AHL: QA with Steve Wagner

An undrafted defenseman out of the college ranks, Steve Wagner is already getting the nod for recall to St. Louis over other highly regarded Blues prospects with NHL experience of their own. The former USHLer and Minnesota State University-Mankato Maverick started the season with the Blues but was splitting time recently between St. Louis and the Peoria Rivermen of the AHL at the midpoint of 2007-08.

McKeen's recently had the opportunity to chat with Wagner in Des Moines, where he started his USHL career. The St. Louis Blues prospect discussed his adjustment to the AHL and the NHL, his three seasons with MSU-Mankato, his two seasons in the USHL between Des Moines and Tri-City, and a couple of his collegiate teammates who are making their own mark in the NHL.

McKeen's: A little over five years ago you were playing here in Des Moines for the Buccaneers. Could you have imagined at that time that, here you are, you would be in your first full pro season and splitting time between the NHL and the AHL?

Wagner: Um, no, I don't think so. I was pretty young coming out of high school, I was still trying to get my feel of junior hockey then. So, it was more of a stepping stone. It's hard to look and say, you know, "Hopefully five years down the road I'll be in the NHL." It's hard, to be realistic, but it is amazing.

McKeen's: You were undrafted and went to Minnesota State University-Mankato, so when did NHL teams start to take interest in you?

Wagner: I mean, from what I know, there were rumors a little bit after my sophomore year, and then I knew going back to my junior year I'd have to have a good year and see what happens from there. Then, three quarters of the way through the junior year it sounded like I needed to get an agent, and I got an agent, and as soon as the season was over… (pauses) St. Louis especially was pounding, knocking on the door. It just sounded like a good deal at the time and I was ready to move on.

McKeen's: Signing with St. Louis in March, what made you decide St. Louis was right for you and what did they tell you when they did sign you?

Wagner: Um, from what they told me, it sounded like I was going to fit in good with their program. They were looking for a player like me, in different situations. A lot of it was I didn't think I could accomplish much more in college. I had three good, solid years, and it sounded like the d-corps they had, that maybe I could slip in there and maybe sneak a few games in here, the next year, and get some experience there.

McKeen's: If I may ask, what were the other NHL teams that showed some interest in you?

Wagner: You know, the agents…(pauses) Phoenix had a crack at it, but the offer really wasn't what we wanted. I think Dallas, even maybe had an offer, but it wasn't what we wanted. You've just got to listen to your agents and hopefully they're telling you the truth and take it from there.

McKeen's: Who does represent you?

Wagner: Ben Hankinson with Octagon Hockey.

McKeen's: Sure, he used to play in the NHL himself. You played 14 games with Peoria last year. Tell me about that adjustment and how it maybe helped you coming into this year.

Wagner: It's a big adjustment. It was a big decision, first of all, just to leave college. Pretty much, didn't stay in school there, didn't finish that second semester, so that was a big decision, and coming down to a group of guys that had been playing 70 games or so together, so I was kind of the odd-man out. But, it was good, a good experience, met some guys, so when I came back in the summer, there were some familiar faces. But, the biggest part was it showed me what I needed to work on, that I needed to be physically stronger, faster game, different game. There's no hands in the NHL, there's no sticks. It was definitely an adjustment right away.

McKeen's: You started the year in St. Louis and skated for a quite a while, 21 games in fact. How did training camp go for you and then that first 21-game stint before they sent you to Peoria in early December?

Wagner: Training camp, I actually came down at the beginning of August. So, I was down there a little bit early, working out with the guys and meeting everybody and trying to make myself familiar with the organization. It was kind nerve-racking, because you didn't really know what to expect, it was my first pro camp. You just try to do everything right, you're trying to battle every day, you're trying to learn from your mistakes. It went well. They gave me a lot of shots to play and, eventually, I got to stay for a while. It was good. Those first 21 games were good. I had some ups and downs, a learning experience every day, just learning how to be a professional, and learn from your mistakes and move on every day.

McKeen's: While you were up there, was there anyone in particular that you tended to pair with or that you felt you had good chemistry with on the blueline?

Wagner: I played with Christian Backman most of the time I was there. It's just getting used to guys. As soon as you can get used to a guy's tendencies, the game is so much easier. So, there were a few games there where we struggled and we just weren't used to each other, and then after four or five games, we got the hang of each other, what each other was going to do, and just coming out of there with each other.

McKeen's: In making the team, you beat out some guys who had been in the organization for a little while and were highly drafted players. How did that make you feel in terms of sense of accomplishment?

Wagner: Um, it's an accomplishment, but you've got to always go in and think that you've got a chance, you know? You've got to give yourself, mentally and physically, the motivation to go there every day and think that you can make this team no matter who you're battling with. So, that's the name of the game, I guess. It's a business and whoever they decide to put in the lineup is going to play and, fortunately, for a quarter of the season, it was me. So, it was good.

McKeen's: With that, now that you are with Peoria, what are some of the things that the Blues want you to work on while you are here?

Wagner: Well, mostly I think it's just a lot of playing in every situation. At the Blues, I don't play a lot of penalty kill, I don't play a whole lot of powerplay, so it's getting out there and playing in every situation, adjusting, and just trying to be consistent every day. Up there, it's tough as a young guy to stay consistent, but it's something everybody needs to work on to get better at.

McKeen's: On the flipside, what would you say are some of the strengths of your game already?

Wagner: I'm a pretty strong skater. That keeps me out of most of the trouble. I think I move the puck well. If my game's on, I move the puck well and skate the puck well and I try to keep myself out of bad decision-making and bad areas.

McKeen's: I noticed watching you tonight, you do seem to have a fairly powerful skating stride. Anything particular that you did growing up or in the past few years that you did to make that so?

Wagner: Not particularly. I was always more of a…(pauses), couldn't skate like everybody else, was kind of hunched over, bow-legged. Everybody wanted to change it. To me, I think it was fortunate for me that I never changed, I think it's one of my assets. It's just one of those things that that's the style I had and for some reason I'm just naturally a good skater.

McKeen's: What type of defenseman would you say that you are and what type do you want to be?

Wagner: I'd say I'm more of an offensive-minded defenseman, but I'm capable of playing both ways, and I want to be able to play in any situation, whether it be the penalty kill, the powerplay, five-on-five, against their top line. I'm still adjusting, trying to make myself better, and that's one thing that I need to keep working on.

McKeen's: While you were at Minnesota State, what were some of the areas of your game that developed the most?

Wagner: I'd probably say consistency. I was coming out of juniors and… (pauses), you have to be consistent every night because in college you don't play many games. So, it's two games a weekend. You play good one game and take that other game off, it's tough. It's tough to go a whole week that, maybe, Saturday night you didn't play so well. It's one of those things that consistency is key and makes the team better and makes the guys play better around you. Even now, I'm still working on it.

McKeen's: Tell me more about that adjustment, because, obviously, the college schedule is highly practice-orientated and now here you are, there are times where you are going to play many games in not so many nights.

Wagner: It's definitely an adjustment, especially when I came down for those 14 games that we had. We had like 14 games in like 25 days or something. I was like, "Wow, I played half a college season almost." So, it's definitely an adjustment. You can't eat garbage like you could in college. You have to take care of yourself, get fluids in you, eat good meals, get your rest. It's a job. There's really no messing around, no going out and hanging out every night. So, it's definitely an adjustment, something I'm still getting used to, and hopefully it just comes easier over the years.

McKeen's: While you were with the Mavericks, you played with a fellow St. Louis Blue, David Backes. Tell me about him and his game.

Wagner: In college, he was a great player, a big strong guy, a skilled guy, good with the puck, battles hard. He's the leader on and off the ice. It was good to come to St. Louis and have a familiar face and give me pointers here and there and know what guys are looking for, what coaches are looking for, how to work out, how to train, how to eat, how much you should be on the ice. Little tidbits here and there, what you should and shouldn't do in the locker room, what older guys like and all the kind of stuff like that. So, between him and D.J. King, those two guys helped me a lot, just adjusting to the game, good buddies. So, it's good, it's good to have a familiar face.

McKeen's: You also skated with Ryan Carter in the Anaheim organization. Same question about him.

Wagner: He was actually my roommate for two years. My freshman and sophomore year, he lived with me. He's a battler. He's a guy that hates to be out-competed in the corners, so he's just a battler. He'll get in there and grind. He's worked himself into that organization. I think he's going to do well there and it's good to see him playing and I wish him the best of luck.

McKeen's: What would you say were some of the highlights of your collegiate career?

Wagner: Oh, my sophomore year we swept St. Cloud the second-to-last weekend and then we swept Wisconsin the last weekend of the year, when I think they were the fourth seed. So, that was probably the highlight of the college career.

McKeen's: Going back to 2003-04 with the Tri-City Storm in the USHL, you had a pretty good year as a team and for yourself. Tell me about that year.

Wagner: That would have been my last year, right? Yeah, we had a good year, a really good team. It was unfortunate we couldn't finish off Waterloo, there. It was a good learning experience. It was good to be on a team that wanted to battle and compete and was highly skilled. Bliss Littler was there, and he was a good coach, all business all the time. So, it was an adjustment for me, you had to be more professional with him. It was actually good so that you grew up a little bit, you matured a little bit. We had a good team. The experience going from high school to juniors is a huge step, and obviously going from juniors to college is another big step. Juniors and college were two good stepping-stones.

McKeen's: Tell me about you path prior to playing in the USHL.

Wagner: Well, I was born and raised in Grand Rapids (Minnesota). I just played up through the Grand Rapids program there. It was just a game that everybody played. You're kind of odd if you didn't know how to skate. At a young age, I just picked it up, my brothers played, I was a rink rat, I was there every night outside playing if it wasn't snowing. With the organization, I played my three years of high school and then my senior year, learned that I was drafted in the USHL, so I decided to keep playing. I love to play, just wanted to see what it was like, ended up in Des Moines. Unfortunately, it didn't work out there, moved on out to Tri-City and had my year and a half there, which was good, too.

McKeen's: When did you start playing defense?

Wagner: I started playing defense second year of pee wee, so I would have been 12. I played defense until my last year of bantam, until high school, I played forward again for a year. Then I went back to defenseman for high school and have been playing it ever sense.

McKeen's: And started skating?

Wagner: Skating? Oh, wow. Four of five, probably? Before kindergarten there.

McKeen's: Lastly, who was your favorite player, or players, growing up and why?

Wagner: I think Ray Bourque was probably my biggest idol to watch. He was in Boston a long time, and couldn't win a Cup. Then it was good to see him move over to Colorado and he finally got it done. He's going to be in the Hall of Fame. He's just a great guy, just a battler, played for a long time, a good, clean player. He's an idol I guess.