AHL: QA with Yannick Weber

Some teams have a triggerman from the point; the Hamilton Bulldogs have a machine gunner named Yannick Weber. The 5-foot-10, 192-pound blueliner has an arsenal of hard shots, gets them off quickly, and isn't too particular about whether the puck is settled or not. Weber fires away, and his presence from the point has put him second in AHL-rookie defenseman scoring and in a position to finish in the top-10 in AHL-defenseman scoring overall. The Montreal Canadiens lost a hard-shooting Swiss defenseman last summer to the New York Islanders in Mark Streit, but they had another Swiss powerplay weapon in the wings in young Weber.

McKeen's correspondent Kevin Wey recently had the opportunity to talk with Weber. The young defenseman discussed such topics as his stint in Montreal, his rookie season in the AHL, his successful major junior career with the Kitchener Rangers, his experience with Team Switzerland, the possibility of representing his country in the future, and some of the NHL defensemen that he looks up to.

McKeen's: You're heading into the stretch drive of your rookie-pro season, well, your rookie-pro season for North America, anyway. Overall, how would you say 2008-09 has gone for you so far?

Weber: Well, I had a really long season last year with the whole run to the Memorial Cup and everything. I had a really good summer, I had a good training camp in Montreal, I was the last guy cut, I played every exhibition game I could. Of course it was a big change going from Montreal with all of those exhibition games down here to play a bigger role and have a little more pressure on myself. It's my first year and I didn't know how it's going to be. But, I think I had a little rough start. I couldn't get any points. My powerplay wasn't really working. Then, after a while, it's getting better and better, and now I think I'm playing pretty well. Of course, you can always learn as a young guy, but I think I'm playing better. It's getting better.

McKeen's: What have been the biggest adjustments for you going into the AHL coming out of major juniors?

Weber: I think it's just who you play against. You have older guys, you have top prospects from NHL teams, and you have older, experienced guys. It's different. It's a little bit of a smarter game. The guys are smarter with the puck and smarter overall. In junior, it's more, kind of running around, trying just to win. Here, it's a little smarter. The guys have a little more experience and guys have been around the league a long time. So, I think just who you play against. You're facing some good players in this league.

McKeen's: Obviously, you have adjusted reasonably well, as you were named to play for PlanetUSA at the AHL All-Star Game in January. Tell me how you found out that you were selected to that, who told you, and what your reaction was.

Weber: I was in Montreal, I was called up in Montreal. I was sitting out the game in New York, and I got into the trainer's room for my workout and they were like, "Oh, you got selected for the All-Star Game," and I was like, "Yeah." I thought they were kidding, right? Then they said, "No, you're a starter." And I'm like, "No, you're just trying to fool me." Then they said no and they showed me. I was pretty happy. I was up with Montreal, and I didn't know how long I was going to be there. I was surprised but also happy. It's always great to represent the team and yourself in a game like that.

McKeen's: With the AHL All-Star Classic, what were the highlights for you?

Weber: I think everything was great. They treated us really good. The skills competition was fun. It was long, but it was fun, and the game, it's an All-star game. It's no hitting, it's more of a skill show. It's good for me, I could kind of show what I have. It was good fun.

McKeen's: You touched on this already, but you were recalled to Montreal from January 1-14, and then played the game in Toronto. Tell me about the circumstances of that recall and how you felt your time with the Canadiens went.

Weber: It was good. Just being in practice, practicing with the guys, it's a different level. You learn a lot just from practicing and being out with the guys on the road and all of that and feel how it is up there. I had the one game, and they used me for the powerplay and all that. So, the coaches talked a lot to me and they want me to get that experience, how it is, and what I have to work on. I had a lot of fun and can't wait for the next recall.

McKeen's: What did the Canadiens tell you when they sent you back down to Hamilton?

Weber: Well, they have a lot of defensemen up there. They were like, "We like you up here, but you need to play games, you need to help Hamilton, you need to play games and get experience." They wanted me to play games, not sitting out. So, it wasn't good for me just sitting in the stands and watching the games. After a while, it's kind of like, "Okay, what's going to happen next?" But, I need some games and see what happens in the future.

McKeen's: Going back to the beginning of the season, what were some of the things that Montreal wanted you to work on in the AHL this season?

Weber: They know that I'm good offensively and on the powerplay and my shot and all of that. They knew that. They were like, "You're able to do that in the NHL, too, but you've got to be strong in your own end as well." For a guy who is mostly offensive, it's always hard to be consistent in the defensive zone. But, they told me what I have to do here in Hamilton. I think I've learned a lot from the coaches and I think it's getting better and better. We'll see how it happens next year.

McKeen's: We've touched on this a bit, too, but on the other side of improvement, what would you say are the strengths of your game already and the style of game that you play?

Weber: Oh, I would say offensive skill. I'm a pretty good skater and I see the ice pretty well. On the powerplay, I use my shot and all of that. I think that's what they want me to do, use my shot, score goals, create something in the game. I think that's what I'm here for.

McKeen's: How many shots on net do you average? I haven't looked at your shots on goal yet.

Weber: Today?

McKeen's: You had a lot today. You had nine or ten today.

Weber: Today? I don't know which ones they counted, but mostly I'd say between five and eight, mostly. You've got to shoot to score goals, and if you have the lane, you've got to do it.

McKeen's: The last two seasons, you played with Kitchener. What were the areas of your game that improved the most in your two seasons there?

Weber: Well, I would say I came over here, to North America (pauses), my goal was getting drafted, getting good in the North American-style of hockey for my dream of playing in the NHL. Kitchener had a great coach in Peter DeBoer, who's in Florida now. He just helped me to adjust my game to the North American style. They found my weapon with my shot and on the powerplay. I think in a lot of everything. I got stronger, I got better offensively, I'm a better skater now, and I like it better on the small ice surface than on the big ice surface. In Kitchener, they did a great job. I learned so much both years.

McKeen's: Last year, you also played in an All-star game, up in the OHL. Tell me about what that was like and how does that compare to the AHL All-Star Game?

Weber: It's, of course, kind of the same. It's an All-Star game. It's always fun to be around the guys from the league who you play against. For me, with the OHL, it was just fun to be around the guys that I play against. It's a little bit of a smaller league. It's kind of the same. I think the AHL, more people know about it. In the OHL, not a lot of people know about it. It's a bigger league, the AHL. I think for me, I'm more proud about the AHL than the OHL, but both of them were fun and I'm glad I was in it.

McKeen's: I suspect I know the answer to my next question, but I'll ask it anyway. What were the highlights of your time with Kitchener?

Weber: I would say the second year. We had a great year. We had a bunch of good players. I suspect you know who's playing where, like Steve Mason in Columbus, and guys in the AHL playing really well. Making that run, we were the host of the Memorial Cup, but we didn't want the cheap way to get into the Memorial Cup, we wanted to win the OHL. We had a great run, we had a great year. Every game and every day was fun. Too bad we lost in the finals, but I think we were proud of the whole season, of the OHL. That was just a great season overall.

McKeen's: I talked with Justin Falk, who played for Spokane at that time, and he suspects (jokingly) the people in Kitchener rigged the trophy.

Weber: Yeah, it was funny. We were in the dressing room. We heard the next day that they broke it. We were sad to see them win, but they played a good game and they knew what we were doing. They played right against us. We out-shot them, but just didn't get any goals. It was a good game, but too bad we came out as the loser.

McKeen's: Kitchener selected you with the 15th overall pick in the 2006 Import Draft. So, what all goes into a player making the move from Switzerland all the way to Ontario?

Weber: For me, it was kind of like, I was playing pro in the second highest league. It was kind of like, with that team I would've been playing a bigger role in that league and maybe get some icetime in Bern in the highest league. For me, it was like, I don't want to be a seventh or eighth defenseman in Bern and just sit and not learn a lot. So, I was like, "I'm still young, I feel I can improve a lot." So, I was thinking about going to North America, and with the World Juniors I played in Vancouver three years ago, four years ago, I kind of showed that I'm able to play on a small ice surface, and teams were asking. They heard that I wanted to come over and they were asking if I wanted to come over, where I wanted to go, and all of that. With Kitchener, I think I had a really good spot. From the beginning, I played on the powerplay. They knew what they wanted to do with me, and I had great coaches that helped me a lot. A lot of guys do it now, after me, making the move. Some guys still stay and think it's better to stay back home, but for me it was just, with the situation I was in, it was better to make that move.

McKeen's: You played in the Nationalliga B with Langenthal.

Weber: Yeah.

McKeen's: How does the play and skill level compare between the Nationalliga B and the OHL?

Weber: Well, it's, again, it's older guys, right? I was, like, by far the youngest guy. There were a lot of older guys who had played in the first league for a bit and now just finishing their career in the second league. The guys don't try as hard as in the OHL. I think it's more like (pauses), it's not a beer league or anything, you still have two imports, we had two Canadians who were really good, and it's still very competitive. For me, it was just like, I wasn't playing that much. I was kind of the number seven D. But, in the OHL, you've got really good, skilled, young guys who are going to play in the NHL one day. If you play against them, it's different. In Langenthal, it was more older, experienced guys. It's a slower game. It's more patient and guys know what they were doing. In the OHL, it's more like, you go 100 percent every shift. That was a good change for me, that I could develop in the OHL more.

McKeen's: You've represented Switzerland at five major tournaments, and then other tournaments beyond that. In that time, who were some of the opposing players that you faced while playing for Switzerland that impressed you the most and why and who were some of your Swiss teammates, likewise, who impressed you the most and why?

Weber: Well, I think my first World Championship, in Vancouver, the Under-20, the World Juniors, was the best. We played against Canada and the U.S. the first two games. I played against guys like Kyle Chipchura and Guillaume Latendresse, and Justin Pogge in net, those guys. They had a great team. I think that was the best game I ever played in. It was also because it was in Vancouver. It was a good crowd. The years after, in Sweden and Czech, it was kind of, like, empty. I think that tournament was the best, and playing against Canada in Canada was just awesome. You've got such a good team, and we played pretty well against them. Playing against those guys and seeing where they're at now, it was a really good experience.

McKeen's: And fellow teammates?

Weber: My last year, I played with Luca Sbisa. How he just made that jump from junior to Philadelphia is just unbelievable. I knew he was really good. I knew he was going to be a first rounder if he plays like that in junior, and he played those 38 games or something. He played good. He was one of the better ones I would say. Too bad they had to send him down to juniors, but he's going to have a great future. I was pretty proud of him. I'm good friends with him, we played together at the last world championship. I'm really proud of him. I was surprised, but really happy for him.

McKeen's: Unfortunately, you've been part of two Swiss teams that have been relegated from the top division. So, tell me about the emotions after that, when you're on a team that gets relegated to Division I.

Weber: It's always pretty sad. You know you're going to fight for it, and you're going to face teams like Germany and Kazakhstan and Latvia and all of that. Normally, you're the better team. You're the better, skilled team. For us, it was always like we'd play good against teams like Canada and the U.S., and then we'd play against Germany (pauses)... it's like you can't be the better team, you're always the underdog, and you play good as an underdog. You always lose close, but you can never win against small ones. I think the first one was Under-18, I think it was in Czech. We lost against Germany, and afterward you knew the next year you were going to be in the B Group and play against teams like France and stuff. It was a bad moment. And the last World Juniors, we had a good team, we had good "d", we had speed, we also had Roman Josi, who is a second-rounder, too. We just couldn't get it together. We had too many individuals. We weren't really a good team. Like, we were a good team, but we didn't play like a team. That's why we lost against Kazakhstan. It was that game that we had to win and we couldn't do it, we had too many guys who were upset about their icetime and didn't play as much. You have to play like a team, especially in a tournament like that. You have to put your selfish stuff behind and play for your team, for your country. We didn't do that those two tournaments and we got relegated. It was kind of sad, especially for me, I was the captain. We had a lot of meetings, because we weren't in a good spot, and we talked a lot together and we thought we had it together, but when it was time to play the game against Kazakhstan, we rolled over for them. It was pretty sad. But, you've got to move on. For me, there's more games with the national team coming. We'll see what happens.

McKeen's: That goes perfectly into my next question. If things go bad, I guess, for Hamilton and Montreal, is there a chance you play for Switzerland in the World Championships this year?

Weber: Yeah. I think there's a pretty good chance. The coach was here a couple weeks ago and saw me play in Philadelphia, and he was really impressed. It's a little early today. After the playoffs, we'll see how it is. But, I think there's a recall in the middle of the tournament, where you can pick up two guys or so. It was like, "If you guys have a bad run or it doesn't work out, you're always going to be there." I kind of look forward to the Olympic Games. For me, that's my goal, I would say, in the national team. It's in Vancouver, it's on a small ice surface. It's half of another season ahead of me before that. For us, it's important to have a good next season. We don't have too many players in the NHL or the AHL. So, I think for me, I'm in a great spot. Of course, you always have to fight for your spot on the national team, but I played for the national team in juniors at every stage and the coach was real impressed with my game and how I've developed. In his head, I'm a big candidate for the Olympic team.

McKeen's: Going all the way back to the beginning, when did you first start playing hockey and how did you get that start?

Weber: I started in Bern, in juniors. Bern's a pretty big hockey town. There was a news article that said the organization was looking for young players. So, my dad was like, I didn't have a hobby, I was just school when I was young. I didn't play soccer or anything. So, he just asked me if I wanted to try that, see how it is, how it feels. It started from there and it just kept going and going. I'm glad that I had good parents who drove me to practices and to games and all of that. That's kind of how it started, just a news article because they were looking for young players.

McKeen's: How old were you then?

Weber: Six years old or so.

McKeen's: Lastly, who were some of your favorite players growing up and why, and who are some players today that you'd like to equate to?

Weber: Well, when I was young, my first jersey was a Blackhawks jersey, and my first card was a Chris Chelios card. So, that was kind of the guy I always looked at. In the video games, I liked playing with him and all of that. So, that was a guy I looked up to, but now he's kind of at the end of his career, and I can't really compare myself now with him. Now, I just look at guys who kind of have my size, who have my skill. Guys like [Brian] Campbell, and [Kimmo] Timonen, those guys. I look what they do, I look how they work in their own zone, and also Mark Streit, of course. He's a good friend of mine. He made the NHL as a Swiss player. He's a real offensive guy with a good shot. So, I kind of look up to him too and I learn a lot from him.

McKeen's: Yeah, I was joking with a scout that you guys (the Canadiens) lose one hard-shooting Swiss defenseman and you have another one in the wings right here.

Weber: I think a lot of him, especially since he's a good powerplay guy. You never know. I'm glad that they see me, kind of as a next Mark Streit. We'll see what happens in the future, but it would be good to have two, two Swiss in the NHL.

McKeen's: Yeah, two Swiss skaters, not just goalies.