CONRAD
MARTIN
Mercyhurst
Sr. | D | Toronto, Ontario
Martin's
injury made any hpoes of a Mercyhurst upset against
Boston College that much slimmer.
Key
Statistics: Martin notched two goals and 15 assists
last season. During his three years in Erie, Martin’s
goal scoring has stayed even (three as a freshman, two in
each of the past two seasons), while his assists have grown
(from six to eight to 15). Despite a nagging knee injury,
he played in all but one of the team’s games last season.
He also led the team in two very different categories –
plus/minus (+10) and penalty minutes (84). Was named Atlantic
Hockey’s Best Defensive Defenseman.
What
He Does: He’s a bruiser first and foremost,
but Martin has pitched in more and more on offense each season.
At 6-feet-2, 215 pounds, he is about as rugged as Atlantic
Hockey defensemen come, and he has strength and grit to match
his size. Offensively, he has a nice shot and seems to see
the ice well, as evidenced my his mounting number of assists.
The
Bigger Picture: Remember that knee injury we referenced
in the “Key Statistics” segment? Well, Martin
was able to play through it all year until he took a controversial
check against Boston College in the NCAA tournament. At that
moment, the joint went kaplooey. Martin missed the second
half of the game and had knee surgery in the offseason. Lakers
coach Rick Gotkin said Martin was wearing a cast from his
ankle to his hip as recently as a month ago, but he reportedly
had it taken off within the last couple of weeks. The team
hopes to have him back on the ice by November. When he returns,
it will be without longtime sidekick T.J. Kemp, who was a
senior last season. Gotkin said the offensive-minded Kemp
and defensive-minded Martin were perfect complements –
not to mention great friends. Martin, who will be a captain,
won’t have the luxury of playing with someone of Kemp’s
caliber this year, so he’ll have to take the next step
and be the unquestioned leader of Mercyhurt’s blueline
corps.
Mercyhurst
head coach Rick Gotkin on Martin: “He’s
a guy we put out there in the closing minutes when we’re
trying to keep the other team from scoring, and he’s
a guy we put out there in the closing minutes when we need
a goal. We give him a lot of responsibility. We’re expecting
a big senior season out of him, so we hope to get him back
in the fold real quick.”
