LEWISTON – Saint John Sea Dogs forward Ryan Murphy emerged from the locker room after Wednesday night’s game against the Lewiston Maineiacs and whirled around sideways. He looked out of place.
From behind him, a young fan yelled.
“Hey Murphy,” he screamed through his cupped hands, “you play a lot better this year than you did last year.”
Murphy laughed.
“I don’t know if that’s a compliment or a put down,” he said.
Last year, Murphy skated for the Maineiacs. His locker room was at the end of the arena, and was certainly nicer than the visitors’ locker room is at the Colisee. He scored 11 goals and had 25 points, but was deemed expendable in this year’s expansion draft.
Saint John, not too far from his home town of Fredericton, New Brunswick, snatched him up early. Wednesday night, in his first skate at the Colisee this season, Murphy caught himself reminiscing.
“It’s kind of weird being here,” said Murphy. “I have some good memories of being here, and I’m kind of glad we get to come back here four more times.”
His memories were good enough, in fact, to earn him the job of trip navigator.
“They really didn’t know where they were going, so it was my job to help the bus driver get here,” said Murphy.
At training camp this year, too, Murphy found himself in the driver’s seat.
“This is everyone’s first camp, really,” said Murphy. “As a 20-year-old, I have a different role out there, to be a leader. It’s a good learning experience for me, too.”
Notching three assists on his old home ice was nice for Murphy, too.
“That’s not bad, I guess,” said Murphy.
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