panoo

All the Ingredients
By Lawrence Goldstein

If things don’t work out for Karl Alzner in the hockey world, he could always try his hand in the kitchen. His mother entered their “cookies and jam” into a contest at the Pacific National Exhibition.

It took home first prize.

“My buddies got on my case about that, and my girlfriend is always asking me to make more,” he said with a laugh.

Luckily for Alzner, he probably won’t be wearing an apron professionally anytime soon. The Calgary Hitmen defenseman has a game as reliable as a Honda – and it should earn him a spot at or near the top of the draft board in Columbus June 22.

“Alzner is clearly the No. 1 defenseman in this draft. He doesn’t make mistakes in his own end,” said Kyle Woodlief, chief scout and publisher for Red Line Report.

And when you play around 35 minutes per night, mistake-free hockey is quite an accomplishment.

Alzner started his hockey career at 4 years old. When first setting foot on the ice, he saw a young kid his age flying around and kicking up snow. It startled him.

“I was scared and started crying. But after a little while, I gathered four pucks and shot them. I loved it, and still do to this day,” said Alzner.

Being one of the bigger kids on his youth teams, the Burnaby, British Columbia native was dispatched to the defense corps. While most youngsters love scoring goals, Alzner took more pride in preventing them.

“I liked being the last guy back, and to see things from that angle,” he said.

Alzner’s game has virtually no holes. He does a little of everything and can adapt to whatever pace is being employed.

“Karl was outstanding all season long, and just goes out and gets the job done,” said Kelly Kisio, Calgary’s head coach and GM. “He’s a great defender, and an excellent skater. He can skate all day long.”

Offensively, he’s just starting to get his feet wet. The 18-year-old’s production nearly doubled from last season, and he’s worked exceptionally hard to grow that side of his game.

“I developed more offensively this season. Some of it was rushing the puck more, but also, I was holding onto the puck a bit longer to make plays instead of moving it right away,” Alzner said.

Kisio and Calgary assistant Dave Lowry have been tremendous influences on Alzner, who feels lucky to have the former NHLers at his disposal.

“It's a perfect situation to play for coaches that played in the NHL. They discuss what they had to do to make it, and to see their passion every day is great. It gets us even more fired up to play,” said Alzner.

Despite being a forward at the highest level, Lowry runs the defense and brings a different element to the equation.

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