TSN 1260 August spotlight on the VHLM: Dan Wilinsky

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With the summer of the Edmonton Oilers making it look like it'll be another year fighting for the top of the draft lottery, TSN 1260 will be doing a monthly spotlight on the VHLM. This month we caught up with Ottawa Lynx rookie Dan Wilinsky, who is in preparation for the upcoming season and next years VHL draft.

 

Good afternoon Dan, and thanks for joining us. Well get right into it. How's the summer gone so far? It's been a pretty whirlwind summer with winning the Memorial Cup, signing with Ottawa and skipping the NHL draft. Have you had a chance to relax? Or has it been all pedal to the metal?

 

Thanks for having me. It has been a pretty wild summer. Winning the Mem Cup was amazing. We had a great team this year and everything seemed to click for us down the stretch. I'm very thankful to win that in my final year.

 

There really hasn't been much time for much else. The family managed to go to Canmore for a few days and tour around a little, but that's been about all.

 

As for the NHL draft and signing with Ottawa, it was a tough decision but with the another possible lockout coming up I didn't feel it was a smart call on my part to get caught in that being so early in my pro career. I felt it would have really stunted my development and hurt me going forward. Ottawa's management team came up to me about a week ago with a great offer for this season and an awesome plan for what the team wants to accomplish this year, so it was hard to turn down. We're definitely set up for a successful season and I know were all chomping at the bit to get started.

 

With that, how's camp gone with the Lynx? You missed the draft and were late getting started. Has that affected anything?

 

Camp has been great so far. Its a fun bunch to be around, and it makes working hard easy with such a good group. I'm not too worried about missing a bit of time yet. I was working out with the Raiders rookies back in Prince Albert, so I was still on the ice every day. It's been an easy transition to being in Ottawa. The coaches, staff and really everyone has been very welcoming and helping getting me up to speed on what we want to accomplish here and the great history of the franchise.

 

Sounds like you've got a great setup in Ottawa. What are your personal expectations for the year?

 

I've never been a big fan of concrete expectations for myself because the team has to come first. So far though I've clicked real well with my new linemates, I just hope to be able to contribute every night. Although scoring 30 or 40 goals is never a bad thing!

 

Well hopefully it's another great year for you, and for the Lynx. We'll be watching once the Oilers are out of the playoffs by Halloween. Thanks again and we look forward to having you on again!

 

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