Sarich adopts a simple plan

Lightning defenseman improving his game by learning from mistakes.

By DAMIAN CRISTODERO, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published September 25, 2002

BRANDON -- There was a time, not so long ago, that Cory Sarich's eyes would light up at the idea of throwing a crunching, daze-inducing body check.

At 6 feet 3, 204 pounds, the Lightning defenseman is good at it, and coming out of juniors he believed that reputation needed to be perpetuated. Then he realized by concentrating so much on ringing people up he was hindering his development.

It is one thing to hear the boards rattle after a bell-ringer. It's quite another when that is drowned out by the roar of the crowd after a goal is scored from the area you were supposed to be covering.

"I used to get a big charge out of running someone over," Sarich said.

He still does. But now when Sarich sees an opportunity to pummel someone into the boards, his eyes stay focused and a light comes on instead.

"I'm starting to figure out when it is the right time and when it isn't," he said after Tuesday's practice at the Ice Sports Forum. "There used to be certain guys, at times you just want to smoke them and you try to look for spots. That's when you get in trouble."

Call it the education of Cory Sarich.

No Lightning player made more of an improvement during last season. The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, native went from a nervous, unsure player who worried about what could go wrong on the ice to a player who had fun, accepted mistakes and tried to make them right.

"I bore down in keeping things simple," Sarich said. "I wasn't trying to do extra things. I kept my gaps tight and myself involved in the play. I was keying in on the basics. I decided I was so worried about everything it was just producing more mistakes."

"He's learned that and that's very important to be able to understand his game and what he does best," coach John Tortorella said. "It's simpler for him to see."

Sarich, 24, did not always see so clearly.

He went through a nine-game stretch in November in which he did not get a point and was minus-9. He also missed four games because of a shoulder injury and three others during a stint at AHL Springfield.

He lacked discipline in his positioning. When mistakes were made, he sometimes compounded them by trying to do too much to compensate.

His confidence shot, Sarich knew something had to be done.

"After I struggled, I realized I was so worried about everything, it was producing more mistakes," he said. "Mistakes are going to happen, just try not to repeat them. You key on it, think about it for a second and play through. They will take care of themselves, and they kind of discontinued."

The transformation was remarkable.

Sarich was minus-3 in the season's final 56 games. He ended the season minus-4 with a career-high 11 assists, 112 hits and 59 blocked shots.

There were still blips like the four-game streak in March in which he was minus-5. But Tortorella called Sarich last season's most-improved player.

"He still has a long way to go," the coach said.

And he still has to fight for ice time on a clogged back line that now includes Brad Lukowich.

"But he's a guy who wants to do more," Tortorella said. "He has a big heart. He just has to keep himself back and keep the reins."

"The biggest thing is to continue the way I ended last season," Sarich said. "If I can get started that way, I figure it will be an accomplishment in itself."

Now if he could just score. Sarich hasn't had a goal since Nov. 24, 2000, against the Panthers, when he got his first, a span of 133 games.

"The more you think about it, the more it might not happen," Sarich said. "I do want to get one."

You can bet his eyes will light up when he does.