Ice rink becomes Roman's lake

By TOM JONES

©St. Petersburg Times, published October 13, 1997

CLEARWATER -- When in Tampa Bay, do as the Roman does.

Roman Hamrlik, that is.

Laugh. Joke. Relax. Play inspired hockey.

"Roman's become a whole new player," Lightning captain Paul Ysebaert said. "Already this season, you can see the difference."

It just might be a new day in Tampa Bay for the first draft pick in Lightning history. Take Sunday morning inside the Lightning's makeshift locker room at SunBlades Ice Arena. Gone was the shy, awkward teenage loner who mangled the English language more often than Yogi Berra.

In his place, a confident 23-year-old who bounced from one end of the room to the other, teasing teammates, talking about football and reflecting articulately on his maturity as a hockey player.

Meet the new Roman Hamrlik.

"It's a different feeling this season," Hamrlik said. "I'm just going out and really enjoying hockey again. I'm not putting extra pressure on myself. I'm not nervous out there. If I make a bad play, I just try to forget it. Before, I would let it bother me for the whole game.

"Everything is different than it used to be, especially the way it was last year."

Last season, Hamrlik had what he called his worst year as a professional, even more dismal than his inconsistent rookie season. Gone was best friend Petr Klima. Gone was confidant and coach Wayne Cashman. Gone was the play that helped him total 65 points the season before that.

As with anyone playing poorly, Hamrlik felt the wrath of coach Terry Crisp and from the fans, who turned Hamrlik into the scapegoat.

"I know I didn't play well and it was a hard, hard season," Hamrlik said. "The more I tried, the worse it got. I was not happy."

But then Hamrlik reported to training camp in the best shape of his life. His weight was up, his body fat was down. He was leaner, faster, stronger.

"To me, though, the biggest difference has been his maturity," said center Brian Bradley, who has been Hamrlik's teammate since Hamrlik's first NHL game. "He isn't the 18-year-old kid anymore. He's a 23-year-old man who has learned what it takes to be successful in this league. He's grown off the ice and that has helped him on the ice."

Also helping him on the ice has been defense partner Cory Cross, who guessed that Hamrlik's stardom simply was a matter of time.

"It takes time to develop in this league," Cross said. "When you first start out, the players look like they're moving 100 mph. But as you get older, the game slows down. But that takes time. And confidence is the key. It looks to me like Roman is playing with confidence now."

Of course, Cross pointed out, confidence is only as good as your last game or last pass. But he believes the days of Hamrlik moping after bad games or loud lectures from Crisp are fading.

That remains to be seen, however. After all, Hamrlik hasn't played a bad game this season and Crisp has had nothing but rave reviews.

"I just feel so much better about my game," Hamrlik said. "I keep working to get better and I can get better. I know I will make some bad plays. But overall I feel better about myself. I'm happy."

NOTES: Lightning players Dino Ciccarelli and Jeff Norton are scheduled for MRI tests today to determine the extent of their injuries. Ciccarelli is bothered by a right elbow problem that does not allow him to straighten his arm. Norton missed the past two games with an injured thumb. Norton practiced Sunday, Ciccarelli did not; both are listed as probable for Wednesday's game at Florida, pending the results of the MRI tests.