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With switch, Clymer no longer holds back

The former defenseman has found a new role.

By JOANNE KORTH

© St. Petersburg Times,
published September 18, 2001

[Times photo: Dirk Shadd] In five scrimmages for the Black team, right wing Ben Clymer has one goal and two assists.

TAMPA -- Stay back.

For years, that's all Ben Clymer heard, his hockey aspirations guided by a defensive edict that he not stray too far forward on the ice. He had no idea how much it was holding him back.

Unable to make the Lightning roster a year ago as a defenseman, Clymer appears to have found his niche as a forward.

"I really like forward," said Clymer, a right wing. "But I don't really care what position they want me to play. I just want to play and be a part of this team."

The Lightning plays its first preseason game at 6 tonight against Ottawa in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

After a week of training camp, Clymer has become an integral part of what could be called the Newcomer Line. Fifth-year center Vaclav Prospal and veteran left wing Dave Andreychuk are new to the Lightning; Clymer is new to his position.

But it doesn't show.

The trio already is clicking, having accounted for three goals and five assists for the Black team in five scrimmages. Clymer has one goal and two assists.

Not bad, considering his last extended stint as a forward came years ago on an outdoor rink in his native Minnesota, where 30 children -- all of them forwards -- battled for a single puck.

"I think he looks very comfortable at forward," coach John Tortorella said. "Benny is totally focused on making this club. He could be a very important part of this team."

Clymer played in 60 games as a rookie defenseman with the Lightning in 1999-2000, scoring two goals and six assists with 87 penalty minutes. But his minus-26 rating was glaring. Management mentioned a switch to wing, but nothing happened.

Last season, Clymer failed to make the club as a defenseman and was assigned to the minor-league affiliate in Detroit, where he played a couple of midseason games at forward. Again, nothing came of it and Clymer went back to defense.

When the team called him up in February, he assumed it was to play defense. But he found a forward's jersey hanging in his locker.

"I thought, "Wow, this is going to be a new experience,' " Clymer said. "Early on, it was hard to get myself to get involved in the offense. I just wanted to stay back because that's what I heard for so many years."

Not anymore.

Clymer is having fun being the aggressor and relishes camping out in the rough-and-tumble territory in front of the net. Though his value to the team is enhanced by his ability to play defense if needed -- he took a few shifts in Sunday's scrimmage at the Ice Palace -- he is committed to his new role.

"There's a lot of pressure as a defenseman, especially a young one," said Clymer, 23. "You can have a game where you make two mistakes and you're minus-2 and on ESPN with two guys going by you scoring goals.

"As a forward, your errors are aggressive mistakes. You're trying to get the puck. You're out there trying to do positive things instead of prevent negative things."

At 6 feet 1, 195 pounds, Clymer was small for a defenseman, especially by Lightning general manager Rick Dudley's standards. But his skating ability and soft hands made him a natural forward.

"The only surprising thing was how quickly he made the transition," center Brad Richards said. "He wasn't lost or stranded. With his speed and strength, he's a perfect winger.

"Everybody needs some kind of break in their career. He was probably wondering when he was going to get his break on defense, but he got it, strangely enough, at forward."

After making his NHL debut as a forward on Feb. 25 against Buffalo, Clymer finished the season with five goals and one assist. This season, he is determined to make the team out of training camp.

"By no means do I think I'm secure," Clymer said. "Right through the last day of training camp, I want to be a guy that would be difficult to send down. I'm trying to be a good forward and someone they want to keep around here."

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