CRANBERRY, Pa. -- Entering this season, there were a couple of options for defensemen with experience quarterbacking a power play who could fill the same role on Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's top unit.
With Wilkes-Barre's season getting underway Monday evening, the guy who looks to have that role after working it in practice over the last week is undrafted free agent defenseman Cam Lee, signed by the Penguins to a two-year entry-level deal in March following his senior season at Western Michigan.
"I'm really grateful for the opportunity," Lee said Sunday of the power play role. "I did it in college. I know it's a lot different in pro -- faster, everything's at the next level. So I'm going to do my best, and hopefully we can figure it out as a group, get some goals and win some games."
Head coach J.D. Forrest, who is also running the power play this season, is pleased with his setup with Lee at the point.
"He's hard to read up there," said Forrest. "And we've got two guys on the flanks who are pretty dangerous on their forehand. So if he can dish pucks to those guys pretty quickly, and without making it obvious where he's going. And also, he's got the ability to get off the lane and shoot pucks on there. And with Timmy Schaller at the net-front, we like our chances if it gets delivered to the net as far as a tip or some rebounds. He's got a couple of different tricks up his sleeve, Cam does on the blue line."
Lee was given a spot on the left side of the top pairing in the first preseason game, alongside Jesper Lindgren, the defenseman acquired in the Kasperi Kapanen trade. After Lindgren was injured and the defense pairings were shaken up more with Will Reilly returning from Pittsburgh's taxi squad, Lee played on the second pairing with Billy Sweezey. That elusiveness that makes Lee a good option for the power play has impressed Forrest throughout camp and the two preseason games as well.
"For the forechecker coming on him and up on the blue line when he has the puck, he's hard to read," Forrest said. "So he's got that ability that's hard to teach, he just naturally has it. He's full of confidence up there, which we like. He can get up in the play and provide some offense. Those are some things that we're going to look for him to keep building on."
Lee, who led all Western Michigan defensemen in scoring with three goals and 18 assists in 26 games, is an offensive defenseman. And like a lot of young offensive defensemen, something Forrest would like to see Lee improve upon this year is his positioning and overall defensive game.
"There's good players on other teams," Forrest said. "So there's not a perfect play to be made every shift, and every time you get the puck. So it's a little bit of that risk-reward calculation that he's starting to figure out, of 'If I try this here, is the offense going to really benefit from it? Should I make a play that's maybe not as cute, but is effective for what we need to accomplish at the moment, and wait for my chance on the next one to strike or make a more difficult play?' So he's got that to work on, which he's not the only one. Guys are constantly working on that. That's something we'll see him improve on just from playing."
Lee was one of the young prospects who attended Pittsburgh's training camp in January.
"You just learn more about how to carry yourself as a pro," Lee said. "Their work ethic. Just to see those guys working their tails off, trying to make everyone better out there, it was really cool to see."
It also gave Lee some time to get to know two other young defensemen -- John Marino and P.O Joseph -- who showed how quickly a young defenseman can earn a big role in Pittsburgh.
"It's awesome, I'm really happy for those guys," Lee said. "I met them at camp and they're great guys. It's awesome to see young guys like that get a sniff like that. They have that success it's awesome. Watching P.O is so cool, seeing the success he's having already. I hope it continues for him."
"We talk about how in general, the fact that Pittsburgh utilizes players who started the season in Wilkes-Barre, whether it's one game or the whole season," Forrest said. "Inevitably, it seems to happen. ... Cam was at camp, so he got a good look at the NHL defensemen and how P.O was, and how he conducted himself. It was a good learning process for him. It's definitely something that guys know is a possibility, and they're hoping to be prepared when the time comes."
Lee got in a little extra preparation this offseason. When the puck drops for Wilkes-Barre's season opener, it won't be his first experience of professional hockey. While waiting for NHL training camps to begin, Lee moved overseas to Slovakia to play for HC Slovan Bratislava. He appeared in 14 games, scoring two goals and nine assists, before being called back to America by the Penguins for training camp.
"I loved it," Lee said of his time in Slovakia. "It was a great time, all the guys over there, the North American guys, were helping me along the way and telling me more stuff about the pro game here in North America. It's a lot different, but I definitely learned a lot."
Forrest said that he was able to learn more about Lee from Lee's time over there as well.
"It's a little bit of a different style over there," Forrest said. "I was able to see portions of a few of his games, and it took him a little to adapt, but when he did, he figured out how to play in those systems over there and against those systems, which are quite different. That's another thing I like about him, he's pretty adaptable. He's shown that the more he sees something, the more he can start to get a grasp and find what works for him."
That adaptability should serve Lee well as he begins his professional career in North America.
"The transition from college to pro hockey, it's a big leap," said Forrest. "So far he's handled it well. He's going to get some opportunities to keep proving himself here."
