BSN Exclusive: Nikita Zadorov is a changed man

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Hockey is such a game of repetition, of superstition and habits and the players and managers that compose this sport are loathe to change any of it. One of the buzzwords in the game now is “process”, the gradual building upon those things and habits that eventually coalesce into something solid, something good.

It is something of a dichotomy, therefore, when Colorado Avalanche defenseman Nikita Zadorov says it was not until he was able to forget about everything from the past, from the process, that he could start to really feel confident as a player. What works best for Zadorov is a process that starts, ends and starts again every 24 hours. The one constant is daily change. Not to get all Zen Buddhist here, but with Zadorov, there is no more past and there is no more future. There is only the present. That kind of mindset has helped the 22-year-old Russian overcome some of the mental hurdles that have claimed victim to so many players like him before. You know, the first-round pick type of guy, supposed to have all the talent to make it in the NHL, but couldn’t overcome the early obstacles and saw their career fizzle out.

That looked like it might be Zadorov, as recently as October. While Zadorov has become a seemingly indispensable player to the team now, people might forget he was a healthy scratch on opening night of the season at Madison Square Garden. He was also benched for an entire third period in a recent game. Somehow, Zadorov has been able to forget about all that and push forward with success.

It wasn’t always that easy, he said.

“I’m doing a good job on it now, but if you remember (in the past) if I make a mistake, I would keep making them all the time, like, I wouldn’t stop,” Zadorov told BSN Denver. “But right now, I just try to focus on the next shift and make sure I don’t make that mistake next shift. I have a new mindset every day; it doesn’t matter what happened yesterday, I’m only focused on today.”

A lot of athletes say that, but it’s extremely difficult to maintain such an attitude. Grudges between player and coach can build up after a while. It can’t have been easy for Zadorov to have bitten his tongue over some of the “messages” sent to him from Jared Bednar, including the recent benching in the third.

But Zadorov never did lash out. He’s always just taken it in stride and tried for a better day. Lately, those have been happening with more frequency. The two-game road trip through Minnesota and St. Louis, for instance; Zadorov scored the game-winning goal in the second period and was a physical presence in the decisive third. Against the Blues, despite playing hurt, he was a plus-3 and in nearly 24 minutes. In the nine games entering Friday’s with Nashville, he was a plus-12.

Finally, some real praise is coming from Bednar.

“I like the way he’s playing right now. He comes out, he has a slow start to the season – we know what he can do, we saw him do it last season. That’s all we want from him as a staff, is for him to be at his best,” Bednar said. “It’s tough, you’ve got guys who don’t play their best every night, but you want them to make sure to be pushing their limits to playing their best hockey. There was a point in the season where he got away from that, and he struggled a little bit and took some things for granted.

“As a coaching staff, you’re trying to make sure you’re getting the most out of your guys, so we took him out of the lineup for a little bit. … But give him credit, he’s put in the work. We’ve played him against other teams’ top guys and he’s also chipped in a little bit offensively.”

Zadorov is still going to make mistakes. He made a couple in Friday’s game that were costly, especially on the Filip Forsberg goal that tied the game 2-2 in the second period and seemed to swing momentum of the game. Zadorov lost a puck behind the net, then failed to lock up the smaller Forsberg in front of the net, resulting in a Forsberg rebound putback goal in close.

Zadorov still seems to look a bit gassed at the end of shifts, and Bednar has harped to him about his conditioning before. Bednar was not happy at the shape Zadorov exhibited after missing some of training camp because of a contract stalemate. Zadorov wasn’t happy at being benched on opening night, but he didn’t pout. He’s just kept at it. No doubt there will be more bumps ahead, but Zadorov seems equipped to deal with them if they come.

“When I make I mistake in a game, I can still get frustrated quick,” Zadorov said. “But since I’ve been in the NHL, I’ve worked on it a lot. Now, every day is a new day for me.”