Zach Hamill Making Most of Chance

Hamill Looking Good
November 12, 2011
by Thomas Chace Jr.

Zach Hamill is in his 4th pro season with the Providence Bruins after being taken with the 8th overall pick in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. The 23 year old, a 5’11”, 180 pound Vancouver native had scored 20-30 goals a year and averaged about 65 points in four years for the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League.

With Providence he has proven to be quite a durable player, having played at least 65 games a year in his three year stint here. But Zach has not been a great return on the team’s investment from a production standpoint. In three seasons he has tallied 13, 14 and 9 goals. With a lack of scorers on Providence, his situation is exacerbated by his high selection in the draft.


This year has been rather interesting though. After being placed on waivers at the end of the Boston Bruins training camp and clearing those waivers, Zach came down to Providence with a little different mindset. He knows what has been said, he knows the numbers, he wants to turn these words and numbers around.


In 14 games this season with Providence, Zach has 5 goals and 5 assists for 10 points. Also sporting a +2 in the plus/minus category. Always playing center, the organization has asked him to play on the wing this season. Zach was called up to Boston on an emergency basis due to an injury to Daniel Paille this week. He looked great, recording an assist on fellow Providence player Jordan Caron’s goal against Edmonton on Thursday night. Zach has been called up to Boston before. He played in four games over the last two seasons and recorded 2 assists, but never looked as good as he did this week against the Oilers.


I asked Zach about his confidence level prior to his call up to Boston. “ Confidence is such a key thing and I want to bring it every day. Not just to the games but to the rink, I want to make myself better. My linemates are part of it, getting coaches praise is part of it, and the coaches showing me things I need to work on. Teaching me how to play every day with confidence.”


In regards to his results thus far into the season, Zach said “it’s not just the results, we’ve been winning games and being part of that is fun, and being a key guy on the team is great.”
With Paille out after surgery to repair a facial injury after blocking a shot, Zach Hamill has another chance to show what he’s all about and what he’s learned as a professional hockey player. So young, yet so much was expected. Assuredly, Zach will make the most out of this chance and hopefully look back fondly on his growth as a player and person