VANCOUVER — Kiefer Sherwood was a thorn in the Vancouver Canucks' side last spring.
Eight months later, the feisty winger has bloomed into one of the team's top forwards.
Chants of "Kie-fer Sher-wood!" echoed through Rogers Arena at multiple points on Monday night as the American forward scored his first NHL hat trick and powered the Canucks to a 3-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche.
Hearing his name ring out was "a pretty special honour," Sherwood said.
"I was trying to take it in," he said. "I really appreciate the fan support. Obviously, their passion is something that Vancouver is known for, and it's pretty cool. I'll definitely remember it.”
The Canucks' faithful weren't cheering for Sherwood in April as he used his speed and aggression to pester the team's stars throughout a first-round playoff series between Vancouver and the Nashville Predators. The Canucks eventually prevailed in the six-game set.
The post-season run capped a career-best regular season where he racked up 10 goals, 17 assists and 41 penalty minutes in 68 games.
The 29-year-old from Columbus, Ohio, went on to sign a two-year, US$3-million deal with Vancouver when free agency opened on July 1.
Thirty games into his first season with the Canucks (16-9-5), he's already put up a career-high 11 goals and is tied with Pius Suter for the second-most on the team behind Jake DeBrusk (14). Sherwood also leads the league in hits (184).
"I just try to put my work boots on each and every night and I think when you do that, sometimes good things happen," he said Monday.
"And I'm just grateful for opportunity. There's a lot of good players up and down the line up here, so it doesn't really matter who we're playing with, but I think when everyone contributes, it's a fun group to be a part of and we showed that tonight.”
The Canucks believed the six-foot-tall, 194-pound winger had more offence to give when they signed him, said head coach Rick Tocchet.
“This summer, I called him on a Sunday, he was going to shoot pucks because he told me, ‘Hey, I’ve got some offensive game in me.’ So he does," he said. "And he's obviously an aggressive guy, and a guy that you need on the ice who gives us juice.”
Sherwood had an even-strength goal, a short-handed goal, an empty-net goal and three assists in nine minutes and 31 seconds of ice time against the Avs.
He adds "a little bit of everything" to Vancouver's team, said centre J.T. Miller.
"Obviously the physical aspect everybody's talked about," he said. "But he's got a lot more skill than people probably think and can shoot the puck really hard. And I think he put all that on display today. Happy for him. It was awesome."
As much as Sherwood was a pest for the Canucks last spring, he's now an integral member of Vancouver's team.
"He's a guy that's got a positive attitude every day, chatting guys up in the morning," said goalie Thatcher Demko. "Maybe you're a little groggy before the practice but he's bringing everyone's energy up and he wears his heart on his sleeve, plays hard for us. And he was definitely really annoying to play against.
"He's a good dude. We love having him around and everyone's just pumped for him tonight, he played so well and getting a hat trick is really special for him.”
Sherwood's second goal of the night came on an Avalanche power play midway through the second period when he picked a puck off Colorado superstar Nathan MacKinnon near the benches.
The winger then raced down the ice and put a shot up and over the glove of Avs goalie Mackenzie Blackwood to give Vancouver a 2-0 lead.
It was then that the first chants rang out around the rink.
"I’m just thankful for the support," Sherwood said of the fans. "I was just trying to take it in. (It's) something you dream of as a kid. Those are the kind of moments that you work for and just kind of manifest and visualize. So I'm really thankful and grateful for them.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 16, 2024.
Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press