-'Mitch was very coachable'-

OSOYOOS TIMES-November 12, 2008-

By Karen KnelsenrnOsoyoos Times

Speed, strength and smarts are what it takes to make it in the NHL and Osoyoos's own Mitch Fritz has demonstrated that he's got the whole package.
For his hard work on the ice, Fritz, 27, has been rewarded with a contract with the New York Islanders.
He said the feeling is unbelievable, just kind of like floating.
The Islanders have had their eye on Fritz for a while now as he has been playing on their farm team in Bridgeport, Conn.
He was signed to a free-agent contract in July.
At six-foot-eight, the left winger stands out in the crowd of hockey hopefuls.
I'm the second tallest hockey player in the world.
And Fritz knows he's living the dream.
Everyone wants that to happen and hopes they can play in the NHL. It's a huge dream, and I get to live it.
But it's not all fun and games, either.
There's still the reality of a busy schedule to contend with.
You're either travelling or you're playing. It usually works out to a game every second day. You're busy, Fritz said.
Still, when he looks at the faces around him, it's worth it.
There're guys on my team that I had hockey cards of when I was a kid, he said.
And he mentioned there's something to be said for facing off against opponents such as Markus Naslund too.
Fritz said the highlight of his career was a fight with Georges Laraque of the Montreal Canadiens.
He still has sore spots as reminders of the tilt, but he said its par for the course.
That's a normal thing.
Osoyoos's Mal Turner knew that Fritz had what it takes to make it to the NHL a long time ago.
Mitch is not one of the run of the mill guys on a hockey team. He's a very smart individual, said the man who used to sharpen Fritz's skates and who Fritz himself credits as an off-ice coach.
Turner has framed autographed photographs of Fritz and other hockey players from Osoyoos lining his dining room walls and when he looks at them, he smiles with pride.
They've always sort of been my kids, he said.
Talk with Turner for just a few seconds and you'll hear it “ he means what he says.
Mitch was very coachable. Very smart and he wanted to improve, he wanted to know how to do things better.
Turner added that he's heard of Fritz's growing reputation as an enforcer “ and doesn't quite get it.
I don't know where he got the reputation of being a fighter. He's like a big, gentle giant, he said.
Turner thinks it's about time Fritz gets to show the world the kind of stuff he's made of, however, especially coming from a small town.
He's got the size and he's got the skill and his skills aren't that shabby. He's done his apprenticeship, he said. I'm just elated that he has the chance now to prove himself in the major league. If you want somebody on your home team, you want a Mitch Fritz.rnFritz is not the only one in his family wearing a famous jersey these days.
His older brother Luke, also from Osoyoos, plays professional football for the Montreal Alouettes.
Other sports players from Osoyoos who have hit the big time in recent years are Chuck Kobasew, who is now playing for the Boston Bruins, and Tyler Liebel, who is playing for the Arizona Sundogs in the Central Hockey League.
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