PROFILE
RYA N
PULOCK
Long Time
Coming
BY CARTER BROOKS
Photos by Jonathan Kozub
Winnipeg Jets and courtesy the
New York Islanders
It has been a long time coming
for Grandview’s Ryan Pulock.
Following a slew of injuries on
the New York Islanders’ back-
end, the 23-year-old offensive
defenseman from western
Manitoba has finally been
handed the reins on Long Island.
After spending a very
successful 54-game partial
season in the American Hockey
League with the Bridgeport
Sound Tigers in 2014-15,
Pulock got his first big-league
call up. By registering two
goals and four points in the
Islanders’ final 15 games of the
season, the hulking blueliner
felt he did about as much as he
could to cement his place in the
Isles’ lineup for the beginning
of the 2015-16 season.
But there are never any
guarantees. Islanders’ General
Manager Garth Snow had other
1 6 | G AME ON | PL AYOF F EDITION 2018
ideas and kept the six-foot-two,
215-pound defender in the
minors for another two years.
Finally, after posting 15 goals
and 46 points in 55 games with
the Sound Tigers last season,
Pulock made the jump to the
NHL for the start of 2017-18.
Helping Pulock in his case for
regular NHL minutes were the
long-term injuries sustained to
Islanders’ defensemen Calvin
de Haan, Johnny Boychuk and
Scott Mayfield. Often finding
himself paired with Thomas
Hickey, Pulock has found
comfort and stability within
New York’s defensive game.
Like many offensive
juggernauts, the Islanders
tend to use four forwards
and one defenseman on their
power play, thus limiting
Pulock to quarterbacking
the second power play unit