You Can't Teach Size
By Marlon Martens
Sept. 20, 2023
The old adage is often used in sports, when justifying the preference of one player over another.
If you saw Royals defenceman Seth Fryer off the ice, you’d probably peg him for a basketball player.
Standing at 6’7, and 205 lbs, it’s reason enough for scouts to take notice.
Fryer, 17, was originally drafted in the 10th round in 2021. The Victoria native spent most of last season playing for the VIJHL Peninsula Panthers, where he collected 6 assists in 39 games.
Being local has it’s advantages, as Fryer joined the Royals for many practices, which gave him a chance to compete and grow his game at a higher level. It was his progress that allowed him to suit up for 9 WHL games last season, even filling in at forward position.
The puck first defenceman, went to work in the off-season, putting the pieces together to compliment his lanky frame.
“I gained a little bit of weight, improved my overall core strength, balance, and my body control, which is key on the ice, especially with such a high contact game.”
The daily work outs, which included lateral type training, high intensity and high strength power, appears to have paid off.
He’s more fluid on the ice, has quicker feet, added physicality and over all looks more put together.
“I feel great, definitely feel a lot stronger, a lot faster and a lot more in control of my body.”
Fryer is determined to gain a consistent spot in the lineup, and he’s still in the mix heading into the regular season. There are 9 defenceman still on the roster, which includes overage Captain Gannon Laroque who’s away at San Jose Sharks main camp as a signed prospect.
He’s up against a pair of 17 year old defenceman in Matthew Keller, and Hudson Bjornson, both fresh faces this season.
Royals Roster: https://chl.ca/whl/roster/227/281/
“My goal is to become more of a key player in the organization.”
“I also have some offense that I like to bring in, physicality, and move my feet a lot, and overall I’m just a stronger back end guy.”
He was influenced by his Dad, who played Junior B in the Trail, Rossland area.
“He got me into it, I started skating when I was super little…”
Fryer tells RoyalsFan that gets his height from his Mom’s side, and there’s till potential to grow more.
“My brother is pretty tall. He’s 6’3. My Dad’s around 6 feet, and my Mom is 5’11. My uncle is
6’4 and their grand grandpa was 6’9.
He could potentially grow two more inches, which would match that of NHL’s Zdeno Chara. Vancouver Canucks Tyler Myers is 6’8 for another comparison. There are only around 30 players in the NHL over 6’4, and a majority of them are netminders or defenseman.
You have to wonder about the food bill to feed an exercising, growing teenager, that size.
“I love pasta, chicken, and rice, it’s always a great meal. And hamburgers, you can never go wrong with a burger.”
Make that a double patty while you’re at it.
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