CALGARY, AB — Curtis Dickson willingly answered questions from the media following his 11-point performance at the Scotiabank Saddledome last Friday.
Dickson was a popular guy after scoring four goals and adding 11 assists to help lead the Calgary Roughnecks to a convincing 20-9 win over the visiting New England Black Wolves.
Suddenly, from his right, teammate Mike Poulin got into the fray with his own question.
Poulin asked: “Have you ever had seven assists before?”
Laughter ensued before Dickson politely responded to the query.
“I have not,” admitted Dickson, who recorded his previous career high of six helpers back on Feb. 7 during a 15-14 overtime setback at home to the Buffalo Bandits. “That’s pretty high for me.”
For his unselfish efforts, Dickson received a pair of accolades from the National Lacrosse League earlier this week.
As well as being chosen as the Third Star of the Week, the 6-foot-2, 205-pound forward was named the “Pinty’s Wingman of the Week” for his passing prowess and playmaking abilities.
“We knew we had to be better and we prepared well for this game and it showed on the floor,” said Dickson, who was held off the scoresheet a week earlier during a 13-7 setback to the Rochester Knighthawks at the ’Dome.
Calgary coach Curt Malawsky was pleased with the way that his players bounced back with a much better effort against the Black Wolves after dropping their second straight decision this season to the K-Hawks.
“We had a lot of contributions up front,” Malawsky said. “We had some big guys score some big goals.”
One of those guys was forward Shawn Evans, who was named the NLL’s First Star of the Week after firing five goals and adding six assists. Not to be outdone, Dane Dobbie recorded a sock trick (six goals) to go with one helper.
“I’ve had a bit of a rocky year this year and it’s nice to get that going,” said Dobbie, who passed on credit to his teammates. “A lot of guys had big nights. It’s just one of those things that it’s great to see. Our effort was there and we’ve got to bring that next weekend.”
At 3-8, the ’Necks still have lots of work to do to get back into the playoff picture in the NLL’s West Division and that continues on Saturday (7 p.m.) when the 10-3 Toronto Rock visit the ’Dome.
“Obviously, it’s the best team in the league coming in here,” said Calgary captain Andrew McBride. “They’ve got a dynamic offence and they’re playing really solid. They’re a veteran team and they made some really big off-season pickups. It’s going to be a good test for us. I think we match up well against them and we understand what they’re going to bring to the table.”
MOUSE’S MUSINGS
“We’ve changed our mentality,” Malawsky said. “We’ve changed our ideology. This team doesn’t have a lot of smiles at practice. It’s all business. When you walk in the rink, it’s ready to go and that’s the mindset that we’re going to have. I think these guys are starting to find their identity. Next week’s a new week, but I think we can learn from the previous ones.”
CAPTAIN’S COMMENT
“We know each other well,” said McBride in regards to taking on the Rock this weekend. “There’s a lot of rivalry between the two teams. We’re familiar with guys like Josh Sanderson and Nick Rose, who both played with us before, so it’s going to be a good test. You always want to prove yourself against the best team in the league and they’re the cream of the crop this year.”
DID YOU KNOW?
Dickson matched his career-best total of seven goals in a game during a 16-13 win for the Riggers over the Vancouver Stealth at home on Feb. 21. It was at that game that the man known as ‘Superman’ heard fans at the ’Dome chanting his nickname after every goal he scored. “I just noticed that tonight for the first time,” he said following his nine-point performance. “I guess they’ve been doing that for a little while now. It’s pretty cool getting the fans behind you like that and getting them into the game.”
PLAYER PROFILE – #17 Curtis Dickson
Position: Forward
Shoots: Right
Height & weight: 6-2, 205
Birthdate: July 18, 1988
Hometown: Port Coquitlam, B.C.
Fast fact: His 11th point against New England last Friday was his 300th NLL point in just his fifth season. By scoring 17 more times, he’ll reach the 200-goal plateau.
Stat attack: Dickson set career high for goals (44), assists (28) and points (72) in 18 games last season. With 33 goals and 25 helpers in 11 games this year, he’s well on his way to improving upon all those totals.
Occupation: Lacrosse instructor
Family ties: Claims the best advice he has received is anything his parents told him.
Notable quotable: “It’s going to be tough,” said Dickson of the battle to make the playoffs. “Nothing’s ever easy in this league with the parity the way it is. It’s one of those things where we’ve got to carry the momentum over. We played a great game (against the Black Wolves), but we’ve kind of got to put that in the back of our mind. We’ve got to get prepared for a really good Toronto team coming in here.”
