From farm to NHL farm team is Pridham's goal

MONTROSE -- Colby Pridham is biding his time helping with spring planting while waiting for the next phase of his hockey career to begin.
The graduate of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's Halifax Mooseheads is home on the farm in Montrose.
"Hopefully later on in the summer the phone will ring," said the shifty centre.
He's already signed to play university hockey for the Saint Mary Huskies, but he's open to offers from AHL or NHL teams.
Saint Mary's is fine with that, he said. In fact, he talked to other universities before choosing the Huskies, and has been up front with them all.
"They all know my first goal is to try to play pro," said the five-foot-11, 180-pound son of Paul and Marcia Pridham.
He's hoping for a tryout with the Vancouver Canucks' AHL farm team, the Manitoba Moose. He could have attended their camp last year but opted for a tryout with the Tampa Bay Lightning's rookie camp and then their AHL camp, instead.
He had spoken with officials with the New York Rangers and Phoenix last year, too. He has been in contact this year with a scout from the New York Islanders.
Although the tryout with the Lightning did not result in him making the jump to professional hockey, Pridham said it was a great experience.
"You see how many people are playing the game to get to where you want to go," he said. "Everything is a little faster and the guys are bigger and stronger."
Pridham was nagged by an ankle injury for the first half of last season with Halifax, but he felt he bounced back after Christmas.
He was juggled back and forth on the top two lines in his second year with Halifax, and logged a lot of time on the power play and penalty kill. He was named the team's best defensive forward.
To get ready for another tryout, Pridham is concentrating on beefing up a bit and working on quickness.
Pridham played midget AAA hockey with the Alberton-based Western Regals and major midget with the Cornwall Thunder before spending two years with the Charlottetown Abbies. During his second year with the Abbies he played some games with the Mooseheads. Two full seasons with the Moosehead would follow.

wbureau@journalpioneer.com