CARDIFF,U.K- Elite league Cardiff Devils’ new Canadian signing Marc Fulton got his first goal for the franchise within five minutes of just his second game in European hockey. Fulton got the first of four Devils goals that earned them a home victory over Basingstoke Bison’s high class goaltender Kevin Reiter.
Reiter’s recent stellar performances (including saving 65 of 66 shots against reigning champions Coventry Blaze) have sparked a mini-revival for the short-benched franchise, but Fulton scored the crucial early breakthrough for the Devils.
The Devils have been searching for a forward with game-breaking scoring ability and it is hoped that Fulton’s arrival will add that crucial quality on the top two lines. With momentum behind them, the Devils have scored freely, but have lacked the ability to ‘score from nothing’ to break tighter, pressure games open this season.
Fulton showed his ability to score key goals when in his senior year at college; ranking second in his conference with five game winning goals. His debut goal for the Devils was crucial in building his teams’ confidence against Reiter in the Bison net, who is currently the league’s hottest goalie.
“I want to show Devils fans what I can do and it felt great to get that early goal, my aspirations for the season are to put in good numbers and get on the score sheet as much as I can,” Fulton said “This is my first time in European hockey and my aim is to do well enough that I return next season.”
Fulton played four seasons of college hockey for Colgate where he averaged a point per game in his junior and senior years. He spent his first professional season with the Texas Wildcatters in the ECHL where he contributed 25 points (including 10 goals) in 51 matches; a solid performance in his rookie season. Fulton moved to the Victoria Salmon Kings over the summer, but faced limited opportunity.
“Victoria brought in a lot of players who had come down from the AHL and it was obvious that I wasn’t going to get a great deal of ice time, I looked at teams in Holland, Germany and Hungary but was pleased when Peter Aubry (Fulton’s teammate at Texas and now Cardiff’s goaltender) talked to me about coming to Cardiff,” Fulton said “Victoria asked me to stay, but when Cardiff’s offer came up it looked an opportunity I couldn’t resist.”
Fulton, a 25 year old native of Vancouver, played his first match in a Devils uniform the day he arrived in Wales. Despite being clearly tired, Futon’s quality was recognised by Head Coach Gerad Adams after the game.
“I’m excited to get Fulton in, Marc is going to be a big player for us and you could see it in his performance, even though he was desperately tired after the long haul from Canada,” Adams said “He is exactly the right fit for us and has played East Coast League hockey since leaving college, Marc will add to the qualities we already have and fit in well.”
“We’ll be patient with Marc, get his fitness levels up and get him back onto the ice in training. He’s not a guy I’m going to throw into the fire and expect a lot from him immediately, but we are confident he will be a big player,” continued Adams.
Fulton’s stats suggest he could also provide the answer to the Devils’ powerplay struggles. The ability to convert powerplay opportunities has been a key attribute of the league’s top two or three teams and is often important to ensure games are won even when the team has played poorly; a vital skill in winning championships.
Fulton’s powerplay record is encouraging for the Devils. In his senior year at college he ranked second in the ECACHL and tied for seventh in the country with 10 power-play goals on the year. He also had a team high 24 assists, demonstrating his passing ability and vision which is so important on the powerplay. Contact the author at Aled.lloyd@prohockeynews.com
You must be logged in to post a comment.