Rucchin Has Outgrown Obscurity : Hockey: Ducks see big things ahead for this center, who has been a key player in the first four games.

Big centers are a commodity in the NHL, which makes it all the more remarkable that the Mighty Ducks found Steve Rucchin in the remainder bin.

Duck General Manager Jack Ferreira spent the last couple of years calling all over the league trying to trade for a tall, broad-shouldered center who could score and play defense. Now Ferreira is getting used to a very comfortable thought: He might already have one--or two or three.

Besides Rucchin, 24, there is rookie Chad Kilger, a very promising work-in-progress, and Bob Corkum, a dependable veteran.

But it is Rucchin--6 feet 3 and 215 pounds--who arrived a year ago from a place off the NHL radar. Now he is the Ducks’ second-line center and all-around workhorse, killing penalties, playing on the power play and, for the moment, leading the team in scoring with four goals and two assists. After four games, he has been their best all-around forward bar none, and Coach Ron Wilson already sees a spot on Rucchin’s left shoulder big enough to wear a “C” some day.

“He’s future captain material,” Wilson said.

Ferreira sees Rucchin as a player who can score 70-100 points.

“I don’t know if it will be this year, but that’s his upside,” Ferreira said. “He reminds me a lot, from when I was with Calgary, of Joe Nieuwendyk. People used to say, ‘Joe who?’ He came into the league and got better and better. I’m not saying Steve’s going to be a 50-goal scorer, but he reminds me of the same type of player. He came out of college unheralded. People didn’t know who he was.”

People didn’t know who Rucchin was, either, and the sight of him playing defense while scoring 17 points in 43 games as a rookie sent assistant GMs scrambling to figure out how they missed him. It happened because Rucchin came to the Ducks from the University of Western Ontario via the supplemental draft, reserved for players who reached the end of their college eligibility without being drafted.

Supplemental draft picks who make it are few and far between, though the Ducks’ Todd Krygier also came that route. Western Ontario graduates? Fewer and farther between.

“It’s pretty spotty,” said Western Ontario Coach Barry Martinelli.

Even more striking is the maturity of Rucchin’s play--especially for a guy who had never played more than 37 games in a season before last year, when he played 41 with minor league San Diego during the NHL lockout and then 43 for the Ducks.

“His development has been tremendous,” said Denny Lambert, who has been playing left wing on Rucchin’s line with Valeri Karpov on the right. “He’s not made little strides but huge strides, through training camp last year and then every game, he got better and better. You could just see him getting confidence.”

Virtually no one steps into the NHL as a fully formed player, but Rucchin came as close as anyone. Even Paul Kariya had to make adjustments. Kariya also had to learn about defense, and finished his first season with the team’s worst plus-minus, a minus 17.

Rucchin? He led the team in plus-minus as a rookie, with a plus 7.

“He looks like a guy who is going to score 80 points and probably lead his team in plus-minus every year,” Wilson said. “He’s obviously studied the game. Some people have that knack. He’s obviously very bright, but that doesn’t always translate. I’m met bright people who were dumb hockey players, and dumb people who were bright hockey players. But he has that athletic sense. His positioning is impeccable. And he works very hard. He has that real long reach and he’s real strong on his feet, and he never gives up on a play.”

Rucchin’s defensive conscience might well be a product of his unusual route to the NHL.

“It was interesting last year watching the Ducks in a 3-2 game,” said Martinelli, his college coach. “Steve was on the ice the last couple of minutes of the game. We asked him his last year here to sacrifice his stats to win and he did. We were No. 1 in Canada in goals allowed and made it to the final four for the Canadian championship based mostly on defense. Instead of getting 80 points, he got 53 and was not on the ice for a lot of goals against. He’s a good team player.”

Probably the biggest adjustment Rucchin had to make was to the grind of a long pro season. He hit the weight room this summer and took courses in physiology and biochemistry at Western Ontario to make sure his academic skills don’t get rusty while he postpones medical school. After the first serious weight training of his life, he feels more power in his skating--and that much more confident.

“I’ve still only played 43 games, but that’s 43 under my belt and I feel a lot more confident,” Rucchin said. “I know what to expect from players around the league now. Before I had no idea of the speed of the game or the strength of the players. Coming back this year, I was prepared and I was able to set a few goals for myself. Last year, not knowing what to expect, it was difficult to mentally prepare and focus my mind on goals.”

Rucchin has exceeded the Ducks’ expectations--and his college coach’s as well.

“He’s actually ahead of my timetable,” Martinelli said. “I kind of thought it would take him a full year to adjust to the pro game and another to the NHL. I thought by next September he’d really be ready to go.

“From what I’ve seen, he’s been able to elevate his game to whatever level he’s at. If his NHL career parallels what he did for us, I think he’ll be a very consistent and productive player. I can see him having a very sound 10-year career.”