Thunder’s Milan cultivates on-ice persona

Dan Milan can’t be himself on the ice — that guy is too nice to play hockey — so the Thunder defenseman becomes someone else.

“Comparing it to football, I want to be the Richard Sherman of hockey,” said Milan, referencing the outspoken NFL cornerback. “A little trash talk, a little swagger, but good defensively.”

It’s an apt comparison because while Milan doesn’t draw attention to himself with off-ice ramblings, he finds a more sinister side of himself to channel when he plays.

The 22-year-old Milan, playing for the Thunder on assignment from the Tampa Bay Lightning of the NHL, psychologically wears on opponents with an approach that he describes as good-natured but grating.

“I try to go with not so much straight-to-the-heart chirps, I’m not really about that,” Milan said. “I’m more about saying stuff like, ‘I’m too fast for you.’ Stuff that will get in their head, make them mad.”

Milan’s smack escalates from his relatively mild initial offerings, and soon opposing forwards become so flummoxed that they drop their gloves to brawl with Milan or just avoid his areas altogether.

According to hockeyfights.com, Milan has sparred nine times this season, which ranks in the top 20 in the ECHL and is especially high for a player as well-rounded as Milan. His scraps are more spontaneous than the planned, nearly choreographed affairs that usually take place.

Milan is quick to post selfies of the aftermath of his fights on social media, and to write light-hearted comments expressing eagerness for the next fight. Those posts are more indicative of Milan’s true persona, a toned-down version of his in-game presentation.

“My on-ice personality and off-ice personality are a little bit different, said Milan, who has 11 assists and 115 penalty minutes this season. “I’m still intense when I’m in the weight room, but I try to be as nice a guy as possible off the ice and be that complete opposite off the ice.”

Milan’s gregarious nature doesn’t translate to patience for his current plight. He’s a consistent candidate to be recalled to the Triple-A American Hockey League as Tampa Bay’s property, but his four promotions haven’t led to a career renaissance yet.

The four trips to Triple-A Syracuse have afforded Milan one game there -- last season, which he mostly split between Brampton of the Central Hockey League and Florida of the ECHL, a Tampa Bay farm team.

The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Milan is hardly in his prime with 140 professional games to his credit, but opportunities quickly come and go and his best plan has been being prepared and to continue refining his skills.

“I always came into camp in really good shape,” Milan said. “But this season it seemed, three years of professional experience, I went in and got first in every single testing category, except I lost to (one person) in the long jump and the high jump.

“I definitely want to be able to prove myself. I want someone to notice all the hard work and how far I’ve come. I feel like sometimes people, they think you’re getting older so you stop developing. For me, I can always get stronger, always get faster, always get meaner.”

Until he sticks permanently in Triple-A or higher, Milan will draw upon experiences such as the time he spends in Syracuse – even if he doesn’t get to play – and his short-lived defensive partnership this season with former NHL defenseman Theo Peckham, who started the season with the Thunder but left for Europe in December.

Milan also plans on making forwards wish the AHL would hasten his next promotion.

“When they get on the ice and see that you’re out there, they’re thinking about it,” Milan said. “They’re thinking about it every time they go in the corner with you or whatever. If you keep telling them you’re going to run their face through the glass, even if you don’t do that, they’re still thinking about it.”

This story was originally published February 12, 2015 at 7:55 PM with the headline "Thunder’s Milan cultivates on-ice persona."