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A winded Jack Skille was the last player off the ice Monday at the University of B.C. after doing a series of punishing post-practice starts and stops, which made a good first impression.

And once he caught his breath, the right winger had a lot to say.

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Lumped into a professional forward tryout triumvirate with James Sheppard, 28, and Tuomo Ruutu, 33, the 29-year-old Skille knows well-travelled grinder Adam Cracknell, 30, beat long odds to win a Vancouver Canucks’ fourth-line roster spot last fall after signing a one-year, two-way contract three weeks before camp.

Skille intends to do the same, not that it’s going to be easy.

“I’m willing to chew through rope to be here,” said Skille. “If I prove I’m on a mission and ready to go, I think I should turn some heads. When you look back as a young guy, you always have time and if you don’t make the playoffs, there’s always next year. That’s not the case. I’ve seen how hard it is.