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Nikita Tryamkin was right, and we were all wrong.

Turns out his English is better than you think — and so is his grasp of the NHL.

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It was October when the Canucks concluded Tryamkin wasn’t ready to play. They urged him to to go Utica, even for a limited conditioning stint.

Wiener dogs. Bo Horvat. Tryamkin speaks. It’s a big week for The Pat-cast, powered by Eagle Ridge GM:

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The Russian mountain man with the sleepy eyes and a visor he wears like a brimmed hat, said nyet. Because of an out-clause in his contract, there was nothing the Canucks could do about it.

He refused to go to the American Hockey League, even for a weekend. The market was incredulous. Meanwhile, Tryamkin was doubling down in his best broken English, explaining to the coaching staff why he didn’t need the minors. He made it clear he knew he was ready and should be in the lineup ahead of one of the defencemen in the top six.