CLEVELAND, Ohio — When Cleveland Monsters forward Trey Fix-Wolansky made his professional hockey debut in 2019, he went from one postseason environment to another.
Fix-Wolansky had just come off a 16-game playoff run with the Edmonton Oil Kings of the Western Hockey League, one of three major junior leagues in North America. He then came to Cleveland for the final three games of that postseason, and he had a goal and an assist. But they lost all three of those games as they were swept in the second round by the Toronto Marlies.
“Going into the playoffs with the Oil Kings, that was my first time in the playoffs in a while, too,” Fix-Wolansky told cleveland.com. “I really took that moment in and then coming to Cleveland and being able to step into a playoff atmosphere in Cleveland as well, I think that was huge for me and something that I can take into this year just knowing that the games are going to be tighter and every shift matters. Every play matters.”
Fast forward five years to 2024 as Fix-Wolansky the Monsters come back home to Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for Game 3 of their North Division semifinal vs. the Belleville Senators on Wednesday night. The best-of-5 series is tied at 1-1, with each team winning once in Belleville. The Monsters evened up the series on Friday in Game 2, 4-3, thanks to Cole Clayton’s overtime goal.
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It will be almost five years to the day of Fix-Wolansky’s final home playoff game, which came on May 7, 2019.
But Fix-Wolansky is in a different place with this Monsters team. After being the youngster playing in his first professional postseason, he is now the veteran leading a young group of players in their first pro playoffs.
“I’ve seen the growth of this team over the last five years,” Fix-Wolansky said. “Tons of great players have come in. We have a very strong team this year, so to be able to help this team with the mindset that every shift matters, every play matters, I think that’s what’s gonna allow us to go far this year.”
Several Monsters including recent Blue Jackets draft picks David Jiricek, James Malatesta and Luca Del Bel Belluz are among the young players getting their first taste of the playoffs. Malatesta has not yet played in these playoffs, but Jiricek and Del Bel Belluz have both been in the lineup with Jiricek recording his first playoff point in Game 2.
Malatesta and Del Bel Belluz are in their first seasons as pros while Jiricek, while in his second, is just two years from being picked sixth overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Monsters’ NHL parent club. As one of the veterans of the Monsters, Fix-Wolansky has tried to pass on some of the wisdom he’s gained from 224 games of AHL regular season experience.
“I don’t think you can let the highs get too high or the lows get too low,” Fix-Wolansky said. “It’s always going to the rink with a great attitude, having a smile on your face, kind of laughing, joking around. But when it comes to the ice, you’ve got to dial it in and be serious and want to go out there and get better each and every day.”
Like several Monsters, Fix-Wolansky had to fill spot duty in the NHL with the Blue Jackets dealing with numerous injuries towards the end of the regular season. But despite the hard moments for the Monsters due to some of their top players being in the NHL, there were bright spots for Fix-Wolansky as both Malatesta and Del Bel Belluz each had their first NHL goals.
“I was lucky enough to be on the ice when James scored his first NHL goal,” Fix-Wolansky said. “So I think I was as excited as he was and just to see Del Bel (Belluz), all the hard work he put in this year to get rewarded like that as well. It’s honestly one of the best feelings in the world when you score your first NHL goal, and I’m so happy that they both got the opportunity to do that.”
When the NHL season ended, all those Monsters players came back up to Cleveland and helped lead them to three consecutive wins to claim the North Division and a first-round bye in the playoffs. The division title also gave the Monsters home ice for their first two playoff series, including the remaining games of their series vs. the Senators.
“We knew we were gonna make the playoffs. But we really wanted the North Division,” Fix-Wolansky said. “I know everyone was buckling down for those three games and were able to get three wins.
“I think that’s just the confidence that our team plays with and the ability we have when we have a full lineup.”
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