Fraser brings bite to Wranglers

When a hockey player suffers dental damage during a game, players and coaches often call it "spittin' Chiclets."

Wranglers rookie center Curtis Fraser was spittin' Chiclets this week, but he didn't lose his teeth on the ice.

The hard-nosed 6-foot-2-inch, 200-pounder had a tooth chipped recently when he was hit from behind against Alaska. And Tuesday he had two wisdom teeth removed the old-fashioned way -- by an oral surgeon.

"I've been pushing it back for two months. I wanted to wait until the end of the season, but the pain was so bad I couldn't wait anymore," said Fraser, who returned to practice Wednesday. "It's a total relief, but it's a different feeling now. I've got to be careful with my mouth, and I can't eat anything real solid for a few days."

Worried about keeping up his strength as the Wranglers prepare for their ECHL National Conference finals series against Utah, which begins Monday, the 26-year-old Fraser joked about putting a steak in a blender.

"I'm hoping to get something good in me. I'll have to mush it up," he said. "I've got to eat something."

Since returning from the San Antonio Rampage of the American Hockey League, where he spent virtually the entire season, Fraser has helped Las Vegas devour its playoff opponents.

After scoring 11 points in five regular-season games for the Wranglers, Fraser has six points (five goals, one assist) in six playoff games, netting series-clinching goals against Stockton and Alaska.

"I try to pride myself and rise to the occasion," Fraser said. "If it's an 8-0 game and I have three goals, it doesn't mean much, but when it's a 3-3 game with six minutes to go, that's the time you have to be good and you want to be good. I want to be a big-time player."

In the eyes of his teammates and coach, Fraser already is a prime-time player.

"Curtis is one of those special players. He's got everything you want in a player. He's big, gritty, tough and talented," said Wranglers right wing and former NHL player Peter Ferraro, who leads the league with 17 playoff points (7-10) in 10 games. "He thinks the game well, and he's a complete player. He's got NHL capabilities; he really does."

Fraser has dreamed of playing in the NHL since he was a boy, and coach Glen Gulutzan said Fraser has that kind of potential.

"He's got the size, smarts, a great attitude and he plays with an edge," Gulutzan said. "He needs to establish himself as a full-time role player in the (AHL). That's the next step."

Fraser, who had six points in 41 games for San Antonio, returned to the Wranglers for the sixth and final game of their first-round series against Stockton. He scored two goals in a 4-1 win.

He also gave Las Vegas the lead for good in a clinching 6-3 victory over Alaska in Game 5 of the second round, scoring with 8:36 left.

"It's been a huge boost getting him back for these games," defenseman Jason Jozsa said. "You wouldn't think one player would make a big difference, but he has made a big difference for us."

Fraser made a triumphant return to Alaska, where he had 114 points in 148 games at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. His series-winning goal against the Aces was made more special because of a surprise visit by his father, Delaney, who was seeing his son play as a professional for the first time.

"He was really excited about that. That was pretty cool for him," Fraser said. "It was a really nice surprise, because when he came to San Antonio, I didn't play."