One-on-one: Belliveau 'built something' in rookie season

... this rebound goal against the Cyclones:

... this goal from in close against the Cyclones:

... this wrist shot against the Grizzlies:

... and this laser of a shot against the Komets:

He had two goals in eight playoff games, including this rebound goal in the second round against the Walleye:

"There's a lot to his game to really like," Army said. "He's a guy who from day one 'til the point we're at now has continued to improve in every aspect, just from being consistent with puck touches, his confidence with the puck, and his defending."

Army also pointed out that Belliveau has a bit of a "mean streak" to his game that only increased in the playoffs. I caught up with Belliveau during the second round of the ECHL playoffs, and when I asked him about that "mean streak" a soft-spoken Belliveau said, "Yeah, I'd say that's accurate" with a bit of a sheepish grin. He definitely showed it on the ice during two games I covered, getting under the skin of Walleye players between the whistles and backing it up with his physicality.

Belliveau said that the biggest adjustments for him coming from junior hockey to professional hockey were off the ice -- "No school, no mom, no dad." But on the ice, he had to get accustomed to playing against bigger and stronger players, and he felt like he handled the challenge well.

"I think it went pretty good," he said of his rookie year. "I think I progressed on the development side. I'm more confident with the puck, and my defensive play is way better than before. With the coaching staff, it was very nice."

With Wilkes-Barre having as many defensemen as it did this season and relatively few injuries or losses to NHL recalls, there wasn't much opportunity for Belliveau to see AHL time this year. He made his AHL debut in April when he got called up for a pair of back-to-back games against the league-leading Hershey Bears, skating on the left side of Wilkes-Barre's second defense pairing with veteran captain Taylor Fedun. Wilkes-Barre split the weekend -- winning 4-1 then losing 4-1 the next day. Belliveau was scoreless with no shots on goal, and a minus-1 in his brief stint.

"It was very nice for me," Belliveau said of that experience. "I played against Hershey, too -- not a bad team, they were very good, one of the best teams in the league. So there was more structure, and it was quicker a bit."

Belliveau was understanding of and not frustrated by the lack of real AHL time this year -- there just wasn't room in Wilkes-Barre, and he benefitted from the playing time in Wheeling. Even though his AHL stint was brief, he said that it was helpful in learning what he needs to work on for next season as he aims to become an AHL regular in his sophomore season. First and foremost, that's going to be improving his foot speed since the AHL's that much faster.

"He played two games in Wilkes and played really well," Army said. "Now, it will be can he follow that up in the offseason? But he's definitely built something and had to put together a foundation that I think is really important moving forward."