'A real Rivermen': Unsung Peoria center's grueling 314-day journey back to the ice

PEORIA — Joe Drapluk doesn't know how his comeback story will end.

In fact, for a while the Peoria Rivermen center wasn't completely sure it would begin. He spent more than 10 months working back from a major injury, battling the physical and mental part. He did it with the kind of precision and patience the Rivermen played with Friday in a strong outing in which they were near-perfect defensively in a win over Fayetteville.

"When you're going through it, you wonder if you will make it back," Drapluk said. "Then you come to understand that's in your head. Some days you don't feel good, but you remind yourself it's in your head and you keep battling on."

And that's what Drapluk did for the Rivermen on Friday in the opening of a three-game weekend series between two teams that produced a game with no margins for error. The Rivermen played immaculate defense, got some clutch saves from goaltender Nick Latinovich — including a take-away caliber stop while facing a six-on-four with 14 seconds left — and shut down the Fayetteville Marksmen, 1-0, before a crowd of 3,416 at Carver Arena.

Peoria leaped over Fayetteville into second place in the SPHL race with a victory in a game in which the Marksmen were held to just six shots in the first 31 minutes.

BOX SCORE: Rivermen 1, Fayetteville 0

SPHL Standings

Fayetteville will be back for rematches Saturday and Sunday, proverbial measuring stick games for both teams. Drapluk will be there, too, winning faceoffs, adjusting his defensive play, killing penalties, so many little things that fans don't notice but without which the team wouldn't win as much.

"He's a stud," Rivermen coach Jean-Guy Trudel said. "He's not on the scoresheet like some guys, but he's so great about where he puts his body, positions himself when he plays, his hockey IQ is just off the charts.

"He's such a great competitor. He's a real Rivermen."

314 days

Drapluk was skating near the end of the game for the Rivermen at Quad City on March 25, 2023 last season. Mike Gelatt scored a goal for Peoria with 48 seconds left in that game. Drapluk was on the ice for it.

"I took a little hit and I felt something pop in my knee," Drapluk said. "I didn't want to stay down on the ice, it might have taken away our scoring chance. I struggled off.

"It was my last shift. But hey, they gave me an assist on our goal."

It turned out Drapluk suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. He went into pre-hab — conditioning of the knee for two weeks before surgery to improve the odds of a good outcome. He then had surgery on May 15 in Peoria and stayed here for two months, going through intensive rehab with Midwest Orthopaedic Center and with Rivermen trainer Allison Beazley.

"I couldn't drive, I was on painkillers," Drapluk said. "Trevor (Rivermen equipment manager McClary) brought me food. But we put the work in."

Drapluk moved to an athletic rehab center in southern Florida after that, where NHL and NFL athletes were recovering from injuries.

"They really kicked my ass down there," he said, laughing. "My (twin) brother, Brian, tore his ACLs in both knees, and I used to needle him about it. But I got a taste of it with this."

Feb. 1, 2024

The Rivermen were on a road trip in Roanoke on Feb. 1 when Drapluk, at last, was activated from IR and joined the lineup. He wasted no time, the penalty-killing ace scoring a shorthanded goal and adding two assists in a Peoria win.

"We were winning games, and I came in thinking, 'Do they even need me?' " Drapluk said. "It was such an emotional game for me, such an emotional moment to play again.

"I just wanted to help this team win."

PEORIA PENICILLIN: The Peoria Rivermen have a new one-game re-brand. Here's a look at the specialty jersey and logo

That ended a 314-day, 45-game absence. He returned with a stronger knee and made Peoria's team stronger at its heart.

Drapluk grew up in Pembroke Pines, Fla., a suburb about 20 miles north of Miami that has been home to many prominent athletes, from baseball's Manny Ramirez and Mike Napoli, to football's Lawrence Taylor and Geno Atkins and others from the NHL and NBA, too.

Drapluk's parents, Mike and Lisa, were New Jersey people who loved hockey. The family included five children — twins Joe and Brian, brother Eric, and sisters Jessica and Nicole. Eric played 301 games in the ECHL for Tulsa and Orlando. Nicole was an NCAA Division-I soccer player at Delaware State.

The Rivermen got Joe Drapluk in an early season trade last year with Macon, where he was captain.

"I love having him in our defensive zone," Latinovich said after Friday's win. "He's so patient and precise on faceoffs. He does it all. The team in front of me was terrific tonight."

Rivermen 1, Fayetteville 0

Fayetteville entered Friday's series opener against the Rivermen in second place, one point ahead of third-place Peoria.

It was a duel in net between the SPHL's No. 2-ranked goaltender Ryan Kenny (league-best .939 saves rate) for Fayetteville and Peoria's Nick Latinovich, ranked third.

Kenny stopped the Rivermen on a 3-on-2 rush and follow-up midway through the period. Latinovich countered by stopping Fayetteville scoring leader Cameron Cook a couple of minutes later on a solo walk down the slot and follow-up.

They continued to match stops into the second period and beyond. The Rivermen twice left pucks on the ice in front of the goal line but could not finish, as Fayetteville's defensemen saved a couple of goals.

The Rivermen finally broke through at 7:55 of the second period when Jordan Ernst's initial drive from above the right circle was deflected in traffic by center Dante Zapata past Kenny. The Rivermen did not allow a shot until the five-minute mark of the period, and at one point built an 15-4 shooting edge.

Latinovich, with help from his defense, shut down a 2-on-1 rush during that swing.

In the third period, Fayetteville pulled Kenny for an extra attacker with 2:49 left in regulation. Rivermen defenseman Zach Wilkie was boxed for delay of game 53 seconds later, and Fayetteville finished the game on a 6-on-4 advantage.

Latinovich made two huge stops at the end when he stopped Tyler Kobryn in the low slot and, with 14 seconds left, sprawled and robbed John Moncovich on an open shot from below the right hashmarks.

River Readings

Rivermen goaltender Nick Latinovich has consecutive shutouts, and his scoreless sequence over the last three games is 146 minutes, 14 seconds of regulation and overtime play. … Rivermen winger JM Piotrowski fought Fayetteville captain and former Peoria center Connor Fries 4 seconds after the third-period faceoff. … Fayetteville hadn't played a game in Peoria since splitting a two-game series with the Rivermen on Nov. 9-10, 2018. ... The Rivermen are 14-1-3 at home. … Peoria will wear three special superhero-themed jerseys on Saturday — one in each period. … Sunday is Family Fun Day, with upper bowl tickets for kids 12-under set at $7. … The Rivermen came into the weekend series as the most penalized team (minutes per game) in pro hockey among 102 teams in the NHL, AHL, ECHL and SPHL. ... Fayetteville goaltender Ryan Kenny's late father, Robert Kenny, played in the old International Hockey League for Los Angeles, including two games for Los Angeles against the Rivermen in Carver Arena during the 1995-96 season. His stepfather, Michael, was a goaltender for Notre Dame.

Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: SPHL hockey: Peoria Rivermen center Joe Drapluk overcomes injury