Photo Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin/USA TODAY Sports

Halfway through the interview in his stall in the Vancouver Canucks locker room, Andrey Pedan is interrupted by a tap on the shoulder from Nikita Tryamkin. There seems to be some confusion about workout gear.

Tryamkin is supposed to pack for an upcoming road trip, but there’s a communication gap between the newest Canucks player and the team’s training staff. So Pedan excuses himself, settles the issue and apologizes for the interruption.

Such is life for Pedan these days. He’s a full time National Hockey League prospect, part-time translator and security blanket for his new teammate. Whatever it takes to stay and play at this level, Pedan is willing to do his part. He wants Tryamkin to feel as comfortable as possible in his new surroundings, but Pedan, too, wants to feel right at home here. This is where he wants to be next season — and for years to come — and he’s hoping this late season audition gives Canucks management a true indication of his readiness to play in the NHL.

Through three games on this current recall from Utica, the Lithuanian-born, Russian-raised Pedan hasn’t looked out of place as a member of the Canucks third defensive pairing. At 6’5”, he’s not as large as Tryamkin – few are – but Pedan certainly has the size to be an imposing force on the blueline. He can’t allow himself to get drawn out of position looking for big hits, but whenever an opportunity to finish a check presents itself, he has to make opponents pay a price.

Pedan has spent much of his season in the American Hockey League working on his positional play in his own zone. He’s quick to credit Comets head coach Travis Green and assistant Nolan Baumgartner with helping shape his game so that when the call came from the Canucks, he was ready.

“They trust me with what I do and I appreciate the time they’ve put in with me,” he says of the Utica coaching staff. “I get to be part of the first unit of the penalty kill and play lots of five-on-five when they need me. I’m trying to keep it simple and the main thing for me is to try not to do too much. Sometimes it kind of gets out of hand a little bit. That’s what I’ve worked on the most, and it has improved because we get to spend more time in the offensive zone and that’s why my numbers have increased.”

It’s true. Now in his third full-season in the AHL, Pedan has managed to contribute offensively for the Comets. The Canucks, however, aren’t expecting much in the way of production from the 22-year-old – at least not at this stage of his career. They are far more concerned with his ability to compete, to process the game at this level and to use his size effectively.

In limited minutes so far, Pedan has fared well. He’s averaging 11:12 of ice time, has seven shots, 19 hits and five blocked shots in his six game big-league career. Like all Canucks defensemen, Pedan was under siege against St. Louis on Saturday (-15 by even-strength Corsi) and was forced to take a first period hooking penalty to prevent Blues forward Kyle Brodziak from getting to the front of the net.

“Guys are faster here, so you have to be ready for any situation,” Pedan explains. “It’s an adjustment. But I’m excited to play and I will always try my best. I’ve had some shots on net and some hits, so I’m learning.”

Trying to get the most out of this late season audition, Pedan has spent as much time as possible with Canucks coaches pouring over video to pinpoint the areas he needs to improve. He’s young and he knows he still has much to learn about the NHL, however, he claims he’s not dwelling on the mistakes he’s made. He’s also using the video sessions to highlight the parts of his game that have withstood the early tests he’s faced.

“I watch the video, I think about the game, I mark what I need to do better and then I try to move on,” he says. “I’ve spent a lot of time and put a lot of energy into training and I’m here and this is my chance to show what I’ve got and I’m really appreciative that the team is giving me that opportunity.”

With 11 games to go, Pedan is hoping he’ll remain on the Canucks roster for the duration of the season. All he knows for sure is that with injuries and organizational uncertainty, he’s here now and every chance he gets is another opportunity to show what he can do and state his case for a spot on the blueline next season.

“I’m looking forward to playing physical and clearing the crease and making sure guys don’t want to come there next time,” he says.

It has been a while since the Canucks have had a true deterrent on defence to keep opponents honest and give them something to think about when crashing the crease. With his play over the final few weeks of the season, Pedan wants to let the Canucks coaching staff and management that he’s ready for the challenge. That’s a message he’s hoping won’t get lost in translation.