During a quiet moment after an Abbotsford Heat practice, head coach Troy Ward spoke eloquently of his fondness for Ben Walter.

鈥淪ometimes, I think you can tend to overlook him,鈥� Ward said of the veteran centre.

鈥淚t鈥檚 like, we all rely on our wives and we never give them enough credit. We just take them with a grain of salt sometimes. She鈥檚 there, taking care of the kids, and I鈥檓 going to go do my thing.

鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of how I look at Ben 鈥� it鈥檚 the same scenario in life. We just expect him to be there and expect him to go lead us.鈥�

Walter鈥檚 strictly substance over his style, and his metronome-like consistency might only be appreciated by those who watch the team night in and night out.

The son of Heat president Ryan Walter suited up in the most games of any Abbotsford player, appearing in the first 75 before sitting out Sunday鈥檚 regular season finale, since the result had no affect on the standings.

Earlier this month, Walter set a new Heat single-season scoring record, eclipsing the 54 points Jason Jaffray posted in 2009-10, the franchise鈥檚 inaugural season in Abbotsford.

While Walter was the first to pass the mark, he was subsequently passed by linemate Krys Kolanos, who finished with 30 goals and 61 points, three ahead of Walter.

Walter finished with 19 goals and 58 points and also surpassed the 400-point mark for his AHL career.

The former junior A hockey star 鈥� he played in the BCHL with his hometown 91原创 Hornets 鈥攈as always been known for his steady play and quiet leadership.

鈥淗e鈥檚 really been our anchor,鈥� said Heat goalie Danny Taylor.

鈥淗e鈥檚 a man of few words, but a lot of the young guys look up to him.

鈥淗e鈥檚 been hands down one of our best players all year.鈥�

Walter finished the season with points in nine of the last 10 games, registering six goals and a dozen points in that span.

Ward lauded his leadership.

鈥淒own the stretch, he seems to be the guy that wants the puck all the time,鈥� the Heat bench boss said.

鈥淭here were times in the year where we maybe didn鈥檛 see him or notice him as much.

鈥淏ut this is his time as a veteran.鈥�

Walter鈥檚 play was huge in helping the Heat earn home-ice advantage in the quarter-finals of the Calder Cup playoffs for the first time.

Abbotsford (42-26-3-5, 92 points) is the fourth seed in the Western Conference and face the fifth-place Milwaukee Admirals in the opening round best-of-five series.

The first two games are in Milwaukee on Friday and Sunday before switching to Abbotsford for game three on Wednesday, April 25.

If necessary, games four and five would also be at the Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports Centre on April 27 and 28.