Canada took the Russians out behind the proverbial woodshed in game 3 this morning in Omsk, Russia, with a 6-2 win. The game was not as lopsided as the score would indicate (from what little I saw anyway) but there is little positive that the Russians can take away from a four goal loss. Kyle Turris, Zach Boychuk, Colton Gillies, Claude Giroux, Stefan Legein, and Sam Gagner scored for Canada. Leland Irving got the win in net. Canada now leads the series 3-0 and with the way things are going, the almost-unthinkable-before-the-series-began notion of sweeping all 8 games is suddenly seeming like a distinct possibility. Without the home fans to play for, how will the Russian players get motivated for the upcoming games in Canada? I'm thinking they won't.
What was already a rather uninteresting event just got more uninteresting with this news. Russian star Alexei Cherepanov is out of the series with a concussion suffered in game two when he was hit high by Brandon Sutter of Canada. Cherepanov had just slew-footed Sutter a few seconds earlier and Sutter went looking for him, paying the Russian back with a leaping hit that earned Sutter two minutes in the box. (For a video look at the slew-foot and the hit, here it is on YouTube). But more than the blow to Cherepanov's head, it's a bigger blow to the Russian chances in this series. This is their best player we're talking about here, and while he hasn't done much in the first two games, they are still worse off without him. Methinks the Russian goal for this series should shift - if it hasn't already - from winning the series to just avoiding being embarrassed. They'll need to win a couple of the remaining games to salvage any respect from this tournament.
Some general WHL news now....
Keeping with the Russian theme, the CHL announced the sites for this year's Canada/Russia challenge games in November. The games are in Chicoutimi, Gatineau, Kitchener, Sudbury, Medicine Hat, and Kootenay. Personally, I'm sick of this crappy series already. I'm sick of meaningless Canada-Russia games too; this isn't the Cold War anymore and we don't get emotional about beating Commie ass like we used to. Based on the pathetic rosters the Russians have sent to this thing from the beginning, it's obvious how much they care. They are 3-21 all-time in that tournament and two of those wins were in shootouts over QMJHL teams. They have one freakin' actual regulation win in 24 tries. Against the WHL, they're 0-8 and have been outscored 47-11. Stick a fork in this thing and go back to league all-star games instead. At least those were more competitive and non-Canadian players got to play in them too.
Next up, the league has adopted some new rule changes for this coming season. Changes #1 (home team chooses whether to shoot first or second in the shootout), #2 (elimination of Gross Misconduct rule), and #5 (faceoffs now occur at nearest faceoff dot only, regardless of where the puck went out of play) are rather minor/insignificant. #3 (players fouled on a clear breakaway in the neutral zone get penalty shots now) is a common sense change. But the two we're most likely to notice are #'s 4 and 6. Players can now be given a major penalty for an act of interference which results in an injury. This is in keeping with the league's crackdown on obstruction; how many times have you seen a player run a "pick" on an opponent who doesn't see it coming? Picks and the like are interference and now you can get a major if you hurt the guy in the process. And lastly, #6 looks like the league will no longer measure stick curvature. Goalies everywhere are shuddering right now at the thought of every sniper in the league sporting a big banana curve this year and not being able to do anything about it.
More exhibition action today, with three games in the Everett tournament plus a Warrior-Raider rematch in the Jaw:
Spokane vs. Portland (Everett tournament)
Vancouver vs. Everett (Everett tournament)
Chilliwack vs. Seattle (Everett tournament)
Prince Albert @ Moose Jaw
Everett, Portland, and Kamloops signed a bunch of prospects to education agreements yesterday. The Blazers also cleared up part of their overage situation by releasing Brady Mason. I expected the Portland papers to have at least a little blurb about the Hawks signing, seeing as how it's a local product and all. I mean, how many Portland minor hockey products have played in the WHL? You probably don't need to take off your socks to do the count. But, nothing in the papers there as far as I can see.
Amidst the rumours that new Hitmen forward T.J. Galiardi might have his eye on playing pro this year, we have these quotes from him in today's Calgary Herald which sure sound like he's going to play for the Hitmen. More quotes saying much the same things.
Article on the progress of Brandon's training camp. Rookie camp has wrapped up there and main camp gets started now.
The Tyrell boys are trying to make it a brother act this year in Prince George.
Saskatoon has a couple big rookies trying to make the team up front. A 6'7" forward? Can he skate?
Rockets goalie Kris Westblom is recovered from his knee injury and ready to make the most of his overage season.
Rebels #1 bantam pick Connor Redmond is loving life in the WHL. Sounds like Brian Sutter is loving him too. Too bad he can't play 'til next year.
Regina import prospect Marco Insam talks about playing hockey in Italy.
Lethbridge Hurricanes camp is underway.
A look at how the roster battles are shaping up in Everett.
Moose Jaw sniper Riley Holzapfel has signed a contract with the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers.
And lastly, I've fixed the Seattle defence in the camp rosters below. I guess the rumour that they acquired the entire Saskatoon defence turned out to be false. Also added a roster for Lethbridge.
Friday, August 31, 2007
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Calgary/Portland trade
The Hitmen and Winter Hawks swing a deal.
Calgary gets the rights to 19 year old T.J. Galiardi from Portland for a 2008 3rd round bantam pick. This is possibly Moose Jaw's pick which Calgary had acquired from the Warriors last fall for Matt Isbister.
Galiardi is a 2nd round pick of the Colorado Avalanche and is leaving Dartmouth of the NCAA after just one year. He posted 31 points in 33 games there as a freshman and will help address Calgary's need for offence. I would guess he wasn't wild about joining the rebuilding effort in the rose city and hence the trade to a contender.
Calgary gets the rights to 19 year old T.J. Galiardi from Portland for a 2008 3rd round bantam pick. This is possibly Moose Jaw's pick which Calgary had acquired from the Warriors last fall for Matt Isbister.
Galiardi is a 2nd round pick of the Colorado Avalanche and is leaving Dartmouth of the NCAA after just one year. He posted 31 points in 33 games there as a freshman and will help address Calgary's need for offence. I would guess he wasn't wild about joining the rebuilding effort in the rose city and hence the trade to a contender.
Thursday stuff
The WHL exhibition season kicked off last night with the host Prince Albert Raiders taking a 6-5 shootout win over the Moose Jaw Warriors. Scorers for the Warriors were Brad Reige (2), Quinton Howden, Martin Filo and Neal Prokop. Brandon Glover and Todd Matthews split time in net. Glover gave up three goals and Matthews gave up two plus the shootout. Scorers for the Raiders were Brandon Harrod (2), Jorden Iron, Max Brandl, and Kyle Aschim. Iron also scored the shootout winner. David Aime went the distance in net for the Raiders.
Whole bunch of cuts around the league last night:
Everett cut eight.
Prince Albert cut seven.
Regina pared ten.
Fresh off his decision to join the team after all, Brayden Schenn is lighting it up at Brandon's camp. So is Rylan Schwartz, except Schwartz still hasn't committed to the WHL.
Saskatchewan AAA midget league scoring champ Matt Strueby is having a great camp with the Regina Pats. He should be one of the rookies to keep an eye on in the league this year. At 18, he should be able to step in and contribute this year the way Matt Robertson did last year for the Raiders.
Nice profile of Warriors overage candidate Terrance Delaronde. Despite being new to the team himself (he played for Kamloops last year), he has taken one of the new Euros under his wing off the ice. Classy.
Good piece on new Blades O/A's Chris Durand and Michael Kaye. They are both Saskatoon natives, who now return home for their final seasons in the league after playing four years each in other WHL cities. Turns out they are quite familiar with each other from their days as opponents in the Saskatoon minor hockey system....
Article about the Americans' two new Euros. A 6'7" defenceman who doesn't like to fight and says fighting shouldn't be part of the game? Some Ams fans are going to love this guy.
Portland has finally gotten video replay screens installed at Memorial Coliseum. It has been 13 years since they've had replay there; however, fans only missed them for the first 12 years since last year there were no highlights to replay.
Whole bunch of cuts around the league last night:
Everett cut eight.
Prince Albert cut seven.
Regina pared ten.
Fresh off his decision to join the team after all, Brayden Schenn is lighting it up at Brandon's camp. So is Rylan Schwartz, except Schwartz still hasn't committed to the WHL.
Saskatchewan AAA midget league scoring champ Matt Strueby is having a great camp with the Regina Pats. He should be one of the rookies to keep an eye on in the league this year. At 18, he should be able to step in and contribute this year the way Matt Robertson did last year for the Raiders.
Nice profile of Warriors overage candidate Terrance Delaronde. Despite being new to the team himself (he played for Kamloops last year), he has taken one of the new Euros under his wing off the ice. Classy.
Good piece on new Blades O/A's Chris Durand and Michael Kaye. They are both Saskatoon natives, who now return home for their final seasons in the league after playing four years each in other WHL cities. Turns out they are quite familiar with each other from their days as opponents in the Saskatoon minor hockey system....
Article about the Americans' two new Euros. A 6'7" defenceman who doesn't like to fight and says fighting shouldn't be part of the game? Some Ams fans are going to love this guy.
Portland has finally gotten video replay screens installed at Memorial Coliseum. It has been 13 years since they've had replay there; however, fans only missed them for the first 12 years since last year there were no highlights to replay.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
More Wednesday notes
Portland has acquired disgruntled Tri-City defenceman Brock Cornish. The cost? A 2008 3rd round bantam pick.
Medicine Hat has finally released their 07-08 schedule today. The fact that the league beat them to it three weeks ago with the release of the complete league schedule apparently has not stopped the Tigers from trumpeting this "release" on their site.
A few Hitmen tidbits from the Calgary Herald in advance of Hitmen camp which opens today. The team's #1 pick in this May's bantam draft, defenceman Austin Madaisky, will be unable to take part in camp due to a broken arm. Too bad, because you always like to see how your top picks stack up against the others in your system. Also in the broken bone department, defenceman Dan Mercer broke his right wrist after a fall while skating on Monday, so he'll be out for a while. And thirdly, overage forward Riley Merkley is said to be considering leaving the WHL for college. (Shrug). Merkley's performance last year left something to be desired anyway. It hasn't seemed like his heart was really in it for a couple years now so this really shouldn't surprise anyone.
Medicine Hat has finally released their 07-08 schedule today. The fact that the league beat them to it three weeks ago with the release of the complete league schedule apparently has not stopped the Tigers from trumpeting this "release" on their site.
A few Hitmen tidbits from the Calgary Herald in advance of Hitmen camp which opens today. The team's #1 pick in this May's bantam draft, defenceman Austin Madaisky, will be unable to take part in camp due to a broken arm. Too bad, because you always like to see how your top picks stack up against the others in your system. Also in the broken bone department, defenceman Dan Mercer broke his right wrist after a fall while skating on Monday, so he'll be out for a while. And thirdly, overage forward Riley Merkley is said to be considering leaving the WHL for college. (Shrug). Merkley's performance last year left something to be desired anyway. It hasn't seemed like his heart was really in it for a couple years now so this really shouldn't surprise anyone.
Showdown in Quebec City
Something I heard about a little while back but haven't gotten around to mentioning until now....
Pre-season will have a little more meaning next weekend in Quebec City, as two teams from the QMJHL (Quebec and Rimouski) will engage in a pre-season tournament with two teams from the USHL (Indiana and Omaha). The USHL (for those who may be fuzzy on such things) is a USA-based Jr. A league which is one of the primary suppliers of talent to the NCAA. As such, it is frequently the opposition for CHL clubs who are pursuing players who have not made up their minds between major junior and college.
Of course this is preseason and the question remains as to what kind of rosters each team will be putting out there - mostly vets, or mostly rookies? But you can be sure there will be many interested observers who wish to see how the USHL stacks up against Canadian major junior. Since most of us probably feel that the CHL is by far the stronger league, a win (or at least a very, very strong showing) by the USHL teams would certainly have the potential to earn the USHL a lot more respect than it currently gets in most Canadian hockey circles.
Which begs the question: what's in this for the QMJHL? If they trounce the USHL teams, so what? It was expected. If they lose, does their credibility take a hit when they're trying to lure prospects to the Q instead of to college?
In the end, no matter what happens, nothing will change for the CHL in a positive direction. Bottom line is that kids cannot play in the CHL and still pursue an NCAA scholarship, whereas the reverse direction is allowed. Regardless of how strong or weak the CHL appears, a player still has to have made up his mind that he's not interested in the NCAA before he'll come to the CHL. So, why is the "Q" doing this? They and the CHL have nothing to gain. So CHL fans will just have to hope that Quebec and Rimouski don't get embarrassed in this thing.
Pre-season will have a little more meaning next weekend in Quebec City, as two teams from the QMJHL (Quebec and Rimouski) will engage in a pre-season tournament with two teams from the USHL (Indiana and Omaha). The USHL (for those who may be fuzzy on such things) is a USA-based Jr. A league which is one of the primary suppliers of talent to the NCAA. As such, it is frequently the opposition for CHL clubs who are pursuing players who have not made up their minds between major junior and college.
Of course this is preseason and the question remains as to what kind of rosters each team will be putting out there - mostly vets, or mostly rookies? But you can be sure there will be many interested observers who wish to see how the USHL stacks up against Canadian major junior. Since most of us probably feel that the CHL is by far the stronger league, a win (or at least a very, very strong showing) by the USHL teams would certainly have the potential to earn the USHL a lot more respect than it currently gets in most Canadian hockey circles.
Which begs the question: what's in this for the QMJHL? If they trounce the USHL teams, so what? It was expected. If they lose, does their credibility take a hit when they're trying to lure prospects to the Q instead of to college?
In the end, no matter what happens, nothing will change for the CHL in a positive direction. Bottom line is that kids cannot play in the CHL and still pursue an NCAA scholarship, whereas the reverse direction is allowed. Regardless of how strong or weak the CHL appears, a player still has to have made up his mind that he's not interested in the NCAA before he'll come to the CHL. So, why is the "Q" doing this? They and the CHL have nothing to gain. So CHL fans will just have to hope that Quebec and Rimouski don't get embarrassed in this thing.
Wednesday news
Canada took on Russia again today in Ufa in game 2 of the "Super Series", winning this one 3-0 on goals from Kyle Turris, Stefan Legein, and David Perron. Jonathan Bernier got the shutout in net. Canada leads the series 2-0 now and with four of the remaining six games to be in Canada, should probably come out with the edge in the end. But, is it just me or does it not seem like nobody really cares about this tournament? Most of the people I know who are hockey fans (and there are some real fanatics in there) are following the tournament, but only casually, and there doesn't seem to be a lot of concern whether Canada wins or loses the thing. Far cry from the World Juniors, Olympics, or pretty well any competition that actually matters.
The WHL season starts for "real" tonight with the first exhibition game. Moose Jaw will make the trek north for a clash with the Raiders. Next action after this comes on Friday when the Everett tournament (featuring Everett, Chilliwack, Portland, Seattle, Spokane, and Vancouver) kicks off. Edmonton also hosts a tournament on the weekend (starts Saturday with Edmonton, Kamloops, Kelowna, Regina, Prince George, and Swift Current), while Tri-Cities has a tournament next weekend which features the five U.S. division teams. All told there are 63 exhibition games on the schedule this year, wrapping up on September 15. The regular season starts September 20.
The Oil Kings did some serious cutting last night, and it looks like veteran WHL goalie Tommy Tartaglione was one of the victims. His name no longer appears on the roster. Other cuts with prior WHL experience were Tyler Halliday, Ryan Sawka, and Brayden Nargang.
And still with the Oil Kings, a good story here about prospect Craig McCallum's journey to the WHL.
Pats p-b-p guy Rod Pedersen reports in his blog that Pats tough guy and overage candidate Myles Stoesz may have broken his jaw after a stick in the mouth yesterday. That could put a crimp in his plans to land a job in the Atlanta Thrashers system if he isn't able to fight at their training camp next week. Which may be a good thing for the Pats if he ends up being returned to the WHL as a result.
Also from Pedersen, Pats sniper Jordan Eberle was injured on a hit from 19 year old camp hopeful Ian Clark. The hit must have been questionable since Clark had to fight Josh Elder right afterwards. I wonder if it's any coincidence that Clark was one of five players cut later in the day. 'Cause we all know a sure way to impress the brass of the team you're trying out for is to cheap shot their marquee player.
The University of Saskatoon Huskies have signed up some recent WHL grads for next season. Joining the Huskies are forwards Steve Gillen (Spokane, Moose Jaw) and Casey Lee (Kamloops, Kootenay), defenceman Jesse Zetariuk (Red Deer, Moose Jaw, Everett), and goaltender Andrew Leslie (Swift Current, Red Deer, Moose Jaw).
Chilliwack general manager Darrell May discusses his team's top five prospects.
Profile of top Pats defence prospect Curtis Kulchar, who is no stranger to winning after back-to-back Canadian midget titles with the Prince Albert Mintos.
Overview of Saskatoon Blades camp, which gets started tomorrow.
The Broncos made some cuts yesterday and are now down to just 29 players in camp. Getting close to the final roster there. I have 28 names for them.....maybe somebody else knows who the 29th is? Should be a forward. Here's what I have for them:
Forwards: Brad Bienvenu (90), Kyle Bortis (88), Mike Brown (90), Justin Dowling (90), Cody Eakin (91), Kris Foucalt (90), Philip Gervais (90), Brad Hoban (91), Brady Leavold (87), Christian Magnus (92), Levi Nelson (88), Zack Smith (88), David Stieler (88), Matt Tassone (89), Grant Toulmin (89), Dale Weise (88), Geordie Wudrick (90)
Defencemen: Derek Claffey (89), Eric Doyle (89), R.J. LaRochelle (87), Spencer McAvoy (88), Ryan Molle (89), Paul Postma (89), Joel Rogers (91), Michael Wilson (87)
Goaltenders: Ian Curtis (90), Chad Ketting (91), Travis Yonkman (88)
One of Seattle's prized offseason acquisitions, NHL first rounder Jim O'Brien, has yet to take part on the ice in camp for them as he is still recovering from shoulder surgery in April. Word is that he may not be ready to play until November. Thanks to T-Bird fan Jon Whiting for that tidbit.
Tri-Cities lost one of its better prospects today when '90 forward Joe Colborne committed to Denver University. The 6'3" Colborne had 48 points in 53 games in the AJHL last year as a 16 year old and is considered one of the best 1990 prospects from Alberta.
King overthrown: Lethbridge has a writeup on their camp on their site, and missing from the list of overage candidates is that of defenceman Randy King. No idea what happened to him. Without King, the overage spots are set there with Farmanara, Dietrich, and Knudsen. Not the strongest group of O/A's in the league so don't be surprised to see one of those spots upgraded IMO.
The WHL season starts for "real" tonight with the first exhibition game. Moose Jaw will make the trek north for a clash with the Raiders. Next action after this comes on Friday when the Everett tournament (featuring Everett, Chilliwack, Portland, Seattle, Spokane, and Vancouver) kicks off. Edmonton also hosts a tournament on the weekend (starts Saturday with Edmonton, Kamloops, Kelowna, Regina, Prince George, and Swift Current), while Tri-Cities has a tournament next weekend which features the five U.S. division teams. All told there are 63 exhibition games on the schedule this year, wrapping up on September 15. The regular season starts September 20.
The Oil Kings did some serious cutting last night, and it looks like veteran WHL goalie Tommy Tartaglione was one of the victims. His name no longer appears on the roster. Other cuts with prior WHL experience were Tyler Halliday, Ryan Sawka, and Brayden Nargang.
And still with the Oil Kings, a good story here about prospect Craig McCallum's journey to the WHL.
Pats p-b-p guy Rod Pedersen reports in his blog that Pats tough guy and overage candidate Myles Stoesz may have broken his jaw after a stick in the mouth yesterday. That could put a crimp in his plans to land a job in the Atlanta Thrashers system if he isn't able to fight at their training camp next week. Which may be a good thing for the Pats if he ends up being returned to the WHL as a result.
Also from Pedersen, Pats sniper Jordan Eberle was injured on a hit from 19 year old camp hopeful Ian Clark. The hit must have been questionable since Clark had to fight Josh Elder right afterwards. I wonder if it's any coincidence that Clark was one of five players cut later in the day. 'Cause we all know a sure way to impress the brass of the team you're trying out for is to cheap shot their marquee player.
The University of Saskatoon Huskies have signed up some recent WHL grads for next season. Joining the Huskies are forwards Steve Gillen (Spokane, Moose Jaw) and Casey Lee (Kamloops, Kootenay), defenceman Jesse Zetariuk (Red Deer, Moose Jaw, Everett), and goaltender Andrew Leslie (Swift Current, Red Deer, Moose Jaw).
Chilliwack general manager Darrell May discusses his team's top five prospects.
Profile of top Pats defence prospect Curtis Kulchar, who is no stranger to winning after back-to-back Canadian midget titles with the Prince Albert Mintos.
Overview of Saskatoon Blades camp, which gets started tomorrow.
The Broncos made some cuts yesterday and are now down to just 29 players in camp. Getting close to the final roster there. I have 28 names for them.....maybe somebody else knows who the 29th is? Should be a forward. Here's what I have for them:
Forwards: Brad Bienvenu (90), Kyle Bortis (88), Mike Brown (90), Justin Dowling (90), Cody Eakin (91), Kris Foucalt (90), Philip Gervais (90), Brad Hoban (91), Brady Leavold (87), Christian Magnus (92), Levi Nelson (88), Zack Smith (88), David Stieler (88), Matt Tassone (89), Grant Toulmin (89), Dale Weise (88), Geordie Wudrick (90)
Defencemen: Derek Claffey (89), Eric Doyle (89), R.J. LaRochelle (87), Spencer McAvoy (88), Ryan Molle (89), Paul Postma (89), Joel Rogers (91), Michael Wilson (87)
Goaltenders: Ian Curtis (90), Chad Ketting (91), Travis Yonkman (88)
One of Seattle's prized offseason acquisitions, NHL first rounder Jim O'Brien, has yet to take part on the ice in camp for them as he is still recovering from shoulder surgery in April. Word is that he may not be ready to play until November. Thanks to T-Bird fan Jon Whiting for that tidbit.
Tri-Cities lost one of its better prospects today when '90 forward Joe Colborne committed to Denver University. The 6'3" Colborne had 48 points in 53 games in the AJHL last year as a 16 year old and is considered one of the best 1990 prospects from Alberta.
King overthrown: Lethbridge has a writeup on their camp on their site, and missing from the list of overage candidates is that of defenceman Randy King. No idea what happened to him. Without King, the overage spots are set there with Farmanara, Dietrich, and Knudsen. Not the strongest group of O/A's in the league so don't be surprised to see one of those spots upgraded IMO.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Tuesdays roundup
Regina has inked their top four picks from the 2007 bantam draft to WHL education agreements. The four are Dominick Favreau, Graham Hood, Justin Slobozian, and Jordan Weal.
Another player is at home requesting a trade, this one from Tri-Cities. '89 defenceman Brock Cornish is at home waiting for a deal after talking with Ams G.M. Bob Tory. He joins Brandon's Matt Hallick as 18 year olds waiting for a change of scenery.
Also in that article: Ams defenceman Jarrett Toll will be out until October after breaking his ankle playing lacrosse. He always played lacrosse in the summers while growing up but hadn't for the last couple years until deciding to do it again this year. Wanna bet this is the end of lacrosse for him?
#1 overall import pick Tomas Vincour is in Edmonton's camp and looking pretty good from the sounds of it. Good skill level and not afraid to play the body.
UPDATE: Edmonton has updated their site and now have camp rosters available. Looking at the rosters, I see several players who washed out of the league elsewhere but who are trying to resurrect their careers with the expansion team:
Karl Benke - let go by Swift last fall after 60-some games for the Broncos.
Andrew Bentz - played for Tri-City and Lethbridge in 04-05 and 05-06.
Adam Geric - played for Saskatoon last year but was released this summer.
Eli Grossman - released by Prince George after unsuccessful stints there and in Seattle.
Tyler Halliday - couple games with Red Deer in 05-06.
Brian Kaval - goalie best known for suiting up for Kelowna in the 2005 playoffs after Derek Yeomans was hurt. Didn't play though.
Brayden Nargang - let go by Portland last fall after playing there in 05-06.
Ryan Sawka - former 1st round bantam pick couldn't hack it with Swift or Everett in 04-05 and 05-06.
Scott Skrudland - let go by Saskatoon last winter after stints there and in Kamloops.
Chris Ward - Portland's backup goalie last year, had probably the highest GAA (6.20) the league has seen since the days when 10-8 games were routine.
Not unexpected I guess.....these guys were all at least marginally WHL calibre at one time and the Oil Kings need all the WHL calibre players they can get. We'll see how many make the final cut.
And.....that's it? Slow day for league news.
Another player is at home requesting a trade, this one from Tri-Cities. '89 defenceman Brock Cornish is at home waiting for a deal after talking with Ams G.M. Bob Tory. He joins Brandon's Matt Hallick as 18 year olds waiting for a change of scenery.
Also in that article: Ams defenceman Jarrett Toll will be out until October after breaking his ankle playing lacrosse. He always played lacrosse in the summers while growing up but hadn't for the last couple years until deciding to do it again this year. Wanna bet this is the end of lacrosse for him?
#1 overall import pick Tomas Vincour is in Edmonton's camp and looking pretty good from the sounds of it. Good skill level and not afraid to play the body.
UPDATE: Edmonton has updated their site and now have camp rosters available. Looking at the rosters, I see several players who washed out of the league elsewhere but who are trying to resurrect their careers with the expansion team:
Karl Benke - let go by Swift last fall after 60-some games for the Broncos.
Andrew Bentz - played for Tri-City and Lethbridge in 04-05 and 05-06.
Adam Geric - played for Saskatoon last year but was released this summer.
Eli Grossman - released by Prince George after unsuccessful stints there and in Seattle.
Tyler Halliday - couple games with Red Deer in 05-06.
Brian Kaval - goalie best known for suiting up for Kelowna in the 2005 playoffs after Derek Yeomans was hurt. Didn't play though.
Brayden Nargang - let go by Portland last fall after playing there in 05-06.
Ryan Sawka - former 1st round bantam pick couldn't hack it with Swift or Everett in 04-05 and 05-06.
Scott Skrudland - let go by Saskatoon last winter after stints there and in Kamloops.
Chris Ward - Portland's backup goalie last year, had probably the highest GAA (6.20) the league has seen since the days when 10-8 games were routine.
Not unexpected I guess.....these guys were all at least marginally WHL calibre at one time and the Oil Kings need all the WHL calibre players they can get. We'll see how many make the final cut.
And.....that's it? Slow day for league news.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Monday stuff
The Canada-Russia Super Series started this morning with game 1 in Ufa, Russia, with Canada posting a 4-2 victory over the Russians. Canada came back from down 2-0 with four unanswered goals. Scoring for Canada were Stefan Legein, Brad Marchand, Sam Gagner, and Kyle Turris.
Steve Mason of the OHL's London Knights was named the starting goalie for Canada ahead of Everett's Leland Irving, but there are 12 other WHLers on the team including the captain and two of the three alternates. Vancouver's Milan Lucic is captain while Calgary's Karl Alzner and Red Deer's Brandon Sutter are alternates along with London's Sam Gagner.
One of the WHL newcomers trying to make the Edmonton Oil Kings is Mark Messier's kid, Lyon. He's a 6'1" defenceman trying to make it as one of the team's five overagers after playing for the NAHL's Texas Tornado last year. He's got his work cut out for him, given that the Oil Kings already have three other overage defencemen with tons of WHL experience - Stamler, Hengen, and Swaby.
Follow that up with some name-dropping of some of the better prospects to make the Oil Kings this year.
Auditions continue in Chilliwack for the right to replace Josh Aspenlind on the top line with Moller and Santorelli.
How is Giants winger Garet Hunt looking these days? Pretty damn good from the sounds of this. He won the junior mens title at a bodybuilding competition on Saturday night.
Brandon has put '89 winger Matt Hallick on the trade block. Sounds like a mutual thing but Hallick has not lived up to the expectations of a 2nd round bantam pick. In 99 career WHL games he has just 3 goals and 15 points.
Regina is close to getting their top four picks from this year's bantam draft signed to contracts. The article also mentions which rookie campers got brought through to the main camp, if you're interested.
Great story from the Everett paper on Brett Chartier, who went undrafted in the bantam draft but is now one of Everett's better prospects. More proof of why kids who aren't picked in the bantam draft shouldn't quit. Also from that article: turns out there won't be three Ryan Whites in the WHL this year after all, as Everett's prospect by that name has decided to stay in Colorado and play midget.
The battle for backup goalie in Prince George appears to be over, for now anyway. Joel Danyluk, 17, is the only goalie remaining for the job after the others in camp were all released. Danyluk will now get to play some exhibition games which could determine whether he gets the job or whether the team needs to start looking at a trade for another goalie.
Good piece on Prince George's new Swedish defenceman, Patrik Magnusson. Sounds like he may be more of a North American style player.
Don't think I've had any Seattle camp news on here yet, mostly because it seems neither of the Seattle papers care to cover the team. Here's a wrap-up from the T-Birds site.
From the blog of Spokane Chiefs beat writer Jessica Brown, new Chiefs import Stefan Ulmer had a rough welcome to North America. The Austrian lost seven teeth (ouch!) after a hard hit in the team's first scrimmage.
Steve Mason of the OHL's London Knights was named the starting goalie for Canada ahead of Everett's Leland Irving, but there are 12 other WHLers on the team including the captain and two of the three alternates. Vancouver's Milan Lucic is captain while Calgary's Karl Alzner and Red Deer's Brandon Sutter are alternates along with London's Sam Gagner.
One of the WHL newcomers trying to make the Edmonton Oil Kings is Mark Messier's kid, Lyon. He's a 6'1" defenceman trying to make it as one of the team's five overagers after playing for the NAHL's Texas Tornado last year. He's got his work cut out for him, given that the Oil Kings already have three other overage defencemen with tons of WHL experience - Stamler, Hengen, and Swaby.
Follow that up with some name-dropping of some of the better prospects to make the Oil Kings this year.
Auditions continue in Chilliwack for the right to replace Josh Aspenlind on the top line with Moller and Santorelli.
How is Giants winger Garet Hunt looking these days? Pretty damn good from the sounds of this. He won the junior mens title at a bodybuilding competition on Saturday night.
Brandon has put '89 winger Matt Hallick on the trade block. Sounds like a mutual thing but Hallick has not lived up to the expectations of a 2nd round bantam pick. In 99 career WHL games he has just 3 goals and 15 points.
Regina is close to getting their top four picks from this year's bantam draft signed to contracts. The article also mentions which rookie campers got brought through to the main camp, if you're interested.
Great story from the Everett paper on Brett Chartier, who went undrafted in the bantam draft but is now one of Everett's better prospects. More proof of why kids who aren't picked in the bantam draft shouldn't quit. Also from that article: turns out there won't be three Ryan Whites in the WHL this year after all, as Everett's prospect by that name has decided to stay in Colorado and play midget.
The battle for backup goalie in Prince George appears to be over, for now anyway. Joel Danyluk, 17, is the only goalie remaining for the job after the others in camp were all released. Danyluk will now get to play some exhibition games which could determine whether he gets the job or whether the team needs to start looking at a trade for another goalie.
Good piece on Prince George's new Swedish defenceman, Patrik Magnusson. Sounds like he may be more of a North American style player.
Don't think I've had any Seattle camp news on here yet, mostly because it seems neither of the Seattle papers care to cover the team. Here's a wrap-up from the T-Birds site.
From the blog of Spokane Chiefs beat writer Jessica Brown, new Chiefs import Stefan Ulmer had a rough welcome to North America. The Austrian lost seven teeth (ouch!) after a hard hit in the team's first scrimmage.
Friday, August 24, 2007
NHL moves goal judges
Has anyone else heard about this? It's news to me and the season is almost here:
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sports/20070824_NHL_verdict_goes_against_goal_judges.html
The NHL is doing away with goal judges behind the nets. Most of the story is about the Flyers' addition of luxury seats to the area where the goal judges once sat, but just the fact that the goal judges are being moved to the press box in the first place is news to me.
Which immediately brings up the question for me about how this affects the Hitmen and Oil Kings, who are the only WHL teams playing out of NHL buildings. Will they have to put the goal judge boxes back behind the nets for WHL games, or can the goal judges work from the press box for WHL games in those two rinks too? Putting the boxes back might be difficult if the Flames and/or Oilers put in seats into those locations like it seems many NHL clubs are.
I guess we'll have to see....
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sports/20070824_NHL_verdict_goes_against_goal_judges.html
The NHL is doing away with goal judges behind the nets. Most of the story is about the Flyers' addition of luxury seats to the area where the goal judges once sat, but just the fact that the goal judges are being moved to the press box in the first place is news to me.
Which immediately brings up the question for me about how this affects the Hitmen and Oil Kings, who are the only WHL teams playing out of NHL buildings. Will they have to put the goal judge boxes back behind the nets for WHL games, or can the goal judges work from the press box for WHL games in those two rinks too? Putting the boxes back might be difficult if the Flames and/or Oilers put in seats into those locations like it seems many NHL clubs are.
I guess we'll have to see....
Friday's news
Sounds like there may have been more to the trade of Justin Leclerc by Lethbridge than just picking Maniago and Metsola over him. According to Canes G.M. Ray Stasiuk, Leclerc "wasn’t sure he wanted to commit to our goaltending rotation again this season". So basically Leclerc didn't want to compete for or share the #1 job. In that case, things aren't going to get any easier for him in Kamloops as long as Dustin Butler is still in the picture there.
Three players no-showed the Cougars camp, including two that the team had high hopes for. Worst for them is '90 goalie Marc Boulanger, who the team appears to have had pencilled in as the backup this year. Now they'll have to find another goalie to back up Real Cyr.
After a bit of a standoff, the Wheat Kings and their 2006 1st round bantam pick, Brayden Schenn, have come to an agreement. Schenn has signed with the Wheat Kings and should be a lock to make their team in this rebuilding year. Schenn had originally balked at reporting to the Wheaties because he wanted to play somewhere closer to his brother Luke who plays for the Kelowna Rockets.
Regina has released overager Justin Scott. That brings the Pats down to three overagers in camp, but questions surround Kaspars Saulietis (he's also an import and will have to beat out one of two younger imports to make the team) and Myles Stoesz (he has a contract with the Atlanta Thrashers and might be assigned to the AHL or ECHL instead of back to Regina). So the only overager they have for sure is Troy Ofukany.
Following suit, the Spokane Chiefs have released overager David Linsley. That leaves them with Chris Bruton, Judd Blackwater and David Rutherford as their overagers for this year.
#1 overall import pick Tomas Vincour has arrived in Edmonton. ISS called him a franchise player at the junior level; the Oil Kings certainly hope that pans out.
Bit about the three-way battle for two goalie jobs on the Oil Kings. Dalyn Flette, Tommy Tartaglione, and Alex Archibald all played significant minutes last year in the league but only two of them are going to make it in Edmonton.
The Giants have inked coach Don Hay to a five-year extension. Certainly makes you wonder whether this was influenced by the coming changes in Kamloops. The new owners of the Blazers all played for Hay and have done much talking about wanting to make changes to the team. Had Hay not re-signed with Vancouver, you'd have to think there would have been some interest in him from the Blazers. Hay's new contract does have an out-clause after the third year, but only for an NHL job apparently.
Regina's 2006 first rounder, Brett Miller, had a setback while training this summer. He required an appendectomy in early August which has resulted in him being a bit behind the other rookies at camp, conditioning-wise. As a result, it seems the notion of returning to AAA midget this year is being floated with him, which is a bit of a rarity for first-round bantam picks, who almost always crack WHL rosters at 16.
Some quotes from top Tigers prospects Linden Vey and Cody Carlson. Pretty standard stuff.
Three players no-showed the Cougars camp, including two that the team had high hopes for. Worst for them is '90 goalie Marc Boulanger, who the team appears to have had pencilled in as the backup this year. Now they'll have to find another goalie to back up Real Cyr.
After a bit of a standoff, the Wheat Kings and their 2006 1st round bantam pick, Brayden Schenn, have come to an agreement. Schenn has signed with the Wheat Kings and should be a lock to make their team in this rebuilding year. Schenn had originally balked at reporting to the Wheaties because he wanted to play somewhere closer to his brother Luke who plays for the Kelowna Rockets.
Regina has released overager Justin Scott. That brings the Pats down to three overagers in camp, but questions surround Kaspars Saulietis (he's also an import and will have to beat out one of two younger imports to make the team) and Myles Stoesz (he has a contract with the Atlanta Thrashers and might be assigned to the AHL or ECHL instead of back to Regina). So the only overager they have for sure is Troy Ofukany.
Following suit, the Spokane Chiefs have released overager David Linsley. That leaves them with Chris Bruton, Judd Blackwater and David Rutherford as their overagers for this year.
#1 overall import pick Tomas Vincour has arrived in Edmonton. ISS called him a franchise player at the junior level; the Oil Kings certainly hope that pans out.
Bit about the three-way battle for two goalie jobs on the Oil Kings. Dalyn Flette, Tommy Tartaglione, and Alex Archibald all played significant minutes last year in the league but only two of them are going to make it in Edmonton.
The Giants have inked coach Don Hay to a five-year extension. Certainly makes you wonder whether this was influenced by the coming changes in Kamloops. The new owners of the Blazers all played for Hay and have done much talking about wanting to make changes to the team. Had Hay not re-signed with Vancouver, you'd have to think there would have been some interest in him from the Blazers. Hay's new contract does have an out-clause after the third year, but only for an NHL job apparently.
Regina's 2006 first rounder, Brett Miller, had a setback while training this summer. He required an appendectomy in early August which has resulted in him being a bit behind the other rookies at camp, conditioning-wise. As a result, it seems the notion of returning to AAA midget this year is being floated with him, which is a bit of a rarity for first-round bantam picks, who almost always crack WHL rosters at 16.
Some quotes from top Tigers prospects Linden Vey and Cody Carlson. Pretty standard stuff.
Blazers trade players, owners
Couple Kamloops notes tonight....
Firstoff, they have made a trade with Lethbridge. The Hurricanes get a 2008 2nd round bantam pick from the Blazers in return for '89 goalie Justin Leclerc.
From the Lethbridge point of view, the deal clears up the logjam they had in net with Leclerc, Michael Maniago (an ex-Blazer), and new Finnish import Juha Metsola. For the Blazers, this certainly makes their goalie and overage situations more interesting. Before the deal it had seemed pretty certain that Dustin Butler would have a job as the starting goalie (and thus an overage spot) and would be backed up by a rookie prospect, likely 16 year old James Priestner. Now, well.....not so certain since Leclerc comes with past experience as a #1 goalie. They could now opt to make Leclerc the starter and move Butler out in favour of another overager like defenceman Ryan White. Or, if Priestner looks like he's not ready yet, they can go with a Butler-Leclerc tandem. Decisions, decisions.
Second news item? Oh, nothing much, just that the Blazers were sold tonight. Fresh off of Gregg's blog, the shareholders voted 151-43 tonight in favour of selling the team to the group fronted by Vancouver businessman Tom Gagliardi, but which includes former Blazers legends Shane Doan, Jarome Iginla, Mark Recchi and Darryl Sydor in a 40% role.
The second bid on the table for the team - the one from James Priestner's dad in Edmonton - was not considered. The sale still needs approval from the league's board of governors before being official.
Since the new owners have not exactly given coach/GM Dean Clark a resounding vote of confidence in the past, Clark's job security probably just became a little shakier.
Firstoff, they have made a trade with Lethbridge. The Hurricanes get a 2008 2nd round bantam pick from the Blazers in return for '89 goalie Justin Leclerc.
From the Lethbridge point of view, the deal clears up the logjam they had in net with Leclerc, Michael Maniago (an ex-Blazer), and new Finnish import Juha Metsola. For the Blazers, this certainly makes their goalie and overage situations more interesting. Before the deal it had seemed pretty certain that Dustin Butler would have a job as the starting goalie (and thus an overage spot) and would be backed up by a rookie prospect, likely 16 year old James Priestner. Now, well.....not so certain since Leclerc comes with past experience as a #1 goalie. They could now opt to make Leclerc the starter and move Butler out in favour of another overager like defenceman Ryan White. Or, if Priestner looks like he's not ready yet, they can go with a Butler-Leclerc tandem. Decisions, decisions.
Second news item? Oh, nothing much, just that the Blazers were sold tonight. Fresh off of Gregg's blog, the shareholders voted 151-43 tonight in favour of selling the team to the group fronted by Vancouver businessman Tom Gagliardi, but which includes former Blazers legends Shane Doan, Jarome Iginla, Mark Recchi and Darryl Sydor in a 40% role.
The second bid on the table for the team - the one from James Priestner's dad in Edmonton - was not considered. The sale still needs approval from the league's board of governors before being official.
Since the new owners have not exactly given coach/GM Dean Clark a resounding vote of confidence in the past, Clark's job security probably just became a little shakier.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Camping out
This is a work in progress.....a list of all likely 07-08 WHLers who will be attending NHL training camps in the next few weeks. Should read as: Player, Position-Age (WHL Team) - NHL Team (NHL status).
This is ONLY players that might reasonably be expected to be returned to the WHL this season. Guys who are headed to pro hockey are not on here.
Additions are welcome. I know the list is not complete and I have missed many. So, if you know of players I've missed, put 'em in a comment and I'll update the list from time to time.
Keith Aulie - D-18 (Brandon) - Calgary (2007 4th round)
Andrew Clark - F-19 (Brandon) - St.Louis (Free Agent)
Karl Alzner - D-19 (Calgary) - Washington (2007 1st round)
Keegan Dansereau - F-19 (Calgary) - Florida (Free Agent)
Ian Duval - F-19 (Calgary) - Tampa Bay (Free Agent)
Bostjan Golicic - F-18 (Calgary) - Atlanta (Free Agent)
Carson McMillan - F-19 (Calgary) - Minnesota (2007 7th round)
Alex Plante - D-18 (Calgary) - Edmonton (2007 1st round)
Keith Seabrook - D-19 (Calgary) - Washington (2006 2nd round)
Brett Sonne - F-18 (Calgary) - St.Louis (2007 3rd round)
Ryan White - F-19 (Calgary) - Montreal (2006 3rd round)
Oscar Moller - F-18 (Chilliwack) - Los Angeles (2007 2nd round)
Mark Santorelli - F-19 (Chilliwack) - Nashville (2007 4th round)
Cameron Cepek - D-19 (Edmonton) - Montreal (2006 7th round)
Robin Figren - F-19 (Edmonton) - NY Islanders (2006 3rd round)
Dane Crowley - D-20 (Everett) - Tampa Bay (2006 6th round)
Taylor Ellington - D-19 (Everett) - Vancouver (2007 2nd round)
Ondrej Fiala - F-20 (Everett) - Minnesota (2006 2nd round)
Dan Gendur - F-20 (Everett) - Vancouver (2007 7th round)
Zach Hamill - F-19 (Everett) - Boston (2007 1st round)
Leland Irving - G-19 (Everett) - Calgary (2006 1st round)
Peter Mueller - F-19 (Everett) - Phoenix (2006 1st round)
Victor Bartley - D-19 (Kamloops) - Detroit (Free Agent)
Keaton Ellerby - D-19 (Kamloops) - Florida (2007 1st round)
Juuso Puustinen - F-19 (Kamloops) - Calgary (2006 5th round)
Cody Almond - F-18 (Kelowna) - Minnesota (2007 5th round)
Tyson Dowzak - D-19 (Kelowna) - Philadelphia (Free Agent)
Torrie Jung - G-18 (Kelowna) - Tampa Bay (2007 7th round)
Milan Kytnar - F-18 (Kelowna) - Edmonton (2007 5th round)
Chad Greenan - D-20 (Kootenay) - Detroit (Free Agent)
Ben Maxwell - F-19 (Kootenay) - Montreal (2006 2nd round)
John Negrin - D-18 (Kootenay) - Calgary (2007 3rd round)
Mitch Fadden - F-19 (Lethbridge) - Tampa Bay (2007 4th round)
Dwight King - F-18 (Lethbridge) - Los Angeles (2007 4th round)
Ben Wright - D-19 (Lethbridge) - Columbus (2006 4th round)
Jordan Bendfeld - D-19 (Medicine Hat) - Phoenix (2006 5th round)
Trevor Glass - D-19 (Medicine Hat) - St.Louis (Free Agent)
Daine Todd - F-20 (Medicine Hat) - Tampa Bay (Free Agent)
Brady Calla - F-19 (Moose Jaw) - Florida (2006 3rd round)
Riley Holzapfel - F-19 (Moose Jaw) - Atlanta (2006 2nd round)
Jordan Knackstedt - F-19 (Moose Jaw) - Boston (2007 7th round)
Jason Reese - F-19 (Moose Jaw) - Tampa Bay (Free Agent)
Frazer McLaren - F-20 (Portland) - San Jose (2007 7th round)
Colton Sceviour - F-18 (Portland) - Dallas (2007 4th round)
Viktor Sjodin - F-19 (Portland) - Nashville (2006 7th round)
Mike Gauthier - D-20 (Prince Albert) - Toronto (Free Agent)
Jeff May - D-20 (Prince Albert) - Minnesota (Free Agent)
Jesse Dudas - D-19 (Prince George) - Columbus (2006 6th round)
Evan Fuller - F-19 (Prince George) - Vancouver (2006 7th round)
Patrik Magnusson - D-18 (Prince George) - Detroit (Free Agent)
Dana Tyrell - F-18 (Prince George) - Tampa Bay (2007 2nd round)
Ty Wishart - D-19 (Prince George) - San Jose (2006 1st round)
James Reimer - G-19 (Red Deer) - Toronto (2006 4th round)
Kirill Starkov - F-20 (Red Deer) - Columbus (2005 6th round)
Brandon Sutter - F-18 (Red Deer) - Carolina (2007 1st round)
Brett Sutter - F-20 (Red Deer) - Calgary (2005 6th round)
J.D. Watt - F-20 (Red Deer) - Calgary (2005 4th round)
Brett Leffler - F-18 (Regina) - Washington (2007 5th round)
Logan Pyett - D-19 (Regina) - Detroit (2006 7th round)
Nick Ross - D-18 (Regina) - Phoenix (2007 1st round)
Linden Rowat - G-18 (Regina) - Los Angeles (2007 5th round)
Myles Stoesz - F-20 (Regina) - Atlanta (2005 7th round)
Colton Gillies - F-18 (Saskatoon) - Minnesota (2007 1st round)
Garrett Klotz - F-19 (Saskatoon) - Philadelphia (2007 3rd round)
Justin McCrae - F-19 (Saskatoon) - Carolina (2007 4th round)
Riku Helenius - G-19 (Seattle) - Tampa Bay (2006 1st round)
Thomas Hickey - D-18 (Seattle) - Los Angeles (2007 1st round)
Bud Holloway - F-19 (Seattle) - Los Angeles (2006 3rd round)
Scott Jackson - D-20 (Seattle) - Detroit (Free Agent)
Jim O'Brian - F-18 (Seattle) - Ottawa (2007 1st round)
Drayson Bowman - F-18 (Spokane) - Carolina (2007 3rd round)
Chris Bruton - F-20 (Spokane) - St.Louis (Free Agent)
Justin Falk - D-19 (Spokane) - Minnesota (2007 4th round)
Ondrej Roman - F-18 (Spokane) - Dallas (2007 5th round)
Eric Doyle - D-18 (Swift Current) - Dallas (Free Agent)
Ryan Molle - D-18 (Swift Current) - New Jersey (2007 7th round)
Levi Nelson - F-19 (Swift Current) - Boston (2006 6th round)
Paul Postma - D-18 (Swift Current) - Atlanta (2007 7th round)
T.J Fast - D-20 (Tri-City) - Los Angeles (2005 2nd round)
Colton Yellow Horn - F-20 (Tri-City) - Tampa Bay (Free Agent)
Jonathon Blum - D-18 (Vancouver) - Nashville (2007 1st round)
Garet Hunt - F-20 (Vancouver) - Vancouver (Free Agent)
Milan Lucic - F-19 (Vancouver) - Boston (2006 2nd round)
Spencer Machacek - F-19 (Vancouver) - Atlanta (2007 3rd round)
Michal Repik - F-19 (Vancouver) - Florida (2007 2nd round)
Tyson Sexsmith - G-18 (Vancouver) - San Jose (2007 3rd round)
This is ONLY players that might reasonably be expected to be returned to the WHL this season. Guys who are headed to pro hockey are not on here.
Additions are welcome. I know the list is not complete and I have missed many. So, if you know of players I've missed, put 'em in a comment and I'll update the list from time to time.
Keith Aulie - D-18 (Brandon) - Calgary (2007 4th round)
Andrew Clark - F-19 (Brandon) - St.Louis (Free Agent)
Karl Alzner - D-19 (Calgary) - Washington (2007 1st round)
Keegan Dansereau - F-19 (Calgary) - Florida (Free Agent)
Ian Duval - F-19 (Calgary) - Tampa Bay (Free Agent)
Bostjan Golicic - F-18 (Calgary) - Atlanta (Free Agent)
Carson McMillan - F-19 (Calgary) - Minnesota (2007 7th round)
Alex Plante - D-18 (Calgary) - Edmonton (2007 1st round)
Keith Seabrook - D-19 (Calgary) - Washington (2006 2nd round)
Brett Sonne - F-18 (Calgary) - St.Louis (2007 3rd round)
Ryan White - F-19 (Calgary) - Montreal (2006 3rd round)
Oscar Moller - F-18 (Chilliwack) - Los Angeles (2007 2nd round)
Mark Santorelli - F-19 (Chilliwack) - Nashville (2007 4th round)
Cameron Cepek - D-19 (Edmonton) - Montreal (2006 7th round)
Robin Figren - F-19 (Edmonton) - NY Islanders (2006 3rd round)
Dane Crowley - D-20 (Everett) - Tampa Bay (2006 6th round)
Taylor Ellington - D-19 (Everett) - Vancouver (2007 2nd round)
Ondrej Fiala - F-20 (Everett) - Minnesota (2006 2nd round)
Dan Gendur - F-20 (Everett) - Vancouver (2007 7th round)
Zach Hamill - F-19 (Everett) - Boston (2007 1st round)
Leland Irving - G-19 (Everett) - Calgary (2006 1st round)
Peter Mueller - F-19 (Everett) - Phoenix (2006 1st round)
Victor Bartley - D-19 (Kamloops) - Detroit (Free Agent)
Keaton Ellerby - D-19 (Kamloops) - Florida (2007 1st round)
Juuso Puustinen - F-19 (Kamloops) - Calgary (2006 5th round)
Cody Almond - F-18 (Kelowna) - Minnesota (2007 5th round)
Tyson Dowzak - D-19 (Kelowna) - Philadelphia (Free Agent)
Torrie Jung - G-18 (Kelowna) - Tampa Bay (2007 7th round)
Milan Kytnar - F-18 (Kelowna) - Edmonton (2007 5th round)
Chad Greenan - D-20 (Kootenay) - Detroit (Free Agent)
Ben Maxwell - F-19 (Kootenay) - Montreal (2006 2nd round)
John Negrin - D-18 (Kootenay) - Calgary (2007 3rd round)
Mitch Fadden - F-19 (Lethbridge) - Tampa Bay (2007 4th round)
Dwight King - F-18 (Lethbridge) - Los Angeles (2007 4th round)
Ben Wright - D-19 (Lethbridge) - Columbus (2006 4th round)
Jordan Bendfeld - D-19 (Medicine Hat) - Phoenix (2006 5th round)
Trevor Glass - D-19 (Medicine Hat) - St.Louis (Free Agent)
Daine Todd - F-20 (Medicine Hat) - Tampa Bay (Free Agent)
Brady Calla - F-19 (Moose Jaw) - Florida (2006 3rd round)
Riley Holzapfel - F-19 (Moose Jaw) - Atlanta (2006 2nd round)
Jordan Knackstedt - F-19 (Moose Jaw) - Boston (2007 7th round)
Jason Reese - F-19 (Moose Jaw) - Tampa Bay (Free Agent)
Frazer McLaren - F-20 (Portland) - San Jose (2007 7th round)
Colton Sceviour - F-18 (Portland) - Dallas (2007 4th round)
Viktor Sjodin - F-19 (Portland) - Nashville (2006 7th round)
Mike Gauthier - D-20 (Prince Albert) - Toronto (Free Agent)
Jeff May - D-20 (Prince Albert) - Minnesota (Free Agent)
Jesse Dudas - D-19 (Prince George) - Columbus (2006 6th round)
Evan Fuller - F-19 (Prince George) - Vancouver (2006 7th round)
Patrik Magnusson - D-18 (Prince George) - Detroit (Free Agent)
Dana Tyrell - F-18 (Prince George) - Tampa Bay (2007 2nd round)
Ty Wishart - D-19 (Prince George) - San Jose (2006 1st round)
James Reimer - G-19 (Red Deer) - Toronto (2006 4th round)
Kirill Starkov - F-20 (Red Deer) - Columbus (2005 6th round)
Brandon Sutter - F-18 (Red Deer) - Carolina (2007 1st round)
Brett Sutter - F-20 (Red Deer) - Calgary (2005 6th round)
J.D. Watt - F-20 (Red Deer) - Calgary (2005 4th round)
Brett Leffler - F-18 (Regina) - Washington (2007 5th round)
Logan Pyett - D-19 (Regina) - Detroit (2006 7th round)
Nick Ross - D-18 (Regina) - Phoenix (2007 1st round)
Linden Rowat - G-18 (Regina) - Los Angeles (2007 5th round)
Myles Stoesz - F-20 (Regina) - Atlanta (2005 7th round)
Colton Gillies - F-18 (Saskatoon) - Minnesota (2007 1st round)
Garrett Klotz - F-19 (Saskatoon) - Philadelphia (2007 3rd round)
Justin McCrae - F-19 (Saskatoon) - Carolina (2007 4th round)
Riku Helenius - G-19 (Seattle) - Tampa Bay (2006 1st round)
Thomas Hickey - D-18 (Seattle) - Los Angeles (2007 1st round)
Bud Holloway - F-19 (Seattle) - Los Angeles (2006 3rd round)
Scott Jackson - D-20 (Seattle) - Detroit (Free Agent)
Jim O'Brian - F-18 (Seattle) - Ottawa (2007 1st round)
Drayson Bowman - F-18 (Spokane) - Carolina (2007 3rd round)
Chris Bruton - F-20 (Spokane) - St.Louis (Free Agent)
Justin Falk - D-19 (Spokane) - Minnesota (2007 4th round)
Ondrej Roman - F-18 (Spokane) - Dallas (2007 5th round)
Eric Doyle - D-18 (Swift Current) - Dallas (Free Agent)
Ryan Molle - D-18 (Swift Current) - New Jersey (2007 7th round)
Levi Nelson - F-19 (Swift Current) - Boston (2006 6th round)
Paul Postma - D-18 (Swift Current) - Atlanta (2007 7th round)
T.J Fast - D-20 (Tri-City) - Los Angeles (2005 2nd round)
Colton Yellow Horn - F-20 (Tri-City) - Tampa Bay (Free Agent)
Jonathon Blum - D-18 (Vancouver) - Nashville (2007 1st round)
Garet Hunt - F-20 (Vancouver) - Vancouver (Free Agent)
Milan Lucic - F-19 (Vancouver) - Boston (2006 2nd round)
Spencer Machacek - F-19 (Vancouver) - Atlanta (2007 3rd round)
Michal Repik - F-19 (Vancouver) - Florida (2007 2nd round)
Tyson Sexsmith - G-18 (Vancouver) - San Jose (2007 3rd round)
Thursday news
Red Deer has invited two new overagers to camp, is the revelation from the Red Deer Advocate's camp preview. The new guys are forwards Adam Ross of Edmonton and Ryan Fuller from San Jose, CA. Ross played the last two years in the QMJHL while Fuller comes from the NAHL's Texas Tornados. Neither of them brings past numbers that would indicate they are likely to be big scorers in the WHL but they do provide some junior hockey experience and to a team that will be very short on that. Whether either of them even make the team will have to depend a lot on the NHL status of J.D. Watt, Brett Sutter, and Kirill Starkov.
At the other end of the overage picture, Everett released two of theirs, Damir Alic and Jesse Smyke, over the summer. Everett Herald writer Nick Patterson had that story on his blog today. So, the Tips actually have six guys (Campos, Crowley, Fiala, Gendur, Reekie, Sonne) competing for the three spots and not eight.
The Blades say they will not have a rookie camp this year and will instead bring just 74 players to main camp next week. They'll run three days of scrimmages and then pare down to about 26 players on Sept 1st. Considering they'll probably carry 24 players or so during the season, that's basically their team right there and that is a really, really short training camp. Three days to look at all your prospects of all ages and pick your team? It might be easier for them though since they have so many veteran players coming back that there really aren't a lot of spots open and some of the ones that are open are pretty well spoken for already.
Jesse Dudas is back in Prince George and says his glass body is healthy. The guy has the ability to be one of the better d-men in the league but he can't stay healthy. He missed 28 games in 04-05, 48 games in 05-06, and 40 games in 06-07. He has spent more games injured than he has played in his three years in the league. Add to that the quiet questions about how badly he WANTED to be healthy, and......any bets on how long into the season he suffers another season-ending injury?
Gregg Drinnan of the Kamloops Daily News has an excellent wrap-up of the current import situation around the league on his blog. Looks like a few 2007 import picks are no-shows: one each in Brandon, Chilliwack, Kelowna, and Regina.
There's tons of training camp stories available today from the various team sites, local newspapers, etc, etc. Not much very interesting so far though, as most stories are the usual "we're going to be better this year, our vets need to step up, we have an opening here and here and here" bland blah blah blah. Listening to coaches and G.M.'s spout that crap straight out of "Boring Interviews for Dummies" has to make sportwriters want to pound nails into their eardrums. Fortunately, with many teams opening camps today or tomorrow, there should start being more interesting news coming out. Who's cut, who's looking good for earning spots, which returning players did more ribs than reps this summer, etc, etc.
UPDATE: Moose Jaw has inked #1 overall bantam pick Quinton Howden to a WHL education contract. Story here.
At the other end of the overage picture, Everett released two of theirs, Damir Alic and Jesse Smyke, over the summer. Everett Herald writer Nick Patterson had that story on his blog today. So, the Tips actually have six guys (Campos, Crowley, Fiala, Gendur, Reekie, Sonne) competing for the three spots and not eight.
The Blades say they will not have a rookie camp this year and will instead bring just 74 players to main camp next week. They'll run three days of scrimmages and then pare down to about 26 players on Sept 1st. Considering they'll probably carry 24 players or so during the season, that's basically their team right there and that is a really, really short training camp. Three days to look at all your prospects of all ages and pick your team? It might be easier for them though since they have so many veteran players coming back that there really aren't a lot of spots open and some of the ones that are open are pretty well spoken for already.
Jesse Dudas is back in Prince George and says his glass body is healthy. The guy has the ability to be one of the better d-men in the league but he can't stay healthy. He missed 28 games in 04-05, 48 games in 05-06, and 40 games in 06-07. He has spent more games injured than he has played in his three years in the league. Add to that the quiet questions about how badly he WANTED to be healthy, and......any bets on how long into the season he suffers another season-ending injury?
Gregg Drinnan of the Kamloops Daily News has an excellent wrap-up of the current import situation around the league on his blog. Looks like a few 2007 import picks are no-shows: one each in Brandon, Chilliwack, Kelowna, and Regina.
There's tons of training camp stories available today from the various team sites, local newspapers, etc, etc. Not much very interesting so far though, as most stories are the usual "we're going to be better this year, our vets need to step up, we have an opening here and here and here" bland blah blah blah. Listening to coaches and G.M.'s spout that crap straight out of "Boring Interviews for Dummies" has to make sportwriters want to pound nails into their eardrums. Fortunately, with many teams opening camps today or tomorrow, there should start being more interesting news coming out. Who's cut, who's looking good for earning spots, which returning players did more ribs than reps this summer, etc, etc.
UPDATE: Moose Jaw has inked #1 overall bantam pick Quinton Howden to a WHL education contract. Story here.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Wednesday stuff
Recent news and stuff....
Portland unveiled their new web site yesterday. Seems OK to me although they need to use a different font for the text. Fun to see that the team owner has a blog on the site. Nobody else in the league has their owners blogging about team going-ons.
Broncos p-b-p guy Jon Keen has a wrap of yesterday's camp action on his blog. I thought WHL teams weren't allowed to open camps until tomorrow. Is this an official camp day for the Broncos or just an informal thing? I'll have to find out.
Profile on Bruins prospect Jadon Potter in the Chilliwack paper today. Thing I found most interesting about the piece is the mention that "Evan Piggin" is in the mix for a job there. Is this actually Evan Pighin, who played for Red Deer last year? He was traded to Prince George a month back and then told the Cougars he was going to play Jr A in Salmon Arm next year instead. Perhaps he had a change of heart if the Cougars dropped him from their list?
Maybe the most significant news of the day? Ondrej Fiala is back in Everett. You'll recall Fiala caused a stir when he left the team in midseason last year to go home and have surgery on his knee - surgery the Tips didn't think he needed to have. Apparently all is well now and he'll have a chance to play for them again this year as an overage import, provided he doesn't stick in the Minnesota Wild system. Of course there is the other matter of the Tips having two other imports and five other overagers already but you'd have to think he would have a good chance at making the team.
Still with Everett, beatwriter/blogger Nick Patterson says his information indicates that Dane Crowley should be back with the team as an overage this year. Getting more crowded in that Everett O/A situation by the day. I also note the Silvertips will apparently have a Ryan White of their own in camp this year. If he makes the team and the Kamloops one finds work in the league as an overage, there will be three Ryan Whites in the league this year. The third and best one is in Calgary of course.
In Vancouver, the Giants' Garet Hunt is headed to training camp with the Canucks (he chose them over another offer from the Oilers....so not only can the Oilers not get NHLers to come there, they can't get CHLers either) and says his hideously-broken leg is "25% stronger than last year. What did they do, replace the bone with titanium?
The University of Lethbridge Pronghorns mens hockey team announced their 07-08 key recruits yesterday and it includes several ex-WHLers. Goalies Jesse Deckert and Scott Bowles, and defencemen Curtis Cooper and Darren Deschamps for sure, plus a couple more unnamed forwards who are committed to the team if pro tryouts don't work out.
Portland unveiled their new web site yesterday. Seems OK to me although they need to use a different font for the text. Fun to see that the team owner has a blog on the site. Nobody else in the league has their owners blogging about team going-ons.
Broncos p-b-p guy Jon Keen has a wrap of yesterday's camp action on his blog. I thought WHL teams weren't allowed to open camps until tomorrow. Is this an official camp day for the Broncos or just an informal thing? I'll have to find out.
Profile on Bruins prospect Jadon Potter in the Chilliwack paper today. Thing I found most interesting about the piece is the mention that "Evan Piggin" is in the mix for a job there. Is this actually Evan Pighin, who played for Red Deer last year? He was traded to Prince George a month back and then told the Cougars he was going to play Jr A in Salmon Arm next year instead. Perhaps he had a change of heart if the Cougars dropped him from their list?
Maybe the most significant news of the day? Ondrej Fiala is back in Everett. You'll recall Fiala caused a stir when he left the team in midseason last year to go home and have surgery on his knee - surgery the Tips didn't think he needed to have. Apparently all is well now and he'll have a chance to play for them again this year as an overage import, provided he doesn't stick in the Minnesota Wild system. Of course there is the other matter of the Tips having two other imports and five other overagers already but you'd have to think he would have a good chance at making the team.
Still with Everett, beatwriter/blogger Nick Patterson says his information indicates that Dane Crowley should be back with the team as an overage this year. Getting more crowded in that Everett O/A situation by the day. I also note the Silvertips will apparently have a Ryan White of their own in camp this year. If he makes the team and the Kamloops one finds work in the league as an overage, there will be three Ryan Whites in the league this year. The third and best one is in Calgary of course.
In Vancouver, the Giants' Garet Hunt is headed to training camp with the Canucks (he chose them over another offer from the Oilers....so not only can the Oilers not get NHLers to come there, they can't get CHLers either) and says his hideously-broken leg is "25% stronger than last year. What did they do, replace the bone with titanium?
The University of Lethbridge Pronghorns mens hockey team announced their 07-08 key recruits yesterday and it includes several ex-WHLers. Goalies Jesse Deckert and Scott Bowles, and defencemen Curtis Cooper and Darren Deschamps for sure, plus a couple more unnamed forwards who are committed to the team if pro tryouts don't work out.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Todays news
Jim Swanson of the Prince George Citizen has a good writeup on upcoming Cougars camp. Amongst the things divulged in the article that I didn't know before is that 06-07 Cougars tough guy Kyle Klym was released by the team over the summer.
In the Hat, the Tigers' new goalie is in town. And in other Tigers news, former Tiger Kieran Block is recovering from serious leg injuries suffered while cliff-jumping. That article here.
In Moose Jaw, the injured Garrett Robinson will attend Warriors camp. As it says in the article, it is extremely unlikely that he will ever be able to play in the WHL again. But, it's great to see him progressing as well as he has.
The Hitmen announce that Keegan Dansereau and Ian Duval have received NHL free agent tryouts. Dansereau is going to Florida Panthers camp and Duval to Tampa Bay's.
In the Hat, the Tigers' new goalie is in town. And in other Tigers news, former Tiger Kieran Block is recovering from serious leg injuries suffered while cliff-jumping. That article here.
In Moose Jaw, the injured Garrett Robinson will attend Warriors camp. As it says in the article, it is extremely unlikely that he will ever be able to play in the WHL again. But, it's great to see him progressing as well as he has.
The Hitmen announce that Keegan Dansereau and Ian Duval have received NHL free agent tryouts. Dansereau is going to Florida Panthers camp and Duval to Tampa Bay's.
More veteran stuff
As promised a while back, some more looking at the veteran strengths of the teams heading into this season.....while every team will have some rookies who make impacts, championships are usually won or lost on the strength of your 18-20 year olds, not your 16 and 17 year olds.
As before, a "veteran" for the purposes of this is any player who has played at least 15 games (RS or PLF) in the league. And again, a caveat: I'm not taking into consideration the quality of the players here. A team with five veteran defencemen is a team with five veteran defencemen here, whether those are five NHL first rounders or five plugs who will be lucky to survive training camp this year.
And one more thing, all numbers below assume that the overage picks I made yesterday hold true. If you disagree with any picks for team overagers, you'll have to recalculate these numbers for that team using the career games total of the O/A of your choice instead.
Anyway, by position here....numbers are total # of veteran players, followed by number of games those players have in the league, and then the average number of games for each player. Teams are sorted by # of vets and then average games.
Goaltenders:
Edmonton Oil Kings: 3 vets. 154 gp, 51.33 avg
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 2 vets. 156 gp, 78 avg
Calgary Hitmen: 2 vets. 133 gp, 66.5 avg
Spokane Chiefs: 2 vets. 133 gp, 66.5 avg
Kelowna Rockets: 2 vets. 126 gp, 63 avg
Red Deer Rebels: 2 vets. 123 gp, 61.5 avg
Saskatoon Blades: 2 vets. 73 gp, 36.5 avg
Moose Jaw Warriors: 1 vet. 177 gp, 177 avg
Everett Silvertips: 1 vet. 163 gp, 163 avg
Kamloops Blazers: 1 vet. 150 gp, 150 avg
Prince George Cougars: 1 vet. 125 gp, 125 avg
Portland Winter Hawks: 1 vet. 111 gp, 111 avg
Regina Pats: 1 vet. 89 gp, 89 avg
Vancouver Giants: 1 vet. 88 gp, 88 avg
Kootenay Ice: 1 vet. 58 gp, 58 avg
Tri-City Americans: 1 vet. 58 gp, 58 avg
Chilliwack Bruins: 1 vet. 52 gp, 52 avg
Swift Current Broncos: 1 vet. 45 gp, 45 avg
Seattle Thunderbirds: 1 vet. 32 gp, 32 avg
Prince Albert Raiders: 1 vet. 30 gp, 30 avg
Brandon Wheat Kings: 1 vet. 20 gp, 20 avg
Medicine Hat Tigers: 1 vet. 17 gp, 17 avg
Notes - Yes, Edmonton has three veteran goalies: Archibald, Flette, and Tartaglione. They actually have four if you count Chris Ward, who falls short of the arbitrary 15 game requirement. A good example of how quantity <> quality.
Also note that a few teams (Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Seattle) have 18/19 year old Euro goalies coming to camp who are not counted in these totals. New Euros aren't counted in the defencemen and forwards below either.
Defencemen:
Prince Albert Raiders: 8 vets. 1066 gp, 133.25 avg
Calgary Hitmen: 7 vets. 1073 gp, 153.29 avg
Swift Current Broncos: 7 vets. 846 gp, 120.86 avg
Chilliwack Bruins: 7 vets. 567 gp, 81 avg
Everett Silvertips: 6 vets. 879 gp, 146.5 avg
Regina Pats: 6 vets. 804 gp, 134 avg
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 6 vets. 554 gp, 92.33 avg
Tri-City Americans: 6 vets. 280 gp, 46.67 avg
Edmonton Oil Kings: 5 vets. 907 gp, 181.4 avg
Kamloops Blazers: 5 vets. 764 gp, 152.8 avg
Prince George Cougars: 5 vets. 742 gp, 148.4 avg
Seattle Thunderbirds: 5 vets. 683 gp, 136.6 avg
Brandon Wheat Kings: 5 vets. 664 gp, 132.8 avg
Medicine Hat Tigers: 5 vets. 618 gp, 123.6 avg
Kelowna Rockets: 5 vets. 563 gp, 112.6 avg
Vancouver Giants: 5 vets. 553 gp, 110.6 avg
Kootenay Ice: 5 vets. 509 gp, 101.8 avg
Spokane Chiefs: 5 vets. 450 gp, 90 avg
Saskatoon Blades: 5 vets. 321 gp, 64.2 avg
Moose Jaw Warriors: 5 vets. 311 gp, 62.2 avg
Portland Winter Hawks: 5 vets. 285 gp, 57 avg
Red Deer Rebels: 4 vets. 240 gp, 60 avg
Notes: a good reason why the Raiders won't likely carry three O/A defencemen, as I mentioned yesterday. But as it stands, teams like P.A., Calgary, and Swift can roll out at least four d-men each who all have at least 120+ games in the league. Calgary has five guys at 150+ games. And Edmonton - yes, Edmonton - has four guys at 150+ and three of them are 200+ games experienced. You don't play that long in the league without being a competent player, so this is a big plus for a team like the Oil Kings. Maybe they can't score but they should at least be able to defend. Not to mention that those veteran defencemen should be in demand by contenders at the trade deadline. They could speed up the building process through a few trades come January.
Red Deer's defence is even younger when you consider that 164 of their 240 total games experience belong to Luke Egener. The other three (Morin, Scarborough, Levarsky) have 76 games combined. Similar in Portland (Gabriel has 108 of those games), Moose Jaw (Ehrhardt has 134 of theirs) and Saskatoon (Ward has 139 of their total).
Forwards:
Moose Jaw Warriors: 13 vets. 1794 gp, 138 avg
Saskatoon Blades: 12 vets. 1551 gp, 129.25 avg
Everett Silvertips: 12 vets. 1452 gp, 121 avg
Portland Winter Hawks: 12 vets. 1222 gp, 101.83 avg
Vancouver Giants: 11 vets. 1703 gp, 154.82 avg
Regina Pats: 11 vets. 1651 gp, 150.09 avg
Seattle Thunderbirds: 11 vets. 1594 gp, 144.91 avg
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 11 vets. 1456 gp, 132.36 avg
Prince Albert Raiders: 11 vets. 1235 gp, 112.27 avg
Kelowna Rockets: 11 vets. 1044 gp, 94.91 avg
Chilliwack Bruins: 11 vets. 926 gp, 84.18 avg
Medicine Hat Tigers: 10 vets. 1458 gp, 145.8 avg
Kootenay Ice: 10 vets. 1385 gp, 138.5 avg
Kamloops Blazers: 10 vets. 1076 gp, 107.6 avg
Swift Current Broncos: 10 vets. 1020 gp, 102 avg
Spokane Chiefs: 10 vets. 1017 gp, 101.7 avg
Calgary Hitmen: 9 vets. 1498 gp, 166.44 avg
Prince George Cougars: 8 vets. 1055 gp, 131.88 avg
Tri-City Americans: 8 vets. 959 gp, 119.88 avg
Brandon Wheat Kings: 7 vets. 649 gp, 92.71 avg
Red Deer Rebels: 6 vets. 898 gp, 149.67 avg
Edmonton Oil Kings: 6 vets. 588 gp, 98 avg
Notes: look at the averages and not just the totals here....Chilliwack has a decent 11 vets but as a group they are the least experienced bunch. Red Deer has only six vets but by average they are 4th-highest.
Vancouver may be rebuilding but they can roll out eight forwards (almost three full lines!) who all have 150+ games played. Moose Jaw and Calgary can put out six 150+ guys each. At the other end, Chilliwack, Swift Current, and Tri-City all have only one 150+ game guy.
More notes later when I have some time.
As before, a "veteran" for the purposes of this is any player who has played at least 15 games (RS or PLF) in the league. And again, a caveat: I'm not taking into consideration the quality of the players here. A team with five veteran defencemen is a team with five veteran defencemen here, whether those are five NHL first rounders or five plugs who will be lucky to survive training camp this year.
And one more thing, all numbers below assume that the overage picks I made yesterday hold true. If you disagree with any picks for team overagers, you'll have to recalculate these numbers for that team using the career games total of the O/A of your choice instead.
Anyway, by position here....numbers are total # of veteran players, followed by number of games those players have in the league, and then the average number of games for each player. Teams are sorted by # of vets and then average games.
Goaltenders:
Edmonton Oil Kings: 3 vets. 154 gp, 51.33 avg
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 2 vets. 156 gp, 78 avg
Calgary Hitmen: 2 vets. 133 gp, 66.5 avg
Spokane Chiefs: 2 vets. 133 gp, 66.5 avg
Kelowna Rockets: 2 vets. 126 gp, 63 avg
Red Deer Rebels: 2 vets. 123 gp, 61.5 avg
Saskatoon Blades: 2 vets. 73 gp, 36.5 avg
Moose Jaw Warriors: 1 vet. 177 gp, 177 avg
Everett Silvertips: 1 vet. 163 gp, 163 avg
Kamloops Blazers: 1 vet. 150 gp, 150 avg
Prince George Cougars: 1 vet. 125 gp, 125 avg
Portland Winter Hawks: 1 vet. 111 gp, 111 avg
Regina Pats: 1 vet. 89 gp, 89 avg
Vancouver Giants: 1 vet. 88 gp, 88 avg
Kootenay Ice: 1 vet. 58 gp, 58 avg
Tri-City Americans: 1 vet. 58 gp, 58 avg
Chilliwack Bruins: 1 vet. 52 gp, 52 avg
Swift Current Broncos: 1 vet. 45 gp, 45 avg
Seattle Thunderbirds: 1 vet. 32 gp, 32 avg
Prince Albert Raiders: 1 vet. 30 gp, 30 avg
Brandon Wheat Kings: 1 vet. 20 gp, 20 avg
Medicine Hat Tigers: 1 vet. 17 gp, 17 avg
Notes - Yes, Edmonton has three veteran goalies: Archibald, Flette, and Tartaglione. They actually have four if you count Chris Ward, who falls short of the arbitrary 15 game requirement. A good example of how quantity <> quality.
Also note that a few teams (Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Seattle) have 18/19 year old Euro goalies coming to camp who are not counted in these totals. New Euros aren't counted in the defencemen and forwards below either.
Defencemen:
Prince Albert Raiders: 8 vets. 1066 gp, 133.25 avg
Calgary Hitmen: 7 vets. 1073 gp, 153.29 avg
Swift Current Broncos: 7 vets. 846 gp, 120.86 avg
Chilliwack Bruins: 7 vets. 567 gp, 81 avg
Everett Silvertips: 6 vets. 879 gp, 146.5 avg
Regina Pats: 6 vets. 804 gp, 134 avg
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 6 vets. 554 gp, 92.33 avg
Tri-City Americans: 6 vets. 280 gp, 46.67 avg
Edmonton Oil Kings: 5 vets. 907 gp, 181.4 avg
Kamloops Blazers: 5 vets. 764 gp, 152.8 avg
Prince George Cougars: 5 vets. 742 gp, 148.4 avg
Seattle Thunderbirds: 5 vets. 683 gp, 136.6 avg
Brandon Wheat Kings: 5 vets. 664 gp, 132.8 avg
Medicine Hat Tigers: 5 vets. 618 gp, 123.6 avg
Kelowna Rockets: 5 vets. 563 gp, 112.6 avg
Vancouver Giants: 5 vets. 553 gp, 110.6 avg
Kootenay Ice: 5 vets. 509 gp, 101.8 avg
Spokane Chiefs: 5 vets. 450 gp, 90 avg
Saskatoon Blades: 5 vets. 321 gp, 64.2 avg
Moose Jaw Warriors: 5 vets. 311 gp, 62.2 avg
Portland Winter Hawks: 5 vets. 285 gp, 57 avg
Red Deer Rebels: 4 vets. 240 gp, 60 avg
Notes: a good reason why the Raiders won't likely carry three O/A defencemen, as I mentioned yesterday. But as it stands, teams like P.A., Calgary, and Swift can roll out at least four d-men each who all have at least 120+ games in the league. Calgary has five guys at 150+ games. And Edmonton - yes, Edmonton - has four guys at 150+ and three of them are 200+ games experienced. You don't play that long in the league without being a competent player, so this is a big plus for a team like the Oil Kings. Maybe they can't score but they should at least be able to defend. Not to mention that those veteran defencemen should be in demand by contenders at the trade deadline. They could speed up the building process through a few trades come January.
Red Deer's defence is even younger when you consider that 164 of their 240 total games experience belong to Luke Egener. The other three (Morin, Scarborough, Levarsky) have 76 games combined. Similar in Portland (Gabriel has 108 of those games), Moose Jaw (Ehrhardt has 134 of theirs) and Saskatoon (Ward has 139 of their total).
Forwards:
Moose Jaw Warriors: 13 vets. 1794 gp, 138 avg
Saskatoon Blades: 12 vets. 1551 gp, 129.25 avg
Everett Silvertips: 12 vets. 1452 gp, 121 avg
Portland Winter Hawks: 12 vets. 1222 gp, 101.83 avg
Vancouver Giants: 11 vets. 1703 gp, 154.82 avg
Regina Pats: 11 vets. 1651 gp, 150.09 avg
Seattle Thunderbirds: 11 vets. 1594 gp, 144.91 avg
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 11 vets. 1456 gp, 132.36 avg
Prince Albert Raiders: 11 vets. 1235 gp, 112.27 avg
Kelowna Rockets: 11 vets. 1044 gp, 94.91 avg
Chilliwack Bruins: 11 vets. 926 gp, 84.18 avg
Medicine Hat Tigers: 10 vets. 1458 gp, 145.8 avg
Kootenay Ice: 10 vets. 1385 gp, 138.5 avg
Kamloops Blazers: 10 vets. 1076 gp, 107.6 avg
Swift Current Broncos: 10 vets. 1020 gp, 102 avg
Spokane Chiefs: 10 vets. 1017 gp, 101.7 avg
Calgary Hitmen: 9 vets. 1498 gp, 166.44 avg
Prince George Cougars: 8 vets. 1055 gp, 131.88 avg
Tri-City Americans: 8 vets. 959 gp, 119.88 avg
Brandon Wheat Kings: 7 vets. 649 gp, 92.71 avg
Red Deer Rebels: 6 vets. 898 gp, 149.67 avg
Edmonton Oil Kings: 6 vets. 588 gp, 98 avg
Notes: look at the averages and not just the totals here....Chilliwack has a decent 11 vets but as a group they are the least experienced bunch. Red Deer has only six vets but by average they are 4th-highest.
Vancouver may be rebuilding but they can roll out eight forwards (almost three full lines!) who all have 150+ games played. Moose Jaw and Calgary can put out six 150+ guys each. At the other end, Chilliwack, Swift Current, and Tri-City all have only one 150+ game guy.
More notes later when I have some time.
Moffatt stays away
2nd overall bantam pick Luke Moffatt has told the Kelowna Rockets that he will not attend their training camp next week.
Rockets head scout Lorne Frey is saying all the right things (about giving Moffatt time to make up his mind, etc) but you have to know this is not a good sign. Moffatt can attend Rockets camp for two days without affecting his future NCAA eligibility, so why would he not make the effort to go there if he was at all interested in the WHL as a career option? In fact, he can attend their entire camp if he wants, and as long as he pays his own expenses there, he can still go NCAA if he later chooses. So, this doesn't strike me as a good situation for the Rockets. Why would a player who has any interest in the WHL and has never attended a WHL camp before choose not to attend a WHL training camp and see how he likes the surroundings, how he stacks up against WHLers on the ice, etc. So unless Moffatt has something else going on that week which prevents him from attending, you'd have to think that this decision shows something less than a ton of enthusiasm about playing in the WHL.
But, they knew the risks when they picked him. And in Moffatt's defense, as far as we know he has yet to tell a single WHL team that "yes, I will play there". We know for a fact that he wouldn't tell Portland that, and that's why they didn't pick him first overall. Kelowna decided he was too good to pass up at #2 and certainly right now this looks more like it's going to blow up in their faces than it did on that May day.
Rockets head scout Lorne Frey is saying all the right things (about giving Moffatt time to make up his mind, etc) but you have to know this is not a good sign. Moffatt can attend Rockets camp for two days without affecting his future NCAA eligibility, so why would he not make the effort to go there if he was at all interested in the WHL as a career option? In fact, he can attend their entire camp if he wants, and as long as he pays his own expenses there, he can still go NCAA if he later chooses. So, this doesn't strike me as a good situation for the Rockets. Why would a player who has any interest in the WHL and has never attended a WHL camp before choose not to attend a WHL training camp and see how he likes the surroundings, how he stacks up against WHLers on the ice, etc. So unless Moffatt has something else going on that week which prevents him from attending, you'd have to think that this decision shows something less than a ton of enthusiasm about playing in the WHL.
But, they knew the risks when they picked him. And in Moffatt's defense, as far as we know he has yet to tell a single WHL team that "yes, I will play there". We know for a fact that he wouldn't tell Portland that, and that's why they didn't pick him first overall. Kelowna decided he was too good to pass up at #2 and certainly right now this looks more like it's going to blow up in their faces than it did on that May day.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Current overage picture
A look at the current overage picture around the league, with my picks for who each team will eventually go with when cutdown day arrives October 11:
Brandon Wheat Kings:
--------------------
In: Daryl Boyle (D), Tyler Dittmer (F), Theran Yeo (D)
Out: Codey Burki (F), Bryan Kauk (F), Dustin Kohn (D), Mark Louis (D), Tyler Plante (G), Ryan Reaves (F), Juraj Simek (F)
Reasoning: Burki, Kohn, Plante, Reaves, and Simek are gone to the pros. Kauk has informed the team he will pursue Jr A opportunities instead. That leaves Boyle, Dittmer, Yeo, and Louis for three spots and I don't think they'll go with three O/A defencemen. Louis is a decent guy but they need Boyle's offence and Yeo's toughness more.
Calgary Hitmen:
--------------------
In: Ryan Gillen (D), Dan Mercer (D), Riley Merkley (F)
Out: Brodie Dupont (F), Fredrik Petterson (F)
Reasoning: Dupont and Petterson are gone to the pros and Sweden, respectively. That leaves only three players for the three spots. The worthiness of Gillen to have a spot is debateable but until they cut him or get somebody else, it's his.
Chilliwack Bruins:
--------------------
In: Dylan Chapman (D), Nick Holden (D), Ken Petkau (F)
Out: none
Reasoning: No extras and those three make fine choices.
Edmonton Oil Kings:
--------------------
In: Alex Archibald (G), Michael Hengen (D), Karey Pieper (F), Bretton Stamler (D), Matt Swaby (D)
Out: none
Reasoning: Again, no extras here since the Oil Kings are allowed five O/As this year.
Everett Silvertips:
--------------------
In: Dane Crowley (D), Dan Gendur (F), Brennan Sonne (F)
Out: Damir Alic (F), Brandon Campos (F), Ondrej Fiala (F), David Reekie (G), Jesse Smyke (F)
Reasoning: Fiala isn't coming back but the rest are. Slight chance Crowley could turn pro but I think he'll be back. Crowley and Gendur are shoo-ins, leaving one choice from the rest of the pack. No place for an overage goalie (they need to groom an eventual replacement for Leland Irving this year) so Reekie is out. Of the rest, I think Campos has some untapped potential, but Sonne has some grit to his game as well as being money in the bank in shootouts for some reason.
Kamloops Blazers:
--------------------
In: Ryan Bender (D), Dustin Butler (G), Brock Nixon (F)
Out: Brady Mason (F), Ryan White (D)
Reasoning: Nothing against Mason and White, but the other three are better. Nixon was the leading scorer last year, Butler (for all his inconsistencies last year) is the only returning goalie, and Bender is bigger and tougher than White, all else being equal between the two.
Kelowna Rockets:
--------------------
In: James McEwan (F), Kris Westblom (G)
Out: none
Reasoning: They're the only two here so no decisions need to be made. McEwen could be the captain. If the Rockets want to fill the third spot, there will likely be some good candidates made available in the next month.
Kootenay Ice:
--------------------
In: Clayton Bauer (F), Steve DaSilva (F), Chad Greenan (D)
Out: Lukas Bohunicky (D), Paul Kurceba (D), Ryan Russell (F), Luke Wiens (F)
Reasoning: Russell and Bohunicky are gone, while Wiens was a one-dimensional tough guy who doesn't merit an overage spot. Since DaSilva (leading scorer) and Greenan (45 pts from the blueline last year) are pretty safe bets, that leaves the decision between the forward Bauer and the defenceman Kurceba. Got to think they'll go with Bauer's 50 points.
Lethbridge Hurricanes:
--------------------
In: Jacob Dietrich (F), Yashar Farmanara (F), Randy King (D)
Out: Tomas Kudelka (D), Nicolaus Knudsen (D), Lukas Vantuch (F)
Reasoning: Kudelka and Vantuch are gone. I think Dietrich and Farmanara are good bets, leaving King vs Knudsen for the defence spot. Probably King gets it.
Medicine Hat Tigers:
--------------------
In: Jerrid Sauer (F), Daine Todd (F), Kevin Undershute (F)
Out: Gord Baldwin (D), Darren Helm (F), Jakub Rumpel (F), Kris Russell (D), Michael Sauer (D), David Schlemko (D)
Reasoning: Baldwin, Helm, Rumpel, Russell, Sauer, and Schlemko are gone. That leaves the other three, who still make a good trio of O/A's
Moose Jaw Warriors:
--------------------
In: Terrance Delaronde (F), Joey Perricone (G), Keith Voytechek (F)
Out: Martin Grundling (D), Kurt Jory (G)
Reasoning: No need for two O/A goalies which means that Jory likely won't be back unless Perricone isn't for some reason. Perricone had a rough year last year but his play in the 2006 playoffs showed he can be a #1. Jory hasn't shown that. Delaronde and Voytechek fill the other two spots nicely unless Grundling does come back as an overage import, as some speculation has him doing. A decision is required in that case - but not until we see the whites of Grundling's eyes anyway.
Portland Winter Hawks:
--------------------
In: Nicholas Hotson (F), Frazer McLaren (F)
Out: none
Reasoning: McLaren could have some pro potential (San Jose) but either way there are no decisions to be made here about cutting or trading anyone.
Prince Albert Raiders:
--------------------
In: John Flatters (D), Mike Gauthier (D), Jeff May (D)
Out: Jarrid Dowhay (F)
Reasoning: Three O/A defencemen? Unlikely we see that come true in the end, but Dowhay is clearly the worst of the four so at this point, Flatters-Gauthier-May are my picks.
Prince George Cougars:
--------------------
In: Real Cyr (G), Greg Gardner (F), Kalvin Sagert (D)
Out: Nick Drazenovic (F), Vladimir Mihalik (D), Curtis Patterson (D), Richard Rapac (F), Devin Setoguchi (F)
Reasoning: Drazenovic, Mihalik, Rapac, and Setoguchi are gone. Cyr is the starting goalie so he's got a job, while Sagert and Gardner are well ahead of Patterson in the pecking order.
Red Deer Rebels:
--------------------
In: Pierre-Paul Lamoureux (F)
Out: Martin Hanzal (F), Jason Lynch (D), Kirill Starkov (F), Brett Sutter (F), J.D. Watt (F)
Reasoning: Hanzal, Sutter, and Watt are gone to the pros while Lynch is leaving the WHL to go to university. There is an outside chance that Starkov may be returned to the WHL by the Columbus Blue Jackets, which is probably why the Rebels only drafted one Euro in the import draft despite having room for two. Rumours abound that Sutter (unlikely) or Watt (only slightly more likely) will be returned to the Rebels from the Calgary Flames minor league system, but like with Grundling, wait 'til they show up. That leaves only the versatile Lamoureux with a for-sure spot right now and it's not really very for-sure either.
Regina Pats:
--------------------
In: Troy Ofukany (F), Justin Scott (F)
Out: Kaspars Saulietis (F), Myles Stoesz (F)
Reasoning: Ofukany and Scott will be there, although Scott might not be there for long if he can't prove he can play on the top couple lines. Saulietis and Stoesz are less likely although both are possibilities. Saulietis is believed to be coming to camp but the Pats have two new Euros that he'd have to beat out. Stoesz could turn pro or could also be returned for another year in junior.
Saskatoon Blades:
--------------------
In: Chris Durand (F), Michael Kaye (F)
Out: none
Reasoning: both these guys have been acquired by trade already this summer. There's room for one more.
Seattle Thunderbirds:
--------------------
In: Andre Herman (F), Scott Jackson (D), Ian McKenzie (F)
Out: Benn Olson (D)
Reasoning: Assuming Jackson doesn't earn a contract off an NHL tryout somewhere, this should be the three since Benn Olson is still rather one-dimensional. If Jackson doesn't come back though, Olson could be in luck.
Spokane Chiefs:
--------------------
In: Judd Blackwater (F), Chris Bruton (F), David Rutherford (F)
Out: Michael Grabner (F), Adam Hobson (F), David Linsley (F), Sean Zimmerman (D)
Reasoning: Grabner, Hobson, and Zimmerman are gone to the pros. Of the other three, Linsley's contributions are the smallest. That puts him on the outside.
Swift Current Broncos:
--------------------
In: R.J. LaRochelle (D), Brady Leavold (F), Michael Wilson (D)
Out: Daniel Rakos (F)
Reasoning: Rakos will not return as an overage import, leaving the other three to the spots.
Tri-City Americans:
--------------------
In: T.J. Fast (D), Erik Felde (F), Colton Yellow Horn (F)
Out: Tanner Gillies (F), Carey Price (G), Shaun Vey (F)
Reasoning: Tanner Gillies has retired and Carey Price will turn pro. Yellow Horn could/should score 50 goals one of these years so he's not going anywhere, and Fast is the lone defenceman on a blueline that can probably use some older players so he's probably sticking around too. Felde vs Vey for the third spot, tough call. Going to go with Felde because of Vey's history of injuries and inconsistency, but Vey will fetch a good price in a trade with somebody.
Vancouver Giants:
--------------------
In: Garet Hunt (F), Tim Kraus (F), Mike Wuchterl (F)
Out: Mario Bliznak (F), Cody Franson (D), Kenndal McArdle (F), Brendan Mikkelson (D), Blaine Neufeld (G)
Reasoning: Bliznak, Franson, McArdle, and Mikkelson are gone. That leaves only the other three plus goalie Neufeld but they don't need an overage backup goalie with the 18 year old Sexsmith being their starter. Kraus is in the Don Hay doghouse and could be trade bait but until then, he's got one of the spots. Hunt and Wuchterl are similar type players but Hunt isn't going anywhere.
Brandon Wheat Kings:
--------------------
In: Daryl Boyle (D), Tyler Dittmer (F), Theran Yeo (D)
Out: Codey Burki (F), Bryan Kauk (F), Dustin Kohn (D), Mark Louis (D), Tyler Plante (G), Ryan Reaves (F), Juraj Simek (F)
Reasoning: Burki, Kohn, Plante, Reaves, and Simek are gone to the pros. Kauk has informed the team he will pursue Jr A opportunities instead. That leaves Boyle, Dittmer, Yeo, and Louis for three spots and I don't think they'll go with three O/A defencemen. Louis is a decent guy but they need Boyle's offence and Yeo's toughness more.
Calgary Hitmen:
--------------------
In: Ryan Gillen (D), Dan Mercer (D), Riley Merkley (F)
Out: Brodie Dupont (F), Fredrik Petterson (F)
Reasoning: Dupont and Petterson are gone to the pros and Sweden, respectively. That leaves only three players for the three spots. The worthiness of Gillen to have a spot is debateable but until they cut him or get somebody else, it's his.
Chilliwack Bruins:
--------------------
In: Dylan Chapman (D), Nick Holden (D), Ken Petkau (F)
Out: none
Reasoning: No extras and those three make fine choices.
Edmonton Oil Kings:
--------------------
In: Alex Archibald (G), Michael Hengen (D), Karey Pieper (F), Bretton Stamler (D), Matt Swaby (D)
Out: none
Reasoning: Again, no extras here since the Oil Kings are allowed five O/As this year.
Everett Silvertips:
--------------------
In: Dane Crowley (D), Dan Gendur (F), Brennan Sonne (F)
Out: Damir Alic (F), Brandon Campos (F), Ondrej Fiala (F), David Reekie (G), Jesse Smyke (F)
Reasoning: Fiala isn't coming back but the rest are. Slight chance Crowley could turn pro but I think he'll be back. Crowley and Gendur are shoo-ins, leaving one choice from the rest of the pack. No place for an overage goalie (they need to groom an eventual replacement for Leland Irving this year) so Reekie is out. Of the rest, I think Campos has some untapped potential, but Sonne has some grit to his game as well as being money in the bank in shootouts for some reason.
Kamloops Blazers:
--------------------
In: Ryan Bender (D), Dustin Butler (G), Brock Nixon (F)
Out: Brady Mason (F), Ryan White (D)
Reasoning: Nothing against Mason and White, but the other three are better. Nixon was the leading scorer last year, Butler (for all his inconsistencies last year) is the only returning goalie, and Bender is bigger and tougher than White, all else being equal between the two.
Kelowna Rockets:
--------------------
In: James McEwan (F), Kris Westblom (G)
Out: none
Reasoning: They're the only two here so no decisions need to be made. McEwen could be the captain. If the Rockets want to fill the third spot, there will likely be some good candidates made available in the next month.
Kootenay Ice:
--------------------
In: Clayton Bauer (F), Steve DaSilva (F), Chad Greenan (D)
Out: Lukas Bohunicky (D), Paul Kurceba (D), Ryan Russell (F), Luke Wiens (F)
Reasoning: Russell and Bohunicky are gone, while Wiens was a one-dimensional tough guy who doesn't merit an overage spot. Since DaSilva (leading scorer) and Greenan (45 pts from the blueline last year) are pretty safe bets, that leaves the decision between the forward Bauer and the defenceman Kurceba. Got to think they'll go with Bauer's 50 points.
Lethbridge Hurricanes:
--------------------
In: Jacob Dietrich (F), Yashar Farmanara (F), Randy King (D)
Out: Tomas Kudelka (D), Nicolaus Knudsen (D), Lukas Vantuch (F)
Reasoning: Kudelka and Vantuch are gone. I think Dietrich and Farmanara are good bets, leaving King vs Knudsen for the defence spot. Probably King gets it.
Medicine Hat Tigers:
--------------------
In: Jerrid Sauer (F), Daine Todd (F), Kevin Undershute (F)
Out: Gord Baldwin (D), Darren Helm (F), Jakub Rumpel (F), Kris Russell (D), Michael Sauer (D), David Schlemko (D)
Reasoning: Baldwin, Helm, Rumpel, Russell, Sauer, and Schlemko are gone. That leaves the other three, who still make a good trio of O/A's
Moose Jaw Warriors:
--------------------
In: Terrance Delaronde (F), Joey Perricone (G), Keith Voytechek (F)
Out: Martin Grundling (D), Kurt Jory (G)
Reasoning: No need for two O/A goalies which means that Jory likely won't be back unless Perricone isn't for some reason. Perricone had a rough year last year but his play in the 2006 playoffs showed he can be a #1. Jory hasn't shown that. Delaronde and Voytechek fill the other two spots nicely unless Grundling does come back as an overage import, as some speculation has him doing. A decision is required in that case - but not until we see the whites of Grundling's eyes anyway.
Portland Winter Hawks:
--------------------
In: Nicholas Hotson (F), Frazer McLaren (F)
Out: none
Reasoning: McLaren could have some pro potential (San Jose) but either way there are no decisions to be made here about cutting or trading anyone.
Prince Albert Raiders:
--------------------
In: John Flatters (D), Mike Gauthier (D), Jeff May (D)
Out: Jarrid Dowhay (F)
Reasoning: Three O/A defencemen? Unlikely we see that come true in the end, but Dowhay is clearly the worst of the four so at this point, Flatters-Gauthier-May are my picks.
Prince George Cougars:
--------------------
In: Real Cyr (G), Greg Gardner (F), Kalvin Sagert (D)
Out: Nick Drazenovic (F), Vladimir Mihalik (D), Curtis Patterson (D), Richard Rapac (F), Devin Setoguchi (F)
Reasoning: Drazenovic, Mihalik, Rapac, and Setoguchi are gone. Cyr is the starting goalie so he's got a job, while Sagert and Gardner are well ahead of Patterson in the pecking order.
Red Deer Rebels:
--------------------
In: Pierre-Paul Lamoureux (F)
Out: Martin Hanzal (F), Jason Lynch (D), Kirill Starkov (F), Brett Sutter (F), J.D. Watt (F)
Reasoning: Hanzal, Sutter, and Watt are gone to the pros while Lynch is leaving the WHL to go to university. There is an outside chance that Starkov may be returned to the WHL by the Columbus Blue Jackets, which is probably why the Rebels only drafted one Euro in the import draft despite having room for two. Rumours abound that Sutter (unlikely) or Watt (only slightly more likely) will be returned to the Rebels from the Calgary Flames minor league system, but like with Grundling, wait 'til they show up. That leaves only the versatile Lamoureux with a for-sure spot right now and it's not really very for-sure either.
Regina Pats:
--------------------
In: Troy Ofukany (F), Justin Scott (F)
Out: Kaspars Saulietis (F), Myles Stoesz (F)
Reasoning: Ofukany and Scott will be there, although Scott might not be there for long if he can't prove he can play on the top couple lines. Saulietis and Stoesz are less likely although both are possibilities. Saulietis is believed to be coming to camp but the Pats have two new Euros that he'd have to beat out. Stoesz could turn pro or could also be returned for another year in junior.
Saskatoon Blades:
--------------------
In: Chris Durand (F), Michael Kaye (F)
Out: none
Reasoning: both these guys have been acquired by trade already this summer. There's room for one more.
Seattle Thunderbirds:
--------------------
In: Andre Herman (F), Scott Jackson (D), Ian McKenzie (F)
Out: Benn Olson (D)
Reasoning: Assuming Jackson doesn't earn a contract off an NHL tryout somewhere, this should be the three since Benn Olson is still rather one-dimensional. If Jackson doesn't come back though, Olson could be in luck.
Spokane Chiefs:
--------------------
In: Judd Blackwater (F), Chris Bruton (F), David Rutherford (F)
Out: Michael Grabner (F), Adam Hobson (F), David Linsley (F), Sean Zimmerman (D)
Reasoning: Grabner, Hobson, and Zimmerman are gone to the pros. Of the other three, Linsley's contributions are the smallest. That puts him on the outside.
Swift Current Broncos:
--------------------
In: R.J. LaRochelle (D), Brady Leavold (F), Michael Wilson (D)
Out: Daniel Rakos (F)
Reasoning: Rakos will not return as an overage import, leaving the other three to the spots.
Tri-City Americans:
--------------------
In: T.J. Fast (D), Erik Felde (F), Colton Yellow Horn (F)
Out: Tanner Gillies (F), Carey Price (G), Shaun Vey (F)
Reasoning: Tanner Gillies has retired and Carey Price will turn pro. Yellow Horn could/should score 50 goals one of these years so he's not going anywhere, and Fast is the lone defenceman on a blueline that can probably use some older players so he's probably sticking around too. Felde vs Vey for the third spot, tough call. Going to go with Felde because of Vey's history of injuries and inconsistency, but Vey will fetch a good price in a trade with somebody.
Vancouver Giants:
--------------------
In: Garet Hunt (F), Tim Kraus (F), Mike Wuchterl (F)
Out: Mario Bliznak (F), Cody Franson (D), Kenndal McArdle (F), Brendan Mikkelson (D), Blaine Neufeld (G)
Reasoning: Bliznak, Franson, McArdle, and Mikkelson are gone. That leaves only the other three plus goalie Neufeld but they don't need an overage backup goalie with the 18 year old Sexsmith being their starter. Kraus is in the Don Hay doghouse and could be trade bait but until then, he's got one of the spots. Hunt and Wuchterl are similar type players but Hunt isn't going anywhere.
Friday, August 17, 2007
Hawks/Tigers swap forwards
Portland and Medicine Hat make a trade:
Thomas Frazee (17) to Medicine Hat for Tyler Swystun (19) and a 2008 4th round pick.
Makes the Hawks better today while also unloading a player they had off-ice problems with last year. Downside is that they are a lot weaker down the road at forward in the 1990 age group. Two years from now that might hurt them.
Swystun's hockey tour of North America continues. After being a 1st round pick of Prince George, he refused to report and went to Camrose (AJHL) for a year to play for a scholarship instead. Got one and went to Michigan. Played there one year and left, going to Medicine Hat last year after the Cougars traded his rights. Now he's off to Portland. That's four teams in four years and in three different leagues and three different corners of the continent.
He didn't get a lot of ice time last year in Medicine Hat, but should be able to put up good numbers on the first line (I would assume) in Portland for the next couple years. Medicine Hat is obviously hanging their hats on Frazee working through his personal problems and becoming that kind of player too in a year or two. The deal actually surprises me a bit from the Tigers point of view since they have lost a lot of offence from last year plus almost their entire defence and their #1 goaltender too. Thought they might want to hang onto some more of their vets...???
Thomas Frazee (17) to Medicine Hat for Tyler Swystun (19) and a 2008 4th round pick.
Makes the Hawks better today while also unloading a player they had off-ice problems with last year. Downside is that they are a lot weaker down the road at forward in the 1990 age group. Two years from now that might hurt them.
Swystun's hockey tour of North America continues. After being a 1st round pick of Prince George, he refused to report and went to Camrose (AJHL) for a year to play for a scholarship instead. Got one and went to Michigan. Played there one year and left, going to Medicine Hat last year after the Cougars traded his rights. Now he's off to Portland. That's four teams in four years and in three different leagues and three different corners of the continent.
He didn't get a lot of ice time last year in Medicine Hat, but should be able to put up good numbers on the first line (I would assume) in Portland for the next couple years. Medicine Hat is obviously hanging their hats on Frazee working through his personal problems and becoming that kind of player too in a year or two. The deal actually surprises me a bit from the Tigers point of view since they have lost a lot of offence from last year plus almost their entire defence and their #1 goaltender too. Thought they might want to hang onto some more of their vets...???
Monday, August 13, 2007
Seattle lands NHL first-rounder
From TSN, the Ottawa Senators have signed their 2007 first round pick, U. of Minnesota center Jim O'Brien:
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=216088
At least according to TSN, he is likely to report to Seattle this year since he has now lost his NCAA eligibility by signing with the Senators. If so, a big plus to the Thunderbirds as O'Brien is a solid all-around player with a big frame. Plus he is only 18 this year so they're likely getting him for the next two seasons.
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=216088
At least according to TSN, he is likely to report to Seattle this year since he has now lost his NCAA eligibility by signing with the Senators. If so, a big plus to the Thunderbirds as O'Brien is a solid all-around player with a big frame. Plus he is only 18 this year so they're likely getting him for the next two seasons.
Friday, August 10, 2007
Friday facts
Just some stuff I have laying around waiting for a chance to use it....
Most junior hockey observers would say that contending teams need to have significant numbers of veteran, experienced players. You don't see many teams winning championships with rosters full of 17 year olds. So, which teams have the most veteran, most experienced rosters heading into 07-08? (We'll ignore the important distinction between veterans and quality veterans for this)
For our purposes here, I defined a "veteran" as any player who played at least 15 games in the WHL last year. And in the case of teams who have more than 3 overager veterans on their roster still, I've only counted three per team since that's all they'll have after October 10. Here's the breakdown of "veterans" by team:
Saskatoon Blades: 20
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 19
Chilliwack Bruins: 19
Calgary Hitmen: 18
Regina Pats: 18
Prince Albert Raiders: 18
Moose Jaw Warriors: 18
Swift Current Broncos: 18
Kelowna Rockets: 18
Portland Winter Hawks: 18
Seattle Thunderbirds: 17
Spokane Chiefs: 17
Vancouver Giants: 16
Medicine Hat Tigers: 16
Kamloops Blazers: 16
Kootenay Ice: 16
Everett Silvertips: 15
Prince George Cougars: 15
Edmonton Oil Kings: 15
Tri-City Americans: 14
Red Deer Rebels: 13
Brandon Wheat Kings: 13
So, is Saskatoon going to be the class of the league next year? Not necessarily, but they certainly have an edge over say, Brandon. Assuming both teams use 24 player rosters, Brandon is going to have 11 players next year who have less than 15 games in the league. Saskatoon will only have four.
How about experience? Not quite the same as just being a veteran player, experience is how many games (both regular season and playoffs) those veterans have played in the league. Here's the breakdown of that:
Calgary Hitmen: 2704
Regina Pats: 2544
Seattle Thunderbirds: 2309
Prince Albert Raiders: 2211
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 2166
Vancouver Giants: 2148
Everett Silvertips: 2111
Medicine Hat Tigers: 2109
Moose Jaw Warriors: 2084
Saskatoon Blades: 2020
Kamloops Blazers: 1990
Prince George Cougars: 1986
Kootenay Ice: 1952
Swift Current Broncos: 1911
Kelowna Rockets: 1733
Edmonton Oil Kings: 1663
Portland Winter Hawks: 1602
Spokane Chiefs: 1600
Chilliwack Bruins: 1545
Red Deer Rebels: 1457
Brandon Wheat Kings: 1333
Tri-City Americans: 1273
For this calculation, teams with more than three overagers on their roster had only the three most-experienced ones counted.
Something to think about.....teams with few vets and little experience are probably going to struggle this coming season, as their rosters will be heavy with rookies and other inexperienced players. By the same logic, the opposite should apply for many teams with lots of vets, especially lots of experienced vets - assuming they're not all 3rd/4th liners, those teams should do reasonably well in the standings. Of course there are always exceptions but it's something to consider when trying to pick who'll do well next year anyway.
When I have a few minutes in the next couple days, I'll expand on this a bit and take a look at teams' veteran strengths by position. Logic would seem to indicate that a team that can roll out six defencemen with 200+ games experience would have an edge over a team with four rookies in the lineup. Which teams are which in that debate?
Most junior hockey observers would say that contending teams need to have significant numbers of veteran, experienced players. You don't see many teams winning championships with rosters full of 17 year olds. So, which teams have the most veteran, most experienced rosters heading into 07-08? (We'll ignore the important distinction between veterans and quality veterans for this)
For our purposes here, I defined a "veteran" as any player who played at least 15 games in the WHL last year. And in the case of teams who have more than 3 overager veterans on their roster still, I've only counted three per team since that's all they'll have after October 10. Here's the breakdown of "veterans" by team:
Saskatoon Blades: 20
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 19
Chilliwack Bruins: 19
Calgary Hitmen: 18
Regina Pats: 18
Prince Albert Raiders: 18
Moose Jaw Warriors: 18
Swift Current Broncos: 18
Kelowna Rockets: 18
Portland Winter Hawks: 18
Seattle Thunderbirds: 17
Spokane Chiefs: 17
Vancouver Giants: 16
Medicine Hat Tigers: 16
Kamloops Blazers: 16
Kootenay Ice: 16
Everett Silvertips: 15
Prince George Cougars: 15
Edmonton Oil Kings: 15
Tri-City Americans: 14
Red Deer Rebels: 13
Brandon Wheat Kings: 13
So, is Saskatoon going to be the class of the league next year? Not necessarily, but they certainly have an edge over say, Brandon. Assuming both teams use 24 player rosters, Brandon is going to have 11 players next year who have less than 15 games in the league. Saskatoon will only have four.
How about experience? Not quite the same as just being a veteran player, experience is how many games (both regular season and playoffs) those veterans have played in the league. Here's the breakdown of that:
Calgary Hitmen: 2704
Regina Pats: 2544
Seattle Thunderbirds: 2309
Prince Albert Raiders: 2211
Lethbridge Hurricanes: 2166
Vancouver Giants: 2148
Everett Silvertips: 2111
Medicine Hat Tigers: 2109
Moose Jaw Warriors: 2084
Saskatoon Blades: 2020
Kamloops Blazers: 1990
Prince George Cougars: 1986
Kootenay Ice: 1952
Swift Current Broncos: 1911
Kelowna Rockets: 1733
Edmonton Oil Kings: 1663
Portland Winter Hawks: 1602
Spokane Chiefs: 1600
Chilliwack Bruins: 1545
Red Deer Rebels: 1457
Brandon Wheat Kings: 1333
Tri-City Americans: 1273
For this calculation, teams with more than three overagers on their roster had only the three most-experienced ones counted.
Something to think about.....teams with few vets and little experience are probably going to struggle this coming season, as their rosters will be heavy with rookies and other inexperienced players. By the same logic, the opposite should apply for many teams with lots of vets, especially lots of experienced vets - assuming they're not all 3rd/4th liners, those teams should do reasonably well in the standings. Of course there are always exceptions but it's something to consider when trying to pick who'll do well next year anyway.
When I have a few minutes in the next couple days, I'll expand on this a bit and take a look at teams' veteran strengths by position. Logic would seem to indicate that a team that can roll out six defencemen with 200+ games experience would have an edge over a team with four rookies in the lineup. Which teams are which in that debate?
Thursday, August 9, 2007
Birth of a blog
Here goes nothing I guess. After enough prodding, I've caved in....
I expect this blog will mostly be filled with notes and opinions on the WHL and NHL, although other sports may creep in now and then (especially during the summer) and maybe the odd non-hockey topic too. It's not going to be one where I tell you in excruciating detail what I had for breakfast each day. I know, I love those blogs too. They're what makes the web great. But I doubt anyone wants to read about my boring life.
Those of you who know me from the Yahoo WHL mailing list will probably notice some duplication of content between this blog and what I post on the list. In some cases, what I post on the list will also appear here verbatim, or vice versa. But there will be things posted here that I can't or won't post to the WHL list because it doesn't belong there.
Let's see how it goes....
I expect this blog will mostly be filled with notes and opinions on the WHL and NHL, although other sports may creep in now and then (especially during the summer) and maybe the odd non-hockey topic too. It's not going to be one where I tell you in excruciating detail what I had for breakfast each day. I know, I love those blogs too. They're what makes the web great. But I doubt anyone wants to read about my boring life.
Those of you who know me from the Yahoo WHL mailing list will probably notice some duplication of content between this blog and what I post on the list. In some cases, what I post on the list will also appear here verbatim, or vice versa. But there will be things posted here that I can't or won't post to the WHL list because it doesn't belong there.
Let's see how it goes....
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