Could this be just the start of a 2 or 3 year run for the Chiefs? It could very well be....their losses for next season, while not inconsequential, are not crippling either. In fact, of the 23 players on their 07-08 roster, they should have 17 of them back next season. The only six losses will be the three overagers (Blackwater, Bruton, Rutherford) which every team in junior hockey loses, plus three of their six '88s since they can only keep three of them as next year's overagers.
The six overage candidates are Armstrong (G), Compton (F), Falk (D), Glass (D), Kelner (F/D), and McCrae (F). Falk and McCrae may be headed pro since they were both drafted last year, but on the other hand, their NHL teams still have another year yet to sign them so they may end up being returned to junior. If one of both of those guys comes back, they are no-brainers to have overage spots next year. The other no-brainer is Glass, who was probably the team's best defenceman if it wasn't Falk. Compton and Kelner's statuses probably depend on whether Falk and/or McCrae are back, but neither Compton nor Kelner would be a huge loss if they were not back. They were both 3rd/4th line depth players more than key players on this year's team. Valuable depth players, yes, but much more easily replaceable than a top-liner. Armstrong is pretty much a sure thing to be gone since he is the backup goalie and almost nobody keeps overage backup goalies. He'll be traded somewhere else in the WHL for next year, someplace where he can be the starter.
They will definitely return three of their four top scorers (Bowman, Wahl, Roman), plus at least five (Glass, Spurgeon, Reddington, Ulmer, Cowen) of their top six defencemen, and (maybe most importantly) their #1 goaltender, Tokarski. With a few other forwards like Johnson and Koper probably ready to take on larger offensive roles to help offset the loss of guys like Bruton, Blackwater and Rutherford, I don't see why this team can't be just as good next year as they were this year.
Looking even longer-term than this, I think a three-year run is not out of the question for the Chiefs either, given that players like Wahl, Johnson, Koper, Ulmer, Reddington, and Cowen are all 17 or younger and will be around for two more years yet, barring them going to the NHL. 18 year olds like Tokarski and Spurgeon are decent to good bets for overagers in two years as well, because of their height and/or NHL undrafted status. That is a really good core group there for two years from now yet, and assuming the management continues to surround those guys with more good 16/17 year olds this year, they could still be a force in 2009-10.
Couple other notes.....maybe a bit of a rant, actually.
I'm sick already of people (Kitchener fans mostly but not exclusively) talking about how the Rangers "should" have won the Cup and how the Chiefs are destroying the game of hockey with their dull style, yadda yadda yadda.
Let's straighten this out: the only trophy the Rangers should have won is Most Overrated. They were 2-3 at the Memorial Cup: that's not even .500 and some idiots think they deserved to have won it instead of a team that was 4-0? They lost not once but TWICE to Spokane in their own rink, and some idiots still think they deserved to have won it?
The Rangers scored 18 goals in three games against everyone else. They scored two goals in two games against Spokane. The Memorial Cup's most overrated player, Justin Azevedo, scored 11 points against the rest.....ZERO against Spokane. The evidence is clear: Kitchener was not better than Spokane.
Then there's the goofs who have to point out that Kitchener's best player, goalie Steve Mason, did not play in the Cup because he was hurt. And I say, who cares....would Mason have scored a couple goals against Spokane? Because that's what did the Rangers in, their inability to score goals when it counted, and not their goaltending. The Rangers took 91 shots at Dustin Tokarski over two games, and scored on TWO of them. Brutal.
For that matter, anyone who says the Chiefs play a trap is nuts: they gave up 91 shots in those two games. If that's playing the trap, then they are the worst trapping team of all time since one of the signatures of an effective trap is low shot totals. The Chiefs were the 4th-highest scoring team in the WHL this year, and 2nd-best defensively....yes, they stress defence first, but it's not like they don't score. They play very well at both ends of the ice, and that's why they won.
4 comments:
Having seen the Chiefs up close during the second round, that's no trap. They play solid hockey at both ends of the ice. In the series against the Giants, it wasn't their defensive system that worried me. It was the explosiveness with which they get the puck and transition into offense. With that much speed up front it was scary good.
Good on the Chiefs, good on the WHL!! 5 outa the last 9 and we only make up 1/3 of the CHL.
The Dub is the BEST junior league in the world, bar none! The Rangers were supposed to be as good or better than London of a few years back. No Way! Most of the central scouting people are from Ontario and seem to think its the only Jr league in Canada.
I have always felt the OHL was very overrated. Does anyone actually think Azevedo would have scored the points he did if he had played on a WHL contender? NO WAY! Our guys play over horrid road trips, 4 provinces and 2 states, and the toughest competition in Canada.
The Rangers were shown up for what they were. Playing in the dub, they would be fortunate to win two rounds. The eastern media and TSN hyped the Rangers but treated the Chiefs as almost unknown underdogs. Coulda, woulda, shoulda...I can hear the whining all the way from Ontario.
Alan, at the time of the McCrae trade you commented that Spokane had given up a lot to get him but that McCrae was the type of player who helped win championships. Your words have turned out to be prophetic. I'm very happy for McCrae. He gave us everything he had every night and showed great leadership. He deserved to have something good happen for him.
Mike - very true. I was actually more surprised with the price they paid for Trevor Glass, who at the time I thought was not as valuable a piece as McCrae and not nearly worth what they gave up (a 2nd and a 3rd rounder). Now though, after watching Glass's outstanding play, I think they might have gotten away cheap especially when you consider they'll have him again next year.
And after winning the Memorial Cup, I doubt the Chiefs or their fans care anymore about how much they gave up for either McCrae or Glass....as a fan I would gladly sell out the entire farm and take several years of dead last overall finishes if it meant I could have a Memorial Cup win. But I cheer for the wrong team for such a thing to ever happen to me....
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