Steven Alldridge Left Wing 6'3", 185 lb |
||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL Jr A) | 43 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 65 | |
| Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL Jr A - PLF) | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| - Alldridge has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Kieffer Bellows Center 6'0", 195 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: 2013 7th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Edina Hornets (AA bantam) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| - Bellows is the son of former NHLer Brian Bellows | ||||||
| Liam Blackburn Center 5'11", 155 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Cariboo Cougars (BCMMHL major midget AAA) | 40 | 35 | 50 | 85 | 32 | |
| Cariboo Cougars (BCMMHL major midget AAA - PLF) | 4 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 2 | |
| Cariboo Cougars (Macs AAA midget tournament) | 5 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 4 | |
| Prince George Spruce Kings (BCHL Jr A) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | |
| Travis Boyd Right Wing 5'11", 190 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 20 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Minnesota Golden Gophers (NCAA) | 40 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 8 | |
| Michael Bullion Goaltender 5'9", 172 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 9th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | GAA | W | L | OTL | SV% | |
| Vaughan Kings (Greater Toronto AAA midget) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Toronto Jr. Canadiens (OJHL Jr A) | 2 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| - Bullion has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Anton Cederholm Defence 6'2", 207 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: 2013 Import Draft | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Rogle (Sweden U-18 Jrs 2nd Div.) | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | |
| Rogle (Sweden U-18 Jrs) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Rogle (Sweden U-20 Jrs) | 36 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 64 | |
| Rogle (Sweden Elitserien) | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | |
| Dylan Chanter Defence 6'3", 203 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Merritt Centennials (BCHL Jr A) | 56 | 9 | 11 | 20 | 31 | |
| Merritt Centennials (BCHL Jr A - PLF) | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | |
| - Chanter will play for University of New Hampshire on scholarship starting in 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Tristen Charles Defence 6'2", 160 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: 2013 10th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| North East Wolfpack (SBAAHL AA bantam) | 13 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 10 | |
| Zone 8 (SaskFirst) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| Ryan Collins Defence 5'11", 180 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: 2011 8th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| U.S. National U17 Team (USDP) | 56 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 20 | |
| USA (World U-17 Challenge) | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| USNTDP (USHL Jr A) | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| USNTDP (USHL Jr A) | 38 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 12 | |
| - Collins will play for University of Minnesota on scholarship starting in 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Brian Cooper Defence 5'11", 187 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 20 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks (NCAA) | 32 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 11 | |
| Henry Crone Center 5'8", 140 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Dallas Stars Elite (AAA bantam Superseries) | 19 | 18 | 14 | 32 | 6 | |
| Carter Czaikowski Defence 5'9", 160 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: 2013 6th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Calgary Flames (AMBHL AAA bantam) | 32 | 11 | 28 | 39 | 65 | |
| Calgary North (Alberta Cup) | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 10 | |
| Calgary Bruins (AMMHL minor midget AAA) | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | |
| - Czaikowski has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Jordan Davies Defence 6'1", 180 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Sherwood Park Kings (AMHL AAA midget) | 34 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 58 | |
| Sherwood Park Kings (AMHL AAA midget - PLF) | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 16 | |
| Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL Jr A) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL Jr A - PLF) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| - Davies has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Brendan De Jong Defence 6'2", 146 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: 2013 7th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Juan de Fuca Grizzlies (BCAHA AAA bantam) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| Juan de Fuca (Jardine AAA bantam trnmt) | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| Jack Dougherty Defence 6'1", 180 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| St. Thomas Academy (Minnesota High School) | 25 | 3 | 21 | 24 | 16 | |
| - Dougherty will play for Ohio State on scholarship starting in 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Jared Fiegl Left Wing 6'1", 199 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| USA (World U-17 Challenge) | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | |
| USNTDP (USHL Jr A) | 38 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 29 | |
| - Fiegl will play for Denver University on scholarship starting in 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Colin Gallagher Defence 6'4", 181 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Henry Sibley (Minnesota High School) | 25 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 8 | |
| Jack Glover Defence 6'3", 173 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| U.S. National U17 Team (USDP) | 56 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 32 | |
| USA (World U-17 Challenge) | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | |
| USNTDP (USHL Jr A) | 37 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 24 | |
| - Glover will play for University of Minnesota on scholarship starting in 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Justin Greer Defence 6'2", 190 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 4th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Edmonton CAC (AMMHL minor midget AAA) | 28 | 5 | 17 | 22 | 105 | |
| - Greer has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Rocco Grimaldi Center 5'6", 170 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 20 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| USA (World Juniors) | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | |
| North Dakota (NCAA) | 40 | 13 | 23 | 36 | 18 | |
| Darion Hanson Goaltender 6'2", 155 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | GAA | W | L | OTL | SV% | |
| St. Francis (Minnesota High School) | 25 | 3.41 | 16 | 9 | 0 | 0.900 |
| Nick Heid Defence 6'2", 205 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Spring Lake Park (Minnesota High School) | 25 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 35 | |
| Blake Heinrich Defence 5'11", 192 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: 2012 12th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Sioux City Musketeers (USHL Jr A) | 42 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 110 | |
| - Heinrich will play for University of Minnesota-Duluth on scholarship starting in 2013-14 or 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Adin Hill Goaltender 6'0", 159 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | GAA | W | L | OTL | SV% | |
| Calgary Buffaloes (AMHL AAA midget) | 18 | 3.04 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 0.907 |
| Calgary Buffaloes (AMHL AAA midget - PLF) | 1 | 6.15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.826 |
| Calgary Buffaloes (Macs AAA midget tournament) | 2 | 3.03 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.902 |
| - Hill has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Cason Hohmann Center 5'8", 178 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 20 Acquired: 2008 3rd round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Boston University Terriers (NCAA) | 39 | 10 | 24 | 34 | 16 | |
| Caleb Jones Defence 6'0", 175 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 3rd round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Dallas Stars (Tier 1 Elite Minor Midget) | 40 | 2 | 17 | 19 | 36 | |
| - Jones is the brother of current Portland Winterhawk Seth Jones | ||||||
| Travis Kilbrei Left Wing 5'8", 159 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 5th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Interlake Lightning (MMHL AAA midget) | 40 | 15 | 15 | 30 | 32 | |
| Interlake Lightning (MMHL AAA midget - PLF) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| Team Manitoba (Western Canada U-16 Challenge) | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Teemu Kivihalme Defence 5'11", 158 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Burnsville (Minnesota High School) | 25 | 9 | 21 | 30 | 22 | |
| Fargo Force (USHL Jr A) | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| - Kivihalme will play for Colorado College on scholarship starting in 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Jimmy Lambert Center 5'5", 135 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Saskatoon Crunch (GSHL AA midget) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| Saskatoon Contacts (SMAAAHL AAA midget) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Saskatoon Contacts (Macs AAA midget tournament) | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | |
| Jeremy Leipsic Left Wing 5'4", 121 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Winnipeg Monarchs (WMHA minor midget AAA) | 34 | 21 | 22 | 43 | 22 | |
| - Leipsic is the younger brother of current Portland Winterhawk Brendan Leipsic | ||||||
| Mitchell Mattson Left Wing 6'2", 165 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Grand Rapids (Minnesota AA bantam) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| Skyler McKenzie Center 5'5", 136 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: 2013 8th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Sherwood Park Flyers (AMBHL AAA bantam) | 19 | 18 | 22 | 40 | 53 | |
| Sherwood Park Flyers (AMBHL AAA bantam - PLF) | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 8 | |
| Northeast (Alberta Cup) | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | |
| Sherwood Park Squires (AMMHL minor midget AAA) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| - McKenzie has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Matt McNeely Goaltender 6'3", 200 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 20 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | GAA | W | L | OTL | SV% | |
| Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs (NCAA) | 25 | 2.67 | 10 | 11 | 3 | 0.902 |
| A.J. Michaelson Center 5'11", 200 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 19 Acquired: 2009 4th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Minnesota Golden Gophers (NCAA) | 22 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 | |
| Nicholas Nonis Defence no height/weight | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Governor Dummer Academy (Mass. Prep School) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| - Nonis is the son of Toronto Maple Leafs G.M. Dave Nonis | ||||||
| Ryan Norman Left Wing 5'10", 185 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: 2011 5th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Shattuck-St. Mary's (U.S. Prep) | 57 | 27 | 41 | 68 | 12 | |
| Shattuck-St. Mary's (HPHL major midget) | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | |
| - Norman will play for University of Minnesota on scholarship starting in 2014-15 or 2015-16 season | ||||||
| Logan O'Connor Center 5'11", 165 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Calgary Royals (AMHL AAA midget) | 34 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 10 | |
| Calgary Royals (AMHL AAA midget - PLF) | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | |
| Calgary Royals (Macs AAA midget tournament) | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| Jake Oettinger Goaltender 5'11", 158 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: 2013 9th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | GAA | W | L | OTL | SV% | |
| Farmington AA (Minnesota bantam) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Fredrik Olofsson Left Wing 6'1", 185 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Colorado Thunderbirds (Tier 1 Elite Minor Midget) | 31 | 26 | 43 | 69 | 8 | |
| Green Bay Gamblers (USHL Jr A) | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| - Olofsson is the younger brother of Portland prospect Gustav Olofsson | ||||||
| - Olofsson will play for Colorado College on scholarship starting in 2014-15 or 2015-16 season | ||||||
| Gustav Olofsson Defence 6'2", 185 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 19 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Green Bay Gamblers (USHL Jr A) | 63 | 2 | 21 | 23 | 59 | |
| Green Bay Gamblers (USHL Jr A - PLF) | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| - Olofsson is the older brother of Portland prospect Fredrik Olofsson | ||||||
| - Olofsson will play for Colorado College on scholarship starting in 2013-14 or 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Alex Overhardt Center 5'11", 160 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 11th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Colorado Thunderbirds (Tier 1 Elite Minor Midget) | 41 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 33 | |
| Zach Paterson Defence 5'10", 173 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: 2011 2nd round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL Jr A) | 18 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | |
| Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL Jr A - PLF) | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Portland Winterhawks (WHL) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| - Paterson has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Ethan Price Center 5'10", 185 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 6th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Omaha AAA (HPHL minor midget) | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| Omaha AAA (NAPHL 16U) | 22 | 15 | 23 | 38 | 8 | |
| Omaha AAA (NAPHL 16U - PLF) | 5 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 6 | |
| - Price has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Jarrod Schamerhorn Goaltender 6'2", 190 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | GAA | W | L | OTL | SV% | |
| Beaver Valley Nitehawks (KIJHL Jr B) | 6 | 2.00 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0.925 |
| Beaver Valley Nitehawks (KIJHL Jr B - PLF) | 10 | 2.74 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0.916 |
| Nanaimo Clippers (BCHL Jr A) | 7 | 2.20 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0.928 |
| - Schamerhorn has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Alex Schoenborn Right Wing 6'0", 194 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Wenatchee Wild (NAHL Jr A) | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 34 | |
| Portland Winterhawks (WHL) | 20 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 22 | |
| - Schoenborn has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Quentin Shore Center 6'1", 185 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 19 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Denver Pioneers (NCAA) | 39 | 10 | 9 | 19 | 24 | |
| Tanner Sorenson Center 5'9", 172 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 20 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Michigan State Spartans (NCAA) | 42 | 13 | 8 | 21 | 18 | |
| Owen Stout Center no height/weight | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 7th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Hollyburn Huskies (BCAHA AAA minor midget) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| Paul Stoykewych Defence 6'0", 200 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: 2010 2nd round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Winnipeg Blues (MJHL Jr A) | 52 | 4 | 24 | 28 | 72 | |
| Winnipeg Blues (MJHL Jr A - PLF) | 12 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 18 | |
| Canada West (World Junior A Challenge) | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | |
| - Stoykewych will play for Western Michigan University on scholarship starting in 2013-14 or 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Destry Straight Center 6'1", 190 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 20 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Boston College Eagles (NCAA) | 33 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 10 | |
| Adam Tambellini Right Wing 6'4", 177 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 19 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Surrey Eagles (BCHL Jr A) | 16 | 14 | 12 | 26 | 8 | |
| Vernon Vipers (BCHL Jr A) | 36 | 22 | 17 | 39 | 18 | |
| Surrey Eagles (BCHL Jr A - PLF) | 17 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 6 | |
| Surrey Eagles (Royal Bank Cup) | 5 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 4 | |
| - Tambellini is the son of former NHLer Steve Tambellini | ||||||
| - Tambellini will play for University of North Dakota on scholarship starting in 2013-14 season | ||||||
| Keoni Texeira Defence 6'0", 195 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 2nd round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| L.A. Jr. Kings (Tier 1 Elite Minor Midget) | 32 | 8 | 16 | 24 | 89 | |
| - Texeira has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| Adam Touchette Center 5'11", 155 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: 2013 7th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Eastman Selects/Southwest (WMHA major bantam AAA) | 10 | 14 | 13 | 27 | 35 | |
| Eastman (Manitoba Bantam Showcase) | 11 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 12 | |
| Team Gold (Manitoba U16 P.O.E.) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| Evan Tschumi Center 6'2", 170 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 10th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Calgary Bruins (CMHA midget AA) | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Calgary Bruins (AMMHL minor midget AAA) | 25 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 113 | |
| Layne Viveiros Defence 5'11", 189 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 17 Acquired: 2011 9th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Camrose Kodiaks (AJHL Jr A) | 15 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 2 | |
| Camrose Kodiaks (AJHL Jr A - PLF) | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | |
| Austria (World Juniors B-Pool) | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| Portland Winterhawks (WHL) | 22 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 10 | |
| - Viveiros has signed a WHL education contract | ||||||
| - Viveiros is the son of former WHLer Emmanuel Viveiros | ||||||
| Luke Voltin Left Wing 6'0", 180 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 18 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL Jr A) | 60 | 7 | 19 | 26 | 50 | |
| - Voltin will play for University of North Dakota on scholarship starting in 2014-15 season | ||||||
| Garrett Wait Center 5'11", 161 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 15 Acquired: 2013 8th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Edina (Minnesota High School) | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | |
| Evan Weinger Right Wing 6'0", 185 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 16 Acquired: 2012 13th round bantam pick | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| L.A. Jr. Kings (Tier 1 Elite Minor Midget) | 40 | 21 | 18 | 39 | 68 | |
| Austin Wuthrich Right Wing 6'1", 198 lb | ||||||
| 2013-14 age: 20 Acquired: listed player | ||||||
| GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | ||
| Notre Dame Fighting Irish (NCAA) | 33 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 18 | |
Friday, July 5, 2013
2013-14 Prospects: Portland
First up on the 2013-14 prospects postings, it's Portland.
Prospects postings to begin
I'm going to start posting my annual rundown of each WHL team's protected list prospects later tonight. As I mentioned last week, I'm going to post them in the order that teams had players selected in the NHL draft last Sunday, which means Portland will be the first team to be posted tonight. They will be followed by, in order: Prince Albert, Brandon, Edmonton, Everett, Medicine Hat, Seattle, Regina, Swift Current, Kelowna, Tri-City, Victoria, Kamloops, Vancouver, Prince George, Red Deer, Kootenay, Calgary, and Spokane. Then the three teams who did not have a player drafted (Lethbridge, Moose Jaw, Saskatoon) although I haven't decided on their order yet.
Posts will be done at a frequency of about two per day, so it'll take about 11 days to do everything. A few notes before we start:
- my copy of the WHL protected player lists is from several weeks ago. Some changes may have been made since then. Not likely a lot of changes, but maybe a few players are different.
- I generally excluded any players who played more than 30 games in the WHL last year, and/or spent an entire year on a WHL roster. I may have erred/missed players in some cases, so if you see a guy and say "he's not a prospect anymore, he has 200 games in the league!", then now you know why he's there: I goofed.
- heights and weights were gathered from the most reliable sources possible. In most cases these were team or league websites for the team(s) the player played for in 2012-13. So, those heights/weights are as accurate as those websites were. Those heights/weights were also most likely recorded at 2012 training camps so I do recognize that many players have grown an inch or five (they're teenagers!) in the last year since then.
Corrections, comments, etc always welcome. Enjoy the posts.
Posts will be done at a frequency of about two per day, so it'll take about 11 days to do everything. A few notes before we start:
- my copy of the WHL protected player lists is from several weeks ago. Some changes may have been made since then. Not likely a lot of changes, but maybe a few players are different.
- I generally excluded any players who played more than 30 games in the WHL last year, and/or spent an entire year on a WHL roster. I may have erred/missed players in some cases, so if you see a guy and say "he's not a prospect anymore, he has 200 games in the league!", then now you know why he's there: I goofed.
- heights and weights were gathered from the most reliable sources possible. In most cases these were team or league websites for the team(s) the player played for in 2012-13. So, those heights/weights are as accurate as those websites were. Those heights/weights were also most likely recorded at 2012 training camps so I do recognize that many players have grown an inch or five (they're teenagers!) in the last year since then.
Corrections, comments, etc always welcome. Enjoy the posts.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
2013 Import Draft
The 2013 CHL Import draft is underway. You can follow it live HERE.
I won't be posting the stats for players picked here on the blog but I will post links to where you can find stats on them via Twitter (https://twitter.com/smallatlarge) if you want to follow me there.
I won't be posting the stats for players picked here on the blog but I will post links to where you can find stats on them via Twitter (https://twitter.com/smallatlarge) if you want to follow me there.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Import draft rule changes
So it seems the confusion about what new rule changes are in effect for the 2013 CHL Import Draft and which changes were still at the "proposal for the future" stage has been clarified.
- teams can only draft '93, '94, and '95 goaltenders in the first round tomorrow. No '96s. And after the first round is over, there will be no more import goaltenders drafted ever again. (Unless, you know, they change the rules again!).
That rule change has been previously widely reported. Two others hadn't:
- teams may not trade import picks. They may also not trade import players until one year after their drafting.
- teams who have an import player picked in the first round of the NHL draft will be allowed to select one more import in the next import draft, to cover against that first rounder sticking in the NHL.
The second of those lower two new rules will only affect one WHL team tomorrow and that's Everett, who had Mirco Mueller picked in the first round. The Silvertips already dropped Stathos Soumelidis earlier this summer and with Mueller being an NHL first rounder, the 'Tips can now draft two new players tomorrow.
That other rule though, the no-trading-picks one, that rule is going to really bone one WHL team tomorrow and that team is Seattle. The Thunderbirds have the 13th overall pick in the draft but they also already have two '94 imports on their team from last year - forwards Alexander Delnov and Roberts Lipsbergs. I doubt they want to drop either of those proven players but if they don't, then they can't use the #13 overall pick to draft a potentially bigger impact player.
Their one outlet, and I don't know if this applies to them yet or not, is that they drafted Delnov and Lipsbergs last year and so they may be able to trade one of them to another WHL team tonight or tomorrow morning, depending on what the CHL's definition of "one year after being drafted" is. Is it one exact calendar year to the date of their picking in the Import draft? If so, that date has passed and the Birds should be able to trade one of those players if they want.
The only other WHL team I see being affected by that rule is Portland, who have two '95 imports. But given that Portland's import pick sucks (last pick in the first round), I don't think it's a big deal for them to pass on that pick and keep the two guys they got.
All other WHL teams have room to add at least one and maybe two new imports and so they can all use their first and sometimes second round picks as normal.
- teams can only draft '93, '94, and '95 goaltenders in the first round tomorrow. No '96s. And after the first round is over, there will be no more import goaltenders drafted ever again. (Unless, you know, they change the rules again!).
That rule change has been previously widely reported. Two others hadn't:
- teams may not trade import picks. They may also not trade import players until one year after their drafting.
- teams who have an import player picked in the first round of the NHL draft will be allowed to select one more import in the next import draft, to cover against that first rounder sticking in the NHL.
The second of those lower two new rules will only affect one WHL team tomorrow and that's Everett, who had Mirco Mueller picked in the first round. The Silvertips already dropped Stathos Soumelidis earlier this summer and with Mueller being an NHL first rounder, the 'Tips can now draft two new players tomorrow.
That other rule though, the no-trading-picks one, that rule is going to really bone one WHL team tomorrow and that team is Seattle. The Thunderbirds have the 13th overall pick in the draft but they also already have two '94 imports on their team from last year - forwards Alexander Delnov and Roberts Lipsbergs. I doubt they want to drop either of those proven players but if they don't, then they can't use the #13 overall pick to draft a potentially bigger impact player.
Their one outlet, and I don't know if this applies to them yet or not, is that they drafted Delnov and Lipsbergs last year and so they may be able to trade one of them to another WHL team tonight or tomorrow morning, depending on what the CHL's definition of "one year after being drafted" is. Is it one exact calendar year to the date of their picking in the Import draft? If so, that date has passed and the Birds should be able to trade one of those players if they want.
The only other WHL team I see being affected by that rule is Portland, who have two '95 imports. But given that Portland's import pick sucks (last pick in the first round), I don't think it's a big deal for them to pass on that pick and keep the two guys they got.
All other WHL teams have room to add at least one and maybe two new imports and so they can all use their first and sometimes second round picks as normal.
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Prospects posts
I've gotten a few e-mails asking where my annual postings of the prospects for each WHL team are, so I might as well let everyone know: they're coming later this week. They are almost done and I am just going to wait until after the Import Draft on Wednesday so I can add the new import picks to each team's listing.
So, look for the first teams to be posted on Thursday, or maybe even Wednesday night. I'll probably do two teams a day again for 11 days or however long it takes to finish them all.
No voting to decide which team goes first this year - what I'm going to do is post them in the order of where WHL teams have their players picked in today's NHL entry draft. So yes, Portland will probably end up being the first WHL team posted since Seth Jones will almost certainly be the first WHL player picked. After that....well, it's anyone's game, isn't it.
Teams that do not have any players picked today will go last obviously.....haven't decided how to order them yet. I'll think of something.
So, look for the first teams to be posted on Thursday, or maybe even Wednesday night. I'll probably do two teams a day again for 11 days or however long it takes to finish them all.
No voting to decide which team goes first this year - what I'm going to do is post them in the order of where WHL teams have their players picked in today's NHL entry draft. So yes, Portland will probably end up being the first WHL team posted since Seth Jones will almost certainly be the first WHL player picked. After that....well, it's anyone's game, isn't it.
Teams that do not have any players picked today will go last obviously.....haven't decided how to order them yet. I'll think of something.
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Import draft rundown
The 2013 CHL Import draft is set for July 3 - the Wednesday after the NHL draft basically, as it usually has been. The CHL has the complete draft order up on their site here, if you're curious about where your favourite team(s) are picking.
According to the draft list, none of the 22 WHL teams have traded any of their import draft picks in either the first or second round, so (as of right now anyway) everyone will be picking in reverse order of last year's standings.
With that in mind, here's a little look at the import situation for each team and what I think they might be doing in Import-land:
Brandon:
Last year had '93 F Marek Kalus and '94 F Richard Nejezchleb. Kalus is not going to be back as an overager but I would think Nejezchleb will come back for his 19 year old season. Brandon has the #7 overall pick in the draft and I'd expect them to use that one and pass their 2nd round pick.
Calgary:
Last year had '94 F Pavlo Padakin and '93 F Victor Rask. Rask is going to be playing pro in the Carolina Hurricanes organization next year but Padakin should be back, meaning the Hitmen can select one player. They pick 52nd in the first round.
According to the draft list, none of the 22 WHL teams have traded any of their import draft picks in either the first or second round, so (as of right now anyway) everyone will be picking in reverse order of last year's standings.
With that in mind, here's a little look at the import situation for each team and what I think they might be doing in Import-land:
Brandon:
Last year had '93 F Marek Kalus and '94 F Richard Nejezchleb. Kalus is not going to be back as an overager but I would think Nejezchleb will come back for his 19 year old season. Brandon has the #7 overall pick in the draft and I'd expect them to use that one and pass their 2nd round pick.
Last year had '94 F Pavlo Padakin and '93 F Victor Rask. Rask is going to be playing pro in the Carolina Hurricanes organization next year but Padakin should be back, meaning the Hitmen can select one player. They pick 52nd in the first round.
Edmonton:
Last year had '93 D Martin Gernat and '94 F Edgars Kulda. Gernat is going to play pro next year with the Oilers organization and I would expect Kulda to return. His numbers weren't amazing last year but were decent for a depth player on a stacked team. He should have a bigger role next year as a sophomore WHLer and at the very least should be better than what they could get with what would probably be the last pick of the draft, so I expect the Oil Kings to keep Kulda and make one pick to replace Gernat.
Everett:
Last year had '95 D Mirco Mueller and '94 F Stathis Soumelidis. Soumelidis has already been released; Mueller - a likely NHL first round pick - is a keeper so the Silvertips will make one pick, at #10 overall, to replace Soumelidis.
Kamloops:
Last year had '94 F Tim Bozon and '93 D Marek Hrbas. Hrbas has signed with HC Sparta Praha in his native Czech Republic for next year, so he is gone. Bozon should return though, so the Blazers will be able to make one pick this year, to replace Hrbas.
Kelowna:
Last year had '94 F Henrik Nyberg. No indication from the Rockets that Nyberg will not be back to play his 19 year old season, so right now I'd expect him back. So, the Rockets can make one pick.
The Rockets also still own the rights to '94 F Zemgus Girgensons but the chances of him showing up in Kelowna are remote. As a no-show pick, Girgensons doesn't count towards the Rockets' limit of two imports and so they can still make a pick while retaining both Nyberg and Girgensons' rights.
Kootenay:
Last year had '94 F Jakub Prochazka, who they released two weeks ago, and so they currently have none and can make two picks. Whether they'll make any at all is a your-guess-is-as-good-as-mine scenario, given the organization's declining to pick imports in 2010 and 2011. If they don't want to pick, that #25 overall spot might be attractive to a lower WHL team that might want to move up.
Lethbridge:
Last year had '93 D Albin Blomqvist and his brother, '95 F Axel Blomqvist. Albin went home in midseason to deal with an injury and is not expected to return as an overager. Axel should be back though to build on a good 17 year old season. The Hurricanes can make one pick to replace Albin.
Medicine Hat:
Last year had '94 G Marek Langhamer, who should return as the Tigers' starting goaltender after splitting that role last year with departed overager Cam Lanigan. The Tigers can make one pick to add a 2nd player to go along with Langhamer.
Moose Jaw:
Last year had none - at least after they cut Nikita Zagryadskiy in midseason. So the Warriors can make two picks, the first at #19 overall. The Warriors also still own the rights to a no-show pick from last year, '95 F Frederik Tiffels - but Tiffels is set to attend Western Michigan University next year so it's unlikely he'll suddenly decide to show up in Warriors camp. They can still pick two players.
Portland:
Last year had '95 F Oliver Bjorkstrand and '95 D Kirill Vorobyev. Bjorkstrand is a no-brainer to keep; Vorobyev didn't play very much last season but could/should have a bigger role next year with the losses on the Winterhawks blueline. Those two factors, plus the fact that their first pick is the very last pick in the first round, make me think the Winterhawks will simply pass their picks and do nothing this year. If there IS somebody they want to draft, they will have to drop or trade either Bjorkstrand or Vorobyev to another WHL club first.
Prince Albert:
Last year had '95 F Leon Draisaitl and '93 F Jonas Knutsen. Knutsen has signed in his native Norway with the Valerenga club, so he will not be back as an overager. Draisaitl should return to play his NHL draft season with the Raiders, so the Raiders will be able to pick one player to replace Knutsen.
Prince George:
Last year had '94 D Rinalds Rosinskis, who has been released since the season ended. The Cougars are therefore able to pick two players. They have the #4 overall pick so they should get a good player there, although as always lately, finding somebody willing to play in Prince George seems to be the problem.
I say that because they also still own the rights to '94 F Marko Dano and '94 G Joonas Korpisalo - their 2011 and 2012 first round picks (Korpisalo was 5th overall) and neither of them came over to North America. Perhaps one or both will decide to give the Cougars a try this year.....or perhaps not.
Red Deer:
Last year had '93 G Patrik Bartosak and '94 F Dominik Volek. It sounds like the Rebels are interested in having Bartosak back as one of those rare beasts, the overage import. And why wouldn't they, seeing as how he was just named the top goalie in the entire CHL for this past season. But Bartosak will be selected in the 2013 NHL draft - I don't see how he'll be undrafted again, seeing as how he has NHL size (6'1") and was the top goalie in the entire CHL - and his drafting team will probably want to sign him and turn him pro. Regardless though, the Rebels can pick another player to replace Bartosak since as an overager, Bartosak does not count towards the two-import limit right now. If Bartosak does come back, then the Rebels will have to choose two of Bartosak, Volek, or New Guy.
Regina:
Last year had '93 F Emil Sylvegard, who has been released but wasn't bringing his 4 goals back as an overage import anyway. The Pats can pick two new imports.
Saskatoon:
Last year had '93 G Andrey Makarov and '93 F Matej Stransky, who have both signed NHL contracts and who both will not be back. Blades can pick two new imports and no doubt hope to land two guys who can help fill the gaping holes in their upcoming lineup.
Seattle:
Last year had '94 F Alexander Delnov and '94 F Roberts Lipsbergs and there is really no reason for the Birds not to want both of them back, so I'd look for them to trade their picks. They have #13 in the first round, which should be a very attractive pick for lower teams looking to move up and land an impact import.
If Seattle wants to use that #13 itself, they'll need to drop or trade either Delnov or Lipsbergs first.
Spokane:
Last year had '93 F Alessio Bertaggia and '95 F Mikulas Rimmel. Bertaggia is probably going to play pro back home in Switzerland next year, although no signing with any team has been announced to my knowledge. I'd expect him gone though. As for Rimmel, he produced very few points last year in little playing time as a 17 year old. Do they want him back? I'd assume yes, although there are a lot of returning forwards so it's a bit hard to see where he'll get a bigger role than last year. We'll see. I'd expect the Chiefs to pick just one player, to replace Bertaggia.
Swift Current:
Last year had '93 G Eetu Laurikainen and '93 D Richard Nedomlel. Nedomlel will be turning pro in the Detroit Red Wings system, so he is gone. It sounds like the Broncos want Laurikainen to come back as an overage import, so don't be surprised to see that. Either way though, they can still draft two more since neither Laurikainen nor Nedomlel count right now. Bring the two new guys to camp along with "Eeeeeetu" and see who wins the final two spots.
Tri-City:
Last year had '94 D Michal Plutnar and '94 F Malte Stromwall. Stromwall has signed a pro contract at home in Sweden with Vaxjo, so it would seem he is gone despite having eligibility remaining in the WHL. Plutnar should return, but the Americans will have to make a difficult decision in whether or not to drop Stromwall and make another pick, or hope Stromwall does come back to the WHL despite that contract in Sweden. I suspect we'll see them drop him and make a pick.
Vancouver:
Last year had '93 F Marek Tvrdon, who is likely going pro in the Detroit organization. Regardless though, the Giants can make two picks in this import draft. They have the #1 overall selection actually....should get a definite impact player there.
Victoria:
Last year had '92 F Alex Gogolev and '94 G Patrik Polivka. Gogolev was an overager last year and has moved on. Polivka was their starting goalie and I would expect that he will return, so the Royals will be able to pick one player to replace Gogolev.
And as a bonus, now for something completely diffierent......or not.
As most of you probably already know, the CHL has changed the rules for the 2013 and 2014 (and future) Import drafts. In the 2013 draft, goaltenders can be picked in the first round only, and they must be born in 1993, 1994, or 1995. ie, no 1996 (17 year old) goaltenders this year. Starting in 2014 and forward from there, no goaltenders may be selected at all.
This has been a rather controversial decision, to say the least. Not to wade into the fray here, but I do see the CHL's point of view in making this decision. Looking strictly at the WHL, there were four starting goaltenders in the WHL last year who were imports - Bartosak in Red Deer, Makarov in Saskatoon, Laurikainen in Swift Current, and Polivka in Victoria. Those teams all had younger Canadian backups - Bolton Pouliot, Alex Moodie, Landon Bow, and Coleman Vollrath respectively. Pouliot was 18 and the other three were all 17 last year. All four backups got into between 14 and 27 games last year, which was 30-45 games fewer than the import starters played.
I think we all can agree that more playing time makes players better. So you can make a case that the Canadian goalies - Pouliot, Moodie, Bow, and Vollrath - would be better goalies next year and in the future had they been playing 30 - 45 more games last year than they did. So this is where the CHL is accurate in saying having import goaltenders in the CHL is hurting the development of Canadian and American goaltenders. Not a lot of them, but there's obviously some who are affected.
All that having been said....I also think that if they think that this move is going to fix the Canadian "goaltending problem", then they're mistaken. I think this is a case of treating the symptoms of an illness rather than the root cause - it eliminates the (symptom) problem of Canadian goalies losing their jobs to European goalies in the CHL but doesn't address the cause.....WHY are they losing their jobs to European goalies? Why are European countries better at developing goaltenders than Canada is right now?
I don't know the answer to that but I'd guess the cause starts much earlier than the CHL. The CHL is the last stop on the Canadian player development model, so I'd venture that if you're waiting to the major junior level to give goaltenders the attention they need, then you're waiting too long.
Friday, June 14, 2013
More Blades Trades (and WHL openness complaint)
The Blades have made two more deals in the last couple days, further reducing their overage glut down to seven players for three spots (I'm not counting players with signed NHL contracts who probably won't be back).
First they traded forward Jessey Astles to the Tri-City Americans for a conditional 2014 6th round bantam pick. The conditions on the pick, I'm sure, are that Astles must make the Americans roster. He's not a scorer but brings toughness and leadership to the Ams; whether that's enough to allow him to win an overage spot against some good competition (Mitch Topping, Zach Yuen, Phil Tot, Lukas Walter, Tyson Dallman) will be up to Astles in training camp I guess.
The second trade was last night and it saw overage forward Lukas Sutter dealt to the Red Deer Rebels for '95 defenceman Kevin Pochuk and 2014 3rd and 7th round bantam picks.
Sutter is a 2012 2nd round pick of the NHL's Winnipeg Jets and so he could yet end up playing pro hockey next year if the Jets sign him. However, last season was not a good season for him - certainly not as good as his draft year of 2011-12 - and so it seems highly likely that the Jets will wait another year before deciding whether to sign him or not. They do have until June 1, 2014 to sign him, so odds are that he'll be in Red Deer playing for his Uncle Brent next year. Meanwhile, Pochuk was caught in a glut of returning defencemen in Red Deer (six other returning d-men besides himself; seven if you count Matt Dumba who isn't certain to return, plus they need to make room for incoming blueline prospects like Vukie Mpofu and Kaleb Denham) and is very badly needed in Saskatoon where the only returning defenceman under the age of 20 is 17 year old Nelson Nogier. So the deal works out very well for Pochuk for sure, he should get a lot of ice time in Saskatoon whereas in Red Deer he might have been on the bubble to even be on the team.
One other thing, there are conditions on the deal which were not mentioned in either the Blades or the Rebels press releases about the trade - if you read those two linked press releases you would come away with the impression that the deal is Sutter for Pochuk, the 3rd, and the 7th, done deal and no conditions.
As it turns out, that is not the case - both the 3rd and 7th round picks are conditional. The 3rd round pick only transfers to Saskatoon if Sutter comes back to the WHL and doesn't turn pro. The 7th round pick only goes to Saskatoon if Pochuk doesn't make the Blades roster. So if Sutter turns pro and Pochuk makes the Blades, then this deal is Kevin Pochuk for nothing. Big difference all of a sudden, huh?
So, moving to the second part of this post, this is why it really irks me that the WHL and its teams (some of its teams anyway) can't seem to bring themselves to mention these details when announcing trades. Why can fans not be told of the conditions on trades? I can't think of any single reason why these details would be kept from fans.
I'd like to see them lay out all conditions on trades, as well as tell us which team's draft picks are being traded in these deals when a team has more than one pick in a given round - the OHL and QMJHL manage to tell us which team's picks are moved, and those leagues are still in business so we know the release of this information can be done safely.
The reason I mention that last part is because Red Deer owns two 2014 3rd round picks - but good luck figuring out whose picks they owned, and/or which one they'll be giving to Saskatoon for Sutter.
Let's try though. In order:
1) Red Deer traded a 2014 3rd round pick to Vancouver for Matt Bellerive on September 24, 2012. Presumably this was their own pick they traded since they didn't have any others at the time.
2) Red Deer traded Joel Hamilton to Vancouver on May 8, 2013, for a 2014 3rd round bantam pick. Now, whose pick was that? Was it Vancouver's own pick? Was it Red Deer's pick from the Bellerive trade being returned? Or was it Kelowna's pick, which Vancouver owned from the Jackson Whistle deal on September 7, 2012?
3) Red Deer trades a conditional 2014 3rd round pick to Saskatoon in the Sutter deal yesterday. Whose pick was that? Was it Vancouver's pick from the Hamilton deal above? Was it Red Deer's own pick from the Hamilton deal above, via the Bellerive trade? Was it Kelowna's pick from the Hamilton deal above, via the Whistle trade? Or was it Saskatoon's own pick, which Red Deer acquired in the Adam Kambeitz/Christian Stockl trade on October 8, 2012?
Want to complicate #3 even further? Saskatoon acquired Seattle's 2014 3rd round pick in return for Kambeitz on January 10, 2013. Well, sometimes deals have conditions that "Team A will give Team B their best pick in the X round, should they have more than one", or something like that. What if that condition was on the pick in the Kambeitz/Stockl trade between Saskatoon and Red Deer? In that case, the 3rd rounder the Blades would be giving the Rebels could very well be Seattle's pick and not their own pick. Etc, etc. You can see how this becomes impossible for fans to follow very quickly unless the league starts making these details and conditions public, as well as clarifying which teams' picks are being moved.
So: how about it, WHL?
First they traded forward Jessey Astles to the Tri-City Americans for a conditional 2014 6th round bantam pick. The conditions on the pick, I'm sure, are that Astles must make the Americans roster. He's not a scorer but brings toughness and leadership to the Ams; whether that's enough to allow him to win an overage spot against some good competition (Mitch Topping, Zach Yuen, Phil Tot, Lukas Walter, Tyson Dallman) will be up to Astles in training camp I guess.
The second trade was last night and it saw overage forward Lukas Sutter dealt to the Red Deer Rebels for '95 defenceman Kevin Pochuk and 2014 3rd and 7th round bantam picks.
Sutter is a 2012 2nd round pick of the NHL's Winnipeg Jets and so he could yet end up playing pro hockey next year if the Jets sign him. However, last season was not a good season for him - certainly not as good as his draft year of 2011-12 - and so it seems highly likely that the Jets will wait another year before deciding whether to sign him or not. They do have until June 1, 2014 to sign him, so odds are that he'll be in Red Deer playing for his Uncle Brent next year. Meanwhile, Pochuk was caught in a glut of returning defencemen in Red Deer (six other returning d-men besides himself; seven if you count Matt Dumba who isn't certain to return, plus they need to make room for incoming blueline prospects like Vukie Mpofu and Kaleb Denham) and is very badly needed in Saskatoon where the only returning defenceman under the age of 20 is 17 year old Nelson Nogier. So the deal works out very well for Pochuk for sure, he should get a lot of ice time in Saskatoon whereas in Red Deer he might have been on the bubble to even be on the team.
One other thing, there are conditions on the deal which were not mentioned in either the Blades or the Rebels press releases about the trade - if you read those two linked press releases you would come away with the impression that the deal is Sutter for Pochuk, the 3rd, and the 7th, done deal and no conditions.
As it turns out, that is not the case - both the 3rd and 7th round picks are conditional. The 3rd round pick only transfers to Saskatoon if Sutter comes back to the WHL and doesn't turn pro. The 7th round pick only goes to Saskatoon if Pochuk doesn't make the Blades roster. So if Sutter turns pro and Pochuk makes the Blades, then this deal is Kevin Pochuk for nothing. Big difference all of a sudden, huh?
So, moving to the second part of this post, this is why it really irks me that the WHL and its teams (some of its teams anyway) can't seem to bring themselves to mention these details when announcing trades. Why can fans not be told of the conditions on trades? I can't think of any single reason why these details would be kept from fans.
I'd like to see them lay out all conditions on trades, as well as tell us which team's draft picks are being traded in these deals when a team has more than one pick in a given round - the OHL and QMJHL manage to tell us which team's picks are moved, and those leagues are still in business so we know the release of this information can be done safely.
The reason I mention that last part is because Red Deer owns two 2014 3rd round picks - but good luck figuring out whose picks they owned, and/or which one they'll be giving to Saskatoon for Sutter.
Let's try though. In order:
1) Red Deer traded a 2014 3rd round pick to Vancouver for Matt Bellerive on September 24, 2012. Presumably this was their own pick they traded since they didn't have any others at the time.
2) Red Deer traded Joel Hamilton to Vancouver on May 8, 2013, for a 2014 3rd round bantam pick. Now, whose pick was that? Was it Vancouver's own pick? Was it Red Deer's pick from the Bellerive trade being returned? Or was it Kelowna's pick, which Vancouver owned from the Jackson Whistle deal on September 7, 2012?
3) Red Deer trades a conditional 2014 3rd round pick to Saskatoon in the Sutter deal yesterday. Whose pick was that? Was it Vancouver's pick from the Hamilton deal above? Was it Red Deer's own pick from the Hamilton deal above, via the Bellerive trade? Was it Kelowna's pick from the Hamilton deal above, via the Whistle trade? Or was it Saskatoon's own pick, which Red Deer acquired in the Adam Kambeitz/Christian Stockl trade on October 8, 2012?
Want to complicate #3 even further? Saskatoon acquired Seattle's 2014 3rd round pick in return for Kambeitz on January 10, 2013. Well, sometimes deals have conditions that "Team A will give Team B their best pick in the X round, should they have more than one", or something like that. What if that condition was on the pick in the Kambeitz/Stockl trade between Saskatoon and Red Deer? In that case, the 3rd rounder the Blades would be giving the Rebels could very well be Seattle's pick and not their own pick. Etc, etc. You can see how this becomes impossible for fans to follow very quickly unless the league starts making these details and conditions public, as well as clarifying which teams' picks are being moved.
So: how about it, WHL?
Monday, May 27, 2013
The demolition has begun
The Blades didn't waste any time at all in starting to address their overage situation - they have traded the rights to '93 defenceman Dalton Thrower to his hometown Vancouver Giants in exchange for a conditional 2014 2nd round bantam draft pick.
The condition on the pick is that Thrower must play in the WHL as an overager. He is an unsigned 2012 2nd round draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens. The Habs do not have to sign him until June 1, 2014, so there is a possibility that they could return him to junior next year. I think that possibility is slim, but you never know.
Portland fans will delight in having Thrower in the Western Conference next year, where he can play the Winterhawks four times and have his chance to atone for his hit on Taylor Leier. Knowing Thrower is a pretty tough kid, he won't back down, so they'll get their chance. IF he plays as an overage, of course.
With the move, the Blades have reduced the number of '93s (potential 2013-14 overagers) on their roster to thirteen:
Jessey Astles
Erik Benoit
Nathan Burns
Graeme Craig
Darren Dietz
Andrey Makarov
Shane McColgan
Matthew Pufahl
Kyle Schmidt
Duncan Siemens
Matej Stransky
Lukas Sutter
Collin Valcourt
The condition on the pick is that Thrower must play in the WHL as an overager. He is an unsigned 2012 2nd round draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens. The Habs do not have to sign him until June 1, 2014, so there is a possibility that they could return him to junior next year. I think that possibility is slim, but you never know.
Portland fans will delight in having Thrower in the Western Conference next year, where he can play the Winterhawks four times and have his chance to atone for his hit on Taylor Leier. Knowing Thrower is a pretty tough kid, he won't back down, so they'll get their chance. IF he plays as an overage, of course.
With the move, the Blades have reduced the number of '93s (potential 2013-14 overagers) on their roster to thirteen:
Jessey Astles
Erik Benoit
Nathan Burns
Graeme Craig
Darren Dietz
Andrey Makarov
Shane McColgan
Matthew Pufahl
Kyle Schmidt
Duncan Siemens
Matej Stransky
Lukas Sutter
Collin Valcourt
Dietz, Makarov, Siemens, and Stransky have all signed NHL contracts and are very unlikely to return, which means there's really only nine players in the discussion. Shane McColgan is a draft pick of the NY Rangers but has not signed a contract yet - the Rangers have four more days to get that done or they lose his rights back into the 2013 draft. If he does sign, he is probably gone. If he doesn't sign, then his chances of returning probably hinge a lot on if/where he gets drafted again in June.
Lukas Sutter is an unsigned 2012 2nd round pick of the Winnipeg Jets. Based on his unimpressive 2012-13 season, I don't think the Jets are going to be in a hurry to sign him. They have another year to do so yet (same as Montreal with Thrower) and there is no reason for them not to wait another year and see if 2012-13 is an anomaly for him.
Astles, Benoit, Burns, Craig, Pufahl, Schmidt, and Valcourt are undrafted and unsigned at the NHL level and so those seven, at least, could/should all be back in the WHL next year. I'm not sure there will be a lot of interest in Kyle Schmidt as an overager; he was a 6th/7th defenceman for the Blades and probably wouldn't have been much more than that for anyone else either. He could be a Jr A guy next year. Astles (7 goals in 4 seasons) is not a guy that teams typically carry as an overager either so he might also be done at the major junior level. But he is also a well-liked team guy, a leader who has shown he can play a physical role without hurting his team....not all role players can say that. So you never know, there might be some interest in a guy like that.
So that leaves Benoit, Burns, Craig, Pufahl, Valcourt, probably Sutter, maybe McColgan, and maybe Astles. Blades have a few more decisions to make before mid-October next year. There's a number of very good players there so I'd expect teams with overage deficiencies to be contacting the Blades sooner rather than later and try to get some things done long before training camps open.
Memorial Cup wrap-up
Just dumping a collection of mental Post-It notes to the blog here after a week spent watching the Memorial Cup....
- the best team won. The (narrowly) second-best team finished 2nd. The third-best team finished 3rd, and the 4th-best team finished 4th. That doesn't happen every time, but it did this year. I don't think there was a lot separating Halifax from Portland but the Mooseheads won both their meetings at the tournament and outscored Portland 13-8. It is difficult to make any case but that Halifax was the better team.
- that Final game was one of the best hockey games I've seen this year. Portland seemed a little unprepared in the first period (nerves?) and it cost them; in the 2nd and 3rd periods the game was quite even and I would say Portland was actually the better team for large portions of those two periods. But the first period killed them, being down 3-0 after 20 minutes (and still down 3-0 halfway through the second period) made a comeback very difficult against a top team like the Mooseheads. At 5-2 I was sure it was over but Portland hung in there and made a white-knuckle finish out of it, making it 5-4 with over a minute left to play yet.
- the much-hyped Jones/MacKinnon/Drouin "battle of the top three prospects" certainly lived up to its billing. In the two head-to-head games between the three, Jones had two goals (though he was also a -1) while MacKinnon had NINE points (6 goals, 3 assists) and Drouin had six points (1g, 5a) in the two games. MacKinnon and Drouin were unstoppable in the Final and are pretty much the main reason that the Memorial Cup is on the East coast today and not the West one. So as far as the head-to-head thing goes, MacKinnon won, hands-down. He played his best hockey of the year on the biggest stage against the toughest competition.
- that said, does it matter? Will it change anything? The Colorado Avalanche's opinion is the only one that matters when it comes to determining which of Jones or MacKinnon (or Drouin!) goes #1 overall in the NHL draft. I think when you look at Colorado's roster there are several good young forwards there already (Duchene, Landeskog, O'Reilly, etc), including a couple who are centermen. Then you look at their defence and it's terrible - probably the reason they were dead last in the West. They need defencemen badly, and a franchise defenceman like Jones is, IMO anyway, too good for them to pass up given their organizational needs. There's also the P.R. aspect, they can sell Jones as a "native son" since he partially grew up in Denver and took up hockey there. That is a minor thing in the overall picture, but it's there and it becomes a bigger factor if you have two players you consider equal in all the on-ice measurables. So in my view, no matter how good MacKinnon played yesterday, Jones will still go #1 as long as it's Colorado doing the picking.
- it is safe to say that after watching Jones, MacKinnon, and Drouin, this year was a very, very good year to be one of the three worst teams in the NHL. Even at #3, Tampa Bay will get the one that the other two teams didn't want - and they'll still get a guy who could be the best player when the careers are all said and done.
- I'm a little surprised by the level of dislike/hate for Portland there seems to be among WHL fans. I always, always root for the WHL champion at the Memorial Cup, even when it's one of my team's hated rivals (in recent years - Edmonton, Kootenay, Medicine Hat!) but I do understand when people can't bring themselves to cheer for a "hated rival". No judgement here. What surprises me though is the number of people who want them to fail because of the sanctions/cheating/whatever you want to call it situation. The way I see it, the people who deserve the scorn there are only the ones involved in the misdoings - namely, Mike Johnston and anyone else who was involved in what they did....and there is no evidence presented (publicly anyway) that anyone other than Johnston was involved. Johnston and the organization were severely punished for what they did. I don't see the logic in hoping the innocent parties in all this - the players - fail. Just me I guess....like I said, no judgement on people who see it differently, I just don't understand the thinking is all.
- the early favorite for the 2014 Memorial Cup, I think, has to be the host London Knights. London won the OHL title this year and they did that with only 2 overagers and only 4 19 year olds. In other words, they may lose very few players off this championship team heading into next year - and their great group of 2013 draft prospects - Domi, Horvat, Zadorov, Elie, Mermis - will be a year older and better. They should contend for the OHL title again next year and even if they don't win it, they'll still be a very, very good host team at the Memorial Cup itself.
- and with that we arrive at the Saskatoon Blades, this year's host. Without trying to piss off Saskatoon fans, I think the Blades' season cannot be called anything but a huge disappointment. I think that 18 game winning streak in February covered up a lot of flaws on this team by moving them up the standings - but their average opponent in those 18 wins was a .459 team and 10 of those 18 were against teams that missed the playoffs. Only three were against teams that had home ice in the first round of the playoffs. That stretch was misleading, padded numbers against mostly weak competition. I think this was a team with a lot of good individual talent that never really meshed together and were carried a lot by a very strong goaltender. Without Makarov and the winning streak (which, incidentally, he played every game of), I think this is a non-playoff team. They did play reasonably well at the Memorial Cup, they didn't get blown out until the tiebreaker loss, and they were the only team at the tournament to beat Halifax. But they also had the benefit of 7 weeks of rest heading into the Memorial Cup too. It was fresh legs against tired ones in those games, that has to count for something.
- Saskatoon has paid a big price to try to contend this year and in 2011 (when they traded for Brayden Schenn). They have not had a first round WHL bantam draft pick since 2009 (for accuracy, they did have a 1st rounder in 2010, but they traded the player 8 months later in the Schenn deal) and won't have one again until 2016. To show for that they have a 2nd round exit (via sweep) in 2011 and a 1st round sweep in both 2012 and this year, with a 1-3 Memorial Cup. So, they are 1-15 in their last 16 post-season games. I would be very surprised if Lorne Molleken retains his job - either via quitting or being dismissed - in Saskatoon after those kind of results. It may not be entirely his fault but he is the general here, he made the decisions and paid the very high prices for players that he paid. So the buck stops at his desk. I'm sure he knew and accepted that risk when he made the deals too.
- Last thought: will people be tempted to pay those kind of prices again? (Of course they will!)
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