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your-dietician · 3 years

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Who on Edmonton Oilers' extended NHL roster is likely to be promoted to a "Core 12" spot next season?

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Who on Edmonton Oilers' extended NHL roster is likely to be promoted to a "Core 12" spot next season?

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Cult of Hockey

Author of the article:

Bruce McCurdy • Edmonton Journal

Vancouver Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes (43) checks Edmonton Oilers forward Ryan McLeod (71) in the third period at Rogers Arena. Oilers won 5-3 on May 4, 2021. Photo by Bob Frid /USA TODAY Sports

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The other day we began our off-season review of Edmonton Oilers’ roster with a detailed look at the club’s “Core 12” players, a group that includes the starting goalie, top two defence pairs, top two forward lines plus third-line centre. While one or two of those spots might be open to debate, I chose the following dozen:

Lots of holes in this version of the Oilers Core 12, of which no fewer than 8 players (white background) played under expiring contracts in 2021 and are poised to become free agents next month. Of the others, 2 have a year to run on their current pact (blue background), and 2 are locked up long term (orange). Thankfully, that latter category includes both of Edmonton’s “franchise” players.

Let’s look a little further down the line-up this time:

Every skater here played 8 or more NHL games with the Oilers this past season, nobody else played even 1. The list does include a tiny shuffle between the pipes, where mid-season waiver pickup Alex Stalock dressed as a backup goalie a couple of times, but saw no game action. He was on an NHL roster all season long so clearly belongs with this group. Stuart Skinner on the other hand did play an NHL game, but primarily was a core player for Bakersfield Condors so will be considered later.

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Whereas there are tons of pending free agents in the Core 12, the secondary players — including at least 2 at each position — are largely under contract. That’s not necessarily a good thing, especially on a team whose bottom 6 forwards have gotten owned at 5v5 on an annual basis.

Before we slice the chart vertically and review on a position-by-position basis, it’s instructive to do so horizontally and look at them as 6-man units. The first of those — Neal-Turris-Kassian-Russell-Bear-Koskinen — is not only under contract, but for a collective $18.35 million in ’21-22. That’s over $3 million a man. Not too many value pacts to be seen, especially up front where veterans Neal, Turris and Kassian each played only half the season for various reasons, combining for just 9 goals at a cap hit of $10.6 million. And not one of those contracts is expiring. Ouch.

The second set of Shore-McLeod-Archibald-Jones-Bouchard-Stalock at least has the virtue of being inexpensive, to the tune of less than $1 million per. At that level, contracts can be buried in the AHL, making those spots more open to competition.

Just 6 guys on the entire list who don’t have a contract, 2 of them already committed elsewhere. At first blush the other 4 are in deep simply due to the numbers game.

Left wing

Mixed reviews on the big contract-driven trade that brought James Neal to Edmonton in exchange for Milan Lucic. Some saw it as a Ken Holland-inspired miracle, but the net effect to this point is that Edmonton’s cap hit went up, not down. Instead of absorbing $6.0 million per season on Lucic, the Oilers are on the hook for a net $6.5 million, of which $5.75 is Neal’s AAV and the other $750k cap retention on Lucic. Neal came out guns blazing in Oil Country, but since the calendar turned to 2020 has struggled with injury and COVID and scored just 5 goals in 42 games. With 2 years yet to run on that contract and Neal about to turn 34 before camp opens, the Oilers may well be considering a buyout. That would open a little over $3.8 million in cap space the next 2 years, but claw back 50% of that amount in the following 2. This per PuckPedia.com: From the organization’s perspective the buyout option is the one significant advantage of the Neal pact vs. that of Lucic, which was and is virtually buyout-proof. But that only comes into play if the Oilers actually pull the trigger. Best guess here is that they will.

Devin Shore was RFA at season’s end, but has already signed a 2-year extension at $850,000 per.

Tyler Ennis was acquired for a draft pick at the 2020 trade deadline, then signed to a 1-year extension which has run its course. The 31-year-old vet showed some nice offensive flashes, but ultimately scored just 3 times in 30 games while twice clearing waivers and spending plenty of time on the taxi squad. A small forward with no meaningful role on special teams, I’ll speculate Ennis won’t be re-signed a second time.

Joakim Nygard‘s NHL dream was ruined by a badly-broken hand. He has already committed to a 6-year (!) contract back in his native Sweden.

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Centre

Just 3 centres listed in our chart above, though its worth remembering our initial Core 12 had an “extra” centre in Jujhar Khaira, identified as a 3C which by definition is a bottom 6 player. Indeed, Khaira played fewer than 10 minutes all season long with each of Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, or Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and scarcely more than that with anyone who might identify as a “skill winger”. He’s RFA with a qualifying platform of $1.3 million. We discussed JJK’s situation in the previous post, and also in the podcast associated with this one.

Signed to a 2-year contract on the first day of free agency, Kyle Turris showed plenty off the ice, where he received Edmonton’s nomination for the King Clancy Award for his exemplary work at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital. On the ice was another story, however, where he struggled right out of the gate at both ends of the sheet. The would-be 3C soon wound up as a bit player, clearing waivers at one point and playing on the wing on those rare occasions when he got a game. He finished with just 2-3-5 and a team-worst -11 in 27 games. Alas, he still has a year to run at a cap hit of $1.65 million. Oilers could consider buying him out but are more likely to send him to Bakersfield which would allow them to bury $1.125 million and retain “just” $525,000 against the cap. Not impossible he rebounds and makes the club, of course, but that seems the unlikelier outcome from this distance.

Ryan McLeod made terrific strides in 2020-21, first getting some productive time in the Swiss National League before ripping it up in the AHL (28 GP, 14-14-28, and a league-leading +23). That earned him the distinction of an in-season recall to the NHL, the only player in the organization to do so successfully. He got his feet wet with 10 games and 4 more in the playoffs, scoring just 1 point but showing decent promise. McLeod projects to being a #3C in due course, but surely is better pencilled in at 4C next year until such time as he plays his way up the line-up. Shows real promise to be a draft-and-develop success story, a rare bird in this part of the world.

Gaetan Haas was a quirky, fun player to watch with some real defensive utility but zero offence that translated to the NHL. Like Nygard, he’s signed a long-term deal (5 years) back home, in his case Switzerland.

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Right wing

Zack Kassian‘s counting numbers in 2021 were literally that: 1 fight, 2 goals, 3 assists, dash-4, 5 points. His season was limited to just 27 games due to 2 significant injuries. After a monster 2019 riding shotgun with McDavid that saw him score 24-26-50 in 82 games between Jan 01 and Dec 31, he was signed by Holland in 2020 January to a 4-year extension at a whopping $3.2 million AAV. But the wheels came off right away; he’s scored just 4 times in 47 games since the calendar turned to 2020. Now 30, his career is at (another) crossroads. While there are some whispers that eastern-based clubs might be interested on the trade market, one wonders if they might balk at that cap hit. Best guess is that he’ll still be an Oiler come the fall, with Holland foremost among those fervently hoping for a bounceback season.

Josh Archibald was signed in the summer of 2019 to a 1-year-deal, then re-upped for 2 years with a 50% raise that raised his cap hit to $1.5 million. That deal still has a year to run. Oilers fans can expect more of the same fast-skating, hard-hitting, aggressive-penalty killing style Arch has brought to this point, along with maybe 10 goals.

Alex Chiasson came to Edmonton in 2018 at a crossroads, having just won a Stanley Cup but unable to land a contract. He had to come to camp on a professional tryout before winning an NHL minimum pact from the Oil and using it as a springboard to a career-best 22-goal season. Holland signed him to a 2-year extension in the summer of 2019 at a pricier $2.15 million, for which he delivered responsible even-strength play and net-front excellence on the league’s best powerplay, but only 20 goals combined over the 2 years. That pact has now expired and the cap space likely to be used elsewhere, though it’s not impossible he could be brought back at a significantly lower figure. Best guess here? He’s gone.

Patrick Russell has gotten way further than anyone could have expected since he was signed as a college free agent back in 2016, ultimately signing 4 different contracts with the org. He spent parts of the last 3 seasons with the Oilers, appearing in 59 games overall. Alas, the promising offence he showed in the AHL did not survive the trip to Canada, and he remains stuck on 0 career goals. The Dane was OK-ish as an occasional fill-in on the 4th line, but with his latest 1-year pact expired it seems likely the org will look elsewhere to fill his spot. Almost the definition of a “replacement-level player”.

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Left defence

Kris Russell has been an Oiler for 5 years now, the last 4 of them at a $4 million AAV. His ice time dwindled the last 2 seasons, and he appeared in just 35 games in 2021. Partly due to expansion draft requirements, the organization saw fit to sign him to a 1-year extension at less than a third of his old cap hit. That’s a more appropriate price tag for a guy who projects to a part-time third-pairing role. The diminutive 34-year-old still has defensive chops but has never excelled at the transition game.

Caleb Jones still has a year to run on the 2-year, $850k AAV pact he signed early in 2020. At the time it projected as a value contract, but a year later the player has struggled to make the next step and optimism about his future is waning in some quarters, though not in others. He had a great chance to step into a second pairing role but instead stepped into his coach’s doghouse on occasion. He remains a promising young player who may well be targeted by Seattle Kraken in the upcoming expansion draft.

William Lagesson got an extended look on a defence-first pairing with Adam Larsson. He played a robust game and won his share of physical battles, but brought very little in terms of offensive or even transition game. The Oilers averaged just 16.34 shots per hour that he was on the ice at 5v5, by far the lowest among the 712 NHL skaters who played at least 120 minutes. (Teammate Haas was next at 19.63, over 20% (!) higher.) He’s halfway through the 2-year pact he signed last summer, but as he enters his Draft +8 season it’s surely fair to conclude “limited upside”.

Slater Koekkoek signed a 1-year deal late in free agency, won some fans with his early play before getting injured. He’s poised to become UFA again, even as many folks have penciled his name in as a likely returnee. This observer is less sure about that, given the organization’s depth at left defence. Detailed write-up here.

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Right defence

Finally, a chance to discuss a player who has a legitimate shot to move from this group into the Core 12 next season. That would be Ethan Bear, who was a top 4 defender in his impressive rookie season in 2019-20 who found himself in a third-pairing role on many nights in 2021. Both guys who were ahead of him, Tyson Barrie and Larsson, are currently UFA. Only one of them is pat to be back — I’m guessing Larsson — with Bear well-positioned to step back into his old pairing with Darnell Nurse. He has a year to run on a bridge deal that carries a $2.0 million cap hit.

Evan Bouchard also projects as a Core 12 type in the future, though it’s likely he will first be eased into a third pairing role. He was blocked by all 3 of Barrie, Larsson and Bear in 2021, and played just 14 games in what many saw as a failed developmental opportunity.

Goaltenders

Mikko Koskinen had a hugely disappointing season that failed to build on what was a fairly strong 2019-20. He was OK for a while in the backup role, but struggled mightily any time he got more regular ice time. He definitively lost the #1 job to Mike Smith, whose base salary was just a third of Koskinen’s. That $4.5 million cap hit still has a year to run, leading some to speculate that the Oilers might buy him out. If they try to move him in a trade it will come with a cost of a sweetener, cap retention, and/or a hefty pact coming the other way. Detailed write-up here.

Alex Stalock was plucked off the waiver wire at mid-season, but came with an ongoing health issue and spent plenty of time in a non-roster position before eventually being activated as a third goalie. He played no games. He’s cheap ($785k), experienced, and might battle for a backup job in the fall, though he’s more likely to stay as the #3 man in the depth chart. That’s problematic in an organization that has 3 promising young goaltenders with North American pro contracts and limited places to play.

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Summary

19 players in all discussed here, a meaty post to say the least. Primary takeaways are three-fold:

too many weighty contracts in the lower echelon of the roster, and no easy path to clear them out that doesn’t leave residual dead cap space like buyouts or cap retention.

too few players on the list who project into the Core 12 in the near or intermediate term. I count just Bear in the former category, with Bouchard, Jones and McLeod (as the token forward) in the latter. Given all the potential vacancies due to free agency, internal help still seems to be a fair ways off.

including the Core 12 plus those detailed here, just 2 players (McLeod and Bouchard) on the NHL roster will still be on their Entry Level Contract in ’21-22.

Of course the club has other players in the pipeline who were outside the NHL last season, including several promising ones. We’ll dive into this last group next time.

Recently at the Cult of Hockey

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Follow me on Twitter @BruceMcCurdy

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andrewuttaro · 5 years

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New Look Sabres: GM 49 - CBJ - Blizzard Puns

It seems like it was a whole different world back when the Buffalo Sabres took on the Columbus Blue Jackets in Game 11 this season. That was a narrow 5-4 loss for the Blue and Gold to an Artemi Panarin OT game-winner. That was before the win streak when we were all content to just look for signs of improvement. Oh times have changed! In past years these teams would meet for Wednesday Night rivalry on nights NBC should’ve been airing a couple Canadian teams god forbid and we would joke about the intense history between the clubs, our breaths full of sarcasm. Then each team would go on their merry way; Columbus to a first round exit (narrower and narrower every year) and Buffalo onto miss the playoffs. To each his own it was. Now the Sabres need some W’s in these eleven post bye-week games against beatable opponents as Chad DeDominicis at Die By the Blade recently noted. Now I look at Columbus with actual aggression. Not only that but if the Sabres do pick it up again down the stretch for these next two months leading into the playoffs there is a chance these teams play in the first round. Oh yes, let’s do some playoff trash talk: Columbus, you’ve rallied behind this team and every season they’ve looked like a deep playoff contender while the next calamity was waiting around the corner. Sabres fans don’t need to remind you that you’ve never won a playoff series because we know that’s why the trash talk in this series is a one way street. Your club can probably go win the Eastern Conference if your two best players didn’t demand out of town. Buffalo cannot imagine being afraid of the Jackets in a playoff series and the facts of the matter is there’s no compelling reason to be: Sabres in 6! That felt a little mean but it’s been tough times lately for the Sabres so deal with it. Game on!

I had the good vibes coursing through my veins to start this game! I sincerely missed this team and they didn’t make me regret those feelings. The second line of Sheary-Mittelstadt-Rodrigues came streaming into the Blue Jackets zone and went right to the net. Casey Mittelstadt’s shot didn’t get through but Evan Rodrigues was right there behind him to clean up the rebound and get Buffalo up 1-0. That goal was a little over two minutes into the first. Hardly a minute later Columbus has their go in the Sabres zone when Ryan Murray took a shot from the blue line that Pierre-Luc Dubois redirected in. 1-1 game. It was at this point my early concerns about the Sabres possession game began to disappear like the green grass under the blizzard. The Sabres took over O-zone possession and began to push their luck on the O-zone chances a bit more. Rasmus Ristolainen got a puck from the wall over to Sam Reinhart parked right in the slot all alone and 23 sunk it past Sergei Bobrovsky. 2-1 Sabres and it’s worth mentioning this period was looking like a return to form for Carter Hutton as Columbus returned the chances with some consistency. Tage Thompson got the puck from a marauding Rasmus Dahlin and looked like a tower smacking home the 3-1 goal for the visitors. On another night of questioning why Lawrence Pilut is benched once again it’s nice to be refreshed by another questionable Housley deployment from earlier this season. Don’t worry; we’ll get back to that later.

Speaking of Tage Thompson, he got penalized late in the first for goaltender interference. The play actually looked like what you want from Thompson, crashing the net and all, but it gave the Jackets a powerplay bridge into the middle frame where Nick Foligno cashed in. I didn’t see it because my stream crashed but the replay looks like he got a sausy tap in. Don’t take time to complain because before the cannon blast dissipated the Sabres responded on a Jeff Skinner race to the back of the net. It’s 4-2 now only a minute into the second and I feel great if this is the Sabres team we’ll see down the stretch here. Then the game turned into a shooting gallery: the nightmare of any goalie’s save percentage. At this point the shots from both teams totaled less than 35. Halfway through this game that changed, perhaps more from a Columbus angle. Brandon Dubinsky put a puck on Hutton up close and somehow it trickled in. The floodgates seemed to open then for the home team and Hutton is suddenly under siege as the defense in front of him got sloppy. Cam Atkinson got a charitable deflection off Reinhart and stood all alone face to face with Hutton. Atkinson won the stare down and this game is 4-4 through forty minutes. Yikes. In past years the Sabres are scared now in this situation. Personally I two just wanted them to hold the line and be conservative. This team needs wins now! The beautiful thing about the final period is that it showed this Sabres team doesn’t get scared. The pressure poured out from the Blue and Gold like the heavens had an ocean of snow to drop. Yes, I’m doing a lot of blizzard metaphors today. Just like how scoring opened, it closed with a Sabres second line we’ve criticized a lot for being nonexistent when it was needed. Evan Rodrigues goes in on Bob and it bounces off the pads. This time it was Conor Sheary there to pick up the rebound: 5-4 Sabres. The rest of the period was stressful; I made the mistake of blasting workout music and nearly soaking my shirt through with sweat. Columbus pushed hard, especially in the last two minutes with an empty net behind them but Hutton stood tall. The Jackets made their losing streak three games though and it ended 5-4 Sabres.

As we talked about briefly at the start of tonight’s blog the Sabres need to get on a roll and win some games out of the bye week to get back into the thick of the playoff race. There is a unique little window we find ourselves in right now where most of the teams ahead of us in that race are on their bye-week while Buffalo is playing games. This win tonight helps close a gap between the now 56 point Sabres and the final wildcard spot at 58 points. Most notably Montreal is not playing games right now and that is probably the team you need to peel out of there. Purely on a head-to-head basis the Sabres have been a better team than our surprising friends up in French Canada but games in hand and clutch wins in tough games make the difference in a race as tight as this. For such a tight race one might wonder why Lawrence Pilut, a rookie to North American ice whom has better advanced stats than a certain Kings defenseman who just got traded into the division, was scratched. I am not going to defend Housley’s decision to not play our favorite Press Box Pilut but I’m willing to be patient in the light of the memory of how the Thompson experiment panned out. You may be yelling saying the Thompson experiment was playing him not benching him but of all the shit Housley has to fix right now I am not going to waste energy bemoaning a game-to-game deployment choice over say… the consistently bad powerplay. I’m picking my battles; this stretch ahead of us is going to take a lot of my emotional energy and trust me, I love you Pilut, but your time will come.

The Sabres played an aggressive, pressurized game tonight and that’s encouraging going into Dallas tomorrow night and a super busy February to follow. We’re not used to a genuine playoff race here in Buffalo so let’s save our energy for the slugfest that lay ahead. Drop a like on this blog for my mental energy and a share/retweet too if you really need me to keep it up going into this stretch. Comment too if you got some chirping to do. I let some snarls rip on our boys tonight too; it wasn’t a perfect game by any means. That maybe something we’re apt to remember going forward here: it doesn’t need to be perfect, it just needs to work. Points! Points! Points! Make them rain down like this endless column of snow!

Thanks for reading.

P.S. I don’t regret not writing on the NHL All-Star Weekend. It’s been three days and I still can’t come up with takeaways. I guess that’s the point… that it’s all pointless.

#buffalo sabres #hockey #nhl #blog #cbj

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maysoper · 5 years

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The Rundown - Week 10

If there's one group of people I need to congratulate in looking at this week's schedule of games in Canada West women's hockey, it's the schedule makers. With the points earned last weekend in the conference, this weekend's games could spell doom for some while giving others the security of a playoff spot if they could find wins. With every point mattering for seven of eight teams at this juncture of the season, playoff spots will likely be a major theme for the remainder of the season for the seven teams in contention. With that being said, let's see how this week affected the playoff picture on The Rundown!

FRIDAY: In what may have been the biggest series when it came to determining quarterfinal byes, UBC headed northeast over the mountains into Edmonton to meet the Alberta Pandas. UBC needed points to hunt down Manitoba while Alberta was looking to put more space between them and everyone else while claiming the first playoff spot. Dayna Owen got the call for the Pandas as they continued their three-goalie rotation while Tory Micklash was sent to the UBC net. Just as they always do, Alberta came out ready to play and largely controlled home ice in the opening frame. Chances were had by the Pandas, but Micklash turned aside all eight shots she faced while Owen made three stops in a period were she didn't face a lot of tests. After 20 minutes, it was still 0-0 on the scoreboard. The second period was more of the same as Alberta controlled most of the period, but one of the two shots recorded by UBC would find the twine. Madison Patrick fired a shot in on Owen which the netminder kicked aside, but Ashley McFadden was in the right spot to pot the rebound as UBC went ahead 1-0 at 8:58! Despite putting seven more pucks on Micklash, she kept her net clear of pucks through 40 minutes as UBC went to the third period with the one-goal lead! It likely doesn't need top be said, but Micklash went ballistic in the third period as she shut the door time and again on the Pandas. UBC certainly found a few more chances, but Owen continued to keep Alberta within a goal with her play. However, Celine Tardif would cap this game off with an empty-net goal with 34 seconds to play as Micklash stoned the Pandas in the 2-0 victory! Tory Micklash made 27 saves to record her ninth win and fourth shutout while Owen made ten stops in the loss. Highlight are below!

With a solid 2-0 victory tonight the birds are resting up for a rematch tomorrow @ 12pm (PT) CHECKOUT THE HIGHLIGHTS FROM TONIGHT ⬇️⬇️⬇️ pic.twitter.com/EntV1TbOja

— UBC Women's Hockey (@UBCWHKY) January 12, 2019

SATURDAY: For as rare as losses are for the Pandas at Clare Drake Arena, you knew they were going to come back with some fire in their bellies on Saturday. UBC, not wanting to mess with a winning setup, started Tory Micklash for the second day in a row while the Pandas came back with rookie extraordinaire Halle Oswald in an all-Manitoba goaltending match-up. Just like the night before, the opening period saw no goals recorded largely due to Micklash's incredible netminding as she turned aside all seven shots sent her way. Oswald was far less busy as she only had two pucks to handle, but she too was perfect on both shots. Through 20 minutes, the score remained 0-0. The middle frame showed more stalemate hockey, but it would be an Alberta penalty that triggered the first goal. Alex Poznikoff went for a skate while shorthanded, and her rush ended with a high shot that went up and over the short side on Micklash to put the Pandas up 1-0 at 13:12! Another Alberta penalty two minutes later would see the team with the advantage strike back as UBC's Rylind MacKinnon loaded up a wrist shot from the point that danced its way through traffic past a screen Oswald to find the back of the net at 16:03 to tie the game 1-1! The final four minutes of the period would go scoreless as we moved to the third period tied at one goal apiece! The third period was a defensive battle as it appeared that neither side wanted to win as much as they were preventing a loss. Alberta held the advantage in shots with a 4-3 margin, but both Micklash and Oswald weren't interested in allowing a goal, so we were treated to free hockey with the game tied 1-1 at the end of regulation time! Four-on-four overtime? Solved nothing. Three-on-three overtime? Solved nothing. Shootout? Found a winner! Mathea Fischer would put UBC up in the shootout in Round One with a dangle that nearly caused me to pull a muscle as I watched, but Kennedy Ganser would tie the shootout up in Round Two. In Round Three, UBC's Emma Hall would be stopped as Alberta's Amy Boucher stepped to center ice.

PHK🐼🏒 Amy Boucher with the shootout WINNER!! Boucher and Taylor Kezama score in the shootout, giving @PandasHockey a 2-1 win over UBC.#GreenandGold pic.twitter.com/se6zjz4s43

— UAlberta Golden Bears & Pandas (@BearsandPandas) January 12, 2019

Boucher's goal would send Alberta to the 2-1 shootout victory! Halle Oswald earned her sixth win of the season with her 12-save effort while Micklash was brilliant in the shootout loss as she stopped 27 shots. Highlights from the game are below!

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FRIDAY: While one could describe this series as the battle of the bottom-dwellers in Canada West, the reality is that Lethbridge has a legitimate shot at making the Canada West playoffs for the first time if they can continue gathering points. Calgary literally needed to win to remain relevant, and any losses this weekend would ultimately force them into the spoiler role. Alicia Anderson started for Lethbridge while Kelsey Roberts was tasked with Calgary's netminding in the first half of this home-and-home series. The first period saw both teams come out firing as the Dinos opened the game with an early volley before the Pronghorns went the other way and peppered Roberts. Despite Calgary outshooting the Pronghorns by a 14-8 margin through the opening frame, Anderson and Roberts kept all shooters off the scoresheet as the game moved to the second period tied at 0-0. After the teams traded early power-play chances, the Dinos would finally solve Anderson midway through the frame. Calgary won a face-off in the offensive zone back to Delaney Frey, and she went over Anderson's shoulder inside the far post at 10:10 to put Calgary up 1-0! Minutes late, Lethbridge would be whistled for a penalty, and the Dinos would strike again. Carley Wlad would be the beneficiary of a weird bounce off the crossbar and off the glass behind Anderson from a Dana Wood shot as Wlad banged home the rebound at 14:47 to put the Dinos up 2-0! The Pronghorns could not solve Roberts for a second-straight period, and we'd head to the third period with Calgary holding the two-goal lead and a 26-17 advantage in shots. Early in the third, the Pronghorns would finally break the goose egg. Meg Dyer ricocheted a pass off the boards to Katie Breitkreuz, and Breitkreuz went shelf over Roberts' blocker at 1:38 to make it a 2-1 game! Minutes later, the Dinos would restore the two-goal margin as Rachel Paul went end-to-end, weaving around Pronghorns until before backhanding a shot high over Anderson's glove to make it 3-1 at 6:33! The Pronghorns continued to press as time wound down, but were thwarted by Roberts as we neared the final horn. A late scramble with all sorts of traffic in front of Roberts saw Jodi Gentile pick up the loose puck and snipe it home on the left side as Roberts was down and out on the right, and Lethbridge trailed 3-2 with 1:33 to play. Following the goal, the Pronghorns called their time-out, pulled Anderson, and sent six attackers out to see if they could extend this game. 22 seconds after the face-off, Ashley McCabe found Jordan Doram all alone in front of Roberts, and Doram zipped the puck between Roberts' legs to tie the game 3-3 at 18:49 in a rather unbelievable sequence of events! Neither team would find the net in the final 1:11, and we'd go to overtime to find a winner! The four-on-four overtime period featured more quality goaltending as neither team could find the back of the nets, so we'd move to double-overtime and three-on-three play. Midway through the second overtime period, a shot by Katie Breitkreuz was stopped by Roberts, but Tricia Van Vaerenbergh came thundering in for the rebound, knocking the net off its moorings and the puck into the net. After a delay, officials determined the net had come off its pegs before the puck went in, and the goal was waved off as these two teams went back to work. However, it would be moments later when Van Vaerenbergh would truly end the game, beating Roberts with her shot with 35 seconds to play to give Lethbridge the 4-3 double-overtime win! Alicia Anderson picked up her sixth win by making 40 saves on the night while Roberts stopped 39 shots in the loss.

SATURDAY: The series would move slightly north for the back half of the home-and-home as the Pronghorns traveled to Calgary. The same story held true as the night before - Lethbridge needed points to track down Mount Royal and Regina in the standings while Calgary was looking to avoid being all but eliminated from the playoffs. Kelsey Roberts and Alicia Anderson would square off in the nets in a rematch from Friday's battle. The teams traded chances early on, but it would be Lethrbidge who decided that scoring a little earlier than the third period might be beneficial. Eryn Johanson corralled a pass from Mattie Apperson and cut across the left face-off circle into the slot, opening up Roberts' five-hole as she moved laterally where Johanson slipped the puck n the backhand for the game's opening goal at 9:05! Calgary would respond minutes later on a 5-on-3 power-play when a Paige Michaelenko shot was kicked out by Anderson, but Laine Grace snuck in off the left side of the umbrella and backhanded the rebound past the Pronghorns netminder to tie the game at 1-1 at 14:14!

DINOS GOAL!!! Laine Grace ties it up on the two man advantage! 1-1. #GoDinos pic.twitter.com/YI0Xd3FEB3

— UCalgary Dinos Women's Hockey 🏒 (@DinosWHKY) January 13, 2019

The final five minutes had no other goals recorded as we'd go to the second period with the single goal scored for each team. Whatever was said during the intermission seemed to spark the Dinos as they came out to start the middle frame like they were on fire. They peppered Anderson with shots and were flying around the Lethbridge zone, but the Pronghorns' defence would not waver as they turned the attacks aside. That seemed to spark the visitors as the Pronghorns used the momentum built plus a little puck luck to find a second goal. Ashley McCabe was the recipient of a bouncing puck at the edge of the crease from Kianna Dietz, and she potted the puck into a yawning cage after players had fallen on top of Roberts. The officials agreed it was a good goal, and Lethbridge led 2-1 at 11:13! It seemed that the Dinos were poised to tie the game late in the frame but a pair of saves by the post and the crossbar kept this game at 2-1 as the teams headed to the third! The third period saw the teams trade chances, but neither the goalies nor the posts were willing to concede any further goals. Despite outshooting the Pronghorns, the Dinos could not muster another goal as the Pronghorns picked up three points with the 2-1 win! Alicia Anderson notched her seventh win of the season in making 27 stops while Roberts fell short with her 18 saves.

FRIDAY: The battle of the rectangle province went for the second time this season as Regina traveled to Saskatoon for the first half of the home-and-home with the Huskies. Regina needed points to hold onto fifth-place against the persistent Mount Royal Cougars and the surging Lethbridge Pronghorns. Saskatchewan, meanwhile, had a chance to close the gap on third-place UBC with a pair of wins this weekend. Which team would help their own cause? Jessica Vance took the net for the Huskies while Jane Kish was in net for the Cougars. The first period was all about goal-scoring and goaltending for the home squad. Saskatchewan jumped out in front at 6:56 off a Brooklyn Haubrich goal, and then followed that goal up 44 seconds later when Bailee Bourassa lasered a shot over Jane Kish's left shoulder into the top-right corner. Regina got themselves moving after that and generated a number of chances, but Vance wasn't having any of it as she denied those shots. With 1:06 remaining in the frame, Kennedy Brown knocked down a puck and took off on a breakaway where she went top-left corner over the glove of Kish to make it 3-0. The final minute would produce nothing else, so we'd move to the second period with Saskatchewan firmly in control with a 3-0 lead. Morgan Baker was in the Cougars' net to start the second period as Sarah Hodges looked for something to spark her team. Unfortunately, the Huskies continued to bring the heat, but Baker was ready for the action as she turned away a number of chances early on. Saskatchewan would make good on one of their 14 shots in the frame as Abby Shirley solved Baker at 16:22, and it seemed that the Huskies were setting up a blow-out of their provincial rivals. However, Regina would kill Vance's shutout when Chelsea Hallson sent Jaycee Magwood and Emma Waldenberger in on a two-on-one just over a minute later. Magwood opted to keep and that was a good decision as her shot beat Vance at 18:54 to make it a 4-1 game. The third period was all about Saskatchewan limiting chances and securing the lead through the final 20 minutes. They would indeed do that, using some early scoring to help them to a 4-1 victory on this night! Jessica Vance made 26 saves for her eighth win of the campaign while Kish suffered the loss in her 20 minutes of work, making 11 saves on 14 shots. For the record, Baker stopped 21 of 22 shots in her 40 minutes of relief work.

SATURDAY: The series would head south down Highway 11 to Regina as the interprovincial battle continued. The loss on Friday certainly didn't help Regina, but the three points earned by Saskatchewan made the gap between the fourth-place Huskies and fifth-place Cougars even larger. Jessica Vance took to the Saskatchewan nets once more while Regina came back with Morgan Baker after her strong performance one night earlier. After both teams got their legs under them, the Huskies went back to work as they did one night earlier. Kennedy Brown sent a pass over to Sophie Lalor on a two-on-one, and Lalor waited just long enough to find a seam on Baker as she beat the Regina netminder between the wickets at 7:56 to put the visitors up 1-0. Regina, however, wasn't going to let this one get away while on home ice. Jenna Merk stripped a Huskie of the puck behind the net and threw it out front where Shaelyn Vallotton picked it up inside the blue line, stepped into a wrist shot, and beat Vance low on the glove side at 10:20 to even the score at 1-1! The final nine minutes saw Regina pour on all sorts of pressure thanks to a 5-on-3 power-play, but Vance would stand tall as the period ended with the score tied at one-goal apiece despite Regina leading 14-5 in shots! The second period was highlighted by more goaltending as neither Vance nor Baker were interested in allowing the opposition to take a lead. That continued into the third period as well as neither Regina nor Saskatchewan could find an advantage. This would carry over into the four-on-four overtime period and again into the three-on-three overtime period. At the end of three full periods and two overtime periods, we were still tied 1-1 with Regina holding a 33-18 advantage in shots. We'd need a skills competition to decide a winner in this one! It would take eight rounds to determine a winner, and that would include Baker stopping Bailee Bourassa and Sophie Lalor twice each while Jessica Vance stoned Jaycee Magwood twice. However, the only goal of the shootout would go to Regina when Jordan Kulbida zipped a shot under Vance's blocker for the winner in the skills competition! Regina would claim victory with the shootout goal as they prevailed 2-1! Morgan Baker picked up her third win of the season in stopping 17 shots while Vance absorbed the loss despite making 32 saves on this night.

FRIDAY: Manitoba traveled to Calgary to meet the Mount Royal Cougars as they stared at a six-point chasm between themselves and first-place Alberta while third-place UBC was three points back of them. Mount Royal needed to find points to try and leap Regina into fifth-place while holding off Lethbridge in their push for the playoffs. Manitoba opted to send Lauren Taraschuk to the crease while Mount Royal went with Zoe De Beauville. Manitoba came out strong and carried the play in the early going as they caused the Cougars some fits with their speed and skill. This would help Manitoba draw the first penalty as Tatum Amy was sent off for a slash, and the Manitoba power-play would make the Cougars pay. Natasha Kostenko would find the first goal as she beat De Beauville at 10:23 with the player-advantage, and the Bisons were up 1-0! It appeared we'd go to the intermission with that score, but Karissa Kirkup had other ideas as she found the back of the net with 14 seconds left in the frame, and Manitoba would lead 2-0 when the horn sounded. The second period was far more even in the play between the two teams, but a bodychecking penalty on Tianna Ko was what Manitoba needed to extend their lead. Jenai Buchanan would find room past De Beauville at 6:38 - eight seconds after Ko was sent off - as Manitoba took a 3-0 lead! It should be noted that early in the second, Mount Royal went down a defender when Victoria Byer went down and was in considerable pain. She was helped off the ice, and the Cougars would play the remainder of the second and the third with only five defenders. Here's hoping that Byer's injury is minor, and she's back on the ice sooner than later! The good news? They would start the third period needing three goals to even the game. Nicolette Seper would beat Taraschuk midway through the third period to ruin the shutout bid, but Erica Rieder would ice the game with an empty-netter with 18 second to play as Manitoba locked down the defensive zone to secure the 4-1 victory. Lauren Taraschuk made 19 saves to record her conference-leading tenth win of the season while De Beauville suffered the loss despite stopping 28 shots. SATURDAY: Manitoba came into Saturday's game looking for the sweep and all six points while Mount Royal needed to find a split in their efforts to hunt down the Saskatchewan-based Cougars. Lauren Taraschuk would head back to the blue paint for Manitoba while Mount Royal opted to go with Emma Pincott in the matinee. The Cougars came out as the aggressors in this game and they had chances early, only to be denied by Taraschuk. The period would begin to shift in Manitoba's direction as they had a power-play midway through the period, but came up with nothing to show for it. The defensive stance seemed to push the Cougars, and they'd take a lead with less than five minutes to play in the frame when Camryn Amundson out-muscled a defender to get off a backhander that eluded Taraschuk on the short side to give MRU the 1-0 lead at 15:39! The Cougars would maintain their first lead of the weekend through to the intermission. It seemed that the Bisons simply couldn't find their game on this afternoon as the Cougars opened the second period by blitzing the Manitoba defence over and over, but, while the Bisons may have bent, they certainly didn't break. They would find themselves square later in the period when Alanna Sharman - who had missed the entire first half of the season - scored her first goal of the campaign on a slapper than beat Pincott at 14:03. Give Taraschuk credit as she held the fort in the second period as the two teams went to the the third period knotted up at 1-1. Both teas traded chances in the opening of the third period, but it would be a power-play midway through the frame that put the Bisons ahead. Alanna Sharman scored her second goal of the game past Pincott at 10:04 to put Manitoba up 2-1. Five minutes later, Lauryn Keen decided to put on a display of talent while shorthanded that can only be described as "dazzling"!

WOW!! Lauryn Keen shows off some ridiculous dangles on this shorthanded goal! @umbisonsWHKY lead @MRUcougars 3-1 in the third! #gobisons pic.twitter.com/9A90LSD8uX

— U of Manitoba Bisons (@umbisons) January 12, 2019

Keen's amazing shorthanded goal at 15:07 put Manitoba up 3-1, and Mount Royal was running out of time. Pincott would head to the bench with 1:19 remaining, but it would be Jordy Zacharias who iced this game with 16 seconds to play into the empty net as the Bisons skated to the 4-1 victory! Lauren Taraschuk made 18 stops for her eleventh win of the season while Emma Pincott suffered her first loss of the season after making 18 saves.

CWUAA WOMEN'S HOCKEY School Record Points GF GA Streak Next Alberta

12-4-4-0

44 47 16

@ MRU Manitoba

12-4-2-2

42 57 29

vs REG British Columbia

9-4-3-4

37 41 26

@ CAL Saskatchewan

8-6-4-2

34 34 28

vs LET Regina

7-8-2-3

28 35 46

@ MAN Mount Royal

7-11-1-1

24 28 47

vs ALB Lethbridge

6-11-1-2

22 26 44

@ SAS Calgary

2-15-0-3

9 22 54

vs UBC

The Last Word

Well, after a number of surprises this week in terms of who beat who, the overall net change in the standings was zero. The races got a little tighter thanks to those wins, but every team is in the same place as they were last week. That being said, there are some things to note for this upcoming week. With Alberta visiting Mount Royal, Alberta can clinch a playoff spot with a victory of any sort on Friday OR a Lethbridge loss at the hands of Saskatchewan at any point this weekend. There are 24 points remaining this season, Alberta is 22 points ahead of the Pronghorns, and Alberta holds the tie-breaker right now as the season series is 2-0 in their favor. With Manitoba hosting Regina, the Bisons can book their ticket to the playoffs with any combination of four points earned this weekend OR by earning one point on Friday AND having Lethbridge lose in regulation time to Saskatchewan on Friday. There are 24 points remaining this season, Manitoba is 20 points ahead of the Pronghorns, and Manitoba holds the tie-breaker right now as the season series is 2-0 in their favor. With Calgary hosting UBC, the Dinos will officially be eliminated from playoff contention if UBC wins both games in regulation AND Mount Royal earns four points against Alberta in their two games. There are 24 points remaining this season, Mount Royal is 15 points ahead of the Dinos, and the teams have split the season series 1-1 thus far. If Mount Royal fails to earn four points or if Calgary earns points in any way, the Dinos are still in the hunt for the final playoff spot for at least one more week. What makes this upcoming weekend's games a little more intriguing is the fact that Mount Royal and Alberta are 1-1 against one another this season with each team winning at home. The series this weekend will also be a home-and-home, so fans of the Cougars are hoping to recreate the same magic they found in Week Three when the Cougars beat the Pandas 3-1 in Calgary. The playoff picture is slowly starting to take form, and it's the most exciting time in Canada West with seven teams legitimately vying for six spots. While no one is writing off the Dinos just yet, if they adopt the spoiler role and play like they have nothing to lose, we might be talking about eight teams vying for six spots following this weekend. As Andy Williams sang, it really is the most wonderful time of the year! Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice! from Sports News http://hockey-blog-in-canada.blogspot.com/2019/01/the-rundown-week-10.html

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flauntpage · 5 years

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The Flyers Now vs. the Flyers Then, and How it Equates to Joel Quenneville

Russ wrote a post Tuesday about the Joel Quenneville firing and how it relates (or doesn’t really) to the Flyers.

I wanted to expand on what he wrote with an opinion that I have expressed previously on the Snow the Goalie podcast, but haven’t really written in this space… until now.

I won’t sit here and begin to tell you why the Chicago Blackhawks fired Quenneville. There could very well be something behind it that’s not public. But, from my 1,000-foot view, I know there was a cordial-at-best relationship between Quenneville and general manager Stan Bowman. This wasn’t anything new. It went back several years. The two were definitely able to put their differences aside when Chicago was winning three Stanley Cups in six years, but two first-round exits and a missed playoff season altogether in the last three years followed by a .500 start to this season (points percentage-wise) was enough for the GM to win out and can the coach.

Now you might ask, why did I bold that last part of the previous paragraph? It’s because I want you to read it again. Go ahead, I’ll wait…

…

If you didn’t know I was talking about Quenneville and the Blackhawks, doesn’t that sound eerily familiar to Dave Hakstol?

Actually, it’s not eerily similar. It’s spot on the same.

In Chicago, Rocky Wirtz, owner of the Blackhawks, who invariably had to sign off on this firing of Quenneville, wasn’t content enough with his three-time Cup-winning coach merely giving mediocre results.

Here, Comcast Spectacor, owner of the Flyers, who would invariably have to sign off on any personnel decision involving an employee, seems to let that mediocrity define them.

This isn’t meant as an indictment of Hakstol. I honestly think the guy has coached his ass off this season just to get to 7-7-1. I don’t type that lightly either. I never gave him high marks for coaching before this season, but I see a difference in Hakstol compared with his first three seasons where he went from feeling his way to growing too comfortable knowing his GM, Ron Hextall, had the patience of a saint for the team’s progress.

No, this is instead targeted at the ownership of the team. It’s an ownership that is clearly driven by the bottom line, not necessarily about results. It’s why mediocrity has reigned supreme for Hextall’s tenure. The team has been just good enough to keep the fans interested, the tickets mostly sold, and the stadium more than full enough to keep the money rolling in.

But that bottom line figure has started to have a little more of a red hue to it. Don’t get me wrong, the Flyers are still in the black, but the numbers at the bottom of the spreadsheet are getting a little bit of a sun burn, and this has precipitated CEO Dave Scott to suddenly make visits to the GM’s box this season.

Finally, they are showing they care – but it’s likely for the wrong reasons as far as fans are concerned.

Yes, hockey, like all professional sports, is a business, and ultimately, business decisions are going to be made, regardless of their popularity.

But, to be successful in sports – from the competition side – it requires more from ownership than just a wallet and maximizing its return on investment. It requires a desire to win over and above the bottom line.

I spoke to an executive with the Flyers several years back who explained to me, in great detail, why the organization at the time didn’t make money unless the team made it into the second round of the playoffs.

It made a lot of sense back then.

In short, the team was spending more money than almost any other team because they were trying to win season after season after season all while keeping the fans as engaged and interested as possible.

And although the Flyers ultimately came up short in that pursuit, an 0-fer that has extended to 43 years now, they were definitely in the championship conversation every year.

I’ve made the argument before that the Flyers were an elite team in the NHL for a long period of time. Some chided me for that – and I get it, it’s hard to characterize a team as elite without a championship for so long.

But between 1974 and 2010 the Flyers went to the Stanley Cup Finals eight times. If you add in the seasons they were bounced in the semifinals, they reached at least the Final Four of their sport 15 times in 35 seasons (2004-05 was locked out entirely).

You’ll be hard pressed to find many other professional sports teams with that kind of sustained success.

And the primary reason that happened was they had an owner who wanted to win more than anything else.

Sure, Ed Snider meddled sometimes a bit too much. There were mistakes that were made along the way that can now posthumously be linked back to him. Bad contracts (Ilya Bryzgalov), trading away young players at the wrong time (Justin Williams, Patrick Sharp – although these were Bob Clarke decisions, they needed Snider’s blessing), firing a coach at the wrong time (Terry Murray, Peter Laviolette) and a total mishandling of the Eric Lindros situation.

But these decisions were mistakes of passion, not a mistake of apathy.

And that’s the most damning thing about the Flyers right now. They are mediocre because that’s what ownership has accepted.

And maybe they are slowly on the way to where they can be competitive again. Hextall is truly giving us an on-ice rendition of The Tortoise and the Hare. But how much longer do you have to wait? Two more seasons? Three? Four?

Is this a five-year plan? Seven? Ten?

Whatever it is, Comcast should have the alarm bells going off about what is happening in Chicago. Good organizations don’t settle. They keep trying to find the next advantage to winning.

And maybe the Blackhawks are on their way to a rebuild, with the window having closed on an aging roster and ownership felt that it was better to head into that period of uncertainty with a coach making a lot less than Quenneville’s $6 million a year. Or maybe they are trying to squeeze more out of the current roster and want to send a message to the players that having the 27th ranked power play and 22nd ranked penalty kill is not good enough. (By similarity, the Flyers are 24th and 29th respectfully).

Whatever the case may be, the Blackhawks, at least for the past decade, have been an organization determined to win and do so at all costs – and it has resulted in an incredible run.

The Flyers? Their payroll in 2003-2004 was $69 million. That, of course, was before there was a salary cap, but was the second-highest in the NHL. Now, 15 years later, it’s $72.5 million. The Flyers now rank 23rd in the league in salary. Hextall did a great job of getting them out of salary cap hell, which was an issue created prior to his arrival, but at the same time, has not attempted to do anything with the room he has created – aside from throwing a little too much money at James van Riemsdyk to bring the long-lost Flyer home.

The reason he’s been able to get away with being so very patient?

Because he doesn’t have an owner, or owners, who care nearly enough as the fans, never mind coming close to the passion for the sport that Snider had. They like the fact that they are spending less money than they can and still are able to put a sometimes entertaining and marginally successful product on the ice.

The Flyers would be wise to send a similar message to their players and their fans like Chicago has done and give a tour of Comcast’s bottomless pockets to Quenneville.

It would be a sign that expediting the concept of winning is a priority. Bringing in a coach who knows how to win and motivate winning players.

That’s not to say Hakstol won’t eventually get there – like I said, he’s done yeoman’s work this season – but an apathetic and frustrated fan base is about ready to give up on the waiting. And even if Hakstol saved his gig with a good road trip out west, everything now changes with Quenneville suddenly becoming a free agent.

I would bet there are teams ahead of the Flyers right now who are thinking long and hard about calling Quenneville or his agent. Hell, I bet a couple called in the time it took you to read this post.

Comcast and the Flyers need to get on that horse, post haste…

Otherwise, a 3-0-1 road trip in November might be the most exciting thing to talk about during the postmortem on this season in April and you’ll be discussing the creation of more off-ice marketing shticks to try and distract fans until the team gets to where it should be already.

The post The Flyers Now vs. the Flyers Then, and How it Equates to Joel Quenneville appeared first on Crossing Broad.

The Flyers Now vs. the Flyers Then, and How it Equates to Joel Quenneville published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

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thrashermaxey · 6 years

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Ramblings: Thoughts on Voynov, Zetterberg, Gustafsson, why Krug is underrated, and more (Aug 27)

***

The last update of the Fantasy Guide was in on Friday night. This one just had a few tiny player moves, plus I put in my projected team goals-for (I projected another increase overall, but was conservative at 2.2%). I explained my reasoning with thoughts on goalie equipment rule changes…

Thursday will be my first re-birthday. When I reach the anniversary of my stem cell transplant on August 30 I will provide my readers with an update on my health, what all has happened in my battle with leukemia and where things stand. So be sure to look for that. (Spoiler: it will be good).

I’m going to try to get away with the family for a couple of days this week. I did that last week and no kidding within an hour of getting to the cottage all that site security crap hit and the emails came flying at me. Got most of it straightened out a few hours later (once I found out about it) with the rest fixed the next morning. Hopefully things work out better this time when I leave! *crosses fingers*

Slava Voynov has not yet received clearance from the NHL to play this year, according to several sources who quote Bill Daley. And the teams that need him the most and can afford him (Toronto probably the most, but also Ottawa and others) will be vilified for signing him. Especially in Toronto, a city that just got rid of Roberto Osuna (Blue Jays). His wife, who is standing by his side and has all these years, didn’t want Voynov charged to begin with. Does that help matters any? We will see. I have a feeling that there will be a team that takes the plunge, and that the court of public opinion will not like it at all. If you have lots of draft picks using one on them towards the end on him could pay off because he has a lot of offensive upside for a defenseman. He is not currently projected in my fantasy guide nor anywhere on my draft list so he truly is a sleeper pick right now, a huge risk and quite the long shot.

NHL.com’s Nick Cotsonika is reporting that Henrik Zetterberg is still unable to train and will probably not be cleared to play. He adds that Zetterberg would be cleared to play later, so don’t write him off for the season just yet. If Zetterberg cannot play, Andreas Athanasiou moves to center.

I don’t see Michael Rasmussen in the NHL this year, but Filip Zadina’s odds just increased. I really like what this does for Athanasiou as he moves from third-line winger with minimal PP time to second-line center with secondary PP time. Rasmussen’s odds certainly improve and now he may get a nine-game trial, I just don’t think he’s ready to stick. Dark horse long shot: Joe Veleno.

Notes from Twitter this week…

1) Someone commented on how Jaden Schwartz and Mark Stone are going very late in mock drafts. This is explainable by the fact that they are both Band-Aid Boys and so projected total points have them lower than they’d be had they played 80 games. Therein lies the flaw with projections. You print out your sheet (or plug them into the draft room online) and they are in the order of their season totals. But if your league has an IR you have to account for that, and this is where your own brain has to step in and make adjustments. Would you rather draft a player projected for 58 points in 66 games or a player with 65 points in 82 games? If you have an IR then you want the 58 guy because he will get more points when he’s playing and you can replace him at likely half the value or better via the waiver wire when he’s hurt. And who’s to say that this won’t be the year he stays healthy? Prognosticators can only give their best guess on games played based on track record, but this really is a variable. Go through your list if you have an IR and move up some of the players projected to miss 10-15 games. You can still get them at great spots, just don’t move them up too high.

On a side note further to that, if I project 80 points in 80 games for a player and another magazine projects 40 points in 80 games…but then he breaks a leg and ends up with 40 points in 40 games – is the other magazine better than I? Some who rank projections will say “yes” according to their formula. This is why I preach content, sleeper odds and updates as being more important than projections. Most projections for most players will be within a few percentage points of each other across prognosticators. It’s the meat of the sandwich that matters. And I say this even though I’m generally one of the more accurate people.

2) Someone wanted to know my thoughts on Erik Gustafsson. I love this question and immediately made a mental note to answer it here. The 26-year-old has improved steadily in the AHL and thrived last year with 17 points in 25 games. He finally got into the Chicago lineup on January 20 (likely delayed by Jordan Oesterle going supernova briefly before flaming out) and tallied two points. That earned him enough goodwill to keep him in the lineup for another 11 games but he managed just one point. That got him scratched. Gustafsson returned to the lineup February 19 and stayed in the lineup from that point onward, posting 12 points in 22 games with ice time that eked steadily upward to close to 20 minutes per game towards the end. Impressive!

All Chicago did in the offseason to address their lack of depth on defense was to sign Brandon Manning, who is hardly a threat to Gustafsson. I have him penciled in for 31 points in 67 games and as a strong sleeper for topping 40. Look at the team – Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook are in decline, but they are still 1-2. After that, competition for PP time is with Jan Rutta, Connor Murphy, Gustav Forsling and Brandon Manning (I don’t think the Hawks rush Henri Jokiharju). These are all No.6 defensemen on a lot of teams, as is Gustafsson. But it’s his spot to lose, which is the No.3 guy for PP ice time.

{source}<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-cards="hidden" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">What happens with Torey Krug this season and why is he so undervalued in pools?</p>— Andrew (@anjoot) <a href="https://twitter.com/anjoot/status/1033817985868152832?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 26, 2018</a></blockquote>{/source}

Everyone has fallen in love with Charlie McAvoy and think that his arrival will spell the end of Krug. Injury issues aside (I have concerns, but I also have concerns about Krug so that’s a wash), McAvoy is not stealing the PP job from Krug anytime soon. I find that fantasy owners get hunches and while these hunches may turn out to be absolutely correct they almost never do within the timeline they expect. If they think “this year” it ends up being “four years from now”. Krug had 37 points in the second half last season! Thirty-seven! It’s true, look it up. Does that sound like someone on the decline? And for those who respond “Yeah, but that’s because McAvoy was hurt” – come on! McAvoy could return as an enhanced cyborg and it’s not going to remove a defenseman from his place on the roster after the guy got 37 points in 41 games to end the season!

{source}<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-cards="hidden" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I’d like info on new goons. Our keeper has hits & pims. A guy like Haley FLA can get decent games out of no where and win me pims a couple weeks with one game. Seems like those guys come out of no where. Then leave. Who this year?</p>— Rian Shaefer (@L0RDFuDGE) <a href="https://twitter.com/L0RDFuDGE/status/1033818930169761795?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 26, 2018</a></blockquote>{/source}

There has to be a reason Ross Johnston was signed to a four-year contract. Maybe he only plays 12 games but he’s going to get 40 PIM in those games. Sometimes you just gotta follow the contract.

(PS – Torey Krug makes $5.5 million this year, another reason to feel good about his standing with the team)

{source}<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-cards="hidden" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Which backup goalie do you see surprising many people?</p>— Blake Perkins (@bperkins21) <a href="https://twitter.com/bperkins21/status/1033821377239961600?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 26, 2018</a></blockquote>

Robin Lehner

{source}<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-cards="hidden" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Does Vince Dunn get more ice time & special teams or is he sheltered again and used on the PP?</p>— FlyingVs (@ImUrHucklbrry) <a href="https://twitter.com/ImUrHucklbrry/status/1033822854138093568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 26, 2018</a></blockquote>

Yes and yes. Here is a direct quote from my Fantasy Guide (c’mon, buy it!):

“Dunn started slowly from an offensive standpoint, but he had 17 points in the second half (36 games). His ice time went up by about one minute per game and his power-play time gradually increased quarter-over-quarter until it was 2:14 per game in the fourth quarter.”

See you next Monday.

from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-rambling/ramblings-thoughts-on-voynov-zetterberg-gustafsson-why-krug-is-underrated-and-more-aug-27/

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andrewuttaro · 5 years

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New Look Sabres: Midseason Thoughts

Happy New Year! The Buffalo Sabres game against the Florida Panthers tomorrow will be their 41st game. By my calculation that’s the halfway point of the season and I think my math skills are at least good enough for basic division. This landmark of the season had me thinking we ought to take a look at the season as whole here when we’re about halfway certain what it’s going to end up looking like. Yea, perhaps we can be a little more than halfway certain with our predictions at this point but just let me show off my basic math skills, ok? I initially started thinking about the grand scheme of things about this season back after the Sabres met the Leafs the first time at the start of December. True rivalry games like that always get me thinking. There is a lot more to digest about this season based on the first half than my most optimistic self would’ve thought in September. I remember predicting the Sabres would have a winning record in October like I was going out on a limb. The expectations clearly changed this season, early on two: like the first twenty odd something games it became clear the corner had finally been turned. There’s a lot to that and I will dive into some of the minutia of that in later thoughts but perhaps it’s wiser first to reflect. Before I started New Look Sabres I wrote hockey articles on and off for different outlets and even freelance like this. I have no writing degrees so my thoughts were encapsulated in slick declarative titles: 2013-2014 was the Dawn of the Tank, 2014-2015 was the War of the Tanks, 2015-2016 was the New Guard Rising, 2016-2017 was the lost season and 2017-2018 was… *shutters* … the trash season. Jack Eichel’s rookie year had its optimism as you can see but the seasons to follow showed the things wrong with the team needed fixing. Certainly not all those problems are fixed but what might this season be called? I feel that the first half of this season has already given us a pretty solid idea…

…2018-2019 is the Reclamation. The season the Sabres reclaimed not only relevance but the mantle of the minimum level of quality Sabres teams have had over the last forty nine years. Moreover, the Buffalo Sabres as a club reclaimed their fans: not just the diehards who look at draft rankings in January, the casual fans and the ones who just don’t want to be miserable watching hockey. The runner up name was the Found Money Season. That’s where my first thought starts. This team has turned a corner; they’re a playoff contender now. At least they acted like it in the first half. Expectations should remain there. Make the playoffs, please oh please make the playoffs; divisional or a more likely wildcard, just make it. Anything that happens beyond that is a gift; found money if you will. If the Sabres win a game there: excellent if they win a round, fantastic! If they get swept, okay whatever. I want to say this now not just to get ahead of crazy March and April sound bites but to remind us all not to sell the farm. The playoff race, the playoffs themselves and everything that comes before is a learning experience more than anything else. I would say some young guys on this team don’t know what the Stanley Cup playoffs are like but really it’s true with every member of the Sabres core including Jeff Skinner. Pominville is really your only guy who’s not a former Blue who can tell you about that. Bank points through the second half, make the playoffs and from there on out its whatever this season. No expectation past game 82 except learn. Learn what it means to be in the playoffs and play like it. The second half will be decisive if not for playoff positioning than simple team building. Not the roster building GMs do, no: Build Buffalo Sabres hockey. Learn it, and then teach us what it’s like. Playoffs are just proof of competitiveness, that’s all the Sabres need to prioritize right now on that front: growth in competitiveness.

They’ve found some kind of groove already this season but in the second half the Sabres need to lock down their style, their game, their groove and put it to the test in the playoffs against whoever they face. It seems cruel to use this phrase sometimes as a Sabres fan knowing what we’ve been through but we’re still in a building year. I am not going to be offended if Jason Botterill goes out and acquires a small piece or two but it better not be expensive and it better not be a rental. Reward these guys with a weapon that will be here a little while. Rental players you get for a playoff run or a season and a half rarely make the huge difference you want them to make. Reinforce the defense or shore up secondary scoring if you make a move. That’s how you’ll reward a Sabres team that turned it around this season. The Playoff window is just opening, the Stanley Cup window has not opened yet. Don’t buy a lot by selling futures when our focus is experience and growth as a team. So yes, reward them for what they’ve done with a cheaper move but don’t make the move that will be seen as demanding a deep run at the Cup. That rewarding the group is important in its own way. Maybe, although cheap wouldn’t be the word I use to describe it, that reward is signing Jeff Skinner since he wants to stay? Hmm.

My second thought I already touched on a little bit: it’s consistency. This Buffalo Sabres team is remarkably streaky and that’s fine when there’s enough wins in there to make it work but that’s not a habit of Stanley Cup teams. Consistently winning, or being damn close to it, requires not just one line action like we saw almost exclusively in December, but secondary scoring and a defensive core that contributes as well. Some of that you develop and call up in house but maybe, once again at a good price, you bring in a piece for the parts here that are not producing at all. My third point is a discussion of goaltending. The Carter Hutton-Linus Ullmark tandem has been top ten in this league in goals against and save percentage. Given where each of those guys is in their careers you expect a drop off at some point. That drop off has not come yet and any strategizing for it seems a little moot right now. That said, it would be good if Ullmark good get more starts in the second half. An 8-1-3 record in his 13 starts is safe enough a bet to trust him. Trust in him will build confidence and if he is the goalie of the future in Buffalo, which I truly believe he is, he needs that. Yea, he got pulled before the third in that one game, he’ll have his mistakes like any goalie does but I could not feel happier about the Sabres situation in net right now.

My fourth point: SIGN JEFF SKINNER! LOL, no that’s important but it’s not actually a midseason thought. No, I want to talk more generally about the season now; where we’ve been and where we’re going. The beginning of the season can really be thought of us as before and after Jeff Skinner got put on Eichel’s wing. After that 5-1 rout on the road against San Jose Phil Housley took a blender to the lineup and got some good results. Four wins came in the next eight games and then the next major phase of the Sabres season happened when everyone kicked into over gear and the ten game win streak hit. For three weeks the Sabres felt invincible beating teams like Tampa, Winnipeg and San Jose pulling in every Western New York Hockey fan that had since gotten tired of Sabres sorrows. The five game skid that followed the win streak wasn’t as bad as it felt and the wins came back although Buffalo is still in a post-win streak hangover from a standings perspective barely playing .500 hockey since the big one. From here on out the road map to the playoffs is simpler than seven years outside the playoffs might lead you to believe, at least until the end of January. It’s banking points, particularly in Western Canada before the bye week late in January, before suiting up for a stretch run in February and March that only sees two breaks of more than two days. The back half will be a crucible after the bye week and there will be teams, even ones not names Boston, Montreal or the Islanders, who will give you fits and make you work for that playoff berth we’ve all been dying for.

This blog is going to change a little bit in the second half of the season as well. Hopefully it won’t be a crucible to get through but I am making myself think harder for my comedic bits starting now. Instead of the burn book for all our reasons to hate divisional rivals in those games, each game against an Eastern Conference opponent will feature a bit on what facing them in the first round of the playoffs would mean. This will be understandably silly against some opponents like Ottawa and New Jersey but it should be fun. Some programming notes: seasons for this blog will revolve around the post season. The blog season ends when the Sabres are eliminated from contention for Lord Stanley’s Cup whether that be March *shutters* or early May. The blog season will formally end with a 2018-2019 Season retrospective followed by a break before the draft that may or may not see some kind of “Playoffs according to the Sabres” and or another Schedule breakdown depending on when that releases. If you care enough about the blog to read through that then thank you, I wish you had cared enough to drop me a comment or two going into this but I’m not bitter: it’s a super chill hockey blog, I don’t expect my writing here to attract deep thought. That said, deep thoughts appreciated.

Thanks for reading.

P.S. I want to signal boost the opinion that if the Sabres do not make the playoffs in 2019 then Phil Housley’s job should be at stake. A collapse great enough to ruin the 11 point lead on a playoff spot they had in November is already well in progress. Lots of hockey left but there’s the objective.

#buffalo sabres #hockey #nhl #blog

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andrewuttaro · 5 years

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New Look Sabres: GM 37 - ANA - Still Kicking

Two teams come into this game with two straight regulation losses: only one will come out with a W! I did some digging into past blogs and I discovered something weirdly encouraging: the Sabres came into this game after losing two games in a row in regulation. That’s not the encouraging part. The encouraging part is that this is only the second time this season the Sabres have lost two in a row in regulation and the last time was the 6th and 7th games back in October! Yea, there was that five game losing streak right after the big olde ten dubs but the Sabres played good in four of those and collected points in three. Kind of like Friday night in Washington when Buffalo played well but was just not rewarded for it. Last night in a tilt against the Anaheim Ducks the Sabres looked good again, this time in they looked good the kind of way that makes you excited for the postseason: the consistent way. Maintaining a narrow lead for most of the game the Mighty Sabres of Buffalo pounded out a hard fought win in front of a very merry sellout home crowd. Last game I just asked for a nice sendoff before the Christmas break and evidently my letter reached the North Pole because I got what I wished for! I must be a good boy. Of course it’s fair to say it’s the Anaheim Ducks and in spite of where they sit in the Pacific Division their just not that great a team. Yea, that’s fair. But within that shaky framework are a few pieces that won a Stanley Cup more than a decade ago the year the Sabres should’ve been there to meet them. And it’s also Christmastime so maybe just let yourself be happy about a win for goodness sake!

Having gone home for some Yuletide prep with the Fam I watched the first period on MSG TV next to my dad like it was 2011 all over again. Jolly. The Sabres came out immediately throwing the pressure on the Ducks, shots after shots after shots, and the visitors just kind of held on through it. John Gibson was clearly a big part of it. Jack Eichel got a chance, Tage Thompson got a good chance, friggin everyone hopped on the sleigh and got a chance. The Ducks did get to testing Linus Ullmark a little bit as the period went on. Then the Buffalo Sabres gave us their Christmas present to us: a rare gift that, barring another wicked win streak, is a truly meaningful gift to those of us who watch this team a lot: a powerplay goal. Set up in the offensive zone Jack Eichel got the puck to Rasmus Ristolainen who continues to be on a line with the other big Rasmus: Rasmus Dahlin to make Rasmus Squared. Risto got it to Dahlin who you could tell sized up a quick pass back to Eichel but instead skated toward Gibson and just rockets it in five hole. The noise of the home crowd was very audible. Funny thing, I think Dahlin happened to also go five hole on Reinhart who was doing an excellent job screening Gibson. That goal came a tad over three minutes left in the first period and nothing terrible noteworthy happened before the first horn sounded except an almost fight. Jeff Skinner must have been doing some trash talking with Ryan Getzlaf (which makes a ton of sense btw) because Zach Bogosian came rushing over like Getzlaf was about to punch a puppy. No puppies were punched and the second period began similarly with volley after volley of Sabres chances.

Ondrej Kase had a scary breakaway early in the second but didn’t get past Ullmark. There was an almost goal for Jack and Jeff that you could see how pissed the two were that they didn’t finish it. I don’t know about you but as the last minutes of the second period ticked by and the Sabres took a 1-0 lead into the third period there was a nervous energy. Now I’m listening to the radio broadcast en route back to Buffalo and I can’t help but get that feeling something is going to go south. The Sabres were on the penalty kill to start the period and once again the kill was strong under the guidance of Chief Killer Bogo and his newly returned co-conspirator Jake McCabe. Adam Henrique almost sneaked in a wraparound as the PP died but no line was crossed. The Ducks started to pour it on now. Three straight regulation losses is rough and they didn’t want it either. Linus Ullmark really got into the zone facing shots from just about every angle. And then, like getting the gift you’ve been asking for on Christmas morning, Jeff Skinner got the puck and skated in around the outside of the net and roofed it close quarters short side on John Gibson. 2-0 Sabres with 8:48 left in the third period. Insurance if I’ve ever seen an insurance goal. Small but massive note: that’s Jeff Skinner’s 26th goal this season. With that he beats the most goals a single Sabre scored last season at 25 whom Jack Eichel scored in an injury shortened season. Pretty unreal, eh? Seven or so minutes later as the Sabres increasingly push back against the Ducks the visitors pull their goalie and Conor Sheary finds the empty netter. The time ticked down to zero and Linus Ullmark’s second NHL career shutout and eighth win of his first season working part-time in Buffalo. The Buffalo Sabres win 3-0 over the Anaheim Ducks sweeping the season series with quacks for the first time since 2010-2011.

Now as the Sabres navigated that perilous 1-0 lead as the Ducks came at them hard early in the third period there was something far more worrisome afoot in Key Bank Center. The play-by-play call by Rick Jeanneret went more or less silent with a confused sounding Rob Ray trying to do color commentary and play-by-play for a time. Eventually, well known Sabres social media guidepost and pre/postgame host Brian Duff took over the color commentary somewhat awkwardly, but RJ did not return for the duration of the game. While officials for the team said an update on him would be given once more was known a few folks at the game said they saw RJ carried out on a stretcher. WGR 550 reported shortness of breath and heart problems. It was a difficult night trying to think about writing this while worrying about someone who embodies this franchise perhaps more than Gilbert Perrault or Alexander Mogilny. RJ is literally the longest serving NHL play-caller in league history having been with the Sabres since 1971. Think about that, if you’re under 20 then one or both of your parents were probably not born yet when RJ first took the microphone as their guy. He may deserve a banner in the rafters more than Danny Gare. Well, the update the Sabres delivered this morning was very encouraging saying he is resting, doing well and looking forward to being back after the Christmas break; but what he apparently texted to the Athletic’s John Vogl this morning is perhaps the most heartwarming message and weirdly accurate of where the team is at on the ice right now as well: simply “Still Kicking.” Incredible.

Now we go into a Christmas NHL break and a roster freeze to go with it. The Sabres play again on Thursday in St. Louis where they will meet Ryan O’Reilly in the better situation he was looking for… oh wait. All kidding aside, I want the best for O’Reilly. I have tickets to his return to Buffalo on St. Patrick’s Day because I know fun games when I see them. I will post a Amerks Angle for December after Christmas but before that game so if you just cannot wait for more content then you got something to look forward to: but if you are that person, well why haven’t you commented your words of yuletide encouragement!? Yes: comment, like and do share this blog on social media and amongst family and friends with holly jolly spirit! And just think about where you were with this team at Christmas last year: probably just about tapped out considering the season was pretty well dead already. What if I told you then the Sabres would be third in the Atlantic division nine points up on a playoff spot in spitting distance of the Maple Leafs? You probably wouldn’t believe me but if you did you would sign up for it in a heartbeat. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and very glad tidings to you and your kinfolk! Let’s go Buffalo!

Thanks for reading.

P.S. Conor Sheary joked about his empty netter not counting after the game. If he starts scoring again after Christmas maybe it will count a lot in retrospect.

#buffalo sabres #hockey #nhl #blog #anaheim ducks

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