All Things AHL Part VI

[Robb_K]

Yawn

Well, at least you didn't report my post for being made by a senile person, and have me banned for breaking the OT rules for the umpteenth time.

 

[PiggySmalls]

27 shot shutout for Husso tonight.

 

[joshyhockey26]

27 shot shutout for Husso tonight.

I thought he looked pretty solid in net in the moments he needed to be. San Antonio have a tough stretch of games coming up on the West Coast though they do get a boost in getting Jordan Schmaltz back.

 

[PiggySmalls]

Binnington and Schmaltz makes the AHL All-Star game.

 

[MissouriMook]

So maybe having our prospects on multiple AHL teams this season was good for something after all?






I'll see myself out.

 

[joshyhockey26]

Binnington and Schmaltz makes the AHL All-Star game.

Well deserved for both players. Binnington is having a strong season and getting little praise for it

 

[joshyhockey26]

Binnington came in reserve tonight for the Bruins as they got lit up 3-0 early on against Hartford. Made 15 saves in 36 min of work. They ended up losing 3-2.

 

[Blueston]

Walman scratched tonight in Chicago. Given he has been playing well and team went on road with 6D, wouldn't be surprised if Dunn is put on IR and Walman recalled.

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

Walman has been recalled per Korac

 

[Quaz]

Blais continues to torch the AHL with another 2G, 1A game tonight for SanAntonio.

 

[joshyhockey26]

Blais continues to torch the AHL with another 2G, 1A game tonight for SanAntonio.

Only a matter of time before he gets another call up. Basically the “Wade Megan” of this season. Only younger and has a higher ceiling. Megan’s goal production is way down this season. Though the assists are still there.

 

[CaliforniaBlues310]

I wonder if Blais will be a viable option for the bottom 6 or if he’s an unfortunate AAAA player

 

[EastonBlues22]

I wonder if Blais will be a viable option for the bottom 6 or if he’s an unfortunate AAAA player

He might fit in on a scoring 3rd line, but he's not the sort of player you would try to fit into a typical bottom 6 role. I think Sobotka and Sanford have a fairly significant edge over him there, and Berglund as well if someone like Thomas pushes him to the wing.

He's already come further than I thought he would. I just don't see much hope for him cracking the Blues roster long-term. His best chance in the immediate future might be outplaying Fabbri for a sheltered scoring line role. I suppose that's possible if Blais continues to advance and Fabbri's game deteriorates because of his injuries, but it's probably going to be a step back for the Blues so I'm not exactly rooting for it.

Further out he might have some opportunity as well as Sobotka, Steen, and even Schwartz see their contracts expire...but he'll be around 25 years old by then and 5-6 years is a long time for someone to be marinating in the AHL. Blais should probably hit the NHL before then if he has aspirations of carving out a legitimate NHL career. It's really hard to keep advancing as a player if the competition level and challenge of the game is stagnant for that long.

 

[STL fan in MN]

Yeah, Blais has done better than I expected too. But agreed that I think the Blues have other guys likely to continue to beat him out. What’s best for his career is likely to be traded to a team with less depth that could give him a good 3rd line opportunity.

 

[MortiestOfMortys]

Sanford is going to blow everybody’s nuts off when he’s back and healthy. I still don’t think people realize what we’ve got in him. How people are seeing Tage the Rage right now is how I saw Sanny last season. Having both of them on our team is going to be a boon.

 

[Vladys Gumption]

You’re seeing a lot of things in Sanford that I’m not seeing then. He did not impress me at all.

 

[Celtic Note]

You’re seeing a lot of things in Sanford that I’m not seeing then. He did not impress me at all.

I personally wouldn’t say he didn’t impress me at all. But I would say that he didn’t impress me much. Tage has certainly has a better showing thus far. He has a more dynamic and complete game.

 

[The Note]

If Sanford ever becomes more than Jaskin I’ll be surprised.

 

[Zamadoo]

I'm pretty sure Sanford was a direct comparison to Tage (and Parayko) at the draft. Kid who always had great hands and had a late growth spurt putting from 5'11 to 6'4+... I was just thinking the other day that Sanford on a line with Tage could be a good tandem. Could use their hands on the PP.

 

[STL fan in MN]

I don’t get the hate for Sanford. Last season, he had a big flaw of being way to easy to knock down/knock off the puck but his actual puck skills and positioning were good. Nice shot too. He was top heavy but adding the strength and balance needed is literally the easiest thing for a young player to do to improve their all-around game. I don’t see huge upside but he should easily be a 3rd line caliber player IMO with the possibility of playing on the 2nd line in a pinch when injuries arise.

He just needs to add that strength. His shoulder injury likely slowed down that strength improvement a bit, at least in the upper body, but he could still work out his lower body while rehabbing the shoulder.

I don’t see him being any sort of savior but I’m certainly excited to see how he looks when he’s ready to go. I think he could certainly challenge guys like Paajarvi and Jaskin for a spot in the lineup.

 

[542365]

I'm ready to see Sanford again. He at least has a hint of skill as opposed to MPS and Sundqvist. I'm fine with either guy(NOT BOTH) on the 4th line, but they don't belong on any line with any intention of scoring.

 

[Oberyn]

I don’t get the hate for Sanford. Last season, he had a big flaw of being way to easy to knock down/knock off the puck but his actual puck skills and positioning were good. Nice shot too. He was top heavy but adding the strength and balance needed is literally the easiest thing for a young player to do to improve their all-around game. I don’t see huge upside but he should easily be a 3rd line caliber player IMO with the possibility of playing on the 2nd line in a pinch when injuries arise.

He just needs to add that strength. His shoulder injury likely slowed down that strength improvement a bit, at least in the upper body, but he could still work out his lower body while rehabbing the shoulder.

I don’t see him being any sort of savior but I’m certainly excited to see how he looks when he’s ready to go. I think he could certainly challenge guys like Paajarvi and Jaskin for a spot in the lineup.

Yeah, I think Sanford could be a decent player given his skillset. My main concern with Sanford is, as you mentioned, how easy it is to knock him off the puck due to his weak lower body. This was painfully evident during his short stint with the Blues and I thought he would use the offseason to improve in that aspect. I'm not sure if he neglected this but getting ragdolled by Jaskin on the first day of training camp does not exactly bode well with me.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

You might be right about Blais, EB22.

It appears that he projects well into a 3rd-line scoring role.
Don't the Blues have a 3rd-line scoring hole?

As far as depth pushing out Blais, I'm not so sure Berglund and/or Sobtoka will be with the Blues for long, but if they are, then Blais certainly is blocked unless injury forces a call-up.

In that case, Sammy Blais needs to be 100% ready to take that 3rd-line spot and keep it and force the Blues. Otherwise, he is better off on another team with needs. Sabres are becoming a better and better trading partner.

 

[Mike Liut]

Player I like on the 3rd line over Blais

Berglund
Sobotka
Jaskin
Barbashev
Sanford
Steen
Kostin

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Player I like on the 3rd line over Blais

Berglund
Sobotka
Jaskin
Barbashev
Sanford
Steen
Kostin

Liking a player for a 3rd-line role is one thing, but a different player taking away that roster spot is entirely another thing. And this is my point.

If Blais cannot take away a 3rd-line spot from the others, then he does not belong here.