Brantford Bulldogs 2023-24 Off-Season Thread (Part One)

[Hamilton Bulldogs]

Bulldogs owner says team will stay in Brantford if new sports centre is built

Bulldogs owner says team will stay in Brantford if new sports centre is built

www.brantfordexpositor.ca

Interesting, wonder if Brantford will build the arena for the Dogs.

 

[Jawk]

Bulldogs owner says team will stay in Brantford if new sports centre is built

Bulldogs owner says team will stay in Brantford if new sports centre is built

www.brantfordexpositor.ca

Interesting, wonder if Brantford will build the arena for the Dogs.

New building is very close to being official. The 3 year term for the Civic ends in 25/26, they will extend for the 26/27 and 27/28 will be in the new building.

This is the worst keep secret on both sides.

 

[Petes1987]

Is Nick Lardis going to be back for the playoffs?

 

[Jawk]

Is Nick Lardis going to be back for the playoffs?

They haven't officially said, it seems to be trending that way. Hard cast is off. Last home game he also had the soft brace off.

Last weekend one of the guys that does the official Bulldogs podcast said he was a week away.

 

[Hamilton Bulldogs]

Really bad penalty to take in OT

Oof

 

[Rattler]

Really bad penalty to take in OT

Oof

Thank you Mr. Protz

 

[Babs716]

If us and Sudbury both win tomorrow…us vs Mississauga for the first round with home ice advantage? Correct?

I’d say this would be my ideal match up given the potential scenarios right now..
closest opponent, I suspect Bulldogs fans will travel well which will be noticeable in Paramount, less time on the road for the guys which would hopefully be beneficial for round 2..

 

[OMG67]

If us and Sudbury both win tomorrow…us vs Mississauga for the first round with home ice advantage? Correct?

I’d say this would be my ideal match up given the potential scenarios right now..
closest opponent, I suspect Bulldogs fans will travel well which will be noticeable in Paramount, less time on the road for the guys which would hopefully be beneficial for round 2..

If Sudbury wins tomorrow, you play Mississauga. Doesn’t matter if you win or lose. If you win and Sudbury loses, you play Ottawa. If both you and Sudbury lose, you play Sudbury. There are some 3 point game scenarios that play out somewhat differently but generally speaking, that is what you are looking at.

 

[Rounder8]

If us and Sudbury both win tomorrow…us vs Mississauga for the first round with home ice advantage? Correct?

I’d say this would be my ideal match up given the potential scenarios right now..
closest opponent, I suspect Bulldogs fans will travel well which will be noticeable in Paramount, less time on the road for the guys which would hopefully be beneficial for round 2..

As far as travel goes, that is for the best.

I don't like that matchup at all though.

 

[Hamilton Bulldogs]

As far as travel goes, that is for the best.

I don't like that matchup at all though.

Id say at least 3/5 of the worst Bulldogs games this year have been vs the Steelheads.

It hasn't been a good matchup this year at all. Would like to see them somewhat healthy before taking that team on, which probably won't be the case in round one.

 

[Babs716]

As far as travel goes, that is for the best.

I don't like that matchup at all though.

Who is your preferred matchup? Genuinely curious.

There isn’t a team that stands out for me in terms of performance/matchups, so I defaulted to alternative factors that could be beneficial.

I hope we’ll be coming into the playoffs with a couple more bodies back (Lardis, Oki) which I think will significantly improve the dynamics the players have been working with over the last few weeks. Given the injuries, illness etc. the team has faced and is overcoming over the last couple weeks, I don’t think we have a clear depiction of where the team is at coming into Round 1. Hoping they come in more energized and refreshed, and a little less run down but time will tell.

 

[Rattler]

Out of three options in first, I'd go with Ottawa. Most recently they beat them, and furthermore looked like they had an upper hand, which can't be said for all the wins we had this year.

 

[Jawk]

As far as travel goes, that is for the best.

I don't like that matchup at all though.

I'm not sure any of the 3-6 teams like their matchup. Both series will be challenging.

 

[Babs716]

I'm not sure any of the 3-6 teams like their matchup. Both series will be challenging.

100%

 

[Rounder8]

I'm not sure any of the 3-6 teams like their matchup. Both series will be challenging.

Ok, I will be more direct. I don't think they would beat Mississauga.

Ottawa would be my choice.

 

[Canadian Game]

Between the possibilities of Mississauga, Sudbury, and Ottawa, I’m glad we face Ottawa. They won’t be easy by any means, but the Bulldogs have had a tough time with Mississauga lately, and with Sudbury you hope you come out healthy since they will wear down their opponent in a series (regardless of who wins). Let those two battle that one out.

 

[OMG67]

Between the possibilities of Mississauga, Sudbury, and Ottawa, I’m glad we face Ottawa. They won’t be easy by any means, but the Bulldogs have had a tough time with Mississauga lately, and with Sudbury you hope you come out healthy since they will wear down their opponent in a series (regardless of who wins). Let those two battle that one out.

As an Ottawa fan, I think there is a ton of logic in this. Ottawa isn’t going to wear you down physically. They aren’t the type of team that will outwardly injure their opponents. They also have been pretty piss poor the last three weeks.

Where Ottawa presents a problem is they’ve had the ability to perform well overall against the teams that finished the schedule at 80+ points. They did so by pressuring the puck in all areas of the ice and solid goaltending. They’ve diverted from that lately but if they find the motivation when the playoffs start, they have the ability to control games.

IMO, I don’t see the heart in Ottawa right now. I think that was evident today. They simply let Branford control the pace and the style of game. The let the Bulldogs set the pace and played a game of response instead of proactivity.

MacKenzie left the game on Friday night after a shot off the mask. The thought is he may be concussed. If he doesn’t return and Michelone is in net, I don’t like Ottawa’s chances of winning a game let alone winning the series.

I honestly couldn’t make a prediction on this series without knowing which Ottawa teams hows up. My assumption is the piss poor team we’ve seen lately will show up. Not only will brantford win that series, they will do it without receiving any physical punishment.

 

[Rounder8]

As an Ottawa fan, I think there is a ton of logic in this. Ottawa isn’t going to wear you down physically. They aren’t the type of team that will outwardly injure their opponents. They also have been pretty piss poor the last three weeks.

Where Ottawa presents a problem is they’ve had the ability to perform well overall against the teams that finished the schedule at 80+ points. They did so by pressuring the puck in all areas of the ice and solid goaltending. They’ve diverted from that lately but if they find the motivation when the playoffs start, they have the ability to control games.

IMO, I don’t see the heart in Ottawa right now. I think that was evident today. They simply let Branford control the pace and the style of game. The let the Bulldogs set the pace and played a game of response instead of proactivity.

MacKenzie left the game on Friday night after a shot off the mask. The thought is he may be concussed. If he doesn’t return and Michelone is in net, I don’t like Ottawa’s chances of winning a game let alone winning the series.

I honestly couldn’t make a prediction on this series without knowing which Ottawa teams hows up. My assumption is the piss poor team we’ve seen lately will show up. Not only will brantford win that series, they will do it without receiving any physical punishment.

While you are talking Ottawa metaphorically showing up, the other key is what Brantford team physically shows up.

It looks like Hamara is a no go and that is a killer, but if they were to get Lardis and Okitundu back it would help a lot for sure.

It hasn't killed them so far, but in a playoff series they are stretched really thin on D and it will hurt them. If Ottawa can exploit that, Brantford will struggle.

 

[Hamilton Bulldogs]

Good to see the boys get a look. Morrison has been great this year in the AHL.

 

[Rounder8]

Good to see the boys get a look. Morrison has been great this year in the AHL.

I don't think that I've ever been more excited for ex Bulldog news.

Congrats to both, but especially Logan. Proof that you should never quit.

 

[Rattler]

Protz and Roberts, will have to pipe it down in playoffs. Expect that message has been delivered to them already. I'll take legit penalty that saves goal anytime of the day, but retaliation, delivering full force hit on vulnerable player, punching first, slashing for no reason, are terrible penalties to take and screw team over. It also show weakness in these players, as they cannot win foot race, or make intelligent plays, so they get drawn in stupid plays. Coaching, as far as I know, has been addressing these issues, but players understand only one language, playtime. I absolutely would not have problem, gamelong, benching of players that show lack of self control, or deviation of game plans, especially those two.

 

[Rounder8]

Protz and Roberts, will have to pipe it down in playoffs. Expect that message has been delivered to them already. I'll take legit penalty that saves goal anytime of the day, but retaliation, delivering full force hit on vulnerable player, punching first, slashing for no reason, are terrible penalties to take and screw team over. It also show weakness in these players, as they cannot win foot race, or make intelligent plays, so they get drawn in stupid plays. Coaching, as far as I know, has been addressing these issues, but players understand only one language, playtime. I absolutely would not have problem, gamelong, benching of players that show lack of self control, or deviation of game plans, especially those two.

Benching them is not a luxury that they have in the playoffs though.

With the D as it is, benching either one of them means increased playing time for their 5th and 6th dmen. That should not be an option in the playoffs. I don't want to crap on their dmen, but the bottom pair will get exploited, especially if they increase their playing time.

They just don't have the depth to do that right now, even though I agree about the bad penalties.

 

[Rattler]

Benching them is not a luxury that they have in the playoffs though.

With the D as it is, benching either one of them means increased playing time for their 5th and 6th dmen. That should not be an option in the playoffs. I don't want to crap on their dmen, but the bottom pair will get exploited, especially if they increase their playing time.

They just don't have the depth to do that right now, even though I agree about the bad penalties.

Respectfully disagree.
Better player playing poorly, will perform worse then worse ones playing well.
In a long run, better player will have better performance overall, but it's human nature to fall into conformity, that brings casuality, which transforms into bad play. Only way to bring their best performance and build them as better players, is understanding that spot is not given to them, but earned night in night out. No compromises, if it means purposely dropping game down, so be it. With players playing to their comfort zones, you'll drop series.
Obviously, can not bench whole team, but can and should reward good plays, and punish bad plays. Applying good measure of it defines good coaching to bad coaching. It should raise coaches respect in locker room, rather then diminishing it.

 

[Rounder8]

Respectfully disagree.
Better player playing poorly, will perform worse then worse ones playing well.
In a long run, better player will have better performance overall, but it's human nature to fall into conformity, that brings casuality, which transforms into bad play. Only way to bring their best performance and build them as better players, is understanding that spot is not given to them, but earned night in night out. No compromises, if it means purposely dropping game down, so be it. With players playing to their comfort zones, you'll drop series.
Obviously, can not bench whole team, but can and should reward good plays, and punish bad plays. Applying good measure of it defines good coaching to bad coaching. It should raise coaches respect in locker room, rather then diminishing it.

Agree with all of that during the regular season.

I do not agree with that in the playoffs. Try to picture our D without Protz in a playoff series.

 

[Rattler]

Agree with all of that during the regular season.

I do not agree with that in the playoffs. Try to picture our D without Protz in a playoff series.

No matter, coaches will do what they think works. Hope we get through this first round at least, and give chance to Hamara to dress once more for Bulldogs.