Erie Otters 2018-19 Season Thread

[7D442]

just for the record i do believe Erie and SSM are among the best organizations in drafting talent ...some have completely misunderstood my posts..

In rebuild and retool years - and when the cupboards are pretty bare to begin with before these recent trades-it would have been nice to recoup some picks and players back in return for the players who for one reason or another arent w the team anymore....saying that is not a slam against eries drafting..!! And Re Lawr, Murdaca, and Lizotte for instance -we didnt get anything back that i know of..Even like a 3rd rd pick would have helped..correct?

and otterguy much like everything i wrote you misunderstood-I was a huge fan of Murdaca, we should have kept him..Oh and also played him in the mem cup in that last game after the first period-we prob would be MEM CUP Champs if we did..

lets move on... i will try and delete my misunderstood posts

 

[NOA]

Nice nice by Brown. Picks are in much better shape. Moving Lodnia next season should restock them completely.

I don't mind that they didn't get a 2018 2nd in this move. Their entire lineup is eligible to return next season except for Fellows and Headrick so there won't be a lot of open spots. I expect they'll take a forward with their top pick plus there will be some guys from the 2017 draft looking for spots.

Don’t forget the 3rd we got in the Fergus trade for 2018. Now add this Raddysh trade and we have another 3rd in 2018
So yes no 2nds in 2018 but we will have 2 thirds.

Consider that for Vilardi/Day Windsor got 2nds in
2020, 2022, 2024, 2025
And one third in 2020
Erie meanwhile got a 3rd in 2018 and 2023
But then seconds in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023. We basically got 3 seconds and 1 third before 2022. Windsor got 1 second and 1 third in that span. It’s a great haul for Erie. And if Fowler pans out it will definitely be a steal. Now of course it’s a win for SSM if they win some rings. But this is no doubt a big haul for Dave Brown.

 

[NOA]

As EON said, yes roster is seemingly full next year especially up front which is why I get moving Robinson and why Carson left team.

Poddubyni (99) or Patry (00) and then I assume they use their top 9-12 pick in the Import draft.
Golod (00)
Gritz (00)
Fowler (01)
Sproule (01)
Mack (00)
2018 1st Rounder (02)

Those are all locks up front. Yetman, Girhiny (OA) will probably make team. That brings the total to 10 forwards. Not including Mak/Lodnia. So even if they didn’t keep Yetman/Girhiny and they moved Mak/Lodnia in September.. they still would have 9 forward spots (getting a player back in Lodnia trade) locked up. Plus as EON said.. 2017 drafts. Brendan Sellan, Hoffman and Josh Shimizu will all have a chance to make team. Expect at least 1 will. And it’s not counting them signing a guy like Schroeder or signing a FA.

On defense-
Beamish (00)
Martin (99)
Wainman (99)
Duff (00)
Henry (00)
Kischnick (01)
Timmermans (00)

All are locks. Which is why erie is expected to move a defender this year before the deadline. Getting crowded. But it’s a good problem. Creating competition. And it’s why they could be a more consistent team next year. Young this year but guys like Golod/Gritz/Mack/Duff are getting valuable minutes. Expect that to carry over with Sproule/Beamish/Fowler now that we are clearly in rebuild mode. Play the young guys!

 

[NOA]

just for the record i do believe Erie and SSM are among the best organizations in drafting talent ...some have completely misunderstood my posts..

In rebuild and retool years - and when the cupboards are pretty bare to begin with before these recent trades-it would have been nice to recoup some picks and players back in return for the players who for one reason or another arent w the team anymore....saying that is not a slam against eries drafting..!! And Re Lawr, Murdaca, and Lizotte for instance -we didnt get anything back that i know of..Even like a 3rd rd pick would have helped..correct?

and otterguy much like everything i wrote you misunderstood-I was a huge fan of Murdaca, we should have kept him..Oh and also played him in the mem cup in that last game after the first period-we prob would be MEM CUP Champs if we did..

lets move on... i will try and delete my misunderstood posts

Yes I intially misunderstood it but on second post I noted that it wasn’t Erie’s choice to lose these guys for nothing

Murdaca made foolish off ice decisions. NOBODY wanted him in OHL for a trade. We tried to do what you said to recoup picks. But nobody wanted him so he was released and still nobody claimed him. Your point with him would be valid if someone claimed him on waivers for free

You also mentioned fergus. I told you that Erie moved him for Picks already. If you don’t like the return then you can notice that Barrie then moved him a few weeks later for THE EXACT SAME price/picks. I think they were all picks in the same draft year too. You again would have a point if Barrie somehow got more for Fergus
Lawr was a busted draft pick. That’s the only waste there and that happens with every team in every draft. But nobody is going to trade for him when he had like a .850 career save percentage. Lizotte I explained too with his OA season and talent

Erie tried to put Lawr, Murdaca, and Carson on the market. Naturally nobody wanted them. And that’s evident that all 3 are out of the league even tho they could have been claimed for free by now. So I still don’t get your point. Every draft pick we use should either succeed and if not be traded for high picks? Doesn’t work that way. None of the guys listed had the talent to dictate any good return anyways. For instance, even if say someone wanted Lawr- it would have been 10-15th round pick erie got back. Similar for Carson. Those guys proved they are borderline OHL players. Don’t lose sleep on us getting no return for them because this was really nothing to get back for them.

 

[EON]

I think this is Erie' draft pick situation right now. You'll see this move pretty much replenished their 2nds, they just lack 3rds now. But they should get a few picks for Lodnia/Maksimovich next season to fill up the cupboard again. It's just up to how well they draft/develop young guys now.

2018: 1st, HAM & SSM 3rd, 6th & SSM 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th
2019: 1st, SSM 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th
2020: 1st, GUE 2nd, 4th, 5th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th
2021: 1st, SSM 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th & SSM 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th
2022: 1st, SSM 2nd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th
2023: 1st, SSM 2nd, SSM 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th
2024-2026: untouched

I don't think they're going to move Headrick, I think they'll keep him to guide the young guys the rest of the season and give them some stability. He'll get a ton of playing time which is a showcase for NHL teams as he looks for a contract. I think Brown will move one of the excess dmen, maybe Byrne, for an OA forward to have a 13 man rotation up front.

Maksimovich-Lodnia-Golod
Fellows-Gritz-Girhiny
Fowler-Poddubnyi-OA
Patry-Sproule-Yetman/Mack

Duff-Headrick
Martin-Wainman
Beamish-Timmermans
Henry

Oberoi
Murphy

Looking to next season, Erie only drops 2 of their forwards (if they acquire another OA) and one dman, both goalies return. They should add a good forward with their likely top 4 pick as I don't see them making the playoffs. I also think they should consider moving Poddubnyi as he could land a decent return and use their top 12 import pick. If no one bites release Patry. Neither of Erie's current imports are worth passing on that high of a pick.

Up front next season the rough depth chart looks like:

Maksimovich(OA)-Lodnia-Golod
Gritz-Fowler-Girhiny(OA)
Patry-Sproule-Yetman
Import-Mack-2018 1st

A few guys from the 2017 draft should be in the mix: LW Brendan Sellan (5th), RW Brendan Hoffman (7th), LW Joshua Shimizu (8th), LW Kyle Schroeder (10th), C Curtis Trolley (12th), C Michael Miele (14th).

The defense:

Martin-Wainman
Duff-Timmermans
Beamish-Henry
Kischnick

Unlikely anything changes here unless someone surprises or they make a few trades. Byrne could still be here as an OA as well.

Oberoi
Murphy

Both set to return next season. I think both guys have starters potential but we'll see. Jackson Bernard (2017 15th) is undersized but I wouldn't rule him out, he has great numbers.

Some good things to look forward to. The rest of the season and probably next season will be challenging as this team probably won't win a lot but there should be a lot of skilled young guys developing.

 

[NOA]

Terrific post EON!
Agree with everything. The entire depth chart will depend on development of players. And of course what they do with the Import spot. Obviously they should and need to use a top 12 pick. Personally I would try to get a younger Import but honestly this team will be a rebuilding again anyways. They can afford to try getting a 1 year Import. Someone who provides offense and is already nhl drafted. Once he graduates Erie can then draft another Import in 2019. Important thing though is finding someone who reports

If their goaltending is better next year it would be huge. If Oberoi/Murphy both don’t develop then I expect Dave to try making a Murdaca like trade. Goalie play has to be better next year. Defense will definitely be better off based on experience. Having 3 rookies and 2 guys in wainman/Martin getting their first season of actual ice time has made for issues on the backend. I think Kischnick can be a star one day.

Agree though it’s all about development now. If Fowler/Sproule/Golod give you second year jump in production, then Erie should be in solid shape moving forward. Won’t win a ton of games like you noted but should be a much more exciting team to watch when you add more experience and 2 top picks from OHL/Import draft

 

[Fischhaber]

yes SSM and Erie among the top 3 or 4 teams at drafting. The difference with the Greyhounds imo is getting more guys to report. Which helped make the 2014 draft epic for them. Erie has had a chance for guys like Colton Point. If they just started hitting on 1 of those every other drafts it would make a huge difference. Next up for Erie with that: Kyle Schroeder.
Recent draft picks for Erie:
2015 - 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 5th
2016 - 1st, 3rd
2017 - 1st, 5th
no seconds for 3 years. only 2 thirds and 1 fourth.

The Greyhounds have had their share of high profile snubs as well, but perhaps none as big as Colton Point. I imagine that he would have been a big difference maker last year.

It's interesting that the league's most distant cities are doing the best job of drafting and recruiting. It's also interesting that this isn't the best run of Greyhounds drafting. That actually came under Sherry Bassin, whom you are well acquainted with.

Enjoy Hayden Fowler. I think he's going to be a dynamic player with more ice time and experience.

 

[NOA]

The Greyhounds have had their share of high profile snubs as well, but perhaps none as big as Colton Point. I imagine that he would have been a big difference maker last year.

It's interesting that the league's most distant cities are doing the best job of drafting and recruiting. It's also interesting that this isn't the best run of Greyhounds drafting. That actually came under Sherry Bassin, whom you are well acquainted with.

Enjoy Hayden Fowler. I think he's going to be a dynamic player with more ice time and experience.

still crying about not being able to sign Point..He wanted to come here back in his draft year. So we can blame Bassin for that

But as for Fowler, yes im excited. Never have seen him play but read some stuff about him. Heard he has elite skating and IQ. Usually that translates to success. Can't really teach those skills. You just have them or ya dont. also heard he was only getting minimal mins in SSM. assuming thats true? hence his lower numbers? Hoping Erie gives him 3rd line minutes to start. we are a bottom team so why not let guys develop

as for Sambrook and Raddysh,
you will love Raddysh. Gets knocked for his skating but has come a long way. I wouldnt classify him as slow or stiff. He's big so he just isnt as explosive. But never considered it an issue..wasnt in the playoffs last year at least. Great size too and actually willing to use the body. Best skill for him though is his IQ and strength. Strength on the boards, passing, and shooting. And his hockey IQ is so top notch, sees things very well. Makes creative plays for a big guy. He will likely be a 2.0-2.25 ppg player the rest of the way. Enjoy

Sambrook is steady and plays a physical game for a guy that has his offensive skills and IQ. Thing you will like about him is his complete game. He can play a shutdown role but in the biggest stages he always seems to have a big goal or create a big play that leads to something. Had 5 goals in the playoffs last year..all of them were at clutch times... when he gets in close on an odd man rush he almost seems like a forward. He will fit in nicely. Plenty of experience with both as well. Raddysh top 6 minutes for 2 straight runs. part of the 2014-15 team too. Sambrook getting top 4 minutes in back to back years as well. That bodes well. Also both players are tough as nails and durable. Wish them the best

 

[Fischhaber]

still crying about not being able to sign Point..He wanted to come here back in his draft year. So we can blame Bassin for that

But as for Fowler, yes im excited. Never have seen him play but read some stuff about him. Heard he has elite skating and IQ. Usually that translates to success. Can't really teach those skills. You just have them or ya dont. also heard he was only getting minimal mins in SSM. assuming thats true? hence his lower numbers? Hoping Erie gives him 3rd line minutes to start. we are a bottom team so why not let guys develop

as for Sambrook and Raddysh,
you will love Raddysh. Gets knocked for his skating but has come a long way. I wouldnt classify him as slow or stiff. He's big so he just isnt as explosive. But never considered it an issue..wasnt in the playoffs last year at least. Great size too and actually willing to use the body. Best skill for him though is his IQ and strength. Strength on the boards, passing, and shooting. And his hockey IQ is so top notch, sees things very well. Makes creative plays for a big guy. He will likely be a 2.0-2.25 ppg player the rest of the way. Enjoy

Sambrook is steady and plays a physical game for a guy that has his offensive skills and IQ. Thing you will like about him is his complete game. He can play a shutdown role but in the biggest stages he always seems to have a big goal or create a big play that leads to something. Had 5 goals in the playoffs last year..all of them were at clutch times... when he gets in close on an odd man rush he almost seems like a forward. He will fit in nicely. Plenty of experience with both as well. Raddysh top 6 minutes for 2 straight runs. part of the 2014-15 team too. Sambrook getting top 4 minutes in back to back years as well. That bodes well. Also both players are tough as nails and durable. Wish them the best

Thanks very much for your thoughts. I'm excited to see them in their first home game.

Fowler has definitely been getting limited minutes at C, maybe 6-8 per game. With Frost, Hayton, and Verbeek ahead of you and not missing any games, that's going to happen.

He's been a little timid at times, but makes smart plays with the puck and when he's been more assertive, I've been very impressed with his stickhandling and shooting ability. Give him 15 minutes a game and an experienced wing (Hounds have had him with 2 rookies all year) and I expect him to become a solid top 6 C as soon as next year.

 

[NOA]

Personally hoping we spread out things and give the young guys a chance for minutes.
We have been in rough shape at center all year. Lost Pettit/Cirelli/Foegle/Strome and Debrincat was the next guy who took key draws. Also traded Mcshane. Knew it would be an issue. Based on that we need to start gooming our young centers. Starts with Fowler.

Would try something like this-
Golod - Lodnia - Podd
Mak - Fowler - ?? (Rumored OA trade)
Fellows - Gritz - Girhiny
Patry - Sproule - Yetman/Mack

Balance things out but giving Fowler someone like Mak would be ideal. Mak can play with anyone and is a great vet. Then shelter him with an OA on the other wing. Would make sense. I think Podd needs to move out of the center spot. His +/- has been horrendous and his faceoff percentage isn’t great. Maybe less defensive responsibility on the wing will help.

 

[NOA]

Now that timpano is done for year, Dave Brown has said Erie will fill out OA spot on forward. Makes sense. They are really young and could use a cheap veteran. And on top of that they have 8 defenders now.. 7 of which are eligible to be here next year with kischnick at least on the way

With Kitchener adding today, they now have 4 OAs. Makes a lot of sense that we add Henderson for a defender. And I would be okay with that as long as Martin isn’t involved.

 

[FirebirdsFan21]

Now that timpano is done for year, Dave Brown has said Erie will fill out OA spot on forward. Makes sense. They are really young and could use a cheap veteran. And on top of that they have 8 defenders now.. 7 of which are eligible to be here next year with kischnick at least on the way

With Kitchener adding today, they now have 4 OAs. Makes a lot of sense that we add Henderson for a defender. And I would be okay with that as long as Martin isn’t involved.

Did Timpano get hurt?

 

[NOA]

Did Timpano get hurt?

Nobody really knows. Based on the fact that the team didn’t try to trade him in a goalie hungry market and the fact that they didn’t release a statement saying Troy was done.. tells me it’s a combination of things. He got hurt...maybe causing him to be out until February or March. And he decided to just end his year.

He’s home now and based on social media posts, doesn’t appear like there is any chance he returns

 

[7D442]

While there is still time between now and Wed , i am kind of surprised that another team has not yet scooped up little Maks to help in a playoff run.. ..Great play maker , skater and goal scorer..The kid is fun to watch..Maybe if he stays he gets the C this year??

 

[NOA]

While there is still time between now and Wed , i am kind of surprised that another team has not yet scooped up little Maks to help in a playoff run.. ..Great play maker , skater and goal scorer..The kid is fun to watch..Maybe if he stays he gets the C this year??

I’m sure teams have definitely tried..erie just isn’t willing to trade him. Unless a team overpays which I don’t see why they would in such a big market this year for top talent.

They probably could have gotten 2 seconds and 2 thirds for him but I don’t see how they could have gotten much more. And I don’t think erie wants to be that bad going forward. They haven’t been winning but at least they are competitive in most games. On top of that he will be here next year. Will help out early in the year on a very young team. And then Erie will likely move him. Probably can still get a second and a third for him. Maybe an additional third if they move him earlier in the year. So I see no problem with keeping him. Lodnia will else fetch a good amount. And Poddubyni could be made available.

 

[7D442]

with these trades and Murph in goal where does that put our avg age at? and how close to being the youngest team are we ?

Appears we will not be making the playoffs now that our top offensive and Defensive player are gone ( which in the scheme of things is ok) young guys are getting good ice time and this team is competitive but terrible in the 3rd period..i mean horrific..

Golod and Gritz look great and hopefully Sproule and Fowler will come on strong as well

as of now i think we would get the 3 rd pick in the draft--and that could improve over the second half of this year..

 

[ohloutsider]

with these trades and Murph in goal where does that put our avg age at? and how close to being the youngest team are we ?

Appears we will not be making the playoffs now that our top offensive and Defensive player are gone ( which in the scheme of things is ok) young guys are getting good ice time and this team is competitive but terrible in the 3rd period..i mean horrific..

Golod and Gritz look great and hopefully Sproule and Fowler will come on strong as well

as of now i think we would get the 3 rd pick in the draft--and that could improve over the second half of this year..

According to Elite Prospects Saginaw is the youngest team, Windsor second and Erie is eighth youngest.

 

[NOA]

Stupid to follow that metric. 17.90 average age is not far off from 17.60 average age. And the list is off. For instance, Erie is still knocked for timpano’s age even though he has been gone for a month and won’t return. Carson Edwardson also still on the eliteprospect roster. Anyone that uses or follows that average age list is careless.

The metric I would use is 2000 or 2001 born players. Guys that could be in the league for 2-4 more years. Erie has 12. Windsor has 12. The difference is Windsor has 6 2001 born players on the roster and Erie has 2 on roster but Brendan Kischnick is already signed.. we just dont have roster space on the backend for him so he is grooming another year down in junior, nothing wrong with that as Erie has tremendous success (Dermott, Sambrook, Raddysh) with this system. And Duff and Kischnick appear to be next in line with it. Also feel confident that we see 2 of Sellan, Hoffman, Shimizu, Schroeder here next year from the 2001 class

According to eliteprospects this is who is younger than us and this is their list of 2000 and 01 players:

Ottawa 14
Saginaw 13
Windsor 12
Flint 11
North Bay 9
London 9
Guelph 9
Niagara 7

Erie has 12. Erie has plenty of youth.

 

[MoWanchuk1]

Stupid to follow that metric. 17.90 average age is not far off from 17.60 average age. And the list is off. For instance, Erie is still knocked for timpano’s age even though he has been gone for a month and won’t return. Carson Edwardson also still on the eliteprospect roster. Anyone that uses or follows that average age list is careless.

The metric I would use is 2000 or 2001 born players. Guys that could be in the league for 2-4 more years. Erie has 12. Windsor has 12. The difference is Windsor has 6 2001 born players on the roster and Erie has 2 on roster but Brendan Kischnick is already signed.. we just dont have roster space on the backend for him so he is grooming another year down in junior, nothing wrong with that as Erie has tremendous success (Dermott, Sambrook, Raddysh) with this system. And Duff and Kischnick appear to be next in line with it. Also feel confident that we see 2 of Sellan, Hoffman, Shimizu, Schroeder here next year from the 2001 class

According to eliteprospects this is who is younger than us and this is their list of 2000 and 01 players:

Ottawa 14
Saginaw 13
Windsor 12
Flint 11
North Bay 9
London 9
Guelph 9
Niagara 7

Erie has 12. Erie has plenty of youth.

After hinz trade Petes have 10 2000’s and 2 2001’s for 12

 

[NOA]

After hinz trade Petes have 10 2000’s and 2 2001’s for 12

I was only doing the 7 teams (and Erie) that we’re considered the youngest in league based off eliteprospects

I’m sure a few other teams have 9-12 guys in that age range too.

Point is if I’m an erie fan I’m not worried. Plenty of youth. Restocked the picks
Consider that in May we had 0 second or third round picks until 2024. And we had 1 known 2000 player in Sproule.

Now? We have 5 seconds and 3 thirds added. Total of 8 picks from 2018-2024. With still lodnia/Mak to move next year. And we added Fowler, Gritz, Beamish and Golod came out of nowhere. Better than rebuilding with old players. Or having youth, like we used to, but none actually having star talent. So far so good on the rebuild. Not going to take 5-10 years like it did with bassin I can tell you that. Draft/develop like we have been and it will be 2-3 years

 

[Jives]

Kitchener now has 5 OA’s after acquiring Culina.

 

[NOA]

Kitchener now has 5 OA’s after acquiring Culina.

Said before that I’m confident that Henderson will come to Erie. He will be cheap. But give erie some veteran with size. With Erie having 8 forwards in their first or second year they can use this. As long as it’s cheap which it should be, I’m all for it

 

[Jives]

Henderson for an 8th sounds fair.

He is one of the Rangers best penalty killer and works hard. Talent wise average at best but I think could be a good fit for a young team.

 

[NOA]

Henderson for an 8th sounds fair.

He is one of the Rangers best penalty killer and works hard. Talent wise average at best but I think could be a good fit for a young team.

Our PK is brutal. And on top of that..RW/right shot is one area we lacked all year So makes all the sense. He will get 2nd/3rd line minutes. Get top PK time if that’s his game, and hopefully provide some leadership.

 

[Tim Wallach]

Henderson is great in the room, loved by teammates and fans. Never takes a shift off, works the boards and is a top notch PK guy. Only draw back is lack of production. He's a 3rd liner through and through. Great pick up for anything 5th or lower.