I got the Springfield game. Loved it. My thoughts.
HFD is much improved away from Gernander. It was a team that played hockey out there. They have a solid roster — like always — and I think we will see a difference in the standings this year.
Lines:
Tambo-Nieves-Kosmachuk
Lettieri-Chytil-Schneider
Purmpel-DeA-Whitney
Fontaine-Fogarty-Selleck
Graves-Pionk
Bereglazov-Gilmour
Crawly-Noonan
Neal Pionk is definitely one of the better Ds I’ve seen in HFD in a while. I love this kid. He handles everything, with ease. Doesn’t matter if someone is running him in a corner or he gets a puck in an impossible situation. He just gets it done. Moves the puck so well. Active offensively. Good shot. He skates really well defensively and just takes away the ice and space for the attackers. This kid is NHL ready.
Filip Chytil had a very good game. Sure he isn’t there 110% in all situations. But he really dominated a few PP shift. On one occasion he played the full 2 minutes and several times I thought he had stayed on too long and tried to hang on to the puck in the wrong situation — but he shielded the puck and moved it well and the kid is just a really good passer. He finished the night 1+2 for 3 pts and it was well deserved. They faced a very solid team infront of a full arena so it was really impressive to see. What a pick. Did I say hat his passing is really impressive?
I really like Vinny Lettieri in many ways. He is gritty and smart. A good scorer. I do have concerns about his engine. The AHL game is much more up and down the ice and small simple plays. Really few rushes. The NHL game can be a lot more N-S. He can make it, but I believe that because he seems to be the type that can make it to work despite all conditions not being there.
Boo Nieves was my biggest disappointment in camp and he was the same last night. Pretty square and played a bit without timing. Accomplished very little on the ice.
Tambs is doing a solid job in HFD, but I think he is a long shot for the NHL. Good shot. Good size. Is the overall game there? Nah, it’s such a skating game in the NHL and Tambs not a skater.
Two guys surprised me positively. I thought Steven Fogarty played a fairly good checking game. Wasn’t as immobile as I feared. RHS. Good on FOs. Of course a long shot, but if a kid like that keeps getting better and really focus on his role, with the right line mates, all of a sudden he can fill a role in the NHL too.
John Gimour has been trashed a lot, but he definitely played a really good game. Moved the puck really well. Saw some PP time. Played RD, strong No 3 D hockey by an AHL standard hands down. The kid definitely has a lot of hockey in him.
Alexi Bereglazov had a very solid game, but he wasn’t a big factor either. He made some good moves with the puck which definitely helped his team a lot. Moved it away from pressure, was mobile on the ice. Gilmour played RD and when he came up on the left side with the puck BG often shifted over to the right side and joined the play too. Good I front of the net.
Some have trashed him which I just think was pretty clueless. I think he has faced bigger transition issues to get to the NA game and I think I underrated how you need to be a little quicker and more aggressive as a D in NA. But BG is instantly neck to neck with Ryan Graves as the top 2-way D in HFD. He has great size. Was that the D that was described this summer? Hardly...
Ryan Graves was good. He had a tough rush or two against him where he couldn’t quite keep up, but played good besides those plays. Wasn’t that involved offensivly. Gilmour got most of the PP time on the second unit, but Graves also saw some shifts there.
Fontaine had a pretty quite night, but also didn’t have that big of a role. I don’t mind that. HFD has a lot of solid vets, which is good because you need that to play a modern game and you need to play a modern game to develop the kids.
Think Gropp and co will struggle some to get ice time in the AHL. Fontaine won’t have a huge role. But the bar to get in isn’t too high, it’s where it should be.
Crawly played a solid game. Good reach and good at finding angles.
Thought our goalie was shaky...
Truthfully, it's the most potential they've had down there in a while.
Pionk will almost certainly get a look this season if he keeps doing what he is doing. He's very calm many situations and I'd say he's positioned himself as the first call-up should an opening become available.
Chytil just continues to intrigue me. The talent was always there, but he's playing with a growing confidence this season that really stands out. There were times last season where he didn't always seem like he was willing to assert himself, even against his peers. Not this season. Coupled with room to grow both physically and offensively, and this kid has legit first line upside. It's almost easy to forget he is only weeks removed from turning 18, because he plays like a 20 year old.
Lettieri looks like a guy who could force his way into an NHL lineup as a fourth line player. His offensive upside is limited, but he does so many of the little things that translate well into a bottom line role at the NHL level. In my mind, he's the opposite of a guy like
Nieves who just doesn't impress me outside of his outstanding skating and frame. Nieves is easy to notice for those exact reasons, but you're spot on - it seldom seems to result in much.
Tambs to me looks like a career NHL'er at this point. He can be a solid presence at the AHL level, I just don't see much that leads me to believe he's a guy who is going to take a big leap to the next level.
Beregazlov has continued to underwhelm me. He's not bad, I just expected more from him. To some extent,
Graves is in a similar boat. He's plateaued a little and hasn't quite taken that next step that I thought he might be able to by now. Not bad, just not quite knocking on the door to the NHL either.
