The 2015 C Draft (open/closed edition) - Draft is on and open to anyone.

[seventieslord]

Weyburn fills the last backup goalie spot with the only other guy for whom significant consensus exists: Viktor Zinger.

Zinger’s domestic achievements are quite staggering for a soviet player available this late:

1966: 2nd team all-star (behind Konovalenko)
1967: 2nd team all-star (behind Konovalenko)
1968: 2nd team all-star (behind Konovalenko)
1969: 1st team all-star, MVP runner up (behind Firsov)
1970: named to “34 best players”, or more specifically, “3 best goalies” – only a 1st AST was named so Zinger was 2nd-3rd
1971: 3rd team all-star
1972: named to “30 best players”, or more specifically, “4 best goalies” – only a 1st AST was named so Zinger was 2nd-4th
1976: 8th in MVP voting – 2nd among goalies – there was no “top 30 players”

That’s 7 consecutive significant seasons, a few off years, and one final season renaissance.

Led by Zinger, Spartak Moscow captured the USSR title in 1967, 1970, 1971 and 1976, a pretty amazing achievement in a CSKA Moscow-dominated league. The 1976 title was earned by top regular season record, but 1967, 1970 and 1971 were the result of 4-round playoffs, in seasons where Spartak was not the favourite heading in (2nd and 4th in the regular season).

Spartak Moscow retains the USSR Cup. After two qualifications on penalties, it runs in the second period of the final with two goals from Konstantin Klimov.

Two years after the Krylia Sovietov, it was the turn of the Spartak Moscow CSKA to dethrone the imperial title of champion of the USSR. The club's fourth win of intellectual professions, the first in the annals 60 years, welcomed the many fans of the team's most popular country, which does not have the considerable support of the key instruments of the system are the Army (CSKA ) and militia (Dynamo).

He didn’t play as many international games as Konovalenko, so he is appropriately selected behind Konovalenko, but he should not fall as far as he has.

Here is a brief summary of their international experience:

Konovalenko played 53 games in top IIHF tournaments, going 47-4-2 (.906). He allowed 87 GA for a 1.61 GAA.
Zinger played 21 games in these tournaments, going 19-2-0 (.905). He allowed 32 GA for a 1.52 GAA.

Because in a small sample size it is very important to consider the competition each goalie faced, and since Zinger was second fiddle, it’s very possible that they only used him against lesser teams. But here is the breakdown for each of them:

Konovalenko: FIN 10, SWE 9, CZE 9, GER 8, USA 8, CAN 5, POL 3, HUN 1
Zinger: GER 6, CAN 4, SWE 3, USA 3, CZE 2, FIN 2, NOR 1

Simplified, if you consider Canada, Sweden and Czechoslovakia tier 1, and USA and Finland Tier 2, and all else tier 3:

Konovalenko: 40% Tier 1, 34% Tier 2, 26% Tier 3
Zinger: 43% Tier 1, 24% Tier 2, 33% Tier 3

Very similar records of usage. Zinger didn’t get as many games against Tier 2, but he did play just as much against Tier 1. Keep in mind this is also in the exact same years, for and against the exact same squads. It appears Zinger earned the superior GAA honestly; though of course Konovalenko maintained his over more than double the games which is more impressive.

To provide some further, but less important depth to the comparison, here is what happened in the other games that Chidlovski lists (Braun Memorial, Izvestia Cup, Exhibition Games) – considering the competition level in these contests could be poor and also vary wildly I don’t believe this to be nearly as important, but it may provide some more illumination. I also don’t have the energy to break down the teams they each played in these games.

Konovalenko: 53-11-1, .823, 2.18 GAA
Zinger: 27-6-4, .784, 2.65 GAA

 

[tony d]

Weyburn selects head coach Jimmy Skinner.

Skinner won the Cup as a rookie head coach in 1955.

 

[seventieslord]

Yorkton selects righty defenseman Kevin McCarthy to play with Robidas. He was a well-rounded player who was good offensively but not an "offenseman".

-RH shot for the PP.
-Played in the 1981 All Star Game

-Captain of the Vancouver Canucks from 1980-1982
-Member of the Manitoba HHOF

-4 straight 40+ point seasons and 5 straight 36+ point seasons.

-5 years peak: His 219 points from 1979-80 to 1984-85 are 63% of 2nd place Paul Coffey and 67-68% of 3rd/4th place Denis Potvin/Doug Wilson.

Kevin McCarthy was a gifted offensive defenceman who played over 500 NHL games for three different teams in the 1970s and '80s. His crisp passes and hard shot from the point made him an important part of the power play unit and a key to his team's transition game.
...
The young rearguard was steady during his rookie season in 1977-78 but the Flyers were deep on defence. In December 1978, he was the key to a deal with the Vancouver Canucks that involved former top-five draft pick Dennis Ververgaert. McCarthy fit in well with his new club as he quarterbacked the power play and moved the puck up ice on a regular basis. He hit double figures in goals three times, topped 40 points on four occasions and took part in the 1981 NHL All-Star Game.

- Best defense VsX: 70, 63, 58, 54, 47, 56, 22.
- Played 20.61 minutes per game for 537 games and killed 42% of penalties (both for teams only slightly below average)
- During his 4-year peak, played 24.2 minutes per game for Vancouver

Swift and skilled on the attack, tough defensively.

 

[tony d]

Moose Jaw selects Left Winger and hometown boy Doug Smail.

Joe Pelletier:

Smail was phenomenally quick, probably the quickest skater during the 1980s. He was a very intelligent skater as well, as he often would skate at less than full board in order to throw off his check. This unpredictability led to a lengthy career as a penalty killer and defensive left winger.

 

[seventieslord]

Flin Flon selects a guy who's more of an offenseman, but a minute munching one: Joni Pitkanen, D.

Pitkanen's offensive record is really underrated. He's got the best ice time average of anyone left with at least 500 games played, the downside being that he didn't play much more than 500, and his teams were mediocre.

- 23.65 minutes per game for 535 games (7% below average teams)
- 119 career PPP
- Best defense vsx scores: 78, 65, 64, 56, 52, 50, 40.

 

[tony d]

Flin Flon selects defenseman Al Macneil

Legends of Hockey

Defenseman Al MacNeil played over 500 NHL games in the 50s and 60s. He was capable of taking the body in his own end and was fairly effective at passing the puck ahead to his forwards.

 

[seventieslord]

Flin Flon selects defenseman Al Macneil

Legends of Hockey

Haha, that is almost damning in how nondescript it paints him as! And really, he was. But being in the NHL as long he was, for deep teams, is an achievement at this point.

 

[seventieslord]

Moose Jaw needs a more offensive oriented guy to play with Hart on the third pairing, so let's give him Dimitri Mironov, D. He wasn't one of my original choices, but 4 people listed him, and I can see the value there.

- Played 21.01 minutes per game for 556 NHL games
- 4th highest scoring defenseman in 1994 playoffs
- came to NHL at 26, was a serviceable USSR defenseman from 1986-1991
- 2nd in USSR defense points in 1990-91
- point of comparison: from age 22-25 in USSR league, had 119 pts in 178 GP (0.67 PPG). Ilya Byakin, also in this draft, had 70 in 126 (0.55 PPG) at age 24-27
- 16 points in 31 major international games (includes 4 points in 11 best-on-best)
- 0.60 PPG in non-BOB int'l games compared to Byakin's 0.51
- Useful 20+ minute NHLer through age 34

 

[tony d]

Yorkton selects defenseman Barret Jackman

Legends of Hockey:

A fierce competitor, Jackman plays with a high level of intensity and is a punishing player in his own end.

 

[Hobnobs]

Has Niklas Kronwall been selected? Because he has waited long enough if he havent.

If he havent been selected I pick him here.

 

[seventieslord]

Has Niklas Kronwall been selected? Because he has waited long enough if he havent.

If he havent been selected I pick him here.

Long gone.

 

[seventieslord]

Weyburn selects RW Glenn Brydson. He was on my list (and three others) but for whatever reason I wasn't in a hurry to grab him. However, this late in the draft it's time to respect consensus and give him a spot.

- Best VsX scores: 65, 64, 62, 50, 31, 20, 8

Right-winger Glenn Brydson played nearly 300 games for four different clubs in the 1930s. He was known for battling hard in the corners and sticking with his check while contributing on offense as well.

The native of Swansea, Ontario played three years with the Toronto Canoe Club before joining the Montreal AAA for a season and a half. Brydson made his NHL debut as a reserve with the Montreal Maroons in 1930-31. He then spent three years on the club as a solid two-way forward playing with such figures as Wally Kilrea and Batt Phillips.

Following his tenure in Montreal, Brydson was spent the 1934-35 season with the St. Louis Eagles. His solid work and 29 points stood out on the fledgling club that folded after the season. Brydson was claimed by the New York Rangers in the Dispersal Draft and was enjoying a solid first half of the schedule when he was traded by the Chicago Black Hawks for Howie Morenz. He was a decent role player for the Hawks but lost his place in the line-up part way through the 1937-38 season. Brydson spent his last four and a half pro seasons in the AHL then played a year with the senior Kingston Frontenacs before retiring in 1943.

 

[Hobnobs]

Long gone.

Good. Couldnt find him so I thought I check.

The terriers get Jimmy Skinner as a Coach

 

[seventieslord]

Good. Couldnt find him so I thought I check.

The terriers get Jimmy Skinner as a Coach

tony just took him.

 

[Rob Scuderi]

Good. Couldnt find him so I thought I check.

The terriers get Jimmy Skinner as a Coach

tony picked him earlier so you'll have to switch it up

 

[Rob Scuderi]

and pick for yorkton instead. they need a 4th line LW and a coach. anyone want to suggest options for the former before we decide?

coaches should be easy. there seems to be consensus about the 7 deserving ones.

Matt Cooke is underrated because we all hate him. Strong PK usage (32% for uits 10% above average), decent ES scoring, and not too high PIM for his reputation. Not to mention the plus side of the reasons he's hated. If you didn't hate him, why would you prefer Doug Smail to him?

Ken Smith was a solid 06 checking winger who often drew Richard as an assignment.

Red Green was a physical goalscorer, but not sure how physical he was and a lot of his resume is from not so great non-NHL leagues.

 

[seventieslord]

tony picked him earlier so you'll have to switch it up

they need a 4th line LW or a defenseman to play with Flett.. we can discuss options before committing if you want.

 

[seventieslord]

Matt Cooke is underrated because we all hate him. Strong PK usage (32% for uits 10% above average), decent ES scoring, and not too high PIM for his reputation. Not to mention the plus side of the reasons he's hated. If you didn't hate him, why would you prefer Doug Smail to him?

Ken Smith was a solid 06 checking winger who often drew Richard as an assignment.

Red Green was a physical goalscorer, but not sure how physical he was and a lot of his resume is from not so great non-NHL leagues.

I would actually like all three of them to be starters. Cooke is a three position forward, so I'd accept him falling to be a spare... The others shouldn't. We have room for two right and two left, so we can make it happen.

I agree with you about smail. I was comparing the two directly earlier today at home. Rota and Floyd Smith were two other guys I'd throw in that mix. One of those five would be left out.

 

[VanIslander]

The Beavers select 6'2 205 lbs. Gerald Diduck, a defensive defenseman with nearly a thousand games played and over a hundred playoff games with several franchises. He was paired on defense with Denis Potvin for N.Y. Islanders in 1984-85 and he led all N.Y. Islanders' defensemen with 32 points in 1988-89. In Vancouver he won the Vancouver Ram Tough Award (Most Aggressive) for 1991-92 and the next season won the Canucks' hardest-shot competition. The season thereafter he went to the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals. He suffered countless injuries due to his physical brand of hockey.

Rough and tumble Gerald Diduck was chosen in the first round of the 1983 Entry Draft, 16th overall by the New York Islanders. The big, bruising rearguard was considered a solid defensive defenseman who always managed to clear way of opposing forwards for his goaltender in the junior ranks, and the Islanders expected the same of him in the NHL.

After a short 32-game stint with the Montreal Canadiens at the start of the 1990-91 campaign, Diduck was shipped off to the Vancouver Canucks, where he patrolled the defense for the next four years. The 1991-92 season was a particularly ornery one, even by Diduck's standards, when he spent 229 minutes cooling his heels in the penalty box.

The closest he ever came to sipping champagne out of the Stanley Cup came while a member of the Canucks in 1993-94. The Cinderella Canucks advanced all the way to the Cup finals before losing a tough seven-game battle with the New York Rangers. Diduck played in all 24 Vancouver post-season games, scoring a goal and seven assists.

He was a force to be reckoned with as a member of the Canucks,...

... had great upper body strength. He could dominate in the corners, where he could tie up a guy along the boards with ease. He was also capable of a good open ice hit. He was a good fighter when he did drop the gloves, but that was a rare occurrence.

Gerald also had a good package of skills to compliment his physical game. Gerald had tree trunks for legs, which meant a strong skating stride. He had good quickness and mobility. His most attractive finesse quality was his booming hard shot. Gerald was often used on the latter half of a power play because of his shot which often perplexed goalies. He was able to get the shot from the point off quickly too, although it made his shot erratic and therefore often unthreatening... Gerald played very aggressively upon his arrival in Vancouver, and as a result played a more important role on a team than he had at any other point in his NHL career.

 

[seventieslord]

Diduck even played 20 minutes a game on a playoff team twice!

What does he have on Terry Carkner?

 

[seventieslord]

Yorkton selects Ken Smith, LW.

- Best VsX scores: 61, 59, 38, 38, 30, 15, 6

What a steal Ken Smith is. First, let's talk about the offensive credentials here. With the recent "A" draft selections made, Smith is one of just 8 players remaining who topped 30 points three or more times before expansion. And he's one of just three to have two 40+ point seasons in that time. yes, one of his 30-point seasons was in 1945, but in 1949 and 1950 he proved he was not just some wartime player. He placed 14th and 21st in the NHL in points these two seasons.

His playoff exploits are impressive, too. Smith placed 5th in NHL playoff scoring in 1945, with 7 points, and tied for 10th in 1948 with 5. With 21 playoff points in 30 games, Smith is the highest playoff scorer available circa 1950, and didn't just play a ton of games to do it - his per-game average was excellent. He was 51st in career playoff points as of 1950, but 17th in points per game.

In addition to that, Smith did have at least a moment as a great defensive player: from LOH.net: "Pound for pound, he is one of the best players in the NHL." This is the praise that Dick Irvin gave Kenny Smith as he watched him check his Canadiens star Maurice Richard in the 1945-46 Stanley Cup finals. "Players: the Ultimate A-Z Guide” notes that Smith was “tough as nails and particularly resilient, once playing in 237 consecutive games.” Amazing that a tough player like Smith only amassed 49 PIMs in 331 NHL games.

In 1945, 1948, 1949, and 1950, Smith was a significant NHL regular season or playoff player, or both.

Hayes had no alternative to handing out a misconduct to Richard... for his protest of a minor handed to Ken Smith, of the Bruins. Richard, bleeding after a tangle with Smith, felt he should have received a major.

... and he was just 5'7", 150 lbs.

 

[VanIslander]

The Millers select Tom Fitzgerald, a speedy and hard-working defensive right winger who was the Predator's first-ever captain (1998-2002) at the tail end of a 1097 NHL game career which saw the leader and fan favorite score 25 shorthanded goals and 329 points. He exemplified what brought the Panthers to the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals with his 8 points and sound checking on the run.

... a key defensive player when the Islanders upset the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins to reach the semi-finals in 1993.... scored eight points in 22 playoff games as the Panthers shocked the hockey world by reaching the Stanley Cup finals... A solid defensive player and penalty killer...

http://www.legendsofhockey.net:8080/LegendsOfHockey/jsp/SearchPlayer.jsp?player=10479

... an original Panther and a fan favorite... had a reputation as being one of the best penalty killers in the league. Originally a right wing he was able to play the center position as well. A gritty player, Tommie worked hard every night. A very nice person... one of the players that defined the Panthers "Guts & Glory" attitude night after night

http://rh202.gmxhome.de/panthers/players.htm

 

[Rob Scuderi]

Flin Flon will take Bob Pulford, Coach

Pulford coached the Dionne led Kings and Iain selected him for an offensive-minded squad he assembled

Bob Pulford, Coach

Bob Pulford coached 829 NHL games for the Kings and Blackhawks, his first at age 36 and his last at 63. Pulford was a key to the Los Angeles Kings becoming a team to be reckoned with in the NHL:

Bob Pulford spent five seasons as the Kings head coach (1972-77). Pulford is second all-time in Kings coaching history in games (396) and wins (178) and is third in Kings history with a .535 winning percentage. Pulford is the only Kings coach to ever win the Jack Adams award (1975), awarded to the NHL's Best Coach.

In Pulford's first year with the Kings (1972-73), the team was named “Most Improved” in the NHL and missed the playoffs in the last game of the season. His second year, the Kings made the playoffs for the first time in five years. His third year, the Kings had their greatest season ever finishing with 105 points and earning Pulford “Coach of the Year” honors. His fourth year, the Kings advanced to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in seven years and took heavily favored Boston to a seventh game in the Stanley Cup Quarterfinals. In his final year, the Kings again advanced to the Stanley Cup Quarterfinals and again, fell to the Boston Bruins, this time in six games.

Pulford was very organized and had specific plans for how he wanted his team to operate. For a Brandon Shamrocks team with more offensive talent than defence, this will be key:

One coaching colleague called it ``the Bible.'' It was written by a young hand, but one who felt he knew what the Kings needed, and decided to put it all down on paper.

Bob Pulford was only 36 years old when he took over as coach of the Kings, but he had seen enough to know that things needed to change, on and off the ice. The Kings hadn't been a playoff team -- and hadn't totaled more than 63 points -- for three seasons when Pulford made the transition from player to coach before the 1972-73 season.

Within three years, Pulford had set the Kings on a new course, guiding them to a franchise-best 105 points in 1974-75, a record that still stands today.

Perhaps, somewhere, someone still has a dog-eared copy of the pamphlet Pulford took to Kings owner Jack Kent Cooke upon his hiring as coach almost 40 years ago.

``I put it all on paper,'' Pulford said. ``I wrote it all out, what I thought had to be done and how I thought it should be done, and I gave it to Cooke. It was a little book on how I thought hockey should be played, and the changes I thought had to be made.

``There was discipline involved in it. How do you discipline? What do you do? There were systems in there. How to win faceoffs, where to position defensive players, offensive plays, and then there was just basic philosophy of how to coach a hockey team and what was needed, all aspects of it.''

When Pulford took over the Blackhawks in 1977, he took a 63-point team and turned them into an 83-point team. Similarly, when he took over the team again in midseason 1984/85, the team was .443 and they produced a .667 winning percentage for Pulford. In 1999/2000 he again took over the team in midseason, and they jumped from .292 to .534 under his guidance.

 

[seventieslord]

Flin Flon finishes off the 4th line with Red Green, RW

For now, I'll just say that I can't see a single logical on-ice reason that Shorty is in the HHOF and Red isn't, because Red was the better player.

Left-winger Redvers Green played with four different NHL clubs in the 20s. He was an accomplished goal scorer as an amateur and pro and could handle the rough side of the game as well.

-Brother of Shorty
-NOHA First All-Star Team (1922)

-5th in NHL points
-1st in NHL assists
-7th, 10th in NHL goals

(note all the above are in split leagues)

-Stanley Cup in 1929
-lost the chance to play for the Stanley Cup in 1925 due to the player's strike by the Hamilton Tigers:

The Tigers had been perennial cellar-dwellers until the 1924-25 season when "Shorty" teamed up with his brother "Red" Green and future Hall of Fame center Billy Burch. The Tigers were serious contenders for the Stanley Cup, and the players tried to use that as leverage in a fight to earn a pay increase...

Over the course of his career, he was the 8th leading scorer in the NHL.

The following year:

When Red Green was 10th in NHL goals in 23-24, it was still back when the starting players played the majority of the game. So with 4 teams in the league and 3 forward spots, that's only 12 spots in the entire league for forwards. Great offensive defenseman Georges Boucher finished above Green in goals. I don't know if Reg Noble was an F or D that season.

So really, Green was 8th or 9th in goals among 12 starting forwards with 1 or 2 defensemen finishing above him. Doesn't particularly impress me.

His 24-25 was quite impressive, though. One of the most impressive offensive seasons by a physical presence in this draft (and Red was definitely at least some level of physical). But it was just one season. How does that make him rate overall offensively? I don't know.

Dreakmur and I had Red Green in the last AAA draft and I honestly had no idea how good he was offensively. I was definitely interested in seeing how far he fell this time. At minimum, he's a decent physical presence who can chip in on occasion.

- Best VsX scores: 74, 54, 40, 39, 18
- Led NOSHA in scoring in 1922; 31 points when 2nd had 18
- 2nd in Allan Cup scoring in 1920, a point behind Shorty
- 2nd in NOSHA scoring in 1920, with 19 (Shorty had 27)

 

[Rob Scuderi]

Moose Jaw will select a coach very familiar with Malecek in Mike Buckna.

Buckna was a teammate and coach of Malecek. Buckna led CSSR to internationally in the late 30s and again in the late 40s. Buckna was a strong technician preaching an offensively-minded system.

At a time when the rest of European hockey stressed defense, LTC’s offensive orientated style stood out in stark contrast, influencing both Team Moscow Head Coach Arkady Chernyshev and Player-Coach Anatoli Tarasov. This style would have an impact on the future direction of the so-called 'Soviet hockey system.' The Czech’s play had been the creation of Mike Buckna from Trail, British Columbia. Buckna, while visiting Prague in 1935, decided to offer his services as a player/coach to the Prague LTC club. At the time, LTC had already established itself as one of the top club teams in Europe and had gained respect in 1934 in Canada with its 1-0 win over the World Champion Saskatoon Quakers, in 1934. At the age of 21, the former Trail Smoke Eater had become one of the top players on the Prague club.

Czechoslovakian hockey was traditionally a very defensive style with defensemen rarely touching the puck in the offensive end and with the forwards dropping back to cover the net. Even with LTC’s achievements Buckna believed the defensive coaching philosophy adopted by the Czechoslovakians was stale and limiting the development and success of their hockey.

Buckna saw hockey as a game built on the offensive fundamentals of passing, puck-handling, and forechecking. By the end of his first season in Prague, Buckna had already begun holding coaching clinics. The following year, at the age of 22, he was invited to run the Czechoslovakian National Team program. Buckna would stay in Prague until 1939 departing only when all Canadian coaches and players were evacuated just ahead of the Nazi annexation.

It would be the Buckna concepts used in Czechoslovakia which the Russians would draw upon to create their own offensive orientated system. It was Buckna’s theories on how the game should be played, evident in the success of his Czechoslovakian team, which largely shaped what would eventually become the European style of hockey...

http://boxscorenews.com/red-storm-russian-ice-hockey-p559-68.htm