The Utica Comets Thread

[Bad Goalie]

Comets now to the kill.
Hamilton hooking. One of his typical felonies. Not back a period and he's called for another one.

Personnel change and Zilch hasn't identified any member of either Comets' foursome. He is such a waste.

Kill is successful.

 

[Bad Goalie]

delete - duplication

 

[Bad Goalie]

End of 1st

0-0

SOG 14-8 Comets

Best 3 chances for the Comets:

Puck a foot too far ahead of MacEwen for an open side tap in.
LaBate stopped in front
Darcy just missing the wide side from in front.

 

[Bad Goalie]

On to the 2nd period.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Expect a much improved game from the Bruins this period.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Breakaway by the Bruins and it's a goal.

1-0
That didn't take long. Just about 2 minutes in. Goal at 2:03. First shot of the period and it's a goal.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Watson and Cederholm is not a very good duo. Having a lot of trouble with the forecheck. Would stand to reason. These two should each be paired with a strong partner. Problem is there are only two that can fill that role. Wiercioch is with Chatfield-rookie and Sautner with Brisebois - rookie. Using Cederholm in the strong D role and he's not good enough to support his rookie as he needs the support himself.

Comets to the PP

Goal!!!!!!! Darcy with his 1st of the season. Stops the PP drought at 3/30.
Darcy (1) from Brisebois (2) and MacEwen(8)

 

[Bad Goalie]

Comets have a very glaring problem. It's been the case all season, but is even more obvious with the depletion of top D-men to injury. Any time a team gains possession in the Comets zone it becomes chaos. #1 problem is they can't regain possession. They become puck chasers running around in circles. They don't play men but all play the puck which any hockey player knows is usually futile. They cede way too much space. Their gap in their zone is huge. Point men have all day to decide where to pass or walk in and shoot or dish when someone finally goes at them. So, either just stranding still while the opposition skates all over the zone or puck chase. Both behaviors are disastrous. They can't clear the zone if they do get the puck on their stick. Play on the half boards break out pass ends up turned over more often than not. Their most common escape in these circumstances is the offense miss-passing or their keeper making a save and holding on. It has been and will continue to be a recipe for disaster if not fixed.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Comets to the kill.

Darcy for Hooking.

Hamilton does a great job bottling the puck up for the first 30 seconds.

Now they are set up and moving the puck and shooting.

This one has a single second left as Demko hangs on.

Kill is successful.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Comets now to the PP. This is starting to follow a reffing pattern in this league. They go a long time calling nothing and after they finally call one they start a series of alternate calls until all of a sudden they stop again in the 3rd.

Bruins called for another infraction and will go up 5 on 3 when the 3rd period opens for 19 seconds. Bet they lose the draw which will effectively kill the 1st penalty. Bad thing here is that the refs will even up this call by awarding the Bruins a 5 on 3 at some point as well. As I was getting to in the reffing explanation above when the game ends the PPs are usually very close to equal.

That's the end of the 2nd.

1-1

SOG 14-11 Providence.As I posted the Bruins picked up their game and the Comets found on several occasions found themselves holding on.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Comets D is really challenged with the absence of McEneny, Holm and Sifers. They will have to get along without Mac, but the result of the other two being out has forced the Comets to essentially sklate 4 AHL rookies. Brisebois and Chatfield have been playing all season, but now you have Cederholm, Stewart, and Watson as the only guys left and all are in essence AHL rookies. Stewart played 4 games with the Comets in '15-16, but i believe all 4 were on LW.

 

[Bad Goalie]

3rd is underway. Comets a 19 second 5 on 3.

The 2-man is over.

Now to a one man PP.

Why he insists on playing Carcone on the PP I don't know.

He is the left side halfboards forward. He makes the same play consistently. He starts down the boards, does a spin-or-ama and sends it back to the point. That's it or he shoots. His real bad move is forcing a pass across the ice.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Comets to the kill. Hamilton again - Interference.

11 seconds in and the Bruins are called. so it's 4 on 4.

Brisebois walked but the shot is high and wide.

Big stop on Darcy!

Back to 5 0n 5.

Score!!!!!!! Carcone. Skated backwards out of the corner protecting the puck and then shot it home. That's Zilch's explanation.

Carcone (2) unassisted.

 

[Bad Goalie]

The Comets to the box again 6 minutes into the 3rd.

Cassels this time - Holding

 

[Megaterio Llamas]

Bad Goalie, has Cull been deploying Brisebois mostly on the wrong side so far this year? This seems to be the case in my limited understanding of the situation. Have you observed any difference in Brisebois according to left side/wrong side deployment? Playing mostly on the wrong side would seemingly add to the challenges a rookie defenceman faces as a first year pro, to me at least.

 

[Bad Goalie]

The Bruins are swarming and here's that short 5 on 3 I told you they would get.

5 on 3 is done. Now to 5 on 4 for almost 2 minutes.

Here they go again. Save Demko. Save Demko. Demko big SAVE!!!

Like I said, once a team sets up it's chaos. On the PK they just sag back in and watch the offense do their thing.

Kill works. Even strength.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Bad Goalie, has Cull been deploying Brisebois mostly on the wrong side so far this year? This seems to be the case in my limited understanding of the situation. Have you observed any difference in Brisebois according to left side/wrong side deployment? Playing mostly on the wrong side would seemingly add to the challenges a rookie defenceman faces as a first year pro, to me at least.

He has played a lot on the right side. Too many left shooting D-men and he's the guy who goes wrong side. You'd have to ask Cull how he arrived at that decision. Maybe it's to try and teach the 3rd round rookie to be able to play both sides. Proof might be that he has also played the left side when paired with a right side D-man.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Comets to the PP once again. Better pot this one because the zebras will even this up. It was 5 to 5 before this call. Now 6-5. It is more than likely we see # 6 against the Comets soon enough and it will b e in the last 2 minutes and become 6 0n 4.

Won't need it because the Comets turned it over and surrendered the tying goal shorthanded.

Back to even strength. That was just pitiful. Clifton, a rookie, scoring his first goal.

 

[Megaterio Llamas]

He has played a lot on the right side. Too many left shooting D-men and he's the guy who goes wrong side. You'd have to ask Cull how he arrived at that decision. Maybe it's to try and teach the 3rd round rookie to be able to play both sides. Proof might be that he has also played the left side when paired with a right side D-man.

I believe he played mostly on the the left side in the 'Q'. Probably a case of the timid French speaking Quebecois kid wanting to please the coach by volunteering for unfavorable assignments.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Comets just falling apart and surrendering chances like they were 3 for a quarter. When it goes downhill for them it becomes a landslide.

Her comes OT. They blew that one by failing to take care of business on a late game PP. Scoring would be nice, but with the man advantage you have to at least just run off the 2 minutes.

3 0n 3.
Bruins went through this last night with a last minute goal to tie and won in a shootout.

 

[Bad Goalie]

Here we go. Wiercioch, Megna, and Bancks.
Bruins in control.

Now Sautner, Boucher, and Darcy

Woods, Briesbois, Carcone

Woods, Carcone, Wiercioch

Megna, Carcone, Wiercioch

Now a penalty to Wiercioch and the Bruins to 4 on 3 with 2 minutes left.

Don't like this one bit.

This is taking forever to get going.

Score and that's it on a simple one timer.

3-2 Providence in OT.

Blew that one boys.

 

[Bad Goalie]

I believe he played mostly on the the left side in the 'Q'. Probably a case of the timid French speaking Quebecois kid wanting to please the coach by volunteering for unfavorable assignments.

I doubt that was the reasoning. Cull has his own ideas it's been evidenced by all kinds of groupings that make you scratch your head. Just for example he has yet to put together his best 5 players on a single PP.

He just will not put his best 3 forwards on the ice together even when down a goal. Now that he no longer has his best forwards, he tries a line of the best he's got. Megna/Darcy/Boucher. Not so hot, huh. In 18 games Goldobin/Chaput/Boucher were together only twice.

Subban, the team's best PP point man, was never used on the first unit and usually not the second unit either. He got his time on the last 20 seconds or so with the regular line Cull wanted to go 5 on 5 when the PP ended.

His OT trios are just mind boggling. The deadliest shooter on the team is Boucher yet he played the first 30 seconds or so and never got another turn tonight. Other forwards he used were Darcy, Hamilton, Carcone, Woods, Bancks, and Megna for a flash.

It's like he is playing the OT to get to the Shootout and leave it up to Demko to find another way to win the game for him. The Comets are 1-2 in games that end in OT. They are 3-1 in shootouts. The Comets 3 shootout wins are tied with 3 other teams for the most in the league so their is some factual backup to my theory. However, Bachman has one of those wins and the loss is Demko's so the idea of Demko being the lucky horseshoe isn't locked in steel just yet. Maybe it's just get to the Shootout period, not just Thacher, but Bachman also?

 

[orcatown]

On the game tonight

Good

Weircoich - must have played half the game. As long as he is out there team is in decent shape. Comes off and the problems start. Better than Hutton probably

Chatfield - helped that he played with Weircoich. Getting more involved and using quickness to compensate for lack of muscle in his end.

Darcy - this player is getting better and better. Probably the best offensive player outside of Boucher right now. Was once a promising player in the US Junior National Team program and productive player in the Q. However, he did not pan out as pro in the Lightening organization and was cut loose last year. Has really hasn't put up the numbers for the Comets this year but recently has shown a lot better.

Bad

Brisebois - got pushed back on defense and fumbles with the puck most of the game. Made particularly horrible series of plays leading to the short handed goal that tied the game late for Providence

Hamilton - brutal. Rivaled Cassels in his ineffectiveness. Naturally picked up a couple of stupid penalties.

Cassels - ugh

Molino - looking more and more gun shy. Gets run over a lot.


Others

Cederholm - lacks sufficient speed. Ends up getting tied up too much in his own end.

Carcone - made a very nice move on the second goal but otherwise not a factor.

LaBate - very disappointing season. Lacks any finish and mostly just a body you can throw out. Showing little of the toughness he showed last year.

Watson - said he played but never saw him.

MacEwen - plays in spurts. Sometimes makes a good play but then invisible for long stretches

On the Canuck management of the Comets - some serious mistakes have been made

1. Making Johnson the GM. He had no experience and even if you believe he might evolve into a decent management person you don't put him immediately into such an important position. This was one more example of the old boys system in action - a typical Linden deal were getting a buddy a good gig was put ahead of the needs of the team. Johnson really wasn't much of player for the Canucks but he endeared himself to the alumni by blocking shots and being a fine person to have beer with. So we got to find him a good spot for him despite the total lack of any credentials. This has been the Canuck way for along time. Forget the fans - it is the alumni that have to be served. There is no way Johnson would have got this job if he wasn't in with the alumni that run the team. This attempt to let Johnson learn on the job, rather than having him train under some experienced person with AHL contacts, has had negative effects on the Comets and the Canucks. But screw that since Johnson is a Linden buddy.

2. Relying of players like Bancks and Hamilton. Using up vet room on a no talent plug like Hamilton is ridiculous. All this player could ever do was kill penalties. He has no ability to move the puck or create any offense. Continuously hurts the team by taking bad penalties. Moreover gets hurt a lot when players return some of the dirt Hamilton dishes out. The fact that the Canucks actually gave him a pre-season game shows how far the team has their head up their butts on this player. Another example of the Canucks giving time to a player b/c he is a good guy and is seen as character person. Problem is he has no talent even for this level and the team should have been looking for vet talent that could play rather than wasting money and time on Hamilton. With Bancks you have a somewhat better player but he is still no more than mediocre AHL player who can not create offense. Making him your captain and seeing him as front line player is idiocy. One of the reasons that players like Virtanen had trouble is b/c they ended up with stone handed players like Bancks who couldn't make a play. If you keep Bancks around it is as 3rd or 4th line checker on the wing. Giving him any greater role than that is ludicrous. But again he is one of the boys who has been a good soldier so he gets front line treatment rather than actually looking for vet talent that could help the younger players to progress.

3. Keeping a position for players like Cassels. I remember last year when Linden talked about Cassels progressing. You have to ask if he ever actually saw Cassels play. If he did then you have hope that Linden is never involved in making personnel decisions for the team. Cassels has been junk from day one with the Comets. He can't skate fast or well enough to play at this level. Indeed he probably can't play at any level of pro hockey well enough. How hard is that to see? Yet the team still inks him in as player on the Comets. Thus the Comets are loaded up with dead weight players like Cassels. Cassels long ago should have been shipped out to the ECHL (if he could make it there) and the Canucks should have never planned for him to play in Utica this season. The Canucks should have been beating the bush and looking at other players to replace him. They should never, based on Cassels past play with the Comets, have invited Cassles to training camp or had any expectations he would be with the Comets. Here again you have to believe that the fact Cassels dad use to play with the Canucks was a consideration. Again needs of the alumni first and the Comets be damned.

4. Providing no protection to the younger players. The younger players, especially the defenseman, are just thrown to the dogs. They have been getting run for years. And every year many go down. McEneny was playing well so other teams targeted him and eventually got him. In his time in Utica, Subban was also a target and some of his problems came from the continual abuse he got. We had defensemen from Sweden that showed some promise but they got basically run out as well. This team has never provided enough push back or protection for these players. Other team keep enforcer players around so their younger players can expect some help in protecting themselves. And I really fear that Pettersson in will be destroyed in Utica given the lack of protection provided to young players by the team. This year the Canucks could have signed Tanner Glass or others to be there if the young players were being run. Instead they keep the useless Hamilton (cause like he is a good guy you know) who has trouble enough saving his own hide.

I could go on but these are IMO some of the glaring errors made by Canuck management. And I don't see the situation changing as long as the likes of Linden and Benning and the rest of the dumbskulls in the alumni continue to run the team.

.

 

[go comets]

Far too much dead weight on the comets roster. Trading pedan and with Archie hurt leaves this team far too soft.
The 3rd and 4th lines spend the majority of their time chasing the puck around their own zone...

It's fairly obvious that Canuck fans have little clue about what it takes to play in the AHL. Time and Time again we are told how great Carcone, Molino, Cassels and other players are, only to watch them game after game look like completely ineffective players... Sad fact is they are not AHL players and most look like they would be Fringe ECHL players....

 

[tyhee]

Far too much dead weight on the comets roster. Trading pedan and with Archie hurt leaves this team far too soft.
The 3rd and 4th lines spend the majority of their time chasing the puck around their own zone...

It's fairly obvious that Canuck fans have little clue about what it takes to play in the AHL. Time and Time again we are told how great Carcone, Molino, Cassels and other players are, only to watch them game after game look like completely ineffective players... Sad fact is they are not AHL players and most look like they would be Fringe ECHL players....

Note-this post was edited by a moderator. It contained a reference to a post which I think has now been deleted. I have no complaint with the mods deleting that reference and there's no reason to add that reference back in but in place of it I'd like to express my thanks to orcatown, BG, UticaHockey and others who provide information on this thread.

There are quite a few of us who are Canuck fans but who haven't claimed Carcone, Molino, Cassels and other players are great, nor even claimed that the Comets were going to be a great team this season.

That being said, I can understand the frustration of the Comet fans to many of the comments made by we Canuck fans. Even among those of us who like to think of ourselves as somewhat objective, we aren't on the scene, generally don't see the Comets play and miss things. (In my case, I thought that with the addition of Dowd to the Canucks we'd see Chaput back in Utica almost right away. I was wrong.)