What's happening with AJ Thelen?

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Vlad The Impaler

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Feb 27, 2002
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His ice time has been decreasing steadily every game I saw (that's when he even plays).

Completely wasting his time over there. Should have tried the WHL in retrospect.

I don't know if he has truly left but for a month now, I've been wishing he was elsewhere.
 

CH Wizard

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I'd not be surprised , as like Vlad said he isn't seeing much icetime as of late.He didn't score a single goal since the beginning of the season, he has 11 assists though.He'd have seen quality icetime with the Raiders (in the WHL)
 

chaachie12

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I've heard second hand (in some cases VERY second hand) that he has ZERO interest in playing anything but pro hockey after being drafted. Not always the best way to prove you deserve the pro game. It is pretty clear he WON'T be in E. Lansing next year, but where?

Kids these days... :shakehead
 

SpaceGhost79

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MSU has struggled this year, but the good players are considered good because they tend to continue to shine despite tough times. Thelen, on the other hand, has not. I think he has had his head someplace else all season and hasn't shown as much effort on the ice.

He came into this season with a lot of expectations after a superb freshman year and being drafted by his hometown team very high. There was a lot of talk over the summer that he wanted to turn pro, but ultimately he didn't (not sure if that was because the Wild didn't offer him or not). Not only that, but before the season even started coach Rick Comley said he was disappointed with Thelen for returning to school out of shape. Apparantly Thelen didn't do much, if any, summer conditioning and came back out of shape and slower on the ice. His offense has been nonexistant, and his lack of defensive game has been exposed this year. He's second worst on the team with a -5 rating. As much as some might want to pin it on coaching, which may have some to do with it, equal blame must be placed on Thelen for the lack of effort he put in during the off season because it sure is showing.

A Minneapolis Star-Tribune article a few weeks ago on Thelen quoted him as saying he'll be a Spartan for two more years, unless the NHL ends their lockout. Even his coach Rick Comley said in the same article that Thelen desperately wants to turn pro. Here are the exact quotes:

"Here's a young kid who gets drafted 12th overall by his hometown team," Comley said. "He fast-tracked to get here, and he's very anxious to get on to the next phase of his career. ... He desperately wants to sign a pro contract. He wants to sign after this year. Absolutely."

"I have two more years here," Thelen said. He paused a moment and added: "If the lockout, God forbid, is that long."

I suspect he'll head to major juniors if he leaves, and for his sake I hope he learns what work ethic is this summer.
 

TMHUNH

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Leachmeister2000 said:
yeah he can, Kobasew did it and so did Comrie and a host of others.

Yeah but not this late in the season, which is what I think he meant.

I think signing an ATO in the AHL might be his best option.
 

Hobey Baker

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TMHUNH said:
Yeah but not this late in the season, which is what I think he meant.

I think signing an ATO in the AHL might be his best option.
Ah, so he's out for the dub then. I wonder if he'll get a crack at the AHL seeing that he didn't exactly perform up to par at MSU this season. Perhaps a sniff of the pro life is what he needs to jumpstart his game.
 

Vlad The Impaler

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TMHUNH said:
Yeah but not this late in the season, which is what I think he meant.

I think signing an ATO in the AHL might be his best option.

Would you happen to know the precise rule? Is there a date or a number of games played or something?

Thanks :)
 

TMHUNH

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Vlad The Impaler said:
Would you happen to know the precise rule? Is there a date or a number of games played or something?

Thanks :)

No and that isn't what I meant. I didn't mean that he couldn't play there I was just saying that he can't be compared to Kobasew or Van Ryn because they weren't in the same situation as Thelen.

I don't know if there are any rules about that. Someone on here is bound to know.

I will say that in my opinion it is 'unlikely' that he would join a WHL team this late in the season, when he could do the same in the AHL.
 

MS

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Vlad The Impaler said:
Would you happen to know the precise rule? Is there a date or a number of games played or something?

Thanks :)

I think the cutoff for a US college player (or European) to join a CHL club is the same as the respective league's trade deadline, which are all in mid-January ... for ie guys like Sindel and Todd Perry moved leagues just before the deadline. After that rosters are frozen except for emergency callups.

But don't quote me on that because I'm not 100% sure.
 

thestonedkoala

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I'm don't know if I should be disappointed in Thelen or the program. From articles and reports, Thelen has kind of turned me off with his, I should be in the pros now attitude and him not being able to make do with what is going on in the NHL/AHL/ECHL and things like that. But if there is problems with the program, I think it is understandable that Thelen isn't happy.
 

Rabid Ranger

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I'm not going to sit here and say Thelen is an innocent in all of this, because he clearly isn't. Even if you're having a rough go of it, or expectations aren't being met, you should still give 100%, and he hasn't done that. That being said, it's clear that MSU isn't the right place for him at this point, and his dismissal is probably best for both parties. Someone with his immense physical gifts will get on track somewhere, whether that's the WHL or another league. I'm hoping he gets his head on straight because he'll still be eligible for the U.S. WJC team next year (I think).
 

Erack82

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thelen-vi.jpg

Just thought I would put this picture I shot of AJ earlier this season.

Kinda funny to read this from a few years back:

"In high school, kids are just trying to impress everybody. In college, you're working for the team, and you'll do whatever it takes for the team." - A.J. Thelen

http://nhl.com/intheslot/read/college/college110603.html
 
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Joe d

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DoobieDoobieDo said:
I'm don't know if I should be disappointed in Thelen or the program. From articles and reports, Thelen has kind of turned me off with his, I should be in the pros now attitude and him not being able to make do with what is going on in the NHL/AHL/ECHL and things like that. But if there is problems with the program, I think it is understandable that Thelen isn't happy.

DDD...I agree....Big red flag goes up when you read something like this. You would have liked to see him suck it up and finish the season. Dealing with adversity is a true tale on how a prospect will react when times get tough. Let's see what happens in the next couple weeks. I really want this Minnesota kid to succeed.
 

RangerBoy

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Comley pretty much threw Lee Falardeau and Brock Radunske out of the program last summer.He told them they stick around for their senior years but they would not receive any real icetime
 

TMHUNH

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A Lone Wolf said:
What dub team owns the rights to Thelen? Because if he was passed over by the dub in there draft, then I believe that makes him available to all the CHL teams....

It was mentioned in this thread that Prince Albert owns his rights.

This is what I see happening:

It is likely too late for Thelen to join Prince Albert this season.

So I think he signs an ATO in the AHL or possibly the ECHL, plays out the season. Then joins Prince Albert for next season and hopefully makes the WJC team.

Then signs with Minny after next year.
 
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