2018-19 Utica Comets, Pt. V

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alternate

Win the week!
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Jasek imo has been one of the biggest disappointments this season. The way he finished last season I had hoped he'd earn some big league games this year and press to make the Canucks next year, but now he's looking like a mid level AHLer at best. Don't really hear any reports that make me think he's still on the radar as a prospect unfortunately.
 

sting101

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Jasek imo has been one of the biggest disappointments this season. The way he finished last season I had hoped he'd earn some big league games this year and press to make the Canucks next year, but now he's looking like a mid level AHLer at best. Don't really hear any reports that make me think he's still on the radar as a prospect unfortunately.
when i saw him in Penticton i was pretty much convinced his ceiling was a good AHL player
 

Bad Goalie

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Both players looked good. Gadjovich has improved his skating and finally got involved. The bad news is it was against the worst team in the league...

TECHNICALLY the worst team in the North Division and the East, but 3rd worst team in the AHL with 46 points. The 2 worst teams in the AHL are in the Pacific Division, Stockton with 43 and Ontario is the worst with 36.
 

Bad Goalie

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I'm loving that Gadjovich is starting to show. Once he turns that corner on skating he can be a great NHL 4th liner.

I think you mean a lot more with your "starting to show" than what the people who have been watching him the whole season mean. He has become noticeable with a pass or a shot or a forecheck that causes a turnover or keeps the puck in the zone or disrupts a breakout. He's been skating on the checking line. He still gets knocked around easily and often falls down himself when attempting a check. I'd say it has to do with skating, not so much lack of strength. I think he is surprised that his hits don't matter much to the guys he targets.

Last night he scored his 2nd goal and first since November 9th. It wasn't a shot, but a tip of a shot-pass from D-man Sifers from the top of the right circle. He was driving to the net and Sifers hit him in stride. A beautiful tip it was nonetheless.

He stepped in between the Comets most physical player, Vincent Arseneau and Laval's Morgan Adams-Moisan, an ECHL tough guy (98 PIM) playing in his second game with Laval. Why he decided to do this is unknown (LOL), but suffice it to say Arseneau didn't need any help. However, Jonah more than held his own as the two threw jackhammer short rights one after another after another after another, rock 'em sock 'em robot style. Both with shields and both having broken hands would not be a surprise.

Jonah is just starting to feel his oats. His game is still way off from where it needs to be just to be a steady AHL player. He needs to some major work on his skating over the summer.
 
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Bad Goalie

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And maybe that net-front presence we've been lacking. Still see him as a year / year and a half away even in the best case scenario. Keeping my fingers crossed.

That may be closer to the whole 2 years you are working on. If you are looking for a net front presence, MacEwen is the far better candidate for that than Jonah.

Looking for a 4th liner could explain his useage on the checking line with Hamilton and Arseneau. Arseneau is a prototypical example for him to follow as is Bancks. Arseneau the most physical and Bancks the most successful guy at disrupting the plans of most opponents in their own end blocking or picking their passes, tying them up, taking them to the boards and coming out of the board battles and corner scrums with the puck. Neither has a scoring touch and that may end up being Jonah's saving grace if he can get goals off his work and that of his linemates. That was what made Zalewski so valuable until the concussions sent him to Europe. To do what Z did Jonah has to skate better.
 
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Bad Goalie

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That will keep him around for a bit longer. He can be released at any time from a PTO, but at the moment he is the team's #7 as Blujus and Graham are still out for an undetermined amount of time. He is not getting ice over any of the 6 currently in the game day lineup:
Sifers
Schenn
Sautner
McEneny
LeBlanc
Chatfield

I wouldn't be upset to see him get a game over Chatfield, but see it as unlikely.
 
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Bad Goalie

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TJ Hensick leading the ECHL in points(58) and assists (41) was signed to a contract by the San Jose Barracuda. Ends my quest for dimwit Johnson to sign this guy. He would easily be the Comets #2 center and could have worked and up or down the Comets lineup at center as injuries and callups have affect the Comets all season. So much more talent here than Woods, Darcy, or Hamilton can provide combined.
 

Bad Goalie

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DiPietro returned to his Jr club, Ottawa, where he belongs. If the Canucks had done their duty he would never have left his Jr club in the 1st place. He was not even close to ready for the NHL.

Next year he will settle into Utica where he will likely split his rookie year with a veteran. That has been the pattern here in the past. Currently contract wise that looks to be Bachamn. That could change easily with a trade.
 
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Bad Goalie

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Demko, Brisebois, MacEwen, and Gaudette are now all in Vancouver. That's a hefty chunk of top Comets talent out of the lineup. 2 weeks ago the Canucks were completely healthy.

Brisebois will start for the Canucks in LA tonight and is supposedly to be paired with Biega. The top 2 defenders for Vancouver, Edler and Tanev, are both out.

Ex-Vancouver coach, Willie D., is the King's coach.
 
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Bad Goalie

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Gaudette with a goal and an assist for the Canucks in their OT win over LA.

Brisebois held his own.

MacEwen looked like MacEwen. You saw his good stuff and you saw the stuff he doesn't have down yet.
 
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UticaHockey

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Reid Gardiner has 26 goals 27 assists in only 36 games with the Zoo. I wonder why his offence doesn't translate to the AHL. Maybe this time around.
I'd like to see Cull put Gardiner in a top 6 role centering some decent wingers to see if it does translate. If he ends up on the fourth line with a couple of grinders we will never know. The Yanni Gourde's and Curtis Valk's of the world should be enough of an example that younger high scoring ECHL forwards can do it at the next level if put into a position to succeed.
 
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Bad Goalie

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TJ Hensick - 33 years old - 1.23 ppg in ECHL
Reid Gardner - 23 years old - 1.47 ppg in ECHL

Don't know what you are trying to prove here.

Reid Gardiner in Utica has sucked. Typical high scoring ECHL player whose game does not translate to the next level.
38 AHL GP, 9Pts, .24 PPG

TJ Hensick led the Comets in scoring for 19 games (15 PTS-13 assists) at the end of the 2015-16 season and led them in scoring for their short playoff run. He is a play making center extraordinaire
630 AHL GP, 568 Pts - 402 Assists, .90 PPG.

There is absolutely no comparison. San Jose will like their acquisition if for nothing but the influence he will have on their young players and that's their opinion as well as mine. He would have been dynamite for the Comets rookie wingers and Hamilton could have played for whatever AHL team wanted him (392 AHL GP/115 PTS).
 
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Bad Goalie

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I'd like to see Cull put Gardiner in a top 6 role centering some decent wingers to see if it does translate. If he ends up on the fourth line with a couple of grinders we will never know. The Yanni Gourde's and Curtis Valk's of the world should be enough of an example that younger high scoring ECHL forwards can do it at the next level if put into a position to succeed.

You know Cull won't do that. Woods, Hamilton, and Darcy are his boys. Gardiner on the wing? Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't he a RW anyways and not a center?
 
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Bad Goalie

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And the rumor was true. Luke Schenn has been called up.

Just when things were really looking up for the Comets, the Canucks are dropping like flies. The Comets D was finally playing a steady game led by Luke. Saucereman had commented shortly after Schenn's arrival how the interested D-men had been led onto the ice after practice ended to go through drills with Schenn. It clearly had a positive impact.

I called for this all off-season as the Comets have not had this kind of defensive leadership since Huskins left. An older NHL experienced veteran is a godsend to any AHL team.

Comets have to go hunting quickly. Only 6 healthy D-men available:
Sautner
McEneny
Sifers
LeBlanc
Saucerman
Chatfield

Hopefully the #s 7 and 8 (they should bring in 2) are not selected from Dirk, Anselmini, and Watson. They have not been helpful, but Cull played Watson over Saucerman, so I'm leaning there.
 
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Bad Goalie

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Comets are on the road in W-B/Scranton tomorrow.

Cleveland has Bellville tonight and tomorrow and Utica on Sunday.

Binghamton has lowly Laval tonight and tomorrow and Rochester on Sunday.

Syracuse and Rochester go head to head in Back to Back games tonight and tomorrow. The division could be a real mess by Sunday night or a couple teams could make some big hay.
Utica has a chance to actually get some real breathing room or fall right back into a quagmire. This was not the weekend to be in such dire straits with their roster.

24 games left in the season for them and 8 are vs Rochester and Syracuse and only 7 more in the division. The non division games are only 2 pointers while divisional games are 4 point swings.
 

VanJack

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If last night's game in L.A. proves anything, it's time to just roll the dice with the kids. I really hope Jimbo can get off the pot and seriously market some of his veteran players at the trade deadline.

The bottom line is that guys like Sutter, Tanev, Gudbranson or Edler would have some value on the trade market--particularly to a team thinking it might have a shot at long playoff run.

If Benning could acquire some picks or decent young prospects from other NHL organizations, maybe there's some help in the pipeline for Utica. And if the Comets make the playoffs, could guys like Gaudette, Demko, MacEwen and Scheen all return for the playoff action?
 

Bad Goalie

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If last night's game in L.A. proves anything, it's time to just roll the dice with the kids. I really hope Jimbo can get off the pot and seriously market some of his veteran players at the trade deadline.

The bottom line is that guys like Sutter, Tanev, Gudbranson or Edler would have some value on the trade market--particularly to a team thinking it might have a shot at long playoff run.

If Benning could acquire some picks or decent young prospects from other NHL organizations, maybe there's some help in the pipeline for Utica. And if the Comets make the playoffs, could guys like Gaudette, Demko, MacEwen and Scheen all return for the playoff action?

Why do people keep asking this question? The answer is:

YYY----------EEE------------SSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

First add Brisebois to that list.

All that is necessary is for the Canucks to paper them down if they are on the Canucks roster at the paper deadline. All the NHL teams will be doing it. You announce you are sending them down. Then the next day you recall them. They never leave town, but were sent down and recalled. However, that demotion-recall was done on paper and those players are now eligible to play in the AHL playoffs.

It is all up to Benning or whomever he designates that task to and whether or not he wants them to participate in the AHL playoffs. All 5 of these guys have been big parts of the Comets success whether they have played a lot of games for the Comets or not so many and if the Canucks don't make the playoffs what the Hell does he have to lose. It would be a benefit all of these guys.

They are even eligible if the Canucks made the playoffs and were quickly eliminated. This was the case with Baertschi in '14-15 and last year the Marlies got a big boost when the Leafs were eliminated and they got players back to help defeat the Comets in the final game of the opening round series. They went on to win the Calder Cup with those additions.

It's also important that someone loudly reminds them because one season they actually forgot to do it because Benning was so hard at work trying to get deals done that he forgot and no one else brought it up. He didn't get any good deals done either. I have conveniently erased the year that happened from my memory.
 
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