Yup. I told you it would be so and Mitch is the guy I thought it would be. If Biega had been here it would have been the smartest thing to make Teves the other one. The 2 could get ice in all situations every game day. Much better for them than sitting out game after game. Mitch should get that in the ZOO if Vancouver has any power down there.
2019-20 Utica Comets
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Yup. I told you it would be so and Mitch is the guy I thought it would be. If Biega had been here it would have been the smartest thing to make Teves the other one. The 2 could get ice in all situations every game day. Much better for them than sitting out game after game. Mitch should get that in the ZOO if Vancouver has any power down there.
It's another question that begged answered when Vancouver broke camp. The assumption he and his agent were looking for any NHL team to give him a 2-way. Obviously it didn't happen.
The next logical question was why didn't Vancouver hook him up with an AHL deal for more than minimum AHL $$$ with a hook that if he really performed at a high level and the Canucks needed a call-up at center he could sign a 2-way and get a shot. Maybe they tried. Maybe other teams tried as well. It's not looking like any of that happened. According to EliteProspects he is signed with Eisbaren Berlin of the DEL (Germany), but has no stats.
A follow up on Mitch Eliot is in this morning's OD. He was sen down to get game experience. However, the article says he will return to Utica after the game. What game is not explained. I assume it means after he plays the game with the Zoo. It could also mean after the Comets game Saturday in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. In either case it appears he's coming right back. I don't have the exacts nor more of an explanation than that.
Comets open at home on Wednesday. Looks like he'll be in house for player introductions.
Comets open at home on Wednesday. Looks like he'll be in house for player introductions.
UticaHockey
Registered User
It may sound like semantics but it's really not. Instead of "why haven't the Comets signed Landon Ferraro to an AHL deal?" it should be "why haven't the Canucks signed Landon Ferraro to an AHL deal". The Comets per sa don't sign players directly but instead Vancouver signs players to AHL contracts for the Comets. This would have required Ryan Johnson and Jim Benning to offer Ferraro an AHL contract which my guess they never did because of the perceived notion that the Comets have too many forwards even though they are short of quality centers.
The drafting of Pettersson and Hughes bought the Benning/Weisbrod era a lot of time and leash. Any basement team that ALSO has a basement farm team should require a deeper inquisition from critics. The one guy from Vancouver media who was onto this was Jason Botchford, and he mocked Jim for immediately writing off Utica's problems, almost seconds after stepping off the plane. Botch probably would've been the only guy who could really expose the poor handling of the farm and get enough eyes on it.
UticaHockey
Registered User
If there were an abundance of centers in Utica I would agree with you but there isn't. The Comets #2 center Graovac went down with an injury in the first game of the season and the reality is Carter Bancks will likely move from the wing to the middle and move up in the line up where he doesn't belong.
Do you ever listen to yourself? Do you ever look before you leap. Do you know exactly who is on the Comets roster? If you did you would see the ridiculousness of your statement.
Goldobin and Baertschi are wings. They have nothing to do with holding back prospect centers because there aren't any!!!!!!! Since Utica came into being the only center prospects they have sent here were Friesen, Gaunce, and Cassels.
Friesen gave it his all and was mediocre at best.
Cassels was never even AHL quality from the day he got off the bus until the day he wasn't offered a QO when his ELC was up.
Both are in Europe.
Gaunce was a very good AHL center and graduated to the Canucks and we all know his history.
This season, once again, not a single prospect at center. Don't even think to mention Jasek. Here is a guy whose only chance at the NHL is on the wing and they've converted him to center to deal with the shortage. A reactionary move, not a long range plan.
Even with Lukas, the Comets need another center for the inevitable that just happened after game #1, Graovac out with an injury. Who will the center be? Carter Bancks(!) instead of Ferraro. Both are vets so it wouldn't matter. Another better vet will be sitting because he plays. Would be the same if it were Landon, but Bancks could sit while a superior Ferrao played.
Injuries will occur in both cities all season long and the vets here will shrink as they go up to the Canucks and the vets in the Comets games won't exceed the limits. Cull has said he and the team will just have to play it out. He knows what will transpire. When or before Rousell comes back more fur is sure to fly. Jim will be trying to trade to get his roster and cap down.
A team with 3 bona fide centers and 1 tryout convert has adequate room for a 5th. Was surprised to see Graovac go down first. Fan base here expected (some wished) it would be Wacey, who is usually the first injured. He only played 23 games last season and 45 the year before. The center issue in Utica hasn't been addressed for the last 5 years and this is the worst oversight.
If you can find a good non vet center at this point, by all means bring him in. There was a bunch of them available this summer and I listed them all out. Benning and Johnson didn't sign one and the Comets will soon be desperate again. Vancouver posters will really be *****ing if Baertschi or Goldobin take a turn scratched when Bancks and Hamilton have to count as 2 of the 6 legal vets because a centers is out, like right now. I predicted this mess with the vets when the team was being assembled this summer. Benning never makes a plan beyond the moment.
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Saturday I would put Goldy and Boucher back together. They always flip flopped wings all night long anyways. Goldy was constantly feeding Boucher from the left wing or the middle for Reid's one timer on the right. Cull actually moved Chaput down a line because the 2 worked so well that the Center wasn't as important to them. Thus, I would put whom ever Cull is going to sub in for Graovac with them.
I think I might fall into @THRILLHOIAFs theory of the Comets pulling a reactionary move to get a center. I think it's what I call "a reactionary move out of necessity" and therefore is actually preplanned, but I'd slide Bailey in the middle for faceoffs and let him enact a 3-man weave with them. He goes to the net, can shoot from either side, has the speed to force defensive coverage, is supposed to be working hard on his defensive responsibility so, he could hang back as the high man and would to be the first guy back because Boucher is historically late because he is almost always the deepest forward on his line.
Goldobin(VE)/Bailey(VE)/Boucher(V)
Baertschi(V)/Jasek/MacEwen
Gadjovich/Camper(V)/Lind
Arseneau/Hamilton(V)/Stevenson
Scratches:
Bancks(V)
Perron (inj)
Malone (inj)
Graovac (inj)
The only healthy scratch is Bancks, the extra vet.
Reality? Probably Bancks at center and Bailey sits. Can't kill penalties without Wacey and Carter, right? Seems to be Cull's impression.
I think I might fall into @THRILLHOIAFs theory of the Comets pulling a reactionary move to get a center. I think it's what I call "a reactionary move out of necessity" and therefore is actually preplanned, but I'd slide Bailey in the middle for faceoffs and let him enact a 3-man weave with them. He goes to the net, can shoot from either side, has the speed to force defensive coverage, is supposed to be working hard on his defensive responsibility so, he could hang back as the high man and would to be the first guy back because Boucher is historically late because he is almost always the deepest forward on his line.
Goldobin(VE)/Bailey(VE)/Boucher(V)
Baertschi(V)/Jasek/MacEwen
Gadjovich/Camper(V)/Lind
Arseneau/Hamilton(V)/Stevenson
Scratches:
Bancks(V)
Perron (inj)
Malone (inj)
Graovac (inj)
The only healthy scratch is Bancks, the extra vet.
Reality? Probably Bancks at center and Bailey sits. Can't kill penalties without Wacey and Carter, right? Seems to be Cull's impression.
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Hoglander
I'm Höglander. I can do whatever I want.
I read posts both here and on other HF pages stating that Benning didn't sign Ferraro because he was holding onto the few contract slots the Canucks had left. Then he uses one of those rare precious gems on a player assigned to the ECHL, David Pope, whom they acquired as the return for Alex Biega.
The 2nd move, wasting one of those highly prized contracts on Pope made the failure to do something right by not signing Ferraro, tell me the rationale people will go to defend dumb Benning moves are bizarre. He never made any such statement about the contract slots, yet that was "obviously the reason" Ferraro couldn't be signed. Signing Pope blows that theory to kingdom come.
The other issue was it would put too many vets in Utica which would take ice time away from prospects. Really? Like the Comets roster is bulging with iffy prospect forwards. Oh, you mean the long list of:
Jasek - had a spot created for him at center so he's in.
Lind and Gadjovich - are non vets and they have to play precisely because they have 6 vets. Vets will be scratched not the 2 guys on ELCs.
The scratches would be Stevenson, Malone, and Arseneau and the others with the vet mess should end up being Hamilton and Bancks while the other 6 play until the inevitable call-ups and in house injuries open up slots. One slot has already opened up with the injury to Graovac. Perron and Malone are also injured leaving the Comets with one healthy scratch tomorrow at forward and he has to be a VET. If Ferraro were here it would be 2 vets. The D are all non vets.
If a Comet were to be injured tomorrow and the Comets had a game Sunday afternoon, either a fast rocket sled from Kalamazoo shuttles in a call-up or the Comets slate one of their extra D-men as a forward because Bancks couldn't play anyways due to his veteran status. That's of course unless the injured player was also a vet.
Benning has created the vet issue. If it hurts one of his precious prospects (which I don't believe he has plans for anyways), it's on him. If the guy ever did some thinking beyond his nose this would have been dealt with in the off season. He knew he had too many forwards in Vancouver and only Gaudette wouldn't be one. Again not thinking ahead, he didn't figure Gaudette would make the team which would have reduced the vets by one. Everyone in Vancouver believed he would make a trade or two to lower the team's cap. That would also have reduced Vets and he could have bargained for good non vet AHL players back like occurred in the Pyatt for Perron trade.
We currently have the results of what he didn't do and what he did. Another fine mess he's gotten us into.
Team still undefeated 1-0 this year? Should be interesting year with young but not too young d core in Utica. Centers or no centers current forwards will score. Goldy, Sven and Boucher will score. Question is how long the first 2 are there.
I think Ferraro wasn't signed due to the log jam at forward. That was Ray Ferraro's opinion as well. As for Pope's contract, Biega cleared waivers. There's no evidence that he could have been traded for a draft pick or prospect without a contract.
UticaHockey
Registered User
Ryan Johnson specifically mentions that they added more depth at Goaltending, defense and forwards but didn't break down the forward group to address the depth at center.
Without Goldobin and Sven in the lineup last week the team looked pretty good, and that was independent of Tyler Graovac who, in my opinion, didn't really bring much to the table for his line was the weakest of the 3 with the exception of Gadjovich amazingly, who had quite a few looks and chances throughout the night, especially the one chance early that got waved off due to a kick
even got himself a breakaway down the wing for a backhander on net.
In theory, with Graovac out with injury, the obvious odd-man-out (For Trent Cull) will be either Justin Bailey or Nikolay Goldobin.
If the Canucks have put an end to the Goldy in the NHL experiment, then I wouldn't be too surprised if he actually spent time in the press-box on the farm.
In reality,
Based on actual skill, one of Hamilton/Bancks SHOULD sit out for Baertschi/Goldy/Boucher/Bailey/Camper, but the two are CLEARLY, Cull's go-to guys. Plus, with Bancks having the C, I can't imagine him ever getting benched this season, barring some abhorrent performances.
Game #2 10/12/19
Utica Comets @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Forwards:
Boucher/Camper/Lind
Baertschi/Bancks/Bailey
Goldobin/Jasek/MacEwen
Gadjovich/Stevenson/Arseneau
Brisebois/Rafferty
Teves/Chatfield
Sautner/Juolevi
Goal:
McIntyre
DiPietro - backup
Scratches:
Healthy
Bachman
Blujus
LeBlanc
Hamilton
Injured:
Perron
Graovac
Malone
Utica Comets @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Forwards:
Boucher/Camper/Lind
Baertschi/Bancks/Bailey
Goldobin/Jasek/MacEwen
Gadjovich/Stevenson/Arseneau
Brisebois/Rafferty
Teves/Chatfield
Sautner/Juolevi
Goal:
McIntyre
DiPietro - backup
Scratches:
Healthy
Bachman
Blujus
LeBlanc
Hamilton
Injured:
Perron
Graovac
Malone
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Comets very raggedy play, but have created the better chances of the 2 teams.
Both have had an unsuccessful PP.
Comets PP1
MacEwen
Baertschi/Lind/Boucher
Juolevi
PP2
Gadjovich
Goldobin/Bailey/Camper
Rafferty
shots are 7-5 inside the last 5 minutes
Both have had an unsuccessful PP.
Comets PP1
MacEwen
Baertschi/Lind/Boucher
Juolevi
PP2
Gadjovich
Goldobin/Bailey/Camper
Rafferty
shots are 7-5 inside the last 5 minutes
Good rush by the Sautner line. Sautner is fed by Goldobin right in the slot. Save made and another on Sautner's rebound.
S----C----O-----R------E!!!!!
Camper the draw and Boucher nets #3 on the season. 17:40
1-0 Comets.
Camper the draw and Boucher nets #3 on the season. 17:40
1-0 Comets.
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