Prospect Info: 2019 Prospects

How can you include Virtanen on that list? Green basically turned JV into a professional hockey player in Utica. I'd also say Markstrom's time in Utica was essential in allowing him to rebuild his fundamentals. Both guys' stints in Utica were essential in turning them into the players they are today.

 

Earning ice time and development can be a bit of a ‘chicken and egg’ argument. If they want faster development then yes, giving rookies more ice time will get them up to speed quicker (or show they can’t make it). Also, some prospects tend to be fasts learners (elite prospects tend to be), while others take a bit longer to get there.

However it seems to me that for most of the prospects, management and The coaching staff is not putting an emphasis on speeding up their development and don’t mind taking their time, focusing a bit more on winning and slowly getting the rookies in while managing their veteran depth. Dahlen and Juolevi were the exceptions I think, they wanted them up with the big team faster.

Also I think development this year was hampered by poor preparation by the coaching staff and maybe management and players for the start of the season. They returned a lot of players that finished with the team last year and played terribly for the first 20 odd games. I understand it can take a few games for a team to find their feet but that was way too long. How it took them as long as they did to put Gaunce at centre is beyond me.

 

We need more draft picks for 2019 and 2020 in the first 3 rounds. Our drafting is much better compared to the days of Patrick White, Niklas Jensen, Jordan Schroeder.

 

Fri Feb 8

AHL

Lehigh Valley 2 Utica 5
Leighton 25 saves on 27 shots

Carter Bancks (3) ASST: Jaime Sifers (8), Lukas Jasek (12)
Ashton Sautner (3) ASST: Tanner Kero (25), Zack MacEwen (21)
Reid Boucher (20) ASST: Zack MacEwen (22), Stefan LeBlanc (8)
Tom Pyatt (3) ASST: Brendan Woods (3), Jonathan Dahlen (12)
Brendan Gaunce (14) ASST: Tom Pyatt (5), Brendan Woods (4)

ECHL

Kalamazoo 4 Indy 2

USHL

Dubuque 4 Cedar Rapids 2
Thiessen 18 saves on 20 shots

NCAA

Michigan State 3 Michigan 5
Hughes 1 assist, +2
Lockwood 1 goal (12th), 2 assists, +3

Union 3 Harvard 5
Rathbone 1 assist, -1

OHL

Ottawa 1 Mississauga 2 (SO)
DiPietro did not play (emergency recall)

Sarnia 6 Guelph 2
Eliot 0 points, +1

WHL

Moose Jaw 4 Lethbridge 3
Woo did not play (suspended 2 games for the Charging call on Feb 6)

S_C

 

Question for those in the know

Lockwood and or Madden

Better prospect than Dahlen?

 

Both of them are.

 

I remember the days when R.J. Umberger, Ryan Ready, Brandon Reid were the prospects Canucks were looking forward to the most. Also never forget Justin Schultz the ideal winger for the Sedins according to Nonis. It's incredible how much the NHL has changed and how much investment has gone to player development.

 

Actually think Dahlen is most probable first, Madden has by far the highest upside, and Lockwood is a decent pest agitator Burrows type. Overall would rank them about the same place right now, in that 5- 8 slot with the Canucks. None are locks, none are write offs.

 

Dahlen's season so far has been an enigma wrapped in a mystery....usually a 20 year old who dominates the Allvenskan like he did last season is automatically penciled in for an NHL spot eventually. But something seems to be missing in Utica. I don't know if it's the size of the rink; the speed of NA hockey or his compete level, but something isn't happening.

Of course until Lockwood and Madden actually sign their contracts and lace them up for Utica, you really won't know for sure.

 

Thats just not true, lots of young Europeans, who are high draft picks struggle with NA rink size, speed, and physicality. You cant automaticallg pencil them all in
He also has a skating issue, and defensive issues which have forced him to be moved down the lineup with bad linemates.
He also was really heating up before the injury. Seems to have been affected by that

 

Does anyone in Vancouver want to listen? Gaunce is not a regular at center despite the fact he belongs there. Cull usually slides him back on the wing whenever 2 of Hamilton, Woods, and Darcy are healthy and Gaudette is in Utica.

Last night (2/8/19)
Kero
Gaudette
Woods
Darcy

Gaunce LW.

When you see Gaunce at center the Comets are shorthanded in the middle.

 

Would you say Cull has an excellent crop of centremen at his disposal?

 

I think Pettersson and DiPietro were in the same draft, no?

You can’t hit on every pick bud!

 

Hughes now has the same amount of points but in 12 games less than last year.

0.78ppg → 1.16ppg ↑ 49%

 

If he played Gaunce at center on a nightly basis and Kero and Gaudette were also in the middle, yes, you'd have 3 good centers.
When only Kero and Gaudette are in the middle you are missing 2.
You can get away with a Woods, Darcy, or Hamilton on the 4th line, but 2 of them weakens the lineup.

The Comets have scored 14 goals in the last 3 games and Woods and Darcy have played center in all of them. Darcy and Gaudette (sick for one game) had no points while Woods had 3 assists, 2 on Dahlen goals. Gaudette is still trying to do too much on his own. He has had Gaunce on his left and and Lind on his right, but doesn't seem to have the sense to understand how to employ them in his plans. To become a solid center his set ups of his wings should be occurring as often as his own offensive chances. He is not going to succeed offensively in this league unless he uses his linemates. He is easy to foil going it alone. He hasn't beat a D-man clean yet. MacEwen is finally showing a semblance of understanding this use of his line mates to create more space for himself.

 

Doesn't that say more about Cull being a self-defeating coach than it does about the roster?

 

Sat Feb 9

AHL

Rochester 2 Utica 5
Leighton 25 saves on 27 shots

Zack MacEwen (17) ASST: Evan McEneny (18), Reid Boucher (24)
Reid Boucher (21) ASST: Zack MacEwen (23), Luke Schenn (11)
Jonathan Dahlen (13) ASST: Brendan Woods (5)
Reid Boucher (22) ASST: Zack MacEwen (24) (PP)
Reid Boucher (23) ASST: Zack MacEwen (25), Ashton Sautner (5) (EN)

ECHL

Kalamazoo 3 Kansas City 4 (OT)

USHL

Cedar Rapids 2 Dubuque 1 (SO)
Thiessen 30 saves on 31 shots (stopped 6 of 7 shots in SO)

NCAA

Michigan 5 Michigan State 2
Hughes 3 assists, +2
Lockwood 1 goal (13th), even

OHL

Ottawa 4 Hamilton 3
DiPietro did not play (emergency recall)

Guelph 4 Sarnia 1
Eliot 1 assist, -3

Niagara 6 Sault Ste. Marie 7
Brassard 2 assists, -2

WHL

Moose Jaw 2 Red Deer 1
Woo did not play (suspended)

S_C

 

Brassard and Eliot are now tied in points -- and tied for 7th in OHL defencemen scoring (Eliot gets the nod because he has more goals).

 

That's not what I was asked.

 

Sun Feb 10

AHL

Utica 4 Bridgeport 5 (OT)
Kulbakov 27 saves on 32 shots

Tanner Kero (18) ASST: Reid Boucher (25), Evan McEneny (19) (PP)
Luke Schenn (3) ASST: Jonathan Dahlen (13), Jonah Gadjovich (5) (PP)
Jonathan Dahlen (14) ASST: Brendan Woods (6), Cam Darcy (8)
Brendan Gaunce (15) ASST: Tom Pyatt (6) (SH)

OHL

Kitchener 1 Sarnia 0
Eliot 0 points, even

Niagara 2 Sudbury 3
Brassard 0 points, -2

WHL

Moose Jaw 2 Calgary 6
Woo 1 assist, -3

S_C

 

I’m so happy to see Dahlen picking up the pace

 

I get that, but I also get that the Comets have the potential to ice a better roster than they do. Obviously, Cull deserves credit for getting as much as he has out of the roster, but I think his line blending and refusal to play Gaunce as a center are pretty serious flaws worth noting.

 

I wonder if that "refusal" is actually an order from above (which, if so, would be even more frustrating).

 

"the Comets have the potential to ice a better roster than they do."

Really?

Here's the D-men as of yesterday:
Schenn
Sifers
Sautner
McEneny
LeBlanc
Chatfield - playing like crap right now
Saucerman

Injured-
Juolevi out for the season
Graham WTW
Blujus WTW
He's playing the only 4 contracted D he has and the other 2 are on AHL contracts.

Here's the forwards as of yesterday:
Pyatt/Kero/Boucher
Gaunce/Gaudette/Lind
Dahlen/Woods/Darcy - Crazy, but Dahlen has been scoring goals with Woods as his center.
Gadjovich/Hamilton/Arseneau

Injured -
Jasek - Played 2 of the 3 weekend games and sat out Sunday with an injury incurred on Saturday. That gave Gadjovich a game. Neither of the 2 is making any kind of impression as anything better than a lesser quality AHL player as of now, but Jasek is the better of the 2.
Bancks

So, assembling this cast of characters would you please tell me where the better potential roster is that Cull can put out on the ice? Maybe you can rearrange the lines which he has been doing constantly, sometimes to the dismay of all who watch the Comets, but he is always tinkering to try and come up with the best combinations while giving all of the kids playing time, deserved or not. Last night he created 2 strong lines, 1 that had potential with Dahlen and Woods, and a checking line which did an admirable job (They were not out for a goal against, while Dahlen's and Boucher's lines were on for 2 GA each.)

His vets are Schenn and Sifers on D and Boucher, Pyatt, Bancks, and Hamilton up front. Schenn, Sifers, Boucher and Pyatt ARE NOT going to sit. That leaves Bancks (captain) and Hamilton. Since the 5 vet rule became a problem with the acquisition of Schenn, Hamilton has been sitting.

Last night Darcy was on the wing, Arseneau was in the lineup for Bancks, and Gadjovich was in for Jasek. With MacEwen enroute to Vancouver, Cull was playing the only 18 forwards he had at his disposal.

Actually, the beginning of your statement has never rung truer:
"Cull deserves credit for getting as much as he has out of the roster."

 

Kero, Gaudette and Gaunce are three of the Comets' best five forwards-- actually, of the best four now that MacEwen is called up. Seems to make sense to have them all playing in the top six. In case of a Kero/Gaudette absence then Gaunce should move to centre but right now it is sensible to have him on the wing. The lines as assembled on Friday and Saturday prior to MacEwen's call-up seemed to work the best of any combos since I started watching (all of the games in 2019).