A SERIOUS DISCUSSION - Brett Bellemore

[Boom Boom Apathy]

Time for the defensemen.

Brett Bellemore
Age: 26
6'4", 225 lbs, Shoot Right.
Career: 72GP, 2G, 8A, -3, 3.5% SH %
Last Season: 64GP, 2G, 6A, -1, 3.7% SH%, -3.2 Corsi Rel

Bellemore finally made the jump to the NHL last year and showed that he wasn't out of place, for the most part and was a better option than Harrison and Gleason. He was paired frequently with Hainsey on the 2nd pairing, although he was probably better suited for the bottom pairing. He played fairly well, but had some rough patches, which was to be expected for a guy in his first season being slotted above his ability. After seeing what was available on the open market, he returned to the Canes.

What are your expectations of Bellemore? With likely 8 defensemen signed, will he find much playing time? or be relegated to the #7 D / press box?

DISCUSS!

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[What the Faulk]

I expect that he'll play the Komisarek role as the number 7 guy with Murphy starting in Charlotte if the latter shows he isn't ready. If he has a good enough camp where they absolutely cannot leave him off the team, I expect that Francis will look to dump Liles or Harrison for pretty much anything, maybe even pay someone a late pick to take them. Bellemore is a cheap press box option who won't really hurt you defensively in transition, and he has surprisingly decent offensive instincts off the rush. But when it comes to set plays in either zone, he shows his rawness. I don't expect he'll get enough playing time to hit last year's numbers.

 

[Zezima]

Like it or not he's our 2nd best RD right now. That's unless Murphy had/has one hell of a summer/training camp. You're completely right about Bellemore being better suited for the bottom pairing, where I actually like him quite a lot, but with our current group I'm slotting him beside Hainsey again on unit 2. For the record my third pairing is probably Harrison and Murphy so I'm not happy about any of this.

He's the only defensemen in our lineup who frequently hits a lot so I really hope he isn't put in the press box. Expectation wise I think he could be a good bottom pairing guy for the next five years if we actually got some real defenders to play ahead of him. Last year he showed that he can do everything just about okay so I'm confident that he is an NHL defenseman. Areas of improvement I'm looking towards are positioning and skating...not that he's horrifically bad at either but he was out of place on a few memorable goals last year.

 

[Anton Dubinchuk]

He should be able to hit 5 accidental assists...

 

[RodTheBawd]

Each year he continues to develop, so as long as he hasn't reached his peak (I don't think he has), I don't see why he can't claim the 5th spot (sans Timmay).

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

I expect that he'll play the Komisarek role as the number 7 guy with Murphy starting in Charlotte if the latter shows he isn't ready. If he has a good enough camp where they absolutely cannot leave him off the team, I expect that Francis will look to dump Liles or Harrison for pretty much anything, maybe even pay someone a late pick to take them. Bellemore is a cheap press box option who won't really hurt you defensively in transition, and he has surprisingly decent offensive instincts off the rush. But when it comes to set plays in either zone, he shows his rawness. I don't expect he'll get enough playing time to hit last year's numbers.

The only way I see anyone taking Liles and maybe Harrison is if the Canes take back a forward with a similar contract. I REALLY hope Francis doesn't use the JR approach of throwing in picks/prospects so someone will take them. My guess is there will be a combination of Murphy in Charlotte (if they don't think he's ready) and a couple of guys in the press box (Bellemore, Gleason, Harrison) for the first part of the season while they see what works and then try to sort it out after that.

The real question is which guy will step up and take the spot along side Hainsey between Bellemore, Liles and Murphy. Given they are right handed, Murphy and Bellemore should have the inside track, but have to show they are capable.

 

[What the Faulk]

Depending on the forward and the contract details, that might not be a terrible idea. Even if Boychuk does step up, Malone or Dwyer or Nash all make little enough where you can scratch them here and there.

 

[nobuddy]

Sekera-Faulk
Hainsey-Murphy
Liles-Bellemore

sounds like our best defense to me I guess.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

Sekera-Faulk
Hainsey-Murphy
Liles-Bellemore

sounds like our best defense to me I guess.

If Murphy is ready for that responsibility, I agree, this would probably be ideal.

 

[mmssd]

He's a solid defenseman. Nothing special, but I like him. I'd much rather see him get playing time over Gleason.

 

[Carolinas Identity*]

If Murphy isn't ready for a top 4 roll, I think a 3rd pair of Murphy and Bellemore would be not bad. Let them develop together.

Of course that'd mean Liles in the top 4. And there's always the chance Fleury blows everyone's socks off at camp.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

If Murphy isn't ready for a top 4 roll, I think a 3rd pair of Murphy and Bellemore would be not bad. Let them develop together.

Except they are both RHD and are used to playing there (from what I can tell). Putting one of them in an off-side position while they are still learning / developing may not be the best. I get that some defensemen do this and that some vets adapt to it, but I would be hesitant to do that with those two. I don't recall ever seeing them together last year, but maybe I am wrong.

 

[Carolinas Identity*]

Except they are both RHD and are used to playing there (from what I can tell). Putting one of them in an off-side position while they are still learning / developing may not be the best. I get that some defensemen do this and that some vets adapt to it, but I would be hesitant to do that with those two. I don't recall ever seeing them together last year, but maybe I am wrong.

I was just thinking Bellemore's been around the block once or twice as it were and might be able to handle it. It's just that aside from PP time, I'm a little hesitant to throw Murphy into a full time top 4 spot atm. Down the road? Sure, but right now? I'm not so certain, though I'd love to be proven wrong.

 

[Unsustainable]

It all depends on Murphy.

I think 10pts is fair though

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

I was just thinking Bellemore's been around the block once or twice as it were and might be able to handle it. It's just that aside from PP time, I'm a little hesitant to throw Murphy into a full time top 4 spot atm. Down the road? Sure, but right now? I'm not so certain, though I'd love to be proven wrong.

I'm not convinced Murphy will be ready for a top 4 role either, but pairing him with another RH D in Bellemore, when they are both still learning/developing doesn't seem to make much sense to me. Ideally, I'd like to see the following if Murphy is ready:

Faulk-Sekera
Hainsey-Murphy
Liles - Bellemore
Harrison/Gleason

If Murphy isn't ready for 2nd pairing, but is ready for NHL, I suspect we'll see something more along the lines of:

Faulk-Sekera
Hainsey-Liles (or Liles-Hainsey)
Harrison/Gleason-Murphy
Bellemore

Or

Faulk-Sekera
Hainsey-Bellemore
Harrison/Gleason/Liles-Murphy

 

[Ole Gil]

So much depends on Peters philosophy on using defense pairings. Is he a 5 man unit guy, a balanced group guy, a specific role guy. I think we're in specific role mindset at the moment. Hainsey/Bellemore or Gleason/Bellemore doing some defensive zone grunt work seems adequate.

 

[Vagrant]

Some of you do realize that Bellemore was damn near not brought back by the Hurricanes, yes? Had he gotten an offer worth considering elsewhere he wouldn't even be here now. Slotting him anywhere in the lineup based upon that seems to be .....optimistic. The organization is going to give Murphy his opportunity here. Which truth be told is the right move, because Murphy is too strong a skater and too good offensively for the AHL. If he's ever going to be anything in the NHL, he has to start getting the experience up here now.

Likely starts the year in the AHL. We inexplicably signed Tim Gleason to take his minutes. Sekera, Faulk, Hainsey, Liles, and Harrison should take the remainder of the open slots. If Murphy is ready, he'll send somebody to the pressbox likely between Gleason and Harrison.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

How and when he got signed is kind of irrelevant now though. The Canes have 8 defensemen with NHL experience on the roster right now. When we get the the #6 / #7 guy, I would "assume" that the coaches are going to pick the best player, not worry about when or how the guys was signed as that's not their job.

Bellemore and Murphy ARE the most likely to go to the AHL simply because of age and contract. If Bellemore shows more than Gleason and/or Harrison, I would hope the coaches play him. If he isn't any better than those guys, then it really doesn't matter much.

 

[What the Faulk]

Yeah, I agree. Let's not forget that Gerbe was in pretty much the same situation last summer and was given second line minutes to start with.

That said, I think $ plays a factor in who sits and who doesn't this year.

 

[A Star is Burns]

No matter when he was signed, I think he'll play plenty with injuries. I think he'll also play his role well enough when he plays that he'll keep getting in. Hopefully Peters lives up to his ice time as the ultimate weapon. What we're paying these guys doesn't matter. Won't change whether they play or not. I hope he plays whoever is the best option at any given time.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

That said, I think $ plays a factor in who sits and who doesn't this year.

If all other things are equal, or close enough, then yep, they will. If a guy stands out (either positively or negatively), then $ probably won't be as much of a factor.

 

[What the Faulk]

Well yeah, I agree that if someone steps up they'll play. But right now I don't see a huge difference in Bellemore, Harrison, and Gleason.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

Well yeah, I agree that if someone steps up they'll play. But right now I don't see a huge difference in Bellemore, Harrison, and Gleason.

Fair point. But I didn't mean only someone stepping up, but also their play dropping off. It's fair to say Gleason and Harrison's play have dropped off the past couple of years and if that continues, they may not be so close any longer. I guess it's good we're talking about 6-7-8 guys. Imagine how bad this D would be if last year, JR didn't pick up either Sekera or Hainsey.

 

[What the Faulk]

Speaking along those lines, McBain is getting a tryout in Arizona. I'm somewhat surprised he couldn't land a job.

 

[Vagrant]

For all saying it doesn't matter when/how he was signed, it's not so much that it changes the fact that he's a Hurricane as much as it gives us an idea of how the organization views him. More directly, how Ron Francis views him. He saw fit to promise Tim Gleason double the NHL salary and 7 times what Bellemore would make in the AHL. The fact that Carolina was confident in letting him leave if he could find a one way contract anywhere else in the league is a pretty telling piece of information even if we disagree with it. I like Bellemore. I think he has more to give than Gleason at this stage obviously. I still don't think he's a better all around player than Harrison but admittedly Harry has had some rough stretches.

When presented with the option of keeping Bellemore for basically house money, Carolina decided not only to keep Harrison but to add Gleason. He's making less money than Michal Jordan. To ignore those factors in where he's likely to be placed in the lineup is to not view the situation with a full scope in my opinion. He's in the mix, certainly, but he's going to have to do some highly unusual things to supplant the usual suspects. Can anybody see Carolina waiving Gleason or Harrison on his behalf because that's basically what would have to happen in order for him to make this team out of camp. That or test the market and try to move one of those guys, which I think would be near on impossible. Slotting matters. With Murphy and even the aforementioned Jordan being compensated more, it's arguable that Bellemore is sitting at 9th or 10th on the defenseman depth chart right now. The difference between his situation and Gerbe's situation for example is that Gerbe was in a position last season a lot like Boychuk and Terry are in this season. Play well and there's nobody in front of you. That's not the case with Bellemore. He's behind two guys that play virtually identical styles and minutes in Gleason and Harrison and behind another that's a prospect in Murphy that Carolina has been pushing hard to find ice for. And if you go by contracts as the only way to determine who the organization values, he's slightly less valuable to us than Michal Jordan who was signed quicker and was pursued more aggressively. How does a guy without a flashy game supplant all those others?