Hamilton Bulldogs 2019 Offseason Thread

[HamiltonOHL]

anyone have roster from today?

@izzies44 Troys handle is on Twitter I just seen he posted a roster

 

[Hammer9001]

Glad to see the Dogs getting behind the Forge.

 

[Rounder8]

Bulldogs have officially signed their 1st and 2nd round draft picks.

 

[bulldogsbaby]

Feeling sort of nostalgic from 2017-18. Anybody know where I can watch game 6 of the championship series? It was up on youtube but it paused often and isn't available anymore to watch

 

[digiblader]

Next season could be the Bulldogs' last in Hamilton if the city doesn't get off its butt and gets a new arena built--Michael Andlauer is seeking other cities to relocate to if no new arena is planned by June 2020, when the lease expires for good this time.

This is a repeat of what happened 5 years ago before they moved to Hamilton (which led to CAA Arena getting renovated for the AHL in Belleville).

Opinion | Andrew Dreschel: Tired of council’s ‘paralysis by analysis,’ Bulldogs owner floats relocation options

 

[Hammer9001]

Knew digi couldn't resist. However, it's a completely fair point, as this is the exact same that happened in Belleville. An owner, who for years advised that he needs either a renovation or a new facility given the current one is decades old, and the council was too slow to act. Can only hope for the best.

 

[Helvigster]

Unfortunately, I don't think City Council cares too much, hence why it has taken so long to get an arena planned. If they did care, this wouldn't be happening. There's literally no reason for this to be happening other than the fact that CC doesn't care about the Bulldogs, and with the beginning of play for both Forge FC and the Honey Badgers, CC has an even lesser incentive to pay attention to the Dogs.

On the flip side, however, maybe CC has done nothing because they want both the Honey Badgers and the Bulldogs in the same arena. FirstOntario Centre isn't just an old hockey arena, it's an old sports arena in general that needs to be replaced, and a new arena would not only benefit the Bulldogs, but the Honey Badgers too.

The only problem with this is that Andlauer wants to own his own arena, and (correct me if I'm wrong on this statement) the CEBL owns the Honey Badgers. So unless Andlauer and the CEBL can come to an agreement that lets the Honey Badgers play at his arena, they'll have to play at FOC, which I doubt they'll like and they might even consider moving the team. But I don't think they're going to want to give up that early. Then again, I doubt they'll build a new arena specifically for the Honey Badgers. Maybe they could play at the Dave, I'm not too sure though.

So essentially, this is it. You have four options: Bulldogs and Honey Badgers both play at a new arena, Bulldogs relocate and the Honey Badgers either stay at FOC for as long as they can and later either relocate or move to the Dave, Andlauer and the CEBL can't come to an agreement on the new arena and the Bulldogs stay while the Honey Badgers relocate, or CC continues to ignore and both teams relocate.

Take your pick. I know what I want.

 

[Whatanathol]

1. Zero chance the Bulldogs relocate back to Belleville when the B Sens fold up shop? I don't see an AHL team surviving in that market. Attendance was telling after inaugural season. $25-28 per tix too steep for Belleevillee.

2.Is the owner restricted to certain boundaries around the Hammer if he relocates? If so, where might he go?

thanks.

 

[Hammer9001]

1. Zero chance the Bulldogs relocate back to Belleville when the B Sens fold up shop? I don't see an AHL team surviving in that market. Attendance was telling after inaugural season. $25-28 per tix too steep for Belleevillee.

2.Is the owner restricted to certain boundaries around the Hammer if he relocates? If so, where might he go?

thanks.

To the first, I agree. It doesn't make sense they'd go back to Belleville while the Sens are there, especially since the Sens are trying to build their regional footprint.

To the second, no one knows. Andlauer I'm to understand lives in Burlington but their council (as with nearly every city council around thanks to Ford) is incredibly stingy with funds right now, because the Conservatives are again cutting fund to the cities and downloading services to them. Pretty much, unless someone else in the private sector steps up, there isn't anything concrete. As far as I am aware, Hamilton's report in July is the only region that's looking at this. Brantford has stated they'd be open to someone in the private sector paying for a study on their arena, but apart from that, quiet in this region.

As far as somewhere further away, who knows? I'm to understand Cornwall has been knocking on the door for a while, but that's been going on for some time.

 

[Whatanathol]

copy that ty.

 

[AttackSound]

As a neutral fan of the situation in Hamilton but a big supporter of the league. I can't see the Bulldogs going anywhere anytime soon.

To the posting above about Cornwall, they may have the populous to support a OHL team again since the early 90's but have no viable facilities at the moment to for the Bulldogs to go to at the moment. They had success in the 90's, but being the furthest eastern point on the map remains the true issue even if they did relocate there I can't see it being a viable solution long-term.

The Bulldogs would be better shifting their organization to a smaller facility in the city surely there is a facility in the city of Hamilton that could hold 3,000-5,000 capacity that would sit better suited for the Bulldogs to operate out of than FOC??

 

[Canadian Game]

As a neutral fan of the situation in Hamilton but a big supporter of the league. I can't see the Bulldogs going anywhere anytime soon.

To the posting above about Cornwall, they may have the populous to support a OHL team again since the early 90's but have no viable facilities at the moment to for the Bulldogs to go to at the moment. They had success in the 90's, but being the furthest eastern point on the map remains the true issue even if they did relocate there I can't see it being a viable solution long-term.

The Bulldogs would be better shifting their organization to a smaller facility in the city surely there is a facility in the city of Hamilton that could hold 3,000-5,000 capacity that would sit better suited for the Bulldogs to operate out of than FOC??

One would think that the team could move to a smaller facility but it doesn't seem to be the case. First, another facility has to meet OHL standards, which many community rinks would not meet since the OHL has certain requirements for glass, boards, seating, player training facilities, and even the scoreboards. Unfortunately Hamilton's city council is basically forcing the Bulldogs to play in FOC despite Michael Andlauer offering pay for a new arena. I'd imagine he'd rather invest money into his own facility rather than split costs on another city owned facility for upgrades, especially if council has been difficult to work with. Finding an owner who isn't asking for handouts and is willing to find the construction of their own facility is a rarity itself. The Bulldogs have a great owner but the city keeps putting up roadblocks.

 

[Hammer9001]

As a neutral fan of the situation in Hamilton but a big supporter of the league. I can't see the Bulldogs going anywhere anytime soon.

To the posting above about Cornwall, they may have the populous to support a OHL team again since the early 90's but have no viable facilities at the moment to for the Bulldogs to go to at the moment. They had success in the 90's, but being the furthest eastern point on the map remains the true issue even if they did relocate there I can't see it being a viable solution long-term.

The Bulldogs would be better shifting their organization to a smaller facility in the city surely there is a facility in the city of Hamilton that could hold 3,000-5,000 capacity that would sit better suited for the Bulldogs to operate out of than FOC??

To this, the biggest issue is that the ice system at First Ontario is starting to fail. It is a known issue that's likely going to cost likely a couple million to fix. If it goes, there are no other viable facilities in Hamilton. The closest one is Mountain Arena, but it has capacity issues (2,500), no video board, ancient boards and netting around the entire arena. The OHL has already knocked it down as a facility, and it would also require sharing ice with the Kilty B's and Hamilton Steelhawks.

One would think that the team could move to a smaller facility but it doesn't seem to be the case. First, another facility has to meet OHL standards, which many community rinks would not meet since the OHL has certain requirements for glass, boards, seating, player training facilities, and even the scoreboards. Unfortunately Hamilton's city council is basically forcing the Bulldogs to play in FOC despite Michael Andlauer offering pay for a new arena. I'd imagine he'd rather invest money into his own facility rather than split costs on another city owned facility for upgrades, especially if council has been difficult to work with. Finding an owner who isn't asking for handouts and is willing to find the construction of their own facility is a rarity itself. The Bulldogs have a great owner but the city keeps putting up roadblocks.

So would I, but I understand the issue the city is having here. They have been in a perpetual budget crunch and now Ford is cutting funding to the municipalities even further. Thus it is dang hard to come up with cash for a new facility. Even if you did though, the city doesn't want to be in the large facility business anymore. It's costing more money long term then what it brings it, which is why they are investigating selling it to the private sector. However, there's issues with that which is why they are studying a potential sale, and they want to maximize revenue. The problem is they've already studied the arena, it's deficiencies and costs already, which is frustrating Andlauer, as he describes it "Paralysis by Analysis". The other issue is that according to Eisenberger, the Bulldogs havn't come forward with an actual build proposal they can partner on. It's just been Andlauer saying "Copps is old, I need something new, I will pay half the cost." neither side is really reaching out properly, partly because the city is trying to get out of the facility business.

However, once again the question becomes what are Andlauer's other options if he gets tired of waiting? Brantford and Burlington appear only willing if Andlauer does it entirely on his own dime, at which point, why not wait for the city that might actually throw some money after this facility debacle gets resolved. I think the more likely option is someone else partners with him privately to build his own facility. The OHL doesn't have alot of relocation targets anymore apart from Cornwall, unless something comes out of right field.

 

[Helvigster]

Robert Thomas is a Stanley Cup champion

 

[Helvigster]

Thread seems kind of dead so here's some more news:

The Bulldogs home opener is on September 21st against the Otters. The Bulldogs first game of the season will be the day before in Sarnia.

 

[Hammer9001]

Important to understand this is an opinion piece, and there is no new information here.

Opinion | Scott Radley: Could Burlington be interested in the Bulldogs?

Pretty much the only thing here said is what we already knew. Burlington is outright saying "No we aren't courting the Bulldogs, we aren't trying to steal them from Hamilton, but if the public supported a large arena, if the arena met a broad community need and if we had the money/someone else paid for it, we'd consider it."

 

[HockeyPops]

Is Hamilton going to be more competitive this season (8th in the East last year). If so, how high do you think they will climb?

 

[XXIV97]

Ken Holland stated that Philip Broberg will be playing with the Hamilton Bulldogs or his SHL team. He said it depends one the amount of ice time his SHL team is willing to give.

 

[Rounder8]

Is Hamilton going to be more competitive this season (8th in the East last year). If so, how high do you think they will climb?

My guess is in the 4th/5th spot maybe. They aren't ready to contend yet. imo

 

[Rounder8]

Ken Holland stated that Philip Broberg will be playing with the Hamilton Bulldogs or his SHL team. He said it depends one the amount of ice time his SHL team is willing to give.

This would be great news for Hamilton if it happened.

Also, it looks like NHL scouts think that there are just too many holes in Kaliyevs game to be a first round pick. Hopefully he takes on the challenge and competes harder this year. It will be a pivotal year for his development.

He obviously can score goals with the best of them, but there is a lot that he can improve on.

 

[Helvigster]

Kaliyev goes to the Kings early in the second round

 

[Rounder8]

It's sounds like Edmonton would like Broberg to play in Hamilton this year. IF it happens that would be huge for the team.

 

[Hammer9001]

Is Hamilton going to be more competitive this season (8th in the East last year). If so, how high do you think they will climb?

I figure middle of the pack, I think how Tag Bertuzzi shakes out may be a factor in that. Also depends if Roy has a sophomore slump, or if he improves.

 

[kovacro]

Nice writeup on OHL prospects about the Dogs pick in the import draft. Not sure how he could fit in since we have 2 imports on the club currently and there is the potential for Broberg to be here this season.

20. Hamilton Bulldogs - Jan Mysak - Left Wing
Mysak is considered to be one of the top prospects eligible for the 2020 NHL Draft, and a potential first round pick. The Czech native played primarily in the Czech men's league this year as a 16 year old and did exceptionally well. His production there compares favorably to guys like Pavel Zacha, Radek Bonk, and Michal Frolik. Mysak was also a standout at this year's U18's as an underager. I am sure Hamilton is hoping to use fellow country man Jan Jenik to help them recruit him.

OHL Prospects: 2019 CHL Import Draft Review

 

[bulldogsbaby]

Nice writeup on OHL prospects about the Dogs pick in the import draft. Not sure how he could fit in since we have 2 imports on the club currently and there is the potential for Broberg to be here this season.

20. Hamilton Bulldogs - Jan Mysak - Left Wing
Mysak is considered to be one of the top prospects eligible for the 2020 NHL Draft, and a potential first round pick. The Czech native played primarily in the Czech men's league this year as a 16 year old and did exceptionally well. His production there compares favorably to guys like Pavel Zacha, Radek Bonk, and Michal Frolik. Mysak was also a standout at this year's U18's as an underager. I am sure Hamilton is hoping to use fellow country man Jan Jenik to help them recruit him.

OHL Prospects: 2019 CHL Import Draft Review