Hamilton Bulldogs & Wheeling Nailers 2013-2014 Part 3

[Leon Lucius Black]

How's the great Christian Thomas doing lately.....

11 points in 20 games while Kristo has 9 points in his last 20, not like either of them is doing anything.

 

[Whitesnake]

11 points in 20 games while Kristo has 9 points in his last 20, not like either of them is doing anything.

Thomas was traded 'cause we were getting a sniper, a scorer. He has 3 goals. That can't be good enough.

 

[Mike Mike Caron]

Thomas was traded 'cause we were getting a sniper, a scorer. He has 3 goals. That can't be good enough.

He's a sniper but he's also a playmaker, quite a complete player actually.

 

[Ezpz]

11 points in 20 games while Kristo has 9 points in his last 20, not like either of them is doing anything.

Hartford are literally the worst team in the AHL. Hamilton are in the playoffs. Kristo is the only offense Hartford has and he's still putting up significantly better ppg than Thomas. Not to mention we traded for Thomas because he's a "sniper" and Kristo has 10 more goals than him. Thomas' shot is only good in practice or against kids because he's garbage at finding open ice at the pro level. Never going to be an NHLer and I called it from the moment the trade happened. His defensive game is poor and his offensive game isn't good enough for the top 6. He's Palushaj without being great at the AHL level.

 

[Whitesnake]

He's a sniper but he's also a playmaker, quite a complete player actually.

Most of his career, the guy has had more goals than assists. Even in juniors. His greatest strength is his shot. If he makes it in the NHL, it will be because of it. And you don't use your shot to make great passes. Personnally, I'd say that Kristo is a more complete player than Thomas.

 

[That]

A huge with problem with Thomas is he forgets he has a shot that can terrorize goaltenders. I mean, he's got just 9 shots in 6 games this month. Hardly enough for a guy who's best asset is his ability to hammer the puck.

But he's also been injured three separate times (IIRC) this season, so he might not be fully healed. Regardless, he still has to play better.

 

[Mike Mike Caron]

Hartford are literally the worst team in the AHL. Hamilton are in the playoffs. Kristo is the only offense Hartford has and he's still putting up significantly better ppg than Thomas. Not to mention we traded for Thomas because he's a "sniper" and Kristo has 10 more goals than him. Thomas' shot is only good in practice or against kids because he's garbage at finding open ice at the pro level. Never going to be an NHLer and I called it from the moment the trade happened. His defensive game is poor and his offensive game isn't good enough for the top 6. He's Palushaj without being great at the AHL level.

How do you explain his 19 goals as a 20 years old rookie? I dont like the trade, prefered Kristo, but both are very comparable and uninspiring players.

 

[Et le But]

Hartford are literally the worst team in the AHL. Hamilton are in the playoffs. Kristo is the only offense Hartford has and he's still putting up significantly better ppg than Thomas. Not to mention we traded for Thomas because he's a "sniper" and Kristo has 10 more goals than him. Thomas' shot is only good in practice or against kids because he's garbage at finding open ice at the pro level. Never going to be an NHLer and I called it from the moment the trade happened. His defensive game is poor and his offensive game isn't good enough for the top 6. He's Palushaj without being great at the AHL level.

On the flip side...Kristo gets prime minutes, Thomas is competing with older and more established players for offensive ice time and like everyone else on the Bulldogs, is constantly shuffled around. Also, the Bulldogs are not a very good offensive team. They have scored more goals than Hartford, but in the Western Conference, the only team with less goals is Utica, one of the worst teams in the AHL. The Bulldogs are like the Habs, built around unreal goaltending and a good defense.

Right now Thomas doesn't look like an NHLer. Kristo is underwhelming himself. Thomas is also significantly younger.

I really don't understand that trade but of the hundreds of issues I have with this organization right now, this is one of the moves that deserves a little patience for.

And as much as the Bulldogs have improved....there is still the issue that the only forwards to develop offensively under Lefebvre are Bournival (hardly an offensive dynamo at the next level) and Gallagher (who only briefly played for the Dogs)...the problem might not start with Thomas....

 

[habalifeok]

Watching a bit of the game tonight the Penquins could have fended off the Habs with .25 cent flyswatters. And we are arguing about Thomas and Kristo? Malkin woulda bulldozed both of them at the same time.
However they are the least of the Habs worries.
Price left on the clothesline to dry again.
All UFAs on the Habs must go including Markov.

 

[S Bah]

Watching a bit of the game tonight the Penquins could have fended off the Habs with .25 cent flyswatters. And we are arguing about Thomas and Kristo? Malkin woulda bulldozed both of them at the same time.
However they are the least of the Habs worries.
Price left on the clothesline to dry again.
All UFAs on the Habs must go including Markov.

Very good points, but the worth of Markov teaching our younger prospects should be considered. Also the value of Diaz going forward, wait until his value to the Swiss Olympic team as a #1 PMD becomes apparent. Likely what Bergevin and Dudley are anxiously awaiting, hoping for Subbanesque proportions in development.

The Bulldogs Ste.Pierre and Tarnasky have been great veteran leaders and are worthy of contracts. Farm teams can't expect second year pros to lead a team against the types of semi-pro teams the elite NHL franchises have in place. The Habs system was once the envy of all, Bergevin's revamping is only in it's 2nd year. The real-time projection for optimum results will be 3-4 yrs., having veteran AHL/NHL players is crucial for developing prospects properly for the rigors of NHL life.(both on ice and off ice, workouts, eating etc.) There can be no substitute for veteran teammates playing through the same obstacles our prospects will face

 

[S Bah]

I'm really impressed with the attitude of the Bulldog's Stefan Fournier RW, he sounds a lot like former Hab policeman and PWF John Ferguson. (AHL interview this week) Soon to be joined by Jack Nevins LW a similar type of PWF, the Habs are certainly on the right path to joining the other "Elite NHL teams" with character players that protect their teammates and learn the talents necessary to make them NHLers. More on the way with McCarron, Crisp and De la Rose soon to arrive, the Habs will not be pushed around like "Christians in the Coliseum" they have in the past!

Thank You Marc Bergevin and Rick Dudley for bringing respect back to my Montreal Canadiens. After the fiascos that the Bruins and Leafs have perpetrated upon our smaller but far more talented Habs, this past decade. I applaud your no nonsense approach back to respectability, along with restoring the team's & fans pride in our once glorious franchise!

 

[JuicyHam]

I'm really impressed with the attitude of the Bulldog's Stefan Fournier RW, he sounds a lot like former Hab policeman and PWF John Ferguson. (AHL interview this week) Soon to be joined by Jack Nevins LW a similar type of PWF, the Habs are certainly on the right path to joining the other "Elite NHL teams" with character players that protect their teammates and learn the talents necessary to make them NHLers. More on the way with McCarron, Crisp and De la Rose soon to arrive, the Habs will not be pushed around like "Christians in the Coliseum" they have in the past!

Thank You Marc Bergevin and Rick Dudley for bringing respect back to my Montreal Canadiens. After the fiascos that the Bruins and Leafs have perpetrated upon our smaller but far more talented Habs, this past decade. I applaud your no nonsense approach back to respectability, along with restoring the team's & fans pride in our once glorious franchise!

I wish more fans were like you.

 

[S Bah]

I wish more fans were like you.

What old *********'s or serious Hab fans? Thanks it's great being a Hab fan!

 

[HCH]

Thomas was traded 'cause we were getting a sniper, a scorer. He has 3 goals. That can't be good enough.

You might mean Kristo was traded so we could get a scorer, but enough already with the Kristo love affair. It was a minor league trade and nothing more.

Devote your considerable insights to a more worthwhile cause

 

[S Bah]

You might mean Kristo was traded so we could get a scorer, but enough already with the Kristo love affair. It was a minor league trade and nothing more.

Devote your considerable insights to a more worthwhile cause

Kristo is payback for Gainey giving Sather, McDonagh.

 

[SquiddFX]

I'm really impressed with the attitude of the Bulldog's Stefan Fournier RW, he sounds a lot like former Hab policeman and PWF John Ferguson. (AHL interview this week) Soon to be joined by Jack Nevins LW a similar type of PWF, the Habs are certainly on the right path to joining the other "Elite NHL teams" with character players that protect their teammates and learn the talents necessary to make them NHLers. More on the way with McCarron, Crisp and De la Rose soon to arrive, the Habs will not be pushed around like "Christians in the Coliseum" they have in the past!

Thank You Marc Bergevin and Rick Dudley for bringing respect back to my Montreal Canadiens. After the fiascos that the Bruins and Leafs have perpetrated upon our smaller but far more talented Habs, this past decade. I applaud your no nonsense approach back to respectability, along with restoring the team's & fans pride in our once glorious franchise!

I was going to ask how Fournier was doing in the AHL. I noticed he has become an "Enforcer" on the team. How has he been playing?

 

[bsl]

I'm really impressed with the attitude of the Bulldog's Stefan Fournier RW, he sounds a lot like former Hab policeman and PWF John Ferguson.

I know what you are saying dude, and well done, but John Ferguson had no support, no money, no training, and sacrificed his head and body for Habs.

I think Ferguson should be recognized by Habs more than he is. He was a brutal, killing insane MOFO. He would do anything to help Habs win. Anything.

He protected Gros bill, and Yvan as a rookie, Savard, Pocket Rocket, Lemaire as a rookie, and so many other great Habs players.

There is no comparison. You are reaching comparing this kid to Ferguson.

But well done. If Fournier has this attitude, he will not match JF, but he could still be crucial when Habs contend.

My dream is to have a killing french enforcer on Habs, who also has decent skills. Man I would love that. When a Quebec guy is tough, no one is tougher.

 

[uncleherman77]

Leaf fans piss me off after tonight, anyone else at the game?

 

[S Bah]

I know what you are saying dude, and well done, but John Ferguson had no support, no money, no training, and sacrificed his head and body for Habs.

I think Ferguson should be recognized by Habs more than he is. He was a brutal, killing insane MOFO. He would do anything to help Habs win. Anything.

He protected Gros bill, and Yvan as a rookie, Savard, Pocket Rocket, Lemaire as a rookie, and so many other great Habs players.

There is no comparison. You are reaching comparing this kid to Ferguson.

But well done. If Fournier has this attitude, he will not match JF, but he could still be crucial when Habs contend.

My dream is to have a killing french enforcer on Habs, who also has decent skills. Man I would love that. When a Quebec guy is tough, no one is tougher.

Except John Ferguson RIP, he was the best PWF in the AHL before Selke signed him actually or was it Pollock, whatever. One of my closest friends, Jean Nadeau RIP was quite a scrapper too, a Head Bouncer at the American in a seedy bar in Vancouver in his heyday. I too have an appreciation for the finer application of force when necessary, which has been neglected by the Habs General Managers for far too long.(approximately 21 yrs) about the time the Habs last won the SC. Pretty passing and goal scoring is great but a Stanley Cup is far better, a thought not lost on Marc Bergevin & Rick Dudley, let me reassure our fans of this simple fact.

Whether or not the Policeman job is owned by a Frenchman, is not a priority, while nice, I would accept an ornery Irishman just as quickly. As long as our players have the required backup necessary, that allows them to play unfettered by goons, I will be ecstatic! Believe Dat MF!

 

[yoyo999]

Leaf fans piss me off after tonight, anyone else at the game?

The Leafs are not known as a team that develops solid prospects. Kadri would have done well anywhere and they thought so much of Reimer they went and got another goalie. Gunnarson, Kulemin and Morgan Reilly are the only other players drafted by the leafs on the roster and again, Reilly would have done well anywhere. Gunnarson and Kulemin are NHL players but are very dispensable. You could argue Tyler Bozak was undrafted and signed by them and has become the player he is thanks to the leafs but they simply offered the most money of all the teams and he was 24. There was likely little scouting involved and very little developing.

Very few players that are drafted by Toronto see the light of day in a leafs uniform. That's just not how they operate. They draft players so they can send them to other teams for guys that were drafted 2-3 years previous, and the work has already been done. The Leafs need to win now....and fast...they don't have time to sit and wait for prospects.

Let's look at current Habs drafted by the team that went through our system.

Carey Price

Thomas Plekanec
Max Pacioretty
Alex Galchenuyk
Brendan Gallagher
Michael Bournival
Ryan White
Louis Leblanc

P.K Subban
Andrei Markov
Alexei Emelin
Nathan Beaulieu

*David Desharnais.

The only ones I will count as able to succeed anywhere are Subban and Galchenyuk. The rest are products of the habs development system and I will take our record and play over the last decade, over the leafs' any day of the week. Let them have a 2-0 AHL win in the middle of the year.

 

[SquiddFX]

The Leafs are not known as a team that develops solid prospects. Kadri would have done well anywhere and they thought so much of Reimer they went and got another goalie. Gunnarson, Kulemin and Morgan Reilly are the only other players drafted by the leafs on the roster and again, Reilly would have done well anywhere. Gunnarson and Kulemin are NHL players but are very dispensable. You could argue Tyler Bozak was undrafted and signed by them and has become the player he is thanks to the leafs but they simply offered the most money of all the teams and he was 24. There was likely little scouting involved and very little developing.

Very few players that are drafted by Toronto see the light of day in a leafs uniform. That's just not how they operate. They draft players so they can send them to other teams for guys that were drafted 2-3 years previous, and the work has already been done. The Leafs need to win now....and fast...they don't have time to sit and wait for prospects.

Let's look at current Habs drafted by the team that went through our system.

Carey Price

Thomas Plekanec
Max Pacioretty
Alex Galchenuyk
Brendan Gallagher
Michael Bournival
Ryan White
Louis Leblanc

P.K Subban
Andrei Markov
Alexei Emelin
Nathan Beaulieu

*David Desharnais.

The only ones I will count as able to succeed anywhere are Subban and Galchenyuk. The rest are products of the habs development system and I will take our record and play over the last decade, over the leafs' any day of the week. Let them have a 2-0 AHL win in the middle of the year.

What do you mean by went through our system? Galchenyuk went straight to the NHL and Emelin came over from the KHL.

 

[Price My Man Crush]

Have you guys read this?

http://www.habsfuture.com/2014/01/in-hamilton-focus-is-clearly-on-wrong.html

 

[EveryDay]

Hamilton at TVA sport tonight if anybody interested...

 

[EveryDay]

Very good first period for Andrighetto and Thomas. Tarnasky is very impressive at this level and could be a call up right now.

Tinordi is NHL ready.

 

[Vi Nc E x13x]

Very good first period for Andrighetto and Thomas. Tarnasky is very impressive at this level and could be a call up right now.

Tinordi is NHL ready.

Hows the game going?