Prospect Info: Hershey Bears/South Carolina Stingrays 2020-2021 Vol. 1

[tenken00]

Also well reserved

Well reserved for the well deserved award

Looking like a young dashing Lex Luthor in that pic

 

[hb12xchamps]

Well reserved for the well deserved award

Looking like a young dashing Lex Luthor in that pic

Damn autocorrect

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Well reserved for the well deserved award

Looking like a young dashing Lex Luthor in that pic

 

[tenken00]

The best DC character.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

The best DC character.

Ahem...Superman disagrees!

 

[Rayquaza64]

could be a very exciting season depending on who is down there, I for sure will be attending bears games

 

[Calicaps]

The best DC character.

Ahem...Superman disagrees!

DC sucks. Junior varsity at best.

 

[tenken00]

DC sucks. Junior varsity at best.

 

[hb12xchamps]

AJF and Snively both re-signed. AJF for two seasons

 

[Legionnaire11]

Looking for info on players who made their NHL debut last season. What kind of future outlook do these guys have?

Garrett Pilon
Vitek Vanecek
Philippe Maillet

 

[Dr John Carlson]

Maillet is an AHLer. Pilon could be a good bottom-six guy. Vanecek is a career backup.

 

[Cappy76]

Really on Vanecek? I could see him being a definite 1b in a 1a/1b situation. Someone that won't carry a team but can provide solid almost starter level play for extended periods.

 

[Ridley Simon]

Vanacek will probably get taken by the Kraken. So there is that

 

[Calicaps]

Vanacek will probably get taken by the Kraken. So there is that

Given the injury, not so sure they'll even be able to expose him. I'm not sure what the implications of all of that are.

 

[twabby]

I'm not seeing why they would take Vanecek. Someone like Dillon, Jensen, or Sprong makes a lot more sense than a goalie who has played one season in the NHL and wasn't particularly good.

 

[Dr John Carlson]

Really on Vanecek? I could see him being a definite 1b in a 1a/1b situation. Someone that won't carry a team but can provide solid almost starter level play for extended periods.

I think he has enough flaws in his game to make him too unreliable to be anything more than a backup, ideally. Most noticeably rebound control and puck handling (which is more important than most people give credit for).

For the record, I think Samsonov is better but not by a lot, as he suffers from a lot of the same deficiencies . Difference is that Vanecek is 25, and has been playing in North America for six years, so he's closer to being maxed out than Samsonov IMO.

 

[Cappy76]

I think he has enough flaws in his game to make him too unreliable to be anything more than a backup, ideally. Most noticeably rebound control and puck handling (which is more important than most people give credit for).

For the record, I think Samsonov is better but not by a lot, as he suffers from a lot of the same deficiencies . Difference is that Vanecek is 25, and has been playing in North America for six years, so he's closer to being maxed out than Samsonov IMO.

That's fair - Rebound control was for sure something that was a noticeable shortcoming in his game. Puck handling while I agree can be extremely beneficial for a goalie to have isn't make a break for me. But yes rebound control 100% could be an issue with him.

 

[Ridley Simon]

I'm not seeing why they would take Vanecek. Someone like Dillon, Jensen, or Sprong makes a lot more sense than a goalie who has played one season in the NHL and wasn't particularly good.

Rookie G that win 25 games? On a rookie G salary? He’s def on their list, depending on what other G’s are available

 

[twabby]

Rookie G that win 25 games? On a rookie G salary? He’s def on their list, depending on what other G’s are available

The 21 wins are nice but wins are more of a team stat. The team really did play some solid defense in front of Vanecek and helped him get those wins. But his own individual stats were not very good: -0.7% fenwick save percentage above expected at 5v5, .908 overall save percentage, only .916 at even strength, and he's already 25 years old with what I think is considered to be a relatively low ceiling. Those types of goalies are a dime a dozen around the league.

But really it's more that I see much better players on the Capitals roster for Seattle to pluck, namely Jensen or Sprong. Even Dillon who had a confusing season has generally been a solid defensive D-man his entire career. Seattle seems like they are going pretty heavy on analytics so I could easily see them taking Jensen and have him be a second-pair RD on their team and eating big shutdown minutes. Or if they decide they have enough solid defensive D they could opt for Sprong who seems to have a great scoring touch even if the play-driving isn't quite there. Both of these players provide something valuable that can't be too easily acquired in the open market for cheap, unlike Vanecek.

 

[txpd]

Vanecek's stats are averages. You can kill an average for a full season with a bad stretch even if surrounded by excellent play. Lets not forget that Vanecek had never played an NHL game and right off the bat was the only goalie that the Caps would play. 17 in a row or something. Right? Then add on top of that the team was trying to learn a brand new system without pre season games and in person meetings. Also some of their best players came in even later because of COVID. His 10 game splits later in the season had save% approaching .930.

Lets face it. This guy showed real mental toughness because he had to totally carry the load. I expect that a 2nd season with an actual training camp and him not having to play ALL the games will show that he is a legit starting goalie with numbers to support that.

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Maillet is an KHLer. Pilon could be a good bottom-six guy. Vanecek is a career backup.

fixed….

 

[txpd]

AJF and Snively both re-signed. AJF for two seasons

AJF has a shot of making the team in camp

 

[Dr Quincy]

Any chance Nardella makes the team out of camp?

 

[CapitalsCupReality]

Any chance Nardella makes the team out of camp?

seems unlikely coming off injury, but he was trending in the right direction with his play.

 

[Strawberry Fields]

Purchased a 12 game plan for the Bears for the upcoming season, haven't had season tix since 08-09 and have only set foot in Giant Center once in the last 18 months so really looking forward to going more frequently again!