*OFFICIAL* Ottawa 67's 2013-14 Season Thread

[ecraigs]

People need to remember that we have had some pretty terrible drafts in recent years. The Draft fuels the talent train. Our talent train has been short more than a caboose. We need to take a strong look at who is driving the scouting and evaluation. You can' succeed if you don't have the horses.

I agree, but we seem to have given up on the draft and prefer to trade away our picks. I think that same strong look has to be applied to the roster. There should be guaranteed spots for 3 forwards and 4 defence and one goaltender. Everybody else is on the bubble.

 

[tiger tilley]

Coaching staff

Let's remember that Pickard and Donovan were added this year. Pickard has the skills to be effective, but may need some mentoring. Donovan has been invisible, but he has the pro background we could use.

Yes we bought crickard and donovan in to support the team. Crickard will be a great up and coming young coach. He does need a mentor and chris did not supply that at all. Dont make a dumb mistake in leeting one of the bright you coaches go. He was the third man on the bench with no voice.

 

[tiger tilley]

young coach should lead the team

Yes we bought crickard and donovan in to support the team. Crickard will be a great up and coming young coach. He does need a mentor and chris did not supply that at all. Dont make a dumb mistake in letting one of the bright you coaches go. He was the third man on the bench with no voice. When you bring a young coach in you better have a great coach to take him under his wing. Some members on this team have said that both asst coaches worked harder than the head coach. Crickard can relate to these young players. Anyone remember gary green head coach for the caps at 26 years old. Its not about age is getting the players to play for you.

 

[ecraigs]

Yes we bought crickard and donovan in to support the team. Crickard will be a great up and coming young coach. He does need a mentor and chris did not supply that at all. Dont make a dumb mistake in leeting one of the bright you coaches go. He was the third man on the bench with no voice.

Crickard moved from coaching at Minor Hockey AAA to Major Junior is one step. He isn't that much older than the players. Gary Green had a couple of great years with the Petes before he moved to the NHL.

 

[tiger tilley]

Crickard moved from coaching at Minor Hockey AAA to Major Junior is one step. He isn't that much older than the players. Gary Green had a couple of great years with the Petes before he moved to the NHL.

I agree with you, green had a great mentor along the way and paid his dues with the petes. I think whats missing for crickard was someone to look up to on the bench.

 

[BarberPole9]

I'm not usually a guy that blames coaches for poor performance and I've heard good things about Byrne as a person but this team needs a change at the helm as badly as any team that I can remember in my lifetime.

They were historically bad last year, yet there are two solid NHL regulars who were on their team the majority of the season. Couple them with Jake Cardwell, who could have had an impact on any team in the O last year, Graovac (who nearly made Team Canada), Janes and others and they should have had a playoff team last year at worst. Is there another team in the O who has two players off of their last year's team currently making an impact in the NHL?

In a very poor Eastern conference this year and essentially having their entire team coming back (post trade deadline last year), having a young seemingly talented team they should have really improved over the course of the year to be a team to be reckoned with by now. When most of their competitors sold at the deadline, the 67's essentially stood pat (minus the Bradford upgrade over Blandisi) and they still managed to lose ground.

The players seem unmotivated and disinterested and watching the Coaches on the bench, they seemed resigned to defeat.

I'm really, really hoping that Mr. Hunt is paying attention and is going to make a splash with a new hire. I wish all the best to Chris Byrne, but this team needs a new voice.

 

[tiger tilley]

I'm not usually a guy that blames coaches for poor performance and I've heard good things about Byrne as a person but this team needs a change at the helm as badly as any team that I can remember in my lifetime.

They were historically bad last year, yet there are two solid NHL regulars who were on their team the majority of the season. Couple them with Jake Cardwell, who could have had an impact on any team in the O last year, Graovac (who nearly made Team Canada), Janes and others and they should have had a playoff team last year at worst. Is there another team in the O who has two players off of their last year's team currently making an impact in the NHL?

In a very poor Eastern conference this year and essentially having their entire team coming back (post trade deadline last year), having a young seemingly talented team they should have really improved over the course of the year to be a team to be reckoned with by now. When most of their competitors sold at the deadline, the 67's essentially stood pat (minus the Bradford upgrade over Blandisi) and they still managed to lose ground.

The players seem unmotivated and disinterested and watching the Coaches on the bench, they seemed resigned to defeat.

I'm really, really hoping that Mr. Hunt is paying attention and is going to make a splash with a new hire. I wish all the best to Chris Byrne, but this team needs a new voice.

i agree Byrne lost the team midway through the season His big problem he never held his players accountable for their action or their mistakes. The two asst were not allowed to lead the team as byrne was on his own page. Even when players made made plays or choices he did not get in their face. You cant be their buddies and their leader. The move should be made that byrne is moved out of the mix. Keep the asst coaches in because they never stood a chance with byrne leading the team.

 

[OMG67]

You can't have it both ways folks. If you fire Byrne, you are essentially firing the GM and Coach. That means you need to hire a new GM. That GM then decides on the rest of his staff in hockey operations. Whether that GM is also the coach or not is irrelevant. The new coach then decides on who his staff is.

The only other option I could see is keeping Byrne as GM only and then elevating one of the other guys and that guy would probably be Donskov and I don't think anyone on here likes that option too much.

I am not sure why everyone is so mad at the results this year. This was not a playoff team coming into the year. I can understand last season with so much talent at the top end of the roster but this year was screaming no playoffs. Sure, there were some fans that felt this team was better but without Monahan this team was not going anywhere. Our defense was wayyyyy too young and too many things needed to go right up front for this team to be a success. AAA didn't improve, Hill is a shadow of what his potential was two years ago, Gus and Fielding regressed a little, and none of the young guys from past drafts took a giant leap forward. Outside of Konecny, Bell, and RVS, Salituro was the only other bright spot and even he didn't do much more than expected. The Bradford trade worked out really well. We were very fortunate with Trudeau.

I think it is a win that this team managed to get above 50 points and challenge for a playoff spot. It is a 14 point improvement with a worse roster than last year. We have a reasonable foundation returning next year. We will have the #3 pick in the draft as well as another high Import pick (#7). We move back home where everyone will be more comfortable. Things are looking better already. If we do manage to get a new hockey operations team then great. If not, Byrne will get another opportunity to see this project through. You can best bet that if next year's team doesn't win a round in the playoffs, Byrne will be gone for sure.

 

[analyser]

I haven't heard anything official, but I have heard from people closely associated with the team and they said if JH doesn't do something that a petition for Byrne's removal will be forthcoming.

Hopefully JH will listen to this input as 67 fans/associates are not use to having a team that has no direction, has no clear future, seems to be run on the spur of a moment philosophy and seems attached to 20 yr. old goalies.


I don't know who is heir apparent but their has got to be someone out there who can at least make us competitive.

I am really finding it difficult to renew my season tickets if this fiasco is going to continue. I just hate when you know about 70% of the time in advance what the outcome will be and it is not going to be positive. In addition, how come we never come out ready to play from the drop of the puck.

 

[OMG67]

I haven't heard anything official, but I have heard from people closely associated with the team and they said if JH doesn't do something that a petition for Byrne's removal will be forthcoming.

Hopefully JH will listen to this input as 67 fans/associates are not use to having a team that has no direction, has no clear future, seems to be run on the spur of a moment philosophy and seems attached to 20 yr. old goalies.


I don't know who is heir apparent but their has got to be someone out there who can at least make us competitive.

I am really finding it difficult to renew my season tickets if this fiasco is going to continue. I just hate when you know about 70% of the time in advance what the outcome will be and it is not going to be positive. In addition, how come we never come out ready to play from the drop of the puck.

Again, I am not here to defend Byrne. However, this team was not built to make the playoffs...nor should it have been.

Two years ago we made trades to advance the team through the semi-finals. We did give away assets and picks in those trades that could have made a difference to this team. We applauded Byrne for doing so back then and we also knew that those deals would hurt a little going forward.

Last year we had a solid top end of the roster and we underachieved. It was rather pathetic really. This year, we had less, especially after Monahan left.

I agree there were some questionable deals made; however, they weren't bad deals...jury out on Herbst deal still.

I would have liked to get more for Ceci and Graovac but the reality was last year was a bad seller market and we got a low return.

When you step back and look at this team, you have to look at drafting being a big issue going forward. We have failed to identify any significant assets outside the first round...and Perklin was a horrible 1st rounder! Maybe if Byrne had better horses, the results would have been different?

I am not sure Hunt will make a change this year. I think he will let Byrne continue the rebuild. The reality is that next year is the step forward year. I hope he does make a change BUT only if it is for a high profile acquisition that brings back some hype, not some young unknown guy with a solid record in Jr "A".

 

[BeaverSports]

I've been away from Ottawa and the team for a few years, so I can't claim to have the insight I might like to have on the situation. Here's my take for what it's worth, however…

First and foremost, I think the move to Kanata would have been a logistical nightmare for any coach and general manager. It would have an effect on players' schooling and billeting, on transportation, on practice times, on game times, etc. I think this would have been more difficult to negotiate than any of us fans could have imagined it would be. Maybe Byrne is given a bit of a free pass due to that situation.

I also wonder about the organization as a whole. I know a lot of off-ice talent moved on following the early 2000s heyday (and I'm not sure some were replaced), and it also seems apparent from the outside looking in that Hunt and his high-level staff have been quite preoccupied by the CFL franchise with a lot of their expertise at best split between the two franchises and not necessarily supporting the hockey department at all times.

Lastly, you've still got Brian Kilrea and many of his hockey ops people still in place. While it appeared Byrne tried to put a stamp on the team with the size added and he's brought in a stream of new assistant coaches, you wonder how much freedom he has had and what conditions he accepted the job under. With talk of Sean Day last year, you further wonder if everyone is pulling the same way.

I wouldn't mind seeing a new face as the team moves back downtown, but I can see Byrne getting the benefit of the doubt for a number of reasons if he wants to stick around. I'll also put this question to you, is there a potential coach/GM who A) has a background of major junior success who is available and isn't a suitcase, and B) will that person work knowing he's sharing support staff with other organizations and he may have to accept working with people already in place?

 

[OMG67]

I've been away from Ottawa and the team for a few years, so I can't claim to have the insight I might like to have on the situation. Here's my take for what it's worth, however…

First and foremost, I think the move to Kanata would have been a logistical nightmare for any coach and general manager. It would have an effect on players' schooling and billeting, on transportation, on practice times, on game times, etc. I think this would have been more difficult to negotiate than any of us fans could have imagined it would be. Maybe Byrne is given a bit of a free pass due to that situation.

I also wonder about the organization as a whole. I know a lot of off-ice talent moved on following the early 2000s heyday (and I'm not sure some were replaced), and it also seems apparent from the outside looking in that Hunt and his high-level staff have been quite preoccupied by the CFL franchise with a lot of their expertise at best split between the two franchises and not necessarily supporting the hockey department at all times.

Lastly, you've still got Brian Kilrea and many of his hockey ops people still in place. While it appeared Byrne tried to put a stamp on the team with the size added and he's brought in a stream of new assistant coaches, you wonder how much freedom he has had and what conditions he accepted the job under. With talk of Sean Day last year, you further wonder if everyone is pulling the same way.

I wouldn't mind seeing a new face as the team moves back downtown, but I can see Byrne getting the benefit of the doubt for a number of reasons if he wants to stick around. I'll also put this question to you, is there a potential coach/GM who A) has a background of major junior success who is available and isn't a suitcase, and B) will that person work knowing he's sharing support staff with other organizations and he may have to accept working with people already in place?

You raise a few interesting points. Brian Kilrea is a senior advisor. I know he does some scouting and probably has a lot of input on the draft. Considering how poorly we have drafted in recent years, maybe he should be ushered out once and for all? Whether Kilrea has any significant input past the draft is uncertain.

The move to Kanata is difficult but only for games. As far as I am aware, the team has remained in the same general area for schooling and practises. They pull up tent for games at the CTC only.

From a perspective of sharing resources, I think that is a positive. It allows a sports franchise to have assets in place that are accessible all year round and with three sports teams, you can pay more to have better people. At times those resources can be stretched a little thin but better people means better administration.

I TOTALLY agree about a new face. You can't fire Byrne unless you have someone high profile to replace him. Byrne was groomed by Kilrea. He was brought along slowly. If Byrne is replaced, we can't afford to bring someone along slowly. We need someone that can hit the ground running. There are guys out there that can do that but are they willing to come her and is Hunt willing to pay the required freight to get them here?

 

[ecraigs]

There are guys out there that can do that but are they willing to come her and is Hunt willing to pay the required freight to get them here?

After the financial bath from CTC and no playoffs, I doubt that OSEG has much interest in doing anything. I think that they would much prefer to ride out the next year and see where they are going for 2015-2016.

I would suggest that they improve their scouting network and freelance connections. A pick like Perklin should have sent alarm bells ringing all over. Even then, mistakes are made. Sometimes the most prolific minor hockey player cannot or will not step up to Major Junior.

 

[General Zodd]

You can't fire Byrne unless you have someone high profile to replace him. Byrne was groomed by Kilrea. He was brought along slowly. If Byrne is replaced, we can't afford to bring someone along slowly. We need someone that can hit the ground running. There are guys out there that can do that but are they willing to come her and is Hunt willing to pay the required freight to get them here?

Then Hunt has his homework to do doesn't he? Instead of focusing all of his time on the football team maybe he should devout some serious thought into Bryne's replacement? It's time to bring in a proven Coach/GM that lead this team from day one! Or give someone else the coaching reigns and hire a GM only - but the bottom line, Byrne has to go period!

 

[44 95 plus tax]

From my post on the NOOF.

Gary Galley.

Local guy, success in NHL as player, success in Junior as coach, knowlegable, would have the respect of the players. I think he would be a fantastic fit. Try and entice David Bell to come run the defence ( I am not sure of his contract status with Barrie). Maybe add Drake Berehowsky if the Western team goes another direction. Those two have Major junior experience.

Two years ago I told people we should have tried to hire Gary Roberts and Galley to coach. Roberts is too far into his fitness gig now to give that up for coaching.

OSEG is going to have two new teams struggle this summer, being new franchises. They don't need a third. And I don't think JH runs the team anymore. They have brought in Bernie Ashe to run the business side of the sports teams. He would be the one making decisions on Front office and Coaching staff. JH would have some say, but not the decision.