Saginaw Spirit 2019-20 Season Thread

[swoopster]

I seriously doubt that this team will have difficulty scoring goals. There is too much talent and depth to not be one of the top scoring teams in the league.

The problems in the game last night were team defense and goaltending in my opinion.

Gone are the two top in forwards in Tippett and McLeod... they "made" other players better. There is nobody set to fill that role. This team, as present, can outgun weaker teams, but that will be the extent of it. Not panicking yet Fisch, just looking at roster realities

 

[Savard18]

Shutout.

 

[Kingpin794]

2019,
I agree with you on the lack of true goal scoring ability. Coskey, Perfetti and maybe Jenkins ( still not convinced with him as yet ). Grinders, big guys who don't play big, and potentials, make up the rest.

The overage problem came up and bit them. When the talk of moving Gilmour ( a true loss ) came up, could you not blame him for heading in another direction. These kids aren't paid pro's, so it is justified for him to do what he did.

At present moment, they have been caught napping, afraid to make a move because it now comes as weakness...and the rest of the league smells it.

Holy s. We don't need to over analyze every two games.

If we keep putting up 35/40 shots a game, the pucks will go in. Not worried about that.

We will bring in a defenseman in due time. Not worried about that either. It doesn't have to be today.

 

[Kingpin794]

Congrats to Mancini on scoring his first goal tonight.

 

[nofriendsinhockey]

Great goaltending today.

 

[SaginawFan]

Soo is going to be good, they have tons of skill on both sides, Saginaw has lots of holes, dave Drinkill should of committed to Brady Gilmore he is a piece of the pie we r missing ,not enough goal scorers on Saginaw in a 5 on 5 game
We look good on pp/pk which is huge but 5 on 5 not so good,Perfetti should not be playing center you a limiting his scoring options , love budssker but not a goal scorer,Giroux is a grinder but also not a true goal scorer, porco has not changed his game , try’s to use his speed to beat everyone and puts himself out of position to make plays for his teammates, same for the other lines with Katic/golden/ big guys but struggle on break out once in there own zone there ok ,but again not goal scorers , dd should of put more effort to go after merkley he is a game changer

Gilmour wasn't a huge goal score, but I think down the road this team will miss him in the room and as the leader. Drinkill made a huge error on not keeping him.

But on another note, the boys played well last night. Coskey will lead this team to many wins. I was very impressed with Frappier, he will make Lennox work harder in the coming weeks.

 

[Finster8]

Great goaltending today.

Frappier will give Lennox some good quality competition so ride the hot goalie till it's time to change.
Solovyov has done up and above what most people thought he could. He is leading the OHL in assists and is second in points also he is first in power play assists. Another excellent pick by Drinkill.
IMO 1 top line center to play with Perfetti and Coskey maybe Thomas, Janik or Dudas.
Top 4 D is needed the most but plenty of time to get whatever it takes to make sure that we improve our team D.
We came out of the gate slow last season, we need to develop as a team and the play one game at a time.
The assets are their to get a boost on D and a bonafide center.

 

[Sagman]

Soo is going to be good, they have tons of skill on both sides, Saginaw has lots of holes, dave Drinkill should of committed to Brady Gilmore he is a piece of the pie we r missing ,not enough goal scorers on Saginaw in a 5 on 5 game
We look good on pp/pk which is huge but 5 on 5 not so good,Perfetti should not be playing center you a limiting his scoring options , love budssker but not a goal scorer,Giroux is a grinder but also not a true goal scorer, porco has not changed his game , try’s to use his speed to beat everyone and puts himself out of position to make plays for his teammates, same for the other lines with Katic/golden/ big guys but struggle on break out once in there own zone there ok ,but again not goal scorers , dd should of put more effort to go after merkley he is a game changer

Come on 2019. Are you serious. Guelph got rid of him and they went on to do very well. Petes thought so highly of him that they asked him not to show up after they gave up a kings ransom. He is a team wrecker. As far as goal scoring, maybe the studs need to show up a little more then what they already have. Maybe play a little defense will help as well. Your stud d-man is what -12 the last time I looked. Who are the leaders? Are any of the Oa's wearing a letter?

 

[Saggy]

If you listened to Laz interview after the Niagara game he clearly stated he (and some NHL teams) like Buzz back on defense. He also said by doing that he will also be able to get some of the younger players more ice time up front. He seemed happy with Cardwell and Bloom and to a lesser degree Codd but needs to get them playing time. Did not seem pleased with Punnett which is scary as he was our first overall pick. Rumor from friend in Niagara says Punnett plus picks for Akil Thomas is being discussed.

 

[Petes]

If you listened to Laz interview after the Niagara game he clearly stated he (and some NHL teams) like Buzz back on defense. He also said by doing that he will also be able to get some of the younger players more ice time up front. He seemed happy with Cardwell and Bloom and to a lesser degree Codd but needs to get them playing time. Did not seem pleased with Punnett which is scary as he was our first overall pick. Rumor from friend in Niagara says Punnett plus picks for Akil Thomas is being discussed.

Being discussed now even though it can’t be done until the deadline and neither team knows what their record will be?

Yeah, I doubt that.

 

[Saginaw 2019]

Come on 2019. Are you serious. Guelph got rid of him and they went on to do very well. Petes thought so highly of him that they asked him not to show up after they gave up a kings ransom. He is a team wrecker. As far as goal scoring, maybe the studs need to show up a little more then what they already have. Maybe play a little defense will help as well. Your stud d-man is what -12 the last time I looked. Who are the leaders? Are any of the Oa's wearing a letter?

Guelph did get rid of him to open up spots and picks , then they went out and grabbed top older players around the league , I’m not saying the kid isn’t a bad teammate, but the kid is a game changer and losing bode Wilde killed Saginaw and he is the closest thing to him, London took a chance and take a look at what he is doing, as far as team leaders , obviously they have the same core and I’m sure Jenkins will get the other , why would they give a (c or a A) to Coskey all he does is put up points !!!! if I was to go into battle who the heck would I want to back me up or lead us , I can tell you this it sure wouldn’t be the guys wearing the c and a now , but hey Patrick cane never wore a c or a till recently with the blackhawks , the letter on the front of your shirt means nothing, the back means everything

 

[Saginaw 2019]

If you listened to Laz interview after the Niagara game he clearly stated he (and some NHL teams) like Buzz back on defense. He also said by doing that he will also be able to get some of the younger players more ice time up front. He seemed happy with Cardwell and Bloom and to a lesser degree Codd but needs to get them playing time. Did not seem pleased with Punnett which is scary as he was our first overall pick. Rumor from friend in Niagara says Punnett plus picks for Akil Thomas is being discussed.

I’m not sure nhl is looking at buzz as a dman that’s a little silly , but he Is top 6 on this team, we will need to load up on a quality d if we r going to go deep , we need a quality center , that can create plays and get deep and not knocked off the puck
Jenkins played winger all last year and half of the season his first year , that’s where he put up points , we lack right wingers and centers ,plenty of left wings with perfetti /Jenkins/porco/giroux

 

[Slap Shot Rick]

Merkley used his no trade clause to ensure he'd go to London. It appears that no other teams had a shot at him.

 

[Kingpin794]

I'd say the chances of him being sent back for a rehab year are pretty high now. Unfortunate that he had this happen to him right as he's building up momentum but there will be no need to rush a kid into pro duty especially if he's going to be on the shelf for a while.

 

[Buttsy]

Merkley used his no trade clause to ensure he'd go to London. It appears that no other teams had a shot at him.

He’s a London kid with family in the area and spoke of sleeping at his Uncles house rather then checking into a Hotel when he first arrived. I think you are right it was London or nothing for him. Time will tell if he has changed his approach?

 

[Finster8]

If you listened to Laz interview after the Niagara game he clearly stated he (and some NHL teams) like Buzz back on defense. He also said by doing that he will also be able to get some of the younger players more ice time up front. He seemed happy with Cardwell and Bloom and to a lesser degree Codd but needs to get them playing time. Did not seem pleased with Punnett which is scary as he was our first overall pick. Rumor from friend in Niagara says Punnett plus picks for Akil Thomas is being discussed.

Send Codd down to get better TOI. Team needs more offense and that helps the team D which needs Millman to step up his game and some additions to the D when DD thinks the timing is right. A guy like Thomas will be in the range of Tippett or McLeod. Maybe Cardwell 3-2nds 1-3rd 1-4th or so. Then a deal could be done faster. Punnett will be a good D, just getting acclimated to the OHL. Perfetti-Thomas-Coskey would rip up the league. Easier said then done but Thomas has a no trade and could want to play with two guys like that for the year. This is our year, lots of players will be gone next year and that's when we trade some young guys to replenish our picks. No panic button yet so lets see how we do in the next ten or 15 games and some will get better some worse.
Last season the addition of Murray, Tippett and McLeod made us better the same will have to be done this year. I don't think we see Wilde but Ivan has a chance to be sent back it would give him a better chance to develop and open up a trade especially if Frappier can hold the back up job then one of the other two is expendable. Again giving us picks to grab whatever we need?
If Wilde comes back would give us our Dman.

 

[Finster8]

I'd say the chances of him being sent back for a rehab year are pretty high now. Unfortunate that he had this happen to him right as he's building up momentum but there will be no need to rush a kid into pro duty especially if he's going to be on the shelf for a while.

He is better to rehab in Saginaw then to jump into the AHL coming off a serious injury. Bode is still only D+2 and can work on his total game and play AHL when he is 20.

 

[three dog night]

Re match Thursday at the Meridian Centre Thomas game time decision

 

[Saggy]

Is it just me or are the young guns more productive than Katic and Goldowski? The older guys are getting lots of time and doing next to nothing with it. Just sayin....

 

[Finster8]

Is it just me or are the young guns more productive than Katic and Goldowski? The older guys are getting lots of time and doing next to nothing with it. Just sayin....

Of our current 7 rookies Bloom has 1G+1A, Smith has 1G, Mancini 1G and Bulovs, Punnett, Cardwell, Codd all still waiting for their first point. Goldowski has 3A, Katic 1G+1A, Baber, Jenkins, Busdeker, Porco all have 3pts. Then our top 4 point leaders so it seems their are a few vets and rookies who are under achieving at this stage. Our Bottom 6 has to pick it up, not many goals being scored. It is early enough to get the right lines together and get some chemistry building as the year progresses. For guys like Porco and Jenkins it's just a matter of time before they hit their stride. All this means the importance of a top center between Coskey and Perfetti. Making the second line Giroux-Jenkins-Busdeker and strengthening our third line Porco-Baber-Goldowski.
With the additions of Solovyov and King add Millman, Webb give us a decent top 4. Wilde if he comes back gives us 5 and we have Smith, Punnett, Lemieux and Mancini fighting to get in the lineup. Also a trade for a top 4 D is needed for more depth if we are seriously considering a long playoff run.
Katic could be used as part of trade. He seems to be the odd man out of the top 9 if we can acquire that top line centre and still develop Bloom Cardwell Codd Bulovs on the 4th line.
If Prosvetov comes back that could change many things. Frappier seems to be a solid backup to either Lennox or Ivan.

 

[Saggy]

Forget the rookie points as it is a weak comparison. Some of the vets you mentioned only have a few points and they get regular shifts. Rookies have not seen the third period yet

 

[Finster8]

My point was most of the team except 4 guys have 3 pts or less. The rookies have been snake bitten like the rest of the team. If they get more TOI they should produce more offense. The 3rd period we have played horrible as a team and Lazary will hopefully get some chemistry building in the third as this has been a problem to start the season. I'm not disagreeing just saying it will take time for the coach to adjust to how each rookie responds to certain scenarios. Maybe they are seeing which vets fit into the overall picture for the future, the rookies will be their for plenty of action.

 

[Saginaw 2019]

My point was most of the team except 4 guys have 3 pts or less. The rookies have been snake bitten like the rest of the team. If they get more TOI they should produce more offense. The 3rd period we have played horrible as a team and Lazary will hopefully get some chemistry building in the third as this has been a problem to start the season. I'm not disagreeing just saying it will take time for the coach to adjust to how each rookie responds to certain scenarios. Maybe they are seeing which vets fit into the overall picture for the future, the rookies will be their for plenty of action.

I’m not sure what vets you think need to step up and start producing points , if you look at last year all those guys received tons of ice time on third /4th line and they still didn’t produce , they are never going to be skilled guys or goal scorers
We realistically have only 2/3 snipers, if porco would be able to use his speed and make plays like he did last game at the end , he we be valuable, he has a little bit too much of horse blinders, giroux is hard nose go to net and hope for best all his goals are in pp /and he is the same not a very created player,budsker is same player as giroux but without the scoring touch, we r in desperate need of 2 centers or 1 and if you put Coskey in the middle ,

 

[Saggy]

Like Perfetti, Cosky, Jenkins, Porco and Giroux to put pucks in net. Not everyone can be a goal scorer. Still need high end Centre. Heard Buzz will be playing defence for the next little while or till they find out about Wilde

 

[bcspragu]

Like Perfetti, Cosky, Jenkins, Porco and Giroux to put pucks in net. Not everyone can be a goal scorer. Still need high end Centre. Heard Buzz will be playing defence for the next little while or till they find out about Wilde

Busdeker was surprisingly good on D Sunday. Better than King at least. King seems to slow for western conference OHL hockey. Maybe he will grow into it.

We are still 2 weeks into the season. People dont need to already be pitting vets vs rookies for playing time. Bloom got a shift or two Sunday with Perfetti. Obviously coaches like his game (I do too for that matter). Tbone is going to be a fine player, but size is killing him right now. Same can be said for Smith on D, I really like his offensive game but he can literally be pushed off the puck by bigger forwards and D because of his size. This is where Goldy and Katic have an advantage. They can use thier size (and both have been better about it this season especially Katic) to lean on smaller opposition and lead to turnovers and wearing down smaller lines along with other things not seen on a scoresheet.

Like I've said before. Drinkell knows this year is his shot, he will make trades, however it takes two to tango. Other teams know Drinkell needs to add so prices are high. Closer to the deadline prices will come down a tad when teams have to sell off or lose out on potential assets. Not to mention jury is still out on Wilde coming back as well. If he gets sent back, Saginaw is literally getting the best Dman in the O this season for free. Would be a huge boost.