Sudbury Wolves 2018-19 Season Thread (Part 3)

[WolvesFan]

Stratis not in the OA pic?

He is a 2000 born player he stil has 2 1/2 years of play assuming he does play his 20 year old season

 

[Lycanthrope]

He is a 2000 born player he stil has 2 1/2 years of play assuming he does play his 20 year old season

Thanks I thought about that after I asked. Well do we try to get another import to replace Niz? If so wonder who’d be available.

 

[dirty12]

Thanks I thought about that after I asked. Well do we try to get another import to replace Niz? If so wonder who’d be available.

Niz is not considered an import as he played MM in the GTA with Merkley making him eligible to be the 7th pick of the 2016 OHL priority draft.

 

[hockieguy]

So I was wondering if anyone else (besides Jack who made it known earlier) thinks maybe we should seriously look at adding a piece or two, so long as we don’t torpedo next season.
Goalies like UPL just don’t come along very often and that’s what makes it so tempting to add this year.
Thoughts?

The Wolves need defencemen. Lukonnen is the reason the defence look so good. The games that the goalie are gone, will be the true snapshot of the assets and liabilities on the this team.

They have had a tremendous start, much better than I thought, but there have been no significant injuries and they're riding a really hot goalie. Teams are approaching the part of the season where things get really hard. Especially for goalies. Mississauga and Peterborough are in the same boat as Sudbury. Their starters have started way too many games and it is starting to show. Ingham has been fairly steady but he looked gassed the last game, and Jones in Peterborough had been pulled in two straight games.

If one thinks about the season so far, how would the team be without the goalie, or playing Mc Grath 30% of the games, and how effective is Lukkonen going to be after the World juniors? Where would this team be defensively and where would they be given that the PP is second last, the PK on the road 17th and 8th overall, and the goal total is not very high.

Considering that the PK is 8th, the Wolves are the second most penalized team. But the interesting thing about that is that they are 17th on the road and have a lot of road games after Christmas.

The overall picture will be interesting after the world juniors as the team will get to evaluate the two biggest question marks: Goaltending and defense

The picture looks different when one pieces of the puzzle is removed.

 

[Lycanthrope]

The Wolves need defencemen. Lukonnen is the reason the defence look so good. The games that the goalie are gone, will be the true snapshot of the assets and liabilities on the this team.

They have had a tremendous start, much better than I thought, but there have been no significant injuries and they're riding a really hot goalie. Teams are approaching the part of the season where things get really hard. Especially for goalies. Mississauga and Peterborough are in the same boat as Sudbury. Their starters have started way too many games and it is starting to show. Ingham has been fairly steady but he looked gassed the last game, and Jones in Peterborough had been pulled in two straight games.

If one thinks about the season so far, how would the team be without the goalie, or playing Mc Grath 30% of the games, and how effective is Lukkonen going to be after the World juniors? Where would this team be defensively and where would they be given that the PP is second last, the PK on the road 17th and 8th overall, and the goal total is not very high.

Considering that the PK is 8th, the Wolves are the second most penalized team. But the interesting thing about that is that they are 17th on the road and have a lot of road games after Christmas.

The overall picture will be interesting after the world juniors as the team will get to evaluate the two biggest question marks: Goaltending and defense

The picture looks different when one pieces of the puzzle is removed.

Well you wouldn’t expect any team to have to play without their number one goalie for any length of time and if you’re goalie is one of the most impactful players on the team so be it, they’re part of the roster. Nothing wrong with the fact that Ukko’s been a difference maker, teams need good goaltending to be successful.
Everybody talks about defence, and while I realize we’re pretty young back there, I think adding a forward (or two) may be just as important. Remember a good offence is also the best defence. As far as Ukko, he has been nothing short of stellar and has stolen a few games outright, but not every game. How often have the Wolves given up a ton of shots, scoring chances and been badly outplayed? Not often that I can recall.
As far as playing him too much, I don’t agree. It’s not at all uncommon to see successful coaches ride their number one goalies. It’s primarily a weekend league and they’re young. Hey, if you have the hammer use it.
Special teams as you pointed out to me are a definite concern, especially on the road.
I guess we’ll see soon enough how well the Wolves can float the boat without Ukko but the fact is we will have him back shortly so paps should look to improve the team with the knowledge that our goaltending is set.
It will be interesting to see how the Wolves play without Ukko but the fact is, barring the unforeseen they won’t have to for long, so the team should be judged with Ukko as the goalie.

 

[Lycanthrope]

Niz is not considered an import as he played MM in the GTA with Merkley making him eligible to be the 7th pick of the 2016 OHL priority draft.

Thanks, again thought about that as well. Still a roster player that needs to be replaced.

 

[Lycanthrope]

I thought I’d add the Wolves schedule is very balanced regarding home and away for the second half. 6 home 6 away in Jan. 7 home and 5 away in Feb and 4 home 5 away in March.
Excellent job regarding scheduling this season.

 

[hockieguy]

I thought I’d add the Wolves schedule is very balanced regarding home and away for the second half. 6 home 6 away in Jan. 7 home and 5 away in Feb and 4 home 5 away in March.
Excellent job regarding scheduling this season.

Well you wouldn’t expect any team to have to play without their number one goalie for any length of time and if you’re goalie is one of the most impactful players on the team so be it, they’re part of the roster. Nothing wrong with the fact that Ukko’s been a difference maker, teams need good goaltending to be successful.
Everybody talks about defence, and while I realize we’re pretty young back there, I think adding a forward (or two) may be just as important. Remember a good offence is also the best defence. As far as Ukko, he has been nothing short of stellar and has stolen a few games outright, but not every game. How often have the Wolves given up a ton of shots, scoring chances and been badly outplayed? Not often that I can recall.
As far as playing him too much, I don’t agree. It’s not at all uncommon to see successful coaches ride their number one goalies. It’s primarily a weekend league and they’re young. Hey, if you have the hammer use it.
Special teams as you pointed out to me are a definite concern, especially on the road.
I guess we’ll see soon enough how well the Wolves can float the boat without Ukko but the fact is we will have him back shortly so paps should look to improve the team with the knowledge that our goaltending is set.
It will be interesting to see how the Wolves play without Ukko but the fact is, barring the unforeseen they won’t have to for long, so the team should be judged with Ukko as the goalie.

Time will tell. If he stays healthy and fresh, the Wolves are a tough team to play against.

 

[Wisdom]

Wolves finally get an honourable mention in the top ten in the CHL
67’s and Knights included in Kia CHL Top 10 – Ontario Hockey League

 

[HockeyPops]

Hi guys, I am really intrigued by Sudbury's current options. Interested to hear whether posters here think Sudbury is a legitimate contender this season. But wanted to discuss that in the context of next season as well, in which I believe Sudbury will be even better.

Question 1: How big of a window does everyone think Sudbury has? 2 years? 3 years? What birthyear represents Sudbury's strongest players that you might want to build around?

At a glance, it looks like you will only retire 4 players after this season. If so you will have 5 overagers back next year.

Questions : What kind of moves would you make this year? Would you bring in younger players that will be with you for many seasons or rent seasoned vets and go for it now? Would you move any 99's now since you will have to move 2 next fall anyway?

Here is your roster, with my anticipated retirees stricken out.

1998
Pilon, Drake
Pilon, Darian
Candella

1999
Carson
Bulitka
Levin
O'Bonsawin
Luukkonen
McGrath

2000
McConville
Robinson
Hutcheson
Gilhula
Malik
Stratis
Serensits

2001
Tabak
Murray
Wawrow
Phillips
Ross

2002
Byfield
Thompson

 

[billoink]

I think you go all in now, Ukko can win games not just save them. Must remember going all in does not necessarily mean winning the cup.

 

[cub]

it is confirmed that Andrew Dale was fired by the Sudbury Wolves/ Sudbury Five. Vice President of Marketing and Development.

 

[HockeyHell]

Any word on what happened? That seems out of no where.

 

[I Loveallsports]

Hi guys, I am really intrigued by Sudbury's current options. Interested to hear whether posters here think Sudbury is a legitimate contender this season. But wanted to discuss that in the context of next season as well, in which I believe Sudbury will be even better.

Question 1: How big of a window does everyone think Sudbury has? 2 years? 3 years? What birthyear represents Sudbury's strongest players that you might want to build around?

At a glance, it looks like you will only retire 4 players after this season. If so you will have 5 overagers back next year.

Questions : What kind of moves would you make this year? Would you bring in younger players that will be with you for many seasons or rent seasoned vets and go for it now? Would you move any 99's now since you will have to move 2 next fall anyway?

Here is your roster, with my anticipated retirees stricken out.

1998
Pilon, Drake
Pilon, Darian
Candella

1999
Carson
Bulitka
Levin
O'Bonsawin
Luukkonen
McGrath

2000
McConville
Robinson
Hutcheson
Gilhula
Malik
Stratis
Serensits

2001
Tabak
Murray
Wawrow
Phillips
Ross

2002
Byfield
Thompson

Nice work

 

[I Loveallsports]

it is confirmed that Andrew Dale was fired by the Sudbury Wolves/ Sudbury Five. Vice President of Marketing and Development.

Wow! Wonder why...

 

[WaW]

That seems odd. Can only wonder why

 

[WolvesFanSudbury]

Any reason behind this?

 

[yalbmert25]

I think you go all in now, Ukko can win games not just save them. Must remember going all in does not necessarily mean winning the cup.

Can you explain to me what you mean by going all in now doesn't mean winning the cup?? Isn't that the definition of going all in?

I think it's a three year window.

 

[I Loveallsports]

Weeks- to join the wolves in Barrie.

 

[WaW]

I personally do not think Sudbury is in a position to go all in, as I agree we are looking at a 3 year window. With how sorry this franchise has been for 17 years, we desperately need to string together competitive seasons to make the team relevant to both young prospects, and to fans in order to fill up the barn.

I mean look at how long it's taken for attendance to rise this year. Half the season...and people are STILL skeptical. The burgess family almost completely sunk this ship, and now he have the time and resources to rebuild it. By the time our new barn opens, the team should be much healthier.

Obviously from a fan's perspective I want a championship, but it's just too hard to overlook the business perspective here. We can't afford to jeopardize the window we have IMO, but that doesn't mean we can't make a few trades here and there to patch up some holes. I don't think we're there yet where we should be dumping 7 draft picks for 1 player.

 

[billoink]

Can you explain to me what you mean by going all in now doesn't mean winning the cup?? Isn't that the definition of going all in?

I think it's a three year window.[/To win a Memorial cup is probably the hardest prize to win as you only have the kids for a maximum of 4 yrs.A coach who thinks he is close will role the dice WITH WHAT HE HAS to make the team stronger to make a run. Will Sudbury catch up to London ? no but does that mean we continue to draft and hope they develop till we are the London's of the league before we go for it? Do you pull all the horses out of the race because they can't win and not settle for second or third? With Ukko they can steal games, where will that lead to? who knows without trying. Can't catch a fish if your line is not in the water. Learning to be a winner does not always mean winning the big prize.

 

[Lycanthrope]

Wow! Wonder why...

Wow! In a way this doesn’t completely surprise me. Anyone else notice he has been more stressed and aloof at the games? Communicating on his headset all the time. I asked him about the game a few times and his reply was “I don’t know I’m not watching”type of thing. In hindsight there were obvious tensions.

 

[hockeynorth]

3 years window, Byfields d+1 year is the big year, maybe next season. Definitely not all in this year IMO. So anyone we acquire should be at least a two year option for me

 

[HockeyPops]

3 years window, Byfields d+1 year is the big year, maybe next season. Definitely not all in this year IMO. So anyone we acquire should be at least a two year option for me

So would you take a flier on a player like Barrett Hayton that may be around next year?

 

[billoink]

Well that would put the rebuild at 9 yrs and counting, Go for a couple of rounds now with Ukko, everyone else is rebuilding too lets not forget. Chances of the Wolves winning the Memorial Cup will be 20 to 1 every season.