Prospect Info: Syracuse Crunch, Orlando Solar Bears, & Prospects Thread

[TheDaysOf 04]

Sammy Walker named All-B1G Honorable Mention. Walker and Zuhlsdorf were also honored as All Academic B1G selections

Click to read more...

 

[Ja Sports]

Made a Tim Stutzle hype reel - thought you guys might enjoy

Let me know what you think!



p.s. I tried to find your draft thread but didn't see one

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

According to Zulhsdorf’s agent, former Gopher forward Ben Hankinson, the Lightning will retain Zulhsdorf’s rights until Aug. 15, at which point Zuhlsdorf hopes to sign an NHL or minor league contract with one of the league’s 30 other teams.

“We’re going to test out free agency and see how that goes,” Zuhlsdorf said last week in a phone conversation from his home near the U of M. “We’re going into the unknown here. We’re going to be looking for teams that want me to play for them, and I’ll probably have to go to a camp for an AHL team other than Tampa.

"I think I’ll find a team that’s willing to try me out. I’m pretty motivated and bummed out that Tampa didn’t work out. My internal fire is bigger than it’s ever been right now.”

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Alex Barre-Boulet Named 2019-20 Second All-Star Team - Syracuse Crunch

Finishing fifth in the AHL in scoring this year, the 22-year-old native of Montmagny, Que., is one of only two players to place among the league's top 10 point-getters each of the last two seasons.

Syracuse Crunch forward named to AHL all-star squad

“The small details, they got better, defensively and on the PK,” Barre-Boulet said of his development from year one to year two. “I was playing lot more on the PK this year than I was last year. So I think I got better on that. It’s just being more consistent, I guess. Last year was a lot of up and down for a first season, but it’s good to have consistency in your game.

“I didn’t want to come in too confident (this year). My first season, I think, went well. I wanted to bring something different to my game, being better defensively or being faster. I think I did that this year. It’s up to me to have a good summer, even though everything is shut down, to maybe make the jump next year (to the NHL).”

He now waits to see if the NHL resumes play and Tampa Bay calls him up for the remainder of the season.

“I don’t know how long it’s going to take. I’m going to be patient. But at the same time I think I’ll make the steps as quick as I can, try to stay in shape," he said of getting into NHL condition. "It’s hard because all the gyms are closed right now and everything is shut down in Canada. I have a program right now that I’m trying to keep following and I have roller-skated kind of hard, the same thing as on the ice. But other than that there’s not much you can do.”

 

[Felonious Python]

Allan McShane's profile seems appealing. If he doesn't get drafted, he could get an AHL deal.

High hockey IQ, two-way, physically strong (for junior), hard worker, etc. Skating is/was an issue, but we have Barb.

He's not a huge guy, but for at least minor league depth, you can get away with being a bit shorter.

 

[Felonious Python]

A fun little draft sim.
draftsim

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

ABB: Smartest Player, Best Forward, MVP

Colton: Most Improved, Best power forward

Abbandonato: Rookie of the Year

Witkowski: Plus/Minus Player of the Year

Gaunce: Plus/Minus Player of the Year, Best defenseman

Walcott: Hardest to play against, Most Heart, Exemplary community service

 

[bov]

Not sure if there's an NHL future for Walcott but he seems like a great teammate and he can play both forward and D. Would be cool to see him rewarded in the next season or two if he remains in the organization. He stood out to me in training camp a few years ago too, just seems like a player who deserves that "cup of coffee" down the road and could stick around as a character guy. I know it's only team awards, but the AHL can be a hard time for many and Walcott seems to be recognized for his character year in/year out.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Saint John trades Cajkovic to Val-d'Or for draft picks. This is Val-d'Or's 4th trade in the past few days. They also picked up QMJHL star Jakob Pelletier and 20 year olds Justin Ducharme & Gabriel Villeneuve. It looks like they are loading up for 2020-21.

Not sure if there's an NHL future for Walcott but he seems like a great teammate and he can play both forward and D. Would be cool to see him rewarded in the next season or two if he remains in the organization. He stood out to me in training camp a few years ago too, just seems like a player who deserves that "cup of coffee" down the road and could stick around as a character guy. I know it's only team awards, but the AHL can be a hard time for many and Walcott seems to be recognized for his character year in/year out.

At the very least these are the kind of players you'd like to keep around when they hang up the skates. Angelidis and Cote were both hired by JBB and Eric Neilson was an instructor last summer at our development camp before becoming an assistant coach with the Acadie-Bathurst Titan.

edit: you could probably count JBB bringing back former Crunch captain Witkowski too this past offseason or the feeling that Ryan Callahan had something lined up for him when his contract was completely up.

 

[HoseEmDown]

A straight up bum like Cody Kunyk played a game for the lightning, so it would be nice to get a kid like Walcott in a game but doubt it happens.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[Silver Tuna]

Made a Tim Stutzle hype reel - thought you guys might enjoy

Let me know what you think!



p.s. I tried to find your draft thread but didn't see one

I need a shower after watching that video

 

[Crunchrulz]

Look for a kinder, gentler Retiredsquid to provide input regarding the Crunch this year. Took some time off from the sport as a whole and have come to realize that hockey is not going to change back to what it was so it is time for Retiredsquid to move forward to what it is. Will be an interesting season whenever they decide to kick it off.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

* No one knows exactly when the draft will be held. Probably October, if all goes well, maybe November. We just don’t know.
* We know the draft lottery is this Friday (June 26, 8 p.m. ET) but even when it is concluded that night, we still won’t know the actual order of selection. That’s because eight of the 15 teams in the lottery won’t be known until we see which teams lose in the best-of-five play-in qualifier series, probably in August, sometime after which a second lottery will be required.
* We don’t know when, where, or even if many of the top prospects for the 2020 draft will be playing to start the 2020-21 season because there is so much uncertainty as to whether junior or college hockey leagues in North America will be playing games this fall.

This is a great read on all the potential positives and negatives that come with scouting this 2020 draft class.

Looking at Bob's list, a few names that catch my eye from the middle of the 2nd round grade and onward:

Luke Tuch - A 6'2" winger from the USNTDP. He is the younger brother of Las Vegas forward and former 1st rounder Alex Tuch. In comparison to his brother, he say: "I have more of an edge to my game than Alex. I like to get in my opponent's face. That's just how I thrive, and I feel I'm a little more physical." Craig Button says: "Determined and competitive and gets into the guts of the action. He makes life very uncomfortable for opponents." Possibly a good addition to the prospect pool after the loss of big winger Nolan Foote.

Jean-Luc Foudy - A 5'11" speedy forward for the Windsor Spitfires. Coincidentally he is also the brother to a former 1st round pick, Liam, who played for Canada's gold medal winning WJC team this past winter. Jean-Luc is described as a competitive forward with elite skating, but his stats weren't great this past season in the OHL. I'm not sure what happened. He was almost a ppg player up to new years, then he hit a wall or something and scored 11pts in the remaining 26 games.

Daemon Hunt - A 6'0" defenseman for Moose Jaw. Very interesting prospect. Made his WHL debut as a 15 year old in 2017-18. He was the only other 2002 born player on Canada's 2019 U-18 WC team besides top 2020 prospect Jamie Drysdale. Unfortunately he only played 28 games in the 2019-20 season due to an injury where he got cut by a skate blade.

Yegor Sokolov - 6'4" Russian winger playing in Cape Breton. Just turned 20 this month. Had a good showing at the WJC including when he scored 2 goals on Hugo Alnefelt in the Semi Finals. He led the QMJHL in goals this season with 46 in 52 games.

Alexander Pashin - 5'8" forward playing in the MHL. Super small but super skilled kind of prospect. Best known for scoring 7 goals in the 2019 Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, 1 behind tournament leader and top 2020 prospect Cole Perfetti. 3 of them came in the Semi Finals against Finland, and then 2 more were against Canada in the Finals to win gold.

 

[Major4Boarding]

A few years back, a kid like Luke Tuch would've seemed like a good one to have on the radar. But that was when Dave Quinn was coach at BU. Since he left and Coach O'Connell has taken over, I kinda have reservations about his next level development there at BU.

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Mikhail Shalagin returns to Spartak Moscow

 

[Felonious Python]

Mikhail Shalagin returns to Spartak Moscow

Can't say I'm surprised. His contract with Syracuse expired and I don't think he really did anything to deserve another one (right now at least).

The off season is still young, but Syracuse only has Clint Windsor and Abbandonato under contract right now.

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[Major4Boarding]

Hmmmm. That's certainly interesting

 

[Crunchrulz]

Can't say I'm surprised. His contract with Syracuse expired and I don't think he really did anything to deserve another one (right now at least).

The off season is still young, but Syracuse only has Clint Windsor and Abbandonato under contract right now.

Great point but it is best that we wait and see how this post season plays out and then how long they plan to wait until the 20-21 season starts. Plenty of time for "silly season".

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

“I still need to work on my game. I still need to work on my speed and all the details. But I’m here to work hard and prove myself to the organization. At the end of the day, they’re making the decision. I don’t know how far I am but being here helps me a lot.”

“I started skating back in Quebec, so as soon as I got the green light to skate I was on the ice with (director of player development) J.P. Cote. When I got the call to come here I was really excited. As soon as I got on the ice here I was super-excited. You didn’t need the second energy for practice. I was already pumped up.”

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

google translated:

Cory Conacher (Tampa Bay) and Brian Gibbons (Carolina), two other Lausanne rookies according to our sources, are for their part free to join the LHC, as they have not been selected by their franchise. They could be present at training camp next week, provided they manage to reach Switzerland on time.

It's also reported in the article, former teammate & bolt prospect Mark Barberio was planning on joining and reuniting with Conacher before he was added to Colorado's roster for the playoffs.