The Fourth 2019-20 Utica Comets Thread
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Gaunce4gm
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Lind at C could be a game changer. If he can stick at it long enough to develop into a true Centre that would boost his stock tremendously
Oh, they would definitely be in the lineup without a doubt. Michaelis would easily be one of the top 4 centers.
#1 Sam Anas - (27) The best cut and dried. Last year's AHL scoring champion
#2 Lukas Jasek (23)/Marc Michaelis (25)
#3 Lukas Jasek/Mike Michaelis
It would be tossup and left for these 2 to play it out.
#4 Hugh McGing - (22) St. Louis's version of Lockwood or Michaelis
The rest:
John Stevens - A mid season addition to the Comets last season acquired in an AHL trade with Bridgeport for future considerations. Not exactly trade most players would consider an honor. Kind of like be traded for Nothing. 9 Pts in 24GP with Utica. He's a depth center even on this team.
Carson Focht - (20)Rookie 5th Rd selection with poor Jr numbers. Should be depth right now and perhaps would have started the season in the Zoo.
Tanner Kaspick - (22) 3rd yr ELC played 59 games for San Antonio and recorded 6G/8A/14Pts
Dakotas Joshua - (25) 3rd yr ELC, only got 30 games last season with AHL San Antonio and recorded a miserable 3G/4A/7Pts.
If you are chosing a top 4 you give the new guys with the highest promise the 1st opportunity and the other guys go to depth.
The Comets only have 2 RWs on the roster and would have made the top 4 anyways based upon the forwards in camp.
#1 Kole Lind (22)
#2 Will Lockwood (22)
LW
#1 Sven Baertschi - (28) The best man for the job. PPG+ player last season.
#2 Nathan Walker - (26) 32Pts /46GP with San Antonio last season
#3 Curtis McKenzie - (29) 17G/28A/42Pts in 61GP last season with AHL Chicago
#4 Jonah Gadjovich - (22) put up 17 Pts, 13 of them goals in just 38 GP with Utica last season. This guy's main problem is getting injured.
#5 Nolan Stevens - (24) 9G/22A/31Pts in 50GP with San Antonio last season.
#6 Vincent Arseneau - (28) A real grit player and the only real physical guy on the Comets last season A true 4th line grinder who sticks up for the rest of his guys. chipped in 9G and 2A last season playing with guys who didn't know where the net was or couldn't put the puck in it when they found it, thus the 2A.
There is one more in Evan Polei (24), 4th yr pro, 1G/3A/4Pts in 21GP with San Antonio. Depth
2 of these LWs are going to have to play RW. I say that because they are better players than any of the extra centers.
Rathbone steps right into the top 6 without a question:
Steve Santini - (25) The team's most experienced D-man and a proven leader.
Mitch Reinke - (24) Played 46 games with San Antonio last season and recorded 22Pts after putting up 45 in 76GP in 2018-19.
After these 2, Rathbone would be at least #3 without playing a game.
Josh Teves - (25) 0G/2A/2Pts in 29GP as a reserve after showing his was not top 6 quality.
Mitch Eliot - (22) 2G/3A/5Pts in 27GP and much like Teves turned out to be a depth defender.
Tyler Tucker - (20) ROOKIE, .62 PPG in 4 years of Jr hockey
Josh Wesley - (24) 5th yr-pro, 135 ECHL GP and 73 AHL GP . Last season 17Pts in 26 GP with ECHL Tulsa and 4Pt in 25GP with San Abtonio.
The Comets play a preseason game this afternoon vs NYS Thruway rival the Syracuse Crunch. I did not see this lineup before I created this post.
H-m-m-m-m, their projected lineup seems to pretty much agree with me.
Baertschi/Anas/Lind
McKenzie/Jasek/Walker (one of the LWs moved to RW)
Gadjovich/Focht/Stevens (the other LW moved to RW)
Arseneau/McGing/Lockwood
The depth centers are scratches except for Focht because Michaelis is not here and one of them has to play. The scratches are the ones I projected.
Michaelis would definitely replace Focht on the 3rd line.
2 of the 6 LW had to move to RW and they did. The remaining one was scratched as I projected.
The Defense is a potential train wreck:
TylerTucker/Steve Santini
Josh Teves/Mitch Reinke
Mitch Eliot on his offside/Jett Woo
The most questionable of the 7 was scratched.
That's all they have!!!!!!!! 7D-men for the season??????????????????? Preposterous. Somebody *GMs JOHNSON/BENNING needs to get their thumbs out of their asses and rectify this issue yesterday. Both St.Louis and Vancouver took 2 D-men each originally earmarked for the AHL, but didn't return any one to the AHL. The Comets no longer have Kalamazoo to go to for emergency call-ups. This goes beyond an emergency call-up. This calls for signings of at least 2 D-men with AHL experience along the lines of Dylan Blujus (now with AHL Rochester).
There are only 3Veterans by AHL rules9Baertschi, Walker, and McKenzie) on the Comets so there is room for Veterans if that's what they want to sign and Veterans would fit in nicely with all these inexperienced players they have in the current 7. e.g Eliot carrying Woo is ridiculous.
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I have to believe that's a mistake. Sam Anas was the AHL's scoring champion last season and he has always been a Center. Lind is only 1 of the 2 RWs on the Comets roster. I can't believe St. Louis wants to put Anas on the wing anymore than he wants to go there himself. He will be a free agennt again in 21-22. Maybe the Canucks could consider him in the middle instead of Lind who feasts on experienced linemates (Bailey,Goldobin, Camper, Boucher) for his points. He's not the straw that stirs the line. Playing RW with Baertschi and Anas is the exact thing I'm outlining here.
UticaHockey
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Lind has been centering between Anas and Baertschi all week in training camp. Not sure if it is permanent but it appears that is how they will start the season.
UticaHockey
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UticaHockey
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UticaHockey
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The Iron Goalie
Formally 'OEL for Norris'
So they're trying Lind at center? Seems to be the 'reverse' of what the Canucks usually do....draft centers and try to turn them into wingers....although I guess they did try Jasek in the middle last season.
The reasons players usually move from the middle to the wing is skating, or the lack of it. So if Lind skates well enough to be considered for the center ice position, this would be a huge bonus for the Canucks.
But regardless of the players and the outcome, you have to be pumped that Comets hockey is back!
UticaHockey
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UticaHockey
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If Kole keeps centering Anas and Baertschi he should put up a lot of points. Two skilled pass first guys on either side of him. Good for Lindsanity.
Mr. Canucklehead
Kitimat Canuck
UticaHockey
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Wow! Lind at center is certainly a surprise.
Even bigger that Anas had no problem moving to the wing after all the success he has known in the middle.
So that's 2 RWs moved to the middle in 2 seasons. Jasek and now Lind (at least for the moment). Since JB doesn't seem to draft any, guess they will have to make some.
The Comets are now playing with only Lockwood as a natural RW.
Even bigger that Anas had no problem moving to the wing after all the success he has known in the middle.
So that's 2 RWs moved to the middle in 2 seasons. Jasek and now Lind (at least for the moment). Since JB doesn't seem to draft any, guess they will have to make some.
The Comets are now playing with only Lockwood as a natural RW.
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I take it you were able to pick up on this from Birnell on Facebook?
Once the season starts we will be able to watch on AHL TV and everyone can chip in as the game progresses.
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I did predict the #1 line. Just got Anas and Lind mixed up.
Lind was also a pass first guy last season supported by his 30A and 14G.
Provided these guys all shoot when the shot is there this line could pile up goals. The problem would occur when they all keep trying to make the extra pass for the perfect goal.Hopefully this doesn't happen. At any rate it will allow Lind to continue to feast on the team's best linemates.
Lind was also a pass first guy last season supported by his 30A and 14G.
Provided these guys all shoot when the shot is there this line could pile up goals. The problem would occur when they all keep trying to make the extra pass for the perfect goal.Hopefully this doesn't happen. At any rate it will allow Lind to continue to feast on the team's best linemates.
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It also appears a tight game was blown open when the keepers were changed up. 2-1 Utica at the time according to @UticaHockey's post. Have to wait and see the game breakdown, if there is one, to see just exactly what happened. With 5 goals against it will also be interesting to know who was on the ice especially on the back end. The D was not exactly 3 sound pairings. Kind of like to see if any certain pair was exploited more than the others.
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UticaHockey
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Limited coverage because no media was at the Aud for preseason game but here is one of Lind's goals.
NuxFan09
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Interested to know how Woo played, but I don't think we're going to get a lot of info. Have to wait for the regular season at least.
UticaHockey
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I just looked at CapFriendly to check on the status of Scott Perunovich, a D-man and last year's Hobey Baker Award winner. He's still on the Taxi Squad and like Rathbone has not yet played in an NHL game. He and Rathbone should be in the AHL if they are going to ride around in the Taxi all season. ROOKIES have to play. It is not good for kids' development to lose their rookie season sitting out most of the games.
Noted on this check that 18-yr old Jake Neighbours, a LW, had been removed from the Taxi Squad. He had originally been designated for Utica in their first list of players to be sent to Utica along with Perunovich and Jake Walman, another D-man. Walman and Neighbours instead were assigned to the Taxi. Perunovich was declared medically able to play and was also assigned to the Taxi. Like the Comets none of these guys have played a game. I never agree with young players, especially ROOKIES, sitting when they could be getting valuable ice time in both games and working with their line or D partner in all of the aspects of team hockey, e.g. 5 on 5, 4 on 4, 3 on 3, PP, and PK as members of the parent's AHL team.
So the final assignments of Perunovich, Walman, and Rathbone provides a simple explanation as to how the Comets ended up with only 7 D-men.
Neighbours is no longer listed on the Taxi squad, but he won't be coming to Utica. He has been assigned back to Jrs with the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL. At 18 and a player who was supposed to play in Canadian Jrs. that's where he should be. Would have been nice to get a look at their 2020 #1 draft pick, but this worked out as it should.
Noted on this check that 18-yr old Jake Neighbours, a LW, had been removed from the Taxi Squad. He had originally been designated for Utica in their first list of players to be sent to Utica along with Perunovich and Jake Walman, another D-man. Walman and Neighbours instead were assigned to the Taxi. Perunovich was declared medically able to play and was also assigned to the Taxi. Like the Comets none of these guys have played a game. I never agree with young players, especially ROOKIES, sitting when they could be getting valuable ice time in both games and working with their line or D partner in all of the aspects of team hockey, e.g. 5 on 5, 4 on 4, 3 on 3, PP, and PK as members of the parent's AHL team.
So the final assignments of Perunovich, Walman, and Rathbone provides a simple explanation as to how the Comets ended up with only 7 D-men.
Neighbours is no longer listed on the Taxi squad, but he won't be coming to Utica. He has been assigned back to Jrs with the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL. At 18 and a player who was supposed to play in Canadian Jrs. that's where he should be. Would have been nice to get a look at their 2020 #1 draft pick, but this worked out as it should.
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