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Season Preview: Plante

In BAL, CHA, DEN, EDH, GLP, PIT, SAL, SCA, STE, Uncategorized, WIN on November 26, 2011 at 10:00 pm

The Sawchuk Conference has its powerhouses – and the last five cups. But the Plante is where all the intrigue is.

Apart from a strong Salem squad fresh off a trip to the Gump Cup Finals, the entire conference is full of dark horses – young teams, growing teams, sure, but few that are in flat-out rebuilding mode. That kind of parity makes the conference incredibly tough to call.

In – D Ryan McDonagh, F Nino Niederreiter, G Jacob Markstrom, D Michael Sauer, F Blake Geoffrion, F Teemu Hartikainen, F Brandon Prust
Out – F Evgeni Malkin, F Cal O’Reilly, D Bryan McCabe, F Darroll Powe, D Anton Stralman, F Rob Schremp, F Jamie Langenbrunner

Baltimore made the boldest move of the off-season, unloading Evgeni Malkin for all of Pittsburgh’s draft picks. That meant a pretty big personnel turnover – 7 guys in and 7 out, not counting poor Steven Kampfer, released before he even got a sniff. It’s hard to look as this as anything but a small step backwards in the short term, but any team with Anze Kopitar is poised to compensate for the loss of a player of Malkin’s calibre, and the team still has a strong core in its prime.

In – F Luke Adam, F Matt Halischuk, F Matt Calvert, D Jason Garrison, F BJ Crombeen, F Mike Knuble
Out –  G Michal Neuvirth, F Alexander Frolov, F Benoit Pouliot, F M-A Pouliot, D Kurtis Foster, D Oskars Bartulis

Charleston should be a playoff team, there should be little doubt of that. After a surprising trip to the finals led to two straight years of mediocrity, the Chiefs started rounding back into form when Steven Stamkos hit the scene. Now that they have a marquee scorer, they have a roster with few glaring weaknesses, and with Miikka Kiprusoff and Jonathan Quick splitting duties in goal, they should be one of the Plante’s better teams.

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Season Preview: Sawchuk

In BOS, DEL, FFS, IHS, NAS, PWH, SFS, STL, VAN, WVR on November 24, 2011 at 10:40 am

The last five Gump Cups have gone to Sawchuk Conference teams. The five years before that went to the Plante. Are we due for a sea change? With two flat-out powerhouses, a few perennial contenders, and several rebuilding teams poised to take the next step, there’s no shortage of intrigue in the Sawchuk this season. Here’s a look at what’s changed.

In – G Michal Neuvirth, F Marcus Johansson, G Devan Dubnyk, F Jordan Caron, D John Moore, F Nate Thompson, F Adam Hall
Out – F Mike Knuble, F Paul Kariya, D Niclas Wallin, F Jason Blake, D Jaroslav Spacek, G Jason LaBarbera, F James Wright

The Banshees, under new ownership eager to make a stamp on the team, made some significant moves this off-season, shipping out vets Mike Knuble, Jason Blake, and Jaroslav Spacek and bringing in two promising young netminders in Michal Neuvirth and Devan Dubnyk. But how much will they really play behind workhorse Henrik Lundqvist? A rested Lundqvist should terrify the rest of the conference come playoff time, though, and if Boston gets good performances from some of its younger players – notably Sam Gagner and Erik Karlsson – they should be in the running for a spot.

In – F Derek Stepan, G Kevin Poulin, F Linus Omark, F Mats Zuccarello, F Anthony Stewart, D Shane O’Brien, G Peter Budaj
Out – F Cristobal Huet, F Slava Kozlov, F Michael Nylander, D Wade Redden, F Mike Brown, F Tomas Kopecky, F Jay Pandolfo

There’s no question the Sturgeon are in full-on rebuild mode, and one that’s going quite well… up front. As players like Evander Kane continue emerging and newcomers like Derek Stepan get a chance to shine, they’ll improve. But there’s still major upheaval to come as its once mighty core retires or otherwise moves on, and there are big question marks on defense and in goal, meaning a young player like Alex Goligoski is going to have to be a number one defenseman this year, because Delta has no one else to fill those skates. And, seriously, Peter Budaj?

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6 Most Surprising Pre-Season Cuts of 2011

In BAL, BOS, PWH, SAL, SFS, Special Features on November 22, 2011 at 2:29 pm

If you’re a GWMHL general manager bent on taking your team anyplace other than the golf course, you’ve got to make some hard choices as you try to shoehorn yourself in the league’s strict 28-man roster limit. Drop that draft choice before he’s ever sniffed the pro game? Let go of the fading vet?

This year, GMs have been particularly ruthless, jettisoning some good (well, mostly once-good) players in favor of the latest toys.

6. LW Kristian Huselius, cut by Salem – The Wannabees are deep up front and Huselius is battling serious injuries, so this is no huge shocker, but he’s still a one-time 50-goal scorer and a big contributor to Salem’s run to the finals in 2011. He was also a top-3 draft pick once upon a time – and not a very good one.

Year   Name                       GP    G    A  PTS  +/-  PIM
02-03  Vancouver Sea Otters       79   21   14   35  -10   28
03-04  Vancouver Sea Otters       78   28   21   49    7   20
04-06  Vancouver Sea Otters       44    1    2    3   -4   18
04-06  Montreal Smashers           9    1    1    2   -3    0
06-07  Salem Wannbees             78   22   20   42  -12   26
07-08  Salem Wannabees            81   50   51  101   63   24
08-09  Salem Wannabees            80   20   17   37    0   14
09-10  Salem Wannabees            37    8   12   20    7   18
10-11  Salem Wannabees            68   17   33   50   14   38
                  Totals         554  168  171  339   62  186

5. D Cody Franson, cut by San Francisco – Franson might not be a bluechipper anymore, but he’s in his early 20s and managed a whopping 42 points in 52 games last season, his rookie year. The writing was on the wall when the Seals drafted Cam Fowler and Alec Martinez.

Year   Name                       GP    G    A  PTS  +/-  PIM
10-11  Oregon Rugrats             52   12   30   42   12   16
                  Totals          52   12   30   42   12   16

4. LW Jason Blake, cut by Boston – Blake’s bounced around, but he’s got a pedigree that includes a 48-goal year in ’07-’08. He only managed 9 goals last season for the Banshees, who are fairly deep on the wings.

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Free Agent Draft: Lilja, Biron, Winnik Take Top Spots

In IHS, NAS, News, Transactions, WIN on November 9, 2011 at 4:44 pm

No big names but lots of roleplayers and veteran experience signed on with new GWMHL teams in the 2011-2012 Pre-Season Free Agent Draft . The Nashville Knights claimed defenseman Andreas Lilja in the top spot, while the Winnipeg Falcons shored up in net with Martin Biron. The Ice Harbor Storm took Daniel Winnik, most recently of the Altoona Railroaders, with the third pick. Other highlights included Nashville selection its 8 millionth goaltender.

Round 1

1. Nashville – D Andreas Lilja
2. Winnipeg – G Martin Biron
3. Ice Harbor – F Daniel Winnik
4. Delta – F Anthony Stewart
5. San Francisco – F Tomas Kopecky
6. Great Lakes – F Darren Helm
8. Baltimore – F Brandon Prust
9. Boston – F Nate Thompson
10. Pittsburgh – G Ben Bishop
12. Sterling – D Mike Weaver
13. El Dorado – F Nick Spaling
14. Farmington – D Randy Jones
16. Charleston – F BJ Crombeen
19. Portland – G Rick DiPietro

Round 2

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Chiefs Deal Neuvirth to Banshees

In BOS, CHA, News, Transactions on October 29, 2011 at 7:27 pm

The Charleston Chiefs have solved their brewing goaltending controversy by shipping 23-year-old Michal Neuvirth to the Boston Banshees for veteran winger Mike Knuble and a fourth round pick in 2012.

Neuvirth played 8 games for the Chiefs last season, winning five, but behind Miikka Kiprusoff and Jonathan Quick his chances of playing much were next to nil. Now he’ll be back up Boston workhorse Henrik Lundqvist.

Knuble is a two-time 30-goal scorer about to enter his 13th GWMHL season. He was originally drafted in by Bridgewater in 1998 who later signed as a free agent with the eventual Banshees.

Neuvirth, Michal
Year   Name                       GP    W    L    T   GAA   SAV%   SO
10-11  Charleston Chiefs           8    5    3    0   2.38  .925    3
                  Totals           8    5    3    0   2.38  .925    3

Knuble, Mike
Year   Name                       GP    G    A  PTS  +/-  PIM
98-99  Bridgewater Rangers        53    3    3    6   -2   10
99-00  Bridgewater Rangers        41    6   16   22   -4   14
00-01  Bridgewater Rangers        62    8    9   17  -24   40
01-02  Bridgewater Rangers        42    0    1    1   -6   19
02-03  Kansas City 99'S           29    4    0    4   -5   10
03-04  Kansas City 99'S           62   11   24   35    2   32
04-06  Kansas City 99'S           82   16   16   32  -15   32
06-07  Kansas City 99'S           82   30   21   51    2   70
07-08  Boston Banshees            50   10   15   25   -5   40
08-09  Boston Banshees            58   21   13   34  -18   54
09-10  Boston Banshees            77   31   12   43  -14   70
10-11  Boston Banshees            46   15    8   23   -3   28
                  Totals         684  155  138  293  -92  419

6 Biggest Free Agent Steals Since 2006

In BAL, EDH, GLP, IHS, Special Features, STE on October 26, 2011 at 8:53 am

The Free Agent Draft. Used by most teams to fill out bottom-end depth and injury insurance, it’s also a chance for the occasional Hail Mary – take a wild swing (sorry, “intelligently allocate your scouting resources”) and you never know, you might get something good. Even the worst free agent class, especially at the notoriously shallow mid-season signing period, can yield a diamond in the rough.

Almost every Free Agent Draft has a few consensus top picks – players that every team vies for. Stephen Weiss and Martin Hanzal in 2009. Ryan Malone in 2008. Niklas Backstrom in 2007.

But let’s look past those gimmes, the obvious choices, the first rounders, and peer into the darkest depths of recent Free Agent Drafts in search of some of the biggest heists.

6. D Jan Hejda, Ice Harbor (2nd round mid-season in 2007-2008)

Hejda’s not flashy, but he’s a blueline rock on a rebuilding Ice Harbor team – a guy who’s not bad with the puck and excels defensively. And when your D is as young the Storm’s, you need players like Hejda.

Year   Name                       GP    G    A  PTS  +/-  PIM
07-08  Ice Harbor Storm           39    0   12   12   -8   14
08-09  Ice Harbor Storm           59    1    6    7   -5   50
09-10  Ice Harbor Storm           82    4    9   13   -9   30
10-11  Ice Harbor Storm           62    2    8   10  -10   34
                  Totals         242    7   35   42  -32  128

5. D Dennis Seidenberg, El Dorado (5th round pre-season in 2006-2007)

El Dorado has an impressive up-and-coming defense corps and Seidenberg, a late-late-late-round steal in 2006, is a big part of it. He was taken one pick before Kris freaking Beech, but now he’s one of the Lynx’s leaders in ice time and will be for at least a few more seasons.

Year   Name                       GP    G    A  PTS  +/-  PIM
03-04  Chesapeake Icebreakers     52    5    8   13  -20   12
04-06  Did Not Play
06-07  El Dorado Lynx             64    3   41   44   11   34
07-08  El Dorado Lynx             25    2    3    5    0   12
08-09  El Dorado Lynx             33    0   10   10    0   18
09-10  El Dorado Lynx             41    1   28   29    2    8
10-11  El Dorado Lynx             57    4   24   28   14   37
                  Totals         272   15  114  129    7  121

4. D Mark Streit, Colorado (2nd round pre-season in 2006-2007)

Another defenseman, it’s true, and for good reason – this 2nd round free agent draftee by Colorado (now Baltimore) is his team’s best defenseman by a wide margin, leading all Crab players in ice time and hovering around the 50-point mark for three straight seasons.

Year   Name                       GP    G    A  PTS  +/-  PIM
06-07  Colorado Wildfire          39    4   13   17  -16   36
07-08  Kenora Thistles            76   13   19   32   -2   28
08-09  Kenora Thistles            79   10   38   48   -1   26
09-10  Baltimore Crab             73   16   40   56  -26   72
10-11  Baltimore Crab             82    8   41   49  -31   34
                  Totals         349   51  151  202  -76  196

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Draft Day: The Big Winners

In BAL, GLP, PIT, SCA, Special Features on October 23, 2011 at 3:08 pm

It’ll take a few years until there’s really a “win” or a “loss” from today’s GWMHL Rookie Draft (when we promise to mercilessly mock the losers) and really, every team made some smart choices and picked up intriguing young talent. But some teams stand out for us as having made the most of their picks – or lack thereof. Here’s our top four.

4) South Carolina Fire Ants

The Ants dealt away their final two picks, but they shored up an injury-prone defense. Travis Hamonic (15th overall) could well blossom into a key on this injury-prone defense, someone who could play with Zdeno Chara while Sami Salo is on IR. The acquisition of veteran blueline Filip Kuba also helps in the short run.

3) Baltimore Crab

They traded away one of the game’s best in Evgeni Malkin, but they got what they wanted: picks, picks, picks. Never shy about making a splash, the Crab came away with a lot of long-term talent, including potential impact forward Nino Niederreiter (10th overall) and goalie Jacob Markstrom (30th). Ryan McDonagh (8th) and Michael Sauer (48th) give them an instant defense pairing – and they need one.

2) Pittsburgh Hornets

It seems impossible that a team with no picks in a draft could walk away a winner. But the Hornets made a bold move in sacrificing all their selections and came out of it with their deepest roster in years. Malkin is still young, if injury-prone, and may well end up on Brad Richards’ wing, while both Bryan McCabe and Cal O’Reilly should be able to contribute this season.

1) Great Lakes Pilots

The Pilots were the big winners at the draft lottery, moving up from 6th to 2nd, so it’s no big leap to say that they won the draft, too. Defenseman Nick Leddy will help shore up the back end, but the addition of Taylor Hall finally gives them a left-winger to play with Martin St. Louis. The team still has some big holes to fill up front, but the future’s looking a lot brighter than it was yesterday.

2011 Rookie Draft: Skinner Takes Top Spot

In BAL, GLP, NAS, News, PIT, Transactions on October 23, 2011 at 1:50 pm

The biggest question of the 2011 Rookie Draft was answered in mere moments – Skinner or Hall? The Nashville Knights went with Jeff Skinner, adding to an already deep corps of young forwards. The Great Lakes Pilots would make Taylor Hall the latest addition to the list of high-level draft-day bridesmaids.

Forwards Tyler Seguin (Winnipeg), Jordan Eberle (Ice Harbor), and Derek Stepan (Delta) rounded out the top 5. The first defensemen went sixth – Cam Fowler to the San Francisco Seals. Nashville took the first second goaltender at #21, sparking a run that resulted in netminders drafted in 7 of 20 second rounders.

The Baltimore Crab kicked the day off in a big way, dealing Evgeni Malkin (himself acquired on draft day last year), along with Cal O’Reilly and Bryan McCabe, to the Pittsburgh Hornets in exchange for all four of Pittsburgh’s picks in the draft. It meant that the Crab ended up making 7 selections on the day.

Other minor trades included Ice Harbor dealing its 3rd and 4th rounders to Denver for a 3rd rounder in 2012, and the Night Train shipping blueliner Filip Kuba to South Carolina for a 3rd and 4th.

Complete 2011 Rookie Draft Results

Round 1

1. Nashville F Jeff Skinner
2. Great Lakes F Taylor Hall
3. Winnipeg F Tyler Seguin
4. Ice Harbor F Jordan Eberle
5. Delta F Derek Stepan
6. San Francisco D Cam Fowler
7. Vancouver D Oliver Ekman-Larsson
8. Baltimore D Ryan McDonagh
9. Boston F Marcus Johansson
10. Baltimore (from Pittsburgh) F Nino Niederreiter
11. Denver D Kevin Shattenkirk
12. Sterling F Magnus Paajarvi
13. El Dorado F Alexander Burmistrov
14. Farmington F Cody Hodgson
15. South Carolina D Travis Hamonic
16. Charleston F Luke Adam
17. Saint Louis F Jacob Josefson
18. West Virginia F Nick Palmieri
19. Portland G James Reimer
20. Salem D Jonathon Blum

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The 4 Most Hilarious Top-5 Picks of All Time

In SAL, SCA, Special Features, VAN on August 22, 2011 at 2:43 pm

Hindsight is nature’s best talent scout.

Sure, some consensus picks fail to live up to expectations. Others have careers derailed by injuries. But not everyone can turn to those excuses when they look back at their wacky, off-the-board picks. Today we look at four spectacular examples of teams who took a flyer on a player in a coveted top-five slot… and lost in a way that leaves you shaking your head.

4. Kristian Huselius, drafted 3rd overall by Vancouver, 2002

Kristian Huselius is still playing and still contributing offense. As a matter of fact, he broke the 100-point barrier in ’07-’08 – though not for the team who drafted him – and is enjoyed a strong 2011 postseason with Salem, with 20 points in 16 games.

But Huselius stands out as a hilarious draft pick because of the company he kept in his draft class. In 2002, the Vancouver Sea Otters had the third overall pick. Drafted immediately before their turn at the podium? Dany Heatley and Ilya Kovalchuk. At 4th? Pavel Datsyuk. The city of Vancouver would like that one back.

Year   Name                       GP    G    A  PTS  +/-  PIM
02-03  Vancouver Sea Otters       79   21   14   35  -10   28
03-04  Vancouver Sea Otters       78   28   21   49    7   20
04-06  Vancouver Sea Otters       44    1    2    3   -4   18
04-06  Montreal Smashers           9    1    1    2   -3    0
06-07  Salem Wannbees             78   22   20   42  -12   26
07-08  Salem Wannabees            81   50   51  101   63   24
08-09  Salem Wannabees            80   20   17   37    0   14
09-10  Salem Wannabees            37    8   12   20    7   18
10-11  Salem Wannabees            68   17   33   50   14   38
                  Totals         554  168  171  339   62  186

3. Vladimir Malakhov, drafted 4th overall by New York Islanders, 1993

Like Huselius, Vladimir Malakhov had a few years as a solid player, but he never came close to the career-high 64 points he racked up in his rookie season. His career numbers are pretty good… for a second rounder.

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The GWMHL Wants You!

In BOS, News, PWH, SAL, WIN on August 17, 2011 at 12:55 pm

The Gump Worsley Memorial Hockey League is looking to fill some ownership vacancies as we head into the 2011-2012 regular season! Read on to find out more…

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