Mighty Makar
I hate this fu*ken team
- May 24, 2016
- 15,220
- 16,861
Pre-Game Talk: 2023/24 Training Camp
- Thread starter Bill Peckerskull
- Start date
UncleRisto
Not Great, Bob!
If Curtis Lazar is injured I'm going to freak.
- Jul 25, 2006
- 33,398
- 24,223
Tatar took a shot to his hand and was in pain for a while, hopefully it’s just a bruise, but with the Avs injury luck, it’s probably broken
MonsterMack
He did the Mack, He did the monster Mack
I'm legit stoked we have Drouin. He doesn't have to be the dude here, he's just going to feed our dudes. Couldn't care less that he isn't a two way player
Alex Jones
BIG BOWL 'A CHILI!!
GoNordiquesGo
Registered User
UncleRisto
Not Great, Bob!
henchman21
Mr. Meeseeks
- Feb 24, 2012
- 67,085
- 53,551
How does every conversation on these boards always lead back to ass?
Avsboy
Registered User
- Dec 12, 2006
- 32,246
- 16,658
Put some googly eyes on her tits and watch them bounce around. They call it the all seeing eye @CobraAcesS
Gruyeriev
Shut your five hole
- Apr 14, 2021
- 4,573
- 4,680
Foppa2118
Registered User
- Oct 3, 2003
- 52,661
- 32,031
My thoughts on the first couple pre-season games:
- I liked a lot of the guys these first two games. Wasn’t expecting much, but some looked like they could make some decent callup options. Lots of hunger to stand out, good skating, and seemed to do ok moving the puck the way Bednar wants.
- Kozun stood out the most to me among the non NHLers in the first game. Some sneaky skill, to go along with some elusive skating. Good combo to fit into Bednar’s system, but need to see his size tested against bigger NHL teams.
- Smallman stood out to me in the second game. Good skater, physical presence, good instincts, good passing. Reminds me a bit of a former #36 in Steve Moore. Needs to keep it up, but could find himself playing an NAK type role as a callup if he does.
- Like the way Kiviranta looked too. Skates well, handles the puck well, looks to have a solid all around game. Could be an Anti Laaksonen type of 4th liner that plays well defensively, but also has decent skating and puck skills. Interested to see how he looks the rest of pre-season.
- Tufte looked solid for a big guy too. Usually guys his size stand out for being bad. But he stood out by going to the front of the net and battling and having decent instincts. I think he’ll get some games this year. Haven’t really seen his skating tested yet though, so I’m curious about this. Liked that he stepped in with Merrill when he went after a smaller forward in front of the net for the second shift in a row, and after Minny had been taking some liberties in the period. Then Tufte finished a couple hard checks on the next shift.
- Meyers looked ok. Better as the game went on. Still need to see more from him though. More tenacity around the net. Needs to play bigger than his size, because while he has a little puck skill, it’s not enough to keep him in the NHL alone. So far he’s played at about what his size is.
- Hanzel looked good for a 6th rounder. Showed some cerebral plays, but also the kind of game that you need to see duplicated, to tell whether he just plays well in the pre-season, or plays well in the NHL. Need to see him against bigger NHLers. Kind of just allowed Kolesar to have the perfect screen standing in front of Georgiev for their goal.
- Jedlicka looks like a heck of a pick in the 7th round too. Really good skill and in a 6’2” body that can skate and handle the puck, he’s got a lot that most late round picks don’t have. Didn’t look out of place at all in his first NHL game. Gonna be interesting watching how he develops.
- Ahcan showed some real good offensive instincts. Didn’t look too bad defensively either though he needs to be tested more. Low center of gravity too and looked strong for 5’8”, so his size may not be as big an issue. If he can break into the NHL on any team it might be the Avs. Interested how he looks the rest of pre-season.
- OO looked ok, but he still needs to show more IMO. He looked big and at times fast so he’s got all the tools. Nice goal and had a couple other nice shots, but outside of his shot, he’s still not much of a presence. So he either needs to find a way to contribute more when he’s not scoring, or keep scoring ala Burakovsky. The latter option is hard to do, especially at the NHL level.
- Malinski looked hesitant to me. I don’t think it’s just nerves. Looks more like he’s not used to the pace. Which I guess is understandable since he's only played AHL pro hockey so far. Not sure he's even been to an NHL camp. I thought he could make the team, but he needs to find some more confidence to play his game. More on his toes and a bit quicker loose puck anticipation. If not he’s probably gonna spend the first half of the season in the AHL at least.
- This Wood-Colton-Tatar 3rd line could be among the best in the league. And they look to have some chemistry already. I’ve seen some concern about who’s gonna pass on that line, but they don’t need a playmaker. First of all, the Avs system is setup to manufacture scoring chances without playmakers. More importantly though, they’re a meat and potatoes forechecking line with Wood and Colton especially. Arguably the best 3rd line the Avs ever had with the Kono-Gratton-Barnaby was a meat and potatoes forechecking line too. It works because they all know how each other play, so they just forecheck hard, cycle, and someone will eventually get open either in the slot or the front of the net. Think we’ll see that a lot this year.
- I liked a lot of the guys these first two games. Wasn’t expecting much, but some looked like they could make some decent callup options. Lots of hunger to stand out, good skating, and seemed to do ok moving the puck the way Bednar wants.
- Kozun stood out the most to me among the non NHLers in the first game. Some sneaky skill, to go along with some elusive skating. Good combo to fit into Bednar’s system, but need to see his size tested against bigger NHL teams.
- Smallman stood out to me in the second game. Good skater, physical presence, good instincts, good passing. Reminds me a bit of a former #36 in Steve Moore. Needs to keep it up, but could find himself playing an NAK type role as a callup if he does.
- Like the way Kiviranta looked too. Skates well, handles the puck well, looks to have a solid all around game. Could be an Anti Laaksonen type of 4th liner that plays well defensively, but also has decent skating and puck skills. Interested to see how he looks the rest of pre-season.
- Tufte looked solid for a big guy too. Usually guys his size stand out for being bad. But he stood out by going to the front of the net and battling and having decent instincts. I think he’ll get some games this year. Haven’t really seen his skating tested yet though, so I’m curious about this. Liked that he stepped in with Merrill when he went after a smaller forward in front of the net for the second shift in a row, and after Minny had been taking some liberties in the period. Then Tufte finished a couple hard checks on the next shift.
- Meyers looked ok. Better as the game went on. Still need to see more from him though. More tenacity around the net. Needs to play bigger than his size, because while he has a little puck skill, it’s not enough to keep him in the NHL alone. So far he’s played at about what his size is.
- Hanzel looked good for a 6th rounder. Showed some cerebral plays, but also the kind of game that you need to see duplicated, to tell whether he just plays well in the pre-season, or plays well in the NHL. Need to see him against bigger NHLers. Kind of just allowed Kolesar to have the perfect screen standing in front of Georgiev for their goal.
- Jedlicka looks like a heck of a pick in the 7th round too. Really good skill and in a 6’2” body that can skate and handle the puck, he’s got a lot that most late round picks don’t have. Didn’t look out of place at all in his first NHL game. Gonna be interesting watching how he develops.
- Ahcan showed some real good offensive instincts. Didn’t look too bad defensively either though he needs to be tested more. Low center of gravity too and looked strong for 5’8”, so his size may not be as big an issue. If he can break into the NHL on any team it might be the Avs. Interested how he looks the rest of pre-season.
- OO looked ok, but he still needs to show more IMO. He looked big and at times fast so he’s got all the tools. Nice goal and had a couple other nice shots, but outside of his shot, he’s still not much of a presence. So he either needs to find a way to contribute more when he’s not scoring, or keep scoring ala Burakovsky. The latter option is hard to do, especially at the NHL level.
- Malinski looked hesitant to me. I don’t think it’s just nerves. Looks more like he’s not used to the pace. Which I guess is understandable since he's only played AHL pro hockey so far. Not sure he's even been to an NHL camp. I thought he could make the team, but he needs to find some more confidence to play his game. More on his toes and a bit quicker loose puck anticipation. If not he’s probably gonna spend the first half of the season in the AHL at least.
- This Wood-Colton-Tatar 3rd line could be among the best in the league. And they look to have some chemistry already. I’ve seen some concern about who’s gonna pass on that line, but they don’t need a playmaker. First of all, the Avs system is setup to manufacture scoring chances without playmakers. More importantly though, they’re a meat and potatoes forechecking line with Wood and Colton especially. Arguably the best 3rd line the Avs ever had with the Kono-Gratton-Barnaby was a meat and potatoes forechecking line too. It works because they all know how each other play, so they just forecheck hard, cycle, and someone will eventually get open either in the slot or the front of the net. Think we’ll see that a lot this year.
Bill Peckerskull
Fargin' Icehole
Richard Doll
Registered User
Wouldn't shock me if Tufte beats out Myers for 4C, I think Bednar really likes his size, and having the option to use him in certain situations throughout the game might be enticing for him.
Foppa2118
Registered User
- Oct 3, 2003
- 52,661
- 32,031
This is a bummer for Pavel.
I really thought he was the leading candidate for the 4C position. He looked great in the pre camp skates I saw, and hearing that Bednar liked Tufte's size and faceoff ability, it only reinforces that Pavel probably would have made it.
Now he's got to work his way through an injury and then back into the coaches good graces during the season, without Bednar seeing him up close in camp/pre-season.
Bill Peckerskull
Fargin' Icehole
UncleRisto
Not Great, Bob!
- Apr 25, 2006
- 52,112
- 56,327
I guess we've found our big stay at home RHD for the PK.
UncleRisto
Not Great, Bob!
He really should cut back his shifts at USCIS and focus on the hockey.
Bill Peckerskull
Fargin' Icehole
Avalanche Camp Update: Tatar Missing, Clurman Making Moves, Bednar On Kovalenko
On Tuesday, we got a pretty clear idea of who might legitimately be in the running for a roster spot with the Colorado Avalanche on opening night. That’s good news for Nate Clurman. Here are the lines that took the ice in group one for practice. As you can tell, it’s pretty obvious these are […]
coloradohockeynow.com
- Jul 25, 2006
- 33,398
- 24,223
So he’s away for immigration business with broken hand?
henchman21
Mr. Meeseeks
- Feb 24, 2012
- 67,085
- 53,551
I'd expect people to hate it if he was the extra D, but Clurman has flashed 2 camps in a row now. He really settled nicely into a top 4 AHL role last year. Plays a steady game, has size, can skate, and can play physical... also about as good of kid as you can expect. He's also completely unafraid to just fire the puck from the point. The shot isn't amazing, but he's like a Carolina defensemen at times. 
I'm rooting for the kid. He's not an impact sort of guy, but would be awesome to see him get NHL games.
I'm rooting for the kid. He's not an impact sort of guy, but would be awesome to see him get NHL games.
Richard88
John 3:16
- Jun 29, 2019
- 19,404
- 21,152
If Hanzel deserves to be signed to play in the pro's, how do you go about making room?
The AHL blue line is looking pretty crowded already.
Toews - Makar
Byram - Manson
Girard - JJ
Hunt
Schume - Malinski
Ahcan - Clurman
Middleton - Fairbrother
Aamodt
The AHL blue line is looking pretty crowded already.
Toews - Makar
Byram - Manson
Girard - JJ
Hunt
Schume - Malinski
Ahcan - Clurman
Middleton - Fairbrother
Aamodt
The 4C favorite is Olofsson, IMO.
