NJ is paying for non producing guys they have signed here. Guess they can't see wasting any more even though it was their lack of concern when they were signed in the first place:
Foote - $825K
DeSimone - $775K
Justin Dowling - $500K
Bowers - $225K
Willman - $225K
Halonen - $175K
Schmelzer - $275K
Hardman - $350K
Colton White - $250K
Beckman - $125K
Hatakka - $775K as long as he's in NJ? $125K when reassigned.
Daws - $350K
Laberge - $120K
total - $3,976,000
The other 10 are on NHL 2-ways and making between $70K and $85K.
That brings the AHL $$$ paid for the lower half of 2-ways $905K.
$3,976,000
+905K
total $4,881,000 paid in salaries to the Utica Comets players on NJ contracts.
That's not exactly a huge amount of money for an actual hockey team in the 3rd best league in the world. Some have been saying the 2nd best overall. They use the number of guys beyond the top draft picks who can't make it in the NHL and more who also can't make in the AHL. Those are the top young players from those leagues. I'm not going to bicker over it, but the point is the AHL is a talented league containing many ex-NHL and future NHL players, some of whom will be stars.
Many NHL franchises recognize this fact and construct very competitive farms with their own prospects and those from other teams they have acquired through trades. They pick up others who have been released from their contracts due to there being no room and they become real possibilities for their new clubs. There are many veteran players who have worn out their titles as prospects, but are very good players to build a team of prospects around, while also serving as adequate depth players for the parent team.
Fitz and other NJ GMs have a history of shortchanging the farm after the first season of an affiliation. Utica had a very good team in the 21-22 season,but were missing proven top AHL centers. The center issue has never even been addressed. In fact, since the prospect pool shrunk it was obvious they felt no need to spend $$$ on proven AHL veteran talent and the good players that were here sufferdd for it and yet, minus those top players the team fought tooth and nail to qualify for the playoffs and went out in the 1st round.
Last seaon they signed even lower level talent and in spite of a continual output of everything they had, they finished out of the playoffs.
This season, as it was obvious, the forward prospect pool is non existent, the effort to provide anything more than what could be scraped up for the least amount of finacial output has left DIiNeen (who I am not convinced is all that anyways) a group of forwards that don't have what it takes to win games in this league. When NJ is hurting, good luck to them bringing in any of these forwards to make any kind of impact in the NJ lineup. Fitting a guy onto a line of competent NHL players, they may keep their head above water, but have already proven they are not NHL players. It can only be hoped they will not hurt the team.
DiNeen has already shown he has no faith in some of what he has here. Twice in the last 5 games he has gone with 7 D and 11 forwards for 2 reasons. 1, he didn't carry enough depth to cover a single missing forward while away from home because he doen't believe there is anyone talented enough in the depth pool that was provided to him in the first place. He came into the season knowing that he had 14 forwards that would start out the season and 3 of them were suspect at having enough talent to make a difference: Wendt, Malone, Filmon. He was missing Beckman, Gambardella, and Parent with preseason issues who would have replaced the 3 aforementioned.
Beckman finally became game ready and was sent down on 10/21, the same day as Casey, but when the Comets took the ice in Laval on 10/25 only Casey was there. Apparently counting on Beckman, Wendt was sent to Adirondack on 10/23. The Comets played with 11 forwards and 7 D in Laval.
In that Laval game the Comets #4 center, Filip Engaras was injured in a bad crash into the end boards. God knows how long he'll be out. The irony here is that with decnt AHL level centers Schmelzer would be the Comets #4 and Engaras would be in Adirondack.
On 10/26 back in Utica, Beckman was in the lineup. Malone who had been playing RW when in the lineup was now the #4 center.
The Comets would next play back in Laval on 10/30, but before that would happen Dowling was recalled by the Devils and Utica recalled Wendt. Wendt did nothing to account for the loss of their best center. That left them with 3 centers including Malone who was in at #4 for Engaras. Nathan Legare, the energy line RW, was stapled into the middle as #3 while Bowers and Schmelzer would be tossups for #s1 and 2.
Wendt would play RW on the energy line now centered by Malone which left only Laberge as an original member. The other 2 were not adequate replacements.
On 10/31 Tag Bertuzzi was reaclled from Adirondack. On the next night, 11/1 vs the Rochester Americans, he played LW on the "energy line" still centered by Malone with Laberge now moved to his offside RW so Bertuzzi could play his natural LW. The Comets were obliterated by the Rochester Americans 8-1 and heard some boos at the end of period 2. They heard a chorus of boos on several occasions during the 6 goal explosion by the Amerks in period 3 and as they left the ice the chorus was louder from the few patrons who hadn't yet left the building.
Last night on 11/2, the Rochester Americans were again the opponent back in the Utica Aud for the 2nd of a rare back to back weekend duel in the same building between the 2 foes located a mere 2 hours away. DiNeen had seen enoguh of trying to cable together a lineup of guys who further weakened the promise the lowly Comets were already playing with. Filmon and Wendt were scratched and the Comets played with 11 forwards and 7 D.
The Comets 7 D consisted of White and Casey, Misyul and DeSimone, and Vilen, MacKinnon, and Welenski who rotated in and out and played a good game. The rest of the Comets reached down deep, found their wounded pride, and put on their best performance of the season. It was a performance thast provided them with their 1st taste of what this city's hockey fans have always provided to a team that plays their hearts out, win or lose. They fell behind 1-0 late in the first in a period that they outshot the Amerks 6-4 in a very tight checking contest on both ends of the ice. The goal came on the Amerks 2nd shot of the period at 6:46.
The Comets tied it up with a PPG by Nolan Foote at 6:30 of the 2nd.
The tough contest tilted in he Amerk's favor as they took the lead at 11:28 of the 3rd. Instead of watching the Comets wilt as trhey had in every other game this eason when a team scored on them when they were trying to come back, they dug down deeper and kept pushing. At 18:05 Poulter scrambled to the bench. With 6 attackers on the ice, Casey tied it up with his 1st AHL goal.
The 3rd ended with the score knotted at 2.
THE COMETS HAD EARNED THEIR FIRST POINT OF THE SEASON IN GAME #9!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Both teams had big chances in the OT, but both keepers kept their respective teams in the hunt, but Poulter was much busier and held the fort. The Comets failed to capitalize on a PP for the last 1:28 of the OT.
Then came the Shootout. Utica has been abysmal in this aberration of a hockey game. You only have to watch the Comets futility at breakaways in game after game to recognize the reason for their terrible results in shootouts. Part of it has to be on DiNeen when you see his selection of players to try their tricks of the trade.
Konsta Helenius went 1st for the Amerks and Poulter stopped him.
DiNeen started out with Beckman. He's been a high scoring AHL forward with the Iowa Wild. Why not see what he's got. The keeper made a semi-split glove stop on a mid-level shot. If he goes high, he scores, but he didn't get it up.
Mason Jobst scored for the Amerks on their 2nd try. 1-0 Rochester
Nolan Foote went high after a deke and scored. 1-1
Isak Rosen went next for the Amerks and Poulter came up big.
Now, the DiNeen head scratching. For the win he chose 4th line foerchecking, back checking, banger Sam Laberge. He outdeked himself and he and the keeper were lying face to face and the puck was stopped by Houser.
4th try for the Amerks Vsevold Komarov. He was the guy Legare pummeled late in Friday's game. Time for some revenge? He got his as he scored. 2-1 Amerks.
To try and stay alive DiNeen went with another of the regular energy line, Legare, Could he get inside Komarov's head again?
Nope. Houser with the save and the Comets end up with their 1st point, albeit on the losing end of a shootout.
Final Score:
Rochester 3 Utica 2 - Shootout
Forwards:
(34) Beckman (26) Schmelzer (25) Foote
(48) Bertuzzi (11) Legare (24) Halonen
(20) Willman (15) Bowers (61) Stillman
(79) Laberge (13) Malone (?) Rotation fowards
(
D-Pairs:
(93) Misyul (57) DeSimone
(6) White (22) Casey
(83) Vilen (3) MacKinnon (32) Welinski
Goal - (1) Poulter
SOG:
ROC - 4 8 7 5 = 27
UTC - 6 14 10 2 = 30
Foote (3) from Willman(2) and Schmelzer (1) PPG
Casey (1) from Vilen (1) and Halonen (2)
Poulter
2 GA/ 26 SA/ 24 Saves
The Comets have now lost 9 sraight since the season opener without a victory.
O for October.
O for the 1st 2 games in November.
Next up, Cleveland Monsters in Utica next Friday, Nov. 8.
