Barrie Colts 2023-24 Off-Season Thread (Part One)

[Bra Wavers]

Beau Akey out for the year…..sad for him and for Barrie

 

[MeafAttack]

Beau Akey out for the year…..sad for him and for Barrie

Really sucks for young Beau and his development. Shoulder surgery has been scheduled and he should be ready for the start of next season. His teammates will have to try and fill the void. Aitchesan will probably see added responsibility and I think he is ready for the challenge.

 

[LDN]

What happened to good ol boy Devin/Colin?

 

[MeafAttack]

What happened to good ol boy Devin/Colin?

His parents cut off his internet ...lol

 

[Chawbadoo07]

Maybe Devin's mom could cut off Marty from being the Head Coach too

 

[I Loveallsports]

This OHL draft pick was raised by a community. How hockey’s diversity programs gave him a chance to succeed

Drafted by the OHL’s Barrie Colts in the first round, Shamar Moses is proof that some hockey diversity programs, in Toronto and beyond, are working.

www.thestar.com

 

[MeafAttack]

Maybe Devin's mom could cut off Marty from being the Head Coach too

Why ?, what has Marty done this year that doesn't suit you. Young teams make mistakes and the defence is banged up and short on experience. Frasca has missed games due to camp and injuries. Not sure what you expect him to do.

 

[Chawbadoo07]

How about making players better? How about teaching them to do little things right? Not expecting this team to do much this year but would like to see players improve and be able to play the game properly. It doesn't matter what year or players on Martys team they are always a tire fire in their own end and have to be bailed out by goaltenders. Would love to see a change in philosophy in this organization

 

[MeafAttack]

With Akey out for the year and Frasca not due back till after Xmas the Colts really should be concentrating on moving players to regain assets for next season.
I think teams would be really interested in Punnett as an upgrade on a OA spot as well as shopping 1st round pick Sale in an exchange with somebody needing an upgrade on an import position.
It appears Thornton will not be sent back by Arizona so West will finish his career out with the Colts.
A very young team that will only benefit from the youngsters getting ice time.
Some may say we're only X games into the season; however, you had better have an idea of what direction the team is going prior to the holiday break and this team is going nowhere fast.

 

[mark hammill]

They have a young guy that was drafted and is playing with Stayner Siskin. Cole Dubowsky, big tough 16 year old, needs a shot at, the O, he’s ready and is what the Colts need with Fresca out, and Punnett an OA. Bring him up now ,,,

 

[HockeyPops]

ok dad

 

[mark hammill]

Ok dad— really ? What’s your best suggestion Pops ?

 

[HockeyPops]

My best suggestion does not involve calling up a 16 year old 7th rounder on an already young team. The team is young. They need experience. There is no silver bullet that is going to suddenly make the team a contender. Give them time. Swap out a few graduating players for assets as Meaf Attack suggests.

You create a new account and your first post is pushing a kid out of left field. Big red flag. He will get his chance. At training camp next fall.

 

[mark hammill]

“Pushing” a kid is not what I did it was a suggestion. There are 4 20 yr olds, 4. 19 year olds and 5 18 year olds on that Team as it stands. bringing up a kid at 16 if he can hang, gives the Team 4 years . That is my point, or bring in another 19 year old and continue to be in the spot you’re in now Year after year.
Face the music and actually rebuild, you’ll have something to build on.

 

[HockeyPops]

Alright, let's discuss then. It's possible Barrie might need to bring in a body over the world junior stretch with Sale gone for Czechia. In your most recent game in the Soo on Saturday, here were your scratches:

Out of the Barrie lineup tonight are Anson Thornton, Jacob Frasca (injury), Justin Handsor, Bode Stewart (injury), and Beau Akey (injury)

If we are suggesting that Thornton and Akey will be unavailable the rest of the season, then that leaves 3 extra bodies on your full roster (2 currently injured), and when Sale leaves you will have no extra healthy bodies until Akey or Stewart return. You might be able to get through it, or you might need a call up.

Dubowsky is an option to call in as an affiliate, but there are quite a few other options that were drafted higher than him, most of which are doing just fine this season in their various leagues and would warrant a call up before Dubowsky.
2023 3rd - Mason Goodfellow (C)
2023 4th - Sam Black (LW)
2023 5th - Johnathan Cirone (LW)
2023 5th - Teague Vader (LD)
2023 6th - Peter Legostaev (C)
2023 6th - Ethan Armstrong (RD)
2023 7th - Cole Dubowsky (LW)

Now, you say there are 4 x 20 year olds. But Thornton doesn't really count if he isn't going to be sent back. So their roster composition is as follows for the rest of the season:
Age / #
20 - 3 (no Thornton)
19 - 4
18 - 5 (no Akey)
17 - 8
16 - 3

Again, it's a very young team. But it has a strong '05 group. This IMO should be the age that is targetted if possible. Might be able to get an '05 defenseman back for Punnett in lieu of picks.

Also, before calling up anyone else, let's consider the roster turnover for next year. Barrie will only lose 4 players off this roster to graduation (assuming 3 of their '04s return as OAs). You have to assume Barrie will add their top two '08s drafted plus an import to next year's roster. So there are only a couple of spots available for all these 2023 and 2024 draft picks next year. If I were the GM, I would want to be sure any player I sign is going to be a part of the team long term.

So, if we are having an unbiased discussion about what the Colts should do, should we not discuss all of these things?

 

[dirty12]

Can take it further to state the OA goalie with the colts is the back-up and OA forward Frasca has not played for well over a month, I think.

The Colts are probably icing one of the youngest line-ups.
The team and 16 yr old player can benefit from developing in jr, and the team be better off if the 18 yr old D develops too.

 

[mark hammill]

Absolutely we should discuss all those things, and the most important one in my opinion is to get the longest and best use of any of these guys which means signing them early in order to get them for the longest possible time.
The other thing we need to discuss is the role any individual will/ can play to assist the Team. To do that, we need to look at the individual attributes each individual brings to the table, to look at their style of play and what the Teams needs are in relation to that particular style of play. It could be the Teams top priority is not to sign a very Physical aggressive player, but to sign one with more finesse or any other attribute the Team may be short on. Implementing that protocol probably changes the significance you would place on the individuals position in the draft. Suppose you felt you really need a strong physically shressive player and he’s your 5th round pick, your other choice is a 4th round pick but he’s not at all physically aggressive, all other aspects are equal, who is Your pick ?
Suppose the situation was that your Franchise was brand new and for whatever reason you could only sign 16 and 17 year olds. What would that Team look like in 3 years when the 17 year olds were now overagers and they had all been playing together for 3 years ?
That’s all I’m saying Pops, the longer you can hold that Team together, practicing, playing and virtually living together the better they should perform as a Team. So bite bullet, let the clock start ticking, and eliminate and add to the Team as required.

 

[dirty12]

Absolutely we should discuss all those things, and the most important one in my opinion is to get the longest and best use of any of these guys which means signing them early in order to get them for the longest possible time.
The other thing we need to discuss is the role any individual will/ can play to assist the Team. To do that, we need to look at the individual attributes each individual brings to the table, to look at their style of play and what the Teams needs are in relation to that particular style of play. It could be the Teams top priority is not to sign a very Physical aggressive player, but to sign one with more finesse or any other attribute the Team may be short on. Implementing that protocol probably changes the significance you would place on the individuals position in the draft. Suppose you felt you really need a strong physically shressive player and he’s your 5th round pick, your other choice is a 4th round pick but he’s not at all physically aggressive, all other aspects are equal, who is Your pick ?
Suppose the situation was that your Franchise was brand new and for whatever reason you could only sign 16 and 17 year olds. What would that Team look like in 3 years when the 17 year olds were now overagers and they had all been playing together for 3 years ?
That’s all I’m saying Pops, the longer you can hold that Team together, practicing, playing and virtually living together the better they should perform as a Team. So bite bullet, let the clock start ticking, and eliminate and add to the Team as required.

Not sign young aggressive, physical player? Beaudoin, Moses, Lowe, Aitcheson, …

Starting the clock pre-maturely with 16 yr olds results in unnecessary injuries that does no good for development.
I don’t know what you’ve been watching, but it seems to me a few young players in limited ice time develop better surrounded by good vets. London & NB develop young players by giving them time when they are ready.

It is important to remember that there was a draft last year too, and the year before that; 18 yr olds have 2-3 years left to develop in the league compared to 4-5 years for the 16 yr old.

 

[mark hammill]

I agree, the most important thing here is to ensure the kid is ready to be called up, bringing him up too early hurts everyone.
I was not talking About any of the players currently on the Team that you mention, the situation(s) I mention are hypothetical situations that lay out the reasons you are looking for a player or players with specific talents. The longest You can have a player on your Team is approx. four years, and of course there is a huge benefit if you can mentor each one of them with older more experienced players. In Barrie’s case it appears to me that in the next two seasons they are going to lose at least eight players due to the age limit. So again, you can replace them with 18 & 19 year olds and be in the same situation of losing four of them every year, I’m not convinced that is the way to go. I’d be inclined to take the inexperienced hit early and have two or three years of a Team growing together in experience?

 

[HockeyPops]

Even Mississauga's team last year, which was super young, had 13 players aged 18+ on the final roster. The Colts right now have 12. Can you really expect them to continue to get younger than they already are?

 

[dirty12]

Not sign young aggressive, physical player? Beaudoin, Moses, Lowe, Aitcheson, …

Starting the clock pre-maturely with 16 yr olds results in unnecessary injuries that does no good for development.
I don’t know what you’ve been watching, but it seems to me a few young players in limited ice time develop better surrounded by good vets. London & NB develop young players by giving them time when they are ready.

I agree, the most important thing here is to ensure the kid is ready to be called up, bringing him up too early hurts everyone.
I was not talking About any of the players currently on the Team that you mention, the situation(s) I mention are hypothetical situations that lay out the reasons you are looking for a player or players with specific talents. The longest You can have a player on your Team is approx. four years, and of course there is a huge benefit if you can mentor each one of them with older more experienced players. In Barrie’s case it appears to me that in the next two seasons they are going to lose at least eight players due to the age limit. So again, you can replace them with 18 & 19 year olds and be in the same situation of losing four of them every year, I’m not convinced that is the way to go. I’d be inclined to take the inexperienced hit early and have two or three years of a Team growing together in experience?

In this case, it is definitely the way to go imo. The colts are taking the hit with a younger roster this season as it is. The colts should be contending next season and/or season after that.

 

[mark hammill]

If I agree with you that they are taking a hit with a very young Team then I’d tear off the band-aid and clean house now, why wait? There are 4 more OAers coming right behind the 4 they have now! As much as nobody likes to hear this, it’s all about money. Start next year with no OAers.!

 

[dirty12]

If I agree with you that they are taking a hit with a very young Team then I’d tear off the band-aid and clean house now, why wait? There are 4 more OAers coming right behind the 4 they have now! As much as nobody likes to hear this, it’s all about money. Start next year with no OAers.!

It would be novel, yet dumb to go with no OAs and less than a handful of solid 19 yr olds if the team has them.

It’s possible that Punnett (OA) & Sale (18) get moved out by the deadline, and then the fourth and final 16 yr old allowed joins the team ROS, probably won’t be Dubowsky though.

 

[mark hammill]

OK, With Punnet, Sale, Fresca, and Akey gone, what 16 year old gets called up and what is that decision based on ? What will the Team be lacking with those individuals gone, other than experience.

 

[dirty12]

OK, With Punnet, Sale, Fresca, and Akey gone, what 16 year old gets called up and what is that decision based on ? What will the Team be lacking with those individuals gone, other than experience.

Can only have first two selected plus any two other ‘23 drafted play 10 games on A cards. Williamson can choose one more in addition to Moses, Newton, and Handsor. It will most certainly be the one Williamson believes is most ready. I’ll guess it will a D or RW in jrA or B before a player in jrC.
Though it is very possible the Colts are returned an import and/or OA in trades for theirs. That would be preferable to another 16 yr old I think. The colts are getting plenty of experience losing as it is. I’m not sure making the team significantly weaker by inserting a below replacement level 16 yr old does anyone any good.