AnotherDimwit
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Beyond deserving. Can’t wait to see him in a Wings uni down the road.
Flint Firebirds 2022-23 Off-Season Thread
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What would be nice is if they announced a couple acquisitions. I like Dent the coach but Dent the GM has far from impressed me up to this point. He’s watched multiple players come off the board and go to competitors in the Conference and all the rumors surrounding the remaining major players have them going to other teams. If he thinks this club is good enough as is or with one mediocre acquisition to make it to the Finals he’s a fool. Period. They’re not even close and if he doesn’t add those pieces and they fall in the 1st, 2nd or Conf Finals again it’s a HUGE waste of two years making no moves or the wrong moves. Then they’re looking at a 2-3 year rebuild. You can’t waste those opportunities in this league. Look at Hamilton. Been a franchise the same amount of time as Flint. Spend EVERYthing to buy as much as possible then sell everything off to rebuild. Two….TWO Championships already. Burnett is Guelph? Same thing. Championship banner. He cannot possibly be that naive. If his plan is next year or the year after? You trade Lombardi, Deline, and Kuzmin and Piercey if you can. This mediocrity is getting frustrating.
Flint has 2 cards left to trade, so they won't be able to trade anyone of value.
Flint has the roster depth and picks to make a couple of significant moves. If Dent did not acquire a player like Harrison or Savard by the deadline, I don’t think it would be because he didn’t try. I think it would only be because another team was willing to part with the equivalent of K.Pitre or Bertucci and/or the selling team pivoted to another buyer for the same value Dent would offer a little bit out of spite because Dent would not part with those two players.
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I think he’s already blown it to be honest. I said as much in the off-season when he acquired Cranley. I just figured there would be a goalie available to rectify the situation and there’s not. People can point to Cranley’s numbers all they want but the issue is he always lets in the back breaking goal at the wrong time. Like last night. It’s a 4-3 Flint lead late, they’re in control and looking good and a wrister that should be an easy routine save sneaks through his pads. 4-4 now and the game momentum shifts. That’s EVERY night. He’ll make 5 highlight reel saves and just get beat on an easy save at a critical time. I wouldn’t mind another D added either. If they got Del Mastro or Hache and made Stojkov the 7D? I’d have no worries about the D and and injury wouldn’t sink them. Maybe Should have kept Petrovski? They need two guys up front too. One Jacob Frasca will not get it done. Honestly? He dropped the ball on Arcuri and Pastujov. Didn’t get a great return for Othmann. If he was that big of an issue he should have been moved earlier. Brennan WAS one of the few guys in the league that was a 3 2nd 2/3 3rds and a 16yo type return player. Right now? Go try for Harrison and Winterton or DellBellBulluz or Wright. If you can’t for sure pull TWO of those? Sell. Seriously. I’m in the sell camp at this point. This isn’t the group as is. They’re a 5-6 seed and possibly a 1st round exit. Probsbly a 2nd round exit. You don’t buy for that. You sell.
Yup, sell what you can. Try and retool for a run next year. Kressler, Kuzmin, and Lombardi won't be back. So take what you can get. Not sure the OA's would be major upgrades for anyone.
Deline would be. He could have got a good return for Piercey before he went on his annual zero points for 15 games streak. It’s highly unlikely Kressler is back but I wouldn’t call it impossible. He’s not gonna sell though. He’ll waste picks adding one mediocre piece and get bounced in the 1st or 2nd round. I know he really got them going late last year and primed for the playoffs and they performed but that’s highly unlikely to happen again. The league is back to normal. Last year was not normal.
I like him as a coach. I think he’s failed so far as a GM though. I don’t know if he’s just not any good or he doesn’t understand how the league works or he’s just made some errors he has to learn from but it’s been wrong decisions since the start. He failed to buy at last years deadline. If he had added a guy up front and a D like Perrott they would have a Western Conf banner and maybe an OHL title. I was against buying last year and didn’t see that that was the right choice until a couple months ago myself but that was what should have been done and I can admit I was wrong. I dont think anybody was wowed by their 2022 draft. We’ll see what comes out of it but so far? Not extremely impressed. The acquisition of Cranley was a mistake. I said it at the time and it’s proving true on an almost nightly basis. Wrong goalie. Overpaid. Wasted an OA spot too. If Othmann was that big of an issue, he should have realized it and moved him before he wasted away his value. I don’t like the D’Amato deal at all. I like Smith don’t get me wrong. He doesn’t provide the offense though and maybe D’Amato doesn’t play a heavy game but he gets the job done. I know Dent added Smith and Guryev to wear down opposing forwards in the playoffs but has anybody seen big hits out of either of them yet? When D’Amato is going off as an OA in two years that deal is gonna look really bad. Why the hell we’re watching Bradshaw play instead of Assinewai is beyond me and every ex-player I know that sits in my section. Aspinall is two years younger. Get him some ice too. I really like our ‘05’s (who weren’t picked by Dent) but trading away Petrovski hurt that group. That’s what I’d do right now. Start making the moves to build around your 05’s.
ohloutsider
Registered User
With the trade deadline looming the "office" is likely working from home. No trades much so they might as well do the data entry on suspensions.
I fully expect Mancini to be added, but if he doesnt two things might have occured.
1. Pitre gets the two because he swapped sides of the faceoff just to drop the gloves
2. Initially on the OHLs Game Summary, Pitre was listed as an instigator and Mancini was listed as instigated upon. That has since been removed, but makes me wonder if Pitre said something that lead to the fight that was suspension worthy but didnt end up meeting the criteria for instigation
All and all really shows OHL needs to do more explanation on why players are getting suspended.
Coulson clearly started yapping in his ear as soon as he lined up. They both clearly dropped at the same time though. I just think it’s kind of lame if it’s “asking to drop the gloves?” Suspension. “Answering yes to dropping the gloves” Fine. Which I think is kind of how it’s gonna play out. Whatever. It’s two games. It seems like every fan and team is frustrated with the rules, officiating and suspensions in this league. Lack of transparency is ridiculous like you said too.
There goes Winterton off the board to London. Get the F out of the game now and move Lombardi, Deline, Kuzmin Dent! You clearly aren’t up to playing with the big boys. Your little moves for Stojkov and Smith don’t get the job done and your 12th and 13th round picks for castoffs won’t help you get what’s needed. I’m gonna be so pissed if he blows it all on Wright so we can watch him underperform and get knocked out in the 2nd round.
You can't do nothing.
You can't keep guys like Kressler and Lombardi and get nothing in tlreturn for a quick 1st round exit.
That's not the way this league operates, you are either a contender or a pretender. There's no letting it ride.
Not true. There are times a good team like Flint with plenty of picks, prospects, and returning players is sort of caught in the middle and do not buy or sell.
If both Flint and Missassauga become sellers, there is either going to be some real unhappiness with the return on good players or unhappiness about no sale.
Is Flint a good team? They’re in 6th place in the Conference. That’s not a good team. Getting nothing for Lombardi, Deline, Kuzmin and getting bounced in the 1st round is worse than getting a lesser return for them and getting bounced in the 1st round.
ohloutsider
Registered User
I was actually wondering this myself? Does Flint turn into a seller? It might upset the apple cart so to speak. Some nice pieces to sell would refill the coffers.
Kingpin794
Smart A** In A Jersey
They’re also only 1 point out of 4th. They certainly have the players and ammo to make themselves better. I’d take them over Sarnia, Kitchener and probably Owen Sound and Saginaw (once we deal Mintyukov). Who are you building around if you sell off now? Hay and Bertucci and….? Yeah you’ll get good players in return but I don’t think it will be enough to make a real run with in the next two years. It’s kinda now or wait another 3 years.
Kuzmin & Lombardi would be excellent cheaper substitutes for Mintyukov & DelBelBelluz.
Ownership, management, fans are all ok with selling for picks this year, and even more likely in a position to sell next year if the next window does not get nearer?
Flint doesn’t need more picks, so I’m guessing it is more likely a Savard or Harrison is added.
I see that point. Hay and Bertucci will both be very good. Probably not elite. Pitters and Day will be good. Smith and Stojkov should be solid OA D. Jenkens should be a serviceable 19yo by that point. The talent of ALL of the 06’s is up in the air at this point. I’d want a solid 05 back in the Lombardi and/or Kuzmin deal. We’ve seen Guelph and Hamilton to an extent totally buy their Championships mostly with picks. Make a big add or two in the off-season and then another 2-3 at the deadline. There’s a reason everyone is looking at what Barrie can do if Clarke is sent back. Ottawa to an extent too. They theoretically would have a stacked group of 07’s to trade/fill out the bottom of the roster too. I’m not sure Flint is better than Sarnia now if Gaudreau comes back with any type of form, then there’s talk of them adding Del Mastro? I can’t see Flint getting past them as is or with one forward addition.
That would be a waste of assets in my opinion. Both of them? Meh. Ok. I’d maybe be a little on board. You spend to WIN. Getting bounced in Round 2 isn’t winning. If they can get out of the West, that’s good enough for me but I like London and Sarnia better as is and Windsor and Kitchener can be added to that list very easily. Two things I absolutely have no interest in supporting. Doing what Erie is doing now and being a Sault Ste Marie or Saginaw. 20-30 years of no OHL titles and rare visits past round two while being mildly competitive occasionally have no interest to me. When it’s time to sell, you sell and when it’s time to go for it, you don’t balk and get scared and try to bargain hunt your way in. You GO for it.
Look. I’m figuring when playoffs start, London, Sarnia, Kitchener, Owen Sound, Saginaw and maybe even Windsor all have better goaltending than Flint. Therefore at worst. At ABSOLUTE WORST. Flint’s roster top to bottom has to match the talent level of all those teams or surpass it. I don’t see it happening. Dent wants to prove me wrong? Have at it. I’ll still back him and the boys but personally I think he’s already blown it.
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