Kingston Frontenacs 2024-25 Season Thread, Part I

[ScoutLife4]

Media room lines

 

[ScoutLife4]

Luca caputi is in Peterborough scouting for Vancouver.

 

[frontsfan67]

Oh. My. God. Scott Arnold just said Mason vaccari is either the best or one of the top 3 goalies in the league LOL

 

[OMG67]

Oh. My. God. Scott Arnold just said Mason vaccari is either the best or one of the top 3 goalies in the league LOL

 

[frontsfan67]

What a goal by Hopkins

 

[frontsfan67]

The 2 Italian guys leading the league in scoring lol. Wooo fronts first place in the league let’s go

 

[Donnie740]

Peterborough is hopelessly outgunned again this year - - not sure why the Kingston brain trust felt compelled to have their first unit power play on the ice in the last minute with a two man advantage.

If Kingston scores 7 goals does everyone get a free slice of pizza?

 

[leafs4life94]

From what I saw of the game -

- McNamara looks good and is very much a shit disturber but as long as he doesn't take stupid penalties too much every teams loves to have one. The one thing I have noticed with him is if he starts a game well he gains almost too confidence and starts being a little careless with the puck
- I barely noticed some of the younger guys - I think I only recall seeing Weir 2x, Buttar and Kelly a couple more times than that. I'd be curious what the TOI was.
- Pieniniemi looked good and very comfortable. He's a lot more skilled with the puck than I realized and should be a good PP QB
- On the flipside, I don't know if I noticed Uronen at all other than the PP. He didn't look bad, more just unnoticeable.
- Hopkins and Pickell both with nice goals but I've gotta give the edge to Hopkins.

Tomorrow will be a bigger test, but I think with Oshawa still missing top guys that might give Kingston the edge.

 

[Ryan Christensen]

Sorry you guys are right your 1-0 and beat peterborough start the parade

 

[frontsfan67]

Sorry you guys are right your 1-0 and beat peterborough start the parade

Absolutely gotta plan it. Undefeated so far and we have the leading scorer. Mem cup here we come!

 

[PuckLucker]

From what I saw of the game -

- McNamara looks good and is very much a shit disturber but as long as he doesn't take stupid penalties too much every teams loves to have one. The one thing I have noticed with him is if he starts a game well he gains almost too confidence and starts being a little careless with the puck
- I barely noticed some of the younger guys - I think I only recall seeing Weir 2x, Buttar and Kelly a couple more times than that. I'd be curious what the TOI was.
- Pieniniemi looked good and very comfortable. He's a lot more skilled with the puck than I realized and should be a good PP QB
- On the flipside, I don't know if I noticed Uronen at all other than the PP. He didn't look bad, more just unnoticeable.
- Hopkins and Pickell both with nice goals but I've gotta give the edge to Hopkins.

Tomorrow will be a bigger test, but I think with Oshawa still missing top guys that might give Kingston the edge.

I'd say 11 minutes of Penalties in the 1st period by a single player is "too much stupid penalties". I doubt the Petes fans were happy with his celebration on the 2nd goal with 4 seconds left in the game.
He did answer the bell vs Melee though, I'll give him props for that finally, as usually you see a ref "holding him back" and nothing ensues.

I agree with everything else you mentioned, young players need more ice time to develop, especially when a lead is secured and safe. Vacarri made some really nice saves which allowed the Fronts to pull away in the 3rd period.
6 different goal scorers is nice to see

 

[ScoutLife4]

Vaccari played well last night. -There were a few times during the game where he made a couple key saves during some sustained pressure form the Petes.
One thing i also noticed is the nervous head movement is gone. -I'm happy for him that whatever that was he was able to get past. I feel like that distraction was affecting his game.

Pickell- Looked great in all situations. This kid is exciting to watch as he's great with the puck and without it. he was running around throwing hits every chance he had and stripping pucks in the neutral zone like crazy.

McCgowan- This kid worked hard in the off season and you can tell. His skating looked really strong last night and some of his speed bursts when we would jump up and drive the net Peterborough had no answer for. -I was really impressed in his confidence carrying the puck last night and driving the net.

Mcnamara- He looked bigger, faster and stronger with the puck then he did last year. -I'd like to see him cool it a bit with the antics on the ice i think he's going to drag his team into a lot of penalty situations with his show.

Burns- I didn't think he had a great night and quite frankly Pieniniemi looks better.

Heyes- Didn't look great had a couple scoring opportunities and couldn't finish. Didn't seem strong on the puck was turning it over quite a bit. -He's just not good enough to hold a OA spot on a competing team imo.


Wakely- Told this may still happen that they are working hard on it with NB but Oshawa has come into the mix because they are struggling to get a Barlow trade done. -Kingston also has been talking to O/S about Barlow but it doesn't sound promising.

 

[OMG67]

Vaccari played well last night. -There were a few times during the game where he made a couple key saves during some sustained pressure form the Petes.
One thing i also noticed is the nervous head movement is gone. -I'm happy for him that whatever that was he was able to get past. I feel like that distraction was affecting his game.

Pickell- Looked great in all situations. This kid is exciting to watch as he's great with the puck and without it. he was running around throwing hits every chance he had and stripping pucks in the neutral zone like crazy.

McCgowan- This kid worked hard in the off season and you can tell. His skating looked really strong last night and some of his speed bursts when we would jump up and drive the net Peterborough had no answer for. -I was really impressed in his confidence carrying the puck last night and driving the net.

Mcnamara- He looked bigger, faster and stronger with the puck then he did last year. -I'd like to see him cool it a bit with the antics on the ice i think he's going to drag his team into a lot of penalty situations with his show.

Burns- I didn't think he had a great night and quite frankly Pieniniemi looks better.

Heyes- Didn't look great had a couple scoring opportunities and couldn't finish. Didn't seem strong on the puck was turning it over quite a bit. -He's just not good enough to hold a OA spot on a competing team imo.


Wakely- Told this may still happen that they are working hard on it with NB but Oshawa has come into the mix because they are struggling to get a Barlow trade done. -Kingston also has been talking to O/S about Barlow but it doesn't sound promising.

The challenge with last nights game is that the Petes aren’t a measuring stick BUT the effort and drive was there which was good to see.

I also like Pickell. Gotta love the little kids that spark plug a team. He was a great depth addition.

I’ve said all pre-season that I think McGowan is a capable 2nd pairing D-Man. I really don’t think you need two guys for the 2nd pair. I think you can get away with one quality 2nd pairing guy. That opens up a few possibilities. One, you add the D-Man and drop Williamson down to the 3rd pair with the other two rotating in and out OR, you use Williamson in the deal to acquire the D-Man and conserve picks. I sort of lean towards dropping Williamson down to the 3rd pair and use picks if you can make it happen.

To me, Wakely is the key acquisition right now. If the Fronts can get that done, sooner the better. Fill in the OA slot and move out Hayes. Hayes is a redundant player IMO. He isn’t any better or worse than the other depth forwards. I really don’t think anyone would argue too hard if I were to suggest both Weir and Pickell could roll into his spot on the 3rd line.

 

[ScoutLife4]

The challenge with last nights game is that the Petes aren’t a measuring stick BUT the effort and drive was there which was good to see.

I also like Pickell. Gotta love the little kids that spark plug a team. He was a great depth addition.

I’ve said all pre-season that I think McGowan is a capable 2nd pairing D-Man. I really don’t think you need two guys for the 2nd pair. I think you can get away with one quality 2nd pairing guy. That opens up a few possibilities. One, you add the D-Man and drop Williamson down to the 3rd pair with the other two rotating in and out OR, you use Williamson in the deal to acquire the D-Man and conserve picks. I sort of lean towards dropping Williamson down to the 3rd pair and use picks if you can make it happen.

To me, Wakely is the key acquisition right now. If the Fronts can get that done, sooner the better. Fill in the OA slot and move out Hayes. Hayes is a redundant player IMO. He isn’t any better or worse than the other depth forwards. I really don’t think anyone would argue too hard if I were to suggest both Weir and Pickell could roll into his spot on the 3rd line.

I definitely wouldn't use it as a measuring stick.

I'm to the belief they should separate Burns and PIE but who do they put on that top pairing with one of them is a legitimate issue.

To make this team a contender they need to :
-Wakely
-Dman ready to fill a 1st or 2nd pairing hole.

Concerns:
Goaltending -I'm still not sold on the combination they have right now. But i hope i'm wrong.
I think they need Lalonde to play the best hockey he has ever played. (Especially if they do not upgrade the D)

 

[OMG67]

I definitely wouldn't use it as a measuring stick.

I'm to the belief they should separate Burns and PIE but who do they put on that top pairing with one of them is a legitimate issue.

To make this team a contender they need to :
-Wakely
-Dman ready to fill a 1st or 2nd pairing hole.

Concerns:
Goaltending -I'm still not sold on the combination they have right now. But i hope i'm wrong.
I think they need Lalonde to play the best hockey he has ever played. (Especially if they do not upgrade the D)

I wouldn’t worry about goaltending right now. I would be more concerned about the other two.

With some god fortune, they can fix one of the two with a deal for an OA and purge Heyes. They need to utilize that OA spot more effectively by filling a more important role than 3rd line RW. Wakely seems like the most serviceable option right now. That would bump Guindon down to 2C and McNamara down to 3C.

If they could find a way to get a Gibson deal done with SSM using Williamson and picks, that would be ideal. Even more ideal if they could use Velliaris. The two brothers (I assume they are brothers) could play together.

If they can do that, then it opens up more options for goaltending. Since Lalonde is an OA, they could look at upgrading their OA Goalie into a starter or they could find a capable 19 year old backup on the cheap and upgrade their 3rd OA slot with some depth scoring.

Options are available. I still think they should hold back as long as possible before making a move but if Wakely is on the block now, you gotta move on it. NB will control the timing.

 

[ScoutLife4]

I wouldn’t worry about goaltending right now. I would be more concerned about the other two.

With some god fortune, they can fix one of the two with a deal for an OA and purge Heyes. They need to utilize that OA spot more effectively by filling a more important role than 3rd line RW. Wakely seems like the most serviceable option right now. That would bump Guindon down to 2C and McNamara down to 3C.

If they could find a way to get a Gibson deal done with SSM using Williamson and picks, that would be ideal. Even more ideal if they could use Velliaris. The two brothers (I assume they are brothers) could play together.

If they can do that, then it opens up more options for goaltending. Since Lalonde is an OA, they could look at upgrading their OA Goalie into a starter or they could find a capable 19 year old backup on the cheap and upgrade their 3rd OA slot with some depth scoring.

Options are available. I still think they should hold back as long as possible before making a move but if Wakely is on the block now, you gotta move on it. NB will control the timing.

I keep seeing people throw around Velliaris name but i don't know why anyone would want him.
Imo he's not an OHL dman. -Looks lost most of the time. -If it wasn't for the Chromiak situation he would not be dressed.

I'm a little concerned there may be 4 teams involved in the Wakely sweepstakes.
What Kingston has going for him is Wakely has a relationship already with Troy Mann & Chris Longo.
He skates with Longo a lot in the summer and he attended a Belleville training camp a couple years ago with Troy and skated with a bunch of Belleville Sen's all summer.

 

[yacky]

Vaccari played well last night. -There were a few times during the game where he made a couple key saves during some sustained pressure form the Petes.
One thing i also noticed is the nervous head movement is gone. -I'm happy for him that whatever that was he was able to get past. I feel like that distraction was affecting his game.

Pickell- Looked great in all situations. This kid is exciting to watch as he's great with the puck and without it. he was running around throwing hits every chance he had and stripping pucks in the neutral zone like crazy.

McCgowan- This kid worked hard in the off season and you can tell. His skating looked really strong last night and some of his speed bursts when we would jump up and drive the net Peterborough had no answer for. -I was really impressed in his confidence carrying the puck last night and driving the net.

Mcnamara- He looked bigger, faster and stronger with the puck then he did last year. -I'd like to see him cool it a bit with the antics on the ice i think he's going to drag his team into a lot of penalty situations with his show.

Burns- I didn't think he had a great night and quite frankly Pieniniemi looks better.

Heyes- Didn't look great had a couple scoring opportunities and couldn't finish. Didn't seem strong on the puck was turning it over quite a bit. -He's just not good enough to hold a OA spot on a competing team imo.


Wakely- Told this may still happen that they are working hard on it with NB but Oshawa has come into the mix because they are struggling to get a Barlow trade done. -Kingston also has been talking to O/S about Barlow but it doesn't sound promising.

just read somewhere that some Kingston fans are planning a parade already ,so they dont need Wakely lol

 

[ScoutLife4]

just read somewhere that some Kingston fans are planning a parade already ,so they dont need Wakely lol

I think any reasonable person can see and admit this team still has some holes to fill to be even spoke about in the team regard as Brampton, Oshawa, Barrie.
Hell, They may not even be better then Brantford right now with their goalie addition....

 

[OMG67]

I think any reasonable person can see and admit this team still has some holes to fill to be even spoke about in the team regard as Brampton, Oshawa, Barrie.
Hell, They may not even be better then Brantford right now with their goalie addition....

You know my thoughts but if it is challenge or bust then the discussion needs to change to what they need to challenge and focus on that.

So, IMO, they need the 1C and probably a 1st pairing D-Man. That gets them in the mix. It pushes Guindon and McNamara down the depth chart to where they will both be more effective. It also pushes Burns down to the 2nd pairing where he will have a bit more room and influence.

Maybe they need a goalie, maybe they don’t. I lean toward they do need one but goalies are a funny breed. They sometimes flip a switch and are good for long stretches. I’d wait to see what unfolds through Christmas.

With respect to Velliaris, he young and big. Teams will always take a chance on young and big. He has value in that regard. Kids like him usually turn the corner in year 3 at 18.

 

[frontsfan67]

I think any reasonable person can see and admit this team still has some holes to fill to be even spoke about in the team regard as Brampton, Oshawa, Barrie.
Hell, They may not even be better then Brantford right now with their goalie addition....

Think he’s referring to me joking around after the win last night.

And yes right now they’re arguably the 4th or 5th best team in the conference probably when everyone is back and fully healthy

Fortunately for the fronts- they’re all back.

 

[frontsfan67]

This is horrible. Opening night and apparently only 3800 sold right now

Last time it was sold out I’m pretty sure is Connor McDavids draft year when Erie came here

 

[ScoutLife4]

View attachment 910260This is horrible. Opening night and MAYBE 50% capacity

I was actually surprised by how many seats were empty in Peterborough last night.
They had it as a sell out but there was tons of empty seats.

 

[leafs4life94]

View attachment 910260This is horrible. Opening night and apparently only 3800 sold right now

Last time it was sold out I’m pretty sure is Connor McDavids draft year when Erie came here

It's usually worse in the building too because a lot of the seats at the visitors end are given out/sold to groups and they're fairly rarely filled.

As someone that waits to buy tickets until an hour before the game I've gotta say I don't really mind it lol