It feels like the fans are a bit on a roller coaster here.
Kingston is a good team. They will compete this year.
Kingston is also a franchise that suffers from a diminished reputation. They not only need to compete this eyar but they need to continue to rebuild or build a stronger reputation. To do that, they need to remain competitive. All this talk about selling Miedema etc is not productive. IT would be better for th efforts to remain competitive, work on developing the young kids while being competitive and statrt being a place players choose to play instead of being the place they begrudgingly go to play.
That’s the thing. Trading Miedema would open up a spot in the top 6 this year and next moving players up from the top 9 and he needs to be moved next year anyways. May as well do it when he’s 19 and add conditionals for him coming back next year as I don’t think he gets signed unless he gets traded to another team and gets more responsibility leading to him getting some points. Quite clearly he needs a change in scenery. He’s arguably the 6th or 7th best forward on the team this year and hasn’t progressed AT ALL since coming here from Windsor.
They have Buttar, Kelly, McQuaig, Weir, potentially Shewfelt, and 1 of their first round picks next year (I assume they draft 1F, 1D unless there’s a Jack Ivankovic type goalie that can go first round) for their 4-12 guys assuming none start on the first.
Buttar being a second round pick this year may take a big leap who knows and be able to play top 6 from the get go. No point in holding onto 5 OA’s to start the year especially after Miedema apparently isn’t super fond of kingston.
Next year the fronts have McGowan, Uens, McNamara, Soto and Miedema as OA’s I think they should keep McGowan, McNamara and Soto as the 3 to start the year and trade 2 by next years deadline. Trade Uens in the summer if you can, miedema at this years deadline.
Don’t worry about winning a Championship. Finish the next five years with a .550 win%, win a round in the playoffs 3 of those 5 years and allow the coach and management staff to entrench themselves in the OHL as being competent.
What would this do?? They have mann for 3 or 4 more years you think they’d be better off just winning the first round a few times? That’s ridiculous if Mann doesn’t go on a run here AT SOME POINT he may not get another coaching job in the AHL. Can bet the house he will absolutely be pushing atleast one of those years.