Kitchener Rangers 2024-25 Season Thread, Part II

[GeoBlue]

Good pick. Ellinas is a clutch player.

.

 

[LostRangers]

Good win for the boys tonight against a team that is much better than their record shows.
First two periods were very good. We played with pace and were hard on the puck. I thought it may have been Arquette’s best game of the season, even though he didn’t show it on the scoreboard.
I think Bilecki would benefit from playing some Jr. B hockey. Right now he doesn’t hav3 the strength or footspeed out there. The 3rd goal, he was caught with no gap and the forward blew right by him, and then he was outmuscled for the loose puck for the rebound lying behind Parsons. You could see Jussi didn’t like the matchup as he tried to get Reid and Campbell out but the ref wouldn’t allow the late change.
Other than that it was a great game. Goal of the week candidate for Gris with a beauty!!

 

[Jives]

Ellis with his best game yet. He is going to surprise a lot of people in the years to come I think. He had 2 points but could have had a couple more.

Lam made a couple wtf good plays and wtf bad plays.

Campbell has come a LONG way in a year. He looked very good tonight.

What ever happened to hard hitting Max? Here is hoping that in a year he makes a big jump like Campbell has. I had Max in my top 4 above Campbell to start the year and I was completely wrong on that.

 

[EvenSteven]

Ellis with his best game yet. He is going to surprise a lot of people in the years to come I think. He had 2 points but could have had a couple more.

Lam made a couple wtf good plays and wtf bad plays.

Campbell has come a LONG way in a year. He looked very good tonight.

What ever happened to hard hitting Max? Here is hoping that in a year he makes a big jump like Campbell has. I had Max in my top 4 above Campbell to start the year and I was completely wrong on that.

I saw it too with Ellis and Lam. I like Lam, but he still has trouble out there in traffic. He needs bulk and it shows. He can be a Justin Azevedo but not without more body mass.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Ellis bump him off the 2nd line. Then I think we’ll see Ellis soar playing with more offensive line mates.

And Campbell? I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. MM has done a great job repairing what was a miserable 2022 draft crop. Ellinas, Dirracolo, Vermeulen, Hlacar and yes, Campbell, all brought in on the very cheap. Campbell is becoming a gem for us. I see him as a very good OA option in a couple years, and dare I say a top pairing D alongside Reid next year.

 

[Jives]

I saw it too with Ellis and Lam. I like Lam, but he still has trouble out there in traffic. He needs bulk and it shows. He can be a Justin Azevedo but not without more body mass.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Ellis bump him off the 2nd line. Then I think we’ll see Ellis soar playing with more offensive line mates.

And Campbell? I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. MM has done a great job repairing what was a miserable 2022 draft crop. Ellinas, Dirracolo, Vermeulen, Hlacar and yes, Campbell, all brought in on the very cheap. Campbell is becoming a gem for us. I see him as a very good OA option in a couple years, and dare I say a top pairing D alongside Reid next year.

If Ellis has a couple more games like that I can’t see him not getting a look on the 2nd line and bumping Lam.

Carson could be a beast on D for his OA / mem cup year. Him with Ellinas (hopefully returned) would be a solid 2 OAs. Max has 1.5 years to figure it out and be the 3rd OA.

 

[EvenSteven]

If Ellis has a couple more games like that I can’t see him not getting a look on the 2nd line and bumping Lam.

Carson could be a beast on D for his OA / mem cup year. Him with Ellinas (hopefully returned) would be a solid 2 OAs. Max has 1.5 years to figure it out and be the 3rd OA.

If Ellis has another game like that vs the Soo coupled with more of what Lam has been giving us, I switch them for the Windsor game. Windsor is a big team and Lam struggled against them. Ellis should be a better option on line 2.

 

[Gondrex]

I'm liking that 4th line too. I've put out my opinion a couple times in the past that Pugliese was the straw that stirred the drink for that line last year - elevating Mercer and Bottineau's game. With Arquette now on that line, he seems to be that ingredient that is helping boost Bottineau's play. Vermeulen, who I've felt has been quietly playing a fairly consistent and reasonably productive game himself, seems to fit in nicely within that trio. They play together like they know and take pride in their role.

 

[bobber]

Ellis with his best game yet. He is going to surprise a lot of people in the years to come I think. He had 2 points but could have had a couple more.

Lam made a couple wtf good plays and wtf bad plays.

Campbell has come a LONG way in a year. He looked very good tonight.

What ever happened to hard hitting Max? Here is hoping that in a year he makes a big jump like Campbell has. I had Max in my top 4 above Campbell to start the year and I was completely wrong on that.

Good points Jives. There seems to be an element of physicality missing the last few games. Before it seemed like a team that set a bit of a tone. Different identy at this point in time. Bull Dogs PK did a great job keeping the Rangers to the outside and blocking lanes. They have some skilled players that make an impact. Game could have easily gone the other way. Rangers younger players getting valuable experience.

 

[Gondrex]

If Ellis has another game like that vs the Soo coupled with more of what Lam has been giving us, I switch them for the Windsor game. Windsor is a big team and Lam struggled against them. Ellis should be a better option on line 2.

.....and - correct me if I'm wrong - I believe he is doing all this while playing on his off wing. I realize that he was listed as center in the USHL.

 

[EvenSteven]

I'm liking that 4th line too. I've put out my opinion a couple times in the past that Pugliese was the straw that stirred the drink for that line last year - elevating Mercer and Bottineau's game. With Arquette now on that line, he seems to be that ingredient that is helping boost Bottineau's play. Vermeulen, who I've felt has been quietly playing a fairly consistent and reasonably productive game himself, seems to fit in nicely within that trio. They play together like they know and take pride in their role.

Beat me to it! I just came back here to heap some praise on Arquette as well.

Well said.

 

[Gondrex]

Beat me to it! I just came back here to heap some praise on Arquette as well.

Well said.

Yeah, and I wanted to make sure I gave credit to Bottineau at the same time. He's not known to be a big contributor offensively, yet even still, seemed to have stagnated up until now with this new line combination.

 

[Coaches Coroner]

I like Ellis and Arquette quite a bit. Arquette is pretty tenacious on the puck and uses leverage well to win battles for a smaller guy. I think Mercer is currently the odd man out and a place should be found for him to get more minutes as a 19 year old.

 

[EvenSteven]

Might we soon be in a position where it’s time to move out what could be an excess 07 or two off this roster in addition to or instead of weeding out a Mercer?

Trade comparables to the moves London made finding playing time for Johnston and Arrowsmith?

I like Ellis and Arquette quite a bit. Arquette is pretty tenacious on the puck and uses leverage well to win battles for a smaller guy. I think Mercer is currently the odd man out and a place should be found for him to get more minutes as a 19 year old.

There will be 07’s who’ll be bumped down the depth chart by higher quality 07’s and 08’s thanks to the CHL/NCAA agreement.

 

[Matttheleaf]

For the Rangers to gain home ice in the first round they will need roughly 81 points based off the past 8 full seasons we have had, and based on the point percentage of the team in 5th right now it also comes to 81 points needed to be ahead of them. They have 41 games remaining to get the same amount of points if they want to stay in the top half. Now this doesn't mean that the team won't be way worse in the second half and fully drop off, especially if we sell hard, or that a team in the lower half wont push hard and overtake us, but we have set ourselves up well to gain home ice in the first round based on our extremely hot start.

 

[RangerNation]

For the Rangers to gain home ice in the first round they will need roughly 81 points based off the past 8 full seasons we have had, and based on the point percentage of the team in 5th right now it also comes to 81 points needed to be ahead of them. They have 41 games remaining to get the same amount of points if they want to stay in the top half. Now this doesn't mean that the team won't be way worse in the second half and fully drop off, especially if we sell hard, or that a team in the lower half wont push hard and overtake us, but we have set ourselves up well to gain home ice in the first round based on our extremely hot start.

I would love if they finished 3rd in the conference. To me, that's a stress free playoff for a rebuilding team.

 

[Matttheleaf]

I would love if they finished 3rd in the conference. To me, that's a stress free playoff for a rebuilding team.

3rd is my hope as well. Allows us to play the 6th ranked team and avoid playing the Knights until the 3rd round if we can get past the 2nd round that is.

 

[EvenSteven]

This is my prediction on how MM sees this team today and what he’ll do going forward:

Recognizing London’s superiority, I think that MM feels this team today can still beat any other team in the conference in a seven game series. He also thinks/knows that more flyers are coming which makes this team’s future so heavy with higher end talent among the 07 and 08 groups that he won’t need an overstocked draft cupboard to ice a top contender in 26-27. So I think he stands pat at the deadline as far as selling off high end graduates. He likely just makes minor deals where he thins out the overloaded roster a little.

By now, no doubt he has been in contact with each and every one of the flyers he’s taken in the last couple drafts. If not the player personally, the player’s agent and camp. He will have a good idea on the odds on every one of them reporting to Kitchener over the next year or two. The because of the Agreement, he expects more of these players reporting.

Going forward, at least for the next couple years, I think he sees the practice of trading multiple 2nds and 3rds to bring in a high end rental, unnecessary. We will already have those high end players on the roster. We may just need some minor tweaking. You don’t need an overflowing draft pick cupboard to do minor tweaking.

So regarding our graduating players who would hold trade value at this deadline, and are OA candidates next year:

Andonovski.
He may or may not return as an OA, but he’s an interesting case. As Senators property, they decide where he plays next year. They could send him back here period. Or, Ottawa/Brantford ownership could force a deal to Brantford. “We’ll only return him for his OA season if you trade his rights to Brantford”, is a possibility. Brantford will go all in next year and Ando solidifies their back end. I can see MM keeping him this year, then letting the above play out. If he is returned here as an OA, then that’s great. If Ottawa forces a deal to Brantford, we’ll get something for him then. If not, then we’ll have him for this year’s run and he graduates. (See above regarding not needing an overflowing cupboard). That’s the gamble.

Chromiak.
He might not have a ton of trade value but I see him as an above average OA possibility next year.
I see MM doing everything he can to bring in a couple imports next year. Be that Pobezal, Chrenko, or someone yet to be drafted. But in the event there is an import spot open, and Andonovski is moved or out of the picture, I can see a place for Chromiak as an overage import on next year’s team. That would happen early enough where Chromiak is still in the OA mix.

Pridham.
He could return if he signs with Chicago and they eventually assign him here after a short stint in the AHL. He could hold off on signing to keep his NCAA eligibility (is he a student first player?) and play here one more year before going to BU. Keep in mind that BU is a top end hockey school that may not have minutes for him next year. Another year on a contending team in Kitchener gives him a good place to play while waiting for a solid spot at BU. But for sure we cannot rule him out as an OA possibility next year.

I can see MM deciding that standing pat makes a ton of sense if it can keep us in the top three in the conference. If anything, I can see him moving out an 07 or two who have value to thin out the lineup and bring decent return.