Ottawa 67's 2022-23 Off-Season Thread (Part 4)

[Larionov]

Nowhere near enough urgency in their play, and way, way too slow. The only way to break through that Peterborough defensive shell is with speed, and we suddenly don't have any.

I hope they make a liar out of me Saturday, but it looks very much like this team has had its spirit completely broken. I suspect they go out pretty quietly on Saturday...

 

[analyser]

Well I will say one thing Donoso has been Ottawa's MVP in this series. Without his play it could be a lot uglier.

 

[OMG67]

“We got ‘em right where we want ‘em!”
-Kilrea

 

[donghabs98]

Ottawa's effort has been quite disappointing along with their shot selection (or lack their of). I was at Game 2 and in the final minute down by 1 they couldnt get anything on net, just kept passing it to the outside. That problem has persisted.

Injuries will happen, but they can still be doing much better than they are now with this lineup

 

[Zebra]

Petes fan here -

I don’t understand what made Sirman so angry at the end of the game.

Did someone do him dirty or was it just general competitive angst ?

 

[Race Dawg]

Well I will say one thing Donoso has been Ottawa's MVP in this series. Without his play it could be a lot uglier.

Yes he's played well. Anyway bye bye team on Saturday!

 

[Race Dawg]

“We got ‘em right where we want ‘em!”
-Kilrea

Killer said that in 1988 against the dirty Generals after Theriault basically told his goons to hog tie Cassels and company. This is NOT the Generals and definitely not 1988!

 

[analyser]

Yes he's played well. Anyway bye bye team on Saturday!

It is all part of sport but we don't have to be happy.

 

[OMG67]

I know it’s still a little early but can we at least agree that next year isn’t a contender year? Can we now at least agree that next year is a minor rebuild, trading away some pieces at the deadline?

 

[OMG67]

I can’t post in the Petes thread so this is for the Petes fans…

I’m disappointed that the 67’s haven’t come through but it is nice to see the Petes finally piece it together. I think everyone felt they were the team to beat in this division. They have a lot of quality players and they are an older team, maybe the oldest in the league. I still think North Bay is a better team but with Peterborough playing a better team game now, they may stand up well to the Battalion, that is assuming the Colts don’t finish them off.

 

[Zebra]

I can’t post in the Petes thread so this is for the Petes fans…

I’m disappointed that the 67’s haven’t come through but it is nice to see the Petes finally piece it together. I think everyone felt they were the team to beat in this division. They have a lot of quality players and they are an older team, maybe the oldest in the league. I still think North Bay is a better team but with Peterborough playing a better team game now, they may stand up well to the Battalion, that is assuming the Colts don’t finish them off.

Hi OMG67
Petes fan here and I just want to say I am sorry to hear you are unable to post in the Petes thread -hopefully that is temporary.

I always enjoy your analysis and presentation of facts ( actual stats/ data).

 

[Race Dawg]

Petes fan here -

I don’t understand what made Sirman so angry at the end of the game.

Did someone do him dirty or was it just general competitive angst ?

Probably trying to stir up shit and to pump the boys up.

I’m disappointed that the 67’s haven’t come through but it is nice to see the Petes finally piece it together. I think everyone felt they were the team to beat in this division. They have a lot of quality players and they are an older team, maybe the oldest in the league. I still think North Bay is a better team but with Peterborough playing a better team game now, they may stand up well to the Battalion, that is assuming the Colts don’t finish them off.

Wait what? You got banned from the Peterborough forum? Oh well at least you didn't get banned from the Ottawa one.

I tend to agree. The Petes will match up well against either team here. I've only seen bits and pieces of NB and the Colts recently but I think the Bats are the better team between the 2. NB should come out of this on top and face the Petes....

 

[NordiquesForeva]

I know it’s still a little early but can we at least agree that next year isn’t a contender year? Can we now at least agree that next year is a minor rebuild, trading away some pieces at the deadline?

I would agree, yes. First and foremost, make a decision on Donoso (OA) or MacKenzie…MacKenzie would get us more back given his age, but we’ll need him for 2024-25 so I’d keep him and trade Donoso before the season starts provided a viable backup is found. MacKenzie should be one of, if not the, best goalies in the league by then.

Trade Rohrer at the deadline for a good haul. He’s a really good player and will improve a contender as their middle-6 C/RW that can play in all situations.

If Beck returns, he should get dealt at the deadline too. Another big haul if (very big if) he’s healthy. With a new GM in Calgary, his injury challenges, and uneven play, it’s highly uncertain he gets signed. There are decent odds he ends up back in Ottawa next season and it would be great for the 67s if he does. If healthy he’d be top 5 in points next year I’d imagine.

I’d even make a decision on Sirman or Smyth and consider trading one of them. For 2024-25, our OA possibilities would be MacKenzie, Mayich, Sirman, Smyth, Gerrior and Stonehouse. Can’t keep them all, and they’ll presumably have more value at next years deadline than in the following off-season. Either would fit on a contender as a #5/6 steady physical D-man.

In 2023-24, consider a #4-7 seed in the playoffs a good season, try and push a higher seed to 6 or 7 games or even win a series as a 4 or 5 seed. Most importantly, accumulate playoff experience for 2024-25.

Edit: The one scenario that would make we want to reconsider is if by some miracle, Boucher gets returned to Ottawa instead of the AHL. With Boucher and Beck as OAs, I’d consider next year to be a contending season. Highly unlikely of course.

For 2024-25, the big decision upfront would be whether to bring back Gerrior or Stonehouse as an OA. Let’s say its Gerrior for argument’s sake. He’s captain material. Deal Stonehouse in the off-season.

Foster - Pinelli - Gerrior (OA)
Barlas - Gardiner - Dever
xxx - xxx - Kelly
xxx - xxx - xxx

Marrelli - Mews
Mayich (OA) - Ewles
xxx - Horner
xxx

MacKenzie (OA)
xxx

That’s not bad. We’ve had success with our imports. Everyone in our top 6 and our top 3 D will have had two playoff runs under their belts. MacKenzie should be a top goaltender. But I think the key takeaway for me is that 2024-25 is shaping up as a better contending season than next year. I don’t know enough about the other teams but in isolation Ottawa’s roster looks good. We’d have tons of picks from the deals noted above and maybe some new bodies in place too. Boyd should draft and develop for playoff hockey though, it’s a different beast and we just weren’t ready this year.

I also agree with the analysis above that we really didn’t need to do anything at the deadline this year. Hindsight is 20/20 of course. We overachieved as the top seed, and probably would have ended up as the 2nd or 3rd seed without Morrison and Mintyukov. We would have been pushed by Hamilton or Missy but would be the favourites. Then knocked out by Barrie or NB in the second round..so right where we ended up anyway. The deadline moves may have been to placate the fan base, seeing a first place team and wanting them to do…something. Also a nod to the veterans that were screwed out of a contending year in 2019-20. But we ended up half-pregnant, with a roster not constructed well enough for playoff hockey. It’s too bad. There’s still a 10-20% chance we go on a bit of a run here and take it in 7, but long odds of course.

Petes fan here -

I don’t understand what made Sirman so angry at the end of the game.

Did someone do him dirty or was it just general competitive angst ?

Just being a shithead. The tell was him going after one guy (Melee I think) the turning his attention to Gauvreau when the first guy shrugged him off.

 

[OMG67]

Nords….

The challenge with the returning forwards for 2024-25 season is none of them would be considered impact. Pinelli will be good as well as Gardiner but I am not sure either of them will be that Elite leader you need to push through. I think that will need to come out of the Import draft or maybe get lucky with an NCAA commit signing at some point.

Mews and Marrelli will be elite on the back end for sure. Same with MacK In net.

They need to hit a home run with a 17 year old Import this offseason. Preferably a Centre. That will go a long way towards looking at a run.

Regarding next season, there really isn’t a scenario that ends up with Ottawa contending. We are likely getting bounced from the 2nd round losing Morrison, Mintyukov, and Matier. No draft picks to fill holes. I really can’t see a way through that. They’ll have access to the 2027 picks of course. But even then it will be tough. Maybe they can add one decent player? They’d be good enough to win a round but not good enough to do real damage. It will be tough sledding the following season looking at no high picks in 2025, 2026, and 2027. They’d be forced to do a massive selloff.

I’d pull a Hamilton Bulldogs or Saginaw Spirit next season. Look to make your deals at the trade deadline and make as much hay as possible through the First half. Trade Rohrer, Smyth, Sirman, Beck and Donoso but bring in three value OA’s at a low cost (nothing more than an 4th) and run with it. Fill the holes left behind. See if you can bring in a young centre in one of those deals.

Keep four OA’s for the start of 2024-25. They can roster four of them but dress only 3. Keep MacK, Mayich, Gerrior and Stonehouse. If it looks like the team is a contender, keep the most meaningful three and trade the 4th. If they don’t look like a contender, then trade them all.

Post Deadline Roster:

Pinelli - OA - Stonehouse
Gerrior - Gardiner - Foster
Barlas - IMPORT - Kelly
2nd rnd(23) - 1st rnd(22) - Dever
3rd rnd(62)

Marrelli - Mews
Mayich - Ewles
OA - Horner
3rd rnd(46)

MacK
OA(early season waiver claim) or sign one of the 4 goalies picked in 2022.

I think if they get fortunate with the OAs and find some solid cheap ones, they can be competitive and restock the picks cabinet doing so.

EDIT:
targets from the NCAA commits:
2006’s - Ryder Dagenais and Caton Ryan
2005’s - The MacPherson twins and Ryan Smith
2004’s - Jack “John” Henry and Seamus Powell

Most likely? Maybe the MacPherson twins. Only because Boyd did mention them from the perspective of how good the 67’s 2021 draft was. But? Maybe?

 

[OMG67]

Hi OMG67
Petes fan here and I just want to say I am sorry to hear you are unable to post in the Petes thread -hopefully that is temporary.

I always enjoy your analysis and presentation of facts ( actual stats/ data).

All good. I’m very misunderstood! If you saw me face to face instead of reading text, you’d see the context all over my face jsut trying to poke some fun at certain people or situations. Some take offence because they can’t sense the nuance. It is what it is. I accept that. So, at times, I get placed in timeout.

 

[beastintheeast]

If Boyd can get some pics and has a couple of international players in mind, I can see Rohrer traded before the international draft.

That would give us a forward and defenceman in the build and some of those draft picks in return.

Donoso I see it as an after-camp trade. Not because Ottawa is going to want to keep him but because other teams need to see what they have.

Boucher will not be back Ottawa wants him to learn and playing OHL is not the place to send him to Belleville

Beck if he reports camp healthy TRADE HIM quickly before he has a chance to get injured. I do not think he will get a rookie camp invite.

As to this year I think once the smoke clears we are going to find out that there were a lot of hurting players. That is the only thing that explains Morrison, Minty Beck Tolnai and Constatini in this round.

Saturday I would go with the season-opening lineup. put Morrison and Beck on the bench for PP and select shifts

Put Minty in the line up instead of Constantini.

Sorry OMG but right now he is a liability more than an asset.

 

[dirty12]

If Boyd can get some pics and has a couple of international players in mind, I can see Rohrer traded before the international draft.

That would give us a forward and defenceman in the build and some of those draft picks in return.

Donoso I see it as an after-camp trade. Not because Ottawa is going to want to keep him but because other teams need to see what they have.

Boucher will not be back Ottawa wants him to learn and playing OHL is not the place to send him to Belleville

Beck if he reports camp healthy TRADE HIM quickly before he has a chance to get injured. I do not think he will get a rookie camp invite.

As to this year I think once the smoke clears we are going to find out that there were a lot of hurting players. That is the only thing that explains Morrison, Minty Beck Tolnai and Constatini in this round

The Petes ridiculously fast forward group matching the defensive effort of the ‘67s explains the ‘67s looking sluggish imo.
Be honest, Morrison and Tolnai cannot keep up with that pace never mind separation. The ‘67s will need to better execute picks to turn this series around.

Saturday I would go with the season-opening lineup. put Morrison and Beck on the bench for PP and select shifts

Put Minty in the line up instead of Constantini.

Sorry OMG but right now he is a liability more than an asset.

 

[sirius67fan]

Petes fan here -

I don’t understand what made Sirman so angry at the end of the game.

Did someone do him dirty or was it just general competitive angst ?

Just frustration i think!

 

[BigHitter67]

The Petes ridiculously fast forward group matching the defensive effort of the ‘67s explains the ‘67s looking sluggish imo.
Be honest, Morrison and Tolnai cannot keep up with that pace never mind separation. The ‘67s will need to better execute picks to turn this series around.

I agree the Pete forwards are a load . Fast and skilled !!

 

[analyser]

Let's face it 67s fans had to be optimistic about this series seeing how the Petes team could not seem to get it all together. The Petes loaded up but did not seem to execute as a cohesive unit. We had success during the year but it was not like the playoff grind.

When you look at it realistically the Petes have a total of 12 02s and 03s. We on the other hand have a total of 7. The maturity, experience and playoff battle readiness makes a big difference coming from your group. Boyd's decision to go after Morrison and Minty but not to add a couple of other experienced players cost us in the end. (Like 15 draft picks) Sometimes you have to also move roster players to get the required players needed to balance your roster..

Size is another issue for the 67s when it comes to the playoff grind and keeping the other team honest as we are really lacking in this department. You need complementary players to to play with your speedy young forwards.

To the Petes supporters your team has really neutralized our speed and kudos to the coaching staff. Good luck to your team as you battle the Batallion or the Colts. I know one thing either team will be a difficult hill to climb.

 

[OMG67]

The Petes ridiculously fast forward group matching the defensive effort of the ‘67s explains the ‘67s looking sluggish imo.
Be honest, Morrison and Tolnai cannot keep up with that pace never mind separation. The ‘67s will need to better execute picks to turn this series around.

I know you are pointing to the Petes speed but if we are being completely honest, the Petes speed hasn’t killed Ottawa at all. In four games, the 67’s have given up 10 goals (plus 2 EN). The issue for Ottawa is offence. They haven’t been able to break through the Petes defence. Spearing was always going to be a wildcard. He’s been often injured and has not lived up to his potential all season. But, he is a playoff type guy and he has been great at clogging the middle and net front.

Additionally, Simpson has made some ridiculous saves. If Simpson were average, these games would be going to OT at worst and then who knows?

I know the shot totals don’t flatter Ottawa but the funny part is they have controlled a lot of the puck possession in the series, barring game 4. Game 4 was horrible for Ottawa and yet it was essentially a 2-1 game.

I know you have an affinity towards the Petes offence and speed but to be honest, their offence has not been a difference maker IMO. It has been their defence and goaltending that has stood out. That was not something I would have expected coming into this series based on the results of their regular season. Even the Sudbury series was more defence and goaltending. The Petes have only scored 25 goals over 8 games in the playoffs. Discounting the EN goals, they are under 3 goals per game. IMO if I am pointing to a disappointing area for them, it is their offence and forwards not generating enough chances. As you have pointed out int he past,t hey tend to be happy shooting from the perimeter. They’ve been fortunate to score goals from the perimeter this series. The 67’s have not been as fortunate.

This is not to say the Petes have not been the better team overall. They have. I just feel differently as to the areas of the games that have been the more impactful for the Petes than you seem to feel.

 

[NordiquesForeva]

Nords….

The challenge with the returning forwards for 2024-25 season is none of them would be considered impact. Pinelli will be good as well as Gardiner but I am not sure either of them will be that Elite leader you need to push through. I think that will need to come out of the Import draft or maybe get lucky with an NCAA commit signing at some point.

Mews and Marrelli will be elite on the back end for sure. Same with MacK In net.

They need to hit a home run with a 17 year old Import this offseason. Preferably a Centre. That will go a long way towards looking at a run.

Regarding next season, there really isn’t a scenario that ends up with Ottawa contending. We are likely getting bounced from the 2nd round losing Morrison, Mintyukov, and Matier. No draft picks to fill holes. I really can’t see a way through that. They’ll have access to the 2027 picks of course. But even then it will be tough. Maybe they can add one decent player? They’d be good enough to win a round but not good enough to do real damage. It will be tough sledding the following season looking at no high picks in 2025, 2026, and 2027. They’d be forced to do a massive selloff.

I’d pull a Hamilton Bulldogs or Saginaw Spirit next season. Look to make your deals at the trade deadline and make as much hay as possible through the First half. Trade Rohrer, Smyth, Sirman, Beck and Donoso but bring in three value OA’s at a low cost (nothing more than an 4th) and run with it. Fill the holes left behind. See if you can bring in a young centre in one of those deals.

Keep four OA’s for the start of 2024-25. They can roster four of them but dress only 3. Keep MacK, Mayich, Gerrior and Stonehouse. If it looks like the team is a contender, keep the most meaningful three and trade the 4th. If they don’t look like a contender, then trade them all.

Post Deadline Roster:

Pinelli - OA - Stonehouse
Gerrior - Gardiner - Foster
Barlas - IMPORT - Kelly
2nd rnd(23) - 1st rnd(22) - Dever
3rd rnd(62)

Marrelli - Mews
Mayich - Ewles
OA - Horner
3rd rnd(46)

MacK
OA(early season waiver claim) or sign one of the 4 goalies picked in 2022.

I think if they get fortunate with the OAs and find some solid cheap ones, they can be competitive and restock the picks cabinet doing so.

EDIT:
targets from the NCAA commits:
2006’s - Ryder Dagenais and Caton Ryan
2005’s - The MacPherson twins and Ryan Smith
2004’s - Jack “John” Henry and Seamus Powell

Most likely? Maybe the MacPherson twins. Only because Boyd did mention them from the perspective of how good the 67’s 2021 draft was. But? Maybe?

Projecting out is difficult but I would expect Mews to be an elite D-man in 2024-25. He's being discussed as a 1st round (perhaps even top ~15) draft pick so that puts him in that category. Marrelli should be very solid, perhaps a tier below elite, and Mayich will be a very strong OA (I consider him to be quite strong as an 18-year old; not on Matier's level at that age obviously, but quite strong...he's developed well this year).

Whatever moves are made in this off-season and next year's deadline, the primary objective in 2023-24 needs to be for the 67s to secure a reasonable playoff seed (yes, exactly like Saginaw or Hamilton this year), force a lengthy first round series against a higher seed or preferably sneak into the second round before bowing out. The primary goal should be to accumulate playoff experience for the projected core in 2024-25.

If 2024-25 arrives and the core hasn't developed as expected, the Import players needed haven't arrived or panned out, and we project out as another mid-tier playoff seed, maybe its time to sell it off again at the deadline and re-tool. Lots can happen between now and then. But overall I agree that next year is the not the year. Could shape up as a good re-tool season for us actually.

 

[OMG67]

Let's face it 67s fans had to be optimistic about this series seeing how the Petes team could not seem to get it all together. The Petes loaded up but did not seem to execute as a cohesive unit. We had success during the year but it was not like the playoff grind.

When you look at it realistically the Petes have a total of 12 02s and 03s. We on the other hand have a total of 7. The maturity, experience and playoff battle readiness makes a big difference coming from your group. Boyd's decision to go after Morrison and Minty but not to add a couple of other experienced players cost us in the end. (Like 15 draft picks) Sometimes you have to also move roster players to get the required players needed to balance your roster..

Size is another issue for the 67s when it comes to the playoff grind and keeping the other team honest as we are really lacking in this department. You need complementary players to to play with your speedy young forwards.

To the Petes supporters your team has really neutralized our speed and kudos to the coaching staff. Good luck to your team as you battle the Batallion or the Colts. I know one thing either team will be a difficult to climb.

I may be disappointed in the results of this series but this is what I expected in the next series if we were to have played North Bay. So, in the end, this isn’t all that much of a surprise. The surprise is Peterborough finally getting their game together at such a late point int he season.

You highlighted the issue and that is youth. I had pointed to that a lot this season. Nearing the end of the deadline after we had added Morrison and Mintyukov, we had posted a mock lineup and there were still holes. I know a lot of us wanted to see Rohrer moved to the wing. That would necessitate the addition of another Centre. We also struggled with who would be the ideal D-Man to pair with Mintyukov and the only ideal player was Matier. The problem with that was we really needed them to be on different pairings to cover 45 minutes of ice time per game.

I like Cooper Foster but IMO, he was the player that needed to be used in a deal. His stat line and age would have been a signficant get for a team selling. If we were adding Mintyukov to an already clogged blueline which necessitated the shift of Sirman to forward, Sirman should have been moved. If you look at the Hache trade to Barrie, I think that could have been a potential get for Ottawa and potentially a solid pairing for Mintyukov even if both were lefties. I would have liked seeing a Zito deal as well But that one happened earlier in December. Zito would have added some grit to our centre position.

In theory, both Zito and Hache were available and Ottawa would easily have had the assets to make those two deals happen.

I’m not saying this deal should have happened but if Ottawa could have foreseen the struggle on defence finding a partner for Mintyukov, a swap of Costantini for Roger in Kingston may have been good as well. That is more of a hindsight move but one that could have helped.

I know Beast and I disagree on philosophy but the goal of sport is to win a championship in what would be considered reasonable intervals. If you are in a 20 team league, you should want to win a championship every 20 years on average. Ottawa hasn’t won since 2001. Prior to that it was 1984. That is not ideal. When you have a young team that is performing and you have an experienced hockey management team that should know that regardless of the regular season performance of your youth, you CANNOT rely on them to produce in the playoffs. I was ok if they decided not to add to this team. Alternatively, I wa soak if they pushed all their chips in. What I wasn’t ok with was a half assed effort. Although they got, IMO, the best two players at the deadline, they should have recognized the youth wasn’t going to propell them through. When the average fan sits there questioning the validity of the totality of moves, I think that tells you something.

I question the concept of loyalty In these situations. I know a GM is apparently showing loyalty by not trading the players that got you to first place at the deadline but I think an act of loyalty is when you owe it to the core of the team to sacrifice whatever you have to for the greater good of the team. Maybe Boyd kept two players and showed loyalty but he let down the other 22 byt not doing everything he could. So, really, how loyal was he?

I remember back int he day when Killer was the GM and the team was always the bridesmade. Other teams would make big deadline moves and Killer would add a depth 4th liner Ottawa boy. One of the key leaders on the 67’s squad actually said post deadline that Kilrea isn’t as smart as people think he is. The dressing room was pissed off no moves were made. I think that is the mentality of the guys in the room. No matter how close they may be, the reality is they want to be positioned best as possible when the time is right. The 67’s were positioned best as possible and the time was right. The GM just wasn’t up tot the task.

Projecting out is difficult but I would expect Mews to be an elite D-man in 2024-25. He's being discussed as a 1st round (perhaps even top ~15) draft pick so that puts him in that category. Marrelli should be very solid, perhaps a tier below elite, and Mayich will be a very strong OA (I consider him to be quite strong as an 18-year old; not on Matier's level at that age obviously, but quite strong...he's developed well this year).

Whatever moves are made in this off-season and next year's deadline, the primary objective in 2023-24 needs to be for the 67s to secure a reasonable playoff seed (yes, exactly like Saginaw or Hamilton this year), force a lengthy first round series against a higher seed or preferably sneak into the second round before bowing out. The primary goal should be to accumulate playoff experience for the projected core in 2024-25.

If 2024-25 arrives and the core hasn't developed as expected, the Import players needed haven't arrived or panned out, and we project out as another mid-tier playoff seed, maybe its time to sell it off again at the deadline and re-tool. Lots can happen between now and then. But overall I agree that next year is the not the year. Could shape up as a good re-tool season for us actually.

I think if the right moves are made and we have a little bit of decent fortune, this 67’s squad could do exactly what you suggest. A sell off that doesn’t result in struggling to make the playoffs and keeps the train moving forward.

 

[analyser]

I may be disappointed in the results of this series but this is what I expected in the next series if we were to have played North Bay. So, in the end, this isn’t all that much of a surprise. The surprise is Peterborough finally getting their game together at such a late point int he season.

You highlighted the issue and that is youth. I had pointed to that a lot this season. Nearing the end of the deadline after we had added Morrison and Mintyukov, we had posted a mock lineup and there were still holes. I know a lot of us wanted to see Rohrer moved to the wing. That would necessitate the addition of another Centre. We also struggled with who would be the ideal D-Man to pair with Mintyukov and the only ideal player was Matier. The problem with that was we really needed them to be on different pairings to cover 45 minutes of ice time per game.

I like Cooper Foster but IMO, he was the player that needed to be used in a deal. His stat line and age would have been a signficant get for a team selling. If we were adding Mintyukov to an already clogged blueline which necessitated the shift of Sirman to forward, Sirman should have been moved. If you look at the Hache trade to Barrie, I think that could have been a potential get for Ottawa and potentially a solid pairing for Mintyukov even if both were lefties. I would have liked seeing a Zito deal as well But that one happened earlier in December. Zito would have added some grit to our centre position.

In theory, both Zito and Hache were available and Ottawa would easily have had the assets to make those two deals happen.

I’m not saying this deal should have happened but if Ottawa could have foreseen the struggle on defence finding a partner for Mintyukov, a swap of Costantini for Roger in Kingston may have been good as well. That is more of a hindsight move but one that could have helped.

I know Beast and I disagree on philosophy but the goal of sport is to win a championship in what would be considered reasonable intervals. If you are in a 20 team league, you should want to win a championship every 20 years on average. Ottawa hasn’t won since 2001. Prior to that it was 1984. That is not ideal. When you have a young team that is performing and you have an experienced hockey management team that should know that regardless of the regular season performance of your youth, you CANNOT rely on them to produce in the playoffs. I was ok if they decided not to add to this team. Alternatively, I wa soak if they pushed all their chips in. What I wasn’t ok with was a half assed effort. Although they got, IMO, the best two players at the deadline, they should have recognized the youth wasn’t going to propell them through. When the average fan sits there questioning the validity of the totality of moves, I think that tells you something.

I question the concept of loyalty In these situations. I know a GM is apparently showing loyalty by not trading the players that got you to first place at the deadline but I think an act of loyalty is when you owe it to the core of the team to sacrifice whatever you have to for the greater good of the team. Maybe Boyd kept two players and showed loyalty but he let down the other 22 byt not doing everything he could. So, really, how loyal was he?

I remember back int he day when Killer was the GM and the team was always the bridesmade. Other teams would make big deadline moves and Killer would add a depth 4th liner Ottawa boy. One of the key leaders on the 67’s squad actually said post deadline that Kilrea isn’t as smart as people think he is. The dressing room was pissed off no moves were made. I think that is the mentality of the guys in the room. No matter how close they may be, the reality is they want to be positioned best as possible when the time is right. The 67’s were positioned best as possible and the time was right. The GM just wasn’t up tot the task.



I think if the right moves are made and we have a little bit of decent fortune, this 67’s squad could do exactly what you suggest. A sell off that doesn’t result in struggling to make the playoffs and keeps the train moving forward.

I agree that Hache would of been a good addition and another player I would of considered is Layden McCallum. Both would of added some grit and experience to the team. Though the Wolves would probably not of traded McCallum but you never know.

 

[beastintheeast]

THe bottom line is that the players we drafted to be the big guns and provide leadership in the playoffs have yet to do it.
This team looks worn out and beat.

The Petes are not a better team. If they were they would have been in the hunt for 1st but they never were.

They are not a faster team.

The big difference in this round is not the players but the coaches.

Peterborough realized that they could not play run and gun with us so they went with what has worked every time they get up against a better offensive team.

They play a defensive system that does not allow for shots on the net and keeps the other team off balance.

n the regular season fans would kill the coach if he played every home game like this but in the playoffs it is amazing.