Sarnia Sting 2022-23 Season Thread

[StingUpdates]

Voit listed as part of group 2 at Toronto today

Weird they made no mention of him being at main camp. Least that means he's healthy. Vilmanis is playing tonight vs Nashville. Lantz got sent back today. Mast, Gaudreau still at camp.

Is Grover the consesus #2 or is he the odd man out ?

Up until Saturday to me he was the clear #2. Had outplayed Surzycia all camp, pre season. Then sh*t the bed vs WSR. If I had to guess Grover will be the backup to start (unless he has to start Vs KIT/WSR..) & if he struggles Surzycia gets an opportunity.

Sarnia's 2nd home game vs SSM will be on TSN. Surprised they chose that of all the games but whatever lol.

 

[HkyBeegs3]

Is there any chance mast, vilmannis or gaudreau make their respective teams?
Whats everyone's thoughts on the play\progress of Namestnikov?

 

[OHL Fan]

Seca said they have one of the best bluelines in the ohl.So aquiring Hoover is just for depth & nothing else.

Sarnia's defense may not be in the top half of the Western Conference. JMO

 

[StingUpdates]

Is there any chance mast, vilmannis or gaudreau make their respective teams?
Whats everyone's thoughts on the play\progress of Namestnikov?

They'll be back. I went into camp hoping for a 60-70 Point season from Namestnikov & nothing i've seen has made me reconsider either way. Intrigued to see who he plays with when everyone is back.

My expectations come crashing down for opening weekend if Voit, Vilmanis, Mast, Gaudreau are all out, especially vs two strong teams in KIT & WSR. See if any get sent back by Friday.

 

[OHL4Life]

Is there any chance mast, vilmannis or gaudreau make their respective teams?
Whats everyone's thoughts on the play\progress of Namestnikov?

you have nothing to worry about

 

[StingUpdates]

There haven't been many years I can remember where I'm this undecided on what I'd want the lines to look like, especially when everyone is back.

Do u guys have lines/pairs you'd like to see?

Gaudreau survives another round of cuts. Welp we'll be without him for at the very least opening weekend.

 

[HkyBeegs3]

Where do you see that Gaudreau is still with the sharks, I can't seem to find him on their roster on the team site

 

[HkyBeegs3]

Nevermind I see it.

 

[Ogie Junior]

As of 4:30pm PT today

Limpar-Lantz on his way back to the hive.

DETROIT - The Detroit Red Wings today assigned forwards Amadeus Lombardi and Pasquale Zito, defenseman Oscar Plandowski and goaltender Jan Bednar to their respective major junior clubs and released forwards Julien Anctil, Marcus Limpar-Lantz, Mitchell Martin and Jacob Mathieu and goaltender Andrew Oke from their amateur tryouts.

 

[Ogie Junior]

Sorry I combined 2 separate post.

 

[Ferda11]

Sarnia's defense may not be in the top half of the Western Conference. JMO

While I think it will be in the top half (hardly), I also think there are a lot of people over hyping these guys. They all lost a full year of hockey still...people forget that. A 19 year old blueliner who lost a year of hockey is not as strong or experienced as a 19 year old who didn't lose a year of hockey. So while the age of the player tells one story, the year lost tells another. We saw it allllll last year and we have seen it through 4 exhibition games so far this year (I know it's only preseason blah blah). Gaudreau will make this teams defense look way better than what they are on his own. There is no top end talent to this defensive core whatsoever, but they should be able to use size and aggression to their advantage if they choose to play sound defensive hockey and become true "stay at home d-men". We have one of the best jr goalies in the world, this team needs to keep it's focus on defending him and our own zone. That won't happen until guys like Romeo and Mast stop trying to carry the puck up the ice like they are elite defensemen.

 

[honeydripper]

There haven't been many years I can remember where I'm this undecided on what I'd want the lines to look like, especially when everyone is back.

Do u guys have lines/pairs you'd like to see?

Gaudreau survives another round of cuts. Welp we'll be without him for at the very least opening weekend.

disclaimer- my opinion only, which is purely fan based with all of the biases attached to it.

1- Vilmanis, Voit, Burke
2a- Sikic, Namestnikov, Limpar-Lantz
2b- Filak, MacDonell, Doucette
4- McIntyre, Wainwright, Martone

Ritchie, Mast
Dillingham, Romeo
Daviault, MacDonald

I'd give the second line minutes to whichever line is clicking during any given game. Max and Marco are on short leashes in my eyes, they're either really good or completely invisible, never in between. Some of the new guys might change my mind, I just haven't seen enough to put them in my imaginary line up.

 

[Ferda11]

disclaimer- my opinion only, which is purely fan based with all of the biases attached to it.

1- Vilmanis, Voit, Burke
2a- Sikic, Namestnikov, Limpar-Lantz
2b- Filak, MacDonell, Doucette
4- McIntyre, Wainwright, Martone

Ritchie, Mast
Dillingham, Romeo
Daviault, MacDonald

I'd give the second line minutes to whichever line is clicking during any given game. Max and Marco are on short leashes in my eyes, they're either really good or completely invisible, never in between. Some of the new guys might change my mind, I just haven't seen enough to put them in my imaginary line up.

This would be very similar to mine as well.

I would switch Namestnikov off C. It's too much responsibility for him. He isn't that type of player. Your C needs to be the best back checker on the line, I feel like that will be Limpar-Lantz. Max is too offensively minded to worry about his own end lol.

I would also pair Ritchie and Mast separately on the blueline, especially if both plan to be offensively active.

Lalkin, Harper, Hoover and Campbell are the obvious ones out at this moment. Hoover could replace Macdonald based off "potential" alone as Seca seems to have high hopes for Hoover.

 

[StingUpdates]

Boston is yet to put out their cuts, but a reporter said he believes Mast was one of them as he along with a few others weren't at practice.

 

[SpaceMan81]

I like the top 2 lines as someone else has mentioned. I am a bit worried about Max and Sikic because they should have been much more dominant in the games I saw and they just weren't.
Here we go again on my McIntyre rant. He has outplayed Martone and Doucette in every game. I have no idea what games I am watching but there is no way he should play below either of them. And the line with Filak and MacDonell and McIntyre was the best last weekend. I'd keep them together.
It's ok if Martone starts on the 4th line as a rookie. Last year Filak, MacDonell, Geci, Lalkin, Vogelsberg, Harper and McIntyre were 4th liners or scratched as rookies. So he might be better off there to start the season.
I think Wainwright is the kind of player who would be better suited playing up in the lineup than playing 4th line mins. He is hurt by the numbers game, but I also didn't think he shined this preseason.
Harper, Lalkin and Dougherty are definitely behind the regulars at this time.

The defense scares me a lot. Next to Ritchie and Dillingham, we are young and inexperienced. If this team is half decent at the deadline, they have to trade for a stud defenseman. If that means trading a Filak, Namestikov, or another good forward, it is a must. There defense is just not good enough to be a top contender yet. That being said, maybe Mast comes back with a ton of confidence to take over games and play 30 mins. If that's the case, that would be awesome.
And let's pray that Gaudreau is back soon because both backup goalies are not quite up to OHL standards imo. Without Gaudreau, this team may be hard pressed to not finish last!!

 

[StingUpdates]

I agree with a lot of the points u guys have made today. I've gotta temper my expectations/hopes a bit. Especially because our conference looks ridiculously strong. KIT, FLT, OS have far more dynamic Fs than us. I still prefer our D & think it'll be a real strength of our team. It would be a huge disappointment if it wasn't.

Mast is 19 & a signed prospect. Romeo is 19 & drafted. Ritchie should be one of the best OA D. Daviault was the one of the best 16 yr old Dman last year in the league & will be a projected (I'd guess) 3rd rounder. Dillingham is a really solid OHLer who continues to improve each yr. MacDonald/Hoover are just your typical 6th Dman, but they are OHL level players.

Not saying they'll be elite & set the league on fire, but there's no reason for them not to be an upper tier team at defending. They are big, skate well, have physicality, puck moving ability & unlike last yr they have some experience under their belt. Letang is a defensive minded coach as well who stresses structure, defending.

Up front I like a lot of what we have, but it needs more high-end talent. I've said a lot the need for a 1C at the deadline but realistically to compete they'll probably need to add another F with that if they wanna be more than a 2nd round exit to FLT/KIT/OS/GUE.

The reason I'm so "high" on them or expect a lot is because they simply can not waste this season. They haven't had a "run" since the 2018 playoffs. That'll be 5 years already come April. They are gonna lose Gaudreau, Voit, Mast, Ritchie, Burke, Dillingham, Lantz after this season. Realistically after this yr they aren't setup for another high-end team for a few years. It HAS to be now or we could go 7, 8, 9 years without a decent run at it & mixed with covid that's crippling to a team that's just average for attendance already.

 

[Ogie Junior]

Cap Friendly is reporting that both Mast and Voit were sent back to junior but I can't find any confirmation from either team.

 

[StingUpdates]

Cap Friendly is reporting that both Mast and Voit were sent back to junior but I can't find any confirmation from either team.

Well I'd like to think they are pretty trustworthy haha. Still worry something could be up with Voit health wise. We'll just have to wait & see if he's dressed Friday.

Talk about someone we simply could not afford losing for any decent stretch of games. Leaves just Vilmanis & Gaudreau at camp. Don't imagine either make it past the next round of cuts whenever those will be.

 

[StingUpdates]

Here's what Sheldon Keefe (Leafs coach) had to say on Voit~

Keefe: I have liked what I have seen from Ty going back to when I watched him in the prospects tournament. I know he has dealt with injuries and we didn’t get to see him in much of our camp last season and it was a very short prospects tournament for him a year ago. When he got in this year, I liked his game.

He is a guy who can make plays and puts up points, but I saw a more competitive side of him than what I had expected. We wanted to give him a little bit more of a taste of it in practice by having him with the NHL guys.

Certainly, he is a super talented guy. He has to continue to get stronger, stay healthy, and continue working at his game when the puck is not on his stick. When it is on his stick, he has that part figured out.


Still leaves me a little unsure but said he got to practice vs NHLers & that would've been over the last week so hopefully that means he's good to go. Also nice to hear he's upped his competitiveness away from the puck.

 

[DarkRedxJ]

Doherty to the legionaires Surzycia to Strathory

 

[Ogie Junior]

SUNRISE, Fla. - Florida Panthers General Manager Bill Zito announced today that the club has reduced its roster for their 2022-23 Training Camp Presented by Baptist Health to 50 players.

Forwards Liam Arnsby, Josh Davies and Sandis Vilmanis, as well as defensemen Marek Alscher, Evan Nause and Braden Hache have been returned to their respective junior clubs.

 

[Dougie Daryl Clark]

Lines I'd like to see them try:
1. MacDonell, Voit, Burke - Burke plays his off wing and snipes, Mac digs pucks out of corner and goes in front, Voit does his magic.
2. Namestikov, Sikic, Vilmanis - Sikic dishes the puck, Max flies up and down wing and Vilmanis plays a smart, steady game

3. Filak, Limpar-Lantz, McIntyre - good size line, can grind and control the puck on cycles.
4. Doucette, Wainwright, Martone - good combo of youth, energy and skill for fourth line

 

[StingUpdates]

Voit, Mast, Vilmanis all sent back. Leaves just Ben. See how much chemistry they can get in 2 days of practice haha.

Right move sending Doherty down. Needs more time.

 

[Ogie Junior]

That's now 14 forwards left which I think is the right number to have going forward but 8 defense is maybe 1 too many not counting Young which is still a bit of a mystery.

 

[DarkRedxJ]

Voit, Mast, Vilmanis all sent back. Leaves just Ben. See how much chemistry they can get in 2 days of practice haha.

I find it odd how the sting sent Surzycia to junior B but Gaudreau hasn't been officially sent back yet makes me wonder if they know he will be back by Friday night or maybe we're looking for a more expiernced backup which I'm kinda hoping is the case because if we want to contend I don't think Grover is the way to go considering we maybe losing Gaudreau to world junior camp + world juniors and I don't feel comfortable leaving it to Grover that long