Prospect Info: Syracuse Crunch, Orlando Solar Bears, & Prospects Thread

[Felonious Python]

Groshev has a good toolkit to play in the bottom 6 of a KHL team. Shalagin isn’t getting to the KHL unless he can play in the top 6 and put up a lot of points.

Shalagin was pretty good defensively for the Bears. He couldn't figure out how to contribute offensively.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

The Western Hockey League Board of Governors announced today the WHL Regular Season is scheduled to open on Friday, January 8, 2021.

The WHL has agreed that all Regular Season games during the 2020-21 season will be played exclusively within the boundaries of each of the four Divisions, with the East Division consisting of the seven Saskatchewan and Manitoba-based teams; the Central Division consisting of the five Alberta-based teams; the B.C. Division consisting of the five B.C.-based teams; and the U.S. Division consisting of the five teams located in Washington and Oregon.

All WHL players will be reporting to their respective WHL Clubs following the Christmas break where they will begin training in preparation for the opening of the WHL Regular Season on January 8.

WHL draft picks:

Jack Finley (Spokane / US Division)
Gage Goncalves (Everett / US Division)
Jaydon Dureau (Portland / US Division)
Quinn Schmiemann (Kamloops / BC Division)


Moncton and Gabriel Fortier have played only 3 games so far.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

The US national junior team will meet December 9th or 10th & enter the Edmonton WJC bubble December 13th. USA Hockey held their 42 player evaluation camp this past week.

USA Hockey Concludes 2020 National Junior Evaluation Camp at USA Hockey Arena

A lot will happen over the next ten weeks, as staff make final decisions on the U.S. National Junior Team roster. Some players may have the opportunity to play a handful of games with college and club teams over the next two months, but what was shown on the ice at USA Hockey Arena will leave a lasting impression on staff of who can bring energy and urgency to Team USA in accomplishing the ultimate goal of winning a gold medal.

It's unclear how many players they will take into the bubble. A couple different college conferences have announced they will start their seasons in mid-late November, but I doubt between the players who can't get on the ice and those who can but only for a few games, makes much difference. I wonder if being selected for their evaluation camp will carry all the weight on who gets an invite in December. Is it possible they take only those players and then cut the number down and finalize their roster from there before the December 26th start?

Which brings us to Team Canada. They will have a similar problem in evaluating players. The QMJHL who started earlier than the rest of the CHL, is postponing their games until the end of the month, and who knows what they'll do after that. The OHL is not slated (as of now) to start until December and the WHL will not play until the new year. Hockey Canada also had an evaluation camp back in late July, but players did not get on the ice. They held a virtual camp focusing on "player development through online education."

2020 Lightning draft pick Gage Goncalves was a late addition to that list of 40+ Canadian players. He's a long shot, but as Al Murray said, his exclusive selection marks him as a player on their radar. This will be something to watch after today's WHL's announcement to see what this all means for Goncalves chances.

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[Legionnaire11]

Looking at a couple who made their debut last season, what kind of NHL future does Volkov and Stephens have?

 

[Odie Cleghorn]

And what are the prospects for Raddysh?

 

[Felonious Python]

Lipanov to Moscow Dynamo.
Google Translate

The machine translation says it's a 'bilateral' contract, which I'll interpret as a two-way contract between the KHL and VHL.

It's also saying the deal is until the end of the season, but not mentioning if he's intending to leave for AHL/ECHL camp. His numbers with Orlando are inflated from being a streaky PP scorer. At even strength he was mostly a replacement player.

If he has trouble over there, I don't think he's coming back.

 

[Peacefool]

im not following crunch team,but are there any guys who could possibly step really big in NHL in Tampa next season,and make a big impact for the team?

 

[Felonious Python]

im not following crunch team,but are there any guys who could possibly step really big in NHL in Tampa next season,and make a big impact for the team?

It depends on how many holes are in the lineup after JBB cuts salary.

ABB, Volkov, & Foote are probably the 'biggest' names we've got. Although there's a bunch of candidates, some with NHL experience, some not. Gemel Smith, Mathieu Joseph, maybe Raddysh and Katchouk.

Stephens signed a one-way, so I suppose he's up.

We don't really have anyone kicking down the door at the moment.

 

[Peacefool]

It depends on how many holes are in the lineup after JBB cuts salary.

ABB, Volkov, & Foote are probably the 'biggest' names we've got. Although there's a bunch of candidates, some with NHL experience, some not. Gemel Smith, Mathieu Joseph, maybe Raddysh and Katchouk.

Stephens signed a one-way, so I suppose he's up.

We don't really have anyone kicking down the door at the moment.

yeah thats why i meant.As you said "We don't really have anyone kicking down the door at the moment" I was hoping that we have some great talent down there who could make a team and make a big impact. Ill just hope that Volkov gonna find his game at top 9,maybe top 6,cuz i liked he when i saw him playing with us. And that Foote will step in like 6-7 dman.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[Felonious Python]

The Norfolk Admirals voluntarily suspend for the upcoming 2020-21 ECHL season.

A shame really. This was the first season since they rejoined the league that I felt that they might have been able to put together a decent team. They changed owners and it's another clear sign that it always starts at the top.

It does mean that the Solar Bears South division is down two teams since Atlanta also dropped.

Unlike Atlanta though, there are guys I think OSB would be interested in. Eric Williams, Matt Marquardt (who played with asst. coach Jared Staal), maybe possibly Dajon Mingo, etc.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Lightning prospects in the NCHC:

Nick Perbix - St. Cloud State
Cole Guttman - Denver
Magnus Chrona - Denver
McKade Webster - Denver
Cole Koepke - Minnesota Duluth

The Big Ten Conference (Sammy Walker - Minnesota) will start November 14th.

Lightning prospects in the ECAC & Hockey East:

Kris Oldham - Clarkson/ECAC
Nick Capone - UConn/Hockey East
Max Crozier - Providence/Hockey East
Ty Taylor - New Hampshire/Hockey East
Eamon Powell - Boston College/Hockey East

have both yet to release a schedule for the 2020-2021 season.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

A long interview with Lipanov


He flew from NY to Moscow in March.
Trained with NHL and KHL guys during the summer before they left to join their club teams.
Tested positive for covid in July but didn't have any symptoms.

On what the plan for Lipanov is for the 2020-2021 season:

You left Dynamo in 2017, and since then there have been rumors of your return. With what attempt did the Dynamo leadership persuade you to return?
- Every summer I was in touch with representatives of Dynamo. They didn’t say “come on, move” and didn’t give a contract right away. Rather, they asked how they were doing, were interested in plans. After all, their pupil. Many thanks to them for such attention.

Dynamo General Manager Viktor Merkulov said that you refused to return last season. Why did you make this decision?
- I still wanted to try my hand at the Tampa system. I had a contract then, and now it is valid. Did I do it right? Later, when I’m finished with hockey, it will be possible to reason about what decisions were made, reasonable or not reasonable.

"I'm at Dynamo until the end of the season - that's right from the development point of view"

Clarify. Are you at Dynamo before the opening of the NHL training camps?
- As far as I know, until the end of the season. In order not to twitch, play calmly here, gain experience, pump skills. This will be more correct in terms of development.

and next year:

Your contract with Tampa is valid until 2022. What goals do you set for yourself by the end of this period?
- There are global goals, and there are realistic ones. If we talk about realistic, then you need to gain a foothold in the AHL, and then get a qualification offer from Tampa. And in order to be perceived differently, you need to prove yourself at Dynamo. The attitude towards a simple prospect from the junior league and towards a player from the KHL, whatever one may say, is different. Let's see what Tampa thinks about my future development. I don't see the point in looking too far.

Lipanov also talks about his time in the OHL, Akim Aliu, the Hockey Diversity Alliance, and playing/developing in the AHL and ECHL.

Google Translate

Lipanov played his first game in the VHL today. He won 7/10 faceoffs, and had 12:47 of ice time.

 

[Felonious Python]

Ooh boy. Raw Charge ain't gonna like those HDA comments.

FWIW, Anson Carter has criticized Akim Aliu in the past for using race as leverage to a hockey career. The guy isn't perfect, but are we better off with anti-racism in hockey? Yeah.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Sergachev in attendance for Miftakhov vs Groshev


Miftakhov makes 30/32 saves for the win.

Groshev played only 7 1/2 minutes.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Gage Goncalves gets an invite to Canada’s selection camp

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Fortier picks up a hat trick with the 3rd goal coming in OT for the win.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Shorthanded goals in back to back games for Fortier.



Hugo Alnefelt is with Sweden's National Junior Team in Malmo, for a tournament to prepare for the upcoming WJC, but no games were played. It's unclear if he can/will join the mens team in Finland for the Karjala Cup, which is going on right now.


google translated:

On Thursday, the Swedish Ice Hockey Association and the Finnish Ice Hockey Association jointly decided to cancel Finnkampen in Malmö, as a precautionary measure due to two positive covid tests in the Swedish squad.

Players and leaders in the Junior Crowns were tested before the trip to Malmö where all test results were negative. Since the collection, the players have worn mouth guards and adapted their operations to Swedish ice hockey's Business Protocols. Upon arrival in Malmö, new covid tests were performed where a player tested positive. After the positive answer did quick tests on all leaders and players where another player showed a positive test result. None of the players have shown or are showing any symptoms. After these test results, the Swedish Ice Hockey Association together with the Finnish Ice Hockey Association chose to cancel Finnkampen in Malmö.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Neftekhimik trades Groshev to SKA



Groshev has yet to play a game for SKA as he is currently with Russia's National Junior Team playing in the Karjala Cup. Groshev is also wearing an 'A' as one of the teams returning players.

Groshev had 2 assists in 17 games this season for Neftekhimik, averaging 11:48 of ice time a game. Groshev goes from a 5 win team to 12 win team. SKA has the 2nd most point in the KHL's western conference, only behind CSKA. The head coach of Saint Petersburg is Valeri Bragin, who has coached Groshev before on the national junior teams.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Groshev wins the Karjala Cup with Russia




There's no U20 Four Nations Tournament this month so I believe this is it as far as international games until teams enter the Edmonton bubble for the World Juniors.



Hockey East (Nick Capone, Max Crozier, Ty Taylor, & Eamon Powell) will start their season November 20th.

That covers all Lightning prospects in the NCAA except for Kris Oldham at Clarkson apart of the ECAC.

Link >> College Hockey

A few Lightning prospects on preseason ranked teams

#2 Boston College - Powell
#3 Minnesota Duluth - Koepke
#4 Denver - Webster, Chrona, Guttman
#8 Clarkson - Oldham
#13 Minnesota - Walker

Providence (Crozier) also received votes.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Walker, the 2018 Minnesota Mr. Hockey winner from Edina and the Big Ten freshman of the year after his first season of college hockey, turned some heads last season when he became the first sophomore in modern Gopher hockey history to be named a co-captain. Motzko said the leadership that Walker has shown as the team has navigated the pandemic-related uncertainty of the past eight months makes it clear that the forward is a leader on and off the ice.

“Sammy has really taken on a great leadership role with our team while becoming an upperclassman,” Motzko said. “For this program and for his teammates, he’s really done a terrific job leading guys through what we’re going through right now.”

Jack Finley is on loan to the West Kelowna Warriors of the BCHL.

The Western Hockey League has agreed to allow teams to loan their players to Junior A teams until December 20th at which time they will rejoin their WHL team.

Jaydon Dureau is also on loan to the Melville Millionaires of the SJHL