AHL: WBS Penguins Thread: Youre a prospect until youre 30 and youll like it!
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GilbertSeinfeld
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The broadcast mentioned that Torts was in the building tonight on the Flyers behalf.
Watching the 3rd period and OT, I'd swear Mike Sullivan was not only in the building but behind the Baby Pens' bench.
Rudy Russo
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Someone on this board brought this up last week, The Wheeling Nailers are playing their game #5 playoff game at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex in Cranberry on Saturday evening. Wheeling is up three games to one against the Indy Fuel.
Thank god they didn’t get any NHL games over Harkins or Bemstrom
Jacob
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Poulin and Koivunen were good in both games which is encouraging. Broz looked decent. Poulin was good in the POs a couple years ago too.
Blomqvist.. be nice to see him duplicate this season plus have a deeper run before we give him an NHL spot. No rush on him.
I thought Forrest overall did a decent job this year but maybe look at someone like Sonne from Saskatoon or Ahokas from Kitchener as the next head coach. It’s a good spot for jumping to an NHL career and should have plenty of applicants.
The forward group next year is pretty much set with all the prospects we brought in plus Koppanen and Johnstone returning. Pretty sure Houde and Joshua are signed to AHL deals too. I’d re-sign Gruden and Andonovski. Maybe room for one more like, journeyman, emergency call-up type forward.
D is pretty empty so far with Pickering coming in, St. Ivany likely to be in the NHL and everyone else being a UFA. Assume Ouellet moves on and Fedun retires. I’d re-sign Samorukov and Rathbone for depth.
Blomqvist can carry the reigns full-time.
Blomqvist.. be nice to see him duplicate this season plus have a deeper run before we give him an NHL spot. No rush on him.
I thought Forrest overall did a decent job this year but maybe look at someone like Sonne from Saskatoon or Ahokas from Kitchener as the next head coach. It’s a good spot for jumping to an NHL career and should have plenty of applicants.
The forward group next year is pretty much set with all the prospects we brought in plus Koppanen and Johnstone returning. Pretty sure Houde and Joshua are signed to AHL deals too. I’d re-sign Gruden and Andonovski. Maybe room for one more like, journeyman, emergency call-up type forward.
D is pretty empty so far with Pickering coming in, St. Ivany likely to be in the NHL and everyone else being a UFA. Assume Ouellet moves on and Fedun retires. I’d re-sign Samorukov and Rathbone for depth.
Blomqvist can carry the reigns full-time.
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Ryder71
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So
How did our hero Koivunen look? Didn't even know he was here in NA. I was focused on the NFL draft, tell me? But understand he's only 20 and had a long flight?
Gumbercules
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In addition to the NHL contracts, here are the AHL contracts they have for next year currently:
Jagger Joshua
Avery Hayes
Mathieu De St. Phalle
Logan Pietila
Philip Waugh
Scooter Brickey
Joshua was an every day player for WBS, so he will fill a spot. Brickey and Hayes played in the playoffs, so presumably they liked what they saw from them. The others could be Nailer fodder.
Jelsma was only on an ATO. He made a bit of splash, but wasn't on the playoff roster, so not sure where that goes.
They will also sign some Fedun, Ouellet, Hinostroza like equivalents to fill out the roster. Important to have guys like that around to help the younger guys start getting into good habits (e.g. diet, work ethic) that are required to be successful pros. Also the teams that generally win in the AHL have strong vets leading the way.
GilbertSeinfeld
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Saw Baby Pens gave up a 2 goal third period lead with under 10 mins to go, recaptured the lead with 3 minutes left and then gave it up again 20 seconds later and lost in overtime. All while giving up 3 pp goals lol.
Looks like those NHLers taught the baby pens a thing or two about how it's done in the big leagues.
Looks like those NHLers taught the baby pens a thing or two about how it's done in the big leagues.
Rudy Russo
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How do you feel about Andononski game? Just a AHL career player, or a fourth line player in the NHL?
Rudy Russo
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From the Hockey News:
In a stunning turn of events, the Pittsburgh Penguins AHL affiliate was eliminated in the first round of the AHL's Calder Cup Playoffs. The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins had a 3-1 lead in the third period, but it wasn't enough to secure a victory.
Emulating the NHL club and some questionable officiating led to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins falling to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms by a final score of 5-4 in overtime. The Phantoms captured the best of three series win with the over time goal.
It was a disappointing finish for the Baby Pens, who were hoping for a long run in the postseason. The roster had been loaded up with some of the organization's top prospects, like Tristan Broz, Owen Pickering, and Ville Koivunen. Also adding to the firepower were players with NHL games played, like Valtteri Puustinen, Jack St. Ivany, and Ryan Shea. Some of the Penguins's top prospects made it into game action, and were impressive in both appearances.
Koivunen made it clear why Kyle Dubas was so excited to acquire him in the Jake Guentzel trade. He put up a goal and an assist in his two games played, and brought the chance of scoring every time he stepped on the ice. With Brayden Yager still playing in juniors, Koivunen has to take the spot for top offensive prospect in the system. Between his keen offensive awareness, silky smooth hands, and a habit of finding his teammates in open positions, Koivunen not only impressed, he made a case for getting a shot with the NHL team next season.
The other impressive rookie was goaltender Joel Blomqvist. Goaltending was not the issue in the team's series loss, as Blomqvist continued his fantastic season in his two postseason starts.
While he did give up five goals in their Game 2 elimination, they were far from his fault. The Penguins were penalized quite a bit in the third period, surrendering two power play goals as a result. One of the goals was a seemingly obvious high-sticking goal, but the officials missed it, and the other was during a 5-on-3.
Despite this, Blomqvist stood tall. He gave up just two goals in their Game 1 loss and still stopped 29 shots in game two. The Penguins may understandably want Blomqvist to continue developing in the AHL, but his performance this season has earned him a shot at NHL time.
Other standouts in the game were forwards Jonathan Gruden and Tristan Broz. Gruden was aggressive on every loose puck and rebound, laid plenty of physical body checks, and displayed a grinder mindset that could earn him a fourth line role in the NHL.
Broz looked unfazed by the rapid transition from college to professional hockey. He couldn't crack the scoresheet in his two appearances, but he fit in nicely. His skating kept pace, he was strong on the puck, and created several scoring opportunities. He even played on the second line alongside Sam Poulin and Valtteri Puustinen during Game 2. With a full season awaiting Broz in the AHL, he can adapt to the offensive style of the professional game playing top line minutes.
After the offseason, it will be interesting to see if any of these players force their way into NHL roles. Their performances in the postseason showed strong ends to their respective seasons. Dubas is looking for young guys to fight for roles, but was it enough to earn the opportunities they are looking for?
In a stunning turn of events, the Pittsburgh Penguins AHL affiliate was eliminated in the first round of the AHL's Calder Cup Playoffs. The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins had a 3-1 lead in the third period, but it wasn't enough to secure a victory.
Emulating the NHL club and some questionable officiating led to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins falling to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms by a final score of 5-4 in overtime. The Phantoms captured the best of three series win with the over time goal.
It was a disappointing finish for the Baby Pens, who were hoping for a long run in the postseason. The roster had been loaded up with some of the organization's top prospects, like Tristan Broz, Owen Pickering, and Ville Koivunen. Also adding to the firepower were players with NHL games played, like Valtteri Puustinen, Jack St. Ivany, and Ryan Shea. Some of the Penguins's top prospects made it into game action, and were impressive in both appearances.
Koivunen made it clear why Kyle Dubas was so excited to acquire him in the Jake Guentzel trade. He put up a goal and an assist in his two games played, and brought the chance of scoring every time he stepped on the ice. With Brayden Yager still playing in juniors, Koivunen has to take the spot for top offensive prospect in the system. Between his keen offensive awareness, silky smooth hands, and a habit of finding his teammates in open positions, Koivunen not only impressed, he made a case for getting a shot with the NHL team next season.
The other impressive rookie was goaltender Joel Blomqvist. Goaltending was not the issue in the team's series loss, as Blomqvist continued his fantastic season in his two postseason starts.
While he did give up five goals in their Game 2 elimination, they were far from his fault. The Penguins were penalized quite a bit in the third period, surrendering two power play goals as a result. One of the goals was a seemingly obvious high-sticking goal, but the officials missed it, and the other was during a 5-on-3.
Despite this, Blomqvist stood tall. He gave up just two goals in their Game 1 loss and still stopped 29 shots in game two. The Penguins may understandably want Blomqvist to continue developing in the AHL, but his performance this season has earned him a shot at NHL time.
Other standouts in the game were forwards Jonathan Gruden and Tristan Broz. Gruden was aggressive on every loose puck and rebound, laid plenty of physical body checks, and displayed a grinder mindset that could earn him a fourth line role in the NHL.
Broz looked unfazed by the rapid transition from college to professional hockey. He couldn't crack the scoresheet in his two appearances, but he fit in nicely. His skating kept pace, he was strong on the puck, and created several scoring opportunities. He even played on the second line alongside Sam Poulin and Valtteri Puustinen during Game 2. With a full season awaiting Broz in the AHL, he can adapt to the offensive style of the professional game playing top line minutes.
After the offseason, it will be interesting to see if any of these players force their way into NHL roles. Their performances in the postseason showed strong ends to their respective seasons. Dubas is looking for young guys to fight for roles, but was it enough to earn the opportunities they are looking for?
Gurglesons
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Jacob
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I think he’s worth QOing. He could be a 4th liner. I think he at least deserved a call-up this season. Big guy, skates well, physical enough. Offensively he could be better. He plays a straight line type game that’s tailored for a bottom line spot.
Jacob
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I think Houde is signed too. Think they extended him recently while he was injured.
Rudy Russo
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Wheeling won tonight 4 to 2, and the series against Indy. Lukas Svejkovsky two assists.
GilbertSeinfeld
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Does Wheeling know that's not how this franchise operates?
Allie Kitsune
...and the Brawla Brawla Sewitt
Why is Bald Todd still here also? f*** f*** Todd, Bald Todd is an asshole, Bald Todd wears his underwear backwards, Bald Todd is a poopyhead.
Darren McCord
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My guess is they are waiting to see who is fired after the playoffs before making nhl moves
Jacob
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Individual players showed improvement and looked NHL-ready when called up, like Gruden and St. Ivany. Forrest gave a lot of players a large amount of responsibility and they thrived. But on the other hand it’s a competitive position and there may be better candidates available.
Always think you should be confident enough with your AHL head coach that you would be comfortable promoting them to the NHL mid-season if the wheels are falling off.
As I mentioned 2 guys I’d consider for the job would be Sonne from Saskatoon or Ahokas in Kitchener. Based on what little I know Ahokas would be my choice. He’s been coaching in the SM-Liiga but decided to come over to the OHL to, I assume, try and work his way up to the NHL. In interviews he seems like kind of a direct-speaking guy that puts a heavy emphasis on defending well first and building out from there. With our decent amount of Finnish prospects maybe he’ll help them too. He’s coached men and junior-aged kids in Finland so nice balance of winning and developing there.
Maybe they go for a more name-brand option like Woodcroft though.
Always think you should be confident enough with your AHL head coach that you would be comfortable promoting them to the NHL mid-season if the wheels are falling off.
As I mentioned 2 guys I’d consider for the job would be Sonne from Saskatoon or Ahokas in Kitchener. Based on what little I know Ahokas would be my choice. He’s been coaching in the SM-Liiga but decided to come over to the OHL to, I assume, try and work his way up to the NHL. In interviews he seems like kind of a direct-speaking guy that puts a heavy emphasis on defending well first and building out from there. With our decent amount of Finnish prospects maybe he’ll help them too. He’s coached men and junior-aged kids in Finland so nice balance of winning and developing there.
Maybe they go for a more name-brand option like Woodcroft though.
Darren McCord
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I hope they bring in a handful of guys with experience in the AHL and as assistants who out pressure on sullivan. Bring in some new guys as well but ones close to a head coaching position.
The punch line is they’re bringing back Porter as a L4 regular on the big club.
It won’t matter too much if they play the way Sullivan wants in WBS to prepare them for playing in the big club…they need to find coaches who have a different tactical philosophy for the NHL team for that to work
Darren McCord
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Right which is what I am hoping for. Your hire coaches for the style you want and you put pressure on sullivan.
He can quite if he wants
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