CCHL: Some things I think I think...

The 30 game mark is a good time to take a look around the CCHL and see what stands out...

1) Participation is on a record-breaking trend. Thanks to everyone who sends lines in and stays on top of the fatigue issue within Simon. Awesome!

2) Keep an eye on your goalie usage. Chris Kash will be releasing his first goalie usage report on Christmas Day, but you could overuse your netminder before then, too. It is the responsibility of the General Managers to keep their teams in compliance with the rules. Remember last year? The penalties are stiff...

3) Hats off to the Falcons. Fighting for 1st overall and putting up some impressive numbers. The number that stands out to me is Matt's W/L record on the road. A sick 12-3-2, a winning percentage of .765!

4) The Falcons also lead the league in team +/- with a +34, they are second in both goals for and goals against, first in gaa per game, first in shots for AND in shots against AND are the best in penalty killing so far. If Fort Erie keeps this kind of performance going, this may be the Falcon's year.

5) Looking at the Conferences, keeping in mind there's a lot of hockey left, each Conference seems to be seeing some separation in their standings. In the Canosa, the top seven teams are pulling away from the bottom four teams. There is currently a five-point gap between the #7 and #8-11th teams. Likewise in the Corfield, a similar situation has developed with the top seven teams pulling away as well. The point differential between the #7 team and the #8 team is five points.

6) A reminder that after your team has played in its 41st game, you may then move your UFA signees as you wish. You can trade them, waiver them, etc...

7) Sickbay - Calgary's got it rough right now with four top players unable to play. Barkov & Gaudreau are out with various injuries, Ryan O'Reilly is out for 2 more days due to fatigue and Matty Tkachuk has been suspended for being a jerk. Two more games to go before he can return.

8) Teams that have impressed me so far: FOR, SIB, GIL & REK...

9) Teams that should & probably will be better: MIN, PAR, DRT, GEO & SPR...

10) One thing I know for sure. We don't know what we don't know...

A Weekly Look at the 2019-20 Sudbury Miners: Volume 7 (Games 27-30)

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

Miners Weekly Record: 2 wins, 1 losses, 1 OT loss.
Miners League Standing: 17 wins, 10 losses, 3 OT Loss = 37 points total. Currently sit in 4th place in the Canosa Conference, 8th overall in the CCHL.
Miners Special Teams: Power Play – 22.5% (7th); Penalty Kill – 80.7% (10th)
Miners Scoring Leader: Center Tyler Seguin (13G – 22A = 35 pts; 11th Overall in the CCHL)

Much of the success that the Sudbury Miners have had lately, has been as a result of an offence
that is finally starting to produce. Led by forwards Tyler Seguin and Timo Meier, the Miners have enjoyed a 7-2-1 record in their past 10 games.

“I think we’re winning in all kinds of ways, which is nice,” Meier said. “I think about a month ago in
Las Vegas, Freddie (Andersen) made what seemed about 50 saves, we came out with a win. And then
there are nights like we had the other night in Minnesota where it was tight-checking but we still pulled out the win. So when you’re finding ways to win, I think that’s the sign of a good team”.

Despite the Miners recent run of success, they still just sit 3 points up on 7th place Victoria for the
final playoff spot in the Canosa Conference. Just 4 points separate 2nd to 7th in the conference.
“We're playing the right way," Seguin said. "Everyone is contributing in their own way. Our team is
definitely trending in the right direction, but with the division being so tight, we need to keep this run of good play going. You could quickly find yourself looking up in the standings if you’re not careful."

MINERS PLAYER PROFILE OF THE WEEK: Zack Hyman

A determined, competitive and mobile winger, Hyman is a tenacious forechecker. His relentless
puck pursuits and hardworking, physical style, make him a coaches favourite. The grinding winger is
often used to add an element of physicality to a skilled line, but has enough talent to compliment the line as well. While it might be a stretch to count on him for 20 goals every year, but his value will be in other areas such as the penalty kill and in providing a physical, forechecking presence. He is no fun to play against.

MINERS PROSPECT NEED TO KNOW: Martin Necas

Necas was fantastic last season in the AHL- his first full season in North America – and is on the
cusp of a CCHL job. He is a fantastic skater with high end agility and is able to skate into traffic and avoid taking on big hits. He is a quick, dynamic playmaker, and his puck-handling skills combined with his aforementioned skating, help him create room for himself in the offensive zone. While he is not an aggressive player, he does use his frame well to help walk out of the corners with the puck on his stick. For all of his offensive ability, Necas also works hard off the puck and can play in a two-way role if he doesn’t reach his first line upside. Charlotte would not have won the Calder Cup without him, and the Miners will soon be leaning on him to succeed as well. Expected CCHL arrival: 2020-21.

Calgary: A Week in Review (November 23rd to 29th, 2019)

Record this week: 1-2-0
Game 28:
Calgary Chinook 1 Dartmouth Lakers 4

Barkov injuries as the Chinook defeated by the Lakers 4-1

DARTMOUTH - Calgary Chinook centre Aleksander Barkov suffered a lower-body injury Sunday night against the Dartmouth Lakers and is considered day-to-day, the team announced. Chinook Head coach Eugene Yip said postgame that he's unsure if Barkov will be able to play Tuesday against the Gillam Shark. Eugene also added that he's
hopeful Barkov’s injury isn't long term and that "checked out" OK. The Chinook lost 4-1 to the Lakers in the shorthanded effort. The Lakers scored three goals in the 2nd period less than six minutes apart. Michael Frolik sparked a three-goal outburst in the second period, leading the
Lakers to a 4-1 victory. "The first period was a struggle to be honest with you," Frolik said. "I don't think we had too much early on but we kind of felt our groove as the middle of the game went on."

Richard Panik added the fourth goal late in the period when his shot from the boards deflected past Carey Price.

Game 29:
Calgary Chinook 3 Gillam Sharks 2

Price comes up big in 3-2 win over Sharks

GILLAM - Despite the terrible effort in the first period. The Calgary Chinook were outstanding in the second and the third period as they grabbed a 3-2 win against the Gillam Sharks. The Chinook failed to clear the zones in the first period as the Sharks had 16 shots on net. They were lucky to get out of the period trailing 2-1. It took a series of big saves from Carey Price to seal the win in the second and the third to keep the Sharks at bay. John Carlson scored his 7th of the season to tie the game in the
second period and it was Kris Letang netting the game-winning goal in the third period power play.

Game 30:
Calgary Chinook 2 Gillam Sharks 3 OT

Killorn Scores in OT, Sharks Beat Chinook 3-2

GILLAM - In a rare back to back away games vs the Gillam Sharks, Alex Killorn beat Carey Price on a rush 2:50 into overtime to lift the Gillam Sharks over the Calgary Chinook 3-2 on Thanksgiving Thursday night. Bobby Ryan scored his second goal and Kris Letang got his ninth with the Chinook
in the first period. Carey Price stopped 45 shots where The Sharks bombarded him with 22 shots in the second period Tyler Johnson and Auston Matthews scored 2:17 apart to tie the game at 2 in the
early second period. Alex Killhorn put a shot on goal off the rush, and the rebound came to Matthews in the slot.

Calgary: A Week in Review (November 16th to 22th, 2019)

Record this week: 3-1-0
Game 24:
Calgary Chinook 3 Victoria Ronin 5

Chinook lose to the Ronin 5-3

VICTORIA - For the 2nd straight games this season, the Flames allowed the other team to score three in the first period. They never led in the game and chased the entire time. Chinook head coach Eugene Yip saw several positives from the game but lamented that his team spent the duration chasing.

“I thought we had to come from behind, obviously,” said Yip. “We ended up chasing the game and couldn’t get there in the end.” “I feel like I gave them too much momentum to start the first there,” said Price. “The first one got sprayed a little bit in the face and kinda panicked for a second there and couldn’t find the puck and then panicked and put in my own net. The second one, couldn’t get the puck off the wall to Gio and by that time the guy had already sealed off that lane. I’ve just got to make a better play than that.”

Game 25:
Calgary Chinook 3 Portland Owls 2

Chinook score 3 in 1st, hang on for 3-2 win

PORTLAND - David Pastrnak had a goal and an assist to lead the Calgary Chinook to a 3-2 win over the Portland Owls on Monday night. Gaudreau also scored for Chinook. Giordano’s 7th goal of the season came with 21 seconds left in the first, capping a three-goal opening period for the Chinook.
''We were able to keep a lot of pucks in the offensive zone and generate a lot of attempts at the net and a lot of offense as well as a lot of good scoring opportunities,'' Chinook coach Eugene Yip said. ''It was a good start for us.'' ''Obviously, it's really nice to get that goal - especially that late in the period,'' Giordano said. ''You get three goals up. It's really nice, especially when it wasn't
the prettiest one.'' Giordano and Carlson lead the team in points with 27 points each in 25 games.

Game 26:
Parry Sound Orrsmen 2 Calgary Chinook 3

Chinook on two-game winning streak beat Orrsmen 3 to 2.

CALGARY - David Pastrnak deflected in a goal with 8:09 remaining, and the Calgary Chinook win over the Parry Sound Orrsmen 3-2 on Wednesday night. Carey Price made 19 saves for the Chinook.
Brett Connolly and Mike Matheson scored for Parry Sound. Jacob Markstrom stopped 30 shots, enduring a barrage early from the Chinook. Calgary held a 13-5 shot advantage after the first period.
"Just a bad start,” Orrsmen defenceman Brent Seabrook said. “I kind of felt like we were a little disjointed all night. Not a lot of communication out there. We kind of got run around a little bit. We were still in the game and they get the power-play goal and we don't. That's the difference a lot of the time.” Derek Ryan opened the scoring in the first, flipping a rebound backhand over
Markstrom. Pastrnak scored on the power play 11:51 into the third, but Parry Sound quickly
answered as Matheson scored three minutes later.

Game 27:
Long Island Express 3 Calgary Chinook 4

Chinook Snap Express’ 6-Game Win Streak, 4-3

CALGARY - Chinook scored 3 late goals in the 3rd period to come back from a 3-1 deficit and beat the Express 4-3. Barkov, de Haan and Pastrnak each had a goal and an assist, and the Long Island Express suddenly looked much different than they had while winning 6 games in a row. ''Frustrating. ,'' said Express center John Tavares. ''When we do things the right way, we're successful. And you see tonight when we don't do it and we got away from staples of our game, playing heavy and being hard on all pucks and getting pucks deep. When you get away from that, it's tough to win.'' Jimmy Vesey put Long Island up 3-1 early in the third period. Matthew Tkachuk, David Pastrnak and Aleksander Barkov scored three unanswered goals to make a comeback.

''They're a good team. I can see why they've won 6 in a row,'' Tkachuk said. ''We found a way to come out and get to them in the third and find a way to win the hockey game and get a big two points for our team.''

A Weekly Look at the 2019-20 Sudbury Miners: Volume 6 (Games 23-26)

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

Miners Weekly Record: 4 wins, 0 losses, 0 OT loss.
Miners League Standing: 15 wins, 9 losses, 2 OT Loss = 32 points total. Currently sit in 4th place in
the Canosa Conference, 7th overall in the CCHL.
Miners Special Teams: Power Play – 21.5% (7th); Penalty Kill – 82.6% (5th)
Miners Scoring Leader: Center Tyler Seguin (13G – 17A = 30 pts; 10th Overall in the CCHL)

The Sudbury Miners are on a hot streak.

The constant message from Management and the Coaching Staff seems to have sunk in finally
with this team, as the Miners have won 5 of their last 6 games, including a current win streak of 4. They continue to sit in 4th place in the Canosa Conference but are slowly gaining ground on the top spot, while solidifying a playoff spot.

“We’ve been playing some good hockey lately…..something we knew we were capable of doing”,
stated Miner's defenseman Josh Morrissey. “We have the confidence back in our room, and feel we can start to make a charge up the standings”.

But, that was not the biggest news to hit the Nickel City this past week.

The Miners pulled off another big trade this past week, to acquire help now and for the future.
The deal brought them another top young player in Sebastian Aho, along with veteran defenseman Ryan Suter and a couple of 5th round picks. The cost was not cheap to acquire this talent, as the Miners would surrender current CCHL players in Brandon Carlo and Kevin Fiala, along with top prospects Alex Turcotte and Matt Boldy in the deal.

“It’s really no different than the deal we made for Tyler (Seguin) we made earlier this year. We
have drafted the depth to make these types of moves without depleting the prospect cupboard”, stated
General Manager Terry James. “We feel that this group is on the cusp of something special and something that could be sustained for years. As a Management team, we need to exhaust all avenues to help make that happen. This deal sends a message to our team and the league that the Miners are serious about being a contender”.

MINERS PLAYER PROFILE OF THE WEEK: Chris Tierney

Tierney is a multi-dimensional forward who is reliable in all situations. He has good hockey sense
and his ability to play within a structured system effectively sets him apart. He has very impressive speed and tenacity. He provides much-needed depth to a team, but skilled and dangerous forward that is capable of playing anywhere in the line-up. Since he is responsible in his own end as well, he is sometimes featured on the penalty kill.

MINERS PROSPECT NEED TO KNOW: Nick Robertson

What Robertson lacks in size, he makes up for in skill. He is one of the most creative players in
the OHL. His skating is slick and smooth, and his puck control draws defenses into him, which opens up lanes and space for his line-mates. He is also very tenacious on the puck in the offensive zone and is terrific at forcing turnovers with his quick feet and stick. He does not possess great size and needs to mature physically to make him stronger playing through checks. The upside is incredibly high though, with Robertson possessing the skill set to be a front line player. Expected CCHL arrival: 2022-23.

State of the Loons : Throwing in the Towel?

When the team boarded the plane in Siberia to take the grueling red-eye flight back to Capeside - their record was a solid 14-7-2. Sitting at 30 points was good for 4th in the Corfield Conference and positioned for another playoff run. The Miners were in town Monday night for the second half of the long-distance back to back. Bright and early Monday morning prior to the Miners/Loons game, Sudbury Gm Terry James was seen in the Nest lobby waiting to meet with GM Czepiel. The two met behind closed doors throughout the afternoon and were seen sitting together during their team's game that night in the owner's box.

At the post-game press conferences each team announced a major trade: Sudbury acquired defenseman Ryan Suter, center Sebastian Aho and two mid-round draft picks. Capeside acquired defenseman Brandon Carlo, winger Kevin Fiala and two blue-chip prospects in Alex Turcotte and Matthew Boldy. And it did not end there... An hour later Czepiel was again at the podium announcing a deal with Georgetown which sent last year's MVP David Krejci, prospects Kupari and Gylander and a 2nd round pick to the Millers for top goaltending prospect Ilya Samsonov and a first-round pick.

So ...Many fans are wondering - What the Hell?

Czepiel spoke with us - "When we looked at this year's team we see a team that can definitely make the playoffs, but we see a team with a lot of holes and a lot of players that are not living up to expectations. The issue is, we do not have many future assets that we can use to strengthen this year's team. After last year's unexpected success we sent away a lot of draft picks and young players and that has left us dry. So we made a tough decision. We are reloading - not rebuilding. By reacquiring Carlo we add a young, cheap, defensively sound defenseman to an aging defensive group. Turcotte and Samsonov could be ready to jump in as early as next year. The trading away of Aho and Kupari doesn't make a lot of sense, but the addition of Turcotte creates a log jam on our center depth chart with Dubois, Turcotte, Beecher, and Zegras. Our goal from day one has been to build a team that will be able to remain successful year after year, not just for a one or two year window. I believe that these moves can help make that a reality."

Will the "reload" continue? Recent UFA signings Zach Parise, Travis Zajac and Jack Johnson will be able to be moved in a few weeks. Veterans Nick Holden and Brook Orpik could be dealt soon to teams with playoff aspirations. Adding young wingers should be the Loons priority over the next few months as that is the team's area of weakness.

Updated top 10 prospect list

10 Egor Afanasyev
 9 John Beecher
 8 Matthew Boldy
 7 Bode Wilde
 6 Jakub Lauko
 5 Ian Mitchell
 4 Oliver Wahlstrom
 3 Ilya Samsonov
 2 Trevor Zegras
 1 Alex Turcotte

Sudbury Miners Prospect Report: Winter 2019

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

With the CCHL well underway, there is no time like the present to see which players may be plying their trade in the Nickel City in the very near future. The Miners has spent the better part of three (3) years building prospect depth that has allowed them to acquire such talent as Tyler Seguin and Sebastian Aho, while not sacrificing the future.

To be considered a prospect for this report, the player is not currently on the CCHL active roster and/or has not played one full CCHL season.

Below are the Sudbury Miners top-10 CCHL prospects for Winter 2019

1. Kirby Dach – C. Dach looks like he’ll be the future face of the Sudbury Miners. He combines all
the right tools in his IQ, patience and pure skill. You can’t nail down one talent that stands out
because there’s just so many. He can play in his own end and dominate in the offensive end.
He’s just going to get better, and that will be exciting to watch.

2. Martin Necas – C/W. An explosive offensive talent who can play both centre and the wing,
Necas is known for his incredible speed, agility, and confidence. He has tantalizing puck skills
and the ability to fool opposing players with ease. His creativity and unpredictability make him a
consistent threat in all three zones of the ice.

3. Cole Caulfield – W. Despite his small stature, Caufield is an elite skater and a pure goal-scorer.
He has a full arsenal of shots, all of which can result in the puck in the back of the net. The
Miners have a future superstar in their system, even if he spends a couple of seasons developing
before he gets to the CCHL.

4. Spencer Knight – G. If there is one trait to Knight’s game is that there is no panic in the way he
plays. Yet, he can move quickly to get to pucks. When a tough save needs to be made, he’s
there, square, in perfect form even if it requires him to move to get there. His explosive,
controlled movement and lightning-quick reflexes will allow him to thrive in the CCHL.

5. Grigori Denisenko – W. Denisenko doesn’t seem to get discussed a whole lot, but there’s no
question that he’s one of the best prospects outside of the CCHL. He’s a great skater, with some
of the best puck handling skills seen in recent years. He sets the pace when he’s on the ice and
should be an elite, top-line player in the CCHL.

6. Joel Farabee – W. Farabee is lethal one-on-one and his elusiveness allows him to navigate
around defences with his strong skating ability. His ceiling is as a top-six forward, who is
responsible in his own end. His offensive ability alone should make him a star for the Miners.

7. Philip Broberg – D. Broberg seems to be a polarizing prospect - some scouts have him high,
some very low. With that being said, there is no questions that he’s an elite skater who can blow
by entire teams when his wheels get going. He’s solid offensively as well, as a set-up man from
the point. He needs to fine-tune his game, but there’s lots to like about Broberg.

8. Peyton Krebs – C/W. Krebs is a well-rounded prospect that brings an offensive flair to his game
and is known as a leader. He’s a great playmaker and skater. A big selling point in Krebs’ game is
his defensive skill. There aren’t many players at the same age that are as sound in their own
zone as he is.

9. Rasmus Sandin – D. Sandin is an extremely talented defenseman with a nose for making great
passes. Whether it’s a pass up the ice from his own zone or a cross-ice pass in the opponent’s
end, Sandin can do it. He’s very patient with his passes, waiting for the right moment to strike.
He continues to round out his defensive game in the minors and could be ready for the CCHL as
early as next season.

10. Alex Formenton – W. When you think of Alex Formenton, you think of speed. He’s one of the
fastest CCHL prospects and is learning how to use that speed properly to generate chances or
defend. He has some more developing to do offensively before he hits the CCHL full time, but
he’s getting close.

Dayton Musicmen Player Grades after 25 games Part Two (Defense & goalies)

Thirty percent of the 82 game CCHL regular season has passed and it's a good time to see how the boys are performing. We'll use a traditional grading scale with A being the best and F being the worst grades available. In the case of a player being traded to Dayton, a grade will be assigned. In the case of a player being traded from the Musicmen, no grade will be awarded. 






DEFENSE: 

Matt Niskanen: GP- 25, 6/12 - 18 pts. - Part of the team top blueline duo, Niskanen has a solid +7 so far playing heavy minutes thus far this season. GRADE (A)

Ron Hainsey: GP- 22, 5/9 - 14 pts. - Working well with Niskanen so far, he'll be welcomed back to the lineup for the team's next game on Wednesday night. GRADE (B)

Ben Lovejoy: GP- 25, 3/6- 9 pts. - The third Musicman who holds a +11 rating at this point. Working well on the team's second defensive pairing working mostly with Brenden Dillon. GRADE (A)

Brenden Dillon: GP- 25, 1/7 - 8 pts., - Not sexy but his +9 on the year is just fine to the coaches in Dayton. GRADE (B)

Adam McQuaid: GP- 21, 0/4 - 4 pts. - Not much is asked or expected but he's handling his 3rd pairing duties quite well. GRADE - (C)

Roman Polak: GP- 14, Similar to McQaid, he's handling his limited duties rather well. GRADE - (C)

Troy Stecher: GP - 3, GRADE - (Incomplete)

Matt Benning: GP - 3, GRADE - (Incomplete)

GOALIES:

Pekka Rinne: GP - 24, 16-6-2 - Tied for the CCHL lead in Wins and top 5 in most other goaltending catagories. Without question, Rinne is the team's MVP twenty five games into the 2019-20 season. GP - 3, GRADE - (A+)

Corey Crawford: GP - 2, GRADE - (Incomplete)

Dayton Musicmen Player Grades after 25 games...

Thirty percent of the 82 game CCHL regular season has passed and it's a good time to see how the boys are performing. We'll use a traditional grading scale with A being the best and F being the worst grades available. In the case of a player being traded to Dayton, a grade will be assigned. In the case of a player being traded from the Musicmen, no grade will be awarded. 


FORWARDS: 


Jay Beagle: GP-25, 6/7-13 pts. - A strong season for the veteran 3rd line/PK specialist. One of three Musicmen with a good +11 rating helps Dayton's stingy defense keep them in most games.  GRADE: (A)

Pierre-Edouard Bellemare: GP-23, 1/3-5 pts., - Another 4th liner who brings defense first to his game. Good mentor for McCann and on of the team's best checking forwards. GRADE: (C)

Blake Comeau: GP-25, 7/5-12 pts. - Comeau's value doesn't come offense, but rather his stellar defense as witnessed by his league 6th best +11 plus/minus rating. Veteran leadership and responsible play is and has been his calling card for a long time. GRADE: (A)

Evgeni Dadonov: GP-25, 2/11-13 pts. - Another disappointment in the goal scoring department with just 2 tallies so far. In the NHL, Dadonov posted a 14.4% shooting percent last year yet is limping along at just 3.92% - another candidate for a goal scoring breakout before too long. GRADE: (C)

Ryan Dzingel: GP-25, 10/9-19 pts. - Dzingel has played on each of the top three lines and done well regardless of where he's asked to play. GRADE: (A)

Rocco Grimaldi: GP-0, 0 pts. - GRADE: (Incomplete)

Taylor Hall: GP-21, 9/8-17 pts. Coming off an injury-riddled NHL season, the team has limited Hall's ice time in an effort to keep him healthy. GRADE: (B)

Evgeny Kuznetsov: 25 GP, 2/15-17 pts. - Holding down the pivot on the team's 2nd line, Kuznetsov has put up 17 pts. but just 2 goals on the year, more is needed. His shooting percentage of 2.99% compared to his NHL number of 10.9% suggests an adjustment may be coming soon. GRADE: (B)

Evgeni Malkin: 21 GP, 8/11-19 pts. - Since arriving in Dayton several weeks ago, Malkin has taken over the top line center slot and performed very well. On pace for 30 or more goals and a 70+ point season. GRADE: (A)

Jared McCann: GP-24, 2/2-4 pts. - Reduced to the 4th line, McCann is developing and will likely graduate to duty on the team's 3rd line. Solid checking forward. GRADE: (C)

Daniel Sprong:  GP-13, 0 pts. - Sprong  - despite great talent - hasn't really got a chance to show what he can do in the lineup. 13 games played but just 3-4 shifts and just 3 minutes of ice per game won't give him the opportunity he needs. Using Batherson instead of Sprong shows Corfield's confidence level. GRADE: (Incomplete)

Drake Batherson: GP-5, 1 pt. - 5 games isn't much to grade anybody but Batherson has been averaging 16 minutes per game and skating in a top 6 role. We're expecting a bit more from the rookie. GRADE: (Incomplete)

Juho Lammikko: GP-2, 0 pts. - GRADE: (Incomplete)

Up next - defense and goaltenders...

Calgary: A Week in Review (November 9th to 15th, 2019)

Record this week: 1-3-0

Game 20: Calgary Chinook 2 Niagara Falls Thunder 5

Chinook drop 5-2 decision to Thunder
NIAGARA FALLS -

In what was billed as a bounce back game against the Niagara Falls Thunder, the Chinook are still very much a work in progress. The Thunder capitalized on early mistakes by the Chinook to stake a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes and then close the door with a pair in the 2nd period for a 5-2 victory.
“This was a lesson for us,” said defenceman Mark Giordano. “Obviously we have a long way to go. We have to find a way to win these games because there are going to be many of them this year.”

“It was not enough,” said Yip. “There are some guys who can play better. We have lots of guys looking for a lot of extra ice time and extra opportunities, but there is not much happening.” “There’s no let up from us, which is important, but one thing we’ve done too much this year is put ourselves behind,” said Johnny Gaudreau. “Good teams start to be on top a lot and make other teams come to you.”

That’s two games in a row now that Chinook have give up 5 goals in a game.

Game 21: Las Vegas Aces 2 Calgary Chinook 1

Aces hand Chinook 3rd straight loss

CALGARY - David Perron was pleased that his Las Vegas Aces were finally able to close one out.
Oskar Sundqvist and Jan Rutta scored for the Aces in a 2-1 victory over the Calgary Chinook on Monday. "It was nice to be able to finish one," said Perron. "This trip hasn't been kind to us
in that respect, but we've played some pretty good hockey and to get some results is huge for us."

Calvin de Haan responded for the Calgary Chinook, who have lost three in a row."We just have to keep battling," said Giordano, the Chinook captain. "We have said everything that there is to say. It is just up to us to do it now.” "Everybody here has to look in the mirror and ask themselves if they are doing enough and playing the right way and playing for the team," said Chinook forward Matthew Tkachuk.

Game 22: Calgary Chinook 6 Portland Owls 3

Calgary Chinook snap losing streak with 6-3 win over the Owls

PORTLAND - David Pastrnak had two goals and an assist to lead the Calgary Chinook to a 6-3 win over the Portland Owls on Wednesday. Mark Giordano had two goals for the Chinook, who snapped their three-games losing streak.

Playing alongside Giordano, defenseman John Carlson had three assists. Derek Ryan and Ryan O’Reilly also scored for Calgary, while goalie Carey Price made 19 saves. Radio Gudas, TJ Brodie and Torey Krug scored for the Owls. "We just stayed within our game and tried to play it simple," Pastrnak said. "We got going and just tried to keep our foot on the gas the whole 60 [minutes]."
"We're building every shift, every game throughout the series," Giordano said. "We're getting close to our game and it's pretty dangerous."

Game 23: Portland Owls 5 Calgary Chinook 2

Chinook fall short once again in 5-2 loss to Owls

CALGARY - Not a strong effort for Chinook. It was a difficult night for Calgary from start to finish.
A dominant opening frame for the Owls set the tone early, and Calgary was never able to fully recover.

Torey Krug got the Owls on the board eight minutes into the game when he scored on a breakaway.
Less than 2 minutes later, Portland took a 2-0 lead when Patrick Marleau beat Carey Price cleanly as he capitalized on a Derek Ryan turnover. It was 3-0 at the end of the first period. Calgary responded with a goal from Jakob Silfverberg early in the second period, who blasted a scorcher top-shelf to cut the deficit by one. Price didn’t have his best night, giving up 4 goals on 14 shots for an .714 save
percentage. All in all, it was not a strong effort for the Chinook, who continue to struggle with consistency this season.

Dayton Musicmen Top Ten Prospects (NOV 2019)...

We're past the 1/4 milepost of the 2019-20 season and it's a good time to see who cracks the top ten prospects for the Musicmen.

1. Drake Batherson - RW - OTT- Batherson is having a solid season for Belleville in the AHL with 16 points in 14 games so far this season. It's not a question of if, but when Batherson heads to Ottawa for good.

2. Owen Tippett - W - FLA - Arguably, the best goal scoring draftee in the 2017 entry draft. Playing for Springfield in the AHL, Tippett has 12 points in 17 games. With the Panthers 2nd in the NHL in scoring, patience may be a virtue for Dave Tippett's son.

3) Sam Poulin - W - PIT - Son of former Flyer Dave Poulin, this Pittsburgh draftee is off to a scorching start for Sherbrooke in the Q. 37 points in just 19 games. 16 goals in just 19 games. This high-energy, talented 2-way winger should force his way into the Pens lineup by 2020-21.

4) Dmitry Zavgorodniy - LW - CGY - The highest scoring forward in Dayton's prospect system. 16 goals, 27 assists and 43 points, good for 3rd in the QMJHL. He should be skating on an NHL rink in 2-3 years.

5) Patrick Harper - C - NAS - Boston University top pivot has 15 in just 8 games. Gets better each year, not sure how his game translates to the Pro game, but we will get to find out in a year or two.

6) Daniel Sprong - W - ANA - A very, very talented offensive player who has trouble finding his game in the NHL. Pittsburgh grew tired of his uneven performance and sent this former second-rounder away for defenseman Marcus Petterson, which appears to be a steal for the Pens at this point. The Ducks waived Spring at the start of the 19-20 season and no one claimed Sprong. Still, his toolset is impressive and at 22, he's still very, very young.

7) Alex Nedeljkovic - G - CAR - Two strong years for the Charlotte Checkers in the AHL with a combined W/L record of 65-21-8 and a Turner Cup championship last season has built up the young goalie's resume. Petr Mrazek and James Reimer have played well so far this NHL season, which will force Neds to bide his time in the AHL.

8) Semyon Der-Arguchintsev - C - TOR - As much of a bummer the 2019-20 season has been so far for the NHL Leafs, there is help on the way. Semyon is producing at a high level on the OHL's Peterborough Petes.  31 points in just 18 games so far this campaign.

9) Shawn Boudrias - RW - MIN - Cape Breton's Boudrias has been a force so far this season in the QMJHL, totaling 13 goals and 13 assists for 26 points in 21 games.

10) Dustin Wolf - G - CGY - Not the biggest netminder, but one of the best in the WHL. 10 wins in 14 starts and a sterling .936 save percentage. Wolf just keeps winning and will be climbing up the Flames depth chart in the next few years.

A Weekly Look at the 2019-20 Sudbury Miners: Volume 5 (Games 20-22)

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

Miners Record: 1 wins, 2 losses, 0 OT loss.
Miners League Standing: 11 wins, 9 losses, 2 OT Loss = 24 points total. Currently sit in 5th place in
the Canosa Conference, 11th overall in the CCHL.
Miners Special Teams: Power Play – 20.7% (10th); Penalty Kill – 81.5% (8th)
Miners Scoring Leader: Center Tyler Seguin (10G – 14A = 24 pts; 16th Overall in the CCHL)

If the first quarter of this years’ CCHL season has told us anything, is that the Miners will struggle
with consistency.

The Miners have fallen into a pattern of having a bad week, followed by a good week. This
pattern has seen them gain no ground in their chase for a playoff spot and has them dangerously close to that “mushy” middle – good enough to win some games, but no bad enough to get that early draft pick.

“We’ve got to dig in. Plain and simple”, stated Miner's defenseman Jake Muzzin. “I know we
have had some injuries, but every team goes through that. It’s no excuse and we need to be better.”
Despite their struggles through the first quarter, the Miners dressing room appears solid and
committed to playing with the type of consistency that quality teams always do.

“Frustration’s just useless. Like, it’s really a useless emotion, it doesn’t do you any good, you lose
confidence over it,” said Miners forward Sam Reinhart. “Yeah, there are days when I come when I’m maybe not as upbeat as I am other days, but I think you just really try to refocus every day. I know it’s a marathon, not a sprint.”

MINERS PLAYER PROFILE OF THE WEEK: J.T. Compher

A smart, tenacious forward, Compher plays a solid, all-around game. He is versatile, responsible
and reliable to play in all situations. He is defensively mature compared to other players of the same age
and experience. His skating, while it has gotten better, still has much room for improvement. Compher
will never be a top scorer, but projects as a solid third-line center with penalty-killing abilities. He is the
type of player that every team needs and that good teams already have. It’s not a stretch to see that his
value goes beyond goals and assists.

MINERS PROSPECT NEED TO KNOW: Simon Holmstrom

At first glance, you can see that Holmstrom is an elite skilled winger. With that being said, he has
the potential to be a top-six or bust forward. With his elite skill, he can control the pace of the game. He
is a strong skater and with more strength in his legs, he will continue to improve. He possesses both a
good wrist shot as well as an elite playmaking potential. Injuries have slowed his development curve a
bit. Last summer he couldn’t train properly, and he missed a big portion of the season due to multiple
injuries. Holmstrom will be a long-term project for the Miners but one that could be worth the wait.
Expected CCHL arrival: 2023-24.

Millers Top 10 Prospects for 2019-20

The Millers prospect pool was greatly reduced after Dylan Samberg and Nils Hoglander were dealt to Minnesota. The top 3 show up on most lists of Top 100 NHL prospects but the system’s depth has been greatly reduced due to trades and the graduations of Kotkaniemi, Bennington and Foegele.

1. Ilya Samsonov, G - He’s established himself as a backup netminder in the NHL this season and it’s not an outrageous possibility to see him become a 1B if Braden Holtby continues to struggle. If he pans out the Millers are set in net for the foreseeable future.

2. Ty Smith, D - Expected to break camp and at least get an NHL look-see this season Smith instead was sent back to the WHL. He still profiles as a 2nd pairing, offensive-minded Dman and PP contributor.

3. Tyler Maden, C -Scoring at a point per game pace in college, he’ll probably go pro after this season. Should be a solid middle 6 Center and special teams contributor in the NL.

4. Calen Addison, D - Another gifted WHL blueliner, Addison doesn’t have the well-rounded game of Smith nor the dynamic playmaking skill, but should slot as a 4 to 6 Dman and PP asset.

5. Karl Henriksson, C - He’s a long ways off but the young Swede is opening eyes as an 18 year-old playing against men in his home country’s non-elite (2nd tier) division.

6. Samuel Fagemo, RW - Fagemo is playing in the top tier in Sweden as a 19 year-old and holding his own. At nearly 200 lbs he could make the jump to North America in the next year or two.

7. Oskari Laaksonen, D - A 20 year-old in his 3rd year in the Finish top division, he’s rounding out his game and may show up in NA next season.

8. David Farrance, D - 14 points in 9 games for Boston University has put him back on the radar as a potential offensive contributor from the blueline in the NHL.

9. Janne Kuokonnen, LW - 3rd year AHLer should be a good middle 6 winger, but is unlikely to hit the top 6 ceiling expected when he was drafted.

10. Dustin Wolf, G - Dropped in the draft due to size concerns but he continues to stop pucks in the WHL.

Around the CCHL blog post for Victoria

Victoria News

November 11 2019


It didn't take long for the Ronin to show their true colors about the current season when they traded former Norris trophy winning defenseman PK Subban to Dartmouth. The return isn't overwhelming either although we can't make a final assessment as the draft pick and Ryan Merkley have yet to make the NHL. The cost savings are the real motivation for Victoria to make this move.

While Lawson Crouse has upside and is a former 1st round pick, his best NHL season is 25 points with Arizona of the NHL. Granted he has played less than 200 games in the NHL and as a bigger player, it has been said that they often take longer to grow into their frame and adjust to the speed and pace of the NHL. At least the Ronin hope so.

The team did have pending UFA defenseman Marco Scandella on the bench who now gets a regular starting gig, they also had a roster issue when Jake Virtanen went down with a minor injury. So the thought process in BC was that Scandella should make up some of what they lost in Subban. They also feel that Crouse can fill in on the wing and improve overall team depth upfront.

The onerous Subban contract went to a team that can easily afford his price, plus they can bank on the upside of Merkely and the pick thrown into the deal. The team is fortunate enough to have some very promising kids on the backline including Chabot, Hughes, Lindell, Mayfield & Cholowski so that they can easily take on the risk of Merkley and hope the best for him.

The move also helps clarify who their UFA resign is likely to be as Tyler Myers can likely be retained at less than 4 million dollars due to the CCHL free agency resigning rules. This move signals that the team is likely to continue their rebuild for at least 1 more season in the hopes of becoming a better than 500 hockey team and banking the all-important playoff bonus money in seasons to come.

Its been a slow process but things are starting to come together now. Rumors now indicate that Andrei Svechnikov will soon be joining the club, but the club would not respond to questions about his status.

A Week in Review (November 2nd to 8th, 2019)

Record this week: 2-1-1
Game 16:

Calgary Chinook 6 Fort Erie Falcons 4

Tkachuk and Giordano help fuel Chinook to wild 6-4 win over Falcons

FORT ERIE - Matthew Tkachuk and Mark Giordano each had three assists and the Calgary Chinook held off the Fort Erie Falcons 6-4 on Saturday afternoon match up. Calvin de Hann, Kris Letang and John Carlson each had a goal and an assist and Carey Price made 34 saves. “Five of our six  defensemen recorded two points or more tonight, it’s unreal. “ Said Coach Eugene Yip.

After the Chinook overcame a 2-0 deficit to tie it early in the second period, Aleksander Barkov put Calgary back in front 3-2 at 9:43 when he redirected a pass from John Carlson. It was a wild third period, Falcons Reilly Smith scored his 4th of the season to tie the game at 3-3 early in the period. The Chinook then got a power play when Ryan Suter went off for holding, and Matthew Tkachuk whipped a backhand pass to a wide-open Calvin de Hann, who snapped the puck short-side on Gibson at 5:06. Calgary born Brayden Point scored 2 minutes later to tie the up at 4-4. It was Johnny Hockey scoring at 13:38 mark to make it 5-4. Panarin sealed the game with his 7th of the season at 16:08. Gaudreau now leads the CCHL with 5 game-winning goals. "We know what we are doing is working and we are hanging in games," said Calgary captain Mark Giordano. "Whether we are ahead or down a goal going into the third period, we can find ways to create offense and come out on top. It is nice for our team to win in different ways, it only adds to our confidence."

Game 17:

Calgary Chinook 3 Dayton Musicmen 4

Calgary Chinook fall 4-3 in an entertaining comeback overtime loss to the Dayton
Musicmen

DAYTON - A fairly even first period with shots in favor of Dayton 15-13 saw both team settles for 2 goals a piece. Taylor Hall took advantage of a defensive lapse at 17:15 when he snuck in front of Aleksander Barkov to redirect a shot to tie the game just little more than a minute before Calgary’s goal by John Carlson.

The Musicmen would gain the lead early in the second period as Jake Guentzel stuffed home the puck on Chinook goaltender Carey Price. The Chinook would capitalize on the penalty by Pierre-Edouard Bellemare shortly after the Guentzel go-ahead goal to make it 3-3. Nothing came into fruition in the third period. Thus the game had to be settled into overtime.

The two teams would trade chances over three minutes in the extra frame when Ex-Chinook Jared McCann buried the puck on Price. Musicmen got revenge of the 4-0 shutout in front of the home crowd.

Game 18:
Seattle Reign 2 Calgary Chinook 4

Chinook move into 1st in Corfield Conference with 4-2 win against the Reign

CALGARY - The Calgary Chinook are tied for first place in the Corfield Conference
thanks to a 4-2 win Tuesday night in Calgary.

Derek Ryan found the back of the net 5:44 into the game when he poked in a rebound. Artemi Panarin fired a powerful wrister past Semyon Varlamov 8:31 into the 2nd period. Kris Letang’s rebound deflected off Varlamov and sailed into the slot, where Panarin rifled it into the net. Matthew Tkachuk earned the other assist. Derek Ryan scored his 2nd of the night with a backhander past Varlamov just 0:21 into the third period. Along the far boards, Jakob Silfverberg controlled the puck
despite being knocked to the ice by a Reign defender. With one arm, he was able to feed a cross-ice pass to a streaking Derek Ryan. He flipped a backhander over Varlamov’ left shoulder.

Reign’ forward Drouin scored with 4:29 left in the third period. He swatted his own blocked shot out of the air and past Carey Price to make it a one-goal game. David Pastrnak tapped in a Barkov pass for a 4-2 Chinook lead just 36 seconds after. On the far side of the goal, Barkov sent a cross-crease pass to Pastrnak on the far post. He slammed it into the open net for the tally. de Haan added an
assist. Price stopped 23 of 25 shots to earn the win.

Game 19

Wisborg Donuts 5 Calgary Chinook 1

Chinook Special Teams Crash in Ugly Loss

CALGARY - The Wisborg Donuts converted on the power play four different times and Leon Draisaitl and Kasperi Kapanen scored 2 goals each as the Calgary Chinook fell, 5-1, to the Donuts on Thursday night in front of the disappointed home crowd at Scotiabank Saddledome.

"It was average at best," Eugene Yip said. "The 5-on-5 play I thought was OK. OK, a lot of nights, doesn't win. At the end of the day, you go to the penalty box as much as we did, we'll lose the game. It cost us tonight."  "They took it to us from start to finish," Chinook winger Matthew Tkachuk said.
"They played like a team with nothing to lose. They are well-coached. I'm sure Donuts Head Coach Johan Kallum had them fired up over there to come in here and play a good game and we didn't match it." The Chinook will now have little time to regroup as they have a date with the
Thunder Saturday evening in Niagara Falls. "We have to address it," Carlson said of the result. "It's a quick turnaround with Saturday’s game, but we'll definitely address this. We're a pretty honest group and we know that wasn't good enough." "It's a huge game tomorrow," Giordano said. "Everybody knows that. It's a great opportunity for us to bounce back. We will do what we have to do to get our minds right and get away from that hockey game and get back to playing Chinook hockey
because that wasn't it."

A Weekly Look at the 2019-20 Sudbury Miners: Volume 4

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

Miners Weekly Record: 2 wins, 0 losses, 1 OT loss.
Miners League Standing: 10 wins, 6 losses, 2 OT Loss = 22 points total. Currently sit in 5th place in
the Canosa Conference, 10th overall in the CCHL.
Miners Special Teams: Power Play – 20.7% (13th); Penalty Kill – 82.7% (9th)
Miners Scoring Leader: Center Nicklas Backstrom (8G – 10A = 18 pts; 34th Overall in the CCHL)

Maybe they have figured it out now. Maybe they have finally turned a corner after a rocky start.
Maybe….just maybe….they can be the team that we expected at the start of the season.

At least that is what the fans and management are hoping with this years’ edition of the Sudbury
Miners. The team again had a solid week, taking 5 out of a possible 6 points and their recent stretch of solid play has also saw them tie their current season high win streak at 4. However, despite their recent run of success, they have made up little ground on the teams above them in the Cansoa Conference. This just shows that it will be a battle all year for the Miners to solidify their spot in the post-season dance.

“It looks like we have turned a corner and are playing some good hockey”, stated Miners Coach
Derek Sutton. “But this league is so tight right now and if you aren’t careful, you can quickly be on the outside looking in. You know what they say, sometimes you do the hard work and set the table and somebody else eats the meal”.

MINERS PLAYER PROFILE OF THE WEEK: Travis Konecny

Konecny is best described as a fiery, talented competitor, with great hands in tight. He is a
balanced skater, with great lateral agility and decent speed. His skating and patience allows him to
outwait goalies and beat them laterally. He is a solid, heads up playmaker but his shot is just above
average. Despite his size, he is not shy to invite contact in order to make a play and gets to the dirty
areas in order to get a scoring chance. He is fast developing into a top-6 forward for the Miners, and
there is still room for his game to grow. The 50 point mark this year is a decent milestone at this stage in his development.

MINERS PROSPECT NEED TO KNOW: Gabriel Fortier

The first thing that strikes you about Fortier is that he makes himself noticeable on every shift. He
is relentless all over the ice in pursuit of the puck and attacking those with it. He is equally good with the puck as without, and on both sides of the puck as well. But, having said that, he does not possess elite skill. He also does not possess great size and must get stronger before making the jump up to the next level. He will need some minor league seasoning. Fortier’s style of play makes him a fan favourite, and he has the skills and smarts to play useful CCHL shifts up and down the line-up.

Expected CCHL arrival: 2023-24.

Calgary: A Week in Review (October 26th to November 1st, 2019)

Record this week: 2–0-0

Game 14:
Calgary Chinook 4 Parry Sound Orrsmen 3

Letang has 3 points in Chinook’ 4-3 win over Orrsmen

PARRY SOUND - The Calgary Chinook are a far better team when Defensemen
jumps into the play like play-making defenseman Kris Letang did yesterday night.
“He's such a good player when he plays the game the right way,” coach Eugene
Yip said.  “He's a competitive guy. He really cares. He can make plays, he can score, he
does it all.” Letang poked holes in the Orrsemen defense in helping the Chinook build a 3-1
lead by the 2nd period and eventually beat Parry Sound for the third straight time
this season. He set up Bobby Ryan’s 1st goal of the season with a pass that found the veteran
forward wide open to the right of the net early in the first period. Letang's no-look
pass from the right point set up Nino Niederreiter to make it 2-0.

Aleksander Barkov also scored in a game the Chinook never trailed. Carey Price
stopped 32 shots in the game.  Calgary improved to 9-5-0, and moved three points ahead of sixth-place.

Dartmouth Lakers in the Corfield Conference.

Game 15:

Gillam Sharks 3 Calgary Chinook 5

Chinook erupt for five goals in the first period, handed the Sharks fifth loss in a row

The Calgary Chinook exploded with five goals in the first period against the
slumping Gillam Sharks. David Pastrnak started the offensive outburst with a power-play goal in the first seven minutes of the opening period. Pasta skated in close and fired a shot over
the right shoulder of Sharks goaltender Keith Kinkaid.

Under two minutes later, It was Aleksander Barkov with his fourth of the season. After a face-off, the puck slid into the slot and Barkov scooped it up and deposited it into the net. Johnny Gaudreau scored his sixth and seventh goals in the middle of the first period. Gillam pulled Kinkaid after he surrendered four goals on six shots in less than 15 minutes.

Three of Calgary’ first five scores came on the power play.

“The first period was pretty good, scoring from everyone,” said Chinook coach
Eugene Yip. “I thought we played a really direct period. Sometimes that's mistaken
for not being offensive, but I thought we supported the puck really well. We were
on top of their defencemen in the first period, came out fast and hard.”