Miners make another trade; send Foligno to Dayton for picks.

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

The Sudbury Miners and Dayton Musicmen made a minor move late Thursday evening, as the Miners sent utility forward Marcus Foligno to the Musicmen in exchange for a 4th round, 7th round and 12th round pick in 2018.  The Miners will also retain $1.3 million of Foligno’s $2 million salary for the upcoming season.

Dayton was looking to add some veteran help for the next season as the franchise continues its re-build.  While Foligno will not come to Dayton and break scoring records, he will be a reliable veteran that will help serve a purpose during this transition phase.

At times, Foligno had trouble cracking the line-up in Sudbury, only seeing action in 42 games last season.   He chipped in with 4 goals and an assist, along with 33 penalty minutes while playing limited minutes on the Miners 4th line, when he did get into the line-up.

"(Marcus) is a really good person, he competes, he wants to win," General Manager Terry James said.  "He's been caught in a bit of a numbers game here with what we are trying to do.  He knew that.  But he can still be of some value to a team in the right situation and I think heading to Dayton will be good for him.  We will miss seeing his old-man around the rink though.   You know he still wears that funny looking helmet whenever he is out for a skate?"

For the Miners, with this latest transaction, they again move a veteran contract who did not really fit into their future plans, for a couple of draft picks.  As it stands right now, Sudbury will pick 22 times in the 2018 draft, 14 of which will be within the first 100 selections barring any future transactions.

Loons acquire Risto!

Finally, general manager Trevor Czepiel has given New Englanders a reason for optimism. Early Wednesday afternoon word leaked out that after lengthy trade discussions with Georgetown, Czepiel acquired defenseman Rasmus Ristolianen.

“We were stunned that Risto was available and we paid a high price, but it isn’t often you have the opportunity to land a player of his abilities,” said Czepiel Wednesday evening. “Risto plays a fast, two-way game. At only 23 years old Risto can captain a power play while also logging 25+ minutes per game.” Czepiel added.

New England sent the higher of their two first-round picks in the upcoming draft to Georgetown. “We knew we would have been able to draft a great player at 8th overall, but with Risto being only 23 and as accomplished as he is, we couldn’t pass this up. Georgetown is gonna get themselves a hell of a player” said Czepiel.

Rumors swirl that Czepiel may have his sites set on a bigger prize for the New England fans. An unnamed source speculated that Czepiel is acquiring “chips” in case a bigger move presents itself. The source told me “ With St. Patrick’s day approaching, Czepiel is chasing after a certain leprechaun.”

The acquisition of Ristolianen shows that maybe there is a method behind Czepiel’s madness. The Loons now have a solid young core with Ristolianen, Dubois, Wennberg, Wood, and Jarry. We don’t know how they will do five on five, but the power play featuring Barrie, Ristolianen, Wennberg, Stastny, and Dubois has the potential to be lethal.

Notes:

On Thursday the Loons and restricted free agents Wennberg, Ritchie, Ouellet, and Barrie came to agreements on new contracts.

And in a sign and trade, Hjalmarsson was sent to Portland for young defenseman Troy Stecher.

With all these moves New England fans have to think twice before purchasing any player jerseys.

Dayton says goodbye to some players, welcomes two vets...

AFTER MUCH DEBATE within the Dayton Musicmen headquarters, decisions have been made.

With a last-place finish, everyone knows changes are on the way. Since the season ended, there was a list UFA and pending RFA players that were unlikely to return to the Musicmen next season and those changes have begun.

DAY turned in its contract resign information into league office on February 26th, the first CCHL team to do so. To no one's surprise, UFA Mike Smith was resigned to a two-year deal worth $3.85M per year. Not offered contract and being released into free agency were Matt Irwin, John Mitchell, Mark Barberio, Reid Boucher, Phil DiGiuseppe, Luca Sbisa and Matt Tennyson.

Mike Smith was then traded to the CCHL Champion Calgary Chinook, along with prospect Emile Pourier for netminder Jimmy Howard, prospect Maxime Comtois and Calgary's 2nd round in 2019.

Citing a need for adding some players to the Dayton roster, the word went out from the Musicmen that affordable players, with good games played, would be of interest. After 48 hours, the team welcomed two veteran NHL-ers to Southwest Ohio.

First aboard was defensive-minded Zemgus Girgensons. who was then followed by the likewise defense first, Marcus Foligno.

Girgensons, 24, has two years remaining on his $1.6M / year deal.

Foligno, 27, enters the final year of his $2M contract.

Of the $3.6M dollars due to the two new Musicmen, the out of pocket financial expense in the 18-19 season will be just $2,000,000 dollars. Also moved out were a 4th, a 6th, a 7th and a 12 rounder in the coming 2018 CCHL Entry Draft.

"We knew we'd need to add a few forwards this UFA session and we felt we could acquire a couple at a lower cost this way than we would've through the free agent bidding process. We like our depth and feel we've improved our defensive skill level up front. We'd still like to improve at Center if we can and we'll be seeking 1-2 dmen to help us through next season. We have our core guys, but we know there will be injuries that come up, and we want to have an answer for those times instead of resorting to signing free agents. The waiver draft will also be an opportunity for us to add up to three additional players." said General Manager Bill Corfield.

Miners send Bishop “Flying” to Fonthill...

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

The Sudbury Miners and Fonthill Flying Squirrels made a move early Sunday morning, which ends weeks of hard discussions between the two organizations.

News of the trade broke early Sunday morning but wasn’t able to made official until the trade call was completed at the CCHL Headquarters in Dayton. The trade, which is now official, breaks down as follows:

• Sudbury sends G Ben Bishop, F Philip Danault along with a 2018 4^th round pick in exchange for F Zack Hyman, prospects Shane Bowers and Cal Foote and a 2^nd round pick in 2019.

Fonthill will take on Bishop’s $5.75 million cap hit, which expires after the 2018-19 season. Sudbury had to get Bishop to waive his no-trade clause to make this deal happen; the veteran had five teams on a no-trade list. Given Sudbury’s recent acquisition of Fredrick Andersen, Bishop knew his days in Sudbury were numbered.

"No one ever expects to be traded," Bishop said on a conference call. "But given the recent addition by the Miners, it’s something I knew would probably come this off-season. I’m excited to go to Fonthill but is it true that they have flying squirrels there?”

Bishop, who had a trying year in Sudbury, considering the Miners are in a rebuild mode and are one of the league’s youngest and weakest teams. He is expected to solidify the goaltending in Fonthill by giving them a true No.1 stopper and is another name that a new fan base can identify with.

From the Miners perspective, there was not enough crease for both Andersen and Bishop to thrive. Given Andersen is younger and has a smaller cap hit, the logical choice for the Miners was to get some assets for Bishop. By acquiring a couple of higher-end prospects and an early draft pick, this move stays in line with the franchise’s philosophy to build through the draft and promote from within.

“It’s never easy to part with a player of Bishop’s talent and character. He was an excellent player for us and he deserves a chance to win. We wanted to make sure he went to a team that would give him the chance to be a true No.1. But for us, at the end of the day, to acquire two high-end prospects (in Bowers and Foote) and also secure another high pick in 2019, it was a deal that we felt comfortable in making” stated General Manager Terry James.  

Miners continue to deal; trade Crouse to Loons

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

The ink probably had not even dried on their first move earlier in the week, but the Sudbury Miners and New England Loons were at it again, making their second deal within a week.

The trade breaks down as follows:

Sudbury trades F Lawson Crouse, a 2018 1^st round pick (8^th overall) & a 2018 9^th round pick to New England in exchange for a 2018 2^nd round pick (41^st overall) and New England’s 2019 1^st round pick plus a conditional draft pick.

Here is where the deal has the potential to be confusing. The condition of the pick is that Sudbury will receive New England’s 2019 2^nd round pick and New England will receive Sudbury’s 2019 4^th round pick, only if the New England 1^st rounder in 2019 is lower than the 5th overall pick (ie. 6th, 7th, 8th and so on etc.) If the draft pick is the 5th overall pick or higher (ie. 1st, 2nd etc.) than no picks will change hands.

Crouse was originally drafted in the second round of the 2015 CCHL Entry Draft (10th overall) by the Springfield Homers. Sudbury had acquired Crouse as part of a trade with the Fort Erie Falcons at the end of last season that brought defenseman Shea Theodore to the Nickel City. Crouse spent the past year with the Miners farm team affiliate in Brantford.

The question surrounding Crouse lately is he will he ever reach his potential. In his draft year, Crouse was a prospect that scouts said owned all the qualities of a true power forward. He could score goals, play a physical game and be a force down low, in the corners and in front of the opposing goal. However, lately, his development seems to have stalled and some scouts question if he will be anything more than a 3^rd line winger in the CCHL.

It is worth noting that Crouse is still relatively young in CCHL terms (21 years old), so there is still time for him to develop what scouts had seen during his junior hockey days with the Kingston Frontenacs. He will get that chance in New England.

Miners at it again; acquire Perreault from the Loons...

Miners at it again; acquire Perreault from the Loons

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON)

The Sudbury Miners and New England Loons made a move after the conclusion of the CCHL Finals over the weekend. The Loons sent pending UFA forward Mathieu Perreault and a 2019 3^rd round pick to the Sudbury Miners in exchange for forward Drake Cagguila and prospect Teddy Bluegar.

It is believed that Sudbury plans to re-sign Perreault at a reasonable $3.3 million cap hit for the next 2-3 years, and with the 2019 3^rd rounder, it gives the Miners another pick in the top 60.

“Mathieu was one of those players we had identified at the end of the year that might be available, given the fact he was an upcoming UFA. While he is a mature player, we think he can bring some leadership to our young dressing room”, quoted Miners GM Terry James.

“We think his playmaking skills and hockey sense are outstanding, and he's also very quick. We like the flexibility he provides by being able to play both wing and center, and he can help us in the face-off department”.

In exchange for Perreault, the Miners gave up a low level prospect in Bluegar, but the real key to the deal for the Loons was getting Cagguila. While a versatile player, Cagguila was never going to land a top-6 role with the Miners going forward, but is very anxious to earn a that shot with the Loons.

“I enjoyed my time here with Sudbury. The organization is top notch and I think they have a very bright future. But, at this stage of my career, I want to go to a place where I can play regularly and show what I am capable of doing”, stated the out-going Cagguila.

Miners get to work in the off-season; acquire Andersen.

CANADIAN PRESS (Sudbury, ON):

General Manager Terry James made it clear at his season-ending press conference in February that he owed it to the loyal fans of Sudbury to be much better for the 2018-19 season.   And as soon as the trade freeze was lifted, James wasted no time getting to work in addressing one of his biggest needs.

Goaltender Fredrick Andersen makes his way to Sudbury from Fort Erie, in exchange for a 4th round and 11th round pick in 2018, and a 1st round pick in 2019.   With the move, James hopes he has now brought some stability to the Miners crease going forward.
 “We love that Freddie has a tremendous size for a goalie and he has shown to have loads of natural puck-stopping ability.  He has already put up some great numbers and we just feel he is just starting to come into his prime and will be good for years to come” stated James.  “When we found out that he was available, we did not waste much time talking to Fort Erie and the deal came together pretty quickly”.

Andersen will come to camp in the fall as the undisputed #1 goalie, relegating the incumbent Jake Allen to a secondary role.  Andersen is signed for the next two years at a $5 million dollar cap hit, which in today’s market is very reasonable for a goaltender of his caliber.  He is slated to become an unrestricted free agent in 2020.

While the price was significant (three draft picks), Sudbury was dealing from a position of strength and at the time of the deal, still owned four (4) 1st round picks in the 2019 draft.  The pick sent to Fort Erie is Calgary’s 1st, which James is expected to be at the latter end of the draft.