SB Nation - Chris Minard

Oilers Roundtable, Part IV - Training Camp Battles

Derek Zona — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:05:20 -0000

by Jeff Lewis - AP

Thus far we've reviewed strengths, there are a few, and weaknesses, there are many, in the 2009 preseason roundtable. Part IV takes a peek at training camp and the player battles that fans can look for as September progresses.

Our lineup includes: the erudite Shepso, author of some of the most intellectual hockey writings - he plies his trade at Bringing Back The Glory; The venerable HBomb, frequent on-point commentor at Lowetide's place; the incisive Dawgbone, a frequent commentor all over the Oilers' 'sphere, who writes too infrequently at After The Green Light; the pragmatic Doogie2k, an excellent foil and a thought-provoking writer at Still No Name; and the hilarious Lord Bob, whose rapier wit is rarely matched in the 'sphere. Jonathan, Bruce and myself round out this merry band of brigands, obsessives, geeks, and puckheads.

4. Coming into training camp, do you think there are any position battles to be won?

Shepso: Oh gawd yes. 3C and 4C are both still wide open, as is 1LW, though the Amicus Brief series proves that DP belongs there should Horcoff and Hemsky not be broken up. I have a feeling that Poo will be our 3C out of training camp, though Brule is more suited for it. Nilsson still has to prove he belongs here, Jacques and Smac will be battling for the utility coke machine position, as clearly Huggy Bear is the main 4th line goon now. Reddox is in tough as well as the last forward. I say he doesn’t make the team and Smac does. I’m also pretty sure that Peckham is going to give the lovable but not-so-skillful Strudwick a run for the 7D in training camp. He’ll lose, but only because Jason is so quotable and great in the pressbox…er…locker room. DD may give JDD a run in training camp, but his time is not quite now. He will play 5-8 games in the bigs this year though.

Hbomb: The goaltending seems set, as does the 7 defensemen. The depth forwards are where the battles are going to be. By my math, you can give spots right now to Hemsky, Horcoff, Penner, Gagner, Cogliano, O'Sullivan, Moreau, and Pisani. That's eight guys right there. In the battle for the other six spots are Robert Nilsson, Gilbert Brule, Marc Pouliot, JF Jacques, Zack Stortini, Liam Reddox, Ryan Potulny, Steve MacIntyre, and perhaps Ryan Stone. It's going to depend on what sort of dimension that Pat Quinn wants to bring to his bottom six, and whether or not there's a place at center or on the wing for a guy like Cogliano or O'Sullivan.

Note that I have not included Rob Schremp in this debate. In my mind, he's completely finished as an Oiler prospect and is all-but-certain to be lost on waivers prior to October 1st.

Dawgbone: There's a couple of spots where there should be battles, but I don't think there will be (And I don't think it matters). The biggest issue is that of all the potential battles, none of them really matter much because the players just aren't that good. It's not like we are talking about a player who can potentially challenge a guy like Pisani for a job because the kid is that good. The battles we are talking about is roster spots for Brule, Schremp, Potulny, Stone, Jacques, etc... Not to take anything away from these guys but they just don't make enough of a difference over each other to have any factor in terms of how the season goes.

Doogie2k: The 2C job is an interesting one. In the article I linked above on the centres, I noted basically three players who could theoretically make that position: Gagner, O'Sullivan, and Andrew Cogliano. It'll be interesting to see which one wins out, and how much it reflects the Quinney coaching philosophy. I would be very curious to see what a line with Gagner at centre and O'Sullivan and Cogliano on the wings would be like, aside from horrible at face-offs. Related to that, the top two LW jobs could be up for grabs, particularly if Quinn opts to put O'Sullivan on the wing again, instead of at centre. I suspect Dustin Penner's job is safe, but Robert Nilsson has to be looking over his shoulder, since he could readily be supplanted by Patty O'Lanterns or, if O'Sullivan plays 2C, Sam Gagner. Finally, 3C could potentially be interesting, though it's probably Pouliot's job to lose unless he's supplanted by either O'Sullivan or, as a dark horse, Brule.

Other than that, just the usual jockeying for position in the bottom tier of the roster. Depending on player performance and perceived team needs from the coaching staff, any combination of Reddox, Sestito, Minard, Stone, Potulny, Brule, Jacques, Stortini, MacIntyre, Schremp, Eberle, and Paajarvi-Svensson (okay, maybe not Schremp at this point) could make 10-14F, while the D battle seems mostly won, unless one of the current bottom three (Staios, Smid, Strudwick) gets hurt, gets traded, or completely fails out in camp.

Lord Bob: While not a position battle /per se/, Theo Peckham and Taylor Chorney could easily ruin Jason Strudwick's year as the /de facto/ injury replacement. Quinn has had trouble with youngsters but he's been known to take a flyer on a kid who catches his eye. If Peckham or Chorney impress in camp and a defenseman goes down long-term, the Oilers may opt to throw one of the rookies straight into the lineup and Strudwick will continue to sit in the press box. Peckham is obviously the favourite, but Chorney's skillset is more attractive and if he comes to camp motivated, he could make noise.

Bruce: There are always position battles, although in 2009-10 they mainly seem to be concentrated up front. The goalies are set with JDD almost certainly having the jump on Dubnyk for the backup role, while the blueline crew seems fairly settled with a defined top 4, Staios and Smid a solid third pairing, and Strudwick surely slotted for a 7th D/14th F role as last year. Theo Peckham will turn some heads in training camp but barring trade or injury I don't see him forcing his way past anyone in the projected top 6 quite yet.

Up front it's musical chairs with 7 forwards vying for top 6 roles. In theory 1LW is an open competition, with O'Sullivan, Cogliano, even Nilsson nipping at Penner's heels. Only 2 of the "losers" will line up with Gagner on the second scoring line, while the odd man out might find himself centring a tough minutes line (POS, Cogs) or in tough for a job (Nilsson). If the former, then a battle will develop between Pouliot and Brule for the 4C role.

Guys like Potulny, Eberle, and Schremp will make some noise at training camp but are likely battling just to make the 23-man roster in a pressbox role. Ditto MacIntyre.

Derek: I see two primary battles to be settled in camp: first line left wing and second toughs center. Cogliano and Penner will fight it out for the first left wing and the loser will end up on Gagner's port side. O'Sullivan and Pouliot will battle for the second toughs center in a more nuanced battle. Neither are particularly physical, but Pouliot is bigger and seemingly better in the circle. O'Sullivan also has a better resume to this point. I think if O'Sullivan can get some traction in the faceoff circle, the spot between Pisani and Moreau is his. If not, he can end up on Pouliot's left or on Gagner's right. If Pouliot loses, the fourth line center is his. If not, he's leaving Edmonton.

Jonathan: Yes. Up front, there are spots reserved for Gilbert Brule and Jean-Francois Jacques, but they'll need to have strong training camps to hang on to them, as the Oilers have a group of very good AHL players (Liam Reddox, Ryan Potulny, Chris Minard, Ryan Stone) who will all be pushing for a role. On top of that, it remains to be seen if Steve MacIntyre's roster spot will go to a fighter; if it does, the Oilers have brought in Kip Brennan to challenge for the role, if not one of the other forwards in the system could snag it. Other than that, there is the slight possibility that Theo Peckham or Devan Dubnyk could pass Jason Strudwick or Jeff Deslauriers in camp.

Poll

Which position battle will last the longest in training camp?

Horcoff's Left Wing

59 votes

Gagner's Right Wing

16 votes

Second Toughs Center

41 votes

Backup Goalie

15 votes

Enforcer

6 votes

Seventh Defenseman

13 votes

Other (Let us know in the comments)

3 votes

153 votes | Poll has closed

Springfield Falcons Quality of Competition Update

Jonathan Willis — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 16:36:41 -0000

More photos » by Jimmy Jeong - AP

8 months ago: Edmonton Oilers defenseman Theo Peckham (49), left, fights with Los Angeles Kings' Brian Boyle (22) during the first period of NHL hockey game in Edmonton on Tuesday, April 7, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press,Jimmy Jeong)

Browse more photos »

As regular readers know, earlier this year I devised a scheme for calculating the quality of competition that players in the AHL were facing. It involved looking at who was on the ice for goal events, and assigning them a rating based on their total points. I did this work manually for the Springfield Falcons - those rankings and the method behind them can be found here.

Gabriel Desjardins of Behind the Net fame has done me one better. He's run my formula with some slight modifications (explained after the jump) and he's done it for the entire AHL. Desjardins was nice enough to send a copy my way, and what follows below is his list, with this summer's additions (Minard, Arsene, Brennan) added in for good measure.

The changes Desjardins made to my formula were as follows:

He used only 5v5 scoring for his player ratings (whereas I had used total scoring)
He added in defensemen as well as forwards
He ran the entire season in one go, whereas I had done it in two attempts
He used a computer, so naturally the human error portion of these rankings drops significantly

I'm not certain that scoring reflects quality for defensemen as well as it does for forwards, but other than that Desjardins' rankings should be improved in quality, and they certainly reflect an improvement in comprehensiveness.

Forwards

Liam Reddox: .309
Tim Sestito: .295
Tyler Spurgeon: .286
*Chris Minard: .283
Ryan Stone: .281
Colin McDonald: .281
Derek Bekar: .279
Guillaume Lefebvre: .278
Ryan Potulny: .270
Vyacheslav Trukhno: .270
Gilbert Brule: .268
Carl Corazzini: .267
Geoff Paukovich: .264
Jordan Eberle: .263
Charles Linglet: .260
Bryan Lerg: .259
Rob Schremp: .253
Ryan O'Marra: .250
Shane Willis: .246
*Kip Brennan: .245

Thoughts:

People who remain confused about Liam Reddox's elevation to the big club should know that this is one of the biggest reasons why. He's a superior player at the AHL level in every way.
The Oilers seem to have acquired a very decent player in Minard, who did a fine job outscoring quality competition last year. We haven't really talked about Minard as a challenger for a roster spot, but it's worth remembering that he's played 35 games for Pittsburgh over the past two seasons (20 last year), and adds some size (6'1", 200lbs). He'll challenge for a role on this team.
I hope Brennan's a way more effective fighter than Guillaume Lefebvre, because everything I've seen indicates that Lefebvre's the superior player.
There are a lot of guys in the mix for fourth line roles, and while Brule seems ordained to get a job he will have to fight off Minard, Stone, Potulny and Reddox in camp. Rob Schremp's in there somewhere too, but probably near the bottom of that list.

Defensemen

Theo Peckham: .286
Taylor Chorney: .279
Mathieu Roy: .275
Cody Wild: .274
Bryan Young: .266
*Dean Arsene: .264
Ryan Constant: .262
Rob Bina: .259
Mike Gabinet: .254
Sebastien Bisaillon: .245

Thoughts:

This is one of the biggest reasons I'm so bullish on Peckham. He's already playing against guys who are close to NHL-calibre, and he brings those other things (size, but more importantly nastiness) that are coveted in defensemen.
Taylor Chorney improves a fair bit by Desjardins' count, which does help explain his struggles last year. Still there isn't much separation between him, Wild and Roy.
I'm hesitant to put Arsene this low in the rankings; it's always a little perilous to compare guys across teams and anecdotal evidence would suggest that he should be in the group right after Peckham.
With the possible exception of the 6'3" Gabinet, I don't really see the bottom three players on this list as AHL'ers.

Chris Minard/Jeff Taffe leave Pittsburgh system, Pens sign Chris Conner

FrankD — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 03:35:29 -0000

More photos » by Mark Avery - AP

Chris Conner, seen here playing for the Dallas Stars during the 2008/09 season, signed with the Penguins earlier today.

Browse more photos »

Just when you thought things would be a bit quiet on the nation's birthday, there are a few depth moves worth addressing.

Forwards Chris Minard and Jeff Taffe have officially left the Pittsburgh Penguins' system, shipping out of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton as part of two separate deals worked out earlier today. Minard will join the Edmonton Oilers next season, while Taffe has his eyes set on the Florida Panthers. In a system like Pitt's that is ripe with talented forwards you'd have to imagine the difficulty in cracking the lineup on a full-time basis. Both guys had a few shots here and there but if you ask me I think their chances increase greatly as members of new clubs. Good luck to em both.

In light of shipping out two guys from the system, the Pens compensated for some depth in WBS with the signing of former Dallas Stars forward Chris Conner. Conner picked up three goals and 10 assists over 38 games last season and will likely face the same struggles as Taffe and Minard if he hopes to crack the Pittsburgh lineup.

Big ups to Seth from Emptynetters and Jonathan from the Citizens Voice, two guys who work night and day, holiday or weekday, to get the word out.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pens wrapup and injury list

Hooks Orpik — Fri, 15 May 2009 00:16:18 -0000

As we know, it wasn't all sunshine and smiles for the Penguins organization lately, as the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins lost in Game 7 to the very formidable Hershey Bears. Of course, small potatoes compared to the Stanley Cup playoffs, but the Baby Pens season is over.

Always interesting is when a team is eliminated from the playoffs and their list of injuries is disseminated. Courtesy of Johnathan Bombulie of the Citizen Voice newspaper, here's what the Baby Pens players were dealing with....Seeing this list might make you think they got in a bus accident or something..

Adam Berkhoel -- had to have his knee drained six times during the Hershey series; scheduled for surgery tomorrow
John Curry -- injured knee in Game 5 vs. Bridgeport; tried to take painkillers to get through Hershey series but couldn't go
Tim Wallace -- broken collarbone
Janne Pesonen -- broken bone in his hand
Andy Wozniewski -- broken foot
Joey Mormina -- high-ankle sprain; didn't miss a game
Aaron Boogaard -- probably needs shoulder surgery
Dustin Jeffrey, Connor James, Bill Thomas -- knee injuries
Joey Haddad -- had knee surgery
Paul Bissonnette -- had wrist surgery
Eric Tangradi -- had hand surgery

Yikes. Seeing that list it's no wonder Wilkes-Barre ran out of gas and got shutout in their last two games. And it makes moments like Janne Pesonen's 4 point game or Joey Mormina continuing to play first pairing defense and you just have to shake your head at the toughness and resiliency that they show.

Bombulie also said he expected about three players to be called up to Pittsburgh as a taxi squad of practice players. Bombulie named forward Jeff Taffe as one likey candidate. That one is a slam dunk, as Taffe lead WB/S in playoff points and has 153 career NHL games. I would suspect that if Bill Thomas' knee injury isn't that severe he might get the call to Pittsburgh too, as he seemed to excel at faceoffs and was a decent 4th liner. Chris Minard played 20 games in Pittsburgh, so he seemingly would be a candidate to join the Pens for the remainder of the season too, I would think.

With Alex Goligoski already in Pittsburgh, the Pens eight healthy defensemen (if Sergei Gonchar is good to go). So maybe they'll get Ben Lovejoy up to Pittsburgh, just in case.

So even though the Pens are eliminated for the third time in four years by Hershey, it's been another successful season down on the farm. For the seventh consecutive year Wilkes-Barre won at least one playoff series. Over the past four regular seasons the Baby Pens have won 198 games (average of 49.5 a year). It's a successful, well run organization no matter which coaches, management or players revolve, the constant is winning and developing players.

This year no one fully graduated, but with Pittsburgh spate of injuries Wilkes-Barre was tested. Goligoski, Minard, Jeffrey, Lovejoy, Curry, Wallace, Bissonnette, Pesonen and Caputi were all called up to play various roles for the NHL. As soon as next year some of them (Goligoski, Lovejoy Curry, Caputi) might be challenging for NHL jobs full-time. Good work and good job boys.

Off-day link roundup 4/22/09

Hooks Orpik — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 16:28:42 -0000

A sweet interview with ex-Penguin and current ESPN talking head Matthew Barnaby [Pens Universe]

Breaking down Sidney Crosby and Jussi Jokinen's controversial goals from last night [From the Rink]

The Penguins have made a big turnaround in the faceoff circle [Post-Gazette]

Pens/Flyers can't be a true rivalry, because one team keeps on winning these days [Tribune Review]

A Philly columnist recognizes the Flyers are in a tough spot [Philadelphia Inquirer]

Alex Burrows may be the most important player that no one in the Eastern timezone knows about [Vancouver Sun]

Columbus is way out of their league this year, but they're getting there [Sporting News]

Red Line Report, a scouting service known for being unconventional, ranks John Tavares as the #3 prospect in the draft [TSN]

John Stevens says Flyer fans are the most passionate in hockey...Reminder to Stevens: your career playoff record in Pittsburgh 0-5. [Faceoff Factor]

Alex Ovechkin profile on ESPN: what does it mean for the league and network's future relationship? [Puck Daddy]

The last three Stanley Cup winners have all switched goalies in the first round of the playoffs...Don't worry, Mathieu Garon, I think the Pens are gonna take their chances with the guy they got. [Japers Rink]

The Philadelphia Phantoms (The Flyers minor league affiliate) is set to to move Glenn Falls, New York [Broad Street Hockey]

On booing and singing the National Anthems [Birdwatchers Anonymous]

The finalists for the Calder Trophy have been announced: Bobby Ryan (ANA), Kris Versteeg (CHI) and Steve Mason (CBS) [NHL.com]

RJ Umberger got drilled...Again. [Total Pro Sports]

Chris Minard tied an AHL record with his third career over-time playoff winning goal [Citizens Voice]

Beardathon update:

Eric's beard is up to six days (new picture after every win)...If you're donating along with the jersey numbers of Penguins goal scorer, your balance through four games is $6.16 after last night's $1.60 effort in honor of Sidney Crosby, Tyler Kennedy and Max Talbot. [Penguins Beardathon]

AHL Playoff Update: Baby Pens blow Game 3, but still have series lead 2-1

Hooks Orpik — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 19:25:41 -0000

We're very wrapped up around here with the NHL playoffs, but there's another playoff seres for the Penguins organization going on right now. In the blink of an eye, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have played three games in the past three ~~games~~ days against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.

Game 1 Recap (Friday): Chris Minard and Dustin Jeffrey scored to give the Pens a 2-0 lead. Luca Caputi put another on the board to make it 3-0. The Sound Tigers rallied back to make it 3-2 but John Curry held strong and Wilkes-Barre took a 1-0 series lead. Unfortunately though, Janne Pesonen would leave this game with an apparant hand/wrist injury and has been out of the playoffs ever since with not much in the way of details for his return.

Game 2 Recap (Saturday): This game was in Bridgeport, thanks to some scheduling quirks with the Sound Tigers. Back in their own barn, they came out the gates strong and took a 4-2 lead into the third period. But defenseman Andy Wozniewski with 6 minutes left in the game to make it 4-3. Ben Lovejoy then tied it on a great rush up the ice to force over-time. Four minutes into OT, Minard scored the game winner to give the Baby Pens a 2-0 series lead.

Game 3 Recap (Sunday): The game would be back in Wilkes-Barre but Tim Wallace wouldn't be available, as he was suspended a game for a hit to the head. Still, WB/S roared out the gates taking a 4-1 lead in the game on the strength of Jean-Michel Daoust's two goals and two assists. Undeterred, Bridgeport rallied back to score three goals in regulation and then take the game in OT.

It's seemed like a real back and forth battle, which shouldn't be a surprise since Bridgeport (49-23-3-5) and Wilkes-Barre (49-25-3-3) had almost identical regular season records and are no strangers to one another. In the best of seven battle, expect this one to keep going right down to the wire until one of the teams emerge to move on.

The AHL all-stars: Two Girouxes, Rory and a Brodeur

James Mirtle — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 16:15:07 -0000

The AHL also announced its all-star teams this week, and they give you a decent idea of who some of the top talent is in the NHL's minor league:

Team Canada

Forwards	Defensemen	Goaltenders
Steve Downie, Nor	x-Johnny Boychuk, Pro	Mike Brodeur, Roch
x-Alexandre Giroux, Her	Kyle Cumiskey, LE	Barry Brust, Hou
x-Claude Giroux, Phi	Cody Franson, Milw	x-Brian Elliott, Bing
Mike Iggulden, Bri	Bryan Helmer, Her ("C")
Jason Krog, Man	x-Derek Joslin, Wor
Corey Locke, Hou	Andrew MacDonald, Bri
Brett MacLean, SA	Brett Palin, QC
Mark Mancari, Por	Danny Syvret, Phi
x-Chris Minard, W-B/Scr
Cal O'Reilly, Milw
Teddy Purcell, Man
Martin St. Pierre, Pro
Mike Santorelli, Milw		x-starters

The tough thing about these all-star games is that, not only do you have to hope no one gets injured, but there's also the problem of call ups to consider. Claude Giroux just torched the AHL in his first pro season with 17 goals in 31 games and is now up with the Flyers, perhaps permanently given their injury woes.

At least they don't have to worry about Captain Helmer missing the game. (Great character guy. Was good to see him get some time in the NHL with the Caps as part of his swan song.)

Three Milwaukee players here, all Nashville picks in the midrounds. Franson's a great example of the depth the Predators have on defence now; he's only 21, big and skilled and would be in the NHL with most franchises. (Not bad for a third rounder.)

Purcell looks like a really good NHLer, someone we'll see play a role with the Kings when they're climbing the standings a year or two from now. He probably misses this game, too.

Boychuk leads AHL defencemen in scoring for the Baby Bruins, and I bet the Avs are kicking themselves for dumping him this summer.

And looking at the goalies, I wonder if the Sens will give Elliott a shot in goal if Gerber and Auld continue to struggle. (And in case you're wondering, Mike Brodeur is a distant cousin of Marty. He started the season in the ECHL and has been very good for Rochester in a dozen games so far.)

Team PlanetUSA

Forwards	Defensemen	Goaltenders
Keith Aucoin, Her	Rory Fitzpatrick, Roch ("C")	Jeff Frazee, Low
x-Chris Bourque, Her	Jonas Junland, Peo	Daniel Larsson, GR
x-Nikita Filatov, Syr	Mattias Karlsson, Bing	x-Cory Schneider, Man
x-Nathan Gerbe, Port	x-Jakub Kindl, Gr. Rapids
Martins Karsums, Pro	Ben Lovejoy, W-B/Scr
Tim Kennedy, Port	Bobby Sanguinetti, Hart
Petri Kontiola, Rock	Jaime Sifers, Tor
Drew Miller, Iowa	x-Yannick Weber, Ham
Joe Motzko, Chicago
Michael Ryan, Albany
Ryan Potulny, Spr
Jeff Taffe, W-B/Scr
Ryan Vesce, Wor		x-starters

Vote for Rory paid off! The plucky defenceman gets the captain's 'C' while playing for his hometown Americans despite having a pretty pedestrian season so far.

Aucoin's another veteran worth pointing out: a 5-foot-9 30-year-old playing for one of the best teams in the league, he leads the AHL in scoring by a mile with 48 points in 34 games despite missing some time while playing three games with the Capitals in the NHL.

Filatov's with Columbus at the moment, so his participation's in doubt.

Karsums is a talented young Latvian who I saw at the world juniors quite a bit when they rolled through B.C. two years ago. He's eighth in league scoring and should see time with the big-league Bruins in the near future.

Weber looks like another good one for the Habs, too, who also have P.K. Subban on the way on the blueline.

Kindl... don't tell me you're suprised the Red Wings have another European stud coming on the blueline.

Speaking of Detroit and potential gems, so much for Jimmy Howard as the goalie of the future: Sweden's Danny Larsson has outplayed him by a mile and makes the team here. He was a late third-round pick in 2006.

I know there are some readers who see a lot more AHL hockey than I do; let me know what you think of the teams and some of the players' play to date.