SB Nation - Jordan Schroeder

College Hockey Showcase

WCHBlog — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:45:29 -0000

I was at the Ann Arbor half of the College Hockey Showcase this past weekend, so I figured I'd share a few thoughts there.

Friday- Michigan 6 Minnesota 0

The big story line here was how poorly Minnesota played, but what got kind of lost was that Michigan didn't play that great either. They certainly weren't "lose to Bowling Green" bad, but I don't think they would have had much success against a top-ranked team.

It's a shame because at the start of the decade, the annual Michigan-Minnesota contest was really a measuring stick game, usually between two of the top teams in the country, and the speed and intensity was playoff-level. This year's game was probably the slowest Michigan-Minnesota game I've seen.

The first period was pretty strange. It started with Matt Shegos calling a delay of game penalty because Michigan had two centers thrown out of the face-off circle 23 seconds. In my entire life, I've never seen two consecutive players thrown out of a face-off circle. I guess now I know why it's so rare, since that could be one of the softest penalties possible. I like the theory that Shegos had a bet that he could work that into a game.

Adding to the strangeness, through 19 minutes of the first period, Alex Kangas had been rock solid for Minnesota while Dave Wohlberg had played pretty poorly for Michigan, and the reward for each was Wohlberg scoring just before the end of the period on a ridiculously soft goal. Bryan Hogan was extremely consistent in the other goal. Jordan Schroeder was making gritty defensive plays on the penalty kill. I half-expected to look over at the Minnesota bench and see John Hill reading Proust or drawing up calculus equations on the whiteboard.

Not to take away from Minnesota's total ineptness on Friday, but a few bounces going their way could have changed things. It's probably wouldn't have changed the outcome, but it could have saved them some embarrassment. The Gophers hit goalpipes pretty solidly right before Wohlberg's goal, and right before Michigan's third goal, which really opened things up. After the third goal, Minnesota basically gave up, minus the final minute when they tried to avoid the shutout, which they could not do.

Minnesota definitely has the talent to be a good team. There's way too many draft picks and talent not to be. At the same time, I don't think they have what it takes to be a great team. There's some simple solutions like playing David Fischer and Brian Schack less, or not putting Kevin Wehrs on the powerplay, but they need 120 minutes of icetime from defensemen a night, and that's got to come from somewhere.

Saturday Michigan 3 Wisconsin 2

First off, I'm like some sort of weird Badger groupie, having now attended four of Wisconsin's six road games so far this year. That's got to be some sort of non-family member record.

Anyway, this was a pretty good game. Michigan had to play better against Wisconsin, and they responded to the challenge. Wisconsin played pretty well, but Michigan did a great job of capitalizing on the few chances they got, and Bryan Hogan was rock solid again, and kept the Badgers from being able to tie the game. Wisconsin was Wisconsin. Solid defense, grinding things out along the boards in the offensive zone. They just made one mistake on a powerplay and that ended up being the difference.

Michigan is still 11th in the CCHA standings, but this weekend seemed like it could jumpstart them. They've got some games in hand, and with a possible 6 points per weekend series, they could make up a lot of ground quickly if they continue to play like they did this past weekend.

A couple other notes...

Usually, this weekend is a good itime to start thinking about which players will be gone for the World Juniors. But it looks like these teams won't be losing a lot this year. Jordan Schroeder is a gimme. Wisconsin's Derek Stepan is a gimme. I'd say Michigan's Chris Brown almost has to be on there too. After that, there's only a couple of "maybes". I'd advocated for David Wohlberg to be an addition after his play last year, but he didn't do a lot for me this weekend. I could take him or leave him. Jake Gardiner is probably almost a lock too. I haven't been overly impressed(or unimpressed) with him so far, but I think he's still in the shadow of McDonagh and Smith right now. Aaron Ness has played well at times this year, but he, along with the rest of his team, didn't look that great against Michigan.

Brandon Burlon maybe has an outside shot at Team Canada, but it's doubtful, given Canada's depth. He's a player with all the skills, that I could really see taking off in this second half of the year if he starts trying to force the issue a little more.

Bryan Hogan was obviously the player of the weekend. Maybe it's coincidence, but the only real winner out of the Jack Campbell saga last week was Hogan, who is now almost guaranteed to start every meaningful game for the rest of his career at Michigan. Maybe there was a little bit of weight off his shoulders this weekend.

Like I said, I've seen a lot of Wisconsin and it's always fun to watch Blake Geoffrion. Nobody battles harder or does the little things as well as he does. Saturday maybe wasn't his best game, since I believe he was the center on Michigan's short-handed goal, but he also picked up a goal of his own, and was just a terror to Michigan all night.

Thank You Sir, May I Have Another?

Yankee Canuck — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 15:43:11 -0000

Update: The Canucks will ice the the same roster as last night because it's working. The Sharks will get Rob Blake and Devon Setoguchi back into their lineup tonight. Oh. Gee. Great.

********************

I've missed the past two games but, from what I can gather, the guys have figured out how to score again. Small miracles indeed.

It reminds me of earlier this month when the Canucks lost three straight to Dallas, St. Louis and Detroit and only scored a goal per game. Then they blew up on Colorado 8-2. Now, get shutout by the Hawks? Do some fine tuning on LA before putting the hurt on - where it rightly belongs - Edmonton.

And along comes San Jose to pee in the pool. Maybe. Who knows. These guys may.

The Sharks took three of four meetings last year, are currently the best team in hockey, have scored the most goals, have the best PK, Thornton leads the league in points and Heatley is tied for second in goals. Imagine how good they'd look if they had Blastoff as yet another weapon?

Speaking of that offseason trade that helped both the Sharks and Canucks, Jordan Schroeder is outscoring Patrick White. Seriously.

A convincing win over San Jose would help settle some fears that Vancouver is nothing more than a .500 team that can't hang with the big guys. Obviously it won't be easy, but hey, here's a tip all the way from across the pond:

Several populations of skilled orcas around the world have learned how to overcome sharks using a combination of superior brain power and brute force.

Sounds about right. It was only a matter of time before AV took lessons from mother nature anyway.

Go Canucks.

Who is the WCHA's Best Player?

WCHBlog — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:52:36 -0000

Before the season, I picked Jordan Schroeder as the WCHA's top player, but now that we're a couple weeks into the season, I'm ready to take a mulligan. Schroeder didn't register a point in the one game where Minnesota actually scored a goal, so he's got no points on the year, and I think it's fairly safe to say there are a number of better players out there--including perhaps Jordan Schroeder from either of the past two years. But that's another story. For now, we'll take a look at some of the potential heirs to the throne.

The Big 3

Chay Genoway, North Dakota: Genoway almost won player of the year last season, and was almost my pick for this season. He hasn't suffered any drop-off this season. He leads the league in points among defensemen(second in points per game) and can be a pretty solid defender.

Marc Cheverie, Denver: Cheverie has a perfect record so far, with three shutouts in four starts, giving him a 1.00 GAA and .966 save percentage. Those types of numbers aren't sustainable, but even in an era of bloated goaltending statistics, if he kept a GAA around 2.00 and a save percentage in the .940 to .950 range, that would be a pretty amazing feat.

Justin Fontaine, Minnesota-Duluth: Fontaine may be a slight notch behind the first two names, but not by much. He's easily the most dynamic offensive force in the league. His 7 goals lead the nation, and it wouldn't be a shock to see him win the WCHA scoring title this season.

The Second Tier

Billy Sweatt, Colorado College: It's hard to get too excited about racking up massive points against Michigan Tech's atrocious penalty kill, but if Colorado College stays near the top of the WCHA standings, they'll obviously be the story of the year, and if their senior leader keeps his stats up, he'd have to get serious consideration come award time.

Rhett Rakhshani, Denver: He's been very consistent through Denver's first six games. If he, and maybe more importantly, his partner-in-crime Tyler Ruegsegger who has hand in half of Rakhshani's points this year, stays healthy, he could finish with some very big numbers.

Blake Geoffrion, Wisconsin: Kind of a dark horse pick, but one of my favorite players in the WCHA to watch. He'll probably only score in the point per game range, which won't put him among the leaders, but he's as tough a player as there is in the league.

Poll

Who is the top player in the WCHA this year?

Chay Genoway

140 votes

Marc Cheverie

40 votes

Justin Fontaine

45 votes

Other

68 votes

293 votes | Poll has closed

Do You Agree With Cody Hodgson Being Cut?

Yankee Canuck — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 23:18:19 -0000

More photos » by Jeff McIntosh - AP

Cody Hodgson will have to wait a year to repay this hit to Jay Bouwmeester. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press,Jeff McIntosh)

Browse more photos »

All summer we thought he was a lock. All summer we thought the prized prospect of the Canucks offense was going to take his baby NHL steps this season.

Then again we thought similarly lofty futures were also in store for Cory Schneider and Michael Grabner. Word to the wise Jordan Schroeder: nothing is a given.

Watching the fallout in the comments here and elsewhere about Hodgson have been interesting; it seems Canucks nation is a bit torn. Half of the fans seem to understand what AV told the Team 1040 today:

"He just wasn’t ready," said Alain Vigneault. "We really believe this young man has a tremendous amount of upside but, at the end of the day, he didn’t show any signs that he was ready to play at this level. After analyzing it and talking about it, we felt the best thing for him was to go back to junior and his team."

The other half of fans seem to think this was the definition of wrong, for both Cody himself and what the team needs now. Here is part of what Section 312 said in our fanshot of the news earlier:

What I have a real problem with is how they handled Cody Hodgson. I think I did more than enough to make my position on this clear but to recap. Hodgson is too good for junior. He is going to regress this year. No matter how much character a guy has he will always have trouble motivating himself to dominate at a level that he has already dominated, when there are higher levels to reach. Cody is going to develop bad habits, he is not going to get better playing against inferior opponents and therefore you will see a worse player in camp this time next year. Now maybe he will get better as the camp goes along, maybe he is a really coachable kid and they can get him to a suitable level during next years camp that he can make a push to make the team. But much like Luc Bourdon I can’t see it happening.

The reality is Hodgson is gone, but the debate will last for sometime. And the first person to say 'Nathan Smith' or 'Patrick White' gets a stern talking to.

But being the engaging, poll-happy folks we are here (I trust you voted in a certain season preview earlier?), we want to know your opinion: did the Canucks screw the pooch with their prized prospect?

Poll

Do you agree that cutting Cody Hodgson was the right move?

Yes - he just wasn't good enough in camp to warrant the job.

276 votes

No - he was injured, was slowly improving and was ready for the bigs.

139 votes

Wait, the "g" is silent in his name? I'm so stupid...

46 votes

461 votes | Poll has closed

2009-2010 WCHA Pre-Season Awards

WCHBlog — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 22:15:28 -0000

Here are my WCHA pre-season awards, with some brief commentary italicized.

Player of the Year: Jordan Schroeder, Minnesota

Goalie of the Year: Brad Eidsness, North Dakota

Rookie of the Year: Dylan Olsen, Minnesota-Duluth

Defenseman of the Year: Chay Genoway, North Dakota

Genoway may be in the running for Player of the Year, especially if, like I predicted, UND wins the league and Minnesota comes in an uninspiring fourth, but I'll stick with Schroeder who I think is the best player in the league.

1st Team All-WCHA

F-Jordan Schroeder, Minnesota

F-Justin Fontaine, Minnesota-Duluth

F-Chris VandeVelde, North Dakota

D-Chay Genoway, North Dakota

D-Patrick Wiercioch, Denver

G-Brad Eidsness, North Dakota

VandeVelde may not put up the points of some other forwards in the league, but he also makes an impact in a lot of other areas and I feel he's a bit undervalued.

Defense was a tough call because I felt like there were three good players for two spots. I gave the nod to Wiercioch over McDonagh since Wiercioch is likely to put up a few more points.

2nd Team All-WCHA

F-Derek Stepan, Wisconsin

F-Ryan Lasch, St. Cloud

F-Anthony Maiani, Denver

D-Ryan McDonagh, Wisconsin

D-Garrett Raboin, St. Cloud

G-Marc Cheverie, Denver

I think this will be a real breakout year for Derek Stepan. My lack of enthusiasm for Lasch's style of play is well-documented, but he'll probably end up with enough points to make it onto one of these teams.

After the top 3 defensemen in the league, the choices for the fourth best D aren't that inspiring. Raboin and Kurt Davis will probably fight it out by each playing about 50 minutes a game.

Eidsness and Cheverie are pretty much a toss-up. Whoever finishes first in the league probably gets the nod. Thank goodness I don't have a pick a third goalie.

All-Rookie Team

F-Danny Kristo, North Dakota

F-Ben Hanowski, St. Cloud

F-Rylan Schwartz, Colorado College

D- Dylan Olsen, Minnesota-Duluth

D-Nick Leddy, Minnesota

G-Mike Lee, St. Cloud

There's actually real competition for the rookie goalie title this year, with likely three freshmen starting in goal for their teams. Lee is the most talented, and should be on the best team of the three.

Best of the West #4: Nick Leddy, Minnesota

WCHBlog — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 21:56:55 -0000

Nick Leddy, Defenseman, 5-11 180 lbs., Eden Prairie(MN) High School

Role he'll likely play: Leddy will have an uphill climb to earn key minutes with the Gophers in his freshman season. He's a dynamic offensive defenseman, but the Gophers already have players like David Fischer, Cade Fairchild, and Aaron Ness filling that role. That said, defense wasn't a strength for Minnesota last season, and Leddy could see his ice time increase as the year goes on.

Why he is ranked here: Leddy was selected 16th overall, much higher than most had him projected, by his hometown Minnesota Wild. That clearly shows he's a very talented player, but he is also much farther from reaching his potential than the players ahead of him on the list. Leddy is making a difficult jump from the US high school ranks, but eventually, his ability should shine through.

Why he'll be great: Leddy plays a very mature game, and is likely to earn ice time because of his ability to avoid costly mistakes on the blueline. He's one of the best pure skaters in this class as well, which is a huge asset for any defenseman.

Why he might not: Unfair or not, there will be extra expectations on Leddy because he was drafted by the Wild, and more importantly, ahead of teammate Jordan Schroeder who could be an All-American this year. If the pressure to perform well causes him to move outside his comfort zone and try to do too much on the ice, he could struggle.

Contrived Rivals-style star ranking: 5 stars

Schroeder Sticking Around for Another Year

WCHBlog — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:09:39 -0000

It's now being reported that Jordan Schroeder will definitely return to Minnesota next season, though it sounds like this year is almost definitely his last, which isn't altogether surprising.

The angle about Schroeder going to the WHL seemed a bit overblown. It was more of a fail-safe for the Canucks to give Schroeder an opportunity in training camp through the first ten games of the season to see if he could seriously contribute to the big club, and if they decided he couldn't, ship him to the kid's league so they didn't have to pay him as much money and keep him under their control for longer.

Canucks Interested in Signing Schroeder

WCHBlog — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:49:17 -0000

A report out of Canada today says that the Vancouver Canucks are interested in signing Minnesota's Jordan Schroeder and having him play a year in the WHL, rather than going back for his sophomore year at the University of Minnesota.

I think putting him in the WHL would be a waste. Schroeder is probably good enough that he could make the Canucks this year. But this would be a huge blow to Minnesota if they lost one of their top players so close to the start of the season.

Six Questions Regarding The Canucks Offense

Yankee Canuck — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 20:51:40 -0000

I think Alain Vigneault haunts me in my sleep (which frankly isn't cool, I should be slaying dragons or the Jonas Brothers during that time). But I can't shake the fear that the Canucks will have problems scoring every season, the upcoming one being no different.

Last year, when Gillis mandated a more up-tempo and less coma-inducing offense, Vigneault (to his credit) adapted his style and the Canucks vaulted from 23rd in the league to 11th in scoring.

But based on the biggest offensive changes so far this summer (Samuelsson in, Sundin out) is there any reason to think they can improve their production per game? Anything's possible, but as always, there's good reason to be skeptical.

With the first preseason game exactly one month away, here's six random questions regarding the Canucks offense.

1. So just who are the forwards?

With the news that Sergei Shirokov is heading to training camp, it adds to an already interesting problem for the Gillis/Vigneault machine as to what the forward ranks look like (though knowing Vigneault is going to juggle them 30 seconds into game #1 is a given).

For the sake of argument, let's assume three things: Gillis will make no more additions or subtractions at the forward (hardly a stretch based on his year and change of service). Secondly, the twins will call the first line home again. Lastly, let's assume (though I doubt they'd do this) the Canucks elect to carry the 23 player maximum: two goalies, seven defensemen and 14 forwards.

That leaves 12 full time jobs up for the following NHL-caliber players:

Alex Burrows
Ryan Kesler
Pavol Demitra
Mikael Samuelsson
Steve Bernier
Kyle Wellwood
Mason Raymond
Jannik Hansen
Rick Rypien
Darcy Hordichuk
Ryan Johnson

There's some kids to keep in mind as well:

Cody Hodgson
Michael Grabner
Sergei Shirokov
Tanner Glass
Guillaume Desbiens
Eric Walsky
Mario Bliznak
Patrick White
Jordan Schroeder

If the rumors that Hodgson is a lock are true, there's your 12. But if history is any indication, it's probable that a standout in camp will make the cut (as Raymond did two years ago and Hansen last year) and that puts you a guy over. Grabner is the best bet to have a good camp and run the number to 13. But who knows: maybe Patrick White finds his stride, maybe Shirokov is ready for the NHL and Gagner already admitted that Schroeder could make the team now.

So who should make it? Who shouldn't? And if a guy like Grabner doesn't make it or conversely knocks someone like Hansen or Raymond out, should one of them be traded or just sent to the Moose to wait for the inevitable injury call-up?

2. Who rides shotgun with the Sedins?

I've seen it suggested in a few places that Samuelsson may get to be the third twin this year. However, the Sedins and Burrows line led the team with 61 ES points last year and, as you know, finding a proper line mate for the Sedins isn't exactly easy (only Burrows, Anson Carter and Taylor Pyatt can claim success as the third twin). Just plopping a Swede down in that role isn't a gurantee of anything; just ask Markus Naslund or Magnus Arvedson.

And, in case you're curious, the Sedins and Demitra were the second highest combination of ES points at 38. Does Vigneault stash 'spoldy bones on the first line again? Probably not as Demo's game is no where near the compliment that suits the Sedins well (i.e. driving to the net). And speaking of Demitra...

3. What's to be expected of Demitra?

Demo's point production per game inched up a bit last year, but has steadily decreased since the lockout (1.07 with Los Angeles, .90 and .70 in two years with the Wild and .77 last season). His average TOI is also down through the same four year span, 21:04 with LA to 17:29 with Vancouver. Can the soon to be 35 year old produce enough to be fourth in points (53) again? Naturally you're worried about his Salo-like durability, especially considering the last time we saw Demo he took himself out of the game by checking Brian Campbell. I'm of the mind Demitra is only as good as his linemates (the days where he could seemingly score at will are definitely over) and he seemed to gell well with Kesler so while his spot on the second line is likely safe, I'd expect lower numbers this season (and if the Canucks falter into next spring, he'd be an attractive guy to move though he does have the NTC).

4. Who replaces Pyatt and Sundin's production?

Losing Pyatt and Sundin means 14 ES goals. Obviously they'll be looking towards Samuelsson to make up for some of that - and hopefully Kesler and Burrows can add to their breakthrough seasons with a few more tallies - but how huge an impact could Steve Bernier be in that regard? If the Canucks training staff really worked on his conditioning and his hands of stone issue, he alone could make that number up and blossom into the power forward that scouts had projected him to be. I expect a lot of pressure to be on his shoulders; Bernier needs a great start and a big year. Same goes for Wellwood.

5. How bad will the breakout hangovers be for Burrows & Kesler (if at all)?

Around the end of January - somewhat in line with jumpstarting creaky ol' Mats Sundin and ending the massive losing streak Vancouver was on - Vigneault broke up the core of his checking line and gave Burrows the enticing first line role while Kesler lined up with Demitra on the Sundin line. It worked beautifully: Burrows and Kesler combined for 22 goals and 40 points and helped the team to a 14-3-2 record deep into March. Now with no Sundin to distract the opposing defenders and teams a bit smarter as to how to shutdown the twins and Burrows, it won't be as easy to repeat that production. Or will it? I suspect Kesler will have another strong year, but Burrows should crash back down to Earth since his ES numbers will be hard to duplicate. And, regardless of what I think, what's Vigneault's next trick if they both hit the wall?

6. Should Hordichuk play fewer games?

Blackout played 73 last year and ranked dead last in even strength TOI at 5v5. That's to be expected as most goons don't pile on the minutes, and while some of his puglist counterparts saw similar game starts (Parros at 74 and Boll at 75 GP), others saw far less: Boogaard suited up 51 times, Brashear 63, Stortini 52, and Cote at 63. Not to detract what a momentum shifter (pro and con) Blackout can be, but for a team so heavily penalized and already employing perennial shit stirrers in Rypien, Kesler, Bieksa, SOB and Bernier to a lesser extent, how valuable is Hordichuk's extremely limited on-ice contribution? Would the Canucks be better off scratching him 13 more games this year and leasing that slot to one of the many prospects waiting in the wing?

Hodgson God. Schroeder Ready? Grabner Good! White Bad :(

Yankee Canuck — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 19:42:19 -0000

View full size photo »

~~Pavel Bure fodder~~ Grand Pooba of Player Development Dave Gagner was on the TEAM1040 earlier talking about - who else? - the kids. His comments should warm your heart when it comes to Grabner, Hodgson and even Schroeder. But the much maligned Patrick White is still very well maligned.

First up, Grabner who's going to have himself a third-straight crucial training camp from the sounds of it:

Michael Grabner is very close. He's a guy that can really create a lot from nothing - He's got great speed and a good shot. It's the smaller things in the tighter areas that are things he's had to work on, and he's improving in those areas. He will play in the NHL, it's just trying to get him on a regular basis.

Next up, the golden one, the Wellwood replacement, the great CoHo. Is he ready for the NHL Mr. Gagner?

In my opinion, he is. He's proven everything he can at the Canadian hockey league level - Player of the year. It was the type of year that he was able to experience everything, which is very unique. At the World Junior Championships, he led that in scoring and played a big part in a gold-medal win. At the end of the season, he helped get his team in the OHL final and after that played in the Calder Cup final (with Manitoba). In terms of the experience he gained this year, we couldn't have asked for anything more.

Go ahead and squeeeee. You've earned it.

Now what about the hot-headed Schroeder and his summer training?

He's a lot closer than many of the players selected in front of him are...He could play this year (with the Canucks), probably. It's hard to say the opportunity he'll get, but there's players he's played against and outplayed that are going to be in the NHL next year. So, I don't see why that's such a far stretch.

Can you imagine a scenario where all four of the top prospects - Hodgson, Grabner, Schroeder and Schneider - suit up alongside Luongo, the Sedins, Samuelsson, Kesler and Burrows? Definitely a million to one shot, but fun food for thought nonetheless.

However, it's not all good news on the farm as the Nonis gift that keeps on giving in Patrick White is still struggling:

"He just has to stay focussed [sic] on improving every day and getting better every day. Getting stronger, faster, more skill, and being determined to make those small steps. I mean, it's not going to happen overnight, but if he's determined he can re-invent himself and get something out of his career because he was rated in the first round, he was selected in the first round, so a lot of people saw that skill level in Patrick. So, he's got it in him. He's just got to nurture it and get it out of himself."

Yikes. Though one would hope the possibility of having Schroeder play alongside him in the NCAA next year may help push him towards the improvements he needs.

No ending on a downer though. Let's wash that Patrick White tequila taste out of our mouth with the crisp, cool burst of lime that comes from none other than Mario Bliznak:

I don’t want to speak for anyone else but I don’t think as a group we thought he’d be able to compete in the American Hockey League in his first year out of junior, if ever...He unequivocally proved me wrong and showed some promise that he may be able to compete at the next level. He was the most pleasant surprise on our team

That quote comes from Moose GM Craig Heisinger on Bliznak's play last year. To be the most pleasant surprise on a team that was full of surprises across the board is damned impressive. Bliznak hasn't had a sniff at the NHL level yet. Could that be changing now too?

Check out more of the Bliznak interview at canucks.com and head on over to the TEAM1040 for some .mp3's of the Gagner interview. But just hearing the positive news has me ready for camp to see what these guys got. After a year of waiting on Sundin, the youth movement is a nice change of pace.