The 20 year old situation got a little more clear this morning as Seattle acquires Defensemen Cason Machacek from Lethbridge in exchange for a 6th round Bantam selection.
Important to note here that the press release has confirmed the "retirement" of Erik Bonsor and the strong indication that Seattle does not expect to have Ryan Button back in the mix.
The release certainly makes it seem like Seattle will be in the market for another 20 year old player and they will adjust as necessary if Button is returned to Seattle.
Machacek is described as a solid stay at home defensemen with good hockey smarts. He also had 17 fights last year, though I would expect that number to go down as Seattle will likely be asking him to play top 4 minutes this season.
Hockey Challenge 2014
Recent Articles
7.21.2011
7.07.2011
Potentially Bad News
Some potentially bad news out today regarding the future status of the recently drafted Marcel Noebels.
The Sports Blog Nation blog "Broad Street Hockey" has an article out this morning that is a translation of an article released by the Krefeld Pinguine, the hometown DEL team of Noebels.
Link is here, read for yourself.
I will try to summarize. In the article, Noebels states that he has a contract offer from the Krefeld Pinguine and that he would "like" to accept it.
It does NOT say that he doesn't want to return to Seattle but he makes it pretty clear that his preference would be to stay in Germany. He also basically admits that his decision is up to Philly and that he would go where they want him to go.
Seattle might be in the market for another Import player.
The Sports Blog Nation blog "Broad Street Hockey" has an article out this morning that is a translation of an article released by the Krefeld Pinguine, the hometown DEL team of Noebels.
Link is here, read for yourself.
I will try to summarize. In the article, Noebels states that he has a contract offer from the Krefeld Pinguine and that he would "like" to accept it.
It does NOT say that he doesn't want to return to Seattle but he makes it pretty clear that his preference would be to stay in Germany. He also basically admits that his decision is up to Philly and that he would go where they want him to go.
Seattle might be in the market for another Import player.
6.17.2011
A word about Coaches
Yesterday, the Tbirds officially announced Steve Konowalchuk as their new Head Coach. Konowalchuk (which, for the purposes of brevity we'll call Coach K from this point on) has WHL and NHL playing experience and NHL coaching experience before arriving in Seattle.
I've seen it stated here on the blog and other places that Coach K is "great hire" or a "good hire" by most fans, presumably based on the aforementioned playing and coaching experience.
Here is the thing about coaches...
My belief is that coaches generally fall into 1 of 3 categories. You are either a really good, difference making coach who can influence the game in a positive way and have the ability to get players to play up to and beyond their potential. You are a really bad coach who can make a difference in a negative way or you are somewhere in the middle. I would say that 10% fall into the upper category, 10% fall into the bottom and the rest are in the middle.
Most coaches really don't have that much effect on the game. I know that is really hard for people to believe and especially the people who have apparently felt like Rob Sumner was on the ice for the past two seasons while the team missed the playoffs. Coaches just don't have that much impact on games. A great coach can make a difference and a bad coach can make a difference in the wrong direction but it is the players who control the outcome of the game a majority of the time.
Coach K even confirmed this yesterday by saying that the system the team played was less important than the players buying into that system and then going out and executing that system. (Shout out to Thom Beuning for a great interview with Steve and can be found here.)
I'm getting a little off track... but here is the point. Coach K may have WHL and NHL playing experience and NHL coaching experience but that doesn't mean he is automatically a "good hire" or even a "good coach". The most obvious and glaring example was Isaiah Thomas in the NBA. Great player, horrible coach. Coaches also don't have to have NHL playing experience to be a great coach. Don Hay has NHL coaching experience but never played in the NHL.
I think it's great that GM Russ Farwell was able to hire a coach with such extensive playing and coaching experience but that isn't going to automatically ensure that he will be a great coach. It also won't change the fact that Seattle has four years worth of busted 1st round bantam selections or that Seattle will be pretty short on defense if Ryan Button isn't returned by the Boston Bruins.
Hopefully for the sake of the Seattle Thunderbirds and their fans this IS a "great hire" but the fact is... we probably won't get a verdict on that for a couple of years.
I've seen it stated here on the blog and other places that Coach K is "great hire" or a "good hire" by most fans, presumably based on the aforementioned playing and coaching experience.
Here is the thing about coaches...
My belief is that coaches generally fall into 1 of 3 categories. You are either a really good, difference making coach who can influence the game in a positive way and have the ability to get players to play up to and beyond their potential. You are a really bad coach who can make a difference in a negative way or you are somewhere in the middle. I would say that 10% fall into the upper category, 10% fall into the bottom and the rest are in the middle.
Most coaches really don't have that much effect on the game. I know that is really hard for people to believe and especially the people who have apparently felt like Rob Sumner was on the ice for the past two seasons while the team missed the playoffs. Coaches just don't have that much impact on games. A great coach can make a difference and a bad coach can make a difference in the wrong direction but it is the players who control the outcome of the game a majority of the time.
Coach K even confirmed this yesterday by saying that the system the team played was less important than the players buying into that system and then going out and executing that system. (Shout out to Thom Beuning for a great interview with Steve and can be found here.)
I'm getting a little off track... but here is the point. Coach K may have WHL and NHL playing experience and NHL coaching experience but that doesn't mean he is automatically a "good hire" or even a "good coach". The most obvious and glaring example was Isaiah Thomas in the NBA. Great player, horrible coach. Coaches also don't have to have NHL playing experience to be a great coach. Don Hay has NHL coaching experience but never played in the NHL.
I think it's great that GM Russ Farwell was able to hire a coach with such extensive playing and coaching experience but that isn't going to automatically ensure that he will be a great coach. It also won't change the fact that Seattle has four years worth of busted 1st round bantam selections or that Seattle will be pretty short on defense if Ryan Button isn't returned by the Boston Bruins.
Hopefully for the sake of the Seattle Thunderbirds and their fans this IS a "great hire" but the fact is... we probably won't get a verdict on that for a couple of years.
6.15.2011
Steve Konowalchuk
The news is out. The Avalanche blog at the Denver Post is reporting that former Portland Winterhawk, Washington Capital and Colorado Avalanche, Steve Konowalchuk will be named the new coach of the Seattle Thunderbirds.
Konowalchuk, has been an assistant coach to Joe Sacco in Colorado for the past two seasons.
Links can already be found here for the Denver Post blog and here for Jim Riley's report in the Seattle Times.
Join me in welcoming Steve to Seattle. Let's all hope he can take the Tbirds to the top of the mountain in the years to come.
Konowalchuk, has been an assistant coach to Joe Sacco in Colorado for the past two seasons.
Links can already be found here for the Denver Post blog and here for Jim Riley's report in the Seattle Times.
Join me in welcoming Steve to Seattle. Let's all hope he can take the Tbirds to the top of the mountain in the years to come.
6.09.2011
Seattle Prospects
The always interesting annual Prospects post by Alan Caldwell is up. Most interesting to me is the number of players we have listed and especially the goaltenders (3).
The post can be found here.
The post can be found here.
5.25.2011
I'm back...
After a bit of an extended hiatus here during the summer I am back for a few notes.
Some fans are planning a Memorial Cup viewing party down at Gator's in Kent on Sunday for the Final.
The link to the Facebook invite is right here.
Also... The Bantam Draft came and went a couple of weeks ago and quite frankly I didn't find myself all that motivated to write anything about it. It's really difficult to get a read on 14 year old players at this point and it is almost equally as difficult to get very much reliable information about them on the internet.
The one interesting note that came out of the draft was the size of the players Seattle took. Generally speaking, one of the biggest mysteries about drafting Bantams is that you only get a few clues about whether a player will grow taller or bigger over the course of their career in the WHL. Seattle has obviously made a concerted effort to avoid this problem by drafting, on average, taller players than any other team in the WHL. They won't have as much of a guessing game as courtesy of Alan Caldwell the Tbirds average draft pick already stands 6'1" tall. 1st Round pick Ryan Gropp stands 6'1" and 2nd round pick Austin Douglas already measures 6'5" and 195 lbs... whoa.
This of course doesn't ensure that any of these selections will turn into great WHL players but at least the Tbirds won't have to worry about Douglas not having the required height.
Lastly, I have heard a few grumblings and rumors about the coaching search but nothing that has any kind of repeatable reliability. It's still pretty early in the process and there is plenty of time to hire a coach. I imagine we will likely see an announcement in the next couple of weeks.
Some fans are planning a Memorial Cup viewing party down at Gator's in Kent on Sunday for the Final.
The link to the Facebook invite is right here.
Also... The Bantam Draft came and went a couple of weeks ago and quite frankly I didn't find myself all that motivated to write anything about it. It's really difficult to get a read on 14 year old players at this point and it is almost equally as difficult to get very much reliable information about them on the internet.
The one interesting note that came out of the draft was the size of the players Seattle took. Generally speaking, one of the biggest mysteries about drafting Bantams is that you only get a few clues about whether a player will grow taller or bigger over the course of their career in the WHL. Seattle has obviously made a concerted effort to avoid this problem by drafting, on average, taller players than any other team in the WHL. They won't have as much of a guessing game as courtesy of Alan Caldwell the Tbirds average draft pick already stands 6'1" tall. 1st Round pick Ryan Gropp stands 6'1" and 2nd round pick Austin Douglas already measures 6'5" and 195 lbs... whoa.
This of course doesn't ensure that any of these selections will turn into great WHL players but at least the Tbirds won't have to worry about Douglas not having the required height.
Lastly, I have heard a few grumblings and rumors about the coaching search but nothing that has any kind of repeatable reliability. It's still pretty early in the process and there is plenty of time to hire a coach. I imagine we will likely see an announcement in the next couple of weeks.
3.30.2011
Can we move on now?
Ok... the Union of Victims got their wish and the Tbirds will have a new coach next year.
There is no debate left... let's have some class and let Rob go in peace.
It's time to start talking about things that matter.
There is no debate left... let's have some class and let Rob go in peace.
It's time to start talking about things that matter.
3.29.2011
Coaching Change
I was wrong. It happens...
Seattle today decided to go in another direction and will not renew the contract of Coach Rob Sumner.
I have made no secret of my opinion on this subject. I think Sumner could have done a better job with the teams that he has had but I do not feel like he was the main reason for the failures of this organization, especially in the last two seasons.
So in my mind... this makes Rob Sumner the scapegoat. Having said that, this is a business and the team hasn't performed well (for whatever reason) the past two seasons and the Thunderbirds chose to go in a different direction.
The Union of Victims will be throwing a party at Gators tonight... drinks are on them.
Seattle today decided to go in another direction and will not renew the contract of Coach Rob Sumner.
I have made no secret of my opinion on this subject. I think Sumner could have done a better job with the teams that he has had but I do not feel like he was the main reason for the failures of this organization, especially in the last two seasons.
So in my mind... this makes Rob Sumner the scapegoat. Having said that, this is a business and the team hasn't performed well (for whatever reason) the past two seasons and the Thunderbirds chose to go in a different direction.
The Union of Victims will be throwing a party at Gators tonight... drinks are on them.
3.22.2011
Season Wrap
As I'm sure all of you know... Seattle's season came to an end on Sunday evening but their playoff hopes came to an end on Saturday night in a one goal loss to Portland. That was followed on Sunday by a tough one goal loss to Tri-City who owned the Tbirds all season long.
Seattle was competitive to the end... but their demise came during a stretch in January and February after newly acquired Ryan Button and 20 year old D-man Travis Bobbee both went out with injuries. Seattle went 0-6 in the 6 games that Button missed. Go 2-4 in those 6 games and Seattle winds up in the 8th spot in the playoffs.
Quick wrap on the Seattle end of the season awards:
Shutouts: Calvin Pickard (1)
Hat Tricks: Brendan Rouse, Luke Lockhart, Colin Jacobs, Burke Gallimore, Marcel Noebels (4 goals)
Fan Favorite: Calvin Pickard
Most 3 Stars: Calvin Pickard
Graduates: Travis Toomey, Travis Bobbee, Brenden Dillon, Burke Gallimore (likely back), Erik Bonsor (maybe back), Ryan Button (maybe back)
Humanitarian of the Year: Travis Toomey
Scholastic Player of the Year: Mitch Elliot (2nd year in a row)
Most Improved: Brenden Dillon
Most Dedicated: Austin Frank and Michael Salmon
Rookie of the Year: Marcel Noebels
Defensive Player of the Year: Brenden Dillon
Top Scorer: Burke Gallimore
Most Valuable Player(s): Calvin Pickard and Brenden Dillon
Right here you can find my season preview. Let's see what I got right and what I got wrong.
First off I projected the team to score 195 goals and the team scored... 195 goals. Holy shit I'm good.
I also thought the team couldn't possibly be worse on defense than they were in 2009-2010 and called for 225 goals against. Whoops. Seattle gave up 264 goals, 9 more than they gave up in 09-10. Yikes
Using those projections I thought Seattle would have 61.77 points and they wound up with 64 points. Pretty good there.
I thought at best they would be as high as 6th and they were 10 points off that pace and at worst they would be 9th and technically they would be tied for 9th.
What I didn't count on... was the defense being as bad or worse than it was the year before. Mitch Elliot has a team worst -27 followed closely by Burke Gallimore at -26 and Brenden Dillon at -25.
Notables... yeesh not many. Marcel Noebels being 3rd on the team in scoring and only -11 was probably the best overall performance. Dillon winding up with 51 assists was fantastic but that plus/minus is glaring. Gallimore led the team with 34 goals and 70 points. Erik Fleming was -20 in just 50 games and Justin Hickman was -20 in just 46 games.
I still believe Travis Bobbee is a pretty good hockey player but I have to admit that his injury filled 14 point, -11 campaign was pretty much a disaster. I truly hope his shoulder is ok and he finds hockey somewhere and has a better season next year.
What do I think this team will look like next year??
Here goes...
Disclaimer: I don't ever, ever talk to Russ Farwell or Rob Sumner. I don't bother them. So these opinions have no inside knowledge and this is strictly what I would do with the team.
20 year olds: I think Gallimore is back and I'm optimistic that Button is back because someone mentioned to me that they didn't think Boston had enough spots for him in Providence next season. We'll see. Despite the fact that the defense might be scary next season I wouldn't bring back Bonsor and I would trade for a better 3rd 20 year old.
Back next season: Noebels, Lockhart, Jacobs, Rouse, Alos, Sutter, Doty, Hickman, Frank and Elliot. In my mind these guys are definitely on the team next year.
Guys I'm not sure about:
Sanvido - Sanvido has shown that he has elite scoring ability but very little ability to be a good enough skater to allow those skills to translate to the Major Junior level. I think he'll be once again fighting for his roster spot but considering that he is a shootout weapon and Seattle doesn't have many of those... I would expect him to make the team.
Lund - In my mind this was another lost season for Lund. He was -15 and most of his 13 points came conveniently around the trade deadline in a 9 game stretch. In my mind he needs to really come ready to play next year because if you can't do a lot better than that as a 19 year old I worry about your spot on the team.
Fleming - The former 1st round pick... I just can't see him on this team next year. For his own sake he would probably be better off going back to Junior A where he can play and be a solid contributor and have fun with the last couple years of his Junior Hockey.
Spooner - No idea what happens to Spooner. He didn't really show a lot but he didn't really play a lot either. I will say this though... as you will see below there is probably a defensive spot to be had for a guy like Spooner if he steps up and improves in the off-season.
So where does that leave us...
Defense -
Button (hopefully)
3rd 20 or Bonsor
Sutter
Frank
Hauf
Theodore
Green
Wardley?
Spooner?
Forwards -
Gallimore
Noebels
Lockhart
Jacobs
Rouse
Alos
Elliot
Doty
Hickman
Troock?
Sanvido?
Lund?
Alex Kerfoot?
James Neil
Maybe 1 of: Wray, Edwardh, LeLievre, Houcher, Ness... etc.
The back end of the forwards should have a lot of competition.
Goaltenders -
Pickard obviously for one more glorious season. Beyond that... I have no idea. If I was Michael Salmon I would be begging to get out of here. Playing that little could not have been fun and if I were him I wouldn't see the point in sticking around another season. Now whether that means getting traded or going back to Junior A... I have no idea.
What to expect??
I think we're going to see Seattle finally get themselves back into the playoffs but I'm not expecting big things. I think this team might be able to crack the 200 goal mark again but I'm not very optimistic about the defense being improved by a ton. I think the best we can hope for is something like 200+ goals and a reduction in goals against down to the 220's and you might be able to get 75 points and get back into the playoffs.
Lastly....
Playoff predictions. Spokane over Portland in the West Finals, Red Deer over Saskatoon in the East and Red Deer over Spokane for the WHL Championship.
Seattle was competitive to the end... but their demise came during a stretch in January and February after newly acquired Ryan Button and 20 year old D-man Travis Bobbee both went out with injuries. Seattle went 0-6 in the 6 games that Button missed. Go 2-4 in those 6 games and Seattle winds up in the 8th spot in the playoffs.
Quick wrap on the Seattle end of the season awards:
Shutouts: Calvin Pickard (1)
Hat Tricks: Brendan Rouse, Luke Lockhart, Colin Jacobs, Burke Gallimore, Marcel Noebels (4 goals)
Fan Favorite: Calvin Pickard
Most 3 Stars: Calvin Pickard
Graduates: Travis Toomey, Travis Bobbee, Brenden Dillon, Burke Gallimore (likely back), Erik Bonsor (maybe back), Ryan Button (maybe back)
Humanitarian of the Year: Travis Toomey
Scholastic Player of the Year: Mitch Elliot (2nd year in a row)
Most Improved: Brenden Dillon
Most Dedicated: Austin Frank and Michael Salmon
Rookie of the Year: Marcel Noebels
Defensive Player of the Year: Brenden Dillon
Top Scorer: Burke Gallimore
Most Valuable Player(s): Calvin Pickard and Brenden Dillon
Right here you can find my season preview. Let's see what I got right and what I got wrong.
First off I projected the team to score 195 goals and the team scored... 195 goals. Holy shit I'm good.
I also thought the team couldn't possibly be worse on defense than they were in 2009-2010 and called for 225 goals against. Whoops. Seattle gave up 264 goals, 9 more than they gave up in 09-10. Yikes
Using those projections I thought Seattle would have 61.77 points and they wound up with 64 points. Pretty good there.
I thought at best they would be as high as 6th and they were 10 points off that pace and at worst they would be 9th and technically they would be tied for 9th.
What I didn't count on... was the defense being as bad or worse than it was the year before. Mitch Elliot has a team worst -27 followed closely by Burke Gallimore at -26 and Brenden Dillon at -25.
Notables... yeesh not many. Marcel Noebels being 3rd on the team in scoring and only -11 was probably the best overall performance. Dillon winding up with 51 assists was fantastic but that plus/minus is glaring. Gallimore led the team with 34 goals and 70 points. Erik Fleming was -20 in just 50 games and Justin Hickman was -20 in just 46 games.
I still believe Travis Bobbee is a pretty good hockey player but I have to admit that his injury filled 14 point, -11 campaign was pretty much a disaster. I truly hope his shoulder is ok and he finds hockey somewhere and has a better season next year.
What do I think this team will look like next year??
Here goes...
Disclaimer: I don't ever, ever talk to Russ Farwell or Rob Sumner. I don't bother them. So these opinions have no inside knowledge and this is strictly what I would do with the team.
20 year olds: I think Gallimore is back and I'm optimistic that Button is back because someone mentioned to me that they didn't think Boston had enough spots for him in Providence next season. We'll see. Despite the fact that the defense might be scary next season I wouldn't bring back Bonsor and I would trade for a better 3rd 20 year old.
Back next season: Noebels, Lockhart, Jacobs, Rouse, Alos, Sutter, Doty, Hickman, Frank and Elliot. In my mind these guys are definitely on the team next year.
Guys I'm not sure about:
Sanvido - Sanvido has shown that he has elite scoring ability but very little ability to be a good enough skater to allow those skills to translate to the Major Junior level. I think he'll be once again fighting for his roster spot but considering that he is a shootout weapon and Seattle doesn't have many of those... I would expect him to make the team.
Lund - In my mind this was another lost season for Lund. He was -15 and most of his 13 points came conveniently around the trade deadline in a 9 game stretch. In my mind he needs to really come ready to play next year because if you can't do a lot better than that as a 19 year old I worry about your spot on the team.
Fleming - The former 1st round pick... I just can't see him on this team next year. For his own sake he would probably be better off going back to Junior A where he can play and be a solid contributor and have fun with the last couple years of his Junior Hockey.
Spooner - No idea what happens to Spooner. He didn't really show a lot but he didn't really play a lot either. I will say this though... as you will see below there is probably a defensive spot to be had for a guy like Spooner if he steps up and improves in the off-season.
So where does that leave us...
Defense -
Button (hopefully)
3rd 20 or Bonsor
Sutter
Frank
Hauf
Theodore
Green
Wardley?
Spooner?
Forwards -
Gallimore
Noebels
Lockhart
Jacobs
Rouse
Alos
Elliot
Doty
Hickman
Troock?
Sanvido?
Lund?
Alex Kerfoot?
James Neil
Maybe 1 of: Wray, Edwardh, LeLievre, Houcher, Ness... etc.
The back end of the forwards should have a lot of competition.
Goaltenders -
Pickard obviously for one more glorious season. Beyond that... I have no idea. If I was Michael Salmon I would be begging to get out of here. Playing that little could not have been fun and if I were him I wouldn't see the point in sticking around another season. Now whether that means getting traded or going back to Junior A... I have no idea.
What to expect??
I think we're going to see Seattle finally get themselves back into the playoffs but I'm not expecting big things. I think this team might be able to crack the 200 goal mark again but I'm not very optimistic about the defense being improved by a ton. I think the best we can hope for is something like 200+ goals and a reduction in goals against down to the 220's and you might be able to get 75 points and get back into the playoffs.
Lastly....
Playoff predictions. Spokane over Portland in the West Finals, Red Deer over Saskatoon in the East and Red Deer over Spokane for the WHL Championship.
Final Word... hopefully...
I'm kind of hoping we can put all this "fighting" to rest... I'm sure this won't actually end it but hopefully this will help pump the brakes a little bit.
First thing... The Union of Victims certainly has the "right" to yell and scream and do whatever they want. Their folly of course is in thinking that Russ or Rob give a shit about your yelling and ranting. So if Russ and Rob don't care... what exactly is the point? You guys say you are trying to get something to "change" but if what you're doing isn't actually creating any change... well then all you are doing is being disrespectful and rude to your fellow fans.
My suggestion to the Union would be this... There are far better ways to express your frustrations than the rude and disruptive behavior that is only bothering those around you. How about this... don't buy tickets and write an intelligent and polite letter to the front office explaining to them why you aren't renewing your tickets. I can assure you they don't care about your posters, your cardboard cutouts or your taunting but they might care about losing your money.
Second... This is all mostly a waste of energy. Everything I have been told is that Rob Sumner is going to be back as coach of the Thunderbirds. That makes all this discussion (some good, some not) kind of a waste of time.
I'll get on with the business of wrapping up the season later today.
First thing... The Union of Victims certainly has the "right" to yell and scream and do whatever they want. Their folly of course is in thinking that Russ or Rob give a shit about your yelling and ranting. So if Russ and Rob don't care... what exactly is the point? You guys say you are trying to get something to "change" but if what you're doing isn't actually creating any change... well then all you are doing is being disrespectful and rude to your fellow fans.
My suggestion to the Union would be this... There are far better ways to express your frustrations than the rude and disruptive behavior that is only bothering those around you. How about this... don't buy tickets and write an intelligent and polite letter to the front office explaining to them why you aren't renewing your tickets. I can assure you they don't care about your posters, your cardboard cutouts or your taunting but they might care about losing your money.
Second... This is all mostly a waste of energy. Everything I have been told is that Rob Sumner is going to be back as coach of the Thunderbirds. That makes all this discussion (some good, some not) kind of a waste of time.
I'll get on with the business of wrapping up the season later today.
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