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2017-18 Canes Prospect and Cherkers Thread

Another great week for the Checkers wrapped up last night:

Fri Mar 9 Hartford W 4-3 Neds with the win. Poturalski, Kuokkanen, and Zykov x2 with the goals

Sat Mar 10 Hartford W 7-3 Neds with the win, but Smith started this game and played 27:11 and only allowed 1 goal before leaving with an injury. McKeown, Carrick, McKegg, Roy, Foegele, Brown and Neds with the goals. Video provided above by andyt on Neds goal, which is his second as a pro, he scored 1 for Florida last season.

Checkers remain in 4th place in the AHL Atlantic division but have continued to solidify that playoff spot. They will play 4 home games next week....Tue and Wed vs. Wilkes-Barre who is 2nd in the division, 3 points ahead of the Checkers but with 4 games in hand as I type this Sunday morning the Sat and Sun vs. Eddie Lack and the Binghamton Devils who are one of the worst teams in the conference.

Zykov now has 30 goals, 4 ahead of 2nd place where you will find Chris Terry. Zykov has 16 PP goals which is 5 better than anyone else in the AHL. Foegele set a rookie record last night for the Checkers with his 25th goal. Neds continues to lead the AHL in wins with 27.
 
Checkers lose 5-2 to Scranton Wilkes-Barre last night. Zykov with his 31st goal, but the Checkers seemed to imitate the Hurricanes last night.
 
Canes draft picks and prospect stats through 3/14/2018

CHL seasons all end on March 18th, playoffs next week. CHL stats are as of 3/14. Playoff stats coming next week.

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

Martin Necas (Chech Brno): 24 Games 9 Goals 8 Assists +1 ** Playoffs started March 13th for Brno

Eetu Luostarinen (Liiga KalPa): 55 Games 6 Goals 14 Assists -7 *** KalPa playoff games this week

Luke Martin (Big-10 Michigan So.): 37 Games 1 Goal 6 Assists +14 *** Michigan lost to Ohio State in the semi finals of the Big 10 tournament. Their season is most likely over.

Morgan Geekie (WHL Tri-City): 65 Games 29 Goals 51 Assists Even

Stelio Mattheos (WHL Brandon): 66 Games 41 Goals 45 Assists +4

Brendan De Jong (WHL Portland): 66 Games 5 Goals 19 Assists +2

Ville Rasanen ( Jr. A SM-Liiga Jukurit U20/Mestis Roki/Liiga Jukurit (Major league)):
With Jukurit U20: 28 Games 0 Goals 6 Assists -21
With Roki: 9 Games 1 Goal 2 Assists -6
With Jukurit: 4 Games 0 Goals 0 Assists -2

Jake Bean (WHL Calgary/Tri-City):
With Calgary: 25 Games 5 Goals 22 Assists -12
With Tri-City: 29 Games 6 Goals 13 Assists +2

Matt Filipe (Hockey East Northeastern So.): 29 Games 5 Goals 8 Assists +9 ** Northeastern beat UMASS to advance to the Hockey East Semi's (single elimination). They play Providence on 3/16. Filipe did not play in the 2 games vs. UMASS (I assume he is hurt).

Hudson Elynuik (WHL Spokane): 69 Games 31 Goals 54 Assists +25

Noah Carroll (OHL Sault Ste. Marie): 63ames 6 Goals 29 Assists +37

David Cotton (Hockey East Boston College So.): 36 Games 9 Goals 18 Assists +9 *** BC eliminated Merrimack in 2 games. They play BU on 3/16 (single elimination).

Eetu Makiniemi (Jr. A SM-Liiga Jokerit U20) 35 Appearances 3.03 GAA .916 Sv%

Jack Lafontaine (Big-10 Michigan So.): 4-4-0 3.51 GAA .889 Sv% *** Michigan lost to Ohio State in the semi finals of the Big 10 tournament. Their season is most likely over.

Jeremy Helvig (OHL Kingston): 30-16-3 2.67 GAA .916 Sv%

********** PLAYERS WHOSE SEASON HAS ENDED ***********

Max Zimmer (Big 10 Wisconsin So.): 25 Games 3 Goals 4 Assists Even

Luke Stevens (ECAC Yale So.): 30 Games 6 Goals 5 Assists +1
 
Mixed bag for the Checkers this past week:

Tue Mar 13 Wilkes-Barre L 5-2 Neds with the Loss. Poturalski and Zykov with the goals.

Wed Mar 14 Wilkes-Barre W 3-1 Neds with the Win. Gauthier and Kegger x2 with the goals.

Sat Mar 17 Binghamton W 4-2 Neds with the Win. McKeown, Foegele, Zykov, and Wallmark with the goals.

Sun Mar 18 Binghamton L 4-1 Smith with the Loss. Kegger with the goal

Checkers remain in 4th place in the AHL Atlantic division with still a pretty decent lead, but losing today against last place Binghamton was a bummer. They play 2 road games this coming week....Fri and Sat vs. Laval which is one of the weaker teams in the conference. There are only 11 games left for the Checkers. Bridgeport is the only team with a realistic shot of catching Charlotte...they are 7 points behind with 13 games left to play.

Zykov now has 32 goals, 5 ahead of 2nd place.
 
Canes draft picks and prospect stats through 3/18/2018

CHL Playoffs start this week.

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

Martin Necas (Chech Brno): Playoffs: 4 Games 1 Goal 0 Assists +1 *** Brno swept their first round playoff series against Ridera

Eetu Luostarinen (Liiga KalPa): 55 Games 6 Goals 14 Assists -7 *** KalPa's first quarterfinal playoff game is this coming Wednesday

Luke Martin (Big-10 Michigan So.): 37 Games 1 Goal 6 Assists +14 *** No games last week, Michigan did make the NCAA tourney, they play Northeastern (Matt Filipe) on 3/24

Morgan Geekie (WHL Tri-City): 68 Games 30 Goals 54 Assists Even *** Geekie finished T21st in the WHL in assists

Stelio Mattheos (WHL Brandon): 68 Games 43 Goals 47 Assists +7 *** Mattheos finish T12th in the WHL in goals, T16th in points

Brendan De Jong (WHL Portland): 68 Games 6 Goals 19 Assists +1

Jake Bean (WHL Calgary/Tri-City):
With Calgary: 25 Games 5 Goals 22 Assists -12
With Tri-City: 32 Games 7 Goals 14 Assists +5

Matt Filipe (Hockey East Northeastern So.): 30 Games 5 Goals 8 Assists +10 ** Northeastern lost to Providence in the Hockey East Semis last week (Filipe did play). They did make the NCAA tourney and will play Michigan (Luke Martin) on 3/24

Hudson Elynuik (WHL Spokane): 71 Games 31 Goals 55 Assists +45 **** Elynuik finish T17th in the WHL in assists

Noah Carroll (OHL Sault Ste. Marie): 65 Games 7 Goals 30 Assists +37 *** Carroll finished 6th in the OHL in +/- SSM's Morgan Frost led the OHL with a +70!! He was the 2nd of the Flyers first round picks last season (27th overall).

David Cotton (Hockey East Boston College So.): 37 Games 9 Goals 19 Assists +8 *** BC lost to BU in the Hockey East semis on 3/16. BC did not make the NCAA tourney so Cotton's season is over.


Jack Lafontaine (Big-10 Michigan So.): 4-4-0 3.51 GAA .889 Sv% *** Michigan is in the NCAA tourney, but Lafontaine is doubtful to play

Jeremy Helvig (OHL Kingston): 31-16-3 2.68 GAA .916 Sv% *** Helvig finished 5th in the OHL in GAA and Sv% and Wins

********** PLAYERS WHOSE SEASON HAS ENDED PRIOR TO LAST WEEK ***********

Max Zimmer (Big 10 Wisconsin So.): 25 Games 3 Goals 4 Assists Even

Luke Stevens (ECAC Yale So.): 30 Games 6 Goals 5 Assists +1

Ville Rasanen ( Jr. A SM-Liiga Jukurit U20/Mestis Roki/Liiga Jukurit (Major league)):
With Jukurit U20: 28 Games 0 Goals 6 Assists -21
With Roki: 9 Games 1 Goal 2 Assists -6
With Jukurit: 4 Games 0 Goals 0 Assists -2


Eetu Makiniemi (Jr. A SM-Liiga Jokerit U20) 35 Appearances 3.03 GAA .916 Sv% ****** I'm going to assume that Makiniemi's season is over
 
Sault Ste. Marie finished a ridiculous 55-7-3-3 for 116 points, the best record in the OHL by 23 points. Their 317 goals for were 18 better than 2nd place and their 186 goals against were 16 better than 2nd place.
 
It will be a massive upset if Sault Ste. Marie doesn't easily sweep through the OHL playoffs. All the pressure is going to be on them though.

As far as all of our kids go, with Charlotte's roster pretty healthy and loaded up with some pretty high end talent, I don't expect any of our kids to actually play games for Charlotte this season as their teams get eliminated from the playoffs. Jake Bean MIGHT be the exception there, but really Charlotte at this point doesn't need him. If he does end up with Charlotte it will be mostly just as insurance and to allow him to practice and travel with the team during the playoffs. Elynuik could also end up in Charlotte but there really is no reason to expect he would be needed there.

None of our college kids should be jumping to the pros. Brno is expected to make a long playoff run so Necas will likely be unavailable (and really there is no reason to have him in Charlotte for any part of this season). Luostarinen won't be ready to come over until at least another full season (or more).

The Canes also still need to deal with their contract limit.....they are at 49, just one below the limit. Bean and Necas' contracts don't count yet towards that limit since they are entry level slides but they will next season (assuming that Necas is going to play in NA next season, which I fully expect he will). Helvig, Carroll (if we choose to sign him) and Elynuik will all need contracts. Geekie and De Jong are both out of underage eligibility...they can be left in juniors for overage seasons (and probably will be) without yet being offered entry level deals.

Some deadwood cleanout should be part of the new GM's plan in the offseason, this will have to happen out of necessity.
 
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cmaleski2 said:
The Canes also still need to deal with their contract limit.....they are at 49, just one below the limit. Bean and Necas' contracts don't count yet towards that limit since they are entry level slides but they will next season (assuming that Necas is going to play in NA next season, which I fully expect he will). Helvig, Carroll (if we choose to sign him) and Elynuik will all need contracts. Geekie and De Jong are both out of underage eligibility...they can be left in juniors for overage seasons (and probably will be) without yet being offered entry level deals.

Some deadwood cleanout should be part of the new GM's plan in the offseason, this will have to happen out of necessity.
Click to expand...

This needed to happen anyway. We've stockpiled so many "prospects" in the last few years, with next to no out-flow, that it's almost comical. I mean, it's not funny at all when you consider just how few of that huge container truck full of guys look anything like legit NHL prospects, but hey ... numbers will out. Apparently you can't keep more than 50 players even if most of them are smallish utility guys that will never play in the NHL. Overstatement for comedic effect ... or was it?
 
From Jason Shaya's 10 Thoughts:

9) Greg McKegg is the best trade deadline addition to the Checkers that I can recall. Head coach Mike Vellucci had high praise for McKegg even before he played a single game for Charlotte. McKegg has a very good reputation both on and off the ice and both his professionalism and his skill are on full display with Charlotte as he averages a point per game since putting on a Checkers sweater.
Click to expand...

Also, note Shaya has the Senators game call on Monday as Forslund presumably has another network call that night, as he did last night (Kings vs. Wild for Eric's 39th goal).
 
I don't mind the Canes keeping McKegg around next season for depth. He's played 91 NHL games and having a guy like that in the minors that you can call up and put on the 4th line and know he won't kill you out there can be valuable.

But again the Canes are going to need to evaluate all of their RFAs and UFAs in the minors and clear out some guys who are just never going to make it (ie Sergey Tolchinsky, exciting as he is, will likely never ever play in the NHL for us and isn't exactly lighting up the AHL, so why keep him around?). You can easily work through our UFAs and say who will (or should) not be retained. Those include Derek Ryan, Lee Stempniak, Jeremy Smith, Brendan Kichton. Then you hit guys like Patrick Brown, Dennis Roberston, Philip Samuelsson, and Andrew Miller who have value to Charlotte but none to the Canes. And of course Cam is a UFA....

The RFA list includes McKegg, Lindholm, PDG, Zykov (bye bye waiver exemption), Hanifin, TVR, Dahlbeck, Poturaski, Wallmark, Carrick, Ganly, Kanzig and Tolchinsky. Many of those minor leaguers will be qualified and retained, but not all of them. I expect McKegg will be qualified, he is useful for what he is.
 
Hanifin is going to be a tough re-sign after making the All Star while doing next to nothing to back that recognition up on the ice. In fact, he got worse after the All Star game. Significantly worse. That's the recipe for a hold out if we don't play it smart, and maybe even if we do.

In general, we look to have a lot of obvious deadwood to cut and/or just walk away from at the end of the contract year. But you know how it's gone around here as well as I do. Even fresh blood in the GM's office is going to have to work to overcome our deeply ingrained corporate sloth when it comes to settling for the unproductive bird in the hand over the trouble of going out and actually finding another bird.

Dang it. This team has finally broken the last straw of optimism I had left.
 
From Lyle Richardson of MY NHL TRADE RUMORS
Here is the short hand of his observations of our options. For the full story use a search engine. What do I look like Google?

Montreal Canadiens- Max Pacioretty (a year away from unrestricted free agent) or Alex Galchenyuk (signed through 2019-20 with an annual cap hit of $4.9 million)

Toronto Maple Leafs- Offer of Hanifin or Slavin could tempt the Leafs to part with William Nylander or Mitch Marner.

The New York Islanders - Brock Nelson (4th straight 20-goal season)

Detroit Red Wings - Andreas Athanasiou or the 6’5″, 223-pound Anthony Mantha.

The Edmonton Oilers- Center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (I would offer Faulk straight up!)

San Jose Sharks- Timo Meier (if they re-sign Evander Kane)

Buffalo Sabres - Sam Reinhart (has three straight 40-point seasons under his belt.)

Goalies
Trade For: Robin Lehner, Michael Hutchinson (Seems familiar), Jon Gillies or Calvin Pickard. (all could be had for a prospect and draft pick?)
Free Agency: Antti Raanta, Anton Khudobin (Seems fa—nevermind), Jonathan Bernier or Kari Lehtonen.

I personally think we should sign Dave Hill. (Yeah, I'm not Google, remember?)
 
First we need to get our losers out of here. Staal, Faulk, Rask, Ryan are at the top of the list. Just get 'em all outa here. Is there gas in the car?
 
Until there’s a general manger in charge I’m not wasting a single second of thought on anybody who isn’t already on the organizational roster. It’s pointless.
 
I don't have a problem with Staal staying. Paid too much, yes (that's on mgmt). But the guy shows up every night and is one of the best defensive centers around IMHO. Build a friggin offense on this team and the narrative will change about Staal. The rest of that crowd, adios!
JFG said:
First we need to get our losers out of here. Staal, Faulk, Rask, Ryan are at the top of the list. Just get 'em all outa here. Is there gas in the car?
Click to expand...
 
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