The Lethbridge Hurricanes wrapped up their pre-season schedule Saturday night with a 2-1 loss to the Calgary Hitmen in the Crowsnest Pass.
The lone Lethbridge goal was scored by Jamal Watson. Calgary out shot the Canes 31-23.
Zac Robidoux played the entire game for Lethbridge in goal. The loss dropped the Canes 2-4 in exhibition play this year.
Scoring the Hurricanes was an issue all of last season and the club is certainly hoping for that to change when the season starts for keeps on Friday (Sept. 19). In six pre-season games, the Hurricanes scored 12 goals, 5 of which came in one game against the Medicine Hat Tigers. If the Canes are going to battle for a playoff position in this 2014-15 campaign, they will have to get a lot of offence.
It appears players like Jaeger White, Pavel Skumatov, and Nikita Milekhin will be nice additions to the Lethbridge offence this season and Tyler Wong should be a nice goal contributor as well if he can stay healthy. No question the Canes have gotten bigger and stronger. For Hurricanes fans, they hope that'll translate in a positive season for this club. No question the pressure is on everyone, from hockey operations staff to the players to get this team back into the post-season.
The Hurricanes open the WHL regular season Friday at home when they host the rival Medicine Hat Tigers. Game time is 7:00 pm MDT at the ENMAX Centre.
Thanks,
Pat
The views expressed on this blog are those of the moderator and contributors and are not endorsed by 94.1 CJOC or the Lethbridge Hurricanes.
More cuts to come. With Sayers and Jensen injured and Walters away at camp, that leaves d-men able to play. Likely no moves there. Forwards on the "bubble" could include Holub, Warkentine, Bricker, Goberis and Alldridge (whose size will likely have him stay). Of course the injuries to Sheen and Estephan will save one or two.
ReplyDeleteDuke will be back sometime, likely before the home opener. The Reid Duke situation is very curious. Here is a player who walked on the team, blamed the team for his low draft selection, got flown into Regina by the Hurricanes and there is no secret about the rest of the team being ticked off. (That's being polite). I have no idea why he was brought back. What effect has it had on the chemistry within the club. The coaching staff is trying to establish a culture. But for certain it is not a culture of discontent.
Scoring is going to be a problem. The Canes will suffer without a scoring star. As Pat pointed out, not many goals scored and low shot totals.......all the signs of last year. One good thing was the play of the two goaltenders and the penalty kill. 95.2% (2nd best in pre-season.
RJS
I agree, RJS. I don't know what they were trying to prove with the Reid Duke situation. It can't be helping any in the dressing room that is for sure. While the goaltenders have done well so far they are both young and haven't faced the full onslaught of another team's scoring power. I do believe they may be the one highlight of the season.
ReplyDeleteAs far as goal scoring and the PK go, little has changed and little is likely to change given the fact that the same Head Systems Manager who refused to accept any responsibility last season or acknowledge that some things just didn't work is still at the helm doing the same old thing. I can't wait for the whole "players aren't buying into the systems" excuses start again.
You know what they say. If you do what you've always done you're going to get what you've always gotten. I hope and pray for the players sake I am wrong but I just don't see anything being different.
-cc
Bryan Maxwell will for sure improve the defensive posture of this team while Berehowski continues to unravel, if things do not improve (management/leadership) then, as Robison said, changes will be imminent starting with the release of the head coach, likely why Maxwell was hired to begin with? One would think the the Drake is on a very short leash...
ReplyDeleteLBJ
LBJ...could not agree with you more, but I would take it one step further. If the team gets off to a bad start (say the first 10-12 games) then it will likely be Brad Robson and Drake who get their walking papers to be replaced by Anholt and Maxwell.
ReplyDeleteSalt in the wounds of bad trades.....Pilon ends up with 3 assists in one exhibition game, scores an overtime winner in the second game. OUCH!
RJS
I concur. I think Maxwell and Anholt are set in place and ready to step up should this team get off to a bad start. Nick Walters said that he has already learned so much from Maxwell and believes it will help him in Columbus.
ReplyDeleteAs for Pilon there was never much doubt he was going to be successful if he was playing under successful leadership. It is unfortunate he couldn't get that here at the time although I feel if Maxwell was the defensive coach during that time, Pilon may still be wearing a Hurricanes jersey.
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Well, being on a better team makes guys like Pilon look better than they really are, for me leaving Lethbridge the way he did puts his character into question and guys like that don't get very far in the NHL environment. Maybe he is a good player but he will never get a cheer out of me, thats for sure!
DeleteX2 just sayin.
Deletedc
Anon....13:51
ReplyDeleteI agree, that Pilon is on a better team for sure and is likely getting the coaching he needs. But you are right, character is huge, despite skill and he will find that follows him into the NHL, much like what Reid Duke must be going through at Minnesota's rookie camp. I can just imagine the "chirping" going on the ice.
RJS
There is no doubt at all that management is on an extremely short leash. Apparently the league is closely monitoring all moves and prepared to step in and make changes. Maxwell and Anholt bring instant credibility. You know Maxwell will have them playing a gritty, tough, but most of all unified defense. Like I commented in the prior piece, Duke and Erkamps are being shopped but the price is high. Will have to be patient and see what teams lose players to the pro ranks or injuries and who becomes desperate.
ReplyDeleteCannot see how they put a high price tag on either of these guys? Duke lacks character and Erkamps cannot play in his own end to save his life? I do not think there will be much on the trade front until the NHL campers situations around the league are definitive???
ReplyDeleteLBJ
Unbelievable comment. Erkamps can't play in his own end to save his life. This kid was one of the top D men in The U16 Canada Winter Games gold medalists and a top D man on the U17 team run by Mike Dyke. Both team recognized him as a leader with the "A". His strength throughout his career has been in his own end......this is the damage this organization has done.....which leads the fans to think the kid can't play.......criminal...Duke on the other hand is a young player who seems to be quite immature when it comes to the team thing....There are not a lot of big fish on this team to put him in his place, so he plays the top talent kid...On another team he would have much more success and fall in line with the pecking order...
DeletePotentially, there are many players on this roster that would likely be much better if they were on different teams? Erkamps was -62 in 66 games and it just seemed that he was constantly pinching leaving his partner to deal with odd man opportunities coming back? Granted, there was little or no defensive plan last season and that is likely why he asked to be moved at the end of last season...
ReplyDeleteJakeS
-62 with at least 10 of those being end of the game empty netters...Also on a team that has such effective offense, he was probably asked to be on the offensive end...looking back part of the problem was the forwards inability to back check and support the defense...which constantly left the defensive partners with odd man rushes..( when a D man pinches, one of the FWDs need to realize they have to support the other D man and not all of them end up deep in the offensive zone....(Not a lot of guidance from the coaches)
ReplyDeleteThe worst part of it all, and I told Erkamps thus via twitter, he would have learned a ton from Maxwell this year. Nobody questions his offensive upside and skating ability, but Maxwell would have made him a ton better in his own end. As much as fans may disagree, Erkamps and Duke still hold a ton of value and will bring quality returns on the market.
ReplyDeleteHey Pat, just wondering why you didn't publish an article after last week's win against the Tigers. Great energy at the rink that night and appeared that the coaches got on well. Hope the absence of an article is an oversight and your not turning on the team. They could use so positive thoughts to kick off the regular season.
ReplyDeleteActually no. I've never turned on the team, nor do I intend to. I was at the game briefly, but traveling to Medicine Hat for work that evening and all day at meetings the following day and never got to writing up anything on that game. I most certainly did not ignore writing something up on that game. I will try my best to get something on each game this year.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that it is up to be Mr. Positive for the hockey club. The Hurricanes brass have taken care of that. As someone in the media posted on twitter, "#control the message". I would expect Pat to continue to accurately report on the club, thus giving both sides of the situation. Pat has had to suffer through the last 5 years like the rest of us fans, and through it he has been as objective as humanly possible. Give us your honest opinion on the performance of the club and that is all we should expect.
ReplyDeletePositive thoughts for the regular season........two young goaltenders look solid, Jaeger White is a complete player who Brian Maxwell said during an interview, "will score a lot of goals for us as a Hurricane".
RJS
I cut and pasted this because it shows clearly how the rebuild has gone. Credit to "Bocephus" for posting this on WHLfans blog. How can delusional fans and hecklers continue to blindly think things will get better. It is sad to see how much has been wasted. Behold the last 5 years of player "drafting and development". Thanks Bocephus for the research...
ReplyDeleteSku
20's
Henry
McKechnie
Yakubowski
19s
Merkley 3rd overall
Leverton 2nd rounder
Erkamps 2nd rounder
Topping 2nd rounder
18s
Pilon 3rd overall
Duke 5th overall
Olynek 2nd rounder
Amson 2nd rounder
Sayers 3rd rounder
17s
Estephan 4th overall
Lenchyshyn 1st rounder
Plotnikoff 2nd rounder
Conrad 3rd rounder
16s
Skinner 1st rounder
Anholt 2nd rounder
Allen 3rd rounder
In total
6 first rounders
7 second rounders
3 third rounders
That's 16 picks in the top three rounds in 4 years!
That's 13 picks in the top two rounds in 4 years!
That's 6 picks in the first round in 4 years!
That's 4 top five picks in 4 years. Don't forget they also traded a 6th overall pick for Boes.
Has there ever been a management and coaching staff that has done less with more?
All that and they turned it into a performance that got them Bellerive with the second overall pick.
Quite the accomplishment when you think about it.
Thanks for that, I knew it was bad, but not that bad in what the team has ended up with. 4 years of futility and they expect the fans, season ticket holders and shareholders (I am not one) to continue to support this team. I feel sorry for the players. When is the league going to step in and purge the whole franchise?
ReplyDeleteRJS
This year is the year, no more excuses. The league will not tolerate another brutal year. I would expect a purge of management down to begin with and ownership soon to follow. The league does not want to move this team, forced changes by the league may soon become reality. Maxwell and Anholt are in place for a reason, the change could be swift.
ReplyDeleteHere is what Kelly Friesen had to say about Lethbridge in his preview of the central division teams, doesn't look like he is expecting the team to be a whole lot better than last year, if at all, here it is:
ReplyDeleteLethbridge Hurricanes – 2013-14 record: 12-55-2-3 for 29 points; division finish: last; result: missed the playoffs.
Is there a light at the end of the tunnel in Lethbridge?
The Hurricanes’ 2013-14 season was an absolute gong show. They had more than a handful of players, including premier defenceman Ryan Pilon, ask for a trade and finished the year with only 12 wins. Not to mention, the team’s board meetings seemed to have a crazy family reunion atmosphere to them.
Unfortunately for the Hurricanes, their 2014-15 season picked up right where their previous year left off. Macoy Erkamps, the club’s leading defenceman last year, and Minnesota Wild prospect Reid Duke asked for trades before camp even started. But after some negotiating, or in other words telling him it may be a long time before a deal happens, Duke decided to return to Lethbridge for his 18-year-old season.
The hard truth is that the Hurricanes aren’t in the mix to make the playoffs. They, however, have the potential to double their win total from last year. Top 2012 bantam pick Giorgio Estephan showed promise last year and 16-year-old Jaeger White has impressed in pre-season action. The bottom line, though, is that unless the Hurricanes ban together and don’t have players asking for trades, it’s going to be another ugly year in Lethbridge.
LBJ
Anon 12:47; as you say the league will not tolerate another brutal season. With another youngish team, not a lot of natural goal scorers and 2 untested goaltenders (who did look good in pre-season) the prospects of a huge improvement over 12 wins is not all that great. I would imagine that season ticket sales are down; the club is about $700K in debt and unless the season is a huge success (playoff hunt) the walk-ups won't be great either. Anholt and Maxwell were brought in for a reason, but .....if the team falters from the get go, their reasons for being here may be mute. The WHL will take over and put the team up for sale, despite the President continually saying publicly (he does not own the team-shareholders do) the franchise is not for sale.
ReplyDeleteAs said by others....."the leash is short".
RJS
I think it is safe to say that unless there is so real success during the first 10 to 15 games, there will be another round of defections as there are simply to many good players on that team that must realize some learning and development this season! The only difference is they will be demanding that the league arranges the trades based on the failed promise of development within the WHL, I highly doubt that Robison has any intentions of going down that road or his job could be called into question? He told the City of Lethbridge that until the management/leadership gets stronger, this team will not realize success and I think he meant it...
ReplyDeleteJakeS