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Post by thepuckman on Sept 25, 2022 21:18:09 GMT -5
For those who don't know, there were some transactions over the weekend.
Saginaw traded Evan Klein to Niagara for a 12th round pick.
Saginaw reassigned Josh Glavin to the Sarnia Legionnaires, bringing the D total to 8.
And Saginaw sent EBUG John Chartrand back to his Jr. C team. Oke was not a part of the Wings Red-White game today so I'd say he's on his way back.
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Post by donjohnson on Sept 26, 2022 8:13:28 GMT -5
For those who don't know, there were some transactions over the weekend. And Saginaw sent EBUG John Chartrand back to his Jr. C team. Oke was not a part of the Wings Red-White game today so I'd say he's on his way back. I was hoping to see Oke in the Red/White game but I figured it was a longshot. I was hoping that they'd play 3 shortened periods and maybe he'd get part of a period but they only played two periods and they only played 4 goalies. By all accounts, Oke had a very nice camp with the Wings and hopefully that will translate to success this year with the Spirit. Have to imagine the speed is insanely faster than the Spirit so hopefully the game will slow down for him back in the OHL. I can see Piercy (Flint) staying with Detroit a while longer to see him in an exhibition game but I agree with you that once the team heads back to Detroit, Oke will be back in Saginaw. |
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Post by aj0512 on Sept 27, 2022 20:55:03 GMT -5
Oke and Mintyukov have both been returned to Saginaw and should be in the lineup this weekend.
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Post by ricardo on Sept 27, 2022 21:24:37 GMT -5
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Post by aj0512 on Sept 29, 2022 7:13:30 GMT -5
Josh Bloom was also returned yesterday. So Lennox is the only one still at camp I believe.
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Post by donjohnson on Sept 29, 2022 11:54:32 GMT -5
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Post by donjohnson on Oct 20, 2022 9:37:55 GMT -5
Carson Christy has been sent down to Jr B according to Spirit social media
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Post by donjohnson on Oct 26, 2022 10:22:15 GMT -5
Going to be quite a different training camp compared to last season. Last year, there were a handful of random draft picks who got offers and made the team based on performance at camp. This year, there's a numbers game and it's more than likely that some people from last year's team won't make the squad this year. Here are the major questions that I think are out there for the Spirit: 1) What's the goaltending situation? Andrew Oke was solid last year in his rookie season and performed well at Wings camp from all accounts. Couple that with making Team USA a few weeks ago and he's shown that he's ready for #1 minutes in the OHL. Brett Fullerton would be a capable backup so where does that leave Lennox? To me, this season is still part of a rebuild so it makes ZERO sense to give any minutes to an OA goalie but you hate to give him away for free and lose games to him. Very much the #1 question if you ask me. 2) What will we do for OA's this year? Smith is a no-brainer for an OA because he's local, a good leader and a very good defenseman. I have to imagine he'll also be the Captain this year too. Beyond that, you can see Question #1 for Lennox and then the other returning OA is Schleuting and I can't see using an OA spot when you have the following dmen playing above him (Pavel, Smith, Mancini, Glavin, Zayne, Hislop, Forgione, Savard). I think it's very possible that we trade Lennox (for pick(s)) and release schleuting and we only have 1 OA this year and give the younger players the ice time. 3) What rookies will make a big jump? We (along with the rest of the league) had a ton of rookies last year many of whom were 17 and didn't have any experience. Bodies grow like crazy during those years and it will be interesting to see who spent time in the weight room, who got faster, who plays more physical, etc. There will definitely be a few that will stand out during camp. It will be interesting to see how we play this year...I have to imagine we're going to be faster and more skilled but we're still going to be young and everyone knows this league is won by 18-20yo's, not 16-17yo's. Ok...I know quoting my own post is dorky but I wanted to revisit my "3 questions" now that we're 10 games in: 1) Goaltending: Lennox has played very strong this year despite his GAA being up around 3.5 which isn't really indicative of how he's playing. It says more about the defense/system than the play of the goalie. I'm a little surprised at how little Oke is being used coming off of TeamUSA and Red Wings camp. Maybe they're auditioning Lennox for a trade or maybe they're going to run with him for the season. I don't think we have our questions answered yet about the goaltending situation. 2) OA's for the year: Smith was a for-sure and I doubt he'll be traded...losing Schleuting was what I predicted and gaining Theo Hill has been a great addition. Lennox is still the question mark and I can still see us trading him and running with just two OA's to get the young guys more ice time. 3) What rookies will make a big jump? So far the answer is probably Mangone and Sapovaliv who are both about .5pts ahead of their pace per game last year. Loukus is also up but wasn't a true rookie despite it being his first year in the OHL. The real surprises have been Misa with his production as a 15yo and Joey Willis. Both of them have provided a huge spark to the offense. Still want to see something from McNamara...he has lots of speed but hasn't seemed to put it all together yet. |
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Post by donjohnson on Oct 27, 2022 13:01:40 GMT -5
Fullerton was sent down to Jr. B Chatham today...makes sense...he deserves to play somewhere.
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Post by farmgirl62 on Nov 4, 2022 6:51:20 GMT -5
Last night's game was a wonderful comeback! Best one since the Sarnia game!!!
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Post by eric8199 on Nov 4, 2022 11:23:19 GMT -5
Last night's game was a wonderful comeback! Best one since the Sarnia game!!! Agreed. Was great to see. Definitely need to get better at breaking into the zone and staying in the zone. So many times we either can't get past the blue line at all, or the second we do, it's cleared back out. That's been a big issue the last few games is just getting multiple chances per rush. Once they started holding the zone last night finally in the third, they started scoring. Good to see T-Bone get his first of the year. Surprising it took this long. Hopefully the flood gates open there. |
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Post by donjohnson on Nov 4, 2022 14:17:09 GMT -5
Very exciting finish to the game last night...I was a little more social butterfly last night than paying close attention but it seemed like we were getting good opportunities but unable to cash in rebounds and stuff like that. Two great starts from Oke in a row and his GAA is now awfully darn close to Lennox who has been playing really well this year too. Still need to keep tightening up the defense a bit but it's nice to see the improvement since the Flint game. That was a reality check and it's been nice to see the team respond.
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Post by Bthumme on Nov 6, 2022 17:05:35 GMT -5
I'm really happy with how the season has played out so far. I don't think I'm in the wrong to say I think we are slightly over-performing so far, led mainly by an extremely high Offensive output with a nod to great special teams, which is why I'm really looking forward to the next couple years.
Does everyone here think we still go ahead and Trade Bloom/Mintyukov/Lennox? We could get some really nice building blocks for the next couple seasons.
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Post by donjohnson on Nov 6, 2022 17:33:04 GMT -5
I'm really happy with how the season has played out so far. I don't think I'm in the wrong to say I think we are slightly over-performing so far, led mainly by an extremely high Offensive output with a nod to great special teams, which is why I'm really looking forward to the next couple years. Does everyone here think we still go ahead and Trade Bloom/Mintyukov/Lennox? We could get some really nice building blocks for the next couple seasons. I think Bloom for sure and most likely for Lennox. Bloom seems to be a little stagnant this year but would be a huge asset to a contender. Not sure what the market is for Lennox... He's played VERY well this year and seems to be healthy... Would be nice to get something for him and then maybe pick up Flints OA that they'll have to get rid of. Not sure on mintyukov... We really need the defense so I'm hesitant to get rid of him but he'd be one of the biggest prizes out there so it may be hard to say no. |
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Post by aj0512 on Nov 6, 2022 19:58:01 GMT -5
Good parity in the Western Conference so far, but I'm still on Team Sell. Mintyukov is a guy who could bring back a big haul. Lennox is someone I could see staying to be honest. Glad he's having a good season. Really happy with the way the young guys have played and I'm looking forward to seeing them develop.
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