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Connolly, Drouin among Lightning's Final Roster Cuts |
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The Tampa Bay Lightning has released its final round of roster cuts. A total of ten players have been assigned to various minor leagues, including the American Hockey League, East Coast Hockey League, and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
From the Lightning's press release:
The following is a list of players and where they have been assigned:
Mike Angelidis Syracuse Crunch (AHL)
J.T. Brown Syracuse Crunch (AHL)
Brett Connolly Syracuse Crunch (AHL)
J.P. Cote Syracuse Crunch (AHL)
Jonathan Drouin Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
Kristers Gudlevskis Florida Everblades (ECHL)
Dmitry Korobov Syracuse Crunch (AHL)
Nikita Kucherov Syracuse Crunch (AHL)
Matt Taormina Syracuse Crunch (AHL)
Dana Tyrell Syracuse Crunch (AHL)
Some thoughts...
* It's a little bit surprising to see that both Brett Connolly and Jonathan Drouin have been cut from the team's roster. Many people expected Connolly to be assigned to Syracuse while Drouin got a nine game audition, and then called up when Drouin got sent back to Junior. Well, that prediction proved to be worth less than the paper it was written on. While I'd expect that Brett will be the team's number one call-up in the case of injury (read: when Ryan Malone gets injured), the fact remains that I find this decision to be awfully confusing.
* Even with the Connolly/Drouin demotions, it's not as though the Lightning are going to struggle to fill roster spots. Tyler Johnson, Alex Killorn, PC Labrie, Ondrej Palat, Richard Panik, and Tom Pyatt all made the team. The Johnson/Palat/Panik trio, in particular, will be an interesting one to watch. The grouping has had a great deal of success in the AHL, and looked very impressive through the Lightning's preseason contests.
* Andrej Sustr is still on the roster in what appears to be the Lightning's eight spot on the blue line. The big defender has done nothing but impress since being signed out of college late last season. If he gets the opportunity to suit up for a number of contests with the Lightning this year, I think we'll all be impressed. He has a unique skillset and brings a different dimension to the Lightning's back end.
* The fact that Sustr is still around is perhaps the only real surprise when it comes to the team's defense. Mark Barberio made the final cut, as expected. He'll likely slot in as the number seven guy and serve as a powerplay specialist when needed.
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As always, thanks for reading.
Ottawa Senators Blogger • 
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