Just had a quick squiz at the Rags game stats from yesterday, Dinger looks like he had an ok game. I've said it before, & I'll say it again, Dinger will be a good solid player this year. Just think, we had him for zero & gave him away for the same & in the meantime gave him no chance to succeed.
- Aussiepenguin

He won't get a chance on the Rangers either. McD, Shea (don't know how to spell that), Klein, Girardi, and Staal are all guaranteed spots regardless of what you think of Girardi and Staal. He'd have to beat out McIlrath which is pretty unlikely.

Face it, the kids been unable to break into a roatation wherever he goes and he's entering what should be his prime right now. He's a career AHLer. A high end one, but one none the less.

Grinder
Old NHL- every game is interrupted by a WWF cage match or 3
New NHL- guys just play hockey and don't get distracted by nonsense
- Dcoms

Id rather watch an actual fight than Hornqvists 50 facewashes and 20 bearhugs a game. Old NHL also had a lot more scoring and creativity.

Obviously didn't watch as much as you did but I also get the feeling that the talent outflux hurt Simon a lot last year. At the beginning of the year WBS was pretty stacked and Simon was able to play along side a bunch of NHL/borderline NHL talents. He was able to just be another piece and hone his game while not being leaned on. Then the call ups happened and he lost Wilson, Rust, Sheary, Sundqvist, and Kuhnhackl and all of a sudden he found himself being "the guy" and what's more is he lost Pouliot and Warsofsky on the blue line, stripping the WBS blue line of skill so he didn't have anyone to get the puck up to him either. That's not good for development.
- Victoro311

No that was absolutely true, and I said that when Simons production slowed down, I don't hold that against him at all. My point simply was Simon much like most guys coming out of juniors or college are rarely prepared conditioning wise for the length of and grueling nature of a pro schedule. It really caught up to him at the end. Jarry was in the same boat. His style of play as elements of both MAF and Murray. Very athletic butterfly style, with a typically calm demeanor like Murray. Problem was he was used to the back up role as Murray was on fire, and typically was a wall as well when he got the nod. Once he was the #1 netminder it was obvious that around Feb or March he was tiring out, then got hurt prior to the playoff .

The call ups to Pitt and the lesser talent on the Wbs team was the main culprit for the drop in production, but those guys still played well regardless.

I feel old. I remember watching Clark D. play against my alma mater when he played in college. Have no clue how good of a coach he will be. He lost a lot of talented dudes last year to the Pens after Sullivan was elevated.
- Oneonta Penguin

He was average at best in Wheeling. I'll give him the full season with his own setup before I completely judge. There's alot of folks here that aren't thrilled with him though. My concern is that he does not seem to coach or carry himself like Sully does, which has been Pitts MO over the years. WBS gets coached and plays the same brand as Pitt. I'm going to some practices this week, so hopefully my fears will be put at ease.

He won't get a chance on the Rangers either. McD, Shea (don't know how to spell that), Klein, Girardi, and Staal are all guaranteed spots regardless of what you think of Girardi and Staal. He'd have to beat out McIlrath which is pretty unlikely.

Face it, the kids been unable to break into a roatation wherever he goes and he's entering what should be his prime right now. He's a career AHLer. A high end one, but one none the less.
- Victoro311

Skjei??

Well my friend, time will tell. He'll get time without question, just depends on how he goes as I don't think the Rags will have too many options with their D - especially if things get tough & they aren't winning games. AV will have to play their best I would think so I believe he'll get enough games to play his way in. Now if Trouba wants to go to the bright lights............

Skjei??

Well my friend, time will tell. He'll get time without question, just depends on how he goes as I don't think the Rags will have too many options with their D - especially if things get tough & they aren't winning games. AV will have to play their best I would think so I believe he'll get enough games to play his way in. Now if Trouba wants to go to the bright lights............
- Aussiepenguin

Yes. Skjei. That's it. I'll never get that one under my belt.

No that was absolutely true, and I said that when Simons production slowed down, I don't hold that against him at all. My point simply was Simon much like most guys coming out of juniors or college are rarely prepared conditioning wise for the length of and grueling nature of a pro schedule. It really caught up to him at the end. Jarry was in the same boat. His style of play as elements of both MAF and Murray. Very athletic butterfly style, with a typically calm demeanor like Murray. Problem was he was used to the back up role as Murray was on fire, and typically was a wall as well when he got the nod. Once he was the #1 netminder it was obvious that around Feb or March he was tiring out, then got hurt prior to the playoff .

The call ups to Pitt and the lesser talent on the Wbs team was the main culprit for the drop in production, but those guys still played well regardless.
- Reverend Killtaker

Very excited for this year's crop of WBS Baby Pens. I'm extra excited because of the depth we have most of the talent in WBS should stay there for the entire year. Guentzel, Simon, Blueger, Prow, and Bengtsson should all stay there for most of the season only seeing spot call ups due to injury. Should be real good for development. If only we could get Sprong in there, but you know, the CHL and its transfer agreement and such

Very excited for this year's crop of WBS Baby Pens. I'm extra excited because of the depth we have most of the talent in WBS should stay there for the entire year. Guentzel, Simon, Blueger, Prow, and Bengtsson should all stay there for most of the season only seeing spot call ups due to injury. Should be real good for development. If only we could get Sprong in there, but you know, the CHL and its transfer agreement and such
- Victoro311

It'll be great to get this crop all developing together. Having the ability to inject players like Pitt had to do last year with Sheary, Kuhn, etc has huge advantages. I'm not sure you take one player last year alone and get the same production as putting in multiple who all are familiar playing with one another in wbs. Chemistry is a huge asset.

Yes. Skjei. That's it. I'll never get that one under my belt.
- Victoro311

Watched him play four times here at PSU when the Goofers came in. Thought to myself he was grossly overrated when I saw him play here. I shook my head. Well, he did impress me as a competent blue liner during the play-offs. Felt he was the Rags second best Dman.

How you get the pronunciation out of that is beyond me.

Not sure why people have an all - or - nothing view on Pouliot.

FWIW a team like Arizona would be a great fit. Where there wouldn't be pressure to play perfectly with a management team that is heavy analytics. But I wouldn't want to trade him as a GM because there is a very high risks that you look like an idiot 2-3 years down the road.

Not sure why people have an all - or - nothing view on Pouliot.

FWIW a team like Arizona would be a great fit. Where there wouldn't be pressure to play perfectly with a management team that is heavy analytics. But I wouldn't want to trade him as a GM because there is a very high risks that you look like an idiot 2-3 years down the road.
- sditulli

There is also a risk of hanging hope he figures it out and he continues to fail. That is his deal. It could go either way.

There comes a point in time if a prospect, or in this case, a suspect, fails to perform or come close to his perceived ability, that cutting bait is necessary. We have been waiting for him to take the next step for a while it seems. He took a major step backwards last year after playing 40 games the previous year ... major, major disappointment. This is his make or break season here. If he doesn't perform, its time to move on regardless. You can't just look at the potential and hang your hopes on him achieving that in the next XXX years at this stage. Improvement hasn't been made. I hope he proves me wrong, but again, I don't see it. Potential is a word that gets more GMs and head coaches fired, not hired.

Arizona is a place that does like younger talents that might have flaws. They made the deal for the young Dman from tampa that was allegedly a locker room problem. They have a nice blend of veterans and youth on the blueline. I'm not sure he would be in position to see more action in Phoenix than here.

I have a rough time figuring out his value as far as a trade. He ISN'T worth a first round pick. He is worth another guy that needs a change of scenery. In a perfect world, I would put him in a package to see if we could pry Toby Rieder out of them. Big fan of his.

There is also a risk of hanging hope he figures it out and he continues to fail. That is his deal. It could go either way.

There comes a point in time if a prospect, or in this case, a suspect, fails to perform or come close to his perceived ability, that cutting bait is necessary. We have been waiting for him to take the next step for a while it seems. He took a major step backwards last year after playing 40 games the previous year ... major, major disappointment. This is his make or break season here. If he doesn't perform, its time to move on regardless. You can't just look at the potential and hang your hopes on him achieving that in the next XXX years at this stage. Improvement hasn't been made. I hope he proves me wrong, but again, I don't see it. Potential is a word that gets more GMs and head coaches fired, not hired.

Arizona is a place that does like younger talents that might have flaws. They made the deal for the young Dman from tampa that was allegedly a locker room problem. They have a nice blend of veterans and youth on the blueline. I'm not sure he would be in position to see more action in Phoenix than here.

I have a rough time figuring out his value as far as a trade. He ISN'T worth a first round pick. He is worth another guy that needs a change of scenery. In a perfect world, I would put him in a package to see if we could pry Toby Rieder out of them. Big fan of his.
- Oneonta Penguin

What is the "risk" exactly? ~$1M for his next contract? It is doubtful that he is holding another 7th defenseman back as none seem to be close to ready.