Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
Tough break on the early exit. Onward & upward for next season !Comment
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
The NHL has completed its 2023 NHL Entry Draft at the Cadillac Arena in Beijing, China. This groundbreaking event was the first NHL Draft held outside continental North America and was hosted in an arena used by the Russian based Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
Houston would select ten prospects in the draft composed of four defensemen, two left wingers, two goalies, a center, and a right winger. Five of the players were from the United States, with one each from Austria, Canada, Finland, Ukraine, and Russia.
The Huskies selected Defenseman Kenneth Morrison of Notre Dame University. The 18 year old freshman from St Charles, Missouri, had eight goals, fourteen assists, and was a +6 in 58 games with the USA Hockey. A shoot first defensemen, he could do with some more with his defensive side of the game. Although he has the potential to be a top-2 defenseman in the league, many question if he can actually reach that expectation.
A very unusual pick made by the Huskies was Goalie Easton Wengranowski. Having played three season in Austria’s National League – A, the goalie did not have a strong season with ZSC Lions in Zurich, Switzerland, having a 89.5% save percentage and a 3.13 goals against per game. However, he was able to rack up 21 wins in 31 starts.
“We were very excited to have the opportunity to grab Easton in the fourth round” said Ulf Eklund, Houston’s Head of Amateur Scouting. “He didn’t have the best season last year, but he has shown the ability to be a showstopper when he puts it all together. This kid can be an animal and the type of goalie any team would want.”
For the second year in a row, Houston grabbed four defenseman, showing a propensity towards the position. This is understandable as the average age of the blueline is almost 31 years old and, with Dustin Byfuglien likely retiring next season, and a couple of defensemen likely to be moved out or not resigned, there needs to be some youth coming up to replace them.Comment
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
After going 4-3-0 in preseason, the Houston Huskies are preparing to take the ice in their season opener against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday night.
The Huskies had a forgettable season last year, making the Stanley Cup Playoffs but being eliminated in five games by the eventual Stanley Cup Champions, the Vegas Golden Knights. Following the quick post season, GM AW promised swift and uncompromising change. So, is this a new team like he promised?
Bottom line: No. The core is still here. He didn’t get rid of any big name players (to be fair, none had a contract coming up). But there are some changes that should make Husky fans excited about next season.
Alain Vigneault is still here as the team’s head coach. However, from word with insiders, he is on a VERY short leash. We’ve seen some changes in the assistants: Defense Coordinator Robert Mueller is out after failing to deliver what he promised, as is goaltending coach Rosanne Barr after she was found trying to pick up goaltending prospects at Home Depot. Special Teams coach Tonya Harding returns after having one of the best powerplays in the NHL.
Vigneault and Harding are joined by long time bench master Ken Hitchcock who will take the defense. Asked why he is returning, he said “I just couldn’t stay away. They have a number of young prospects I can break. This is going to be fun!”.
The team did re-sign quite a few of their pending free and restricted free agents, to include Pat Maroon, Dustin Byfuglien, and Yanni Gourde. However, a number of potential free agents were either released or traded. Below is the break out:
Also interesting to note are the large number of initial entry deals done this year compared to past seasons. This is because many of the prospects that whose eligibility is running out are of a higher quality than previous years.
“You’ll notice we only released one unsigned player and quite frankly, he was never going to be anything more than the guy opening the door on the bench”, GM AW said. “But you’ll notice that a couple of these players will have a spot on the big club by the end of the year.”
This is also important as the club has a number of big contracts for core players next season, to include Nico Hischier, Anders Lee, Artemi Panarin, and Sergei Bobrovsky. The ability to bring in cost controlled rookies will allow more money to sign the core.
The game will begin at 7PM CST and will be proceeded by a rally at the Toyota Center.
Below are the starting lines for tomorrow night:
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
Another season, another 41 games complete. This week we look at the Houston Huskies and the trials and tribulations they’ve had so far this season. This season, we are also taking a look at their farm teams and their depth. So let’s go.
No-one can say the Huskies were happy with their performance last season. After making the playoffs as the first wildcard seed in the Western Conference, they were bounced in five games by the eventual Stanley Cup Champions, the Vegas Golden Knights. GM AW promised major changes but the changes were rather moderate. Some changes behind the bench and a couple free agents (Defenseman Erik Johnson, Center Sam Bennett, Goalie Jacob Markstrom) were brought in to provide depth in high risk areas. The team has seen a couple rookies this season, with Defenseman Preston Maurer a regular in the lineup and visits from Center Jarrod Lau, Defenseman Dimitri Mayorov, and Goalie Markuss Kalinin.
As we sit right now, Huskies sit in the first wildcard position with a 22-16-3 record (47 points) with a three points on the first out team, the Dallas Stars. They are 5-4-1 in their last ten. The team has struggled at home this season with a 9-9-3 record, while performing on the road at 13-7-0. The team has a disproportionate number of wins to shootout, with four shootout wins this season. This could hurt the team down the road if tied.
Coach Alain Vigneault is on a short leash this season and word from insiders is that GM AW is taking a much more active role in the day-to-day operation of the team. Vigneault has been the head coach of the team for all four and a half seasons of their existence and some pundits believe the team may have started shutting him out. One stat they point to is the goal for average this season of 2.54, the fourth worst in the NHL, a stat that traditionally was one of the best in the NHL. However, a stat that is traditionally one of the Huskies’ worst, goals against per game, is third best in the NHL at 2.29. This does reflect having assistance coach and defense coordinator Ken Hitchcock who likes to play a close, defense first style game. Another saving grace is the Huskies have the second best penalty kill, allowing only sixteen goals on 122 attempts and, ironically based on their low scoring 5-5, the second best powerplay, converting on 31 of 123 attempts.
So, let’s start by looking at what is going well for the team. Bobrovsky sits second in the NHL for save percentage (93.1%) and tied for fifth for goals against average (2.22) with goalies with more than twenty games played. To help with these totals, backup goaltender, Jacob Markstrom only saw seven games before he went down to injury, but in that time, he was sitting on a 92.9% save percentage and a 2.14 GAA. The team brought up rookie Markuss Kalinin and, to alleviate any concerns, in five games has a 93.1% save percentage and a 2.03 goals against average. This is an enormous turnaround from last season where backup goaltending was suspect, to say the least.
If the playoffs started today, they would be in. Though there isn’t a huge gap with the Stars, it is enough that there is a slight buffer. The concern is, after going 6-4 in the first ten games, by twenty five games, the team was sitting a solid second in the Central Division. Since then, the team has faltered and slid down the standings. Unless this slide is checked, Houston may be out of the running before they know it.
Once again, the injury bug has slaughtered this team. So far, the team has lost seventy six games to injury. Nikita Scherbek disappeared after the fifteenth game of the season and isn’t expected back anytime soon. Because of injury, Erik Johnson has only played nine games this season. At one point, the team had its number one center (Nico Hischier), number one right winger (Scherbek), two middle-six defensemen (Johnson, Dustin Byfuglien), and the backup goaltender (Markstrom) out at one time. This not only affects the Huskies, but the Arlington Bald Eagles have dropped from their number on spot based on the emergency callups that have occurred.
Unlike goaltending, no players are making any strong singular contributions this season. AJ Likens leads the team in points this season with 35 points (7G, 28A) while Dmitry Orlov leads defensemen with 18 (6G, 12A). Even the team lead in powerplay goals (Artemi Panarin) has only six, which is only good for tied with twelfth in the league (though AJ Likens is third in the league for powerplay points with 15). None of the rookies have made a major mark in the stats department (except Kalinin), with the only notable being Defenseman Dimitri Mayorov ninth in plus/minus (+2).
Here is where the hope lies: prospects. The team took another leap last draft and is now considered to have the second most potent farm team in the league. The team boasts on A+ prospect (Goalie Easton Wengranowski), seven A prospects (Center Xavier Ballard, Left Wingers Jesse Wisniewski and Derek Baumgartner, Defensemen Toni Nattinen, Adam Duffy, and Antti Miettinen, and Goalie Don Norton), and twelve B prospects. Even if only half pan out, this will be an amazing coup for this team going forward. And we can expect to see more going forward as the team has seventeen picks in the upcoming draft (1 x 1 Rnd, 2 x 2 Rnd, 1 x 3 Rnd, 2 x 4 Rnd, 5 x 5 Rnd, 3 x 6 Rnd, 3 x 7 Rnd). This is especially beneficial as this seems to be a team that can find gold in the later rounds.
What do the Huskies need to solidify this team? Consistency. You’re just not sure what you are going to see night to night. In December, this team lost 8-1 against Chicago, storming back the next night for a 7-1 victory against New Jersey. You just don’t know what you are going to get each night.
The team remains light on defense though it is much improved over last season. Another top-4 defenseman wouldn’t hurt and could definitely help when the injuries start mounting.
Do the Huskies make trades at the deadline? Only a rental with contracts needed next season for Nico Hischier, Artemi Panarin, Anders Lee, and Sergei Bobrovsky, with Hischier likely getting a significant raise.
Do the Huskies make the playoffs? Yes. They haven’t missed it since joining the league; why would this year be any different? They have been in worse places and made the show.
Do the Huskies win the cup? Nope. Last year showed the lack of high end scoring and solid defense and this team is not all that much stronger. Anything is possible in the second season but it will require a much greater effort and more consistency than what we have seen in the past.Comment
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Re: An NHL Expansion Story: Deep in the Heart of Texas
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