Goaltending

[Bighat]

Time to go out and get a tender, if we are going to make a move we need some help. The experiment is over.

[patsdude114]

Cant really fault MacAuley on anymore then 1 of those goals (7 so far) this is the worst game I have watched the Pats play all season long heck even last year combined. Its like they thought with Burroughs, Stevenson & McGuire all back that things would be easy....well think again we got our a*ses spanked badly tonight.

I haven't really been much of a MacAuley fan all year ya he got hot for about 3 weeks but other then that he has been below avg at best, just tonight not really faulting him on many goals the team infront of him just didn't show up. Stephenson was brutal all night long

[Some_Arrogant_Jerk]

why cant we ever beat these dicks on their home turf? Its been years now, we might have an average of one win every two seasons there.

[chopper]

Jayce Hawryluk IS a cheap shot artist make no mistake. He has injured two of our players in our last two games there. You can't accept that. Even the Brandon broadcasters acknowledged it was a bad hit and might draw a suspension. All hell should have broken loose and it didn't. That's one of the reasons we loose there. We played like a ringette team.

MacAuley couldn't be overly faulted but he didn't make any huge saves when we really needed them. He may have had a couple weak ones but he had no defence or offence either. Somebody has to tell Schneider he is getting beat short side high far too much to play in this league. I have said before I don't think we have the goaltending to take us very far in the playoffs provided we can even make it. Chandler Stephenson was a -5 which is deplorable REALLY -5 ???? Leaders weren't leading. Best players weren't the best players. D'amico as a call up was the hardest working players. Embarrassing!

We played poorly, we reacted poorly, and lost to a team we have to beat if we really want to be in the playoffs. The good thing is it's just one game and even though we were schooled it's still just two points. It did however expose some serious weaknesses.

[sbtatter]

Jayce Hawryluk IS a cheap shot artist make no mistake. He has injured two of our players in our last two games there. You can't accept that. Even the Brandon broadcasters acknowledged it was a bad hit and might draw a suspension. All hell should have broken loose and it didn't. That's one of the reasons we loose there. We played like a ringette team.

MacAuley couldn't be overly faulted but he didn't make any huge saves when we really needed them. He may have had a couple weak ones but he had no defence or offence either. Somebody has to tell Schneider he is getting beat short side high far too much to play in this league. I have said before I don't think we have the goaltending to take us very far in the playoffs provided we can even make it. Chandler Stephenson was a -5 which is deplorable REALLY -5 ???? Leaders weren't leading. Best players weren't the best players. D'amico as a call up was the hardest working players. Embarrassing!

We played poorly, we reacted poorly, and lost to a team we have to beat if we really want to be in the playoffs. The good thing is it's just one game and even though we were schooled it's still just two points. It did however expose some serious weaknesses.
Hawryluk is not a cheap shot artist.
Tonights hit was a major, and the first one like that Hawryluk has taken, and he will be suspended. But the one on Burrows was not a cheap shot, it wasn't even a penalty and we all know that. However, that phantom call by the league in the last game will ensure Hawyrluk sits for 5 to 7 this time.

[chopper]

Just read Cameron's remarks. He said they were not in good enough shape after the break. They are going to be able to improve the conditioning by tomorrow?? He also said they played poorly in Calgary and again tonight. That would be 14-3 in goals last two games. MacAuley is now 23rd in the League at 3.45 GAA and 897 Sv %. I don't see how you can go anywhere with that level of goaltending. Much of the game may have been the poor play of the d-men and the forwards losing battles all night. Defensemen are clearly what we need as well.

Right now the Pats may have tied their wagon to MacAuley who we shouldn't forget is a rookie. There are not a lot of goalies available with the exception of Boes or Cheveldave who the Raiders are unhappy with. They are both 20 yrs. It's too bad there couldn't have been a Rodewald/Wapple deal instead.

Everybody knows you need great goaltending to win any kind of championship/pennant. I'm not sure we have good enough tending to win a playoff spot.

[chopper]

Lets just say we don't all know it wasn't even a penalty. I watched it over and over again including slo-mo. You can see him starting to go high, and you can see him go across his chest and make contact with the head. There is bloody good reason Burroughs was out with a concussion. It didn't come from a shoulder hit. You bet Burroughs lost six games for a concussion he got on a phantom hit to the head...yup that's it. That's a stupid comment! However I won't argue with you since you might win.

[sbtatter]

Lets just say we don't all know it wasn't even a penalty. I watched it over and over again including slo-mo. You can see him starting to go high, and you can see him go across his chest and make contact with the head. There is bloody good reason Burroughs was out with a concussion. It didn't come from a shoulder hit. You bet Burroughs lost six games for a concussion he got on a phantom hit to the head...yup that's it. That's a stupid comment! However I won't argue with you since you might win.

It wasn't called a penalty on the ice for good reason, and if you're being honest, you know it wasn't a cheap shot at all, even some of your fellow fans on here admitted that. Burrows bent down and got hurt on a hockey check. No one can see a hit to the head, if you see it, show us a link. Concussions can be caused by a whiplash injury as well you know?
But tonight was a bad hit.
See how easy it is to be unbiased? If Hawryluks a cheap shot artist then you and I are NHL coaches.

[chopper]

It wasn't called a penalty on the ice for good reason, and if you're being honest, you know it wasn't a cheap shot at all, even some of your fellow fans on here admitted that. Burrows bent down and got hurt on a hockey check. No one can see a hit to the head, if you see it, show us a link. Concussions can be caused by a whiplash injury as well you know?
But tonight was a bad hit.
See how easy it is to be unbiased? If Hawryluks a cheap shot artist then you and I are NHL coaches.

I hardly think you as a Brandon fan can be accused of being unbiased in your view, so consequently your opinion can only carry that much weight. The reference to "phantom hit" says all that needs to be said. All I had to watch was the WHL feed, which I recorded and have watched numerous times. I happen to know that the Pats reviewed it several times as well. It's surprising that the four guys watching it with me all saw it the same way...funny how that goes. Because Montsion missed the call, the Pats had to pay $500 to have it reviewed for supplemental. There's more I could say but I won't burn a friend. If you choose to believe the WHL suspended a player for a phantom call, maybe call them and tell them as much. You might be surprised by what you would learn. You wouldn't have taken the same position had the tables been turned. After Brandon's Yaworski gave Hunt a vicious hit to the head that pretty much cost him last season, i'm pretty sensitive to this type of crap from that team. You see what you want in that player but I see a chippy kid who I've watched for two seasons. He showed his true colours tonight. He doesn't need to, but he fancies himself a gritty guy. Karma can be a *****.

Feel free to voice your opinion as to how you saw the hit. However please don't try to portray your point of view as the accurate or only correct one. When you consider what the Pats saw to ask for discipline, what the league saw, and what Burroughs suffered through; it says all that's needed. Burroughs wasn't hurt on a "hockey play" or whiplash. Considering all the lost games our players have suffered because of head hits by Brandon players, I consider that assertion offensive.

[patsdude114]

There's 2 points that have to be made here reguarding this thread.....
1) The Pats didn't have to pay $500 to get the league to review the hit, the league reviews all hits when a player is injuried
2) Hunt was never injuried by Yarwosky (however u spell it) his 1st concussion came off a fight between him & Hunter & when he returned I believe the EVT player was Grayson who head hunted him & knocked him out for the entire year. Also fyi he was actually able to play come Feb but the pats played it safe as we weren't going anywhere & had a miserable team. Told him to come back this year fully healthy.

I wouldn't go as far to say Jace is a cheap shot artist but he may be getting that rep with the league now. As for the hit on Burroughs, its a 'dirty' hit by any means but the league is trying to get rid of the blind side hits which that hit was hence the suspension. This hit was far worse & he should consider himself lucky that Zgraggen didn't need to be carried off by the stretcher, I'm fully expecting nothing less then 5 games.

Now onto the actual topic at hand here, yes MacAuley is not a WHL starter by any means & I was the really the only 1 who didn't agree with handing him the #1 job out of camp. Sacher had proved himself that he could play in this league last year as a 18yr old rookie but yet they hadn't MacAuley the job without ever really seeing him play against WHL level shooters. There was very little difference between MacAuley's & Sacher's play in training camp & preseason was not enough to just give MacAuley the home opener start. Forsure that pissed off Sacher which did lead to him leaving the team, the Pats dropped the ball on this 1 & Sacher is actually playing pretty good on the worst team in the league right now.

Also there isn't lots of goalies available very few teams will move there goalie at any point most teams have a young backup so who are they going to use for the rest of the year if they moved there goalie? They sure in hell don't want MacAuley in return. The Pats burned their bridge on this situation & will be stuck with MacAuley for the rest of the year we just gotta deal with that.

[chopper]

There's 2 points that have to be made here reguarding this thread.....
1) The Pats didn't have to pay $500 to get the league to review the hit, the league reviews all hits when a player is injuried
2) Hunt was never injuried by Yarwosky (however u spell it) his 1st concussion came off a fight between him & Hunter & when he returned I believe the EVT player was Grayson who head hunted him & knocked him out for the entire year. Also fyi he was actually able to play come Feb but the pats played it safe as we weren't going anywhere & had a miserable team. Told him to come back this year fully healthy.

I wouldn't go as far to say Jace is a cheap shot artist but he may be getting that rep with the league now. As for the hit on Burroughs, its a 'dirty' hit by any means but the league is trying to get rid of the blind side hits which that hit was hence the suspension. This hit was far worse & he should consider himself lucky that Zgraggen didn't need to be carried off by the stretcher, I'm fully expecting nothing less then 5 games.

Now onto the actual topic at hand here, yes MacAuley is not a WHL starter by any means & I was the really the only 1 who didn't agree with handing him the #1 job out of camp. Sacher had proved himself that he could play in this league last year as a 18yr old rookie but yet they hadn't MacAuley the job without ever really seeing him play against WHL level shooters. There was very little difference between MacAuley's & Sacher's play in training camp & preseason was not enough to just give MacAuley the home opener start. Forsure that pissed off Sacher which did lead to him leaving the team, the Pats dropped the ball on this 1 & Sacher is actually playing pretty good on the worst team in the league right now.

Also there isn't lots of goalies available very few teams will move there goalie at any point most teams have a young backup so who are they going to use for the rest of the year if they moved there goalie? They sure in hell don't want MacAuley in return. The Pats burned their bridge on this situation & will be stuck with MacAuley for the rest of the year we just gotta deal with that.

You are right about the Hunter fight. It was actually Fenske who was hit in the head by Yaworski. I got the Hunter fight and the Yaworski hit mixed up. It's my bad and I have to apologize to sbtatter for my forgetfulness. I do agree with you the hit on Burroughs was cheap shot. It certainly wasn't a phantom hit.

The information given to me by a team staffer was that injuries are only looked at if a penalty was called on the play and it was recorded on the referee's report. In all other cases the team must request supplemental which requires a $500 fee. It's my understanding from this person that's what was done in this case after careful review of the video. The person seemed to know what they were saying. Numerous players are hurt on non penalty plays every game and the league couldn't look at them all.

Now on to relevant stuff:
I also agree that we handed MacAuley the job without him ever being battle tested. He had a little run early when the Pats were winning a lot of close SO games. His play has tapered off since then. He was rated #8 at one point but is now at #23. I think we are stuck with him and I don't think it will be good enough to go anywhere. It sort of makes too many additions/changes pointless. I guess the hope is a re-vamped defence my help keep some of the pucks out of the net. Quality goaltending is so crucial to a long playoff run at any level. That isn't a bright spot with us right now. It's too bad we didn't go after Wappel instead of Hanson.

[sbtatter]

You are right about the Hunter fight. It was actually Fenske who was hit in the head by Yaworski. I got the Hunter fight and the Yaworski hit mixed up. It's my bad and I have to apologize to sbtatter for my forgetfulness. I do agree with you the hit on Burroughs was cheap shot. It certainly wasn't a phantom hit.

The information given to me by a team staffer was that injuries are only looked at if a penalty was called on the play and it was recorded on the referee's report. In all other cases the team must request supplemental which requires a $500 fee. It's my understanding from this person that's what was done in this case after careful review of the video. The person seemed to know what they were saying. Numerous players are hurt on non penalty plays every game and the league couldn't look at them all.

Now on to relevant stuff:
I also agree that we handed MacAuley the job without him ever being battle tested. He had a little run early when the Pats were winning a lot of close SO games. His play has tapered off since then. He was rated #8 at one point but is now at #23. I think we are stuck with him and I don't think it will be good enough to go anywhere. It sort of makes too many additions/changes pointless. I guess the hope is a re-vamped defence my help keep some of the pucks out of the net. Quality goaltending is so crucial to a long playoff run at any level. That isn't a bright spot with us right now. It's too bad we didn't go after Wappel instead of Hanson.

I accept your apology. The fact remains that the Hawryluk hit on Burrows was not the work of a cheap artist, it was a guy coming in and checking a defenceman away from the boards. The WHL head office may deem that a penalty now, but it wasn't cheap. The definition of cheap was Teubert literally chasing a young Mark Stone around the ice slashing him then pounding the crap out of him. The definition of cheap was Darren Bestland charging opposing forwards with their head down along the boards. I can understand you being upset with Hawryluk for the last 2 games, but he's not a cheap shot artist, look at the season and a half he's played.
As I stated in my first post, he will get 5 to 7 games is my guess.
Regina couldn't handle the speed of he, Nejezchleb and Quenneville, Stevenson was having a bad night. Papirny played the best he's played, and a couple of defensive miscues by Regina led to breakaway goals for Bukarts and the floodgates opened. I'd predict a much closer game tonight, as KM said, "Regina's a proud organization"
Chopper, what was your take on the Wilson/Schenn incident?

[Bighat]

Cheap shot artist equals JORDAN TOOTOO

[sbtatter]

Cheap shot artist equals JORDAN TOOTOO

He wouldn't be able to play in this league now hey? Everything was a charge. He'd jump off the bench and skate as hard as he could and hammer a guy in the far corner, with or without the puck. He sure fired the crowd up in Brandon, but I agree with bighat, TooToo is a far better definition of cheap shot artist than #8

[chopper]

I accept your apology. The fact remains that the Hawryluk hit on Burrows was not the work of a cheap artist, it was a guy coming in and checking a defenceman away from the boards. The WHL head office may deem that a penalty now, but it wasn't cheap. The definition of cheap was Teubert literally chasing a young Mark Stone around the ice slashing him then pounding the crap out of him. The definition of cheap was Darren Bestland charging opposing forwards with their head down along the boards. I can understand you being upset with Hawryluk for the last 2 games, but he's not a cheap shot artist, look at the season and a half he's played.
As I stated in my first post, he will get 5 to 7 games is my guess.
Regina couldn't handle the speed of he, Nejezchleb and Quenneville, Stevenson was having a bad night. Papirny played the best he's played, and a couple of defensive miscues by Regina led to breakaway goals for Bukarts and the floodgates opened. I'd predict a much closer game tonight, as KM said, "Regina's a proud organization"
Chopper, what was your take on the Wilson/Schenn incident?



I suspect if you asked 10 fans you would get a 5/5 split or a 7/3 split depending where your from. I doubt JH will get more than 4 games. Lets just agree to disagree on that matter.

You and I have the same feelings on Tuebert. He was rude to fans here and in my mind someone who didn't reflect well on the team, and often took nights off. It's too bad Parker didn't pull the trigger on a trade with Brandon when he had the opportunity to move Eberle/Tuebert.:)

Wilson should have been suspended but Shanahan painted himself into a corner, since there was no suspension on the Getzlaf hit. Schenn even said after looking at it further he was fortunate he got away with as little damage as there was. Very dangerous hit in my mind. Someone will be paralyzed soon if it continues. I was in the arena the game Brad Hornung was paralyzed. I've witnessed the carnage.

The Pats richly deserved the thrashing they got. They were purple panther pi-- bad. Ultimately it was only two points in the standing 2-1 or 8-0. I'm not sure they could ever find a way to be worse than they were. Brandon knows they are not 8-0 better than the Pats, and the Pats know they are not 8-0 poorer than Brandon. Anytime you see those types of scores you know a team took the night off and everything went wrong. It happens to every team once in a while.

[patsdude114]

Chopper I hope this inside person with the Pats staff wasn't Cliff Mapes this guy couldn't even tell you the color of the walls in the bathroom while standing infront of them. You'd get a better response from a bag of hammers then this fool. Either way I didn't really think the hit on Burroughs was that bad, yes it was a blind side hit but see worse hits pretty well on a nightly basis that don't get called or an injury let alone a suspension.

Also there was a big reason why there was no fighting after that hit on Zgraggen the Pats were killing off a 5on3 & Burroughs came out of box to make it a 5on4 the 3 on the ice were Leier Zgraggen Stevenson before Burroughs came out they were completely gassed. You don't fight when your gassed against players who have waay more energy then you that's just asking for a beating.

Like I said that was the worst game I have seen the pats play this year & prob even last yas well, it was just that bad. Hopefully its a lesson learned although I'm getting sick on heaaring that over the past few years.

[chopper]

Anytime a player takes one for his team, and nobody responds a real loud message is sent. When someone stands up even if he loses, a message is sent. It's about showing up when needed.

When the best players are not the best players you usually lose. MacAuley didn't give anything extra but neither did anyone on the team. Stephenson was pathetic at -5 and a couple on the pp. Cameron talked about playing poor hockey the last couple games, he talked about post break conditioning, and preparation. Really! We started the first half poorly but can't afford to do that again. They talked all first half about lessons after losses or implosions. A four point game and your not ready? With 120 goals for/138 goals against I'm thinking maybe the lessons haven't been learned.

[sbtatter]

Anytime a player takes one for his team, and nobody responds a real loud message is sent. When someone stands up even if he loses, a message is sent. It's about showing up when needed.


Poor Hunter got handed a loss by Regina's #23 (I think) when he stood up for Papirny, but at least he tried to defend his goalie!
Speaking of goalies, I was surprised to see McCauley start to grab Pylon from behind in the scrum after #44 went down

[chopper]

Poor Hunter got handed a loss by Regina's #23 (I think) when he stood up for Papirny, but at least he tried to defend his goalie!
Speaking of goalies, I was surprised to see McCauley start to grab Pylon from behind in the scrum after #44 went down

Very astute observations my friend!

[patsdude114]

Anytime a player takes one for his team, and nobody responds a real loud message is sent. When someone stands up even if he loses, a message is sent. It's about showing up when needed.

It wouldn't of mattered anyways as little Jace went into the fetile position as soon as the hit was made. Either way it don't really matter as no 1 competed anyways there is no message sent reguardless the Pats showed there message as they had no interest in even playing last night. One fight wouldn't of changed that & if you think otherwise well ill just leave it at that...... I'm sure little Jace will get what's coming to him soon enough

[chopper]

It wouldn't of mattered anyways as little Jace went into the fetile position as soon as the hit was made. Either way it don't really matter as no 1 competed anyways there is no message sent reguardless the Pats showed there message as they had no interest in even playing last night. One fight wouldn't of changed that & if you think otherwise well ill just leave it at that...... I'm sure little Jace will get what's coming to him soon enough

Your probably right..it likely wouldn't have mattered. It's a moot point since nothing happened so we'll never know..case closed.

I've seen equally bad scores but it's a long time since I've see that level of disinterest.

[Some_Arrogant_Jerk]

Now I didn't see the hit, but this reverse bias crap I keep seeing around here is just mind boggling. No matter what...if someone takes liberties with your team, you don't sit there and advocate the attitude of "oh the league will handle it. Ill just skate to the bench for a water break". Seems what happens with a couple people is they try extra hard to sound worldly by constantly opposing your own team's argument in an effort to make friends with fans of other teams.

What happens is simple. If someone injures your player, you support the pummelling of the little bastard. Shawn Thornton style. Enough to make David Branch cry.

Brandon always seems to be the team doling out this crap, and I can tell you the pats are never going to get the same 12 powerplay, 10-3 win like Brandon did during 'teubert gate'. You stand up for yourself because nobody else will, especially this apathetic league that only wants good headlines to make non-fans smile, instead of making the right hockey related decisions.

[Bighat]

I agree on dirty hits you make the player pay but on thortons play, that was bs a clean hit is being retaliated on way too much. If a hard clean hit is made suck it up and play on.

[sbtatter]

Well, who said defence rules in the dub?! 12 v 8 in two games! They should schedule more back to backs, makes for fun games to watch. Nice push back by the Pats

[Fight Guy]

Still blows my mind there is no home and home with MJ this season.:confused:

I never saw the game last night, but I'll go ahead and assume it was a much better showing...lol. Was a fun game to watch. Lots of good passing along with not enough shooting, though the shot clock may say otherwise too. I only say that because there were several times a wished they had shot the puck but, in the end, I really can't complain. Gonna miss Mondays game against PA. Hopefully the Pats can finally get a win against them.

[Some_Arrogant_Jerk]

I agree on dirty hits you make the player pay but on thortons play, that was bs a clean hit is being retaliated on way too much. If a hard clean hit is made suck it up and play on.

orpik is a guy who's infamous for hiding behind the instigator rule. He is a dirty player who plays on a protected team and hasn't had a real fight in years. He is the poster boy for players who had it coming.

[chopper]

Being this thread was about goaltending, I want to say I was not happy with ours one bit. There were at least two stoppable goals and possibly three. That may have been an even more dominating performance than Brandon's the night before. However Brandon scored 4 goals on 26 shots or about 1 every 6 shots. We owned them in the 2nd period yet they scored 2 goals on 6 shots. It seems like every time they shot they scored. Coach McGuigan touched on it twice in the post game and they clearly weren't happy with four goals against. MacAuley looked shaky, not confident, fighting the puck, and he misplayed a number of attempts, some with near bad consequences. He is an adventure in net.

For me it was all about 2 points and nothing more. I would have been happy with a 2-1 win so long as no loser points were awarded. The teams are well matched. The season series is tied and Brandon holds a 18-17 lead in total goals. I can't imagine it being much closer.

Even in a big win there are still concerns about the number of goals we give up, particularly the easy ones that are less difficult.

[patsdude114]

MacAuley just doesn't make that save for us when we need one. I agree with you there was 2 goals forsure that shouldn't go in, that 2nd McCauley goal should of never went in he is so slow moving from 1 side of the net to the other, sorry but he is not a WHL calibre goalie.

Our defense & PK gets blamed so much but I really believe thaat its more goaltending then aanything else. Honey made about 3 or 4 saves tonight that he really had no business making, there was prob 1 or 2 goals he would want back especially that 2nd Stephenson goal. It makes me wonder how we would look with a goalie like Honey between our pipes, ya he isn't an elite goalie by any means but at least he makes some saves where he doesn't give up on a puck.

It always seems we are 1yr too late with certain positions, this year would of been a perfect year to have had Hewitt between our pipes. I hope MacAuley can get back to where he was in Nov but in all honesty I think that is where he peeked. Could that Fuhr kid we have on our 50PL be the answer? I never watched him play when he was with the Giants but my god he has to have some battle in him where he will make a key save from time to time.

It was nice to see Sinitsyn shooting the puck lots tonight, he by far has the best slap shot on our team I think at times he looks to pass too much. I also wish he would take off with it abit more (ok a lot more) he is such a great skater I think he needs the green light a lot more.

Monday night we must beat PA they are without there top 2 players & that should give us a big advantage over them. Need to get as much separation as possible before those 2 players get back as players always come back in a dominating way after the WJs. I fully expect PA to make a push for 1st in our division in the 2nd half

[Fight Guy]

I was really hoping to see Schneider play tonight. I know MacAuley wasn't given much help the night before, but he still let in seven goals. You say MacAuley is too slow moving side to side, which I agree, while Schneider is quite quick moving side to side, and just quicker in general. May have helped keep some of those pucks out tonight.

Sinitsyn has a deadly shot, and he used it quite a bit. That was good. If he keeps doing that, they're gonna go in off deflections and players, if not straight through to the back of the net.

Have to say I was impressed with D'Amico. Seems he got some confidence playing in the MJHL. He had 17pts in 14 games for Virden, making him the most offensive player on the team. That's with 11 goals. He was physical and was handling the puck well. If he plays another game or two, he might end up replacing McCoy. D'Amico has the puck skills to move the puck like the top two lines, and with him being faster than McCoy, I think he might be a better fit at this point and down the road. Not sure if McCoy is hurt or been a healthy scratch, but can't say he was missed out there. Didn't even realize he wasn't playing till 10 mins into the 3rd period.

[patsdude114]

That's who I forgot to touch on was D'Amico the guy has been the Pats best worker the past 2 games he seems like he is playing to stick around and doesn't have no interest going back to Jr. A.... He is way more of a serviceable player then McCoy is I do see a switch between these 2 players at trade deadline.

I agree that Schiender is a lot quicker then MacAuley just 1 draw back to Schiender is he just isn't experienced enough with his positioning at this level, these shooters see the holes he leaves & tend to pick spots fairly easily. Now with that said he has played some real good games even though most of his starts have came to much lesser opponents like MJ twice & KAM but he has also played well in TC & MH....hopefully he keeps progressing and the Pats can use him alittle more down the stretch.

[chopper]

Obviously happy with the way we responded and the win. Wasn't an 8-4 game but perhaps 8-1 or at worst 8-2. Normally if Brandon scores 4 on the road they win. Still concerned about starting net minding but I feel what we got is what we got. It will probably kill us in the end. At this point I doubt the Pats would bring in another project but who knows. A lot of teams are in contention and wouldn't part with their #1 guy. The only quality guy that could be had is Bartosak and it would cost a kings ransom plus he's not a fit for us. I suspect P.A. may try to land him since they are less than thrilled with Cheveldave. It certainly looks like we're saddled with Macauley

I also liked D'amico's play. He is far faster than McCoy which allows him to really hit d-men with speed. Being at least 200 lbs he really stuck some guys last night. Playing like that he won't be going back to Jr A.

I noticed that Tye Hand was out AGAIN this game. It doesn't appear this guy can stay healthy for three games in a row. Something has to be done there. I feel we need a replacement there as well as one more who can play tougher along the wall.

[Bighat]

I think we may see fuhr up here in the next few days. Harrison looks ok on d and poor mortlach he got benched after he pinched and got caught.

[chopper]

I think we may see fuhr up here in the next few days. Harrison looks ok on d and poor mortlach he got benched after he pinched and got caught.

It's going to be tough to get any battle tested goalie at this stage. I was wondering if something could be worked out with Kamloops, maybe Taran Kozun could be an option. He had a .914 save % last year in 20 games with a 2.36 GAA. The team this year is quite bad so his numbers are up somewhat. He is still a very good goalie. Fuhr may very well be an option but he will have to go through the same learning curve as MacAuley did. It's a question if the Pats have enough time to get him up to speed.

[RWAH]

I have been a MacAuley supporter and agree with a lot posted as his numbers have dropped. He did make an opportune stop in the first period on a partial break away from his right side. but he is shaky on some routine stops.
Chad L said when Sacher jumped ship they called Fuhr but he wanted more time at Jr.A to get his confidence back and to get a lot of playing time. So now half a season latter its possible we could see him.
listening to the game from Brandon it sounded like MacAuley made some big saves in the first period. 8 goals are not his fault.
I wonder why, and it has happened twice, we pull McAuley for Schneider and then put MacAuley back in. I don't know what that is about
Off the subject Dámico is playing to stay. His physical play is better and his D responsibility is light years ahead. Im sure he is back to stay
Any one hear how much longer for Klimchuk to return.

[chopper]

I have been a MacAuley supporter and agree with a lot posted as his numbers have dropped. He did make an opportune stop in the first period on a partial break away from his right side. but he is shaky on some routine stops.
Chad L said when Sacher jumped ship they called Fuhr but he wanted more time at Jr.A to get his confidence back and to get a lot of playing time. So now half a season latter its possible we could see him.
listening to the game from Brandon it sounded like MacAuley made some big saves in the first period. 8 goals are not his fault.
I wonder why, and it has happened twice, we pull McAuley for Schneider and then put MacAuley back in. I don't know what that is about
Off the subject Dámico is playing to stay. His physical play is better and his D responsibility is light years ahead. Im sure he is back to stay
Any one hear how much longer for Klimchuk to return.

MacAuley played well until the end of the USA swing, then his play dropped off. There is no way the high team goals against average can be entirely put at his feet. It does seem lately he is giving up at least one bad one every game. In the last P.A. game there were at least two and if he makes one extra save maybe we get a 6-5 win and one more point. In the game before last in Brandon we had come back from 4-2 to tie at 4-4 and he gives up a softy with 29 secs left. That would have been at least one point and maybe two. However we have 142 goals against which translates to nearly 300 for a 72 game season, and that's far too high. There are only five teams worse than us and they're all out of the playoff picture. There are other factors.

Our D-men have played soft all season. We can't hold a pin and break up a cycle which leads to more good scoring chances. Our discipline is still an issue as we have one of the highest penalty totals in the League which means we're shorthanded too much. Lastly our PK has been near the bottom of the league all season. When you combine that with the other two factors it has to be a big part of the goals going in. Shoring up those three areas would go a long way to putting the brakes on our bad team GAA.

The time D'amico put in JrA has really helped him. He was a very effective player, got a point and laid out some nice hits. I notice McCoy has sat out the last two games and for a 19 year old that isn't a favourable sign. I hope they can find him a place to play. My bet on Klimchuk is the New Years game.

[RWAH]

Chopper: Any opin on the tender shuffle?

[sbtatter]

Chopper: Any opin on the tender shuffle?

In Brandon, they put McCauley back in because Regina iced the puck twice in a row and their players were totally gassed, but with no time out left, coaches only option was to buy some time switching tenders again. McCauley took his time finding his equipment, Schneider didn't move until McCauley got to the net, then skated off slowly. Smart play by the Pats. McCauley then made a good save, and they didn't switch back for some reason, maybe because Schneider had looked a bit shaky and because the original goalie switch was meant to wake the Pats up rather than pulling McCauley for poor play?

[patsdude114]

OK I want to clear something up here 1st off yes our PK is the sh*ts and that's putting it lightly but our total penalty minutes are inflated a lot cause we have the 4th most fights in the entire league at 42 fighting majors times that by 5 210mins of our 709 total minutes.

We are not the most penalized team when it comes to times on the PK infact we are tied for 5th most with 5 teams around us within 6 or less times on the PK.

Yes our PK is still the sh*ts but really there are teams who take just as many or more minor penalties as we do. Also a lot of our penalties come from competing unlike the previous years where they came from playing defense all game long.

IMO there is too much switching places in the defensive zone which just opens up more space. If our players just played there zone there would be less open ice.... for example on 1 PK last night on the PP goal that BRN scored on Stevenson and Hansen were the forwards they switched sides 3 times which just creates more ice for the offense, instead of just following the play and then let the other 1 take over once it gets too far over the guy will continue on following leaving the other side wide open as the other forward takes to long to cover that lane. You watch other teams PK's they don't skate as much as we do they play there lanes and wait patiently for the chance to get the puck out.... this is a coaching error which is souly on the coaches in how they want to kill penalties...we haven't been over 80% in the PK since the 2007/08 season & we have been the bottom 2 in the PK 3 times

[chopper]

OK I want to clear something up here 1st off yes our PK is the sh*ts and that's putting it lightly but our total penalty minutes are inflated a lot cause we have the 4th most fights in the entire league at 42 fighting majors times that by 5 210mins of our 709 total minutes.

We are not the most penalized team when it comes to times on the PK infact we are tied for 5th most with 5 teams around us within 6 or less times on the PK.

Yes our PK is still the sh*ts but really there are teams who take just as many or more minor penalties as we do. Also a lot of our penalties come from competing unlike the previous years where they came from playing defense all game long.

IMO there is too much switching places in the defensive zone which just opens up more space. If our players just played there zone there would be less open ice.... for example on 1 PK last night on the PP goal that BRN scored on Stevenson and Hansen were the forwards they switched sides 3 times which just creates more ice for the offense, instead of just following the play and then let the other 1 take over once it gets too far over the guy will continue on following leaving the other side wide open as the other forward takes to long to cover that lane. You watch other teams PK's they don't skate as much as we do they play there lanes and wait patiently for the chance to get the puck out.... this is a coaching error which is souly on the coaches in how they want to kill penalties...we haven't been over 80% in the PK since the 2007/08 season & we have been the bottom 2 in the PK 3 times

SBTATTER appears to have it right regarding the the goalie switches. Cameron is a veteran coach who knows how to get a time out without using one. Actually quite brilliant.

PD114....you make some valid points and the stats are interesting and eye opening. I will assume you have gone over game sheets to find that info. Good on you cause I'm too lazy to do it:). I take you at your word that we the 5th rated team when it comes to PK's. That would suggest to me there are 17 teams that take fewer minors than us, thus are killing off fewer Pk's It's amusing we have the 5th highest number of pk's and we have the 6th highest goals against. My only point is that needless penalties of any nature hurt the hockey club. Even fight adjusted we still take a lot needless trips to the box. Aggressive penalties, compete penalties, and goal saving are all fine in my books. The coaches have been upset with the number of obstruction penalties we've had this year. Those come from being slow or on the wrong side of the man/puck.

I agree there is much wrong with the PK. It seemed better when Cameron was running it but I think McGuigan is doing it now. There is far too much running around and losing coverage. The soft defensive play mainly comes 5 on 5. I recall many instances this season where players below the goal line easily got away from the d-man. When Kelowna pinned us, they stapled us. We need our D to play that way. I also feel the upper body strength of many players is not where it should be. We were using a strength and conditioning coach last season but I don't know if he is still on staff. Weight room time is boring but it yields big results. Galagher's dad does it for Vancouver and they are some of the strongest guys i've seen.

[patsdude114]

go to whl.ca and look at the team stats under the stats icon in the upper left side u can look at PP numbers home and away PK u name it its there

[chopper]

go to whl.ca and look at the team stats under the stats icon in the upper left side u can look at PP numbers home and away PK u name it its there

Thanks a lot, I've been on that website hundreds of time but still missed that....sheesh.

Don't you think it was pretty quiet on the trade front after that first volley by P.A.? I'm starting to think the prices might be too high. A lot of clubs still in play and only about five that aren't. The bottom feeders are probably are trying to create a bidding war?

[Fight Guy]

I'm thinking it will pick up this week. Teams probably want a few games to decide, especially in the East. It's so tight, they probably don't know what they want to do yet.

[chopper]

Man is it ever close. 8 teams separated by 8 points. Depending on circumstances it has the makings of the 08-09 season where it came down to a tie breaker for the playoff spot. Very very close and one pretty good team may end up on the outside.

[patsdude114]

At times I wonder what the price tag would be on Tanner Eberle, the guy has some skill is a great skater, not afraid to mix it up & get his nose dirty but above all the guy is a good PK guy (at least from my experience of watching him).

He played his minor hockey in Regina, a buddy of mine was his Bantam coach & he does business with Tanner's dad quite often & they have had talks about Tanner & the Warriors from what my buddy says Tanner isn't happy in MJ anymore (who caan blame him) as he did ask for a trade in late Nov but Millar declined. A big reason why Tanner didn't walk out was cause of his training camp in MTL that he doesn't want to show a character flaw.

I know Eberle doesn't help our defensive woes below the goalline but he would be a top 9 forward who can play top line minutes baring an injury. Just some food for thought is all hell I'd even prefer Paulic over MacAuley lately, Paulic faces a TON of shots on a nightly basis & for the most part keeps MJ around for a couple periods, a goalie can only stop so many quality shots in a game....

[chopper]

At times I wonder what the price tag would be on Tanner Eberle, the guy has some skill is a great skater, not afraid to mix it up & get his nose dirty but above all the guy is a good PK guy (at least from my experience of watching him).

He played his minor hockey in Regina, a buddy of mine was his Bantam coach & he does business with Tanner's dad quite often & they have had talks about Tanner & the Warriors from what my buddy says Tanner isn't happy in MJ anymore (who caan blame him) as he did ask for a trade in late Nov but Millar declined. A big reason why Tanner didn't walk out was cause of his training camp in MTL that he doesn't want to show a character flaw.

I know Eberle doesn't help our defensive woes below the goalline but he would be a top 9 forward who can play top line minutes baring an injury. Just some food for thought is all hell I'd even prefer Paulic over MacAuley lately, Paulic faces a TON of shots on a nightly basis & for the most part keeps MJ around for a couple periods, a goalie can only stop so many quality shots in a game....

Heck yes I would be happy with Eberle and Paulic, however if Miller wouldn't trade in Nov is he holding out for too much? Would at least love to see Eberle here. He would take some of the pressure off of Stevenson having to be the only one primarily standing up. They may move Paulic as well since they aren't making the playoffs and may want to give Sawchenko the minutes good or bad.

The P.A. fans are not happy with Cheveldave so I think P.A. will be looking too. Bartosak might be a fit for them but they would have to rearrange their imports. They really feel this is their year so I think they may throw away the stops. Jobs could be on the line there.

If we couldn't get Paulic what are your thoughts on Kozun? He had great numbers last year as a backup (20 games) and this year he is as good as MacAuley while on a bad team in the Loops. He was outstanding on Kamloops East swing and seems to play good. Another guy I was thinking about was Russ Maxwell from Lethbridge. He is a great skater, kills penalties real well and has over 20 points. Thoughts?

[patsdude114]

I like Maxwell as well he was a player I thought of as well, Kozun would be a nice fit I guess it depends on Kamloops if they feel they need him as a 20yr old goalie or not.

As for Millar declining to trade Eberle back in Nov I don't know too many details about it think maybe he was playing hardball with Eberle & seeing if he would walk out on them or just suck it up & play as Eberle is a player they need to lead the way for their extremely young team. Giving these players the freedom to call the shots on trades should not be happening, it happened 3 times in LETH & they got hosed on the deals (especially the SEA trade).

I don't see how PA thinks this is their year, ya they will prob lose Morrissey to WPG next year but they have a lot of holes to fill as well. They have made some bold moves already so what is another move or 2 I guess

[chopper]

I like Maxwell as well he was a player I thought of as well, Kozun would be a nice fit I guess it depends on Kamloops if they feel they need him as a 20yr old goalie or not.

As for Millar declining to trade Eberle back in Nov I don't know too many details about it think maybe he was playing hardball with Eberle & seeing if he would walk out on them or just suck it up & play as Eberle is a player they need to lead the way for their extremely young team. Giving these players the freedom to call the shots on trades should not be happening, it happened 3 times in LETH & they got hosed on the deals (especially the SEA trade).

I don't see how PA thinks this is their year, ya they will prob lose Morrissey to WPG next year but they have a lot of holes to fill as well. They have made some bold moves already so what is another move or 2 I guess

Your right Lethbridge did sooo get hosed on all those deals. It was reported that Lang offered a better package for Yakabowski and McKecknie, but Robson went the other way. I think Eberle could be moved and it would sure be good if the location was here to his home town.

Souto would be great but the price prohibitive, so on to someone else. Lang said in the LP he wants defense and a top six forward. I think he will have to be a magician to get that considering there are so many teams in play. The one thing with Lang is that he thinks outside the box a fair bit. He may end up going in an entirely different direction like 4 for 4 just saying. On the other hand he may not make any moves whatsoever. He may do something none of us are musing about. It is fun to speculate though!

[Bighat]

Your right chopper an 8 player trade seems likely. 3 here 5 the other way.

[chopper]

Your right chopper an 8 player trade seems likely. 3 here 5 the other way.

I know you think that's a facetious remark:D but Lang has been unpredictable in the past. He gave up 4 picks to get 1 in the Quinton Howden deal. He has put together large deals in the past. Like I also said he may not do anything and stand pat. Both he and Parker were never adverse to making big deals; maybe not great ones but big ones .

[sbtatter]

I know you think that's a facetious remark:D but Lang has been unpredictable in the past. He gave up 4 picks to get 1 in the Quinton Howden deal. He has put together large deals in the past. Like I also said he may not do anything and stand pat. Both he and Parker were never adverse to making big deals; maybe not great ones but big ones .

I didn't know Lang made the deal to get Howden?

[Bighat]

Chopper I agree with you and my prediction is 5 - 3.

[chopper]

I didn't know Lang made the deal to get Howden?

Yup he did!

[chopper]

Chopper I agree with you and my prediction is 5 - 3.

Geez after tonite I almost think he has to.

[Bighat]

After tonite we have to make a few moves just for a little shack up, we need to find a goalie bad.

[Toswammi]

Issue you guys have is the cost of an average goaltender is usually high. When other teams know you need one the price climbs a little higher yet.

[patsdude114]

I didn't know Lang made the deal to get Howden?

Moose Jaw
1st-1st overall (Quinton Howden)
3rd-46th pick (Dylan McIlrath)

To Portland:
1st-5th pick (Brad Ross)
2nd- 28th pick (Joe Morrow)
5th-105th pick (Antoine Corbin which was traded to KEL)
(91) born forward (Michael Burns)

And the Pats top 3 picks were... drum roll please...
1st rd 13th ovr- Favreau, Dominick (Madaisky, Ranford next 2 picks)
2nd rd 23rd ovr-Hood, Graham (Nicholls, Morrow, Harrison, Petrovic 4 of the next 10 picks)
3rd rd 49th ovr-Slobozian, Justin (Kichton, Beach, Scheidl, Leach some notables selected in the rest of round 3)

[sbtatter]

Moose Jaw
1st-1st overall (Quinton Howden)
3rd-46th pick (Dylan McIlrath)

To Portland:
1st-5th pick (Brad Ross)
2nd- 28th pick (Joe Morrow)
5th-105th pick (Antoine Corbin which was traded to KEL)
(91) born forward (Michael Burns)

And the Pats top 3 picks were... drum roll please...
1st rd 13th ovr- Favreau, Dominick (Madaisky, Ranford next 2 picks)
2nd rd 23rd ovr-Hood, Graham (Nicholls, Morrow, Harrison, Petrovic 4 of the next 10 picks)
3rd rd 49th ovr-Slobozian, Justin (Kichton, Beach, Scheidl, Leach some notables selected in the rest of round 3)

Yeah, I didn't know Lang was GM for MJ back then!