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HAF
08-20-2006, 03:39 PM
With out Emmerson, Schneider, Beeman and Stephenson this year the thought of our overall toughness for 06-07 has really been weighing on my mind. Boogaard is hands down a top ten tough guy in the league but with our shortage of scoring up front we may be looking at Boogie to stay out of the box and contribute more offensively then he has in years past. Dont misunderstand what I am saying here though.... I do believe Boogaard will play the role as enforcer but who else are we going to count on to step up and protect this young smallish team?

Knudsen proved last year he can drop the mits with good showings against Torrie Wheat and a few others but I'm just not sure we can afford his absence on the blue line. Inglis has looked impressive in the few tilts he's been in but I'm still not convinced on his ability either. Gillen and Butterfield definately have the size but do they have the heart?
I dont see Tory bringing in another tough guy when our biggest need at this time is some scoring up front. I'm inteested to see what others think on this subject.

Redwic
08-20-2006, 07:18 PM
Knudsen proved last year he can drop the mits with good showings against Torrie Wheat and a few others but I'm just not sure we can afford his absence on the blue line.

Judging by "good showings" against Torrie Wheat, who was not by any means a fighter and who rarely had penalties, is not a reliable indicator of whether or not Knudsen has the toughness factor to stand skate-to-skate with the true enforcers of the league. Tri-City definitely needs him to focus more on adding offensive assistance as well as being a leader for the young guys coming up.

I think that the real 'enforcer' for the Americans this season will be Butterfield. He has size and he has experience, and I really believe that he has the heart to be up for the challenge of that role.

HAF
08-20-2006, 07:34 PM
I hope your right about Butterfield but he showed me no indication last year that he has the heart needed to be a true enforcer. He just didnt play his size the way a guy thats 6'4 and 210lbs should.

Stay-Puft
08-21-2006, 09:24 AM
I think you may see some of the 16s coming in with a tough edge to them. Schmidt had his share of penalty minutes last year and Wutzke was the same way. Neither one seems to be afraid to drop the gloves if needed. I agree that Boogaard will be the "main" enforcer, but I think we may be surprised at who else may step up, since this will be Boogaards last year. We should get a good read on the team at this week's rookie camp and next week's training camp (I should be there for both).

AmsPhotos
08-21-2006, 03:53 PM
One of the other good showings for Knudsen was against Stoesz. I don't think Butterfield has the tools to be an enforcer. Size is all he has going for him in that area.

Gillen had pretty good showings against both Stoesz and Jason Lynch last season. All his fights, if I remember, were on the road though, so AMS fans might not realize he can drop'em. I believe he also took on Garth Collins while with P.G. It may come down to whether or not he would be willing to move to wing and take on a 4th line enforcer role with the team.

In addition to Knudsen and Gillen, I think you'll see Gillies be asked to assume some of the toughness duties. From what I have heard from scouts, Gillies is very tough, but didn't show a willingness to be very active in Red Deer. Hopefully Nachbaur can show him that a combination of skill and toughness will be what gets him ahead in hockey. Inglis should also be a more active fighter this year.

HAF
08-21-2006, 03:55 PM
One of the other good showings for Knudsen was against Stoesz. I don't think Butterfield has the tools to be an enforcer. Size is all he has going for him in that area.

In addition to Knudsen, I think you'll see Gillies be asked to assume some of the toughness duties. From what I have heard from scouts, Gillies is very tough, but didn't show a willingness to be very active in Red Deer. Hopefully Nachbaur can show him that a combination of skill and toughness will be what gets him ahead in hockey. Inglis should also be a more active fighter this year.

I do recall Inglis having a good tilt with Scevoir from Portland. He broke his nose if I remember right.

rezstyle
08-30-2006, 04:20 PM
I don't think it's a Tri Cities thing about becoming all of a sudden weaker, but if you look around the division, all teams are becoming weaker.....don't tell me we are falling into the other division's style of play. Legit fighters, you have Boogard, in Spokane we've got Haw, in Seattle they have Olson and Portland has McLaren.....Everett....well.....ya.

Anyways, starting from last year, Portland lost Collins, who although did lose alot, was still a top 10. This year, Spokane lost Stoesz to Chilliwick & Ja. Lynch isn't reporting requesting a trade. I saw McEwan from Seattle is trying out with Saskatoon (I believe) and is similar to Collins. Maybe the U.S. is selling out and turning to the finesse game similar to other divisions.