Other Prospects 2009-2010

[NWTHabsFan]

A little article in the local paper about Petteri Simila and his first impressions at the Niagara Ice Dog camp. Good luck to him. We are due one of our few goalie prospects to exceed expectations as that is still the weak link in the prospect depth IMHO.

www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1717132

[Lord Bebop]

Aug 27, 2009 9:47:03 GMT -5 NWTHabsFan said:

A little article in the local paper about Petteri Simila and his first impressions at the Niagara Ice Dog camp. Good luck to him. We are due one of our few goalie prospects to exceed expectations as that is still the weak link in the prospect depth IMHO.

www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1717132

Thanks for the link........... here's hoping to a smooth transition to the N.A. game. We seem to have some good luck picking goalies. But after Price and Halak there are nothing but question marks. Hope he helps solidify the depth issue.

[NWTHabsFan]

Hockey has started for real for a few of our Euro-based lads.

Avtsyn played his first game in the new MHL (junior league) and Trunev and Nattinen both have seen action in a four nations U-20 tourney for their respective countries.

Andreas Engqvist and his Djurgarden team won the Nordic Trophy finals a little while back, and Engqvist was selected as the best player of the tournament. A big centre to keep an eye on as he is likely NA bound next season.

[NWTHabsFan]

Inside College Hockey just released its annual assessment of the top freshmen entering into NCAA programs, and the Habs' kids are well represented.

Leblanc - Harvard #1
Cichy - North Dakota #6
Kristo - North Dakota #8

Should be a good year to get some TV/web access to NCAA games. I know there will be some for Canadian viewers on the NHL Network and the Big Ten Network for sure. In the US, there are many more options available.

www.insidecollegehockey.com/7Archives/Features/0910/recruitsfwd_0801.htm

[NWTHabsFan]

21 year old Swedish centreman Andreas Engqvist off to a great start, which is great to hear for that big kid that we signed as a UFA after a surprise invite out to the Development Camp.

He has five points in five games including 4 goals. He is playing the SEL so is up against top competition each night. I am very intrigued with this kid and hope to see him over next season battling for a spot.

[Lord Bebop]

Oct 3, 2009 23:32:42 GMT -5 NWTHabsFan said:

21 year old Swedish centreman Andreas Engqvist off to a great start, which is great to hear for that big kid that we signed as a UFA after a surprise invite out to the Development Camp.

He has five points in five games including 4 goals. He is playing the SEL so is up against top competition each night. I am very intrigued with this kid and hope to see him over next season battling for a spot.

Ya i like these FA signing especially when he's a goalscoring 6-foot-3, 196-pound centre. I'm happy he taken a bigger offensive load in the early going so far with Djurgardens.

Another guy that having a good start is Missiaen. He is being battered with shots this season again. He's facing an average of 41 shots a game in 7 games so far. But he has solid numbers 5-2 record, 3.14GAA and .924 SV.

[NWTHabsFan]

The injury bug does not seem to be restricted to the Habs and Dogs as now there has been a very serious injury to one of the NCAA prospects. Promising second year forward Steve Quailer is likely going to a big chunk (or even possibly all) of the upcoming season after suffering an ACL injury in his team's exhibition game against a St Thomas team from Fredericton, NB. He suffered his ACL from a bad knee on knee injury late in the game.

Both Quailer and Northeastern had a very successful regular season last year, and likely both quite better than expected. Too bad to see his development take a hit like this. Hopefully he can hit the gym and get stronger while his knee is recovering as he still is a bit of a tall, thin prospect.

Will update once the severity and impact of the injury are made public.

www.wrbbsports.com/2009/10/breaking-quailer-to-miss-time-with-acl-injury/

[seventeen]

When does our 100th year actually end?,,...Dec 6th or so? That has to pass before we start going anywhere.

[ValkyrieNS]

Oct 8, 2009 21:47:38 GMT -5 seventeen said:

When does our 100th year actually end?,,...Dec 6th or so? That has to pass before we start going anywhere.

December 4th is listed on the Canadiens' site as the Centennial Game.

[balthab]

Oct 8, 2009 21:47:38 GMT -5 seventeen said:

When does our 100th year actually end?,,...Dec 6th or so? That has to pass before we start going anywhere.

The good news is that we can get into the Taylor Hall sweepstakes.

[NWTHabsFan]

A few of the lads are off to a good start down south of the border. UND won both their games on the weekend and Danny Kristo ended up with 2 helpers, one each game. He is on North Dakota's top line so should see some nice ice time. Teammate Mike Cichy was not to be outdone despite playing mainly on the 4th line, but he ended up the weekend with one goal (his NCAA first) and two assists and got the nod at WCHA rookie of the week for opening weekend. Next up for UND is a big battle with David Fischer's U of Minnesota Golden Gophers.

www.fightingsioux.com//ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=13500&ATCLID=204813167

Down in the ECHL, fleet of foot defenseman Mac Bennett now has two points in four games as he notched a goal in his last game, his first in the USHL.

On another note, Patrick Roy's Quebec Ramparts traded Alexander Avtsin's CHL rights to the Montreal Junior since they already had two imports playing on the team.

[NWTHabsFan]

Mac Bennett with no points so far in two games at the World Junior A Challenge in Summerside. However, for a young guy, what a nice experience that fellow Habs prospects made the most of last year (Kristo and Cichy). With this kids' wheels, it should be fun to see where he ends up eventually. Needs to add some bulk though, but he does have the hockey pedigree in his family. Keeping a close eye on this kid.

[Lord Bebop]

Nov 5, 2009 13:51:43 GMT -5 NWTHabsFan said:

Mac Bennett with no points so far in two games at the World Junior A Challenge in Summerside. However, for a young guy, what a nice experience that fellow Habs prospects made the most of last year (Kristo and Cichy). With this kids' wheels, it should be fun to see where he ends up eventually. Needs to add some bulk though, but he does have the hockey pedigree in his family. Keeping a close eye on this kid.

Got to admit i never really heard about this tournament but if it helps Bennett have a season like Kristo's last year then good for him. And if Bennett bulks up and gains the height his father and uncle's have then even better.

[NWTHabsFan]

Bennett and his US teammates won the tourney with a 2-1 win against Canada West.

Leblanc scored his second goal on his short NCAA career this weekend. Dustin Walsh scored his first NCAA goal this weekend for Dartmouth. Kristo had a one goal and two assist weekend in his two games. Lefebvre and Dumont are tearing things up in Drummondville this season and added to their impressive stats this weekend.

Late edit: Bennett was also named to the WJAC tourney's all star team, despite only getting one assist in five games. Guess the fleet of foot defender can play good defense too!!

[NWTHabsFan]

Here is my first Top Three list for prospects this early season.

1. Gabriel Dumont, C, Drummondville (QMJHL) – After coming off a very successful Memorial Cup in the spring where he was playing for Coach Boucher while nursing a ton of injuries, the 19 year old Dumont has kicked off this season with a bang. After losing a number of key players, Drummondville was expected to see a drop off, but that has not happened yet. Dumont has a hot hand with 23 points in his first 16 games. He also has an impressive +10 and 41 pim for a little guy!! This is a tough little player who gives it all every shift.

2. Philippe Lefebvre, LW, Drummondville (QMJHL) – Philippe was invited as a free agent to the Habs development and rookie camps after being passed over in this summer’s draft. The 18 year old has also enjoyed some early success along with his teammate Dumont, as he has 19 points in 20 games so far this season, and a really solid +13 to go along with those points. He plays more of a finesse and skill game than Dumont, but good to see the Hab duo having some early success as I am sure they are both looking forward to being reunited with ex Coach Guy Boucher once they turn pro.

3. Louis Leblanc, C, Harvard (NCAA) – The francophone sweep of the top three is complete!! As has been well documented, the Habs newest West Islander plays in the Ivy League at Harvard and so has only a few games under his belt compared to all other prospects. He had a good debut in an exhibition game against McGill, but that does not count in the standings. He has now played in three regular season games and has an impressive 2 goals and 3 assists in his first 3 NCAA games played. Hope he can keep it going and get named to the WJC over the holidays, but so far so good for this 18 year old.

Honourable mention: Danny Kristo, RW, University of North Dakota (NCAA) – The 19 year old US born speedster has had a really good start to his NCAA career with a strong North Dakota team that should challenge nationally all season. Danny has 7 points in his first 8 NCAA games and looks to be a lock for the US WJC team this year and is even being touted as one of its leaders for the tourney. He had a very solid camp this summer in Lake Placid after coming off a good development camp with the Habs. In the NCAA, Danny started off on the first line but has been relegated a bit of late, but still gets PP time and seems to be making a nice transition from the USHL to the NCAA.

[NWTHabsFan]

Leblanc had one assist in each of his games this weekend. He has managed at least one point in his first five NCAA games. Great start for the young lad.

[Disgruntled70sHab]

I like coming back to this thread every so often. I don't have the opportunity to see the Bulldogs hardly ever, so I'll pull up some of the names here in the thread and take a look at their stats.

Granted, it's only a statistical perspective, but I pick up additional info through the opinions as well.

I'm looking at Andrew Conboy right now on hockeydb.com. He's 6'4" and 200lbs. I haven't seen him play but is he like a tougher version of Blake Wheeler? I look at his PIMs in the USHL and NCAA and he doesn't look to be afraid of dropping the gloves.

I'm also wondering about Shawn Belle and Mathieu Carle. More specifically, will there ever be room for these guys with the club. Belle looks more like a journeyman defenceman, while Carle has been patiently biding his time. Both looked pretty comfortable in their call ups.

Any of you seen these guys play recently?

Cheers.

[Lord Bebop]

Nov 18, 2009 12:24:58 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

I like coming back to this thread every so often. I don't have the opportunity to see the Bulldogs hardly ever, so I'll pull up some of the names here in the thread and take a look at their stats.

Granted, it's only a statistical perspective, but I pick up additional info through the opinions as well.

I'm looking at Andrew Conboy right now on hockeydb.com. He's 6'4" and 200lbs. I haven't seen him play but is he like a tougher version of Blake Wheeler? I look at his PIMs in the USHL and NCAA and he doesn't look to be afraid of dropping the gloves.

I'm also wondering about Shawn Belle and Mathieu Carle. More specifically, will there ever be room for these guys with the club. Belle looks more like a journeyman defenceman, while Carle has been patiently biding his time. Both looked pretty comfortable in their call ups.

Any of you seen these guys play recently?

Cheers.

I thought Conboy would have been more of a heavyweight enforcer on Hamilton but he turning into a Greg Stewart type player IMO.

He and Nielsen are forming a big mean duo for the Bulldogs as of late. Iwould like to see if Conboy could play a moe offensive role perhaps he could surprise.

[NWTHabsFan]

A couple of noteworthy performances this weekend.

Dustin Walsh (freshman, Dartmouth NCAA) ended up with 3 points in two games this weekend. He now has 5 points in 7 NCAA games, and Dartmouth won its first game and he is now tied for a team lead in points as a 18 year old rookie out of the Junior A ranks in Ontario.

Danny Kristo had a goal and an assist tonight is a 3-2 loss to perennial contender Denver. The Denver - North Dakota battle is far from over.

[NWTHabsFan]

Nov 20, 2009 15:50:25 GMT -5 Lord Bebop said:

Nov 18, 2009 12:24:58 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

I thought Conboy would have been more of a heavyweight enforcer on Hamilton but he turning into a Greg Stewart type player IMO.

He and Nielsen are forming a big mean duo for the Bulldogs as of late. Iwould like to see if Conboy could play a moe offensive role perhaps he could surprise.

That Nielson, Conboy and Lacroix line is a ton of fun to watch (until Lacroix got injured on Saturday - another bits the dust). They can all skate and the two big boys hit everything in sight. Conboy has not dropped the mitts as much, mainly because Nielson and Henry are also there if needed to take on all comers. He has not coverted some of his USHL net presence into a lot of points yet in the AHL, but he is becoming a better all round player. After all, his NCAA career ended after 21 games and he is still only 21 years old, so he still has a lot of developing to do.

[Lord Bebop]

Nov 24, 2009 15:02:12 GMT -5 NWTHabsFan said:

Nov 20, 2009 15:50:25 GMT -5 Lord Bebop said:

Nov 18, 2009 12:24:58 GMT -5 Disgruntled70sHab said:

I thought Conboy would have been more of a heavyweight enforcer on Hamilton but he turning into a Greg Stewart type player IMO.

He and Nielsen are forming a big mean duo for the Bulldogs as of late. Iwould like to see if Conboy could play a moe offensive role perhaps he could surprise.

That Nielson, Conboy and Lacroix line is a ton of fun to watch (until Lacroix got injured on Saturday - another bits the dust). They can all skate and the two big boys hit everything in sight. Conboy has not dropped the mitts as much, mainly because Nielson and Henry are also there if needed to take on all comers. He has not coverted some of his USHL net presence into a lot of points yet in the AHL, but he is becoming a better all round player. After all, his NCAA career ended after 21 games and he is still only 21 years old, so he still has a lot of developing to do.

Ya i forgot how young he is............... but he Neilson and perhaps Greg Stewert may look good i think.

[NWTHabsFan]

Nov 24, 2009 21:15:52 GMT -5 Lord Bebop said:

Nov 24, 2009 15:02:12 GMT -5 NWTHabsFan said:

Ya i forgot how young he is............... but he Neilson and perhaps Greg Stewert may look good i think.

That line would be a blast, but no natural centre. Who cares, they would hit everything that moved and anything that even resembled the opposing jersey. All three could drop the mitts on demand.

The best thing I saw this season with Conboy and Nielson was at the Bell Centre, when a Baby Sen hit Neilson open ice, Conboy rushes to his defence and wails at the offending player. No questions asked, he just bee-lined. As if Neilson needed it, because he then dropped the mitts exactly next shift right after the faceoff. Good team players those two.

NHL calibre yet? Nah, but they are getting better.

[NWTHabsFan]

Heck of a weekend for Danny Kristo. He had a goal on Friday night and he bettered that on Saturday with two goals and an assist (in one of those weird NCAA ties - 5 a piece).

[duster]

I'm a big fan of Kristo. Everytime I've seen him a play, he's impressed me by his speed and hockey acumen. I think he's going to be a good one.

[Boston_Habs]

Nov 29, 2009 14:50:29 GMT -5 duster said:

I'm a big fan of Kristo. Everytime I've seen him a play, he's impressed me by his speed and hockey acumen. I think he's going to be a good one.

Danny Kristo continues to have a solid freshman season for #3 ranked North Dakota. Kristo has 14 points (5 goals, 9 assists) in 16 games and is the team's leading scorer.

[Boston_Habs]

On the other hand, David Fischer..... I just don't know what to make of this kid but it may be time to hang the "bust" label on him. He's in his 4th year at Minnesota...too long for a 1st round pick... and he has a grand total of 2 points in 16 games. That's 30 points in 134 career NCAA games.

He was a surprise pick when the Habs grabbed him 20th overall in a draft that in hindsight is looking pretty weak, but so far Fischer has done NOTHING to warrant his selection. I watched him play 2 years ago in the NCAA tournament and could see what Timmins liked - good size, fluid skater, handles the puck, can do everyting well..... but plays with no intensity whatsoever. Still with his skill level, even playing at 75% of his ability he should be able to assert himself more than 2 points in 16 games would suggest!

This could be quite embarassing for Gainey/Timmins if they don't even think Fischer is good enough to play in Hamilton next year!

[Habs_fan_in_LA]

Watched Wisconsin vs North Dakota today.
Goals by McDonough, slapshot from the blueline and Kristo, wrister from top of the circle.
1. Overall quality of play is fast and very skilled.
2. Kristo plays the point on power plays, fast skater on a fast team.
3. McD is a steady player with some offense.
After watching some AHL games and Pac-8 games, these kids were very good.
Kristo coughed up the puck several times, but overall I was very impressed.

[NWTHabsFan]

After a very slow start in the KHL only getting a few minutes of play per game and getting bounced back and forth between the big club and junior team, Alexander Avtsin turned in a great week last week, one that earned him KHL rookie of the week honours.

On the 11th, he netted his first KHL goal and added an assist that game for his first multi point game in the KHL. On the 13th, he followed it up with another goal in back to back games. One of those goals was also the game winner. Pretty good for a 18 year old kid getting very limited ice time (a bit more than BGL, but not much more!!).

www.russianhockeyfans.com/prospects/alexander-avtsin-from-vympel-to-montreal-65.html

[NWTHabsFan]

Well, a new year and time to do another top three prospect list. Which prospects have had a good run lately? Read on...

1. Cedrick Desjardins, G, Hamilton (AHL) - The 24 year old free agent signee makes my top three list for the first ever time, and in style too I should add. He was just named as the AHL goalie of the month for December and rightfully so, as he had a shutout streak going that came within a period of Johnny Bower's AHL record (yup, that ones been around for a while). Cedrick is second in the AHL with goals against (1.66), third in save % (0.932), and he leads the AHL with 5 shutouts. With Curtis Sanford out with a shoulder injury, expect Coach Boucher to rely on Desjardins a whole lot in the next little while.

2. Gabriel Dumont, C, Drummondville (QMJHL) - The 19 year old continues to pile up the points on a strong Drummondville team that just traded for Team Canada goalie Allen. Gabriel has now set career highs for assists and points and still has half a season to go. He has 23g 28a for 51 points in 36 games and a nice +16. He has a gritty side to as witnessed by his 73 pim, so the kid could top the century mark in both points and penalty minutes this season.

3. Danny Kristo, RW, North Dakota (NCAA WCHA) - Danny actually has the second best points per game production of all our NCAA prospects, second only to Louis Leblanc's 10 points in 10 games. Danny has 16 points in 18 NCAA games so far this season. However, he gets the nod due the new silverwear he has around his neck (or gold technically) due to his membership on the newly crowned World Junior Champions. He ended the tourney with 5g and 3a in 7 games and a very impressive +5. The Canadian prairies have been good to Danny as he won gold yesterday in Saskatoon and in November 2008 won gold on the US team in the World Junior A Challenge in Camrose, AB in front of this fan.

Honourable Mention: Alexander Avtsin, RW, Dynamo Moscow (KHL) - Getting KHL ice time is hard for an 18 year old rookie, especially on a stacked roster like Dynamo. However, Alexander is now getting more ice time as his coach's confidence in him grows and he has started to pot a few goals, getting his first two career KHL goals in December. He was also named the KHL rookie of the week in December too. Although his 7 points in 25 KHL games is not exactly mind boggling, it is quite good considering how much ice time he really was getting for most of the early season. Too bad he was not named to the Russian WJC team, as it would have been nice to see him in action. Maybe next year as he still will be eligible.

[NWTHabsFan]

An article about 2009 draft pick Dustin Walsh and his first season at Dartmouth in the NCAA.

thedartmouth.com/2010/01/06/sports/walsh