Recapping Lethbridge
While Saturday's exhibition game against Lethbridge ended in a disappointing loss, it's important to keep in mind that the game was more about taking stock in what the Mavericks have this season than the actual result on the scoreboard.
The exhibition game provided what should be a nice transition to the regular season. No matter how hard a team works in practice, there is no substitute for playing at game speed, and this weekend gave the Mavericks that opportunity. It was obvious that it took the Mavericks a little while to adjust to the speed of the game. The first period was very sloppy hockey, but the Mavericks started to settle down as the game went on. Now that everyone has gotten a little taste of what the college game is like, they should be more prepared to head to South Bend on Thursday.
The Mavericks first line was the only line composed entirely of returning players. Senior Travis Morin centered Kurtis Kisio and Jon Kalinski.
Morin played an outstanding game for the Mavericks. He had two goals, and probably could have had more. Maverick fans should be thankful that he is back for his senior season, because he is definitely good enough to play at the pro level right now. He was dominant whenever he was on the ice.
Kisio and Kalinski played well next to him, as well. Kisio should be an excellent set up man. He made a nice play on a 2-on-1 late in the game to feed the puck across to Travis Morin. Morin tried to slide the puck fivehole, but the Lethbridge goalie made a great save coming across the net. Kalinski played his usual, feisty style. He took a couple penalties, though penalty in overtime was very weak. Overall, the Mavericks top line should be able to hold their own against the rest of the WCHA.
The second line was centered by freshmen Kael Mouillierat, flanked by Joel Hanson and Jason Wiley. This line didn't have their best game, but did a pretty decent job. Hanson looks to be stepping up and looked a little more assertive and aggressive, which is a good sign. Wiley didn't have his best game. He played ok, but only had a couple good shifts. Once he settles down and gets used to the pace of the game, he should provide a little more offense. I was impressed with the play of Mouillierat. I showed some feistiness that I wasn't expecting. He created a couple nice turnovers on the forecheck, including one that almost went for a goal if he hadn't been hauled down.
The third line was centered by Kevin Huck, with Matt Tyree and Zach Harrison on the wings. Huck looked a little more confident in his second year of college hockey, which is good to see. Matt Tyree should be a welcome addition to the team. He gives the Maverick lineup a little much-needed size and maturity. I think he'll be in the lineup on a regular basis, especially early in the season. Zach Harrison showed a lot of talent. He's got great skating ability, and with time, should provide some offense as well.
The fourth line listed was probably the second best line of the night, with Mick Berge centering freshmen Trevor Bruess and Jerad Stewart. Bruess played an outstanding game. He was rewarded with a goal in the first period, but also created some other chances. Jerad Stewart came to MSU straight from high school, but is physically ready to be a college hockey player. His skating and strength is exceptional for someone his age. He still has a ways to go before he can contribute offensively though. He missed a couple chances, including in overtime, when he could have one the game after getting a nice pass on a 2-on-1.
James Gaulrapp and Ryan Gunderson were two extra forwards that dressed for the exhibition. Gaulrapp played much better than I anticipated. He won't contribute a lot offensively, but did an excellent job as a fourth line energy type guy. Gunderson didn't see much ice time so it's hard to say much about him.
On defense, Brian Kilburg paired with Blake Friesen. They both played pretty well.
Chad Brownlee played with freshmen Nick Canzanello, which was a great pairing. Brownlee is a very conservative defensive-defenseman, which gives Canzanello the freedom to take some chances. Canzanello had a couple nice rushes up the ice, and only one time did he get caught too far up the ice when the puck came back the other way. He also did a great job of taking the body one-on-one, so in that regard, he could even be a step up from Kyle Peto this year.
Lucas Fransen and R.J. Linder were the third pairing. R.J. Linder played well. He has the strength to physically dominate players in the corners. He's exceptional for a third pairing defenseman.
The powerplay kind of struggled, despite the one powerplay goal. The first unit consisted of Travis Morin, Kurtis Kisio and Jason Wiley, with Blake Friesen and Mick Berge at the point. Steve Wagner will likely take over Friesen's role, which is good, because Friesen seemed to struggle on the powerplay.
The second powerplay unit featured Jon Kalinski, Kael Mouillierat, and Kevin Huck, with Joel Hanson and Nick Canzanello at the point. Again, they weren't great, but they showed a lot of potential for a second powerplay unit.
Each goalie got 20 minutes of play, with Chris Clark starting, Dan Tormey playing the second, and Mike Zacharias finishing up. Clark gave up two goals on five shots. The first goal was a save he probably should have made. I didn't have a great view of the second to see what happened. Dan Tormey looked poised in his period, and should be excellent this year. Mike Zacharias, despite giving up the two goals, looked a lot more confident in net this year, and should get a couple starts like he did last year.
Overall, perhaps this loss will end up being better for the team than an easy cakewalk game would have been. The loss shows the team how far they need to go and how much they need to improve, and should help motivate them through this short week of practice and get them ready to start the season for real against Notre Dame.
The exhibition game provided what should be a nice transition to the regular season. No matter how hard a team works in practice, there is no substitute for playing at game speed, and this weekend gave the Mavericks that opportunity. It was obvious that it took the Mavericks a little while to adjust to the speed of the game. The first period was very sloppy hockey, but the Mavericks started to settle down as the game went on. Now that everyone has gotten a little taste of what the college game is like, they should be more prepared to head to South Bend on Thursday.
The Mavericks first line was the only line composed entirely of returning players. Senior Travis Morin centered Kurtis Kisio and Jon Kalinski.
Morin played an outstanding game for the Mavericks. He had two goals, and probably could have had more. Maverick fans should be thankful that he is back for his senior season, because he is definitely good enough to play at the pro level right now. He was dominant whenever he was on the ice.
Kisio and Kalinski played well next to him, as well. Kisio should be an excellent set up man. He made a nice play on a 2-on-1 late in the game to feed the puck across to Travis Morin. Morin tried to slide the puck fivehole, but the Lethbridge goalie made a great save coming across the net. Kalinski played his usual, feisty style. He took a couple penalties, though penalty in overtime was very weak. Overall, the Mavericks top line should be able to hold their own against the rest of the WCHA.
The second line was centered by freshmen Kael Mouillierat, flanked by Joel Hanson and Jason Wiley. This line didn't have their best game, but did a pretty decent job. Hanson looks to be stepping up and looked a little more assertive and aggressive, which is a good sign. Wiley didn't have his best game. He played ok, but only had a couple good shifts. Once he settles down and gets used to the pace of the game, he should provide a little more offense. I was impressed with the play of Mouillierat. I showed some feistiness that I wasn't expecting. He created a couple nice turnovers on the forecheck, including one that almost went for a goal if he hadn't been hauled down.
The third line was centered by Kevin Huck, with Matt Tyree and Zach Harrison on the wings. Huck looked a little more confident in his second year of college hockey, which is good to see. Matt Tyree should be a welcome addition to the team. He gives the Maverick lineup a little much-needed size and maturity. I think he'll be in the lineup on a regular basis, especially early in the season. Zach Harrison showed a lot of talent. He's got great skating ability, and with time, should provide some offense as well.
The fourth line listed was probably the second best line of the night, with Mick Berge centering freshmen Trevor Bruess and Jerad Stewart. Bruess played an outstanding game. He was rewarded with a goal in the first period, but also created some other chances. Jerad Stewart came to MSU straight from high school, but is physically ready to be a college hockey player. His skating and strength is exceptional for someone his age. He still has a ways to go before he can contribute offensively though. He missed a couple chances, including in overtime, when he could have one the game after getting a nice pass on a 2-on-1.
James Gaulrapp and Ryan Gunderson were two extra forwards that dressed for the exhibition. Gaulrapp played much better than I anticipated. He won't contribute a lot offensively, but did an excellent job as a fourth line energy type guy. Gunderson didn't see much ice time so it's hard to say much about him.
On defense, Brian Kilburg paired with Blake Friesen. They both played pretty well.
Chad Brownlee played with freshmen Nick Canzanello, which was a great pairing. Brownlee is a very conservative defensive-defenseman, which gives Canzanello the freedom to take some chances. Canzanello had a couple nice rushes up the ice, and only one time did he get caught too far up the ice when the puck came back the other way. He also did a great job of taking the body one-on-one, so in that regard, he could even be a step up from Kyle Peto this year.
Lucas Fransen and R.J. Linder were the third pairing. R.J. Linder played well. He has the strength to physically dominate players in the corners. He's exceptional for a third pairing defenseman.
The powerplay kind of struggled, despite the one powerplay goal. The first unit consisted of Travis Morin, Kurtis Kisio and Jason Wiley, with Blake Friesen and Mick Berge at the point. Steve Wagner will likely take over Friesen's role, which is good, because Friesen seemed to struggle on the powerplay.
The second powerplay unit featured Jon Kalinski, Kael Mouillierat, and Kevin Huck, with Joel Hanson and Nick Canzanello at the point. Again, they weren't great, but they showed a lot of potential for a second powerplay unit.
Each goalie got 20 minutes of play, with Chris Clark starting, Dan Tormey playing the second, and Mike Zacharias finishing up. Clark gave up two goals on five shots. The first goal was a save he probably should have made. I didn't have a great view of the second to see what happened. Dan Tormey looked poised in his period, and should be excellent this year. Mike Zacharias, despite giving up the two goals, looked a lot more confident in net this year, and should get a couple starts like he did last year.
Overall, perhaps this loss will end up being better for the team than an easy cakewalk game would have been. The loss shows the team how far they need to go and how much they need to improve, and should help motivate them through this short week of practice and get them ready to start the season for real against Notre Dame.
posted by Chris at 1:28 PM
1 Comments:
I disagree with you on Wiley. He's a quick little bugger that gets in and out before the other team knows it...reminded me a lot of Shane Joseph. Give him time and he'll impress. Glad to see you gave RJ some props. I don't know why Jutting doesn't play him more (well, I have my theory...read my blog if you care to know it). Looks like he worked on his skills over the summer. I was much happier to see him on the ice than Wagner. Kisio didn't impress me...so that's nothing new. He needs to step it up or sit on the 3rd level watching the game in street clothes. I was disappointed that Hollywood wasn't back on track. Looks like he's shed some weight, so I was hoping he was going to be back to the form he was a couple of years ago. I saw both shots he let in nice and clear (my seat is the bottom part of 215 next to the blue line) and they were WEAK to say the least. All of these men need to step up, because we know Morin and Tormey can't be expected to carry the whole team for a season.
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