Category: NHL

14Aug

Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond (34)

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pierre-luc-leblond4

The hardest of the hard-nosed players (and the one with the longest name) Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond(34) was traded to Calgary Flames for a 5th round pick in next year’s draft.

He’d gone south in the New Jersey system and it was time for him to find some new, unchartered territory (in Alberta).

He may find himself a good amount of playing time in the Western Conference as a fourth line instigator, if he can keep his temper in check.

Does this look like a guy who would cause problems on the ice?

13Aug

Garrett Klotz(12) Adirondack Phantoms

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garrett-klotz

Big, tough guy (6’5″ 235lb) Garrett Klotz(12) recently re-signed an AHL contract with Adirondack Phantoms after being dismissed to the Central Hockey League Bloomington Prairie Thunder last season.

Something must’ve registered in his head in a good way though, because for the first time in three pro seasons he found a bit of a goal scoring touch and ended up with 24 points (9 goals, 15 assists) in 49 games.

He’s never had much more than 5 points in any year.

We’ll see if he continues to contribute points along with the penalty minutes he racks up each season.

13Aug

David LeNeveu(31) Oklahoma City Barons / Springfield Falcons

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Hard to believe that goaltender David LeNeveu(31) will be entering his 9th pro season after being drafted in 2002 by the Phoenix Coyotes in the 2nd round (#46 overall).

For 2011/2012, he has signed an AHL contract to join Oklahoma City Barons, where he’ll compete for the top spot in net.

The head scratcher is that he’s only ever had one really decent year in between the pipes since his college hockey days, when he was impressive enough to leave school early and turn pro. Maybe in hindsight that wasn’t such a good decision.

 

13Aug

Andre Benoit(61) Spartak Moscow / Binghamton Senators

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Binghamton Senators‘ Andre Benoit(61) is one of the best defensive agitators I saw play in the AHL postseason and helped his team to the ultimate prize, the Calder Cup, while having clearly his best season of offensive numbers.

He even played in his first NHL games in his 6 year pro career last season;  8 with Ottawa. He registered 1 point, an assist.

He’s traveling overseas again next season joining Spartak Moscow of the KHL. He spent ’07/’08 in Finland and ’08/’09 in Sweden and the last two seasons in the AHL with Hamilton (2005-2007, 2009-2010) and Binghamton.

The knock on him must be that he’s two small to be a top six guy. I’ll miss seeing him in the AHL Eastern Conference but think he’ll be back to North America quite possilby on a one-way NHL deal.

11Aug

Cedrick Desjardins(30) Colorado Avalanche / Norfolk Admirals

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Cedrick Desjardins(30) was left out of Tampa Bay‘s plans for the future after one year with the organization.

He had a great season with Norfolk Admirals in the AHL and won both his starts with the Lightning.

Colorado signed him for 2011/2012 and he’ll challenge for the starting job or could give Lake Erie a nice boost in net.

He won the ECHL Kelly Cup with Cincinnati Cyclones in 2008.

 

07Aug

Sean Sullivan(37) San Jose / Worcester Sharks

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Fan favorite and all around good guy, veteran defenseman Sean Sullivan(37) signed another one-year, two-way contract with San Jose.

In his four years since turning pro in 2007 with Phoenix Coyotes, he has yet to see any NHL action. He was the leading scorer with Worcester last season. Hopefully he gets a shot this year but he’s probably low on their depth chart and is seen as a leader for the guys in the AHL.