Syracuse Crunch | CollegeHockeyPlayers

18Dec

Ondrej Palat(12) Syracuse Crunch

Posted in AHL, NHL | Leave a comment

Tampa Bay Lightning have certainly found a diamond in the rough with deep pick, 7th round in the 2011 draft (#208 overall), Czech left wing Ondrej Palat(12).

He was with Norfolk Admirals in his rookie campaign for their storied ride to the AHL Calder Cup Championship and scored 4 goals and 5 assists in 18 games.

He finished the regular season with 9 strikes and 21 helpers in 61 contests while going a +6 plus/minus.

Through the first couple few months of his sophomore season, the 6′ 180 lbs. forward is taking it up a notch on the score sheet as he’s on pace to post career highs for assists, points and plus/minus and may even break his goal scoring mark as well.

In 26 games with new Lightning minor league affiliate Syracuse Crunch, he’s potted only 3 goals (but that could change in a hurry with some explosive output streaks) and his 17 assists look to crush his mark set last season by a wide margin.

He’s also an outstandingly accountable +17 on the ice.

The 21-year old has always put up big numbers first playing in his homeland and then in two years of Canadian juniors before turning pro.

He’s signed through 2014 on a three-year entry level deal but that could get extended in the offseason to make sure he stays on pace to move up in the ranks with Tampa Bay.

04Dec

Riku Helenius(31) Syracuse Crunch

Posted in AHL, ECHL, NHL | Leave a comment

Tampa Bay Lightning 1st round pick in the 2006 draft (#15 overall), Finnish goaltender Riku Helenius(31) has already had quite the ride through North American pro leagues and Europe in his 5-year playing career.

In his rookie campaign he saw 7 minutes of NHL game action, 25 appearances in the AHL with then affiliate Norfolk Admirals and 11 contests with three different ECHL teams.

Entering his sophomore season he started with Norfolk but after a dozen games was reassigned to the top league in Sweden, where he stayed through the next year while still under he 3-year entry level contract.

For 2011/2012 the decision was made for him to join JYP Jyvaskyla in his home country’s SM-liiga, where he won the National Championship with the team and posted his most impressive numbers yet over the course of the regular season and in the playoffs.

The now 24-year old, 6’3″ 211 lbs. netminder was wooed back to the United States to compete for a job in the show. But due to the NHL lockout the first season of that 2-year deal (the 2nd is a one-way contract) may be spent entirely with the Lightning‘s new minor league affiliate, Syracuse Crunch. The same team that won the 2012 Calder Cup as Norfolk Admirals.

In 8 AHL starts, he’s off to an ok start with a 5-2 record on a very good team but has a not so great 3.04 GAA and .878 SV%. He may heat up as the 2012/2013 rolls on but he’s already mixed it up in a goalie fight early in his time back.

02Dec

Brett Connolly(28) Syracuse Crunch

Posted in AHL, NHL | Leave a comment

Tampa Bay Lightning 1st round pick in the 2010 draft (#6 overall), right wing Brett Connolly(28) skated the entirety of his rookie campaign as a 19-year old in the NHL. He picked up 4 goals and 11 assists in 68 games but was a bit of a lowly -9 plus/minus.

Signed to a three-year entry level deal that extends through 2014, the 6’2 200 lbs. forward finds himself playing his first games in the minors with new affiliate Syracuse Crunch, which adds even more depth to the team that won the Calder Cup Championship (as Norfolk Admirals) last season.

He’s off to a quick start, already racking up 7 goals and 10 assists in 18 contests, while the Crunch continue the pace that brought them to the top of the league and see them tied for first place in the Eastern Conference.

There’s little doubt of his tough playing style that opens up room for scoring chances, which he’ll bury 9 times out of 10, and on the farm he’s a bit of a skater on another level and has the disposition that is more mature than his years on earth.

26Nov

J.T. Brown(23) Syracuse Crunch

Posted in AHL, NHL | Leave a comment

Undrafted rookie right wing J.T. Brown(23) signed a 2-year entry level deal with Tampa Bay Lightning that runs through the current 2012/2013 season but started last year while he was still playing college hockey for Minnesota-Duluth.

Reason being is that upon finishing up his second stint at UMD, he decided to turn pro, inked a contract and immediately skated in five games with the Lightning to conclude the regular season. In those contests he managed an assist and was a nice +2 plus/minus playing an average of 13 minutes per game.

The 5’10” 177 lbs. forward had been literally a point per game guy in college and American junior hockey as he was coming up the ranks.

Over the weekend he just about doubled his point totals in the AHL (4 goals, 6 assists) with Syracuse Crunch, scoring his first hat trick and getting a helper in one contest.

Some had him pegged to start his first full season in the NHL but as we know….

24Nov

Gabe Guentzel(10) Fort Wayne Komets

Posted in AHL, ECHL, NHL | Leave a comment

Undrafted defenseman Gabe Guentzel(10) started his rookie season 2012/2013 under contract with Norfolk Admirals of the AHL and has played in 6 of a dozen games so far. He has an assist but is also a dismal -8 plus/minus on a .500 record team.

He was recently reassigned to their ECHL affiliate Fort Wayne Komets, where in his first game on Thanksgiving night he potted his first and assisted on another in the win. Not a bad start in the lower league for the 6′ 187 lbs. d-man.

The 24-year old could stay in the midwest for awhile but look for him to get called back up if he keeps hitting the scoresheet.

He skated in 12 regular season games at the end of 2011/2012 with Syracuse Crunch, the old affiliate of Anaheim Ducks, on an ato after finishing his college career; and appeared in another 4 postseason contests.

So, even though he’s not signed with the Ducks officially, he’s fully on their radar and participated as a free agent in prospect camp with the team.

19Nov

Emerson Etem(26) Norfolk Admirals

Posted in AHL, NHL | 1 Comment

Anaheim Ducks‘ 1st round pick in the 2010 draft (#29 overall), center Emerson Etem(26) is a rare example of a local kid signing with the hometown team and seeing how it’s a California story makes it even more like Twilight Zone.

After three pretty outrageously successful years in juniors, where last year he put up 107 points (61 goals and 46 assists) in 65 regular season games, the 20-year is ready for the next step. He signed a three-year entry level deal that keeps him with the Ducks through 2015.

The 6′ 195 lbs. forward probably didn’t expect to see as much time with the team’s farm team, Norfolk Admirals but with no NHL in site he’s skated 14 AHL games to start 2012/2013.

He’s recorded three goals and no assists. Last season on an ato with then Anaheim affiliate Syracuse Crunch he potted a goal in two games to get things started.

No doubt he seems to have the skill set but in the one game we saw him play, his team was eaten alive in a shutout so no one looked too good.

26Oct

Brian O’Hanley(38) San Antonio Rampage

Posted in AHL, ECHL, NHL | Leave a comment

5th year defenseman Brian O’Hanley(38) was originally a San Jose Sharks‘ 9th round pick in the 2003 draft (#267 overall) and bounced his way around from ECHL to the AHL in pretty much each of his pro seasons, although he continues to call Cincinnati Cyclones his home base having played games with the team in every year, including one full season, 2009-2010; the only time he ever skated for a single club in a campaign.

He appeared in AHL career highs last season with 44 games scoring 4 goals and 7 assists, most of them with his real hometown team, Worcester Sharks. He was born in one hour away Quincy, MA and played his college hockey at Boston College.

At 5’11” 191 lbs. he isn’t the biggest of the blue liners out there but plays the puck pretty well and is accountable for his space on the ice.

Heading into the new season he signed a training camp tryout with San Antonio Rampage and stuck but was reassigned, yes, once again to Cincinnati to start the season. And he did scoring 2 goals and adding 2 assists in 3 games earning him his first call-up.

The 27-year old should be able to flourish with all the talent in the upper league.

18Oct

Josh Brittain(17) Fort Wayne Komets

Posted in AHL, ECHL | Leave a comment

A few Anaheim Ducks‘ prospects are finding themselves doubly reassigned, when they start at AHL training camp but ultimately will play games in the ECHL to start 2012/2013.

3rd year, 2008 3rd round pick (#71 overall) left wing Josh Brittain(17) is familiar with the process already as he’s skated in 47 games with Elmira Jackals over his first two seasons, so joining Fort Wayne Komets will actually be a step up at least in terms of fans in the stands.

The big 6’4″ 210 lbs., that doesn’t really look like he takes up that much space out there as his size might indicate, spent more time up in the AHL in 2011/2012 with Syracuse Crunch and recorded career highs games played (38), goals (2) and assists (4).

He was in training camp with the Ducks‘ new affiliate Norfolk Admirals and was one of the last cuts before opening night.

The 22-year old definitely needs to open up more room on the ice for himself to increase his scoring chances.

25Sep

Troy Bodie(20) Norfolk Admirals

Posted in AHL, ECHL, NHL | Leave a comment

7th year left wing Troy Brodie(20) was part of a list of six players recently signed to an AHL contract by Norfolk Admirals, the new minor league affiliate of Anaheim Ducks.

He had a one-year, two-way deal with Anaheim last season but skated no NHL games.

In all, split half with the Ducks and one season picked up on waivers by Carolina Hurricanes, the 6’4″ 219 lbs. forward has skated in 107 games in the show registering 6 goals and 5 assists. He should be a bigger, more intimidating upfront power forward than his style indicates.

The 27-year was originally an Edmonton Oilers‘ 9th round pick in the 2003 draft (#278 overall).

He started his pro career with Stockton Thunder of the ECHL, put up some big numbers and that was his only stop there.

This will be an interesting year him. It’s his first without an NHL contract and he definitely has something to prove.

18Sep

Brent Regner(28) Peoria Rivermen

Posted in AHL, NHL | Leave a comment

Columbus Blue Jackets‘ 5th round pick in the 2008 draft (#137 overall), defenseman Brent Regner(28) found himself without a team heading into his fourth pro season, despite putting up career high games played, assists and points (75 – 29 – 31) with Springfield Falcons in 2011/2012.

Turns out the Jackets weren’t interested in qualifying him for another campaign and cut ties with the 23-year old, who also displayed better on-ice accountability with a +4 plus/minus.

No worries as Peoria Rivermen stepped in an offered the 6′ 190 lbs. blue liner a one-year AHL contract for 2012/2013.

In 181 AHL games he has 12 goals and 58 assists. With the NHL lockout looming, he may be in a dog fight for a spot on his new team’s roster.

He also was a part of the fabled 2007 Vancouver Giants‘ squad that captured the Memorial Cup.