This and that

Interested where some former hockey Buckeye's are plying their trade these days? Well thanks to the heads up from BHG we get a look at some courtesy of the Buckeye's web site:

Four Buckeyes saw considerable ice time in the NHL. Former All-American R.J. Umberger became the first former Buckeye to join the Columbus Blue Jackets and helped lead the local team to its first Stanley Cup playoff appearance with 26 goals and 20 assists. In the postseason, Umberger had a team-high three goals, including the first playoff goal in franchise history. Dave Steckel contributed 19 points during the regular season for the Washington Capitals in their race to the playoffs. Steckel played exceptionally well during the postseason, with his best game coming on the road in Game Six against the eventual Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins, when Steckel won 73 percent of his faceoffs and scored the game-winning goal in overtime. As an alternate captain for the Vancouver Canucks, Ryan Kesler finished the regular season third on the team with 59 points. In the postseason, Kesler had two goals and two assists in the Canucks’ run and he was a Top 3 finalist for the NHL’s Selke Trophy given to the best defensive player in the league. Tyson Strachan made his NHL debut for the St. Louis Blues in December and posted a plus-eight rating during his 30 games with the team. Also logging NHL ice time were Sean Collins with the Capitals and Nate Guenin with the Philadelphia Flyers.

Johann Kroll, who also played 28 games in the AHL, won the ECHL’s Kelly Cup title with the South Carolina Stingrays. Collins ended the year with the American Hockey League champion Hershey Bears.

Andrew Schembri led Miesbach TEV in Germany in scoring with his 32 goals and 72 points. Jean-Francois Dufour also led his French team, Briancon, in scoring with 58 points.

Steckle really was unbelievable in the post season run for the caps. He's a guy I really enjoy watching find success at the NHL level.

Kind of strange that they didn't mention Tom Fritsche who played 48 games for the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL and notched 10g, 10a for 20 points.

Or Rod Pelley, who has also seen some time in the NHL, who played 75 games for the AHL's Lowell Devils notching 15g 23a for 38 points last year. I wouldn't be surprised to see him get some more big league time next season with the NJ.

Outdoor games are certainly en vogue. Check this out:

The schedule for next May’s 2010 I.I.H.F. World Championship was unveiled on Tuesday, starting with the tournament opener in Gelsenkirchen between the U.S. and host Germany at the 76,000-seat Veltins-Arena — a game that may set a world attendance record for hockey.

The schedule appears on the I.I.H.F. web site. After the May 7 opener, Canada inaugurates its participation on May 8 vs. Italy at Adler Mannheim’s 13,600-seat SAP Arena. Two-time defending champion Russia begins on May 9 vs. Slovakia at Cologne’s 18,500-seat Lanxess Arena, the largest hockey-specific venue in Europe.

The guy who I would love the Jackets to land in RFA defensemen Denis Grebeshkov has re-signed with the Oil for 1 year @ 3.15 million.

That signing brings the Oil up to 55.5 mil with Ladislav Smid still left to be re-signed. Something will have to give in Edmonton especially if they want to add some more offense.

I certainly wouldn't rule out a trade with Howson and his former team as Edmonton will certainly look to unload a defensemen. The question is what do the Jackets have to give back offensively? Not a whole lot.

I think the NHL does a really good job with their fans but nothing can top the MLS...at least from what I've seen. I went to the game this past Saturday as part of a Jacket Backer event and the way the players show respect to their fans -- especially the Nordecke -- is incredible.

The topper for me was at the end of the game how just about every Crew player went over to that section and gave them a standing 'O'. Most of them even took their jerseys off their backs and gave them to individual fans. Franky Hejduk didn't leave the field until he slapped every last hand he could.

It's definitely one of my favorite aspects about soccer games.

As a CBJ die hard I just can't help but wonder what it would be like to have our own fan section? It could only really work in the lower bowl. Unfortunately the economics of the game wouldn't allow it -- the fact of the matter is that lower bowl tickets are just too damn expensive to be able to put something like that together. Still a fan can dream can't he? I mean how cool could that be?

I'm a little surprised at the current poll results. I thought there may be a little more hesitation towards the potential signing of Zubov. That clearly isn't the case as most of you out there would support signing him to a 1 year incentive laden deal.

I'll have a new one up in a bit asking for your thoughts on what you think Marc Methot will be awarded in arbitration.

Great interview with John Moore here from the pipelineshow.com. Click here to hear it.

Finally if you're interested in a great local charity event the inaugural Ryan Salmons Foundation Memorial Golf Outing is this Friday. Visit Puck-rakers for all of the details.

-LTL

Sizing up Filatov

I've seen a lot of banter tossed around about Filatov being undersized for the NHL. Well these two entries from the Red Line Report's Kyle Woodlief seem to put those rumors to bed:

You mentioned size, so let's talk about Nikita Filatov. Are there any legitimate concerns about his size for the NHL?

I don't think there's a concern about his size at all. He's almost a legit 6-1. It may be a bit of a generalization, but it's quite true that many of the European countries don't develop physically as early at their North American counterparts. I think he'll play in the NHL close to 190 pounds.

What are your thoughts on Steven Stamkos?

He's certainly a legitimate first-line center, good for maybe 90 points a year when he gets into his prime years. A terrific two-way player.

It's funny: You bring up concerns about Nikita Filatov, and Stamkos is maybe eight pounds heavier than him; but other than that, they're identical. Neither one of them are afraid to play in traffic, get their noses dirty.

Lets also keep in mind that two youngsters and certainly not "big" prospects made the jump last season in Patrick Kane and Sam Gagner and made the quite the impact. I'm not saying Filatov will follow the exact same path as those two but if he doesn't make it to the NHL right out of camp it won't be just b/c of his size.

There is another interesting read over on NHL.com about prospects who may make the jump straight to the NHL next year. I thought this quote "The Great One" certainly jumped off the page:

"I can't speak for the other teams, but this group of draft choices was widely viewed as having more NHL-ready players than any in recent years," Coyotes coach Wayne Gretzky said after the first day of the draft. "We don't often speak in those terms with such young players."

Hawks GM Dale Tallon also weighs in on the size factor:

"It's the size of his heart that's more important," Blackhawks GM Dale Tallon said of Kane after the draft in June. "Guys his size that play the perimeter, you have concerns about moving up to the next level; but Pat gets his nose dirty, gets into the traffic areas and he doesn't get knocked down. He has a solid, wide base for his size, and when he gets stronger it's going to be even more difficult to knock him down."

"We're not in the business to not put the best players we have on the ice, regardless of age," Tallon said. "We've kept an open mind in training camp each year and kept youngsters like Brent Seabrook, Duncan Keith, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews and the same may also happen with Kyle Beach this year ... if he's ready to make the jump to the next level."

The article concludes with some names to keep an eye come camp and yes, one Nikita Filatov is in that mix. In fact here are the names that are dropped:

Stamkos. Doughty. Bogosian. Pietrangelo. Schenn. Filatov. Boedker. Beach. Tikhonov.

For those OSU hockey fans out there it was announced yesterday that Tom Fritsche has been signed to a two-way contact by the Colorado Avalanche. Tom, who is the bother of Dan Fritsche, spent 4 years with the Buckeyes and played a few games with Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL after his OSU season concluded.

THN.com takes a look at teams who need to "move it or lose it":

Columbus Blue JacketsIt’s been a tough existence for Jackets fans, who have had to try and support a team that’s traditionally been eliminated from playoff contention by January. The past couple of seasons have brought hope in the form of Ken Hitchcock and marginal improvement in the standings, but only a playoff appearance – preferably, an extended one – will provide real relief. New faces R.J. Umberger and Kristian Huselius will get all the ice time they can handle.

All I have to say to this one is thanks captain obvious.

According to this article the Columbus Blue Jackets will have enjoyed 187 day break since they last played a regular season game to the start of next season. The Pittsburgh Penguins will have the shortest break at 122 days followed by the Red Wings at 127. The Edmonton Oilers have the longest at 192.

Now of course that isn't to say all the Jackets enjoyed that much time off. Remember that Leclaire, Nash, Novoty, Hejda & Chimera all participated in the World Championships after their NHL seasons concluded. Heck even Hitch kept on coaching.

Also its not like most these guys don't train over the majority of the summer anyhow. Regardless the Jackets should be well rested coming into camp.

Also Puck-rakers has announced the offical numbers of some of the new faces for the Jackets. We've covered this once before here but what the heck, lets cover it again:

Backman - 5

Torres - 14

Murray - 15

Umberger - 18

Huselius - 20

Commodore - 22

Filatov - 28

Tyutin - 51

Voracek - 93

..and hey, I think we have a new poll question!

-LTL

Men’s Hockey Buckeyes Picked Fifth in CCHA Preseason Polls

A little Buckey Hockey news for you today:

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State men’s hockey team was placed fifth by both the coaches and media in the 2007-08 Central Collegiate Hockey Association preseason polls, the league announced Tuesday at its annual media day at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.
Defending NCAA champion Michigan State was the media’s choice for the top spot in the poll, while the coaches picked Miami as the team to beat.

Jason Desantis, an OSU senior defenseman from Oxford, Mich., was voted to a spot on the Preseason All-CCHA Second Team by the league’s head coaches. He had a career-best and team-high 20 assists last year and ended the campaign with 25 points to rank fourth (tied) on the team.

Ohio State opens the 2007-08 campaign Oct. 12-13 hosting the Lefty McFadden Invitational at the Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio. The Buckeyes will face Mercyhurst in the opening round at 8:05 p.m., preceded by Wisconsin and Notre Dame at 5:05 p.m. The consolation game will be at 4:35 p.m. Oct. 13, followed by the championship tilt at 7:35 p.m.

The squad opens play at home Oct. 19 when it hosts Miami at 7:05 p.m. in Value City Arena.

2007 CCHA Preseason Polls

(#) First place votes

Media Poll

1. Michigan State (25) 701

2. Miami (21) 667

3. Notre Dame (13) 656

4. Michigan (4) 596

5. Ohio State 414

6. Nebraska-Omaha 412

7. Western Michigan 352

8. Ferris State 279

9. Lake Superior State 270

10. Northern Michigan 248

11. Alaska 212

12. Bowling Green 108

Not a terrible ranking considering all the teams above them had great years and made the Frozen Four tournament last year. The Buckeyes, who have missed the tourney the last two years, are certainly in line to bounce back. I am surprised that Tom Fritsche, brother of Blue Jacket Dan Fritsche, was not named to any pre-season All-CCHA teams though.

What's up with Bowling Green being ranked last? Ouch. A little trivia for you - did you know that is Rob Blake's alma mater?

Back to OSU, also of note there are a pair of incoming freshman in John Albert and C.J. Severyn who were selected in the NHL draft this past offseason. Albert, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, was picked in the sixth round with the 175th selection by the Atlanta Thrashers and Severyn, from Beaver, Pa., was selected in the seventh round by the Calgary Flames with the 186th pick. So we'll keep an eye on those two this year.

For those that have never attended a Ohio State Buckeye's hockey game I encourage you to get out to a game this year. It really is some fantastic hockey. The players can't fight so you'll see more hits in one period than you will in one full NHL game.

Plus you can't beat the cost - for $20 bucks you can bring a family of four and sit in the lower bowl.

-LTL

NHL Buzz

Wes Goldstein of CBSports.com has a fun look at some of the key offseason stories around the NHL - his top story being:

1. The Lowe road: Edmonton Oilers GM Kevin Lowe probably didn't make any new friends among his colleagues this summer by putting out over-the-top offers to restricted free agents Tomas Vanek and Dustin Penner. Lowe was successful in Penner's case, but he violated what was an unwritten code against poaching these types of players. Still he shook up the hockey world and likely changed the approach teams will take to their business in the future.

http://cbs.sportsline.com/nhl/story/10333226/rss

Pierre Turgeon (pictured right) hangs em up after 19 seasons in the NHL.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/nhl/2007-09-05-turgeon-retirement_N.htm?csp=34

Oilers Pisani out indenfitinetly.

Edmonton forward Fernando Pisani will be out of the Oilers lineup indefinitely after being diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, the club announced Tuesday. Ulcerative colitis is type of inflammatory bowel disorder.

"I would like to thank everyone who has supported me through this difficult time, especially my wife and family," said Pisani, who is currently undergoing treatment. "I appreciate all the wonderful words of encouragement I have received, including messages from my teammates. I look forward to returning to the Oilers."

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=217604&hubname=

Its a shame about Pisani. Ohio State hockey buckeye fans will find this story eerily familiar as Tom Fritsche (brother of Dan Fritsche) went through the same thing last season in the NCAA. He rebounded nicely and looks to put his final mark on that team during his senior season this year. I'm sure Pisani will recover and regain his NHL form in no time as well.

-LTL