Entries with the tag: prospects

“Datsyuk Looked Brilliant”

by IwoCPO on 09/15/07 at 05:18 PM
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Those are the words of anti-Digger Bruce MacLeod in his blogged recap of the second scrimmage from TC.  He also notes that Hasek and Sopel looked very good.

Grigorenko? Invisible.

It was hard to notice Igor Grigorenko, who skated with Mark Hartigan and Aaron Downey. Grigorenko even missed the net on his shootout, going with a deke, but tapping the puck wide.

Scrimmage recap from MacLeod is here.  Another very good piece on why Aaron Downey may make the team here. 

Stealing From My Friends

by IwoCPO on 09/12/07 at 09:52 AM
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I’ve decided I don’t like the term “blogosphere” anymore.  Kind of like “Michigander” or “diet”.  Not real fond of those two either.  So, this will be the last time you see it at A2Y.  Henceforth and thusly, any time I present to you a conglomeration of views in one sloppy post I will title it “Stealing From My Friends”. 

I sense that you are apprehensive.  Apprehensive like a transvestite Dive fan caught in Raleigh at 0130 on a Tuesday?  No, but understandably wary.  Me too.  Here we go.

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“Big” Day For Scotty.  Bad Day For Grigorenko.

by IwoCPO on 09/11/07 at 05:38 AM
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Driving home yesterday I came to a startling conclusion.  When I put my mind to it, and the conditions are perfect, I sound exactly like Ozzy in “Crazy Train.” Not every time, oh no.  But I figured I’ve heard that song close to 700 times over the “history of my life” (Rocky II was on Versus!!!! last night) and I’ll bet yesterday and a late night in Hong Kong in ‘94 were the only times I really nailed it.

Oh, and Scott Bowman’s happy with the Wings.  Unless…

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Patience Hard To Come By For Kindl

by IwoCPO on 09/09/07 at 09:40 PM
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Great stuff from Bruce MacLeod tonite on Wing prospective blue liner, Jakub Kindl.

“About a week before we did send him to juniors, we said that we were going to send him out,” said Detroit assistant general manager Jim Nill. “Then we played him a (preseason) game and he played very well. We said that we’d give him one more and then let him go back to juniors and he played better. He wound up playing about five games.”

With seven NHL-experienced defenseman on the team at training camp last fall, there was little chance that Kindl would wind up in Detroit.

Different circumstances will keep Kindl down in GR this year, or at least prompt the Wings to start him there.  A stacked blue line, plus zero flexibility with Derek Meech spell a season with the Griffs for the young Czech.

More from MacLeod.

Grigorenko Looked “Great Out There”

by IwoCPO on 09/08/07 at 01:13 PM
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A2Y reader BobTheZee mentioned this morning that he was hoping to see more about Grigorenko’s “debut” last night.  I agreed, and here you go.

“He was great out there,” McGrath said. “He can move the puck and he gave me a lot of open chances. He’s smart out there and he and Jan Mursak are two of the best European players I have ever played with.”

Added Mursak, who was a standout himself: “It is hard to tell how good (Grigorenko) is after only one game. But I liked playing with him and (McGrath). I think we will better next game.”

More from Red Wings Central. 

News From TC: Little Wings

by IwoCPO on 09/08/07 at 07:47 AM
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As part of the site’s re-design, I canvassed the 9 A2Y regulars.  I emailed each one claiming I was the widow of a deposed Liberian dictator and that I had millions to place in their bank accounts for safe keeping until I could retrieve it.  Naturally, each regular responded quickly with their account information.  I plan to embezzle twenty dollars from each and send the money directly to Dwayne Klessel so that I can have access to only the hottest rumors.

I also listened to them when they said they wanted more info on Wing prospects, that fans in Hockeytown are hungry for news from TC.  Actually, I haven’t canvassed anyone, no one’s said a word to me about more news on the prospects and that number is really 8, not 9.

Regardless, the kids hit Center I.C.E last night. 

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And The Saginaw Legacy Continues

by IwoCPO on 09/07/07 at 08:40 PM
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Sitting at the dinner table tonite, and yes--there will be hockey involved in this post, our Kindergartner decides to tell a story, a nifty little diddy about a racoon who missed his mommy when he went off to racoon kindergarten.  Apparently, according to daughter number 3 who says she “wants to be a Navy Chief” when she grows up, mommy racoon kissed the palm of racoon jr. every morning before he headed off to school, thereby leaving her love in his hand for the rest of the day.

“She put her love in his hand,” our young Chief told us.  “No...,” she amended, “she made love in his hand.”

I saw it coming and cringed.  I looked five seconds into the future and resigned myself to the inevitable, and wasn’t disappointed.

“Really honey,” said my wife.  “Daddy does that quite a bit too.”

So...let’s talk hockey.

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Raising Kids In Traverse City

by IwoCPO on 09/07/07 at 04:44 AM
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With a few exceptions (Smith, Andersson, Emmerton and Pyett), the future of Wing hockey has descended on TC.  Bruce MacLeod’s first report from the prospect tourney features an outlook from the league’s most valuable assistant GM.

“The biggest part of it is we get to judge the kids against their own level,” said Nill. “Before, we’d have a training camp and the Kindls, Rynos, Ritolas would have to play against Nick Lidstrom, Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan. First of all, they’re going to be in total awe of these guys, so they’re nervous. They’re probably not as strong as the veterans. They can’t really show what they can do. If a guy’s a big hitter, he’s not going to run into Nick Lidstrom. He’s just not going to do it in training camp. There’s too much respect.”

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