Firstly, thanks to all for lovely Birthday wishes yesterday. I had a great weekend and it’s going to roll on all the way to the Milwaukee Admirals “All Aboard” event on Wednesday. Hope to see you all there for that. Especially if you watched UFC 189. We can then have a chat about that, too.

~So Long Taylor Beck~

The Nashville Predators wound up making a trade late yesterday afternoon that sent Taylor Beck to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for Jamie Devane. Beck was set for arbitration with Nashville but Devane’s contract is a two-way deal that comes to an end with the completion of the upcoming 2015-16 season.

Press Release via Nashville Predators:

Nashville, Tenn. (July 12, 2015) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced Sunday that the team has acquired forward Jamie Devane from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for forward Taylor Beck.

Devane, 24 (2/20/91), has spent the majority of his three-season professional career at the American Hockey League level, posting 15 points (6g-9a) and amassing 253 penalty minutes in 118 games with the Toronto Marlies. The Mississauga, Ont., native also appeared in his first two NHL contests with the Maple Leafs during the 2013-14 season.

Toronto’s fourth selection, 68th overall (third round) in the 2009 Entry Draft, the 6-5, 220-pound left wing played for the Ontario Hockey League’s Plymouth Whalers from 2008-12, recording 114 points (53g-61a) and 411 penalty minutes in 237 games.

While it is sad that Beck is yet another member of the Predators/Admirals joining the Maple Leafs organization in recent memory (Brendan Leipsic, Rich Clune, Rob Madore) it was only a matter of time. What I hope many don’t forget is that last season Beck turned up to pre-season camp in Nashville with zero guarantees that he was coming back and set his sights to earn a one-way contract. He did, and it is that mentality and work ethic that I think so many like a player like Beck.

Beck can do so many different things on the ice well. So what’s the real problem? Simply, the talent pool at forward is not only plentiful but too talented to ignore. What’s a Beck when the likes of Kevin Fiala, Viktor Arvidsson, and Miikka Salomäki are all wingers that could play his role? It’s not a knock against Beck. It’s a credit to the Predators scouting department to get so many talented players that push the bill from the AHL level up. Beck did it beforehand. Now the same opportunity to earn an NHL spot is there for someone new. Internal competition is phenomenal for a team to push itself to be great top to bottom. Nashville is doing just that right now and its great for both the Predators and Admirals as a result.

~Going Going, Back Back, to, Calle Calle~

This topic comes with a tip of the cap to a tweet sent out by Jeremy Gover yesterday. He wasn’t doing anything more than taking a shot in the dark at what Nashville’s forward lines might look like at the start of next season but I happen to agree with him:

#Preds forward lines as I see them: Neal-Ribeiro-Forsberg Smith*-Fisher-Wilson* Moses-Hodgson-Fiala Nystrom-Gaustad-Bourque extra: Jarnkrok

— Jeremy K. Gover (@govertime) July 13, 2015

What fascinates me here is Calle Järnkrok‘s spot. Whether you’re thinking center or on the wing it is tough to get that spot for him. Do you look to rotate him and Fiala early on? What about flipping him and Gabriel Bourque here and there?

I always believe in circumstances a player the likes of Fiala or Järnkrok should be using their time wisely by being active rather than stationary. Is it great experience training and practicing with the top tier team with elite level talent? Absolutely. I don’t deny the benefits of that. Yet, there is a difference between playing in an actual game versus practice.

Järnkrok and Fiala are both great talents. Järnkrok had some real nice flashes during his first full NHL season up in Nashville that included the opening round playoff series against the Chicago Blackhawks. Fiala is incredibly committed to making the Predators opening day roster and being an NHL name ASAP. Järnkrok turns 24-years old in late September. Should it be Fiala gaining a spot on the wing over Järnkrok it wouldn’t hurt the Swede to start his season as a top line and multi-scenario piece to the Admirals in the AHL. It would keep him extremely active and sharp in the need for an emergency or long term call up. The exact same can be said for Fiala who turns 19-years old next week Wednesday. Patience is a good thing. Dropping back down to the AHL for the start of the season isn’t a setback as much as it can be a fully functional launch pad.

What are your favorite Taylor Beck moments either with the Admirals, Predators, or both? Do you feel that the Predators should keep young forwards up with the NHL outfit even if they continuously were to healthy scratch them from the lineup? Is Nashville done adding depth players to make decisions like “Järnkrok to Milwaukee” easier to do? Flipside of that, is Nashville done trading players away to give their younger forward depth a chance to shine for the Predators?

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Happy Monday, everybody. Firstly, I hope you all had a fantastic Fourth of July weekend. Secondly, I think today would be a nice day to take a look at the Milwaukee Admirals roster so far. There are tons of pieces in place to make the team a real entertaining team to watch already but there’s still a question to be asked. Is more needed? Well let’s take a look.

~Current Roster~

Centers: Colton Sissons, Austin Watson, Max Reinhart, Félix Girard, Joe Pendenza, Frédérick Gaudreau

Wingers: Miikka Salomäki, Viktor Arvidsson, Kevin Fiala, Pontus Åberg, Max Görtz, Cody Bass

Defensemen: Jonathan Diaby, Garrett Noonan, Mikko Vainonen, Johan Alm, Jaynen Rissling, Jimmy Oligny, Kristian Näkyvä, Connor Allen

Goalies: Marek Mazanec, Juuse Saros, Brandon Whitney

I know there might be some names missing (Taylor Aronson and Anthony Bitetto – RFA process). Plus I also included Fiala’s name even though he could well start the season up with the Nashville Predators. In fact, there are a few names among the forwards that could start in the NHL depending on how the stars align. Oh, and Vainonen isn’t a lock to return to North America either. The point is that this is the bare bones roster that exists right now.

~Quick Thoughts~

An immediate thing that I love about the Admirals roster is the versatility up front. There are lots of options for Dean Evason to play with. With so many centers, even some wingers who can play the position, it affords moving some out on the wing – a possible plus for Watson who has excelled on the wing the last season and a half. Most wingers are also adaptable to working on either the left or right side which can help mixing and matching line combinations.

What still could be an issue is the defense. Once again each and every defensemen is a left-handed shot. Should Aronson rejoin it would add one – but that’s it. Having that blend seemed to help the Admirals a touch last season when an Ian White or Scott Ford were in the mix. I think yet another righty or two from the point would be a welcome addition – if even just an ECHL option.

~Line Combinations~

As I said, the fact that there are so many centers means that lines can be easily mixed and matched. What I think will end up happening is for Watson and Gaudreau to kick out on the wing with Pendenza being utilized as the fourth line center. It allows Watson to be put in a better position to succeed on the wing as he can be added to an attacking line up top.

Arvidsson-Sissons-Fiala
Salomäki-Reinhart-Watson
Åberg-Girard-Görtz
Gaudreau-Pendenza-Bass

Diaby-Alm
Allen-Näkyvä
Oligny-Noonan
(Vainonen-Rissling)

Mazanec/Saros
(Whitney)

Not too shabby, right? There’s still uncertainty as to any other additions and where they might factor in but this should give a nice cheat sheet for those wanting to play arm-chair GM and figure out what needs to be helped out. Personally, it’s still defense for me. Mazanec can go into ‘deer in headlights’ mode and Saros will be adjusting to the pace and gameplay of North American hockey. They won’t be helped out too much with a group that doesn’t really feature that many stay at home defensemen – really only Diaby, Alm, and Rissling are those sort of players. Looking to add a veteran or sturdy AHL defenseman, possibly two, could help out a lot.

As for forwards, if someone like Fiala makes the Predators roster out of camp than alternative options are needed. Heck, with this roster there are only three players headed to the Cincinnati Cyclones in the ECHL and none of them are forwards (Vainonen, Rissling, Whitney).

I feel like bringing back Gary Steffes and Eric Robinson as wingers would be a solid move considering they’re already adjusted to the coaching staff and quite a few players on and off the ice. If Steffes were to join with Fiala up – I would pencil Steffes directly in Fiala’s place due to his chemistry with Sissons at the end of the 2014-15 season.

Other options? There’s plenty still out there in the AHL alone. Free Agency is still very young. Waiting for the parent club to conduct their business seems to be what the Admirals are going through at the moment. To date, the Predators have helped a lot with their two-way contracted players signed so far. When bigger names in their RFA pool sign I feel the roster shapes up and the Admirals can look for certain names to snag.

Put yourself in the GM suit for a moment: what do you make of your current AHL roster, what needs help, how do you address it, who would you target as free agent AHL signings, and are you confident that those in-camp right now are good enough to maintain AHL status for this season?

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For those who either picked up the flyer at Summerfest or caught wind of the news through the Milwaukee Admirals social media – there is a major team event taking place in less than two weeks time. What will it be about? It’s a mystery at this point but the advertisement itself gives three very specific clues that all center around the phrase “All Aboard.

(1) The font being used for the phrase “All Aboard” is unlike anything I’ve ever seen associated with the Milwaukee Admirals franchise before. It has slight resemblance to the Calder Cup winning era but that’s about it.

(2) The “A” used to start off “All Aboard” are both clearly new logos which use beveled bones for the letter.

(3) The colors used are also brand new to the Admirals. It’s not as dark as navy, it’s not as prominent as a royal blue, but there is a blue being used along with shades of white and silver.

What does it all add up too? Well, if anyone followed the Milwaukee Bucks the last half-year, it looks like a rebranding campaign which would make the “All Aboard” event the unveiling of new logos and uniforms for the Admirals. I suppose that would explain why locker room furnishings with the current logo (team carpet, “Road To Nashville Runs Through Milwaukee” entrance sign, and “Admirals Who’ve Graduated to Nashville” sign) were all sold at the recent Garage Sale.

In terms of their branding history the Admirals have really had three eras so far. The IHL era, the early-AHL era, and the Harris Turer ownership era. Each design from era to era were drastically different and both had their unique charm. I crafted my favorite of both words to create the Admirals Roundtable Twitter and Facebook logo as a best of both worlds between the old and current. I love the current color palate (white, black, baby blue) and the ol’ Admiral logo is just too fun. So what could this new rebranding be? Is it even a rebranding or is it just a simplification to the current uniforms? We’ll likely have to wait until the evening of July 15th to find out. I’ll be there. And I’d love to have all you readers there as well.

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The 2015 NHL Draft is now in the pocket. What’s next on the off-season calendar? Two big dates back-to-back. Tuesday is the deadline for teams to tender qualifying offers to current restricted-free agents (RFA’s). Wednesday is the day that free agency begins. From there all bets are pretty much off until the regular season begins.

~RFA Watch~

There are quite a few Milwaukee Admirals that are still RFA’s to the Nashville Predators right now that haven’t been tendered a new deal (that I’m aware of anyways). The current RFA’s include: Taylor Aronson, Anthony Bitetto, Zach Budish, Magnus Hellberg, Josh Shalla, and Austin Watson.

There’s a few names there that I can see getting tendered. Bitetto made his NHL debut last season with the Predators and continues to make strides season after season here in Milwaukee. Watson could well be knocking on a full-time NHL role depending on the Predators off-season moves and by having a strong pre-season camp. Aronson managed an emergency call-up to the Predators last season and was a real pleasant surprise for the Admirals in 2014-15.

Then come some of the question marks. Hellberg tops that list because, if a trio of Carter Hutton/Marek Mazanec/Juuse Saros, are all here right now. Does Hellberg get tendered, brought back to Milwaukee, and in the process send Saros to the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL? That was the option I was pulling for because Saros is still very young, could learn the North American game in a competitive league like, and still push for AHL playing time should an injury occur. Problem? The Admirals signed Brandon Whitney with ECHL hockey in mind. So that role is already filled. The only alternative is to let him walk… or is it?

I’ve heard the rumblings that Hellberg could be tendered and then loaned out to Europe for the 2015-16 season. Should that happen it gives the Predators the option to move him throughout or at the end of the season – or even maintain him over say Hutton or Mazanec at the end of the playing season should he impress. It’s an interesting scenario but one that is puzzling considering any move to larger ice blows up Hellberg’s North American learning process – one that he admitted took time to adjust to. Why keep him just to loan him to Europe? If that goes down I feel as if someone should play “Rains Of Castamere” in the background when they break that news to Hellberg.

Others such as Budish and Shalla? It’s sad, but they’ve clearly never become what Nashville hoped for when drafting them. Budish was a second round pick in the 2009 NHL Draft and only just started getting some good work put together in the AHL this last season. But even he was scrapping for playing time against the likes of Joe Pendenza and Frédérick Gaudreau. Both of those names signed with the Admirals to AHL deals already. So you can see why Budish probably won’t be tendered a new deal. Shalla? Well, his ECHL numbers are pretty good. And that’s unfortunately all of the explanation you really need as to why he probably won’t be tendered either.

~Free Agent Frenzy~

When looking to the current free agents of the Admirals that is another interesting list: Triston Grant, Mike Liambas, Joe Piskula, and Mark Van Guilder. You could perhaps also throw in PTO contracted members of the Admirals this past season such as Scott Ford, Jared Nightingale, and Gary Steffes – and ATO contractee (I think I invented a word) Eric Robinson.

The first and only name of the ones above that should be a no brainer to return is Piskula. He has been the Admirals best defenseman for arguably the last two seasons. Plus, he provides Nashville that veteran AHL safety net in the event anything drastic happened up top. It would be a mistake for the Predators to not offer up yet another two-way contract to Good Guy Joe from Antigo.

I felt at the start of last year that the Admirals had too many of a specific type of player. Well, now they can solve that problem by selecting one or two out of the three. Three? Well yeah, because it looks like Rich Clune will become a free agent soon enough. Put yourself in those GM shoes. Who do you take: Clune, Grant, or Liambas? It’s not as easy a question as you might think.

Van Guilder has been a staple in Milwaukee for six full seasons now. He is the best faceoff man the Admirals have which makes him great on the penalty kill. Plus, his ability to make composed and intelligent plays on the ice is still there. Problem? Age and regression. At 31-years old he isn’t getting any younger and his numbers are starting to reflect that. There is a part of me that feels like his return to the Admirals hinges on Watson’s return to the Nashville system. If Watson is brought back, and doesn’t quite make the NHL roster, he basically plays the same role as Van Guilder. It would be great having both back, especially because they are the best penalty killing duo the Admirals have at the forward spot, but I’m not so sure that will happen.

Two moves I would love to see made were the two blokes that turned up late in the season and made a quick impression: Steffes and Robinson. Steffes exploded in the 2014-15 season for 61 goals between the ECHL (regular season and playoffs) and AHL. He even managed to win the Kelly Cup with the Allen Americans. He is due for a full time AHL season and showed in Milwaukee that he can produce. Then there was the youngster out of Dartmouth, Robinson. He skated incredibly well, found soft spots on the ice, looked comfortable at the AHL level right out of college, and might have been unlucky to not bury a few more feeds from Van Guilder to boot. Both would add to an already skilled Admirals forward group. And both are already familiar with the team. Good fit.

Lastly, what about the Sheriff? This time last year I felt like Ford was ready to hang up the skates and call it a career. What I didn’t realize was that during that time he was getting in incredible shape. I think that showed in the brief time when he returned to the Admirals late in the season as well. He looked better than he did in 2013-14. His ECHL season with the South Carolina Stingrays ended on the losing end of the Kelly Cup finals but his whole season at that level was classic ol’ Ford-o. Right handed veteran defenseman that the coaching staff and locker room are all fans of? I wouldn’t be too surprised to see it happen.

~UPDATE~

How about the timing, eh? The Predators signed Watson to a brand new contract this afternoon. In addition, they have made qualifying offers to all RFA’s not named Budish or Shalla:

.@PredsNHL Qualifying Offers: @Taronson37, @taybeckone9, @ABitetto7, Gabriel Bourque, @Mulle45, @Jarnkrok, Craig Smith and Colin Wilson

— KWilsonPreds (@KWilsonPreds) June 29, 2015

As you can see then – even Hellberg was tendered. And now we play the waiting game.

Any further reaction from the Nashville Predators 2015 NHL Draft? How do you anticipate the RFA scenarios to play out and what names won’t be coming back next season?

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Happy Monday, Roundtable. This week I have “jury duty” which tells me the following things should take place in order: (1) I get summoned (2) the Nashville Predators or Milwaukee Admirals re-sign or sign players whilst I’m doing my civic duties. At least that would be my sort of luck.

In terms of the off-season calendar this is a very exciting week. The 2015 NHL Draft is this Friday and Saturday. Plus, some intriguing storylines could develop in regards to free agency (UFA’s can speak to potential new teams on Thursday – and the deadline for tendering qualifying to RFA’s is next Tuesday). Lots of things are still up in the air as plenty of Nashville and Milwaukee products are pending RFA’s or UFA’s at this time. Much business is still needed to be handled. Saying all of that and there could still be the possibility of trades come the day of the Draft.

~Those Bucks, That Arena, That Subject Again~

There was a good article put together by Tom Daykin of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that poked at the Admirals in relation to the new Milwaukee Bucks arena. It did stir a few social media comments my way so I would again like to tackle this subject.

Firstly, stop worrying about the Admirals existence being tied to their connection to this new arena. The Admirals and Bucks aren’t attached at the hip. They are tenants to the BMO Harris Bradley Center and that’s almost where their relationship with one another ends. The Bucks are the ones under threat of relocation should this project not happen and the new ownership agreement fails. They’re acting with themselves and solely themselves right now because, well, they should. That might come off as cold for some of the Admirals fandom but it makes sense.

At day’s end, the Admirals are and will be based in Milwaukee. It is something that Milwaukee Admirals Governor & CEO Harris Turer made rather clear in a radio appearance in early-May. I think his position that day shouldn’t have changed and it is the correct one. I think everyone should be supportive of the new arena and what it could mean for the city of Milwaukee long term and whether or not it involves the Admirals is not the issue. They’ll remain in Milwaukee. Should the new arena end up being a solid option for them? Great, but they aren’t the ones who are desperate to splash the cash to do so.

Another important factor to remember is that this doesn’t mean once the arena project gets some serious traction that negotiating with the Admirals as a fellow tenant isn’t going to happen. In fact, it would be silly to not reach out to fellow Bradley Center tenants to get involved in the project once more details get cemented.

Now comes the real fun question: should the Admirals go to the new arena or across the street to the UW-Milwaukee Panthers Arena?

I’ve had lots of discussions among friends on this topic and I’ve started coming to the realization that the old MECCA might be the better option for the Admirals no matter what happens. The reason for this is really down to cost and the impact a new arena would have for the ownership of the Admirals and the fans looking to attend games.

According to Daykin, the Admirals paid $90,000 to be a tenant in the 17,800 seater Bradley Center this past playing season. They averaged 5,809 fans (220,745 total) – which was good enough for eleventh in the AHL this past season. The majority of the Admirals revenue stream comes from those ticket sales. A new arena should mean a higher cost to the Admirals to be a tenant. That higher cost should mean a higher ticket price. Will fans pay a major league price for a minor league product? Will the pizazz of attending hockey games at a new arena make the price of a higher ticket an afterthought? Do the Admirals haul back enough money from fans at a new arena that it is financially viable for them to step up to the plate and play ball with the Bucks and join forces? They’re big questions and ones that leave me looking at the alternative.

The MECCA is old. Yes, that is a solid observation many have made and I don’t say that sarcastically. With age comes repairs and adjustments that would be needed to facilitate an AHL hockey team such as the Admirals. Above when discussing the new arena and cost – the same applies here. It’s a weights and balances sort of thing. What would the upgrades cost and how would it compare to that of a tenant cost at a new arena?

Without ballparking any numbers, purely guessing on my part, I would say patch working an arena while paying potentially less of a tenant cost than the Bradley Center would be easier in the pocket book than the new arena. In addition, that Daykin story had an interesting detail that could be corrected with a venue change:

Cash from food and beverages sold at Admirals games goes to the Bucks, Turer said. This past season, for the first time, the hockey team got a share of cash from Admirals T-shirts and other club merchandise sold at the Bradley Center, he said.

Stick to the merchandising portion of that quote and think about the Admirals not seeing a cent for merchandise sales within the Bradley Center up until this last season. I’m not sure of the agreements in place that set something like that into being but hopefully a move to something such as the MECCA could correct.

Merchandising should be a big element to the Admirals business model. It’s a professional franchise that has stood the test of time. There are highly loyal fans and a market to tap into as far as merchandising is concerned. A better deal for the Admirals to pocket venue related merchandise sales with their brand on it should mean better revenue stream.

That leads me to a final point on the MECCA and one that could set it apart from both the new Bucks arena and the Bradley Center. Yes, there are other tenants at the MECCA. Heck, it is called the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena anyways right? The thing is that should the Admirals jump across the street they should be a much bigger player in that barn than they really ever have been at the Bradley Center and probably ever would be in a new arena. Dates for scheduling events should be less taxing, you probably won’t have a Miley Cyrus concert bumping an Admirals game into the frigid months of Winter, and they would be the top professional team playing in the facility. Just thinking about that last line should provide some spring to your step.

In closing, the Admirals are not going anywhere. Fret ye not. If anything just try to imagine it like this. Right now there are two options: (1) the Admirals are part of the new Bucks arena and will follow suit (2) the Admirals will go across the street and make their old home their new home. Those are the options as of now and both have their positives. And that’s they key word here: positives. There are a lot more positives with this situation than there are negatives.

~The Joonas Bros. Reunion~

To end on a much more fun note. Remember Joonas Järvinen? Me too. I really liked that guy. I’m always appreciative of those no nonsense defensemen that can stick to defense, check hard, and be an imposing figure against the opponent’s offensive rush. Järvinen was that type of defenseman. He never really did anything flashy or brilliant but he never did many things stupid or costly to his team either.

The past season Järvinen found himself playing for the brand new KHL team in Russia, HK Sochi. He played 39 games with only an assist with a plus/minus of -8 and was on the ice for the team’s swift playoff exit in the first round by top conference seed CSKA Moscow. Perhaps not the greatest season for him but he was in a pretty competitive league.

So, why am I bringing up Järvinen? Well he has been signed by the Finnish version of the Milwaukee Admirals – HIFK. That’s right. HIFK are the Finnish Milwaukee Admirals: Juuso Puustinen, Joonas Rask, Ryan Thang, etc etc legends.

It only happened once when they were Admirals but on 4/19/13 Järvinen, Puustinen, and Rask were teammates. In that game: Rask scored a goal and an assist, Järvinen had an assist and was a +2, and Puustinen had an assist and was a -2 in an Admirals 6-4 victory over the Charlotte Checkers (Video Highlights).

Now comes the oddity. Another Finnish team has also stepped up and signed Järvinen. That team would be Jokerit of the KHL and they did so at the start of the month. I’m not sure if that means Järvinen’s initial signing with HIFK was ripped up and he zipped back for a job in the KHL rather than Liiga or what but I’d much prefer his initial choice because it would be like he is still an Admiral. Yes. Wearing HIFK gear is like a hipster-y way of saying I support the Milwaukee Admirals and I’m also a big fan of Suomi.

Continued thoughts on the new Bucks arena and the Admirals ties to it? Would you rather see them in a new arena or the old arena with upgrades? Would increased ticket pricing to watch games at the new arena detour you from attending games or purchasing season tickets? Fun question to end on… Is there a European team you follow and are a fan of?

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Happy Monday, everybody. Or for those of you Game of Thrones fans *points at self* Still Not Very Happy About It… and it’s Monday.. Day.

There is quite the game on tonight. The Chicago Blackhawks have a chance to win the Stanley Cup in front of their home fans for the first time since 1938 – 77 years ago. Personally, I prefer to see a team win in front of their home fans. Should the Blackhawks win it I’d like them to get it done tonight. Should the Tampa Bay Lightning manage to play spoiler to that then I want them to cap things off Wednesday night in a Game 7 at home.

It is sad to think that the Stanley Cup is all that is left as far as hockey goes before the long hot ice melting summer that takes hockey away until the fall. The Manchester Monarchs won the AHL’s Calder Cup Saturday. The Allen Americans won the ECHL’s Kelly Cup on Sunday. It’s becoming a bit of a ticking clock for all NHL organizations to put their focus on off-season moves and the NHL Draft. When that time comes is when I expect plenty more actual news items to drop on both the Nashville Predators and Milwaukee Admirals end of things respectively.

~Rambling or Rant~

For those that follow along on Twitter I did touch upon this topic slightly but feel like I bottled a lot more up for today’s ramblings. Don’t follow along on the Twitter machine you say? What topic you ask? Why, this one:

AHL Commissioner David Andrews told me that California-based teams will play 68 games next year. Rest of the AHL plays 76.

— Jon Rosen (@lakingsinsider) June 13, 2015

There was always going to be this annoyance of a topic and talking point with the Pacific Division coming to pass. Now it appears that the absurd notion of Californian AHL teams playing less games than the rest of the league will just be whimsically allowed to take course in the same manner in which the teams passed through in the first place.

Back when the Pacific Division first washed up as a concept it sounded fabulous for the NHL teams to be so close to their affiliates but a logistical nightmare for the AHL. These AHL teams based directly in California (Bakersfield Condors, Ontario Reign, San Diego Gulls, San Jose Barracuda, and Stockton Heat) can battle amongst themselves and traveling expense wouldn’t be too out of the question – much like say the Admirals trekking to places such as Cleveland, Des Moines, or Grand Rapids. Yet, what about lumping outsider franchises such as the San Antonio Rampage and Texas Stars into that division? Wouldn’t that mean traveling back and forth half-way across the country quite a few times? Well, yeah. Unless you schedule a multi-week set of games pitting Californian teams against Texas teams like a long long long playoff stretch. Even writing that causes me to believe the sheer scheduling chaos and travel ramifications just don’t work out in the end.

So the Californian based AHL outfits next season are expected to play eight less games than the entire league. What exactly does that mean? Truth be told, because it isn’t set in stone yet, I’m not all that certain. Do the Rampage and Stars effectively place first and second in the Pacific Division by way of being up 16 points from the get-go? Will one of these Californian teams do well enough to tie a playoff spot with a team that played eight more games and advance on a tiebreaking technicality? Who knows!

What I think irks me the most is this idea that it is better for an NHL franchise to be so close to their AHL base of operations to the point that it shoots the AHL in both feet. Is it a problem sending a player up and down from Manchester, New Hampshire to Los Angeles, California and back? Yes, it is a relative nuisance -but- I have to believe that scenario is the worst of the worst in having an affiliate further from NHL HQ. Communication with coaches, updates on player development, video on games and specific talent, discussions on business operations – these are all things in this day and age of technology that are moot points. So why precisely did the NHL owners behind this big Pacific Division move base to cripple the AHL and have teams and players on those teams playing less games in the regular season than everyone else? Je ne sais pas. That’s the last lick of French that I remember from high school and it means, “I don’t know.” I always knew that would come in handy.

Speaking of the “playing less games” part of this. Does that mean AHL players playing on these Californian teams make more money per game because they play less games? If so, is that incentive enough -along with the lovely weather I suppose- to sign for any of these franchises? Think of say a Gary Steffes type of player. You’re coming off of an incredible career best season that primarily happened a tier down in the ECHL. He signs for the shameless name shilling San Jose Barracuda. They play eight less games. He unfortunately gets hurt and now has even less time to layer together a solid season to prove his worth as an AHL level talent. Why a veteran player would choose to play for one of these organizations confuses me. Perhaps a local golf membership will be added to the contract?

It’s all a mess. Worse? It was always going to be a mess. My snarky logic has me thinking the AHL should slap a regulation loss for all games missed to all teams not willing to compete in a full 76 game AHL schedule. Want to play a 68 game schedule? Sure, but you’ll start the season 0-8-0-0 (0 points). Best of luck getting out of that immediate hole.

The whole thing seems a mess but the good news is that none of the above, per Jon Rosen‘s tweet, is set in stone yet. The AHL hasn’t come forth with an official document that says those teams are in fact playing less games than everyone else. It’s only been “reported” is all. Sadly, I expect it to be a matter of time. My only hope is that with that eventual press release and statement from AHL Commissioner David Andrews comes a thorough dissection of what it means for those teams and the rest of the league. There are so many red flags with specific teams playing less games than the rest while competing them that it begs for answers to all of them. And I anticipate the word “fair” to be brought up plenty.

What do you think of the Californian based AHL teams playing less games next season? Should it be allowed? What is the solution? Was the AHL held at gunpoint to the NHL for this to all fall into place? Should the rest of the AHL play less games with the Pacific Division or should the Californian teams be forced to cooperating with the rest of the league? Why didn’t the Abbotsford Heat play or demand to play less games when they were in operation?

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Happy Monday, folks. There’s a few topics that I’d like to discuss today and hear your responses to. First things first – how about an update?

The AHL Calder Cup Finals started up and each of the first two games went into overtime with the Manchester Monarchs outlasting the Utica Comets. You can watch the game highlights for both of those contests right here: Game #1 and Game #2. The next three games of the series take place in Utica: Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. If Utica is to win this year’s Calder Cup they’ll need to do so on the road in Manchester come Game #6 or Game #7.

Scott Ford vs. Gary Steffes is going very much to my liking. The series is tied at 2-2 with the Allen Americans sneaking out Game #4 in double overtime over the South Carolina Stingrays. It was the first game of that series in South Carolina and the next two go down in Ford’s new chicken & waffle haven: Tuesday and Wednesday. As you know, that Wednesday game will be the first elimination contest for this year’s Kelly Cup Finals. Should it go the distance to a Game #7, please do, it will happen in Allen this Sunday.

Speaking of Steffes, his 2014-15 season continues to be spectacular as the Americans push on in the Kelly Cup Finals. In all competitions (meaning ECHL regular season with the Allen Americans, PTO stint with the Milwaukee Admirals, and then ECHL playoffs with the Americans) he has scored a whopping 91 points (60 goals, 31 assists) in 94 games. If he isn’t in the AHL full-time next season something is wrong. And, hopefully, a spot could be made right here in Milwaukee. He did get to know the coaches and players that will be back for 2015-16 right?

~The New Bucks Arena~

I wanted to wait a slight bit in the off-chance that this suddenly went bust. It has been a few days now and, so far, it is still on. The funding for the new Milwaukee Bucks arena was approved last Thursday and the details that come with that is that it will cost $500 million dollars with taxpayers paying for half of that cost. It’s essentially the first big step of many before any sort of physical ground gets broken.

Not going into complete and annoying political mode (that’s not what this website is for) I’ll simply say that I think this is good in the long term for the city of Milwaukee. There is much more than an arena going up and the new facilities should be fantastic. Pair that with a fresh new look for the Bucks themselves and it is a pretty exciting time for those that are fans of sportsketball.

About those of us that aren’t sportsketball fantastics, that appreciate a sport that doesn’t need a timeout to gauge every other in-game scenario because pre-scouts and game plans are worthless, media timeouts, officials timeouts, timeout, foul, free throw, timeout, 30-second timeout, repeat, etc… there is still not much to go on.

The beauty here is in the now. The pressure was purely on the Bucks to save their franchise by getting a new arena. That mentality means being self centered and focused on them and them alone. The arena has now been given the greenlight as far as the financials are concerned. Now comes a passage of time worth settling in for with the Bucks ownership creeping that much closer to chat with fellow occupants of the BMO Harris Bradley Center about potentially partnering up at the new arena.

I still question the Admirals involvement and I say that on the simple basis of money. New arenas cost big dollars and there comes a cost of being one of these new tenants in a new facility such as this. In the short term, I feel the more cost effective (for the Admirals ownership) and fan friendly (per ticket pricing) option is the UW-Milwaukee Panthers Arena. It will need some upgrades here and there but those shouldn’t hurt the wallet as much as a new arena could. In the long run, the Admirals could probably join the new arena but I would be curious on their perspective should the business model of operating out of the ol’ MECCA prove to be more successful. That’s an option that can’t be gauged properly unless they actually go across the street from the Bradley Center but I think it is one worth trying unless the Bucks are willing to help the Admirals out and make joining this new arena as easy and ‘nickel and dime’ free as possible.

The new arena has been greenlight. Now comes plenty of other news items to keep an eye out for to see what goes on downtown and just whether or not the Admirals are in those plans. Whether they are or not I still view the future of the Admirals really positively either way.

~The Hellberg Dilemma~

I dodged this topic last week. Let’s just thrash it now and be done with it until something concrete surfaces.

The Nashville Predators agreed to a new one-year two-way contract with Marek Mazanec a month ago. And then a day later the Admirals signed Brandon Whitney to an AHL contract with the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL in-mind.

This of course sends the mind into a frenzy all because of two players: Magnus Hellberg and Juuse Saros. Hellberg, like Mazanec prior to his new contract, is a restricted-free agent (RFA) this off-season. Saros is another Finnish goaltending prodigy that the Predators organization has found in the draft and all eyes are set on just when he’ll make his debut on North American ice as a pro. This all comes with one spot open right now in the Nashville Predators organization in net and it is the secondary choice goaltender in Milwaukee at the AHL level.

What is important to remember are the following key factors: Hellberg is an RFA and the last date to tender him a new deal is June 30th, Saros has been drafted by the Predators but hasn’t signed his entry-level contract as of yet, and the NHL Draft (and the trade madness that comes with it) takes place June 26–27th.

There’s still lots of ways for this whole situation to transpire and I genuinely get the impression that Saros is being given one more year in Finland with Hellberg set to return, like Mazanec, on a one-year two-way contract. This can all change with a draft day trade mind you. And that’s when things should come into a bit better focus.

On Nashville’s side of things the signing of Whitney by the Admirals seems to be a direct shot at the ECHL. It’s just not competitive enough for the likes of a Saros to battle in were it down to him, Mazanec, and Hellberg in the AHL and ECHL level for the 2o15-16 season. If Mazanec, Hellberg, and Saros were the minor league plan then there was never a need for a Whitney signing. That of course happened which means things are really cloudy – mostly in part of Saros not having signed his entry level contract yet. If he signs one it’s a ticking clock. Max Görtz probably knows what I’m talking about.

It’s irritating to be sitting and waiting for this story to play out. All the goalies mentioned above have their great upside and would do well for the Admirals next season. It just feels as if someone is due to be forced out for a lower end draft pick in a nothing trade. In three weeks at the NHL Draft that may well become a reality. Or *drum roll* Saros stays in Finland and Hellberg sticks around and the Admirals goaltending duo of last season returns. Clutching at thin air as to what will happen at this point but those last two options feel the most likely right now.

Do you feel like Nashville’s intent to retain most of their players extends to their prospect pool that played in Milwaukee last season? Which Admirals players do you feel aren’t coming back next season? How will the goaltending situation work itself out? Should Nashville make a trade at the NHL Draft that sends away Mazanec or Hellberg?

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The first day of Summer is technically June 21st. Also, the weather yesterday made me wonder if it was a Green Bay Packers bye week. That all said, I want to get the ‘Summer Ramblings’ column back up and running right with the start of the month of June.

For those who are new readers to the Roundtable this was a weekly column I started up last season as a means to keep the hockey discussion moving along throughout the off-season. I’ll be posting every Monday on any various topic that comes to mind (there is a reason I call it ramblings). Along the way I hope to discuss bits and pieces from the last season but -best of all- the build process going into the next season. It’s a way to keep thinking and discussing Nashville Predators/Milwaukee Admirals/Cincinnati Cyclones while re-signings, the 2015 NHL Draft, and free agent frenzy are off in the distance.

~Offensive Defense~

What better topic to start up with than the Admirals defense? Well, the goaltending sure but I’ve beaten that topic to death (I’ve talked with someone who looked like Dana White about having Juuse Saros vs. Magnus Hellberg at UFC 189 for their spot in Milwaukee – I’m trying to make it happen as a Middleweight bout – Hellberg has the reach and, more importantly, previous fight experience… I digress).

In all seriousness, away from the goaltending, I feel the defensive aspect of the Admirals was an issue last season that needs solving going into the 2015-16 season. It wasn’t entirely about the players performance on defense but having the appropriate personnel for the system.

Thomas Willis had a great write up on the Admirals adapting to the new philosophies that Peter Laviolette was trying to implement up in Nashville. His approach to the game is aggressive and attacking which is highlighted by the defense jumping up into the action. The Predators defensive nucleus is quite possibly the strongest, top to bottom, in the entire NHL. While that system can work with the Predators it wasn’t something that necessarily translated for the Admirals last season.

“Halfway through the season, we did flip a few things because we realized we didn’t have the same defensive corps as the Nashville Predators,” Dean Evason said. “That’s a huge strong point for their hockey club and it wasn’t so much for us. We had a lot of young people on our backend, so we had to tweak the new system a bit – not so much to protect them – but to put them into a position to succeed. We weren’t as quite as aggressive as Nashville was with their defense getting up into the neutral zone and beyond.”

Did the coaching staff put the defense in a position to succeed? Perhaps a more interesting question is whether or not altering the defensive approach to Laviolette’s system while the forwards continue on in that system breaks the system entirely. Evason was certainly in the right to change-up the attacking approach of the defensemen with the personnel but, if that changes, the system itself is wounded at best.

This change in philosophy to how defensemen act on the ice means giving the personnel itself a huge re-think. There needs to be better all-around skaters on the blue line that are capable of leaping up into the rush and being able to recover defensively at good pace. Is that Joe Piskula, Johan Alm, or Jonathan Diaby? Nope. If anything I think defensemen like Garrett Noonan or Jimmy Oligny have that skating ability that allows for Laviolette’s system to run its course. With that exact thought in mind it shouldn’t come as any surprise that the Predators went out of their way to bring in a smooth skating offensive minded defenseman such as Kristian Näkyvä. Unless he makes the Predators roster out of camp (unlikely) he should be a big addition to the Admirals next season. Why? Let’s look at some numbers.

The AHL’s website goes as far back as the 2005-06 season for team-by-team statistics (regular season only). Let’s use that as the baseline to see how season-by-season Admirals defensemen have produced offensively:

2005-06 Season
171 points (43 goals, 128 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Kevin Klein, 42 points (10 goals, 32 assists)

2006-07 Season
151 points (37 goals, 114 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Sheldon Brookbank, 53 points (15 goals, 38 assists)

2007-08 Season
159 points (45 goals, 114 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Janne Niskala, 44 points (19 goals, 25 assists)

2008-09 Season
173 points (36 goals, 137 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Cody Franson, 52 points (11 goals, 41 assists)

2009-10 Season
180 points (41 goals, 139 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Robert Dietrich, 43 points (6 goals, 37 assists)

2010-11 Season
189 points (45 goals, 144 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Roman Josi, 40 points (6 goals, 34 assists)

2011-12 Season
142 points (28 goals, 114 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Victor Bartley, 39 points (9 goals, 30 assists)

2012-13 Season
135 points (38 goals, 97 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Mattias Ekholm, 32 points (10 goals, 22 assists)

2013-14 Season
140 points (32 goals, 108 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Anthony Bitetto, 36 points (11 goals, 25 assists)

2014-15 Season
127 points (16 goals, 111 assists)
Top Scoring Defenseman: Taylor Aronson, 32 points (3 goals, 29 assists)

I know that there are plenty of factors to this but the drop off in offensive production from the Admirals blue line is staggering. In some ways I wonder how much of that comes down to the evolution of the game itself. While there are other factors when it comes to scoring, looking at you forwards, I think the numbers the last four seasons show a big down turn in offensive ability – with the exclamation point coming this most recent campaign.

What should be done to help the defense contribute to offense? Is the downturn in offense from the defense a reflection of the game changing or of Nashville drafting and developing poorly?

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We are a day between games for the Milwaukee Admirals. They got back into the win column with a 3-0 shutout last night and are set to face the hottest team in the AHL right now, no question about that, the Grand Rapids Griffins on Friday.

Rather than look ahead to the short term I thought it’d be fun to think about the long term. Specifically looking at the goaltending position. Both Magnus Hellberg and Marek Mazanec will be restricted-free agents at the end of this season. Then, thinking about the 2015-16 season, there is a very good chance that Juuse Saros will make the leap to North America.

The question is what will the Nashville Predators do in the system next season? Carter Hutton will be in the final of his two-year contract next season and all three of the names above could be positioned to compete for the back-up job to Pekka Rinne down the road – specifically the current tandem with the Admirals right now.

Hellberg is in season three with the Admirals right now and has only logged a cameo appearance with the Predators to date. Mazanec has split his time in the AHL and NHL so far through two seasons: 65 games with the Admirals and 27 games with the Predators. Saros is currently in his second senior playing season with HPK of the SM-Liiga in Finland. He turns 20-years old in mid-April and has already played 87 games in net as a pro.

What I feel makes the most sense would be to tender both RFA’s in Hellberg and Mazanec, as well as bring Saros into the mix in North America, and assess the options come the end of the 2015-16 season. I’d look for Saros to do exactly what has worked well for Jordan Binnington these last two years which is integrate him at the ECHL level for a season before bringing him into the AHL.

The alternatives can go anywhere from trying to trading Hutton and promoting either Hellberg or Mazanec next season, retaining one or both of the current AHL tandem and trading them at the NHL Draft to allow Saros to start next season at the AHL level, or -my idea- keep them all and wait out the season to map things out after the season.

How do you think the Nashville Predators will handle the goaltending situation next season? Where will Juuse Saros fit? Will Magnus Hellberg and Marek Mazanec be back in 2015-16? If you had two chose between Hellberg, Mazanec, and Saros -and could only pick two- which do you pick?

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