With extra time and space (much like an attacker on a breakaway) due to the Olympic break, I thought this would be an ideal time to take a look at our prospects at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
With all trades and player movements designed top-down, things have been a bit topsy-turvy for the Baby Pens in terms of roster composition. This also includes the departure of pillars of support Sam Poulin And Valtteri Puustinennot to mention veteran NHLers Danton Heinen And Philip Tomasino.
But because of the almost constant shuffles, coach Kirk MacDonalds crew hardly missed anything. The Baby Pens are currently second in the AHL Atlantic Division with a record of 32-12-2-2 and 68 points. Their percentage of 0.708 points? Fourth best out of 32 teams.
While no individual skater has had a monster season, it has been a collective effort with everyone contributing, just like our pens. However, two players step up in terms of production. Center Tristan Broz leads the pack with 30 points (14+16) in 38 games, followed closely by Avery Hayes (pictured) and his team-best 16 goals and 26 points in 32 games.
After making his two-goal Pens-national NHL debut in Buffalo on Thursday night, Hayes returned to Wilkes in grand style to record a hat trick against Hershey on Saturday night, including the OT winner. Good friend and linemate Rutger McGroarty assisted on two of the goals.
Speaking of which, with four goals and 14 points in 10 games, Rutger is one of two current Baby Pens averaging better than a point per game. The other, Ville Koivunenhas 25 points from 20 games, including six goals.
Despite his prolific production, this last statistic is somewhat concerning. Since being transferred to the Baby Pens on January 9, 22-year-old Finn has scored just two goals in 14 games, a reflection of his lack of finishing at big league level.
With all the departures, several players have stepped up to take on more prominent roles. Undesigned forward Atley Calvert (26 points in 47 games) and Gabe lessons (12 goals in 38 games) have emerged as solid producers. So arrange for off-season pick-ups Aidan McDonough (11 goals, 24 points) and Rafael Harvey Pinard (13 goals). Gray AHL Vets Boko Imam, Joona Koppanen And Philip Kemp are ready to provide guidance and support.
Melvin Fernstrom and spicy Tanner Hoe joined the team this past week. Everyone has already contributed a goal.
On defense, veteran Matt Dumbas has been on fire late, scoring an impressive four goals and 12 points in his past five games. That includes a hat trick in a 6-5 victory over blood rival Lehigh Valley on Friday evening.
Among the children, with five goals, 19 points and a plus-12 in 45 games, Owen Pickering seems to be figuring things out. Perhaps there is still hope for the former first-rounder. Easy to forget that he just turned 22.
A few right-shot novice professionals, Chase Pietila And Find Hardingalso emerge. The former as a tough, stay-at-home type and the latter as a puck mover and facilitator. Harding leads the Baby Pens with a plus-22 in 34 games. That doesn’t appear to be an anomaly, he was a combined plus-85 in his last two junior seasons with the Mississauga/Brampton Steelheads. A potential steal as a seventh-round pick.
A huge southpaw Alexander Alexev returned from an extended stint on IR and assisted against Hershey. Fellow port man Emil Pieniniemi joined the team following a recent promotion from Wheeling.
The real story is of course in the goal, where top prospects lie Sergei Murashov And Joel Blomqvist have formed a dynamic rotation. Murashov’s statistics are truly striking. An 18-5-0-2 record with a 2.11 goals against average and a .924 save percentage. Blomqvist’s are damn good too, with an 8-4-3-1 record to go with a 2.43 goals against average and a .916 save percentage.
Of mild concern? With a save percentage of 0.891 and a 3.17 goals against average, the latter’s play has regressed a bit over the past six starts.
One final observation. Go back to by Ron Hextall last season or even by Kyle Dubas first season and you will notice that there are few prospects for the Baby Pens. Now the club is virtually teeming with good, young talent.
A tribute to the masterful work that Dubas and his staff have done, in a relatively short time!
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