CANTLON: WOLF PACK OFF SEASON – VOLUME 10 

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings

HARTFORD, CT – There is so much activity going on in the world of New York Rangers hockey and in the sport in general.

For the Hartford Wolf Pack, things have been fairly quiet so far. The AHL regular season schedule will drop in mid-July, but we may have gotten a peek at a potential member of the new Wolf Pack coaching staff.

During his comments regarding his Hall-of-Fame induction, Zubov said he has already been in New York to meet with the new Rangers President, “JD” John Davidson, who also happens to be the head of the HOF selection committee. When pressed, Zubov said he, “Just came to chat and have a cup of coffee”

Coming all the way from Russia, that coffee must be pretty darn good.

Since his retirement from playing, Zubov has been coaching for the last five years in his native Russia. He’s been in St. Petersburg for two-and-a-half years as an assistant coach before he became a head coach midway through the season three years ago.

He spent the last two years in the former Olympic town of Sochi as the head coach of HC Sochi in the KHL.

With the plethora of young defenseman in the Rangers’ system, especially in Hartford, and add in the two just drafted last Saturday, it would make eminently good sense for Zubov to become the defenseman assistant coach for the Wolf Pack where he would fill the slot most recently held by Joe Mormina who was let go along with head coach Keith McCambridge the day after the regular season ended.

Zubov’s credentials are impeccable. Not since Jeff Beukeboom and JJ Daigneault were on the Wolf Pack coaching staff has there been someone of that stature of an NHL player to leave an imprint on the locker room.

One name that can be checked off the list of possible coaches is ex-Wolf Pack/CT Whale defenseman, Jared Nightingale. He was hired as an associate coach for Saginaw (OHL).

RANGERS SCHEDULE

The NHL released the 2019-20 schedule and the Blueshirts will open their next campaign against the Winnipeg Jets at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, October 3rd. Their first road game comes on Saturday, October 5th, in Ottawa against the Senators. The same as the Wolf Pack’s home opening date at the XL Center.

The Rangers were able to do some NFL Sunday counter scheduling with fan friendly game times on Saturday the 12th and Sunday the 20th against Edmonton and Vancouver respectively. Both have puck drop times of 1:00 pm.

The AHL schedule will be released in mid-July.

NEWS AND NOTES

It’s official. The NHL’s Seattle franchise files an AHL expansion application to put their farm team in Palm Springs, California. The team, yet to be named, will play in a brand new, 10,000 seat arena. Seattle and OVG (Oak View Group) have teamed up with Live Nation, the behemoth national ticketing agency, and the Agua Caliente Indian tribe, whose land, they will build on, in what will be a brand new, multi-purpose arena. They will be able to do shows in the building since it’s in LA. The building will be classified as a B-Level building,

The location is a perfect distance from Ontario and San Diego. With an airport right there that can service short inexpensive flights to Northern California where the team can play the other Pacific Division teams in the state, which are the Bakersfield Condors, the San Jose Barracuda and the Stockton Heat.

In addition, direct flights to Tucson and Denver and available for the other two AHL Pacific teams. For Seattle, it will have direct flights for recalls and there is a direct connection to Vancouver should the Canucks move their AHL team from Utica to Abbotsford (the Canucks are having a pre-season game there in the fall). They also have flights to Chicago and Texas, Austin and San Antonio for any games with the Midwestern AHL teams.

This is no surprise with OVG involved. They are developing and financing the new re-booted NHL Seattle KeyArena and were named the building’s operators for the Webster Bank Arena back in March. In addition, Irving Azoff, a notable financier, is in the mix as well. There was no doubt this project was gonna get greenlit.

There’s a good piece from the Seattle Times on this final NHL-AHL team imprint as they matchup 32 NHL teams and 32 AHL teams. Read it HERE

Here are two other pieces from Arena Digest that fill in some other pieces to the puzzle. HERE and HERE.

The AHL announced the earliest time in memory that Ontario International Airport will be the title sponsor of the AHL All Star Classic in Ontario, CA this year. It’s the first time it’s been held at a Pacific Division team building.

Ex-Pack, Steven Kampfer, signed a very cap friendly, two-year, one-way deal with Boston for $800K per.

Ex-Pack, Scott Kosmachuk, a pending UFA next week was dealt along with two draft picks by Colorado to Washington for Andre Burakovsky.

Anaheim has prevented one player, Sam Carrick, from leaving the AHL for Europe. The defenseman signs a one year, one-way $700K deal with San Diego.

The Blackhawks and Carolina Hurricanes swapped a pair of players each.

Chicago departed with goalie Anton Forsberg, an ex-Springfield Falcon who spent all last season in Rockford, along with fellow Swede, Gustav Forsling, for ex-Sound Tiger defenseman, Calvin de Haan and Alexei Saarela, who led the Calder Cup champion Charlotte Checkers in goal in the regular season and the post-season. He was originally a Rangers draft pick but was traded to Carolina in the Eric Staal deal two years ago.

Saarela’s younger brother, Antii, was selected by Chicago in the 4th round (123rd overall) in last Saturday’s NHL Draft.

A second member of the Calder Cup champion squad was also dealt as Carolina sent Nicolas Roy and a 5th round draft pick to Vegas for forward Eric Haula.

Two more collegians have signed. North America keeps one in Brendan Warren of the University of Michigan (Big 10) with Indy (ECHL) and one will head to Europe in Chris Pohlkamp of Bowling Green (NCHC). He signs with Coventry Blaze (England-EIHL).

That ups the total to 174 college players that have signed North American pro deals. 42 have signed in Europe and a total of 227 players from college have signed pro deals since the college year has ended.

Stefan Elliott who split the season with Belleville and Wilkes Barre/Scranton leaves for Europe signing with Dynamo Minsk (Belarus-KHL),.

The AHL to Euro list saw Juuso Ikonen leave Hershey to go to HC 71 (Sweden-SHL). There are now 45 players who have signed with European or Asian teams and 24 of 31 AHL teams have lost at least one player so far.

-Ex-Pack, Allan McPherson, leaves Orli Znojmo (Czech Republic-EBEL) for HKM Zloven (Slovakia-SLEL).

-Ex-CT Whale, Blake Parlett, leaves Kunlun (China (KHL) for EHC Munich (Germany-DEL) next year.

-The Rangers officially announce the players they have made qualifying offers effective by 5 pm on Tuesday as per the CBA.: Julius Bergman (D), Pavel Buchnevich (F), Tony DeAngelo (D), Brendan Lemieux (F), Vinni Lettieri (F), Chris Nell (G), Jacob Trouba (D),

When the team makes the offer, it gives them the right of first refusal or the ability to receive draft choice compensation should their player sign an offer sheet from another team. The compensation would then be based on where they were drafted or if undrafted but failed to qualify as Group 6 UFA.

For Lettieri, it makes some sense, but it’s not likely he will be back. Chris Nell makes no sense at all. His first month of play in Hartford two seasons ago. Then he was just an afterthought. He was shuttled to four different ECHL destinations the past two years unless that was the sole purpose to send him to Maine which is the only plausible explanation.

The Rangers did not make the following players UFA (unrestricted free agents); Chris Bigras, Julius Bergman, Chris Nell, and Brandon Halverson. Two Group 6 free agents John Gilmour and Rob O’ Gara were not made any offers by the Rangers.  The other UFA Dustin Tokarski loaned out to Charlotte where he collected his second Calder Cup ring no offer to date has been made and is likely to sign in Sweden for next season.

Bergman has already signed a contract with Frolunda HC the defending Swedish Hockey league champions so his return is highly unlikely.

Here is a list of players who received qualifying offers, as announced by teams with Connecticut connections: Ex-Sound Tiger, Alan Quine (Calgary), Ryan Donato (Minnesota), the son of ex-Wolf Pack and Sound Tiger, Ted Donato, current Sound Tigers, Micahel Del Colle and Josh Ho-Sang (Islanders).

Kasperi Kapanen (Toronto), the son of Hartford Whaler great, Sami Kapanen, who signed a multi-year deal, former Quinnipiac University Bobcat, Brogan Rafferty (Vancouver), and Chandler Stephenson (Washington), who’s the nephew of former Whaler, Bob Stephenson.

Several NHL teams did not make public their list they were; Chicago, Colorado, Detroit, Montreal, Ottawa, Pittsburgh, and Vegas.

The aforementioned Jeff Beukeboom saw his son, Brock, head to Denmark to play for the Odense Bulldogs in the fall.

Ex-Pack, Adam Tambellini, was also not tendered a qualifying offer by Ottawa. Neither was Adam Musil, the nephew of former Whaler and Ranger, Robert (Bobby) Holik, both players are now UFA’s.

In the annual CHL Import where all 62 teams from the three Canadian major junior leagues get the chance to draft two import player limit. No Ranger draft picks were taken, but a few names of note were selected.

Senna Peeters, a Belgian native who played at Selects Academy at South Kent Prep (USPHL) was taken in the 1st round (48th overall) by the Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL).

Then two picks later goalie Nick Malik, the son of former Whaler, Ranger, and Beast of New Haven, d-man, Marek Malik, was taken in the 50th overall slot by the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL).

In the second round, 82nd overall incoming UCONN freshmen Alexander Firstov just selected in the NHL Draft last Saturday in the 2nd round 42nd overall by Minnesota was selected by the Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL).

Cooper Moore (Cos Cob/Brunswick Prep) was drafted by Detroit in the 5th round (128th overall) turns out is the nephew of former NHL’er Dave Ellett who played for Winnipeg, Toronto, New Jersey, Boston, and St. Louis.

With a new AHL city planned for Palm Springs, CA coming into the league by 2021 one of the cities from the old AHL Maritime Division Fredericton is getting a new Junior A franchise in the Maritime Junior Hockey League (MJAHL) with the Fredericton (New Brunswick) Jr. Red Wings.

One big change in Charlotte late yesterday as their head coach and GM (plus Carolina AGM) Mike Vellucci an ex-Whaler, stepped down yesterday after 27 years in the family starting back in Plymouth (OHL) (nee Flint) then owned by Compuware.

Cantlon’s Corner has learned Vellucci is heading to Wilkes Barre/Scranton in the same capacity.