From the Eagles Desk: A Little Inconsistent
A good week for the beloved Eagles as they win 3 out of 4 in regulation and move back into the 4th spot in the Pacific Division. Lots of lineup and roster fluctuations thanks to constant injuries for the Avs but that didn’t seem to phase them. Werner gets a shutout and gets called up, Miska steps in and wins two. Megna, Tynan and Connauton called up and youngsters fill the void. This is how it’s supposed to work in the AHL but so rarely does.
Injuries/Transactions
Jayson Megna was returned to the Eagles last Wednesday and TJ Tynan called up. Megna went back to the Avs last Friday.
Adam Werner got his first NHL callup on Wednesday and won his first game vs Winnipeg. Mason McDonald was called up from the Grizzlies to back up Hunter Miska.
Michael Joly returned to the lineup Saturday against Texas after missing time with UBI.
Martin Kaut missed all 4 games with UBI
AJ Greer completed his 6-game suspension and played vs the Stars and Rampage
Ty Lewis was assigned to Utah last Friday.
Kevin Connauton and Logan O’Connor were called up Tuesday but not in time to meet the Avs in Winnipeg. O’Connor was subsequently sent back to make room for Antoine Bibeau on the Avs roster.
Ryan Wagner was recalled from Utah on Wednesday
COL 4 – ONT 0
Goals: Dries (Rosen, Tynan), O’Connor (Dries, Rosen), Nantel (Dickinson, Campbell), Tynan (O’Connor, Timmins)
Shots: +43/-30
PP 2/6, PK 3/3
Lineup:
Condra – Tynan – LOC
Dries – Bowers – Campbell
MacDonald – Dickie – Nantel
Barron – Igor – Hank
Renouf – Alt
Lindholm – Rosen
Connauton – Timmins
Werner
Miska
Scratch: Kaut (UBI), Joly (UBI), Greer (suspension), Anderson, Bibeau
COL 0 – ONT 4
Goals: none
Shots: +23/-27
PP 0/4, PK 4/5
Lineup:
Condra – Megna – LOC
Dries – Bowers – Campbell
MacDonald – Dickie – Nantel
Barron – Igor – Hank
Renouf – Alt
Lindholm – Rosen
Connauton – Timmins
Werner
Miska
Scratch: Kaut (UBI), Joly (UBI), Greer (suspension), Anderson, Bibeau
COL 5 – TEX 2
Goals: MacDonald (Rosen, Condra), Bowers (LOC, Henry), LOC (Nantel, Connauton), Greer (Joly, Bowers), Greer (Dries, LOC)
Shots: +31/-30
PP 1/4, PK 2/2
Lineup:
Hank – Bowers – LOC
Greer – Dries – Joly
Mac – Dickie – Condra
Nantel – Igor – Campbell
Renouf – Alt
Lindholm – Rosen
Connauton – Timmy
Miska
McDonald
Scratch: Kaut (UBI), Barron, Anderson, Bibeau
COL 3 – SAR 1
Goals: MacDonald (Dickinson), Condra (Dickinson, Alt), Shvyrev (Nantel)
Shots: +19/-39
PP 0/2, PK 1/2
Lineup:
Greer – Dries – Joly
Henry – Bowers – Campbell
MacDonald – Dickinson – Condra
Nantel – Shvyrev – Barron
Renouf – Alt
Lindholm – Rosen
Anderson – Timmins
Miska
McDonald
Scratch: Kaut (UBI), Bibeau
Breaking Down: Week 7
Goals: +16/-11
Shots: +116/-126
Shooting percentage: 13.8%
Save percentage: 91.3%
PDO: 105.1
Finally, an above average shooting stretch. Four goals per game is a lot to ask but it’s good to get in a groove after being stymied so often in October. I still have my doubts about the offensive structure but the confidence can’t hurt.
Shot numbers are skewed from the Rampage game but reflective of the team having the lead a lot more than usual. They still rely far too much on low-percentage point shots but that’s an organizational flaw.
PP: 3/16
PK: 10/12
Good week for special teams. The power play doubled their season total and didn’t even give up a shortie. The PK gave up 1 vs Ontario in 9 chances, so about average for them. The Rampage have a top 5 PP and scored once so that’s not a surprise either. The power play had 2 in the first Ontario game and along with the perfect kill had a big hand in that victory (and shutout). Texas is just a bad team but special teams were a positive there too.
Your scoring star of the week is Logan O’Connor with 2 goals and 3 assists and that’s with missing the San Antonio game due to a callup. Dries and Nantel both had a goal and 2 assists and Rosen and Dickinson both had 3 assists apiece. Shoutouts to Shane Bowers for his first AHL goal, AJ Greer with 2 goals against Texas returning from suspension and Jacob MacDonald with 2 goals on the week.
Overview
Adam Werner earned his first AHL shutout in last Tuesday’s home game vs Ontario. The next night wasn’t so hot losing 4-0. It’s an interesting parallel with his callup to the Avalanche where he came in and pitched a 40-save (combined) shutout vs Winnipeg then struggled a bit next time vs Edmonton. That’s very rookie-ish and something that experience will eventually even out. Overall the Avs have to be very excited about his performance in North America so far. It’s probably more than they envisioned with the early call up and playing two full games in the NHL already but he’s shown the potential to belong there.
Coach Cronin remarked before the San Antonio game that the Eagles are starting to play like a team and I agree. Last week I wrote that they needed an identity or a style that everyone can buy into. I’m not sure what that is exactly yet but the speed element was a factor in their 3 victories this week.
Scoring is starting to spread out a bit too. 5 guys – Rosen, Nantel, Dickinson, Bowers and Greer – doubled or more than doubled their point totals on the season over these 4 games. Tynan and Megna only played one game each (and not the same one) so by necessity the staff put more responsibility on other guys and they responded. Megna is a major shot driver and Tynan is the top point producer by a large margin but Colorado was able to get the job done without them. I’m hoping when they return the staff spread them out more than they were in the first 9 games of the season because they don’t seem to need a top-heavy lineup to win.
For a defenseman, Jacob MacDonald makes a pretty good forward. Cronin said that he’d rather be on the blueline and that’s probably where he’s most useful. He danced around the organizational philosophy of having 4 defensive defensemen and 2 puck-movers as the default lineup, saying it was purely a numbers situation, but it’s pretty clear that both the Avs and Eagles bend over backwards to get 4 defensive guys dressed every night. Right now Timmins and Rosen are the two puck-movers so they are either going to have to change their thinking or make some weird lineup choices with healthy rosters.
Next up
This is fun. Weekend series with Bakersfield in a rematch of last year’s playoffs.
Thanks to the AHL for stats and standings and to the Colorado Eagles for the feature photo.
I’m trying to be optimistic about this season. We have so much talent. I keep thinking, ‘They’ll start clicking eventually.’ Then I remember that I said that all the way through April last season. They’ll have one or two games where I think, “This is it. They have it now.” And then the next weekend, they fall apart.
I guess I wonder if the lack of team identity is on Cronin, or if it’s a product of the AHL? Granted, there are guys moving up and down in the ECHL too, but our ECHL teams definitely seemed to have each other’s back more. Now, it feels like it’s every man for himself, to hell with the rest of the team. I realize they’d all rather be playing with the big club, but there’s a real feeling right now that many of them resent playing in Loveland. (Underscored by rumors that players bitch about any of the events where they have to meet the fans. I know I’m comparing apples to oranges here, but our ECHL guys were AMAZING when it came to hanging out with fans. It’s really disheartening to hear that these guys have so little regard for the people supporting them.) So (to return to my point, after straying a bit), I don’t know if this feeling of not really being a cohesive TEAM is a coaching issue, or an AHL issue?
On a totally unrelated note: do you know anything about how Saigeon is doing? At the 2018 training camp, he was all I heard about. I had really high hopes for him. Now he’s all the way down in Utah. Based on stats I see, he seems to be doing okay, but not great. But I know stats don’t always tell the full story. Just curious if anybody knows how he looks.
As always, I appreciate the Eagles coverage! Fingers crossed for this weekend’s games.