With extra time and space (much like a forward on a breakaway) due to the Olympic break, I thought it would be an ideal time to check up on our prospects at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
With all the trades and player movement engineered from above, things have been a bit topsy-turvy for the Baby Pens in terms of roster composition. That includes the departures of mainstays Sam Poulin and Valtteri Puustinen, not to mention veteran NHLers Danton Heinen and Philip Tomasino.
Yet through the almost constant shuffles, coach Kirk MacDonald’s crew have scarcely missed a beat. The Baby Pens are currently second in the AHL Atlantic Division with a record of 32-12-2-2 and 68 points. Their .708 points percentage? Fourth-best out of 32 teams.
While no individual skater has broken out for a monster season, it’s been a collective effort with every one contributing, much like our Pens. However, two players are a notch above in terms of production. Center Tristan Broz leads the pack with 30 points (14+16) in 38 games, followed in close order by Avery Hayes (pictured) and his team-best 16 goals and 26 points in 32 games.
Following his Pens-ational, two-goal NHL debut in Buffalo on Thursday night, Hayes returned to Wilkes in grand style to register 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, 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 Koivunen, has 25 points in 20 games, including six goals.
Despite his prolific output, the latter stat is mildly concerning. Since being re-assigned to the Baby Pens on January 9, the 22-year-old Finn has just two goals in 14 games, mirroring his lack of finishing at the big-league level.
With all the departures, several players have stepped up to fill more prominent roles. Undrafted forwards Atley Calvert (26 points in 47 games) and Gabe Klassen (12 goals in 38 games) have emerged as solid producers. So have off-season pickups Aidan McDonough (11 goals, 24 points) and Rafaël Harvey-Pinard (13 goals). Grizzled AHL vets Boko Imama, Joona Koppanen and Philip Kemp are on hand to provide leadership and support.
Melvin Fernström and feisty Tanner Howe joined the team in the last week. Each has already contributed a goal.
On defense, veteran Matt Dumba’s been positively on fire late, putting up a staggering 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 night.
Among the kids, with five goals, 19 points and a plus-12 in 45 games, Owen Pickering seems to be figuring things out. Perhaps there’s still hope for the former first-rounder. Easy to forget he just turned 22.
A pair of right-shot rookie pros, Chase Pietila and Finn Harding, are also emerging. The former as a rugged, 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 seem to be an anomaly, he was a combined plus-85 his final two season in junior with the Mississauga/Brampton Steelheads. A potential steal as a seventh-round pick.
Hulking left-sider Alexander Alexyev returned from an extended stint on IR and assisted against Hershey. Fellow port-sider Emil Pieniniemi joined the team following a recent promotion from Wheeling.
Of course, the real story is in goal, where top prospects Sergei Murashov and Joel Blomqvist have formed a dynamic rotation. Murashov’s stats are truly eye-catching. An 18-5-0-2 record with a 2.11 goals against average and .924 save percentage. Blomqvist’s are darn good, too, an 8-4-3-1 record to go with a 2.43 goals against average and .916 save percentage.
Of mild concern? With an .891 save percentage and 3.17 goals against average, the latter’s play has slipped a bit over his past six starts.
A final observation. Go back to Ron Hextall’s final season or even Kyle Dubas’s first season and you’ll note the paucity of prospects on the Baby Pens. Now the club’s virtually teeming with good, young talent.
A tribute to the masterful job Dubas and his staff have done, and in a relatively short time to boot!