OT: Link to Thunderbirds playoff game

[somni]

Didn't see it posted but Springfield lost Game 2 in OT 1-0.
60 min of shutout by Ellis couldn't get it done.
Deciding game is 2pm central today

obviously Ellis isn't shooting enough

Goalies are voodoo but we are in the time of Jobu so I am willing to speculate that if someone throws a big offer sheet at Hofer this summer the Blues will have an internal option.

In all seriousness, how is Ellis' puck handling? That's one thing Hofer and Binny are elite at and defines the Blues' game flow.

[seattleblue]

Didn't see it posted but Springfield lost Game 2 in OT 1-0.
60 min of shutout by Ellis couldn't get it done.
Deciding game is 2pm central today

obviously Ellis isn't shooting enough

Goalies are voodoo but we are in the time of Jobu so I am willing to speculate that if someone throws a big offer sheet at Hofer this summer the Blues will have an internal option.

In all seriousness, how is Ellis' puck handling? That's one thing Hofer and Binny are elite at and defines the Blues' game flow.

Despite a fondness for a poster's schtick who was named goalie, I admit I am not super goalie focused when I am watching these games. For one thing I am not a goalie so I don't break a goalie's game down in my head they way a real expert would. My impression from the games I have seen is he's not on the Binnington/Hofer level of puck handler. But someone who watches him more closely could possibly disagree.

Despite that caveat I know when I am watching a goalie who is locked in and he is locked in right now and seemingly has been a lot of the season. Springfield as a team is very mediocre and he keeps them in it more than they deserve. It's nice that he looks ready to do some NHL backup work.

I imagine the Blues intend to re-sign Hofer but given the way goalies are at a premium and the offer sheets from last summer it's not outside the realm of possibility there's a sheet. Maybe there are numbers the Blues don't want to match and would let him go and take the picks? Probably not though, or else someone is way overpaying Hofer on hope.

[moose-and-squirrel]

Didn't see it posted but Springfield lost Game 2 in OT 1-0.
60 min of shutout by Ellis couldn't get it done.
Deciding game is 2pm central today

obviously Ellis isn't shooting enough

Goalies are voodoo but we are in the time of Jobu so I am willing to speculate that if someone throws a big offer sheet at Hofer this summer the Blues will have an internal option.

In all seriousness, how is Ellis' puck handling? That's one thing Hofer and Binny are elite at and defines the Blues' game flow.

Despite a fondness for a poster's schtick who was named goalie, I admit I am not super goalie focused when I am watching these games. For one thing I am not a goalie so I don't break a goalie's game down in my head they way a real expert would. My impression from the games I have seen is he's not on the Binnington/Hofer level of puck handler. But someone who watches him more closely could possibly disagree.

Despite that caveat I know when I am watching a goalie who is locked in and he is locked in right now and seemingly has been a lot of the season. Springfield as a team is very mediocre and he keeps them in it more than they deserve. It's nice that he looks ready to do some NHL backup work.

I imagine the Blues intend to re-sign Hofer but given the way goalies are at a premium and the offer sheets from last summer it's not outside the realm of possibility there's a sheet. Maybe there are numbers the Blues don't want to match and would let him go and take the picks? Probably not though, or else someone is way overpaying Hofer on hope.

not particularly as a pay back type of thing, but EDM should be at least trying to trade for Hofer, if not OS him. he'd be exactly what they need

[STL fan in MN]

Didn't see it posted but Springfield lost Game 2 in OT 1-0.
60 min of shutout by Ellis couldn't get it done.
Deciding game is 2pm central today

obviously Ellis isn't shooting enough

Goalies are voodoo but we are in the time of Jobu so I am willing to speculate that if someone throws a big offer sheet at Hofer this summer the Blues will have an internal option.

In all seriousness, how is Ellis' puck handling? That's one thing Hofer and Binny are elite at and defines the Blues' game flow.

Despite a fondness for a poster's schtick who was named goalie, I admit I am not super goalie focused when I am watching these games. For one thing I am not a goalie so I don't break a goalie's game down in my head they way a real expert would. My impression from the games I have seen is he's not on the Binnington/Hofer level of puck handler. But someone who watches him more closely could possibly disagree.

Despite that caveat I know when I am watching a goalie who is locked in and he is locked in right now and seemingly has been a lot of the season. Springfield as a team is very mediocre and he keeps them in it more than they deserve. It's nice that he looks ready to do some NHL backup work.

I imagine the Blues intend to re-sign Hofer but given the way goalies are at a premium and the offer sheets from last summer it's not outside the realm of possibility there's a sheet. Maybe there are numbers the Blues don't want to match and would let him go and take the picks? Probably not though, or else someone is way overpaying Hofer on hope.

not particularly as a pay back type of thing, but EDM should be at least trying to trade for Hofer, if not OS him. he'd be exactly what they need

They have Bouchard they need to re-sign themselves and he’s wanting $9M/year. Someone might offer sheet Hofer but i doubt it’ll be the Oilers. They just don’t have the cap room to offer Hofer anything close to a number that would make the Blues not match.

That said, I highly doubt Army lets it get that far but I suppose that depends on just how much Hofer is asking for. Army has said that they will be sure to have enough cap space available to be able to match anything they want. But if some team offers so much as to then way overpay Hofer and the Blues are satisfied with the compensation then I could see them letting him go. But no way they’d let him go for a 2nd. It’d have to high enough to trigger the compensation being a 1st and 3rd…and I’d be surprised if a team would be willing to bet that much on Hofer. But who knows, there’s some teams out there that desperately need a goalie.

Agree the Oilers should pursue the trade route, whether that’s Hofer or someone else. It’s been clear as day for a couple years now that Skinner isn’t the guy. They are absolutely wasting the primes of McDavid and Drai and it’s not good for the league tbh.

[seattleblue]

Didn't see it posted but Springfield lost Game 2 in OT 1-0.
60 min of shutout by Ellis couldn't get it done.
Deciding game is 2pm central today

obviously Ellis isn't shooting enough

Goalies are voodoo but we are in the time of Jobu so I am willing to speculate that if someone throws a big offer sheet at Hofer this summer the Blues will have an internal option.

In all seriousness, how is Ellis' puck handling? That's one thing Hofer and Binny are elite at and defines the Blues' game flow.

Despite a fondness for a poster's schtick who was named goalie, I admit I am not super goalie focused when I am watching these games. For one thing I am not a goalie so I don't break a goalie's game down in my head they way a real expert would. My impression from the games I have seen is he's not on the Binnington/Hofer level of puck handler. But someone who watches him more closely could possibly disagree.

Despite that caveat I know when I am watching a goalie who is locked in and he is locked in right now and seemingly has been a lot of the season. Springfield as a team is very mediocre and he keeps them in it more than they deserve. It's nice that he looks ready to do some NHL backup work.

I imagine the Blues intend to re-sign Hofer but given the way goalies are at a premium and the offer sheets from last summer it's not outside the realm of possibility there's a sheet. Maybe there are numbers the Blues don't want to match and would let him go and take the picks? Probably not though, or else someone is way overpaying Hofer on hope.

not particularly as a pay back type of thing, but EDM should be at least trying to trade for Hofer, if not OS him. he'd be exactly what they need

They have Bouchard they need to re-sign themselves and he’s wanting $9M/year. Someone might offer sheet Hofer but i doubt it’ll be the Oilers. They just don’t have the cap room to offer Hofer anything close to a number that would make the Blues not match.

That said, I highly doubt Army lets it get that far but I suppose that depends on just how much Hofer is asking for. Army has said that they will be sure to have enough cap space available to be able to match anything they want. But if some team offers so much as to then way overpay Hofer and the Blues are satisfied with the compensation then I could see them letting him go. But no way they’d let him go for a 2nd. It’d have to high enough to trigger the compensation being a 1st and 3rd…and I’d be surprised if a team would be willing to bet that much on Hofer. But who knows, there’s some teams out there that desperately need a goalie.

Agree the Oilers should pursue the trade route, whether that’s Hofer or someone else. It’s been clear as day for a couple years now that Skinner isn’t the guy. They are absolutely wasting the primes of McDavid and Drai and it’s not good for the league tbh.

2024 range of compensation getting 1st/3d round picks back =
$4,580,917 - $6,871,374

will increase for next year

what if someone offered 6 x some number in that range? would we match? would an offer like that ever happen?

[STL fan in MN]

Didn't see it posted but Springfield lost Game 2 in OT 1-0.
60 min of shutout by Ellis couldn't get it done.
Deciding game is 2pm central today

obviously Ellis isn't shooting enough

Goalies are voodoo but we are in the time of Jobu so I am willing to speculate that if someone throws a big offer sheet at Hofer this summer the Blues will have an internal option.

In all seriousness, how is Ellis' puck handling? That's one thing Hofer and Binny are elite at and defines the Blues' game flow.

That’s a good question. I’d say it’s about average. Not on the Binner/Hofer tier but few are. Maybe Binner or Hofer can give him some tips over the next year or two as man does that make a difference in the transition game.

Completely agree with Seattle though in Ellis being locked in. He’s simply been money all year. The T-birds were one of the youngest teams in the AHL this season (tons of rookies). I’m not sure if the AHL tracks underlying metrics/fancy stats but I’d have to guess they’d be pretty bad. TBH, they’re not a very good team. But Ellis has made them about a .500 team. They’re the #6 seed in their bracket and facing #3 Providence. Whoever wins today goes on to play #1 Hershey. They probably won’t make it very far in the playoffs but it’d be nice experience for a lot of them if they got to go beyond today. Ellis was voted team MVP and there was really no other choice. He’s been that good for them.

24 months ago, Ellis was struggling in the ECHL. 18 months ago, he was doing so-so in the ECHL. Then all of a sudden something clicked and he started dominating the ECHL, got promoted to the AHL and hasn’t looked back since. 2 years ago, he was an afterthought to me. I had him ranked around 25 in our prospect pool and didn’t think he had a future. Now he’s top-10 IMO and has a real shot at an NHL career IMO. He’s very calm and always locked in. I honestly can’t think of him giving up a bad goal. He just doesn’t let in softies. Very technically sound and always on his game.

The big test will be when he brings those qualities against the best shooters in the world in the NHL. It’s just such an unknown until you see it happen but I like his potential.

[STL fan in MN]

Didn't see it posted but Springfield lost Game 2 in OT 1-0.
60 min of shutout by Ellis couldn't get it done.
Deciding game is 2pm central today

obviously Ellis isn't shooting enough

Goalies are voodoo but we are in the time of Jobu so I am willing to speculate that if someone throws a big offer sheet at Hofer this summer the Blues will have an internal option.

In all seriousness, how is Ellis' puck handling? That's one thing Hofer and Binny are elite at and defines the Blues' game flow.

Despite a fondness for a poster's schtick who was named goalie, I admit I am not super goalie focused when I am watching these games. For one thing I am not a goalie so I don't break a goalie's game down in my head they way a real expert would. My impression from the games I have seen is he's not on the Binnington/Hofer level of puck handler. But someone who watches him more closely could possibly disagree.

Despite that caveat I know when I am watching a goalie who is locked in and he is locked in right now and seemingly has been a lot of the season. Springfield as a team is very mediocre and he keeps them in it more than they deserve. It's nice that he looks ready to do some NHL backup work.

I imagine the Blues intend to re-sign Hofer but given the way goalies are at a premium and the offer sheets from last summer it's not outside the realm of possibility there's a sheet. Maybe there are numbers the Blues don't want to match and would let him go and take the picks? Probably not though, or else someone is way overpaying Hofer on hope.

not particularly as a pay back type of thing, but EDM should be at least trying to trade for Hofer, if not OS him. he'd be exactly what they need

They have Bouchard they need to re-sign themselves and he’s wanting $9M/year. Someone might offer sheet Hofer but i doubt it’ll be the Oilers. They just don’t have the cap room to offer Hofer anything close to a number that would make the Blues not match.

That said, I highly doubt Army lets it get that far but I suppose that depends on just how much Hofer is asking for. Army has said that they will be sure to have enough cap space available to be able to match anything they want. But if some team offers so much as to then way overpay Hofer and the Blues are satisfied with the compensation then I could see them letting him go. But no way they’d let him go for a 2nd. It’d have to high enough to trigger the compensation being a 1st and 3rd…and I’d be surprised if a team would be willing to bet that much on Hofer. But who knows, there’s some teams out there that desperately need a goalie.

Agree the Oilers should pursue the trade route, whether that’s Hofer or someone else. It’s been clear as day for a couple years now that Skinner isn’t the guy. They are absolutely wasting the primes of McDavid and Drai and it’s not good for the league tbh.

2024 range of compensation getting 1st/3d round picks back =
$4,580,917 - $6,871,374

will increase for next year

what if someone offered 6 x some number in that range? would we match? would an offer like that ever happen?

Hard to say but I doubt a team would offer that. One wrinkle in offer sheets though is how the AAV Iis calculated for any offer over 4 years - the AAV is divided by 4, even if it’s 5, 6 or 7 years. So let’s say a team offered Hofer $4.7M for 6 years. That’d be $28.2m total but the AAV would be 7.05M, so the compensation would be even more.

[seattleblue]

Didn't see it posted but Springfield lost Game 2 in OT 1-0.
60 min of shutout by Ellis couldn't get it done.
Deciding game is 2pm central today

obviously Ellis isn't shooting enough

Goalies are voodoo but we are in the time of Jobu so I am willing to speculate that if someone throws a big offer sheet at Hofer this summer the Blues will have an internal option.

In all seriousness, how is Ellis' puck handling? That's one thing Hofer and Binny are elite at and defines the Blues' game flow.

Despite a fondness for a poster's schtick who was named goalie, I admit I am not super goalie focused when I am watching these games. For one thing I am not a goalie so I don't break a goalie's game down in my head they way a real expert would. My impression from the games I have seen is he's not on the Binnington/Hofer level of puck handler. But someone who watches him more closely could possibly disagree.

Despite that caveat I know when I am watching a goalie who is locked in and he is locked in right now and seemingly has been a lot of the season. Springfield as a team is very mediocre and he keeps them in it more than they deserve. It's nice that he looks ready to do some NHL backup work.

I imagine the Blues intend to re-sign Hofer but given the way goalies are at a premium and the offer sheets from last summer it's not outside the realm of possibility there's a sheet. Maybe there are numbers the Blues don't want to match and would let him go and take the picks? Probably not though, or else someone is way overpaying Hofer on hope.

not particularly as a pay back type of thing, but EDM should be at least trying to trade for Hofer, if not OS him. he'd be exactly what they need

They have Bouchard they need to re-sign themselves and he’s wanting $9M/year. Someone might offer sheet Hofer but i doubt it’ll be the Oilers. They just don’t have the cap room to offer Hofer anything close to a number that would make the Blues not match.

That said, I highly doubt Army lets it get that far but I suppose that depends on just how much Hofer is asking for. Army has said that they will be sure to have enough cap space available to be able to match anything they want. But if some team offers so much as to then way overpay Hofer and the Blues are satisfied with the compensation then I could see them letting him go. But no way they’d let him go for a 2nd. It’d have to high enough to trigger the compensation being a 1st and 3rd…and I’d be surprised if a team would be willing to bet that much on Hofer. But who knows, there’s some teams out there that desperately need a goalie.

Agree the Oilers should pursue the trade route, whether that’s Hofer or someone else. It’s been clear as day for a couple years now that Skinner isn’t the guy. They are absolutely wasting the primes of McDavid and Drai and it’s not good for the league tbh.

2024 range of compensation getting 1st/3d round picks back =
$4,580,917 - $6,871,374

will increase for next year

what if someone offered 6 x some number in that range? would we match? would an offer like that ever happen?

Hard to say but I doubt a team would offer that. One wrinkle in offer sheets though is how the AAV Iis calculated for any offer over 4 years - the AAV is divided by 4, even if it’s 5, 6 or 7 years. So let’s say a team offered Hofer $4.7M for 6 years. That’d be $28.2m total but the AAV would be 7.05M, so the compensation would be even more.

I did not know the offer compensation and the 4 year rule, thanks!

1-1 after 2 periods in Providence in the deciding third game ...

[seattleblue]

Providence breaks the tie with their second power play goal of the game to take their first lead in the series in regulation
Then Providence scores about a minute later and it's 3-1 and about 11 min left in our AHL team's season perhaps ...

[STL fan in MN]

Yep, 3-1 Providence with 8 min left. T-birds getting outshot 32-13. Season about to end unfortunately but good experience for a lot of our prospects.

Expect quite a few of them to be called up as black aces as soon as tomorrow.

[seattleblue]

Send the black aces to Winnipeg!

That was a third period SLAUGHTER. 4 goals for a 5-1 final. Springfield was called for four minor penalties and shots were 21-3 in the period and the 3 was generous. The first two shots were a muffin from the left point at 6:20 or so left and a muffin from the right point with 4 min or so left and that was it.

Was nice watching Dalibor Dvorsky's last shift in the AHL!