All posts by Rob Cooke

I will come back to this when I can think of something interesting to say here.

Beer League Heroes 15 -16 Season Primers: The Calgary Flames

Welcome back to the season primer series. The Calgary Flames were the team that everyone expected to come crashing back to earth all year last year and somehow they never did. The analytics crowd was screaming that the teams PDO had to come back to an even level and there was little to no chance that they could sustain their productivity through-out the entire year. Well they did and that just allowed the media and analytics crowd to change their tune to they won’t be able to duplicate that success next year. The Flames had solid defense all season, even when Captain Mark Giordano went down with a season ending injury the rest of the rear guards picked up the slack and soldiered on. Add in up and coming top pairing defender Dougie Hamilton to the mix and Calgary now has one of the best defense cores in the league.

Key Additions: RW Michael Frolik, D Dougie Hamilton

Key Subtractions: D David Schlemko, RW Brian McGrattan, D Corey Potter, D Raphael Diaz

Calgary only added two players this summer but the two that they did add are excellent additions to the team. Dougie Hamilton has the ability to be a top pairing guy in the NHL for a very long time. Michael Frolik brings decent size but more importantly he brings a veteran presence and should be good for between 15 and 20 goals.

Projected Lines (All Players Healthy):

Johnny Gaudreau – Sean Monahan – Jiri Hudler
Sam Bennett – Mikael Backlund – Michael Frolik
Mason Raymond – Josh Jooris – Joe Colborne
Michael Ferland – Matt Stajan – David Jones

TJ Brodie – Mark Giordano
Kris Russel – Dougie Hamilton
Deryk Engelland – Dennis Wideman

Jonas Hiller
Karri Ramo

Roster Contenders: D Ladislav Smid, LW Brandon Bollig, C Lance Bouma, C Paul Byron, C Markus Granlund, D Tyler Wotherspoon, and G Joni Ortio.

Calgary seems to have a roster that is pretty much set even before we enter training camp. A player like Ladi Smid will likely end up being the 7th defender but will still see significant time because we all know how hard it is to keep six healthy defensemen all season.

The key concern with Calgary is going to be their forward depth again this year. Outside of the top line there isn’t anyone on the team that can be counted on for a 20-goal season. Frolik is a possibility but since he hasn’t gotten there yet I wouldn’t hold my breath.

The Flames defense is what is going to power them through for the most part this season. We know Monahan is good for 20 plus goals and so is Gaudreau, well as long as he doesn’t hit the dreaded sophomore slump.

People have been expecting a Calgary regression since November of last year and it never happened. Sorry Oilers fans but it isn’t going to happen this year either. Calgary will be in the playoff picture come April. In what slot is anyone’s guess though.


 

If you are a Flames fan or know of one please direct them to our t-shirt shop. We have 16-Bit Johnny Gaudreau, Sam Bennett, Sean Monahan, Dougie Hamilton, and Mark Giordano all waiting to go to a caring home where they can keep you warm throughout those “miserable” Calgary winters…

Thanks for reading and let us know in the comments below if you think the Flames are due to make the playoffs again this year?

Stay tuned for the next installment of the Beer League Heroes Season Primers series!

Oilers Firsts.

There are seventeen days between now and the official opening of the 2015/16 season. The young stars tournament held annually in Penticton to me are when things really start to get exciting. This is our first chance to see some of these budding young players in actual games with physical contact. More importantly this is the first time we will get to see Connor McDavid play against someone other than his own teammates in a non-contact game. While I am not discounting his 5 goal performance in the Billy Moores cup it was just a prospect game which obviously presents little in the way of a challenge for Connor.

Thinking about Penticton and all the excitement that will surround the bustling little city gets me to thinking of all the Oilers firsts that we are going to witness this coming season, both for young McJesus and the Oilers in general. The first goal of the season, the first multi-point and multi-goal games of the year. The first time we see hats rain from the sky in celebration. The first pugilistic event of the season, good or bad it’s going to happen soon enough people. The first time the boys bring home the clean sheet and how long into the season will we be forced to wait to see the boys in blue victorious? One final thought I just had, hopefully not the final one ever by the way, was will the Oilers be the first team in NHL history to have four 1st overall picks score for one team in one game? Wouldn’t that be something to see!

That’s a lot of season highlights and they could all happen within the first two to three weeks of the season if things break right finally for these boys. With all the excitement that this train of thought is giving to Oilers fans the world over it is time to make some predictions. I want to hear from as many of you as possible too. Let’s all make our best guesses o all the topics above. The prize will be nothing more than bragging rights but you will get to hold your head high knowing that you somehow pulled a guess out of your ass that actually turned out to be true. I know if I am right I plan to laud it over everyone for as long as I possibly can and if not then I will erase all trace of this conversation having taken place and vehemently deny any and all predictions.

With that being said let’s get down to business and start with the guessing.

First goal of the season/ first goal for Connor McDavid

The first goal of the season will come in St. Louis on October 8th. I think everyone knows that by now. If you don’t then what the hell man? You really need to straighten out your priorities! As you can see I added in McDavid’s first goal as well because 95% of the excitement this off-season is directly related to this amazing young man. And now for the official proclamation, (drumroll please) the player that will score the first goal of the 2015/16 season for the Edmonton Oilers will be…..

The crowd won’t obviously go wild and bras won’t rain from the sky for our very own baby Nuge when he lights the lamp midway through the first period in the Scottrade center. That will unfortunately have to wait a week until the very same Blues will visit Rexall to open the final season of the old barn. Young Connor will light the lamp for his first goal of the season in his second game as a pro. He will score a highlight reel beauty streaking off the wing to beat Rinne. Yeah I know that is a pretty detailed prediction but this is the big leagues folks and if you wanna play with the big boys its time to put on your big boy undies, yeah the ones your mom laid out will be fine, and get to guessing!

 

The first multi-point and multi-goal games of the season/ McDavid as well.

There is an immense amount of talent in the Oilers top six, hell there was a lot before we added Connor. The phenom just pushed us even higher. Obviously with that amount of firepower it will be a little harder to accurately predict who will be the first to register a two or more point game and a two or more goal performance. Since there is a fairly decent chance that these both don’t occur on the same night we will make separate guesstimates for both. The first player to record a multi-point game will be…

Again the award goes the Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. The first multi-point game of the season will in fact be the season opener in St. Louis. Nugey will contribute a goal in the first period as we already determined but he will add an assist on a Jordan Eberle third period goal as well to take the honors. Connor will have his first two point night against Dallas in the 3rd game of the season.

The first player to score more than one goal is something altogether different and I really don’t see this one going to RNH. Nuge is more of a playmaker than a sniper and because of that he will prefer to pass the puck more often than not. The winner of the award for first multi-goal game goes to….

Hallsy is still our best offensive weapon for the coming season and adding McDavid as his center is only going to take the speedster to new heights. It won’t take very long for Hall to bulge the twine on more than one occasion in a game. I’m guessing that he completes the task in Dallas against the Stars on the 13th of October. Dallas bled goals last season and with relatively the same D-corps and same starting netminder could see the trend continue this year. Dallas’ saving grace is that for as badly as they give up goals they are also able to find the back of the net more often than nearly any team in the league. Hall will score twice that night and both will be off of passes from Connor McDavid. Goals are obviously a tad bit harder to come by than assists in the NHL so it will be a little longer before Connor is able to see the red light go on twice or more in a game. Although I don’t think that he will have to wait that long and will manage to accomplish the feat in the Battle of Alberta game on the 17th of October.

 

First Hattrick of the season

The first time that the heavens will open up and hats will pour from the sky will be a truly glorious event to behold for the thousands in attendance and the hundreds of thousands if not millions watching on television at home. Should it occur on home ice you can guarantee a delay in the game while all the errant hats are rounded up and removed from the ice. Even on the road most other teams fans realize how special a three goal performance is and will generally litter the ice with more than a few sun blockers. How long will we be forced to wait to see this wonderous occurrence? Well if my guess is right it shouldn’t take that long at all! The first player to record a three goal game will be…

 

The first time that we will see hats raining from the sky will in fact by off of the stick of our young saviour Connor McDavid. Not only will the future of the franchise be the first to score a hattrick this season, which is wonderful news in itself, but he will do so in his first multi-goal game of the season too! That’s right folks. I predict that the first time we see the threepeat will be on the 17th of October live on CBC Hockey Night in Canada against the hated Flames. Calgary has been our most hated rival for virtually the entire time that the Oilers have been in the league and it usually means that the players are even more amped up to play than normal. Connor in a normal game will be a formidable player to watch but when he elevates his game to compete in the BOA he will be virtually unstoppable. Good news for Edmonton fans, not so good for Dougie Hamilton and Mark Giordano.

 

The First Fight/ Will McDavid fight?

The first fight of the season isn’t included as an important seasonal milestone as the rest we are discussing but this is still a contact sport and sooner or later tempers will flair and fists will fly. The only question is how many games it is going to take before we have a couple willing combatants? My guess for the player to drop the gloves and earn a 5 minute trip to the sin bin is going to be…

Matt Hendricks. We all know and love the guy for what he brings to this team and he seems to be a very well-respected vet by the younger guys on the team. Hendy is never going to be a dynamic offensive dynamo but what he does bring is a willingness to do all the little things and the work ethic to handle the tougher zone starts. Another great thing about Hendricks is his willingness to stand up for his teammates. He will definitely be the first guy to come to the defense of his team and I think we will see him drop his mitts if not against the Flames then on the very next night against the loathsome Vancouver Canucks. Will McDavid fight this coming season? I really doubt it, I m fairly certain he will be under fairly strict instructions to keep his gloves on and let others handle the physical violence when it is needed.

 

First shut-out of the season?

We have a new starting goalie this year in all likelihood. Cam Talbot is basically being gifted the job barring a horrendous camp from him or an absolutely amazing one from either Scrivens or Nillson. Smart money is that we will be seeing the ghostbuster mask belonging to Talbot in between the pipes far more often than the other two goalies combined. Even then just because you are getting the majority of the starts doesn’t necessarily mean that he will be the first to record a perfect game. The first goalie to record a shut-out this season will be…

Just kidding! There is pretty much no possible way that the first shut-out isn’t going to Cam. He is hopefully the future in goal for the Oilers and will want to establish himself as a bona fide starter sooner rather than later. My prediction is that his first one will come against the Detroit Red Wings on October 21st. Seeing as it will be only the second home game of the season after five out of the first six games are on the road should make for a very raucous crowd and a great time for Cam to show what he has to the Oilers faithful.

First win of the season?

Last season the Oilers played and lost the first five games of the season. They could only manage to earn one point out of the possible ten. A rough start to be sure but after the first five game skid the Oil managed to put together a fairly successful little streak winning the next four straight to nearly end the month of October. Edmonton only managed a 4-5-0-1 record in October last season and didn’t earn a win against a Western conference team until December 7th against Todd McLellan and his former team the San Jose Sharks. Not exactly awe-inspiring now is it. For the Oilers to show that they are a much improved team and that they will not again be the basement dwelling team that was nearly unable to beat any teams in their own conference they will need to set the tone early and what better way to do that then to walk into Scottrade Center in St. Louis on opening night and leave with their first two points of the season? That is right peeps, I am predicting that Edmonton, on the strength of the aforementioned RNH two point game, will slay the dragon right out of the gates and not only win their first game but do so against one of the big baddies from the West that they had so much trouble with in seasons past. Edmonton wins the game 3 to 1.

 

Will all four first overall picks score in one game?

I am not 100% positive but I am reasonably certain this would be an accomplishment that has never occurred in the NHL before. How cool would it be to see all four of these young stars light the lamp in one game? If it happened at home the roof would come off of Rexall in a quick hurry I can guarantee you that! The odds of something like this happening have to be fairly long. I can’t imagine a lot of people contacting Vegas to lay money down on a long shot like this. I completely agree that there is a better than good chance that this doesn’t happen. Not only this year but ever, but what kind of predictions would these be if I didn’t at least make a guess on the subject. My guess is that the Oilers will light up the Maple Leafs on November 30th in Toronto and show Leafs Nation exactly what they are missing by not having Connor. Couldn’t happen to a better group of fans! Leafs fans have always considered themselves the center of the hockey universe so what better place to make history than right there in the ACC.

I want to see your predictions now people. Who will score the first goal of the season? When Will Connor score his first? First multi-point and multi-goal games? For Connor? First fight, first shut-out and first win for the team? Let me know what you think in the comments. Hit me up on twitter, @cooke_rob, and send me your answers. I want to hear from you!

Be sure to check out Cooke Designs for the latest in Oilers designs and products and let me know if there is any special requests or issues that you have. If you have ordered from the store please tweet me a picture with your fresh new gear!

 

Cheers

Rob

Move McDavid to the Wing?

News in the NHL has slowed to a trickle over the last few weeks. Especially if you are a fan of the blue and orange. The only real notable news is the training camp invites and the venerable Lowetide has those covered for us here. There are a couple notable players on that list of camp invites. Especially defenseman Loik Leveille, forward Rihards Bukarts, and goaltender Jordan Papirny. All three are players that I would have though would have been drafted but the NHL is a different animal and the best players are not always the ones that are selected. The Oilers currently have eight players coming to camp on an invite but with nearly a month to go until camp officially opens we could still see more added to the list. I know a lot of people are still hoping to see diminutive forward Vladimir Tkachev receive an invite but I think that ship has sailed and should the pint-sized player receive said invitation I highly doubt it is with Edmonton.

So what else is there to discuss in Oiler-land? The vast majority of blog sites as well as most main stream media are busy with point projections, line combinations, and standings predictions at this point in the summer so that just goes to show just how little is actually happening at the Oilers offices over on Kingsway.

I happened to be surfing the web this morning and came across a few rumors that, while I don’t think are actually going to happen, still got me to thinking about possible changes that would greatly affect how Connor McDavid is used in his first season of professional hockey. The first rumor is the Kevin Shattenkirk for Jordan Eberle that is making the rounds on the net right now. I’m not going to say much about this proposal as it has been covered today already in the Sunday Night Pint by myself and several others. You really should read the post, it is a terrific series we run every Sunday. If you haven’t read it yet then shame on you but here is a quick link to the post. The other rumor that I read, and I have no intention of offering free publicity to the original poster, is that the New York Rangers supposedly have some interest in doing a swap of Keith Yandle for the so-called enigmatic Nail Yakupov. I would have to think about that deal long and hard before I decided either way but that is irrelevant at this point.

For my intents and purposes I want to assume that one of the two is moved. Return is of little consequence to this post because obviously if either is moved it will be for help on the back end and not a right wing that can play top six minutes. Should Peter Chiarelli decide to move either Ebs or Yak prior to the season than who can fill the hole left behind? That is the $64,000 question. Can Edmonton trade their best player on the starboard side for defensive help without bringing in help from outside the organization to fill it?

The funny thing is that prior to the draft lottery on April 18th, a night that will live forever to Oilers fans, I would have said there was absolutely no chance that Eberle would be moved as there just wasn’t anyone close to being able to fill his skates so to speak. Winning that lottery changed everything for the Oilers. We went from having a middle of the pack prospect group to have the best group in the entire league. Between McDavid, Draisaitl, Nurse and Reinhart we have four young players that should make huge impacts on this team sooner or later. My money is on sooner by the way.

Should Edmonton move Jordan we are left with a gaping hole on the right side that needs to be effectively filled for there to be any chance of a playoff appearance this season. Do any of the three other right wings that are expected to be on the opening night roster look like they are able to bring what Jordan does on a nightly basis? They sure don’t to me.

Likely the best option available may be for one of our two prospect centers to be moved to the right side and hope they are able to keep up. To me the two best options for a replacement from within would definitely be Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid. Both are extremely highly touted prospects and would both be able to handle the pressure of playing in the top six on the right side.

Obviously the issue here is which player would be better suited to the move? Everyone knows the scouting reports for these two players and what each kid will potentially bring to the line up. With Draisaitl we have a big player that has hands of silk and quite possibly the best passing ability on the entire team. He has 39 games of pro experience so he obviously already knows what it will take for him to be on the team for the duration. There isn’t really anything that needs to be said about McDavid that hasn’t already been said before by someone. He is the real deal and from where I stand I don’t really see any weaknesses in his game.

In my opinion the easiest way to answer the question of which guy to move is essentially answered by who would be more important to this team as a center this fall. If I was the general manager I think I would be inclined to put Leon at center and move Connor to the wing. If for no other reason than because Leon is huge! His size lends itself well to having to line up against the big bad centers of the western conference. To me Draisaitl would be much better equipped to do battle with the Getzlaf’s and Kopitar’s in the west than the smaller McDavid. Not that I think that Connor couldn’t handle it because he has excelled at every challenge that has been placed in front of him for the better part of the last decade so to count him out would be extremely foolish.

More than likely Connor would handle himself just fine as a rookie center in the NHL even if he doesn’t dominate from the outset but why add that extra pressure to a kid that is already under more pressure than any player since Crosby. I would actually venture to say that McDavid is under more pressure for the simple fact that the Oilers fans are such a ravenous bunch that most expect an immediate turn around now that he is in the fold even though one player can’t do it all on his own. Those are some insanely high expectations to place on an 18 year old kid. Even one that is as poised and mature as Connor appears to be.

What would you do? Would you move McDavid to the wing? Leon? Or do you have another option in mind? Personally I think both Ebs and Yak will be here come October and this argument will have been pointless. Fun but pointless nonetheless.

Be sure to check out Cooke Designs for my latest designs. All t-shirts are on sale for $14.00 each until after the Labor Day long weekend. In addition there is a 15% off back to school t-shirt sale starting later this month. Come and see all we have to offer!

What to do with Darnell?

The hype this summer is all surrounding the future of the Oilers, Connor McDavid, and rightly so. This is wonderful news to all other prospects coming in to training camp because the attention is going to be squarely focused on Connor. This will alleviate some of the stress that will come with trying to impress coaches and management during the young stars tournament and camp. One player that will look to make a big impression and secure a roster spot in his first professional season is Darnell Nurse. What to do with Darnell? That is the question of the day. Our very own Corey Mitchell has a great write-up on Nurse and his potential. If you want to take a look it’s here. He is writing a great series on the Edmonton prospects so be sure to check that out.

There is a lot to like about Darnell. He’s a good two-way defenseman. He’s big and very mobile for a kid his size. He has great positioning and is rarely beaten one on one. He has the ability to join the rush when needed and possesses good offensive instincts. He seems to really enjoy a physical game and brings a noticeable mean streak with him. He’s not afraid to mix it up when needed and is ready to come to the defense of teammates.

The question is what will he be when he reaches his prime? He definitely has the potential to be a true number one defender in the NHL for a long time but who knows when or if that will ever happen. The tea leaves are hard to read but there is some indication that he can get there. The kid is definitely trending in the right direction.

He played huge minutes for his junior team and was vital to the gold medal effort by the World Junior squad this past year. He played 25 minutes a night in all situations and faced the best players that the other teams had. In the playoffs his coach tried to get Darnell on the ice every time that McDavid was out there and he was the only player that seemed to be able to contain him in any way. Now don’t get me wrong Connor still dominated the series but Nurse didn’t look horribly overmatched like the rest of his team.

This coming season coach McLellan will have some very difficult decisions to make before the final cuts are made. Darnell is likely already a better option on the left side than either Nikitin or Ference but the experience factor is not something that I think Todd will easily discount. He will have to be significantly better in camp and the pre-season if he hopes to be on the opening night roster. What to do with Darnell?

In my honest opinion leaving him off the opening night roster isn’t the worst thing in the world and will show that the coaching staff greatly value experience. I think that Todd and company will choose to send Darnell down to Bakersfield to start the season. He will go down to the AHL for a spell and hone his game as a top pairing defender in a very good league.

Just because I think that the kid will start the season on the farm team by no means does that mean that he will finish there. He will likely be the first call up on the left side, and will see significant time in the NHL this season. Mt prediction is that he is on the active roster by the end of November and will then make it impossible for the team to send him back.

Is Darnell destined to be our number one defenseman? Will he start the year in Edmonton or Bakersfield? Time will tell but I want to know what you all think. Come on Beer Leaguers let me hear it. The comments section is just waiting to be blown up with your responses. All we ask is that you keep it in good taste. If the comment section isn’t your thing then you can let me know on Twitter, @cooke_rob, I welcome all to join in the discussion.

On a side note I am proud to finally announce that my very own online store is ready for its official launch! Before I get into things too much I want to thank my good friend the Beer League Hero for the use of his design and the inspiration to start the store in the first place! I’ve added several of my own designs and used them to make a wide variety of items for all you great folks to purchase!

 

These three items and many more are available now! We’ve got shirts, hoodies, jackets, coffee mugs, cell phone cases, beer mugs, shot glasses, hats and more. New items are being added all the time! Check out Cooke Designs if you want to see more or if you absolutely must have the bottle opener Beer League Heroes shirt. (pictured above) Yes it is a legit bottle opener! How cool is that! Take a look and come back next week when I will run the first contest of the season and give away some free swag!

 

Cheers

Rob

Oilers to Win the West Next Year?

I was cruising around the internet this morning, killing time before I had to head out for the day and I came across a very interesting post to say the least.


I try to stay away from reactionary posts for those most part, instead preferring to make my own way but once in a while a blog is published that just makes you shake your head and think to yourself “did I seriously just read that?” This is definitely one of those articles. It was posted over at the Hockey Writers and written by James Tanner. Should you want to read the post it is available here. I know that is just free publicity for his post but really it is easier to just link to his post so I don’t have to recap the entire thing, only what is pertinent to our discussion.

This is the part that actually has me writing this post.

“In the upcoming season they are going to be the surprise of the NHL, be the most fun team to watch, score the most goals and win the Western Conference.”

Wow, where to begin with that. Well I guess the easiest way is to address them point by point so here goes. No, maybe, no, no. Does that answer everything good enough? Probably not, I don’t imagine that you came to read a post about another post and me not add my two cents in. Like I said the best way to handle this is point by point, so let’s dig in.

“They are going to be the surprise of the NHL”. 

No, no they are not. The Oilers are looking to finally exit a rebuild that has seemed to last forever and are in very tough in the West to make huge leaps and gains as this would imply. Sure the teams in the West generally feast on their counterparts from the East unless the Oilers can make a lot of hay in the tougher Western Conference there is little chance of a massive improvement. Of course the team should be better than they were last year but that isn’t setting the bar very high. To state that a team that has been expected to finally take a step forward for how many years now is going to be the surprise of the NHL isn’t saying anything really because this organization has been such a joke for so long that with this off-season we are already the surprise of the league. If by surprise you mean we are going to do what Calgary did last season or Colorado did before them then I think that you are very sadly mistaken. This is not a playoff team, not yet anyways. Too much dead weight and too many inexperienced players in my opinion. A finish of between 9th and 11th is in the cards I presume.

“Be the most fun team to watch”. 

Okay this one I can kind of see happening. The Oilers are going to be a very young, very fast team and that will make for some exciting hockey for the fans. This team has the talent in the top 9 forwards to put in six goals a game no problem when they are firing on all cylinders. Just have to hope that Talbot and the defense are up to keeping the other team to five or less. Todd McLellan has normally ran a very offensive-minded team and I doubt that will change with the guys we have up front. Definitely will be fun to watch but it will be a lot more fun if we are winning more than losing and I don’t know how much more winning we are going to be doing this season.

“Score the most goals”.

Tanner actually expects this team to go from 26th overall last season to first? That is a pretty tall order for any team let alone one that has so consistently been in the bottom half of the league in scoring. Since Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle joined the team in the 2010/11 season the best the team has done is eighteenth overall. Sure the offense regressed under Eakins but to expect the Oil to score roughly sixty more goals than last season isn’t being realistic. It’s so far from realistic that you can’t even see realistic from where you are. Yes the Oilers will be better this year, mostly due to the re-invigorated power-play. McLellan has always run a fantastic power-play unit. Even finishing seventh last season when the Sharks failed to advance to the playoffs for the first time under Todd. Really expecting any more than a thirty goal increase is like expecting the sky to fall. Just isn’t going to happen in one season.

“Win the Western Conference”.

In all reality they are probably going to be on the outside looking in come April 9th and the season finale in Vancouver. The Oilers haven’t improved even close to enough to challenge Anaheim, Chicago, and St. Louis for Western supremacy. For Edmonton to be the team at the top of the conference come April would mean that the team would need to earn 47 more points next season to equal the top team from the past year. That isn’t going to happen. Expectations need to be tempered when we talk about predictions for this team. I get that the guy likely has his McDavid glasses on and thinks that the kid will put this team on his back and take us to the promised land but that isn’t reality. One player does not make a team. I know that his addition is huge for this franchise. Bigger than huge, his addition changes everything for this team but he can’t win a cup on his own and I know we don’t have the entire supporting cast that will be here when we do finally see Lord Stanley in Edmonton again. Predicting any higher than about 10th is likely only setting oneself up for heart ache down the line. Finishing tenth is actually a pretty impressive feat in itself as it would mean meaningful hockey in February and March. That my friends is really all we can ask for in this day and age.

What do you think? Is James right or what? I don’t see it but I still want to hear from you all. Let me know in the comments, talk to me on Facebook, or get at me on Twitter, @cooke_rob, Thanks very much for reading and make sure that you stop by the Beer League Heroes T-shirt shop and pick up your very own Beer League Heroes shirts!