…since I last updated this thing. Before I jump head first into local baseball season (which begins on Friday…those that follow me on Twitter have all been duly warned), how about some updates?
-Congratulations go to the Manchester Monarchs, who in their final season as an AHL franchise captured their first Calder Cup on Saturday evening by defeating Western Conference (now new division rival) Utica in 5 games. Since I wasn’t able to get to the Aud for a game (when there’s a line around the corner hours before the box office opens, attempting Ticketmaster is pretty much going to be a fail), I did take advantage of the free AHL Live feed and watched parts of 3 of the games…and I have to tip my cap to the Comets fanbase. You will never find a louder, more loyal group than that in any arena, whether minor or major league. I even saw it first hand during the All Star festivities (and I’ll confess to jumping in on a few UTICA chants).
-When the first edition of this year’s Free Agent Tracker comes out on July 1st, you will notice that I have added a new list to go with who’s signed and who is up for free agency: those that have signed to entry level deals. Since my last post, two more names have been added, with both names coming from overseas:
-Back on May 29th, New Jersey signed Russian forward Sergey Kalinin (terms as always undisclosed), who comes to North America after spending the last 5 seasons with Avangard Omsk of the KHL. In 58 games last season he scored 25 points (12 G, 13 A) while serving as the team captain.
-Earlier today, a signing completely out of left field, as Czech defenseman Vojtech Mozik was signed to an entry level deal. He spent the last 3 seasons with HC Plzen in the Czech Extraliga, where last season he notched 29 points in 51 games. His 10 goals (a career high) lead the league among defensemen.
Thoughts Inside The Box 