Just talked with David Franke and he said they are looking for a couple of more goalies, some defensemen and some size in particular, but they are looking for depth in all areas. They'll have some announcements later in the week when I believe they'll announce players like J.M. Rizk, Stephon Thorne and Brent Henley have signed.
He said there's nothing new on Mike Vaskivuo and it might be too late to get him a two-way contract with an AHL team. Vask is heading to France on Aug. 10.
Part of the delay with signings is due to ECHL rules. They want a hard copy of a contract with a player's signature in hand before any announcements are made. Teams cannot simply fax a contract in.
Komets are continuing to talk with Frankie DeAngelis, and they are trying to find him a training camp spot with an AHL team.
``He's in a position right now where he doesn't have to make a firm commitment to anybody,'' Franke said. ``He has a lot of options, but I think he'll come back here.''
The Komets are also looking to finalize a deal to bring goaltender Kenny Reiter to Fort Wayne on deal with Bridgeport of the AHL. They could know that as early as this week.
Another spot they are looking for is more size, but Franke said there are plenty of players available in all roles and positions.
``I could start here in the middle of August and still put a good team together,'' he said.
Comments
As for training camp limits, this is what the league says:
``Teams are permitted to have up to 24 players signed to ECHL contracts and up to six professional players on tryout agreements. There are no limits to the number of amateur players on tryout agreements or to the number of AHL/NHL contracted players in training camp.''
Welcome back Blake....Wait, you are back right, this is not just a random peek right? :)
Blake, I noticed that Chris Auger wasn't included with the names of Rizk, Thorne, and Henley. Was this just overlooked or are there issues with Auger? As you may know, the other paper reported last week that those four players have been signed but not announced.
I hate it that Vaskivuo may be lost, bur to me, that makes the signing of Auger even more important.
Simply overlooked. Had to run out the door to do an interview.
Thanks, Blake. Good to have you back.
Since they seem to be working with Bridgeport, I assume it would be way to simple for them to ask Bridgeport to sign Vaskivuo to a two way contract and give De Angelis a training camp spot, wouldn't it?
The higher you go, the fewer favors you get.
Sure hope we get Frankie back!
alittle off track....are all the sports people at the sentinel on vacation? tonights sports section was the smallest and worst i have ever seen from a big city newspaper. thought i was looking at the puckerhudle daily gazette.
Actually, everybody that was off got back today. I'm not sure what the deal was with that. Looks like a space budget problem.
Blake, exactly how do the Komets send the contracts to the league office. Is it UPS or FedX? Do they overnight them? How long after the league receives/reviews the contract does it take to give the Komets an OK to announce the signings?
Stories earlier reported that David Franke wanted to work on getting last year's players signed first, then work on the rest of the team. Well, he's done a pretty good job at that especially if the Auger, Rizk, Thorne, and Henley rumors are true. DeAngelis seems like a better than even bet and Vaskivuo is probably gone. I sure would like to get them to officially announce those guys soon ( and all at the same time since the rumors have been running rampant for more than a week) so we know the foundation of the team.
Last question, and I may just as well get all my thoughts and questions placed in the same post. How is the health of Smith, Schrock. and Henley??
By the way, the Evansville Icemen have announced Dan Gendur has agreed to terms. Gendur, formally with Rio Grande Valley, may be a pretty decent replacement for Brian Bicek.
Gendur's ECHL numbers are not impressive.....
I was beginning to think the Komets needed a reporter. You deserve your vacation. Don't get me wrong. Can you take it in shorter weeks or even in days? :) I hope you are re-charged and ready to write or type!
I asked this awhile back but is anyone else making the trip to Orlando in December when the Komets go play the Solar Bears? Anyway Blake, do the Komets have any plans on bringing in any players who have ECHL experience? It kinda seems to me the Komets are taking the approach this year of just getting their 19-20 guys in camp and not bringing in too many others to create competition. Of course maybe I'm off base since there is still 2 and a half months until the season starts.
We definately have the scoring on paper but so far we are way too small up front. Since we are probably one of the better places to play in the ECHL, we should be able to land some decent wingers with some size. I think the biggest difference I noticed between the ECHL and CHL was the average size of the players. Getting a little worried that our small forwards will get pushed off the puck too much by far bigger D-men.
I think it's too early to say that yet. The one thing I keep hearing from the returning players over and over is that they truly don't think the ECHL will be any stronger than the CHL, especially with fewer veterans. Youth usually leads to sloppier play. We'll see.
What I think they could be doing is selecting a base group of players, and then maybe they try to improve from there once they have that set up. Then they could negotiate from a position of strength, or they could take an NHL-contracted guy and they would have to fit into FW's plans and locker room vs. being counted on the carry the team. That could be very interesting.
I still think it will be a very competitive camp, a lot like last year's was.
Blake,
If there is an NHL lockout soon after the NHL collective bargaining agreement expires in September, does this mean that the ECHL teams with affiliation agreements with NHL teams will end up stacked with players from AHL/NHL? What will be the effect of the lockout be on AA hockey if a lockout actually occurs?
No one knows for sure, but usually more younger players are shoved down the ranks.
Size, a real tough guy that can play as well, 2 more Rizk's, and a few solid stay home at home defenseman.