There are so many potential options that I really have no clue (insert your own joke here). I think for the first time in the 15 years I've been covering the team that anything is possible, and no one is automatically discounted from being involved in a trade. It's all going to depend on which player the opponent wants, just as it did with Danny Stewart two weeks ago.
I think there are so many options that no one in the locker room knows what's going to happen, and that in turn is causing more stress and affecting play as well. I don't think it's any surprise that the guys played better on Sunday when they were on the road, either.
The Komets are at the point where they have to give up something pretty good to be able to get some quality in return. We saw that with Stewart for Ryan Jorde two weeks ago. Of course, we also saw that anything is possible by Jim Duhart's signing with Missouri. Anyone notice he had two goals and five points in his first two games? Although in typical Duhart fashion he was minus-1. How in the world are you involved in five of your team's seven goals and still be minus-1? Amazing! If the league makes him POW, I'm going to scream.
I've been keeping my ear to the ground, but I haven't heard any credible rumors yet. There's all sorts of wild ones, but I'm ignoring those. The "Let's trade our bottom three players for Huge Belanger'' rumors.
And there's also no way the Komets are going to fire the coach. As a member of Komets management said to me Saturday night, "We're not that stupid.'' Nothing is going to convince the Franke brothers otherwise, so don't waste your breath. Spend more time Christmas shopping,it will work out better for you in the long run with a lot less stress.
I've been racking my brain over the past few days trying to think of an example when firing the coach actually turned the season around in minor league hockey. I came up with Bob Lemon and the Yankees, of course, and George Karl and Denver last year in the NBA, but that's two out of probably 1,000 tries. I still believe changing the coach now would be tantamount to giving up on the season, and it's way too early for that.
While I'm rambling all over the place, who among the players do you think is playing well right now? Who has earned the right to stay? How much are they accountable for what has happened?
I think one of the problems is the Komets have mostly role players, but they almost all play similar roles. Without Kean especially, there's not much offense coming from the blue line, though I think Bozoian could develop that eventually. Among the forwards, there are no bangers or snipers.
There are a lot of holes to fill.
