Baby Penguins Update: December 21, 2017

1. Hey Rick,

   Checked a little bit more in the WBS Pens stats and Sprong who is supposed to be working on his team defense has the 2nd worse +/- on the team. If you don’t count Archibald who was traded.

   If you take away Sprong’s powerplay points and lets be realistic here, we know he won’t see a minute on the main powerplay and there is a slim if that chance he would see time on the second, but if you take that away he is just about even with Aston-Reese in even strength points. The big difference is Aston-Reese is a +11.

   I believe tOR had thoughts of putting Sprong on Crosby’s line, a line which is already has a huge problem covering back. I think the Pens management is correct that Sprong needs to work on his game before he can be of any use.

   I would think Haggerty (more even strength points than Sprong in 10 less games) or Aston-Reese would be better to be brought up at this point.

   1. Hey Phil,

      When I first glimpsed Derrick Pouliot, I thought he was gonna make it, I never said I am always right.

      I Sprong’s case,

      1. I base my opinions on what I saw in the Prospects Tournament and I have admitted that things change. If I had the opportunity to actually watch some of the games in WBS I may change my mind.

      2. Sprong, if I recall correctly was at one point a +6 through mid Nov. Confidence in a kid is very important. As I once mentioned before, when talking about Sprong, it is very possible that the Penguins failure to bring him up when they were having trouble scoring earlier this season, at even strength, may have eroded his confidence. He may have looked at his stats and saw that +6 and his torrid scoring and started thinking to himself, “What do I have to do, walk on water?”

      Just as bringing up layers too soon can hurt a young player, so can ignoring them while veterans are under-achieving..

      3. As I read somewhere else, discussing the constant rap of Sprong not being good defensively, and only being a 1 trick, offensive pony, the Penguins are currently employing a couple of 1-trick pony’s’ Hagelin who really hasn’t been an offensive threat since this incarnation of the Penguins 1st Cup run in 15-16 and Reaves who did look good the last couple of games but still ended up in the (-) column and without goals even though he had some golden opportunities.

      As I say, I am not always right, but I don’t want to bring Sprong up to have him play defense. I want to bring Spring up to give Crosby a winger that has the selfish shoot first mentality when Crosby sets him up with a sweet pass and who will not waste the opportunity trying to send back an even sweeter pass.

      Maybe I am wrong. Unfortunately, the only way to know for sure is for the Penguins to do exactly what I have suggested, bring him up, show faith in him like they have shown in Sheary who is a -8 right now. Sprong is only a -3 in WBS (Christian Thomas is the worst at -5 followed by Archibald at -4).

      I wouldn’t argue it the Penguins were to bring up Aston-Reese though, nor would I argue if they were to bring up Haggerty. However, in both of their cases, neither is as fleet of foot as Sprong and when Crosby was at his best he plays with speed. So, although I would applaud giving either of them getting a call, since I am advocating the change specifically for a winger for Crosby, I would still choose Sprong.

      1. Hey tOR, all good points, but I don’t believe that how the main club is playing should have anything to do with how a player is developed in the minors. That is how the old Penguins management mishandled the players that you always complain about.

         Sprong is -5 now worst on the team. I just have a hard time rewarding a guy that is getting failing grades in what he is in school to learn. He was told he was being sent down for half a season to learn how to play the full rink. If he gave up because he believes the Pens let him down because they didn’t call him up after a good month, then he has a lot more to learn than just how to play defensively.

         You mention Crosby and Sheary both in the minus column. Adding another minus to the mix doesn’t make a plus. I have no problem if the Pens throw Sheary in a trade with whatever defenseman they are abandoning and call up Sprong maybe mid January half way through like promised. See if he has learned anything, at least they will always be able to toss him back unlike Sheary.

         Hagelin can’t be sent down. He is overpaid, but there is not a lot to be done about that at this point unless he can be thrown in a deal also.

         My opinion of Reaves is WAY different than yours. I believe that he has been a complete success and has done everything they and I thought he would do. I’m not seeing the other teams taking runs at the Penguins knowing full well there will be no repercussions. The games are rediculously cleaner. That being said, I also have no problem if they sit him come playoffs and only use him if needed.

2. Hi Rick.
   I really have not had time to follow the WBS Pens as I have in previous years, and that is strange for me is because I used to spend a lot of time watching the Junior leagues and the AHL players in my area. So i ask you a quick question Rick?
   There is a lot of hype around Aston-Reese. By the numbers it seems he plays a physical game that should bode well for him in the future. Is he progressing well?
   The other one in question is center man Teddy Blueger. I had serious concerns about his size when we drafted him. Since we really need to develop center men ASAP… is he a future possibility to play in the NHL or just another under sized AHL caliber talent ?
   Jim

   1. Hey Jim,

      Sorry for taking so long to reply.

      You asked some excellent questions, my friend. Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot of insight into Aston-Reese and Blueger’s progress.

      Judging by his plus/minus and point totals, Aston-Reese seems to be coming along, although given that he scored 32 goals in college last season, the Pens might have expected him to fill the net more often.

      He’s been kind of streaky to boot, scoring points in clusters—including two three-assist games—mixed in with long dry spells. He seems to be getting his shots (40), but they’re not necessarily going in (a low 7.5 shooting percentage).

      Actually, looking at his career numbers, last season’s goal total may have been an anomaly. His previous seasonal high, including college and the USHL, was 14.

      The concern I’ve heard is that he isn’t necessarily a great skater, and that he has a ‘slow’ first step. That was the same critique I’d heard of former Pens forward Sergei Plotnikov, and he’s back in the KHL.

      I’m afraid I know even less about Blueger. The Pens definitely are projecting him to be a third-line center, and from what I understand, he’s defensively responsible, good on faceoffs and willing to get his nose dirty.

      In contrast to Aston-Reese, he seems to be more consistent on a game-in, game-out basis…a good sign. And he seems to be reasonably accurate with his shots (18.8 shooting percentage).

      As with all prospects, you just don’t know how (or if) his game will translate to the NHL.

      Rick

   2. Hey Jim and Rick,

      I have been following WBS pretty closely this year but only statistically. I haven’t had the time to take a road trip over to watch them. However, I did get the chance to watch nearly all of the prospect tournament. During the Tourny, Aston-Reese did impress me with his physical play and had a fight. I am not sure if he was actually penalized for fighting or if they just called it roughing, but he did have a go and acquitted himself well. I hate to think about the future in terms of what about Hornqvist, but should Hornqvist jump UFA I think Aston-Reese will slip in nicely there. I am not sure why it is in my mind that WBS may be using Aston-Reese on the LW at least at times, but that could be something to look at with the lack of real quality there. Furthermore, if (Heaven forbid) Hornqvist would have to sit for an extended period, if it were me, I would bring up Aston-Reese until Hornqvist was ready, if nothing else than to gauge the future.

      As for Blueger, I do recall that Sullie and JR were enthralled with him in camp and the Tourny, but quite frankly, I wasn’t.

      Remember these were my impression from September, not now, things may have changed.

      A side note, I saw kicked around on another penguin talk site was DiPauli. That site was suggesting that Sprong and DiPauli get called up to breath life back into the skaters. They were suggesting that DiPauli could fill the 4th line C roll and move Rowney to RW against teams that were faster rather than physical. Again, my view from way back in Sept was that he too wasn’t ready. Maybe the time between then and now proved beneficial, but I would still look outside the team for a 3 line C and move Sheahan to 4th (Not that JR or Sullie really care what I would do)

      1. Blueger had a big night, last night’ He had 2-goals including the GW in OT.

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