Let The Battles Begin

 The Niagara IceDogs are set to begin the pre-season tonight as they head down to Jamestown New York, to take on the Erie Otters. With camp behind them the Dogs still have some roster battles that will have to be settled before the season begins. 

  In net John Cullen seemed to be the best option after the annual scrimmage last night. Max Englbrecht still looks like he is trying to get comfortable on the smaller ice surface. He seemed to be very quick from post to post, once he secures his angles he could challenge for the starting spot. Mark Nothers has played well and could be a dark horse in the battle if one of the other two slip up. This years third round pick Mark Visentin may have to wait for next season before putting on a Dogs jersey, but he does give the team a potential starter in a couple seasons. There is also the possibility that GM Dave Brown is still looking for a veteran netminder to backstop the club. There is nothing for certain yet but the rumours continue to fly. A reliable goalie will be key for the Dogs in the first couple months of the season with three key defenceman heading out to NHL camps. 

   Alex Pietrangelo, Drew Schiestel and Scott Fletcher are going to be lost to the Dogs for a while and that will open up a couple spots on the roster, if and when they return. Odds are Pietrangelo will go through the entire pre-season with St. Louis and play a couple regular season games before coming back to Niagara. Drew Schiestel may be in the same situation. Both players options are limited due to NHL rules. They can either play in the NHL or the OHL. Fletcher's situation may be more difficult to predict. Being an overage player, Scott is free to play anywhere in the Boston organization if signed. 

So with those players away, the IceDogs will be relying on Josh Day and Reggie Traccitto to anchor the defence until they return. Rookies Jay Gilbert, David McMullen and Mike Schwindt will all be called on to step up their game and contribute immediately. That will leave the Brown with a tough decision. How many blueliners does the squad keep until the veterans return? He may be able to get away with those five and move a forward back to the point for a few games or keep one of the other defenceman that are in camp knowing that they will be sent back to tier II soon after the season starts. 

 Up front there were a couple lines in the Black v White game that have some potential in the regular season. Matt Piva, Johnson Andrews and Marco Insam really seem to have some chemistry and could be a good trio for the Dogs as could the line of Alex Friesen, Chris DeSousa and Thomas Middup. You would think that would leave Andrew Merrett, Andrew Agozzino, Dylan MacEachern, Freddie Hamilton, Matt Sisca, Jason Bergeron and Mike MacIsaac to fill in the other combinations. However, if you remember the IceDogs are considering moving Scott Fletcher to forward when he returns from Boston. Then there's the overage problem. The Dogs currently have five and as mentioned before, are rumoured to be looking at an OA goalie. In case you are unsure of the overage rules here they are. The team can start the season with as many OA's as they would like, but they have to be down to four by November 15th. From there they must be down to three by the trade deadline. Finally, there are a few rookies looking to make this team as well. I don't know about anyone else but personally, I thought Andrew Shaw was very impressive in the scrimmage and deserves a shot at some quality minutes in the pre-season. He had great hands, good speed and a nice scoring touch. Vlad Bessenov and Steven Ceccenese were call ups last season and will also be pushing to find a spot on the roster. 

 There is just a few days until the season starts for Niagara but I don't think we will get a good feel for the IceDogs roster until after October. Until then, we may be treated to some great hockey as players battle it out every night for a roster spot.