Ben Maxwell has been impressive in his AHL debut with 16 points (G-8 A-8) in 20 games.
I’ve posted the entire Hamilton Spectator article by Garry McKay who wrote a great review of the Bulldogs at the 20 game mark of the season…..needless to say, they’re putting up impressive numbers and totally out playing their parent team at this point of the season:
Nobody saw it coming. Not the owner or the media, the staff or probably even the most diehard fans. Not even head coach Don Lever thought the Hamilton Bulldogs would be as good as they are through the first 20 games of the American Hockey League season.
The expectation among even the most loyal Bulldogs supporters was that this year’s team would be solid in goal and on defence; and that goal scoring was going to be one huge question mark.
The general consensus was that the off-season free agent signings would have to produce – and the track record of Bulldogs free-agent signings scoring a lot of goals wasn’t that good.
And the returning veterans — and there weren’t that many — would have to light it up.
And the young players and rookies would have to produce.
Like all of that was going to happen!
So here we are at the quarter-point of the Bulldogs season and a lot of people, including this ink-stained wretch, have egg on their face.
The Bulldogs are 14-5-1-0 and (before last night’s games) lead the North Division.
Their 29 points is second only to Hershey (31) and Bridgeport (30) in the overall standings.
And about that lack of scoring. The Dogs have 76 goals, which is second most in the league.
“Obviously we’re scoring way more goals than I thought we would,” says Lever. “I’m surprised at the number of goals we’re scoring, and we’re getting it from everybody. That’s allowed me to move my lines around.”
Veteran right-winger Matt D’Agostini is leading the team in scoring and is third in the league with 14 goals and 11 assists. At that pace, if he were to play most of the season in Hamilton (he was called up to Montreal Thursday), D’Agostini could threaten 50 goals and 100 points. The Dogs have never had a 40-goal scorer, let alone a 50-goal man. The franchise record for points in a season is 77.
Montreal’s top two offseason free agent signings for Hamilton, Yanick Lehoux and Mike Glumac, have both contributed offensively. Lehoux has six goals and 18 assists and is only one point behind D’Agostini.
Glumac hasn’t been quite as flashy, but has a workmanlike seven goals and four assists.
Lever says he’s been pleasantly surprised by the offensive contributions of young players like Ben Maxwell, Ryan White, Ryan Russell and David Desharnais.
The Dogs also lead the AHL in shorthanded goals with nine.
It’s not just the Bulldogs’ surprisingly good goal-scoring that has them among the league’s elite at the quarter pole. They’re getting as good or better goaltending than they could have expected from veteran Marc Denis, who has backstopped them to 12 of their 15 wins. And Cedrick Desjardins has only played five times, but his shutout of Houston in his last game might earn him more playing time as well. In fact, he’s expected to get the start tonight when the Dogs visit Binghamton.
Lever also likes the way his defence is playing.
“We have a nice mix of young guys and veterans,” says Lever, who noted Alex Henry has done his role as far as penalty-killing and playing very physical. And with Dan Jancevski you always know what you’re getting. He is a two-time winner of the club’s top defenceman award.
“Shawn Belle has been way better than I thought he would be although he still has a long way to go with his consistency. And our young guys have all contributed.”
Lever says that above all, the Bulldogs have good chemistry right through the team.
That doesn’t mean the Bulldogs bench boss is taking anything for granted.
“At the start of the season, I was cautiously optimistic and I’m still cautiously optimistic,” says Lever. “If you look at our division, it’s so tough. Just look at how good Manitoba is, and Syracuse is. You know that Grand Rapids is going to be good and Toronto is going to come around. It’s a tough division.
“Once we start playing Manitoba again and Syracuse, we’ll see how we match up with them.”
Living up to expectations
1. Marc Denis.
Which one would they get?
The solid NHL goaltender with Colorado, Columbus and Tampa Bay for 348 games – or the one whose career had taken a bit of nosedive.
They got a player determined to make it back to the NHL, by restoring his reputation and his game.
He has carried the team on some nights and his 12-3 record and 2.32 goals-against average is among the best in the AHL.
2. Matt D’Agostini
The right-winger is playing as if this is a make-or-break season for him in the eyes of the Montreal Canadiens. He’s put aside his frustration at being an early Habs cut, and is playing like a man on a mission.
That mission, to get called up, was rewarded this week. The Habs summoned him to replace the injured Alex Tanguay.
D’Agostini’s scoring stats of 14-11-25 are good enough for third best in the AHL.
3. Yanick Lehoux.
A solid AHL performer who came into the season with 103 goals and 137 points in 315 games with Manchester and San Antonio; sometimes close to an NHL breakthrough. Last year was a bit of a writeoff, left for Russia and arrived too late to play much there.
He’s bounced back this season, his stats of 6-18-24 put him second to D’Agostini.
Exceeding expectations
1. Ben Maxwell.
The 6-foot, 177-pound centre has earned the praise of coach Don Lever for his work ethic.
He’s been a workhorse so far with the Dogs. Eight goals and eight assists make him the club’s third leading scorer. Four goals have come on the power play.
He’s been a workhorse so far with the Dogs. Eight goals and eight assists make him the club’s third leading scorer. Four goals have come on the power play.
2. Ryan White
Another first-year pro, the 6-foot, 200 pounder has proven himself to be an excellent penalty-killer. His six goals and six assists include one short handed and one game winner.
3. Ryan Russell
Split his time last year between the Bulldogs (25 games) and the Cincinnati Cylones, where he helped them win the ECHL championship.
A great skater, and excellent penalty- killer, he has six goals – two shorthanded and five assists.
Room for improvement
1. Max Pacioretty
The Canadiens’ first-round pick in the 2007 NHL entry draft was sent down after a successful training camp with the Habs this season.
With him came a lot of expectation.
He’s had good games, just not enough of them. He has to develop consistency. So far it’s not there.
2. Brock Trotter
Trotter joined the Bulldogs at midseason last year after electing to leave the University of Denver. Found out he need to get bigger and stronger and did so over the summer.
Played well at times. But he’s also been a healthy scratch four times because of the lack of consistency.
