Author: M Walsh

Beskorowany Shines In Bulls’ Road Start

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By Mary Walsh

San Francisco’s penalty kill was impressive in their first meeting with the Alaska Aces, but it is safe to say that goaltender Tyler Beskorowany stole the game for the Bulls. The final score was 2-1 Bulls, but the official shot clock favored Alaska 45-19. Beskorowany outdid himself. It was almost unsettling to watch him turn away shot after shot, including all but one of the breakaways that the Bulls allowed. “How good is this goalie?” one observer asked Bulls’ broadcaster  Jason Lockhart during intermission. Beskorowany answered that question during long stretches of sustained Alaska offense. The Bulls’ goals were scored very early (Jordan Morrison from Scott Langdon 2:22 into the first) and late (Brett Parnham from Dale Mitchell and Mark Lee 13:44 into the third) in the game. In the meantime, the Bulls’ new goaltender was that good. Really, that good.

The Bulls faced Beskorowany four times last season, and he was memorable for more than his name. The Bulls scored four times against him in their first meeting, but didn’t come close to that again for the rest of the season. In their final meeting, the goalie shut the Bulls out. No wonder Bulls President Pat Curcio was happy to sign the big goaltender for this season.

No goaltender is infallible, he will have off nights, he will be unlucky at times. Even with a goaltender who makes a spectacular start, it is critical for the rest of the team to do their part. Early in the season, after relatively little time to practice together, it is to be expected that the Bulls will have some communication glitches to sort out. Those glitches were most evident in their defensive schemes. The team allowed multiple breakaways and failed to hold the zone at inopportune times, sometimes doing both at once. Their Friday performance suggested that the team wasn’t reading each other very well, yet the Bulls killed all five penalties assigned to them. In that, fans can find hope. The team does know how to defend, they just need to smooth the edges between offense and defense.

Starting the season with an 18 day road trip is taxing in many ways, and some will downplay the team bonding value of such a trip. For an ECHL team, it really is a significant inconvenience. They don’t leave ice at home for players to practice on (see Grand National Rodeo schedule), and they can’t travel with the whole roster. Still, no one denies that a road trip has value for team chemistry. Playing in multiple arenas, being thrown together in transit and training, at work and at rest, all of this will give the Bulls plenty of time to communicate.

Starting the season against arguably the best opponent in the west is a blistering trial by fire for the team. On the plus side, several Bulls ended last season against the Aces, so the formidable opponent is familiar. Either way, winning on such steeply tilted ice as the Bulls did in their first game is something to be proud of. A win is a win. Bulls fans can look forward to seeing less harrowing wins if the team sorts out their defensive cues.

Sharks Should Decide Who’s on Fourth

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By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks are making a splendid start to the season. Despite having their lineup tinkered with by suspension and injury, they keep winning. The only voluntary lineup change they have made from game to game is to their fourth line. There the change has been regular and radical. Matt Pelech and John McCarthy are completely different quantities, one known for fighting and toughness, the other known for tenacity and scoring. Both reputations have been developed primarily in the AHL, over the course of multiple seasons. The Sharks organization knows both players well. Did Pelech move himself up the depth chart, securely ahead of McCarthy by scoring a goal? Possibly, but if anyone believes Pelech will keep doing that they are likely to be disappointed.

Pelech was assigned to the ECHL’s SF Bulls early this season. He was then quickly reassigned to Worcester. After McCarthy’s second NHL game this season, he also spent a day as a Bull before going back to Worcester, while Pelech was recalled. Assigning Pelech and McCarthy to the Sharks’ ECHL affiliate looks like an attempt to keep them nearby for easy recall, while minimizing disruption to the start of Worcester’s season. But so far, they haven’t stayed in San Francisco. They were both reassigned to Worcester anyway.

Todd McLellan has said in the past that he likes to keep options open, use different lineups for different opponents. Is tailoring the fourth line really more important than giving the line time to gel? Five games in to the season, with the other three lines performing so well, why not pick a fourth line and stick with it for a bit?

Did McLellan want Pelech for the game in Vancouver, to give the Canucks pause if they were considering paying special attention to Tomas Hertl? While Pelech’s presence didn’t stop anyone from hitting Hertl, he did score a goal. That is always a good thing to do. Pelech’s goal was timely for him in that respect. There might be more to him than meets the eye.

In today’s NHL, the presence of one known enforcer in your lineup won’t do much to keep anyone from taking a run at someone. It only makes sense that the team should want a fourth line that manages the puck well, executes plays, shoots with some conviction, and basically looks a lot like a third line. So which player, Pelech or McCarthy, fits that role best? They aren’t unknown quantities to the coaching staff. The argument that the season is still young and the coaches need to get to know the players does not apply here.

Perhaps the old adage “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” does apply. An unfixed lineup could be what McLellan wants. After all, the team is winning.

SF Bulls Are Back, Moving Forward

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By Mary Walsh

Seven players have returned to the San Francisco Bulls for a second season. Team Captain Scott Langdon, forward Kris Belan and defenseman Dylan King all signed again early in ECHL free agency. Last week, Dean Ouellet and Jordan Morrison returned from a stint in the Kazakh league to rejoin the Bulls. Christian Ouellet and Brett Findlay, rookies who impressed last season, are also back.  These players are not the only ones showing confidence in the San Francisco Bulls organization.

The San Jose Sharks renewed their affiliation with the Bulls in late August, but they had already given the organization a significant stamp of approval last season. They sent seven prospects to San Francisco from Worcester, including five skaters. This season, Bulls President and Head Coach Pat Curcio expects the Sharks to continue sending prospects to the ECHL:

We could have possibly ten guys from [the Sharks]. They signed a lot of players, and they signed them with the intention [that they will] have a place to put them. So our relationship’s been great and I’m real excited.

The Sharks are happy with the arrangement as well. In their August press release about the renewed affiliation, GM Doug Wilson explained: “We had an extremely positive relationship with the Bulls last season as a development vehicle for players within our system and we look forward to continuing that agreement.” -San Jose Sharks

Prior to their affiliation with the Bulls, the Sharks used the ECHL primarily for goaltender development. The Sharks have the option of using many places to develop players, including Canadian Junior leagues and university programs. The AHL has no cap and no roster limit, so in theory a team could use an AHL team to stash all their prospects without regard to whether there was room on the ice for them or not. Of course, that is not ideal. It is far better to have a pro hockey environment where your prospects can play a lot of minutes.

On the other hand, teams don’t want want to send young talent into a meat grinder. The ECHL is shedding a reputation for being a lawless slug-fest, and becoming a league where talent can be showcased and developed. That San Jose felt confident enough to send so many players to San Francisco in its first season speaks very well for the Bulls.

It also speaks well for the ECHL, as other NHL teams are also investing more talent in the Triple A league. The ECHL is an increasingly viable stepping stone in pro hockey development. In theory, this could also improve the level of play in the AHL, by giving less experienced players a different team to develop with. AHL players could come to the NHL more ready for having been in a system tailored to the needs of experienced prospects.

While the team has bolstered its connection to the AHL and the NHL, the Bulls still have a grass-roots element. In mid-September, the team held open tryouts. From that group, Anthony Taylor was chosen to participate in the team’s main training camp. He will also play in at least one pre-season game. The tryouts gave the Bulls a chance to scope out available talent that they might need through the season, as Curcio explains:

You’re going to need players that are readily available at the drop of a hat. If a player gets injured on a Thursday night and [someone] has to fly out Friday to Worcester or San Jose, it’s hard to find a player over night. You need some good players that are local.

The Bulls will play two pre-season games at the Cow Palace, on Thursday, October 10 and Saturday, October 12. Puck drop at 7:30 pm. Their regular season home opener will be on Friday, November 8 against the Bakersfield Condors.