What constitutes a successful season? Someone would
argue that success goes only to the team that wins the Cup. Everyone else is in
second place. You know, to the victor goes the spoils. That's a bit
of a myopic view, especially at this level of hockey. The roster turnover is so
rapid at this level that it is quite impossible to compete for, let alone win,
a championship every season.
So, success looks different for every team
depending on where they are in their "championship window". If the
T-Birds hadn't won the Chynoweth Cup in 2023, I think a lot of fans would say
that team came up short of a successful season. The expectations for that
team were to win a league title. But they met their expected goal, thus the
season is deemed a rousing success.
The year prior, 2022, I don't think winning the
WHL title was expected. They weren't the favorite that season. They were
considered a contender though, then upset a couple of higher seeded teams in
the postseason and they made it to the league championship series before losing
in six games to the favored Edmonton Oil Kings. Still, the T-Birds finished
that season with the seventh best record in the league and made it within two
wins of taking the Cup. I think, as a result of exceeding expectations, that
too was a season of success.
So where does this season fall on the
"successful season" scale? Is it a success because of how the team
started and how they finished the regular season? It was an unbelievable
second half, but we also can't discount the first half. Or does the second half
make up for the first half? I think the answer lies in between. The
T-Birds used the first half to find out who they were, to figure out what parts
of the roster were working and where changes, whether through addition or
subtraction, needed to be made. It's like fiddling around in the kitchen with a
cake recipe until you get the ingredients right.
The T-Birds were 11-19-2-1 heading into the
Christmas break. They went into that break, having dropped two in a row
and five of seven. They promptly came out of the break and lost their
first three games. They began 2025 with a record of 11-22-2-1, eleven games
below the break-even mark after a 6-4 loss at home New Year's Eve. They then
lost three of their first four games in the new year. 12-25-2-1 at the WHL
trade deadline on January 9th. A season low point of thirteen games below
.500. with just 28 games left. Doubtful anyone was putting the season
into the "success" category at that point.
But the season isn't 40 games long, It's
68. The cake isn't done baking until the oven timer goes off, and even then,
you have to check it to make sure it is baked all the way through. The T-Birds
finished the season by going 18-8-1-1, a winning percentage of .642 over that
28 game stretch. Only six of those games
were against teams with a record below .500. And even with some veteran
additions to the roster for the second half push, they still accomplished that
second half success with one of the youngest rosters in the WHL. They then
pushed the team with the WHL’s best regular season record to six games in round
one, including a double overtime thriller, before bowing out.
I guess the best way to describe the season is
to say while overall, finishing with a sub .500 record usually doesn’t lend one
to call the campaign an overall success, there were many successes along the
way that left everyone with a good feeling about the just concluded hockey
year.
A young team got a year of experience. They took
their lumps but after bumping into a few walls, they found their path. They learned to battle for and achieve something,
a playoff spot. And they got a lesson in playing playoff hockey and passed that
test. Maybe it wasn’t an A on that test, maybe just a solid B, but it should be
enough for them to graduate to the next level.
There will be questions to answer before next
season. Who will be the three 20 year olds? Is the organization satisfied going
into next season with just two 19 year olds? Who will pick up the scoring slack
created by the departure of Pilling? And who steps into the leadership vacuum now
that Schuurman and Pakkala have moved on? How many of the seven signed 2009s
will they carry on the roster next season, outside of Brock England? These
questions will all be answered in due course, but let’s spend some time
enjoying the successes that came from the 2024-25 season.
Thom,
ReplyDeleteOnce again, another good article.
The team has all 7 defensewmen coming back next season, baring trades, with young Tash also in the mix, giving Seattle a problem this summer, but it is a good problem to have. Personally, I like Tash, he has the tools and when given chances, he didn't look out of place on the ice at all. I believe he outplayed some of the other defensemen on the team and played beyond his years. He just needs to grow in size and add meat to his frame.
I really want to see Cumby return. He learned not to take so many stupid penalties, which he was prone to do, especially early in the season. He learned he can still be physical, without going nuts. He shows leadership and gained confidence in his game, especially after scoring his first WHL career goal. He even jumped up on the play on occasion.
That being said, someone has to go to make room for Tash. I might make a couple trades, to bring in an offensive minded defenseman, who can put the puck in the net. Mrtka could be that guy, he made a great end to end rush in the U-18 tourney in Texas and scored, looking more like a forward. He is a excellent skater, has good hands and and has good edgework for a big kid and I think he could be the answer to have that offensive mentallity, but it wouldn't hurt to see another puck moving, ofensive minded defenseman on the team.
The T-Birds have too many of the same type of player back there and need more of a mix.
Could Ratzlaff come back as a 20 year old? It's doubtful! BUT, I did speak with a Buffalo scout about three or four times in the second half of the season and he told me Buffalo has several goalie prospects in their system, which made me think there is an outside chance Scott could find his way back to the organization.
I may be in the minority, but I don't think Melinoski is ready to take on the full time starter role in goal and Dikur's numbers weren't very good (and I am being generous there), even in the lower ranks. So if there is going to be a weak spot with the team next fall, it is in goal. Does LaForge make a trade to bring in an experienced netminder? I have looked at other team's rosters and there isn't much to chose from.
Looking at other team's pending overagers, there are some intriging players, but I don't think those players will be made available. There are a couple former T-Birds (Oremba and Dube) I wouldn't mind seeing wearing the Blue, Green Gray and White again, but I doubt that will happen.
England looks like the real deal and I could see him playing top minutes on the top two lines, at ether Center or Wing. He won't replace Cootes for the top line C, but he could be the second line C. I think Dunn, would be better suited playing the wing.
There are some other '09's that could crack the linup as well, especially at forward. Hilderman impressed me in camp last summer and has been on England's wing for many years. Willers was the 2nd overall player taken in the U.S, Priority Draft and could be a fit. While big and physical, I was not overly impressed with Laraque in camp last summer, his skating leaves a lot to be desired. People may look at his numbers and be impressed, but don't forget, he was a big kid, playing against much smaller opponents, so those numbers I believe are inflated.
I look for big strides in players like Martorana (I wish he had more size), because that kid has a motor. Lovsin has the tools to improve.
Charko reminds me a somewhat of a young Scott Ensor, the way he plays.
Gerrior has a good future with the team I believe.
Mayes is just scratching the surface of what I think he could be, coz I see a lot in his game.
Pekar, once he got used to the North American styl;e of play and smaller ice surface, really came on after the first half of the year.
On the back end, I liked what I saw out of Riley.
I hated seeing Mynio go, but understood the trade.
Thank you Pakkala and Schuurman, a special thanks to Pilling for what he did for the team.
So yes, even though the team had a sub .500 record, I considered the season a success.
John R. thJune