Goaltender Spotlight & SMJHL Crease Comparison
|
![]() Registered Posting Freak ![]() We’re back again with another article about Mitchell Maverick, the Goaltender from Bakersfield, Cali. Despite what we wrote it seems there has been a buzz lately that Maverick may indeed have a better shot at entering the SMJHL than we originally thought. Because of this, we decided to do a full feature article on Maverick and also invited him to do an interview in which we ask him some questions that our users have submitted. We have also looked in depth at each SMJHL team to see what sort of goaltender situation they have going on in general and if drafting a goaltender might be a fit. With more than a little time remaining before the SMJHL Draft, all eyes have turned towards the SHL Draft now that the Four-Star Cup has wrapped up but for you Junior followers, we have all the SMJHL news and reports you can handle! With that being said, let’s take a look at look at who this Mitchell Maverick is and his ever growing SMJHL shot. ![]() Born and raised in Bakersfield, Mitchell Maverick has always been attracted to hockey. First with the Bakersfield Condors of the ECHL, and now more recently the AHL. Attending home games and player autograph sessions was a major factor in Maverick trying out the sport for the first time when he was 8 years old. Originally like any kid Maverick played every position but quickly fell in love with the challenge to stop a puck. Perhaps it was his love, or skill, or desire that led him to become a full-time goaltender. Perhaps he just liked to be alone on the ice and one with his thoughts. Either way, this led him deeper into the game of Hockey. With the SHL in Los Angeles it wasn’t long before Maverick was begging his parents to drive them to home games. With the Pride in San Francisco as well, Maverick was begging them to drive North just as much, especially if it was a LA vs. SF game. It all changed once Anaheim came to town in the SMJHL though as something flipped a switch in his brain. “These players aren’t much older than me” Maverick though, “perhaps I have a shot at playing here.” There was one trouble with this thought however, and it was that Mitchell Maverick just wasn’t any good. Only a few years into being a full-time goaltender, Maverick was relegated to playing a fairly low level of house league hockey with a very light schedule. Instantly he began to beg his parents for more training. Summer camps, holiday camps, shinny, one on one training, or even a scrap of plastic to skate on in the backyard was asked for. Slowly but surely an improvement was noticed, until Maverick made the local U14 Bakersfield Jr. Condors. Consistent commitment and a sheer will to succeed got him onto the team, but his attitude despite getting peppered with 50+ shots a game earned him the respect of his coaches. From that point on Maverick has been playing an absurd number of minutes for the lowly Jr. Condors, first at the U14 level and now at his present U16 club. Success comes in many different forms they say, but that can’t be truer than this case as Maverick’s stats have been steadily rising to where they are at right now (.882 SAV/4.89 GAA/8 W according to our previous article). Although it doesn’t look like much the GAA’s themselves have dropped by almost 2 goals on basically the same team. Perhaps it coaching, but maybe there is a diamond in the rough here. ![]() As mentioned earlier, we sat down with Mitchell Maverick earlier in the week and interviewed him with questions submitted by users and also some of ours that we sprinkled in as well. Below is the full featured interview. "Thanks for joining us Mitchell, I know you were a little surprised when you saw an article come out that featured you and even more surprised when we called to setup the interview. Let’s get right into it. Why did you become a Goalie? Was there another position you preferred?" "Well, I became a goalie almost with no choice. Every time my Novice team needed someone in net, I was always volunteered. Don’t get me wrong, I loved it! However soon after my parents decided to buy me my own set of gear and I guess I’ve never looked back. I’ve always wondered what it would be like if I was a player instead. I think I would love to have tried left wing if I had to pick another position but I’m very happy I’m a goalie right now. After all, I get to play the entire game which is a huge plus." "What type of Goaltender are you? Do you model your game after anyone in particular?" "I feel like I’m an agile goalie and have very good footwork. My rebound control and puck handling can use some work but you need to be in position to make the save in the first place, right? I try to give myself a shot to stop the puck every time and in order to do that you need to be able to skate in your crease. I’ve enjoyed watching a bunch of goalies, both currently playing and those who retired years ago. I’d say Brett Broadway, Ryan Jesster, and Mark Harter have been some of my favourite goalies to watch." "What do you think about the level of play in the SMJHL?" "It’s intense. Such a big step from the T1EHL teams and players I’ve faced over the past few seasons. After all, most of these players are one small step away from playing in the SHL, which is the big time. Quite frankly I’m a little intimated of the skill level although I would love to find out if I’m able to hang with them. Even though it’s quicker, harder, and a smarter game I think I can pick it up and raise my game." "What do you think about your chances of playing in the SMJHL?" "I’m optimistic that not only will I be given a shot, but I’ll prove that I can belong and that I deserve to be in the SMJHL. It’ll be about finding the right fit as well, because I know I can easily go to a team where I’ll be third string and never play, so it’ll be important that I’m with the right club at the end of the day. If that ends up being a team not playing in the SMJHL, that is fine as well. I’ve been exploring options with Canadian Junior leagues and although nothing has come to fruition, I’m confident I’ll find a team somewhere." "If you do get drafted, is there a certain team you would like to go to? Any predictions to make?" "Quite frankly I believe I might go undrafted as of right now, just due to the fact my numbers aren’t great and I didn’t get a lot of scouting exposure this season. If that is the case, I’m fully prepared to work for an invitation to a tryout camp where I’ll show I can belong, like I’ve mentioned before. If I was to be drafted it would be an honour to play for the Knights. I know they finished last this year but the history that organization has is undeniable. Plus, honestly, who doesn’t like a challenge?" "Are you nervous about playing for a team that is far away such as Montreal, Halifax, or Anchorage?" "I think that might be a huge plus for me. I would love to see the world so getting out of my comfort zone and away from home wouldn’t be an issue. I imagine those places are a night and day difference from Bakersfield or even California in general. It would be fun to live and play somewhere new, so no I’m not nervous or concerned about that." "Do you see yourself playing in the SHL one day?" "I haven’t even thought about that. I’ll take it one step at a time and see if I can even make the SMJHL first. I think every kid that loves hockey dreams about the SHL though." "What would you like to tell any of the General Managers that might read this?" "I’m not sure to be honest. Hopefully I’ll be invited to the Prospect Showcase this summer so I can showcase my ability myself. It’s not going to matter what I say, or how I say it. It will be about tangible proof that I deserve to be drafted." "Thanks for joining us Mitchell, we wish you the best this off-season and hopefully we’ll see you in the prospect showcase and the SMJHL Draft." After talking with Mitchell we got wondering, what teams can use a goaltender right now? Who is moving onto the SHL and who is having an identity crisis in the crease? We broke down each team and where their rosters are currently at as of July 26th. Now many of our projections about who is staying and who is leaving may be wrong as it's purely speculation at this point. Also it is worth mentioned that two teams announced new management staffs during the writing of this article. With rumors more GM changes are on the way to the SMJHL our projections come with a huge asterisk* ![]() Team: Anaheim Outlaws General Manager(s): @Dangles13, @SpartanGibbles Previous Season: 30-17-3, 2nd (Four Star Cup Runner Ups) Goals Against: 130, 2nd Starter: Tibuk Soonika – CHI (637 TPE) Backup: Patrick Niederreiter - TEX (307 TPE) In the System: Gritty Saosin (158 TPE) After another great season which saw the Outlaws finish second in the league, the Outlaws stormed into the playoffs and went to 7 games in the Four-Star Cup. Their starter Soonika was a big reason to why the Outlaws continue to have the success they’ve been seeing as one of the leagues youngest franchises. Slated to return for next season, Soonika will be backed up by Niederreiter who may see an increase in playing time as his development continues to grow. Gritty Saosin has also been utilized as a practice goaltender this past season and may very well stay with the team again headed into S49. Second in the league in both record, goals against, and the Four-Star Cup the Outlaws have very strong goaltending and may be 100% solidified for next season. ![]() Team: Anchorage Armada General Manager(s): @Acsolap, @artermis Previous Season: 26-22-2, 6th (Round 3 Loss) Goals Against: 146, 5th Starter: Colt Beckett – MIN (248 TPE) Backup: None With only one goaltender on their roster as of July 23rd, the Anchorage Armada are surely looking to add a young goaltender into the fold for next season. After being the backup for all of last season, Beckett slides into the starting role with Peter Larson leaving for Manhattan. A SAV % of .873 and GAA of 3.13 aren’t the most comforting stats to live with, but we expect to see improvement in Beckett’s game next season. A middle of the pack team in the standings and for goals against, the Armada need to find their X factor that pushes them over the top. Could it be Beckett? Could it be another Goaltender? Perhaps it’s another position player altogether. Depending on the crop of this year’s goaltender prospects we could very well see the Armada take one in the draft this off-season. If not a trade or free agent signing will be in order. ![]() Team: Colorado Raptors General Manager(s): @hhh81, @Sleepy Previous Season: 18-25-7, 9th (Round 1 Loss) Goals Against: 151, 7th Starter: Alexander Thorstrom – CAL (305 TPE) Backup: Knox Booth – S49 (265 TPE) The Raptors certainly have themselves a goaltender controversy. Backup and rookie goalie Knox Booth put up fair better stats than his counter-part Thorstrom during the regular season and played in all six of the Raptors playoffs games. Although on paper Thorstrom is touted to be the better goaltender, we failed to see that this previous season. I doubt the Raptors add another goaltender into the mix this off-season as they will most likely go with a 1A and 1B scenario again to start the year at least. However, after an early playoff exit, and a disappointing season don’t be quick to rule out anything for them as they could make a major splash and shake things up. ![]() Team: Detroit Falcons General Manager(s): @notorioustig, @nour Previous Season: 29-17-3, 3rd (Round 2 Loss) Goals Against: 149, 6th Starter: Emiko Spector – TB (335 TPE) Backup: Jakub Hasek – HAM (325 TPE) Moving On: Jeffery Thompson – S49 (150 TPE) Third string goalie Jeffery Thompson looks like he’ll be moving on from the team after not playing at all this year. Meanwhile we may see another battle in the crease as starter Spector posted considerably lower numbers than Hasek did the previous season. Both are training hard this off-season as the coaching staff will be giving both a long look to see who will be playing the major minutes for the Falcons. It may not emerge straight out of training camp as well as both could easily be rotated until a hot hand is found. The more likely scenario would be a 1A and 1B system that should see both rested and available come late season. Although the Falcons finished 3rd this previous year, goaltending and goals against is an area they want to see some improvement if they want to go deeper into the playoffs. ![]() Team: Halifax Raiders General Manager(s): @Flareon4043, @Citizen of Adraa Previous Season: 20-27-3, 8th (Round 3 Loss) Goals Against: 158, 9th Starter: Biz Nasty – EDM (347 TPE) Backup: Mike McKorsy – TOR (428 TPE) Similar to the Detroit Falcons, the Halifax Raiders have an interesting goaltender situation. Current starter Biz Nasty posted much lower numbers than backup Mike McKorsy who by all accounts is the superior goaltender according to scouting reports. Perhaps this is an internal issue which saw McKorsey only play in 9 games the previous season. Either way, it looks like the Raiders won’t be making a goaltender move this season as both goaltenders are in the top half of the league for ability. What they will be focusing on is getting a team to compete in front of their goaltenders as they finished 8th this previous season and also 9th in goals against. The Raiders did have success this post season in which Biz Nasty was THE guy in net and it showed on his stats as well. Perhaps the Raiders management is onto something? ![]() Team: Kelowna Knights General Manager(s): @NJBadApple, @Noble Previous Season: 15-30-5, 10th (Round 1 Loss) Goals Against: 177, 10th Starter: Malcolm Weekes – S49 (208 TPE) Backup: Theo Haas – WIN (205 TPE) Fresh off the hiring of new management, Kelowna has a young tandem in net which may not bode well again for the last place team in the league. Weekes is the starter, for now, but the team could be looking into making an upgrade right away to help shore up their puck stopping ability. Another route might see the Knights draft a goaltender this season and move on from one of their current goaltenders, which might be Jets prospects Haas. The new management will have time to figure this situation out, so don’t be surprised if they go the draft and develop route in order to hang onto all the assets they can. ![]() Team: Lethbridge Lions General Manager(s): @JNH, @SDCore Previous Season: 26-23-1, 7th (Round 2 Loss) Goals Against: 157, 8th Starter: Nolan McMahon – S49 (240 TPE) Backup: None Moving On: Harry Carpet – TOR (590 TPE) Harry Carpet is headed to the SHL which means former backup McMahon will be playing starting minutes next season. After a very impressive rookie season (8 games) which saw him stop almost 90% of shots, he faced on the lowly Lions the future looks bright. The question will be who will the Lions bring in to push McMahon? Will it be a goaltender that has fallen out of favour somewhere else or will they draft a young eager prospect similar to what they did with McMahon last season. Perhaps they do both? Either way, the Lions are looking to improve from their 7th place record and climb up into the top half of teams in the SMJHL. With team management being one of the more experienced ones in the league, albeit a fairly fresh hire, the money is on the Lions to improve and it will be a very good situation for any goaltender to be apart of. ![]() Team: Montreal Militia General Manager(s): @FuzzSHL Previous Season: 25-19-6, 5th (Round 2 Loss) Goals Against: 137, 3rd Starter: Mike Hunt – NO (343 TPE) Backup: Aleksi O'Koivu-Volkova – HAM (459 TPE) Another new GM hire sees some interesting stories possibly develop out of Montreal. We have reports Hunt could move into the starter’s role, despite playing in only 5 games this season. Hunt did put up similar SAV % numbers with O'Koivu-Volkova, but that is where the comparison ends. With a sub .500 record and much higher GAA Hunt may be an odd choice for a starter but maybe the new staff is going on something else to evaluate their goalies. Then again, maybe the rumour is BS and O'Koivu-Volkova will be back in between the pipes playing in 44 games again. Who knows? Regardless I would be surprised if the Militia went with a goalie in the draft for this upcoming season. ![]() Team: St. Louis Scarecrows General Manager(s): @TML99, @Nictox Previous Season: 33-14-3, 1st (Round 2 Loss) Goals Against: 140, 4th Starter: Billy Sorokin - CHI (TPE 483) Backup: Marques Brownlee – S49 (180 TPE) Billy Sorokin continues to be the guy in St. Louis as he led his team to a 1st place finish this season. Although his game took a dip in the playoffs and saw the Scarecrows get bounced early, you can expect him to rebound and move past this for next season. The question for the Scarecrows will be who can they find for a backup? Brownlee hasn’t been with the team long, and only appeared in two games in which neither were his starts. We may be reading into this but perhaps the Scarecrows are just not interested in him? Then again, maybe with him joining later in the season they didn’t want to throw him to the wolves. Either way, keep an eye on the Scarecrows this off-season as an early round exit may force them to shake something up. Perhaps it will be in net? ![]() Team: Vancouver Whalers General Manager(s): @luketd, @Inf1d3l Previous Season: 28-16-6, 4th (Four Star Cup Champions) Goals Against: 120, 1st Starter: Kasperi Braulin - WKP (408 TPE) Backup: Casmir Stevens – MIN (621 TPE) All hail the Champions, the Vancouver Whalers. Despite only finishing 4th the Whalers had the best goals against and defence in the league and it showed in the playoffs. Coming back to force a Game 7 the Whalers pulled off a gutsy performance. At the helm of that was Kasperi Braulin who shouldered the load for most of the season and put up very good numbers doing so. Don’t forget about the backup Casmir Stevens who relieved Braulin in two games and played very well for the Whalers, trying to keep them in the game. Both goalies look like they’re returning for next season which means the Champions have a solidified crease and will be a real threat to repeat. Don’t expect them to fix what ain’t broke and bring in someone else. They’ve found their guy(s). There you have it, all ten SMJHL franchises crease’s have been examined and that is what we have come up with. Are we right? Wrong? Straight mad? Let us know as always! As for Mitchell Maverick, where does this leave him? Already a longshot for the league it’s clear that not many teams are looking for a new goaltender right now. At best it looks like maybe three teams have an opening that could be filled and according to our sources two of those teams have firmly kept Maverick off their draft prospect list. The future isn’t looking great but anything can happen and we’ve seen stranger things in the SMJHL, such as All-Star undrafted players and many, many first-round busts. We wish Maverick the best and hope to see him playing hockey in any league next season. Code: Words: 3,690 ![]() Graphic Graders I <3 Coffee
Nice post, I always like goalie-related media (btw you got my TPE number wrong, but that doesn't matter much).
Good luck with your player. ![]() ![]() sigs either by @Wasty, @Nokazoa, @sulovilen, @Capt_Blitzkrieg, @sköldpaddor, @Ragnar, @enigmatic, @Lime or myself ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() my portfolio | my sig shop | gfx discord ![]() ![]() ![]() Registered Posting Freak ![]() Registered Posting Freak
A few of those S46 goalies you mentioned are probably getting called up. (Soonika is definitely up)
![]() Former Agent of Nick Brain: Center/Right Winger - ![]() ![]() ![]() Registered Posting Freak ![]() Registered #1 White Fox
Well you didn't see my SHL call up or WJC numbers clearly xD
![]() Registered Posting Freak ![]() Registered #1 White Fox ![]() Registered Posting Freak ![]() Registered Filthy Casual
Great article dude. Soonika and Sorokin and AKV in Montreal are all going up this season too.
|
« Next Oldest | Next Newest »
|
Users browsing this thread: |
1 Guest(s) |