Login

*Ricer13* · 12-03-2022, 03:37 PM

The Kelowna Knights have had a forgettable season at best. They are currently sitting tied for last place with Newfoundland with only 18 points and a 7-23-4 record, yikes! Newfoundland has 4 games in hand on Kelowna which is even worse for the Knights. They have even taken a step backwards from an awful season in season 67 where they finished 12th. Why has Kelowna been stuck at the bottom despite having some good talent on their roster?!? Let’s break that down.

Lack of depth!!! You may look at their roster and see they have plenty of players in the line up but don’t let that fool you. They have top end talent but very few of them. They have great centre depth with Hammer and Aitmukhambetov. A solid top defensive pair with Brandt and Spam but beyond that the talent really drops off. Now this is mostly because the players below them are first and second year players. They will develop and be a key part of the Knights future but right now this team is very much in the development phase. This team hasn’t done a good job building a healthy cycle of depth on their roster. You need a good mix of players from fourth years down to first years in order to keep the team deep and strong for many seasons to come. A good example of that is the Maine Timber roster.

Another issue I see with this team is Goaltending. They have two second year goalies with Jeabous getting the bulk of the starts. In a perfect world you would want to have a third or fourth year veteran who is your proven starter who can mentor a first or second year goalie and get him ready to be a starter down the road. Having two second year goalies isn’t good for anyone. They have no mentor and are constantly fighting for starting position. Clearly Jeabous is winning the net more often.

Lastly, they are in a very good division of teams. They have the Regina Elk and Nevada Battleborn ahead of them whom if you look at their rosters are very deep on the top end of their rosters. Having to face these teams on a regular basis is no fun for anyone. They are below .500 on the season against their own division but they have struggled even more against some of the top teams throughout the league. They’ve given up 8 goals or more in 8 games this season including a big 11-3 loss against Detroit who’s dominated the knights all season.

It’s been a brutal season for the Kelowna Knights but they can take solace in knowing that they have some amazing young talent that are still developing. The real question is can they build on to this talent before they age out and move up to the SHL? Will they able to develop their goalies into true number one netminders? There are so many questions I have surrounding this team moving forward and it’s going to take some serious commitment and work to get them back to being one of the leagues best.

*CptSquall* · 12-03-2022, 06:52 PM

Approved, +5 TPE to @Ricer13

Navigation

Extra Menu

About us