Max Ellis gives up senior season
by wearendhockey (2022-04-08 18:58:41)

Signs ELC with Toronto. Will play for their AHL team for the remainder of the 2021-22 season.


That's shocking. If anyone needed another year of physical
by zahm82  (2022-04-08 22:04:57)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

development in college it was Max Ellis. He hardly scored at all the second half of the season. Hope I'm wrong but I don't see his game in the NHL but obviously Toronto thought differently


I always wonder when college hockey players
by wearendhockey  (2022-04-09 11:15:57)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

with eligibility left sign pro deals shortly after the season ends when the actual decision was made. And if it was made prior to their last game, are their heads fully into the team?

Ellis' disappearance was pretty severe, 27 points in the first 27 games, 1 in the final 12. Something was going on. Since the coverage is so limited we're left only to speculate. Nagging injury? Loss of focus? Teams simply figured him out? He had 10 points in November alone, including 7 in 4 games against Wisconsin and Michigan. In 7 games against WI and UM in March he failed to register a point.


I'm surprised too
by ndmd99  (2022-04-09 15:27:29)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

But all it takes is 1 scout to like him to get signed. I can't imagine he had a ton of options/leverage, so when he was offered the ELC he was smart to take it.

News came almost 2 weeks after we ended the season, so he was probably a plan B option for Toronto after they struck out trying to sign someone else (maybe a player whose season ended on Thurs night?).

I don't see his goal scoring translating much at higher levels. He was pretty much a high volume shooter w/ a low shooting %. He was red hot early on, but regressed back to his more normal shooting % as the season progressed.

I bet there was a scout who watched the MI game(s). Those were Ellis' best showings. Not just scoring. He had a number of breakaway chances (that he didn't finish) and played a big role in shutting down all that future NHL talent.

He's undersized, but has NHL speed. He's fearless and plays with a chip on his shoulder. Probably a career AHL guy, but maybe breaks into NHL as a 4th line/checking winger (so his scoring isn't as big of a need). I follow the Avs, and his signing is similar to Logan O'Connor a couple years ago. O'Connor was a undersized junior at DU w/ underwhelming scoring stats. But now he's a regular on the Avs 3rd/4th line (w/ brief stints filling in for injuries on 1st/2nd due to his speed) who can PK and is tenacious on the forecheck.

Ellis leaving likely opens up some unexpected scholarship space. With how these roster events so closely play out (e.g. Pivonka goes in portal and almost immediately we have his replacement C w/ Primeau), I wonder if Ty Smilanic may come on board (he entered portal this week as a surprise so there may be some things going on behind-the-scenes). He played at NTDP w/ Slaggert. A goal scoring F is need w/ Ellis going. Joining a line w/ Slaggert (and probably Primeau) would be a solid selling point.


Smilanic seems like he would be a nice addition
by wearendhockey  (2022-04-10 12:38:46)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

27 goals in 2 seasons at Quinnipiac. I wonder what prompted him to want to enter the portal? Quinnipiac seems to be a senior laden team and maybe their cupboard will be a little bare next year?

Primeau looks like a decent pick up too, but in him I see just another in a long line of good Notre Dame forwards who are functional on the top lines. Nice to have but be nothing like the dynamic scoring threat this team is screaming for.

We need that line that can't be shut down for an entire game or weekend and uses up the other team's shutdown defenders, so our second scoring line can see most of their ice time against the guys who are generally grocery sticks. We need scorers with enough skill who can create their own space and make plays even when our puck possession system is momentarily thwarted. It has been too easy for a team that knows what to do to clamp down on Notre Dame and leave us with virtually no chance to score.

This all plays out on the biggest stage and we are simply too easy to shut down. Just 2 goals in the last 4 NCAA losses. No other team is that offense-averse even in losing NCAA tournament games. Among 20 other teams with numerous NCAA appearances in the last dozen or so seasons only Providence is close, with 3 goals in their last 4 NCAA losses. That list includes teams that have won titles, teams that have made FFs and teams that have not won any of their last 4 NCAA games. They all manage to create more offensively than Notre Dame.

It is a myth that goaltending and/or defense wins titles. You also have to score. 5 of the last 6 NCAA champs finished in the top 5 in goals scored in the NCAA. The one that didn't was UMD in 2018. Until we see a serious commitment to upgrading our goal scorers or playing a very different style of hockey, this team is not going to realistically threaten to beat 4 different teams in an NCAA tournament.


Look at the bigger picture
by ndmd99  (2022-04-10 16:04:59)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

I get what you're saying. There isn't that dynamic, elite, highlight reel scoring recruit coming in. JJ keeps trying. It'll happen, just not next season. But overall we should have a good upgrade in F scoring.

We're losing 3 centers (G Slag, Burke, and Pivonka). Slaggert will be tough to replace (but Primeau is probably as good as one can hope for). Burke was one of the odd men out as he got less ice time late in season when games got tougher. Pivonka was an offensive black hole (believe he returned OSU weekend in Dec and that's when the scoring probs started popping up). I though JJ might bring him back since he wore a C, but he made the tough call with the Omaha "trade".

Strand will likely be an upgrade over Pivonka/Burke. He scored some high end snipes toward the end of the year. People forget he centered 2 high profile NCAA scorers (Knies and Mazur) in USHL and matched them in PPG. He has legit scoring ability. Need him to keep developing.

JJ has a couple guys coming in from AJHL next season. Don't think he has recruited from there before, but there is some big talent that can come out of there (Savoie and Benning for DU last night were both AJHL products).
Jayden Davis was the center that committed right after Cooley decommit. I'm curious to see how he adjusts to NCAA, b/c it seems like a good number of his goals are snipes off the bar.

I think the 4C will be Brennan Ali, although still tough to tell. He's coming out of HS, so maybe the plan is USHL for a year. Probably similar scoring as Strand this year.

Overall, I see a probable upgrade at center.

Wing we lost Adams. Think Maddox Fleming was supposed to replace him, but late Nov we got a commit from Niko Jovanovic. Around that same time, Fleming left NTDP for USHL where he has been getting more ice time. I wonder if that's a sign Fleming may be pushed back a year and Jovanovic is the replacement for Adams.

Jovanovic fills a major gap in the roster. Plays on same team as Jayden Davis. 20 yo big F. Team shows him as 6'4" 210 lbs (although most other sites show 6'2" or 6'3"). A good chunk of his scoring is physical play within 15 ft of the net. On PP he is either screening the G or flashing to the bumper spot for a one-timer. He should be a massive upgrade and provides different skillset we haven't had in recent years.

Incidentally, looking at the transfers and recruits it still looks like JJ wants more size on the roster. Most of the players coming in are 6'1"+.

Linked a clip from game last night. Jovanovic cycles the puck out of the corner, sneaks in behind the D, gives him a subtle shove to gain space, screens the G, and tips the wrister from Davis. ND needs play like that.

It would not shock me if Jovanovic is a surprise wild card that comes in a pots 15+ goals. And his ability to screen the G enhances opportunities for other to score. Prime example would be Rolston -- he loves firing off low percentage unscreened wristers from the periphery. If he's on a line with Jovanovic, those previously low % shots may actually turn into goals/assists.

Ellis is a loss. And I can't tell if it was expected. We may be looking for another transfer (or maybe Fleming will be the guy?). Curious to see how things shake out in the next couple weeks.


Jovanovic certainly seems enthusiastic about joining the
by zahm82  (2022-04-10 22:23:56)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

team next fall: “It is absolutely a dream come true. Just being in the environment at Notre Dame, where sports are so dominant and popular, there’s no words,” said Jovanovic. “It’s so exciting for me.”


We definitely need someone like this
by wearendhockey  (2022-04-11 11:42:38)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

with size and the ability to screen the goalie, someone who can't be easily moved aside. Was Anders Lee the last really good big body who knew how to establish position around the net and could finish plays? Jovanovic already sounds like he's grown to NHL size. Sounds like the attitude also to be a welcome addition. Looking forward to seeing him at the CFIA.


Wegwerth
by ndmd99  (2022-04-12 09:33:59)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

The lightbulb finally went on as a 6'3" 230lb 21 yo senior in 18/19 and he scored 7G in 12 games cleaning up garbage around the net. He was well on his way to a 20 goal season. If he didn't blow out his knee, that season may have ended very differently.


Despite this, he still led the team in goals scored *
by NH74Domer  (2022-04-09 13:46:34)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post