Breaking Down the 07-08 Wolverines: Tristin Llewellyn

The last defenseman of this year's installment of the Michigan Wolverines is freshman Tristin Llewellyn.

Last Season: Llewellyn had a breakout year offensively, scoring 3-16--19 in 53 games for the Tri-City Storm of the USHL. He had just 18 points in the two previous seasons combined. He was a +3 and had a whopping 165 PIMs, good for sixth in the league. He also had 96 shots on goal, which was a career high. He was honored with an appearance in the USHL All-Star Game.

The playoffs didn't go nearly as well. He had 0 points and was -5 in nine playoff games, with 12 PIMs and 31 shots on goal, which seems really high.

Expectations: When Llewellyn committed to the Wolverines, seemingly 10 years ago, he was thought of as one of the top players in his age group. Since then, expectations have tempered significantly. His development stagnated, in part (I assume) because he spent three years playing in the USHL. A change of scenery might do him a world of good, and hopefully some of the player that was once thought of as a very high draft pick will come through. As it was, he was listed as an "A" player by Central Scouting at one time, and he was on Max Giese's list as a mid-to-late round selection (97th on his list), but ended up getting passed over. Here's what Giese had to say about him in the leadup to the draft:

97. D Tristin Llewellyn, 6-1 195, 5-2-1989, Tri-City USHL
++ Physical defensive game, confidence
+ Character, untapped upside
- Decision making without the puck.

At one point Tristin was a phenom in the American Hockey system as a possible top 5 pick in this years draft as he was playing in the USHL at the age of 15. Playing against players up to five years older then himself stunted Tristin’s development and now he’s a mid to late round pick. He likes to stand up his man at the blue and for the most part does an effective job but he does caught flat footed every now and then, as he can be beaten to the outside. He usually maintains a tight gap and takes the proper angle to his man before standing him up with a nice body check. Can get too aggressive seeking the open ice hit but that presence he brings is a plus. Skating is in need of improvement as he lacks that initial burst forwards or backwards and his turns are a bit choppy although his feet are adequate. His composure with the puck has improved and he makes a strong first pass. He makes good decisions with the puck for the most part but his decision making without the puck is the question mark. He uses a long stick and has adequate hands and escape moves. He was sensing danger better by the end of the season. He possesses a heavy shot but he must improve his shot selection as he’ll force shots into traffic.

As I said in my article in the lead-up to the draft, it scares me a bit that he forces shots into traffic but doesn't have an initial burst. We'd be wise to pair him with someone that has speed unless we want some breakaways going the other way. But apart from Mitera, all our other defensemen have jets so it shouldn't be a problem. I would expect to see him on the second pairing with Chris Summers.

He's not going to be a huge offensive threat. He had just 37 points in 142 career USHL games, though he was around a point every three games last year. He's mainly a defensive defenseman. He hits a lot of people--too many at times, it seems--and is actually a good skater. He made a positive first-impression in the exhibition game. After signing day, Billy Powers compared him to a smaller Mark Mitera.

I'd say he'll have right around 10 points as a freshman. That's what Mitera ended up with, and playing with Chris Summers (if that keeps up) should lead to quite a few second-assist opportunities.

Level of Necessity: 6.5 out of 10

It's looking more and more like he'll be a top-four defenseman on this team--at least in terms of where he's paired. While guys like Quick, Vaughan and Langlais will be counted on to replace some of the points lost with Hunwick and Johnson leaving, Llewellyn's role will more likely be to replace the physicality lost with Jason Dest's graduation.

He's a guy that kind of flies under the radar because he wasn't draft. Where there are questions about the talent level that Quick and Vaughan have faced, there's nothing of the sort with Llewellyn. He has a ton of experience playing in a top Junior league. He's been in the USHL since he was 15 years old. And again, the fact that he's got some speed (even if he doesn't have a great first step) will allow him to cover up at least some of his freshman mistakes.

Breaking Down the 07-08 Wolverines: Shawn Hunwick

The first of the goalies numerically is #31, freshman Shawn Hunwick.

Last Season: Hunwick played for the Alpena IceDiggers of the NAHL and posted a 17-9-2 record with a 3.06 GAA and a .904 save percentage. He was speaking with schools such as Northern Michigan and Holy Cross before he was injured during a rapid-fire drill. After the injury, the teams he was talking to backed off due to his history of concussions. He was all set to go to Adrian College--a Division III school--until Steve Jakiel left school.

Hunwick also won a state championship with Victory Honda a couple of years ago, and put up outstanding numbers in the process. He's also yet another Wolverine who has previously played for Detroit Honeybaked.

Expectations: I expect him to be the third goalie, but with Hogan's illness and Sauer's problem with not stopping the puck, the goalie position has been listed as wide open. Unfortunately, Shawn came down with an illness before the Blue/White game and didn't get into the Western Ontario game, so he hasn't had a chance to show what he can do in game action.

He'll be the backup until Hogan is well again, but I don't expect him to see a lot of playing time.

It is fair to point out that, despite lesser competition, he did have the best save percentage last year out of all three of our goalies.

Level of Necessity: 3 out of 10.

Probably a higher rating than your typical third-goalie would normally get because there's so much of an unknown at that position. I don't expect him to play, but if the other two falter and he shows something in practice, you never know what can happen.

If nothing else, maybe shooting on a shorter goalie (Hunwick is 5'7") in practice will help them better prepare for Jeff Lerg.

Other Stuff: Jack Johnson had his first career NHL point tonight.

Breaking Down the 07-08 Wolverines: Louie Caporusso

If there's one thing that Michigan is good at, it's landing very talented Italian-Canadian forwards. And the newest one is the next player previewed, Louie Caporusso. It seems impossible not to like this kid. He's a great interview...every answer is exactly the attitude that I want to see in a hockey player.

Last Season: Caporusso led the St. Michael's Buzzers in scoring with a 23-27--50 line in 37 games. If that wasn't enough, he posted an incredible 14-19--33 line in 20 playoff games. He was also the Eastern Player of the Game in the Canadian Junior A Prospects Game.

He was picked in the third round by the Ottawa Senators, whose top scout was "adamant" that the team draft him.

Expectations: He's a kid that I'm excited about. He's drawn comparisons to a more offensive-minded Andrew Ebbett or a slower version of Andrew Cogliano. Not to say he doesn't have speed, but Cogliano was kind of a freak in that regard.

His line--he, Turnbull, and Hagelin--was outstanding over the weekend, combining for 17 points and a +16 rating. Practice reports had indicated that he and Hagelin seemed to work pretty well together, and it has carried over into the exhibition season.

Everything I've read indicates that he's a pretty solid all-around player. Good skater, good stick-handler, good shot, good forechecker, responsible defensively, and a good faceoff guy (he won 16 out of 18 in the Blue/White game, including a few against Matt Rust).

The one downer is that he's had some pesky injuries the past couple of seasons. He's not that big (5'10" 185), but hopefully he can avoid the injury bug this season because he looks to be a productive 2nd/3rd line center.

He's not as highly regarded as Cogliano was coming in, but he should be a productive player in his freshman season. "Drew Cogs" had 28 points his freshman season, but was pretty ineffective after the World Junior Championships. Depending on how the power play units shake themselves out, Caporusso could--and probably should--at least approach those numbers. Especially if his line plays as well in the season as they have thusfar.

Level of Necessity: 7 out of 10

This team is going to have to score by committee. There's no TJ Hensick coming to save us and put up close to 70 points. I don't see the third line of this team being your typical "Grind Line". The third line needs to be a scoring line. It doesn't mean they can't be good defensively as well, but they're going to have to put the puck in the net if we're going to win hockey games.

Louie is another one of those guys that I believe with gain the confidence of the coaches enough that they will feel comfortable playing him in most situations. He seems to have developed instant-chemistry with Carl Hagelin, and chemistry is important when you're trying to blend a dozen new faces into the lineup.

And he's another guy that can win faceoffs. Since we don't yet know if Porter can, it's nice to know that we've got two guys on the roster that should be capable-at-worst at it in Caporusso and Rust.

Breaking Down the 07-08 Wolverines: Kevin Quick

I really need to pick up the pace--or move more quickly (see what I did there?)--if I'm going to finish all these before the first game. Next up is #27, freshman defenseman Kevin Quick.

Last Season: Finding anything out about some of these prep school players beyond their stats is a bit tedious, but Quick had a goal and ten assists and was +26 in 25 games for Salisbury Prep. That was a major dip from the year before when he posted a 3-20--23 line in 28 games, with a +45 rating, but in his Checking In interview, Quick attributed the dropoff in points to his team being less defensively sound, so he had to reign it in on the offensive side a little bit.

Expectations: As a 2006 third-round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning, perhaps my expectations from the outset were a little bit higher than they should be. In past interviews, Red Berenson has pointed out that Quick might have a bigger adjustment period due to the fact that he's coming from prep hockey rather than the USHL.

The Lightning wanted him to play in the USHL, but Quick had made a commitment to Salisbury that he didn't want to break. He did, however, take their advice that he should probably find some tougher competition than the ECAC would allow.

That said, I fully expect him to play, and to be a good defensemen for us eventually. Everything I've read throughout his recruitment points to him as a solid two-way defenseman. He's able to jump up into the play, but he's also responsible in his own end. And apparently his skating ability will lead to many oh-so-clever puns with his last name.

In Bob Miller's observations from the Western Ontario game, he wrote the following about Quick:

Quick - After a nearly invisible first period, Quick showed some of the skating and offensive ability he was reputed to bring to the team. Still will need a lot of work in the d-zone, but his quick (sorry, couldn't come up with a more fitting description) jump to offense produced a couple of scoring chances. He really needs experience at the higher level he'll be subjected to this year. Expect some growing pains with potentially big benefit/production at some point, although likely not this season.

I guess the good news is that his speed will allow him to cover for at least some of the inevitable freshman mistakes that he'll make. From the sounds of it, he's a prime candidate for the "most improved" award from his freshman to sophomore seasons. A year in the USHL could have probably helped him, but now he'll have to learn on the job.

I wouldn't expect a big year out of him in terms of points. How well he does--and how much ice time he gets--will almost entirely depend on how quickly he's able to adjust to the college game.
He clearly has the tools to be a very good player.

Level of Necessity: 6 out of 10

I suppose I'm lucky that his number is 27 and not 2, because this rating would have likely been higher had I written this preview before the hockey coverage around the net kicked into full gear. It was hard to not get excited based on what I gathered in doing my Looking Ahead preview. All the draftniks loved him, apparently Tampa management is very high on him, and he's been compared to guys like Brian Campbell and Jack Johnson. It sounds like his talent level is off the chart, and once he gets some experience playing at the college level, he's going to be a very good player. But it seems at this point, I'd be wise to temper my expectations somewhat for this first year.

He'll still play, but at this point I have him pegged more as a third-pairing guy who doesn't see all that much time on the special teams (early reports have Kevin Porter on the point for one of the power play units). It wouldn't shock me if he eventually saw time on the power play, because it sounds as if the big adjustment for him is going to come in our end of the ice.

Other Stuff: After updating the Hockey Hotboard last week, The Wolverine continued their new "Recruiting Wednesdays" feature, with an article about Derek Lee, uber-recruit from the BCHL. He sounds like a really great kid--he apologized repeatedly for taking awhile to respond to the interview request because he was out of town, and he stated a desire to commit quickly so that the other schools won't be hung out to dry.

He seems to have a good relationship with ex-teammate and current Wolverine Ben Winnett. He didn't cite a leader, but based on what I've read elsewhere, it sounds as if Wisconsin is the team to beat. He hasn't visited Michigan yet, so we'll get our chance to make an impression. I've lived in both cities. I really do like Madison, but it's not Ann Arbor. Hopefully Lee will end up agreeing.

Red gives his first impressions of the team to The Wolverine ($ link). One thing that came out in that interview is that Chad Kolarik has earned an "A". It's nice to see that. We only had two players wearing letters, and as one of only two seniors, it seems right for him to have one. Sometimes cementing a player into a leadership role and giving him more responsibility can aid his own play. I like the move.

Mike Spath and Bob Miller will also be updating the Hockey Hot Board today or tomorrow, and we'll apparently get to find out the name of a new goalie target. Please let it be a good one.

Breaking Down the 07-08 Wolverines: Danny Fardig

Continuing on, we get to Michigan's own version of the Little Ball of Hate, Danny Fardig.

Last Season: Fardig continued to do what he does best. Skating around the ice like a mad man, hitting everyone in sight, forechecking, killing penalties, blocking shots, and chipping in with points every now and then.

In 41 games, he put up just 2 goals and 4 assists, was +5 and had 36 PIMs (which isn't bad at all considering the amount of hitting he does and the fact that 10 of those minutes came via a misconduct).

He plays a role, and he does it really well. The one thing that he doesn't do well: Faceoffs. I have no data to back this up, but I'm pretty sure that winning under a third of the 230 faceoffs he took last year (32.9%) makes him the worst faceoff man in the free world. I know that Yanic Perrault is thought of as hands-down the best guy in the NHL on draws, and he has a career mark of around 62%. 33% is kind of mind-boggling. Toward the end of the season, they stopped having him take draws, though he continued to play center.

Expectations: Anyway, he's going to be in a battle with a few other guys for ice-time, since one of the "usual" forwards or the freshmen has to sit. I expect that based on what he brings to the defensive side of the game gives him an edge over someone like Naurato who is mainly effective in the offensive zone. I believe that we're going to score quite a lot of goals this year, even if we don't lead the nation, so I would rather have a tenacious forechecker, and someone who is tough to play against in the lineup over a guy that is going to pot 10 goals and not do much else.

In his two years combined, he has 13 points, so it's pretty unlikely that he's going to reach double-digits this year. But he's not a guy whose contributions are measured on our side of the scoresheet anyway. I'd expect another 5-8 points, 30 PIMs or so, and a +/- on the low side compared to the rest of the team, but still on the positive side (his line doesn't score enough goals to climb the charts in that regard...they're not expected to).

One of the reasons that I like this kid so much is that he does the dirty work and he's willing to give up his body. His 34 blocked shots led the team's forwards. It's even more impressive when you factor in the number of minutes he plays and the fact that he had just one in the last 13 games of the season. That "slump" at the end of the year indicates that if he's consistently in the lineup, his blocks total could actually rise significantly (that would put him around defensemen-level, which is kind of amazing).

Level of Necessity: 6 out of 10

Despite a lack of offensive numbers, he brings it defensively. He's our best shot-blocking forward. He's a good penalty killer. He's a great forechecker. And he brings some of that "nasty" that we don't have a ton of. He's a tough guy to play against, which means he's a nice guy to have around. And most importantly, he skates his ass off every time he's on the ice.

Competition brings out the best in guys. I don't expect to see Fardig lose out on a lot of chances to dress because of the battle for the 11th/12th forward spots, simply because he's a pretty consistent guy. You know what you're getting out of him and he's not going to hurt you by being in there. He's better at playing the pinball role than Ciraulo, and the other guys in this battle for ice-time don't really bring what Fardig does. It makes him unique, and I expect that they'll want some of that in the lineup.

I got my tickets this morning for the Icebreaker this weekend. I'll bring my laptop, but I don't know that I'll be able to update from St. Paul as I'm going to be busy seeing friends, I'm not sure my hotel has internet, and my laptop is hit and miss if it will turn on. If I can't find a way to update, I'll have full coverage when I get back to Madison on Sunday...after I watch the Packers/Redskins game of course.

Breaking Down the 07-08 Wolverines: Chad Kolarik

The latest player that we'll take a look at is one of just two seniors on the team, Chad Kolarik.

Last Season: Kolarik was fourth on the team in scoring as well as goals with an 18-27--45 line. He was +13 and had just 24 PIMs in 41 games. He led the team in PPGs (7) as well as short-handed goals (3). He was also the first Michigan player in a dozen years to notch hat-tricks in back to back games.

Kolarik was the closest thing to a video game player on our team, firing an amazing 163 shots at the net (that's what I do when I play video games...I end up shooting the puck like 70 times).

He also showed that faceoffs are not his strong suit, winning just 38.9% of the 190 draws that he took. What is his strong suit, though, is putting up points. He went without a point in back-to-back games just two times the entire season, and was held pointless on only thirteen of the 41 games.

Expectations: Whereas Kevin Porter puts up a ton of points, but is also a well-rouned player, Kolarik is more of a pure offensive talent. He's not a guy that you're going to put out there to lock down the opposing team's best player. He shoots, shoots, and shoots some more and puts in a fair amount of goals out of sheer opportunities (only Ciraulo, Fardig, and Turnbull had worse shooting percentages amongst our regular forwards).

He's extremely effective on the power play, and while he's not a great defender, he is nice to have out there on the PK, because he gives you the threat of scoring short-handed when he's out there. Part of what makes him so effective in that regard is that he is very good at blocking shots. His 26 blocks were second on the team amongst forwards to Danny Fardig.

He should be in line for another very nice season. He's never had less than 35 points in his Michigan career, and he'll be playing on the top line with Porter and Max Pacioretty, at least for the time being. It will be interesting to see the dynamic between Porter and Kolarik. Last year, Kolarik was with a pass-first center in Cogliano (and don't let Cogs's goal total fool you, he had just 89 shots on goal last year). Porter is used to getting the puck as well, finishing second on the team in shots last year. I'm curious to see if they'll adjust their games (and find some pucks for Pacioretty as well) or if they'll need to juggle the lines and get more of a natural passer on the top line.

If things stay how they are, however, it wouldn't shock me if Kolarik betters his personal bests in goals and points again this year. He put up 18 goals and 45 points and they didn't really have a threat on the left wing until Summers moved up to forward until late in the year. As of right now, he's with two other players that can put the puck in the net. If they prove to be able to get the puck to each other, we could have a really solid top line, even if it's not as nasty as Porter-Hensick-Rohlfs was last year.

I'd like to see him pass up some of those low-percentage shots in favor of working it around to his very talented linemates (and defensemen). If he can cut some of those out, and bury the higher-percentage shots that he gets, he could have a monster year.

I'd really like to see his shooting percentage closer to the .158 that he had as a freshman than the .104 or .110 that he's had in subsequent years. He had 18 goals on 114 shots as a freshman and it took him 163 to match that total as a junior. Midseason, he was at a .144, which is more like what we need. The puck stopped going in for him after the GLI, and he had just 4 goals after the first game of 2007 (I realize this contradicts what I said about how playing with two top-notch players might help him...so we'll see).

He's going to play heavy minutes, as a top line forward who also plays on the power play and penalty kill. I'm looking forward to a very nice senior season out of Kolarik.

Level of Necessity: 8.5 out of 10.

We lose enough scoring on this team as it is. Kolarik is second on the team amongst returning players in goals and points. He's a top line player, he plays on all the special teams units, and he's the closest thing to a sniper that we've got on this team. While Porter outscored him last year, Porter has just two more points over the course of their careers (and that was with the benefit of playing with TJ Hensick). There's no reason that being on equal footing, Kolarik shouldn't lead this team in scoring.

Other Stuff: The hockey team defeated Western Ontario by a 5-1 margin yesterday in their only exhibition game before they head out to St. Paul to potentially take on the #2 and #5 teams in the country.

Based on some high-quality box score reading (I wasn't about to listen to the game when the Packers were on. Maybe I should have.) it looks like another stellar night out of the Turnbull-Caporusso-Hagelin line. Hagelin had a hat trick. The Miller-Rust-Palushaj line also did a good job, with all three players netting two points.

Sauer allowed just one goal, but was apparently not tested more than a couple of times. 1 goal on 17 shots is just fine. You can only stop the shots you face, and it doesn't seem like UWO provided much of an offensive threat. Langlais was +3, and apparently was pretty impressive.

Bob Miller and MGoBlog had very detailed, first-hand accounts. From Bob's post, it seems that they're making an effort to be a more responsible defensive team this season, and he agrees with what I've been saying in these previews, that they'll be a more well-rounded offensive team, but without the elite offensive players that we've had in the past.

Breaking Down the 07-08 Wolverines: Brandon Naurato

Today marked the start of the 2007-08 exhibition schedule, with the Wolverines playing the annual Blue-White game. We'll get into that in a little bit, but first up is the break down on #22, Brandon Naurato.

Last Season: Naurato more than doubled his point total from his freshman season, putting up 12 goals to go along with 11 assists in 40 games. He was +4 with 34 PIMs. He also averaged almost 3 shots on goal per game, putting up 108 to rank him fifth on the team. He was also tied for fourth on the team in PPGs with 4.

If there's one thing this kid does well, it's shoot the puck. He probably has the best shot on the team, and while he doesn't do anything else extremely well, he's carved out a niche for himself on the team. He was held without a SOG only twice all season last year. He was pretty effective in the second half of the season, scoring 14 of his 23 points in the last 19 games of the season, including a five game point streak in January. Only six players on the team had more multi-point games last season (Naurato had 7).

Expectations: It kind of depends. As I've written before, there's 15 guys going for 12 spots up front. I figure that Fragner and Ciraulo will both be frequent scratches, leaving one more player who needs to sit. Naurato, Fardig, and Lebler seem to be battling it out for two spots. I think this battle is going to come down to what the coaches feel they need on the ice at any given moment (and where they may feel we're deficient after they see what the freshmen have). If it's a sniper, Naurato is in. If they need hustle, grit, and forechecking, Digger plays. If they want a big body to play the Jason Ryznar type role, then Lebler is in. And of course one injury up front puts all three of them into the lineup. Amazingly, we only lost four man-games to injury last year amongst our forwards.

Naurato will play, it just might not be every night. If that's the case--and he skated with Ciraulo and Fragner tonight, so that may be an indication that he's on the outside looking in--his numbers will likely go down from a year ago. If he can consistently play the way he did in the last 20 games of the season, though, he may find himself in the lineup more often than not. He'll be dressed based on his offensive abilities, so he needs to put numbers on the stat sheet to consistently be in the lineup.

Level of Necessity: 5.5 out of 10

His offensive abilities are a nice plus, but he doesn't bring enough in the other areas of the game to put him higher than this. He'll be good for 8-13 goals, possibly 20 points if he plays enough, and that's not anything to sneeze at. But he'll be in a battle for ice time (which may bring out the best in him) and I'm not confident that he's going to be the one that wins out in the end. He's kind of a hard one to project. 20 games played wouldn't shock me. But neither would 35. It depends on what we need in the lineup, if he steps up when he gets the chance, and if he can bring it consistently like he did for awhile toward the end of last season.

Other Stuff: The Blue-White game (PDF Link) was tonight and...well...let's put it this way: When the backup (Hogan) and 3rd stringer (Hunwick) aren't in the lineup and are replaced by walkons, it's probably not the best thing if the team the starting goalie is on loses 6-3. Not fair to put the blame on unbalanced teams, either. While the winning team did have 13 roster skaters to 9 for the other side, based on the projected lineups, each side had 9 regular skaters and 3 regular defensemen.

From what I can gather, here's the important stuff from the game:
-Louie Caporusso had a monster night with 3 assists, +4, and winning 16 of the 18 faceoffs he took(!!!)
-His linemates, Travis Turnbull (3-1--4, +4) and Carl Hagelin (1-3--4, +4) were evidently outstanding as well.
-For the other squad, Kevin Porter (2) and Max Pacioretty had the goals.
-Jon Montville isn't listed on the roster for this upcoming season but he played in the Blue/White game, which seems to indicate that he wasn't invited back or chose to focus on school rather than varsity hockey. I'd bank on the latter since he wasn't that bad for us. Either way, going -5 when no one else was worse than -2 probably didn't help his cause if he was looking to be back on the roster in some form.
-Caporusso's numbers on draws may have been aided somewhat by going against walkons (one was 2/10), but Rust and Porter also lost more than they won. And when you factor in that Rust is supposed to be an excellent faceoff man, maybe Louie is really really good? I can hope.
-Do we know why Hunwick didn't play? We don't need another goalie injury already.
-I'm really trying hard not to pile on, but here's the Sauer Report from poster GoalCountReady at the Yost Post:

He looked good tonight...

If by good you meant absolutely horrible. The first Blue goal was a weak shot that hit him in the body and trickled in across the goal line. The second goal was one rebound on a shot he kicked up when he should have had control over. The third one was actually a tough save... Turnbull snapped it into the top corner with the quickness and it was a fantastic shot. I missed the fourth goal, but Ciraulo's goal could have been kept out of the net and Turnbull's final goal was the result of some nice tic-tac-toe hockey that caught him on the wrong post. If it makes you feel any better the Hagelin--Caporusso--Turnbull line looked GOOD.

The Michigan Daily had a liveblog of the event. They weren't thrilled about the goaltending play either. This could really snowball in a hurry.

So we're off to a good start. Hopefully tomorrow is a better day. We don't need to be going into games against Boston College and potentially Minnesota with a goalie still questioning himself. And I'm driving out there, so I'd appreciate not seeing us get blown out.

Ben Winnett's profile closed out the Checking In feature for the year.

The Michigan Hockey edition of "MGoBlogs" at MGoBlue kicked off with a feature about Captain's Practices.

I'm never afraid to admit I was wrong, when I was in fact wrong. Matt Hunwick was the last defenseman cut from the Bruins in training camp (and logically would be the first call up). There were many times where I called him out as someone who I didn't even see as an AHL player, let alone an NHL player. I'm happy to admit I was wrong on that one, and I wish Matt all the best.

It's crazy to think that six years ago right now I was still thawing out after The Cold War. Today it was something like 86 degrees.

I still have nine more of these previews to go. I didn't think I was that far behind. Chad Kolarik is next.