On February 21st the Hamilton Bulldogs played their most recent game at the Bell Centre against the Binghamton Senators. They lost 4-1 that night, and have stumbled since, falling further and further out of the playoff chase in the last several weeks. While the team is not getting the results they want, there have been some good individual performances.
First up is Jarred Tinordi. He has shown good defensive play, and toughness throwing plenty of hits on the Dogs blueline. He also had a fight against Mike Boroweiki in the Bell Centre game. It was a strong fight for both players and many fans have speculated that this added toughness, along with Tinordi’s recent defensive play are the reasons he was called up by the big club after the Olympic break.
Nick Tarnasky also had a fight that night. He also managed to get a breakaway and score in front of the Montreal crowd. It was a little surprising to see a player with his lack of speed on a breakaway, but once he got it he scored a nice goal. Tarnasky has been one of the top goal scorers on Hamilton this season.
Dustin Tokarski has been outstanding for the Bulldogs all season, and has saved the team on a number of occassions. There was no doubt that with Carey Price hurt Tokarski was the man the Habs would recall, and he even managed to get a win in Anaheim against the Ducks. Not an easy place to play for any goalie, nevermind a rookie. He may have let in one rough goal that night, but his overall game was strong and he helped the team win in the shootout.
Sven Andrighetto continues to prove he is the most naturally talented forward on the team, and is a threat on every shift. The Canadiens got a real steal when they took the talented Swiss forward in the third round of the 2013 NHL draft. Andrighetto has a really bright future going forward.
Nathan Beaulieu is a fun player to watch. He is an excellent skater and creates a lot of offence from the backend. While he is back down with the Bulldogs now, he had a strong run in Montreal prior to the Olympics, and it won’t be long before he is back there again.
It would be great to see the Habs be able to get both Beaulieu and Tinordi a spot on their blue line for the experience they could get at the end of the season and in the playoffs. But at the same time the team’s top priority has to be winning right now, and it will be tough to break in two rookie defencemen at the same time. They should be ready to take spots in training camp next year though.
Lastly, we have seen Davis Drewiske recently join the Bulldogs. He was sent down after he finally recovered from his preseason shoulder injury. Adding an NHL defender like Drewiske will no doubt benefit Hamilton in the late part of the season.
Drewiske was acquired from the Los Angles Kings at the 2013 trade deadline and played nine games for the Canadiens last season. He was having a pretty good training camp until missing an edge and slamming into the boards. On the play he injured his shoulder and it required surgery and a long rehabilitation period.
Drewiske has been skating with the Habs since January and started practicing with the team just before the Olympic break. After a few more weeks he was put on waivers for the purpose of sending him to Hamilton. Once he cleared, the Canadiens sent him down so he can get back into game shape after being out for so long. With his experience he can be a leader on the Bulldogs and can act like another captain for that team right now. With a contract running through next season, he may even become the Dogs captain and team leader before all is said and done.
The Habs have a great young prospect future ahead of them. I think with more work on both teams we will for sure see a few more new players next season including Beaulieu and Tinordi…As well Greg Pateryn and maybe Morgan Ellis or Darren Dietz will also get a shot? Time will tell.
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