Rats Acquire Shattenkirk

The Minnesota Rink Rats have announced the acquisition of Kevin Shattenkirk, a highly-touted defensive prospect currently playing in the NCAA. In exchange for Shattenkirk Minnesota sent RW Petr Kalus and a 4th round pick in the upcoming draft to the Harlem Hoodrats. Kalus has seen a decrease in playing time since Patrick O’Sullivan was moved to right wing and was recently a healthy scratch that was sent to the minors.

Kalus wasn’t quite about his recent demotion and many in Minnesota were concerned about how his behavior would affect the team. The organization knew they were dealing with a bit of an ego and decided to make a move sending the speedy young winger to Harlem.

“We are delighted to be bringing in a fine prospect like Kevin to this organization”, stated GM LaDouceur. “We’re hoping Kevin will progress into a solid, top-4 defenseman in the future and he provides great leadership and an ability to play in the offensive zone. He’s played very well thus far in college and we’re excited to see what he can do once he’s ready to play in the big leagues”.

Minnesota has been off to somewhat of a Jekyll and Hyde season thus far. They have shown traces of their abilities against squads like the Vipers, the Fighting Irish & the Saints but have also played very poorly in other games that have been played going 1-4-2 in their first 7 games played.

Clearly the team is missing Captain Jay Bouwmeester who has been out because of an upper body injury the past 4 games. Bouwmeester is expected to make a full recovery but will be out of the lineup the next few weeks. The team has recently found a spark on their 3rd line since the callup of David Krejci. Krejci has played in 2 games and has 2 assists in those games sparking the play of linemates Rob Schremp and Darcy Tucker.

Minnesota’s first two lines has been up and down and has been lead by Matthew Lombardi who has 4 goals and an assist through 7 games. Head Coach, Barry Melrose stated that he’ll continue to mix up his lines and hopes to see improved play from winger Derek Roy who has yet to find the back of the net.

WHL15 Season Outlook

Cammalleri, a highly skilled, speedy, offensive threat. The addition
of Cammalleri provides Minnesota with a proven scoring option that can play all 3 positions up front. In exchange for Cammalleri, Minnesota dealt prospect Dustin Boyd, a WHL16 draft pick and Chuck Kobasew, a potential scoring threat that has taken some time to develop and received a couple of upcoming draft picks as well. Cammalleri will fit in well on the Rink Rat’s first line with Derek Roy and Patrick O’Sullivan.

“Cammalleri is a guy that has scored at every level he’s played and I feel very confident he’ll be able to help us offensively,” said Head Coach, Barry Melrose. “I feel as though we have an improved team over last season and think we have a strong shot to make the playoffs again this season”.

The playoffs will be no easy task for Minnesota as many WHL teams are boasting improved rosters. Within their conference look for the Cats, Orcas and Fighting Irish to see improvements over last season and with the likes of strong clubs like the Bulls, Express, Voodoo, Dropkicks and Timberjacks the division will be pretty competitive again this season.

Minnesota will expect big things out of returning Hart Trophy runner-up Ryan Miller to help carry the team again. The defense looks to be somewhat improved over last season with Brent Burns looking pretty sharp in team training camp. Word has it that Burns is looking like he’ll be one of the best in the league and will most likely be paired with Captain Jay Bouwmeester on the squad’s first line and power play units. The remainder of the team will look like this:

Left Wing
Derek Roy
Geoff Sanderson
Rob Schremp
Mike York

Center
Patrick O'Sullivan
Matthew Lombardi
Alexei Yashin
Kris Beech

Right Wing
Michael Cammalleri
Darcy Tucker
Richard Park
Petr Kalus

Defense
Jay Bouwmeester
Brent Burns
Derek Morris
Toni Lydman
Mike VanRyn
Karel Rachunek
Shane Hnidy

Goal
Ryan Miller
John Graham

Farm
David Krejci
TJ Hensick
Tyler Kennedy
Jimmy Howard
Ryan Potulny
Petteri Norkelainen
Kyle Cumiskey
Brian Elliott
Casey Borer

WHL15 Offseason Report

With the draft completed and the season about to hit full swing the Minnesota Rink Rats have a lot of new faces and an optimistic view for the new season. That optimism is a result of returning goaltender Ryan Miller who was voted to the WHL’s 2nd team All-Star squad and was a close second in voting for the Hart & Vezina Trophies. Miller returns behind the same defense as a season ago but will have a new-look offense in front of them. That offense will be lead by new Rink Rat Patrick O’Sullivan and Derek Roy. O’Sullivan is a solid player who could very well up 40 goals and 40 assists and Roy is a small but speedy winger who is a great setup man and strong finisher.

Jay Bouwmeester returns to the squad and is expected to be named team captain. Bouwmeester will likely be paired with returning defenseman Brent Burns whom the team expects will be much improved with an offseason of hard work and conditioning. The rest of the defense will be rounded out with Derek Morris, Toni Lydman, Mike VanRyn & Karel Rachunek.

Other new faces include newly drafted TJ Hensick, Tyler Kennedy & Brian Elliott along with Ryan Potulny & Alexei Yashin whom were acquired via trade and free agency. The remainder of the offense will be a question mark as the team expects to return the likes of Chuck Kobasew who can put up 20 goals if he stays healthy, Darcy Tucker, Dustin Boyd, Rob Schremp, Matthew Lombardi and possibly David Krejci and Petr Kalus depending on the health of the team.

We recently sat down with GM Rink Rat to ask some questions on the upcoming season and here’s what he had to say:

Q: How do you feel about your draft this season?
A: I feel pretty good about what we were able to do in this year’s draft. There were a lot of great talents in this draft and every GM coming out of it has to be pretty happy with the exception of maybe one club who missed out. We had targeted both TJ Hensick & Tyler Kennedy for our two 2nd round picks and luckily we were able to acquire them. I think both players have a strong chance of playing for our 2nd or 3rd lines next season. We needed help in goal with the possible departure of John Graham in the next season so we picked up Elliott in the 3rd round. We had both Elliott & Greiss targeted as potential 4th round picks but without a pick in that round we had to grab up Elliott in the 3rd. We're happy with that pick and we think he'll help provide us with added depth in the future.

Q: You had Derek Roy on the trade block before the draft. What happened?
A: We came close to making a move but when the player we were targeting at a certain pick got drafted, we decided to stick with Roy. Roy is a tremendous talent with good speed and a great ability to setup his linemates. If we move him it has to be right for our team and our future.

Q: Where do you see this squad finishing during this season?
A: We’ll have to see how the rosters play out. Our division has gotten so good it’s really going to be a struggle. The Cats, Orcas and Cougars will all have improved clubs and this is in a division that already has clubs like the Bulls, Express, Timberjacks, Voodoo, Dropkicks & Fighting Irish. I think our team is going to be fairly comparable to last season, maybe a tad better with an improved Brent Burns on dee, but it’s going to be a tougher division for sure.

Q: Long-term, how does this team look?
A: With our current squad I think we’re 2 seasons away from being a good solid club. A lot of our guys are still trying to figure things out, but I think that they’re not too far off and will have a good chance to put us into contention if they stay healthy and can continue to improve. Guys like David Krejci, Dustin Boyd, TJ Hensick & Rob Schremp all have top-6 potential and give us a good arsenal of options on offense in the upcoming seasons. Plus we have a strong core group of guys like Burns, Bouwmeester, Roy & O’Sullivan that are still in their young 20’s and are improving. O’Sullivan could turn out to be a 50 goal scorer and Roy could end up scoring 80 points each season for the next 6 years. We also have players like Chuck Kobasew & Matthew Lombardi that have put up numbers in the past and have strong potential if they can continue to be consistent. Lombardi is one of the fastest players in the league and we hope his speed and playmaking can put some points on the
board. Right now we’re taking it one game at a time and we’ll see what happens.

Q: Are there any players that you’re currently shopping on the trade block?
A: We like our squad but yeah I think there are still needs that need to be filled. Right now we’re looking for a 2nd line right wing or center for our squad and have Chuck Kobasew, Toni Lydman, Rob Schremp, Matthew Lombardi, Dustin Boyd, Darcy Tucker, Petteri Norkelainen & Petr Kalus available. Roy’s name has been mentioned in a few deals but so far no offer has been good enough to make that move.

Thanks for being here with us and ggood luck to you and your club on the upcoming season.

WHL14 Season Review

After what could be considered a surprise season for many owners in the WHL, the Minnesota Rink Rats ended their "cinderella" season with a 4-game sweep at the hands of the Edmonton Express. The Rink Rats, ranked 7th in the Campbell Conference at season's end, made the playoffs for the 1st time in 5 seasons and more than doubled the team's wins from the previous season.

The team relied on the strong play of MVP candidate Ryan Miller and Captain Marc Savard to turn around the team's fortune and bring success back to this storied franchise. Solid play from young players such as Derek Roy, Nikolai Zherdev, Jay Bouwmeester & Jamie Heward as well as the addition of veterans like Darcy Tucker and Brian Leetch before the trade deadline helped lift the team to the playoffs, but in the end the Express proved too much.

The offseason will provide a few question marks for Minnesota as to the direction of the club. The team will most likely return with a core nucleus consisting of Derek Roy, Brent Burns, Jay Bouwmeester and Ryan Miller but has some question marks as to the status of the rest of the roster. Players such as Darcy Tucker, Geoff Sanderson, Mike VanRyn, Karel Rachunek, Mike York and Josef Vasicek are considered to be on Minnesota's trade block to bring in a few extra picks for this year's draft. Rumors have also swirled that Minnesota may again consider moving Captain Marc Savard who still provides quite a bit of scoring potential, to get into the 1st round of this year’s draft plus a rookie or prospect. Johnny Oduya, Nikolai Zherdev, Rob Schremp and Dustin Boyd may also be on the move if the right offer were in place.

“We’re going to consider all our options and go from there” stated GM LaDouceur. “We’ve got a solid group of players on this team and a couple that are on the verge of going to the next level. We need to continue to find ways to improve and develop our young players. I'm real proud of what we did this season. We're a young club and to improve that much was nice to see. Our fans treat us well in Minnesota and they deserved to watch a winning club.”