I have been a lot busier the past few days than anticipated, but I wanted to give you all a heads up that I am leaving town tomorrow, won't be back until July 12... and don't really plan on blogging in the meanwhile.
Bryan Benway is also out of town, so there shouldn't be too much Bucks' news to report, and this'll be the first time I see my family in nearly a year, so I think they deserve my attention.
I promise I will get around to typing up leftover Ruskowski quotes when I get back, and I'll be blogging much more consistently after that as signings and everything else pick up.
Hope you're having a nice summer; stay safe on the fourth and enjoy the next couple weeks.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Sample Story
In telling everyone to check out my story in today's Times for Coach Ruskowski's thoughts on recently-signed defenseman Tomas Sample, I forgot about the fact that you have to be a subscriber to view our stories online now.
If you are a subscriber to either the print or online version, you can check the story out here.
If not, you can read Ruskowski's quotes here...
On Sample's style:
"He's very simple, very effective... he doesn't get nervous when he has the puck; he's very calm, cool and collected. I like that a lot, and I'm very excited, very happy to sign him."
On the years off:
I read once that after playing for a certain amount of years, it's actually good to take a year off. There's a lot of wear and tear... hockey is very tough on the body. So now I know his body is in good condition, he just needs to get his mind ready. He's working very hard to get back in playing shape and get the rink rust off."
On Sample's tough side:
"He doesn't take any crap from anybody. He's not going to go looking for it, but he's a very team-oriented guy and will back up his teammates and stand up for himself. Sometimes, it's not whether you win or lose a fight, but just that you show up and let your teammates know you're there to help and protect them. That shows our opponent that if they give anyone on our team trouble, they're going to have to deal with some of our guys. He's willing to stand up for guys... players like that make us more of a team, and that's something we were lacking last year."
On all the young d-men:
"If I can bring in a bunch of young guys with talent, I have no problem with (a lot of rookies). It's not going to be a sprint; it's a marathon. So if we can get stronger as the year goes on, that's what I want."
As you may recall, Sample is the second rookie defenseman to be signed by the Bucks this offseason, following Drew Kivell. The only other d-man signed so far was Cody Hamilton, who will only be in his second professional season.
Obviously, though, this is a league full of young players, and the rookie guys are signing up for a chance to come to training camp, not a locked-down spot on the roster. We'll see what happens.
In other offseason transaction news, former Buck Matt Summers was re-signed by the Mississippi RiverKings today.
You can see the full list of offseason trades and signings on the CHL Web site... which seems to be not working right now. I'll post that link as soon as it is.
And, if you care about NHL free agency, the TSN tracker is one of the best places to follow that. Twitter is also incredibly helpful if you know who to follow... and who to ignore.
Speaking of Twitter, I've been meaning to mention that the CHL has one, as do the Bucks.... oh, and so does the LMT sports department.
If you are a subscriber to either the print or online version, you can check the story out here.
If not, you can read Ruskowski's quotes here...
On Sample's style:
"He's very simple, very effective... he doesn't get nervous when he has the puck; he's very calm, cool and collected. I like that a lot, and I'm very excited, very happy to sign him."
On the years off:
I read once that after playing for a certain amount of years, it's actually good to take a year off. There's a lot of wear and tear... hockey is very tough on the body. So now I know his body is in good condition, he just needs to get his mind ready. He's working very hard to get back in playing shape and get the rink rust off."
On Sample's tough side:
"He doesn't take any crap from anybody. He's not going to go looking for it, but he's a very team-oriented guy and will back up his teammates and stand up for himself. Sometimes, it's not whether you win or lose a fight, but just that you show up and let your teammates know you're there to help and protect them. That shows our opponent that if they give anyone on our team trouble, they're going to have to deal with some of our guys. He's willing to stand up for guys... players like that make us more of a team, and that's something we were lacking last year."
On all the young d-men:
"If I can bring in a bunch of young guys with talent, I have no problem with (a lot of rookies). It's not going to be a sprint; it's a marathon. So if we can get stronger as the year goes on, that's what I want."
As you may recall, Sample is the second rookie defenseman to be signed by the Bucks this offseason, following Drew Kivell. The only other d-man signed so far was Cody Hamilton, who will only be in his second professional season.
Obviously, though, this is a league full of young players, and the rookie guys are signing up for a chance to come to training camp, not a locked-down spot on the roster. We'll see what happens.
In other offseason transaction news, former Buck Matt Summers was re-signed by the Mississippi RiverKings today.
You can see the full list of offseason trades and signings on the CHL Web site... which seems to be not working right now. I'll post that link as soon as it is.
And, if you care about NHL free agency, the TSN tracker is one of the best places to follow that. Twitter is also incredibly helpful if you know who to follow... and who to ignore.
Speaking of Twitter, I've been meaning to mention that the CHL has one, as do the Bucks.... oh, and so does the LMT sports department.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Bucks Sign Sample
That sounds kind of funny, right?
Anyway, the Bucks announced today that they have signed 22-year-old rookie defenseman Tomas Sample.
Sample played four seasons of junior hockey then took two years off to complete his education, so he hasn't played since the 2006-07 season.
He played for four teams in two different junior leagues, the Ontario Hockey League and the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League.
I'm guessing that Coach Ruskowski and/or his scouts saw something in this kid they really liked if he's bringing him in after a couple seasons off, so I'll be sure to ask him about that.
For more on Sample, you can check out his OHL profile, his hockeyfights.com profile or this YouTube video:
I honestly have no idea which of the players he is because they're wearing the same number, but both kids throw some pretty big punches in there.
Oh, wait, here's another one:
UPDATE: Ruskowski does indeed seem to like this kid a lot; you can read my story in tomorrow's Times to hear what he had to say. Just a heads up, the numbers on Hockey DB conflict greatly with the ones in the press release and slightly with the ones on the OHL and OPJHL sites. So, in my story, I'm going with the ones from the leagues themselves. That adds up to 38 total points, one more than Hockey DB has given him, and quite a few less than what the press release states. His OPJHL numbers from 2006-07 can be found here, but the only discrepency is with his OHL time, as Hockey DB has him pointless with the Sudbury Wolves in 2003-04 and the OHL site says he had an assist. Sorry if that's confusing; just wanted to explain.
Anyway, the Bucks announced today that they have signed 22-year-old rookie defenseman Tomas Sample.
Sample played four seasons of junior hockey then took two years off to complete his education, so he hasn't played since the 2006-07 season.
He played for four teams in two different junior leagues, the Ontario Hockey League and the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League.
I'm guessing that Coach Ruskowski and/or his scouts saw something in this kid they really liked if he's bringing him in after a couple seasons off, so I'll be sure to ask him about that.
For more on Sample, you can check out his OHL profile, his hockeyfights.com profile or this YouTube video:
I honestly have no idea which of the players he is because they're wearing the same number, but both kids throw some pretty big punches in there.
Oh, wait, here's another one:
UPDATE: Ruskowski does indeed seem to like this kid a lot; you can read my story in tomorrow's Times to hear what he had to say. Just a heads up, the numbers on Hockey DB conflict greatly with the ones in the press release and slightly with the ones on the OHL and OPJHL sites. So, in my story, I'm going with the ones from the leagues themselves. That adds up to 38 total points, one more than Hockey DB has given him, and quite a few less than what the press release states. His OPJHL numbers from 2006-07 can be found here, but the only discrepency is with his OHL time, as Hockey DB has him pointless with the Sudbury Wolves in 2003-04 and the OHL site says he had an assist. Sorry if that's confusing; just wanted to explain.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Ruskowski's Thoughts
I had planned to blog a bit today but got caught up doing desk work all afternoon/evening, so I'm just going to link to my story that ran in today's Times for now.
As those of you have seen it know, I talked to Coach Ruskowski about a wide variety of topics, including his time in the NHL, this season's playoffs, the players he's signing and the ones he's let go.
I talked to him for quite a while, so I have leftover quotes I'll be sure to post sometime soon.
As those of you have seen it know, I talked to Coach Ruskowski about a wide variety of topics, including his time in the NHL, this season's playoffs, the players he's signing and the ones he's let go.
I talked to him for quite a while, so I have leftover quotes I'll be sure to post sometime soon.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Bees Bring Back Rycroft
Sorry for not posting this yesterday, but the Rio Grande Vally Killer Bees took advantage of the hiatus being taken by the Rocky Mountain Rage to sign forward Daymen Rycroft, who spent the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons in Hidalgo.
Brian Sandalow has more on the acquisition via his story and a blog entry.
Obviously, any time the Killer Bees sign anyone, it's going to have at least a slight effect on the Bucks because this is the team they face more than any other, and this signing also takes a pretty big free agent off the market.
Too bad this had to be announced after I spoke to Coach Ruskowski for a Bucks update that will run in Monday's Times.
In other league news, the expansion team in Independence, Mo., has a name, and that name is the Missouri Mavericks.
Brian Sandalow has more on the acquisition via his story and a blog entry.
Obviously, any time the Killer Bees sign anyone, it's going to have at least a slight effect on the Bucks because this is the team they face more than any other, and this signing also takes a pretty big free agent off the market.
Too bad this had to be announced after I spoke to Coach Ruskowski for a Bucks update that will run in Monday's Times.
In other league news, the expansion team in Independence, Mo., has a name, and that name is the Missouri Mavericks.
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