1-On-1: Summer Player Signing Analysis

Roadrunners Director of Hockey Operations Jake Wagman joined Adrian Denny on this week’s Insider Podcast to give Rapid Fire analysis on every player that has been signed so far this summer. For the complete conversation, and to learn about prospect Miko Matikka and hear an interview with rookie Will Gavin; download the full episode below.

Listen to “Free Agent Rapid Fire With Jake Wagman & Introducing Will Gavin” on Spreaker.

NHL/AHL Two-Way Contracts

Andrew Agozzino: This will be a really important veteran for us. We saw him the last couple of years with San Jose and San Diego. He’s just a really consistent point producer, creative playmaker, a guy who has great vision and a little bit of finish to him too. I think he’s going to complement our top six really well; and he’s going to hopefully be a high producer for us.

Travis Barron: Bear is a consummate pro, another glue guy in the room. Centermen are really hard to get in this league and he’s one who can play in all situations as well. He’s a good face-off guy and he’s proven that he can play with the more elite guys on our team and doesn’t miss a beat. He’s another guy that’s not afraid to drop the gloves and stick up for his teammates. Just an incredibly valuable piece for us.

Kevin Connauton: I don’t know him personally, but anecdotally have heard that he’s an unbelievable leader and a really good person. He plays a really consistent game and logs a ton of minutes on the backend. He’s going to be our leader for defensemen, really excited to have some stability there too on a two-year deal. I think he’s going to be an excellent character guy for our team and somebody who’s really counted on to help the young guys come along.

Curtis Douglas: About as tough as it gets and he’s a really positive person. He’s really good in the room, kind of a funny, quirky guy that at six-foot-nine is hard to miss. Him, along with Hunter Drew and Travis Barron was probably one of the best, if not the best fourth lines in the league, last year towards the end of the season. (Curtis) is going to be a big part of what we have going forward.

Milos Kelemen: He’s the horse, lugs the puck and is able to create offense in simple ways by just driving to the net. He’s got a heck of a shot and he’s another guy that’s fun to be around off the ice and he has a great attitude.

Patrik Koch: I don’t think a lot of people knew who he was coming into last year. He was another guy that took a little while to crack the lineup and as soon as he did and he got a foothold, he was known by almost everybody pretty quickly. It’s tough to miss him because he hits harder than anybody in our league. He’s just an honest player, probably one of the nicest people you’ll meet off the ice, he’s just a great family man. His physicality and his ruggedness really stood out and he’s not a secret any more. Everyone knows who Patrik Koch is.

Vlad Kolyachonok: Just the hardest worker that I think I’ve ever seen and that’s saying a lot. He’s one of those guys that you have to try to rip off the ice because he never wants to get off. He went through a lot last year. He had an injury in November with the NHL club. He did a heck of a job rehabbing and got a call-up at the end of the year and played, I think, some of his best hockey with the big club during that span. He’s another guy that will be a leader for us. When he keeps his game simple, he’s one of the most effective defensemen in the AHL.

Ben McCartney: Salt of the earth, just a hardworking guy. He’s somebody who really has an opportunity to take a big step forward this year. He was a young player on his entry-level contract figuring out the league. He has a great opportunity to galvanize the troops in a leadership role. With already being an assistant captain prior to this, we expect that he’s going to drag us into the fight and continue to build on some important stepping stones. He’s got all of the tools, he plays an extremely rugged game. He’s a big part of our identity. He’s just a hardworking guy that’s physical and we’re going to need players like him to just grind opponents down throughout the long year.

Matt Villalta: Our everything. We probably have not had the best goaltending since my tenure started here and Matty cured that pretty quickly. He made us look a lot better than we could have some nights. He made some of the best saves that I’ve seen in the American League. There’s a couple that stand out. I think one of our last games in San Diego he made like three pointblank saves, one was on his butt; he looked down and out. He just stole points for us. He’s such a gifted natural athlete, has unbelievable flexibility and hand-eye coordination. He’s a really easygoing guy; it’s amazing because he nothing flusters him. He played a million games last year and any time we had a question for him whether he wanted to go or not, there was no hesitation, he always wanted to get in. Just a great team player and somebody that really provides a lot of stability for us.

AHL Contracts

Hunter Drew: He kind of fought through not being in the lineup right away, he was in and out throughout the first half of the season and when he got an opportunity, for a while he was at half a goal per-game. He brings a unique element with his ability to produce and create some space for our other forwards on the ice with his physicality. Just another great human being who fits into our group really well.

Will Gavin: I know he can rip it and he did it consistently in college. Probably one of the more impressive human beings that you’ll come across on our team because the Air Force Academy is not an easy place to be, not an easy place to get to. Not only the possibility of serving your country and it’s pretty impressive that he’s able to do that and be a pro hockey player to boot. Just a very impressive kid. He got a taste of what we we’re like, he came down for a week last season; we didn’t get to see him in game action. But it’ll be really good for him to have been in our Development Camp and a training camp with Tucson will be huge for him. It certainly looks like he has all of tools to succeed.

Cameron Hebig: He’s just such a good role model, he started really at the bottom of the totem pole and didn’t have anything handed to him and he’s worked his way into just a consistent AHL’er. If you look at this numbers, 5-on-5, he’s right up there with our other forwards production wise too. He’s such a good skater, he goes to every area on the ice fearlessly and he’s able to play in all situations. His skating is what separates him from other guys in the league.

Ryan McGregor: He’s a stabilizing presence in the middle, has great character and is a hard worker, just a glue guy.

Austin Poganski: Just one of the best leaders that you’ll see and you’ll meet. He was a workhorse on the ice and off the ice he was really able to show some of the younger guys the way and provide kind of a Swiss Army knife type of play on a nightly basis. He was probably our most consistent forward throughout the year. As everybody knows, he went from a PTO to an American Hockey League contract midway through the year and turned it into a nice two-year AHL deal with a good raise. He’s earned everything he’s gotten and I’m incredibly happy to see him return.

Robbie Russo: I know I sound like a broken record, but he’s really good in the room and a great guy to be around. He’s another vet for us. You can never have too many right shot defensemen. He’s going to be a guy who’s counted on to produce on the backend. I think he does everything well, he’s another Swiss Army knife as well. That was a really important part for us to get, because it will insulate our younger guys back there, especially on the right side. Really excited to finally meet Robbie and have him part of the Roadrunners.

Dylan Wells: Just a pleasant surprise. Came in around Thanksgiving and whenever Matty V wasn’t in net, Wellsy got an opportunity to helps us get some much needed points. I can honestly say that we wouldn’t have come in second place without Wellsy. It was immediately apparent that he was a good person and fit into our room really well. We had a few nights where I think he was up in the 35-40 save range and was an important part in what we accomplished last year.