Leafs renew ECHL affiliation with Reading
On July 28, the Maple Leafs announced the hockey club has renewed their agreement with the Reading Royals to serve as the ECHL affiliate for the Leafs and the AHL’s Toronto Marlies for the 2010-11 season. The Royals are also the ECHL affiliate of the Boston Bruins.
“We are excited to once again have the Reading Royals as our affiliate in the ECHL,” said Dave Poulin, Leafs’ vice president of hockey operations in a statement.
Guest columnist Barry Schickling provides a review of the team’s season last year.
Most recent class shows considerable improvement
Reading report card for 2009-10
READING, Pa. – The second season for the Reading Royals as ECHL depository for developing Maple Leafs and Marlies players was a significant improvement over the first. In Year One – 2008-09 – Reading didn’t qualify for the playoffs and only one player who saw significant time for the Royals (James Reimer) was retained by Toronto this past year. Reimer had an above-average season for the Marlies in 2009-10 and established himself as a legitimate goaltending prospect.
Here’s a look at all of the players under NHL or AHL contract to Toronto at the end of the year, a brief look at their most-recent season and their possible futures with the organization.
ALEX BERRY 2009-10 stats: 5 regular season games with Royals – 0 goals, 5 assists, +2, 2 penalty minutes; 16 playoff games with Royals – 2 goals, 4 assists, +3, 4 penalty minutes; 4 assignments by Tor./7 points in 55 games with Marlies. The good: After seeing plenty of action with the Marlies, he played an important role in Reading during the playoffs – he appeared in every post-season game. For a big guy (6-3, 220), he moves very well and has above average puck-handling skills. The bad: When you have his size, you’ve got to use it. It’s an area where he’ll have to improve. Although he doesn’t shy away from contact, he’s not exactly a blood-and-guts type guy either. In short, the physical aspect of his game needs to improve if has major-league aspirations. The future: His first full pro season went fairly well. He’ll need to continue the improvement process in 2010-11. He’s under contract for the upcoming season and how he fares (likely with the Marlies) will determine his future in Toronto. ANDREW ENGELAGE 2009-10 stats: 11 regular season games with Royals – 7 wins, 3 losses, 1 shootout loss, 0 shutouts, 3.89 goals against average, .887 save percentage; 1 playoff game with Royals – no record, 3.00 goals against average, .857 goals against average; 4 assignments by Tor./2-6-0 with Marlies. The good: He didn’t play many games with Reading this year, but when he did, the team won. He has good size but because of injuries to himself and other Toronto goaltenders this past season, he spent lots of time either on the injured list or the Marlies’ bench and didn’t get much quality playing time. The bad: When he did play, Engelage was in over his head at the AHL level. He needed lots of playing time in the ECHL and didn’t get it. A solid workload for an entire season at the ECHL level (like Boston prospect Matt Dalton had with Reading this season) would go far toward helping his development and proving he’s a legitimate prospect. The future: Toronto holds a contract option for 2010-11 and it’s hard to imagine it will be exercised. With Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Jonas Gustavsson, Reimer, Jussi Rynnas, Ben Scrivens and Grant Rollheiser all on the depth chart, it’s unlikely Engelage will return. STEFANO GILIATI 2009-10 stats: 46 regular season games with Royals – 23 goals (tied for third on team), 39 assists, +9 (third on team), 76 penalty minutes; 13 playoff games with Royals – 4 goals, 4 assists, -1, 18 penalty minutes; 3 assignments by Tor./9 points in 25 games with Marlies. The good: Giliati had a streaky season. The good streaks were impressive. In fact, he was the first Royal to be selected ECHL Player of the Week twice in one season – the first week of the season and the first week in March. Any time you average more than a point a game, you’re doing something right. He was at his most effective when playing with a bee in his bonnet. The bad: His feisty nature was not always evident. Those slow streaks occurred when he wasn’t getting involved in the play. He was among the more talented offensive players with the Royals this year. But some nights, you couldn’t tell it. The future: After spending much of ‘09-10 in Reading, 2010-11 is a crucial year for Giliati. It’s the last year of his contract with Toronto and he’ll be expected to make serious offencive noise with the Marlies this season. TODD PERRY 2009-10 stats: 5 regular season games with Royals – 0 goals, 1 assist, -3, 0 penalty minutes; 16 playoff games with Royals – 0 goals, 1 assist, -1, 6 penalty minutes; 2 assignments by Tor./3 points in 27 games with Marlies. The good: He played in all of Reading’s playoff games and took the part of the stay-at-home defenceman. He wasn’t exactly a hammer but he did bring enough of a physical presence to generally keep his crease clear of opponents. The bad: He will never be an offensive threat. He’s also not the fastest skater. But neither of those areas are part of his game. He was injured during much of his stay with the Marlies this year. The future: A minor-league free agent, he’d seem to be on the fence as far as Toronto is concerned Depending on the roster body count, he didn’t do anything that would preclude his return to the Marlies this season. Just don’t expect him to be the first player signed. At 23, he’s still got a bit of time on his side.
JOEY RYAN 2009-10 stats: 32 regular season games with Royals – 3 goals, 6 assists, -1, 43 penalty minutes; 2 playoff games with Royals – 0 goals, 0 assists, -1, 12 penalty minutes; 5 assignments by Tor./0 points in 7 games with Marlies. The good: He scored one of the biggest goals of the season for Reading. His marker four minutes into the second-last game of the regular season started a three-goal comeback which helped the Royals earn a point in the standings and avoid a final-game showdown for the last playoff spot. Like many other players at this level, some nights he’s really good … The bad: … But some nights he’s not. He didn’t make nearly as much progress during the course of the season as some of his teammates. He spent lots of time with the Marlies but didn’t play much. Down the stretch and in the playoffs, he saw very little ice time. See above for note about consistency. The future: He started the season as one of the stalwarts on the Royals’ blue line. But as the season progressed, although he got lots of calls to report to the Marlies, he didn’t see much playing time. For the ECHL playoff run back in Reading, he wasn’t one of the team’s top six defencemen. Expect to see him somewhere else, splitting time between the AHL and ECHL in 2010-11. GREG SCOTT 2009-10 stats: 5 regular season games with Royals – 1 goal, 1 assist, -4, 2 penalty minutes; 13 playoff games with Royals – 1 goal, 9 assists, +1, 0 penalty minutes; 4 assignments by Tor./32 points in 71 games with Marlies. The good: When he finally got some serious ice time with Reading after spending the bulk of the season with the Marlies, he showed that he’s a serious prospect. He was among the ECHL rookie leaders in assists during the playoffs. He has vision, decent skating ability, and understands the game. The bad: He knows what to do – he just has to get better at doing it. He also still must show development in the physical side of his game. The future: With a year left on his entry-level deal, Scott needs to move to the front of the class with the Marlies this season. He didn’t spend lots of time in Reading, but was assigned during the playoffs to get some valuable post-season experience. He did (tied for third on the team in assists). ROBERT SLANEY 2009-10 stats: 22 regular season games with Royals – 1 goal, 10 assists, -10, 22 penalty minutes; no playoff games; 2 assignments by Tor./6 points in 34 games with Marlies. The good: He has talent and decent vision on the ice. He also handles the puck well and doesn’t shy away from physical confrontations. The tools, including size (he was 6-2, 203 at the start of last season) are there. The bad: He made lots of rookie mistakes – especially when tackling defensive responsibilities. A minus-10 in 22 games won’t win any awards. He had a real tough time with Reading around the net and scored just once. The future: Now this he’s got the first year of his entry-level contract under his belt, Slaney has a much better idea of what to expect in the pro game. A late-season injury didn’t help and he missed a chance to help the Royals on their playoff run. The expectation is likely that he’ll be a solid second- or third-line winger with the Marlies this season. However, he’ll have to show even more grit, be a better finisher in the vicinity of the goal and improve his defensive game.
If he doesn’t it’ll be his last year with the club.
Barry Schickling can be contacted at Barry.DoubleSMedia@rocketmail.com
