NOLLY'S NOTES - BLOG #25
Nov 15, 2022
Hello, Cuda Country, hope you’re all doing well. Nolly’s Notes had to go on the shelf last week with our game and travel schedule, but with the team home for four in a row, I’ve got a little bit more time on my hands.
Wednesday will mark the return of Roy Sommer to San Jose. Although he was in the Bay Area for the Rookie Tournament in September, Wednesday will officially be his first visit to Tech CU Arena as an opposing coach. The longtime bench boss of the Sharks top affiliate, coached in 1,742 games, collecting 808 wins over 24 seasons with Kentucky, Cleveland, Worcester, and San Jose.
Roy is a larger-than-life character. Getting to work with him for six years gave me a unique perspective on the AHL. You almost felt like you were transported back in time when you were around him. He had an old school, blue collar mentality. He wasn’t going to choke the skill out of a player, but he wanted you to learn how to play the right way. He had stories for days and a knack for telling them. His approach simplistic, in a good way. He was going to teach you how to play hard, and be a pro.
I’m looking forward to watching the teacher take on the student. John McCarthy played nearly his entire career under Roy and although they’re different, many of the values Roy coveted, are now carried by John. Should be a lot of fun. Welcome home, Roy!
On Monday, the Sharks recalled defenseman Nick Cicek, a corresponding move to Radim Simek being placed on IR. You've got to feel bad for Simek, who burst on to the scene in 2018-19, but has subsequently dealt with injuries ever sense. Hopefully he can have a speedy recovery and get back on the ice soon.
With Santeri Hatakka dealing with a slight upper-body injury that kept him out on Sunday, and no timetable for his return, plus, Cicek going up to the Sharks for at least Tuesday’s game in Vegas, although he’s not expected to make his NHL debut, the Barracuda may look to recall its only contracted defenseman with the Wichita Thunder, Billy Constantinou. That’s TBD, but Constantinou has managed to rack up 10 assists in 10 games with the Thunder, which is good for third among all league defenders in points and second in helpers.
What’s crazy about Cicek’s recall is it’s the first actual call-up this season between the Sharks and Barracuda. The others have been simply paper transactions, which makes this year historically quiet on that front. Since the Sharks moved its AHL club from Massachusetts to California eight years ago, they have been very liberal with their player movement. And why not? When you’ve got players down the hall at your disposal, it makes perfect sense to deploy them. Plus, the organization made a concerted effort to try and give young players a chance in the NHL. With a new regime, that approach has shifted a bit. Now it seems they want guys to marinate in the American League before getting up to the big club. As Joe Will says, more miles on the odometer. Knock on wood, but health plays a big role in this all too. The Sharks have been relatively healthy this year.
The Barracuda’s struggles to score continued Sunday, as the team mustered just a single goal, coming with under a minute to go in the game. The club now ranks 31st in the league in goals for (2.33), although that’s due in large part to the power play struggling to find its footing. The Cuda rank 28th (12.8) in that department.
Depth scoring has been a bit of a crux for the team so far this year too, although, Jeff Viel buried his first two goals of the year on Thursday in a 4-3 shootout win over Ontario and Jasper Weatherby netted his first of the season in a 2-1 overtime victory against Colorado on Saturday. Although the backend is putting up points and playing well defensively as a group, the Barracuda are the only team in the AHL to not have a goal scored from their defensive corps. If that can turn around, that’ll be a huge lift for the team offensively.
The Barracuda have recorded just 81 shots from its blueline this year, fifth fewest in the league. To put that in perspective, Ontario’s Jordan Spence has already recorded 40 himself. As a team, San Jose ranks 24th in shots for (28.42), so in the most elementary terms, the entire team needs to put more pucks on net.
Maybe the fans are onto something when they’re yelling, SHOOT!!!
We wrap up this blog by welcoming Frank Torres to San Jose, the teams new Vice President. Frank brings over 13 years of experience in the AHL and Sports and Entertainment having spent the last year with the Coachella Valley Firebirds, and the prior 13 years under the Spurs Sports & Entertainment umbrella.
That'll do it for this edition of Nolly's Notes. Hope you enjoyed reading. Talk to you all on air on Wednesday with our pregame show beginning at 6:30p on the Sharks Audio Network, SJBarracuda.com/listen, and AHLTV.com.