New Beginnings With Some Old Friends

The San Antonio Rampage open their 10^th season in the AHL this Saturday with a game against their former Division rival Chicago at the ATT Center (game day to follow). This offseason has been a hectic one for the folks down at the AT&T Center. I have been trying to learn about all the new faces and it hasn’t been easy. I apologize for the lack of posts, and I promise that I will pick it up in the future. Now with that said, the blog will be slightly less active than last season. I am starting school in November and this along with my full time job, plus raising two little ones who are into soccer and cheerleading and boy scouts and….well you get the idea. I will still have a game day post for every game. My plan, as of now, is to do a weekly recap on Sunday nights/Monday mornings. I will also chime in on any news that might affect the Rampage i.e. call ups, injuries, trades, etc.

And now, the first official blog post of the 2011/2012 season…

Considering I have very little info to work with on all the new faces in San Antonio this year, I will simply talk about what I saw Saturday and what I know from reading other fans thoughts on certain players. The first thing that stands out to me is the size of our blue line. These kids are huge. Six of the eight d-men on the current roster are 6’3” or taller and I think someone shorted Tyson Strachan of about an inch and a half on the press release. While I’m on the subject of the defense, I am still confused how the Rampage will get all of these AHL level defensemen minutes. The roster currently has 9 listed with today’s demotion of Mike Kostka. From what I have read, Kostka appears to be a Garrett Stafford clone. He is very skilled offensively and steady, but unspectacular defensively. He will be a welcome addition to a Rampage squad filled with giant stay at home types. It will be interesting to see who gets sent down to dominate the ECHL.

Up front, the team had me worried in early August. Then the team signed former Rampage winger Bill Thomas to an AHL deal. Thomas, along with Mark Cullen, Tim Kennedy, and Michal Repik give the Rampage more than enough scoring punch to be a successful team this season. Having players like Bracken Kearns and Greg Rallo on your second and third lines demonstrates true organizational depth. The Rampage should have a good mix of speed and grit up front. The speed coming from Cullen, Repik and AHL veteran Wacey Rabbit; the grit from guys like Eric Selleck and AJ Jenks (who has the hair and game style to quickly become this years Eric Neilson). If any of the young kids from juniors (Hazen, Luciani) can contribute or if Angelo Esposito can regain the abilities he possessed pre-injuries that made him a first round draft pick, this team could be scary good.

In goal, the Rampage currently are carrying a trio of goalies ranging from a Stanley Cup champion(Manny Legace) to a young kid with zero games played at the AHL level (Brian Foster). In the middle is Tyler Plante, a former 2^nd round pick who hasn’t quite been able to put it together in the 5 years he has bounced around the ECHL/AHL. Plante is nursing an injury sustained in the exhibition game on Saturday, so the Rampage could conceivably carry 3 goalies to start the season. Meanwhile, #1 goalie prospect Jakob Markstrom earned the backup job in Florida while Scott Clemmensen recovers from minor knee surgery. It remains to be seen if Markstrom will return to San Antonio. All signs pointed to a full season in the AHL as the clear cut #1, but if he impresses in his time in Miami, he may just earn a full time gig up in the NHL.

Personal notes/observations:

• The signing of Legace had me smiling all day on Friday. Not only is a he a veteran goalie with a Stanley Cup, he did it while with my beloved Red Wings as Hall of Famer Dominik Hasek’s backup.
• The one player that really stood out to me on Saturday was Garrett Wilson. Wilson was re-assigned to ECHL Cincinnati after the game but should see plenty of time in San Antonio. He reminded me of Brett MacLean with skating ability. Nose for the puck, plays in front of the net, and uses his size well. Coach Weber told Dan Weiss that Saturday was his best day of camp. So hopefully, he tears up the ECHL and returns soon.
• NHL veteran Steven Reinprecht has cleared waivers and will be assigned to San Antonio. George Richards of the Miami Herald speculates that the Panthers will try to bring Reinprecht back up through re-entry waivers. If claimed, the claiming team would only be responsible for half of his salary and the 2 million dollar cap hit would come off the Panthers cap.
• Former Rampage forward Viktor Tikhonov was sent down to Portland last week and immediately began negotiating with a KHL team to play in Russia. I’ve never seen a kid do so little in AAA hockey and feel so entitled to a spot in the NHL.
• I have done a complete 180 on this affiliation agreement. Initially, I was not excited one bit once all the changes shook out. But Dale Tallon and Mike Santos have me drinking the Kool-Aid.

This offseason has flown by. With all the changes in the organization (said with a long I, like a Canadian), none of us can really know what to expect for the season. I have high hopes and think it can be special. So, come loud, come proud, bring all your family and friends. Let’s show these guys how much of a hockey town San Antonio can be. Look for the inaugural 2011 Gameday post sometime Saturday morning. Until then, see you at the rink and LETS GO RAMPAGE!!