That was one hell of a ride...

Well, that was fun.

During the Mike Johnston era we witnessed a lot of goals & a lot of wins.  The last 4 playoff runs featured more wins (59) than the 3 full seasons prior to his arrival in the Rose City (47).  This team posted a .731 winning percentage in the 5 regular seasons that began with MJ behind the bench.  Pretty unheard of for junior hockey, if not anywhere in modern sport.

Most of us are familiar with the meteoric rise of this franchise back to relevance in the WHL, but here's a great piece about MJ turning this ship around.  It shouldn't be forgotten that the Winterhawks were on the verge of either being relocated or simply folding during the dark ages.  My understanding is the previous owner (who I won't even mention his name here), who was a bartender back east somewhere, fired Ken Hodge and was going to play GM himself.  Ron Robison had to step in & force the team to re-hire Hodge in order to have some sort of hockey-man making decisions.  It was that bad.

Some fans feel that MJ is a better GM than coach, and I lean that way - if only because you have to be better at one or the other by definition.  If you look at the talent he's amassed during his Portland career - its pretty staggering.   Guys like Ryan Johansen (7th round bantam pick), Chase de Leo (9th round bantam pick),  Brendan Leipsic (6th round bantam pick) - etc etc etc.   Many WHL teams can't find a decent Euro at all it seems, and we've seen a steady procession of top shelf import talent come through here.

Johnston would argue otherwise - as he's been coaching as a profession for over 30 years.  Much of coaching is managing the players personalities & mannerisms.  It ain't gonna be easy to balance Sidney Crosby & Evgeni Malkin with your 4th line guys, but its all in the approach.

Its apples and oranges, the NHL & major junior, but think about the attitudes he's saddled up here:  Boychuck, Ross, Rattie, Morrow, Leipsic, Pouliot, etc.  You hear the phase "I'd rather try and tame a tiger than paint stripes on a kitty cat" - but that's a whole damn streak of tigers right there.  Remember what he did with Taylor Jordan as an overage?  Made him into a legit hockey player.  He handled both high-profile defencemen who left school for Portland without distraction.

I've heard that there are serious challenges in Pittsburgh right now: salary cap issues, sky high expectations, lack of identity - things like this.  After the mess that Mike cleaned up here, I'm sure the Penguins will be fine.

I have serious concerns about the future of the Portland Winterhawks.  The next time they drop the puck will be my 10th season living in Portland & following this team.  Its not an exaggeration to say that every ounce of success I've witnessed this team have comes directly from Mike Johnston.  To go from worst-to-first is a wonderful story, but the clock is supposed to strike midnight at some point.  Somehow MJ found ways to simply keep this team on top.  The Winterhawks are still stocked full of top shelf players, after 4 years of long playoff runs.  Completely unheard of at this level.

Its inevitable for this team to fall back to earth, but it seemed almost impossible under the leadership of MJ.  The next guy has some shoes to fill, alright.  We may be destined to experience the cycle of winning / losing / wining / losing that every other team is subject to - which is a day I've dreaded for some time.  Its way more fun winning all those games year after year.

Anybody got Travis Green's number?  I hear his contract is up........

Open letter to the Minnesota Wild

What to do with Mathew Dumba? 

You have a lot invested - the 7th overall pick is serious business.  Dumba has to pan out, or it will set the franchise back 5 years - or worse.

Many teams find themselves in this dilemma:  you have a player who's too good for junior hockey, but not ready for a regular shift in the NHL.  As a player in his 19 year old season - the only options available are the NHL and the WHL.  I'm sure that some seasoning in Iowa would be an attractive option for this player, but that's not on the table.

We all have high hopes for Dumba, furthered with him making the Wild out of training camp.  In his 3rd career game, he buried a nice powerplay goal, and went on to play over 15 minutes:

However, the jump to the highest level of hockey in the world is not an easy one, and its been hard to get Dumba in the lineup since then.  He's only seen the ice for 13 games this year.  In those games, he's averaging 12:26 of ice time.  There are 45 rookie defenseman who average  more ice time this season.

It made perfect sense to loan Dumba to Team Canada for the World Junior Championships, which just concluded.  While Canada didn't get the result they were hoping for,  he played an integral part of that D corps, and was counted on in all situations.  He didn't have the tournament he wanted on a personal note either: minor injuries, illness, and overall rust were factors that he fought to overcome.  The outside observer may conclude from this tournament that he's still not ready for a regular shift for the Wild.

Sometimes its easy to get caught up in the now: day to day, game to game.  If you keep a special player like this close to the vest, in the tutelage of the Wild coaching staff, he'll be ready to contribute any day now.  The  main goal with developing players that you have so much invested in is what is he going to be at 25, 26, 27 - and beyond?

You don't have to look very far to find a similar story: Nino Niederreiter.  Ask him what it was like that first year with the Islanders: healthy scratch, 4th line, no significant role, rinse-lather-repeat.  If the 5th overall pick can only manage 1 goal, zero assists, and (-29), don't you think he was better suited playing his 19 year old year in major junior?  Its not a stretch to think the only way Nino was available to you was due to the Islanders mismanagement of the player.  Nino's center in the WHL could tell you the same story - he got jerked around during his 19 year as well, and is just now starting to turn the corner.

One of the best benefits of Dumba finishing the season in the WHL is a potentially long playoff run, with a quality franchise.  Under the current regime, we've seen 6 defencemen drafted in the last 4 drafts - 3 in the 1st round - and 20 players overall.  This is a team that played more playoff games last season than Dumba's entire WHL career, and is a contender for their 4th trip to the league finals.

You sent him down to the World Juniors to face elite competition, be counted upon in a starring role, and be immersed in a winning culture.  Those are the same reasons to send him back to the WHL to finish the season.

A 19 year old needs to be playing games, period.  Weather its in St Paul or Portland is almost beside the point.  He needs the minutes, the experience, the progression.  I trust you'll make the correct decision.