Tampa Bay Lightning: Checking Up On The Syracuse Crunch

The Syracuse Crunch, the AHL affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning, will add a few new faces to the roster and look to get back into the Calder Cup Playoffs next season.

After getting bounced in the first round of the playoffs in 2015, the Syracuse Crunch followed up with an average season and did not qualify for the postseason. But, the Tampa Bay Lightning‘s AHL affiliate dealt with several injuries and had to cope without some of their top players who were called up to the Lightning during the regular season.

There will be a few new faces in Syracuse once the Crunch take the ice this fall and they’ll look to rebound and get back into the playoffs just three years removed from their appearance in the Calder Cup Finals.

As the Tampa Bay Lightning get set for a new campaign, their captain, Steven Stamkos, who recently signed an eight-year, $68 million contract extension, will lead the team for the third straight season. However, the Crunch will be under the leadership of a new captain, who is yet to be determined.

Mike Angelidis, who served as the captain of the Crunch for four seasons, moved on from the team and the Lightning organization after having played in the minors for most of his professional career. He would get the occasional call-up to the NHL, but would never stay there long. It was a bittersweet departure for him and the city, as he was well liked by the people in the Syracuse community.

Angelidis has 110 points in 263 games with Syracuse and two points in 14 games in the NHL. The Lightning decided not to offer him a new deal since they felt he would have a better chance of staying in the NHL long-term elsewhere.

With his departure, it’s now time to name the new captain of the Crunch or establish the main leadership core. There have been rumors that either defenseman Luke Witkowski or Matt Taormina will take over and wear the “C” on his jersey for the coming season. That will be announced close to when the start of the season approaches.

Both candidates would be great choices for the captaincy since they’ve been playing in the AHL for a while and can lead a group of young players. Depending on what happens injury-wise at the NHL-level with the Lightning, those two will likely spend most of the season with the Crunch, but both have a chance to crack a spot on the roster following this year’s training camp.

Before the busy free agency period began, Tampa Bay Lightning General Manager Steve Yzerman re-signed forward Tye McGinn and the aforementioned defenseman, Matt Taormina, to one-year, two-way contracts, meaning they’ll be paid differently at the AHL level than at the NHL level.

McGinn played in two games with the Lightning last season, recording one goal on one shot. He played a majority of the season in Syracuse and recorded 20 goals and 44 points, which ranked third on the team. The 25-year-old Fergus, Ontario native isn’t a total stranger to the NHL, having played in 89 games over the course of four seasons, though he will likely play with the Crunch for most of next season.

The other player that was re-signed, Matt Taormina, made an appearance in three games with the Lightning last season and recorded two shots on goal. He also played in three games during the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season and finished with a plus-one rating. While with the Crunch in 2015-16, Taormina posted 13 goals, the most among defensemen, and 41 points in 61 games.

In 59 career NHL games, Taormina has four goals and eight assists for 12 points. He’s played at both levels and at 29-years-old, he’d be a great option for the captain or as an alternate captain.

Related Story: Tampa Bay Lightning Sign G Kristers Gudlevskis

In addition, the Lightning also re-signed goaltender Kristers Gudlevskis to a one-year, two-way contract. He appeared in 41 games last season for the Crunch and posted a 16-12-8 record and a 2.80 GAA with a .907 save percentage. The 23-year-old Latvia native has also appeared in four career NHL games, two in the regular season and two in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Overall, Gudlevskis has appeared in 121 career AHL games with Syracuse and has a 59-37-12 record to go along with a 2.78 GAA and a .903 SV%. Going forward, he’s a very important piece in the Lightning’s goaltending situation and could see some more NHL action depending on what happens in Tampa Bay, but for now, he’ll likely spend most of the time manning the net for the Crunch.

The Tampa Bay Lightning continued to add depth to the organization this offseason and signed forward Jeremy Morin to a one-year, two-way contract on July 1. Morin spent last season playing with the San Jose Barracuda, Toronto Marlies, and Rockford Ice Hogs and recorded 42 points in 59 games.

Over his professional career, he’s played in 89 NHL games for two teams, the Columbus Blue Jackets and Chicago Blackhawks, and posted 10 goals and 22 points, so he has experience at the top level. Once a one-time 30 goal scorer in the AHL during the 2012-13 season, Morin has some offensive upside and will look to get back on track with a new team. He grew up in the Auburn, NY area, so he’ll be playing close to home.

Also on July 1, the Lightning signed forwards Michael Bournival, Gabriel Dumont, and Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond to one-year, two-way contracts. All three were interesting signings by Yzerman, as he looks to add more depth to the farm system.

Bournival, originally drafted by the Colorado Avalanche in 2010, has played in the Montreal Canadiens organization for his entire career. He’s appeared in 89 NHL games with the Habs and posted 10 goals and 19 points over that span. Last season, though, he sustained an injury and was only able to play in 20 games with the Canadiens’ AHL affiliate, the St. John’s Ice Caps. Look for his experience at the top level to be a factor while in Syracuse.

Dumont may have been the best signing of the four mentioned in this article and he will bring experience, leadership, and of course, some offensive consistency to the Syracuse Crunch this coming season. Last season, he played in 71 games for the Ice Caps and posted 19 goals and 49 points while serving as the team’s captain. Overall, he has 92 goals and 203 points in 389 career AHL games and has also appeared in 18 NHL games with the Canadiens.

Finally, Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond (we’ll just call him PL3) was signed and will play for the Crunch this coming season. He’ll bring some grit and personality to the Syracuse lineup, which may have been lacking last season. PL3 is known as an enforcer, a breed of players which is slowly going away in today’s game, and will likely be utilized in that fashion: dropping the gloves and roughing the game up a bit when needed.

must read: Lightning GM Steve Yzerman’s Off-Ice Mastery

PL3 played in 52 games with the Albany Devils, New Jersey’s AHL affiliate, last season and recorded a goal and five assists while racking up 131 penalty minutes, which led the team. In essence, you’re not going to get much offense out of him, but his physical presence will be known. He’s appeared in 41 career NHL games with three teams, including the New Jersey Devils, and five Stanley Cup Playoff games.

As for some of the more established Crunch players, we may see right winger Joel Vermin and center Yanni Gourde earn a spot on the roster right out of training camp, especially since forward Ryan Callahan will be out the first month or so of the season as recovers from hip surgery.

Vermin appeared in six games for the Tampa Bay Lightning last season and only recorded one assist, but showed some promise while with the Lightning when the team was dealing with several injuries. In 73 games with the Crunch in 2014-15, he posted 12 goals and 21 assists.

Gourde only played in two games with the Lightning in 2015-16 and also recorded one assist, but posted 14 goals and 30 assists in the AHL last season and recorded 29 goals and 57 points in 2014-15. We know he can produce at the minor-level, but now it’s just a matter of seeing what he can do consistently at the NHL level.

Next: Lightning F Bokondji Imama Shines At Development Camp

Overall, the Syracuse Crunch received some important depth players in the recent days and look much improved with the new additions. With Gudlevskis in net and a crop of talented forwards on the ice, the Crunch look poised to make another run at the Calder Cup Playoffs. Of course, some players will go back and forth between Syracuse and Tampa Bay, but with some overall consistency and grit, the Crunch look to be a solid team in the AHL in 2016-17.