Playoff roster set, Crunch stays put
AHL American Hockey League

Playoff roster set, Crunch stays put

by Jeff Parzych, AHLReport.com
March 25, 2002 - American Hockey League (AHL)


For many of the Syracuse Crunch fans, Wednesday, March 20th, the day playoff rosters were due at the league office, bore a strange resemblance to a certain major holiday that falls late in December. Much like the days of their youth, they had that feeling of anticipation in the air and the hope that they would receive everything they asked for on their lists. The major difference here being that they were hoping for a solid stay-at-home defenseman instead of a new bike, or a bona fide power forward instead of that fancy new train set.

Looking back, that day turned out to be more like many Christmas mornings of years gone by than people would have liked. As it happened all too often as a child, Santa couldn't bring you everything you asked for and despite all of the nice things you received, you came away feeling a little disappointed.

Maybe that analogy is a bit of a stretch, but in the minds of many Crunch faithful it has some validity. The collective brain trust that runs the Syracuse Crunch, despite efforts to do otherwise, pretty much kept the current Crunch roster in tact. There was one noteworthy addition and a couple of surprising omissions, but beyond that they decided that the roster that has been so successful in the regular season should be the one that carries this club into the postseason. Whether this was the right decision or not remains to be seen.

In their defense, that is Jim Clark, Gary Agnew et al, the fact they were not able to add any other components was not due to the lack of trying. In a recent interview with Bob McElligott, Clark stated that "there were a couple of pieces that he would have liked to add, but in the end the asking price was just too high."

He also talked about how this current group as worked hard all year and deserved a shot in the post season. There is no doubting that issue. This year's version of the Syracuse Crunch has flourished. They have overcome a great deal to get to this point and a good portion of their success can be tied to team chemistry. Adding a key element at this point can greatly alter that positive vibe. It also takes time for that player and his teammates to acclimate themselves to the change.

Crunch forward David Ling, a veteran of seven AHL seasons, echoed these statements when asked about Syracuse's 2001-02 playoff roster. "Some teams went out and got players but we felt we could do it with the players in here and that's what we are going to do."

Ling also spoke of the dangers of adding new players at this juncture. "Sometimes people bring guys in and it hurts them," he stated. "We did not want to do that."

The one player the Crunch did add to the mix rather late was defenseman Jamie Heward. He is a veteran of 239 NHL games and also a player who has experienced success in the AHL having won a Calder Cup with Philadelphia back in 1997-98. "Heward is a great defenseman," said Ling. "He is going to help us out in the long run."

Even a player of Heward's caliber needs time to assimilate to his new team. More often than not it is an adjustment to a coaching style or system rather than his new mates. "Personnel wise I know everybody, it is just a matter of learning a new system," stated Heward. "Gary's system is a little bit different than what we play in Columbus and it's something that is just going to take a while."

Based on his production, six points (2g,4a) in his last four games, Heward seems to be adjusting well. Hopefully all of this progress will not be fruitless. Despite being placed on the clear day list, there seems to be some uncertainty from Heward on whether or not he will actually be here to participate in the postseason.

"I'm not sure where I stand with Columbus. I would like to stay and help them but I don't know what Columbus has in store, " said Heward. "I'm just taking it game by game and if I get recalled then I get recalled. If I don't, we'll see what happens at the end of the year."

Along with the Heward addition, there were a couple of notable omissions. The most discussed was that of center Brett Harkins. After achieving a fair amount of success on the big stage, 14 points in 25 games with the Jackets, he was returned to Syracuse on March 13th.

At the time of his demotion, Harkins was obviously disappointed and voiced that to the Columbus media. "I don't know what more I could have done," Harkins told Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch. "I'm very grateful for the time I got. I'm not going to complain at all, but, yeah I'm disappointed."

Complaining he did not do, but his play was uninspired in four starts after his return. He tallied two assists in those games but was a combined -4.

The twist in Harkins story came when the playoff rosters were announced and his name was noticeably omitted. It was then reported in the Syracuse Post-Standard that Harkins would be leaving the team to attend to his pregnant wife and probably would not return for the season. No other details were released to leave the situation a bit murky.

One other name that was noticeably missing was that of former Crunch forward and local icon, Jody Shelley. All season long, after losing Shelley for an extended period to Columbus, Syracuse fans were buoyed by the belief that their hero would return come April. That never transpired.

Shelley, who made it aware to the Blue Jacket brass that he was willing to participate, never received the opportunity. Why is anybody's guess? It is possible that Columbus is just rewarding him for a job well done this season and by keeping him in Ohio it is their way of saying he is a Blue Jacket now. Another possibility could be the fact that the demand for an enforcer dramatically reduces come playoff time. Shelley now has a more well rounded game, but his forte still is his pugilistic abilities.

With the playoffs only a few short weeks away, time will tell if this group of hockey players that make up the Syracuse Crunch have what it takes to achieve postseason glory. One thing we do know is that win or lose this bunch will do it together.

"We're a family here," stated David Ling. "We've gelled together during the year and we're going to go as far as we can with this family."

The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central.

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