Draisaitl Sent to Bakersfield

Leon Draisaitl has been sent down to the Bakersfield Condors of the AHL.

This comes a shock to many. He performed well in camp and many, including me, thought he’d done enough to earn his spot on the opening night roster. It did appear the he had some chemistry with Lander and Yakupov on the 3rd line.

What Now

Well the forward lines should shape up something line this

Extra Skater – Gazdic

The nice thing about this line up whether you agree with Draisaitl being on the team or not, there are only 2 rookies amongs the top 12 forwards. That is a stark contrast to what we’ve seen in the past. There is absolutely no harm in Draisaitl working on his game getting top line minutes in the AHL. If he’s successful then we can intend to see him back with the team before Christmas.

A Few Quotes from the Rig

Jon – “Didn’t everyone say Draisaitl and Nurse should start the season in the AHL?”

Alex – “Wow….stunned Leon went down, Bakersfield is gonna be stacked”

Meg – “I mean… look at how Detroit grooms guys in the AHL and then they slide right into a roster spot. There’s something to be said for that. And I think Drai benefits from playing with guys in the AHL to start, as he’ll get lots of minutes and build some skill playing as one of the youngest”

Trin – “Wow! Didn’t see that coming but that shows the new regime is developing guys the right way”

BLH – “It’ll be good for him. He’ll get cherry minutes and dominate down there. Gives PC time to move some bodies around.”

Jackie – “I will say this…I love that there’s no hesitation in these moves…they’re just happening. It’s great to have competence in management”

Interesting Stuff.

Thanks for Reading