58 replies to this topic

[cshea]

Ryan Spooner
1/30/92
5'10'
172 lbs.
Center, Peterborough Pete's, Ontario Hockey League




2008-2009: 62 GP, 30g 28a, 58 points. 8 PIM
2009-2010: 47 GP, 19g, 35a, 54 points. 12 PIN

Kirk Luedeke

Spooner has excellent speed and always keeps his feet moving, which is sure to earn him high marks from scouts. He may not quite have Skinner's natural touch around the net, but he's got the wheels and intensity to make NHL teams forget about his small, light frame. He hasn't had a lot of help in Peterborough this year scoring-wise, but he's shown to have the kind of character and ability to come through despite increased checking pressure that makes him a player to watch, especially if he slips out of Round One.

Edited by cshea, 17 September 2010 - 09:03 PM.

[cshea]

Quick Spooner update following the rookie games:

Ryan was the star of the show for Thursday's 2-1 OT victory over the Islanders. He scored both goals for the Bruins, with the game-winner coming in the final minute of OT. He looked a lot more comfortable playing on Thursday, and was really buzzing all over the ice. He led the team in shots with 7 (and smoked one off the post), and looked to have some nice chemistry with Max Sauve. The first goal came off a rush with Sauve. Sauve took a shot that deflected in the air. Spooner was crashing the net and was able to bat it out of mid-air and into the net. The second goal came on a breakaway. Spooner took a nice outlet pass down the right wing, cut in front of the net, and tucked the puck five-hole as the goalie went for the poke-check. The goals were nice, but Spooner's most impressive play came earlier in OT. He showed some great puck possession when he took the puck from the blueline down, around the net and curled back up towards the half boards. At that point he threaded a beautiful back-hand saucer pass over a few Islander sticks that landed right on the tape of Alexandrov's stick. Alexandrov was unable to finish, but it was a hell of a play from Spooner.

He looked pretty solid in game 2. It was like night and day for him, he really settled in on Thursday. Pretty good speed, good vision, good hands. Not overly physical, but he did go battle in the corners from time to time. He also played a bit on the PK, and I thought he did an OK job. Nothing too flashy from Ryan, but pretty solid in all areas.

[cshea]

Stealing the link from PSK, but Spooner's had a very strong camp. Julien is impressed:

“He’s one of those player that’s really impressed me with the fact that he’s got unbelievable hockey sense,” said Julien. “And sometimes you’ve got a player that has a lot of talent, a lot of skill, but the little details of the game he still has to figure out. This player here, to me, already has that part figured out. “He’s an extremely smart individual and he does the little things, right now, that sometimes it takes us two to three years to really teach one of our players at this level. So that’s something he’s really got going for himself right now that’s really impressive, to my eyes anyway. I’m not saying that means that he’s ready. But just saying that that’s something that’s not always easy to teach, and that’s sometimes what gets certain players the opportunity to be great players in this league."

Spooner picked up an assist in Wednesday's preseason opener against the Habs. He was centering Nathan Horton and Max Sauve. It appears he'll play with those two again Saturday night, but could be on the wing with Sauve getting a turn at center. He's also the only 2010 draftee remaining in camp, aside from Tyler Seguin.

[The Four Peters]

I have to admit, I came away from the game tonight extremely impressed with Spooner. He seemed, fast, skilled, and confident out there. He was playing on a line with Sauve and Caron, and while the whole line did an admirable job, the other team seemed at times to make rookie type mistakes. Yet Spooner was always around the puck, accelerating through the neutral zone, and pressuring the D in the offensive zone. He made a great pass to set up a Sauve breakaway in the first, and had a couple of real chances later in the game. Claude rewarded him with multiple shifts in OT, where his speed was highlighted even more.

Jack and Brick took note as well, giving him plently of compliments throughout the night. Not bad for a kid a day older than Seguin.

[cshea]

Ryan Spooner was awesome again on Saturday, and he's really forcing the team to make a tough decision on him. Send him back to the Peterborough Pete's, or keep him on the NHL roster. He looks confident, and he certainly looked more comfortable than both of his linemates on Saturday, Max Sauve and Jordan Caron. The thing that I liked the most about Spooner was how he seemed to kick it up a notch when the game was tight in the 3rd and in OT. He was playing a solid hockey game early, but then when it was tied, the kid really seemed to start making plays and turn on the jets. Julien rewarded him with several shifts in OT, as well as picking him as a shooter in the shootout. You can't tell much from a shootout, but I thought Spooner's attempt shows how confident he is right now. There was no hesitation in his move whatsoever. He picked up the puck, raced down the right wing at full steam before cutting in and making his move.

Anyway, Luedeke had a Spooner update this morning:

Spooner is the one Boston rookie up front who's literally seized the day and not only impressed the fans who've been watching him closely, but the head coach, who isn't an easy guy to please.

The knock on Spooner at the draft was his size, and this is what he had to say about his conditioning, etc.

"I think I just got stronger," he said when asked what the most signigificant improvement he'd made since being drafted was. "That was the big issue for me; I'm not the biggest guy, so I have to be as strong as I possibly can be. I did that.

Spooner's revelations are a case in point as to why you can't judge a book by its cover, and making assumptions based on conventional logic (such as size), because without having the ability to measure the size of one's heart and desire, you can never account for someone who will force the team to sit up and take notice. Spooner has done that, and regardless of whether he sticks in Boston or is one of the final cuts and returns to the OHL, he'll no doubt be riding a tall wave of confidence going forward.

We'll see what happens as camp winds down, but Spooner's certainly made a name for himself.

Edited by cshea, 26 September 2010 - 10:26 AM.

[j44thor]

The way he is playing and the fact that the rest of the juniors have already been returned leads me to believe that he will get a 9 game audition. That would get the B's through the month of Oct which would also help them get a better gauge on when Sturm is returning.

[cshea]

No surprise, but Spooner was sent back to Peterborough today.

http://bruins.nhl.co...ton Bruins News

Boston Bruins General Manager Peter Chiarelli announced today they have released two players from camp: Jamie Arniel and Ryan Spooner.

Spooner had a great camp and really made a name for himself, so hopefully he really turns it on for the Petes.

[cshea]

Quick update:

Ryan Spooner appears to have carried his momentum from training camp over to start the year with the Pete's. 4 goals, 5 assists in 6 games. It doesn't appear as though his team is any good, as they are only 2-6 with a -20 goal differential already.

[PedroSpecialK]

So counting the fact that Spooner's factored in on nine goals, with a -20 goal differential they have given up at least 29 goals thus far. In six games. Just about five per game.

That's abysmal, even by OHL standards. Hopefully him being their featured player will help his development rather than discourage him.

[cshea]

So counting the fact that Spooner's factored in on nine goals, with a -20 goal differential they have given up at least 29 goals thus far. In six games. Just about five per game.

That's abysmal, even by OHL standards. Hopefully him being their featured player will help his development rather than discourage him.

They've actually played 8 games, since he missed 2 when he was still here in camp. They've given up 43 goals, which is a laughable 5.375 per game. Yikes.

He's 2nd on the team in points, behind Matt Puempel (7g, 5a in 8 games), who I think is a pretty highly regarded 2011 draft prospect. After that they don't seem to have much, but yeah, hopefully he'll be able to carry the burden and keep his development on the upswing despite being on a shitty team.

[PedroSpecialK]

Praying to Vishnu that Puempel falls to us, despite his poor showing at the WJC camp he seems to be a real player. That's a laughable amount of goals to be giving up per game though - is Andy Wozniewski plying his trade in Peterborough?

[cshea]

Quickt check in on Spooner, and it appears he hasn't slowed down one bit. 13 games played, 10g, 9a for 19 points. He's at a sizzling 1.46 points per game pace, and is tied for the team lead in points with Puempel.

Good to see. His team sucks, and at 4-10-0-1, they are tied for last. Their goal differential right now is -26 after 15 games, so Spooner's -4 is a pretty good number for that team.

[The Four Peters]

Well this is interesting. Spooner has left his junior team, per Kirk.

Hockeyjournal.com has confirmed that Boston Bruins second-round pick Ryan Spooner has left the OHL’s Peterborough Petes and is at home in Ottawa awaiting a trade

UPDATE: 11/08/10 4:55 According to one source, Spooner left on “very good terms” with his old club, but this could be the case of a team benefiting from getting good assets for a proven player who gets a fresh start.

UPDATE: 11/08/10 9:55 Peterborough’s coach Mike Pelino speaks. Does not sound like a parting on amicable terms, but it’s understandable he might feel that way. 4-11-0-1 with some of the talent he has on the Petes doesn’t exactly sound like a bang-up coaching job, does it?

[Manzivino]

Latest update from that same article:

UPDATE: 11/09/10 9:55 Hockeyjournal.com has learned that Peterborough GM Dave Reid asked Ryan Spooner to go home and await a trade. Spooner did not “quit” the team as was assumed when the story broke; he offered to stay with the Petes until a deal was worked out, but the GM decided it was best for him to go. According to one source, player and GM had an understanding and non-confrontational meeting Monday resulting in Spooner leaving for home in Ottawa.

Nice to see that Spooner had no inclination to sit at home on his own accord.

[jsinger121]

He's been traded to the Kingston Frontenacs.

http://news.therecor.../article/811012

[PedroSpecialK]

Sweet, 2.5 hours closer. Might have to catch some Frontenacs' games now that I've got an excuse to.

[cshea]

Spooner had a goal and an assist in his Kingston debut last night. Good to see him get off on the right foot. His combined totals are 11 goals, 10 assists for 21 points in 15 games.

Looking over the Kingston roster, nobody jumps out at me, except for 2010 3rd overall pick Erik Gudbranson. They seem to be a pretty good team, sitting at 12-6-1, though they only have a +1 goal differential. Let's see how Spooner handles playing on a good team.

[cshea]

I havent' updated this in a while...so here we go:

Ryan Spooner's now played 14 games for both Kingston and Peterborough. His combined totals are 19g, 16a in 28 total games. The 35 points have him second on the Kingston team, to Nathan Moon who is a 20-year old Penguins draft pick. So his production has been pretty consistent for the whole year. No WJC's for Ryan though, maybe next year.

[AxelssonRose]

I havent' updated this in a while...so here we go:

Ryan Spooner's now played 14 games for both Kingston and Peterborough. His combined totals are 19g, 16a in 28 total games. The 35 points have him second on the Kingston team, to Nathan Moon who is a 20-year old Penguins draft pick. So his production has been pretty consistent for the whole year. No WJC's for Ryan though, maybe next year.

What I'm hearing: Offense-- no issues. Defense-- needs a lot of work.

fwiw.

[Manzivino]

Spooner's OHL season ended today as Kingston was eliminated from the playoffs by Oshawa in the first round. Spooner ended up with regular season totals of 35g-46a-81pts, -4 in 64 games (25-37-62, +1 in 50 games in Kingston) and postseason totals of 4-2-6, -1 in 5 games in which his team was outscored 32-17.

Providence only has a handful of games left and virtually no chance at making the playoffs so it will be interesting to see if Spooner joins them for the final two weeks of their season.

[Salem's Lot]

From Axelsson Rose on twitter:

I have confirmation from a good source that both Jared Knight and Ryan Spooner will report to Providence of the AHL today.

http://twitter.com/kluedeke29

[AxelssonRose]

Ryan Spooner and Jared Knight both with assists in their pro debut tonight.

And, the two did a pretty funny interview with P-Bruins media relations chief Adam Kaufman.

Spooner has an edge to him in the sense of humor department. Check out him getting Knighter going with the razzing about the workout video his agent had him do (a stroke of genius by Murray Kuntz because Knight was not invited to the Combine) before the draft. Both players are represented by Kuntz, btw- one reason they are very tight despite not being junior teammates.

http://bit.ly/eDajjI

[cshea]

Spooner scored today and yesterday. 2g, 1a in his brief 3 game cup of coffee as a pro.

[cshea]

Time to dust off this thread as the new season approaches. The rookie games were held earlier this week, and Spooner was impressive with 4 points in Monday's win over the Isles. He didn't get in on the scoresheet in Tuesdays 7-2 loss, but still played reasonably well from what I saw. Anyway, here's Kirk's take on Spooner's showing:

http://kirkscall.hoc...recap-analysis/

His 4-point game 1 performance had everyone buzzing including members of the Boston front office who witnessed it. He came into the tourney as Boston’s top offensively-skilled player and demonstrated it. He was held off the scoresheet in Game 2, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying. He was stoned several times by Isles goalie Anders Nilsson. Given his expectations coming in, it’s hard to put Spooner in this category, but there’s really no other alternative given his pure talent and performance.

After opening some eyes at camp last year, it's nice to see Spooner kick off this years' camp with a bang.

[PedroSpecialK]

Per Dominic Tiano, it appears Spooner will be dealt from the Kingston Frontenacs:

@dominictiano Dominic Tiano
Spooner deal is imminent. Am told Knights have made an enquiry

[Jed Zeppelin]

Having Knight and Spooner play together would be awesome. The Knights are legit this year and he would rack up a ton of points.

[Blacken]

Per Dominic Tiano, it appears Spooner will be dealt from the Kingston Frontenacs:

Again? I mean, from what I've seen it doesn't seem like he's a problem player or anything, but is it reasonable for a fairly-well-regarded prospect to be shuffled around like Spooner has been? (Or are the Frontenacs just falling out of contention?)

Edited by Blacken, 24 October 2011 - 02:09 PM.

[PedroSpecialK]

The Frontenacs are one of the worst teams in an awful division, it just seems to be as simple as that. The picks they get for Spooner will help them a lot more than he can right now.

[Blacken]

Fair enough. I remember a lot of conflicting information around the trade to Kingston in the first place, so it looked a bit odd. Thanks.

[cshea]

IIRC, Peterborough told him to stay home and wait on a trade last year. I don't think it was anything he did, the just told him to sit tight and not bother to practice since he was on the way out.

And, yeah, Kingston is miserable this year. 1-10-2 on the year, and they've only scored 26 goals on they year. Still, Spooner's 2-2=4 line in 11 games so far is disappointing. Hopefully they get everything settled shortly and he gets back on track.

Edited by cshea, 24 October 2011 - 02:55 PM.

[Manzivino]

Spooner went off for 1-4-5 this afternoon, giving him 4-6-10 in his last 3 games and getting him back on track with 8-11-19 season totals through 19 games. He also had 3 assists and was on the ice for 6 of his team's 10 goals (for a +4) in the first OHL-Russia game of the Subway Super Series. Suffice to say, he's en fuego.

[PedroSpecialK]

OHL Player of the Week

@KingstonFronts F Ryan Spooner is the #OHL's Player of the Week. #Bruins prospect had 4G, 6A in 3 games.

[Jed Zeppelin]

I really like Spooner's game but I wonder if he will ultimately be trade bait for the B's. What could help him stick here long-term - besides working on his two-way game - is the fact that Seguin loses no effectiveness playing on the wing and has great chemistry with his current line. If Krejci is signed there just isn't room in the top 6, especially for a center, so he'll need to be defensively viable to be a 3rd line C for Boston.

[Manzivino]

I really like Spooner's game but I wonder if he will ultimately be trade bait for the B's. What could help him stick here long-term - besides working on his two-way game - is the fact that Seguin loses no effectiveness playing on the wing and has great chemistry with his current line. If Krejci is signed there just isn't room in the top 6, especially for a center, so he'll need to be defensively viable to be a 3rd line C for Boston.

I've always assumed Spooner's path to Boston involved a switch to LW, where the organization isn't as deep and any defensive shortcomings wouldn't be as much of an issue. Plus the organization loves to have wings that can play center (Seguin, Peverley, Kelly, the Wheeler-as-center experiment, transitioning Hamill to wing, Marchand developed as a center, etc.) Unless he has a problem playing on the wing, I would be surprised to see him traded just because I think he has the most offensive upside of any current Bruins prospect and the coaching staff always raves about him during training camp. They will have time to figure it out too, as I expect he'll spend the majority of next year in Providence (with Knight being more suited to take Pouliot's "here's the 3rd/4th line, play your way off of it" spot). Don't get me wrong, I'd move him in a package for an elite player without losing sleep over it, I just don't see them trading him for anything less.

[PedroSpecialK]

Spooner has been playing some wing for Kingston, IIRC.

[Jed Zeppelin]

I've always assumed Spooner's path to Boston involved a switch to LW, where the organization isn't as deep and any defensive shortcomings wouldn't be as much of an issue. Plus the organization loves to have wings that can play center (Seguin, Peverley, Kelly, the Wheeler-as-center experiment, transitioning Hamill to wing, Marchand developed as a center, etc.) Unless he has a problem playing on the wing, I would be surprised to see him traded just because I think he has the most offensive upside of any current Bruins prospect and the coaching staff always raves about him during training camp. They will have time to figure it out too, as I expect he'll spend the majority of next year in Providence (with Knight being more suited to take Pouliot's "here's the 3rd/4th line, play your way off of it" spot). Don't get me wrong, I'd move him in a package for an elite player without losing sleep over it, I just don't see them trading him for anything less.

Should have added this caveat. I think he's a terrific prospect and is, at this moment, the best pure offensive prospect in the system (Khokhlachev a close 2nd), and I wouldn't trade him for anything less than an elite player. I hope they don't trade him. Getting quality play from guys on ELCs is so damn valuable, especially considering the money Chia's going to have to dish out in the near future.

[Manzivino]

That's fair, we're on the same page; Chia's done a great job of maintaining cap flexibility and avoiding albatross contracts so far, but they're going to need some legitimate production out of guys like Spooner/Knight/Caron/Kampfer/etc. to be able to pay the core guys the next two offseasons.

Spooner had another 3 point night (1-2-3) and was named OHL Player of the Game for the second OHL-Russia Super Series tilt last night. Quite an impressive 8 day stretch.

Also a nice blurb about Spooner's week on Yahoo Sports Canada; in other news, Yahoo Sports Canada a) covers Junior Hockey and b) places it second only to the NHL in the sports hierarchy.

[PedroSpecialK]

I love that. Sportscentre is one of the things I'll miss dearly here. About 35 minutes of in-depth puck highlights every morning with Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole? Give me that over half an hour of Brett Favre and slam dunks.



And I should add they have juniors hightlights

Edited by PedroSpecialK, 15 November 2011 - 10:54 AM.

[The Four Peters]

I'll never forget going up to Toronto for business a couple years ago during December and having the lead story on Sportscentre being the World Junior Championship team's PRACTICE. I was floored by that.

[Jed Zeppelin]

Stealing this from Bill Ladd on HF:

Spooner's up to 3 points now and looks like the most dominant player on the ice to my eyes.

Picking pockets, winning draws, intercepting passes, backchecking hard, covering for pinching dmen, killing penalties, running (and owning) the power play...

He just backchecked on a Rusky and the D stepped up so the Russian chipped it past him and Spooner goes and gets it as the last guy back defensively, and then slings a 100ft pass to McKegg splitting the D.

[Jed Zeppelin]

Two more shorties tonight for 7 on the year.

edit: and a SH assist. Spooner's on a roll trying to make a push for the WJC team.

Edited by Jed Zeppelin, 04 December 2011 - 10:59 PM.

[SoxScout]

Bob McKenzie
Tough break for a kid who was a good candidate to win a spot. Reminiscent of the year same thing happened to Nick Spaling.

Bob McKenzie
BOS prospect Ryan Spooner, a C with KGN, has apparently been diagnosed with mono and will not be at Canada's WJC camp.

https://twitter.com/#!/tsnbobmckenzie

[The Four Peters]

Wow that really sucks. So neither Spooner or Knight are playing the WJC? That's unfortunate.

[Manzivino]

Wow that really sucks. So neither Spooner or Knight are playing the WJC? That's unfortunate.

Definitely sucks for Spooner, he was going to need a great camp to make the team (especially with Connolly and Smith-Pelly released to the WJC from their NHL teams) but he had been playing his best hockey and really shined during the Super Series. Crappy timing, hopefully he's only out of action for a couple of weeks as he's been told it's a mild case of mono. (I also find it amusing that the front page of Yahoo! Junior Hockey is a picture of Spooner with the headline "That sucks". It looks like the lede of a review for a Shia Lebouf hockey movie).



Bruins should still be well represented at the WJC with Hamilton a lock for Canada, Khokhlachev likely for Russia, and Ferlin a US hopeful.

[AMcGhie]

As someone who went through a "mild" case of mono in college, it pretty well screwed up an entire semester. It took me 3 weeks to not feel like crap on a daily basis, and another 2 weeks to not need to sleep after being awake for more than 2 hours. I then had about 5 weeks of classes/tests/projects to catch up on (which, for Computer Science, isn't as hard as say, History or English). That was not a fun month+, but the Sox did win the series about week 3 of the illness (in '04), so that made me feel a little better.

[Manzivino]

Reports are that Spooner has been traded to the Sarnia Sting, which should be official by the end of the week. Apparently the deal has been in the works for some time but the player headed to Kingston (Ryan Kujawinski) couldn't be traded before January 1st due to being a first round pick in the last OHL draft, then couldn't be traded early this week because he's been taking part in the U17 World Challenge tournament which ended yesterday. I'm really excited to see what kind of production Spooner can put up when he's united with Nail Yakupov.

Spooner has returned to the ice since his battle with mono and has been practicing with the Frontenacs but has been held out of games because of the pending trade, so hopefully he'll see game action soon after the trade becomes official.

[PedroSpecialK]

2 goals for Spooner in his Sarnia debut.

[Jed Zeppelin]

And an assist. At this point, given how strong the Bruins are and look to be for the near future, I wouldn't trade Spooner or any of the top 4 OHL guys for anything unless it was a clear top-6 F/top-4 D upgrade who would be here beyond this season. Overpaying for a rental to make a run at the Cup made perfect sense last season but not anymore. The situation could certainly change with an injury or someone surprising becoming available, but the FO should be content to sit back and let these guys develop. If Chia wants to upgrade the 3rd line LW or get another stay at home D, he can easily do so for a mid-round pick and mid-level prospect.

The thing I like about the forward prospects is how different they all are. Spooner has great speed, hands and skill, legit top 6 talent. Knight's a bulldog who will take the Marchand path of development and do whatever is asked of him on whatever line. Khokhlachev's got a bit of both - less speed but a ton of offensive talent with a willingness to play in the dirty areas. It's hard not to go nuts over these guys and want to push them faster since Seguin made the team right away and is the top offensive player at 19 (plus Hamilton with a great shot of making the team at 19), but it's also pretty exciting to think about them being fully seasoned and 100% ready whenever they are needed down the road. I'm also confident that Spooner and Knight's bromance will make it easy for them to hang in Providence together for a year or two.

[Franklin Fanatic]

And an assist. At this point, given how strong the Bruins are and look to be for the near future, I wouldn't trade Spooner or any of the top 4 OHL guys for anything unless it was a clear top-6 F/top-4 D upgrade who would be here beyond this season. Overpaying for a rental to make a run at the Cup made perfect sense last season but not anymore. The situation could certainly change with an injury or someone surprising becoming available, but the FO should be content to sit back and let these guys develop. If Chia wants to upgrade the 3rd line LW or get another stay at home D, he can easily do so for a mid-round pick and mid-level prospect.

The thing I like about the forward prospects is how different they all are. Spooner has great speed, hands and skill, legit top 6 talent. Knight's a bulldog who will take the Marchand path of development and do whatever is asked of him on whatever line. Khokhlachev's got a bit of both - less speed but a ton of offensive talent with a willingness to play in the dirty areas. It's hard not to go nuts over these guys and want to push them faster since Seguin made the team right away and is the top offensive player at 19 (plus Hamilton with a great shot of making the team at 19), but it's also pretty exciting to think about them being fully seasoned and 100% ready whenever they are needed down the road. I'm also confident that Spooner and Knight's bromance will make it easy for them to hang in Providence together for a year or two.

Jed Z, how do you see the Bruins handling Kelly, Campbell, Paille, Thornton, and Pouliot? I think that goes a long way to determining the futures of Caron, Hamill, Knight and Spooner. When you factor in the uncertainly of the cap moving forward, Chia has some interesting decisions to make this offseason. Of course, there's a lot of hockey between then and now to help make those decision.

[Manzivino]

Another goal last night for Spooner in a 4-2 to loss to Dougie Hamilton's Niagara IceDogs (Hamilton had an assist and instigated a fight against a Sting agitator, which he won handily). It should be noted that Nail Yakupov injured his knee in the WJC gold medal game, and while there's been no update on the severity he is out indefinitely and is expected to miss significant time. So the expected pairing with Spooner will have to wait until he can (hopefully) return.