HOLTY’S BLOG: SOUTH KOREA?

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We’ve looked at the new additions. We’ve looked at the returners. We’ve dissected the schedule. So loyal friends of the blog, where do we head on a balmy late July Thursday?

How about ice cream? More on that in a bit.

That’s a tease or as you’ll see “burying the lede” and as I’ll remind you, it’s my blog and I’ll do what I want.

Now for the blog…

– We start with South Korea. They’re hosting a hockey tournament this winter with 11 other countries invited. They’ll hand out three different precious medals at the end of it. It’ll be on TV either really late at night, really early in the morning, or on tape delay. The NHL says that players in the NHL cannot go. There still hasn’t been a determination of players on NHL contracts in the AHL at the time of the hockey tournament.

– I know what you’re thinking. Well what about players on AHL contracts? Could they possibly attend this tournament? And your answer is yes, they will be allowed to head to South Korea from Feb. 9 -25.

– You may be wondering, well who would possibly be available on an AHL contract from my favorite team in Bakersfield? Since the possible pool, as it stands now (and assuming everyone on an NHL contract won’t be allowed to go) would be AHL, ECHL (no chance for the major countries), European Leagues, and Russia, there will still be many Canadians available. But, I could see Ryan Hamilton, who is on an AHL deal, getting some interest.

– Hamilton is 32 with over 600 games at the AHL level. He’s a two-time AHL All-Star and has captained the Toronto Marlies and Condors. He’s back in Texas currently, and I haven’t talked to him about it, but I could see him wanting to go if offered. Just a hunch. And if he needs a personal PR guy, I’ve never been to South Korea.

– If you’re curious about the schedule, Bakersfield plays seven games during that time frame. Print off the schedule here

– Completely a guess on my part, but with no NHL players going, a few former Condors to keep an eye on for going there would be Anton Lander (Sweden), Dan Sexton (USA), and Timo Pielmeier (Germany) … there may be others.

– Holty you said ice cream. We want ice cream. Save the date, Wednesday, August 9 in the evening (more information to come), but everyone is invited down to the arena, have ice cream, play some games/kids zone/merchandise, pick some seats, etc. Did I mention ice cream??

– Lock of the week? Going back to the well here since I missed horribly on the US Open. Jon Rahm is the pick for “The Open” this weekend. He’s 16-1. Also in a pool with 3 of the 5 qualifying scores (Rahm, Matsuyama, Kuchar, Thomas, Reed), so we’re off to a good start!

Until next time Condorstown…

Ryan Holt aka Holty is the Voice of the Condors and enters his seventh season in 2017-18. Favorite “non-vanilla” ice cream is rocky road. Follow him on Twitter @CondorsHolty for more nonsense or shoot him an e-mail to RHolt@BakersfieldCondors.com with questions, comments, or blog ideas.