I’ll save you the typical press release info of where they played and how many points they scored. That information is easily found with a cursory google search. Or you can just look RIGHT HERE. What I will (try to) provide, is a quick one or two sentence statement about each player and then an overall view of the signings as a whole.

NHL 2-Way Deals

Chris O’Meara/AP

Jake Dotchin (RD)  6’3″ 210
Big, physical right handed shot with plenty of AHL/NHL experience. Had some weight issues in Tampa Bay last fall which led to his contract being terminated, but bounced back to split the season between San Diego and Anaheim.

Image Courtesy of Zimbio

Nick Lappin (LW)  6’1″ 175
Former 30 goal scorer who seemed to regress last season and wore out his welcome with the Devils. Has a little bit of skill, but needs to work on his game away from the puck.

Dan Toulgoet / Vancouver Courier

Derrick Pouliot (LD)  6’0″ 207
Point producing Dman at the AHL level. Former 8th overall draft pick has been an NHL regular since 2017, but struggles defensively. Could compete for an extra D spot with the Blues.

Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images

Mike Vecchione (C,RW)  5’10” 194
Versatile forward and former Hobey Baker runner-up. Smart and offensively gifted, just hasn’t managed to put it all together yet.

Nathan Walker (LW)  5’9″ 186
First Australian ever to play in the NHL, Walker is small and skilled but doesn’t shy away from the hysical side of the game. Good on the power play and comes with a ton of experience.

NHL ELC

Ethan Polei (LW)  6’2″ 229
Polei signed as an undrafted free agent with Bakersfield in 2017. He is a bruising LW who, in a rare case, got 83 games of AHL experience before signing a 2 year ELC.

AHL Deals

Cam Darcy (C)  6’0″ 185
Bottom six AHL player who will provide decent depth for the Rampage. Decent all-around player who has scored 20 plus points the last two seasons with Utica.

Jacob Kupferman

Zach Nastasiuk (RW)  6’2″ 202
Has spent his entire career bouncing between the AHL and ECHL with Detroit and Carolina organizations. Ended up with four points in 19 playoff games during the Checkers Calder Cup run this spring. Depth signing.

Photo courtesy @JJPiccinich

J.J. Piccinich (RW)  6’0″ 185
Hard working defensive specialist who can produce offense at lower levels. Another solid depth piece with a winning pedigree as JJ helped the Newfoundland Growlers capture the Kelly Cup this spring.

My Thoughts

Not long after the Charlotte Checkers raised the Calder Cup, I took a deep dive into the roster construction of the last two Cup winners. I noticed a trend. Successful AHL teams don’t rely on high powered AHL hired guns to win anymore. Teams need balance in their rosters between the NHL prospects and veterans that play specific roles on the team. Those prospects need to “carry the water” so to speak. In years past, we have seen NHL teams attempt to load up the Rampage with All-Star caliber players only to see those teams, and players, fail miserably.

This year’s signings signal a trend, to me, that the Blues are using the blueprint to AHL success. Obviously, much still depends on which, if any, prospects may graduate this fall, but leaving the team in the hands of Jordan Kyrou, Klim Kostin, and Mitch Reinke isn’t the worst idea in the world.

More importantly, there is a very obvious common theme with most of these signings. Winning. Two players (Nastasiuk & Piccinich) are coming directly off championships while others come from successful AHL and NHL franchises. Nathan Walker was a “Black Ace” with the Capitals last spring and played for one of the benchmark franchises in the AHL, Hershey, for five seasons. Mike Vecchione spent his rookie season with the second best team in the AHL, Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Ethan Polei spent the 2018-19 season with Bakersfield who, at one time, had a 17 game winning streak and won the Pacific Division.

Bringing in veteran players that know what it takes to win to play alongside a group of players who just experienced a Stanley Cup victory, should, hopefully, have strong positive effects on the silver and black.

So, What’s Next?

A lot will depend on training camp, injuries, and RFA contracts, but the Rampage currently have 15-16 forwards, 5-6 defensemen, and 2 goalies tentatively slotted into the roster. They are going to need a couple more defensemen and another goalie at a minimum. Lots of time left in the summer and there could still be a minor trade pulled off to take care of these needs. Stay tuned…

I’ve put together a list of all players who suited up for at least 10 games last season with the Rampage (or those newly signed to ELCs) and their current contract status* or transaction news. I will update all summer as signings/trades happen. Be sure to bookmark this page and check back often as this information will change quickly once July 1 hits.

*All contract info courtesy capfriendly

Players Under Contract

Newly Acquired Players

Signed Elsewhere/Remain Unsigned/Traded

Note: All Entry Level Contracts (ELC) are Two-Way contracts.

* denotes player is eligible for arbitration

Italics denotes player’s rights are held by STL but did not play with Rampage in 2018-19

Last Updated: July 2, 2019

A late goal by Jordan Nolan and a 38-save performance by Jared Coreau earned the Rampage a stressful win against Ontario Friday night, 4-2. The win improves the Rampage’s record to 25-23-5, and notch a second win on the Rodeo Road Trip to rise to 3-2-3 for the month to keep their heads above water in one of the closest playoff races in recent memory.

The first goal would come 16 minutes into the game, after an Ontario slashing penalty gave the Rampage their first power play. A blocked shot from Mitch Reinke dribbled to Jakub Jerabek’s stick in the left circle, allowing him to rip a quick wrister high glove side on Cal Petersen for his sixth of the season.

The second goal came less than two minutes later on an additional man advantage opportunity, this time from Jordan Kyrou at the top of the same circle, set up by a tape-to-tape pass from Reinke. The Rampage would enter the locker room for the first intermission up 2-0.

Despite an active second period, the Rampage held on to their 2-0 lead right up to the 9:07 mark of the third period, when Ontario rookie Kale Clague notched his fourth goal of the year off a carromed puck on the power play.

Four minutes later, Clague struck again to tie the game with a slapshot from the low point. Wide defense allowed Sheldon Rempal to deliver a perfect tape pass to the trailer, who bombed it over Coreau’s left shoulder just under the crossbar.

As the minutes wound down in regulation, both sides would continue the aggressive pace set throughout the game, each side producing at least 40 shots by game’s end. A late hooking penalty by Philippe Maillet put the Rampage on a fifth power play of the night, however, and just eight seconds later, a well-orchestrated passing play to Jordan Nolan in the low slot gave the Rampage their go-ahead goal with only 91 seconds to play. Bobby MacIntyre sealed the deal with an empty-netter a minute later, taking the W in Ontario 4-2.

Mitch Reinke earned two primary assists in the game, bringing him within 1 point of the franchise record for points by a rookie defenseman, at 33 total. Jordan Kyrou earned first-star honors after a 3-game point drought with a goal and two assists.

The win brings the Rampage back up to 6th in the Central division, and 5 points out of 4th for the final playoff spot, with 2 games in hand. Tonight the Rampage continue the Rodeo Road Trip with a visit to the San Diego Gulls, who after a strong mid-season rally sit at 3rd in the Pacific with a 28-16-3-3 record. After that, the Rampage will close out the Road Trip with two weeknight tilts against the 5th-in-the-Pacific Colorado Eagles on Tuesday and Wednesday. After that, Friday Night will be the Rampage’s annual Military Appreciation Night, held traditionally at the end of the month-long absence.

https://theahl.com/stats/game-summary/1019161

Photo Courtesy iowawild.com

By William Cotton

The San Antonio Rampage kicked off the annual Rodeo Road Trip with a 5-4 overtime loss in Des Moines. The side finished a disappointing 2/5 on the Penalty Kill, including allowing the game-winner on the  power play at 3:23 of the extra frame. The Rampage fall to 23-21-3, good for 7th in the Central Division, and suffer their first loss to Iowa this season.

Iowa’s Colton Beck would get scoring started early in the first on an odd-man rush at 10:59 of the first period. The Rampage answered eight minutes later when Trevor Smith caromed a rebound from a Jordan Kyrou wrister off his waistline, that required a referee’s roundtable to affirm.

Smith’s goal would be quickly followed up by two more to kick off what would be a ‘wild’ second frame. The first of the two goal an unassisted tally from Adam Musil, which sparked a fight between Mark Cooper and Hunter Warner. The second came from Niko Mikkola, his long-awaited first of the year, coming on his 43rd shot.

A power play goal two minutes later cut San Antonio’s lead in half, but a Samuel Blais tally put the Silver and Black back up by two, fed from an excellent pass by Ryan Olsen in the low slot. Iowa, however, responded with a pair of quick goals less than a minute apart from Matt Read and Gerald Mayhew, the latter tying the game at 4, the sixth and final goal of a goal-heavy second period.

An uneventful third period would generate tension, but with neither team finding a way to break the tie after sixty minutes, the game went to overtime. A ‘necessary’ hooking penalty to stop a J.T. Brown breakaway from Samuel Blais allowed Iowa’s red-hot power play to activate, culminating in a second-rebound chance for Dmitri Sokolov, whose mother and uncle had flown from Russia, that would send the 7200-strong Iowa crowd home happy, closing out the game 5-4.

This game was the first of a back-to-back in Des Moines this weekend, and the first of the Rampage’s 10-game, February-spanning “Rodeo” Road Trip. The Rampage sit 5 points outside of the playoff picture with 49 points in 47 games, but possess three games in hand over 5th-place Milwaukee and 4th-place Rockford, who sit at 53 and 54 points, respectively.

Next game: Saturday 2/9 @ Iowa, 6:00 Central time.

Record: 23-21-3

Flynn arrived in San Antonio as a free agent signing from Dallas on July 1st. In 21 games this season, the 30 year old veteran registered one goal and eight assists. Flynn missed 17 games in November and December as a result of an upper body injury sustained against Manitoba on November 13th when former Rampage center Felix Girard caught him with a check to the head.

Flynn was making top dollar for an AHL player this season, and this move certainly raised some eyebrows as to why he would walk away from his deal. Stephen Meserve (@100degreehockey), who covered Flynn with the Texas Stars last season, speculated that this could be a health related decision for Flynn. Meserve wrote about Severin Blindenbacher back in 2011 under very similar circumstances. The AHL is known as one of the more physical leagues, and it’s possible that Flynn felt going to the less physical NLA was in the best interest of his health.

Flynn’s departure leaves the already shorthanded Rampage in a bind. Ryan Tesink was signed to a PTO before the weekend set with Manitoba and, due to call ups and injuries, had to play shorthanded on Sunday.

The Rampage travel to Milwaukee to take on the Admirals on Tuesday before returning home Friday night for the first of three home games before heading out on their annual month-long Rodeo Road Trip on Feb 7th.

Darren Abate/AHL

You can get highlights, recaps, and basic game stories any number of places around the internet. In Running With the Herd’s new weekly series, “Take 5”, we will bring you our hottest takes about the week, the season, or anything else for that matter. I mean, if the season continues down this path, we may be reviewing movies by January.

Take 1

After scoring 26 goals as a rookie in 2016-17 and performing at nearly a point per game pace with the Rampage last season (40pts in 42 games), Samuel Blais hasn’t recorded a point in three games with the Rampage this season. In the two home games this weekend, the recently sent down Blais recorded four shots and was a -2 with 2PIM. Yes, there could be an adjustment period to think about, and it is a very small sample size, but in limited viewing, he hasn’t been particularly effective and as a long time fan of minor league hockey, this makes my spidey senses tingle in a bad way.

Take 2

Jordan Binnington collected his 100th professional win Sunday and, through the first three weeks of the season, looks far more comfortable in net than his counterpart Ville Husso. This is another small sample size alert, but just watching the two goalies is an interesting experiment in body language and confidence. Binnington looks unrattled and confident, even when the team is imploding in front of him. Husso has been shaky and carries himself more like a frustrated or defeated player after allowing a goal. This could be me projecting because my attitude about hockey sucks right now, but it could be something to keep an eye on.

Take 3

Coming into Sunday’s game with the Wolves, the Rampage had scored three power play goals all season. One came on opening night, the other two came 15 days later in a 6-3 loss at Manitoba. The system isn’t necessarily to blame here. From what I’ve seen, zone entries and possession seem to be fine. The problems I’m seeing are two-fold.

First, the entire team is afraid to pull the trigger and when they do, they have difficulty being anywhere near on target. Second, there doesn’t seem to be any urgency to put a body in front of the crease or in the slot to clean up rebounds and put pressure on goalies. This seems like a simple fix, but net front players aren’t easy to find, and after #19, there aren’t a lot of options on this roster.

Take 4

Sunday marked the final games for three NHL players on conditioning assignments. Forwards Robby Fabbri and Nikita Soshnikov as well as defenseman Carl Gunnarsson will all be on their way back to St. Louis, meaning Blues GM Doug Armstrong is going to be tasked with making some tough decisions over the next couple of days. The Blues currently have 13 healthy forwards, 7 healthy D, and 1 healthy goalie.

Zach Sanford has been terrific since being called up last week, so I am wagering he’s not an option to come down right now. This leaves the Blues with a few options, two of which are not going to make Blues fans happy. In both options, I see Oskar Sundqvist being waived and sent to San Antonio if he clears. The other forward spot to be cleared is the bigger issue. The Blues can send 19 year old rookie Robert Thomas back to juniors, sliding his contract another year or they have the option of sending Jordan Kyrou to San Antonio to play big minutes in all situations. Both have their pros and cons and I’m glad I’m not the one to make that decision. But if I were, Kyrou and Sunny would be in Silver & Black by Tuesday.

Take 5

Last season, Drew Bannister lost 7 games in regulation as coach of the Soo Greyhounds in the OHL. This year, Bannister’s Rampage hit that mark on October 24th. Granted, the Greyhounds were loaded with future NHL talent, and comparatively speaking, the Rampage aren’t at that same level, but they aren’t this bad either. Early on, fans had an argument for questioning if this team was talented enough. But when Blais was sent down and the team received three NHL’ers on conditioning assignments and nothing changed, that argument went out the window.

So is it a system problem, a locker room problem, or the coach? The effort is there every single night, and others have observed that the system the Rampage are running isn’t the same as what Bannister ran last season. Here is where I have my problem. I am all for continuity and fidelity when it comes to systems within an organization. But when losses start piling up and the problems are repeating themselves, sometimes multiple times in one period, it’s time to sit back and assess what the problem is.

Bannister seems to have his favorites already, and a couple of these guys are not only not helping the team, they are actively hurting the team on a game by game basis. Coaching at a high level of any sport requires adjustments–whether it be personnel or in-game strategy–and holding players accountable and, so far, the staff in San Antonio just isn’t getting it done.

Episode two of the 2018-19 season is in the books. JP, Topher, and Nate battle Skype and audio issues to bring you a quick recap of the first week of the season, including a opening night whitewash of the Griffins, and a pair of weekend losses at the hands of the former Rampage. We discuss what went right (system) and what went wrong (everything else) in the 1-3 homestand.

We will return next week to recap the busy week ahead and hopefully have a better idea of what we can expect from this team going forward. Be sure to follow along @RWtHLive on twitter for show updates and in-game comments during the upcoming road trip.

We have come to the finale of our summer series, “Ranking the Rampage” where I give you my completely unbiased (wink wink) rankings of all-time Rampage greats by position. If you missed any of the other rankings, please check them out.

Previous: Goalie
Previous: Defense
Previous: Left Wing
Previous: Right Wing

Today, we will be covering the heart of the forward group, Center. Now, before we get into the players, it is important to understand that some of these players spent a good deal of time playing at a wing position while in San Antonio. However, at the beginning of this exercise, I decided to use hockeydb.com as my reference for listed position, so if a player is listed as a center there, then they qualify here. Because of this, and the fact there are several centers who had significant careers in San Antonio, some players you may expect to see make this list got pushed down to Honorable Mention.

There were a few players who had outstanding individual seasons who failed to make the top five. Additionally, there are players who shuttled back and forth to the NHL for multiple seasons, therefore significantly reducing their games played in an individual season(s) who you also won’t see make it.

Finally, a few players got some bumps due to the role they played on the team. Captains, leaders, and fan favorites. Enough with the pleasantries, lets get to it.

5. Greg Rallo

207GP 55g-61a-117pts  (0.56)

Rallo ranks second all-time in games played in a Rampage uniform and is in the top ten in all major offensive categories. More importantly, the way he represented both himself and the team on and off the ice gave him a step up over some of the other players with better individual seasons. A true class act and fan’s player, Rallo gave it everything he had every shift and was an outstanding leader while in San Antonio. He recently retired to join the Milwaukee Admirals coaching staff after playing three of the last four seasons with the Texas Stars.

4. Bracken Kearns

141GP 42g-53a-95pts  (0.67)

Bracken Kearns could do just about anything a coaching staff could ask, and he would do it well. A great two-way center, Kearns killed penalties, played on the power play, and as seen above, could hold his own in a fight when needed. The former Captain scored 20+ goals in both of his seasons in San Antonio and his 95 points ranks him eighth all-time for the Rampage. The definition of a journeyman veteran AHL player, Kearns has played for five AHL teams since departing and recently signed to play in the top Austrian league at the tender age of 37.

3. Yanick Lehoux

102GP 40g-51a-91pts  (0.89)

In 2006-07, Lehoux put up arguably the best single season offensive performance in team history. His 31 goals (2nd all-time) and 42 assists (1st) led to a franchise record 73 points, eight more than Brett MacLean’s 65 point effort in 2009-10. Remarkably, that season could’ve been significantly better had he not been recalled to Phoenix for a seven game stint. His record breaking season was sandwiched between two seasons split between San Antonio and Europe where Lehoux scored 18 more points in 30 games played. After one more season in the AHL, playing with Hamilton, the Montreal native moved overseas to play in Europe before finishing up with two seasons in the Quebec based LNAH.

2. Rocco Grimaldi

185GP 60g-68a-128pts  (0.69)

What can really be said about long-time fan favorite Rocco Grimaldi? A dynamo on skates and electric with the puck, Grimaldi, like Rallo, played more wing than center in his time in San Antonio. Playing mostly in the middle during his rookie season, Rocco scored 42 points (14g-28a) for the 2015 Division winning team. After departing for Portland when the Panthers pulled out of San Antonio, Rocco made his return to the Alamo City in style scoring 31 times for the Rampage in 2016-17. While battling injuries in his final season in San Antonio, he still managed to tally 31 points in 49 games. Grimaldi signed with the Nashville Predators on July 1st and will likely be a key contributor the Milwaukee Admirals this season.

1. Joel Perrault

154GP 60g-73a-133pts  (0.86)

Despite never playing more than 47 games in any single season, Joel Perrault was one of the more productive players in Rampage history. Couple this with the fact that, unlike Grimaldi, he played almost exclusively at center for his entire career, and you have your #1 Rampage center of all time. Originally an Anaheim draft pick, Perrault was traded to Phoenix in March of 2006 and joined the Rampage for the final 12 games. A regular visitor to the AHL transaction wire, Perrault spent his three full seasons with the Coyotes shuttling back and forth to San Antonio scoring 112 points in 121 AHL games. A highly skilled center with good size, who had a knack for scoring big goals late in games. After leaving San Antonio, and spending a single season with the Vancouver organization, Perrault went on to play five more seasons in Europe before retiring in 2016.

Honorable Mention

Drew Shore – 134GP 26g-69a-93pts  (0.71)
Mike Green – 125GP 38g-57a-95pts  (0.76)
Kevin Porter – 94GP 28g-47a-75pts  (0.80)
Kyle Turris – 86GP 28g-43a-71pts (0.83)
Jeff Toms – 64GP 30g-33a-63pts  (0.98)
Vincent Trocheck – 78GP 24g-37a-61pts (0.78)

There you have it Rampage fans. Your best of the best.

If we were to make a lineup of all-time greats, it would look something like this:

Forwards
Brett MacLean/Joel Perrault/Bill Thomas
David Spina/Rocco Grimaldi/Bobby Butler
Eric Beaudoin/Yanick Lehoux/Chad Kolarik
Mikkel Boedker/Bracken Kearns/Mikko Rantanen

Defense
Sean Sullivan/Alex Petrovic
Colby Robak/Duncan Siemens
Bryan Helmer/David Schlemko

Goalies
Jacob Markstrom
Josh Tordjman

Thank you for reading the series. We will be back for some occasional musings throughout August and then will hit it hard once training camp opens in September.

We are back with our 4th edition of “Ranking the Rampage”. Last week we covered LW, so this week it’s appropriate we switch over to other side of the forward lines and look at RW. Again, we’ve an old-timer on the list that predates my time in San Antonio, but the other four I am very familiar with and a couple are on my personal “all-time” list, including one with whom I felt it necessary to just throw my rules out the window because he NEEDS to be on this list.

Let’s check em out!

5. Juraj Kolnik

154GP 40g-45a-85pts  (0.55)

Kolnik goes so far back, there are no Google images of him to be found in a San Antonio uniform. A New York Islanders 4th round draft pick, Kolnik found himself in the Panthers organization for San Antonio’s inaugural season. In that first season, he scored 25 goals which was good for third on the team. The following season, Kolnik found himself a fixture in the Panthers lineup after 15 games in San Antonio. Surprisingly, he returned for a third season in 2004 and saw a drop in production. After two more seasons in Florida, Kolnik moved to Europe and has bounced around several leagues over the past eleven seasons.

4. Mikko Rantanen

56GP 24g-38a-62pts (1.10)

Longevity be damned, Mikko Rantanen was making an appearance on this list no matter what. Despite only playing in 56 games with San Antonio, Rantanen was an impact player from the first time he set foot on the ATT Center ice. He won Co-Rookie of the Year in 2016 and his 1.10 pts per game are a franchise record for players who have appeared in over 50 games. Did I mention he did all of this at the tender age of 19? One of the most exciting and dynamic players ever to play in San Antonio and he is now living up to his lofty expectations with the Avalanche playing alongside Nathan McKinnon.

Enter a caption

3. Chad Kolarik

135GP 37g-48a-85pts  (0.63)

Kolarik joined the Rampage after completing his senior season at the University of Michigan for the 2008 playoffs. In the first round series loss against the Toronto Marlies, the rookie chipped in for four goals and six points in seven games. The following season, Kolarik teamed up with UofM teammate Kevin Porter in San Antonio’s top six and registered 50 points as a first year pro. A successful second year in the Coyotes organization led to a trade deadline deal that brought back a familiar face to this series, Alexandre Picard. Kolarik has just 6 NHL games on his resume, but he has had a pretty successful minor league and European career. His is signed to play his third season with Adler Mannheim in the German league this coming season.

2. Bobby Butler

137GP 49g-57a-106pts (0.77)

Bobby Butler joined the Rampage in 2013 as a “hired gun” and mentor for the Panther’s AHL prospects. In his two seasons in San Antonio, he did both extremely well. A pure sniper, Butler had one of the best wristers in the league and sometimes made scoring look easy. His season ending achilles injury in the final month of the 2015 regular season cast a giant shadow over the most successful season in franchise history, and if you ask some fans (me included), that injury was the #1 reason the team was swept out of the first round by Oklahoma City. After two seasons in Europe, Butler returned to the AHL with Milwaukee last season and was named to the 2018 US Olympic Hockey team that played in PyeongChang.

1. Bill Thomas

187GP 67g-73a-137pts  (0.73)

Thomas, like Rocco Grimaldi and Nolan Yonkman, holds the distinction of playing for the Rampage under two different NHL affiliates. Signed as an undrafted free agent by Phoenix in 2006, Thomas saw his first action in San Antonio in the 2007 season scoring 33 points in 47 games as a rookie. His second and third seasons, separated by four years, saw Thomas put up identical 52 point efforts and, in both cases, a playoff appearance. In 2012, Thomas led the Rampage to the second round for the first, and only, time in franchise history. His effort on the OT game winning goal against Chicago in round one still goes down as one of the greatest hustle plays in Rampage lore. After a single season playing in Lake Erie with the Avs organization in 2013, Thomas has since played in six separate overseas leagues in the past five seasons.

Honorable Mention

1. Denis Shvidki – 131gp 23g-57a-80pts (0.61)
2. Jeff Hoggan – 130gp 35g-33a-68pts  (0.52)
3. Jim Campbell – 64gp 16g-37a-53pts  (0.83)
4. Matt Murley – 76gp 21g-41a-62pts  (0.82)
5. Jed Ortmeyer – 116gp 22g-27a-49pts (0.42)

Coming up: Center

Previous: LW
Previous: Defense
Previous: Goalie

“Ranking the Rampage” makes its return today to rank the top Left Wings in franchise history, and we’ve got some good ones, folks. Included in today’s list are a couple of franchise greats, an old timer that many may have long forgotten, a hired gun who turned into a great scorer, and a hot shot prospect who turned into an NHL fixture.

This exercise is proving to be even more difficult than I initially imagined. There are some fine individual seasons, but again, for skaters, longevity is rewarded. One statistic I have added is points per game. In at least one case, this statistic made the difference in where a player ranked.

Enough jibber jabber, let’s get to it!

5 – Alexandre Picard

75GP 33g-28a-61pts  (0.81)

Acquired at the 2010 trade deadline from the Columbus Blue Jackets, Picard wasted no time making his impact. In the final 16 games of the 2010 season, the power forward put up 15 points, including 9 goals. The following season, Picard put up solid numbers despite battling injury for a good chunk of the season. His hustle and hard work, along with his nose for the net made him a fan favorite in his short stint in the silver & black. After leaving the Rampage following the 2011 season, Picard played one more season in the AHL before heading off to Europe where he has been playing since, most recently in the KHL.

4. Mikkel Boedker

100GP 23g-49a-72pts  (0.72)

After spending his rookie season with the Phoenix Coyotes, everyone–including Boedker–was surprised when he was assigned to the Rampage to start his sophomore campaign. After some rough moments early on, Boedker settled in as one of the most dangerous skaters of the Coyotes/Rampage era. In his season and a half in San Antonio, Boedker electrified fans with his skating and overall skill level. He has gone on to have a solid, albeit unspectacular NHL career, scoring 288 points in 618 games.

3. Eric Beaudoin

111GP 40g-49a-89pts  (0.80)

Predating my time in San Antonio, the Panthers prospect performed at exactly a point per game pace over his first 79 games, scoring 34 goals and adding 45 assists, while shuttling back and forth between San Antonio and South Florida. His third season with the Rampage saw him struggle to produce eventually leading to his trade to the Edmonton Roadrunners after just 32 games in 2005. That season would be his last in North America. However, Beaudoin did go on to play ten more seasons in various leagues throughout Europe.

2. David Spina

165GP 43g-78a-121pts  (0.73)

Spina was a small and agile winger who made fans scoot to the edge of their seats every time he got the puck in space. Fast, agile, and passionate, he was easily one of the most beloved Rampage players of his era. Somewhat of a minor league journeyman before joining the Rampage, Spina put up 50 points or more in his two full seasons. His third season was riddled with injuries and he only saw action in 26 games in 2009-10. After leaving the Rampage, Spina played one more season in the AHL with Peoria before, like many career minor leaguers, taking his skill to Europe where he played until his retirement in 2017.

1. Brett MacLean

201GP 74g-81a-155pts  (0.77)

When you look at the all-time leaderboard for the Rampage, Brett MacLean is the one constant. MacLean is the all-time franchise record holder in goals, assists, and points and checks in at third in games played behind only Sean Sullivan and Greg Rallo. The former Coyotes second rounder was a shoe-in for 20 goals and 30 assists every season. His best season came in 2009-10, where MacLean registered 30 goals and 35 assists, putting him second on the all time leaderboard for points in a season (65). After moving on from Phoenix and San Antonio, MacLean signed with the Winnipeg organization. After one season with Manitoba and a cup of coffee with the Jets, MacLean tragically suffered a severe cardiac emergency while playing in a summer pick up game and was forced to retire at just 24 years old.

Edit: I totally forgot the honorable mentions.

1. Quinton Howden – 149GP 26g-49a-75pts  (0.50)
2. Andrew Agozzino – 113GP 35g-38a-73pts  (0.65)
3. Ryan Jardine – 163GP 34g-38a-72pts (0.44)
4. Garrett Wilson – 179GP 41g-33a-74pts (0.41)
5. Chris Durno – 80GP 23g-26a-49pts (0.61)

There we have it. Your top 5 Left Wings of all time. Comments? Complaints? Kudos? Be sure to leave them in the comments or hit us up on social media.

Coming up: RW

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Previous: Defense