With the All-Star game fading quickly from my mind, its time to begin looking forward to tomorrow. The following is part 1 of my quick hit assessment of all 30 NHL clubs. Parts 2 and 3 will follow as the week progresses. I hope a Calgary fans take issue with my musings so I can laugh at them!
Anaheim: I'm not sure I can ever buy this collection of talent, prodigious and young though it may be. While Hiller is a stud, and Selanee is a wizard who defies logic, the remaining cast fits well into box scores, but fails to inspire thoughts of victory. Top talents Getz, Perry, Ryan, and Visnovsky all posses unique faults which will prove to be kryptonyte for the Ducks both today and tomorrow. I do like the Ducks staple of elite young defensemen with Fowler, Gardiner, and Sbisa.
Atlanta: I wish this team would move already because I like their collection of youth, skill, size, and talent and I don't want the instability of their situation to hold them back. A great young keeper in Pavelec combines with a skilled and diverse back line to form a solid foundation. Check out this group Burkie, oh guru of the blueline: Enstrom, Bagosian, Byfuglien, Oduya, with vets Sopel and Hainsey...I think you'd swap your vaunted back line at this point. As Burmistrov, Evander Kane, and Bryan Little develop offensively success will follow. Future is bright but true success is not for the city of ATL.
Boston: This team can win now and tomorrow, but only if it can solve its offensive woes. With MVP/Vezina candidate Tim Thomas in net, depth up front in the likes of Horton, Lucic, Krejci, Bergeron, Recci, Ryder and Wheeler, and the always dependable Chara manning the back line the Bruins have some horses for today. Losing Savard who was struggling gives them space to pick up a scorer, which they will need if they hope to win this year. Tomorrow is bright with Rask, Seguin, Marchand, and Toronto's first in 2011!
Buffalo: The little engine that just can't at the moment. Stuck between hockey giant's in Montreal and Toronto and the clubs manning the east in NY, Philly, and Boston, this small market club develops skilled small forwards but has failed to produce a scoring star since the departure of Briere. Roy is a borderline first line talent, and Vanek is not worth anywhere near 7 million. If they can add one more piece to their back end and find a legitimate first line center they may be able to compete in 2012 with Ennis, Roy, Vanek, Myers, and Miller already in the fold. Will Zack Kassian bring the needed help?
Calgary: In a word: Bungled. This team had pieces, but Brent Sutter has managed to out Milbury Garth Snow (At least Snow didn't have a solid club to dismantle) and destroy what was only two years ago a cup contender according to many. You cannot win in the NHL without continuously developing young talent. Calgary does not do this. Their slow, ugly, and old. Unlikely to happen, but the only true road leads through a general purging of assets for picks and prospects. Feaster should begin moving guys now. Calgary has the worst crop of young talent according to Hockeysfuture rankings.
Carolina: I'm impressed with the way this club has managed to stay competitive while rebuilding. Actually, I'm more impressed that any team with Samsanov and Corvo anywhere but in the press box is as high as ninth place. With a talent in Staal, a top end goalie in Ward, and a great prospect in NHL All-Star Jeff Skinner, Carolina gives one of my favorite coaches in Paul Maurice something to work with. I like the forwards which surround Staal and Skinner, with the good Jokinen, the good Ruttu, and the good Sutter providing offense and leadership. The defense however, is as they say...suspect. A few moves away from either long term success or endless mediocrity pretty much sums up this franchise.
Chicago: Tough year for this still immature club. However, this will be a good learning experience for Toews and company, and I expect to see them follow in the Detroit mold, being successful for years to come. Their top end defenders are elite and still growing as players, ditto their top 5 or 6 forwards. If they can avoid the contract snafu's of Versteeg and Barker this club will be fine. If they could find a way to trade Brian Campbell that would help just a little bit as well...Campbell, a first, and Beach to Toronto for Versteeg and Kaberle? Curt?
Colorado: Love Duchene, Statsny, and Shattenkirk...although, did any of you see Shatt's manly bald spot terrifying and confusing young Carolina fans at the All-Star game? Getzlaf you have company. Keep your helmet on. According to sources Stewart is a stud PF in the making. However, after the chosen few I'm not sure I believe in this club. Once Milan Hejduk retires they will have few top six forwards, with the likes of Jones, Galiardi, O'Reilly, Winnik and Yip best suited for third or fourth line roles. Mueller is concussed a little to often to be depended on, and Fleischmann is enigmatic. On the defensive side they have few worthy candidates both today or tomorrow. May the worst state in the union keep sucking.
Columbus: How I loathe this franchise. CBJ has seemingly destroyed more than one career, and consistently ruins good Russian talent. We all know how the likes of Zherdev and Filatov have floundered, but so to have Brassard, Klesla, Mason, and even Rick Nash failed to live up to their potential. The last time this franchise developed a top end defensemen will be the first time...unless you count Ron Hainsey...oh Atlanta, where was your mind? However, the voice of reason says that they cannot fail forever. I like their young center Johansen quite a lot. If he can develop quickly, that will give Nash some incentive and a legitimate first line partner. Their second and third liners are solid enough. Still, that defense needs a miracle for this team to ever push the top end teams consistently.
Last but not least
Dallas: A surprise to be sure. I'm a big fan of what Brad Richards can do, and if they can resign him they will continue to be competitive with the big boys. Lehtinon has proven to be good enough to this point, but its only been 50 games so I won't buy yet. Players like Benn, Neal, Ott, and Eriksson provide a stable group of young talented wingers. However, with the uncertainty surrounding their ownership and Richards, the inability of captain Morrow to stay healthy, and the always enigmatic Ribeiro locking down the second line center spot, Dallas could disappear at any point. Imagine: they lose Richards as a FA, Lehtonen and Morrow return to the sick bay, Jack Campbell continues to struggle in the OHL. They will be left with very little to provide offense, goaltending, or leadership. And Dallas, the cupboards bare...I'd say avoid buying Dallas stock for next year.
Aaron
Skate
A blog about hockey. A blog about stuff related to Hockey. A blog about the useless, inane, frivolous, addictive, obsession that is our passion: Hockey! We are Curt and Aaron and we bring you PuckPotpourri!
"This team had pieces, but Brent Sutter has managed to out Milbury Garth Snow (At least Snow didn't have a solid club to dismantle)"
ReplyDeleteMy favorite line.
Don't forget Toni Lydman in Ana, who apperntly should have been named to the all-star game (according to Doug Maclean so take it with a grain of salt).
Interesting comment about Maurice, I agree that he's done an impressive job with a barely passable line up. It got me thinking about the previous coach Laviolette, who was Barry Trotz-like in the way he managed to eke out wins with rag tag groups of players. The difference being that Laviolette also managed to find point and playoff production in those same players...brindamour, stillman, cole, sami kapanen, gelinas etc.
Give me the Trotz Troll over Laviolette every day! Honestly, and he one day stumbles across this, Doug Maclean is a joke. His opinions are hogwash. That is all.
ReplyDeleteAaron, you're chicago-toronto trade is terrible. Would either team do it? I doubt it. Keep it real, man, keep it real!
ReplyDeleteCarolina is a pretty neat team. They're rebuilding (if that's the right word) the right way. They have some young guys coming up and already contributing, but they also have quite a few vets who are very solid and providing a good competitive team right now. I think there is lots to like if you're a Carolina fan.
Calgary is interesting too. They've got some truly terrible players, a lack of prospects, and are kind of a middling team. But I still think they have an opportunity to do some damage in the near future. If they can just sign a couple cheap players that are positives, I think they could go somewhere. Signing Tanguay and Morrison was smart, if they can do that again and have a guy like Backlund get better, well, I'm still saying that they have window of maybe 2 years. Then Iginla is gone and who knows what they will do with the extra cap room. Probably blow it.