Everett Silvertips:
--------------------
Overagers:
In: Dane Crowley (D), Dan Gendur (F), Brennan Sonne (F)
Out: Brandon Campos (F), Ondrej Fiala (F), David Reekie (G)
Departed Players:
Damir Alic (F-87) (Reg: 56-5-10-15-54; Plf: 12-0-1-1-8) - released
Brandon Campos (F-87) (Reg: 67-10-14-24-46; Plf: 10-1-2-3-15) - trade/release (projected)
Ondrej Fiala (F-87) (Reg: 39-12-21-33-26) - trade/release (projected)
Jason Fransoo (D-86) (Reg: 71-9-34-43-76; Plf: 12-0-6-6-12) - graduated overager
Moises Gutierrez (F-86) (Reg: 61-35-20-55-110; Plf: 12-5-6-11-16) - graduated overager
Peter Mueller (F-88) (Reg: 51-21-57-78-45; Plf: 12-7-9-16-12) - turning pro (projected)
David Reekie (G-87) (Reg: 27gp, 20-6-0, 1.77gaa, .925sv%; Plf: 3gp, 0-1, 3.99gaa, .833sv%) - trade/release (projected)
Jesse Smyke (F-87) (Reg: 68-8-8-16-18; Plf: 11-1-1-2-2) - released
Jesse Zetariuk (D-86) (Reg: 40-1-5-6-32; Plf: 12-0-2-2-17) - graduated overager
Projected Returnees:
Forwards:
Kyle Beach (F-90) (Reg: 65-29-32-61-196; Plf: 11-5-6-11-19)
Jesse Burt (F-89) (Reg: 30-3-1-4-16)
Zack Dailey (F-89) (Reg: 67-2-14-16-36; Plf: 12-3-3-6-12)
Dan Gendur (F-87) (Reg: 48-20-22-42-44; Plf: 12-4-4-8-8)
Zach Hamill (F-88) (Reg: 69-32-61-93-90; Plf: 12-2-8-10-16)
Shane Harper (F-89) (Reg: 58-3-12-15-23; Plf: 8-1-2-3-0)
Carter Smith (F-88) (Reg: 21-2-2-4-20)
Brennan Sonne (F-87) (Reg: 55-5-4-9-116; Plf: 12-2-0-2-12)
Lukas Vartovnik (F-89) (Reg: 58-11-8-19-41; Plf: 10-1-2-3-7)
Defence:
Mike Alexander (D-89) (Reg: 37-1-5-6-26)
Dane Crowley (D-87) (Reg: 29-4-13-17-28; Plf: 12-0-3-3-8)
Taylor Ellington (D-88) (Reg: 60-5-8-13-65; Plf: 6-1-0-1-2)
Jonathan Harty (D-88) (Reg: 70-5-18-23-156; Plf: 12-1-0-1-13)
Graham Potuer (D-88) (Reg: 50-0-8-8-73; Plf: 12-0-1-1-18)
Goaltenders:
Leland Irving (G-88) (Reg: 48gp, 34-9-3, 1.86gaa, .929sv%; Plf: 12gp, 6-5, 2.82gaa, .887sv%)
Rookies:
Shayne Barrie (G-89) (Reg: 1gp, 0-0-0, 0.00gaa, 1.000sv%)
Chris de la Lande (D-90)
Eric English (F-88)
Tyler Eskesen (F-90) (Reg: 4-0-0-0-4)
Eddie Friesen (D-90)
Matt Ius (F-90) (Reg: 8-0-2-2-4; Plf: 1-0-0-0-0)
Vitali Karamnov (F-89) - new import
Morgan MacLean (F-88)
Jordan Mistelbacher (F-90) (Reg: 3-0-1-1-5; Plf: 9-0-2-2-2)
Jeff Regier (D-91) (Reg: 5-0-2-2-2; Plf: 6-0-0-0-2)
Ty Skauge (F-90)
Matt Strong (D-90) (Reg: 16-0-1-1-22)
Prognosis: This team is tough to make a prediction on without knowing the status of forward Peter Mueller, who seems likely to start (and perhaps finish) the season in the NHL. Mueller would be a very dominant player at the WHL level so if he were to return, that would obviously be a huge boost to the Silvertips. Even without Mueller though (and I will operate on the assumption that he is gone), this is a very respectable team which should continue the winning ways that the franchise has had in its short existence. Up front there are still Hamill, Beach, and Gendur to provide proven scoring - all three should top 30 goals this year, with 40 (Beach) and 50 (Hamill) being reachable goals. A year of experience should help Lukas Vartovnik, and expectations are there for players like Dailey, Harper, Karamnov, and Mistelbacher to help provide some secondary scoring. The defence returns five players from last year's edition, including a couple of the league's best in Crowley (I'm projecting him back anyway) and Ellington, and also add two rookies who have already played double-digit total games with the team last year. And in net they have one of the league's best goaltenders in Leland Irving, who needs to shake off the inconsistencies of last season. His backup is likely to be 18 year old rookie Shayne Barrie. Overall, team depth is probably not quite as good as it has been in other years but this is still a very good team which should be in contention come playoffs. The one big question that cannot be answered is how the team will adjust to the loss of coach Kevin Constantine behind the bench. Those are obviously big shoes to be filled there for John Becanic.
Prediction: First in the division in a close race with Seattle. 1st or 2nd in the conference.
==================================================================================
Seattle Thunderbirds:
--------------------
Overagers:
In: Andre Herman (F), Scott Jackson (D), Ian McKenzie (F)
Out: Benn Olson (D)
Departed Players:
Aaron Gagnon (F-86) (Reg: 59-42-38-80-58; Plf: 11-6-2-8-10) - graduated overager
Radek Meidl (F-88) (Reg: 72-16-11-27-89; Plf: 11-1-3-4-6) - released
Benn Olson (D-87) (Reg: 66-2-8-10-181; Plf: 11-1-2-3-26) - released (projected)
Brett Robertson (F-86) (Reg: 38-12-19-31-48; Plf: 11-5-7-12-10) - graduated overager
Bretton Stamler (D-87) (Reg: 72-8-24-32-135; Plf: 11-0-1-1-14) - to Edmonton in expansion draft
Derek Yeomans (G-86) (Reg: 55gp, 30-12-12, 2.12gaa, .917sv%; Plf: 11gp, 5-6, 2.50gaa, .912sv%) - graduated overager
Projected Returnees:
Forwards:
Jeremy Boyer (F-90) (Reg: 56-2-5-7-29; Plf: 3-0-0-0-0)
Jan Eberle (F-89) (Reg: 68-18-20-38-44; Plf: 11-1-4-5-10)
Andre Herman (F-87) (Reg: 31-5-6-11-16; Plf: 11-3-2-5-4)
Bud Holloway (F-88) (Reg: 71-27-38-65-50; Plf: 11-3-3-6-8)
Ian McKenzie (F-87) (Reg: 60-12-9-21-77; Plf: 11-2-1-3-17)
Lindsay Nielsen (F-89) (Reg: 53-6-6-12-24; Plf: 11-1-1-2-8)
Isak Quakenbush (F-90) (Reg: 51-1-1-2-37)
Prab Rai (F-89) (Reg: 38-5-14-19-18; Plf: 8-1-4-5-0)
David Richard (F-89) (Reg: 72-9-9-18-54; Plf: 11-0-1-1-6)
Joshua Schappert (F-89) (Reg: 72-5-11-16-36; Plf: 11-1-2-3-2)
Greg Scott (F-88) (Reg: 72-17-14-31-62; Plf: 11-0-2-2-2)
Defence:
Sena Acolatse (D-90) (Reg: 45-0-4-4-61; Plf: 11-0-0-0-8)
Brad Bakken (D-89) (Reg: 48-0-1-1-20; Plf: 6-0-0-0-0)
Thomas Hickey (D-89) (Reg: 68-9-41-50-70; Plf: 11-3-4-7-4)
Scott Jackson (D-87) (Reg: 71-4-31-35-52; Plf: 11-0-5-5-9)
Jeremy Schappert (D-89) (Reg: 39-1-5-6-15; Plf: 5-0-0-0-2)
Goaltenders:
Jacob DeSerres (G-90) (Reg: 20gp, 7-9-2, 2.79gaa, .900sv%; Plf: 2gp, 0-0, 7.67gaa, .733sv%)
Rookies:
Steve Chaffin (D-91) (Reg: 5-0-0-0-0)
Brenden Dillon (D-90)
Tyler Esau (G-89) (Reg: 11gp, 1-5-1, 5.09gaa, .843sv%) - stats with Prince Albert
Cody Hanson (F-90)
Riku Helenius (G-88) - new import
Josh Lazowski (F-91)
Jim O’Brien (F-89)
Brenden Silvester (F-91)
Charles Wells (F-91)
Prognosis: Some optimism around this team following the offseason additions of a couple of NHL first round picks. Any time you can add a couple top-flight players like that for free is a good thing. I'm not sure that the Birds are serious contenders yet but there are certainly some possibilities here. For starters, things are looking good in net, where Finnish star Riku Helenius will team with 17 year old incumbent Jacob DeSerres to provide a good tandem. The blueline certainly has a couple high-end talents in Thomas Hickey and Scott Jackson, but I wonder about the depth beyond that. Schappert's a good 2nd-pairing guy but are Bakken and Acolatse ready for similar roles? Two rookies complete the blueline. Up front the team will have to replace the lost scoring of Gagnon and Robertson somehow; in Eberle, Holloway, and Scott they have a trio of guys with the ability to step up and they'll need just that. There's also several other players here who are also capable of a lot more than what they provided last year - Herman, Rai, Richard. The addition of Jim O'Brien (when he's healthy) is a boost there too. Still obviously some questions about whether enough guys will step up but there are definitely players there with the ability to do so.
Prediction: 2nd in the division. 2nd or 3rd in the conference.
==================================================================================
Spokane Chiefs:
--------------------
Overagers:
In: Judd Blackwater (F), Chris Bruton (F), David Rutherford (F)
Out: Michael Grabner (F), Adam Hobson (F), David Linsley (F), Sean Zimmerman (D)
Departed Players:
Michael Grabner (F-87) (Reg: 55-39-16-55-34; Plf: 6-0-1-1-2) - turning pro
Evan Haw (D-86) (Reg: 62-3-9-12-138; Plf: 6-0-0-0-12) - graduated overager
Adam Hobson (F-87) (Reg: 43-14-18-32-59; Plf: 6-3-0-3-6) - turning pro
Stephane Lenoski (D-86) (Reg: 36-1-17-18-40; Plf: 6-0-0-0-2) - graduated overager
David Linsley (F-87) (Reg: 50-4-3-7-22; Plf: 5-0-0-0-2) - released
Derek Ryan (F-86) (Reg: 72-28-31-59-50; Plf: 6-3-2-5-2) - graduated overager
J.P. Szaszkiewicz (F-88) (Reg: 63-8-8-16-44; Plf: 6-0-0-0-10) - to Edmonton in expansion draft
Sean Zimmerman (D-87) (Reg: 60-2-12-14-69; Plf: 6-0-2-2-2) - turning pro
Projected Returnees:
Forwards:
Judd Blackwater (F-87) (Reg: 55-12-29-41-87; Plf: 3-0-0-0-5)
Drayson Bowman (F-89) (Reg: 62-24-19-43-55; Plf: 6-2-5-7-4)
Chris Bruton (F-87) (Reg: 63-9-12-21-103; Plf: 6-1-1-2-6)
Seth Compton (F-88) (Reg: 47-8-7-15-12)
Cody Esposito (F-89) (Reg: 41-2-6-8-73)
Curtis Kelner (F-88) (Reg: 28-1-2-3-45; Plf: 5-0-0-0-2)
Levko Koper (F-90) (Reg: 50-3-2-5-14; Plf: 5-0-0-0-0)
Chris Langkow (F-89) (Reg: 49-4-8-12-33; Plf: 2-0-0-0-0)
Ondrej Roman (F-89) (Reg: 70-4-44-48-42; Plf: 6-1-4-5-0)
David Rutherford (F-87) (Reg: 69-31-27-58-133; Plf: 6-2-0-2-13)
Mitch Wahl (F-90) (Reg: 69-16-32-48-50; Plf: 4-0-1-1-5)
Defence:
Justin Falk (D-88) (Reg: 62-3-12-15-88; Plf: 6-0-0-0-8)
Patrick Kozyra (D-89) (Reg: 55-1-4-5-24) - stats with Red Deer
Mike Reddington (D-90) (Reg: 64-1-2-3-75; Plf: 6-0-0-0-15)
Jared Spurgeon (D-89) (Reg: 38-4-15-19-16)
Goaltenders:
Kevin Armstrong (G-88) (Reg: 48gp, 23-17-6, 2.80gaa, .900sv%)
Dustin Tokarski (G-89) (Reg: 30gp, 13-11-2, 2.80gaa, .903sv%; Plf: 6gp, 2-4, 2.80gaa, .901sv%)
Rookies:
Brett Bartman (D-89)
Jared Cowen (D-91) (Reg: 6-0-2-2-2; Plf: 6-0-1-1-6)
Jace Coyle (D-90)
Dustin Donaghy (F-89)
Tyler Johnson (F-90)
James Reid (G-90)
Stefan Ulmer (D-90) - new import
Prognosis: Reasonably well-rounded team that is a good darkhorse contender. They have at least five forwards who could/should crack 60 points this year and a few others who should be in the 20-30 range providing depth. The goaltending is also good, with a 1A/1B rotation of Kevin Armstrong and Dustin Tokarski possible to occur again unless one is moved to make way for rookie James Reid to assume the backup role. Either way, both Armstrong and Tokaski posted similar numbers last year which they'll be looking to improve on with another year's experience. The one concern this team must have is the blueline, where depth is a little thin beyond Falk and Reddington. Jared Spurgeon is an OK 2nd/3rd pair type and there are very high hopes for #1 overall bantam pick Jared Cowen, but he is just 16 and will have a learning curve. It would be a big help if new import Stefan Ulmer adjusted quickly to the North American game. The Chiefs should improve on last year but I'm not sure it is enough to get them past Everett or Seattle in the standings.
Prediction: Third in the division. 4th or 5th in the conference.
==================================================================================
Tri-City Americans:
--------------------
Overagers:
In: T.J. Fast (D), Erik Felde (F), Colton Yellow Horn (F)
Out: Tanner Gillies (F), Carey Price (G), Shaun Vey (F)
Departed Players:
Alex Aldred (F-86) (Reg: 64-15-40-55-82; Plf: 6-1-0-1-8) - graduated overager
Aaron Boogaard (F-86) (Reg: 69-10-11-21-173; Plf: 5-1-0-1-14) - graduated overager
Brock Cornish (D-89) (Reg: 31-3-7-10-44; Plf: 2-0-0-0-0) - traded to Portland
Tanner Gillies (F-87) (Reg: 70-6-18-24-60; Plf: 6-0-1-1-9) - retired
Chris Inglis (F-88) (Reg: 56-1-7-8-78; Plf: 1-0-0-0-0) - traded to Lethbridge
Michael Kaye (F-87) (Reg: 53-10-17-27-79; Plf: 6-1-0-1-10) - traded to Saskatoon
Carey Price (G-87) (Reg: 46gp, 30-13-1, 2.45gaa, .917sv%; Plf: 6gp, 2-4, 2.93gaa, .912sv%) - turning pro
Zach Sim (D-88) (Reg: 43-6-6-12-32; Plf: 5-0-0-0-4) - traded to Medicine Hat
Matthew Swaby (D-87) (Reg: 62-2-18-20-90; Plf: 6-0-3-3-8) - to Edmonton in expansion draft
Roman Teslyuk (D-86) (Reg: 32-8-9-17-70; Plf: 6-0-1-1-12) - graduated overager
Juraj Valach (D-89) (Reg: 58-7-23-30-75; Plf: 6-1-1-2-12) - traded to Vancouver
Shaun Vey (F-87) (Reg: 69-23-22-45-42; Plf: 6-1-0-1-6) - trade bait (projected)
Projected Returnees:
Forwards:
Joel Broda (F-89) (Reg: 71-16-28-44-62; Plf: 6-2-0-2-0)
Erik Felde (F-87) (Reg: 72-24-28-52-38; Plf: 6-0-2-2-4)
Travis Gorman (F-89) (Reg: 21-4-0-4-49; Plf: 2-0-0-0-2)
Drew Hoff (F-88) (Reg: 70-6-9-15-41; Plf: 5-0-0-0-0)
Blair Macaulay (F-88) (Reg: 66-9-9-18-76) - stats with Saskatoon
Taylor Procyshen (F-88) (Reg: 67-33-23-56-42; Plf: 6-2-0-2-2)
Kruise Reddick (F-90) (Reg: 60-9-13-22-30; Plf: 6-0-2-2-2)
Colton Yellow Horn (F-87) (Reg: 59-40-37-77-57; Plf: 6-1-2-3-6)
Defence:
T.J. Fast (D-87) (Reg: 26-3-19-22-30; Plf: 6-0-1-1-14)
Kevin Kraus (D-89) (Reg: 36-0-3-3-57; Plf: 4-0-0-0-2) - stats with Kamloops
Eric Mestery (D-90) (Reg: 43-1-6-7-20)
Tyler Schmidt (D-90) (Reg: 47-4-15-19-72; Plf: 4-0-0-0-6)
Jarrett Toll (D-89) (Reg: 44-0-9-9-59; Plf: 6-0-0-0-2)
Goaltenders:
Chet Pickard (G-89) (Reg: 29gp, 17-10-1, 2.85gaa, .903sv%; Plf: 1gp, 0-0, 3.00gaa, .800sv%)
Rookies:
Kyle Birch (G-90)
Jason Gardiner (F-91) (Reg: 4-0-0-0-0)
Adam Hughesman (F-91) (Reg: 3-0-0-0-0)
Colan Jackson (F-90)
Johnny Lazo (F-89) (Reg: 3-0-0-0-0)
Mitch McColm (D-89) (Reg: 5-0-0-0-9)
Joel Ridgeway (F-90) (Reg: 2-0-0-0-0)
Petr Stoklasa (F-89) - new import
Lane Werbowski (D-91)
Mason Wilgosh (F-91)
Joel Woznikoski (D-89) (Reg: 4-0-0-0-9) - stats with Kamloops
Prognosis: Another team with big losses from last year, the Americans will be looking to replace 12 departed players and will have a fairly young team this year. None of the losses is as big as the departure of Carey Price, the best goaltender in the league last year. The good news is though, Chet Pickard played very well in Price's WJC absence last year and is probably ready to carry the starting job. But he is no Carey Price so there has to be a bit of a dropoff there still. The bigger concern is the blueline, where five of last year's contributors are now gone and the Ams have just 6 seasons and 263 games of WHL experience across the five remaining vets. T.J. Fast has NCAA experience on top of his half-season in the WHL but definitely this is an inexperienced group at one of the game's most critical positions. Everyone is going to have to assume much bigger roles than they have in their WHL careers up to this point. Up front the team does have the luxury of a fair bit of proven goal scoring, which should take some of the pressure off the defence. Assuming they get Colton Yellow Horn back, that should be 40-50 goals right there, plus probably anywhere from 25 to 40 goals from Procyshyn, Broda, and Felde (or Vey if they keep Vey instead of Felde as the 3rd overage). Depth is a little bit of a concern here too but that is to be expected in a rebuilding year; seven rookies will be vying to fill out the last 4-5 spots up front. All in all the Ams are going to take a drop in the standings, but probably not enough to drop them out of the playoffs.
Prediction: 4th in the U.S. division. 6th or 7th in the conference.
==================================================================================
Portland Winter Hawks:
--------------------
Overagers:
In: Nicholas Hotson (F), Frazer McLaren (F)
Out: - none -
Departed Players:
Cameron Cepek (D-88) (Reg: 49-1-8-9-87) - to Edmonton in expansion draft
Thomas Frazee (F-90) (Reg: 55-6-6-12-38) - traded to Medicine Hat
Max Gordichuk (D-86) (Reg: 70-5-21-26-107) - graduated overager
Stefan Langwieder (D-87) (Reg: 59-2-14-16-91) - signed in Europe
Teegan Moore (F-86) (Reg: 31-3-7-10-37) - graduated overager
Chip Petrino (F-90) (Reg: 53-1-2-3-44) - released
Chris Ward (G-89) (Reg: 14gp, 0-10-1, 6.20gaa, .817sv%) - released
Projected Returnees:
Forwards:
Matt Betker (F-89) (Reg: 64-5-5-10-83)
Chris Francis (F-89) (Reg: 69-9-8-17-14)
Nicholas Hotson (F-87) (Reg: 71-18-22-40-52)
Tayler Jordan (F-90) (Reg: 52-2-0-2-137)
Tristan King (F-90) (Reg: 64-6-9-15-26)
Frazer McLaren (F-87) (Reg: 61-19-12-31-186)
Colton Sceviour (F-89) (Reg: 49-12-26-38-38)
Matt Schmermund (F-88) (Reg: 30-3-4-7-30)
Viktor Sjodin (F-88) (Reg: 68-13-12-25-79)
Matt Sokol (F-89) (Reg: 63-6-6-12-55)
Tyler Swystun (F-88) (Reg: 70-12-24-36-45; Plf: 22-2-3-5-6) - stats with Medicine Hat
Defence:
Lucas Alexiuk (D-89) (Reg: 67-0-4-4-85)
Ty Ariss (D-90) (Reg: 30-0-1-1-56)
Scott Gabriel (D-88) (Reg: 46-1-2-3-120)
Devon Marshall (D-90) (Reg: 43-0-1-1-25)
Bo Montgomery (D-90) (Reg: 31-0-2-2-54)
Todd Panchyson (D-88) (Reg: 29-3-2-5-18) - stats with Saskatoon/Lethbridge
Goaltenders:
Kurtis Mucha (G-89) (Reg: 62gp, 17-41-2, 3.82gaa, .885sv%)
Jordan White (G-88) (Reg: 10gp, 1-5-1, 5.05gaa, .828sv%) - stats with Prince George
Rookies:
Riley Boychuk (F-91)
Mark Guggenberger (G-89)
Aaron McGill (F-89)
Lee Morrow (D-90)
Brett Ponich (D-91) (Reg: 2-0-0-0-0)
Radim Valchar (F-89) - new import
Luke Walker (F-90)
Prognosis: Things couldn't get much worse than they were last year, could they? A year of experience should definitely help avoid the multitude of blowout losses this young team suffered last year, but just how much room for improvement is there when only one of their divisional opponents is likely to make a significant drop in the standings? They need to make up minimum 43 points over last year in order to finish ahead of any of their U.S. division counterparts. In fact, with the new conference-based playoff format the best bet for the Hawks to make the playoffs this year might lie in being better than two of the B.C. teams rather than any of the U.S. teams. It's do-able if everything falls into place. For starters, they'll need a much-improved blueline over last year, and with three of last year's top six having moved on since last year, some guys are going to have to step up. Alexiuk, Ariss, Marshall, and Montgomery got their feet wet last year as rookies and must now emerge as reliable top-six WHLers. Montgomery is fine, we'll see about the others. Gabriel and Panchyson must also meet that standard, something they haven't necessarily been able to do consistently in their careers so far. Expectations are also there for rookies Lee Morrow and especially Brett Ponich, but they are still rookies. All in all I think the defence is still a concern for this team. The goaltending should be acceptable again as it was last year; Kurtis Mucha's numbers were not impressive at first glance but in light of the situation he was put in every night, they are respectable. Minnesota high schooler Mark Guggenberger joins the team to push Mucha for playing time. Up front they have ten veteran forwards, many of whom will have to improve on their totals from last year if the team is to increase scoring from last year's league-worst 144 goals. McLaren, Hotson, Sceviour, Sjodin, King, and new acquisition Swystun will need to lead this team offensively. Overall, the Hawks should be improved a fair bit points-wise but it might not be a whole lot standings-wise. We'll see if they can top two of Chilliwack, Kelowna, and Prince George and make the playoffs.
Prediction: 5th in the division. 8th/9th in the conference.
No comments:
Post a Comment