The salamehockey.com site administrators, over the course the next few weeks, will be taking a look at each team’s roster and analyzing the likely scenarios for keepers and re-signs for the upcoming 2011-2012 season.
The much anticipated final one!
TEAM: MAGNUM
GM: Giulio Iaconi
FORWARDS – KEEPERS
1. Anze Kopitar, Kings – Usually gets off to a very quick start to the season, this year should be no exception given the offensive additions the kings have made in the off season. Anze should benefit from the additions of Mike Richards and Simon Gange (if healthy obviously) and one could reasonable expect him to once again reach the 80 point plateau and beyond. The Kings are really looking to have success this season, and that may rest on the very capable shoulders of Mr. Kopitar. On a side note, be prepared if you enter a bet with Giulio that involves the naming rights to your first born child as it will undoubtedly be Anze should you lose.
2. Martin St Louis, Lightning – Undrafted and unwanted early in his career, Marty is now 36 and still producing better than almost anyone in the league. He has back to back 90+ point seasons and over 450 points in the past 5 years and even more amazing for a tiny guy in the NHL is in that same period he HASN’T missed a game! Coach Guy Boucher will continue to use him in every situation so the points will come from everywhere. Oh and he plays with a guy you may have heard of, Steven Stamkos so look for another 85+ season from the mini-Lavaler.
3. Paul Stastny, Avalanche – With the crazies that run the Avalanche who knows if he will stay in Colorado or be traded for two 4 rounders and a lunch coupon from the Olive Garden, but let’s assume he stays… He didn’t have his best season last year, but then again no one on the Avs played well. Paul and Matt Duchene will be relied on heavily to produce (because they gave everyone else away!), but even then the team is the front runner for a lottery pick next year. Expect Paul to have a better season next year, but without a better supporting cast around him he will not reach his career high of 79 points… unless of course he gets traded out of the crazy house!
4. Ryan Kesler, Canucks – Kesler and the rest of the Canucks will have to shake off the heartbreaking loss at home in the Stanley Cup finals. It was revealed that he was playing injured in the finals but the off season surgery should not be of much concern as he will be ready for the start of the season. His point total should remain around to 70-80 point range given the fact that he plays on a the same team as the Sedins. The most important question around Kesler during the off season is why does he look more like Leo Luongo than Roberto does??
5. David Backes, Blues – The Blues leading scorer last season put up decent numbers despite playing on a team that was destroyed by injuries. He can expect a boost to his totals thanks to a full season playing with a very dangerous top 6, with Perron and Oshie returning from injury shortened seasons and Chris Stewart playing a full year with the Blues (thank you very much to the crazies in Colorado). St Louis has made some nice additions to their line up in the off season and should make a decent push for a playoff spot. Look for Backes to better his point total this year.
6. Patrice Bergeron, Bruins – The Stanely Cup center from La Belle Province (but don’t tell Bruin fans he is French), seems to have finally put the injuries that plagued him early in his career behind him. His role on the Bruins will grow given the uncertain status of Marc Savard, and I fully expect his point totals to increase to career highs. The only thing that can hurt him is if the Bruins experience a post-Stanley Cup downfall (God I hope so!), otherwise expect another strong season from him.
7. Jussi Jokinen, Hurricanes – The former shootout specialist seems to have found a groove playing in Carolina. The departure of Erik Cole should see him have a better offensive season as he could once again reach the 60 point mark. BTW, he is not related to Olli, which is probably a good thing!
FORWARDS – RESIGNS
8. Teemu Selanne, Ducks – I can say nothing more about Teemu than he is a God among boys. Should he decide to return then he can be counted on for a good amount of points. Although I don’t think he will reach the level he was at last season he will still contribute on a very potent Ducks offense.
9. Kris Versteeg, Panthers – One of many new Florida Panthers, it is hard to evaluate where he will fit in and what direction the team will take. Hopefully another change of scenery will do him some good as he had trouble hitting his groove in Toronto and Philly. The Panther are his fourth team in the past 2 seasons, but the only team that he has been on that will rely on him to be their leading scorer. 50 points seems reasonable for his first season in the Sunshine state, provided he finds a way to mesh with his teammates.
DEFENSE – KEEPERS
1. Keith Yandle, Coyotes – Considered by many to be one of the most underrated players in the league, Keith had a breakout season last year scoring career highs. Fresh off that year he signed a 5 year deal to keep him in Phoenix (or at least with the franchise wherever it goes). The Coyotes will struggle this year after losing their number 1 goalie, and while Yandle will still provide plenty of offense from the back end, the team in general will not be very good. Look for a drop off in his point total but he should still hit 45 points in the desert.
2. Erik Johnson, Avalanche – The Colorado Avalanche believe that Erik is so good that they traded away one of their best forwards and best offensive dmen to get him. His point totals so far in his career are not impressive but the potential to breakout is there, especially since the Avs also got rid of John Micheal Liles leaving Erik to QB the PP this season. Remember though that Colorado is expected to be a bad team this year, and his point totals will most probably reflect that.
3. John Carlson, Capitals – Carlson seems ready for a breakout season. The Caps are desperate for a deep Stanley Cup run and have probably made the best moves of the offseason to achieve this. Playing a more important role on arguably the best team in the east going into next year will help increase his point totals, expect him to finish in the 45-50 point range.
DEFENSE – RESIGNS
4. Matt Carle, Flyers – Carle seems to fit in nicely in Philly. He is a few steps down on the offensive dman ladder in Philly but will still contribute to the new look Flyers in the coming year. His point total should remain around the same level, unless there is a prolonged absence from either of the players ahead of him in the depth chart.
5. Andrej Sekera, Sabers – Sekera had a nice little run of back to back multi point games towards the end of last season however an significant increase in point totals for this season seems unlikely given offseason acquisition of Christian Eroff who combined with Tyler Myers will be look at to produce from the back end. Another 30 points should be expected from Andrej this season.
GOALTENDER – KEEPER
1. Ilya Bryzgalov, Flyers – The man that apparently can move mountains in Philadelphia will have his chance to prove he has what it takes to be a winner. The Flyers were so desperate to sign him to a long term deal that they essentially blew up their team to do it. Expect a strong season from him since he won’t be expected to steal games the way he did in Phoenix. Ilya will finally provide the Flyers with a goalie capable of winning games, expect 35+ wins with many shutouts along the way. And if that doesn’t happen and you get upset about it just remember his famous quote… “why you heff to be mad??”
GOALTENDERS – RESIGNS
2. Tim Thomas, Bruins – The first goalie to win the Stanely cup & Conn Symthe & Vezina in the same season is obviously coming an incredible year. His style (or lack of) may be criticized but there is no denying the results. He wins games and gets shutouts and just plain frustrates the hell out of everyone. The real question is can he repeat it next year, and the answer is maybe. Thomas’ last really good season was followed up by a stinker which saw Tukka Rask take over as number one, in fact Rask was the #1 at the start of last season before Thomas put together a series of wins. Look for Thomas get off to a good start and have a good year, but it would be hard to expect him to maintain the numbers he put up last year.
3. Martin Brodeur, Devils -What Devil’s team will show up this year, the team that was 3rd last in the league for the 1st half of the year or the team that went on an incredible run only to fall short of a playoff spot. Which team shows up will greatly depend on how Marty plays, if he is at the top of his game watch out, but if he struggles then the whole team will struggle with him. He is still an elite goalie, but age has caught up with him and so have injuries. If healthy he should get 30+ wins with ease, and shut-outs seem to come in bunches with him. But another prolonged injury will mean a long year for the devils.
There you have it, sorry for the wait!!