Quote:
Originally Posted by FlameZilla
As things stand this is my roster, with Knight slotting straight into our 3rd line.
Cammalleri Stajan Stempniak
-Sniper + almost passable NHL centre + streaky hardworking winger
Glenncross Backlund Baertschi
-Glenncross's size, speed & wrist shot will be fed by 2 creative offensive forwards
Hudler Knight Horak
-Horak & Hudler have proven chemistry, plus Horak is arguably our most consistently solid defensive forward. What better pair to slot the rookie in between
Reinhart Jones McJackmattan
-Reinhart or Bouma are the last 2 standing for the final forward slot, in my opinion. I'd like to see McGrattan signed & he and Jackman swap pressbox duty
Giordano (Captain) Wideman
-The default first pairing. On a solid team this would be a good 2nd pairing, but what can ya do?
Brodie Sarich
-Proved a good tandem last year. Sarich is a good calming presence for young D men and I hope he stays
Butler Breen
-Not a huge Butler fan, but as a 3rd pairing guy he is ok. Good value on the contract. I like Breen and the size he brings to the table. I like combining a big bruiser with a puck-mover
Cundari
-I see Cundari displacing Smith as the 7th D man in camp and then steadily rising up the depth chart. I saw a lot of good qualities in him when he joined us & I think his potential is undeniable
Biggest question mark is in goal as 2 of our potential starters are unknown quantities in my eyes. Ramo and Berra will have a great opportunity if and when Kipper packs it in. Interesting and scary.
Notes: Did not include Tanguay as I see no reason for him to stick around. He'll get a half-decent return at the draft I imagine. Possibly included in a deal to move up.
I know we bang on and on about #1 C being the biggest weakness, but to be honest we could use a #1 all-round defender as well. Rumours about Myers are exciting, but I wonder if Feaster actually moves up to #2 in the draft and drafts Seth Jones? If the statements Sakic made are true then he may be available at that slot...
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My lines would be quite different.
Using the current players I would have:
Sven Baertschi • Mikael Backlund • Mike Cammalleri
- Backlund provides the two-way presence while Baertschi tries setting up Cammalleri
Alex Tanguay • Matt Stajan • Jiri Hudler
- Stajan has shown chemistry with both players and they are all about the same speed on the ice. And like the "First" line you have Stajan as a two-way presence and Tanguay feeding Hudler.
Curtis Glencross • Corban Knight • Lee Stempniak
- I want Knight to learn from a couple veterans that produce offensively, play a solid two-way game and can play physically when called upon.
Lance Bouma/Roman Horak • Max Reinhart • Tim Jackman
- Ideally Reinhart will be in the AHL and a UFA center will be brought in and McGrattan will be retained to split time with Jackman. Horak would move up the lineup as needed as injuries show their ugly head.
TJ Brodie • Mark Giordano
- I want to acquire a RH shutdown defenseman to pair with Giordano so Brodie can move down to the second pairing where he is better suited to play right now.
Chris Butler • Dennis Wideman
- Butler is ideally on the third pairing but he is better in the top 4 than the other options we currently have.
Chris Breen/Mark Cundari • Cory Sarich/Derek Smith
- A rotation of these 4 would not shock me in the slightest. But I would prefer Sarich gets traded or retires and Smith gets sent to the minors. And another defenseman is brought in.
Karri Ramo • Joey MacDonald • Reto Berra
- I think we see a 3 headed goaltender dragon at least to start the year. When all is said and done I could see Ramo getting 50% of the starts with Berra and Mac each getting 25%.