Step down will be Frolik. Moving from a heavy team to a light team will be a big adjustment for him. Look for him to be more like Chicago Frolik than Winnipeg Frolik.
Not really a step back but Hamilton will have to work hard to stay even with his expectations. He will have to earn his ice time where last year he was top-4 in Boston by default.
Very little chance that Russell and Wideman hold on to their current regular season rank as best #1 pairing in the NHL as they were the last quarter of 2014-15.
The Calgary defense will be better as a group but the individuals will not standout as much.
Monahan and Gaudreau have dramatically improved every year so why stop now. If the big line stays together Hudler will have a great year.
Bennett will have a hard time living up to my high expectations. I think that by Christmas he will be the clear #1/1a centre. Backlund will get pushed back in the line up and ice time. He will be solid but not improve his stats.
Last edited by ricardodw; 09-21-2015 at 09:22 AM.
|