RHL16 preview edition - part 3 of 4
We move over to the Gordie Howe Conference in part three of the RHL16 preview edition. This conference was more difficult to predict, as there isn't much separating about 8 or so teams. Expect the standings to be much more condensed than the Richard Conference.
Albany StrapHangers
Projected finish: 1st
34-22-10
Got it: The STR went out and landed prized defenseman Pronger in the offseason, who along with recently-signed Hamrlik, turn the backline into the squad’s biggest strength. With Belfour patroling the blue ice, the STR look to be a tough nut to crack defensively this season. They also have speed to burn on the wings with Friesen, Samsonov, Zednik and Afinagenov.
Need it: While there is no real weak link down the middle, no one jumps out and screams #1 centre. Their best pivots, Halpern and Stefan, wouldn’t even be a lot of team’s #2 guy. Same sort of thing holds true on the wings, as the STR have a bunch of decent wingers but no one that you can point to and say ‘he’ll net 30 and lead this team offensively’.
In: Pronger, Hamlik, Zednik, Halpern, Friesen, Nikolishin, Sweeney
Out: Palffy, Francis, Carney, Ozolinsh, Poti, Mapletoft, J.Green, Pratt
Dollars and cents: While the team offloaded Palffy and his $4M salary, they basically nullified the financial gains from that trade by bringing in Pronger. Projected to finish in the negative, the STR are walking a tight rope this season that could limit what they might do over the course of the season.
RHL16 salaries: $29.3M
RHL15 salaries: $28.6M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘without a doubt’
Bottom line: The STR showed their fans that they are committed to improving this team by being very active on the trade and free agent front. They'll be tough defensively, and if they can find a groove and score enough goals, they could be a team to watch out for this season.
Washington Defiance
Predicted finish: 2nd
34-27-5
Got it: One of the best lineups down the middle in the league with Lecavalier, Zetterberg and Holik. They also managed to beat off the vultures and re-sign team MVP Alfredsson, and expectations are that Raycroft can be as good, if not better, than he was in his rookie year.
Need it: After the aforementioned forwards, along with Kotalik, there is a borderline scary drop off in talent up front. Right now, their 2nd set of wingers is R.Murray and Dackell. The team also lost probably their best 2 defensemen from RHL15 in Visnovsky and Chelios, which is never a good thing for a team.
In: Reichel, R.Murray, Domi, McGillis, Reichel, Tremblay, Cairns, Rivers
Out: Lagenbrunner, Holmstrom, Chelios, Gratton, Weekes, Nikolishin, Wiemer, Martins, Marchment, Grand-Pierre
Dollars and cents: The DEF hit a bit of a wall in the offseason and had to make some difficult decisions. They opted to put all their free salary back into Alfredsson, at the expense of a handful of other players. By signing him to a 1-year deal, the squad will go through the same set of decisions again after this season.
RHL16 salaries: $26.6M
RHL15 salaries: $29.9M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘signs point to yes’
Bottom line: Too many outs and not enough ins could be a tough hurdle to overcome. What will help is having Raycroft and Alfredsson in the mix again. If their stars shine bright enough, the DEF could still find themselves in the thick of things.
Chicago Capones
Predicted finish: 3rd
33-29-4
Got it: With the arrival of Hasek, the CAP seem to be loading up to make a push in RHL17. But don’t expect this year to be a write-off by any means for a team that is always competitive. They only have the #1 forward in the league in Kovalchuk, and a good supporting cast on the wings and on defense.
Need it: Weekes will provide average goaltending, but he is big step down from the stellar play of Roloson. The team will need to adapt their style a bit to compensate for more goals going into the net. Pressure will be on a group of mediocre centres to fill the shoes of departed centres Fedorov and Weight. It is doubtful that Weiss, Spezza and Yelle will step up this season.
In: Hasek, Weekes, Hackett, Juneau, Ronning, Zamuner, Neiminen
Out: Weight, Roloson, Dipietro, Fedorov, Hinote, S.Brown
Dollars and cents: Things are rosy in Chicago. With $8M+ in the bank and a salary under revenue projection even before the playoffs, there isn’t much the CAP won’t be able to do. There will be a glut of defensemen headed for UFA at season’s end (Zubov, Warrener, Devries), but the core players will all be there for a few more seasons at least.
RHL16 salaries: $26.3M
RHL15 salaries: $31.8M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘as I see it, yes’
Bottom line: The CAP are always lurking near the top of the standings, and expect no different in RHL16. A few additions in the right places during the season could push them into contender status, or conversely the team may throw away this year and focus on RHL17.
Cleveland Falcons
Predicted finish: 4th
31-31-4
Got it: The FAL were committed to bringing in talent to start their franchise off, and they managed to find some good players in each position. They have a good couple of lines that should be able to find the net with the likes of Kariya, Bondra, Langkow, Zhamnov and are capable defensively with Jovanovski, Kuba, Chelios and Sydor.
Need it: With the lack of depth talent-wise that is inherent to an expansion franchise, the fact that the FAL have more injury-prone players then average could come back to bite them in the ass.
Dollars and cents: The FAL broke open the bank for their first year, bringing in a handful of big-name players with big-number contracts in the hopes of finding success now. Between their salaries and signing bonuses, the squad will have basically blown all their expansion money by season’s end.
RHL16 salaries: $30.1M
RHL15 salaries: N/A
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘most likely, yes’
Bottom line: The FAL have given themselves a real shot at making the playoffs, and should come out on top of the four new teams to take the RHL16 ‘Expansion Cup’.
Chicago Gargoyles
Prediction: 5th
28-33-5
Got it: A scary 1-2 punch down the middle with Richards and Marleau. Legace will give them solid goaltending almost every night, and the GAR have a great top-4 D with Ohlund, McCabe, Timonen and Stuart.
Need it: While the star power is still there, it’s not quite as blinding as before. The GAR are one of the first casulties of the salary cap era, proving that teams just can’t sustain a team based solely on high-priced veterans for very long. The GAR’s depth is lacking, especially down the middle after Richards and Marleau, as well as on the wings after Sturm and Nolan.
In: Gordon, Sutherby, Sjostrom, Laperriere, Petrovicky, Keith
Out: Smyth, Roenick, Therien, Bayda, Radivojevic, Clymer, Sauer
Dollars and cents: The cap hit the GAR hard, as their bank balance finally caught up to their spending the past few seasons. Not helping matters was the decision to give signing bonuses to McCabe and Ohlund. Looking like they might implode during the offseason, the squad moved veterans Smyth, Roenick and Therien to get their books balanced.
RHL16 salaries: $25.3M
RHL15 salaries: $30.6M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘most likely, yes’
Bottom line: It’s a year of transistion for the GAR, as they have already said goodbye to a handful of key veterans before the season has even started. They still can compete, but watch for a more concerted rebuilding effort as the season progresses should they find themselves not living up to expectations.
Indianapolis 500s
Predicted finish: 6th
19-38-9
Got it: The 500 are in full rebuilding mode now, and their attention is towards RHL17 and beyond. Their top two lines are OK, but certainly not spectacular. Markkanen is capable of providing consistent netminding in his ¾ of a season, and any team that includes the Moose will compete night in, night out.
Need it: Goal scoring will be the 500s Achilles heel this year, as their forwards present little in the way of natural talent around the net. Bertuzzi is a shell of his former self, and the emergence of Cole and Selanne is still a season away. The squad’s defense could be suseptible to being pushed around, as the ‘soft’ outnumber the ‘tough’ on Indy’s backline.
In: Bonk, Cole, Selanne, Visnovsky, Laraque, Karpovtsev, VanAllen, Turek
Out: Rolston, Carter, McLaren, Osgood, Arkhipov, Berehowsky, Khavanov, Abid
Dollars and cents: If the 500 continue on this direction, they will have a nice $8M nest egg going into RHL17 that will give the team flexibility when they look to starting their re-entry into the upper eschelon of the RHL.
RHL16 salaries: $23.0M
RHL15 salaries: $24.2M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘my reply is no’
Bottom line: Don’t expect the players and management to mail in the season, but the 500s could find themselves on the outside looking in come playoff time. Not that this result would be overly tramatic for a team in full-on rebuilding mode.
Albany StrapHangers
Projected finish: 1st
34-22-10
Got it: The STR went out and landed prized defenseman Pronger in the offseason, who along with recently-signed Hamrlik, turn the backline into the squad’s biggest strength. With Belfour patroling the blue ice, the STR look to be a tough nut to crack defensively this season. They also have speed to burn on the wings with Friesen, Samsonov, Zednik and Afinagenov.
Need it: While there is no real weak link down the middle, no one jumps out and screams #1 centre. Their best pivots, Halpern and Stefan, wouldn’t even be a lot of team’s #2 guy. Same sort of thing holds true on the wings, as the STR have a bunch of decent wingers but no one that you can point to and say ‘he’ll net 30 and lead this team offensively’.
In: Pronger, Hamlik, Zednik, Halpern, Friesen, Nikolishin, Sweeney
Out: Palffy, Francis, Carney, Ozolinsh, Poti, Mapletoft, J.Green, Pratt
Dollars and cents: While the team offloaded Palffy and his $4M salary, they basically nullified the financial gains from that trade by bringing in Pronger. Projected to finish in the negative, the STR are walking a tight rope this season that could limit what they might do over the course of the season.
RHL16 salaries: $29.3M
RHL15 salaries: $28.6M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘without a doubt’
Bottom line: The STR showed their fans that they are committed to improving this team by being very active on the trade and free agent front. They'll be tough defensively, and if they can find a groove and score enough goals, they could be a team to watch out for this season.
Washington Defiance
Predicted finish: 2nd
34-27-5
Got it: One of the best lineups down the middle in the league with Lecavalier, Zetterberg and Holik. They also managed to beat off the vultures and re-sign team MVP Alfredsson, and expectations are that Raycroft can be as good, if not better, than he was in his rookie year.
Need it: After the aforementioned forwards, along with Kotalik, there is a borderline scary drop off in talent up front. Right now, their 2nd set of wingers is R.Murray and Dackell. The team also lost probably their best 2 defensemen from RHL15 in Visnovsky and Chelios, which is never a good thing for a team.
In: Reichel, R.Murray, Domi, McGillis, Reichel, Tremblay, Cairns, Rivers
Out: Lagenbrunner, Holmstrom, Chelios, Gratton, Weekes, Nikolishin, Wiemer, Martins, Marchment, Grand-Pierre
Dollars and cents: The DEF hit a bit of a wall in the offseason and had to make some difficult decisions. They opted to put all their free salary back into Alfredsson, at the expense of a handful of other players. By signing him to a 1-year deal, the squad will go through the same set of decisions again after this season.
RHL16 salaries: $26.6M
RHL15 salaries: $29.9M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘signs point to yes’
Bottom line: Too many outs and not enough ins could be a tough hurdle to overcome. What will help is having Raycroft and Alfredsson in the mix again. If their stars shine bright enough, the DEF could still find themselves in the thick of things.
Chicago Capones
Predicted finish: 3rd
33-29-4
Got it: With the arrival of Hasek, the CAP seem to be loading up to make a push in RHL17. But don’t expect this year to be a write-off by any means for a team that is always competitive. They only have the #1 forward in the league in Kovalchuk, and a good supporting cast on the wings and on defense.
Need it: Weekes will provide average goaltending, but he is big step down from the stellar play of Roloson. The team will need to adapt their style a bit to compensate for more goals going into the net. Pressure will be on a group of mediocre centres to fill the shoes of departed centres Fedorov and Weight. It is doubtful that Weiss, Spezza and Yelle will step up this season.
In: Hasek, Weekes, Hackett, Juneau, Ronning, Zamuner, Neiminen
Out: Weight, Roloson, Dipietro, Fedorov, Hinote, S.Brown
Dollars and cents: Things are rosy in Chicago. With $8M+ in the bank and a salary under revenue projection even before the playoffs, there isn’t much the CAP won’t be able to do. There will be a glut of defensemen headed for UFA at season’s end (Zubov, Warrener, Devries), but the core players will all be there for a few more seasons at least.
RHL16 salaries: $26.3M
RHL15 salaries: $31.8M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘as I see it, yes’
Bottom line: The CAP are always lurking near the top of the standings, and expect no different in RHL16. A few additions in the right places during the season could push them into contender status, or conversely the team may throw away this year and focus on RHL17.
Cleveland Falcons
Predicted finish: 4th
31-31-4
Got it: The FAL were committed to bringing in talent to start their franchise off, and they managed to find some good players in each position. They have a good couple of lines that should be able to find the net with the likes of Kariya, Bondra, Langkow, Zhamnov and are capable defensively with Jovanovski, Kuba, Chelios and Sydor.
Need it: With the lack of depth talent-wise that is inherent to an expansion franchise, the fact that the FAL have more injury-prone players then average could come back to bite them in the ass.
Dollars and cents: The FAL broke open the bank for their first year, bringing in a handful of big-name players with big-number contracts in the hopes of finding success now. Between their salaries and signing bonuses, the squad will have basically blown all their expansion money by season’s end.
RHL16 salaries: $30.1M
RHL15 salaries: N/A
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘most likely, yes’
Bottom line: The FAL have given themselves a real shot at making the playoffs, and should come out on top of the four new teams to take the RHL16 ‘Expansion Cup’.
Chicago Gargoyles
Prediction: 5th
28-33-5
Got it: A scary 1-2 punch down the middle with Richards and Marleau. Legace will give them solid goaltending almost every night, and the GAR have a great top-4 D with Ohlund, McCabe, Timonen and Stuart.
Need it: While the star power is still there, it’s not quite as blinding as before. The GAR are one of the first casulties of the salary cap era, proving that teams just can’t sustain a team based solely on high-priced veterans for very long. The GAR’s depth is lacking, especially down the middle after Richards and Marleau, as well as on the wings after Sturm and Nolan.
In: Gordon, Sutherby, Sjostrom, Laperriere, Petrovicky, Keith
Out: Smyth, Roenick, Therien, Bayda, Radivojevic, Clymer, Sauer
Dollars and cents: The cap hit the GAR hard, as their bank balance finally caught up to their spending the past few seasons. Not helping matters was the decision to give signing bonuses to McCabe and Ohlund. Looking like they might implode during the offseason, the squad moved veterans Smyth, Roenick and Therien to get their books balanced.
RHL16 salaries: $25.3M
RHL15 salaries: $30.6M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘most likely, yes’
Bottom line: It’s a year of transistion for the GAR, as they have already said goodbye to a handful of key veterans before the season has even started. They still can compete, but watch for a more concerted rebuilding effort as the season progresses should they find themselves not living up to expectations.
Indianapolis 500s
Predicted finish: 6th
19-38-9
Got it: The 500 are in full rebuilding mode now, and their attention is towards RHL17 and beyond. Their top two lines are OK, but certainly not spectacular. Markkanen is capable of providing consistent netminding in his ¾ of a season, and any team that includes the Moose will compete night in, night out.
Need it: Goal scoring will be the 500s Achilles heel this year, as their forwards present little in the way of natural talent around the net. Bertuzzi is a shell of his former self, and the emergence of Cole and Selanne is still a season away. The squad’s defense could be suseptible to being pushed around, as the ‘soft’ outnumber the ‘tough’ on Indy’s backline.
In: Bonk, Cole, Selanne, Visnovsky, Laraque, Karpovtsev, VanAllen, Turek
Out: Rolston, Carter, McLaren, Osgood, Arkhipov, Berehowsky, Khavanov, Abid
Dollars and cents: If the 500 continue on this direction, they will have a nice $8M nest egg going into RHL17 that will give the team flexibility when they look to starting their re-entry into the upper eschelon of the RHL.
RHL16 salaries: $23.0M
RHL15 salaries: $24.2M
Magic 8-ball playoff prediction: ‘my reply is no’
Bottom line: Don’t expect the players and management to mail in the season, but the 500s could find themselves on the outside looking in come playoff time. Not that this result would be overly tramatic for a team in full-on rebuilding mode.
posted by Chris - Eagles at
10:06 p.m.
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