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26 Sep 2009 |
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| Hello again, hockey fans! Today on Fantasypros911.com I will continue my NHL previews which today with focus on the Northwest Division of the Western Conference! (1) Calgary Flames--- After reaching the playoffs last season and dealing with another first round exit, the Calgary Flames fired Head Coach Mike Keenan and brought in former New Jersey Devils coach Brent Sutter. Another key change is the addition of star D Jay Bouwmeester (15g 27a) from Florida. Also of note is the fact that it is the 30th anniversary of the Flames in Calgary so they are going to have a new throwback jersey to be worn during some home games this season. Forwards--- The Flames last season had two point-per-game scorers in RW Jarome Iginla (35g 54a) and C Michael Cammalleri (39g 43a). This year however, after the loss of Cammalleri, the Flames are going to need some other players to have rebound years and make up for the scoring lost during the off-season. C Olli Jokinen (29g 28a) is going to be relied on to re-find the scoring touch of a few years ago, where he was right around that point-a-game plateau. Defensemen--- The difference between this year and the last few years for the Flames on defense is pretty much that D Dion Phaneuf (11g 36a) now has a true partner on the Flames blue-line in Bouwmeester. Not to say that other defensemen that have played with Phaneuf were not talented, but none of them have matched the skill-set that Bouwmeester brings. Also, Bouwmeester is only 25, and Phaneuf is 24, meaning that these two may be together as the top defensive pairing in probably the entire conference for years to come. Goalies--- When it comes to the Flames situation in net, there is really no contest. G Miikka Kiprusoff is the mainstay in net for Calgary. He struggled at times last season, putting up a record of 45-24-5 with a 2.84 GAA and a .903 save percentage. Now you may say, 45 wins is still a lot, and it is no question, but his Goals Against was the highest for him since coming to the Flames for the 2003/2004 season. His backup is G Curtis McElhinney who had a rough go of it last year winning only one game in 14 appearances. (2) Minnesota Wild--- The Minnesota Wild historically have had issues scoring goals. There are a few reasons for this. First off, they played in the defense-first system of former Head Coach Jacques Lemaire. Also, the Wild lacked a true standout scoring threat, since RW Marian Gaborik (13g 10a) just couldn’t stay healthy consistently. Now Lemaire is in New Jersey coaching the Devils and Gaborik is across the river from his former coach, as he is playing on the bright lights of Broadway for the New York Rangers. Forwards--- Taking the place of Gaborik in the category of “top scoring threat” is new pickup and former Chicago Blackhawk LW Martin Havlat (29g 48a). He also takes over the role of “talented offensive player who has issues staying healthy.” All kidding aside, he is among the most electrifying players in the NHL when he doesn’t get hurt. Also not to be forgotten is last seasons top scorer for the Wild, C Mikko Koivu (20g 47a), who should have a better season with Havlat on his left side, the two could combine for some monster numbers. Defensemen--- The Wild blue-liners are a talented group without an established star. Under Lemaire the defensemen did not have to be flashy, they just needed to stay at home and not make mistakes. Under new Head Coach Todd Richards system that focuses more on creating offense, it will be up to the defenders such as D Marek Zidlicky (12g 30a) and D Brent Burns (8g 19a) to increase their offensive output while at the same time playing good defense. Goalies--- The main reason that the Wild are ranked to finish this high in the previews is due to the man between the pipes for Minnesota, G Niklas Backstrom. He went 37-24-8 last season with a 2.33 GAA and a .923 save percentage. He also had 8 shutouts last year, which was key since as mentioned, the Wild were somewhat inept offensively a year ago. His backup is G Josh Harding who went 3-9-1 with a 2.21 GAA and a .929 save percentage. (3) Vancouver Canucks- Last season, the Vancouver Canucks had Stanley Cup aspirations. They also had the talent to make that dream a reality, but saw their dreams dashed in the semi-final round of the Western Conference against the Chicago Blackhawks. Coming into the new season, the Canucks are still a very talented team who will probably make the playoffs again, but another division title may be a dream that will not be realized due to the improvement of the Flames, and the sleeper pick for the playoffs in the Wild. Forwards--- The main objective for the Canucks this summer was to lock up the Sedin twins (Daniel (31g 51a) and Henrik (22g 60a)) for the long term. That goal was met so now the focus heads to the upcoming season for both the Sedins and the franchise in general. Yet again, the main offensive threats are the twins, however there are some talented secondary scorers as well in Ryan Kesler (26g 33a) and Pavol Demitra (20g 33a). Defensemen--- The Canucks defensive corps is extremely talented and helped the team give up the fourth fewest goals in the Western Conference. One key loss for this unit was D Mattias Ohlund (6g 19a) who left via free agency to the Tampa Bay Lightning. His was a rock on the blue-line for the Canucks but the team brought in some key experienced players in D Brad Lukowich (0g 8a) and D Mathieu Schneider (9g 23a). The team still has returning players like D Kevin Bieksa (11g 32a) and D Sami Salo (5g 20a). Goalies--- Just as in Minnesota and Calgary in their division, the Canucks are set in net this season. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, it is going to be Captain/G Roberto Luongo in goal on opening night. Luongo is one of the top goalies in the NHL, and last season, he put together another fine season at 33-13-7 with a 2.34 GAA and a .920 save percentage. This season, he enters his fourth season in Vancouver and has a new back-up in G Andrew Raycroft. (4) Edmonton Oilers--- The Oilers were on the playoff bubble for most of last season however they fell short in the end, losing seven of their last ten games to miss the playoffs by six points. The biggest issues for the Oilers last season was the fact that they couldn’t stop their opponents from putting the puck in the net. They gave up the third most goals in the entire conference last season and for the team to get back to the playoffs that must change. Forwards--- The big addition was the return of two-time 30 goal scorer C Mike Comrie (10g 17a) back to the fold. He has proven the ability to score goals when healthy, but then again there is the key concept. Staying healthy is paramount for Comrie since he is playing with a one-year deal, so in essence, he is playing for his next contract. When it comes to other Oilers forwards, one has to look at RW Ales Hemsky (23g 43a), who is going to again challenge for the team lead in points. A strong season from him, as well as Comrie and the other top forwards like C Shawn Horcoff (17g 36a) and C Sam Gagner (16g 25a), could lead to playoff hockey in Edmonton for the first time since 2005. Defensemen--- Edmonton’s defense had a bit of a rough go of it last year as highlighted above, at least in terms of goals given up. At the same time, that statistic can be somewhat misleading. More then anything, it was the goaltending that betrayed the team, and that will be discussed in the next paragraph. Pretty much all of the top defensemen from a year ago return, with D Sheldon Souray (23g 30a) still leading the group with D Tom Gilbert (5g 40a) looking to improve off a season where he posted a 12 point improvement from his rookie year in 2007/2008. Goalies--- Last season as mentioned the goaltending meltdown was probably the main downfall of the Oilers. Former G Dwayne Roloson had a very pedestrian year last year going 28-24-9 with a 2.77 GAA and a .915 save percentage. The numbers sound better then they actually were. From March 22nd to the end of the season on April 7th he only won two starts and that along with a few other things, facilitated the Oilers being on the outside looking in once playoff hockey started. This season, the team brought in via free agency from the Chicago Blackhawks, G Nikolai Khabibulin. He went 25-8-7 with a 2.33 GAA and a .919 save percentage in 42 games last year and brings proven playoff experience and success up to Edmonton. (5) Colorado Avalanche--- How the mighty have fallen. Due to bad luck, injuries, age and various other factors, the Colorado Avalanche, once among the NHL’s model franchises, have fallen into disarray. After changes up and down the organization, from the players to the coaches to the General Manager, truthfully the only way to go is up. After finishing last in the Western Conference last season, the Avalanche look to move up from “hopeless” to “hopeful”. As bad as things are for this team, there are some young players who are bright spots for the team heading into this year as well as into the future. Forwards--- With the retirement of long time former Captain/C Joe Sakic (2g 10a), the torch has been passed so to speak up front. Sure RW Milan Hejduk (27g 32a) is still on the roster, but he is the last link up-front to the teams last Stanley Cup championship in 2000/2001. Now the team looks for players like LW Wojtek Wolski (14g 28a) and C Paul Stastny (11g 25a) to lead the team going forward. Also look out for in this year and those to come 2009 First Round Draft Pick C Matt Duchene (31g 48a for Brampton Battalion of Ontario Hockey League in 2008/2009). Defensemen--- When a person thinks of the Avalanche on defense, usually the first name that comes to mind is Captain/D Adam Foote (1g 6a). At 38 years of age, he is easily the oldest player on the roster, and with that experience comes the knowledge of winning, which could be useful for this team going forward. In terms of creating offense from the blue-line D John-Michael Liles (12g 27a) is probably going to lead the defensemen in points once again. Goalies--- Last season, goaltending was a big issue for Colorado. As bad as the other components of the team was, the goaltending may have been the worst. G Peter Budaj went 20-29-5 with a 2.86 GAA and a .899 save percentage as the teams main starter a year ago. To upgrade the situation, the Avalanche brought in former Florida Panther G Craig Anderson who posted a 15-7-5 record with a 2.71 GAA and a .924 save percentage, which was good for third in the NHL.
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Tags: Calgary Flames Jay Bouwmeester Jarome Iginla Michael Cammalleri Olli Jokinen Dion Phaneuf Miikka Kiprusoff Curtis McElhinney Minnesota Wild Marian Gaborik Martin Havlat Mikko Koivu Marek Zidlicky Brent Burns Niklas Backsrom Josh Hading Vancouver Canucks Ryan Kesler Daniel Sedin Henrik Sedin Pavol Demitra Mattias Ohlund Brad Lukowich Mathieu Schneider Kevin Bieksa Sami Salo Roberto Luongo Andrew Raycroft Edmonton Oilers Mike Comrie Ales Hemsky Shawn Horcoff Sam Gagner Sheldon Souray Tom Gilbert Dwayne Roloson Nikolai Khabibulin Colorado Avalanche Milan Hejduk Wojtek Wolski Paul Stastny Matt Duchene Adam Foote John-Michael Liles Peter Budaj Craig Anderson
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