Writer of the weekly Top 10 column.
12-team Keeper pool, straight points for forwards & dmen. Goalies get: 2 points per win, 3 per shutout, 1 point per assist & 1 point per shootout loss.
League champ in 2013, 2015, 2018, 2020 and 2022.
Top 8 forwards, 5 dmen and 2 goalies count.
We keep 15 players (any position) plus two rookies.
Forwards: Panarin, Ovechkin, Kopitar, Stamkos, Tuch, Rust, Marchessault, Pavelski, Miller, Bertuzzi, Stone, Kakko, Brown, Stankoven, Kovalenko
Defence: Hedman, Fox, Matheson, Thrun, Jiricek
Goalies: Kochetkov, Talbot, Vasilevskiy, Campbell, Schmid
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I expect they'll give him a strong chance to make the club. He'll probably have to play the wing with Desharnais, Plekanec and Eller already settled as the top 3 centers but that may change.
If one of Gionta or Bourque doesn't get going early, you can bet Galchenyuk will have a chance to show what he can do.
My super expert projected lineup:
Pacioretty-Desharnais-Cole
Galchenyuk-Plekanec-Gionta
Bourque-Eller-Prust
Moen-White-Armstrong
Scratch: Gomez, Nokelainen
Subban-Gorges
Markov-Emelin
Kaberle-Diaz
Scratch: Bouillon, Weber
Other predictions:
1) My roster has 24 players if we include Price and Budaj. Yannick Weber will be traded for a 4th round pick.
2) Gomez is sticking around in the press box. He could also take White's spot on the 4th line.
3) If Bourque is terrible again he will be bought out this summer. Kaberle too. It might make more sense to keep Gomez since he has just next season left on his contract. Let him sample the Bell Centre food from up high.
4) This is not a playoff team. It may be better, but it's a long way up from dead last. Their massive lack of scoring beyond the first line remains an issue. The defense still has its usual holes and way too much uncertainty. They will finish in 10th in the East and draft 10th overall.
I still hate the Moen contract.
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Your forward group is spot on. I might switch Moen and Prust, since Eller and Moen showed good chemistry in the past. I am still on the fence concerning Galchenyuk. Since the Habs aren't contending this season, it could be a good idea to not burn his first year of contract. At the same time, if he is ready, it could help his development to get half a season in the NHL as a first season. If he return to the OHL, I would put Eller to the wing with Plekanec and Gionta, and put Gomez (!) on the third line. Ok, I am not on the fence anymore, bring Galchenyuk in this season, so Gomez could be benched.
At D, the third pair is redundant with Diaz and Kaberle. One of the two should be benched in favor of Bouillon. I would prefer to have Diaz in the line-up, but Kaberle will probably be given the first chance to succeed.
The two contracts I would bought out at the end of the season are Gomez and Kaberle. I know that Gomez only have one year left on his contract, but the Habs have to comply with the 64.3 M cap next season, and they are currently at 60.2, and it doesn't include Galchenyuk, Subban and Desharnais' new contract. The 12 M$ that these buy-out will free will be welcomed by Bergevin.
So in 2013-14, your line-up will pretty much be the same, and Bergevin could use the extra money to shore up the D.
What about subban. What kind of contract do you think (wish) he will end up with?
I hope that they will find a way to sign him to a bridge contract, just like Pacioretty and Price did. Something like 2 years/7 millions. He had a good season last year, but nothing to compare himself with Myers or Doughty when they signed their massive extensions. Just hope Meehan will be reasonable.
I wonder if guys like Subban get strong-armed into signing one-year, then signing one-year again when the cap drops and go from there. The change is pretty extreme and there will be consequences.
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I understand the reasoning behind that move but I'd never move Eller to the wing again, he's a much better player when he plays center.
I think he could be a very underrated player this year. He scored 16 goals last year with limited quality ice-time. I can see him score 10-15 goals in this shortened season and keep rising next year. We'll see though.
I totally agree with your analysis there. Eller struggled in the past on the wing, and he is clearly a better player when he plays center. It's the lack of option that leads me to slot him there.
He could really surprise this season with one capable player on his wing like Bourque. Bourque could be well-served by a demotion on the third line too, which will reduce the pressure on him to score. I love the cxombination of size, skill and defensive awareness of a third line composed of Moen-Eller-Bourque.
I'm with you, there.
Offensively, things are starting to take shape. I still think we need a top winger to play with Plekanec (assuming Galchenyuk doesn't make the team) because Bourque and Gionta carry too much uncertainty.
However, I also love the idea of a Moen-Eller-Bourque line. A lot of balance with some grit and offensive ability.
I'm also curious on who will get that 4th line center job. Eric slated Ryan White at the position but he's more fitted to be a winger and is pretty average in the faceoff dot. Gomez could play there and give you some minutes as a 'spe******t' of the PP but that's paying a lot for a 4th line center. I think if Nokelainen wasn't hurt, the question would be moot. I'm not a huge fan of him but he's solid in the faceoff dot and that is something the Habs truly lack, a faceoff spe******t.
There's a lot to like with this team. I just think it's a work in progress. They need time. But with the shortened schedule a random long winning streak is that much more meaningful so you never know.
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Agree on this. But the best thing that could happen to them is to have a high draft pick again this season. With a good first pick and their three 2nd round picks, and the ability of Trevor Timmins to draft good players in the second round, the Habs could fill the cupboard for years to come... So let gomez and Kaberle play 20 minutes all season!!
Yeah, I don't think the playoffs are out of reach at all but it's true that the team might also struggle as well.
Good thing is, the expectations are not that high this year. I mean, there's always going to be expectations in Montreal but I feel like this year, people are going to forgive the team easier if it doesn't do well in the standings but shows interesting things on the ice.
http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=6...d=nhl:topheads
Plekanec got hurt, will miss the next 7-10 days. At least, he played in the last 3 months, so that won't bother him much. He doesn't need to find his game shape back.
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