Since the Panthers will stink in the BRHL2 this year, most of the attention will be on the NHL.
The Bouncebacks Cory Stillman --- Seems to be a pretty good safe bet this season. As long as he stays healthy he will be playing with Staal and Cole. 60+ points is likely. Joffrey Lupul --- Will the real Lupul please stand up? Saw his production drop nearly in half after a tremendous rookie season, now he is playing on a team without many proven scorers. Josef Vasicek --- Was expected to be a key part of the Canes future, but has fizzled since the lockout. Can Ted Nolan reignite his game? Nick Boynton --- Two time first round pick, had a strong season before the lockout, but has been a major tease since with injuries and inconsistent play.
The Next Step Henrik Lundqvist --- Already one of the top goalies in the game, the Rangers are expected to be title contenders, and that will take Lundqvist being their best player for the entire season. Put up good numbers last year but struggled early, can be even better this year. Rotislav Olesz --- Has been a solid player thusfar, but hasn't gotten a lot of ice time. Has an opportunity to force the issue this year with strong play, and could see a big increase in offensive numbers. Marcel Goc --- Will never be a big point producer, but has the ability to be a solid 3rd line guy, 15 goals, 20 assists are possible. Not likely, but possible. Fedore Tyutin --- Has the talent and opportunity to establish himself as NYs best blueliner, but will he seize it? Ole Tollefson --- Was solid as a rookie, must prove he can handle more responsibility Braydon Coburn --- Looked much better in Philly than Atlanta, must continue to improve.
The Rookies Bryan Little --- Where will he play? If he centers Hossa/Kozlov, he could put up monster numbers and compete for the Calder. Or he could end up spending a lot of time on the bench or in the AHL. Andrei Kostytsin --- Hasn't shown much scoring ability in the NHL, but had a great camp and is pencilled in on the second line. 20+ goals, 40+ points is relatively likely. Niklas Bergfors --- Expected to go back to the AHL for another season, instead may get a chance on the top line to start the season. Lou doesn't have a ton of patience, so who knows how long he will stay there. David Krecji --- Not much room on the scoring lines, so his numbers will most likely be modest. Will the team keep him in the bigs if he isn't getting a lot of minutes? Brandon Dubinsky --- Solid at both ends of the ice, but most likely won't put up big numbers as it will be virtually impossible to crack the top 6 or see power play time.
So, that is where Florida's attention will be this year. Panthers fans have to be excited about the potential for 2008, but very worried about the potential for everything to go drastically wrong.
The Good: A potential top line has formed.....Mike Comrie (11GP 5-8-13), Cory Stillman (11, 5-10-15) and Joffrey Lupul (12, 4-7-11). Stillman has been awesome, Comrie has been consistently good after a great start. Lupul has slowed down but is still getting 20+ minutes a night and generating chances.
Josef Vasicek (11, 4-2-6) has been hot in his last 6 games.....3G, 2A, +3. He looks like he will be a solid 2nd/3rd liner next season.
Braydon Coburn isn't scoring a lot, but has established himself as a top-4 dman averaging over 20 minutes a night. Nick Boynton is even on a bad Phoenix team, averaging nearly 20 minutes a night and getting lots of pk time.
The rookies: Bryan Little is looking like he will be a regular for the Panthers next season with 6 points and a +3 so far. Jiri Tlusty wasn't expected to play in the NHL this season, but has 3 points in 4 games so far.
The Bad: Rotislav Olesz was really playing well (his last 4 games he had 3 points and 20 SOG), then suffered an arm injury which will keep him out for at least a month. Olle Tollefson hasn't managed to crack the top-4 in Columbus and is averaging only 11 minutes a night. The rookies: Brandon Dubinsky has only 1 assist as he can't get much ice time on a veteran squad, David Krecji has only 3 points and refuses to shoot the puck (6 shots in 12 games), Niklas Bergfors made the team out of camp only to get injured in his first game and sent down. Marcel Goc is still pointless.
Same Old Same Old: Henrik Lundqvist is in the top-5 in every goaltending category...save pct, gaa, wins, shutouts, shootout pct.
As always I'll be there for the Providence Bruins home opener Nov 14th (due to rehab on the building, the team opened up all games on the road until Nov 14th home opener). I'll keep you boys posted on Krecji and the rest of the PBruins as well as the AHL in general. -Joe NYRGM
