"Big Five" Questions for O and B in '17-'18

[Howie58]

Greetings:

 

Best wishes to you and America on the 4th.  The days are long gone when you'd take Foster Brooks's advice and celebrate the 4th with a fifth, but I digress. We can't joke about drunkenness anymore but for a chuckle...

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XC3Hc-rAkk

 

In the post-draft boredom period, I wanted to get something off my chest and get the gang's response.  What are the five "big" questions facing the O and B at the start of next year?  Here is the Howie58 Roster.  

 

1)  Will Giroux Break Below 50 Points?  This is one where objective performance may not matter as much as appearance or narrative.  Yes, a Nolan or Rubstov may come to the rescue  Meanwhile, Giroux is the Captain and paid 8 million.  The narrative of his under-performance and how it might impact roster change (Hextall's "boxing out" phenomenon) may be more important than his decline, should it continue.

 

2)  Will "Elllvirth" Work Out and Steal a Few Games?  I am not expecting a Roloson/Fernandez duo that almost snags a Vezina.  But I hope for a competent tandem that doesn't give up too many deflating goals.  

 

3)  Will the Young D Pan Out?  If there's a cornerstone to Hextall's Patience Approach it is with the D.  Will Provorov and whoever else gets into the fold show promise?

 

4)  Are we Saying Goodbye to a Checking Line Model?   I suspect we will need Dramamine to cope with early-season line juggling.  That's fine with me if it really means we are doing away with the notion of checking/fourth/energy lines and aiming for balanced scoring with a first line but competence throughout the forwards.  

 

5)  Is Hakstol a Good Developmental Coach?  Do youngsters like Provorov and Ghost progress? Hakstol isn't a rookie anymore.  He isn't even a sophomore...so no slump.  In theory, this is a year he can strut his stuff,

 

Honorable Mentions:  Are Chris Pryor and his staff leading to the right picks?  Will changes in Assistant Coach improve the team, particularly PP?

 

 

Have at it!

 

Peace,

 

Howie

 

 

[Podein25]

12 minutes ago, Howie58 said:

Greetings:

 

Best wishes to you and America on the 4th.  The days are long gone when you'd take Foster Brooks's advice and celebrate the 4th with a fifth, but I digress. We can't joke about drunkenness anymore but for a chuckle...

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XC3Hc-rAkk

 

In the post-draft boredom period, I wanted to get something off my chest and get the gang's response.  What are the five "big" questions facing the O and B at the start of next year?  Here is the Howie58 Roster.  

 

1)  Will Giroux Break Below 50 Points?  This is one where objective performance may not matter as much as appearance or narrative.  Yes, a Nolan or Rubstov may come to the rescue  Meanwhile, Giroux is the Captain and paid 8 million.  The narrative of his under-performance and how it might impact roster change (Hextall's "boxing out" phenomenon) may be more important than his decline, should it continue.

 

2)  Will "Elllvirth" Work Out and Steal a Few Games?  I am not expecting a Roloson/Fernandez duo that almost snags a Vezina.  But I hope for a competent tandem that doesn't give up too many deflating goals.  

 

3)  Will the Young D Pan Out?  If there's a cornerstone to Hextall's Patience Approach it is with the D.  Will Provorov and whoever else gets into the fold show promise?

 

4)  Are we Saying Goodbye to a Checking Line Model?   I suspect we will need Dramamine to cope with early-season line juggling.  That's fine with me if it really means we are doing away with the notion of checking/fourth/energy lines and aiming for balanced scoring with a first line but competence throughout the forwards.  

 

5)  Is Hakstol a Good Developmental Coach?  Do youngsters like Provorov and Ghost progress? Hakstol isn't a rookie anymore.  He isn't even a sophomore...so no slump.  In theory, this is a year he can strut his stuff,

 

Honorable Mentions:  Are Chris Pryor and his staff leading to the right picks?  Will changes in Assistant Coach improve the team, particularly PP?

 

Have at it!

 

Peace,

 

Howie

 

 

Greetings Howie and Happy 4th of July to you and your beautiful country. 

 

Here are my two cents on your 5 Qs

 

1. G. I agree with you that "appearance or narrative" may be more important than anything else, but overall I think he will rebound. I think more young legs in the lineup will rejuvenate him. After all, he has to be as excited as we are with what's in the pipe, no?

 

2. Goal. I have no faith in Ellvirth staying healthy, but on the off-chance that he does, he could surprise. Same with Elliott. It's not who I would have gone with, but the price was right, expectations are low, and he has lots to prove after his deleterious performance in the playoffs. 

 

3. D. Provorov has already shown promise, the question is who makes the club out of camp: Hagg, Alt, Morin, Sanheim? Clearly the opportunity is there with Hexy not re-signing MDZ and not signing any other D. I say Hagg and Alt have the best chance. Sanheim gets a call up at some point. 

 

4. 4th line Philosophy. I'm not sure what to say here. I think we need more skill throughout the lineup, including the 3rd and 4th lines. But I don't think we will ever move away from the energy/checking model, if only because there's no middle class in today's hard cap NHL. The guys playing in the bottom six can't cost too much so you get what you pay for. Personally, I want speed and possession guys there.

 

5. Hakstol. He's spent all his time at the Jr and College levels so on paper he's the perfect development coach. He also played D as a pro (IHL) so he should be the perfect guy for our young D. We shall see....

 

Our PP has to be better. More movement is called for.It's imperative to make guys move out of shooting lanes in todays' NHL. And you do that by moving.

 

Re: scouting. Personally, I like our scouting. If you look at the Frost pick at 27, you see a priority on hockey IQ and character/work ethic. And that's perfectly fine with me. 

 

 

 

[Jam1986]

Happy 4th to all! 

 

[Jam1986]

1 hour ago, Howie58 said:

Greetings:

 

Best wishes to you and America on the 4th.  The days are long gone when you'd take Foster Brooks's advice and celebrate the 4th with a fifth, but I digress. We can't joke about drunkenness anymore but for a chuckle...

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XC3Hc-rAkk

 

In the post-draft boredom period, I wanted to get something off my chest and get the gang's response.  What are the five "big" questions facing the O and B at the start of next year?  Here is the Howie58 Roster.  

 

1)  Will Giroux Break Below 50 Points?  This is one where objective performance may not matter as much as appearance or narrative.  Yes, a Nolan or Rubstov may come to the rescue  Meanwhile, Giroux is the Captain and paid 8 million.  The narrative of his under-performance and how it might impact roster change (Hextall's "boxing out" phenomenon) may be more important than his decline, should it continue.

 

2)  Will "Elllvirth" Work Out and Steal a Few Games?  I am not expecting a Roloson/Fernandez duo that almost snags a Vezina.  But I hope for a competent tandem that doesn't give up too many deflating goals.  

 

3)  Will the Young D Pan Out?  If there's a cornerstone to Hextall's Patience Approach it is with the D.  Will Provorov and whoever else gets into the fold show promise?

 

4)  Are we Saying Goodbye to a Checking Line Model?   I suspect we will need Dramamine to cope with early-season line juggling.  That's fine with me if it really means we are doing away with the notion of checking/fourth/energy lines and aiming for balanced scoring with a first line but competence throughout the forwards.  

 

5)  Is Hakstol a Good Developmental Coach?  Do youngsters like Provorov and Ghost progress? Hakstol isn't a rookie anymore.  He isn't even a sophomore...so no slump.  In theory, this is a year he can strut his stuff,

 

Honorable Mentions:  Are Chris Pryor and his staff leading to the right picks?  Will changes in Assistant Coach improve the team, particularly PP?

 

 

Have at it!

 

Peace,

 

Howie

 

Howie sorry it wrong key !

 

[Podein25]

43 minutes ago, Jam1986 said:

Happy 4th to all! 

 

44 minutes ago, Jam1986 said:

Happy 4th to all! 

 

 

37 minutes ago, Jam1986 said:

Howie sorry it wrong key !

 

Hammered?

[AlaskaFlyerFan]

1 hour ago, Podein25 said:

 

 

 

Hammered?

His keyboard was "JAMed".

[Howie58]

Howdy:

 

Serves me right for posting on July 4th and invoking the Spirit of Foster Brooks...keyboard is jammed, brainpower is hammered.  Fault is with Howie, not Pods.  By the way, "Ellvirth" is my moniker for Elliott + Neuvirth.  I think that's better than Tneuv.  

 

 

[scoopyten]

6 hours ago, Podein25 said:

 

Greetings Howie and Happy 4th of July to you and your beautiful country. 

 

Here are my two cents on your 5 Qs

 

1. G. I agree with you that "appearance or narrative" may be more important than anything else, but overall I think he will rebound. I think more young legs in the lineup will rejuvenate him. After all, he has to be as excited as we are with what's in the pipe, no?

 

2. Goal. I have no faith in Ellvirth staying healthy, but on the off-chance that he does, he could surprise. Same with Elliott. It's not who I would have gone with, but the price was right, expectations are low, and he has lots to prove after his deleterious performance in the playoffs. 

 

3. D. Provorov has already shown promise, the question is who makes the club out of camp: Hagg, Alt, Morin, Sanheim? Clearly the opportunity is there with Hexy not re-signing MDZ and not signing any other D. I say Hagg and Alt have the best chance. Sanheim gets a call up at some point. 

 

4. 4th line Philosophy. I'm not sure what to say here. I think we need more skill throughout the lineup, including the 3rd and 4th lines. But I don't think we will ever move away from the energy/checking model, if only because there's no middle class in today's hard cap NHL. The guys playing in the bottom six can't cost too much so you get what you pay for. Personally, I want speed and possession guys there.

 

5. Hakstol. He's spent all his time at the Jr and College levels so on paper he's the perfect development coach. He also played D as a pro (IHL) so he should be the perfect guy for our young D. We shall see....

 

Our PP has to be better. More movement is called for.It's imperative to make guys move out of shooting lanes in todays' NHL. And you do that by moving.

 

Re: scouting. Personally, I like our scouting. If you look at the Frost pick at 27, you see a priority on hockey IQ and character/work ethic. And that's perfectly fine with me. 

 

 

 

 

1. I think Giroux will rebound, but I'm not sold he ends up with more than 65-70 points. The PP was not as effective as it had been in the past, and losing Schenn may well mean that it doesn't return to it's formerly elite status, but I think Giroux's going to have a chip on his shoulder this season, and hopefully will be 100% healthy.

 

2.  Ideally, IMO, the Flyers would have kept Mason on a 2 year deal, and used Anthony Stolarz or Alex Lyon as the back up this season. However, that bridge was burned and Mason wasn't coming back. Once we hit the UFA market, Elliott was probably the best of a mediocre crop. He's been streaky. At his best he's a very good goalie. At his worst, he can be dreadful. Overall, his numbers have been good. If both he and Neuvirth can hit career norms, the goaltending will be solid. Maybe not a strength, but not a weakness either.

 

3. I think that Morin and Hagg have already been penciled in, with Sanheim having the best shot of the rest of the D prospects. Alt looks like a system body, Brennan isn't anywhere near good enough in his own end to play for Hakstol, and Friedman and Myers have barely gotten their feet wet in pro hockey. Hagg's had 3 AHL seasons and Morin just finished his second. As good as the young D have looked, having all of them pan out is unlikely. But the Flyers will hopefully get 2-3 top four D out of this group.

 

4. I hope that an unskilled "checking" line is dead and gone. I have no issue with a checking line, but use guys with skill that can play two way hockey. For all their grit, heart and hard work, Chris VandeVelde & Pierre-Edouard Bellemare are mediocre guys that teams can do without. I'd rather see a "fourth" line of Raffl, Laughton and Read than VDV, PEB & whomever else. I also think that eliminating the kind of 4th line the Flyers have used will benefit the PK unit. Still not sure how guys like Read and Raffl were behind VDV & PEB on the PK list last season.

 

5. It's hard to gauge Hakstol as a developmental coach. Provorov blossomed. Konecny had ups and downs. Ghostisbehere had his slump before coming on at the end. I have no issue with a coach using a benching to send a message/teach a young player. But when the young guy is outplaying the vets, or worse, when the vets make the same mistakes as the kid, and the kid sits and the vet plays, it can be frustrating unless there's good communication.

 

The worry there is, they felt the need to keep Ian Laperriere as an assistant, despite the horrific PK(27th in NHL over last 3 seasons) that the Flyers have had since he took over the unit when Berube was named head coach. According to the beat guys and credentialed bloggers, it's felt that Lappy can play the "good cop" role.

 

The PP struggled, but under Mullen for the past 10 years, it's been top 5 in the NHL all but twice. Knoblauch's duties will include the PP and I'm interested to see what set up he uses(Mullen's set-up is the old Penguins' Umbrella that Lemieux QB'd back in the 80's & 90's). It's been effective overall, and I wonder if the struggles last season were more player related than systemic.

 

Either way this is a big season for Hakstol. He's likely to have as many as 4-6 rookies on his roster, and some will be playing key roles.  I don't think he gets fired for a non-playoff year, unless the wheels fall off, but he needs to get this team to perform more consistently. If there is another non playoff year, I strongly feel we see some changes to the core-which we may see anyhow, with Simmonds needing a new contract after 2018-19 & being in his 30's by then.

 

Anyhow, good questions. Enjoyed trying to answer them.

[hf101]

19 minutes ago, scoopyten said:

 

1. I think Giroux will rebound, but I'm not sold he ends up with more than 65-70 points. The PP was not as effective as it had been in the past, and losing Schenn may well mean that it doesn't return to it's formerly elite status, but I think Giroux's going to have a chip on his shoulder this season, and hopefully will be 100% healthy.

 

2.  Ideally, IMO, the Flyers would have kept Mason on a 2 year deal, and used Anthony Stolarz or Alex Lyon as the back up this season. However, that bridge was burned and Mason wasn't coming back. Once we hit the UFA market, Elliott was probably the best of a mediocre crop. He's been streaky. At his best he's a very good goalie. At his worst, he can be dreadful. Overall, his numbers have been good. If both he and Neuvirth can hit career norms, the goaltending will be solid. Maybe not a strength, but not a weakness either.

 

3. I think that Morin and Hagg have already been penciled in, with Sanheim having the best shot of the rest of the D prospects. Alt looks like a system body, Brennan isn't anywhere near good enough in his own end to play for Hakstol, and Friedman and Myers have barely gotten their feet wet in pro hockey. Hagg's had 3 AHL seasons and Morin just finished his second. As good as the young D have looked, having all of them pan out is unlikely. But the Flyers will hopefully get 2-3 top four D out of this group.

 

4. I hope that an unskilled "checking" line is dead and gone. I have no issue with a checking line, but use guys with skill that can play two way hockey. For all their grit, heart and hard work, Chris VandeVelde & Pierre-Edouard Bellemare are mediocre guys that teams can do without. I'd rather see a "fourth" line of Raffl, Laughton and Read than VDV, PEB & whomever else. I also think that eliminating the kind of 4th line the Flyers have used will benefit the PK unit. Still not sure how guys like Read and Raffl were behind VDV & PEB on the PK list last season.

 

5. It's hard to gauge Hakstol as a developmental coach. Provorov blossomed. Konecny had ups and downs. Ghostisbehere had his slump before coming on at the end. I have no issue with a coach using a benching to send a message/teach a young player. But when the young guy is outplaying the vets, or worse, when the vets make the same mistakes as the kid, and the kid sits and the vet plays, it can be frustrating unless there's good communication.

 

The worry there is, they felt the need to keep Ian Laperriere as an assistant, despite the horrific PK(27th in NHL over last 3 seasons) that the Flyers have had since he took over the unit when Berube was named head coach. According to the beat guys and credentialed bloggers, it's felt that Lappy can play the "good cop" role.

 

The PP struggled, but under Mullen for the past 10 years, it's been top 5 in the NHL all but twice. Knoblauch's duties will include the PP and I'm interested to see what set up he uses(Mullen's set-up is the old Penguins' Umbrella that Lemieux QB'd back in the 80's & 90's). It's been effective overall, and I wonder if the struggles last season were more player related than systemic.

 

Either way this is a big season for Hakstol. He's likely to have as many as 4-6 rookies on his roster, and some will be playing key roles.  I don't think he gets fired for a non-playoff year, unless the wheels fall off, but he needs to get this team to perform more consistently. If there is another non playoff year, I strongly feel we see some changes to the core-which we may see anyhow, with Simmonds needing a new contract after 2018-19 & being in his 30's by then.

 

Anyhow, good questions. Enjoyed trying to answer them.

 

     

 

An awesome first post.  I can't disagree with much. 

I think the issues on the backend had more to do with Streit than the PP itself.   He is slow.  His shots were easily telegraphed where they were going.  Once Streit was traded the PP gained speed, transition and more pucks went in the net.

 

 

 

[scoopyten]

3 minutes ago, hf101 said:

 

     

 

An awesome first post.  I can't disagree with much. 

I think the issues on the backend had more to do with Streit than the PP itself.   He is slow.  His shots were easily telegraphed where they were going.  Once Streit was traded the PP gained speed, transition and more pucks went in the net.

 

 

 

I'm hoping you are right about Streit. Schenn could be hard to replace, although perhaps Lindblom can step in-assuming they keep the umbrella set-up. Guys working the point shouldn't be an issue in the future, with Ghost signed, Provorov gaining experience and adding Hagg, Sanheim and Myers at some point.

 

And thanks for the welcome.

[hf101]

18 minutes ago, scoopyten said:

I'm hoping you are right about Streit. Schenn could be hard to replace, although perhaps Lindblom can step in-assuming they keep the umbrella set-up. Guys working the point shouldn't be an issue in the future, with Ghost signed, Provorov gaining experience and adding Hagg, Sanheim and Myers at some point.

 

I expect Lindblom to play on the 2nd line with Konecny on the first unit in place of Schenn.

[scoopyten]

1 minute ago, hf101 said:

 

I expect Lindblom to play on the 2nd line with Konecny on the first unit in place of Schenn.

 

I expect some fluidity for the first few weeks. I'm interested to see who slides over to wing out of the group of centers. I do wonder if they make a move to clear out a body up front before or during camp.

[ruxpin]

1 hour ago, scoopyten said:

Alt looks like a system body,

Yes. He is not even part of the conversation. He's a career minor leaguer who will never see an NHL game unless he buys a ticket.   It's Haag and Morin unless one of the other kids surprises and takes a spot from them. 

[murraycraven]

9 hours ago, scoopyten said:

 

I expect some fluidity for the first few weeks. I'm interested to see who slides over to wing out of the group of centers. I do wonder if they make a move to clear out a body up front before or during camp.

 

 

Assuming Patrick makes the Team I would almost be certain that Filp moves to wing since he has played wing in the past.  It will be fun to watch how the lines shake out in camp!

[elmatus]

10 hours ago, hf101 said:

 

I expect Lindblom to play on the 2nd line with Konecny on the first unit in place of Schenn.

I'd like to see Konecny on the half wall on the 2nd pp myself. He filled in for Giroux a few times last year on the first and showed considerable promise. I can see Filppula doing this as well though, so who knows. I just really hope Couts isn't asked to fill this role again...

 

As for replacing Schenn on the first, I'd say that's more likely to be a pure shooter like Lindblom than a skill guy like Konecny. Of course, with a new pp coach around, all of that could very well change considerably. Who knows what we'll be running this year.

 

I also think Provo is likely to get more pp time. It may be on the 2nd though, unless the staff decides they want to try a Ghost/Provo combo on the 1st. That wouldn't be an awful thing to try out either.

 

As which so many other elements of the team this year, there's just so much up in the air with all the roster and coaching changes.

[elmatus]

1 hour ago, murraycraven said:

 

 

Assuming Patrick makes the Team I would almost be certain that Filp moves to wing since he has played wing in the past.  It will be fun to watch how the lines shake out in camp!

 

I'm assuming a Fil/Patrick/Simmonds or Fil/Patrick/Voracek second line. Fil and Patrick can split the faceoffs on their strong sides. Fil would also serve as a solid two-way veteran presence to help Patrick along.

 

I will say this too. If those two show some chemistry, Fil may not be moved at the deadline after all. A lot would depend on contract negotiations of course, but I'm not sure we really have anyone around who can replace Fil's flexibility right now. That's assuming he doesn't take a step back due to age or something anyway.

 

EDIT: Sorry for the double post folks.

[mojo1917]

7 minutes ago, elmatus said:

I also think Provo is likely to get more pp time. It may be on the 2nd though, unless the staff decides they want to try a Ghost/Provo combo on the 1st. That wouldn't be an awful thing to try out either.

 

As which so many other elements of the team this year, there's just so much up in the air with all the roster and coaching changes.

For this reason I think this year will be fun/interesting to watch. 

The team has been treading water for 2 years, now we begin to see how the restocking of the system with young talent pans out.

Some of these guys will hit, some will be meh, some will sell insurance. I'm excited to see who rises. 

[murraycraven]

32 minutes ago, mojo1917 said:

For this reason I think this year will be fun/interesting to watch. 

The team has been treading water for 2 years, now we begin to see how the restocking of the system with young talent pans out.

Some of these guys will hit, some will be meh, some will sell insurance. I'm excited to see who rises. 

 

 

This is where I am as well in regards to this season.  

 

Honestly, I dont expect the to make the playoffs this year.  If G and Jake rebound and the goalie tandem is solid they might have a shot but I am more interested in seeing the "turning of the page."   We are finally starting to get to the exciting part of Hextall's build.   New kids that are highly touted prospects are finally starting to make it into the lineup.   And the best part is there are more prospects to come in the pipeline.

 

I really am looking forward to this season.   I think, for me anyway, I am most interested to see how the coaching staff handles it's responsibilities this year.   Hak was almost forced to play a more defensive game last year but there is some fresh "skill" coming into the lineup.   I would also like to see his game management and in-game strategy improve this year.   Lastly, I seriously hope that Hak gives the lines enough time to gel and not be all over the place like last year.  As a Coach, I understand that when your team isn't playing well you tinker with the lineup but some of his decisions last year were questionable at best.   I am still on the fence with Hak and really hope he stands out as a Coach this year.

[murraycraven]

@Howie58   great thread btw!

[Howie58]

I am thinking this will be a "Tail of Two Seasons," with Black Friday my delimiter. Line shifting and experimentation will be order of the day up front. But I agree with others here that this is a turning point in the franchise.  We have a supply of young "possibles."   Let's keep fingers crossed.

[Howie58]

3 minutes ago, murraycraven said:

@Howie58   great thread btw!

MC:

 

Thanks...more intelligence on this board than a lot of other venues...good to see the gang.  

Peace,

Howie

[murraycraven]

18 minutes ago, Howie58 said:

more intelligence on this board than a lot of other venues.

 

dont worry Howie... I am sure to screw up "intelligence" factor  

[Howie58]

2 minutes ago, murraycraven said:

 

dont worry Howie... I am sure to screw up "intelligence" factor  

MC:

Nehhhh...don't worry...I worry....graying temples....forgetfulness, getting increasingly cynical. .  .. . 

 

 

[OccamsRazor]

1 hour ago, mojo1917 said:

For this reason I think this year will be fun/interesting to watch. 

 

 

If for no other reason for myself is i don't have any preconceived expectations...in fact i don't know what to expect however i would love to watch this young team go through the ups and downs it will required to help push the where they want to eventually go...

 

...besides what else is there to watch besides a little football....can't wait!

[mojo1917]

1)  Will Giroux Break Below 50 Points?  I think Giroux has a bounce back year. I think the addition of Filpulla shuffled the lines in a good way. No more having to hope against evidence that Sean Couturier would "blossom" into a 2c.  I think bussing Schenn out of town won't hurt as much as people think, I think in particular the constant "trying Schenn on G's wing" business was hurting Gs game and the team as a whole by allowing the opposition to concentrate on one line. I will be very interested to see if Lindblom has any chemistry with G or Jake, I also think giving Koneckny more top 6 minutes won't hurt either. I expect Giroux to be better this year.

 

2)  Will "Elllvirth" Work Out and Steal a Few Games?  I think providing both Elliot and Neuvirth play to their statistical means they will be unspectacular but unhateable as well. My feeling is one of competence with that tandem, I expect the odd clunker of a game here and there and I also expect Neuvirth to injure his hip flexor getting out of his car at some point this season. But overall I think Ellvirth will work out, if they overachieve maybe this becomes a playoff team.

 

3)  Will the Young D Pan Out?  Ivan Provorov is the real deal, I love the idea that Robert Hagg becomes the set him and forget him steady Swede every good team defense needs.  Ghost...uh, well he could be good again, I like him. Gudas will need to be careful to not wind up in the penalty box. MacDonald is you know, overpaid but serviceable...These guys could be pretty good. I am looking forward to seeing what becomes of the young defensemen. I would love for the Morin project to work out.  This group, especially the young guys are what I am most interested in this season. 

 

4)  Are we Saying Goodbye to a Checking Line Model?   I like the idea of balanced scoring and skill throughout the line-up. I liked PEB but think what we potentially have going on now is an upgrade over last year. The Penguins and to a lesser extent the Predators have shown that if everyone is hard on the puck and keeps possession of it, the checking line is not necessary.  I like what Pods says about having fast /smart guys in the bottom 6.

 

5)  Is Hakstol a Good Developmental Coach?  IDK, he coached in college for a thousand years ,one would think so, but that doesn't always work out see Saban, Nick.  Dealing with college kids is way different than dealing with highly paid professionals. I hope so, I crave "the stability" .

 

Honorable Mentions:  Are Chris Pryor and his staff leading to the right picks?  Will changes in Assistant Coach improve the team, particularly PP?

I do think Chris Pryor finds good players, I don't know if I think the scouting department has had a horrible miss since Kevin Marshall, MAB might have worked out had his brain not been scrambled.

I also agree with Pods that the PP needed a refresh getting rid of Schenn won't hurt as much as people think, and incorporating some motion into it can't hurt.  I also think there will be some dynamism in the form of IP and Ghost at the points. 

I have to say I'm optimistic about this year, I am glad to see the rebuild rubber meeting the road.