GM: Jason Haupt
Coach: Rod Brind’Amour
Last season: 9th overall. In playoffs, lost to Minsk
Ins and Outs
(Season 13 to Season 14)
In: Mike Hoffman (free agency), Nikita Kucherov (free agency), Max Pacioretty (free agent), Luka Gracnar (free agency), Michael Matheson (free agent), Jacob Josefson (free agent), Petr Zamorsky (free agent), Jonas Brondberg (draft), Joshua Roy (draft)
Out: Mark Fraser (retired), Josef Vasicek (retired), Ryan McDonagh (free agency), Ryan Gunderson (free agent), Spencer Smallman (free agent), Brayden Schenn (free agent)
Potential Lineup
Olli Palola/Dylan Sikura/Jordan Eberle
Max Pacioretty/Jordan Staal/Nikita Kucherov
Markus Granlund/Marcus Foligno/Patric Hornqvist
Andrei Svechnikov/Jack Hughes/Mike Hoffman
Ryan Murray/Tyson Barrie
Adam Fox/Oscar Klefbom
Marek Daloga/Michael Matheson
Frederik Andersen/Luka Gracnar
Three Questions
1. Who is the star? The team leader? That’s a tough question to answer. They don’t have a Mark Messier type of character leader, nor do they have a Nathan MacKinnon type who can grab a game by the throat and impose his will upon it. They have a large dose of veterans with above average leadership, and some younger skaters like Dylan Sikura who are probably the ones Coach Rod Brind’Amour will send out in crucial situations. But there is no marquee name who everyone will expect to spark the team when it needs it. Adam Fox and Jack Hughes might be that kind of guy in a few seasons, but not right now. So Gothenburg must play as a team in the truest sense of the word. Brind’Amour preaches team play. Everyone is expected to lift the same amount and pull at the same time. When that arrangement works it is a beautiful scene of perpetual motion. The Frolunda finished 9th last season and earned 99 points. That performance gave a hint that the team-first approach in Sweden worked pretty well, and the fans are excited to see what this season brings.
2. Who will be their goalie? Another good question. It should be an easy answer: Frederik Andersen, right? He is one of the best ever at his position. But after 9 excellent seasons that included save percentages exclusively over 90 and a couple trophies, Andersen had an off year with Bratislava last season at age 34. Gothenburg hoped a change of scenery would snap the Dane back to himself and they made a trade to get him late in the season. They were probably thinking Cup at the time. But their theory didn’t pan out. In fact, Andersen played worse after the trade. Now the question is: is he over it, or is Gothenburg stuck with his $7.1 million salary for the next two seasons? All indications are Andersen is still the best man for the job in Gburg, but he will be pushed by a short parade of accomplished netminders. Philipp Grubauer, Cory Schneider and now longtime Edinburgh backup Luka Gracnar are all in the system and they are all capable of taking over for Andersen if called upon. Gracnar is just 30 and he might be being groomed for a bigger role. If Gothenburg gets lucky, prospect Pyotr Kochetkov will have a good start in the NHL and get some great Websim attributes. In the short time he played with the Carolina Hurricanes this season, he looked very good.
3. Are Gothenburg’s defensemen easy to play against? They are not big and they don’t like to bang people around, so in a strictly physical sense, yes, they are easy to play against. But if they get possession, your neck might be sore in the morning from trying to follow the puck. This group is a potent offensive force. Ryan Murray is in great shape and knows how to take care of his plot of ice when he’s out there. The other three members of the top 4 – Adam Fox, Oscar Klefbom and Tyson Barrie – can all skate like Kendall Coyne Schofield and they are great with the puck. When you play the Frolunda, there are times when it seems the forward line has five skaters on it. You can expect about 120 assists from the top four Dmen this season. But they do seem to allow opponents a lot of space in their own zone. It’s actually a little surprising that Gothenburg finished 11th best in shots against last season. We expected to see them farther down the list. We can only surmise their tremendous team speed had a lot to do with limiting shots. Fifteen of the 18 skaters in the lineup have speed ratings of 80 or higher and nine of them have ratings of 90 or better.
Rose’s Focus
“Jordan Staal missed about 20 games last year due to injuries and 35 the season before. He is 36 now and seems to be falling apart. But Staal is still capable of playing an important role on the Frolunda – on any of their forward lines. He is smart, plays hard and can get goals from in front of the net. His health will be a key for the team. Right now, Chandler Stephenson or Jake Leschyshyn would get the call-up to replace Staal. That’s not good. Staal should look up my doctor in Vienna: Marcus Welby, Jr., M.D., although it would be a long trip for him to make appointments. Dr. Welby took me off the Mediterranean Diet and put me on the Rhine River diet. It’s all pork sausage, cheese and two-headed fish for me these days. I feel like I’m 78 again.”
