GM: Chuck Massaro
Coach: Lindy Ruff
Last season: 18th overall. Missed the playoffs
Ins and Outs
(Season 13 to Season 14)
In: Ryan O’Reilly (free agent), Jonas Brodin (free agent), Kevin Shattenkirk (free agency), Jared Cowen (free agent), Michael Stone (free agent), Brendan Perlini (waivers), Connor Korte (draft), Joel Blomqvist (draft), Ben Solder (draft), Bryce Montgomery (draft), Scott Reedy (free agency)
Out: Tyler Myers (free agent), Sidney Crosby (free agent), Kyle Turris (free agent), Gregory Beron (free agent), Yegor Milovzorov (free agent), T.J. Brodie (free agent), Michal Kristoff (free agent), Ossi Vaananen (retired), Juuso Ikonen (free agent), Todd Graham (free agent), Radek Simek (free agent), Matus Holenda (free agent), James Wright (free agent)
Potential Lineup
Adam Henrique/Ryan O’ReillyZemgus Girgensons
Mats Rosseli Olsen/Troy Loggins/Timo Meier
Victor Olofsson/Josh Norris/Colin White
Rhett Gardner/Vasili Glotov/Brendan Perlini
Jonas Brodin/Juraj Valach
Michael Stone/Kevin Shattenkirk
Matt Roy/Mario Ferraro
Connor Hellebuyck/Pavel Francouz
Three Questions
1. Was that Bratislava’s worst season ever? Oh yeah. It was the first time in 13 seasons the team didn’t reach the playoffs, which was disappointing. But the way it happened was cringe-worthy. Fans knew the team was on the downhill side of the hill, but with star goalie Frederik Andersen in town for a couple more years, and with tons of cap space, GM Chuck Massaro thought it was worth a gamble to go for it. Big name, albeit older, players came flooding in through trades and free agency. Even the reigning scoring champ, Anze Kopitar, slipped an Eagles sweater over his head. But the plan failed. The new stars played like house plants from the start of the season until the fans revolted and Massaro started a crazy purge. Kopitar scored 19 points before being traded back to Helsinki, where he was great with 49 points in about the same number of games. That means he was more than twice as good in Finland as he was in Slovakia. Jamie Benn was -26 in Bratislava and +2 after a trade to Paris. Ironically, Andersen’s play dipped a tiny bit after he was traded to Gothenburg along with Jordan Staal and Ryan McDonagh. More irony: Bratislava actually did better after they gave up and cut the big name stars loose, and they somehow came close (3 points in the end) to making the playoffs a 13th straight time.
2. What area needs the most improvement? The Eagles did alright in shots per game, ranking 13th, but they were 20th in goals per game and in powerplay efficiency. Those stats might indicate the Eagles need to get to the dirty areas around the goal crease. They need to post someone in front of the opposing goalie and deflect shots from the point. They are hoping waiver claim Brendan Perlini will take care of that for the 5-10 minutes per game he’s out there. They also need a top defense pair that can shut down opponents and join the offense. Most teams have that kind of top pairing. Bratislava does not. Adding Jonas Brodin from Madrid as a free agent should help a good deal. The team continued signing free agent defensemen after they got Brodin to completely remake the blueline crew. Kevin Shattenkirk, Michael Stone and Jared Cowen all agreed to play for Lindy Ruff. Unfortunately, that new group is slow afoot and will have trouble containing speedy forwards. Adding free agent Ryan O’Reilly in free agency pushed Adam Henrique from center to left wing and with Zemgus Girgensons on the other wing, that should give Bratislava a very good defensive line – hopefully a good two-way line – to face off against your top forward line. But Henrique was obviously homesick for his only EURO home in Gothenburg in Season 13, and if he plays like that again, then Season 14 could be another disappointing season.
3. Why are Rhett Gardner and Juraj Valach in the lineup? Touhgness. Bratislava wants to make opponents feel pain for what happened last season. The Eagles like to blame others for their failures. Wing Rhett Gardner and defenseman Juraj Valach will see good minutes this season for that reason. If fights do indeed change momentum of games, there will be a few momentum changes with those two guys on the ice often. OK, so why is Vasili Glotov penciled in the starting lineup? A different reason. When Bratislava picked up the pace late last season, Glotov was the main driver. He entered when Anze Kopitar was traded and he was placed on a powerplay unit. He was excellent; better than Kopitar was in fact. Glotov, whose game is limited in that he only knows shoot and pass, scored 16 goals and 19 assists in 49 games, which was good by Bratislava standards and it earned him a place in the lineup this season. Likewise, well-traveled Mats Rosseli Olsen, who was a “Sure, I’ll take him” component of a big trade with Gothenburg, earned ice time by being a rare “plus” player for the Eagles. He scored almost as many points for them in 26 games as he did in 57 games with the Frolunda.
Rose’s Focus
“I smell something foul in Bratislava. GM Chuck Massaro needs to cut down on the sauerkraut. But there is something else. Why did veterans Anze Kopitar, Jamie Benn, Frederik Andersen, Adam Henrique and many others basically refuse to play last year? Was it Coach Lindy Ruff’s playing style? Massaro’s domineering presence around the rink every damn day? Just a bad mix of personalities? We will see how it looks this season with about half the cast of characters changed. If any team could use Erik Forssell’s leadership and influence, it’s this season’s Bratislava Eagles.”
