GM: John Charles
Coach: Bob Boughner
Last season: 22nd overall. Missed the playoffs.
Ins and Outs
(Season 13 to Season 14)
In: Dmitry Kulikov (free agent), Jeremy Swayman (draft), Ilya Fedotov (draft)
Out: Adam Larsson (free agent), Jared Cowen (free agent), Kevin Hayes (free agent), Luka Gracnar (free agent),
Potential Lineup
Kirill Kaprizov/Scott Conway/Sam Reinhart
Jason Zucker/Dylan Strome/Tomas Hyka
Dominik Kubalik/Nolan Patrick/Josh Anderson
Joel Farabee/Kirby Dach/Jesse Puljujarvi
Gurkan Cetinkaya/Jamie Drysdale
Dmitry Kulikov/Brett Pesce
Alexander Weiss/Shea Theodore
Jakub Kovar/Jeremy Swayman
Three Questions
1. How are their defensemen doing? Last season, four Edinburgh defensemen were all in the top 36 in the EURO league in shot blocks. That either means Caps defensemen are good at getting into the shooting lanes, or it’s a shooting gallery in the Edinburgh half of the ice. It’s a little of both, for sure, but the fact that the top defense pair had plus-minus ratings of -50 and -52 leads us to believe Coach Bob Boughner has to concentrate more on puck possession. We don’t think you can blame Adam Larsson and Brett Pesce for those numbers. In fact, Larsson finished 13th in the league in hits and tied for 8th among all EURO defensemen in takeaways. Those were some impressive stats, Mr. Larsson. But his 10-year stint in Edinburgh came to an end when his contract expired at the end of the season. The difference in his offensive stats from Season 12 to 13 is mind-blowing. He played roughly the same number of minutes but his point total tumbled from 53 to 17. His shots taken dropped from 124 to 76. His departure made room for veteran Dmitry Kulikov, signed as a free agent at age 34. Solid in his own zone, he is an excellent passer and a very good puck mover. Last season, with Bern, he scored 42 points and was +7. Alexander Weiss prefers to clear the zone and dump in pucks, so possession time suffers when he’s out there, but he is exceptionally careful with the puck. He has had a positive turnover ratio for 7 years and counting now. Gurkan Cetinkaya, from Turkey, saw his ice time drop last season, but he remains one of the top guys on the blueline and he is a great shot blocker. The guy is like a pre-goalie out there sometimes. Shea Theodore improved a great deal in his second season last year, with his plus-minus rating going from -47 to -19. He is very fast and will be expected to join the rush and add to the offense. And Scottish fans are excited to see the new kid this year, namely Jamie Drysdale who is loaded with skill.
2. Why did they draft a goalie? Edinburgh could use some immediate help on offense, but when the fourth pick of the draft came around, there was no such player left so they nabbed Jeremy Swayman, a 23-year-old who should be the heir-apparent to Jakub Kovar in the goal crease. Kovar, who is forward Jan’s brother, has done a very good job for Edinburgh for 9 years now, but at age 30 and with a year left on his contract (possibly two with the team option), his service is nearing an end. That’s when Swayman will take over and he should be a very good one. Getting experience for him will be important and that meant letting longtime backup Luka Gracnar go. Gracnar has also been very good. Both Kovar and Gracnar have always had save percentages near or above 90. GM John Charles seems to have a good eye for goalies because he also has unused Swede Erik Kallgren on the team and two of his four seasons with Minsk saw him go over the 90 save pct. mark.
3. What do their forwards offer? Edinburgh has a mix of forwards and they each seem to be exceptionally good at one or two things in particular. Take Scott Conway for example. The 28-year-old Brit is excellent on faceoffs (52.4 win percentage) and he is a talented passer (his 36 assists and 54 points were tops on the team last season). Kirill Kaprizoff can read the game really well and he, Sam Reinhart and Jason Zucker all have great touch around the net. Dylan Strome has silky mitts, Josh Anderson adds the physical element, and Jesse Puljujarvi is the strongest forward on a team that has good size throughout the forward lines. Like most teams, Edinburgh doesn’t have a forward line of 90 OV players. They do have four ever-improving lines of mainly 20-somethings who should be able to improve upon last year’s stats. If the Caps forwards are lacking in any area, it’s in their defensive responsibilities. Edinburgh gave up the most shots in the league last year and you can’t blame only the defensemen for that.
Rose’s Focus
“Edinburgh’s defense was on their heels most of the season and being a hockey genius, I can tell you why. The Capitals finished last in the league in goals scored and – more importantly as far as the defense was concerned – last in shots per game. And their powerplay was, well, I think the Scottish word for dismal is “Aaaacchhhh!” That hurt my throat a little. I plan to put on some of my best plaid outfits and approach Mr. Boughner about giving center Dylan Strome more ice time. I think he is just about to mature into a strong offensive player. And my niece likes his cute eyes, she said. “
