GM: Dave Franck
Coach: Joel Quenneville
Last season: 9th overall. In playoffs, lost to Bern
Ins and Outs
(Season 13 to Season 14)
In: Derek Stepan (free agent), Petr Mrazek (free agent), Alejandro Hernandez (waivers), Chris Martenet (waivers), Sandro Zurkirchen (waivers), Tanner Jeannot (draft), Eric Comrie (draft), Ross Colton (draft)
Out: Victor Rask (free agent), Michael Hutchinson (free agent), Aaron Dell (free agent), Sven Baertschi (waivers)
Potential Lineup
Dylan Larkin/Derek Stepan/Tomas Jurco
Frank Vatrano/Brandon Sutter/Valeri Nichushkin
Cedric Paquette/Anthony Cirelli/Beau Bennett
Christian Dvorak/Martin Ruzicka/Viktor Arvidsson
Colton Parayko/Ryan Graves
Roman Josi/Brandon Carlo
Alejandro Hernandez/Alexei Bereglazov
Petr Mrazek/Sandro Zurkirchen
Three Questions
1. Geneva must be happy with that season, eh? The Generals have been up high in the standings twice before, but only briefly. They tasted champagne from the Cup in Season 1, and they rose to 4th place overall in Season 9 before enduring finishes in the 20s the last three seasons. Finishing 10th and making the playoffs was great for the whole organizations and their fans. Will they stay up this time? Will they get even better? Here’s a good sign: The team’s shots against average was 6th best in the league last year. It seems the top teams all have that in common. Look at the five teams better than the Generals in that area: Minsk, Berlin, Helsinki, Belfast and Copenhagen. In Geneva’s case, you can credit the defensemen like Colton Parayko and Swiss native Roman Josi, of course, but don’t forget to notice all the good defensive ratings among the forwards. Anthony Cirelli, Cedric Paquette and Brandon Sutter are particularly good at backchecking and there isn’t a forward in the top 12 who is weak defensively.
2. How is the goalie position? That’s where there is a big problem, and there has been one ever since Frederik Andersen left Geneva. Last year, Michael Hutchinson (88.6 save pct.) was the main goalie with Aaron Dell and Ivan Nalimov backing him up. And as we turned the page to Season 14, we see 8 goalies on the roster, although four of them had 0 years on their contract. Hutch was one of them. It was shaping up to be a jump ball for the job between Sandro Zurkirchen, Eric Comrie, Filip Gustavsson and Nalimov. Zurkirchen, who hails from a little south of Zurich is the fan favorite of the group, and he improved on some lackluster stats last season to post a save pct. of 89.0 for Madrid. Then, Petr Mrazek was signed on the first free agency step, which means he gets first dibs on the job. The 30-year-old Czech is coming off a 3-year stint as the starter Greece where he had an 88 save percentage annually for the Gods.
3. What should we like most about the Generals? This team has unreal depth. Look over the four forward lines and you see one player with an OV rating under 80. And fast-skating Frank Vatrano is one of the better shooters on the team, which is why he has beaten out Jiri Sekac (80 OV) for a spot on a line with Brandon Sutter and Valeri Nichushkin. The defense corps insn’t as strong as the forwards are, but their lowest OV rating is 74, and they have Colton Parayko back there and he is very good in all facets of the sport. Back to the forwards though: What Geneva will throw at you is dizzying. The top line has sepeed and skill; the second line plays a smart two-way game; the third line could be one of the best checking lines in hockey and even the fourth line loves to hit and pressure the defense like wild dogs. It’s as solid a 12-pack of forwards as you will find in the league.
Rose’s Focus
“When I watch the Generals play, I will pay particular attention to Derek Stepan. Geneva showed a lot of faith in the 34-year-old when the signed him to a $6.35 million contract with a no movement clause. Stepan will be expected to center the top line with Dylan Larkin on his left wing. He still has good wheels and has stayed in shape, and although he has bounced around to five teams now in six seasons, he has consistently scored points. His 77 last season in St. Petersburg was actually his lowest total in 9 seasons. I am curious to see who Joel Quenneville uses on the right side of that top line. Joel learned a lot from me in the early days of this league. He once asked me which attribute is more important for the top line: speed, strength, skill or hockey sense, because his choices for RW are each strong in one area or another, but not in all of them. Let’s see if he remembers what I told him. Frankly, I forgot.”
