GM: Daniel Podmanicky
Coach: Joel Quenneville
Last season: 11th overall. In playoffs, defeated Bern; lost to Berlin
Ins and Outs
(Season 16 to Season 17)
In: Hampus Lindholm (trade), Martin Jones (trade), Juraj Slafkovsky (trade), Tyson Foerster (trade), Ethan Bear (trade), Martin Necas (trade), Alexis Lafreniere (trade), Emil Bemstrom (trade), Martin Pospisil (draft), Nils Aman (free agent)
Out: Anthony Cirelli (trade), Shayne Gostisbehere (trade), Yegor Sharangovich (trade), Valeri Nichushkin (trade), Braden Schneider (waivers), Brandon Hagel (trade), Martin Misiak (trade), Kevin Lankinen (bought out), Jake Dotchin (bought out), Nikita Zadorov (bought out), Ryan Graves (trade), Kent Johnson (trade), Ty Dellandrea (trade), John Leonard (trade), Louis Boudon (trade)
Potential Lineup
Dylan Larkin/Matty Beniers/Alexander Radulov
Jake Guentzel/Martin Necas/Cole Caufield
Brandon Hagel/Adam Fantilli/Alexis Lafreniere
Juraj Slavkovsky/Martin Pospisil/Tyson Foerster
Ethan Bear/Martin Fehervary
Hampus Lindholm/Erik Cernak
Arber Xhekaj/Sam Girard
Martin Jones/Stanislav Galimov
A Question
Why was it necessary to get rid of 13 players in the off-season? Last season, Martin Fehervary, Shayne Gostisbehere and Ryan Graves all scored 33 points and were tied for top scoring defensemen on Kosice. Today, Fehervary is the only one still in town. Three of the top seven scoring forwards are also gone. In all, 13 players were either released as free agents, bought out, or traded away this off-season. Jake Dotchin and Nikita Zadorov were obtained in a deal that sent top center Anthony Cirelli and Gostisbehere to Bern, but then both Dotchin and Zadorov were bought out. Kosice’s moves made observers dizzy. Again. The addition of Martin Jones in goal could add a few games to the win column by itself. Our take is that the net return on Kosice’s moves are some good Under-30 talent, including Erik Cernak and Juraj Slavkovsky, who like Fehervary are Slovakian. General Manager Daniel Podmanicky is building slowly and with lots of Slovakian pieces … and the team’s fans absolutely love that. When you watch them play this season, notice that the forwards – for the most part – all seem to have speed and puck handling ability. The Top 4 on the blueline play a different style. They are all the kind of guys who take care of business in their own zone first before they worry about moving up ice. But the key to Kosice’s season might be how often they can connect the conservative defensemen with the adventurous forwards and have all five skaters going in the same direction, up and down the ice, together.
Rose’s Focus
“Everyone says I’m amazing because I still work full-time at my age while taking care of the house I live in by myself. They ask how I find the time to cook pierogis every night, wash the dishes, do the laundry, mow the lawn, take out the garbage and all the other things life calls for. Well, I have a secret: these days, I don’t spend as much time cleaning the house as I should. Or as much time as I used to. Maybe I should look for someone to help me clean the house. I will call Daniel Podmanicky. Talk about cleaning house! Did you know that there is only one player left from the team that moved from Geneva to Kosice two seasons ago? I called Dylan Larkin to ask him why he thinks he’s still there while nobody else from the Geneva team is, but he didn’t answer the phone. His friends say he’s afraid to answer it. They say he lives out of suitcases these days because he has the feeling he’ll be traded away at any moment … like everyone else was. He is in his prime at age 30 now and has produced at least 30 goals and 40 assists for virtually all of the last six seasons. That kind of success will keep you in starting lineups. Still, Larkin averts his eyes when Podmanicky enters the room and pretends not to hear him. He’s dreading the call he has dodged thus far. He likes Kosice – the city and the team. They are a young, fun, free-wheeling bunch. That’s something he could never say in Geneva.”
