GM: Carl Choiniere
Coach: Paul Maurice
Last season: 4th overall. In playoffs, defeated Helsinki; lost to Minsk
Ins and Outs
(Season 16 to Season 17)
In: Yegor Sharangovich (trade), Aliaksei Protas (trade), Carl Dahlstrom (free agent), Leon Draisaitl (free agent), Diego Kostner (free agent)
Out: Alexandre Carrier (trade), Andreas Johnson (free agent), Thomas Spelling (trade), Martin Necas (trade), Nikita Kucherov (free agent), Niklas Danielsson (free agent), Eddie Lack (retired)
Potential Lineup
Calvin Thurkauf/Connor McDavid/Alex Debrincat
Teuvo Teravainen/Sam Bennett/Yegor Sharangovich
Yegor Chinakhov/Radek Faksa/Leon Draisaitl
Aliaksei Protas/Ties Van Soest/Mauro Neurauter
Viktor Antipin/Zach Werenski
Jake Moverare/Stefan Ulmer
Ty Smith/Carl Dahlstrom
Matt Murray/Cayden Primeau
A Question
What does Oslo have past Matt Murray and Connor McDavid? Oslo fans get treated to some of the best hockey players in the world on a regular basis. The Outlaws have some immensely talented players. If you go to the Attributes page and sort the league by Overall Rating (OV), you will see that half of the Top 10 play on one team. Matt Murray, Connor McDavid and defensemen Zach Werenski, Viktor Antipin and Jacob Moverare are treats to watch play. When your nucleus eats up about $49 million of your payroll, however, you are forced to give young players a chance to make their bones. That helps more in the future than the present. Ty Smith and Ties Van Soest are good examples. Ty and Ties were first-time starters last season and they will be in the lineup again this season. By the way, Ty and Ties had +19 and +18 turnover ratios, respectively, last season. Not bad at all. But the best surprise in Norway recently has been the progress of a wing playing with McDavid on the top line. No, not Alex Debrincat, although his progress has been steady the last five seasons. His point total went like this in that time: 34, 47, 55, 67, 77. On the other wing, Swiss native Calvin Thurkauf exploded last season in his debut as a top-line forward. A question mark to begin the season, Thurkauf quickly enjoyed Coach Dave Hakstol’s trust in all situations and he scored 37 goals and 85 points. While his defensive skills needed sharpening, his offense was there. He was second on the team in shots with 253 and he could play alongside McDavid and Debrincat again this season. On Line 2, center Sam Bennett will have new wingers in Teuvo Teravainen and trade acquisition Yegor Sharangovich, who scored 47 points in 56 games as a second-liner after being traded to Kosice last season. The Outlaws’ second line could be the difference-maker this season.
Rose’s Focus
“For some reason, the Oslo Outlaws make me think of Godfrey J. Pihlstein. A few years ago, back when I was a high school junior, I knew Godfrey had a thing for me and when he asked me to the prom, I didn’t have the heart to say no. I am a very good person. My friends told me Godfrey didn’t want to blow his chance and he fretted for weeks about what tuxedo to wear, about getting a good haircut, and about what flowers would send the perfect message to me. The night of the prom, he was nervous. Not more than 30 minutes into it, he had managed to spill punch on my dress and call me Rhoda. It was a quick night for Mr. Pihlstein. The Outlaws play very well in the regular season but when it’s time to go to the big dance, they seem to go all Godfrey J. Pihlstein on us. In five of the last seven seasons, the Outlaws were shooed out of the playoffs in the first round and they only made it to the second round the other years. This year, they want to beat or at least avoid the Minsk Hussars in the playoffs. Minsk bounced Oslo in the first round two years ago and then they eliminated them in the second round last season. The Belarusians are a hump the Outlaws have not been able to get over lately. “
