GM: Eugene Wilkinson
Coach: Barry Trotz
Last season: 10th overall. In playoffs, defeated Milan; defeated Bern; lost to Berlin.
Ins and Outs
(Season 17 to Season 18)
In: Alexandre Carrier (trade), Adrian Kempe (trade)
Out: Semyon Varlamov (retired), Noah Hanifin (trade), Alexander Volkov (free agent), Mike Hoffman (free agent)
Potential Lineup
Clayton Keller/Dylan Sikura/Oliver Björkstrand
Casey Mittelstadt/Nick Paul/Jesper Bratt
Samuel Bucek/Jack Roslovic/Mathieu Joseph
William Eklund/Marco Rossi/Juuso Parssinen
Moritz Seider/Cale Makar
Jacob Bryson/Alexis Vanier
Alexander Carrier/Cale Fleury
Niko Hovinen/Andrew Dickson
A Question
The Red Bulls went through the wringer in the playoffs, playing in three consecutive 7-game series. They beat Milan in Round 1, then ousted Bern thanks to two Dylan Sikura tallies before losing to German rivals Berlin in the Southern Conference finals. It was the second season in a row that Munich made it that far only to fall to Berlin. This off season, the evil Smurfs lost a lot of players. Munich held onto 14 of their top 15 scorers and the Red Bulls are very keen on getting their revenge this year. All summer, it seemed Munich’s most pressing problem was the salary cap. The Red Bulls had invested a lot in its defense corps, but GM Eugene Wilkinson clearly wanted to shave some salary in that department. Nicolas Hague was waived (he passed through to the farm club) and then the GM announced to the world that playoff hero Noah Hanifin ($8.9 million contract), as well as Jacob Bryson and Cale Fleury could be had in trades. If all four of those players had left town, then the Red Bulls would need two more blueliners just to fill out their lineup. The thinking was any newcomers would carry light price tags and be more affordable. As it turned out, only Hanafin left via a trade and Bryson, Fleury and Hague remain in Munich jerseys – their redesigned new jerseys – perhaps with the knowledge management sees them as expendable. The cap squeeze was felt the most by Luke Kunin, the effective 3rd-line center in whom Munich invested heavily and came to rely upon for his two-way play. But Kunin and his 3-year, $5.2 million contract, are now with the Hamburg Freezers, Munich’s farm club. All those changes point to a wrestling match that Wilkinson is trying to win against the cap. If he can get it right, look for Munich and Bern to battle for the Southern crown this year.
Rose’s Focus
“Last season, my Munich focus was on the Red Bulls’ middle two forward lines. This year, I’ve narrowed the focus to Line 3 because that big hunk of a man, Nick Paul, left no doubt that he can skate with Casey Mittelstadt and Jesper Bratt and produce really strong games. The guy I think of as ‘Sexy Nicky P’ raised his game and my blood pressure simultaneously. His shot total went from 150 to 234 and all his other numbers went up by noticeable amounts too. That leaves Luke Kunin’s old line as my main question mark. Wingers Mathieu Joseph and young Samuel Bucek were good, but Kunin is who made that line effective for the Red Bulls because he was always moving and always ‘third guy high’ and in position to defend opposition rushes. Due to salary constraints, Kunin, was waived, but the other teams let him pass through waivers. That gave GM Eugene Wilkinson a chance to get him back into the lineup but as of today, Jack Roslovic will try to imitate Kunin as center of that line. I have my doubts. Jack is a good skater, but he is inexperienced and will lose a lot of faceoffs. Speaking of faceoffs, did you know that among all EURO players who won at least 300 faceoffs last season, Munich had the best two in the league in Nick Paul and Dylan Sikura? I did. But that’s only because I’m smarter and more attractive than you.”
