GM: David Bell
Coach: Willie Desjardins
Last season: 9th overall. In playoffs, defeated Kosice, lost to Munich
Ins and Outs
(Season 18 to Season 19)
In: Brandon Bussi (draft), Christian Dvorak (free agent), Par Arlbrandt (free agent), Oskar Lindblom (free agent), Ben Kindel (draft), Matthew Robertson (draft), Sam Rinzel (draft), Denton Mataychuk (draft)
Out: Martin Jones (free agent), Robby Fabbri (free agent), Marcus Pettersson (free agent), Dylan Samberg (free agent), Erik Brannstrom (free agent), Scott Laughton (free agent), Dylan Gambrell (free agent), Morgan Frost (free agent), Rudolfs Balcers (free agent),
Potential Lineup
Matthew Tkachuk/Aapeli Rasanen/Alex Tuch
Jason Robertson/Dominic Canic/Seth Jarvis
Christian Dvorak/Ben Kindel/J.J. Peterka
Jesper Boqvist/Isac Lundestrom/Bobby Brink
Nick Perbix/Evan Bouchard
Justin Barron/Pavel Mintyukov
Denton Mateychuk/Ryker Evans
Akira Schmid/Brandon Bussi
A Question:
What will be the key to the Guerriero’s season? Last season, Milan was most likely powered to 9th place overall by their top two centers. Aapeli Rasanen and Dominic Canic gave the Guerriero a dynamic 1-2 punch. Both men have skill, smarts and they know how to stop the opposition. Both were in the top 12 in the league in takeaways and Rasanen was 8th in shots blocked among EURO forwards. Milan finished 6th in the league in shots on goal, so they know how to work the puck. They were 11th in shots against. Not too many people are worried that those two metrics will get worse, so it will be up to the rest of the team to push them another round – or two – in playoffs. The forward lines will have a slightly different look this season. The Guerriero will still have its two strong lines, but Robby Fabbri is gone. Canadian Seth Jarvis, after five seasons of putting in his time on as a bottom six forward, will get a chance to replace Fabbri and if he keeps that spot, he will surely have a breakout season. Right now, he’s penciled in on a line with Canic and Jason Robertson. The other two lines are unsettled at the moment, although free agent veteran Christian Dvorak will certainly be a fixture on Line 3 where he will be an unofficial mentor to a young player like Ben Kindel or J.J. Peterka. On the blueline, that’s where Milan’s season will be won or lost. Evan Bouchard is again the leader for Milan back there. Halfway through last season, Bouchard was voted to the All-Star Game and he only got better from that point on, finishing +30 with 17 goals and 61 points. But the rest of the defense corps is anyone’s guess. The team has a few veterans and several young players who you know General Manager David Bell (Don Vito Campana) would love to give some ice time. The biggest concern for Italian fans is the fact Milan is going toward the season without an experienced starter between the pipes. Akira Schmid might get handed the job after three seasons as the backup, and Bell made a clever little pick in the draft when he grabbed dirt-cheap Brandon Bussi in Round 2. If nothing else, Bussi will be a good backup goalie for four seasons at $775,000. That gives the Guerriero more cash to spend elsewhere.
Rose’s Focus
“Milan – the Guerriero I mean – seems as streamlined as a plate of spaghetti or linguini. I can’t tell what’s connected to what and who’s going where. Thanks for giving me a chance to get another headache, Mr. Bell. Every good plate of spaghetti needs a fork to get its strands of pasta together and going in the same direction. So my overriding question is who’s the fork? I’m looking for a fork. Fork Quest, if you will. Which guy is best at twirling? I guess it has to be Evan Bouchard. Last season, his great skating and puck handling tied the defense corps to the forward lines beautifully. I would look to him to be the key player on this team. But I can’t even tell who Bouchard’s defense partner will be this year. You think I have a headache? Think of the challenge that faces coach Willie Desjardins. Desjardins has been given a long list of defensemen ingredients to turn into one sumptuous meal for The Don, and the coach knows if he doesn’t produce one, it will be curtains for him. And possibly for his family. If I were him, I would send Pavel Mintyukov, Nick Perbix and Justin Barron in to play musical chairs on the top two pairs, and then ask St. Ignatius of Loyola, the patron saint of Impossible Decisions, to reveal the best two of five remaining names to add to the meal. And then I would journey south a few hours, go to the Vatican, and put in some high-level prayer time. I would also quietly try to sneak my loved ones into hiding until things cool off. Do you guys remember when Doug Weight was Milan’s coach? Whatever happened to that guy?”
