GM: Dennis Sullo
Coach: Bruce Cassidy
Last season: 15th overall. In playoffs, lost to Munich
Ins and Outs
(Season 18 to Season 19)
In: Jake Guentzel (trade), Mikko Rantanen (free agent), Brandon Montour (free agent), Dylan Samberg (free agent), Collin Graf (draft), Ryan Greene (draft), Jonathan Aspirot (free agent)
Out: Mark Stone (free agent), Jonathan Drouin (free agent), Jonathan Huberdeau (free agent), Vince Dunn (free agent), Jonas Siegenthaler (trade),
Potential Lineup
Alexander Polunin/Brayden Point/Mikko Rantanen
Barrett Hayton/Jake Guentzel/Kieran Brown
Quinton Byfield/Ivan Ivan/Collin Graf
Brett Berard/Mark Kastelic/Phil Tomasino
Charlie McAvoy/Quinn Hughes
Mikey Anderson/Brandon Montour
Dylan Samberg/Tomas Machu
Stuart Skinner/Carter Gylander
A Question
What’s the best aspect of the Lions’ game? If you look at the team stats from last season, you will see that Zurich ranked between 12th and 17th in most areas. But in shots allowed, they were 6th best. They played a tight team defense under Coach Bruce Cassidy, who just signed on the dotted line for another 3 seasons. If you are in the mood to hand out credit for that, you first have to walk over to Charlie McAvoy, Mikey Anderson and their defense buddies. They were excellent and four of the six from last year’s squad are back this season with speedy Brandon Montour (60 points for Lisbon last year) and defensive zone specialist Dylan Samberg (94 blocks for Milan last season) replacing the two who left. That seems like an upgrade for the Lions. But they can’t be expected to protect the net area without help and last year, they got it from forwards like Barrett Hayton, Brayden Point and Alexander Polunin – who all return – as well as Mark Stone and Jonathan Drouin, who are both gone. The question now is how do they replace the defense provided by Stone and Drouin? Another question: do they want to? Maybe they want to boost the offensive output a bit. Getting Mikko Rantanen in free agency and Jake Guentzel via a trade tells you the focus is on getting the “goals for” up a bit this season. Rantanen, 32, comes to Switzerland fresh off five straight seasons of 70 or more points for London, and the 34 goals he scored last season is a career best, topping the 30 goals he had as a personal best the season before. That’s a nice trend he’s got going. Guentzel, 33, hasn’t had quite that amount of success, but two seasons ago with Kosice he hit the 30-goal mark and had 69 points before experiencing a down year last season. In goal, it’s the same two guys: Stuart Skinner and Carter Nylander. We bet Zurich would love to see Joseph Woll in the mix too, but that’s not possible because the team is tight to the salary cap. Skinner has put in three seasons as the starter for the Lions and he’s just 27 years old this season. He raised his save percentage steadily in those three seasons and he’s a big reason Zurich beat Berlin in a race to the final playoff spot last season.
Rose’s Focus
“Since the days when Patrice Bergeron was skating around in a Zurich sweater, the Lions seem to have always been a good team that for some reason has never taken off to great heights. At first, it was confusing to me. How could a team with such talent fade away during the playoffs and sometimes not make the playoffs at all? I’m still confused. I know my stuff and I can tell you that a team that was able to put six players on the All-Star team two years ago should have been a legitimate threat for the Cup. But they weren’t. The answer is not at all obvious; I would have pointed it out if it was. I suspect something underhanded is going on. My first suspect without investigating at all is that Smurf guy in Berlin. He’s getting something out of this for sure. Or perhaps it’s that other Swiss GM, Shalom Connell. Maybe there is a plan afoot to bring the Cup to Switzerland for the second time ever and the two Swiss misters are colluding. My strategy – don’t tell anyone – is to dress in a disguise, perhaps as a gorgeous waitress or an older woman, and tail Zurich General Manager Dennis Sullo. When he ‘accidentally’ leaves a package somewhere or throws away a piece of paper as if it’s just trash, I’ll keep an eye on it after he leaves. I’ll especially be looking for little blue Smurf hands reaching into the garbage can. If I can prove Sullo is somehow passing on players or scouting reports, or anything at all, you can be sure I will blow the lid off this scheme. The league’s integrity is at stake. If Zurich doesn’t make the playoffs this season, someone’s going to prison, I assure you.”
