- Jan 17, 2018
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I agree that Detroit has better established players. But Soderblom (to an extent another step from Raymond and Seider could be considered) is the only player with "unknown" potential. For Buffalo it is all of Power/Peterka/Quinn and to a degree Samuelsson and Krebs. If three of those arrive early, then Buffalo will be close to Detroit. They are definitely short on veterans, but Okposo is by all accounts a strong Captain.I'm asking you who you think is legitimately better at their positions and roles in the lineup on Buffalo than the guys on Detroit's roster?
Up and down the lineup I would take most of Detroit's roster over what Buffalo has.
1C - Detroit
1D - Detroit
Top 9 wingers - Detroit
Defensive depth - Detroit
Goaltending - Detroit by a mile
2C - if Copp plays like Copp from 2020 to 2022 then he's the easy choice over Cozens or Krebbs
3C - If Rasmussen plays even 1/3 of the season at the level he did in game 1 then I take him easily over Krebbs
Detroit will be the better team this year because it's combination of veteran talent and younger talent.
For me the bottom lines are:
Detroit would be a mild surprise to make the playoffs; Buffalo would be a fairly big surprise, but not totally unrealistic.
Starting next season, and maybe this season if Tampa is worn down and Toronto implodes, Buffalo and Ottawa should join Detroit as Atlantic heavyweights for the remainder of the decade.