To me there’s three different classes of players in the poll:
Smith, Granlund and Archibald are the ‘sure things.’ They’re all veteran players who have established themselves and at this point you pretty much know what they are. Smith was an established #1 but at this point you’re expecting him to come in, play 30-35 games and push Koskinen to be his best. Granlund and Archibald are both bottom 6ers who will contribute 15-30 points and be key players on the PK. I really like all three acquisitions but I wouldn’t expect anything spectacular from them.
Nygard and Haas both come in as the older rookies who have a lot of pro experience in Europe. They’ve both got intriguing skill sets that potentially fill needs for the team, but there’s also a reason they’ve never had a shot in North America before. Haas in particular has intrigued me lately as his scouting report/highlights really remind me of 16/17 Mark Letestu, where he’s a guy who won’t necessarily contribute much 5 on 5 but he can have an impact on both the PP and PK. Nygard’s speed and offensive instincts could also be a nice fit, he could steal a spot in the top 6.
Finally you’ve got the ‘good story’ players with Persson and Jurco. Jurco being the former high pick who’s struggled with injuries and Persson being the ultimate late bloomer. They both have big question marks around them but could fill massive holes in the squad if they play to their highest potential. I like the way that Jurco decided to take his health into his own hands last year, taking half the season off to recover and then signing with an AHL squad when he felt he was ready instead of signing an NHL contract in the summer(which he likely could have) and being pressured to get back. And Persson going from a division 3 player who worked full time to an NHL contract in 3 years is a guy who’s easy to root for, and as an offense RHD he’d fill a massive hole.
I guess if I were to pick one player for the poll I’d pick Persson. I really like what he’s done in the SHL, and he proved last year he wasn’t just a product of Petterson. That said, I really like all of these pickups and think they’ll all play big parts on the team this season.