Splatman Phanutier said:
Question for everyone that posted 3 forward prospects... do you really expect any NHL team to ice 3 of the 6 3rd-4th liners with rookies?
Ordinarily, it's possible but very unlikly.
In a NHL that has been through a 1 year (so far) lockout, it's still unlikely but less so.
Expect the next season to see an increase of (at the VERY least) 100% more retirement than an average year. It could possibly be much more than that, with old veterans simply too out of shape to bother,several Euros comfortably installed back home and a drastic restructuring of salaries and payrolls in the NHL.
You're going to see a LOT more new faces than usual when the NHL starts back. Now, that doesn't mean they will all be young NHL prospects. There could also be old veterans who stuck somewhere waiting for a scecond chane in the NHL, or Euro overagers, or AHLers who never a chance before. But many will be young players, and you could indeed see several rookie forwards. Heck, perhaps even several all-young energetic lines, like the Gelinas one back with the Oilers many years ago.
Expect to see a VERY different NHL, especially if they don't agree in the next few months. If they agree late, I expect more players to have signed without out-clauses this year. It could be a very weird year with some rosters barely recognizable, lots of player mouvement.