im optimistic but you never know in this league, an injury at the wrong time, a suddenly reliable player is unreliable etc.
But at least we have a good shot/depth and thats the best you can ask for
If Nosek can replace at least like 75% of what stenlund did on the pk, Schmidt and Boqvist do somewhat reasonable i think were ok on losses. Our 4th line overall didnt do shit (outside of Stenlunds Pk),
If Barky and Lundell continue to play like they do with a fully healthy Tkachuk i see us being better, even with a Reino regression.
Plus most of our players will be at training camp healthy (or mostly) as opposed to needing surgery and out till mid season.
Good points and I’ll just add a couple more on the optimistic side:
— the right amount of hungry infusion can help kick the champs in the ass a bit
— their system is good for players to come out of their shadow and be contributors
— a healthy and fit (?) Ekblad can surprise more than a few people
— like you said, Schmidt and Boquist as wild cards can more than live up to expectations
— like you said, maybe our fourth line will be actually improved and score a few more
— our forward depth is pretty insane… especially if Samo works out on second or third line
— even goalie position isn’t a concern but more likely will be a strong backbone
My main concern is, are they over their cup euphoria and will Mo and his coaches be ready? And: can they fix the f***ing PP??