This article is part of our From the Press Box series.
FROM THE PRESS BOX
Paul Bruno, RotoWire.com
We begin our preparations for the upcoming Fantasy Hockey season with a look at players who have moved onto new teams or others who will play more prominent roles. We conclude with the fourth and final column exploring the Pacific Division teams of the Western Conference this year.
Pacific Division
Anaheim Ducks - After a strong showing late in the last regular season and in the playoffs, 21-year old John Gibson confirmed his stellar play in Junior and the AHL, leading the Ducks to deciding that he would be their number one goalie option heading into this season. That's the biggest development here. Ryan Kesler was the other big acquisition, coming over in a trade from Vancouver to assume the second line center role. Veteran Dany Heatley was signed to a one-year/$1M deal to boost the secondary scoring in a move that could turn out to be one of the offseason's best arrangements. He has not been the feared sniper that he was earlier in his career, but this could be a great fit for him to blossom once again into a solid scorer. The Ducks also beefed up their deep defense with the addition of Clayton Stoner (4 years/$13M), who adds more size, toughness and a shutdown defensive mentality here.
Arizona Coyotes - The team now takes on the name of the state in a cosmetic change, but the roster will likely see only changes in the bottom half. Their top pick of 2013, Max Domi, should make his NHL debut and could be a threat to the top-six forward roles if all goes well. Sam Gagner was brought over in a trade from Edmonton (via Tampa) and will be asked to challenge for playing time at center beyond a projected third line role. Joe Vitale (3 years/$3.3M) was also signed on to bolster the depth at center. Devan Dubnyk (one year/$800k) a former starting goalie in Edmonton, will slide into the backup role here, behind workhorse Mike Smith. B.J. Crombeen came over in a trade with Tampa and will be counted on to bring his energy and leadership to this group.
Calgary Flames - The Flames inked veteran goalie Jonas Hiller (2 years/$9M) to assume the top netminding assignment here. He fell out of favor late last year in Anaheim, but the Flames expect him to resemble the career 2.51 g.a.a. goalie that has 326 games of NHL experience. Up front, Calgary went for Mason Raymond (3 years/$9.45M), who is coming off a solid season where he rediscovered his scoring touch in Toronto (19 goals, 45 points). He should challenge for power play time and a top line assignment with the Flames. Devin Setoguchi is another forward who hopes to rekindle his own former scoring prowess at right wing. It's no secret that Brian Burke, the Flames President of Hockey Operations, likes a tough squad, so it was not a surprise to see Calgary sign defenseman Deryk Engelland (3 years/$8.7M). Brendan Bollig is another tough customer who will fortify the forward ranks after coming over in a deal with Chicago.
Edmonton Oilers - The Oilers needed an upgrade to their defense and made that a priority this offseason. Whether the additions of Nikita Nikitin (2 years/$9M) and Mark Fayne (4 years/$14M) fill that need remains to be seen. Keith Aulie (one year/$800k) is no more than a sixth defenseman who shows a willingness to drop the gloves. They added more skill to their forward complement with the additions of Teddy Purcell, who has carved out a nice career as a playmaking winger, and Benoit Pouliot, who brings some much-need size along with his own scoring talents into this mix. In another move that merits consideration, they plucked 23-year old Iiro Pakarinen from HIFK Helsinki in the Finnish Elite League. He is a candidate to boost the talent level and add some more size to a third line role. The third overall pick in the most recent draft, Leon Draisaitl, is expected to compete for a regular shift among the top two scoring lines and the Oilers hope he can be in the mix for rookie of the year honors, if all goes well.
Los Angeles Kings - The defending Stanley Cup Champs have a deep lineup that required very little tinkering in the offseason and seem very well positioned defend their throne. Their big money was spent on caring for the retention of key players. Sniper Marian Gaborik was rewarded with a 7-year, $34.3M deal after leading the club in goal scoring during the playoffs. He will look forward to growing the chemistry he forged with Anze Kopitar after coming over at the trade deadline last season. Matt Greene established himself as one of the league's best shutdown defensemen and was similarly rewarded with a four-year/$10M pact. Even veteran blueliner Jeff Schultz, who toiled as an insurance policy for the LA blueline while playing for their Manchester AHL affiliate, earned a two-year, $1.7M extension. He will compete for the spot vacated by the departure of Willie Mitchell.
San Jose Sharks - The biggest headlines made by the Sharks were in team management's decision to remove the Captain's "C" and assistant captain's "A" from Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau respectively. In the absence of any impact player signings, unless you count the one-year/$750 deal for superheavyweight John Scott, or the one year/$600k pact for depth defenseman Tyler Fedun, they are hopeful that they can get a full season out of rookie phenom Tomas Hertl and that winger Matt Nieto grows into a top-six winger. Other than that, they did re-sign Alex Stalock (2 years/$3.2M) and fourth-line tough guy Mike Brown (2 years/$2.4M).
Vancouver Canucks - In exchange for trading away Ryan Kesler, the Canucks picked up a pair of experienced pieces. Nick Bonino will slide into the second line center role. He hopes to build on a similar role, albeit with more playing time than he was given in Anaheim. In addition, the Canucks received young blueliner Lucas Sbisa, who is another capable puck-mover and at 24 years of age much younger than the other veterans on this blueline. Their biggest addition is in goal where Ryan Miller fulfilled his ambition to get a job on the West Coast. All it cost Vancouver was a three-year/$18M commitment. Another key signing that did not get that kind of attention was the addition of scoring winger Radim Vrbata (2 years/$10M), who is ticketed for the plum assignment alongside the Sedin twins.
