Post by Andre on Aug 15, 2016 21:02:17 GMT -5
In only 8 months, new Capitals GM Andre Deblois has turned over most of his roster, often sacrificing youth in favour of veterans that can help the team win now. It will almost assuredly lead to more wins in the immediate future, but the long term winners of the trades will not be known for years. Let’s break down the roster changes by position.
Some promising young players on both sides of the ledger. The big three on either side (Getzlaf/Hoffman/Zibanejad and Saad/Johansson/Niederreiter) are fairly even with a little bit of an edge to the more experienced group around Getzlaf. Some good young prospects on the way out though in Ritchie, Rubstov and Letunov.
No question here, the Capitals definitely improved their biggest weakness. In Byfuglien and Vlasic they added two national team mainstays who are legit first pairing defensemen. Orlov put up some good numbers in sheltered minutes for the NHL Caps, and Walman and Petersson are decent prospects but none of the losses did much harm to Washington.
There is lots of potential leaving the organization in Demko, Sorokin and Gustavsson, but there is no assurance that any will be as good as Schneider currently is. Fitzpatrick was drafted only five spots after Gustavsson and provides a safety net to make up for the lost potential.
Given the current state of the three teams involved, we are likely looking at one early 2nd and one late 2nd for a mid to late 1st and a mid to late 3rd.
The forward lines provide a very classic dynamic of two good finishers on the wings of each line with very good setup men down the middle. Byfuglien and Vlasic are a top pairing that can run with any in the league and the goaltending tandem of Schneider and Neuvirth is one of the league's best. With the addition of a legit 2nd pairing defender, this team could be considered a Cup contender. We certainly like the changes made to the Capitals roster and look forward to the 2016-17 OGSHL season!
Forwards
In:
Jamie McGinn – Ryan Getzlaf – Mike Hoffman
Jimmy Hayes – Mika Zibanejad – Brandon Pirri
Tyler Motte - Markus Granlund – Jens Looke
Out:
Brandon Saad – Marcus Johansson – Nino Niederreiter
Nick Ritchie – Mikhail Grabovski – German Rubstov
Jack Roslovic – Boyd Gordon – Maxim Letunov
Carl Grundstrom
In:
Jamie McGinn – Ryan Getzlaf – Mike Hoffman
Jimmy Hayes – Mika Zibanejad – Brandon Pirri
Tyler Motte - Markus Granlund – Jens Looke
Out:
Brandon Saad – Marcus Johansson – Nino Niederreiter
Nick Ritchie – Mikhail Grabovski – German Rubstov
Jack Roslovic – Boyd Gordon – Maxim Letunov
Carl Grundstrom
Some promising young players on both sides of the ledger. The big three on either side (Getzlaf/Hoffman/Zibanejad and Saad/Johansson/Niederreiter) are fairly even with a little bit of an edge to the more experienced group around Getzlaf. Some good young prospects on the way out though in Ritchie, Rubstov and Letunov.
Defencemen
In:
Dustin Byfuglien – Marc-Edouard Vlasic
Justin Schultz – Brett Kulak
Out:
Jean-Micheal Liles – Dmitry Orlov
Colin Miller – Kevan Miller
Jake Walman – Kyle Capobianco
Marcus Petersson
In:
Dustin Byfuglien – Marc-Edouard Vlasic
Justin Schultz – Brett Kulak
Out:
Jean-Micheal Liles – Dmitry Orlov
Colin Miller – Kevan Miller
Jake Walman – Kyle Capobianco
Marcus Petersson
No question here, the Capitals definitely improved their biggest weakness. In Byfuglien and Vlasic they added two national team mainstays who are legit first pairing defensemen. Orlov put up some good numbers in sheltered minutes for the NHL Caps, and Walman and Petersson are decent prospects but none of the losses did much harm to Washington.
Goaltenders
In:
Cory Schneider
Evan Fitzpatrick
Adam Huska
Out:
Ryan Miller
Tatcher Demko
Ilya Sorokin
Filip Gustavsson
In:
Cory Schneider
Evan Fitzpatrick
Adam Huska
Out:
Ryan Miller
Tatcher Demko
Ilya Sorokin
Filip Gustavsson
There is lots of potential leaving the organization in Demko, Sorokin and Gustavsson, but there is no assurance that any will be as good as Schneider currently is. Fitzpatrick was drafted only five spots after Gustavsson and provides a safety net to make up for the lost potential.
Futures
In:
Carolina 2nd 2017
Winnipeg 2nd 2017
Out:
Washington 1st 2017
Washington 3rd 2017
In:
Carolina 2nd 2017
Winnipeg 2nd 2017
Out:
Washington 1st 2017
Washington 3rd 2017
Given the current state of the three teams involved, we are likely looking at one early 2nd and one late 2nd for a mid to late 1st and a mid to late 3rd.
Current Roster
Gallagher – Getzlaf – Marchand
Zibanejad – Granlund – Hoffman
McGinn – Perreault – Pirri
Lewis – Granlund – Hayes
Byfuglien – Vlasic
Hunwick – Schultz
Schenn – Beaulieu
Schneider
Neuvirth
Gallagher – Getzlaf – Marchand
Zibanejad – Granlund – Hoffman
McGinn – Perreault – Pirri
Lewis – Granlund – Hayes
Byfuglien – Vlasic
Hunwick – Schultz
Schenn – Beaulieu
Schneider
Neuvirth
The forward lines provide a very classic dynamic of two good finishers on the wings of each line with very good setup men down the middle. Byfuglien and Vlasic are a top pairing that can run with any in the league and the goaltending tandem of Schneider and Neuvirth is one of the league's best. With the addition of a legit 2nd pairing defender, this team could be considered a Cup contender. We certainly like the changes made to the Capitals roster and look forward to the 2016-17 OGSHL season!
