You Call 'em

spader wrote:Chirp's prediction for Spezza:

2011/2012 PROJECTION- 75 GP 35 G 48 A 83 PTS

Discuss.

He also predicted the Sens to finish second in the East last year, 'nuff said.

Dash wrote:Puempel's probably 3-4 years away. He'll finish out his Jr. career and then maybe a year or two of AHL. Look at guys like Tangradi and Hodgson for that matter. Guy was a top prospect at one time. Very slow progression for him. Even Eberle wasn't rushed.

Maybe there's a lockout next year and him and Noesen continue to develop well in the CHL.
I beliebe Zibanejad was drafted ahead of Couturier because he was more ready, then they took 2 guys (noesen and puempel) who are years away. The best guys from the 03 draft (Getzlaf, Perry, Richards, Kesler...) had at least 3 extra years of development after their draft.
At least we have Silfverberg and DaCosta next year so no rush.

wprager wrote:

La Femme wrote:

spader wrote:Chirp's prediction for Spezza:

2011/2012 PROJECTION- 75 GP 35 G 48 A 83 PTS

Discuss.

Only way that happens is Karlsson and Gonchar each get 50+ pts and our power play is top 5 in the league...

Go on ...

To be honest it's not a stretch if Gonchar decides to show up...
Karlsson and Spezza are awesome PP players, and Butler has a very nice release.
I think 5 on 5 we are the worst team in the league (AINEC). But at least give me a lethal PP system, the potential is there.

Why are we the worst in the league 5-5? We weren't at the end of the season, and what's changed? Some guys have one-way contracts, true, but they also have tasted champagne for the first time and may want more. We'll be getting 1 or even 2 rookies on D, but if they make the team (when we already are full on the backend) it will only be because they will truly make a difference. We have a former top-six pick (who would have been top-three if he was not Russian) who will be playing for his next contract. We have three veteran defensemen who had horrible seasons and you've got to think at least one of them rebounds -- with the young guns pushing them out to pasture, maybe even all three. And if they don't, well, our backend is pretty loaded. We have Michalek fully healed (night and day between how he played in the first 50 games and the last 30). We have Captain Clutch without the nagging back.

I'm not going to say they'll win the President's Trophy or even lead the Division, but to say they will be the worst team in the league 5-5, and to further add AINEC ("and it's not even close" for those who were wondering, like me) is a bit harsh, perhaps?

Like NEELY said, unlike the Oilers, our "rookies" are actually 22-24 year old sophomores who played a ton of games last season and won a Cup. Will they make mistakes? Of course. Will they make as many as 19-year-old kids in their first full season? Probably not.

And I've got to believe that Anderson will get us better goaltending than the Oilers got last year, and who was their coach, again? The guy couldn't get the Rangers with, arguably, the best goalie in the league, higher than 3rd in their division. At least some of those years the Pens and Flyers were terrible, and the Isles haven't had a pulse in over a decade.

The answer to me is pretty simple: Fisher and Kelly were arguably our 2 best defensive forwards (and were centers), and they were pretty good on faceoffs. I know we were good in the last part of the year, but in a full season it doesn't work like that. Teams like The Islanders and the Leafs were as good if not better in the last part of the year and I'm not expecting their young guys to play like that for 82 games next year.
I think it's one of the most important jobs on the ice.
I'll give you a pretty simple example in the East. Here's what Regin/Zibanejad/Foligno/DaCosta/Smith will face for 82 games:
- Malkin
- Lecavalier
- Bergeron
- Dubinsky
- Briere
- Laich
- Evander Kane
- Gomez

I'll leave the West out of it, it wouldn't be fair (talent wise, but also importance wise)
You've gotta think, somewhere in December, our kids will run out of gas...
Then again, I predicted Regin to score 50 pts

And BTW, we were totally the worst 5/5 team last year...
http://www.nhl.com/ice/teamstats.htm?fetchKey=20112ALLSAAAll&sort=goals5On5ForAgainstRatio&viewName=summary

La Femme wrote:And BTW, we were totally the worst 5/5 team last year...
http://www.nhl.com/ice/teamstats.htm?fetchKey=20112ALLSAAAll&sort=goals5On5ForAgainstRatio&viewName=summary

Not in those last 24 games -- without Fisher, without Kelly, but also without Leclaire or Elliott, without Kovalev.

Here are my projections (goal wise) for a few Sens:

Bobby Butler: 22
Jason Spezza: 29
Milan Michalek: 24
Erik Karlsson: 14
Daniel Alfredsson: 21

I should have said that those were also based on a full 82 game season, which for some of those guys, will be harder than actually scoring the goals. Those are thus the high end projections.

Dash wrote:Here are my projections (goal wise) for a few Sens:

Bobby Butler: 22
Jason Spezza: 29
Milan Michalek: 24
Erik Karlsson: 14
Daniel Alfredsson: 21

Gun to the head I would say VERY similar numbers:

Butler - 24
Spezza - 36
Michalek - same as you
Karlsson - same as you
Alfredsson - same as you (which is AWESOME that he scores 20+).

Dash wrote:Here are my projections (goal wise) for a few Sens:

Bobby Butler: 22
Jason Spezza: 29
Milan Michalek: 24
Erik Karlsson: 14
Daniel Alfredsson: 21

That's probably pretty close actually;

I'll go with

Bobby B - 25
Spezz - 32 - i believe there will be some magic with young bobby b and hopefully a healthy michalek this season
Michalek - 25 - hoping for a full healthy season - it's time
EK - 20 - maybe wishful thinking, but with the pp time he'll get and the extra experience, I believe it is absolutely possible this season
Alfie - 25 - mostly special team time for him I think - hoping for a healthy season of at least 70 games played in a slightly lesser role - 2nd line minutes and special team time

I guess i've got some serious wishful thinking with Alfie there, but it's certainly not impossible for him to do that, especially if the surgery was as successful as it sounds and that he's back to being healthier than he was last season...i mean, that was a brutal season for him injury-wise

La Femme wrote:And BTW, we were totally the worst 5/5 team last year...
http://www.nhl.com/ice/teamstats.htm?fetchKey=20112ALLSAAAll&sort=goals5On5ForAgainstRatio&viewName=summary

ELLIOTT.

sandysensfan wrote:

La Femme wrote:And BTW, we were totally the worst 5/5 team last year...
http://www.nhl.com/ice/teamstats.htm?fetchKey=20112ALLSAAAll&sort=goals5On5ForAgainstRatio&viewName=summary

ELLIOTT.

Yes, Elliott is the correct answer in this case - for the most part anyway.

Dash wrote:I should have said that those were also based on a full 82 game season, which for some of those guys, will be harder than actually scoring the goals. Those are thus the high end projections.

If Alfie plays a full season he's getting a hell of a lot more than 21 goals.

SpezDispenser wrote:

Dash wrote:Here are my projections (goal wise) for a few Sens:

Bobby Butler: 22
Jason Spezza: 29
Milan Michalek: 24
Erik Karlsson: 14
Daniel Alfredsson: 21

Gun to the head I would say VERY similar numbers:

Butler - 24
Spezza - 36
Michalek - same as you
Karlsson - same as you
Alfredsson - same as you (which is AWESOME that he scores 20+).

Sad day, if you think it'll be awesome if Alfie scores 20.

SensGirl11 wrote:I guess i've got some serious wishful thinking with Alfie there, but it's certainly not impossible for him to do that, especially if the surgery was as successful as it sounds and that he's back to being healthier than he was last season...i mean, that was a brutal season for him injury-wise

From what I've been reading he may even be on the top line. I just want him to rest during the PK situations.

SensGirl11 wrote:I guess i've got some serious wishful thinking with Alfie there, but it's certainly not impossible for him to do that, especially if the surgery was as successful as it sounds and that he's back to being healthier than he was last season...i mean, that was a brutal season for him injury-wise

From what I've been reading he may even be on the top line. I just want him to rest during the PK situations.