Login

icewindoo · 08-11-2024, 08:52 PM

Anchorage Armada S78 Season Preview

Outgoing Players:
F Jesus Murphy (age), F Muon Collider (age), D Sebastien Levesque (age), F Arseniy Vitaliy (IA drop), D Dooddle Wonderpeck (age), D Colton (IA drop), Sawyer Keenin (IFA)

Incoming Players:
D Javelin Bodine (draft), D Dieter Frühstück (draft), D Barcus Juneau (draft), D Abbe Wass (draft), D Deven Rappleyea (draft), F Hughes Incorporated (draft)

Player Age Breakdown:
[Image: NQJHbvX.png]

S78 SMJHL Draft Summary:
Anchorage had stocked the cupboard in preparation for the S78 SMJHL draft, which let them select six players within the first 36 picks. Of these six picks, five of them are D, addressing a sore need. The top pick was D Javelin Bodine, who went third overall.

Forwards:
The loss of Jesus Murphy is a huge hole to fill up front. Murphy led the team last season in goals, assists, points, PP points, shots, and face-off wins. He was a solid top-line center, and he will be sorely missed. Lyle Odelein IV is in line to take over as top forward, and he led a team power play that was above average in the league, but it's unclear whether he can fill Murphy's shoes. Third-year winger Jefferson Steelflex has now maxed out his TPE, but his performance least year was not exactly dominant. Only four of the Armada forwards are in their upper years, and two of those are inactive; the ceiling seems low up front.

Defence:
Aside from questions in the forward ranks, the defence is going to be the major weak point of the Armada this season, very possibly the league's worst D. As of this writing, not a single Armada D is over 230 TPE. The lack of veteran D presence to lean on means that there will be nowhere to hide for the rookies, and they will be thrown into the fray whether they're ready or not. This might become a formidable line-up a few seasons from now, but this season will be full of painful learning experiences on the blue line.

Goal:
Despite having a team -81 goal differential last season, the Armada goaltending tandem was no worse than league average. Goalies PeanutButter Zamboni and Adam Joy shared the duties in net and both had decent numbers. With another year of experience behind them, the goaltending duo should provide above-average quality between the pipes.

Key Players to Watch, Questions to Answer:
With the lack of experience on the blue line, how much of the defensive load will goalies Joy and PeanutButter be able to bear? Will Steelflex be able to lead this team to respectability? Who among the five rookie D will step up and show that they truly belong in this league?

Offseason Grade: A-
Addressing the lack of D by picking up five of them in the draft was an important step, and all of the players chosen are solid picks. (This writer had five of the six drated players in the top 21 of his mock draft.) It's worth asking whether one of the goaltending assets could have been used to improve weaker areas of the roster.

Season Outlook:
This season is likely to be a noticeable improvement upon last season. Though the defence will be sorely tested, the strength in goal should carry this team to more wins that last year. Prediction: 4th in Northern Conference, 9th overall.

Beyond This Season:
The longer range future is definitely brighter for the Armada. It's tempting to imagine how good the D corps will be in a two or three seasons from now, assuming they all develop to their maximum potential.

***bluesfan55*** · 08-11-2024, 08:59 PM

ty to @High Stick King @EvilAllBran and @Ragnar for the sigs

***retuperkele*** · 08-12-2024, 10:22 AM

lesgo boats

chetib · 08-16-2024, 02:00 PM

Approved @icewindoo @CptSquall

Navigation

Extra Menu

About us