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FiveForFighting · 04-15-2021, 06:49 PM

The Anaheim Outlaws had a rough season, going 21-41-4. Although they were last in their division with 46 points, that was the 10th best points total. It looks like their goalie, Vincent Mietitore, carried their team, as he had a 915 save%. Unless he is called up, he looks like the biggest strength this team has going forward. A high end goalie can't save a team by himself, but with the right team around him he can make sure they don't waste the talent in front of him.

Offence is where the Outlaws need to look to improve. They finished the season second last in goals scored with 147, with the average team scoring nearly 40 goals more at 186. Their top goal scorer was RW John Donair, and he lit the lamp 15 times. That's not bad, but it would rank 41st in the league. Cleary, offence is a huge need for this team. Making things more challenging is that Donair may be getting called up to the SHL this year, which would weaken the offensive potential for Anaheim. In addition to being the top scorer, he was second on the team in assists, and was an important piece on the power play. That's not a guy who will be easy to replace if he is indeed called up.

Anaheim has some decent center depth, as Kaapo actually led the team in points with 35. Duncan and Kawashima give them some depth there as well, so they have the potential for a solid top 3 group of centers. Where they will run into problems is the winger depth. Muller is probably the best winger after Donair, but he isn't a first line guy yet, and the guys behind him are a bit further back. Muller had 10 points and 15 assists, which is respectable, but if he's the top winger on this team next year the Outlaw will likely be missing the playoffs again. This is another area that the team will need to look to improve going forward, as their centers are going to need more support.

While their goals against total was also 10th at 237, it's likely that their goalie, Vincent Mietitore, played a big part in keeping that total as respectable as it is. Their defenceman TPE is typically at 270 or below, which makes it difficult to contend when opposing forwards could be maxed. They are clearly in a rebuild, so this isn't meant to criticize the defensive players, rather to highlight that the D are young and are being forced into roles they can't necessarily handle in the early stages of their careers.

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So what are some important steps for them? Well, first they'll need to keep developing their youth movement. Minor league teams go in cycles, and with their youth they will have a shot in a couple of years. This could be a critical draft for them though, as they still have a high end goalie, their defenceman should continue to improve, and the offence will need to produce some more higher end players.

Approved, +5 TPE @FiveForFighting

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