ATD 2023 Assassination Thread - Jim Robson Division

[ImporterExporter]

@rmartin65 @ResilientBeast @Hawkey Town 18 @overpass @tinyzombies @Stanky Marmalade @Professor What @Hitru

Please post your rosters here for review.

We will keep assassinations open for 2 weeks at least, through 03/20.

Thanks!

Click to read more...

 

[tinyzombies]

Can we use Sutter as a 7 and use him on PP1?

Sud-Ouest (PSC) Attack
Home Rink: Point-St-Charles Arena

Co-GM:
@Stanky Marmalade
Coach: Darryl Sutter

Patrik Elias -- Sidney Crosby (C) -- Mark Recchi
Doug Bentley - Milt Schmidt (A) - Helmuts Balderis
Jere Lehtinen -- Mike Modano -- Dany Heatley
Gary Roberts -- Duke Keats -- Frank Finnigan
Denis Savard
Pavol Demitra

Dit Clapper (A) --- Brad Park
Jack Stewart --- Bob Goldham
Pat Stapleton --- Jack Crawford
Gary Suter

Clint Benedict
Carey Price

PP1:
Park
Heatley - Crosby - Balderis
Clapper
(Suter?)

PP2:
Stapleton
Modano - Recchi - Bentley
Schmidt

PK1: Stewart-Goldham-Schmidt-Bentley
PK2: Staple-Crawford/Park-Elias-Finnigan​

 

[overpass]

Ottawa 67s

​

Coach: Al Arbour
Captain: Sid Abel (Brian Leetch, Guy Carbonneau)

Lineup
Luc Robitaille - Norm Ullman - Guy Lafleur
Sid Abel (C) - Evgeni Malkin - Alexander Mogilny
Marty Pavelich - Guy Carbonneau (A) - Lanny McDonald
Kevin Stevens - Ralph Backstrom - Ace Bailey

Moose Johnson - Eddie Shore
Brian Leetch (A) - Bill White
Jim Schoenfeld - Kris Letang

Glenn Hall
Curtis Joseph

Spares: Artemi Panarin, Vic Stasiuk, Brian Campbell

Power play
Robitaille
Lafleur - Shore - Malkin
Leetch

Abel
McDonald - Ullman - Mogilny
Letang

Penalty kill

Pavelich - Carbonneau
Schoenfeld - White

Ullman - Bailey
Johnson - Shore​

Abel, Backstrom, Leetch can also fill in.

 

[Professor What]

Gallifrey TARDIS

Coach: Pete Green

Brendan Shanahan - Syl Apps (A) - Charlie Conacher
Markus Naslund - Connor McDavid - Corey Perry
Alexander Yakushev - Ron Francis (A) - Pavel Bure
Don Marshall - Vyacheslav Starshinov - Dave Taylor
Jack Darragh, Butch Goring

Slava Fetisov (C) - Valeri Vasiliev
Ken Reardon - Red Horner
Mark Giordano - Ken Randall
PK Subban

Dominik Hasek
Pekka Rinne

Power Play
First Unit
Shannahan
McDavid-Apps-Conacher
Fetisov

Second Unit
Perry
Yakushev-Francis-Bure
Reardon

Penalty Kill
First Unit
Marshall-Starshinov-Reardon-Vasiliev

Second Unit
Francis-Bure-Fetisov-Randall

*The second and third lines will receive roughly equal playing time.
*Fetisov and Reardon will swap PK units in the playoffs.

 

[ResilientBeast]

Coach: Cecil Hart

Busher Jackson --- Cyclone Taylor --- Jarome Iginla (A)
Keith Tkachuk --- Bryan Trottier --- Babe Dye
Aurele Joliat --- Russell Bowie --- Bobby Bauer
Gilles Tremblay --- Ken Mosdell --- Ryan Kesler

Frantisek Pospisil (C) --- Bobby Orr
Lester Patrick (A) --- Sylvio Mantha
Derian Hatcher --- John Carlson

Charlie Gardiner
Hugh Lehman

Spares: Frank McGee, Frank Patrick, Ernie Russell

PP1: Jackson - Trottier - Dye - Taylor - Orr
PP2: Joliat - Bowie - Iginla - Patrick/Taylor - Carlson
PK1: Tremblay - Kesler - Hatcher - Mantha
PK2: Joliat - Mosdell - Pospisil - Orr

 

[Hawkey Town 18]

Chicago Shamrocks


Coach: Jon Cooper

Henrik Zetterberg (A) <-> Joe Malone - Andy Bathgate
Herbie Lewis - Bill Cowley - Bill Cook (C)
Bun Cook - Patrice Bergeron - Punch Broadbent
Nick Metz - Dale Hawerchuk - Mark Stone


Scott Stevens (A) - Doug Harvey
Art Ross - Tom Johnson
Roman Josi - Cy Wentworth
---- OR ----
Doug Harvey - Tom Johnson
Scott Stevens (A) - Art Ross
Roman Josi - Cy Wentworth


Vladislav Tretiak
Tiny Thompson


Spares: Patrick Sharp, Bob Bourne, Jim Neilson


PP1
Malone - Cowley - Bill Cook
Harvey - Bathgate

PP2
Lewis - Hawerchuk - Broadbent
Ross - Josi

PK1
Metz - Bergeron
Harvey - Johnson

PK2
Zetterberg - Bun Cook
Stevens - Wentworth

Extra PK F: Stone
Extra PK D: Ross or Josi
​

Notes
- On the 1st line, Zetterberg and Malone can both play C and LW, giving them the ability to switch when necessary, but the main setup will feature Malone at C and Zetterberg at LW.
- At ES Hawerchuk will be asked to play a checking role similar to what he did in the 1987 Canada Cup, we fully expect his ES offense to decrease from this, but this should not affect his PP offense, which should be similar to how he played during his prime in the NHL where his focus was offense.


Estimated Minutes
Forwards

Player	ES	PP	PK	Total
H. Zetterberg	13​		3​	16​
J. Malone	14​	4​		18​
A. Bathgate	14​	5​		19​
H. Lewis	14​	2​		16​
B. Cowley	13​	4​		17​
Bill Cook	15​	5​		20​
Bun Cook	12​		3​	15​
P. Bergeron	12​		4​	16​
P. Broadbent	11​	3​		14​
N. Metz	7​		4​	11​
D. Hawerchuk	7​	3​		10​
M. Stone	6​			6​
TOTAL	138​	26​	14​	178​

Defense

Player	ES	PP	PK	Total
D. Harvey	19​	4​	4​	27​
S. Stevens	19.5​		3.5​	23​
T. Johnson	13.5​		3.5​	17​
A. Ross	14​	2​		16​
R. Josi	14​	3​		17​
C. Wentworth	12​		3​	15​
TOTAL	92​	9​	14​	115​

 

[ChiTownPhilly]

Can we use Sutter as a 7 and use him on PP1?

Sud-Ouest (PSC) Attack
Home Rink: Point-St-Charles Arena

Co-GM:
@Stanky Marmalade
Coach: Darryl Sutter

Patrik Elias -- Sidney Crosby (C) -- Mark Recchi
Doug Bentley - Milt Schmidt (A) - Helmuts Balderis
Jere Lehtinen -- Mike Modano -- Dany Heatley
Gary Roberts -- Duke Keats -- Frank Finnigan
Denis Savard
Pavol Demitra

Dit Clapper (A) --- Brad Park
Jack Stewart --- Bob Goldham
Pat Stapleton --- Jack Crawford
Gary Suter

Clint Benedict
Carey Price

PP1:
Park
Heatley - Crosby - Balderis
Clapper
(Suter?)

PP2:
Stapleton
Modano - Recchi - Bentley
Schmidt

PK1: Stewart-Goldham-Schmidt-Bentley
PK2: Staple-Crawford/Park-Elias-Finnigan​

Prairie Scouting Service report on the Sud-Ouest Attack-

We like-
* likely the most consequential Forward in your Division (Crosby). Yes, I've been revising my bizarre outlier opinion on Crosby... and have him considerably higher than I had controversially placed him before.
* bi-lateral Wingers Lehtinen and Heatley allow for greater ease-of-use for the 7D look teased earlier.
* Honey-Badger coach will make it clear it's HIS team- and players can get-on-board or go eat one.

Not as sure about-
* ATD voting has not been historically kind to players expected to play multiple roles- especially in-game... and this will have to be done with a 7D arrangement.
* Goaltending arguably the weakest in-the-Division (with the usual caveat that I think this may be the most overrated aspect of ATD team-assessment.)
* Curious about role of Denis Savard here. Is he your fill-in for the times when Duke Keats runs afoul of of the ATD committee on Player Safety- or for injuries to other Centers? Is he a "load-management" option to give timed rest to some of your Centers?

Line #1: Any Wingers one mates to Crosby are assured of being better than the ones he's had in real life- so it should be a pleasure for Crosby to work with these, in spite of Recchi being the last-place #1RW in-Division.
Line #2: Easy sale to call Elias-Schmidt-Balderis your '200 foot' line- which is the traditional role for #2 Lines in shallow AT Drafts. It's not looking like you yield anything to your rivals here with this one.
Line #3: I really like this sneaky-good 3rd line- which should get a nice bunch of minutes in a 7D set-up. Lehtinen can be the outer layer of a "defense-in-depth" for the star RWs in Division. Never mind Division- this is one of the better 3rd lines in the Conference. [But then again, I have an outlier opinion on Lehtinen.]
Other dressed Forwards: Keats brings the rough stuff, and Finnigan has his Special Teams roles. Extra Forward Demitra could be used to sub for (most likely) Heatley- in case Daryl thinks Dany needs a one (or more) game reminder about sticking with The Program. [And of course any scheduled rest you choose to arrange.]

With seven Defensemen, you'll be doing Defense by caracole. Ultimately, I think we can count on Daryl Sutter to put in a more sensible solution than can be conceived by the GM, OR the Scout reporting here. I still think-
Stewart-Park
Stapleton-Clapper
G. Suter-Goldham
with Crawford as the 7th is the better plan here. You can flex Clapper to LD on the Horton-model... and flip Stewart to the R-side from time-to-time. Stewart-Stapleton might not be the most confidence-inspiring set of LDs to go up against the likes of Bathgate and Iginla... but they will have reasonable workloads, and will never be asked to do too much.

Benedict keeps you from falling behind in the Goaltender arms-race-- and won't be any sort of reason for the team to come up short.

Both PKs look all right) now that D. Bentley will be Centering PK2- and (honestly) I need more information about the PPs before making comment on them. Always in mind that c. 80+% of the time, a 2-minute span on Special Teams are a non-event (and hence makes Special Teams allocation second only to Goaltending as the most overrated aspect of ATD), AND (again) Daryl Sutter can be counted on to allocate your offensive talent suitably.

You're in a Division of monsters this year- but your team has some unconventional wrinkles that'll give opponents something to think about.

 

[tinyzombies]

Prairie Scouting Service report on the Sud-Ouest Attack-

We like-
* likely the most consequential Forward in your Division (Crosby). Yes, I've been revising my bizarre outlier opinion on Crosby... and have him considerably higher than I had controversially placed him before.
* bi-lateral Wingers Lehtinen and Heatley allow for greater ease-of-use for the 7D look teased earlier.
* Honey-Badger coach will make it clear it's HIS team- and players can get-on-board or go eat one.

Not as sure about-
* ATD voting has not been historically kind to players expected to play multiple roles- especially in-game... and this will have to be done with a 7D arrangement.
* Goaltending arguably the weakest in-the-Division (with the usual caveat that I think this may be the most overrated aspect of ATD team-assessment.)
* Curious about role of Denis Savard here. Is he your fill-in for the times when Duke Keats runs afoul of of the ATD committee on Player Safety- or for injuries to other Centers? Is he a "load-management" option to give timed rest to some of your Centers?

Line #1: Any Wingers one mates to Crosby are assured of being better than the ones he's had in real life- so it should be a pleasure for Crosby to work with these, in spite of Recchi being the last-place #1RW in-Division.
Line #2: Easy sale to call Elias-Schmidt-Balderis your '200 foot' line- which is the traditional role for #2 Lines in shallow AT Drafts. It's not looking like you yield anything to your rivals here with this one.
Line #3: I really like this sneaky-good 3rd line- which should get a nice bunch of minutes in a 7D set-up. Lehtinen can be the outer layer of a "defense-in-depth" for the star RWs in Division. Never mind Division- this is one of the better 3rd lines in the Conference. [But then again, I have an outlier opinion on Lehtinen.]
Other dressed Forwards: Keats brings the rough stuff, and Finnigan has his Special Teams roles. Extra Forward Demitra could be used to sub for (most likely) Heatley- in case Daryl thinks Dany needs a one (or more) game reminder about sticking with The Program. [And of course any scheduled rest you choose to arrange.]

With seven Defensemen, you'll be doing Defense by caracole. Ultimately, I think we can count on Daryl Sutter to put in a more sensible solution than can be conceived by the GM, OR the Scout reporting here. I still think-
Stewart-Park
Stapleton-Clapper
G. Suter-Goldham
with Crawford as the 7th is the better plan here. You can flex Clapper to LD on the Horton-model... and flip Stewart to the R-side from time-to-time. Stewart-Stapleton might not be the most confidence-inspiring set of LDs to go up against the likes of Bathgate and Iginla... but they will have reasonable workloads, and will never be asked to do too much.

Benedict keeps you from falling behind in the Goaltender arms-race-- and won't be any sort of reason for the team to come up short.

Both PKs look all right) now that D. Bentley will be Centering PK2- and (honestly) I need more information about the PPs before making comment on them. Always in mind that c. 80+% of the time, a 2-minute span on Special Teams are a non-event (and hence makes Special Teams allocation second only to Goaltending as the most overrated aspect of ATD), AND (again) Daryl Sutter can be counted on to allocate your offensive talent suitably.

You're in a Division of monsters this year- but your team has some unconventional wrinkles that'll give opponents something to think about.

So the initial lineup is meant to reflect some historical precedent. Then when you are matched with someone you can make adjustments?

 

[ChiTownPhilly]

Best way I can think to explain it is to use a baseball analogy-

Left-handed players don't play 3B (unless you're Mike Squires doing a "parlor trick" turn), SS, or 2B. The reasons for this are clear, if you know Baseball.

Left-handed players don't play Catcher. I see no theoretical reason why a left-hander couldn't catch- particularly if you're starting a R-hand pitcher and figure to be going up against a line-up filled with LH-hitters.

In the modern NHL, R-hand shots don't play LD (at even-strength, anyway). Now, is the thinking behind this orthodoxy more like the second example, or is it more like the first one? This isn't a rhetorical question- I'd be curious to how this gets answered.

 

[tinyzombies]

Best way I can think to explain it is to use a baseball analogy-

Left-handed players don't play 3B (unless you're Mike Squires doing a "parlor trick" turn), SS, or 2B. The reasons for this are clear, if you know Baseball.

Left-handed players don't play Catcher. I see no theoretical reason why a left-hander couldn't catch- particularly if you're starting a R-hand pitcher and figure to be going up against a line-up filled with LH-hitters.

In the modern NHL, R-hand shots don't play LD (at even-strength, anyway). Now, is the thinking behind this orthodoxy more like the second example, or is it more like the first one? This isn't a rhetorical question- I'd be curious to how this gets answered.

I understand all that but it was my understanding that if he played there historically he can stay there if he had success and he won a Cup and was AS1 there

 

[tinyzombies]

Cup Checklist: Analyzing the rosters from the last decade of champions

There are lessons to be learned from past winners; guidelines for how a team’s roster should be made up.

theathletic.com

 

[ChiTownPhilly]

Cup Checklist: Analyzing the rosters from the last decade of champions

There are lessons to be learned from past winners; guidelines for how a team’s roster should be made up.

theathletic.com

Citation is behind a paywall... so (not giving up) I went back to the "Lineup Advice Thread," wherein you said that Dit Clapper was an LD with Crawford playing on the right. To RHS D-men on the same pairing- likely feasible (even in the modern game)-- but such a deployment is incredibly rare: RHS D-men are typically a bit too uncommon for such luxuries to be applied.

Brad Park's different, though. Brad Park's an LHS. An RHS at LD & an LHS at RD would be... different.

 

[tinyzombies]

Citation is behind a paywall... so (not giving up) I went back to the "Lineup Advice Thread," wherein you said that Dit Clapper was an LD with Crawford playing on the right. To RHS D-men on the same pairing- likely feasible (even in the modern game)-- but such a deployment is incredibly rare: RHS D-men are typically a bit too uncommon for such luxuries to be applied.

Brad Park's different, though. Brad Park's an LHS. An RHS at LD & an LHS at RD would be... different.

I might do that depending on the series- if we even make it. The main issue would be clearing but if there is a lefty RW it prrevents. him cutting to the middle and he’s a good skater so he’s not going to have someone turn the corner on him

 

[ChiTownPhilly]

Chicago Shamrocks


Coach: Jon Cooper

Henrik Zetterberg (A) <-> Joe Malone - Andy Bathgate
Herbie Lewis - Bill Cowley - Bill Cook (C)
Bun Cook - Patrice Bergeron - Punch Broadbent
Nick Metz - Dale Hawerchuk - Mark Stone


Scott Stevens (A) - Doug Harvey
Art Ross - Tom Johnson
Roman Josi - Cy Wentworth
---- OR ----
Doug Harvey - Tom Johnson
Scott Stevens (A) - Art Ross
Roman Josi - Cy Wentworth


Vladislav Tretiak
Tiny Thompson


Spares: Patrick Sharp, Bob Bourne, Jim Neilson


PP1
Malone - Cowley - Bill Cook
Harvey - Bathgate

PP2
Lewis - Hawerchuk - Broadbent
Ross - Josi

PK1
Metz - Bergeron
Harvey - Johnson

PK2
Zetterberg - Bun Cook
Stevens - Wentworth

Extra PK F: Stone
Extra PK D: Ross or Josi
​

Notes
- On the 1st line, Zetterberg and Malone can both play C and LW, giving them the ability to switch when necessary, but the main setup will feature Malone at C and Zetterberg at LW.
- At ES Hawerchuk will be asked to play a checking role similar to what he did in the 1987 Canada Cup, we fully expect his ES offense to decrease from this, but this should not affect his PP offense, which should be similar to how he played during his prime in the NHL where his focus was offense.


Estimated Minutes
Forwards

Player	ES	PP	PK	Total
H. Zetterberg	13​		3​	16​
J. Malone	14​	4​		18​
A. Bathgate	14​	5​		19​
H. Lewis	14​	2​		16​
B. Cowley	13​	4​		17​
Bill Cook	15​	5​		20​
Bun Cook	12​		3​	15​
P. Bergeron	12​		4​	16​
P. Broadbent	11​	3​		14​
N. Metz	7​		4​	11​
D. Hawerchuk	7​	3​		10​
M. Stone	6​			6​
TOTAL	138​	26​	14​	178​

Defense

Player	ES	PP	PK	Total
D. Harvey	19​	4​	4​	27​
S. Stevens	19.5​		3.5​	23​
T. Johnson	13.5​		3.5​	17​
A. Ross	14​	2​		16​
R. Josi	14​	3​		17​
C. Wentworth	12​		3​	15​
TOTAL	92​	9​	14​	115​

Prairie Scouting Service Report on Chicago Shamrocks

Like:
Usual league-leading detail for Assassination Thread Panel
Imaginative original research (e.g.: Zetterberg on Penalty Kill)
OPPF-quality top defensive pairing

Not so sure about:
Zetterberg and Malone being interchangeable
Cohesive vision for defensive assignments
Defensive conscience credentials on the top two lines

Line #1: Zetterberg-J. Malone-Bathgate. None of us have any visuals on Joe Malone- but my impression concerning him is that he's most credible at LW with a high-impact Center. His real-life turn was with Lalonde- I could see him fill that role with a "power Center" (such as Lindros)- but don't think Zetterberg clears that bar. No matter- it's still a good working line, even if (at this level) it seems like a "2a" line. [The price one pays for prioritizing Harvey/Stevens in the draft.]
Line #2: H. Lewis-Cowley-Bi. Cook. As a duet, Cook-Bathgate at RW is a candidate for best pair in the League. [The other serious contender is @ImporterExporter 's Gordie Howe/Kucherov.] I think taking a pass on the chemistry and avoiding the casting stretch of mating the Cooks on a scoring line in a league of less than 20 is probably the right call. [However, they could be played together situationally, I suppose.] Cowley/Bill Cook both have great scoring credentials- and this trio doesn't yield anything to your First Line- but that Cowley/Cook partnership has an "odd couple" feel to it. I envision Cowley being the last one back for any of your top two lines players. To the extent that Cooper can control it, he'll probably want to make sure Harvey's out there when Cowley's on the ice.
Line #3: Bu. Cook-Bergeron-Broadbent. I can see this line getting more minutes than currently allotted, since (as I said) I see neither of the first two lines really seem to be"200 foot" lines. Also, I could see some spot-starts for Bergeron up the depth-chart, as he's your one known-quantity face-off guy, and your lone RHS in that capacity.
Line #4: N. Metz-Hawerchuk-M. Stone- interesting strategy to deploy Hawerchuk in a defensive capacity. My concerns about whether that soup is thick enough are ameliorated somewhat by the visibly-limited even-strength minutes, and the option that exists to flip Zetterberg or Bergeron here every so often.

Before reviewing the defense, I'd like to flesh out the Art Ross role, and reflect on what options it may provide. Art Ross in his day was a "Point," and has been used as LD and RD here in ATD. His case seems much like that of Hod Stuart (but to a lesser degree) inasmuch as one can pin some hopes and dreams to him, and there's nothing out there to say it CAN'T happen.

Pairing #1: S. Stevens-Harvey is such a natural, nasty, uncomfortable pairing that it's nearly impossible to say anything against it. However, the advantage of Harvey-T. Johnson is that one strengthens lower pairings and gets Harvey on the side where your Division's scoring Wingers are. I've said before that voters aren't kind to multiple roles for ATD-personnel... but if Larry Robinson can switch sides mid-shift, Doug Harvey can switch sides mid-game. This counts are a benefit, in my eyes.
Pairing #2: there's either S. Stevens-A. Ross or Josi-T. Johnson. Your conference has the skilled duo B. Siebert-Gadsby, and the well-reasoned Leetch-B. White pairing, and your duet will vie with these for top honors in Conference.
Final pairing of A. Ross or Josi-Wentworth is another candidate for best in Conference.

Goaltending: Division average, Conference above-average, League average. Chicago broke my heart by drafting Tiny Thompson and denying Gimli the opportunity to unite the Thompson Brothers.

Leadership: Outstanding. Embarrassment of riches that letters are assigned and a letter can be credibly withheld from Bergeron.

Power Play-Penalty Kill- Cooper will make the most of the talent, that's for sure. Lots of eggs in the PP1 basket, but that's clearly by design.

Depth skaters: injuries and cold-and-flu season players. [If anyone sees situational circumstances whereby they'd come into play when everyone's healthy, I'll listen...]

Coach- fit-to-purpose, with biggest challenge (I think) being keeping the Cowley-Bill Cook interaction from fraying. Like to hear how we'd see that playing out- and also hear under what circumstances the D-assignments get flexed- but other than that, as complete a team-vision as we have going this year.

 

[Hawkey Town 18]

Prairie Scouting Service Report on Chicago Shamrocks

Like:
Usual league-leading detail for Assassination Thread Panel
Imaginative original research (e.g.: Zetterberg on Penalty Kill)
OPPF-quality top defensive pairing

Not so sure about:
Zetterberg and Malone being interchangeable
Cohesive vision for defensive assignments
Defensive conscience credentials on the top two lines

Line #1: Zetterberg-J. Malone-Bathgate. None of us have any visuals on Joe Malone- but my impression concerning him is that he's most credible at LW with a high-impact Center. His real-life turn was with Lalonde- I could see him fill that role with a "power Center" (such as Lindros)- but don't think Zetterberg clears that bar. No matter- it's still a good working line, even if (at this level) it seems like a "2a" line. [The price one pays for prioritizing Harvery/Stevens in the draft.]
Line #2: H. Lewis-Cowley-Bi. Cook. As a duet, Cook-Bathgate at RW is a candidate for best pair in the League. [The other serious contender is @ImporterExporter 's Gordie Howe/Kucherov.] I think taking a pass on the chemistry and avoiding the casting stretch of mating the Cooks on a scoring line in a league of less than 20 is probably the right call. [However, they could be played together situationally, I suppose.] Cowley/Bill Cook both have great scoring credentials- and this trio doesn't yield anything to your First Line- but that Cowley/Cook partnership has an "odd couple" feel to it. I envision Cowley being the last one back for any of your top two lines players. To the extent that Cooper can control it, he'll probably want to make sure Harvey's out there when Cowley's on the ice.
Line #3: Bu. Cook-Bergeron-Broadbent. I can see this line getting more minutes than currently allotted, since (as I said) I see neither of the first two lines really seem to be"200 foot" lines. Also, I could see some spot-starts for Bergeron up the depth-chart, as he's your one known-quantity face-off guy, and your lone RHS in that capacity.
Line #4: N. Metz-Hawerchuk-M. Stone- interesting strategy to deploy Hawerchuk in a defensive capacity. My concerns about whether that soup is thick enough are ameliorated somewhat by the visibly-limited even-strength minutes, and the option that exists to flip Zetterberg or Bergeron here every so often.

Before reviewing the defense, I'd like to flesh out the Art Ross role, and reflect on what options it may provide. Art Ross in his day was a "Point," and has been used as LD and RD here in ATD. His case seems much like that of Hod Stuart (but to a lesser degree) inasmuch as one can pin some hopes and dreams to him, and there's nothing out there to say it CAN'T happen.

Pairing #1: S. Stevens-Harvey is such a natural, nasty, uncomfortable pairing that it's nearly impossible to say anything against it. However, the advantage of Harvey-T. Johnson is that one strengthens lower pairings and gets Harvey on the side where your Division's scoring Wingers are. I've said before that voters aren't kind to multiple roles for ATD-personnel... but if Larry Robinson can switch sides mid-shift, Doug Harvey can switch sides mid-game. This counts are a benefit, in my eyes.
Pairing #2: there's either S. Stevens-A. Ross or Josi-T. Johnson. Your conference has the skilled duo B. Siebert-Gadsby, and the well-reasoned Leetch-B. White pairing, and your duet will vie with these for top honors in Conference.
Final pairing of A. Ross or Josi-Wentworth is another candidate for best in Conference.

Goaltending: Division average, Conference above-average, League average. Chicago broke my heart by drafting Tiny Thompson and denying Gimli the opportunity to unite the Thompson Brothers.

Leadership: Outstanding. Embarrassment of riches that letters are assigned and a letter can be credibly withheld from Bergeron.

Power Play-Penalty Kill- Cooper will make the most of the talent, that's for sure. Lots of eggs in the PP1 basket, but that's clearly by design.

Depth skaters: injuries and cold-and-flu season players. [If anyone sees situational circumstances whereby they'd come into play when everyone's healthy, I'll listen...]

Coach- fit-to-purpose, with biggest challenge (I think) being keeping the Cowley-Bill Cook interaction from fraying. Like to hear how we'd see that playing out- nd also hear under what circumstances the D-assignments get flexed- but other than that, as complete a team-vision as we have going this year.

Thanks for the review! Here are my responses to your questions/concerns:

- I think I need to re-word my note about Zetterberg/Malone, as it seems I'm giving the impression that those two will be switching positions frequently. That is not the case here, Malone will be at Center almost all of the time. The note about their position flexibility is just meant to be a little extra bonus, like if the line gets caught out against an especially unfavorable matchup where they just want to gain possession and make a change Zetterberg might switch to Center for that. Also, having a second player that can take draws allows the first to cheat a bit more as it's no big deal if you end up getting thrown out.

- Bills Cowley and Cook fit together perfectly as far as playmaker-goal scorer. In real life Cook had much success with a pass first center in Frank Boucher. However, there is one drastic difference between Cowley and Boucher, and that is defensive ability, of which Boucher was more than capable and Cowley showed none. This is why I didn't feel like I could reunite the Cook brothers on the same line, I'd be taking away the best defensive player of their real life line and replacing him with a terrible defensive player. While brother Bun is certainly a plus defensive player, with Cowley in the middle, the line needed a stronger defensive player on the LW, enter Herbie Lewis (previous bio here for more info on him).

- Outside of special situations like end of periods, after penalties, etc. I don't see the D pairs switching up much mid-game, but I do see them potentially switching from game to game depending on the opponent and circumstance. A few examples for you:
A team with a very strong 1st line and 2nd line that isn't anything special will probably see Stevens-Harvey together
A team with the scoring more evenly spread among their two lines will probably see them apart
A team with a high minute Dman driving offense will probably see them apart (wink wink Bobby)
A team with an elite Forward may depend on if we have last change or not

- Just to be clear, our 3rd pairing will not change, it's Josi-Wentworth in either setup, as we think Josi should have a physical partner.

- I'm a strong believer that PP1 should be loaded up as much as possible with your best players and while PP2 should of course be capable, it is not very important to me.
The opposite goes for PK units, as if all goes well, the shifts will be much shorter and both units will see the ice against the other team's top PP unit.

- We thought a "player's coach" was the best type of coach for the Shamrocks. For one, Bill Cowley requires special handling, between Cooper as coach, having the team Captain on his line, and asking him to do nothing outside of provide offense, we think we've put Cowley in the best situation possible.
Second, we think a player's coach is best for the overall setup of our team. This is not a team that plays a rigid structure where each line has been assembled in the same way, therefore a hard-nosed taskmaster type would be terrible here. Cooper will have to treat some players/lines much differently than others.

Cooper also facilitates the different looks on the blueline. Further, Harvey/Stevens/Josi all on different pairings is somewhat similar to the real life Hedman/McDonagh/Sergachev on different pairings.

The high level of leadership helps Cooper do his thing too, up front Cook, Zetterberg, Bergeron all on separate lines, and on top of that there's Scott Stevens on D.