Ville and me have compiled a ranking of the HFNHL Teams, somewhat similar to HF's organizational rankings for NHL teams. We used a points system to grade each team's prospects by position (Forwards, Defense, Goalie) from 1(worst) to 10(best). Also we used the NHL's criteria for rookies to determine who is still a prospect and who not.
We are listing only the top 6 forwards, top 4 defensemen and top 2 goalies in the write-ups, but we also considered the overall depth for the rankings.
(When all was said and done and we sorted the list, we found out that our teams ended up #1 and #2 - somewhat "unfortunate") Please add your comments (but be nice
)
Enjoy!
1 - Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche was the clear-cut choice for the top organization in the HFNHL. GM Ville Isopää has done a terrific job rebuilding the once-proud franchise and the future seems to have multiple cups in store for this team.
There are no real weaknesses in the prospect pool, except one could say there are no clear top defense and goalie prospects, but the potential of the prospects is intriguing.
Forwards: Sidney Crosby, Rotislav Olesz, Nicklas Bäckström, Bobby Ryan, Eric Fehr, Marc-Antoine Pouliot,
Defense: Keith Ballard, Paul Ranger, Brian Lee, Ryan Parent, Lars Jonsson
Goal: Ondrej Pavelec, Riku Helenius
2 - Nashville Predators
A step below Colorado, Nashville features the best goalie pool in the league as well as incredible quality and depth on defense. However, there is a serious lack of firepower up front and the only true scoring forward prospects are Corey Perry and Lauri Tukonen. The quality and depth of character forwards remains a strength though.
Forwards: Corey Perry, Lauri Tukonen, Ryan O'Marra, Jesse Joensuu, Jamie McGinn, Dan Fritsche
Defense: Erik Johnson, Braydon Coburn, Anton Babchuk, Kurtis Foster
Goal: Kari Lehtonen, Josh Harding
3 - Buffalo Sabres
The reigning Stanley Cup winner managed to maintain a healthy prospect pool despite compiling a cup-winning team. There is great quality in all areas, only the foward ranks lack some depth. Most of Buffalo's top prospects already have NHL-expierience and will contribute very soon to the success of this franchise.
Forwards: Andrew Ladd, Travis Zajac, Stanislav Chistov, Kris Beech
Defense: Ryan Suter, Marc Staal, Shawn Belle, Fedor Tyutin
Goal: Ryan Miller, Tyler Plante
4 - New Jersey Devils
The Devils are among the top franchises thanks to their incredible bunch of scoring forwards. Getzlaf, Semin, Vanek and O'Sullivan have already hit the NHL and have superstar-potential. In goal the Devils have young star netminder Marc-Andre Fleury, but lack some depth in that area. Defense is a reason for concern as there is no top prospect and no depth at all.
Forwards: Ryan Getzlaf, Alexander Semin, Thomas Vanek, Patrick O'Sullivan, Alexandre Picard, Petr Vrana
Defense: Joe Finley, Matt Smaby
Goal: Marc-Andre Fleury, Kelly Guard
5 - Detroit Red Wings
Very good goaltending and a bunch of potential top six fowards are the strengths of the Red Wings system. With Henrik Lundqvist and Antero Niittymäki, GM Drew Niece should be set in goal for years to come. The problem appears to be in front of the goalie. Sasha Pokulok and Dennis Wideman are nice prospects, but they lack star power and there are not many defense prospects in the Red Wings system.
Forwards: Brad Boyes, Martin Hanzal, Claude Giroux, Jussi Jokinen, Magnus Kahnberg, Martins Karsums
Defense: Sasha Pokuluk, Dennis Wideman, Brian Salcido, Kirill Lyamin
Goal: Henrik Lundqvist, Antero Niittymäki
6 - Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks feature a very balanced set of prospects in every area. There is no weak position and with Evgeni Malkin and Andrej Meszaros they have two allstars in the making. Depth in goal could be better, but overall a very strong group of young players.
Forwards: Evgeni Malkin, Patrick Eaves, Drew Stafford, Robbie Earl, Nigel Dawes, David Krejci
Defense: Andrei Meszaros, Kristopher Letang, Francois Beauchemin, Noah Welch
Goal: Carey Price, David McKee
7 - Los Angeles Kings
The Kings seem to have their future top 6 forwards already in place. The player with the highest potential is goalie Cam Ward who has won a Conn Smythe Trophy already despite being only 21 years old. The weaker points of the Kings system is depth in goal and top prospects on defense.
Forwards: Gilbert Brule, Derrick Brassard, Jack Skille, Marek Zagrapan, Alexander Vasyunov, Joshua Hennessy
Defense: Ryan Whitney, Jonas Junland, Jussi Timonen, Johan Fransson, Matt Greene
Goal: Cam Ward, Karri Rämö
8 - Carolina Hurricanes
2 names jump out when you look at the young Hurricanes. Alex Ovechkin and Dion Phaneuf, 2 young players who are already stars in the NHL. However, there is more to the Canes' prospect pool than these 2. A bunch of former first round picks give them quality depth on offense and defense. The story is different in goal. With only longshot Michal Valent, the goalie pool is mediocre at best.
Forwards: Alexander Ovechkin, James Sheppard, Ryan Kesler, Lee Stempniak, David Backes, Blake Wheeler
Defense: Dion Phaneuf, Cam Barker, AJ Thelen, Milan Jurcina
Goal: Bobby Goepfert, Michal Valent
9 - Anaheim Ducks
Great defense is the strong point in the Ducks prospect pool. Top prospects like Jack Johnson and Niklas Kronwall lead the way and the very talented group of forwards seems to be tailor-made for the new NHL. The Ducks lack a goaltending prospect with starter potential, something that will need to be fixed.
Forwards: Mike Cammalleri, Michael Grabner, Petteri Nokelainen, Tomas Plekanec, Jason Pominville, Antti Miettinen
Defense: Jack Johnson, Niklas Kronwall, David Fischer, Dennis Seidenberg
Goal: Pekka Rinne, Yann Danis
10 - Edmonton Oilers
A very deep group of talented scorers and two-way fowards as well as top-prospect Ladislav Smid and Hannu Toivonen give the Oilers every reason to be happy about. Depth on defense and goal could be better, especially with Ty Wishart being the only other legit NHL defensive prospect.
Forwards: Dustin Brown, Alexander Steen, T.J.Oshie, Ales Hemsky, Paul Stastny, Kenndal McArdle
Defense: Ladislav Smid, Ty Wishart, Sami Lepistö
Goal: Hannu Toivonen
11 - New York Islanders
Tuukka Rask is the top prospect for the Islanders, Marc-Edouard Vlasic is rapidly rising and could be a gem. Other than those 2 players, the Isles feature solid quality and depth in all area but are lacking star-potential.
Forwards: Alex Bourret, Chris Stewart, Jeff Tambellini, Ryan Stoa
Defense: Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Matt Lashoff, Cody Franson, Keith Seabrook
Goal: Tuukka Rask, Justin Pogge, Joe Palmer
12 - Philadelphia Flyers
A potential star in every position, defense remains the strongest position for the Philadelphia Flyers. Depth up front and in goal are reasons for concern and should be adressed in the near future. The Flyers young players should soon get a shot at cracking the lineup.
Forwards: Jeff Carter, Igor Grigorenko, Barry Tallackson
Defense: Tim Gleason, Brent Seabrook, Michael Sauer, Boris Valabik
Goal: Pascal Leclaire
13 - St. Louis Blues
The Blues have a well balanced-group of young players in the system, with some players having the potential to make it big in the NHL. However, the jury is still out on the long-term potential of Andrew Cogliano, Guillaume Latendresse and Dennis Persson. With David Leneveu not developing as expected, the Blues might need to re-stock their goaltending in the future. Overall depth is a strength though.
Forwards: Andrew Cogliano, Guillame Latendresse, Ben Maxwell, Cody Burki, Dan Paille, Adam Pineault
Defense: Dennis Persson, Brendan Mikkelson, Chris Summers, Dustin Byfuglien
Goal: David LeNeveu, Jhonas Enroth
14 - Dallas Stars
The Stars' prospect pool is all about offense. Bluechippers Zach Parise, Jonathan Toews and Mikko Koivu have star potential and should be contributors very soon. Depth on quality on defense and in goal is questionable though.
Forwards: Zach Parise, Jonathan Toews, Mikko Koivu, Scottie Upshall, Marcel Hossa, Hugh Jessiman
Defense: Mark Mitera, Mark Popovic, Christoph Schubert, Vitaly Anikeyenko
Goal: Jeff Drouin-Deslaurien, Dan Ellis,
15 - Florida Panthers
Incredible potential and depth on forward compared to a rather thin defense corps and only one potential NHL goaltender - thats what the Panthers prospect system brings. The forwards are not only about scoring, the team already seems to have their future captain Mike Richards on board.
Forwards: Mike Richards, Marek Svatos, Bryan Little, Evan McGrath, Matt Moulson, James Neal
Defense: Keith Yandle, Trevor Daley, Kirill Tulupov
Goal: Michael Neuwirth
16 - Calgary Flames
With skill and depth among both forwards and defensemen, the Flames looks very sharp for the future. The lack of goaltending however drops them down to the bottom half of this tight ranking. This doesn't seem to be anything to panic over yet as the team has a solid goaltending tandem in Theodore-Raycroft.
Forwards: Wojtek Wolski, Devin Setoguchi, RJ Umberger, Steve Downie, Ondrej Fiala, Lauri Korpikoski
Defense: Steve Eminger, Zbynek Michalek, Scott Jackson, Andrew Albers
Goal: Dmitri Pätzold
17 - New York Rangers
Both some top end quality and depth up front and on defense. Goaltending is a questionmark even if Vincent might turn out ok.
Forwards: Michael Frolik, Petr Prucha, Trevor Lewis, Nick Foligno, Jim Slater, Chris Bourque
Defense: Shea Weber, Jakub Kindl, Alexei Emelin, Michal Barinka
Goal: Alexandre Vincent, Matt Keetley
18 - Pittsburgh Penguins
Top line quality on all positions, but with no depth. The Pens need to re-stock the depth in the organisation, but with a young team, they have time to do it slowly.
Forwards: Peter Mueller, Dan Bertam, Ryan White
Defense: Luc Bourdon, Matt Pelech, Brett Skinner
Goal: James Howard, JP Levasseur
19 - Ottawa Senators
One of the deepest best sets of quality forwards in the league. If the rest of the team was in as good shape, it'd be scary good. However, the defense is thin and the few that are there have large questionmarks around them. Goaltening looks good but no depth. Adding defense is the key for Ottawa's future.
Forwards: Anze Kopitar, Chris Higgins, Kyle Wellwood, Roman Voloshenko, Enver Lisin, Jiri Hudler
Defense: Denis Grebeshkov, Dmitri Vorobiev
Goal: Marek Schwarz
20 - San Jose Sharks
Good depth and skill up front, Very nice depth on defense, not much to show in goal. The forwards have intriguing potential and there is very good potential on defense as well. Going for a goalie in the next draft maybe?
Forwards: Alexander Radulov, Tomas Kopecky, Kyle Chipchura, Andrei Kostitsyn, Stefan Ruzicka, Ryan Stone
Defense: Mark Stuart, Taylor Chorney, Chris Campoli, Kevin Klein
Goal: Jason Bacashihua
21 - Phoenix Coyotes
Two allstar forwards to build around, but little depth. Defense is the opposite, no stars, but some decent depth. Montoya should provide very good goaltending in a few years.
Forwards: Phil Kessel, Jiri Tlusty, Peter Olvecky
Defense: Ivan Vishnevski, Theo Peckham, Jamie McBain, Logan Stephenson
Goal: Alvaro Montoya, Reto Berra
22 - Chicago Blackhawks
Some depth up front, but no clear top 6 forwards. Very impressive offense from the back, although the lack of defensive defensemen is obvious. Good Goaltending combo, should be good for years.
Forwards: Maxime Talbot, Dustin Boyd, Yan Stastny, Petr Kanko
Defense: Mike Green, Matt Niskanen, Mathieu Carle, Carlo Colaiacovo
Goal: Jonathan Bernier, Jeff Frazee
23 - Toronto Maple Leafs
Nice top end skill and decent depth up front. As for the defense, some depth, but no real quality. Goaltending could turn out ok, but isn't among the league leaders.
Forwards: Jordan Staal, Alexei Kaigorodov, Colby Armstrong, Jiri Novotny, Petr Kalus, Franz Nielsen
Defense: Matthew Corrente, Lasse Kukkonen, Niklas Grossman, Michael Vernace
Goal: Corey Crawford, Billy Thompson
24 - Minnesota Wild
A competative group of forwards with some intresting potential. Defense also looks good with size, skill and depth. Goaltending is something that they will have to find answers to, as Bishop is the only one there.
Forwards: Robert Nilsson, Niklas Bergfors, Alexander Perezhogin, Matthew Lombardi, Jakub Kleips, Vyacheslav Trukhno
Defense: Matt Carle, Yuri Alexandrov, Vladimir Mihalik, Michael Funk
Goal: Ben Bishop
25 - Boston Bruins
Intresting potential up front, little potential and even less depth on defense, while goaltending is average at best. Defense needs a lot of help fast, or the team will have to build it's defense via free agency.
Forwards: Benoit Pouliot, Thomas Fleischmann, Peter Sejna, Bobby Hughes, Janos Vas, Loui Eriksson
Defense: RJ Anderson, Dustin Kohn
Goal: Corey Schneider, Kristofer Westblom
26 - Atlanta Trashers
Okposo gives Atlanta something to build on up front, apart from him they lack depth and skill. Defense has two solid guys and then nothing. Goaltending looks ok. There's a lot of re-stocking to do before this team can challenge the top of the rankings.
Forwards: Kyle Okposo, Ilja Zubov, Jannick Hansen, Dominic Moore
Defense: Ben Shutron, Andrei Zubarev
Goal: Devan Dubnyk, Tobias Stephan
27 - Montreal Canadiens
Intresing group up front with both potential and 2-way play. Defense is thin, but has a potential leader in Sanguetti. Adding a goaltending prospect must be a priority for this team.
Forwards: Robbie Schremp, Valtteri Filppula, Antoine Vermette, Vladimir Zharkov, Paul Gaustad, Joel Lundqvist
Defense: Bobby Sanguetti, Chad Denny, Ryan O'Byrne
Goal: Jeremy Duchesne
28 - Tampa Bay Lightning
Thin set of prospects, with some potential up front, but with questionable defense and goaltending. Considering the loss of 1st roudners for the RFA-signing of Hossa, look for Tampa Bay to stay among the bottom teams for years to come when it comes to organisational depth.
Forwards: Carl Söderberg, Patrick Thoresen, Dan Ryder, Johannes Samuelsson, Corey Locke
Defense: Alexander Edler, Oscar Hedman
Goal: Stefan Liv
29 - Washington Capitals
The lack of any top prospects, combined with the lack of depth on every position except for goal, where the Caps have good depth in potential backups. There's a lot of work to be done here, and it won't happen over night.
Forwards: Chris Durand, Martin Latal, Kris Versteeg, Chris Kelly, Juraj Simek
Defense: James Wisniewski
Goal: Peter Budaj, Chris Beckford-Tseu, Jaroslav Halak
30 - Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus has some quality up front, but lacks both quality and quantity on defense and goaltending. Apart from a few prospects who are graduating, there's little to smile about in the organisation. The lack of depth and quality hurts the team enough to have them finish last in the league. There's a lot of work to do to get out of the bottom teams.
Forwards: Steve Bernier, Dustin Penner, Konstantin Pushkarov, Nikolai Kulemin, Jan-Mikael Juutilainen, Jeremy Colliton
Defense: Filip Novak, Kevin Montgomery
Goal: Kris Lazaruk
We are listing only the top 6 forwards, top 4 defensemen and top 2 goalies in the write-ups, but we also considered the overall depth for the rankings.
(When all was said and done and we sorted the list, we found out that our teams ended up #1 and #2 - somewhat "unfortunate") Please add your comments (but be nice
)Enjoy!
1 - Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche was the clear-cut choice for the top organization in the HFNHL. GM Ville Isopää has done a terrific job rebuilding the once-proud franchise and the future seems to have multiple cups in store for this team.
There are no real weaknesses in the prospect pool, except one could say there are no clear top defense and goalie prospects, but the potential of the prospects is intriguing.
Forwards: Sidney Crosby, Rotislav Olesz, Nicklas Bäckström, Bobby Ryan, Eric Fehr, Marc-Antoine Pouliot,
Defense: Keith Ballard, Paul Ranger, Brian Lee, Ryan Parent, Lars Jonsson
Goal: Ondrej Pavelec, Riku Helenius
2 - Nashville Predators
A step below Colorado, Nashville features the best goalie pool in the league as well as incredible quality and depth on defense. However, there is a serious lack of firepower up front and the only true scoring forward prospects are Corey Perry and Lauri Tukonen. The quality and depth of character forwards remains a strength though.
Forwards: Corey Perry, Lauri Tukonen, Ryan O'Marra, Jesse Joensuu, Jamie McGinn, Dan Fritsche
Defense: Erik Johnson, Braydon Coburn, Anton Babchuk, Kurtis Foster
Goal: Kari Lehtonen, Josh Harding
3 - Buffalo Sabres
The reigning Stanley Cup winner managed to maintain a healthy prospect pool despite compiling a cup-winning team. There is great quality in all areas, only the foward ranks lack some depth. Most of Buffalo's top prospects already have NHL-expierience and will contribute very soon to the success of this franchise.
Forwards: Andrew Ladd, Travis Zajac, Stanislav Chistov, Kris Beech
Defense: Ryan Suter, Marc Staal, Shawn Belle, Fedor Tyutin
Goal: Ryan Miller, Tyler Plante
4 - New Jersey Devils
The Devils are among the top franchises thanks to their incredible bunch of scoring forwards. Getzlaf, Semin, Vanek and O'Sullivan have already hit the NHL and have superstar-potential. In goal the Devils have young star netminder Marc-Andre Fleury, but lack some depth in that area. Defense is a reason for concern as there is no top prospect and no depth at all.
Forwards: Ryan Getzlaf, Alexander Semin, Thomas Vanek, Patrick O'Sullivan, Alexandre Picard, Petr Vrana
Defense: Joe Finley, Matt Smaby
Goal: Marc-Andre Fleury, Kelly Guard
5 - Detroit Red Wings
Very good goaltending and a bunch of potential top six fowards are the strengths of the Red Wings system. With Henrik Lundqvist and Antero Niittymäki, GM Drew Niece should be set in goal for years to come. The problem appears to be in front of the goalie. Sasha Pokulok and Dennis Wideman are nice prospects, but they lack star power and there are not many defense prospects in the Red Wings system.
Forwards: Brad Boyes, Martin Hanzal, Claude Giroux, Jussi Jokinen, Magnus Kahnberg, Martins Karsums
Defense: Sasha Pokuluk, Dennis Wideman, Brian Salcido, Kirill Lyamin
Goal: Henrik Lundqvist, Antero Niittymäki
6 - Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks feature a very balanced set of prospects in every area. There is no weak position and with Evgeni Malkin and Andrej Meszaros they have two allstars in the making. Depth in goal could be better, but overall a very strong group of young players.
Forwards: Evgeni Malkin, Patrick Eaves, Drew Stafford, Robbie Earl, Nigel Dawes, David Krejci
Defense: Andrei Meszaros, Kristopher Letang, Francois Beauchemin, Noah Welch
Goal: Carey Price, David McKee
7 - Los Angeles Kings
The Kings seem to have their future top 6 forwards already in place. The player with the highest potential is goalie Cam Ward who has won a Conn Smythe Trophy already despite being only 21 years old. The weaker points of the Kings system is depth in goal and top prospects on defense.
Forwards: Gilbert Brule, Derrick Brassard, Jack Skille, Marek Zagrapan, Alexander Vasyunov, Joshua Hennessy
Defense: Ryan Whitney, Jonas Junland, Jussi Timonen, Johan Fransson, Matt Greene
Goal: Cam Ward, Karri Rämö
8 - Carolina Hurricanes
2 names jump out when you look at the young Hurricanes. Alex Ovechkin and Dion Phaneuf, 2 young players who are already stars in the NHL. However, there is more to the Canes' prospect pool than these 2. A bunch of former first round picks give them quality depth on offense and defense. The story is different in goal. With only longshot Michal Valent, the goalie pool is mediocre at best.
Forwards: Alexander Ovechkin, James Sheppard, Ryan Kesler, Lee Stempniak, David Backes, Blake Wheeler
Defense: Dion Phaneuf, Cam Barker, AJ Thelen, Milan Jurcina
Goal: Bobby Goepfert, Michal Valent
9 - Anaheim Ducks
Great defense is the strong point in the Ducks prospect pool. Top prospects like Jack Johnson and Niklas Kronwall lead the way and the very talented group of forwards seems to be tailor-made for the new NHL. The Ducks lack a goaltending prospect with starter potential, something that will need to be fixed.
Forwards: Mike Cammalleri, Michael Grabner, Petteri Nokelainen, Tomas Plekanec, Jason Pominville, Antti Miettinen
Defense: Jack Johnson, Niklas Kronwall, David Fischer, Dennis Seidenberg
Goal: Pekka Rinne, Yann Danis
10 - Edmonton Oilers
A very deep group of talented scorers and two-way fowards as well as top-prospect Ladislav Smid and Hannu Toivonen give the Oilers every reason to be happy about. Depth on defense and goal could be better, especially with Ty Wishart being the only other legit NHL defensive prospect.
Forwards: Dustin Brown, Alexander Steen, T.J.Oshie, Ales Hemsky, Paul Stastny, Kenndal McArdle
Defense: Ladislav Smid, Ty Wishart, Sami Lepistö
Goal: Hannu Toivonen
11 - New York Islanders
Tuukka Rask is the top prospect for the Islanders, Marc-Edouard Vlasic is rapidly rising and could be a gem. Other than those 2 players, the Isles feature solid quality and depth in all area but are lacking star-potential.
Forwards: Alex Bourret, Chris Stewart, Jeff Tambellini, Ryan Stoa
Defense: Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Matt Lashoff, Cody Franson, Keith Seabrook
Goal: Tuukka Rask, Justin Pogge, Joe Palmer
12 - Philadelphia Flyers
A potential star in every position, defense remains the strongest position for the Philadelphia Flyers. Depth up front and in goal are reasons for concern and should be adressed in the near future. The Flyers young players should soon get a shot at cracking the lineup.
Forwards: Jeff Carter, Igor Grigorenko, Barry Tallackson
Defense: Tim Gleason, Brent Seabrook, Michael Sauer, Boris Valabik
Goal: Pascal Leclaire
13 - St. Louis Blues
The Blues have a well balanced-group of young players in the system, with some players having the potential to make it big in the NHL. However, the jury is still out on the long-term potential of Andrew Cogliano, Guillaume Latendresse and Dennis Persson. With David Leneveu not developing as expected, the Blues might need to re-stock their goaltending in the future. Overall depth is a strength though.
Forwards: Andrew Cogliano, Guillame Latendresse, Ben Maxwell, Cody Burki, Dan Paille, Adam Pineault
Defense: Dennis Persson, Brendan Mikkelson, Chris Summers, Dustin Byfuglien
Goal: David LeNeveu, Jhonas Enroth
14 - Dallas Stars
The Stars' prospect pool is all about offense. Bluechippers Zach Parise, Jonathan Toews and Mikko Koivu have star potential and should be contributors very soon. Depth on quality on defense and in goal is questionable though.
Forwards: Zach Parise, Jonathan Toews, Mikko Koivu, Scottie Upshall, Marcel Hossa, Hugh Jessiman
Defense: Mark Mitera, Mark Popovic, Christoph Schubert, Vitaly Anikeyenko
Goal: Jeff Drouin-Deslaurien, Dan Ellis,
15 - Florida Panthers
Incredible potential and depth on forward compared to a rather thin defense corps and only one potential NHL goaltender - thats what the Panthers prospect system brings. The forwards are not only about scoring, the team already seems to have their future captain Mike Richards on board.
Forwards: Mike Richards, Marek Svatos, Bryan Little, Evan McGrath, Matt Moulson, James Neal
Defense: Keith Yandle, Trevor Daley, Kirill Tulupov
Goal: Michael Neuwirth
16 - Calgary Flames
With skill and depth among both forwards and defensemen, the Flames looks very sharp for the future. The lack of goaltending however drops them down to the bottom half of this tight ranking. This doesn't seem to be anything to panic over yet as the team has a solid goaltending tandem in Theodore-Raycroft.
Forwards: Wojtek Wolski, Devin Setoguchi, RJ Umberger, Steve Downie, Ondrej Fiala, Lauri Korpikoski
Defense: Steve Eminger, Zbynek Michalek, Scott Jackson, Andrew Albers
Goal: Dmitri Pätzold
17 - New York Rangers
Both some top end quality and depth up front and on defense. Goaltending is a questionmark even if Vincent might turn out ok.
Forwards: Michael Frolik, Petr Prucha, Trevor Lewis, Nick Foligno, Jim Slater, Chris Bourque
Defense: Shea Weber, Jakub Kindl, Alexei Emelin, Michal Barinka
Goal: Alexandre Vincent, Matt Keetley
18 - Pittsburgh Penguins
Top line quality on all positions, but with no depth. The Pens need to re-stock the depth in the organisation, but with a young team, they have time to do it slowly.
Forwards: Peter Mueller, Dan Bertam, Ryan White
Defense: Luc Bourdon, Matt Pelech, Brett Skinner
Goal: James Howard, JP Levasseur
19 - Ottawa Senators
One of the deepest best sets of quality forwards in the league. If the rest of the team was in as good shape, it'd be scary good. However, the defense is thin and the few that are there have large questionmarks around them. Goaltening looks good but no depth. Adding defense is the key for Ottawa's future.
Forwards: Anze Kopitar, Chris Higgins, Kyle Wellwood, Roman Voloshenko, Enver Lisin, Jiri Hudler
Defense: Denis Grebeshkov, Dmitri Vorobiev
Goal: Marek Schwarz
20 - San Jose Sharks
Good depth and skill up front, Very nice depth on defense, not much to show in goal. The forwards have intriguing potential and there is very good potential on defense as well. Going for a goalie in the next draft maybe?
Forwards: Alexander Radulov, Tomas Kopecky, Kyle Chipchura, Andrei Kostitsyn, Stefan Ruzicka, Ryan Stone
Defense: Mark Stuart, Taylor Chorney, Chris Campoli, Kevin Klein
Goal: Jason Bacashihua
21 - Phoenix Coyotes
Two allstar forwards to build around, but little depth. Defense is the opposite, no stars, but some decent depth. Montoya should provide very good goaltending in a few years.
Forwards: Phil Kessel, Jiri Tlusty, Peter Olvecky
Defense: Ivan Vishnevski, Theo Peckham, Jamie McBain, Logan Stephenson
Goal: Alvaro Montoya, Reto Berra
22 - Chicago Blackhawks
Some depth up front, but no clear top 6 forwards. Very impressive offense from the back, although the lack of defensive defensemen is obvious. Good Goaltending combo, should be good for years.
Forwards: Maxime Talbot, Dustin Boyd, Yan Stastny, Petr Kanko
Defense: Mike Green, Matt Niskanen, Mathieu Carle, Carlo Colaiacovo
Goal: Jonathan Bernier, Jeff Frazee
23 - Toronto Maple Leafs
Nice top end skill and decent depth up front. As for the defense, some depth, but no real quality. Goaltending could turn out ok, but isn't among the league leaders.
Forwards: Jordan Staal, Alexei Kaigorodov, Colby Armstrong, Jiri Novotny, Petr Kalus, Franz Nielsen
Defense: Matthew Corrente, Lasse Kukkonen, Niklas Grossman, Michael Vernace
Goal: Corey Crawford, Billy Thompson
24 - Minnesota Wild
A competative group of forwards with some intresting potential. Defense also looks good with size, skill and depth. Goaltending is something that they will have to find answers to, as Bishop is the only one there.
Forwards: Robert Nilsson, Niklas Bergfors, Alexander Perezhogin, Matthew Lombardi, Jakub Kleips, Vyacheslav Trukhno
Defense: Matt Carle, Yuri Alexandrov, Vladimir Mihalik, Michael Funk
Goal: Ben Bishop
25 - Boston Bruins
Intresting potential up front, little potential and even less depth on defense, while goaltending is average at best. Defense needs a lot of help fast, or the team will have to build it's defense via free agency.
Forwards: Benoit Pouliot, Thomas Fleischmann, Peter Sejna, Bobby Hughes, Janos Vas, Loui Eriksson
Defense: RJ Anderson, Dustin Kohn
Goal: Corey Schneider, Kristofer Westblom
26 - Atlanta Trashers
Okposo gives Atlanta something to build on up front, apart from him they lack depth and skill. Defense has two solid guys and then nothing. Goaltending looks ok. There's a lot of re-stocking to do before this team can challenge the top of the rankings.
Forwards: Kyle Okposo, Ilja Zubov, Jannick Hansen, Dominic Moore
Defense: Ben Shutron, Andrei Zubarev
Goal: Devan Dubnyk, Tobias Stephan
27 - Montreal Canadiens
Intresing group up front with both potential and 2-way play. Defense is thin, but has a potential leader in Sanguetti. Adding a goaltending prospect must be a priority for this team.
Forwards: Robbie Schremp, Valtteri Filppula, Antoine Vermette, Vladimir Zharkov, Paul Gaustad, Joel Lundqvist
Defense: Bobby Sanguetti, Chad Denny, Ryan O'Byrne
Goal: Jeremy Duchesne
28 - Tampa Bay Lightning
Thin set of prospects, with some potential up front, but with questionable defense and goaltending. Considering the loss of 1st roudners for the RFA-signing of Hossa, look for Tampa Bay to stay among the bottom teams for years to come when it comes to organisational depth.
Forwards: Carl Söderberg, Patrick Thoresen, Dan Ryder, Johannes Samuelsson, Corey Locke
Defense: Alexander Edler, Oscar Hedman
Goal: Stefan Liv
29 - Washington Capitals
The lack of any top prospects, combined with the lack of depth on every position except for goal, where the Caps have good depth in potential backups. There's a lot of work to be done here, and it won't happen over night.
Forwards: Chris Durand, Martin Latal, Kris Versteeg, Chris Kelly, Juraj Simek
Defense: James Wisniewski
Goal: Peter Budaj, Chris Beckford-Tseu, Jaroslav Halak
30 - Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus has some quality up front, but lacks both quality and quantity on defense and goaltending. Apart from a few prospects who are graduating, there's little to smile about in the organisation. The lack of depth and quality hurts the team enough to have them finish last in the league. There's a lot of work to do to get out of the bottom teams.
Forwards: Steve Bernier, Dustin Penner, Konstantin Pushkarov, Nikolai Kulemin, Jan-Mikael Juutilainen, Jeremy Colliton
Defense: Filip Novak, Kevin Montgomery
Goal: Kris Lazaruk
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