Regina Direwolves self review
As I’ve mentioned, I feel pretty fortunate with this team. I had a lot of luck and stole a lot of guys from some of you.
The first line is centered around Nedved but his LW, Sorrell, has an offensive resume just as impressive in my opinion. Nedved was the guy I had as the “most talented†heading into this draft. Did that mean I had him as the “best� Not quite. Above average for a 1st line, yes, if we’re splitting that hair. But we know Nedved was a guy whose talents and results weren’t always congruent. However, his resume can stand or fall based on
what he did, not on what he did
compared to what was expected of him. “Bench?â€
(by the way, I just caught Rob Scuderi’s comment about Nedved being a potential LW. My understanding was that he was rarely a LW and if I thought he was credible at that position at all, I’d have drafted him as a LW and my lineup would have possibly taken a completely different turn!) Sorrell’s not only a very strong offensive LW with the best sustained prime of production, but he also scored at an even higher rate in the playoffs, in a decade where scoring absolutely plummeted in April. And it’s an extensive sample, too – a whole season’s worth of playoff games. Murphy will be the unsung hero of the team. Drafting a guy like Murphy, you get the opportunity to simply “draft for stats†with your other two picks. I don’t recommend this at the MLD level – he doesn’t have MLD scoring line upside. But at the AAA level, absolutely. He provides all the defense and physicality Sorrell and Nedved need to succeed and to balance their weaknesses. He’s also an outstanding leader for this level, a six year captain who can only impact Nedved positively. And Nedved does need that.
My second line came together in a weird way. Art Jackson was penciled in as my guy before the draft began. Dave stole him from me and I simply could not let that stand. Thankfully, he let me pay a high price to get him back to Regina. I think his offensive resume stands up to any 2nd line center here, and as an added bonus he is a quite conscientions defensive player too. Billy Harris was drafted on day 2 to be the 2nd line’s version of Mike Murphy. But along the way, I decided I really wanted to steal Golikov right at the end of the draft and that meant make Harris a LW (where he may not be credible) or get a reasonable replacement because Golikov, for all his outstanding scoring accomplishments (the most outstanding in the draft?) doesn’t have intangibles himself. Enter Granato. Granato doesn’t have Harris’ size – he doesn’t really have size at all – but he had everything you’d want in a player. I had him tabbed as a bottom 6 player but it didn’t take long for him to get to the top of that pile and his offense was in the same range as a number of other scoring line guys being taken so I thought why not. He’s not imtimidating, he’s too small to be. But he is physical and intense, and the line is now defensive enough by committee. It’s as balanced a 2nd offensive line as I could put together in this draft.
Harris ended up on the 3rd line, where he is a standout both offensively and defensively. It’s actually a strong two-way line that, relative to the draft it’s in, might be my best ever. Dahlstrom was a very good defensive forward himself, with best 6 percentage scores totaling over 300. And Boll was over 340, he too with a solid case as a two-way utility type forward. If there’s a weakness it’s that there’s not really a mean bone in their bodies though. This line won’t kill or intimidate you. But Dahlstrom was a plucky, courageous guy, Harris was big, strong and hard to move. Boll was determined in all zones. It has great potential.
I had my eyes in Henning a long time. He’s definitely the best penalty killer in the draft. He’s that good at it. Results at even strength may be mixed but I find it hard to believe that there wasn’t something up with his usage by Al Arbour if he was able to score with relative ease while shorthanded while being relatively inept at even strength. Anyway, Plett was my #1 choice all along for a “goon who can play†at forward, with Dan Maloney very close behind. Scott Walker would have sufficed as well. Then with Golikov in my plans already I looked at my lineup and decided I wanted one more offensive ringer. McDonald was the guy. His percentage scores are through the roof for a pre-merger guy taken now. Plus multiple sources confirm that despite his size, he was not just a slight, weak, one-dimensional player. That said, we had a spot on the PP that needed filling and I think it’s logical that he’ll have an even easier time scoring there. At even strength, this line is kind of a mishmash that will give the top 3 lines some rest, but it’s full of players who specialize in specific things and can move up the lineup when needed, and 2 of the 3 will be important on special teams.
Tregubov was discussed at great length back when I selected him. I welcomed the opportunity to defend the pick, and was honestly surpised that I had to defend him in the 1100s. I fully accept that he should have fallen from his usual ATD slot, but I don’t think I’m being unrealistic when I say he could be a top MLD defenseman. The question mark is of course the competition level he faced. The list of MLD (and even ATD) comparables is long, and if Tregubov is really just a AAA player, the implications for a lot of players are quite profound.
I actually consider Reg Hamilton my #2. Yes, I’m actually that high on this guy. He was a #2-4 defenseman for teams that were consistently strong, for longer than almost any defenseman from the O6 selected going all the way back through the MLD. He did earn all-star recognition (yes, in a war year, but then that was past his prime, too) and quotes indicate what he was good at, so he’s not much of a mystery. Marsh is my #3. What really jumped out at me was that he managed to be a 20+ minute guy for 900 games, and for outstanding teams. The Flyers were his team for most of the 80s, and they may have been the second best team of the decade. And he was usually their #3 ES/PK defenseman, eating up the majority of the minutes that Mark Howe (a huge minute hog) and McCrimmon weren’t taking. The quotes about all his excellent skills can be found everywhere; his bio could have been twice as long. He did literally everything at an elite level for this draft, with the exception of skating, fighting, and puck-related things (lol) but that still leaves a lot, like: penalty killing, clutching/grabbing, hitting, positional defense, crease clearing, leadership, shot blocking. And that sounds like some nondescript stay at home defensemen in a lot of ways, but when you do it for that many minutes and your teams are that successful with you playing such a role, you deserve more prompt selection. Weaknesses? Not a whiz with the puck. Typically referred to as slow.
I have Al Hamilton as my #4. While I still can’t get behind TDMM’s assertion that Hamilton is better than Barry Gibbs, or really all that close, I have sold him short in the past. He’s not
just an offensive defenseman, and in fact his offense is not even that impressive when you adjust for the WHA. He is a two-way guy with a wide range of skills, none of them particularly standout, and no real weaknesses. I like him with Reg, because Reg is the same (his offense is quite underrated) but one’s more offensive and one’s more defensive.
Brisebois is a guy no one really “likes†to pick. But it had to be done. We had a conversation about him already earlier on and about how I’d rather take an offensive specialist who proved he could handle more responsibility in real life than just 2nd/3rd pairing and PP. Also, the PPs he contributed to were actually
good, which is rare for PP specialist defensemen at this level. After that it was just a matter of taking a stay at home tough guy, puck skills optional, to cover his weaknesses. Couldn’t get Odelein. Couldn’t get Snepsts. Had barely begun to consider Jackman and Plager when they were gone. Finally settled on Art Moore. Would have probably moved to Jim Dorey had I missed out on Moore. I’m glad I got Moore though. It gave me the impetus to get some more quotes on him, which I managed to do. And it wasn’t easy, either.
Hrudey is not
the best starter in this draft, but I think he’s well above average. All things considered, he’s a “Potvin Plusâ€. I was actually a little surprised to see just how highly he was regarded circa 1987-1989. Robertson, IMO, was a steal as a backup and should be a starter here. A cup, 2nd and 3rd all-star teams, twice top-5 for the Hart? In a backup? You kidding me?
I was quite pleased to steal Sutter from a Rideau assistant coach job that he was far overqualified for. Sutter was beloved by Brett Hull and if you read his bio, Brett gives an extraordinary amount of credit for his development as a player. 1st, 2nd, 2nd in Adams voting is pretty sweet for this level. And he has an established history of making things better for the teams that hire him. And when they get impetuous and fire him, things don’t get better, they get worse. Laperriere is a guy I had done a lot of reading on and the amount of reverence defensemen have for him as a teacher was really impressive. He had a tendency to coach better than average PK units and teach defense corps who didn’t allow a lot of shots.
I am in love with Bob Turner and I humbly suggest he could play in anyone’s top 6 or higher (maybe the MLD). I’m happy to have him in his real life role: a D/W swingman. Check out the quotes in his bio. He is remembered well by those who saw him. He lasted not quite as long as a guy like Hamilton, but he stayed up with an even better team, the late 50s Habs. Havlat and Murphy were two multi-wing spares I just had to have, Havlat strictly for offense and Murphy for both (he was remarkably consistent and would not look out of place as a top-6 glue guy here… at all. His best 6 scores are 294, not far behind Murphy, Granato and Harris and you know what I think of them.) That said, I realize his claim as a viable RW is a tad on the weak side. Havlat was truly 50/50 LW/RW though.
PP units are pretty easy to explain. My two most potent forwards (aside from Nedved) up front, Harris for net presence, then Nedved on the point. I think he’s one of only two legitimate pointman forwards here, correct me if I’m wrong. He had excellent passing and vision, but a weak slap shot. Tregubov, however, had an outstanding slap shot. So I think they make a perfect “quarterback, triggerman†pair. The unit has big Harris standing in front and grinding down low as well. I like it a lot. The second is my next three most potent forwards (again, Golikov may be my MOST potent forward) and then two more than passable pointmen. Believe me, it’s a struggle for me to find PP pointmen I can live with. Somehow I managed.
Henning killed 57% of penalties for units 25% better than average. He rules. Murphy was up at 36% but his teams weren’t nearly as successful. Marsh’s PK stats are also outstanding. Before his decline went into full effect, he had played 930 games, killing 51% for PKs 14% above average. Reg Hamilton has no actual PK resume to speak of, seeing as he’s an O6 player. I’m simply assuming as a strong defensive player he would be good. Second unit has Dahlstrom, such a prolific penalty killer for an O6 player that it’s actually noted by a few sources, and Granato, who is… at least competent. (I could have used someone like Harris, or even McDonald or Boll but I really wanted to do the whole “one special teams job per player†thing). Tregubov and Moore, both solid defensively, round it out. Only Tregubov is on two special teams. Only Plett isn’t on one. But keep your heads up at even strength.
I didn’t seek to steal every captain in this draft but I sure did well in that regard by accident. Murphy was a six-year captain, he gets the C. Hamilton was a 4-year WHA captain and deserves an A. Marsh was twice a one-year captain in the NHL and has tons of quotes on his leadership. He gets the other A. If one of them is injured, Art Moore is assistant #3. He captained the Silver Seven for one season.
Anyone else have some feedback? It should come as no surprise that I like this lineup a lot but other opinions would be appreciated.