End of year grades
Goalies A , Didn't matter who was in net they all performed well, sure a soft goal now and again but that doesn't effect their overall grade, they were solid, Boston is in excellent shape at this position
Andrew Peski C+ Played 6 games and was a +2, didn't stand out in any particular area but also wasn't a determent, contract is up and might be worth keeping him around for depth
Curtis Hall C+ All things considered (long layoff, injury, full class load at Yale)wasn't that bad, struggled to find a role till the last few games, big boy with soft hands, decent vision, skating needs work as does fitness and engagement but I think there's a lot there and we have to be patient
Nick Wolff B- I think we can all agree we over rated him a bit coming into the season, for positives he's huge and as the season wore on he was more comfortable throwing his weight around, an excellent PKer and showed surprising offensive instincts for such a big dude, for negatives he's still very stiff and decision making is a bit slow, would obviously like more sandpaper, contract is up ,I'd like to see him in a full year and go from there
Joel Messner C He's been in/out of the organization for years now, he's a strong ECHL player and a mediocre AHL one, he's been good in a pinch but you can't count on him long term, I wish him good fortune in the wars to come
Urho Vaakanainen D waste of talent, bad attitude, bad pick, time to move on
Ian McKinnon B+ favorite of the Neanderthal wing of our fan base ,the kid can actually play a bit of hockey though, would love to see him rewarded with a contract extension, very entertaining player, he has an interesting hockey resume
Pavel Shen C- there didn't seem to be much development in his game, still takes bad penalties and doesn't chip in nearly enough to stay in the lineup, occasionally he teases you but it never last, 1 more year left to make an impression
Eduards Tralmaks B lots to like, big and feisty, skates well, drives to the net, responsible, looks like you can use him anywhere, they did well getting him
Matt Filipe B hard worker who grew into his role, started slow, became more aggressive showed above average pace and decent skill, suffered an undisclosed injury and missed last few games, keep an eye on him in the future
Joona Koppanen C- he fell off the map, started well then ?.... I assume we've seen the last of him
Jack Studnicka C 11 games 7 assist no goals -4 not very Captain Jack like, I didn't like his pouty body language and it wasn't till last few games he played to standards, while I'm concerned with the Providence player, Boston Coaching staff disconnect Jack has to do a better job pushing through it
Cooper Zech B would have been a B+ if his play didn't fall off after missing a few games to injury, development wise he's been hitting his marks and meeting expectations, able to play both sides of D and is a PP weapon when given the room to operate, his 5v5 play has improved and he's been able to gain a bit of muscle, points wise a little disappointing but he's also rounded out his overall game, contract is up and would love to see him back
Alex Olivier Voyer B+ I'll admit, I was skeptical but he's won me over, plays every shift hard, chips in offensively protects his teammates, seems like a coach's dream, if he can clean up his skating we might have something, happy he volunteered to continue playing in Jacksonville, good on Sweeney bringing in him, Tralmaks and Filipe, big dudes that are hard to play against
Jack Ahcan A- legit talent that in a normal year probably isn't rushed to the NHL like he was this season, runs the PP like a Boss, so competitive, yes seize is an issue, a big issue.. the kid's a winner though, lets see how this plays out
Oskar Steen B- Will the real Oskar Steen stand up? There are times when he should be in our top 10 prospect discussions and then there are times you forget he's on the ice, NHL release, plus skater, combative at times, need more consistency! hoping for a big season next year, we'll see
Zach Senyshyn B+ dude was a machine down here but his call ups were a bit disappointing, at this point I think you have to let him go, a very likeable kid who just didn't get there in time, I don't know what else to say
Paul Carey B- The Captain has been a warrior and has a lot of hard miles on him but it's obvious to me he's in decline, would like to wish him the best where ever he ends up
Brady Lyle A outstanding free agent signing that now has an NHL contract, nice combination of seize, skill, grit, cannon of a shot, went from a curiosity to a mainstay in rather quick time, he's going to need more seasoning so keep expectations within reason, skating isn't poor but it isn't great either, interested to see if he dropes off playing 70+ games next year, be happy though, so far so good
Robert Lantosi B in a way he disappointed me but I clearly over rated him, started slow but picked up his offensive play to where he was last year, I didn't see growth in the other parts of his game though, rumored to be heading to the KHL and wasn't a Black Ace so writing is on the wall, I'd like to give him a lower grade but he did deliver some timely goals , was worth the experiment and I bet he finds success elsewhere
Samuel Asselin A- just a solid hockey player, started on the 4th line ended up on the 1st, can play PP and PK ,hard to play against, really good player, improved at every level he's played at, should be resigned and will drive the vets crazy at training camp, energizer bunny, fun player to watch
Jakub Lauko A- only question I had for him was did he have the hands to play top 6 in the NHL and I'm happy to say he does, another player that's relentless and brings it every shift, loved watching him blossom offensively ,fearless that oozes machismo on the ice, needs to stay healthy though, he's very close to NHL ready, strange he didn't play Monday
Cam Hughes A+ Saved the best for last, does everything for the team, should be offered a one way deal and should be the next Captain, hopefully he sticks around another few years
Finally thanks to Providence for pulling this off, wasn't always pretty but they got 25 games in plus tons of practice time in
October 15 is right around the corner!
Series Talk: WCSF - Vancouver Canucks vs Edmonton Oilers
