I liked that Rychel immediately hugged Anderson after Sedlak scored the OT goal. I was worried that there was a lot of contention between the two players since Anderson essentially leapfrogged Rychel last season on the depth chart and got called up first.
Bjorkstrand is NHL caliber. He has a maturity, composure, and skill set that sets him apart from the other AHL players.
Rychel hasn't really set himself apart aside from his willingness to play physical and go to the dirty areas. He's got to improve his puck carrying ability and 15 foot shot. Had a good feed to Sedlak on the 1st period goal. Right now he's playing like he wants to become a 3rd line winger at the NHL level. He was drafted to be a top-6 ~20 goal guy, though, so he has work to do.
Anderson is big. He's got to polish his game, but I see a certain David Backes-esque component to his play. I guess it's because of his reach, guts, and the fact that he has decent hands for a big guy. He's also a good leader.
Milano obviously brings tons of speed and an amazing ability to carry the puck. I'm worried about how his game will translate to the NHL where defenders are not only bigger but also much faster.
Wasn't very impressed with our defense aside from Werenski. Last night was an off night for Kukan who carried the puck well but had a bunch of defensive lapses. Heatherington also was a liability. Werenski had one or two bad passes, but otherwise was solid. He was relied upon to be both the offensive catalyst AND had to be the most defensively responsible guy. That's not really his forte. Match him with someone who plays better defense than Heatherington or Kukan and I think he'll shine.
Sedlak and Hannikainen worked really hard. I could see them being quality bottom-6 guys in the NHL or top-line guys in the AHL.
Finally, Forsberg looks great. Amazing composure and positioning. Don't know why his game hasn't translated to the NHL yet. That's one for Ian Clark to figure out.
You don't win many games where you essentially allow 50 shots on goal, especially in an elimination game. Last night was a gutsy win marked by stellar goaltending and a bit of puck luck.