MLD #9 Lineup Assassination

[vancityluongo]

So the MLD is nearing completion, and regular season voting is coming up. Even with only 8 teams, it'd be nice to have a proper evalution period. This thread helps with that. Defend your lineup, and argue in favour of your team while other GM's attack your every fault, whether it actually exists or not!

Post your complete lineups, with coaching staff, captains, special teams units, etc.

Example of assassination thread for new GM's:

http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=514879&highlight=Lineup+Assassination

Click to read more...

 

[Transplanted Caper]

The Peterborough Petes​

Location: Peterborough, Ontario
Home Rink: Peterborough Memorial Centre

Head Coach: Rudy Pilous
Captain:
Assistant Captain:
Assistant Captain:

Herb Cain-Paul Ronty-Wally Hergesheimer
Anton Stastny-Harry Trihey-Marian Stastny
Darcy Tucker-Ron Stewart-Marion Gaborik
Shawn Burr-Jason Arnott-Rich Sutter
Mike Grier

Frank "Moose" Goheen-Yevgeny Paladiev
Mike O'Connell-Dave Maloney
Bill Juzda-Dimitri Yuskevich
Jeff Brown

Johnny Mowers
Bert Lindsay

PP1: Herb Cain-Paul Ronty-Wally Hergesheimer-O'Connell-Maloney
PP2Anton Stastny-Harry Trihey-Marian Stastny-Marion Gaborik-Yevgeny Paladiev

PK1:Sutter-Stewart-Yuskevich-Juzda
PK2:Burr-Arnott-Goheen-Paladiev


​

 

[vancityluongo]

Vancouver Giants​

Coach: Brian Kilrea
Assistant Coach: Dwight McMillan
Assistant Coach: Phil Esposito
Captain: Frantisek Tikal
Alternate Captain: Boris Mayorov
Alternate Captain: Cliff Ronning

Boris Mayorov (A) - Andre Lacroix - Pavol Demitra
Yevgeny Mayorov - Cliff Ronning (A) - Ulf Dahlen
Nick Libett - Thomas Gradin - Al MacAdam
Morris Lukowich - Laurie Boschman - Doug Brown


Goldie Prodgers - Frantisek Tikal (C)
Doug Young - Joe Jerwa
Lee Fogolin Jr. - Leo Reise Sr.
Dana Murzyn

Roland "Rollie" Melanson
"King" Richard Brodeur

PP1: Demitra - Lacroix - Dahlen - Prodgers - Tikal
PP2: Y. Mayorov - Gradin - B. Mayorov - Jerwa - Reise

PK1: Libett - Boschman - Prodgers - Fogolin
PK2: Lukowich - Ronning - Jerwa - Tikal Sr.​

 

[chaosrevolver]

Belleville Bulls MLD #9 Team

Belleville Bulls
Location: Belleville, Ontario
Home Rink: Yardmen Arena

Head Coach: Randy Carlyle
Assistant Coach: Guy Carbonneau
Captain: Don Lever
Assistant Captain: Al Arbour
Assistant Captain: Tommy Smith



Alex Tanguay - Tommy Smith (A) - Corb Denneny
Smokey Harris - Ed Olczyk - Mark Napier
Don Lever (C) - Kelly Kisio - Mush March
Ethan Moreau - Stephane Yelle - Leroy Goldsworthy
Saku Koivu

Al Arbour (A) - Phat Wilson
Gord Fraser - Uwe Krupp
Gord Lane - Jocelyn Guevremont
Marty Burke

Wilf Cude
Arturs Irbe​

What Nates and my goal was, to create lines from the past drafts that had quite alot of success. Though we didnt necessarily have the ability to do that with the top 2 lines because alot of guys who had success on those lines end up in the ATD.

We feel our offense is as good as anybody's. A playmaker like Tanguay with two of the best goalscorers in the draft in Smith and Denneny and then a big, strong, playmaker in Olczyk with Mark Napier (3 30+ goal seasons) and Smokey Harris. Then comes our third line which we feel is the perfect blend off Leadership, Defensive ability and offensive ability. Lever-Kisio-March combined for 1723 points in 2540 games and also combined for a total of 8 years as a captain between the three. Moreau-Yelle are great checking liners and have drawn praise from TC in the last MLD as they were featured on the same line of a very good team in the draft.

We know our defense is no where near the best in the draft. That is always the risk when you go with offense+goalie first. So we hoped to win over all the other gm's in this draft with some surprising picks, including three players from our AAA team from last year. Yes, its a risky move. But one we think could/should pay off.

Al Arbour is our anchor on defense as he was a first pairing defenseman on the winner of MLD #8.

Phat Wilson was noted as an all-time great amateur player whose long rushes down ice contributed to his winning the senior scoring title as a defenceman. He is also a hall of famer.

Gord Fraser was a first pairing defenseman on our MLD #8 team. This time hes a second pairing defenseman. He was a physical player who could also contribute on offence. He played 144 NHL games in five different cities and was an accomplished performer in the minors and the PCHA.

Uwe Krupp is definetly a noticeable name on our team. And certainly will be one of the defenseman that we will key on. He was a leader who represented Germany on many different occasions. He has won a stanley cup. Was 6"6, strong, agile and a overall very solid defenseman. We feel he is one of our strengths.

Gord Lane in my opinion should be selected in the minor league draft for sure. He was one of our last picks in the AAA draft. And me and Nate couldnt believe he was available even in that draft period. Lane has a rough start to his career based on him being just a fighter. But he worked hard to get back to the show. And ended up with the Islanders just in time to be one of the main players that helped them to 4 straight cup victories. The site Legends of Hockey even says, "Lane has been credited as being the team's most effective defender during that era." That is some serious high praise for a team that had the likes of Denis Potvin, Dave Langevin, Stefan Persson and Ken Morrow.

Jocelyn Guevremont is another one that I think is very underrated. As a young defenseman he was considered a purely offensive defenseman. He was considered one of the top offensive prospects from the point that there had been in a long time. However, it was his defense that was the problem. Defense was a problem for Guevremont up until 1975. It was his 4th season in the NHL. Before this time. JG had a total +/- rating of -107 in 3 seasons. But in the next 6 seasons (the rest of his career), Jocelyn put up a +/- rating of +129. And at the same time showed off his impressive offensive talents as he finished with 6 35+ point seasons. He was even named to the 1972 Summit Series team as an extra.

In net we feel like we have one of the best goaltenders in the draft. With goalies flying off the charts early. It was clear to us that we needed to pick one soon. Cude was still available and im sure many didnt realize that he was still around as it was thought of as a steal by a few gm's. Though Cude had under a .500 Winning Percentage that wasnt necessarily his fault. He actually finished with a 2.72 GAA for his career which is extremely respectable. His worst years seemed to be when he got older but his prime was absolutely insane. From 1933-1938 Wilf Cude would post a record of 86-79-41, 20 shutouts and a goals against average that was a remarkable 2.39. This is definetly one of the strengths of the Bulls.

Finally our coaching. We feel its one of the best in the draft. Randy Carlyle has clearly has fantastic success with the Anaheim Ducks. And not just the Ducks either, but also overall as a coach period. With all the teams Randy Carlyle has coached, between the IHL-AHL-NHL, Carlyle's team has never had a losing season. That is an incredible feat. His assistant Guy Carbonneau, though inexperienced, will do well with Randy. As Guy was one of the best defensive forwards ever and can help not just our forwards but also our defense in how to handle your own zone carefully and strategically.

Overall, when you look at mine and Nate's MLD 8 team and then look at our ATD 9 team and then at our MLD 9 team. I think you will notice a huge upswing. This draft truly fills your minds with so much information that is not only useful but also interesting.

 

[vancityluongo]

The Peterborough Petes​

Location: Peterborough, Ontario
Home Rink: Peterborough Memorial Centre

Head Coach: Rudy Pilous
Captain:
Assistant Captain:
Assistant Captain:

Herb Cain-Paul Ronty-Wally Hergesheimer
Anton Stastny-Harry Trihey-Marian Stastny
Darcy Tucker-Ron Stewart-Marion Gaborik
Shawn Burr-Jason Arnott-Rich Sutter
Mike Grier

Frank "Moose" Goheen-Yevgeny Paladiev
Jeff Brown-Mike O'Connell
Dave Maloney-Dimitri Yuskevich
Bill Juzda

Johnny Mowers
Bert Lindsay

PP1: Herb Cain-Paul Ronty-Wally Hergesheimer-O'Connell-Maloney
PP2Anton Stastny-Harry Trihey-Marian Stastny-Marion Gaborik-Yevgeny Paladiev

PK1:Sutter-Stewart-Yuskevich-Brown
PK2:Burr-Arnott-Goheen-Paladiev


​

I guess I'll start assassinating then.

First off, I've already posted how many times you've stole players that I was about to grab that we both had last draft. Paladiev, Brown, Stewart, Stastny, Cain. All solid picks.

I love your top line. It's one of the better ones of the 8. Herb Cain is as seventies said, the classic MLD top line forward. I honestly don't know much about the other two guys on that line, other then they seem to be by all accounts, classic top line forwards as well. The biggest thing that jumps out to me though is your secondary scoring. Harry Trihey, the Stastnys, Gaborik, Arnott, heck even Rocky had a couple 20 goal seasons. Most these guys are fairly responsible defensively as well.

On defense, I've said enough about Paladiev. My favourite MLD defensemen, if that makes sense. Until he gets drafted in the main draft, which he should, as a 6th or 7th, I will always have him targeted. Moose Goheen is a top pairing defensemen in comparison to the others, easily. But, while I threw a tantrum about Brown, I'm not that big a fan of him after I looked him up some more. I wanted him for my third pairing, and I'm not sure he should be on your second. Although, I like your overall defense, and I don't know nearly enough about most of them, other then Paladiev, I'd like to hear your case for your bottom 4. I see that as the weak spot for your team. Brown took a lot of risks from what I've read and heard, is Milbury solid enough defensively to cover for him?

Mowers and Lindsay might be one of the strongest tandems in the draft as well. However, from what I've researched, neither played very long.

Your coaching is just as strong as last draft as well. From everything I've heard, Pilous is one of the top bench bosses in this draft.

Overall I really like this team.

 

[vancityluongo]

Belleville Bulls
Location: Belleville, Ontario
Home Rink: Yardmen Arena

Head Coach: Randy Carlyle
Assistant Coach: Guy Carbonneau
Captain: Don Lever
Assistant Captain: Al Arbour
Assistant Captain: Tommy Smith



Alex Tanguay - Tommy Smith (A) - Corb Denneny
Smokey Harris - Ed Olczyk - Mark Napier
Don Lever (C) - Kelly Kisio - Mush March
Ethan Moreau - Stephane Yelle - Leroy Goldsworthy
Saku Koivu

Al Arbour (A) - Phat Wilson
Gord Fraser - Uwe Krupp
Gord Lane - Jocelyn Guevremont
Marty Burke

Wilf Cude
Arturs Irbe​

What Nates and my goal was, to create lines from the past drafts that had quite alot of success. Though we didnt necessarily have the ability to do that with the top 2 lines because alot of guys who had success on those lines end up in the ATD.




Overall, when you look at mine and Nate's MLD 8 team and then look at our ATD 9 team and then at our MLD 9 team. I think you will notice a huge upswing. This draft truly fills your minds with so much information that is not only useful but also interesting.

You guys have definitely improved. This is your best team in comparison to the other teams yet, and I'm expecting you guys will do even better in the ATD.

You've already addressed a bunch of things, so I'll just quote you:

We feel our offense is as good as anybody's. A playmaker like Tanguay with two of the best goalscorers in the draft in Smith and Denneny and then a big, strong, playmaker in Olczyk with Mark Napier (3 30+ goal seasons) and Smokey Harris. Then comes our third line which we feel is the perfect blend off Leadership, Defensive ability and offensive ability. Lever-Kisio-March combined for 1723 points in 2540 games and also combined for a total of 8 years as a captain between the three. Moreau-Yelle are great checking liners and have drawn praise from TC in the last MLD as they were featured on the same line of a very good team in the draft.

I'm a big fan of modern players, but I'm not sure what I think of Alex Tanguay. I like both Smith and Denneny, but I feel Tanguay is a bit of a weak link on that line. I'll give you credit though, your top 6 has a fairly good combination of size, grit, scoring, and talent. I don't think you should expect too much offense from your bottom-6, although I think Kisio had some offensive talent.

Al Arbour is our anchor on defense as he was a first pairing defenseman on the winner of MLD #8.

Phat Wilson was noted as an all-time great amateur player whose long rushes down ice contributed to his winning the senior scoring title as a defenceman. He is also a hall of famer.

Gord Fraser was a first pairing defenseman on our MLD #8 team. This time hes a second pairing defenseman. He was a physical player who could also contribute on offence. He played 144 NHL games in five different cities and was an accomplished performer in the minors and the PCHA.

Different things contribute to all this. I'm not a fan of "he was a 1st pairing defensemen last draft" as an argument. I tried it a couple times before, got burned. Yeah, the draft pools are getting shallower, so if a guy was a first pairing guy last draft, in a thinner talent pool, he should be a superstar, right? Not always, so just a suggestion, because I had to learn the hard way, have an argument ready as to why he was a first pairing guy last draft/this draft. (this was directed mainly towards your comment about Arbour.

I will say though, I think you're underestimating your defense. I think you're expecting a bit too much from your forwards, but you're being modest about your defense corps. Just IMO.

In net we feel like we have one of the best goaltenders in the draft. With goalies flying off the charts early. It was clear to us that we needed to pick one soon. Cude was still available and im sure many didnt realize that he was still around as it was thought of as a steal by a few gm's. Though Cude had under a .500 Winning Percentage that wasnt necessarily his fault. He actually finished with a 2.72 GAA for his career which is extremely respectable. His worst years seemed to be when he got older but his prime was absolutely insane. From 1933-1938 Wilf Cude would post a record of 86-79-41, 20 shutouts and a goals against average that was a remarkable 2.39. This is definetly one of the strengths of the Bulls.

Can't argue with that really. Solid post, and one of the best goalies in the draft. I'm a fan of Irbe too, he's definitely one of the most underrated modern goalies.

Finally our coaching. We feel its one of the best in the draft. Randy Carlyle has clearly has fantastic success with the Anaheim Ducks. And not just the Ducks either, but also overall as a coach period. With all the teams Randy Carlyle has coached, between the IHL-AHL-NHL, Carlyle's team has never had a losing season. That is an incredible feat. His assistant Guy Carbonneau, though inexperienced, will do well with Randy. As Guy was one of the best defensive forwards ever and can help not just our forwards but also our defense in how to handle your own zone carefully and strategically.

I like Carlyle. I like Carbonneau. I think you could've used an assistant/head coach with more experience though. Both are great coaches, don't get me wrong, but I'm not too sure about in the MLD. I think both are fine, just maybe you should've had either one of them paired with an older, more experienced guy.

Still, solid effort, and like I said, the best team you two have put together.

 

[chaosrevolver]

I'm a big fan of modern players, but I'm not sure what I think of Alex Tanguay. I like both Smith and Denneny, but I feel Tanguay is a bit of a weak link on that line. I'll give you credit though, your top 6 has a fairly good combination of size, grit, scoring, and talent. I don't think you should expect too much offense from your bottom-6, although I think Kisio had some offensive talent.

Tanguay has been a pretty decent playoff performer is whole career. We wanted a left winger who could feed the puck to Smith and Denneny and he seemed like he fit the bill the best. Im not a huge modern guy. But I felt he would be our best choice. We love our second line for sure. Our third line we dont necessarily want to be offensive filled. More of a two-way game though. Thats why we picked three guys who could hold their own in all 3 zones. The 4th line definetly isnt an offensive line. But TC did say in the last draft that he liked those Moreau and Yelle together because of the assets both bring to the table. Which is why we situated them on the 4th line.

Different things contribute to all this. I'm not a fan of "he was a 1st pairing defensemen last draft" as an argument. I tried it a couple times before, got burned. Yeah, the draft pools are getting shallower, so if a guy was a first pairing guy last draft, in a thinner talent pool, he should be a superstar, right? Not always, so just a suggestion, because I had to learn the hard way, have an argument ready as to why he was a first pairing guy last draft/this draft. (this was directed mainly towards your comment about Arbour.

Oh I understand what your saying. But I was referring to him being a 1st pair d-man on the CHAMPIONS of MLD 8. And I know who he was paired with and obviously that had a big impact. But at the same time, he has the experience of a championship and is paired with another offensive defenseman. So I just thought id point it out.

I will say though, I think you're underestimating your defense. I think you're expecting a bit too much from your forwards, but you're being modest about your defense corps. Just IMO.

I wouldnt say im underestimating or expecting too much about any of my team. I think the defense is going to be underrated, but im just not sure others will see that. My offense is built with two offensive lines, a line that plays a great two way game and a defensive line. We arent necessarily saying we will win games 9-0. But we feel they can get it done.

Can't argue with that really. Solid post, and one of the best goalies in the draft. I'm a fan of Irbe too, he's definitely one of the most underrated modern goalies.

I was actually surprised that Irbe was still available.

I like Carlyle. I like Carbonneau. I think you could've used an assistant/head coach with more experience though. Both are great coaches, don't get me wrong, but I'm not too sure about in the MLD. I think both are fine, just maybe you should've had either one of them paired with an older, more experienced guy.

Cannot say I disagree to be honest. But then again, the success Carlyle has had is undeniable. And Carbonneau being an assistant is based on more of the "what he has experienced and can teach the team" aspect.

Still, solid effort, and like I said, the best team you two have put together.

Thankyou very much

 

[vancityluongo]

Tanguay has been a pretty decent playoff performer is whole career. We wanted a left winger who could feed the puck to Smith and Denneny and he seemed like he fit the bill the best. Im not a huge modern guy. But I felt he would be our best choice. We love our second line for sure. Our third line we dont necessarily want to be offensive filled. More of a two-way game though. Thats why we picked three guys who could hold their own in all 3 zones. The 4th line definetly isnt an offensive line. But TC did say in the last draft that he liked those Moreau and Yelle together because of the assets both bring to the table. Which is why we situated them on the 4th line.

It's clear you had a plan, which is good. Tanguay is a good fit on that line, although, like I said, I think the role might be a bit too much for him, but he won't be out of place much because of his solid linemates, and because of the shallowness of LW's, in comparison with others.

I also like Moreau and Yelle though, and agree that they bring a lot to your 4th line. Good picks.

Oh I understand what your saying. But I was referring to him being a 1st pair d-man on the CHAMPIONS of MLD 8. And I know who he was paired with and obviously that had a big impact. But at the same time, he has the experience of a championship and is paired with another offensive defenseman. So I just thought id point it out.

I don't think we judge players based on what they've won in terms of HF drafts. My starting goalie, Rolland Melanson, has won and been to the finals twice in the main draft. Both as backup, but should GM's take that into consideration? Does that give him "experience"? No, because as far as I know, we only judge players on what they did in real life. What they did in previous ATD's/MLD's has nothing to do with anything really, other then it's fun to see which players have been on the most ATD championship teams and stuf like that.

I wouldnt say im underestimating or expecting too much about any of my team. I think the defense is going to be underrated, but im just not sure others will see that. My offense is built with two offensive lines, a line that plays a great two way game and a defensive line. We arent necessarily saying we will win games 9-0. But we feel they can get it done.

I definitely wasn't questioning your modesty, if that's what it came off as. My apologies if it did. No, you made a reference to how you like your offense, but don't think your defense is that strong. All I was saying is, I'm not as big of a fan of your offense as I thikn you are, and I like your defense a fair bit. Just your opinion vs. mine.

Cannot say I disagree to be honest. But then again, the success Carlyle has had is undeniable. And Carbonneau being an assistant is based on more of the "what he has experienced and can teach the team" aspect.

Carlyle success in relation to how long he's been coaching is pretty impressive. And I agree with your comment on Carbonneau, it's actually why I took Espo (what he's experienced on, and off the ice ).

 

[chaosrevolver]

I don't think we judge players based on what they've won in terms of HF drafts. My starting goalie, Rolland Melanson, has won and been to the finals twice in the main draft. Both as backup, but should GM's take that into consideration? Does that give him "experience"? No, because as far as I know, we only judge players on what they did in real life. What they did in previous ATD's/MLD's has nothing to do with anything really, other then it's fun to see which players have been on the most ATD championship teams and stuf like that.

No I get that, i was just pointing out that he was a 1st pairing defenseman on a championship team and certainly wasnt considered a weakpoint by any means. I wasnt really saying he deserves to get more recognition. It was just something that I feel comfortable with in the spot he is in.

 

[vancityluongo]

No I get that, i was just pointing out that he was a 1st pairing defenseman on a championship team and certainly wasnt considered a weakpoint by any means. I wasnt really saying he deserves to get more recognition. It was just something that I feel comfortable with in the spot he is in.

Fair enough. I've just seen arguments, and argued myself about how "so and so was a a first pairing defensemen on this persons team, and he's a second pairing guy on my team, why is he being called weak!" kinda thing.

 

[seventieslord]

Fair enough. I've just seen arguments, and argued myself about how "so and so was a a first pairing defensemen on this persons team, and he's a second pairing guy on my team, why is he being called weak!" kinda thing.

I may have contributed to that a bit.

Like in last MLD, Nash was treated like a run of the mill 2nd-liner or even a weak MLDer. I only had the guy on my second line. This draft, GBC (and let's admit it, he's one of the better GMs around) says he was considering him for his first line.... in a talent pool that was two teams shallower this time around. It felt like a double standard. Doesn't really bother me, but I do feel it's kind of important to bring it up.

I noticed your point about Arbour - Yes, Arbour was on the top pairing of the champions. But he was not one of the two best defensemen on that team. He just ended up being put on the top pairing with their best defenseman - which is fine, that's how many teams are built. So to me it's a tough sell trying to pass him off as a top-pairing player like that. he can be, only if he's the complementary player. there's a difference.

 

[seventieslord]

This is just a copy and paste of my roster thread page, but I don't have time to write anything more about it. If you click on the players if takes you right to the bios I wrote that contain pictures and feature all the pertinent information. Do your worst!

Regina Capitals - click on player names for full bios

Rusty Crawford (C) - Dennis Maruk - Bill Guerin
Todd Bertuzzi - Josef Malecek - Scott Young
Patrik Sundstrom - Rick Meagher - Jimmy Peters Sr.
Darryl Sutter - Bruce MacGregor - Alf Skinner (A)

Dickie Boon - Jeff Beukeboom
Bob Murray - Howard McNamara
Bobby Rowe - Paul Shmyr (A)

Percy Lesueur
Henrik Lundqvist

Extras:
RW Alex Shibicky
LW/C Mike Krushelnyski
D Alan "Eagle Eye" Cameron

Coach: Art Ross

PP1: Crawford-Malecek-Bertuzzi-Boon-Murray
PP2: Sundstrom-Maruk-Guerin-Rowe-Shmyr
PK1: Young-Meagher-Beukeboom-McNamara
PK2: Peters-Crawford-Rowe-Shmyr

Regina was built for balance. Any player with a bad playoff record is offset by a player with a good one. Any small player is offset by a large one. There is no reliance on any one particular era or geographical location. I made sure to include players known for speed, toughness, playoff ability, and size throughout the lineup to avoid having holes or weaknesses in the lineup. There are some excellent value picks from the early days - players who should never fall as far as they do - Alf Skinner, Rusty Crawford, and bobby Rowe, to name a few. We have 6 players capable of playing LW, 8 who can play C, and 6 who can play RW. Art Ross fully intends to juggle lines and make full use of his extras as needed throughout the playoffs.

When Regina's players careers began, by decade:

1880's: 1
1890's: 1
1900's: 3
1910's: 3
1920's: 1
1930's: 1
1940's: 1
1950's: 1
1960's: 1
1970's: 4
1980's: 4
1990's: 2
2000's: 1

Truly an all-time team.

 

[God Bless Canada]

I may have contributed to that a bit.

Like in last MLD, Nash was treated like a run of the mill 2nd-liner or even a weak MLDer. I only had the guy on my second line. This draft, GBC (and let's admit it, he's one of the better GMs around) says he was considering him for his first line.... in a talent pool that was two teams shallower this time around. It felt like a double standard. Doesn't really bother me, but I do feel it's kind of important to bring it up.

I noticed your point about Arbour - Yes, Arbour was on the top pairing of the champions. But he was not one of the two best defensemen on that team. He just ended up being put on the top pairing with their best defenseman - which is fine, that's how many teams are built. So to me it's a tough sell trying to pass him off as a top-pairing player like that. he can be, only if he's the complementary player. there's a difference.

Again, my Nash comment had to do with the fact that he was one of the few power forwards available, and we wanted one to play with Palffy and Taylor. He's not normally someone I would look at, and if I did, it would be for a second line. Deadmarsh was a guy we really wanted for that top line role - he was our absolute top choice - but I think he's better suited to second line play under normal circumstances.

 

[God Bless Canada]

Throwing my team out there...

HUMBOLDT INDIANS
GM: God Bless Canada
Coach: Tom Johnson
Assistant Coach: Ernie "Punch" McLean
Captain: Don Sweeney
Alternate Captain: John Wensink
Alternate Captain: Rick Green
Alternate Captain: Syl Apps Jr.


FORWARDS
Dennis Hextall-Billy Taylor-Zigmund Palffy
Marc Tardif-Dave Gagner-Lorne Carr
Dave Reid-Syl Apps Jr.-Rejean Houle
John Wensink-Mike Richards-"Cowboy" Bill Flett
Herb Carnegie

DEFENCEMEN
Dave Manson-Jay Bouwmeester
Darryl Sydor-John Van Boxmeer
Rick Green-Don Sweeney
Harold Snepsts

GOALTENDERS
Kirk McLean
Marty Turco​

 

[God Bless Canada]

Humboldt Indians review...

I think the most obvious thing is that it's a more offensive team that what people are used to seeing from me. I think you can get away with that in the MLD. The top shutdown defencemen go in the main draft, and what you're left with is a lot of good players, but nobody who's overwhelming defensively. At the same time, there are going to be a few top end offensive players out there simply because they don't fit into the ATD. Guys like Palffy and Tardif need to be on a scoring line if they are to be effective.

Our team can definitely score. In fact, we should be able to get scoring from all four lines. Top line might be the most dangerous one in the MLD. Taylor's an elite playmaker and Palffy might be the best goal scorer in the draft. Hextall's there for grit and toughness, but he can feed Palffy, too, with three 50-assist seasons.

Marc Tardif will be the guy who makes the second line go. The WHA icon should have an easier time against the MLD players. He'll be counted on to set up Carr, a four-time top 10 finisher in goals (two before the war years) and Gagner, a three-time 40-goal scorer at centre who provides some sandpaper.

Third line will be counted on to play against the opposition's top line, but they can score, too. Apps is one of the top offensive centres in the draft, but his lack of playoff success might raise eyebrows, and his defensive acumen makes him a perfect two-way line guy. Reid might be the best penalty killer in the draft. Nothing wrong with Rejean Houle, either.

Fourth line will be used in all situations. They're tough, they're aggressive, they'll be counted on to bring a strong forecheck. But they can score, too. In tight one-goal games, a constant in the MLD, the abilities of our third and fourth liners to score can be a difference maker.

We don't have that true No. 1 defenceman who can be counted on to play 30 minutes per game. (Although Bouwmeester is a workhorse who led the league in ice time on a bad Panthers team last year). But we do have six situational defencemen, all of whom can make contributions at five-on-five and on speciall teams. All of them are capable of making a good first pass, and in the case of Sydor, Bouwmeester and Van Boxmeer, they can definitely contribute offensively. Manson's point shot will be key on the power play.

Green and Sweeney will be key for our team. They're our shut-down tandem. Green's a big, sturdy defenceman who is physical but clean; Sweeney is the classic smart, steady defenceman who thrived despite his small size. Green's the one defenceman on our team who can be counted on for 25 minutes per game.

Helping the defencemen with moving the puck are Kirk McLean and Marty Turco, possibly the two best puck-moving defencemen in the draft. But they're more than just great passers. Both are proven top-notch goaltenders who can be workhorses. Turco has proven he can get it done in the playoffs. McLean is the No. 1. If he falters, which he won't, we're fully confident in Marty. And Marty is level-headed enough to take the No. 2 job. He understands why he's here.

Coaching is a strength with Johnson able to identify with the players, while Punch McLean will crack the whip and bring a strong strategical mind. McLean will also be a favourite with the press. He's a real character.

So what are the weaknesses. As I said before, we don't have that 30-minute per game workhorse on defence. Then again, who is a 30-minute workhorse in the MLD? You don't have a George Owen in this draft. And Green's the only one we'd be leaning on for 25. The others are best-suited to 18-22 minutes per game.

We also aren't as tough as I'd like. Especially on the top two lines. Gagner and Hextall are tough enough, but they're the only real physical presences. Dave Manson is the only bona fide physical presence on the blue line. Except when we use Snepsts. Harold's on this team for character, though.

We'd like to have a few more legit toughies on this team, but many of the grinding sparkplugs raleh and I found in the last MLD - Balon, Balfour, Buchberger, Granato - were scooped up in the main draft. I am thrilled to retain the services of Hextall and Wensink, though.

Last MLD, we tried terrific speed and fierce competitiveness and toughness to win. This time, the speed is there, but this time it's complimented by high-end skill, offensive ability and savvy to win. We won't beat you black and blue, but we will beat you.

 

[chaosrevolver]

I may have contributed to that a bit.

Like in last MLD, Nash was treated like a run of the mill 2nd-liner or even a weak MLDer. I only had the guy on my second line. This draft, GBC (and let's admit it, he's one of the better GMs around) says he was considering him for his first line.... in a talent pool that was two teams shallower this time around. It felt like a double standard. Doesn't really bother me, but I do feel it's kind of important to bring it up.

I noticed your point about Arbour - Yes, Arbour was on the top pairing of the champions. But he was not one of the two best defensemen on that team. He just ended up being put on the top pairing with their best defenseman - which is fine, that's how many teams are built. So to me it's a tough sell trying to pass him off as a top-pairing player like that. he can be, only if he's the complementary player. there's a difference.

Im not selling him off as a top-pairing player. He's there as Wilson's partner. He's the anchor because he was my first defenseman taken and will likely get alot of minutes. Im saying I feel comfortable with him on the first pairing. He's been in that situation before and it worked out. And no I am not saying Wilson is as good as Brad Maxwell. No way in hell. But im saying that I still think it can work well in this situation.

 

[seventieslord]

my whole evening was packed last night. I expect to be able to go over a few lineups including my own tonight. Where is everyone else? let's hear from you.

 

[pitseleh]

On defense, I've said enough about Paladiev. My favourite MLD defensemen, if that makes sense. Until he gets drafted in the main draft, which he should, as a 6th or 7th, I will always have him targeted.

Just to address this, one thing about Paladiev is that he really struggled when he played the Canadians during the Summit Series because of their size and strength. Now I think he's a very good pick in the MLD and wouldn't necessarily be a bad pick in the ATD, but I do think that it hurts his chances of making it into the main draft.

 

[pitseleh]

Bergen Flyers

GMs: Wisent and pitseleh
Coach: Frank Boucher
Captain: Viktor Kuzkin

Sergei Kapustin - Milan Novy - Yevgeny Babich
Martin Straka - Vladimir Zabrodsky - Ernie Russell
Yuri Lebedev - Vyacheslav Anisin - Jaroslav Jirik
Brian Rolston - Billy Reay - Claude Larose
Vladimir Vikulov - Jaroslav Holik

Viktor Kuzkin (c) - Oldrich Machac
Yuri Fedorov - Art Duncan
Bert Marshall - Udo Kiessling
Jim McKenny

Don Edwards
"Sugar" Jim Henry​

PP1: Kapustin-Novy-Babich-Kuzkin-Fedorov
PP2: Russell-Zabrodsky-Jirik-Duncan-Rolston

PK1: Reay-Rolston-Marshall-Kiessling
PK2: Anisin-Larose-Kuzkin-Machac

Strengths

- Offensive prowess. I think we've put together a team that can compete offensively with any team in the draft. Our top two lines have some of the most offensively dynamic players in the draft (Russell, Novy, Zabrodsky) and are complemented by players with size and/or defensive awareness that are also very capable of contributing offensively. Our bottom two lines are more than capable of putting the puck in the net. Anisin on the third line was the Soviet scoring leader in '74, Jirik was a menace in front of the net for the Czechs, Reay had two top-10 finishes in assists and one in goals, Rolston had 20 goals six times and Larose had 20 five times. Our defense complements our transition based offensive game with some elite (for the MLD) puck movers in Kuzkin and Fedorov and a top-notch offensive defenseman in Duncan.

- Strong goaltending tandem. After Lesueur went off the board, I didn't think there was much difference between the top goalies available. We were fortunate enough to have two of our favourites in Edwards and Henry fall to us as late as they did. Having a strong tandem in a draft where there really isn't a lot of goalies with long and strong peaks gives us the option of riding the hot hand in the regular season.

- Stylistic flexibility. With the players in the lineup and subs that we have, there is a lot of room to maneuver to fit the competition. Inserting Holik gives the ability to ice two lines that are tough and defensively responsible, while Anisin provides more of an offensive presence on the third line. Vikulov can be inserted into the lineup to create more a transition based third line, as can McKenny add to the transition game of the defense.

- Clean play. For the most part, we have a bunch of players who play the game clean. Outside of Marshall and Larose (who only barely topped 100 PIMs during a period of high penalty minutes), we shouldn't be spending much time down a man. With what should be a dynamic powerplay, having an edge in PP opportunities should work to our advantage.

Weaknesses

- Toughness in the top-6. Other than Babich, the top-6 is primarily filled with skill players. Though Kapustin has size and Straka is defensively responsible, neither were particularly tough, which means that there is the potential for the team to be pushed around by tough teams. But the skill and speed of those lines do make for a tough matchup against teams that are based on brute rather than speed and smarts on defense.

- Size in general. One problem with taking European players is that on average they were always smaller than their North American counterparts. Of the North Americans we did take, only Marshall has size, while players like Reay, Rolston, and Russell were not particularly big. It may be tough for a player like Machac or Kiessling to adapt their rugged defensive style against bigger, tougher skilled forwards (depending on how much relative size you are willing to give them).

- Weak defensive forwards. As much as we tried to cover up the defensive deficiencies of players like Novy and Zabrodsky by pairing them up with defensively responsible forwards, ultimately you can't completely cover up for players who play one-way games. There will be times that we will have to rely on our goalies to bail the team out.

 

[Transplanted Caper]

I'll get to most of this Friday and early Sat. Cutting it short, but things are absolutely nuts with work and I'm bringing more stuff home from than office than I want. Vacation only 2 days away. Although I'm dreading the election call will take the vacation away from my fingertips.

 

[seventieslord]

The Peterborough Petes​

Location: Peterborough, Ontario
Home Rink: Peterborough Memorial Centre

Head Coach: Rudy Pilous
Captain:
Assistant Captain:
Assistant Captain:

Herb Cain-Paul Ronty-Wally Hergesheimer
Anton Stastny-Harry Trihey-Marian Stastny
Darcy Tucker-Ron Stewart-Marion Gaborik
Shawn Burr-Jason Arnott-Rich Sutter
Mike Grier

Frank "Moose" Goheen-Yevgeny Paladiev
Jeff Brown-Mike O'Connell
Dave Maloney-Dimitri Yuskevich
Bill Juzda

Johnny Mowers
Bert Lindsay

PP1: Herb Cain-Paul Ronty-Wally Hergesheimer-O'Connell-Maloney
PP2Anton Stastny-Harry Trihey-Marian Stastny-Marion Gaborik-Yevgeny Paladiev

PK1:Sutter-Stewart-Yuskevich-Maloney
PK2:Burr-Arnott-Goheen-Paladiev


​

I think this is one of the better teams here for the regular season.

Paul Ronty and Wally Hergesheimer were a dynamic duo and reuniting them was a nice idea. Ronty was top-10 in assists 5 times and Wally 3-times in goals.

Harry Trihey worked as a first-liner last time so to get him as a second-liner this time around has to be considered a good thing. he has some excellent credentials, although he was a flash in the pan even by the standards at that time. His playoff numbers look great, but he beat up on some awful teams too.

The Stastnys are both legit MLD scoring line wingers. Pretty decent size on them, and you'll have some chemistry too. I think that Trihey's MLD8 wingers, despite being HHOFers, aren't at this level.

I think Ron Stewart gives you a great start at a shutdown line. but Darcy Tucker has been mostly brutal defensively for his career. He's an energy guy, someone I'd only put on my 4th line, if at all. Marion Gaborik isn't exactly known as a defensive guy either. I wouln't call him soft, but at the same time, knowing how injury prone he is, is he ready to play the game the 3rd line demands?

Your 4th line is pretty excellent. Rich Sutter was nothing special, but then, he's an ideal 4th line MLDer. Arnott has the size you want and a modicum of talent. Burr was an OK two-way player. Like GBC, I'm not sold on Grier. I don't really see him as one of the best in the league at what he does... at least not to the level that I'd take him as a MLD player.

You have an absolute beast on defense with Moose Goheen. using my own rough size adjustment formula, he'd be 6'6" and 260 by today's standards. From age 32-36 he played in the AHA which is a significant part of his overall resume - good to see, because I have a couple of players who rounded out their careers there too.

Paladiev was a guy who I really thought about taking. It was one of those picks where you keep going back to him and thinking "i'll take him next round" and then finally someone else takes him. I regret nothing; I like the guys I got better, but, nothing wrong with that pick.

Jeff Brown is a guy I personally would avoid. he's about as much of a one-dimensional PP specialist as you can get. If anything, I'd take him as a #7 to help with possible matchups. but I'd just hate to have everyone ragging on his defensive abilities. O'Connell is solid, but is he solid enough to make up for Brown?

Can't go wrong with a Maloney on your third pairing. Anad Yushkevich is a warrior. Your 3rd best D-man, IMO - maybe 2nd best.

I'm not sold on Mowers at all. Possibly the biggest example of a WW2 product if I ever saw one. Bert Lindsay, i think, is better.

Rudy Pilous is an OK coach. Being the only guy to win a cup for Chicago in the past 70 years is an achievement.

I see playoff issues here - but it's not my place to get into them. I would prefer we all focus on eachothers' regular season accomplishments and dig further when we're in playoff matchups.

 

[seventieslord]

Vancouver Giants​

Coach: Brian Kilrea
Assistant Coach: Dwight McMillan
Assistant Coach: Phil Esposito
Captain: Frantisek Tikal
Alternate Captain: Boris Mayorov
Alternate Captain: Cliff Ronning

Boris Mayorov (A) - Andre Lacroix - Pavol Demitra
Yevgeny Mayorov - Cliff Ronning (A) - Ulf Dahlen
Nick Libett - Thomas Gradin - Al MacAdam
Morris Lukowich - Laurie Boschman - Doug Brown


Goldie Prodgers - Frantisek Tikal (C)
Doug Young - Joe Jerwa
Lee Fogolin Jr. - Leo Reise Sr.
Dana Murzyn

Roland "Rollie" Melanson
"King" Richard Brodeur

PP1: Demitra - Lacroix - Dahlen - Prodgers - Tikal
PP2: Y. Mayorov - Gradin - B. Mayorov - Jerwa - Reise

PK1: Libett - Boschman - Prodgers - Fogolin
PK2: Lukowich - Ronning - Jerwa - Tikal Sr.​

Goaltending stands out as a potential issue for me. Melanson was the NHL's save% leader in 83 and 84, which is awesome. Unfortunately he was very below average for the rest of his career, except for 1987, a year in which he was about average. Now, I understand this is the MLD and beggars can't be choosers. I still think his achievements are a bit below par for this draft. Richard Brodeur has the one finals appearance and a decent WHA career, (14th/41 in career WHA perseverence rating) but the lack of any concrete accomplishment would also scare me away.

GBC also went over coaching, and it's an interesting combination. Not much more to add. I'm not sure how I feel about espo as the 3rd coach, but it's not like you blew a pick on him, he was a 24th rounder. I'd be more concerned that it left you with less options and less flexibility among your other players. And I do like your other players.

Is Ronning the best choice for an alternate captain? I know it's probably somewhat sentimental, but is he one of the three players on your team who would best lead it?

Sorry to sound so critical. It ends there. I really like a lot of your choices.

-Dahlen is a great RW, due to his defensive ability and corner work, I might even put him on the 3rd line.
-Andre lacroix is a legit 1st line center. His WHA accomplishments obviously wouldn't be duplicated at the NHL level, but he spent his prime years and it's safe to say he'd have been a consistent 75-90 point player for most of those seasons in the NHL.
-Tikal is in the same boat as guys like Fedorov and Paladiev, I kept thinking about them - never took them. I probably liked him the best of all, though. Nice captain.
-Prodgers is an excellent top pairing defenseman too. Should probably go in the ATD.
-Your 4th line has some definite spunk to it. Lukowich is probably too talented for that line, but to me, that's just a bonus as he does have some grit. Doug Brown is another lunchpail guy who manages to be rugged yet clean, and again, would he perhaps make a better 3rd RW for you than MacAdam?
-I don't see Gradin as having any grit or defensive ability, but he does have talent so it depends on what you're going for with your 3rd line.
-Mayorov is a good first line winger and a good assistant captain. But, was putting him with his brother a great move? The two were famous for their fights, to the point where their coach had to tell one of them to take a hike. And you don't have an extra forward.
-The more I look at Libett, the more I think he's an excellent 3rd line LW. I would definitely select him. Considering this is the MLD, he has the potential to be one of the top defensive forwards (behind Meagher, or course )

 

[seventieslord]

Belleville Bulls
Location: Belleville, Ontario
Home Rink: Yardmen Arena

Head Coach: Randy Carlyle
Assistant Coach: Guy Carbonneau
Captain: Don Lever
Assistant Captain: Al Arbour
Assistant Captain: Tommy Smith



Alex Tanguay - Tommy Smith (A) - Corb Denneny
Smokey Harris - Ed Olczyk - Mark Napier
Don Lever (C) - Kelly Kisio - Mush March
Ethan Moreau - Stephane Yelle - Leroy Goldsworthy
Saku Koivu

Al Arbour (A) - Phat Wilson
Gord Fraser - Uwe Krupp
Gord Lane - Jocelyn Guevremont
Marty Burke

Wilf Cude
Arturs Irbe​

What Nates and my goal was, to create lines from the past drafts that had quite alot of success. Though we didnt necessarily have the ability to do that with the top 2 lines because alot of guys who had success on those lines end up in the ATD.

Overall, when you look at mine and Nate's MLD 8 team and then look at our ATD 9 team and then at our MLD 9 team. I think you will notice a huge upswing. This draft truly fills your minds with so much information that is not only useful but also interesting.

This team is a major improvement over your last one.

Let's start with Tommy Smith. He just might be the top forward in the draft. Looking at pre-NHL players, he is one of the very best and I honestly thought he was taken in the ATD. His prime didn't last like the true greats - Lalonde, Malone, Bowie, Taylor - but at his best, he was nearly as good as them. He scored everywhere he went, and splinter leagues or not, he dominated them.

I'm not a huge Tanguay fan - he's never been top-10 in anything - has he even been top-20? He lacks intensity too. He's got a bit of a playmaking bias, which should be an OK combination with the goal-scorer Smith. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't he one of just two players to score two goals in a SCF Game 7 in the past 20 years?

Corb Denneny had some nice numbers and top-10 finishes - he's solid.

Olczyk is an old favourite of mine - he was one of few bright spots on the terrible Leafs many moons ago. He did have a few years where he was knocking on the door of the top-10 point getters in the league. I can buy him as a 2nd liner. Harris is great but I'm not sure about Napier. Touting him for having a few 30-goal seasons in that era - doesn't really show he was anything special.

I think you've done a good job putting together a 3rd line. Don Lever is an excellent glue guy and a fairly good captain. Kisio plays a good two-way game and Mush March was a durable, gritty player with some talent - I like him.

What you see is what you get with the 4th line. I think they all have decent credentials. Moreau is a guy I'd trust more than someone like, say, Grier. He's renowned for his leadership, his fearlessness, his willingness to do anything to win. Heck, if he lasted until the AAA draft, I'd draft him to be a captain there. Koivu's versatility makes him an option on the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th line.

I've already talked about Arbour. If the champions of the last ATD had used up one of their first 5 picks on him I'd have an easier time buying his greatness. That said, he's a decent top pairing complementary guy. I have never been able to truly get over the fact that he couldn't find permanent NHL employment until after the league doubled in size. Phat Wilson was a good value. I would have taken him as a #7 if I could have.

I was going to criticize Gord Lane a bit, but then, in his LOH bio, that is some high praise. Last MLD, I seriously considered him but ended up going with a different player who was low on a dynasty's depth chart - he must remain nameless. I must have missed that line in his bio; if I hadn't, I may have taken a different path.

Cude is great. I don't think he was given the love he deserved last time around. I'm surprised he wasn't given a chance as an ATD backup yet again. He's been on the first AST and to the cup finals. Irbe is a good backup who I considered. If there was a such thing as a Conn Smythe runner-up, it just may have been him in 2002.

Carlyle is a coach that beat me last ATD. I didn't buy his resume back then but a lot of others did, I suppose. Now, another season later, his credentials are a season longer but not necessarily any better. He was good enough to get to the MLD8 semis, though. Carbonneau is pretty green as a coach, but it should be fairly easy to sell him as a defensive/strategic coach.

Overall, a solid lineup. No glaring weakness, and aside from Smith, no major strength jumps out at me either.

 

[seventieslord]

Throwing my team out there...

HUMBOLDT INDIANS
GM: God Bless Canada
Coach: Tom Johnson
Assistant Coach: Ernie "Punch" McLean
Captain: Don Sweeney
Alternate Captain: John Wensink
Alternate Captain: Rick Green
Alternate Captain: Syl Apps Jr.

FORWARDS
Dennis Hextall-Billy Taylor-Zigmund Palffy
Marc Tardif-Dave Gagner-Lorne Carr
Dave Reid-Syl Apps Jr.-Rejean Houle
John Wensink-Mike Richards-"Cowboy" Bill Flett
Herb Carnegie

DEFENCEMEN
Dave Manson-Jay Bouwmeester
Darryl Sydor-John Van Boxmeer
Rick Green-Don Sweeney
Harold Snepsts

GOALTENDERS
Kirk McLean
Marty Turco​

I think the most obvious thing is that it's a more offensive team that what people are used to seeing from me. I think you can get away with that in the MLD. The top shutdown defencemen go in the main draft, and what you're left with is a lot of good players, but nobody who's overwhelming defensively. At the same time, there are going to be a few top end offensive players out there simply because they don't fit into the ATD. Guys like Palffy and Tardif need to be on a scoring line if they are to be effective.

Our team can definitely score. In fact, we should be able to get scoring from all four lines. Top line might be the most dangerous one in the MLD. Taylor's an elite playmaker and Palffy might be the best goal scorer in the draft. Hextall's there for grit and toughness, but he can feed Palffy, too, with three 50-assist seasons.

Marc Tardif will be the guy who makes the second line go. The WHA icon should have an easier time against the MLD players. He'll be counted on to set up Carr, a four-time top 10 finisher in goals (two before the war years) and Gagner, a three-time 40-goal scorer at centre who provides some sandpaper.

Third line will be counted on to play against the opposition's top line, but they can score, too. Apps is one of the top offensive centres in the draft, but his lack of playoff success might raise eyebrows, and his defensive acumen makes him a perfect two-way line guy. Reid might be the best penalty killer in the draft. Nothing wrong with Rejean Houle, either.

Fourth line will be used in all situations. They're tough, they're aggressive, they'll be counted on to bring a strong forecheck. But they can score, too. In tight one-goal games, a constant in the MLD, the abilities of our third and fourth liners to score can be a difference maker.

We don't have that true No. 1 defenceman who can be counted on to play 30 minutes per game. (Although Bouwmeester is a workhorse who led the league in ice time on a bad Panthers team last year). But we do have six situational defencemen, all of whom can make contributions at five-on-five and on speciall teams. All of them are capable of making a good first pass, and in the case of Sydor, Bouwmeester and Van Boxmeer, they can definitely contribute offensively. Manson's point shot will be key on the power play.

Green and Sweeney will be key for our team. They're our shut-down tandem. Green's a big, sturdy defenceman who is physical but clean; Sweeney is the classic smart, steady defenceman who thrived despite his small size. Green's the one defenceman on our team who can be counted on for 25 minutes per game.

Helping the defencemen with moving the puck are Kirk McLean and Marty Turco, possibly the two best puck-moving defencemen in the draft. But they're more than just great passers. Both are proven top-notch goaltenders who can be workhorses. Turco has proven he can get it done in the playoffs. McLean is the No. 1. If he falters, which he won't, we're fully confident in Marty. And Marty is level-headed enough to take the No. 2 job. He understands why he's here.

Coaching is a strength with Johnson able to identify with the players, while Punch McLean will crack the whip and bring a strong strategical mind. McLean will also be a favourite with the press. He's a real character.

So what are the weaknesses. As I said before, we don't have that 30-minute per game workhorse on defence. Then again, who is a 30-minute workhorse in the MLD? You don't have a George Owen in this draft. And Green's the only one we'd be leaning on for 25. The others are best-suited to 18-22 minutes per game.

We also aren't as tough as I'd like. Especially on the top two lines. Gagner and Hextall are tough enough, but they're the only real physical presences. Dave Manson is the only bona fide physical presence on the blue line. Except when we use Snepsts. Harold's on this team for character, though.

We'd like to have a few more legit toughies on this team, but many of the grinding sparkplugs raleh and I found in the last MLD - Balon, Balfour, Buchberger, Granato - were scooped up in the main draft. I am thrilled to retain the services of Hextall and Wensink, though.

Last MLD, we tried terrific speed and fierce competitiveness and toughness to win. This time, the speed is there, but this time it's complimented by high-end skill, offensive ability and savvy to win. We won't beat you black and blue, but we will beat you.

I haven't gotten down to definitively ranking the teams yet, but I think this is one of the ones I like better.

Dennis Hextall is a gritty guy who is probably there for the purpose of offsetting Palffy. That's a combination that makes a lot of sense. I would certainly worry about their playoff records, but that's for another day. Palffy has the three top-10's in goals, and Hextall was once 3rd in assists. Billy Taylor has some excellent (mostly wartime) credentials and the playoff success the other two lack.

Gagner has two 40-goal seasons, not 3, IIRC. Still, he's OK. I'm not sure I fully buy into the tough image you're attempting to give him, but he does have some grit and played in traffic. Tardif is one of a few major WHA scorers that I can really get behind. Like Lacroix, I think he could have scored 75-90 points for 5 straight years in the NHL. It would be unfair to declare Lorne Carr a WW2 product, but he did have some OK years prior to that. Not a big fan. However, despite your touting of things like Gagner's 40-goal seasons and Hextall's 50-assist seasons, they were never elite players, and Carr, in the context of the league he played in, was for a while.

Dave Reid is an excellent defensive forward and may be one of the top-5 in the draft. I have to agree that Apps Jr. is underrated defensively too - never saw him play, but his career +/- looks excellent considering the teams he played on. (a combined +34 in his 4 non-playoff years) I don't like Houle on a 3rd line.

I'd criticize Richards as a guy who only really has a 75 point season and an appearance in the 3rd round to his name, but this is the MLD and he's just a 4th liner. He's a fair pick. Wensink and Flett are quintessential 4th line players.

As much as I like present-day Bouwmeester, I'm not sure he's done enough in his career to justify being in the MLD at all, let alone on a first pairing. Has he made the playoffs? been considered for the Norris? Aside from that, it's fairly solid. Nobody strikes me as excellent and nobody strikes me as a major liability, although Sydor was criticized as one in the last MLD. I personally would have split him and Van Boxmeer, but you must covet having that "pure" shutdown 3rd pairing.

You were the first to take a goalie. McLean was a good pick, but I don't think he's the best MLD goalie. Turco is someone I considered - he's been a top-8 goalie in the NHL for about 7 years now, and finally has some playoff success to speak of.

You have the foundations of a very solid team here. If I were you, I really would have looked for a couple more players with a better playoff resume, but for now you score well.

 

[seventieslord]

City-Kelowna, B.C
Head Coach- John Muckler
G.M- Camperjr
Arena-Prospera Place
If someone outside of this MLD draft would like to co-G.M with me I would love to work with them

Captain: Garnet "Ace" Bailey
Assistant Captain: Steve Konowalchuk
Assistant Captain:

LW C RW
Rick Nash - Harry Oliver - Garnet "Ace" Bailey
Steve Konowalchuk - Carl Voss - Corey Perry
Reggie Fleming - Craig Conroy - Tony Amonte
Shawn Antoski - Ryan Getzlaf - Tie Domi
Jordan Staal

Mike Green - Robyn Regehr
Patice Brisebois - Mika Stromberg
Ted Crowley - Pat Quinn
Brian Campbell

Mike Palmateer
Felix Potvin
Vesa Toskala

I had to fill in the lineup as I imagined it because the roster post was not completed due to vacation.

This is a first try at the MLD, and consequently, it is going to have problems.

Strengths:
-Tony Amonte. He might be your best forward. You scored a major steal when you took this guy. I'm not sure he's the best fit for the third line, but if you want to do some shuffling, he's a better fit for the top-2 lines than Bailey or Perry. Neither have ever had a season as good as Amonte's six best seasons.
-Goaltending. Palmateer is at least an average starter and Potvin is at least an average backup. Both have some solid playoff records too.
-Coaching. Muckler is a cup winner and has a decent overall record.
-Toughness. Antoski and Domi are going to make you tough to play against.
-Steve Konowalchuk. He's a good player and a classic lunchpail 3rd-liner. Thanks to his defensive ability I would certainly rather place him there than on the 2nd line where he won't be able to keep up offensively.
-Rick Nash. In Nash you have one of the few players who have led the NHL in goals scored in a season.
-Robyn Regehr. He's got some solid credentials and will be one of the top shutdown D-men in the draft.
-Craig Conroy in a 3rd line role. He's just what we all look for in the MLD for the 3rd line. In fact, if you left your 3rd line as-is, it wouldn't be too bad, even though I'd move Amonte up and Konowalchuk down.

Weaknesses:
-top-line scoring. Nash is good but Bailey is outmatched. In his best season he scored 58 points and even that tied for best on the worst team in history. Aside from that, he scored 46 points once, good for 4th on a team that was still quite bad. And none of the players who outscored him have even been taken. And I have him as a LW, not a RW. Bailey wouldn't be such a bad pick, except that you took him in round 1 and expect him to play on your 1st line. Harry Oliver is good but not good enough to salvage the line.
-from an offensive perspective, your 2nd line is in trouble. No one has ever been top-10 in anything aside from Voss getting 9th in assists once. Konowalchuk is grea, but not for the second line. Perry is great, but in a current day league, not one where we can pick any player from history.
-I'd never pick Antoski in any kind of draft. He was as talentless as they come. Domi, I'd consider in a AAA draft. But there's definitely no need to have both.
-I'm afraid your D will get victimized. Stromberg hasn't done anything to distinguish himself and Crowley is just a failed high draft pick. I credit you for thinking outside the box with these two picks. It could work with players up until expansion, but since 1990, with a few exceptions, the best players in the world have all been in the NHL. These guys weren't.
-Mike Green is just that. He's got one really good season under his belt. At the time you took Green, there were many PP specialists out there who had done it for a decade.
-Toskala was unnecessary when you were already set in goal.
-Not a very all-time lineup. Almost 100% modern and 8 players 30 and under.


Recommendations:
-Drop Antoski to the press box and make Bailey a 4th line LW.
-Bring Jordan Staal up to the 3rd line RW spot. With his versatility he is an easier sell on the wing.
-Move Amonte to Bailey's old spot on the first line.
-Bring Brian Campbell up to replace one of Stromberg or Crowley.
-Although Voss is more established than Getzlaf, you want Getz and Perry together. Switch the two.
-Swap Fleming and Konowalchuk. Although they're similar, I like Kono on a 3rd line.
-Get Regehr together with Quinn to make a shutdown pairing.

Here's what you'd have:

Nash-Oliver-Amonte
Fleming-Getzlaf-Perry
Konowalchuk-Conroy-Staal
Bailey-Voss-Domi

Green - Campbell
Regehr-Quinn
Bridebois-Stromberg