In my last entry, I went over my winners in free agency. However, there are two sides to every story, the winners and the losers. There were several teams that did very little to improve themselves and some teams do not look to be very competitive come next year. Most of these teams will have a very hard time keeping up with the other teams that already have a solid core and those that are improving through player development. The following are my losers of the summer of 2011.
Phoenix Coyotes
Notable Additions: Raffi Torres, F. Boyd Gordon, F. Alex Bolduc, F. Andy Miele, F. Mike Smith, G.
The Coyotes lost their main cog that got them into the playoffs, Ilya Bryzgalov, when they could not come to terms. They shipped his rights off to Philadelphia where Byrzgalov signed a 9-year contract. In comes Mike Smith, a goaltender that has been plagued with injuries throughout his career. He was acquired by Tampa Bay in the Brad Richards trade and never quite hit his stride as a #1 goaltender. He started 20 games last season, and the Coyotes will be relying on him and backup goalie Jason Labarbera, who has a total of 28 starts in the past two seasons, to hold down the fort in net. Aside from the troubles in the crease, the Coyotes have a lack of top-6 capable centers, the most notable being former 3rd overall pick Kyle Turris, two-way forward Martin Hanzal and college standout Andy Miele. None of these players has been a #1 center for an NHL squad, nor are any of them ready for the responsibility yet. With the lack of stable ownership in Phoenix, it is very hard to improve a roster that has very little financial backing. Unless the better than average defense and coach Dave Tippett carry the team, the Desert Dogs will not see the post-season for a third straight year.
Winnipeg Jets
Notable Additions: Tanner Glass, F. Rick Rypien, F. Eric Fehr, F. Randy Jones, D. Brett Festerling, D.
There is a sense of euphoria that has swept fans of the Jets with the news of their return to Winnipeg after a hiatus. The former Thrashers squad that missed out on the playoffs yet again did not improve much through free agency this summer and that euphoria may wear off if the team goes another year without post-season hockey. When the biggest name being brought in is Eric Fehr, a one-time 20-goal scorer in his three full years in the NHL, there is a problem. True North Sports & Entertainment could have flexed their financial muscles and looked to improve the team by adding a scoring center to the fold, but instead the club was only able to sign depth forwards and defensemen that will not have the impact required for a club that so desperately needs to make the playoffs. Evander Kane and Andrew Ladd headline the offensive group for the Jets, and while they are good, young players, they cannot be expected to be the scoring leaders of that squad. Contributions from Nik Antropov and Brian Little would aid in the effort, but even with those two playing at the best of their abilities the Jets' offense is suspect at best. There is a lot of depth on the Jets' blueline and goaltender Ondrej Pavelec is still developing as a #1 netminder, but Jets fans will have to wait until at least 2012-13 to see playoff hockey.
Ottawa Senators
Notable Additions: Nikita Filatov, F. Zenon Konopka, F. Stephane De Costa, F. Alex Auld, G.
The day and age of long rebuilds with young players has come in the past few years, with teams like Pittsburgh and Chicago stockpiling high picks that turn out well to change the fortunes of a franchise. The Senators are hoping to do just that, but they are in for a long, bumpy road for the next few seasons. When a team's second line consists of Nick Foligno, Stephane De Costa and Bobby Butler, one knows that there is a problem. Most teams combine young players with older and experienced veterans to ease the development process on the younger players in the organization, but the best Ottawa did was acquire the enigmatic Filatov and tough guy Konopka to bolster their fourth line of hard grinders with Zach Smith and Chris Neil. Daniel Alfredsson and Jason Spezza lead the way for the Sens, but after that group the scoring falls off. As for the defense, the Sens will be relying on rookies such as Jared Cowen and David Rundblad to make a difference in their rookie seasons. Older players like Filip Kuba and Chris Phillips will show them the ropes, but unless some of these players perform better than expected, both Craig Anderson and Alex Auld are in for a lot of work in the 2011-12 season. The playoffs are a number of years away for this Senators squad.
Colorado Avalanche
Notable Additions: Chuck Kobasew, F. Jan Hejda, D. Shane O'Brien, D. Semyon Varlamov, G. J.S. Giguere, G.
The Avalanche are on this list for me even though I really like the Jan Hejda signing for that young group. This is because Avalanche GM Greg Sherman sent away a 1st and 2nd round pick in exchange for the negotiating rights for Semyon Varlamov, the former Capitals goaltender that has never been a proven starter and has battled both injury and inconsistency. Bringing in Giguere as an insurance policy was not a poor move, but with Tomas Vokoun on the market there were better options for a platoon. What makes this worse is that even though the Avalanche will be a team at the cap floor, Vokoun was signed to possibly the best free agent deal of the summer with a salary almost 1/4th the size of his previous contract at $1.5M. A team consisting mostly of young players learning what it takes to play in the NHL, they lack scoring depth after the likes of Paul Stastny, Matt Duchene and Milan Hejduk. David Jones is a solid goal scorer, but there are not many 2nd and 3rd liners on the team capable of putting up goals. A LWer such as Simon Gagne or Jussi Jokinen would have eased the pressure on the younger players, but they will not get that luxury. The Avalanche are all about being up-and-coming, as their defense features several young players that are looking to break out. Among them is Erik Johnson, the former 1st overall pick that was traded from St. Louis to Colorado this past season. The loss of JM Liles through a trade with Toronto opens up a spot on the PP unit, where one of Johnson or Kyle Cumiskey (currently an RFA) will take over. This team lacks reliable netminding and goal scoring depth to have a shot at one of the lower seeds in 2011-12, especially in the difficult Western Conference.
As I've said, don't expect these teams to make the playoffs. If they do, then there will have to be a vast amount of injuries to division rivals and a stroke of luck in net for most of them. From a lack of a starting goaltender to a lack of scoring depth or just going through the pains of a rebuild without adding some band-aids, these teams are all facing a tough 2011-12 season with the players on the roster.
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