As this season starts to trend in the same direction as the last few seasons, I’m starting to wonder more and more as to whether Jason Botterill is the answer to our quest for a top notch GM. Let’s go back to last year as a start. He came to camp with a team that had finished last the previous year and who were adding #1 pick Rasmus Dahlin and previous year’s #1 pick Casey Mittelstadt to a roster. He also added Jeff Skinner and a bunch of guys from the St. Louis Blues organization who were acquired for the prior year’s second line center Ryan O’ Reilly. Things were supposed to work out with Berglund taking over O’Reilly’s spot with Casey handling 3rd line Center duties and Sobotka and Thompson filling roles and revamping the third and fourth lines. The hope was that by adding six players (while only losing one) that the team could make a significant leap from the prior year’s last place finish.
Things looked great when they went on a ten game winning streak. The season, however, started to sour quickly thereafter. By the end of December Berglund had quit, Thompson and Sobotka were relegated to the 4th line or bench and Casey was clearly in way over his head as a 2nd line center, a place he’d been forced to occupy with Berglund’s retirement. Here we were, in a down hill spiral. What was done by Bott’s? Absolutly nothing. I was screaming in late December that he needed to make a move to acquire a 2nd line center. Rumors had it that Minnesota was willing to part with Charlie Coyle, a perfect fit, for the right price. Coyle, a 6’3” 220 lb center with wheels, who had 1 1/2 years left on his somewhat affordable $4M/yr contract could fit right in as the second line center which would allow Casey to develop better at the 3rd line C position for the rest of the year (and the next if need be). Well, in spite of the need, Bott’s failed to pull the plug. Instead, Coyle went to division rival Boston where he proceeded to be one of the Bruins best players in the playoffs with 9G and 7A in 24 playoff games.
So the season ends. At the deadline Botts picks up Montour, a solid 2 way defender with term and age on his side. In the off season he grabs three other defensemen, Colin Miller, John Gilmour and Henri Jokiharju as well as Jimmy Vescey and Marcus Johansson. The acquision of the three new defenders left us with Risto, Montour, Miller, Bogosian, McCabe, Dahlin, Scandella, Jokiharju, Gilmour, Hunwick, Nelson, Pilut and Borgen as defensemen with significant NHL experience (or, in the case of Borgen significant promise). That is 13 defensemen!!!! Think about that. All summer long we assumed Risto or some other defenders would be traded for a top 6 forward. Instead we re signed Girgensons and Larrson.
So we come into the season and start out like last year. 9-1-1 (against somewhat weaker competition, but so what?). Things were looking brighter. Oloffson was playing well on Jack’s wing which allowed Skinner to move down and strengthen the second line. MoJo was adequate as a 2nd line center even though he was playing out of position. We all took a double take when Sobotka, he of 5G and 8A the previous season, was playing second line. That said, we were winning. The PP was leading the league. Olofson had 7 PP goals. Jack and Sam were producing. Skinner was having some success on the second line. Casey and Sheary were scoring here and there.
After this tremendous start we have gone 1-6-2. That’s one win in their last 9 games.What happened???? What happened is that MoJo gets hurt (even though he’d only scored 4G in 16G) and there is no one to help out. Casey still isn’t a 2nd line center. Sobotka has no business playing 2nd line ANYTHING (he of 1G and 2A in 16 games this year). When forced to play more in offensive situations Vescey (2A in 16G), Sheary (3G 2A) and Casey (3G 4A) are not up to the task. The fact that our 4th liners have a combined 5 goals (that’s Okposo, Rodrigues, Girgensons, Larsson and Lazar COMBINED) as well as the FACT that Oloffson has ONE even strength goal this year and the PP has deteriorated to a putrid level has left this team where it ended up last year: IN NEED OF A SECOND LINE CENTER AND ANOTHER TOP FORWARD.
We have 13 defensemen. We have THREE top six forwards on a decent NHL team. Jack is forced to do it all. Skinner looks lost the past 8 games as he has no one to get him the puck. Our penalty kill is abysmal. We have no one other than those three guys who can produce even strength ye we have Dmen down in Rochester (Pilut and Borgen for example) who can come up an do the same job as the 10 Dmen on our roster. It’s time for Bott’s to do something before this season, which looked so promising a few weeks ago, to go by the wayside just like the past six seasons have gone. Go out and make some trades. We have a supposed stud in Dylan Cousins coming up next year. We have a guy who is a generational talent in Dahlin. Use next year’s #1 and Risto/McCabe/Bogo/Scandella/or whomever else you want to trade to get some offensive talent. Get rid of perpetual underachievers like Rodrigues, Girgenson, Larsson, and the like. There was no purpose in signing those guys again this year. Make some moves because the roster Bott’s has assembled is clearly not good enough to compete for a playoff spot.