2018-2019 Edmonton Oil Kings

Last Edit: August 4th Added Kamloops Trade
Edmonton Oil Kings

Offense
 Quinn Benjafield(20)(.68) Vince Loschiavo(20)(.53/.84) Trey Fix-Wolansky(19)(1.25/.77)
Brendan Semchuk(19)(.53/.32) Brett Kemp(18)*(.52/.38) David Kope(18)(.4) 
Ty Gerla (19)(.31/.26) Liam Keeler(17)(.22)  Andrei Pavlenko(18)(.2)
Carter Souch(17)(0.24)  Vladimir Alistrov(17)  Jake Neighbors(16) 

Scott Atkinson(18)(.23)
Brian Harris(19)(.2)
Matthew Culling(17)
Raphael Pelletier(16)
Kobe Mohr(19)(.48/.35) - Traded

**Ty Gerla was recently traded. It makes a lot of sense looking at this roster.

Notes:
They recently traded for Overage Vince Loschiavo. Edmonton remains a little inexperienced but they are starting to show some meat on their bones.  Trey Fix-Wolanksy and recently acquired Vince Loschiavo should be candidates to come close to 1 PPG. 

Semchuck, Kope, Kemp, while not an overpowering 2nd line calibre as of yet, will be able to become more of a scoring threat than they were last year. Edmonton didn't really have a scoring 2nd line last season.

Their 3rd and 4th lines look to be composed of mostly young guns and that is where their experience falls off, yet I wouldn't count them out completely.

Young players such as Carter Souch, Liam Keeler put up very respectable numbers as 16yr olds and Import Andei Pavlenko only dressed for 20 games last season. While they may not be impact players as of yet, they will look to make big strides towards that and into Top 6 type players next season.

They also have a handful of former 1st round picks in their group including Liam Keeler, Brendan Semchuk, Kobe Mohr and Jake Neighbors.

Right now I think they are slightly below average because of a lack of experience. But there is some volatility depending on the development of rookies Jake Neighbors(4th overall in 2017), Vladimir Alistrov(2nd overall CHL Pick) as well as 17yr olds Liam Keeler, Andrei Pavlenko, Carter Souch. Still, they don't have the experience yet to become a contending team.


Defence
Conner McDonald(19)(.59) Matthew Robertson(17)(.36)
Will Warm(19)(.23) Ethan Cap(18)(0.17)
 Logan Downhaniuk(16) Wyatt McLeod(18)(.16)
Jayden Platz(18)(.06)
Leslie Jantzen(19)(.05)

Aidan Lawson(17)
Brayden Gorda(19)(.13) traded to Victoria

Their defence is similar to their offence. They don't yet have the veteran depth and experience of other teams, but they have some guys who are looking to become more than just depth players. Matthew Robertson was impressive at 16, someone with size who can skate and play a mobile game.  Conner McDonald had a breakout season last year. Wyatt McLeod and Ethan Cap are both entering their 3rd seasons.

Their entire D core returns, but they also gave up the most goals in the league last season. They should be a lot better as a collective group, but by how much we will wait and see.

Imports
Vladimir Alistrov(17) 
Andrei Pavlenko(18)(.2)

*They kept Pavlenko over redrafting in the 8th overall spot.

Goalies
Josh Dechaine(20) (49 GP)
Boston Bilous(17) (16GP)
Todd Scott(18)(33 GP)

Notes:
They were going with 3 goalies last season. Edmonton was so young last season that any goalie would have had a poor save percentage. They still don't have much experience on the back-end so I'd say this group is also below average.



Other OA & Player Notes
They have room for potentailly 1 more OA (depending on if they keep Dechaine.  Seeing as they went with a complete youth type team last season, I doubt they will spend anything significant on a 20yr old.


Drafting Outlook

Draft Positioning	Age	Picks	Position
2013	20	1,2,4,5	Last
2014	19	1,3,4,5	Late
2015	18	1,2,3,4,5	11th
2016	17	1,1,4,4,5	7,22
2017	16	1,2,2,3,4,5	4th
2018	15	1,1,2,3,3,4,5	1st

Notes:
Suggests a below average crop of older players, with an incoming 16/17 yr old group that should be impressive.

Last Season
.361 Winning Percentage


Offensive Raw Strength
255-240

Prognosis
I think Edmonton is ready to get out of the basement, but they aren't quite ready to push for a high playoff spot just yet. Some of their youth could push them up if they develop early, but I think a good spot for them would be to push for a wildcard position. They have some flexibility with their overagers which could vault them into the average category and at best compete for the 3rd spot in the division.

Next Up:
Kootenay Ice  This one won't be published untill next weekend

2018-2019 Calgary Hitmen

Calgary Hitmen

Don't put too much stock into line combos. They are just for depth purposes.

Offense
Riley Stotts(18)(.87/.31) Jake Kryski(20)(.79/.65/.58/.37) Mark Kastelic(19)(.63/.52/.17)
Luke Coleman(20)(.54/.38/.41/.07) Tristan Nielsen(18)(.71/.14) Carson Focht(18) (.48/.13)
Orca Wiesblatt(18)(.27)Cael Zimmerman(17)(.27)Hunter Campbell(17)(.19)
Ryder Korczak(16) Zach Huber(18)(.09)Matt Dorsey(19)(.18)

Notes
Their entire core minus Jakob Stukel returns. 

The Hitmen do show some developing firepower. Tristen Nielsen, Jake Kryski, Riley Stotts, Mark Kastelic all have the potential to reach, or at least get close to the 1 PPG mark. They also have Carson Focht who should put up big point increases with more responsibility. 

 They do have some "fillers" in the bottoms lines that may be pushed out in favour of youth. It's a sign that they have some oomf in their lineup, but not quite the depth to push for a division challenge just yet. 


Defense
Vladislav Yeromenko(19)(.65) Egor Zamula(18)(.35)
 Dom Schmeimann(19)(.17)Dakota Krebs(19)(.23)
Jackson Van De leest(17)((.14) Drea Esposito(18)(.17)
Layne Toder(18)(.14)
Luke Prokop(16)
Devan Klassen(16)

Notes
Calgary's Bane has been their poor defensive play the past few seasons.  Last year they received a gift from Regina acquiring Egor Zamula for free on Import waivers. This group while not overwhelming looks to bump up into the average category as they have a lot of defensive defencemen who can take care of their end along with 2nd-year Import Vladislav Yeremenko, who was drafted in the 5th round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.

They also have some younger talent looking to push into the roster including 2017 7th overall selection in defenceman Luke Prokop.  There will likely be some early battles for ice time on their 3rd pairings, which is a good indication that their depth is increasing and their defensive game should improve.

Imports
Egor Zamula(18) - D
Vladislav Yeryomenko(19) - D

Goalies
Nick Sanders(20)(.890)
Matthew Armitage(19)(.890)
Ethan Hein(16)

Notes
Their goaltending remains a weaker point as they don't have a #1 starter. They have 2 older backups one of them being an OA.  They may look to acquire a cheap overage starter. Goaltending as it stands of this post looks below average.


Other OA's & Player Notes
They have 3 OA's on the roster but likely may have an open spot depending on if they keep an overage goaltender.

Drafting Outlook

Draft Year	Current Player Age	Picks	Positioning
2013	20	1,2,3,4,5	18th, late
2014	19	2,3,4,4,4,5	Late
2015	18	1,2,4,4,4,4	19th, Late
2016	17	1,2,2,3,5	16th Mid-Late
2017	16	1,2,3,5,6,7	7th, Mid-early
2018	15	1,2,2,2,3,3,4,4	4th, High

Notes:
Suggests that they should still be behind the pack; however good times will be approaching as their 15 and 16yr old draft class have favourable positions. They also made some big trades last season and added some extra depth into those age categories.

Last Season
.410 Winning Percentage

Offensive Adjusted Strength
240-229

Prognosis
Their cycle in the draft positioning is weak. Their forward core is developing. While offensively they won't be pushovers and have some strength in their top 6, they may not have the depth of other teams.

 Defensively they'll be ok. They have a group of 4 defencemen who can hold their own, they also have a fight for spots in the 5-7th positions.

Goaltending could be a concern. I think they look to shore that area up, but their options may be limited.

If they choose to upgrade OA's and goaltending they could push up into the slightly above average territory. Right now I think they are definitely in contention for a 3rd place/wildcard position. There is some potential for them to go higher if they upgrade their OA spots, but it doesn't really make a lot of sense to do so unless they find an option for a cheap cost.


Next Up
Edmonton Oil Kings  (Sunday Night/Monday Morning)

2018-2019 Brandon Wheat Kings

Hey Folks. Instead of dumping my entire Thought process for the 2018-2019 in one go. I plan to release a new team every few days so it is easier to digest and much more readable.  After all the teams have been released I will dump a generic standings predictions.

These posting may be erratic as the Holidays approach! My goal is to have everything out before the End of August. Don't put too much stock into line combos. They are merely for depth purposes and may not be right.

Brandon Wheat Kings
(Age)(PPG past 2 seasons)
Offense
Linden McCorister(20)(.73/.21) Stelio Mattheos(19) (1.32/.88/) Rylan Bettens(18)  (.29/.08)
Luka Burzan(18)(.7/.41) Connor Gutenberg(19)(.75/.56.23) Ben McCartney(17)(.24)
Cole Reinhardt(18) (.5/.11) Caiden Daley(18)(.28/.17) Baron Thompson(18)(.43/.15)
Marcus Sekundiak(18)(.15) Jonny Hooker(17)(.2)  Ridly Greig(16)

Notes:

It's unlikely that Ty Lewis will return for his OA year as he is signed/drafted. Brandon recently traded away a depth 20yr old. Depending on who reports for their Imports (more later) it could be liekly that they will look to add some veteran scoring up front to complete their Top 6, but have lots of time to choose who that may be. 

They have a couple forwards including (Luka Burzan, Cole Reinhardt) who will likely make large points jumps. They also have a handful of 18's such as Rylan Bettens, Caiden Daley, Ben McCartney, as well as 17yr old Jonny Hooker who will look to make much larger contributions to their team. That's a total of 7 players who are prime for big role increases and development.

Veterans such as Linden McCorister, Stelio Mattheos, Connor Gutenberg will lead the way offensively, and I wouldn't be surprised to see another overage added to that list.

They have a well  Balanced roster, with an experienced checking line and a complement of rookies making up the bottom 6. 


Defence
Braden Schneider(17)(.33) Schael Higson(20)(.39/.28)
Chase Hartje(19)(.43)  Zach Wytnick(19)(.34/.03)
Ty Ettinger(18)(.16) XXX
Erik Brannstrom**

Notes
Erik Brannstrom is an interesting CHL selection as he was selected in the 1st round and 15th overall by the Las Vegas Knights. Former Brandon GM Kelly McCrimmon is the assistant GM for Vegas. There is talk that Brannstrom is too good for the CHL. If Brannstorm reports, Brandon has the makings of an impressive Top 3. It has been confirmed that Brannstrom intends to play in North America this coming season

Braden Schneider was a 16yr old sensation last season playing top line minutes. Schael Higson was his partner and return for another year.  From what I remember Hartje is a really good skater and can play a solid 2-way game. Wyntick has more of an offensive flair to his game.


Imports
Erik Brannstrom D (19)
Jiri Patera G (19)
Martin Kaut F (19) - Did not report last season (1st round NHL pick)

Notes: Brandon had 2 weaker points. Starting goaltending, and a little more depth needed for defense. They shored both areas up with these import selections should they both report to Brandon. Kaut was a selection last season that didn't report. 

Goalies
Dylan Miskiw(19)
Ethan Kruger(17)
Jiri Patera(19) **

Notes:
Patera is a 6th round NHL selection by Vegas


Other OA & Players of Notes
Ty Lewis (20)(1.43/.97/.48) * Signed with Colorado early last year


Drafting Outlook

Draft Year	Current Age	Picks	Notes
2013	20	1,1,2,3,4,5	Early to Mid
2014	19	1,2,3,4,5,5	1st overall+ Middle
2015	18	1,2,3,4,5,6,	very late
2016	17	1,2,4,5,6,7	Mid Late to Late
2017	16	1,2,2,3,4,5,7,8	Early Mid
2018	15	1,2,2,2,3,5,5,5,6	Mid-Late, spread,

Notes: Suggests a strong 20,19 yr old group, weak 18yr old group, however their trades have bolstered their 18yr old crop.

Last Season
.590 Winning Percentage

Intangibles & Questions
Imports, Imports, Imports

They have 2 1st round NHL draft picks on their list. Should they come over that would significantly boost their overall strength.

Offensive Strength Adjusted
287-274   Goals Scored

Defensive Strength 
Imports play a huge token here. Right now defense and goaltending are relatively average. If they get their Imports reporting, I would boost this to above average.


Prognosis 
As it sits now I have them at slightly above average, with the potential to climb to Above Average and compete for 1st in the division depending on their Imports. They have a lot of "developing firepower". While I don't expect everyone to develop, their core is all a year older from last season which saw them reach the 2nd round in a very tough division.

 Right now I see them competing with Prince Albert and Saskatoon for their division. A successful regular season would see them earn Home ice for the playoffs.


Next Up
Calgary Hitmen. I'll try to release July 27th.