I've been racking my brain trying to figure out how Mike Eaves will configure his forward lines. There's so many unknowns to consider. So, I think I'll just "rant" about it here on the blog and see what I come up with.
Carlson, Street, Skille, Dowell and Joudrey all return and will play in the top two or possibly top three lines. Normally I'd think they would all play on the top two lines, but I'm not sure how Eaves feels about playing two or three Freshmen together on a line, so they may be spread out among three lines.
The Freshman class is a big unknown, as is how Tom Gorowsky and Matt Ford will stack up against the Freshman class. Gorowsky struggled in terms of scoring when he was on the ice early last season, but has always been a scorer. The knock on Ford has always been his skating, and it's pretty hard to hide a forward that doesn't skate well. That being said, he's had two seasons to work on his skating, and may have made some strides in that time. On the positive side, Ford is also known for his big slapshot.
The Freshman class has some diverse talent. At the top of the heap figures to be Blake Geoffrion. He was a second round NHL draft pick, and seems to do a lot of things well. One article indicated he wants to play center, but who's to say that's where Eaves will want to put him?
Next up for the Freshmen is Zach Bearson. With three years of USHL experience, international experience, and time spent as a Captain for his USHL squad, Bearson is a power forward who scores at a moderate pace (13 goals, 21 assists in 56 games). He seemed to plateau last season in terms of his numbers, after a big improvement from his first to his second season with Waterloo.
Mike Davies comes to UW after putting up big offensive numbers, especially considering he is a little guy. He tallied 28 goals and 43 assists in 51 games. The question will be whether he is good enough defensively to earn a spot on the ice every night? With the Badgers lack of offensive weapons, you'd have to think he's got a good shot to play. Reports indicate his skating is very good.
Will the real Aaron Bendickson please stand up? Aaron Bendickson had 6 goals and 4 assists in his first 34 games last season playing with Cedar Rapids and Indiana. Once traded to Des Moines he proceeded to rack up 10 goals and 10 assists in 19 games. Was he asked to play more defensively with one team and not constrained with another? Was he playing with far superior talent on one team vs. another? Those are the question marks with Bendickson. Reports are that he skates very well.
Ben Grotting played with Mike Davies in Lincoln last season. He is a big forward that tallied 9 goals and 12 assists in 52 games last season. My guess is he is destined to be a grinder and/or backup for the Badgers.
Andy Bohmbach was brought into the fold just recently with the departure of Joe Pavelski. He played with Zach Bearson for the Waterloo Blackhawks, and put up similar numbers to Bearson. Bohmbach recorded 13 goals and 19 assists in 59 games. Bohmbach recently described himself as a scorer, although scouting reports indicate he works really hard in every area of the ice. My guess is he will see limited playing time and need to use his Freshman year as preparation to compete for regular ice time next season.
John Mitchell is a player with big upside, but who has not been able to tap into that potential yet. He bounced around the USHL between three teams and then was traded to a NAHL team in December last team. Rather than go to the NAHL, he grayshirted with the Badgers for the last half of last season, meaning he could practice with them but not play. He undoubtedly will not see regular ice team this season barring injuries, etc.
So, taking all of this into consideration, my line combos are as follows:
Carlson-Street-Skille
Dowell-Joudrey-Geoffrion
Ford-Gorowsky-Davies
Bearson-Brandt-Bendickson
Eaves has said he's leaning towards Joudrey centering Carlson and Skille on the first line, but I'm going to guess the chemistry of Carlson-Street-Skille wins out. With this line-up, I worry about point production from the second line. Dowell and Joudrey both need to step it up on that front. Ford on the off wing on the third line will give him a chance to blast some one-timers. The third line could really score some points if they have good chemistry. I could also see Dowell or Joudrey being moved to the third line to help out in terms of playing experience. The fourth line I have dubbed the Killer B's! Bohmbach is likely the guy who plays first off the bench to fill in, followed by Grotting and then Mitchell.
Don't like my forward line combos? Then make your own and post them as a comment.
