Rush Season Preview

[hockeyis66 143]

YUKON RUSH SEAON 78 PREVIEW

 

After missing the playoffs in S77, the Yukon Rush lost some players but gained some via the draft and free agency so far this season as they look to not only make it back to the playoffs, but also be one of the top teams in the league and vie for the VHLM Championship.

 

Goaltending – Papa Emeritus – The 4^th overall draft pick in the recent VHLM draft has not disappointed at all so far this season with a 10-0-2 record, .902 save percentage and a 2.47 GAA.  He also has one shutout on the season.  He is a tall goalie that takes up a lot of the net and doesn’t give shooters a lot of room to work with.  His reaction time, hand speed and rebound control are already one of the best in the league and if the Rush are having an off game, they will at least know their goalie will be keeping them in it.

 

Defense – Powers, Kiak, Sylvester, Jokinen and Beach – The defense will be going 5 deep this season and is an improvement over the 2/3 players there last season.  Powers will be the stud on the blue line but has a ton help from Kiak and Sylvester who can both defend and both the puck in the net while Beach and Jokinen are rounding out into defensemen that can also play at both ends of the ice while also being able to pass, handle the puck and throw the body around a bit as well.  Powers is already one of the top scoring defensemen in the league and through 12 games currently leads the Rush in points with 19 and tied with Kiak for the team lead in assists with 14.  This group of defensemen should make the Rush one of the top power play teams in the league since they can fire away from the blue line and one of the penalty killing units since they defend and move the puck well.

 

Forwards – This is a diverse group led by the two way play capabilities of Zakrevsky, Lemieux and T. Reinhart.  They are the top 3 scoring forwards on the team so far this season as Zakrevsky and Lemieux lead the team in goals with 9 and Reinhart is tied for second on the team in points with 18.  The trio has combined for 25 goals and 28 assists in 12 games.  However, the forwards are more than just these 3 players as Lorgo and J. Reinhart are both averaging a point a game so far this season.  Apollo, Numminen, Clouet, Elingr, Appleweed, Grisby and Mortas round out the forward group and provide some significant depth on the team making it hard for the opposition to focus on trying to stop just one line or two.

 

Outlook – There is no question that the Rush are a playoff team and is it finals or bust for this team to make it a successful season?  There are a lot of solid teams this season and the fight for the top is going to be quite a battle and not making it to the finals will probably be a disappointment for this club.  The goaltending will only continue to get better as the season goes on.  The depth on defense this season is a huge step up from where the team was last season and the offense can roll line after line at the opposition.  Win or lose, this season is going to be fun for the Rush.

[Baby Boomer 592]

9.5/10

 

Wow!! it is very well written and nice to read, the space between all your topic is very nice and your descriptions of your team is great. Also, i like the fact that you include everyone on the team to make the emphesis on how ALL your team is contribuating to the victories.