2003-2004 Impact Rookies

MY list of the most important rookies for the up coming season are

1: Somervuori
2: Vorobiev
3: Sejna
4: Ruutu
5: Exelby
6: Alexeev
7: Miettinen
8: Semin
9: Santala
10: Fleury

Agree? Disagree?

Fleury? Unless he starts I don't see how he could have any significant impact. Is it even a given he'll be in the NHL this season?

I will say Ruutu and Spezza if he's still a rookie.

Spezza doesn't have rookie eligibility. He played 33 games last season.

well call me a homer but I would include Kobasew. simply because he is going to get alot of top 6 icetime unless he really fumbles the ball

Caron is still a rookie, and as the pens starter he might make the all rookie team for the second year in a row.

If Fleury is included, that would mean he'd be #1 playing on his head in Pittsburgh.

Is Alexeev still a rookie?

I would say that even though Spezza lost his rookie status by a few games, he is more or less a rookie. If you want Colder trophy candidates then count him out. Otherwise, he's the best candidate for top newcomer to the league.

Is Alexeev still a rookie?
Nope.

Nope.
That's what I thought.

not sure if you want to include over-agers, but the kings picked up two over-age euro rookies, esa pirnes and martin strbak. i imagine at least one of them, perhaps both, will earn a permanent spot on the team.

Pitkanen anyone?

From what I hear Sejna could have a huge year playing on a line with Weight.

i keep hearing that eric staal could play. maybe trying to get him learning from francis before opporunity is lost.

Ruutu will have the most impact, if you mean literally ;)

edit: no way vorobiev will out-do ruutu this year. vorobiev will be lucky if he makes the team.

I'd add Matt Murley in top 20 somewhere. (For Pitts)

Wild have a couple that should make a nice impact on their team :D

Pitkanen anyone?


That's what I thought when I saw that list

My list (top 10) & Reasons

1 - Petr Sejna - My runaway Calder choice. Physically & mentally mature. Tons of confidence. Will get PP & top 6 ice.
2 - Tuomo Ruutu - Not yet physically mature, but wise beyond his years, Sutter will play him a ton.
3 - Marc-Andre Bouchard - Watch out for this kid. Very raw, but no Gaborik & Dupuis, Lemaire will look to this kid, amongst others, to pick up some slack.
4 - Brooks Orpik - Tough, hardnosed defenseman, will get loads of ice on the Pens.
5 - Kari Lehtonen - Won't play much.. but he will open eyes as a backup.. will win the starting job by seasons' end.
6 - Scottie Upshall - He'll surprise offensivly next season, become a key cog in Nashville's future
7 - David Hale - Mature, mean, and just all-around good. Best Devils prospect if you ask me. Hale is gonna rock next season. Could be another Jackman-esque season, even!
8 - Joni Pitkanen - Burried in the Flyers lineup, he should help out the 3rd pairing. I don't expect a super strong start, defensemen take a while, but skilled enough to make a difference.
9 - Dan Hamhuis - Another good young defenseman. Should eat up minutes in Nashville.
10 - Jiri Hudler - My off kilter prediction that he makes the team.

My list (top 10) & Reasons

1 - Petr Sejna - My runaway Calder choice. Physically & mentally mature. Tons of confidence. Will get PP & top 6 ice.
2 - Tuomo Ruutu - Not yet physically mature, but wise beyond his years, Sutter will play him a ton.
3 - Marc-Andre Bouchard - Watch out for this kid. Very raw, but no Gaborik & Dupuis, Lemaire will look to this kid, amongst others, to pick up some slack.
4 - Brooks Orpik - Tough, hardnosed defenseman, will get loads of ice on the Pens.
5 - Kari Lehtonen - Won't play much.. but he will open eyes as a backup.. will win the starting job by seasons' end.
6 - Scottie Upshall - He'll surprise offensivly next season, become a key cog in Nashville's future
7 - David Hale - Mature, mean, and just all-around good. Best Devils prospect if you ask me. Hale is gonna rock next season. Could be another Jackman-esque season, even!
8 - Joni Pitkanen - Burried in the Flyers lineup, he should help out the 3rd pairing. I don't expect a super strong start, defensemen take a while, but skilled enough to make a difference.
9 - Dan Hamhuis - Another good young defenseman. Should eat up minutes in Nashville.
10 - Jiri Hudler - My off kilter prediction that he makes the team.

I Assume you mean Pierre-Marc Bouchard.

How can Hurdler be there and not Semin? Semin will be on the 2nd line this year.Will Hurdler be top 6?

Mizral, Hale isn't quite as solid as once thought, he is playing average vs NHL players and giving the puck up alot. I guess I will be the only one honest here and say some negative things about my own team's prospects.

Miz, PM Bouchard isn't a rookie anymore either, he played significant time last season.

For the Avs the only logical choice is JM Liles, he looks like a pretty good shot to make the team after his camp and presseason showing. Mix that with probably time on the powerplay and his great offensive abilities, and you have what will hopefully be a decent rookie season.

I want to see Suglobov make an impact, something about russian prospects that can get your hopes up.

Hey Jason, I love your avatar. I was a HUGE fan of Transformers when I was a lad. "Transformers,more than meets the eye" :joker:

6 - Scottie Upshall - He'll surprise offensivly next season, become a key cog in Nashville's future
9 - Dan Hamhuis - Another good young defenseman. Should eat up minutes in Nashville.

At the beginning of camp I wasn't too impressed with Upshall as he seemed to fall a lot. But in the last day or so, he's been different. Maybe because they weeded out the team but he looked a lot better and faster in the last few days.

Hamhuis would be my first choice!

5 - Kari Lehtonen - Won't play much.. but he will open eyes as a backup.. will win the starting job by seasons' end. Lehtonen will be in the AHL most of the season, maybe a couple games at the end of the year. Consider him for next year.

At the beginning of camp I wasn't too impressed with Upshall as he seemed to fall a lot. But in the last day or so, he's been different. Maybe because they weeded out the team but he looked a lot better and faster in the last few days.

Hamhuis would be my first choice!

Time to start considering Tootoo. Unlike Upshaw, Tootoo seems to be a lock to start teh season in the show. He beat the crap out Danton from the Blues tonight after the chicken **** blind-sided him for getting it on with Murray Baron. At the end of it Baron got 2:00, Danton got 2:00 for instigating, 5:00 for fighting and 10:00 misconduct. Tootoo received 5:00 for fighting and Nashville went on a two man power play. Now Reed Low is after him. Making quite an impression I'd say.

Time to start considering Tootoo. Unlike Upshaw, Tootoo seems to be a lock to start teh season in the show. He beat the crap out Danton from the Blues tonight after the chicken **** blind-sided him for getting it on with Murray Baron. At the end of it Baron got 2:00, Danton got 2:00 for instigating, 5:00 for fighting and 10:00 misconduct. Tootoo received 5:00 for fighting and Nashville went on a two man power play. Now Reed Low is after him. Making quite an impression I'd say.


Tootoo will make as big an impact as any rookie. It may not be on the scoresheet however :yo: :bow: :yo:

I am being a homer here....but I feel that if Sergei Zinovyev makes the team (and he has a good chance since we are too short on centers and
he has a 1 way contract) and plays with Sergei Samsonov he might have a great rookie year.

He is 23 y.o. so probably mature enough to play against the big boys.

The second one is Milan Jurcina..although he probably needs AHL conditioning.

Konstantin Koltsov

watch out also for these guys:
Derek Roy (Buffalo)
Eric Staal (Carolina)
Brent Burns (Minnesota)
Matt Foy (Minnesota)
P.Bergeron (Boston)
Tuivonen (Boston)
Niklas Kronwall (Detroit)
Michael Ryder (Montreal)
Koltsov(Pittsburgh)
Semin(Washington)
Kesler(Vancouver)
Daley(Dallas)
Michalek(San Jose)
etc..

Also Marek Zidlicky, if he still qualifies as a rookie...

My homer pick is Rita. I still have faith that he can put up some big numbers

MY list of the most important rookies for the up coming season are

1: Somervuori



Eero Somervuori was sent today (friday) in the AHL with the Habs farm club in Hamilton as an agreement between Montreal-Tampa Bay.

Rita isn't a rookie.
But he's been greta so far in camp.
Koltsov could be calder worthy this year...

Rita isn't a rookie.
But he's been greta so far in camp.
Koltsov could be calder worthy this year...

Rita's still a rookie. He only played 12 games last year.

Oops meant Fata! sorry :)

Miettinen is one I want to see dominate this year. Liles looks like he has some potential but defenceman take longer to pan out.

For you fantasy hockey nuts, I'd pay attention to whether or not Johnny Pohl makes the Blues. His natural position is center, but because the Blues have a logjam there, he was moved to wing in practice this week by the coaches and if he makes the team, will get significant ice time in St. Louis... perhaps on the opposite side of Peter Sejna with Weight in the middle.

Miettinen is one I want to see dominate this year. Liles looks like he has some potential but defenceman take longer to pan out.

He won't dominate.. but he can surely make some noise for the Calder.

You can get a sneak preview of what to expect when he plays vs the Wings and Hatcher tonight. Forming an all Finnish line with Kapanen and Lehtinen.

Keep an eye on Derek Roy for Buffalo as well. He has looked better than anyone else at camp. His is highly-touted around here and was expected to make the club last year. He should make quite an impact this season.

Christian Ehrhoff D San Jose Sharks

(Miettinen) won't dominate.. but he can surely make some noise for the Calder.


I think that he will have trouble getting the ice time need, actually. I'd love to see him make some noise for the Calder, but I think when all his said and done his stats will be like Niko Kapanen's last season (maybe a few more goals proportionally).

If Koltsov plays like he did last night and is on Mario's line all year expect him to be an impact rookie. I have watched a lot of preseason games over the years and I have never been as impressed with a rookie as I was with Koltsov last night. He is a completely different player than last year.

Surprise there's been no mention of Kobasew. He may be playing on the 2nd line with Reinprecht and Saprykin. He make an impact this season.

Here are some of my opnions

Eric Staal - if everything is true and the move Francis to his wing so he can center the top line...he should have a great first season.

Andy Hilbert - if he can score the way he did at the AHL level he should be a great addition to the Bruins

Chuck Kobasew - will get an opportunity to play on the second line so he should get a fair amount of ice time with the opportunity to play on the PP.

Mike Komisarek - should add a rugged element to the Habs blueline

Dan Hamhuis - the Preds are pretty thin on D so Hamhuis will have every opportunity to thrive

David Hale - there is no better place for a rookie dman, learning from Stevens, Niedermayer and Rafalski.

Konstantin Koltsov - if he plays with Mario, he will put up the numbers

Carlo Colaiacovo - should be pretty good if he makes, he has a great attitude and is pretty focused

Konstantin Koltsov

Agreed... if he plays with the right people (or person) he could get 40 points this season.

Overall though, I think Ruutu brings the most of any rookie.

S L

If Koltsov plays like he did last night and is on Mario's line all year expect him to be an impact rookie. I have watched a lot of preseason games over the years and I have never been as impressed with a rookie as I was with Koltsov last night. He is a completely different player than last year.

Totally agree.

He is going to play with Mario. I have been advocating for Murley because he can finish, but man, Koltsov looked like a different player (reminiscient of another Russian former Pen whose last name also starts with a K), and will end up playing with Mario due to his speed.

I assume you were at the game. Besides the goals, how did he play? I mean, was he cheating on defense or making some foolish decisions like last year, or did he use his speed to play defense? And how was he along the boards and in the corners?

Carlo Colaiacovo - should be pretty good if he makes, he has a great attitude and is pretty focused


When talking about Leaf prospects be careful not to over rate them. The media does for the Leaf fans. I'm not saying CC isn't/won't be good. Just be careful when it comes to rating Leaf prospects.
Drake Berehowsky
Brandon Convery
Landon Wilson
Marcel Cousineau
Nik Antropov(still waiting....)
Jeff Ware
Nathan Dempsey
K Manderville

Where are they now....?

When talking about Leaf prospects be careful not to over rate them. The media does for the Leaf fans. I'm not saying CC isn't/won't be good. Just be careful when it comes to rating Leaf prospects.
Drake Berehowsky
Brandon Convery
Landon Wilson
Marcel Cousineau
Nik Antropov(still waiting....)
Jeff Ware
Nathan Dempsey
K Manderville

Where are they now....?


Demsey was an 11th round pick who performed beyond expectation, being a leader on the baby Leafs for years while being reliable as a call up when the need was there. Now seems to be doing pretty decently in Chicago... Antropov I'd say is doing rather well right now and appears to have overcome his knee problems. About how long ago where the other guys picked?

MY list of the most important rookies for the up coming season are

1: Somervuori
2: Vorobiev
3: Sejna
4: Ruutu
5: Exelby
6: Alexeev
7: Miettinen
8: Semin
9: Santala
10: Fleury

Agree? Disagree?

Overrating Somervuori are we? ;) Seriously if he finds his touch he might be a good impact but he won't be the most important rookie.
4 finns in top 10 sounds good though :D

Ruutu, Sejna and Pitkanen are my favorites to win the calder.

Overrating Somervuori are we? ;) Seriously if he finds his touch he might be a good impact but he won't be the most important rookie.
He got picked by THN (I think) to win the Calder, thus some people are jumping on the Eero bandwagon. Wildly optimistic pick IMO, especially now that he's been sent down.

I hear that Steve Eminger kid is supposed to be pretty good too :teach:

Ryan Getzlaf has had a great training camp and the Ducks are giving him a really long look. There is a outside chance IMO the Ducks may give him a contract and let him play at least 10 games.

If Fleury makes the team, he'll play 40+ games. Coupled with his #1 overall pedigree, that's an impact rookie.

Konstantin Koltsov
Eric Staal
Jiri Hudler

Jiri Hudler will make an impact playing with the Wings and put up atleast 35 points.

Overrating Somervuori are we? ;) Seriously if he finds his touch he might be a good impact but he won't be the most important rookie.
4 finns in top 10 sounds good though :D


Yeah I have been trying to correct the silly mistake people have been making about Somervuori's potential but it does not seem to go away.

Ruutu will be huge, someone said Sejna is more physically mature, but I would definitely like to hear how that shows. Actually, I don't even need to hear about it..it's obvious that guy never saw Ruutu play. He plays a very complete game and hits anything...and very hard.


Ruutu
Pitkänen
Miettinen

Those are the Finnish impact guys this year.

If Zidlicky counts, then he should be one of the early favorites for calder.

Nate Horton has had an amaizing preseason and will make the team if his contract is fixed up. Also, Juraj Kolnik is the biggest sleeper of anyone in the NHL as he has played awesome in Florida and is gritty, possibly the best stickhandling prospect in the NHL and can fly on the ice. WHen put on the top 2 lines which he hasn't been yet, he could become a fantatstic player and score 40 goals. He is a goal scorer and can make plays.

Yeah I have been trying to correct the silly mistake people have been making about Somervuori's potential but it does not seem to go away.
Well, from what I've seen of him, he certainly doesn't suck like some people have suggested to me, but saying he's going to have a great impact this year is VERY questionable.

People said Brad Richards was solely a product of his linemates too you know. ;)

Hey Jason, I love your avatar. I was a HUGE fan of Transformers when I was a lad. "Transformers,more than meets the eye" :joker:

Transformers...they're robots in disguise !!!! :)

nathan horton IMO will be your 2004 calder trophy winner; you heard it here 1st!

Well, from what I've seen of him, he certainly doesn't suck like some people have suggested to me, but saying he's going to have a great impact this year is VERY questionable.

People said Brad Richards was solely a product of his linemates too you know. ;)
Eero Is a good player but needs skilled players around him to produce. I think he is going to be a steady 35-40 point producer if he finds his game over there.

Bump Bump De Bump

one person said Michael Ryder, zero said Andrew Raycroft, and zero said Trent Hunter

MY list of the most important rookies for the up coming season are

1: Somervuori
2: Vorobiev
3: Sejna
4: Ruutu
5: Exelby
6: Alexeev
7: Miettinen
8: Semin
9: Santala
10: Fleury

Agree? Disagree?
This has to be the worst, at least he got Ruutu and Semin.

This has to be the worst, at least he got Ruutu and Semin.
The funny thing is that a majority of posters at the time (if I remember correctly) thought that Sumervuori, Sejna and Ruutu were going to have the monster seasons. Many felt Sejna could notch 70ish points if he played on a line with Weight all season. Ironically enough, the most "overrated" prospect on HF was the one who had the best rookie season.. :)

Wow the Petr Sejna lovers have some crow to eat!!

I have to give big ups to Kryptonix. His predictions were money.

not sure if you want to include over-agers, but the kings picked up two over-age euro rookies, esa pirnes and martin strbak. i imagine at least one of them, perhaps both, will earn a permanent spot on the team.

nice call :)

Miz, PM Bouchard isn't a rookie anymore either, he played significant time last season.

For the Avs the only logical choice is JM Liles, he looks like a pretty good shot to make the team after his camp and presseason showing. Mix that with probably time on the powerplay and his great offensive abilities, and you have what will hopefully be a decent rookie season.


:handclap:

watch out also for these guys:
Derek Roy (Buffalo)
Eric Staal (Carolina)
P.Bergeron (Boston)
Michael Ryder (Montreal)
Kesler(Vancouver)


:handclap:

I didn't read the entire thread, but I'll bet nobody mentioned Matt Lombardi. Not even Flames fans.

I forgot Raycroft,Hunter,Pitkanen,Hamhuis,Malone and Liles! :banghead:
shame to me ! :cry:

watch out also for these guys:
Derek Roy (Buffalo)
Eric Staal (Carolina)
Brent Burns (Minnesota)
Matt Foy (Minnesota)
P.Bergeron (Boston)
Tuivonen (Boston)
Niklas Kronwall (Detroit)
Michael Ryder (Montreal)
Koltsov(Pittsburgh)
Semin(Washington)
Kesler(Vancouver)
Daley(Dallas)
Michalek(San Jose)
etc..
easily the best list.

nice calls on bergeron, ryder, and roy. :handclap:

MY list of the most important rookies for the up coming season are

1: Somervuori
2: Vorobiev
3: Sejna
4: Ruutu
5: Exelby
6: Alexeev
7: Miettinen
8: Semin
9: Santala
10: Fleury

Agree? Disagree?

Ummm.....gee, that is a tough question. Guess I'll have to disagree. :)

Demsey was an 11th round pick who performed beyond expectation, being a leader on the baby Leafs for years while being reliable as a call up when the need was there. Now seems to be doing pretty decently in Chicago...

Dempsey is in LA now and was playing well. In fact, it seems a lot of fans wouls like to see him back next year.

not sure if you want to include over-agers, but the kings picked up two over-age euro rookies, esa pirnes and martin strbak. i imagine at least one of them, perhaps both, will earn a permanent spot on the team.

I'm against the " Esa Pirnes " Project but many in LA think he's the real-deal. He does play well in both ends but my problem with him is that he's not scoring. This is his first year in the NHL though. I might be wrong about this guy. As for Strbak, he was booted out of LA earlier in the season. Dave Taylor sent him packing to Pittsburgh. I think he's played about 20+ games with the Pens. I can't comment on how well he's played their. Strbak definitely didn't get the job done in LA.

--Spooks

For the Bruins- Zinovjev if he comes over, Boyes and who ever they draft 60th overall this year (Another Bergeron maybe)

Oh wait..he/she means this year. Oh!! What kind of list did he have..horrible

I wasn't wrong that the Wild had some impact rookies, just later than sooner...

Wallin and Veilleux finished strong, Michalek was a steady contributer on the blueline (a filler which we needed, and Burns finished strong as a defenseman.

Foy I don't know what the hell happened to him.

I'd add Matt Murley in top 20 somewhere. (For Pitts)

who?