My breakout player for the 2011-2012 season is named Peter Regin...
In the past, Regin has showed major flashes of offensive potential.. He clicked VERY well with Spezza in the playoffs 2 years ago, and in my opinion, was held back by our former coach Cory Clouston. Whether this was due to injury or one of the 10,000 other reasons Cory Clouston seemed to hold some of our players back, remains to be known...
I think under Maclean, he could receive top 6 minutes, either playing with Spezza, or on the 2nd line.. Besides Spezza/Alfredsson, I am of the opinion that Regin is our 3rd best playmaker up front and could work well on a line with Spezza and Butler...
Factors that need to be overcome
- given the chance to succeed in a top 6 role..
- Be able to play more physically, not exactly going out and hitting all the time, but being able to take a hit from the players that DO.
- Work on your balance, and avoiding the hits you CAN avoid...
Huge Honorable mention to Bobby Butler he already put up good numbers the games he played here, but I think his point total will most likely be what he was on pace to score.
Filatov seems to be the most obvious candidate. The other player that I would like to nominate is Zack Smith. I think he'll surprise people with a 20-goal season, as he'll get some PP time as the forward at the top of the crease/in the slot.
I'll say Anderson. He's going to prove that he's not a fluke.
I wouldn't consider Anderson a candidate for "breakout" player but rather "comeback" player. A breakout player is someone who has yet to have a good season in the NHL.
Filatov was my first thought, but Michalek could have a great year, really looked like he got his skating back at the end of the season.If he gets to 30 that'd be pretty good
it better be regin for his sake, or that poor kid is done. there are too many prospects coming up behind him now for us to wait around. this is a massive year for peter regin's career.
I think Cowen and Michalek will both be great, but the biggest turnaround (I know, not a breakout) will be Gonchar. He's a consistent 60 point pace guy for what, 10 years, and then he has one bad year while being misused on a brutal offensive team and all of a sudden he's old and lost his touch. He will be our highest scoring DMan next year, unless Karlsson has something to say about it.
Regin could definitely make a name for himself this year, as could Foligno.
I'll go with the OP and say Regin. While he did have his sophomore slump, he was terribly mishandled by the coaching staff. Hopefully, MacLean can provide some more stability and get this guy back on track because he was fantastic in 09-10. He's also the most likely candidate to grab the #2 C spot so he'll have a big opportunity to produce.
Prospect-wise, I'll go with Wiercioch in Bingo. Expect 40+ points in the AHL with improved 2 way play and a few call ups once the season is over. I also hope Zibanejad goes back Djurgarden and gets 35-40 points.
