An Opportunity for Friesen?
Rudy beat me to the punch, but yes, Torrey Mitchell is out for two months. That's pegging his return in late November. This will muck things up a little bit but this gives an opportunity for Jeff Friesen to grab a roster spot.
I'm guessing this won't affect Todd McLellan's top two lines, but the current would-be third line of Mitchell with Marcel Goc and Mike Grier on the wings is obviously mucked up. Goc, however, is a natural center and shifting him over would make sense for the time being. Who takes the spot on the wing?
Well, of course Tomas Plihal could work in there, or they could experiment with Devin Setoguchi for a little more offensive punch. (Setoguchi remains a wild card as the lineup shakes out) However, if we're looking at this to be a defensive unit based on speed with some scoring ability, that's what the old Friesen used to specialize in. He obviously didn't really do that in his stints in Washington and Calgary, but let's just assume things go well for Freeze (he's looked pretty good in camp so far) and they've gotta slot him in somewhere.
It makes sense, though it'll obviously create a logjam of forwards when Mitchell returns. Still, it's better to have too much depth than not enough.
Besides, wouldn't it be cool to see good ol' Freeze in teal?
4 comments:
Yeah, this injury actually seems to play into Friesen's strengths: he's speedy and responsible, and does well when there's very little expectation on offense.
I really like the lead pipe / Nancy Kerrigan theories, though. Friesen seems a shoo-in for a contract now.
I would love to see my cousin back in the Shark Tank but aren't they right up against the cap?
They must have some expectation of signing him or he wouldn't have gotten a tryout. I can't imagine he'll be super expensive...
Friesen played under D Sutter, so he's obviously got the tutelage of being a defensive forward. And if he can recapture just a little bit of that offensive prowess earlier in his career, that line would be fast and to be feared with on the shorthanded.
Too bad Plihal's already got #39 and Sandis isn't playing or we'd be in a time-warp back to 1994.
To fit in Friesen, I imagine the Sharks might try to trade McLaren or send him down to waivers.
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