DU's Projected Lineup & Depth Chart

With DU's Official Roster announced last week, LetsGoDU takes our second look at the projected depth chart and lineup on opening night against Vermont.

Forwards
Rakhshani (15g, 22a) - Ruegsegger (15g, 11a) - Maiani (11g, 30a)
K. Ostrow (14g, 14a) - Colborne (10g, 21a) - Salazar (15g, 10a)
S. Ostrow (Fr.) - Martin (10g, 13a) - Shore (Fr.)
Gifford (4g, 8a) - Glasser (4g, 3a) - Jackson (3g, 9a)
[Vossberg (4g, 2a), Dewhurst (0g, 1a), Knowlton (Fr.)]

Defensemen
Wiercioch (12g, 23a) - Wrenn (Fr.)
Donovan (Fr.) - Lee (0g, 5a)
Brookwell (0g, 3a) - Nutini (0g, 3a)
[Ryder (0g, 6a), Phillips (Fr.), Cook (0g, 0a), Brehm (0g, 0a)]

Goaltenders
Chevy (2.34 gaa, .921 sv%)
[Murray (Fr.), Paulgaard (1.61, .917 sv%)]

1st PP
Rakhshani, Colborne, Maiani
Wiercioch, Ruegsegger

2nd PP
K. Ostrow, Martin, Shore
Donovan, Wrenn

1st PK
Colborne, K. Ostrow
Wiercioch, Wrenn

2nd PK
Martin, S. Ostrow
Donovan, Lee

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nice picture of 2 hotties.... but look who's unmistakable head is in the background!!

dggoddard said...

I noticed that as well.

Ruckus is obviously intent on haunting me forever.

msbdu said...

Is Ruckus still looking for work, or is he content collecting his weekly unemployment check?

Aluuum said...

That's a solid fourth line. What does that say about the first three that are even stronger. We can roll all four lines all game and just wear down the opposition. Most of them have one top line ,anoter good one and then fill in the third and fourth.

dggoddard said...

I agree that to stay fresh for the NCAA Tournament its imperative that DU gets production from its fourth line.

The last time DU rolled four lines with any confidence was 2004-05.

achsdu17 said...

I'm loving this line up.

dggoddard said...

There's a lot to like to be sure.

Figure that Maiani was supposed to be a Freshman last season, but came in a year early because of Paukovich's departure. Last year he led the team in scoring. Playing on the first line & getting time of the first PP unit is going to ratchet up his goal total significantly.

Colborne is going to see a ton of minutes on the PK & PP as well as his regular shift.

If the offseason surgery heals Martin's hip, how much more effective is he going to be?

DU also adds its deepest recruiting class ever. Every scholarship recruit has a solid chance to make the NHL.

And finally, Wiercioch may be the best player in college hockey next season.

Anonymous said...

It's gonna be some tough competition to make one the first two lines. But I wouldn't project Glasser to be on the 4th line for much of the season. He'll be a senior & assistant captain, and he's quick, skilled and ready for a breakthrough season. As to Gifford--I'm not so sure where he'll be. He scored a couple of clutch goals last season, and he might also show significant improvement in his senior season. It's a good sign of our depth, that veteran guys like Glasser & Gifford will have to earn their minutes.

pesimisticfan said...

DG,

Great predictions. The only disagreements I have here are on defense. I love the first line, pairing offensive defenseman Wiercioch with stay-at-home Wrenn. But the 2nd line I see the same format happening with Donovan and Brookwell. The third line I see Lee with Phillips. I see your point about either Nutini or Ryder due to experience, but Phillips is a scholarship player and will most likely be a 5th-7th round draft pick, so I'm sure Gwoz won't want to scratch somebody like that. I could see them playing 7 defenseman a lot though, and scratching say a Jackson or Shawn Ostrow on a rotational basis.

Anonymous said...

Ostrow being on a scholarship I can't see him being on a rotational basis. Had he not got hurt this year good chance he would be drafted this year also.He had geat numbers for his rookie year. Who knows?

dggoddard said...

Shawn Ostrow was considered the best college prospect in AJHL before he was injured. If he is 100% this season, he'll be a contributor for sure.

We'll run Pessimistic Fan's defensive pairings next week.