Bison Mid-Season Report Card

Each player with over 21 Games Played will get a rating out of 10 for their performance thus far, vs. expectations.

Forwards

Nick Suzuki, 1C. Rating: 7  (47GP-17G-30A=47pts. +11)

Nick could've had a 9 if he had maintained his >PPG pace of the first 30 games, but a slump coincidiing with an instigated fight saw his production drop as the whole team went in a tailspin.

Matt Boldy, 1LW. Rating: 8 (47GP-22G-24A=46pts. +9)

Boldy continues to develop in his second full season in the SICHL, the team goal leader is pushing Suzuki as scoring leader too.

Bryan Rust, 1RW: Rating: 7 (47GP-14G-18A=32pts. +12)

Rust joined in the blockbuster deal for Mack and has been good, not great on the top line with Suzuki and Boldy. Head Coach Brunette has mixed him into the 2nd line on occasion with Schenn.

Brayden Schenn, 2C: Rating 8 (37GP-13G-17A=30pts. -3)

Schenn has been injured and often faces the opponent's top line, yet still is producing well from the second line.

Anthony Duclair, 3RW. Rating 8 (47GP-12G-14A=26pts. +2)

Despite third line minutes most of the season, Duke has outproduced the second line wingers and earned PP2 and top 6 minutes as a result.

Gus Nyquist, 2RW. Rating 6 (46GP-12G-12A=24pts. -1)

Nyquist has disappointed and not performed as well as expected following 2 solid years for Regina. He has spent time on the first, second, and third lines without developing chemistry with any linemates.

Oliver Bjorkstrand, 2LW. Rating 6 (47GP-8G-15A-23pts. -1)

Bjorkstrand has been the mirror image of Nyquist, with similar underperformance despite top 6 minutes and PP2 time

Drew O'Connor, 3LW. Rating 6 (47GP-6G-9A-15pts. +7)

O'Connor was a regular member of the 1PK unit that saw frequent early struggles. They have improved while shorthanded, but still cede 2+PPGs a game too often.

Adam Gaudette, 4RW. Rating 6 (47GP-4G-6A-10pts. -3)

Gaudette has been fine for his role.

Mark Jankowski, 4C. Rating 6 (45GP-4G-6A-10pts. -4)

Same as Gaudette, he's fine.

Andrew Copp, 3C. Rating 6 (23GP-3G-6A-9pts. -1)

Maybe a harsh rating for Copp considering an injury has limited his availability, but he was brought on a big AAV in to bring stability to the PK and has only marginally done so.

Tanner Pearson, 4LW. Rating 5. (39GP-0G-4A-4pts. -8)

Pearson has not lit the lamp at the midseason mark, despite being a regular at evens and the woeful PK. A candidate for upgrade at the deadline if the Bisons are in contention.

Christopher Wagner, 13F. Rating 6 (21GP-1G-1A-2pts. -3)

Wagner has been decent as an injury fill-in, but is a marginal SICHLer at this point in his career.

Defense

Ryan McDonagh. Top pair. Rating: 8 (47GP-2G-23A-25pts. +16)

McDonagh has earned his big UFA deal thus far, as the co-leading blueline scorer, top +/- player, and stalwart on 1PP and 1PK in addition to top pair duties.

Marcus Pettersson. Second Pair. Rating: 8 (47GP-4G-21A-25pts. +8)

Pettersson has been a very pleasant surprise for the Bisons since coming over in the Celebrini deal. He's jumped to 1PP and has been very solid defensively too.

Christopher Tanev. Top Pair. Rating: 7 (40GP-3G-11A-14pts. +4)

The other big blueline UFA, Tanev has been solid but unspectacular beside McDonagh at evens. Has been part of problematic PK units.

Mat Dumba. Second Pair. Rating: 6 (47GP-3G-11A-14pts. -14)

Dumba's the team leader in hits (YAY), and seeking those big booms often takes him out of position, which is why has a team worst -14 (BOO).

Carson Soucy. Third Pair. Rating: 6 (44GP-5G-8A-13pts. -7)

Afflicted a bit by the same issue as Dumba, seeking hits (though not as often) and being out of position (though not as often).

Justin Schultz. Third Pair/7D. Rating: 5 (45GP-1G-7A-8pts. -1)

It's telling that Schultz, who was signed as a PP specialist and has spent a lot of time 5-on-4, has been outscored by his defensive partner with no PP time. Hence the recent acquisition of Bogosian demoting him to 7th D.

Goalies

Linus Ullmark, 1G. Rating: 4. (36GP, 15-14-6, 1SO, 2.81 GAA, .898 SA%)

No bones about it, Ullmark has been poor in a Bison uniform, and is the primary reason the team is on the outside of the playoff picture looking in. Preseason prognosticators cited goaltending as Regina's weakness, and Ullmark was widely considered an upgrade over the departed Jack Campbell. But Soupy has registered a higher Save % than Linus on a Sun Devil team conceding far more opportunities to the opposition. Regina is top 10 in fewest shots allowed per game, and if they had better goaltending from Ullmark, at the .910 SA% or so of his peers, could be a solid playoff contender. As it is, they will be in a fight for their lives and Linus will have to step up down the stretch.

Elvis Merzlikins, 2G. Rating: 8 (13GP, 7-3-2, 1SO, 2.58 GAA, .905 SA%)

If not for Elvis in the building, the Bisons could be completely out of contention. But when given a chance to challenge Ullmark on a rotating basis he didn't do well enough to unseat him. So he remains the every third or fourth game option.