Colombia Steves Season Review

The Colombia Stveves celebrate winning their division. They become the first ever South American based team to win the division and make the playoffs! A relativity modest 90 points was all that was needed to hold the Giraffes at bay. The Steves lead the division right the way through the season but the Giraffes pushed them right to the very last game. The Steves look set to take on the Rex in the 1st round of the Playoffs, the Steves had a good regular season record against the Rex and will need to play well to get through to the conference finals.

Player Reviews:

Duncan Keith - Rating 9.5/10
Keith lead the Steves both on and off the Ice. His points total of 85 was the best on the team and good enough to be the 3rd highest scoring defenseman in the league. Keith's 34 goals were the 4th highest on the team and he had a league leading 24 PP goals.

David Peron - Rating 9/10
Peron finished second in scoring for the Steves with 83 points. This was his first full season in the Pro's and he did not disappoint. 33 Goals and an impressive +29 earn him top line minutes for most of the season. Peron will be a big part of this team for years to come, and will only improve with the talent that is soon to come out of the farm,

Mike Fisher - Rating 8.5/10
Fisher struggled early on in the season, and after GM J-Iggy publicly called him out on his performances he went from strength to strength. A team leading 35 goals and 81 points, with a 29. Fisher lead by example and showed why he should be the top line centre. Fisher will need to impress in the playoffs to maintain that top line spot as there are a number of top C in the system waiting for a chance to impress.

Anton Babchuk - Rating 9/10
Babchuk should take a lot of credit for the success Duncan Keith had this year. Keith likes to jump up into the play, and Anton was always there to allow him to. His excellent defensive play was highlighted with a +27 and 153 blocked shoots, good enough for 3rd in the league. Even with his defensive play he managed 79 points which was enough for 5th overall in the league and his 61 assist were a team high.

Janik Hansen - Rating 8.5/10
At 27 Hansen has taking time to develop but in his rookie pro season has impressed everyone. 76 Points with 34 goals, while being shuffled around the top 3 lines represents a great return on his first season. His 76 points were the 3rd highest amongst rookies.

Shane Doan - Rating 7/10
Age may be catching up with Doan, but he still managed an impressive 180 hits and 71 points. Doan has always been a player who leads by example and he regularly set the tone for the younger players this season.

Mike Cammalleri - Rating 5/10
Cammalleri came to the Steves in a mid season trade. He was struggling to reproduce the form he showed last season for the Spirit and GM J-Iggy took a shot at him in the hope of adding some scoring. Mike put up 12 goals in 46 games for the Steves which is below what was expected of him. He was asked to make the move from LW to C which hasn't helped, but he will need to prove his worth soon or he may find himself struggling for a place on the roster.

Alex Edler - Rating - 6/10
Edler likes to throw his weight around and with 193 hits and 193 PIMS (10th overall in the league), he sure did that. 58 points is a good return for Edler but he will want to improve on his -11. With a large group of young D pushing for a place on the team, Alex may find he becomes a PP specialist in the coming years.

Nik Antrapov - Rating - 6/10
Like Fisher, Antrapov struggled early in the season. He showed steady improvement and finished with 45 points and a +16. His defensive play has kept him in the team, but after a short period on the top line, Antrapove has found himself as a regular on the 3rd line.

Ryan Malone - Rating - 6/10
Malone started stronger then many expected and lead the Steves through their early season struggles. 44 points is a good return for a 3rd line winger but he will be looking to improve on his - 7 if he wants to hang onto that spot next season.

Derrick Forbort - Rating - 7/10
Forbort had a solid rookie season. 20 points, a +7 and a team high 212 hits showed that he was capable of playing with the big boys. Forbort will need to continue to impress to hold off the strong competition for places next season.

Jared Cowen - Rating - 7/10
11 points, +11 and 153 hits. Like Forbort, Cowen had a solid rookie season and is another of a strong group of young D fighting for a few places on the roster next season.

Eric Gudbranson - Rating - 6/10
Gudbranson split the season between the Steves and the Brians. He put up 8 points for the steves and was a +7. The coach was happy with his play but felt his development would be improved by some time on the farm. Expect Gudbranson to be a contender for a top 4 role next season.

Jonas Hiller - Rating - 5 /10
Hiller started the season as the stronger of the two goalies but faded in the second half. He finished with 23 wins but looks likely to be taking back up duties for the playoffs. He may well find himself on the farm next season.

Seymon Varlamov - Rating - 6.5/10
Varlamov struggled early on, but thought back to take the number 1 spot heading into the playoffs. He is still young and a solid performance in the playoffs could be enough to cement his position as the Steves starter for many seasons to come.