What a Michigan alumni fantasy team tells us about the men's hockey program
With 31 players under contract in the NHL, you can construct a fairly decent roster from Michigan Hockey alumni. But what does the result tell us about the Wolverines of the recent era?
In eighth grade, I counted the seconds until my fourth hour science class. Sure, I enjoyed learning about climate change, trilobites and what makes a volcano go boom. I also liked when we got to do real labs, as rare as they were. I dug science class so much that I breezed through all the coursework by January — which made room for why I really loved science class:
CapFriendly’s Armchair GM.
I used to pour hours into making the best Red Wings teams I could, back when Detroit fans could still hope for playoffs at the end of the season. I built some truly unrealistic rosters, let’s be fair, but I had a heck of a time doing it. Of course, that passion still exists — who doesn’t like screwing around with fantasy NHL rosters? So let’s harness that passion to learn something about the Michigan hockey program.
The rules are simple: Draft a 23-player NHL team using active contracts for Wolverines alumni. The roster must come in underneath the cap. Additionally, I’m requiring that at least 3/4 (all but five) of the players be under deals for two seasons or more, so that way I can’t just spam the abundance of talent available in Michigan’s recent ELC signings.
To keep the active NHL alumni list in mind, here are all the Michigan players under NHL contract, as well as a handful who are UFAs. This list tracks actual salary next season rather than cap hit — the cap numbers will be on the CapFriendly graphics down below.
With that in mind, I wanted to show this table in particular because it shows how Michigan alumni will make a whopping $93.15 million in NHL salary next season, and that’s not counting performance bonuses. Already, that figure is more than the 2022 GDP of nine states, and it’s just a couple million shy of clearing a 10th — West Virginia — as well. With so many entry-level contracts expiring next season, I expect Michigan’s NHL salary to rather handily surpass the Mountain State.
But our job in constructing this NHL alumni team isn’t to hand out bags — it’s to manage them in a way that fields the most complete roster. So let’s get cracking.
FORWARDS
This group is difficult to pick from, because there are 19 really good forwards under contract who belong on this roster. Since we have to cut five, that makes this process really difficult because there’s so much parity on the low end of the spectrum.
Let’s start with the fairly obvious inclusions. Dylan Larkin (2015), Kyle Connor (2016), Zach Hyman (2012-15), Josh Norris (2018-19), Andrew Copp (2013-15) and J.T. Compher (2014-16) — grab a jersey, you’re on the team.
Next, let’s go with Adam Fantilli (2022), since he’s on an ELC for three years and that sneakily fits our criteria. We’re also going to use two of our one-year remaining slots to grab Matty Beniers (2021-22) and Kent Johnson (2021-22). Beniers is an unmatched two-way center in this group, and I’ve hardly seen a player who can execute tactical plays so well as Johnson. They’ll fit anywhere in the top nine.
Already, the cap hit is sitting at $42,790,357 — more than half of the $83.5 million for 2023-24. But following the logic of Big Ten hockey, the best defense is an unstoppable offense. My plan is to outscore defensive problems until Denver (Colorado) humbles this team in the Frozen Four (Stanley Cup Final). Too soon?
The forward corps has four more jerseys to hand out, so let’s grab two easy two-year contracts: Luke Glendening (2009-12) and Mackie Samoskevich (2022-23). Glendening provides a go-to penalty killer and fourth-line center. Samoskevich has an NHL-ready shot and seemingly looks ready to push for an NHL job come training camp. Let’s give him a chance, though he might rotate in and out of the middle six due to his role as a scorer.
Now, there are just three players to choose from: Thomas Bordeleau (2021-22), Brendan Brisson (2021-22), Max Pacioretty (2008), Andrew Cogliano (2006-07), John Beecher (2021-22), Phil Di Giuseppe (2012-14), Cooper Marody (2016-18) and Will Lockwood (2017-20).
Of these players, I think Bordeleau’s faceoff work is unmatched, but he’s got a one-year deal and we need to reserve those spots (more on that later). He would be on the squad if not for that rule.
Picking Brisson might not go as expected because I don’t think his game translates to the fourth-line role that he’s almost pigeonholed into thanks to the volume of talent ahead of him. But I’d rather have Brisson’s trademark shot on my team than go without it. Maybe his role could be a sort of powerplay specialist, and I can assign the displaced minutes to a better defensive player. These are solutions I would explore if actually putting this team on the ice.
Next, the answer is obvious. Fate of the universe on the line, gimme Di Giuseppe. He can play in a fourth line role, and he’s a two-year deal. Unlike his past few seasons, he’ll be a solely NHL player on this squad.
For the final spot, I’m going to opt for Lockwood, whose willingness to play rough-and-tumble — even when he was on Michigan’s first line — should carve a niche for him on this roster. He’s also a leader, wearing the ‘C’ his senior season. If he can inspire a rather young team by sacrificing in a defensive role (shot blocks, heavy hits, you name it), then I think he’ll be more than worth the roster spot.
Here’s what we’re rocking with so far:
DEFENSE & GOALTENDING
Some might say that just $36,509,643 in cap space and three one-year contract slots isn’t enough to field a competitive back end. I say they don’t know me, son.
The go-to top pairing is a cheat code on ice. I’m putting Zach Werenski (2015-16) with Owen Power (2021-22). I feel comfortable with trotting these two out for 25 minutes a night, even 30 if my team is in a do-or-die situation. Power does use up one more of our one-year contracts, but he’s so worth it as a rangy, smooth-skating defender who can activate from a shutdown-first role. I’ll let him flip on the offense switch as much as he wants. He’ll be the last one-year deal, for reasons soon to be explained.
The second pairing is going to make a lot of you smile. That’s because I’m drafting both Quinn Hughes (2018-19) and Luke Hughes (2022-23) to play alongside each other. This might make our goalies tremble from the amount of odd-man rushes they’re going to face because of overcommitted D, but both Hughes brothers are gifted offensive visionaries who we can use to create goals. Luke can play the right side in this case since he did that in college, plus it opens up the shot that got him 17 tucks as a freshman. Hopefully the duo can tap into some sibling magic.
It seems like the choices are now rather hard with just $18 million left in the bank and four D spots to fill — plus two goalies. We’re starting off with by spending big with Jacob Trouba (2013), then going easy on the checkbook with Jon Merrill (2011-13) for the third pairing. I think I’ll use Trouba in a sort of up-and-down role between the second and third pairings, just to mitigate the risks of putting two offensive-first brothers on the same pair in a late-game scenario or overtime. Merrill can play a shutdown role in limited minutes, too, and he’s also on a two-year deal. Oh, and he’s the son of my second-grade teacher, and him coming to class to present his world junior medal is a core pillar in my becoming a hockey fan. So Merrill’s basically guaranteed a letter.
The next choice gets a little harder. We need to draft a reserve defenseman, and we have plenty of cap to do so. However, we can’t use any one-year deals. That’s because goaltender Erik Portillo (2021-23) signed with Los Angeles for one year this offseason, and he’s the only Michigan alum currently under NHL contract. We’re also going to have to break the rules and draft G Strauss Mann, who signed an AHL deal this summer. I’ll translate that to a one-year deal at league minimum. I could also do that for G Jack Lafontaine, but he’s still a UFA and I think forcing myself to pick the goalie under some form of contract is more fair. I also think Mann is the better goalie anyway, and I’m the one making the rules here (muahahah).
So with our final pick, let’s get Cam York (2020-21). He signed for two years in Philadelphia as an RFA this offseason, and thank god for that because he’s the only defenseman left who isn’t on one year remaining. That means this iteration works, and I don’t have to leave another impact player off the table. York is cheap at just $1.6 million, too, even if he’ll probably get a big payday afterward.
May I present the other half of the roster:
What does this tell us about Michigan Hockey?
The first major takeaway is that Michigan’s recent goaltending isn’t translating to the NHL level. Back in the day, goalies such as Marty Turco, Steve Shields and Al Montoya were NHL regulars. Now, Portillo is the one goalie with an NHL contract — but, I wouldn’t be surprised if he played in the AHL next season. I believe Mann deserves a better shot than the one San Jose offered him last season, especially given his excellence in college and the SHL. However, I’m not the one signing his paychecks, and ultimately the powers that be have moved on toward different goaltending solutions.
That’s where a future emphasis on recruiting and developing top-tier goaltenders could be helpful for Michigan. The Wolverines just added former US National Team Development Program goalie coach and director of player personnel Kevin Reiter to the staff. With his eye and knowledge of recruits, plus his ability to train them, perhaps the goaltenders of Michigan’s future might be more attractive to NHL teams. There’s talent to come should Stephen Peck enroll at Michigan next season, and that’s before the new coaching adds get a chance to hit the recruiting trail.
The alumni team is chock full of top six scorers and scoring defensemen, which are two areas the program has done well to recruit in recent years. Look no further than the 2021 Draft and that four-of-the-top-five stat I’m sure you’re tired of hearing about. That shows the program’s NHL output at its best. With player developers all over the staff and a list of talented commitments ready to join, the conditions for that environment to continue seem satisfied.
Perhaps this Armchair GM team looks entirely different. Maybe some middle schooler sitting in science class will one day make a roster with the likes of Rutger McGroarty and Gavin Brindley, Michael Hage and Aidan Park.
Because the ability to come close to putting together an active NHL alumni roster is no minor feat, and it represents the way Michigan has asserted itself in the sphere of college hockey. Now, the task becomes maintaining that position as the Brandon Naurato era continues to take root.