Three defensemen that are primed for breakout seasons
We've covered potential breakout candidates for goalies and forwards thus far, so now it's time to look at three breakout candidates on the blueline. These three defenseman aren't expected to have the type of breakout year that Cale Makar had, but they are primed to have career years. Up first, we have Leafs defenseman Timothy Liljegren.
Liljegren finally made the Leafs' roster out of training camp and managed to skate in 61 games last season. He posted 5 goals and 23 points, but it wasn't until Mark Giordano arrived that we really saw Liljegren take his game to another level. Giordano provided Liljegren with a stable veteran presence and allowed him to feel more comfortable in joining the rush and play with more freedom - as noted by the fact he scored 4 of his 5 goals after the trade deadline. Paired with Giordano, Liljegren and him produced the highest expected goals percentage among all Leaf pairings last season at 65.8% and the lowest expected goals against per 60. Additionally, when Liljegren was paired with Morgan Rielly, they produced a blueline high of 4.6 expected goals per 60 minutes. Liljegren took massive steps in his development last year, showing more confidence with and without the puck and trusting his skillset, and when he made mistakes, his skating ability to recover. While he isn't the biggest, he has a good stick and is aware of his surroundings, allowing him to break up plays without taking himself out of position often. Liljegren played his way into a full-time role last season and will certainly play a larger role in this season. He should become more of a contributor on the penalty kill and surpassing his 23 point total from a season ago, is very doable.
Colorado's Bowen Byram is breakout candidate number 2.
An unfortunate series of concussions limited Byram to just 30 regular season games last season, but he made up for lost time during their cup run. After posting 17 points in 30 regular season games, Byram became a stabilizing force during the playoffs skating alongside Erik Johnson and at times, Josh Manson. Much like when Giordano paired with Liljegren, Byram had a new-found confidence in his skillset. Always an excellent skater, Byram was not shy to skate end-to-end and start an offensive cycle for the Avs, while also cycling through the offensive zone, rotating from below the goal-line back to the blueline. Byram also became a catalyst on the Avs' second powerplay unit alongside Devon Toews. As long as Byram can stay healthy, there isn't a reason why he won't be able to contribute 35-40 points from the backend. Entering the final year of his entry-level contract certainly won't hurt Byram either as players often produce more when they know a big pay-day is coming.
With Duncan Keith retiring, Evan Bouchard will take his place in the top-4 and rightfully so after the playoffs he had. He'll be breakout candidate number 3. A big-bodied blueliner with a booming shot that we saw lots of during the playoffs last season, Bouchard has been developed the right way by Edmonton - slow and steady. Skating in 81 games last year, Bouchard put up 43 points and added another 9 in 16 playoff games. Bouchard quickly became the big, right-shot defenseman that every team covets, and the Oilers are lucky to have him. Like Byram, Bouchard is also entering the final year of his entry-level deal, and with a big pay-day and role coming, Bouchard should have no issues topping 50 points and 15 goals.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 9 | 318 ANSWERS Three defensemen that are primed for breakout seasons How many points will Timothy Liljegren produce this season? | ||
| 25 or less | 70 | 22 % |
| 26-35 | 159 | 50 % |
| 36-45 | 68 | 21.4 % |
| More than 45 | 21 | 6.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
