The Oilers are looking to role with three scoring lines this coming season, but they simply don’t have the guns to make that happen right now. They’ll need to be proactive in adding players this summer if they want to achieve their goal. Winnipeg Jets forward Devin Setoguchi could be one of the pieces needed to make this happen.
Why Is He Out There?:
The honeymoon in Winnipeg is almost over, and fans of the Jets are getting a bit tired of losing and missing the playoffs. Winnipeg will likely undergo changes this coming off-season, and will be a team looking to switch up it’s mix. The Jets attack was not good enough a year ago, and Devin Setoguchi, who underachieved, will likely be cut loose.
What Does He Do Well?:
Setoguchi is a guy that is known as a secondary scoring option. That’s exactly what he was in San Jose for a few seasons, and in Minnesota in his last year. He proved with the Wild he couldn’t handle a bigger role when presented it following a trade a few summers ago.
Devin Setoguchi is a guy that has good speed and is known as a goal-scorer, he has the sniper’s mentality if you will. He’s got a heavy shot, but also an accurate shot, and is good at getting away in tight areas as well, something very valuable in the physical Western Conference. He’s a guy that can handle time on the power-play as well, but isn’t someone you can throw on the PK.
He’s still only 27 years old, and has decent size standing at six feet and 205 pounds. He’s not overly physical, but he can hold his own out there, something sadly missing from some of the Oiler forwards throughout the years.
Offensively, Setoguchi is coming off of a tough season. He scored only eleven goals and had just 27 points in 75 games with the Jets. In 2013, he scored 27 points as well, but in just 48 games. In 2011-12, his last full season prior to this year, he scored 36 points in 69 games, not bad numbers.
Corsi wise, he was 48.8% on a Winnipeg team that was average in this regard. Setoguchi was also in the 48% range in 2012-13 and 2011-12 with the Minnesota Wild, so this tells us what kinda of a player this is in this regard. He’s not a guy that is going to push the river, and is a guy that will go with the flow of his team. This also shows that he isn’t weak in this regard, but isn’t going to be a difference maker.
Like Mason Raymond, Devin Setoguchi is solid depth scorer that usually goes with the flow of his team when it comes to moving the puck. There are a lot of factors that go into these stats, including competition, linemates, zone starts and many other things. If the Oilers role three scoring lines, it’s easy to see where this depth scorer would fit.
Where Will He Play, and Where Should He Play?:
Devin Setoguchi is a right winger, so if he signed in Edmonton he would be in an odd spot. Jordan Eberle holds down the first line spot, while Nail Yakupov and possibly Sam Gagner hold down the second and third line spots. In this case, Setoguchi would be a fourth line winger, but Mark Spector of Sportsnet speculated that one of Eberle or Yakupov won’t be back, which would push Seto to line three.
He’s a depth scorer, and should be on the third line. He’d either be exactly in the right spot or too low on the depth chart in Edmonton. Not exactly a problem for the team.
What Will He Cost?:
Setoguchi is a decent buy-low option right now I’m thinking. Even in a weak free agent class, this is a guy who is coming off of a really tough season and has not been talked about at all. He screams summer bargain contract, and likely will be willing to settle on a ‘prove-it’ one year deal.
I’d think a year or two year deal at $2.5 M per season could get it down with Setoguchi right now.
Closing Argument:
The Oilers need secondary scorers, and Devin Setoguchi has proven before that he can handle the role. He’s coming off of a rough season, but he’s a guy with a lot of talent and a lot of miles left in the tank. He’s not a home-run, but he’s a nice little bet.
He’s a guy you can count on for close to 30 points and double digit goals, and is a guy that adds speed, skill, and a guy with a goal scoring mentality to the lineup. He’s a player that has had success before, and is a good bet to have a bounce back season.
As the current depth chart stands, I’m not sure there is a lot of room for Devin Setoguchi. That being said, I can’t see the Oilers standing pat, and I beleive a spot on the right side opens up. If and when it does, Devin Setoguchi should be on MacT’s list of possible replacement candidates for the departing player.
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