Second Sixes in the Atlantic Division

Patrik Elias	Frans Nielsen	Brandon Dubinsky	Claude Giroux	Pascal Dupuis
Jason Arnott	Blake Comeau	Ryan Callahan	Scott Hartnell	Chris Kunitz
Brian Rolston	Josh Bailey	Chris Drury	James Van Riemsdyk	Matt Cooke
Bryce Salvador	Jack Hillen	Michal Rozsival	Matt Carle	Brooks Orpik
Anton Volchenkov	Bruno Gervais	Steve Eminger	Braydon Coburn	Zbynek Michalek
Johan Hedberg	Rick DiPietro	Martin Biron	Brian Boucher	Brent Johnson

A couple of weeks ago, I looked at what the best sixes, in terms of points in 2010, three forwards, two defense and a goalie, which didn't exactly suggest the top line or starting line-up, just the best players in the positions according to points. Today, I'm looking at the second sixes on each team in the divisions, just for the sake of something to do.  At the end of the looks of the top sixes, I wanted to conclude on which team I would think would have their six chosen first and I'll do the same with these second sixes.

The Cup Finalists, Flyers, have a pretty solid six, including in goal with Boucher, who likely impressed enough people to get a reasonable pick position in the draft this year.  Their second three forwards are young and full of potential, especially on the scoresheet, while Carle and Coburn have some offensive upside on that strong blueline. 

The second six on Broadway have a little more offensive punch on the blueline and a proven backstop, even if he is a back-up.  I would say that Boucher may have a step on Biron going into the draft, especially with the potential of more minutes.  The forwards are very comparable to those of the Flyers and have a little more youth than their counterparts in the swamp.  It's a good group for the Rangers and under the right hard-working circumstances, they could be a good group to pick from.

After those two teams, it's a real mix of talent, a lot more defensive players, but the back-up goaltending is a pretty decent.

I like the Devils the most of the remaining three teams, mostly because their veteran presence up front with the forwards and Hedberg in net should give the Devils good reason to give Brodeur a rest, so there should be some good points coming out of Jersey.  Their blueline is some real defensive stars and not terribly pool worthy, so they likely won't be big targets for points, especially since neither fall into the top 120 of defensive scoring.

The Penguins look really good in their top six and a lot of that talent will be used with this second six, but looking at the Pittsburgh names, there isn't a lot to get excited about.  Kunitz really does stand out in that group as a guy who has some good touch and he'll likely get a nice pick position, but that won't translate to better picks for some of his other teammates.

The Islanders are still a growing group and there is a lot of potential for guys like Bailey, Comeau and Nielsen, but the Islanders as a whole do not inspire confidence in people or poolies at the very least.  All three of those forwards could very well hit their stride and be good sleepers in 2011, but are they going to be worth the pick?  I will be looking at them for some improvements, giving their projections a boost, but not sure if they're better than the other four teams in this division.

Philadelphia, Broadway, New Jersey, Pittsburgh and Long Island are my guesses as the teams that have their six picked completely in the draft.  There doesn't really look like there will be a great deal of points from this group as a whole and it will be neat to see how the other divisions stack up.