When the Carolina Hurricanes snatched Alexander off the free agent market for a nearly risk-free 1-year trial contract, Canes fans were generally pleased. The summer of pulling off an aggressive draft day trade for Jordan Staal followed by seizing the opportunity to sign another elite forward in Semin seemed very unCanes-like and unRutherford-like. I was a big fan of the 1-year low-risk Semin signing from the outset and mostly chuckled at the haters. Sure there was risk in assimilating a new start into the mix. And I read the same articles as everyone else that questioned Semin's character and whatnot. But the deal was too low risk to pass up. And I absolutely loved Jim Rutherford's astute move to sign top-end talent while the masses were still scurrying around the ashes of the Parise/Suter deal and waiting to see what might happen with Bobby Ryan, Shane Doan and Rick Nash.
Of course the haters still hated. People blasted the Canes. They blasted Semin. And so on with the long lead up to the season that did not start until January.
But when the season started and the rubber hit the road, it was pretty quickly proven that at least the first contract for Alexander Semin for 1 year at $7 million was well worth it. Semin played well himself but more significantly he made the players around him better. With Alexander Semin assuming the role of playmaker, Eric Staal boosted his scoring pace from a solid and consistent low 70s pace to a 90-point pace an increase of roughly 20 points. And Jiri Tlusty took arguably the biggest leap forward of any player in the NHL scoring at a 40-goal pace (over an 82-game season). What is more astounding is that he had 0 goals through 7 games when he joined the EStaal/Semin combination, so his 23 goals scored actually came over only 41 games with that line. When a line plays that well, credit is obviously to be shared. Jiri Tlusty is incredibly underrated in terms of hockey IQ and was incredibly efficient finishing. He did an incredible job of reading situations and figuring out when to engage the puck to keep it in the offensive zone versus finding open patches of ices in scoring areas when Staal or Semin corralled it. Eric Staal had in my opinion the best season of his career. Yes. I realize that he scored more in 05-06, but his game was not as well-rounded at that early stage of his career. Sadly, a bit of Alexander Semin's huge season was lost in the broader team collapse.
But when the dust settled on the 2012-13 season, Alexander Semin had:
1) Notched a very respectable point per game pace after adjusting to a new team and line mates minus any kind of training camp to build chemistry.
2) Proven to be a scoring line chameleon melding his game to complement and boost his line mates. I think this is the part of Semin's season that was most impressive to me and maybe gets the least notice. Alexander Semin came to Raleigh with a successful history as a shoot first/goal scorer. There is nothing at all wrong with that and it worked well in Washington especially when he was paired with playmaker extraordinaire Nicklas Backstrom. But with the Canes he was paired with a shoot-first/more scoring oriented center in Eric Staal and complementary line mate Jiri Tlusty who is not a pure playmaker either. So sometime between when he left Washington last July and joined the Hurricanes in January he managed to transform his game. His ability to do this seamlessly on the fly is an incredible testament to just how skilled and multi-faceted his game is.
3) Was a key component of the best even strength line in the NHL. You heard me - best in the NHL. I honestly believe that the only possible exception could be Crosby's line though their season was shortened by his injury. Go look at the stats and count only even strength scoring. Eric Staal, Alexander Semin and Jiri Tlusty are pulled down in the scoring rankings only by the fact that the Canes power play struggled. Only Jonathan Toews bested Tlusty's 19 even strength goals (Stamkos also tied him). Eric Staal was close behind with 15. At the point when Cam Ward was injured and the Canes imploded Staal, Tlusty and Semin were all in the top 5 in the entire league in plus/minus. It is August, so I am fine if the inevitable debate about other better lines breaks out in the comments. And I do realize that there are other candidates. But I honestly believe that this line has as good of a case for being the best even strength line in the NHL for 2012-13.
4) Played the entire season minus any character questions, locker room issues, or any other kind issues. Put simply, he was a good hockey player, a good teammate and a good locker room addition.
So after seeing his production and integration into the team for most of the shortened season, Canes GM Jim Rutherford re-signed Semin for 5 more years at $7M per year.
And of course the haters who mostly had no idea what he had accomplished during the season came back to hate again. That's what they do.
Canes fans who had watched Alexander Semin's season unfold were glad to have this important part of the offensive core more permanently in the fold.
Looking forward to 2013-14, a repeat of 2012-13 would be perfectly fine for Alexander Semin. But given his elite talent level, I do not think it is unreasonable to also hope for just a little bit more. I look for 3 things from Alexander Semin in 2013-14:
1) Same baseline. First, a season similar to 2012-13 is perfectly acceptable. He needs pick up where he left off in terms of just being a great 1st-line hockey player.
2) Boost goal-scoring just a bit. With his change in role for the right reasons that I noted above, a dip in goal-scoring was inevitable and not at all a sign of decreased production. On the same line in 2013-14, I would not look for Semin to be a 35-goal scorer; it just is not his primary role on that line. But that said, I think there are 3 specific points where a Semin goal surge could be huge for the team's success. First, I think he needs to look to score a bit more on the power play. Second, if he can pick up the slack a little bit if the team in general or his line mates start pressing that would be significant. Finally, I would guess that Tlusty/EStaal/Semin will start the season together and play much of it together. But inevitably there will be points where injuries or the need to jumpstart the offense will separate them at least briefly. Depending on line mates and situation, these stretches might call for Semin to be a bit more shoot-first/goal scorer to balance the scoring minus he and EStaal paired together.
3) Might he be the answer to the question I posed awhile back about who might man the point on the power play?
In the comments notwalc astutely pointed out:
"Skillset wise, Semin seems to have what you'd like. Composure, vision, big shot, passing skills, and enough defensive ability to handle anything coming back the other way. I don't know if taking him away from a forward spot screws anything up, but he certainly seems like he'd be able to handle the job."
In terms of power play quarterback/point man skills Semin grades out well:
--Passing/playmaking ability? Check.
--Big and accurate shot to get the puck to the net? Check.
--Good north/south speed to defend breaks the other way? Check.
On the one hand, it is not fair to ask for anything more than the solid season that Alexander Semin had in 2012-13. On the other hand, now adjusted to the team and system, I still think there is one notch higher for him.
What say you Canes fans? Is it crazy to think that Alexander Semin could actually do a bit more in 2012-13? Was I the only one who was amazed by his ability to so quickly tailor his game to match his line mates? What is a reasonable goal target for him in 2013-14 considering that his role?
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