Nico Hischier and the NHL stars are in Europe

The NHL season begins Friday in Prague with a meeting between the New Jersey Devils (with 3 Swiss) and the Buffalo Sabres. Eleven Helvetii are expected to scratch the North American ice.

The Swiss hierarchy in the NHL is relatively well established. We can even say that nine players are part of the furniture. Honor to the best of them: Roman Josi. In Prague during the last World Championship in May, the Bernese demonstrated why he was one of the three best defenders on the planet. His sole presence carried Switzerland and he didn’t miss much to bring home the gold.

In Nashville, the captain with 1000 NHL games has something to smile about. Because his club made three more than interesting purchases by enlisting Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei. Not sure that with these three plus a Filip Forsberg close to 50 goals, Switzerland will have the chance to see Josi again at the World Cup in Herning in May next year.

Three attackers with more than 30 goals?

Engaged in the Czech capital for two Global Series meetings, Nico Hischier, Timo Meier and Jonas Siegenthaler also have veteran status. Nico Hischier regularly averages around one point per game. Last season, he scored 27 goals, in line with the 22/23 season. Timo Meier scored 28 goals, a total below his 40 goals in the 22/23 season. But with Jack Hughes and Jesper Bratt, the Appenzeller has reason to rejoice. As for Jonas Siegenthaler, he will seek to avoid injuries like last year when he was only able to play 57 of 82 matches.

For his second season in Los Angeles, Kevin Fiala once again exceeded 70 points. His 29 goals correspond to the second best total of his career. By arriving in Prague just after the birth of his daughter, the Saint-Gallois scored points with the Swiss supporters. More calm, the winger has extraordinary talent.

Suter and Kurashev at end of contract

For Nino Niederreiter in Winnipeg, he had to reinvent himself. But Grison obtained a new three-year lease and everyone (re)knows the professionalism of El Nino. If the native of Chur plays a season up to his standards, he should approach twenty goals.

A plateau which could be the objective of Pius Suter with the Vancouver Canucks, even if the Zurich native has competition within his team. At the end of his contract, Suter must make sure he shows himself to be able to stay in the best league in the world.

End of contract is also the fate of Philipp Kurashev. Uninspired in Prague, the player of Russian origins had performed well with Chicago, scoring 54 points (18 goals) in 75 games. If he remains a second-line center while getting playing time in power play, Kurashev should get a new lease.

Matches for Schmid and Bichsel?

Janis Moser won this new lease in Tampa (2 years at $3.3 million per season). After three seasons in the Arizona desert, the 24-year-old from Zealand discovered the humid heat of Florida. If he pairs with Victor Hedman, Moser will progress further. And why not improve his record by 31 points in a season?

Two other Helvetians could play matches this season. These are goalkeeper Akira Schmid, now in Las Vegas after New Jersey, and defender Lian Bichsel in Dallas. In pre-season, the 20-year-old Solothurn demonstrated why NHL recruiters fell in love with him. Able to use his double meter and his 106 kilos, the former junior from Bienne is a force of nature. After starting last season in the AHL, he returned to Rögle in Sweden and was good in the play-offs. Since Dallas doesn’t start until October 10, we won’t know the roster until next week. (ats)