2017-18: After an up and down regular season, the Americans got hot at the right time and went on their best postseason run since 2012. For the first time in team history, they swept their first two rounds knocking off the Kelowna Rockets and Victoria Royals. They met their match though in the Western Conference final against the division rival Everett Silvertips where they fell in six games. With the likes of Michael Rasmussen, Juuso Välimäki, Jake Bean, and Morgan Geekie, the team gave the fans a season to remember.
Offseason departures: There was the foreknowledge that players like Jake Bean, Morgan Geekie, Juuso Välimäki, and Dylan Coghlan would probably not return to the junior level as they were all entering their overage year which would make them eligible for the AHL. As of the time of this article, that seems to be the case. 2017-18 overage players Jordan Topping, Patrick Dea, and Maxwell James will also not be back. One of the more surprising moves during the offseason was the departure of head coach Mike Williamson as he left the team to pursue “other opportunities.”
Newcomers: Kelly Buchberger, a two time Stanley Cup champion with the Edmonton Oilers, was named the new head coach on July 16th. Buchberger was an assistant coach for the New York Islanders last season and has head coaching experience as he led the Springfield Falcons of the AHL in 2007-08.
It’s been a quiet offseason on the trade front. As of now, the team seems to be set on building from the inside. Import pick Krystof Hrabik has generated a lot of buzz. The 19 year-old WHL rookie brings a plethora of experience playing for his home country in both the World Junior Championships in 2018 and the Ivan Hlinka in 2016. He is a 6-foot-4 power forward and should plug right in with the team’s top talent. Also, the team signed 19 year-old forward Matt Dorsey who re-entered the bantam draft this year. Dorsey was originally a pick of the Calgary Hitmen in 2014. Dorsey spent last season with the Wenatchee Wild of the BCHL where he went on to help the team capture the Doyle Cup as league champions.
Roy Stasiuk replaced Barclay Parneta as head scout. Parneta departed the team to take over as GM of the Vancouver Giants
Overage situation: The Americans currently have six overage players on their roster. Forward Nolan Yaremko, forward Parker AuCoin, forward Brett Clayton, defenseman Tyler Jette, defenseman Anthony Bishop, and defenseman Dan Gatenby. Three of those will have to be trimmed. Yaremko and AuCoin were both named to the team’s leadership group and should likely be locked in to two of those spots. The third spot seems to be up for grabs.
Import situation: The team currently carries two import players. 18 year-old Russian defenseman Roman Kalinichenko, who is entering his second season with the club, and 19 year-old Czech forward Krystof Hrabik, who will be entering his rookie WHL season.
Returning scorers:
| Pts rank | Player | GP | G | A | Pts |
| 74 | Michael Rasmussen | 47 | 31 | 28 | 59 |
| 84 | Nolan Yaremko | 70 | 22 | 34 | 56 |
| 102 | Isaac Johnson | 68 | 17 | 31 | 48 |
| 136 | Parker AuCoin | 61 | 19 | 21 | 40 |
| 212 | Sasha Mutala | 68 | 11 | 15 | 26 |
| 227 | Riley Sawchuk | 70 | 15 | 9 | 24 |
| 278 | Kyle Olson | 36 | 4 | 14 | 18 |
| 293 | Anthony Bishop | 66 | 0 | 16 | 16 (1 with VIC) |
| 344 | Brett Clayton | 61 | 4 | 6 | 10 |
Returning goalies
| Player | GP | GAA | Sv % | Record |
| Beck Warm | 35 | 3.58 | 0.889 | 16-11-1-1 |
Forwards: Four of the top ten scorers for the team last year could be returning with the biggest question mark being Michael Rasmussen. Yaremko, Johnson, and AuCoin are poised to lead the team in scoring and play top line minutes. After that, there is a bit of a drop off. Sasha Mutala had a solid rookie season and showed last season he could be effective in just about any situation. He is entering his draft year and should put up some big numbers and find himself on the top line(s). Veterans Riley Sawchuck and Kyle Olson should provide a good boost to the secondary scoring. Beyond that, there are some other players that will have opportunity to fill in the gaps left by the departing players. Connor Bouchard has shown some scoring promise in the preseason and combined with his heart and grit, he could be a big part of this team this season.
Defense: This will be the biggest hurdle for the team this year. The returning defensive corps haven’t shown the ability to be consistently offensive. Coghlan, Välimäki, and Bean accounted for 129 points last season. Those are big shoes to fill. All of the Americans returning defenseman combined for 40 points last season. The silver lining is that each returning player will be called upon to play much bigger roles with the departures which will give them opportunities. Players like Kalinichenko and Mitchell Brown will be called upon to build on their solid rookie seasons. Both showed flashes of scoring ability, and both can be punishing to opponents.
Goalies: For the first time in awhile, it looks like the Americans will not carry an overage goalie. Beck Warm is entering his fifth season in the system, and after a solid backup campaign last year, the starting position seems to be his. The 19 year-old has shown some inconsistencies, but he also hasn’t been given the opportunity to be a true number one up to this point. Hopefully he will find his rhythm this season. It looks like 16 year-old Talyn Boyko will get the opportunity to be the backup to Warm. There has been a lot of buzz around the 6-foot-6 ‘tendie and he will get some opportunities this year to show that he can be the goalie of the future for Tri-City.
Outlook: Fans should not expect to see this team reach the same level of success they did last season. Simply put, there is a huge hole to fill with the departing talent. But, it doesn’t feel like the team will need to rebuild either. The really good news is the Americans have a solid track record of drafting top end talent and there is a lot in the pipeline. Most of the young players got some quality ice time last year because of injuries and that experience should help them to play bigger roles this year. The other question mark will be how the team reacts to a new system of play under Buchberger. No matter what, the slate feels semi-clean and the future is bright in Tri-City.
