Recap: After a hot start, NER faded from their position of prominence to finish third in the East and tied for fourth overall. Their playoff appearance added insult to injury (literally). Hey, at least they didn’t lose in the Cup to match the Buffalo Bills for most inept franchise in consecutive championship finals. Overall, they get a C+ for ’08.
Offense: The Revs normally strong attack fell impotent this year. They scored a meager 40 goals all season and finished tenth in the league when it came to finding the net. Sure, it hurt that Twellman missed a lot of the season, but NER still couldn’t score even after he returned, so they get a C+ for the attack.
Defense: NER’s defense was uncharacteristically poor this year, ceding 43 goals (more than they scored) to finish ninth in the league in goals allowed. When they lost they didn’t just lose, they got killed. Matt Reis played well in goal for a huge portion of the season, but he didn’t finish very strong. They get a C+ for defense.
Needs: The Revs main target in 2009 will be to stay healthy, as injuries to Ralston, Twellman and Cristman largely derailed their 2008 season. They also need to play more consistent defense, and to do so they will need to bring in someone to help Heaps and Albright. They can return to prominence, but they need more talent.
