In goal, Devala Gorrick and Adam Grinwis had their ups and downs.

“Seth brought energy, work rate and an ability to take players on. He did a great job off the bench and scored some great goals for us,” Alumbaugh said. “We were very pleased with the development of rookies Austin Ledbetter (CBC/St. Louis Scott Gallagher/SIUE) and Ryan Howe. Austin struggled at times early at right back but made the needed adjustments and Ryan on the left side became a real mainstay for us in the second half of the season.

“And I really liked the leadership we saw from Tony Walls. He joined us late so I’m really excited to see what he’ll be able to do if he’s with us from the start of the season.”

Alumbaugh expects the majority of the squad to be back in 2018. At the same time, he expects to make changes.

“We’re not looking at a complete overhaul, but we will make upgrades where they’re needed,” the GM said. “The guys we bring in will hopefully be guys who can help bring out the best in the players we already have in place. Adding another forward who can work with Christian up top would help, as would a dynamic player on the wing and a midfielder who can be more of a scoring threat. It’s not about just adding pieces, it’s about adding pieces that can complement the guys we have.”