Short of winning the ECHL's Kelly Cup championship, the Wranglers accomplished just about everything they possibly could last season.

But with four of Las Vegas' top six scorers from last year now playing in Europe, the Wranglers, who open training camp today at the Las Vegas Ice Center, will be hard-pressed to match last season's success: a 53-13-6 (112 points) record that tied for the second-most wins in league history and the third-highest point total.

"We're not going to be better than last season. We'll definitely try, but that was a special season last year," Wranglers coach and general manager Glen Gulutzan said. "We want to have great success in the playoffs, but to have higher expectations than a 53-win season is a little tough. We need to get 40 to 45 wins to get into the playoffs."

Las Vegas became only the second team in league history to win a playoff series after trailing 3-1 when it defeated the Idaho Steelheads in the first round last season.

But the Wranglers lost to the Alaska Aces 4-2 in the second round after taking a 2-1 series edge. The Aces, who finished one point ahead of Las Vegas in the West Division, went on to capture the Kelly Cup.

"It could've easily been us," said Gulutzan, last season's league coach of the year.

Las Vegas won't have to battle Alaska for division supremacy this season. The Wranglers have moved from the West Division to the Pacific Division after the San Diego Gulls folded.

"This is going to be the toughest division in the ECHL," Gulutzan said of the Pacific, which includes California teams Fresno, Bakersfield, Stockton and Long Beach.

Las Vegas will feature perhaps the best goaltending tandem in the league.

Marc Magliarditi, the ECHL's all-time shutout leader with 25, went 34-11-5 with a 2.47 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage last season. He was named an ECHL All-Star and finished second in the league's most valuable player voting.

Mike McKenna, who also was named an All-Star, finished his rookie year with a 19-2-1 record, a 2.13 GAA and a .923 save percentage.

"Our goaltending is phenomenal. We have two of the No. 1 guys in the league," veteran defenseman Scott Schoneck said. "We might lack that 1-2 punch (on offense), but, all in all, we should be very competitive this year."

The Wranglers lost several offensive cogs, including last year's leading scorers Matt Dzieduszycki and Dan Tudin.

Dzieduszycki (78 points) is playing in Germany this year, along with Chris Stanley (46 points). Tudin (77 points) is playing in Italy, and veteran defenseman Christian Chartier is playing in Norway.

The Wranglers do return a few solid scorers in forward Steve Crampton (49) and center Derek Edwardson (45). Edwardson, a former ECHL All-Star, scored 12 points in 13 playoff games.

Other key returnees include Marco Peluso, Chris Neiszner, Nick Anderson and Shawn Limpright.

Peluso, an ECHL All-Star last season, scored eight points in six playoff games and Neiszner tallied 11 points in 12 playoff games.

Several newcomers -- Joe Tallari, Tyler Mosienko and Adam Cracknell -- are expected to help fill the scoring void.

Tallari scored 37 points for the ECHL's Johnstown Chiefs last season, Mosienko tallied 47 points for the ECHL's Greenville Grrrowl and Cracknell was second in scoring in the Western Hockey League with 93 points for the Kootenay Ice of Cranbrook, British Columbia.

"We would like to make sure we're still solid in the middle here; that's a concern for us," Gulutzan said. "We have a real good defense. They could play in the American (Hockey) League, too, so we want to make sure we have depth like last year."

Mike McBain, Lee Green and Schoneck return to anchor the defense, along with newcomers Aaron Power and Jason Jozsa.

Power played 50 games for the AHL's Cleveland Barons last year, and Jozsa scored 40 points for Greenville.

The Wranglers play Phoenix in their only two preseason games -- at the Orleans Arena on Wednesday and in Arizona on Thursday.

Las Vegas opens its regular season at Fresno on Oct. 20. Its home opener is scheduled for Nov. 3 against Victoria.