So, here are my predictions for this coming NHL season, I have my predictions according to the placing that I feel each team will finish the season:
Eastern Conference
1. Washington Capitals - they have so much offense and two good, young netminders, but need to find some consistency on the blueline at both ends of the rink, I am also not sold on Ovie as a captain. (point range: 106-112)
2. New Jersey Devils - Martin Brodeur in net. Parise, Elias, Zajac and Arnott up front. Volchenkov, Tallinder and White patrolling the blue line. To boot, they'll likely end up having Ilya Kovalchuk, in my mind. How good? As Rick Jeanneret would say, "Scary good." (point range: 103-108)
3. Boston Bruins - Added Nathan Horton to shore up the offense, good defense and two more than capable netminders in net and recently drafted Tyler Seguin as well. These guys will also be great, however, not as good as New Jersey or Washington, but definitely something to write home about. (point range: 100-105)
4. Philadelphia Flyers - Bolstered an even better defense. Lost some scoring up front with Gagne gone. One of Briere or Carter will needed to be shipped out of there soon as Briere showed how great he was at center last playoffs. But goaltending will get you nowhere if you are in Philadelphia. (point range: 95-100)
5. Pittsburgh Penguins - Lost Sergei Gonchar but ended up with two defenseman every bit as good as Sergei with Martin and Michalek. Only question is, how long can Malkin/Crosby produce without some decent wingers? (point range: 95-100)
6. Ottawa Senators - Added Sergei Gonchar. Powerplay, improved. Offensive ability, improved. Heart and soul? Meh. They are a pretty good team with little defensive depth and a goaltending controversy to sort out this season. (point range: 95-100)
7. Tampa Bay Lightning - Stamkos is one year better, Dan Ellis certainly adds some goalie insurance as a successful tandem is waiting for October to arrive. Kubina adds to some defensive depth and Lecavalier couldn't get any worse, could he? (point range: 92-97)
8. Buffalo Sabres - Ryan Miller. He became a stonewall last season and I think he's not a one-hit wonder. Nothing really changed for Buffalo this offseason lost Lydman and Tallinder, gained Niedermayer (see: Rob), Morrisonn (see: Shaone) and Leopold. They remind me a lot of the 2007-08 Canucks, in the sense that if injuries hit, it will be bad. (point range: 90-97)
9. Atlanta Thrashers - Added grit and goaltending two important factors and I think they could surprise people if you add in an intanglible. Coaching. Craig Ramsay is an excellent coach and well-respected in the league. I think he'll get the most out of all his players, but they'll need a dominant offensive force to step up if they go anywhere. (point range: 85-92)
10. Montreal Canadiens - Ah, Le Canadiens. You may assume my low ranking is in part to goaltending. Non, Non. I think Price will do well, but playoff heroes like Cammalerri, Hal Gill, and Andrei Markov will step it down next year. As a result, fans will publicly humiliate Price even though, he'll play acceptable. (point range: 85-90)
11. Carolina Hurricanes - Where they would be if they had any depth, I'm not sure. What I am sure of, though, is that they lost one of their key components, Ray Whitney and that'll hurt a guy like Eric Staal or Erik Cole. Lots of guys will need to step it up if they want a taste of the playoffs. (point range: 80-87)
12. Toronto Maple Leafs - Named Phaneuf as captain (I just can't bring myself to think that this will have good results, since if they are legitimate they will need to bring in veterans and I can not see Phaneuf being a leader when he has other leaders in the same dressing room), acquired Versteeg and Armstrong, OK, Burke's trying to build a team for the playoffs. Problem is, they'll need either tons of unexpected offense or goaltending heroics on a nightly basis if they go anywhere. But don't take my word for it. If the Giguere-Allaire magic reappears, there goaltending heroics may just be enough. A bubble team in every sense of the word. (point range: 80-85)
13. New York Rangers - Thank god for Lundqvist. I think Gaborik will return to himself and get injured after a stellar 09-10 season. But I don't think they are a great team and won't be again until Sather is fired or quits. Have fun with that, Rags fans. (point range: 77-82)
14. New York Islanders - Are intterchangeable with NY Rangers, Tavares will get better, Okposo will get better, hell, maybe Dipietro even suits up for 20-30 games, Who knows? Don't let their ranking fool you, though. They are definitely a team on the rise within the next few years. (point range: 77-82)
15. Florida Panthers - Yay for Vokoun! Seriously, though. They lost Horton, so there goes their most prominent offensive weapon. They got McCabe-Wideman as a good first pair, but I think Vokoun will be gone for prospects or picks or both come March as Tallon will be doing some rebuilding a la Chicago, which should make one of my friends start salivating very shortly here. (point range: 65-75)
Western Conference
1. Vancouver Canucks - Offense was retained. Defense was taking us nowhere. Enter Keith Ballard and Dan Hamhuis. 3rd line was a scoring line. Hello, Manny Malhotra. We upgraded everything that needed upgrading last season. Even got some grit in Torres and more depth in Schaeffer. Have so much depth that Hodgson was sent down, Morrison was not signed and O'Brien, Hordichuk, etc were shipped off. Even got Newell Brown and Roland Melandson to show for it. Haven't seen a better team in Vancouver ever. Cap problems could cause problems in the future, but Gillis is being creative... if nothing else the players moving between Vancouver and Winnipeg on a daily basis should be entertaining!
3. San Jose Sharks - Forwards could be tuckered out by April from all the extra effort they'll be putting in all season. I expect Thornton and Heatley to become great again, otherwise San Jose fans will be singing the Blues once again. Have two competent goalies to tandem in net. The organization feels they have a four year window, that window may be starting to close, but they will still be a strong team (Point range: 100-107 points)
4. Los Angeles Kings - I can't say enough good things about this young squad. If last playoffs was any indication, be afraid. Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson manning the points, Smyth, Kopitar, Brown up front. Added great net presence in Alex Ponikoravsky (is that how it is spelled?). Great depth in net with Ersberg, Quick and Bernier. Great defensive team looks exactly built like Dean Lombardi's last team. Question is, can they get it done in the playoffs? I think there will still be some growing pains for one more year(Point range: 95-105 points)
5. Chicago Blackhawks - Money talks. So does Dustin Byfuglien. I remember him chirping Lu within minutes of elimination. I hate the Blackhawks. They lost lots of depth this season, which shouldn't phase them a lot until the playoffs. Fatigue could become a factor as the top 2 lines and top 4 defenseman will be seeing a lot of ice. Marty Turco: don't be fooled, he is still a superb goalie despite having a horrid Stars defense in front of him. (Point range: 100-105 points)
8. Anaheim Ducks - What a great top 6. What a quality goalie. *Turns attention to defense* Hmmm, that could be a problem. They have some good grit and size, but the lack of depth could quickly become the Achilles Heal with an injury or two to any position. They are a great team and I expect Hiller to step up next year or they could be playing golf in April once again. The only thing in the way of playoffs is a suspect defensive corps. (Point range: 90-97 points)
9. Colorado Avalanche - Same as last year, Anderson starts off hot, cools down in February and March and becomes hot to start the playoffs again (if they can make it, on the bubble in my opinion, could be quite a few sophomore type slumps). The only difference? The team in front of him is 1 year older. They have a great top line with the maturation of Matt Duchene. Expect to hear scored by Milan Hejduk assisted by Matt Duchene a lot. (Point range: 92-97 points)
10. Nashville Predators - Lost Hamhuis, Arnott. But this is the Preds, they'll find a way to replace them. But it still won't be enough, as their defense may be superlative (even with a real lack of depth, they were going to start with Parent in the top 4!) and goaltending is good, their only offensive threat worth noting is Patric Hornqvist. I think scoring will be a definite problem in Tennessee this winter. (Point range: 90-95 points)
11. Calgary Flames - Ever hear the expression "So crazy it just might work?" if there was ever an appropriate time to use it, it would be now. Bringing back Jokinen and Tanguay seem to be ludicrous at the time, but if Jokinen and Iginla were to be the shooters and Tanguay was to regain his playmaking abilities, Calgary could just pull this one out. In the long run, I don't see it working though. The Flames will continue to hover around mediocrity until the Sutter regime ends and someone comes in to attempt to clean up the carnage (Point range: 83-88 points)
12. Edmonton Oilers - They are a better team than people give them credit for. Coming off a season where they lost over 350 man games, one of them being a great netminder in Khabibulin and any team was sure to fail. The young players being older, the bad seeds gone, and replacing Moreau, Pouliot, Comrie, Putolny and Nilsson with Hall, Eberle, Paajarvi, Fraser, and Hemsky (missed most of the season), yeah I would say that in itself will make the team much better! Depth on defense is a real concern, one injury and they will have Strudwick or Vandermeer in the top 4, gross! Need to get something for Souray, anything! I think they'll do better this season, but Taylor Hall will have not be the reason. (Point range: 77-84 points)
14. Minnesota Wild - They could surprise or fail miserably. Since they didn't do that great last season, I'll go with fail miserably. They have great depth at center, OK on the defense aspect and have Niklas Backstrom in net. They have potential. However I'm not sure they'll find it this season, but they could definitely surprise people this season, if only because they will not be trapping the whole game... every game! (Point range: 72-80 points)
15. Dallas Stars - They are a great team from the top, but depth means everything in the new NHL. They have zero depth. Their goalie is Kari Lehtonen, yes the same Lehtonen who seems to get injured quite a bit. Good luck, Dallas, you'll need it. (Point range: 65-75 points)
And my prediction for the Stanley Cup playoffs:
Western Final: Vancouver Canucks (over Detroit)
Eastern Final: Boston Bruins (over Washington)
Stanley Cup winner: Vancouver Canucks (If they do not at minimum make it to the Stanley Cup Finals this year AV should be fired, he has been out coached the past two years, and has nil excuses with the cast that Gillis has assembled!)
6. Ottawa Senators - Added Sergei Gonchar. Powerplay, improved. Offensive ability, improved. Heart and soul? Meh. They are a pretty good team with little defensive depth and a goaltending controversy to sort out this season. (point range: 95-100)
7. Tampa Bay Lightning - Stamkos is one year better, Dan Ellis certainly adds some goalie insurance as a successful tandem is waiting for October to arrive. Kubina adds to some defensive depth and Lecavalier couldn't get any worse, could he? (point range: 92-97)
8. Buffalo Sabres - Ryan Miller. He became a stonewall last season and I think he's not a one-hit wonder. Nothing really changed for Buffalo this offseason lost Lydman and Tallinder, gained Niedermayer (see: Rob), Morrisonn (see: Shaone) and Leopold. They remind me a lot of the 2007-08 Canucks, in the sense that if injuries hit, it will be bad. (point range: 90-97)
9. Atlanta Thrashers - Added grit and goaltending two important factors and I think they could surprise people if you add in an intanglible. Coaching. Craig Ramsay is an excellent coach and well-respected in the league. I think he'll get the most out of all his players, but they'll need a dominant offensive force to step up if they go anywhere. (point range: 85-92)
10. Montreal Canadiens - Ah, Le Canadiens. You may assume my low ranking is in part to goaltending. Non, Non. I think Price will do well, but playoff heroes like Cammalerri, Hal Gill, and Andrei Markov will step it down next year. As a result, fans will publicly humiliate Price even though, he'll play acceptable. (point range: 85-90)
11. Carolina Hurricanes - Where they would be if they had any depth, I'm not sure. What I am sure of, though, is that they lost one of their key components, Ray Whitney and that'll hurt a guy like Eric Staal or Erik Cole. Lots of guys will need to step it up if they want a taste of the playoffs. (point range: 80-87)
12. Toronto Maple Leafs - Named Phaneuf as captain (I just can't bring myself to think that this will have good results, since if they are legitimate they will need to bring in veterans and I can not see Phaneuf being a leader when he has other leaders in the same dressing room), acquired Versteeg and Armstrong, OK, Burke's trying to build a team for the playoffs. Problem is, they'll need either tons of unexpected offense or goaltending heroics on a nightly basis if they go anywhere. But don't take my word for it. If the Giguere-Allaire magic reappears, there goaltending heroics may just be enough. A bubble team in every sense of the word. (point range: 80-85)
13. New York Rangers - Thank god for Lundqvist. I think Gaborik will return to himself and get injured after a stellar 09-10 season. But I don't think they are a great team and won't be again until Sather is fired or quits. Have fun with that, Rags fans. (point range: 77-82)
14. New York Islanders - Are intterchangeable with NY Rangers, Tavares will get better, Okposo will get better, hell, maybe Dipietro even suits up for 20-30 games, Who knows? Don't let their ranking fool you, though. They are definitely a team on the rise within the next few years. (point range: 77-82)
15. Florida Panthers - Yay for Vokoun! Seriously, though. They lost Horton, so there goes their most prominent offensive weapon. They got McCabe-Wideman as a good first pair, but I think Vokoun will be gone for prospects or picks or both come March as Tallon will be doing some rebuilding a la Chicago, which should make one of my friends start salivating very shortly here. (point range: 65-75)
Western Conference
1. Vancouver Canucks - Offense was retained. Defense was taking us nowhere. Enter Keith Ballard and Dan Hamhuis. 3rd line was a scoring line. Hello, Manny Malhotra. We upgraded everything that needed upgrading last season. Even got some grit in Torres and more depth in Schaeffer. Have so much depth that Hodgson was sent down, Morrison was not signed and O'Brien, Hordichuk, etc were shipped off. Even got Newell Brown and Roland Melandson to show for it. Haven't seen a better team in Vancouver ever. Cap problems could cause problems in the future, but Gillis is being creative... if nothing else the players moving between Vancouver and Winnipeg on a daily basis should be entertaining!
Oh, and look at the other teams in the Northwest, what was once the strongest division in hockey is now one of the weakest (Point range 105-112 points)
2. Detroit Red Wings - I think they still have a lot left in the tank, injuries hurt them a lot last season, but still had 102 points! Now, they have a competent goaltender who can play in both the regular season and playoffs well. They regained Jiri Hudler and got Ruslan Salei recently. Great depth everywhere. (Point range: 105-110 points)
3. San Jose Sharks - Forwards could be tuckered out by April from all the extra effort they'll be putting in all season. I expect Thornton and Heatley to become great again, otherwise San Jose fans will be singing the Blues once again. Have two competent goalies to tandem in net. The organization feels they have a four year window, that window may be starting to close, but they will still be a strong team (Point range: 100-107 points)
4. Los Angeles Kings - I can't say enough good things about this young squad. If last playoffs was any indication, be afraid. Drew Doughty and Jack Johnson manning the points, Smyth, Kopitar, Brown up front. Added great net presence in Alex Ponikoravsky (is that how it is spelled?). Great depth in net with Ersberg, Quick and Bernier. Great defensive team looks exactly built like Dean Lombardi's last team. Question is, can they get it done in the playoffs? I think there will still be some growing pains for one more year(Point range: 95-105 points)
5. Chicago Blackhawks - Money talks. So does Dustin Byfuglien. I remember him chirping Lu within minutes of elimination. I hate the Blackhawks. They lost lots of depth this season, which shouldn't phase them a lot until the playoffs. Fatigue could become a factor as the top 2 lines and top 4 defenseman will be seeing a lot of ice. Marty Turco: don't be fooled, he is still a superb goalie despite having a horrid Stars defense in front of him. (Point range: 100-105 points)
6. Phoenix Coyotes - Ok, they had a great run last year. Wait, what? I thought Phoenix was just a fluke...Oh no. They are a good team that can pull through with help of Dave Tippett and Ilya Bryzgalov. They also added Ray Whitney. Trust me, this team is for real. (Point range: 95-100 points)
7. St. Louis Blues - Depending on how good one Jaroslav Halak plays this year, the Blues could be 6th or they could be 12th. They've got a great young team built on the blueline and some legitimate scoring threats as well. These young players have been quietly maturing the past couple of years and I see some good things happening this year, even have some good size and grit among the youngsters. If Halak goes Playoffs, they are in. If not, they are out. (Point range: 88-97 points)
8. Anaheim Ducks - What a great top 6. What a quality goalie. *Turns attention to defense* Hmmm, that could be a problem. They have some good grit and size, but the lack of depth could quickly become the Achilles Heal with an injury or two to any position. They are a great team and I expect Hiller to step up next year or they could be playing golf in April once again. The only thing in the way of playoffs is a suspect defensive corps. (Point range: 90-97 points)
9. Colorado Avalanche - Same as last year, Anderson starts off hot, cools down in February and March and becomes hot to start the playoffs again (if they can make it, on the bubble in my opinion, could be quite a few sophomore type slumps). The only difference? The team in front of him is 1 year older. They have a great top line with the maturation of Matt Duchene. Expect to hear scored by Milan Hejduk assisted by Matt Duchene a lot. (Point range: 92-97 points)
10. Nashville Predators - Lost Hamhuis, Arnott. But this is the Preds, they'll find a way to replace them. But it still won't be enough, as their defense may be superlative (even with a real lack of depth, they were going to start with Parent in the top 4!) and goaltending is good, their only offensive threat worth noting is Patric Hornqvist. I think scoring will be a definite problem in Tennessee this winter. (Point range: 90-95 points)
11. Calgary Flames - Ever hear the expression "So crazy it just might work?" if there was ever an appropriate time to use it, it would be now. Bringing back Jokinen and Tanguay seem to be ludicrous at the time, but if Jokinen and Iginla were to be the shooters and Tanguay was to regain his playmaking abilities, Calgary could just pull this one out. In the long run, I don't see it working though. The Flames will continue to hover around mediocrity until the Sutter regime ends and someone comes in to attempt to clean up the carnage (Point range: 83-88 points)
12. Edmonton Oilers - They are a better team than people give them credit for. Coming off a season where they lost over 350 man games, one of them being a great netminder in Khabibulin and any team was sure to fail. The young players being older, the bad seeds gone, and replacing Moreau, Pouliot, Comrie, Putolny and Nilsson with Hall, Eberle, Paajarvi, Fraser, and Hemsky (missed most of the season), yeah I would say that in itself will make the team much better! Depth on defense is a real concern, one injury and they will have Strudwick or Vandermeer in the top 4, gross! Need to get something for Souray, anything! I think they'll do better this season, but Taylor Hall will have not be the reason. (Point range: 77-84 points)
13. Columbus Blue Jackets - Name one elite player from Columbus within 5 seconds. Rick Nash, right? Well, that's all they got in CBJ. He hasn't ever hit 80 points in his career. Elite scorer, yes. Dangles, yes. Great center....no. Steve Mason will need to channel his inner Hasek or otherwise this franchise could be in big trouble... could happen... (Point range: 75-82 points)
14. Minnesota Wild - They could surprise or fail miserably. Since they didn't do that great last season, I'll go with fail miserably. They have great depth at center, OK on the defense aspect and have Niklas Backstrom in net. They have potential. However I'm not sure they'll find it this season, but they could definitely surprise people this season, if only because they will not be trapping the whole game... every game! (Point range: 72-80 points)
15. Dallas Stars - They are a great team from the top, but depth means everything in the new NHL. They have zero depth. Their goalie is Kari Lehtonen, yes the same Lehtonen who seems to get injured quite a bit. Good luck, Dallas, you'll need it. (Point range: 65-75 points)
And my prediction for the Stanley Cup playoffs:
Western Final: Vancouver Canucks (over Detroit)
Eastern Final: Boston Bruins (over Washington)
Stanley Cup winner: Vancouver Canucks (If they do not at minimum make it to the Stanley Cup Finals this year AV should be fired, he has been out coached the past two years, and has nil excuses with the cast that Gillis has assembled!)
Hart Trophy Winner: Ovechkin (along with the Art Ross... he has much to prove this year, wants to show people that he can be a winner)
Vezina Trophy Winner: Luongo (he is no longer the captain and has a full time coach this year)
Norris Trophy Winner: Doughty (ever aspect of his game is incredible! Love this guy!)
Calder Trophy Winner: Paajarvi (I think he is more developed than some of the other rookies and is in a really good situation with so much attention on Eberle and Hall... people will take notice soon)
No comments:
Post a Comment