No rule changes were made from last year to this year around the league. No new arena's were built this year but a few got name changes. The Maple Leafs will now play in Scotiabank Arena (formerly Air Canada Center), the Blues will now play in the Enterprise Center (formerly Scottrade Center), while the Islanders will be splitting games between Barclays Center and Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Two games will be set outdoors this year. New Years Day will see the Winter Classic take place at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana, which will see the Chicago Blackhawks and the Boston Bruins square off. As for the NHL Stadium Series, that will take place February 23, at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, as the Penguins square off with the hometown Flyers. San Jose gets hosting duties for this years All Star Game, which is being held at the SAP Center.
There are also a few management and coaching changes that have happened around the league. Tampa Bay (Julien BriseBois), New York Islanders (Lou Lamoriello) and Minnesota (Paul Fenton) all have new General Managers. The league has new coaches in the league in Washington (Todd Reirden), the Rangers (David Quinn), Islanders (Barry Trotz), Dallas (Jim Montgomery), Carolina (Rod Brind'Amour) and Calgary (Bill Peters).
That's just some of the changes that went down this summer. A lot of new faces ended up in new places. So lets get into that right now. Here's how I see the 2018-19 NHL season going down.
Western Conference:
Central Division
1. Winnipeg Jets (112 Points)*
Winnipeg is coming off a year which saw them come within three wins of reaching the Stanley Cup Finals. They look to get back this year, with a few faces missing from last year's title run. Paul Stastny was the biggest weapon that left the Jets attack. With that being said, Winnipeg has a lot going for it. It starts from the net out and Connor Hellebuyck is proving to everybody that he's one of the elite netminders in the game. From the blueline, Winnipeg has Dustin Byfuglien and Tyler Meyers to lead the charge and get help from the likes of Josh Morrissey and Jacob Truba, it going to help keep the puck out of their own net. Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler are going to be counted on to carry the offensive load for Winnipeg. Then you got hot young sensation Patrik Laine, who's coming off scoring 44 goals a season ago, which are solid numbers. For Winnipeg to really take the next step, they need captain Bryan Little to really step his game up and take it to the next level and help the Jets climb over the top. They got a balanced team and solid goaltending, Winnipeg is going to be a tough team to beat this season
2. Nashville Predators (111 Points)*
This was a team that was consistent and dominating most of last year. They just ran into a red hot Jets team that was heating up at the right time heading into last years playoffs. What's scary is that the core of this Predators team is locked in for quite some time. They are going to be a tough team to score on. Pekka Rinne is still one of the premiere puck stoppers in hockey. It's not all on the goalies, you need help from your defense. Nashville has one of the better blue lines in the game today. Roman Josi, P.K. Subban, Ryan Ellis and Mattias Ekholm are the anchors of the corp that will keep the Preds near the top of the league in team defense. But you need more then keeping the puck out, you also have to fill the opposing cage. Filip Forsberg, Ryan Johansen and Viktor Arvidsson comprise the top line and can be one of the best in the game. Complementing them will be the lings of Kevin Fiala, Kyle Turris and Craig Smith, so it going to be a tough lineup to try and compete against. Nashville is going to have to worry a little about locking up some talent in the likes of Ryan Ellis and a pay raise for Roman Josi, but for this season, the Preds are going to have a nice long playoff run come spring time.
3. St Louis Blues (105 Points)*
Last season was a tough pill to swallow for the Blues, who missed out on making the playoffs by a single point. You knew that changes had to be made in the offseason, and boy were they ever in St Louis. First lets start off with the big trade of sending Patrik Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka, and Tage Thompson to Buffalo for Ryan O'Reilly, a guy who can step his game up in this new role and put up points. Tyler Bozak and David Perron were brought in on the free agent market to add some scoring punch and much needed depth to this Blues club. One of the big things that killed this club was it's inability to score on the man advantage, something that should be able to change with the addition of O'Reilly to the likes of Vladimir Tarasenko, Brayden Schenn, Jaden Schwartz and Alex Pietrangelo. Only thing that has me really worried for this team is in net. Can Jake Allen really have a bounce back year? There were stretches last year where he didn't really play because he was getting out played. But make no mistake, when Allen is on his game,m he can carry this team. All in all, the Blues front office made enough moves during the summer to improve this team. In a very competative division, the Blues are going to be in for a test, but they should be able to pass it.
4. Dallas Stars (96 Points) (WC)
Dallas was unable to try and build upon adding depth down the middle at center, because the free agency and trade markets were so thin this year. At least when the Stars got around to try and address the matter. They did bring back a familiar face in Valeri Nichushkin, who after spending the last two seasons playing over in Russia, has something he wants to try and prove at this level again. Val is going to have to try and step in and take some of the scoring pressure off the top line of Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin and Alexander Radulov. Radek Faksa, Devin Shore and Brett Ritchie are also going to have to step up their game to help out the scoring. On the blueline, Dallas has some high hopes for guys like Julius Honka and Stephen Johns, while John Klingberg, Esa Lindell and the veteran Marc Methot will be heavily relied upon. then there's the goaltending. Ben Bishop is going to have to find his form again from what we saw out of him in Tampa. Consistency is going to be a big thing in Dallas, a team that has a nice mix right now of young guns and veteran talent. If they can pull it all together, they may have something to make a run at the playoffs.
5 Minnesota Wild (94 Points)
For six straight years now, the Minnesota Wild have been a playoff team. Sadly for them, it's been quick playoff exits after the first round in each of the last four seasons. They didn't really make much of a big splash in the offseason. Keeping quite seems to be a trend in this central division. Matt Dumba and Jason Zucker were both locked up to extensions, so they have their core set for a few years longer. One knock I have against the Wild is their age, as it looks like they aren't getting much younger. Eric Staal and Mikko Koivu are going to be counted on to try and come close to the heavy production they had last year. Zach Parise has got to find his game again. He's healthy this year, which is something that the Wild haven't gotten from Zach in quite some time. Nino Neiderreiter and Charlie Coyle are going to need to step up their games to complement the big boys in this Wild offense. In goal, they have one of the steadier goalies in the sport in Devan Dubnyk, who's been a very steady hand for Minnesota since he was acquired in 2015. Here's what's going to be the biggest struggle for the Wild. Playing in a much improved and tough division.
6. Colorado Avalanche (91 Points)
A year ago the Avalanche topped off an incredible comeback year by sneaking into the playoffs a single point ahead of the Blues, this coming after being the worst team in the league two years ago. There's been a few changes from last year, with Philipp Grubauer and Brooks Orpik coming over in a trade from Washington. Orpik is going to be a nice depth addition to the top line of Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen. Take that away from the Avs lineup and there's not really a whole lot here that scares you. Sure they've got plenty of youth in Denver, but it's not enough I feel to support the top line and in this league, you need scoring depth. Nobody outside the top line in Colorado last year had more than 50 points. With the West being as good as its going to be this year, Denver could be in for a fight for a playoff spot, but they're going to miss out.
7. Chicago Blackhawks (89 Points)
This is going to be an unfamiliar feeling for the fans in the Windy City. Chicago is going to miss out on the playoffs for the 2nd year in a row. Corey Crawford has been battling health issues since before Christmas last year, which is leaving fans to wonder his health level for this year. Bringing in a guy like Cam Ward is going to get the bulk of the playing time. One of the bigger problems facing Chicago is their age. The core of this team isn't getting any younger. They haven't done much to try and really replenish the aging group with young talent who can step in right away. Its a slow process in Chicago. No doubt that the Hawks are going to be a tough team, but they are going to burn out in a tough Western Conference.
Pacific Division
1. Calgary Flames (110 Points)*
Calgary sputtered last year, dropping to 84 points and missing the playoffs. General Manager Brad Treliving wanted to make changes to his team, and that's what he started doing. He pulled off a huge deal with the Hurricanes, sending away Dougie Hamilton and Michael Ferland, along with prospect Adam Fox, to Carolina for Noah Hanifin and Elias Lindholm. As soon as they were delt, both guys signed extensions with his new club. Oh but wait, the Flames weren't done making a splash. James Neal was one of the prime names on the market, and Calgary was able to gobble him up. Here's how all this balances out. Hanifin joins a top three on defense with Mark Giordano and Travis Hamonic. Joining Neal up front is gonna be Sean Monahan, Johnny Gaudreau, Matthew Tkachuk, and Michael Frolik, who are going to be relied on to carry the scoring punch for this club. Oh yeah they also have a guy named Mike Smith in net who's no slouch. They have a good mix of guys on this hockey club and are going to be very exciting to watch this season. It going to be a division winning kind of year for the Flames, but its going to be a squeaker.
2. San Jose Sharks (108 Points)*
San Jose went all out this summer to get one final crack at a title with the core that it currently has in place. Joe Thornton maybe on his last legs this year at 39 years old so who know's how much he really has left in the tank. Joe Pavelski is 34 and Brent Burns is 33 so who knows with them too. San Jose did go out in the offseason and make moves to try and compete with the rest of this tough Pacific Division. Logan Couture was locked up to a long term extension. Then, after trading for him back in February, San Jose locked up Evander Kane to a seven year extension. That's not even the biggest splash San Jose made. San Jose shipped off four players and two draft picks to Ottawa for some guy you might have heard of. His name is Erik Karlsson, one of the best all around defenders in the league right now. It won't be enough to beat out the Flames for the division title, but they'll enjoy plenty of success this year.
3. Los Angeles Kings (103 Points)*
A fourth place finish for the Kings last year was good, but this year they want to take their game to another level. They lost some of their role players during the summer months. But they did get reinforcement from an unexpected source. Yes Ilya Kovalchuk has returned after a three year absence. He signed a three year deal to come back to the league. He's 35 years old and, just as important, he hasn't played against this level of competition in a long time. Who knows how he's going to adapt to the game or how quickly he can do it. He also provides a little relief for team captain and leading scorer Anze Kopitar, who is coming off an MVP caliber season a year ago. Throw in the likes of Tyler Toffoli, Trevor Lewis, and Dustin Brown, among others, to balance out the offense. LA's blueline has the likes of Alec Martinez, Jake Muzzin and Drew Doughty holding the fort down. Finally, in net is Jonathan Quick, and there's no real need to get into details as to just how good a netminder this guy can be. All things considered, LA has the talent to be able to get back into the playoofs and make some noise in the West.
4. Vegas Golden Knights (98 Points)(WC)*
Last season was one for the ages in Vegas, a first year expansion club going all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. This year, the expectations are just as high, but night not be as close to being met. David Perron and James Neal are the biggest weapons gone from a season ago but the core is still in tact and has been added to. Paul Stastny was brought in to add depth at center via free agency. Stasyny was the best center available on the free agent market right behind John Tavares. Then Vegas goes out and makes a big splash on the trade market, sending Tomas Tatar, Nick Suzuki and a draft pick to Montreal for some guy named Max Pacioretty, who's kinda good. He and Stastny will help balance out a core with William Karlsson, Reilly Smith, Jonathan Marchessault, and Cody eakin up front. Then there's the back end, which is essentially unchanged from last season, with the incoming Nick Holden likely to replace the outgoing Luca Sbisa as the team’s sixth defenseman. Last but not least is Marc-Andre Fleury, who had a monster season a year ago. The big question mark is can he repeat the season he had last year? If he's anywhere close to that, the Vegas is in good shape. They're still a playoff bound team, but it's gonna be a little bit tougher this year considering how much better the rest of the division ahead of them got.
5. Anaheim Ducks (93 Points)
Anaheim is one of those interesting hockey clubs. They were the 2nd best team in the division last year, but I don't think they're going to be that good again this year. Ryan Miller isn't getting any younger, but they already have another solid netminder on the club in john Gibson, who I expect to get the bulk of the playing time this year. A solid blueline core is in tact for the Ducks, a young one too. Cam Fowler, Brandon Montour, Josh Manson and Hampus Lindholm are going to be a tough group to play against. Add in the free agent additions Luke Schenn and Andre Sustr and this should be a steady group. Scoring might be a bit of an issue. Sure they have Ryan Getzlaf, who can still produce but he's not getting any younger. Corey Perry is still a threat, but he's going to miss half the season with an injury. Anaheim gets a little help in the depth department from Patrick Eaves and Adam Henrique helps down the middle. Jakob Silfverberg can also be a productive scorer for stretches. What has me worried about the Ducks is how much longer the older core can carry them and how ready the young guns are to step in and take over? Anaheim will be good, but not enough this year to make the playoffs.
6. Edmonton Oilers (89 Points)
After what the Oilers managed to do two years ago, they had a major letdown last season. You'd like to think they did something to improve upon that result from last year right? Wrong.They don't really have a guy who can go out there and play on the left side with Conor McDavid, who's the best player in the game not named Crosby or Ovechkin. Outside of McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins are the best centers, but they may have to put one of them on the wing to play with McDavid, and Draisaitl did pretty well at it last year. Only thing is you have to sacrifice one position to take up another and try and fill a hole, something that's going to be very tough for the Oilers to try and overcome. Darnell Nurse, Oscar Klefbom, and Adam Larsson are fine NHL blueliners, but none of them can really take over a game from the back end, something which most really good teams have something close to that on their club. Goaltending isn't going to be much of an issue, as Cam Talbot is a fine goalie who has nno problem taking a few games during the season for you. You'd like to think that any team that has Conor McDavid on it would be a decent contender, but with some of the glaring holes that this Oiler team has, and with how good the rest of the Western Conference is, I can't see them making much noise this year.
7. Arizona Coyotes (85 Points)
Coyotes General Manager John Chayka made a few moves in the offseason that seem to try, at least on paper, and help move along the Coyotes in a rebuild and make them a contender again. First he sends away Max Domi, who scored just nine goals and five with a goalie in the net last season, to the Montreal Canadiens. In return he was able to grab Alex Galchenyuk. This will give both players a nice change of scenery, and it appears Galchenyuk will get an opportunity to play center in a top-six role this season. There's some good young talent to build off with Clayton Keller, Brendan Perlini, and Dylan Strome. You also have some good veteran presence with Michael Grabner, Derek Stepan and Richard Panik, which is a good group to lead a very young core. On the back end, Oliver Ekman-Larsson is the new captain and leading the charge of a decent group. Tending goal, Antti Raanta has the potential to be something special with more playing time. This team is on the upswing but its going to take a little more time to get it right in Arizona.
8. Vancouver Canucks (80 Points)
End of an era has come in Vancouver. The Sedin Twins have retired and will no longer be dawning the Canucks sweaters. Vancouver is now going into full blown rebuild mode. Jay Beagle, Antoine Roussel, and Tim Schaller were brought in to try and lead this forward crop, which will try and have both Bo Horvat and Brock Boeser step up and play larger roles with the Sedin's both gone. The defense and goaltending leave a lot to be desired in Vancouver. Sorry to say it Canucks fans, this is going to be a short write up. Expect a lot of growing pains in Western Canada, the Canucks are going to suck this year.
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division:
1. Toronto Maple Leafs (111 Points)*
Toronto hit the jackpot during the summer. The best player in the game today went home. John Tavares signed a big contract to go play for the Leafs, giving them awesome depth down the middle with Tavares, Auston Matthews and Nazem Kadri. All three guys can put the puck in the net, averaging over 30 goals a year. Tyler Bozak and James van Reimsdyk are both gone from the club, signing elsewhere during the summer. Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson are going to be counted on to try and pick up the slack left by those two guys. On paper, there's plenty of balance among the scoring on this hockey club. Jake Gardiner, and Morgan Riley are expected to be the leaders for this blueline, which has some potential. Depending on how the season plays out, don't be surprised if the Leafs go out and make a move for a defenseman. Then there's last years team MVP Frederik Andersen, who had a solid workload last year and can expect to have another heavy workload again this season. Toronto has the netminder and plenty of scoring depth to really make a lot of noise in the playoffs this year. If that defense can come together and close to matching what its other parts can, then Toronto is going to have a deep playoff run.
2. Tampa Bay Lightning (108 Points)*
Coming off an Atlantic Division title last year, Tampa is looking to try and make another deep run for the post season. As a whole, this Lightning team is almost the exact same one that won the division a year ago. Outgoing GM Steve Yzerman did his duty to keep the core together, signing Nikita Kucherov, J.T. Miller, and Ryan McDonagh to contract extensions. Scoring won't be a problem here. Not when you have guys like Steven Stamkos, Kucherov, Tyler Johnson (once he gets healthy), and Alex Killorn. Holding down the blue line are guys like Victor Hedman, McDonagh, and Mikhail Sergachev. Rounding out this team will be Andrei Vasilevskiy in net, once again holding down the work load between the pipes. Vasilevskiy was a workhorse in the Tampa net last year and expect much of the same from him again this season. They will score, they’ll defend well and they will play with speed. If they can clean up their penalty kill, which was middle of the pack a season ago, the sky is the limit for a Lightning team with Stanley Cup aspirations.
3. Boston Bruins (104 Points)*
Boston was good enough to finish second in the division last year, so you know they're going to try and improve themselves this year. It will be a bit of a step back for Boston this year, but they will still be in solid shape. All they will miss, among the guys who left over the summer, were Rick Nash and Reily Nash. One of the biggest things that the Bruins need this season is a clean bill of health. Brad Marchand, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, David Backes and Charlie McAvoy all miss time with injuries, players who are key guys to this hockey club. Boston is getting a little bit up there in years, with captain Zedano Chara hitting 41 at the start of the season. They do have a good bit of balance between veterans and young guns and they have a nice mix in net with Tukkaa Rask and Jaroslav Halak. It won't be as lofty a year as last year was, but the Bruins are still good enough for a solid playoff run coming out of this division.
4. Florida Panthers (97 Points)(WC)*
Florida missed out on the playoffs by a single point last season. That won't happen to the Cats this year, as Florida is going to get in. Florida went out and filled a need by adding a guy the talent level of Mike Hoffman. You put him in a lineup with Jonathan Huberdeau, Vincent Trocheck, Aleksander Barkov and Nick Bjugstad just to name a few. Aaron Ekblad is going to be a key cog to holding down the defense, with steady help from guys like Michael Matheson, Mark Pysyk, and Alex Petrovic. What goes on in net could possibly be an issue. Roberto Luongo had a solid year last year, but he's 39 years old, there's no guarantees that he's going to do anything close to what he did last year. James Reimer is a solid goalie but who knows if he's going to be able to keep pace and take over for Lou like he did when he was the man in the nets in Toronto. There is reason to hope though in Florida. If the Panthers can get this thing figured out in net and get something settled between Luongo and Reimer, the Panthers have enough talent here to sneak into a playoff spot.
5. Buffalo Sabres (92 Points)
There might actually be some positive vibes coming out of Western New York this season. Buffalo hasn't made the playoffs since 2011 and haven't placed higher than 5th since 2012. Buffalo has Rasmus Dahlin, the first overall pick in this past June's draft, only the 3rd time ever that the Sabres have had the top pick in the draft. He's going to have a lot on his young shoulders. He does have help on the back end with Zach Bogosian , and Rasmus Ristolainen leading the dfefensive charge. They'll be playing in front of a new goaltending tandom of Carter Hutton and Linus Ullmark. Buffalo can hold up defending, but they can also put the puck in the net. That Jack Eichel kid is pretty good. It will be different with Ryan O'Reilly now out West, Patrik Berglund, Zemgus Girgensons and Sam Reinheart are going to have to step up and support Eichel down the middle. Plus Kyle Okposo is going to have to really step up and find his game again and be a leader. The core and talent is set in place in Buffalo and they could turn out to be one of the biggest surprises in the Eastern Conference this year.
6. Detroit Red Wings (90 Points)
Going to be an interesting year in the Motor City. One big change is that longtime star and former captain Henrik Zetterberg is no longer in a Wings sweater due to medical issues. With Zetterberg now gone, Detroit will look to its young core of Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha, Andreas Athanasiou, Tyler Bertuzzi and Filip Zadina to try and carry the Wings offense. Detroit's blue line is a little bit of a different story. They aren't getting any younger. Nicklas Kronwall will be 38 in January and isn't playing at full power. Mike Green is 32 but dealing with injuries going into the start of the season, while Jonathan Ericsson and Danny Dekeyser seem a little out of place but might be able to find a way to get back on track. Solid goaltending is there in Detroit with Jimmy Howard and Jonathan Bernier. It looks like it will be a pretty even split but I think Howard will be getting a little more of the playing time in the nets. Detroit has some solid young chips and they could have a good time feasting on the teams below them in the division.
7. Montreal Canadiens (87 Points)
Its going to be a selling year in Montreal this season. look at the two huge names they got rid of this offseason. Alex Galchenyuk proved to be a failed experiment up North and was shipped to Arizona for a promising young forward in Max Domi. Then Max Pacioretty got shipped out for Tomas Tatar, Nick Suzuki and a draft pick. Philip Danault and a returning Tomas Plekanec seem like they are the only true two top of the line centers that this club really has. Brendan Gallagher, Jonathan Druin and Paul Byron are going to be counted on to try and step up and fill the back of the net for this rebuilding Habs club. Cleaning up on the back end are Jeff Petry, Karl Alzner and Jordie Benn leading the charge. All three are serviceable NHL blueliners, but that's about it and in this division, that's going to be tough to compete with. Then there's the goaltending. Carey Price is kicking in the start of his eight year contract extension and one has to feel a little bit bad for him because he's coming into the prime of his career and it doesn't look like he's going to be close to sniffing the playoffs.
8. Ottawa Senators (79 Points)
After coming oh so close to the finals two years ago and starting off great last year, things hit a dead end in Ottawa last year. It doesn't look like they are going to be getting any better this year though. To start off with, there were off-ice issue between Mike Hoffman and Erik Karlsson , which lead to both men being sent packing in deals. So with them gone, Mark Stone, marian Gaborik (when he gets healthy) and Cody Ceci are going to have to pick up the slack and lead this team. Brady Tkachuk, who was just drafted in the June draft, has a very bright future ahead of him in Ottawa. But the facts are this. Ottawa have a long rebuild ahead of them with plenty of growing pains along the way. A new arena and an infusion of youth could get fans excited about their NHL team at some point, but it’s quite likely the Senators are in for some short-term pain while long-term gain.
Metropolitan Division
1. Pittsburgh Penguins (110 Points)*
After getting off to a bit of a slow start last year, Pittsburgh managed to find its stride again and was able to crack the 100 point mark, finishing 2nd in the division. This core in the steel city is mostly in tact from a season ago, so there won't be much to worry about with this club's success. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Derick Brassard provide the Pens with a vast amount of depth down the middle, something that bodes well for a productive offense again next season. Phil Kessel, Jake Guentzel, Carl Hagelin and Patric Hornqvist are going to provide plenty of scoring pop for this club. Kris Letang and Olli Maatta lead a solid defense core. Sure they may have a few holes in them but they will be plenty good. Matt Murray is going to try and bounce back from a tough second year, but he should do just fine this year. It always seems like no matter what, as long as Corsby and Malkin are in the lineup the Penguins always have a chance to be a playoff contending team.
2. Washington Capitals (108 Points)*
There's a lot riding on the shoulders of the Capitals this year, they are the defending Stanley Cup Champions. Todd Reirden comes in as the new bench boss, replacing Barry Trotz, and inherits a loaded team that's still in tact from last season. Alex Ovechkin will be leading the offensive charge once again. He's going to get plenty of support from his running buddy Nicklas Backstrom. They also getting help from Evgeny Kuznetsov and T. J. Oshie among others. The blueline is set pretty well, being lead by Brooks Orpik and John Carlson, with Dmitry Orlov and Matt Niskan round out the top four. Brayden Holtby has the net held down rock solid. Sure there maybe a bit of an issue with a possible backup, but at the end of the day the season will ride on Holtby and he's got no problems in the net. Washington is a balanced hockey club that can roll four lines and will be a tough team to play against this year.
3. Philadelphia Flyers (105 Points)*
This was a good Flyers team froma year ago that actually got better. James van Riemsdyk, who was ooriginally picked by the Flyers 2nd overall in 2007, is back in the mix with a very solid scoring hockey club. He rounds out a nice top six forwards that includes Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier, Jakub Voracek and Travis Konecny. Through a grinder like Wayne Simmonds on this team and you got a tough to move forward unit. Shayne Gostisbehere and Radko Gudas are going to be counted on to lead this defensive crop and try to be a solid hockey club. Throw in an up and coming Ivan Provorov and you got yourself a solid top three. Michal Neuvirth is a question mark in net for me. He's going to miss the start of the season with injury, leaving Brian Elliott to carry the bulk of the netminding duty. Elliott is a good goalie but good's about it. If the Flyers really want to make noise with the Penguins and Capitals, they are going to need the goalies to really step up and play better then they did last year.
4. Columbus Blue Jackets (99 Points)(WC)*
Here we have a club that has been in the playoffs in back to back years and they seem to be in good shape. Artemi Panarin really came into his own last year, proving that he can be an elite level player without Patrick Kane playing with him. Playing with the likes of Cam Atkinson and guns like Pierre-Luc Dubois and needing Alexander Wennberg to step his game up. On the blueline, they will be without Seth Jones for the start of the season due to injury, but they still have solid depth on the back end with talents like Zach Werenski and Ryan Murray. Oh and lets not forget about some guy in net named Sergei Bobrovsky, who's pretty good in his own right. Columbus might not be able to fill the nets quite as well as the three teams finishing ahead of them this season, but they will be good enough to get into the playoffs.
5. New Jersey Devils (96 Points)
New Jersey snuck into the playoffs thanks to an unworldy performance down the stretch from league MVP Taylor Hall. If New Jersey wants to come anywhere close to sniffing the playoffs again this year, not only is Hall going to have to come close to last year's performance, his teammates are going to have to step their game up. Brian Gibbons, Michael Grabner, and Jimmy Hayes are all gone, so that means other role players are going to have to step their game up. Nico Hischier had a decent first year, and I know this is asking a lot out of a 19 year old kid, but he needs to try and get to the level of Taylor Hall. Veteran Travis Zajac, youngster Pavel Zacha and fellow youngster Jesper Bratt will all need to increase contributions to form a legit offense in Jersey. They have the goaltending in Keith Kinkad and Cory Schneider to hang around in this tough division. New Jersey has the same defense group from last year returning. If they can pull it all together and give Hall help, they might be able to overcome the top heavy teams in this division, but I just don't see it this year. Just have a feeling the Devils come up a tad short of their playoff goals.
6. New York Rangers (89 Points)
Rebuild mode is underway on Broadway. They hit near the bottom of the division last year, but they may take a step up in the right direction this year. It a nice mix up front with Mika Zibanejad, Mats Zuccarello, Kevin Hayes and Chris Kreider anchoring this offense. Vladislav Namestnikov, Pavel Buchnevich, Jimmy Vesey and Ryan Spooner should provide a decent amount of secondary scoring to keep the team in balance. It a very young and inexperienced blueline that is going to possibly slow things down just a little bit for the Rangers, so that puts a little more pressure on Kevin Shattenkirk, Marc Staal and Brady Skjei. Then there's the goalie. Henrik Lundqvist is pretty good but he's not getting any younger. Don't get me wrong, he's still a top ten netminder in my mind, but he doesn't have many more quality years left in his game. He going to have to hang on with this rebuild, but he will get another shot at a title. Just won't happen this year.
7. Carolina Hurricanes (86 Points)
There's a lot of changes that were made in Carolina this season. It feels really weird not seeing Cam Ward tending goals there, he's now in Chicago. Don Waddell made some other splashes, trading Noah Hanifin along with Elias Lindholm to the Calgary Flames in exchange for Dougie Hamilton, Michael Ferland and a prospect. Andrei Svechnikov was taken second overall in the draft and is going to be counted on to try and help out Jordan Staal, who's now the top man in the middle of the ice for the Canes. Hamilton and Justin Faulk are going to be asked to step their game up and carry this very young defensive group. Goaltending is going to be a big change with Ward gone but I think Scott Darling and Petr Mrazek can do an admirable job splitting duties in Carolina. Again its the depth of the forwards that has me worried and makes me thing that the Hurricanes are going to be near the bottom of the division again this year.
8. New York Islanders (80 Points)
Losing John Tavares stings for the Islanders. By far the biggest blow of the offseason. Sure they got a new GM in Lou Lamoriello and a new head coach in Barry Trotz and even playing games back at Nassau Coliseum during the regular season. Other then that and the possibility of superb play from Calder Trophy winner Mathew Barzal, who knows with this team. Josh Bailey has a new deal in his back pocket, he now has the chance to take the job of top line center and run with it. Anders Lee, who scored 40 goals last year, is still here, as is 20 goal scorer Jordan Eberle. Matt Martin was brought back into the fold and new faces include Valteri Filppula, Tom Komarov and Leo Kuhnhackl . HTe Blueline is pretty much in tact from last year, except Lucas Sbisa was brought in to replace Calvin de Haan. In net, Jaroslav Halak is gone, now serving as backup in Boston. Thomas Greiss will get the bulk of the playing time, while Robin Lehner, a solid netminder, can fill in the gaps when Greiss needs a night off. There's a lot of holes on this team, so its going to be a long season. But with the new coach and GM in place, this team has some stuff in the right place to get them going in the right direction.
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