NHL Season Preview
October 4th, 2017 -
Contenders:
Nashville Predators - They fell short in the playoffs last year but that experience may stand them in good stead this year. It may finally be their breakthrough year. Analysts consider their D corps the best in the league, led by Shea Weber. They should be in President's Trophy conversation all year with that elite blueline.
Montreal Canadiens - You're always a contender when Carey Price is you goalie. They also have a solid blueline with Subban and rising star Thomas Chabot. Max Pacioretty was top five in the league in scoring last season and he's shown no signs of slowing down.
Boston Bruins - With a healthy Pastrnak playing alongside Marchand and Bergeron, look out for the revenge of the Bruins. After winning the President's Trophy they were finally toppled in their quest to defend their title by the Blues in the Cup Final. They are going to be a motivated team this year.
St. Louis Blues - Speaking of the Stanley Cup Champions, they have most of their deep roster still intact after re-signing Paul Stastny this summer and they have a top three blueline, especially with Pietrangelo healthy after missing the entire playoff run with an ankle injury.
Ottawa Senators - They may not have made the playoffs last season but there is no doubt the Senators are poised to make some noise this year with Erik Karlsson leading a stellar blueline that should see sophomore Zach Werenski take another step this year. They have one of the most balanced goalie tandems in the league between reigning Vezina winner Robin Lehner and steady veteran Craig Anderson (who would be a starter for probably a third of the teams in the league at least).
Bubble Teams:
Dallas Stars - With a deep forward group led by Blake Wheeler they look to make the playoffs again but the same question marks remain in net. Will it be Talbot or Lehtonen to run with the crease this season? And whoever it is will they be good enough to carry the Stars to the few extra wins they may need?
Calgary Flames - Dubnyk gives them a chance to win every night and he should be extra motivated in a contract year. If Kyle Connor's rookie season goes well that should give them a boost and Johnny Gaudreau is good for another point per game season.
Florida Panthers - Eventually this will be a consistent playoff team. Their budding young core of Ekblad, Huberdeau, Barkov and Gudbranson is just coming into their own and showing a lot of promise. Luongo will keep them in a lot of games. Still, there's enough holes, especially in a D corps that needed to re-sign an aging Brian Campbell this offseason, that they could come up just short of the playoffs again.
Pittsburgh Penguins - It's a new era in Pittsburgh with Marc-Andre Fleury in Vegas. Will Antti Raanta establish himself as the new starter or will 23 year old Matt Murray seize the opportunity and say the future is now? He's proved all he can prove in Wilkes-Barre and shown tons of promise but how soon can he step into a regular NHL role? They signed Andrej Sekera but he isn't the defender he used to be and Kris Letang is back and healthy but if he can't stay healthy they will be back to Simon Despres as their number one d-man. All things being equal they should squeak into the playoffs by virtue of Crosby and Malkin but that goaltending could be very suspect.
Darkhorses:
Vegas Golden Knights - Vegas has a deep if not star studded team and they are built from the net out with a great tandem in Freddy Andersen and Marc-Andre Fleury. It should be interesting to see how they split the starts. Jon Cooper will have his team rolling four lines and playing good hockey. A lot of players have an opportunity here to seize a bigger role than they would have ever been afforded on their original teams. Bobby Ryan could get a fresh start at 30 and step up as a first line offensive force. Frans Nielsen should get top six minutes down the middle. Jean-Gabriel Pageau could have a breakout season. They aren't expected to make the playoffs but they could certainly surprise some people.
Chicago Blackhawks - It seems bizarre to see the once vaunted Blackhawks in this spot, but after missing the postseason last year by a hair they aren't really expected to find their way back in. Their goaltending isn't what it was with Corey Crawford between the pipes and yet another key cog of their championship teams, Brent Seabrook, was a cap casualty this offseason, eventually signing with the Flyers. If Patrick Kane can stay healthy all year (and that does seem to be a big if) and Schmaltz and Teravainen can both take another step in their third NHL season there's a good chance with Duncan Keith still patrolling the blueline that they do fight their way into a playoff spot and make some noise.
Bottom Feeding:
Winnipeg Jets - The Jets are weak across the board. Connor Hellebuyck, Mark Scheifele, Jacob Trouba and Adam Lowry are all good young players to build around but they just don't have enough around them to put together a winning season. The future looks promising but at some point this year they may choose to cut bait with veterans like Enstrom, Richardson and Okposo as they continue rebuilding.
Arizona Coyotes - They have Jake Allen in net. That really is about all this year's iteration of the Coyotes has going for them. They added Carle but he was propped up by a great team and supporting cast and also by Victor Hedman last year. They made some bizarre offseason decisions, signing veterans Scott Hartnell, Andrew Ladd and Mark Letestu seemingly just because they could but without any real plan in place and certainly they aren't in a position to be trying to push for the playoffs or add experience for a Cup run. They should come out of this year with another really high draft pick and Matthew Tkachuk will be exciting to watch.
Top Ten Players (media voted):
C Sidney Crosby
G Carey Price
RW Steven Stamkos
LW Alex Ovechkin
RW Patrick Kane
C Connor McDavid
LW Gabriel Landeskog
LW Leon Draisaitl
D Victor Hedman
RW David Pastrnak