EASTERN CONFERENCE PREVIEW

I have been doing Pre season rankings for about a decade now and this year , this conference has been the toughest I have ever done. The best teams in the East last year all got worse. All of the middle of the pack teams last year all got better. The only easy things to predict were that Boston is the best team and Carolina is the worst.

1.    1   Boston Bruins- Can Loui Eriksson replace Jarome Iginla?  No , Iggy is a Hall of Famer and Loui has never been just was a decent scorer who has never the same since a concussion. Hence the Bruins number 1 line won’t be as scary as last year but they still have Milan Lucic and David Kreci. The 2^nd line of featuring Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand shut you down and light the lamp. The defense still has the Beast of the East Zdeno Chara, who did 31 pullups in camp and the goaltending is top notch with Tukka Rask. The big, bad bruin may not be as scary but they’re still the best.

2.     2  Pittsburgh Penguins- Will the Penguins miss high scoring winger James Neal? Maybe at the bar picking up chicks but not a much on the ice. Most of Neal’s goals came on the powerplay or when Evgeni Malkin put it on a tee for him. Neal was a fake tough guy who played with a sense of entitlement. Neal  has never won anything. The Penguins still have the 2 best players in the East centers Sidney Crosby and Malkin and more than  a few capable wings including Chris Kunitz, Pascal  Dupuis and Patric Hornqvist. The Penguins also added some much needed grit. The Defense is full of guys can move the puck and Marc - Andre Fluery is a better goalie the most people give him credit for.

3.      3  Montreal Canadiens – Are the Canadiens to small to win the East?  No, because they know how to beat Boston, their blood rival and best team in the East. The Habs are a small but highly skilled group led by Brendan Gallagher, David Desharnais and Alex Galchenyuk. Brandon Prust and Dale Weise will provide enough muscle to keep teams honest. PK Subban is the best all around defensemen in the East and Carey Price is the East’s best goaltender. If Price stay healthy and coach Mike Therrien keeps pushing the right buttons Canada may put a team in the Finals in 2015.

4.      4  New York Rangers – Can the Rangers win the East again? Probably not. Last year everything fell into place for them in the playoffs. They injured a few goalies and came back against the sinking Penguins to claim the East. This year won’t be as easy but they could do it. Number 1 center Derek Stepan is injured now but he will return and they started horrible last year and came back to take East.  The Rangers did lose many valuable pieces from last year’s run Brian Boyle, Anton Stralman , Benoit Pouliot and Brad Richards and weren’t sufficiently replaced . The defense haso the best top pairing, Ryan McDonagh and Dan Girardi  in the East. King Henry Lundqvist will  get more breaks in net this season with the emergence of Cam Talbot. The Blue Shirts can certainly make a run. Who knows Rick Nash may even contribute.

5.     5  Washington Capitals – Will Barry Trots make a difference? Yes, Alex Ovechkin gets the first competent coach he’s had in North America and the Capitals including Ovi will now play defense. It helps they actually now have some defensemen, Brooks Orpik  and Matt Niskanen and not just the fraud that is Mike Green. Brooks Laich and Nicklas Backstrom will help Ovi get all the goals he needs in Trotz system. Is Braden Holtby a top goaltender?  No, but first let’s play some defense in Washington.

6.    6   New York Islanders – Is John Tavares ready for the elite? The biggest tragedy of last year’s Olympics wasn’t Disco Dan’s  coaching of the US but John Tavaras’ injury. He’s the closest you’ll ever get to Mario without Immaculate Conception. John’s wingers are more than capable. Kyle Okposo should have been on the US team and Michael Grabner is faster than a speeding bullet. They will put up points galore. The new 2^nd line with Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolai  Kulemin will also score. . The Isles also acquired 2 defensemen that have won Cups, Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy. They also have their best goaltender in years,  an unintended back handed compliment, Jaroslav Halak.

7.   7    Detroit Red Wings - Do the Red Wings make it 25 years in a row in the playoffs?  Yes, lame duck coach Mike Babcock and GM Ken Holland will not let this impressive streak end. If Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg can dress most nights , them and the Mule ( Johan Franzen) can make one more trip to the tourney. Young guns Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyqvist will need to light lamp frequently though  to make the 25^th year happpen  because the Wings got no help on defense this offseason. Howard also needs to play better between the pipes this year.

8.     8  Columbus Blue Jackets – Was last year a fluke? No. The Blue Jackets are a  big, skilled , Western Conference style heavy team. The sky is the limit for this team when Boone Jenner and Nathan Horton come back from injuries. The Jackets have a franchise center Ryan Johansen and solid goaltending with Sergei Bobrovsky. Scott Hartnell will lead the way for their young forward group. The defense is average but good enough to keep them in the top 8 in the East.

9.   9    Tampa Bay Lightning- Why are they everybody’s darling team this year? Everybody loves Steven. Stamkos is amazing and someone to always root for, but I think they’re counting on too many kids and  Valerie Filppula to have another career year. Ryan Callahan is a leader but not a goal scorer.  They have a good defense led by the monster Victor Hedman and newcomer Anton Stralman  but  Ben Bishop is a fragile  goaltender and I am not drinking the Kool Aid.

1   10   Toronto Maple Leafs –   Can Brendan Shanahan do  the on an impossible and make the Leafs a true contender? Yes, but it’s going to take time. The Leafs have great high end talent in James  Van Riemsdyk and Phil Kessel. If Nazem Kadri ever wakes up they could score enough goals to make up for the Dion Phaneuf and who else defense. Shanny traded toughness for speed throughout the lineup but all the speed in the world will not matter if there’s more James Reimer in net than Jonathan Bernier.

1  11.  Philadelphia Flyers – How much will the loss of Kimmo Timonen hurt? Not much. Fact is Timonen is one of the most overrated players in hockey. He never shows up when it matters, the playoffs. Not to worry the Flyers won’t make the playoffs because their defense is worse than ever. Always big and slow, now with Michael Del Zotto you can add soft and dumb. Claude Giroux and company will score on the power play with Wayne Simmonds doing his thing but not enough. Trading Scott Hartnell for R J Umberger proves this team is still woefully mismanaged.

1   12  New Jersey Devils – Can Jaromir Jagr player forever? Yes, his great butt and greater hands never get old. Hockey fans should treasure this man. After Jags the New Jersey roster is non descript just like GM Lou Lamoriello likes it. If the Devils could ever win a shoot out ( 0-13) last year they can sneak into the playoffs.

1   13 Ottawa Senators – Is Erik Karlsson going to win another Norris trophy? No, because the Senators will not nearly win enough games. The 3 most interesting things about the Senators this season will be watching to see if Bobby Ryan can live up to his new contract and who will snap first rugged winger Chris Neil or owner Eugene Melnyk.

1   14  Buffalo Sabres – Are the Sabres headed in the right direction? Yes, anytime you part ways with useless eyesore John Scott you’re headed in the right direction. Adding Brian Gionta and Josh Gorges from the Habs gives coach Ted Nolan a little more talent and the team some much needed leadership.

1   15  Florida Panthers – Will the influx of veterans help the Panthers? Yes, they will help the team stay out of the number 1 pick in the draft but not out of the “this team should relocate rumours”.Winger Jonathan Huberdeau  will be fun to watch scoring goals. Old man Shawn Thorton will be fun too because he may do something stupid.

1  16  Carolina Hurricanes – Which Staal will be the first one traded? It will be Eric the Captain. He’s the only one anybody wants. New GM Ron Francis has no allegiance to like Staal family “stepfather”  Jim Rutherford did. Jordan has a broken leg and a contract he never lived up to Jared won’t be traded , he’ll probably be waived.

WESTERN CONFERENCE SEASON PREVIEW

BB.WCP

 The Western Conference has 7 haves, 5 have nots , and 2 directly in the middle. I’ll take the Wild to make the playoffs over Vancouver because their style of play is so boring maybe no one will notice if I’m wrong. Here’s my preseason ranking of the 14 Western Conferences Teams and an answer to one of their pressing questions.

1. LA KINGS - Will the Kings suffer a Stanley Cup hangover?  No, this is the Kings 2^nd Stanley Cup in 3 years so they have been here before and know what to expect. They have played more hockey than anybody else in 3 years but this team has a lot of young legs up front ( Toffoli, Pearson, King ) and on D ( Voynov, Muzzin) . Their two best skaters are entering the prime of their careers ( Kopitar, Doughty) They have a better than average backup ( Jones) for their great goaltender Jonathan Quick saving him too much wear and tear. They will also have trade deadline savior Marian Gaborik all season. The Kings have great leadership and a GM who pulls the trigger on deadline deals. The will not fall far from the top if at all this season.

2. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS- Will Brad Richards regain his old Conn Smythe form? How can he not, hands usually don’t go away and he’ll be playing with an exceptional pair of wingers either Kane, Sharp, Hossa or Saad. The Hawks have the best top five defense in the league ( Keith , Seabrook, Hjalmarsson, Oduya, Leddy) and will be right at the top of the Western Conference again. Super center and Captain Toews knows this maybe his last great shot at Cup number 3 before the salary cap tears this team apart.

3. ANAHEIM DUCKS- Will the acquisition of Ryan Kesler be enough to make Ducks the best team in Southern California? Maybe, the Ducks addition of Kesler started the Western conferences off season arms race. Every good team in the West without two great centers went out and got another center.  Getzlaf and Perry are the NHL’s most formidable center winger pairing, having a line with Kesler behind them makes the Ducks a chore to play against. The Ducks added Clayton Stoner to add  some beef on the blue line jersey sales at the merch stand.  The Ducks still will not overcome their biggest weakness , coach BBQ Bruce Brodeau, just ask Teemu Selanne .

4. ST. LOUIS BLUES- Will Paul Stastny get the Blues to the top of the Western conference ?  Stastny will provide this defense first regular season juggernaut team with more offense then they have seen since the Brett Hull era. If Ken ( Capt Kangaroo) Hitchcock plays Stastny with Oshie and Steen they might not have to worry about how weak their goaltending is because no matter how many minutes excellent defensive center Backes and the awesome defensive core ( Shattenkirk, Pietrangelo, Bouwmeester  play goaltender Elliot can’t stop a beachball.

5. SAN JOSE SHARKS- Will Joe Thorton and the Sharks choke again this year? No, because Thorton won’t be a Shark by the end of the year. San Jose has done everything to get Thorton to remove his no trade short of burning down his house. They ripped the C off his sweater and publicly flogged him. The Sharks have a ton a young talent ( Pavelski, Couture, Hertl , Nieto) and the hull they get from a Thorton and a Marleau trade is what this franchise needs to make the jump to the next level. The fact they kept their maligned coach (McLellan) and moved Burns back to defense I don’t have faith in this franchise.

6. COLORADO AVALANCHE- Will Patrick Roy’s carriage turn into pumpkin?  The Colorado Avalanche will not win the Central division regular season title this season because they realize that and five dollars will get you a cup of coffee and Starbucks. The Avs lost Stastny to the Bliues but still have 2 top centers in Duchene and MacKinnon. Those two centers with wingers O’Reilly and Landeskog the Avs will still score a ton of regular season goals. They went out and got Jerome Iginla and Daniel Briere to score big goals in the playoffs. The Avs problem was a below average defense even before Matt Cooke took cheap shots them.

7. DALLAS STARS- Will Lindy Ruff’s carriage turn into a pumpkin? No, because the great Lindy Ruff is the best coach in the NHL that doesn’t have a Cup (he must hate Brett Hull) and the Stars will be scaring the hell out of some team next spring. The Stars will score a ton of goals. The Stars found their arm’s race center in Ottawa’s Jason Spezza. Dallas has a great number one line combo of Seguin and Benn and a 3^rd line that is becoming stuff of legend ( Roussel, Eakin, Garbutt) . The problem with the Stars will they stop any goals?

8. MINNESOTA WILD- How will the Wild handle their goaltending situation? Poorly, If Ilya Bryzgalov the answer, rip up the question. I get that Backstrom hurt, Harding is sick , and Kuemper is young but if Bryz is the answer make a trade. Parise , Pominville and Vanek can’t score enough goals to overcome the Russian nightmare. Super defenseman Suter may play 35 minutes a game but he doesn’t play goal.

9. VANCOUVER CANUCKS- Why are the Canucks not going to make the playoffs? Because this team needed a complete rebuild not a tweak. Head coach John Tortorella was not the only problem last year. The Sedins aren’t getting any younger or grittier. Ryan Kesler, their best two way forward is now in Anaheim and goaltender Ryan Miller hasn’t stopped in important shot in at least four years. I feel sorry for Kevin Bieksa he always seems to be the only guy in Vancouver that plays with balls and brains.

10. WINNEPEG JETS- Will the Jets wish they were still in Atlanta? Yes, playing in front of nobody wasn’t any fun but neither is playing in the rough and tumble Central Division and at least they weren’t freezing in Winnepeg. The laughable Southeast division doesn’t exist anymore but gifted , talented and troubled Kane and Byfuglien will rack up enough points to bring in a major haul at the deadline for the total rebuild that should have started two years ago.

11. NASHVILLE PREDATORS- Will Peter Laviolette take Nashville to the promised land? If the promised land is the back of the net, yes. If the promised land is the playoffs, no. Lavy will install an actual offense in Nashville. Malcontents Neal, Jokinen and Ribeiro will enjoy Lavy’s on ice freedom but not his intensity. Like a country western song this franchise better enjoy the great defensemen Shea Weber because it will be mighty lonely when he’s gone.

12. EDMONTON OILERS- Will they finally cash in on some of their potential? I have faith in the Edmonton Oilers will be a better team this year and put some heat in frozen Rexall Place. Shipping off Gagne and not having ancient Captain Canada Smith to prop up will enable Hall , Nugent Hopkins and Eberle to mature as a group. Who knows Yakupov may also turn it around this year. May he at least be serviceable enough to bring back some veteran defense at the trade deadline.

13. ARIZONA COYOTES- Will they finally move to Seattle or Las Vegas? No, because even though our Commissioner does not nearly have the psychopathic ego of some pro sports commissioners he still will not back down on keeping an ice hockey team in the desert. Plus Dave Tippett has done such a great job keeping the Dogs relevant all these years he deserves great tee times twelve months a year.

14. CALGARY FLAMES- Will fighting practice in training camp payoff? Yes, because when they are down to two goals in the first people will need a reason to watch. When Monahan  is not on the ice people will need a reason to watch. When you can go to bed or watch the last highlights on NHL Tonight we will need a reason to watch.