Western Conference Outlook

Tomorrow the journey for the Stanley Cup begins but for now we preview the other side of the coin before the puck drops, all analysis ends, and the games begin.

Ok corny intros aside here is my preview of the west (much like I did for the east) followed by the finals pick and who I think will hoist the Cup next spring.

The eight teams to qualify—in no particular order—are as follows: Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, Los Angeles Kings, and the San Jose Sharks.

The Detroit Red Wings are the best of the best again and despite having lost Hudler and Hossa they will simply use the machine of a farm system they’ve created to reload without skipping a beat. The only outstanding question in Detroit is the regular season play of Chris Osgood who put up subpar numbers last year from October through March. Showing up in the playoffs has always been Osgood’s M.O. but if he is as inconsistent this year as he was last season the rise of other teams in Detroit’s division could find the mighty Red Wings fighting for a playoff spot.

Things are looking up on the ice in Chicago as long as Patrick Kane can stay out of trouble off the ice. Kane along with Patrick Sharp and Jonathan Toews (among others) return while veterans John Madden and Marian Hossa have been added to an already star-studded roster. Much like their counterparts to the north Chicago’s only real unknown is in net as Nikolai Khabibulin is now a member of the Edmonton Oilers. The most seasoned and perhaps most likely person to provide stability for the Hawks between the pipes is Cristobal Huet who has shown some signs of greatness. No matter who ultimately gets and keeps the starting job as the goaltender goes so goes Chicago. If their netminder is consistenly good then Chicago can win it all, and if not then they won’t, but either way the playoffs are in their future.

Columbus got its first taste of post-season hockey last season riding mainly the back of surprise rookie netminder Steve Mason. While Mason will not enjoy the same amount of individual success as last year it is my contention that the team will fare better overall. Rick Nash is on a short list of stars on the Blue Jackets but what Columbus has over other teams is cohesiveness. This group has gone through a lot of losing together and last year they experienced a taste of winning. Last year’s success felt good to them and the bitterness of not winning a game in the post season no doubt left a bitter taste in their mouths and will only bring them together to work harder for one another to become a better squad.

Vancouver rode Roberto Luongo all the way to the post-season last year and sweep the St. Louis Blues out of the playoffs on the stick of Alex Burrows. The playoffs were a coming out party of sorts for Alex Burrows (according to some) and Canucks fans have to hope it was just that. Locking up the Sedin twins was huge for any hopes of being a serious contender for Vancouver but the past few seasons have shown that they cannot rely on the Sedin’s for all of their offense. Having three solid lines is something they have lacked for a few years causing their postseason success to be limited. Adding the experience of Mathieu Schneider will greatly improve their blueline but it will be up to the likes of Ryan Kessler and the aforementioned Alex Burrows to prop up this team to the next level. Round one is a given, but round two and beyond is up to Vancouver.

For the Calgary Flames it is short and sweet. They can make it to round one of the playoffs (as they will do again this year) but the question yet again for the Flames is will they have enough discipline to take their frustrations of first round exits and translate it into playing more sound hockey. It’s no longer about skill for Calgary, they’ve got that, it’s amount having the mental fortitude to better themselves as a team.

The Los Angeles Kings will probably be the most interesting and exciting story of the Western Conference this season. Most all puckheads agree that this team is on the rise but I think not only are they on the rise but that they will win their first round playoff series. Sure it puts me in a bind as far as other preseason predictions go but I’m saying this one supersedes all other predictions I make with the exception of the scenario in which they play the team I think will advance to the finals out of the west. Generally I am simply that confident in what the Kings organization as a whole is doing. They have taken their licks over the years but have spent a lot of time learning from those lumps and have put some pretty talented players in key areas. They have a lot of good, young players in Dustin Brown, Alexander Frolov  (heading into the prime of his career), Jack Johnson, Jarred Stoll (also heading into this prime) and Jonathan Quick who was extremely reliable in goal last year and is likely to only get better. Along with this young talent they have added seasoned veterans in Ryan Smyth and Rob Scuderi who has just come off a Stanley Cup Championship with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Kings have the right people in the right places at the right time and barring injury this team is poised to be successful right now.

Lastly are the President’s Trophy winning San Jose Sharks who have done little to change their team in terms of quantity of moves but the quality of moves has been stellar. Dany Heatley was picked up—at the expense of Jonathan Cheechoo—and will be a wonderful addition to this squad. Regular season success has not been a problem for the Sharks (true of many west teams it seems) but Heatley puts them over the hump into serious contention to win the west. Heatley can not only score a lot of goals but he has enjoyed a fair amount of success before so his experience along with a chip on his shoulder to show those in Ottawa that he can still play is going to move San Jose along another step in the right direction.

The only other team that could make any noise should they make the playoffs are the Anaheim Ducks. Their experience is what sets them above the rest but unfortunately perhaps their greatest asset is their biggest downfall. The Ducks are an aging team who have lost yet another step at every position and can only hope to stay close until the trade deadline where they can maybe make a move for a younger group of players with fresher legs for a lengthy playoff run.  Edmonton is not far behind either but they fall short of the star power and physical play needed to succeed in the west. Goaltending is Edmonton’s strongest aspect but that was true last year as well so they will not get their either. No other team has a prayer of even getting to the playoffs let alone making noise once they get there.

With all of that said I think the Chicago Blackhawks will be the team to make it out of the west as they will find what they need in net and will go a step further than last year. Chicago will take on the Boston Bruins who will outlast a tired group of Pittsburgh Penguins to take the east. This sets up an awesome original six match-up which will be a marketing dream for the NHL. After an incredible back and fourth battle the Stanley Cup Finals will again go seven games at which point the Chicago Blackhawks will finally allow Marian Hossa to hoist the Stanley Cup as the 2009-2010 Stanley Cup Champions! Enjoy opening night everyone!

Eastern Conference Outlook

As the hour draws closer and the puckheads continue to salivate over the tease that is the hockey preseason it is time to supplement the appetizers before the hockey fest begins.

Eastern Conference Preview:

I’ll start by predicting who I think will make it to the playoffs (in no particular order) then we’ll look at least briefly at where each team stands. So here are the top eight teams in no particular order:
Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers (Carolina Hurricanes?), New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens, and the Washington Capitals.

The Pittsburgh Penguins should probably be the favorites going into the season because their team is a lot the same and they are the champs until someone else wins the title. They did lose Rob Scuderi but overall you have to like their chances to defend their conference title.

The New York Rangers lost Scott Gomez but have added Marian Gaborik who—if he can stay healthy—will add scoring power to a pretty solid but not spectacular line-up. The nice thing about the Rangers is that even if they do not score a ton of goals Henrik Lundqvist will keep them in most games, will steal a few, and will overall give them a chance to win most every contest they are involved in. Having a chance to win every game is not actually winning them however and that’s where Gaborik is going to be important for them. If Gaborik stays healthy he scores enough goals to get them enough points to get them into the playoffs. In the event that Gaborik does get hurt that will leave New York on the outside looking in and will open the door for the Carolina Hurricanes to sneak into a playoff spot. Carolina too is a solid team but Cam Ward cannot do it alone and they will not be able to rely on Jussi Jokkinen to play all year the way he did in the playoffs. But if any team should fall off at all (i.e. the Rangers) that opens the door for the Canes. Either way, neither team will be a serious Stanley Cup contender.

The New Jersey Devils are channeling their inner 1995 by bringing Jacques Lemaire back to captain the ship. Nothing has changed for the Devils since 1995 and as a result they can continue like a well-oiled machine with their new, old, coach. New Jersey is very much a system team so with Martin Brodeur playing behind that system you have to pencil them into the playoffs and as championship contenders. Some players have changed since last season’s first round exit to Carolina but it matters not as the methodical Devils will be back in the playoffs again.

In each of the last two years the Philadelphia Flyers have put very good teams on the ice but have run into a freight train headed to the finals in the form of the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Flyers got tougher by adding veteran Chris Pronger  but their folly has arguably been in goal and that is an issue that still has yet to be worked out. Philadelphia went across the pond to lure Ray Emery back to North America so the verdict is still out on whether the goaltending problem is fixed (one might argue that Emery’s attitude will cause more problems than it will solve). Bottom line, the Flyers talent will get them to the playoffs and at that point all they’ll need is solid (not spectacular) net play to put themselves in a position to win the Stanley Cup.

Boston’s future is bright because their talent level is a lot the same as last year. Phil Kessel was traded for some draft picks which speaks to how confident Boston is with their team from top to bottom. They still have Chara manning the blueline and they can score at the drop of a hat. There were a lot of questions about Tim Thomas last year and he’ll have to answer those same questions again this year. If Thomas is able to play consistently well the Bruins will learn from their experience last year and should be considered favorites to at least reach the east finals.

The key for the Buffalo Sabres is to stay healthy. Last season Buffalo was a clear playoff team until injuries struck them like a wrecking ball and their playoff hopes came crashing down. So if the Sabres’ stars stay healthy they will be a force, if they do not then Buffalo is not a force… it’s that simple.

The Washington Capitals can score like none other. In the offensive zone 5-on-5 and on the power play they are just about unstoppable. The Caps are greatly lacking defensively but certainly score enough to make up for that over the course of a long season. The biggest downfall of Washington last year was in net and that is their greatest unknown once again. Semyon Varlamov was certainly much better than anyone could have expected in the playoffs last season but is he the answer long term? There is no doubt that Varlamov has talent but he is still young and with being young come growing pains that every player experiences. If Varlamov grows quickly then there’s reason to believe the Caps can win it all, but if he doesn’t then it the fans in DC will be “rocking the red” to the second round of the playoffs and no further.

The Montreal Canadiens did three very good things in the offseason: let Kovalev go, picked up Brian Gionta and Scott Gomez, and got rid of Kovalev (did I mention that already). Alexi Kovalev is a very talented player but he was too inconsistent and caused too much drama in a place that creates enough drama on its own.  Gionta and Gomez provide stability as leaders on the ice and can put points on the scoreboard. Both players spent time in New Jersey so each know how to play a role to perfection. As long as Carey Price can keep his confidence up and the fans give this team a chance they can be very dangerous.

As for the rest of the conference there is very little to talk about. The New York Islanders are clearly rebuilding so the best anyone can hope from them is that John Tavares and company just improve from game to game. In my estimation the Islanders have far more problems off the ice (on the business end) than they do on it. The isles know they are rebuilding and are taking steps toward becoming a good team in time. This is in contrast to the Lightning, Thrashers, Senators, Maple Leafs, and Panthers.

Tampa has a lot of talent but did nothing with is last year and do not have a goaltender that can take them anywhere. Atlanta is just plain bad and probably will not improve very much in all likelihood. Ottawa keeps changing coaches, do not gel as a team, have lost one of their best players in Dany Heatley, and decided that adding Kovalev was the best way to stabilize/improve their team (very dumb). Toronto cannot decide whether they want to try to win now or build for the future. Last year they had enough talent to stay at the top of the non playoff teams for most of the year and this year they are in about the same spot. Lastly are the Florida Panthers who do not have a whole lot of talent (after having lost bouwmeester ) do not get much fan support which makes for a very bad situation.

So that’s the east in a nutshell (believe it or not). Tune in next time for the west preview as well as my Stanley Cup Finals pick and winner.

Free Agency Extravaganza

Arguably the most exciting part of the NHL offseason begins on Wednesday and that is the beginning of the Free Agency period. The draft resulted in very few moves which leaves a lot of mystery to unfold with some big names on the market including Marian Hossa, Alexi Kovalev, Saku Koivu, Marian Gaborik, and Rob Scuderi (whose stock went way up after his performance in the playoffs) among many other players who will likely be asking for big time deals.  Jay Boumeester will most likely be off the market (barring any disaster) before free agency begins so what can we expect starting Wednesday? With the salary cap only going up by $100K can teams afford to sign big names to gigantic contracts? And what teams have the most to gain from the frenzy?

Perhaps the most obvious place to start is in Montreal where the Canadiens have just come off a very disappointing playoff appearance and who have ten players to become unrestricted free agents (UFA). That will leave a crater to fill in a place where the fans are hungry for a Stanley Cup but have not seen one since 1993. In all likelihood the Canadiens (under new ownership) will go in a new direction and not try to resign big names like Kovalev since this core group has not had the type of success demanded by playing in Montreal. I would be surprised if they try to resign a lot of their players but they will have a lot of decisions to make. If nothing else, Montreal can hang their hats on the fact that they have a goaltender in Carey Price who should be solid for years to come if he just regains his confidence.

A team that is perhaps on the cusp and has a lot to gain from free agency is the Minnesota Wild. Minnesota’s goaltending is solid as Niklas Backstrom was just nominated for the Vezina Trophy and he’s got a great defensive unit in front of him. With that said Minnesota simply needs to get itself some goal scorers or just ONE and that should make up for the two points that kept them out of the playoffs this past season. Marian Hossa comes to mind as an option or perhaps the Sedin twins out of Vancouver, both options would supply the Wild with the scoring they seek.

There also may or may not be a shakeup in San Jose despite their enormous regular season success the post-season saw them exit in the first round. Some have suggested goaltending is all that needs to be addressed and Scott Clemmensen may just be the answer for San Jose’s alleged goaltending needs. Brian Boucher and Evgeni Nabokov did a more than adequate job in my opinion but rumblings in the San Jose front office suggests that it was not up the par in the post-season and they are not very happy with that.

The possibilities are endless for teams all over the league once free agency starts but there is a bit of a taste of the types of moves that could happen. It should be a very exciting day for hockey fans everywhere especially those who think their team is only a move or two away from making a run at the Stanley Cup. There aren’t too many offseason days that produce excitement and this is one of them so hopefully it is an enjoyable one for those needing a hockey fix since the end of the finals.

Penguins Win, Treat Fans to Game Seven

The Pittsburgh Penguins answered the call Tuesday night to force game seven on Friday in Detroit. Pittsburgh used a lot of energy to dominate the entire first period and second putting up two goals before Detroit could get on the board. A few interesting notes about Tuesday’s game are as follows: Sidney Crosby only played 17 minutes while Tyler Kennedy played 19; neither Malkin nor Crosby figured in on the score sheet; the players (excluding goaltenders) who had the best game were probably Jordan Staal, Tyler Kennedy, Brooks Orpik and Rob Scuderi; and last but not least Chris Osgood played a great game and the Penguins still won. Marc-Andre Fleury huge because he kept Detroit out of the net toward the end of the game which was exactly how Pittsburgh needed him to play after yielding five goals in game five. No save was any bigger than the breakaway save on Dan Cleary which probably would have put the Penguins behind the eight ball in terms of momentum.

On the other end were the Detroit Red Wings who were outplayed for most of the night but all-in-all did not play a bad game. Detroit was able to completely shut Malkin and Crosby out –at least kept them both off the score sheet—which most people ahead of time would have said that Detroit completing such a task would result in them hoisting the Stanley Cup. Chris Osgood also played a very solid game—as previously mentioned—a performance good enough for a victory on most nights. The unfortunate thing for Detroit was that they probably set out that night saying they would make the role players for the Penguins beat them on this night and Pittsburgh did just that. It’s unlikely that the Red Wings will panic as a result but it definitely gives them something to think about going into game seven.

It’s probably too early to make do any serious predictions about game seven just yet. With that in mind it’s probably safe to say that the sports world will be very excited in anticipation of this game. There are storylines aplenty as there have been all series long, and if nothing else the Penguins have garnered more respect from the Red Wings than they had before the series started. All of the stats will be thrown out the window once the puck drops on Friday night and it should be quite a treat for everyone from the diehard hockey fan to the casual fan of sport. Let the hype begin as Pittsburgh and Detroit prepare for a one game playoff for the Stanley Cup!