Wealthy, greedy people do not have the
ability to lock the doors and take the NHL away from us this season.
Hockey fans can enjoy an 82-game
campaign -- with an intermission at the Olympics -- which will crown the true
champion of a nine-month test. The team that navigates the ups and downs, makes the
smartest personnel moves and peaks at the right time gets to drink from the
Stanley Cup.
One thing that was positive about the
2012-13 season was the mostly wide-open postseason. Perhaps it was due to a
48-game slate before it, but the playoffs were a joy to watch. No matter
whether you liked the teams or not, the Chicago-Boston final was well played
and far more entertaining than the snooze fest of 2011-12 between Los
Angeles and New Jersey.
My biggest hope for this season is that
the players finally begin to grasp the idea that shots to the head and
blind-sided hits can be avoided without taking away the physical nature of the
game that we all love. The reason for a hit, a check, is to dislodge the puck
and create space -- not injure players. Unfortunately, the Zac Rinaldos will still
be around to cause unnecessary havoc. It would just be nice to see Brendan
Shanahan’s mug much less this season.
Looking at my preseason picks last year,
I did select Pittsburgh and Chicago to finish first in each conference. I also
had New Jersey out of the playoffs. Unfortunately, I placed the Islanders and
Maple Leafs 15th and 14th in the East -- respectively.
Oops. With a clean slate, here’s a go at 2013-14.
METROPOLITAN
It’s difficult to pick against Pittsburgh in the regular season with
Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin healthy. The concern is whether Marc-Andre
Fleury can find his game, because there is no viable backup on the roster right
now. The rest of the division is impossible to predict with many variables.
The New
York Rangers might play looser with John Tortorella gone, although they need
Brad Richards and Rick Nash to have much better seasons and goalie Henrik
Lundqvist to sign an extension. A healthy Brooks Laich and the good version of
Mikhail Grabovski could help support Alex Ovechkin a little better in Washington, but the defense is still a
bit thin after John Carlson, injury-prone Mike Green and Karl Alzner. The New York Islanders might take one step
back after moving two steps forward. John Tavares leaped into the NHL’s elite
last year and the Islanders should score. I’m not convinced they have the depth
of talent on the other end of the ice to be substantially better than last year
yet. Philadelphia should be able to
score goals with the addition of Vincent Lecavalier and a healthy Scott Hartnell.
If the defense and goaltending gets better, the Flyers could be a factor. That
is a big IF. Columbus may be a
stronger team this season and finish farther from a playoff spot in the tougher
Eastern Conference. I can’t imagine Sergei Bobrovsky matching last season, so
the Blue Jackets will have to be better offensively. Martin Brodeur’s last
go-round will likely end similar to Mariano Rivera’s, but you can never count
out New Jersey -- especially if some
of their young players progress like defenseman Adam Larsson. Not quite sure
where Carolina is going with its
plan. This season, the Hurricanes will most likely spin into last place while
they give up the most goals in the league.
Playoff teams – 1.
Pittsburgh; 2. New York Rangers; 3. Washington; 4. New York Islanders
ATLANTIC
It hurts me to say that the Boston Bruins are the best team in the
East on paper. Jarome Iginla replaces Nathan Horton and Loui Eriksson moves in
for Tyler Seguin, which is probably a double upgrade. The one way the Bruins
could fall is health, especially if goalie Tuukka Rask gets injured.
It will be tougher in the Eastern
Conference on the ice for Detroit,
but less travel will help. The key might be the development of young defensemen
Brendan Smith, Jakub Kindl and Danny DeKeyser. The return of Jason Spezza from
injury and the addition of Bobby Ryan and Clarke MacArthur helps the Ottawa offense big time and the
Senators were already good on the defensive side of the ice. Toronto was almost good enough to beat Boston
in the playoffs last season and looks to make another step forward if it can
keep the puck out of the net. Goalies James Reimer and Jonathan Bernier might
not be the concern. It’s the Leafs’ inconsistent defense corps. Montreal will maintain its spot in the
playoffs if it gets a better year from goalie Carey Price. However, if one team
is going to fall off in this division it is likely to be the smallish Habs. If Tampa Bay can find a more consistent
offensive-defensive mindset quickly, it can compete with the Islanders, Leafs
and Canadiens for the final playoff spot. Steven Stamkos and Marty St. Louis
will produce points and Victor Hedman is ready to be an all star on defense.
Not sure Tim Thomas was the right way to go for Florida, but he might steal a win or two along the way to keep the
Panthers competitive. The Panthers just need to stick with coach Kevin Dineen
and this team will be fine down the road. Not really sure what the plan is in Buffalo either. The roster has plenty
of holes and I don’t think anyone is going to give the Sabres what they want
for Ryan Miller.
Playoff teams – 1.
Boston; 2. Detroit; 3. Ottawa; 4. Toronto
Eastern Conference – Boston
over Pittsburgh…. Value play –
Ottawa. I think Daniel Alfredsson picked the wrong team.
CENTRAL
The Chicago
Blackhawks kept all the key parts
together for another run. The only question is how much the inevitable hangover
will affect them. The only concern is if Corey Crawford reverts to his 2011-12
form and there are injuries up front, where they are not as deep.
Coach Ken Hitchcock must find the
answers with talented, yet enigmatic St.
Louis. The defense is solid, but their young forwards like Vladimir
Tarasenko, Jaden Schwartz and Magnus Paajarvi must make the next step. Not
really thrilled with the other contending teams, so maybe Nashville will bounce back with the addition of youngsters Seth
Jones and Filip Forsberg and veterans Matt Cullen, Viktor Stalberg, Matt
Hendricks and Eric Nystrom. The Minnesota
Wild barely made the playoffs last season and not sure they got much better in
the offseason unless youngsters Charlie Coyle and Matt Dumba emerge. Ryan Suter
definitely proved last season he is almost worth the money he was given.
Someday, Winnipeg will be a playoff
team again and may this season if it can stay healthy. The Jets will need
impact from newcomers Devin Setoguchi and Michael Frolik up front and improved
defense in front of capable goalie Ondrej Pavelec. Dallas may have as good a chance to finish third in this division
as the previous three, especially if center Tyler Seguin reaches his potential.
It doesn’t seem like Colorado has
addressed their problems on defense and in goal (Ryan Miller?), but Nathan
MacKinnon will be fun to watch and Steve Downie is back.
Playoff teams – 1.
Chicago; 2. St. Louis; 3. Nashville
PACIFIC
Even thought the Los Angeles Kings are sometimes boring to watch, they have a lot of
talent and one of the league’s best goalies in Jonathan Quick. A healthy Anze
Kopitar certainly helps as well.
Teemu Selanne’s final ride should be a
smooth one with Anaheim, which has
improved its depth up front even after the loss of Bobby Ryan. The Ducks will
need to enhance their defense corps down the road though. It’s probably the
last rodeo for San Jose before the
team gets broken up, so you expect either its best or an implosion. There’s too
much talent for the Sharks to fall out of the playoffs in the weaker West with
a solid top four up front in Joe Thornton, Logan Couture, Joe Pavelski and
Patrick Marleau. Tortorella will try to get Vancouver over the hump. Roberto Luongo will be fine with the NHL’s
soap opera team, but not sure the Canucks can get past the first round with a
GM who has no clue what he is doing most of the time. Mike Smith has a nice new
contract in Phoenix and the Coyotes’
defense is too good not to get them back in the playoffs. Oliver Ekman-Larsson
and Keith Yandle rank near the top among the best one-two punches on defense in
the NHL. Edmonton is another team
that puzzles me. Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins are terrific, but not sure
where they are going overall (Steve McIntyre?). It will be fun to watch Karri
Ramo play goal again in Calgary, but
the Flames will likely be in the running for the first pick in the 2014 draft.
Playoff teams – 1. Los
Angeles; 2. Anaheim; 3. San Jose; 4. Vancouver; 5. Phoenix.
Western Conference – Chicago
over Anaheim…….Value play – San Jose
Finals – Chicago over Boston.
This time, the Hawks score three goals in the final two minutes in Boston to
create more agony for Bruins fans. That thought warms the heart.
