It has been about
nine months since I walked into the Tampa Bay Times Forum for a hockey game. It
seems like nine years.
Finally, they will
drop the puck on Saturday and end an embarrassing period for the National
Hockey League. We can talk about power plays and hits instead pounding our
heads on the desk every time the two sides couldn’t decide when to meet next.
You can still be
mad. You should be. You can take out your anger on the owners in your own way.
But boycotting the sport, even for one shortened season, doesn’t make sense to
me.
What did hockey
fans miss the most? Many would say, the excitement of the game. Now that it is
back, why would you turn your back on the fun that the owners, the players and
their lawyers took away from you for four months? You deserve some enjoyment.
I’ve never
understood why many of my friends back in Connecticut have deserted the game
since the Whalers left. They certainly have reason to be angry at the league,
in particular Gary Bettman, for not helping keep the team in Hartford. But they
went to the games because they loved the sport. Why blame the game they loved?
To me, they are separate.
Well, enough about
the past. We have to move forward. Soon we will dive into what should be an
interesting season. It’s not a marathon anymore. It’s not necessarily a sprint
either. It’s more like a mile. You will have to get off to a good start, find a
comfortable position and finish strong.
There will be a
lot of tough decisions to make for teams who will be on the edge of the race
for the playoffs in the 48-game season. Should they try to make it or trade an
expiring contract to build for the future? That will be a dilemma for some.
No doubt, this is
the toughest year to pick the playoff teams. Anything can happen, but we’ll
give it a try on paper.
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WESTERN CONFERENCE
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15. Calgary – Old friend Jay Feaster will have to decide whether to keep
Jarome Iginla a little longer or ship him out for some young talent. In my opinion,
the Flames are not good enough now and must look to the future.
14. Columbus -- I think they will begin to turn things around with John
Davidson in the front office. Brandon Dubinsky could emerge with a key role up
front and the defense has a chance to be improved.
13. Colorado -- The Ryan O’Reilly holdout might hurt and I’m not sure
their depth is very good. Gabriel Landeskog is one heck of a player, though.
12. Dallas
-- Veterans Ray Whitney and Jaromir Jagr join the Stars, but Jamie Benn has yet
to sign a contract. I have real questions about whether they can keep the puck
out of the net consistently, even though goalie Kari Lehtonen was good last
season.
11. Anaheim -- With Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf one year from
unrestricted free agency and Teemu Selanne likely playing his last season,
there will be a lot of – as Brendan Shanahan used to say in Hartford –
“uncertainty” for the future. Still don’t think this team has enough depth.
10. San Jose – The Sharks added Brad Stuart and Adam Burish. Yawn. Just
have a feeling they may be ready for a fall, unless Antti Niemi has a big year
in goal.
9. Edmonton -- The Oilers
have accumulated some great young talent in Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle,
Nail Yakupov, Taylor Hall, Justin Schultz and others. They are likely a year
away, but could slip in.
--
8. Phoenix – Coach Dave Tippett always finds a way. It will be
interesting to see if old friend Mike Smith can have another big season between
the pipes. Emerging defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson should help.
7. Minnesota – Defenseman Ryan Suter and forward Zach Parise will
now have to validate their gazillion-dollar contracts. The Wild should be
better, but not a top contender – yet.
6. Nashville – Overspent to keep Shea Weber on the blue line, which
could hurt the Preds later. But they still have one of the best goaltenders in
Pekka Rinne and a hard-working group.
5. St. Louis -- Chris Stewart could return to form and the addition
of Vladimir Tarasenko should add a spark up front. The question is whether the
goaltending can be as good as last season.
4. Detroit – Nicklas Lidstrom, the best defenseman of this
generation, has retired to leave a giant hole. But there is still plenty of
talent around to be a contender and if any of their young forwards emerge the
Wings could be real good.
3. Vancouver – Not sure I know what the overall plan is. But there
is too much talent on the roster to not win the division and I think Cory Schneider
will be good in net.
2. Los Angeles – Starting so late should allow the Kings to avoid
the Cup hangover. We’ll see if the Kings can find the same rhythm they had in
the playoffs, because don’t forget that this group was the eighth seed in the
West last April.
1. Chicago – The Hawks seem to have the tools after suffering
through that hangover last season. There is plenty of offense and the defense
is loaded. Cory Crawford will have to come back to form in goal or they will
make a move.
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EASTERN CONFERENCE
--
15. N.Y. Islanders – Can’t really buy into this team, but there is
certainly some good young talent led by John Tavares. The Isles are always a pest
for a while, but consistency has been lacking.
14. Toronto – The Leafs are in transition after the truculent GM Brian
Burke was fired. We’ll see if their young talent, like Nazem Kadri, can add
some excitement.
13. Winnipeg -- The Jets give up too many goals and it isn’t often
netminder Ondrej Pavelec’s fault. Not sure Olli Jokinen is the answer up front,
either.
12. Montreal -- The Habs might be in a transition year. Carey Price is
good in goal, but not sure they are that good in front of him and their best
defenseman P.K. Subban isn’t with the team yet.
11. Florida -- Kevin Dineen will do his best with this group, but the
Panthers will likely be better in 2013-14 after they settle their goaltending
situation and their kids are a year older. Florida should remain patient and
Roberto Luongo will fall into its lap.
10. Carolina – GM Jim Rutherford told me last year the Canes needed
top-six forwards. He added two in Jordan Staal and Alexander Semin. Not sure
their defense in front of Cam Ward is quite good enough though.
9. New Jersey – Surprised? The Devils haven’t really replaced Zach
Parise. I think some of their players overachieved last year as well. If Marty
Brodeur can squeeze out one more real good year, maybe they sneak in.
--
8. Ottawa -- Well-coached team with good speed. The Senators need
to add some defensive help, but think they will build off a good season and talented
young players could emerge.
7. Buffalo – We’ll see if coach Lindy Ruff still has it. There is
an interesting mix up front and it could be a breakout year for center Cody
Hodgson. It may all come down to how good goalie Ryan Miller performs.
6. Tampa Bay – The Bolts could win the division, which will likely be
close between the top four. Steven Stamkos and others will score goals. How far
they go will come down to whether they can get a little better on defense, in
goal and especially on the power play.
5. Philadelphia – It’s all about goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov. Will he
be Pluto or Saturn? I have a feeling he settles in during year two in cheese
steak city.
4. N.Y. Rangers – Never been a big fan of Rick Nash, but he might
really fit well in the Big Apple -- especially on the power play. Goalie Henrik
Lundqvist will keep the Rangers in every game. They just need to score more.
3. Washington – The reason the Capitals land here is they will be
far better coached than they have been in the last few seasons. Adam Oates was
a crafty player and he should put the puzzle pieces together.
2. Boston – Man, it’s hard for me to but the Bears here. But they
have depth in scoring and the defense is pretty sound. The locker room should
be looser as well with the divisive Tim Thomas gone and Tuukka Rask taking over
in goal.
1. Pittsburgh -- Everyone’s healthy, for now, which makes this team
hard to stop. The defense might need one more piece, but expect Marc-Andre
Fleury to be way better than he was in the playoffs.
It’s just impossible to pick the Stanley Cup final now. Let’s
wait until late April. Enjoy the season fans. Like I said before, you deserve
it!
- -- Mark Pukalo
