Follow me on Twitter @ToddCordell
Todd Cordell
I like the Caps to win the division again. They are still absolutely loaded with firepower, they have one of the league's best goaltenders, and I think they have young guys who can still take it up another notch in Andre Burakovsky and Dmitri Orlov. I think the addition of Lars Eller was a good one, too.
1. Washington
2. Pittsburgh - They have Sid, Geno, Letang and arguably the best goaltending duo in the league. They're going to be an excellent team.
3. Philadelphia - They cut out some dead weight from last year and are adding Ivan Provorov, who could very well be a Calder finalist, and potentially Travis Konecny, among others. They also get a full season of Shayne Gostisbehere.
4. New York Islanders - Losing Kyle Okposo will hurt but Andrew Ladd and P.A. Parenteau will be able to replace the offense he brought - at least in the short-term. The Islanders are never a sexy pick to make the playoffs but they always seem to get in. That'll probably be the case again this season.
5. New Jersey Devils - The addition of Taylor Hall is huge but having talented players like Joseph Blandisi, Reid Boucher, Beau Bennett and co. replacing dead weight like Stephen Gionta, Tuomo Ruutu, Bobby Farnham and co. will help a bunch, too. With Cory Schneider they'll be in every game and I think they'll be able to squeak into the playoffs as a result (I see three Atlantic teams making it). Admittedly the defense is not good on paper but John Hynes' system, and Schneider, should help them look better than they are.
6. New York Rangers - Love their forward group and Henrik Lundqvist is still Henrik Lundqvist. In saying that it seems likely they'll continue to spoon feed Dan Girardi and Marc Staal big minutes. If they do that, they'll make life a lot more difficult on themselves.
7. Carolina - I actually really like this Hurricanes roster. There is lots of high-end young talent up front and on defense. I like Bill Peters as a coach, too. The problem is only Calgary had worse goaltending than the Hurricanes last season and they're returning the same duo in Cam Ward and Eddie Lack. If they had a legitimate starter they'd make the playoffs.
8. Columbus - The Jackets have a few nice pieces up front and Seth Jones, Zach Werenski and Ryan Murray could be a good top-3 on defense. The likes of Jack Johnson and David Savard will probably be over utilized, though, and play more than some, if not all, of those guys on a regular basis. I don't know that John Tortorella can get a team into the playoffs in today's NHL with the way he coaches.
Peter Tessier
The Metro, the group of franchises in teaming metropolises along the eastern seaboard. Other than Pittsburgh and Washington are there others who stand out? This division is different because I think the Pens are clear favourites in the bigger picture but I'm not sure they win this division.
So I'm sticking with this order:
Washington
Pittsburgh
Islanders
Flyers
Rangers
Devils
Carolina
Blue Jackets
As much as it makes me throw up a little in my mouth I have to say the Flyers could surprise.
Recent posts:
Predicting the Atlantic Division standings
Predicting the Pacific Division standings
Predicting the Central Division standings
Predicting disappointment teams
Predicting surprise teams
Metro Division bold predictions
Atlantic Division bold predictions
Pacific Division bold predictions
Central Division bold predictions
Join the Discussion:
»