Assuming there is no Canadian division
I worked on this for a week so maybe some teams aren’t up to date
these have been the hardest standings to predict and the teams could only be separated by a point or two. very difficult to predict
these predictions will change when the season comes
Dont hate im only 16
Atlantic
1. Tampa Bay Lightning - After winning the cup, Tampa Bay has had a relatively quiet offseason because of a lack of cap space. They will lose some very important players by the start of next year but they are and still will be the best team in the league with that roster. A top 10 player in Kucherov, top 15 in Point and Hedman, top 5 goalie, amazing leadership, a good coach, depth, experience. This team has it all and will remain one of the best if not the best team in the NHL.
2. Boston Bruins - Just like Tampa Bay, Boston has been quiet. They signed Craig Smith to an already good offense which will definitely help but the big question is the left defence. Do they resign Zdeno Chara? Do they make a big trade? Do they rely on some young guys? It will be interesting to see what Don Sweeney does, if he even does anything, to maintain a good defence, currently lead by Charlie McAvoy. The goaltending is amazing which you always need to contend and the Bruins could very well be a candidate to take the first spot in the Atlantic.
3. Toronto Maple Leafs - The Toronto Maple Leafs. The New York Knicks of the NHL. They have an excellent top 6, a good top 4, a good goalie, and that's it. Although Kyle Dubas gets a lot of hate for signing 3 guys to 10mil+ contracts, he has made good moves this offseason in bringing big guys up front and on defense. Simmonds, Thornton, Brodie, Vesey, Bogosian, Boyd, and even Mikko Lehtonen were great, cheap acquisitions to solidify the lineup. However, I still think they are missing something to be a cup contender. This is a really good team, but maybe the fact that they play in Toronto is the problem...
4. Montreal Canadiens - Montreal is quite possibly one of the most underrated teams in the league with players like Danault, Petry, Chiarot, Armia, and even Gallagher not getting the recognition they deserve. This team is very promising, not only for this upcoming season, but for the future with guys like Suzuki, Kotkaniemi, Caufield, Romanov, Primeau, Poehling, and a bunch of other solid prospects looking to crack the lineup in the next coming seasons. Montreal could be a surprise team this year for the balanced lines, added defensive depth, scoring wingers, and goaltending. The Habs' new offseason acquisitions of Anderson, Toffoli, Allen, Edmundson, and Romanov really solidify the lineup and are the finishing touches to a potential playoff team.
5. Florida Panthers - This one is a tossup with Montreal as I can see either team finishing 4th and 5th. But I have Florida finishing one spot lower due to the huge losses of Mike Hoffman (who has yet to sign a contract) and Evgeni Dadonov. They did replace those guys with a lot of good depth players such as Hornqvist, Wennberg, Hinostroza, Verhaeghe, and Gudas, and Nutivaara on defence. This team always seems capable of making the playoffs, but always fall short. We all know Barkov and Huberdeau are superstars and that Yandle and Ekblad are good offensive d-men but it ultimately all comes down to goaltending. Last year, Bobrovsky had a terrible season and that is why Florida missed the playoffs. If he plays like the goalie Florida is paying him to be, they can make the playoffs without question and might be another surprise team.
6. Buffalo Sabres - This team is interesting. Will Taylor Hall and added center depth bring them to the playoffs? I still think they are far from them, but getting a number one goaltender and a good defence could increase their chances of making the playoffs. Jack Eichel finally gets a winger who he can rely on to score points. Adding Staal, Eakin, and Cozens to the team are great but I don't see how they make the playoffs with an absolutely stacked Eastern Conference and weak defence/goaltending. This Sabres team could surprise people and sneak into the playoffs or they could terribly flop and even finish 7th behind a young and hungry Ottawa team.
7. Ottawa Senators - Not yet but soon. The amount of quality young players this team has is insane. With the likes of Stutzle, Chabot, Tkachuk, Sanderson, Brannstrom, Batherton, Formenton, Norris, Bernard-Docker, Brown, Thomson, even Matt Murray who has the chance to turn his career around and go back to the times when he was considered one of the top goalies of the world, the list doesn't end. The additions of Watson and Gudbranson add well needed grit to the team as well as experience. The most intriguing acquisition is the one of Evgeni Dadonov. I believe he is one of the, if not, the most underrated player in the NHL as he scored 65+ points twice in the last 3 seasons and had 47 points in 69 games last year. Although this team has Chabot, Murray, Dadonov, and Tkachuk, I don't see them making the playoffs. However, the future is extremely bright and in a few years, don' t be surprised if they are true playoff contenders.
8. Detroit Red Wings - Like Steve Yzerman said, ''it will take time.'' This team is still really bad, but not 17 wins bad. I can see them being at around 30 wins this year with a new group of players. Staal, Ryan, Merrill, Stecher, Greiss, Namestnikov are all amazing pieces to acquire for experience and depth. Ryan and Namestnikov are probably going to get traded at the deadlines of their respective contract years which means the rebuilding process is sped up. Larkin, Mantha, Seider, Raymond, and Zadina are the future players for Detroit and they will need some time to be great. This team is in a big hole but Yzerman seems to know what he is doing to get them out.
Metropolitan
1. Carolina Hurricanes - The best division in the NHL and the toughest one to rank. The Hurricanes could finish first in the Metro or sixth and they would still be one of the best teams in the league. I have them over the other Metro teams for the fact that they are young and already experienced. Lead by Aho, Hamilton, Svechnikov, and that amazing d-core, the Hurricanes have great, relentless, young guys. The only question mark I have about this team is the goaltending which may determine the position they are in, in the standings. They have done a good job so far against other Metro division powerhouses and I don't see why they shouldn't do good this upcoming season too.
2. Philadelphia Flyers - The Flyers have been either a good playoff team or a good lottery team the past years and I think this trend will stop now. They have finally found how to use their gems in Giroux, Couturier and Provorov. If Voracek, JVR, Gostisbehere and the rest of this solid group of guys play at the best of their abilities, they could be one of the best teams in the league. The deciding factor is Carter Hart. Can he play like he did in the series against Montreal, with the exception of game 2. Because if he can, this team can easily top the tables and be true Stanley Cup contenders.
3. Washington Capitals - This caps team could be the best team in the regular season and absolutely disappear in the playoffs. Ovechkin, Carlson, Kuznetsov, Backstrom, Vrana, Wilson, Oshie, Eller, Orlov are all amazing players and have all won the cup together. The only question I have is in net. Samsonov is good but not great yet and the Capitals need great if they to keep contending for a cup as their window is closing sooner rather than later. The departure of Holtby will hurt, but Samsonov is in good hands with the King as his mentor. A new coach might also determine whether or not they are a contending team or a pretending team.
4. New York Islanders - Barry Trotz is the saviour of Long Island. He has kept this defensive team in the playoffs for the past few seasons and I don't see why they should miss them this year. Overwhelming defense, great goaltending, and surprisingly great offense are what propeled this team to the ECF. Greiss and Toews's departures will certainly hurt the team, but as long as they resign Barzal and keep Trotz as the coach, this team will always be good.
5. Pittsburgh Penguins - I actually had them missing the playoffs last october, and I could see them missing it next season as well. The series against Montreal really pointed out their flaws and Jim Rutherford hasn't done much to fix them. Kasperi Kapanen will add speed to this slowing down team and Jankowski and Sceviour provide a touch of grit but apart from Crosby, Malkin, Letang, and Guentzel this team doesn't have much fire power. Rust, Zucker, and Jarry will have to follow up these great years with another one if the Penguins want a shot at another cup. Pittsburgh might mess around and be the best team in the Metro during the regular season but if they can't produce in the playoffs, the Penguins cup window is closing as fast as the Caps' window.
6. New York Rangers - Yes, I am aware that I put them at sixth, but the Metro is almost impossible to predict. They could finish in the top 3 with another MVP year from the Breadman, another 40+ goal season by Zibanejad, a great goaltending perfomance by the young tandem, and Alexis Lafreniere or they could be bad and not make the playoffs. Will Laffy help this team get to where they want to be? As a habs fan, I want to see this team last, but as a hockey fan I want to see them exceed expectations and be a great young team. If they don't quite make a good impression this season, the next ones will be better with a young core of Lafreniere, Fox, DeAngelo, and Shesterkin. The Rangers will be a very exciting team in the near future and potentially this season.
7. Columbus Blue Jackets - Again, this team could finish in the top 3 and I wouldn't be surprised, but they did finish outside of a playoff spot at the time of the pause. The Blue Jackets haven't added many players compared to the number of players they got rid of. The arrivals of Domi and Koivu will solidify their forward group but the departures of Nutivaara, Murray, Anderson, and Wennberg definitely hurt a little bit, up front and on the back end. The team has yet to sign Dubois or any other big free agent, despite the amount of cap space they have. The defence is still really good with a top 4 of Jones, Werenski, Gavrikov, and Savard and the goaltending tandem is also very capable of getting this team into the playoffs. Like the Islanders, this team is very good defensively and has an amazing coach that seems to be the reason why they are consistently in the playoffs.
8. New Jersey Devils - The success of this team depends on everything; offense, defense, goaltending, and even coaching. The forward group got a slight improvement with the trade that brought in Andreas Johnsson from the Maple Leafs, but it still isn't as good compared to the other Metro teams. If they want to do well, Hischier and Palmieri need to maintain good scoring years as well as a very needed breakout season from 2019 first overall pick, Jack Hughes. He had a very underwhelming rookie season and if he can bounce back and score at least 20 goals and 45+points, this team might just sneak in as a wildcard. This is obviously very unlikely in a stacked Metropolitan division, but if the Blackwood/Crawford tandem can play at the top of their games and the d-men step it up a notch, this team could maybe just make another surprise appearance in the playoffs like they did in 2018.
Pacific
1. Vegas Golden Knights - This upcoming season, I think the Golden Knights will be the best team in the Pacific division. A full season of a Fleury/Lehner tandem, the addition of Pietrangelo, and the solid, two-way forward core that they have might just be the recipe for a Stanley Cup. This team wants to win now and I think they are ready to do so. Apart from the 3 California teams, the Pacific division is absolutely stacked with good teams that all have a chance at making the playoffs and I believe Vegas is the best team among them.
2. Calgary Flames - The Flames, Canucks, and Oilers were all very tough to place and could finish in any order. However, I went with the Flames as the second seed in the Pacific division for the sole purpose of finally having a true number one goalie. With Markstrom in net and Rittich as a backup, the Flames could maybe and finally get a cup on which they have been waiting on for decades. The forwards are great, but in order to have a cup-winning team, they will all need to play like they did during the 2018-19 season. Although the defence lost key guys in Brodie, Gustafsson, and Forbort, it is still very well maintained with a top 4 of Hanifin, Giordano, Andersson, and Tanev. The Flames have a chance to prove themselves as true contenders this year if the whole team can play like they did a couple of seasons ago.
3. Vancouver Canucks - Although they lost Markstrom, Toffoli, Tanev, and a bunch of good players, the Canucks are still one of the scariest teams in the league. Lead by Pettersson, who is a top 10 player in the league, Boeser, Horvat, Miller, who can score points on any given night, Holtby who wants to prove that he isn't a washed-up goaltender and still has a lot left in him, and a d-core that seems to be the only question mark on this team. With a D of Hughes, Schmidt, Edler, Benn, and Myers the defense is alright but there is definitely room for improvement and I don't think it does get the improvements it needs because of the lack of cap space. This young Canucks team may very well be the best in the Pacific, but also the fifth-best. Again, this division was very difficult to rank and I wouldn't be shocked if Vancouver makes a run for the cup with the amazing offense they have.
4. Edmonton Oilers - Out all the top 5 teams in the Pacific, the Oilers are the only team with questionable goaltending, and that maybe the reason why they will not do as well as the other teams. Vegas with Lehner and Fleury, Vancouver with Holtby and Demko, Calgary with Markstrom and Rittich, Arizona with Kuemper and Raanta, and Edmonton with Koskinen and Smith. They are clearly the team with the worst goaltending and I do think it will be a problem. I know they have McDavid and Draisaitl who seem to be able to score when they want to, and that may very well be why they finish first in the division. The Oilers could be placed first or fifth and I wouldn't have a problem with that. Edmonton will be good and we, as fans, are just waiting to see how good they will actually be.
5. Arizona Coyotes - The Coyotes could finish higher up in the Pacific division but the teams ahead of them are simply better. As long as Kuemper doesn't get injured and plays like a Vezina caliber goalie, Arizona will finish higher. Last season the Coyotes and Oilers were fighting for first place in the Pacific division until Kuemper got hurt. The loss of Hall is a big blow to their forward group that lacks goal scoring but if Keller, Schmaltz, and rookie Hayton can have breakout seasons, the Coyotes might be a dark horse for a playoff spot. Kessel and Ekman-Larsson need to have bounce-back seasons as well if they want to make the postseason.
6. San Jose Sharks - The Sharks were tremendously beat up last year with injuries to Karlsson, Hertl, Couture, Kane, and Simek. Without their top players, the Sharks have no one else to step up, and nowadays, a winning team needs depth. They did add Donato, Marleau, Nieto, and another average starting goaltender in Dubnyk, but I still don't see the Sharks as a playoff team. Burns and Vlasic have seen a fast decline in their speed and their overall game, while Karlsson seems to get injured every 5 seconds. The only way I see this team as a potential playoff team is if no one gets injured and if Jones and Dubnyk play like they did in their primes.
7. Anaheim Ducks - Adding Shattenkirk will strengthen an already solid d-core with Fowler, Lindholm, and Manson and a star goalie in Gibson. They have a good back end but the forwards are lacking good scorers. Who even is their best forward? Silfverberg? Henrique? Rakell? Getzlaf? Anaheim has a plethora of young guys that could take a spot in the lineup which is great for the future, but not now. The Ducks are in a rebuild and I don't see them being high in the standings this upcoming season.
8. Los Angeles Kings - The young Kings are going to be interesting to watch this year. How will their young guys translate their games from the juniors and other leagues they played in, to the show. LA hasn't made any notable acquisitions this offseason apart from taking on a year of Olli Maatta's contract, which most likely means they will have another miserable season. The rookies that might play this year are Turcotte, Byfield, Bjornfot, Vilardi, and Anderson-Dolan. The future is bright for the Kings and this upcoming season is a development year for the young guys.
Central
1. Colorado Avalanche - Arguably the best team heading into next season, the Avalanche have the best chances at the cup. A top 6 of Mackinnon, Rantanen, Landeskog, Kadri, Saad, and Burakovsky or Donskoi is seemingly unstoppable. A blueline of Makar, Toews, Girard, Johnson, Graves, and maybe Byram might be the best one in the league. Grubauer and Francouz are totally capable of being the 1 and 2 in net. This Avs team is going to be amazing and they will be Stanley Cup contenders and heavy favorites.
2. St. Louis Blues - The Blues have lost one of the best defensemen in the league and their captain in Pietrangelo. His replacement of Krug will bring some energy and speed to the blueline which will help fill the whole of the loss of Pietrangelo. The whole blueline, as a matter of fact, will have to step their games u in order to fill up the whole of a gone Pietrangelo. In net, Binnington will have to play like he did during their cup winning season if they want another shot at it. The forward group is amazing and a healthy Tarasenko will definitely give them a scoring boost on the wing. The Blues are still contenders despite a shocking playoff series loss to the Canucks and they are looking to get a second title in 3 years.
3. Winnipeg Jets - There are many questions when it comes to the Jets and their team. Is the defense good enough? Is Laine going to get traded? Is the center depth satisfactory? Are they true Stanley Cup contenders? The answer to all these questions is maybe. Maybe the defense is good enough to maintain a good record. Maybe Laine will get traded. Maybe a center depth of Scheifele, Stastny, Lowry, and Thompson is good enough. Maybe the Winnipeg Jets are ready to lift the cup. If Hellebuyck backs up an amazing 2019-20 campaign with an even better one this season, he not only could win the Vezina but could get some votes for the Hart trophy. Just like the 2014-15 Montreal Canadiens, the team in front of Price, who won the Hart, Vezina, Jennings, and Lindsay, was good but not great and the main reason why the team did so good was because of Price's MVP season. If Hellebuyck can do something similar to that, the Jets could do some damage as they have a great, offensive forward group as well.
4. Nashville Predators - Nashville's cup contending window has probably already passed, but they are still at least a playoff team. A blueline of Norris trophy winner Josi, Ellis, Ekholm, Fabbro, and new arrivals Benning, and Borowiecki is good enough to get this team in the postseason alone. The goaltending is questionable with an old Rinne and an inconsistent Saros, and the forwards are good on paper, but can't seem to produce the way they should. Injuries are definitely a problem with this Preds team and if they want a real shot at the cup the top lines are going to have to score some points. The new forward arrivals of Cousins, Kunin, and Richardson will help but again, the top guys in Johansen, Forsberg, Arvidsson, Duchene will have to produce way more than they did last year.
5. Dallas Stars - The Stars are only getting older with Benn, Radulov, Bishop, and Pavelski who have all shown immense regression this past season. The emergence of Heiskanen in their finals run was incredibly promising for the future of the blueline and the team. The Stars could finish in the top 3 but I think the older players will slow the team down and it will result in a worse record than the Jets and Preds. I haven't even mentioned guys like Klingberg, Seguin, and Gurianov who give tremendous scoring boosts but I still don't think they finish ahead of the Blues and Avs. They are still a playoff team and maybe still a contender.
6. Chicago Blackhawks - The rebuild has started. The Blackhawks will be very bad for the next several seasons, including this upcoming one. They are not bad enough to finish last with guys like Kane, Toews, and Kubalik, but they aren't far from finish last in the division. The offense isn't terrible but the defense is slow and old. The biggest question is in net. The two goalies are currently, Delia and Subban who are both average backups at best. I don't see how the Blackhawks make the playoffs next year, especially in a difficult Western Conference. The near future isn't looking as bright as other Western teams.
7. Minnesota Wild - The battle for last place in the Central division between the Blackhawks and Wild is won by... Minnesota. The Wild have gotten worse this offseason with the departures of Staal, Dubnyk, Kunin, Galchenyuk, Donato, and Koivu and have replaced them with Bonino, Bjugstad, Johansson, and Talbot. The Wild will have Kaprizov join the lineup which is a great addition to the team but they are nowhere near contention, even with a good d-core. They will be fighting for last in the central and even the entire NHL. A tandem of Talbot and Stalock isn't sufficient to be a winning team and the offense is just bad, with the exception of Fiala. The Wild will be pretty bad this year and they will be for a while unless Bill Guerin turns this team around and puts them back into contention.
Playoffs According to my Predictions Because Why Not
I think you're pretty spot-on, but I do wonder if this season will be a step back for the Bruins. Also, as a Leaf fan, Montreal looks real good with these off-season moves, and that is worrisome.
Edmonton finished 2nd last season and got better in the offseason. Vancouver and Calgary got worse. I get that the games still have to be played, but on paper it's a tough argument that Edmonton will finish fourth.
lebronisdagoat and Jeuck75 liked this.
Reply
CapFriendly
CapFriendly