I think your honestly a little to high on Anaheim and Calgary

Anaheim form last int he NHL to playoff team?

CBJ will not be that high

Everything else is possible

I agree on the Ducks but Calgary can finish ahead of SJ and VAn

Fun

You're probably gonna get cooked in the replies cause that's what happens on here whenever a standings prediction doesn't follow concensus super closely, but who cares.

Will say, I personally can't really see Buffalo or NYI finishing that poorly. Buffalo should at least be better than Detroit, even in the event they don't take that next step. The Isles have too much of a guaranteed floor with Sorokon and solid plates throughout to finish outright poor, even if they don't have a super high ceiling. I'd be shocked if Washington finished above them.

I see Calgary above SJ and the Ducks but that's about it imho, it's likely Hanfin and Lindholm and others don't finish the year in Calgary, they seem like a team that is going in the wrong direction and bleeding talent for the past 2 years.

Anaheim is a hot take, but Calgary is definitely where they belongs. Wouldn’t be surprise if they make it

Anaheim will definitely be better. A playoff team is a hot take, but they should compete for one

The only things Columbus need to be a cup contender is a goalie and a 1c. I believe Johnson could fit right in that 1c role this season. A goalie is still needed tho

Always looking at people’s predictions , I see a lot of ppl underrating Ottawa. This team was within 3pts of a playoff spot with Norris injured and Chychrun just joining the team and then Forsberg went down and Sogaard only gave them .880 goaltending. To think what they are replacing , Cat and Kubalik had the same amount of 5V5 goals . They’re also getting Norris back from injury and a full year of Chychrun over Hamonic in the top 4. Also added Tarasenko. If the goalies play average at .905 ish then I don’t see how they don’t make it.

So I agree with you, I think they’re more of a WC team tho. If they get insane goaltending somehow, they might get 3rd

I just don't see Calgary doing well quiet a few of their top players want out, they lost their top point producer from last year. and they haven't made any meaningful upgrades to their roster, with the Ducks i just don't see their defense being good enough for them to make the playoffs.

What I don’t like about Buffalo is their goaltending. Levi as a rookie can’t stay consistent for 70 games. And unfortunately, unless UPL take that next step, they don’t have decent backups option. Their defense is a bit shaky too. Detroit are more well rounded.

For the Isles, I don’t think they will be that good. They have insane defense and goaltending, but their offence is quite bad. They need goalscoring

I see Tampa taking a big step back. They don’t have good defense depth. Perbix will probably regress, they don’t have amazing depth. Ottawa has a better roster. The Atlantic will be fun this year

I see Tampa taking a big step back. They don’t have good defense depth. Perbix will probably regress, they don’t have amazing depth. Ottawa has a better roster. The Atlantic will be fun this year

Calgary have a good team that could easily make the playoffs. Huberdeau will be better, Kadri will be better, Weegar will be better, Markstrom will be better. They have pretty good depth. They will probably lose Hanifin and Backlund, but they aren’t really that important. Lindholm might leave, but if he does, they will get another good player in the deal.

Anaheim’s defense is pretty solid. I like it more than Calgary’s, Vancouver’s and San Jose’s. My only concern with that team is their goaltending

Ducks D is solid? What? 🤔

Ok it's better than the Sharks. Not exactly resume worthy stuff there. 😉

I see the argument, but their goaltending already sucked big time last year. Levi could absolutely be raw and struggle as a rookie, especially if they ask a lot of him, but I have a hard time seeing it not being the same quality at the very least.

That's kinda my point with the Isles though. They don't have the scoring where they're a playoff lock or have potential to he an elite team, but I think they have a lot of safety in how the teams strengths shake out to where an outright bad finish is unlikely.

A good way to explain it would maybe be to say that if I had to give a 10 point range for every team, NYI are one of the ones I'd feel most confident finish in it without much variance (I'd say 85-95 points). Doubt they have much chance to be better than a WC, but also woild be surprised if they finish below hockey. 500

I think your heavily overrating the Ducks defense, if the reports are true of the 2024 free agent class for the flames not wanting to come back, they are losing a huge chunk of their top level players and depth, losing Lindholm, Hanfinin, Tanev and Backlund blows any chance they have at competing. even if Huberdeau is better it's unlikely he is a pp/g player again with the team around him, i doubt Kadri will be any better this year was around the average of his career. i just don't see it with the flames.

If the reports are true, Lindholm is now open to sign with the Flames. Huberdeau will probably bounce back and be a ppg again. He probably won't be a 100 points guy, but he will be a 90-95 points guy. Also, if they trade any of the guys you have mention, they will get active players for them. So they stay good. Also, there isn't a team behind them that is better. Vancouver is as bad, and even worse, and we don't talk about San Jose.

I can’t see Carolina finishing 3rd. Maybe NJ finishes ahead, but I can’t see NYR ahead

Vancouver > Calgary > Anaheim in the pacific

Last season the playoff bar was at 95 points. The ducks had 58 points… In what world do you think they can make up 37 points? What have they done to somehow get 18-19 more wins this season?

Canucks have potential to surprise a lot of people this season. Their forward group has never been a problem, and is looking very good. Defense is still questionable, but it’s the best defense they have had in years. Assuming Demko plays like normal, they have a decent chance at a wildcard spot

If you read, it is hot takes. Also, in terms of roster quality, Calgary > Anaheim > Vancouver

They added sone big guys + Leo Carlsson + young player still developping. I know this isn’t realistic but it is a hot take

Anaheim’s roster isn’t close to Vancouver or Calgary’s this season. Their forwards are worse than Vancouver’s and probably Calgary’s, their defense is a lot worse than Calgary’s and Vancouver’s, and their goaltending is worse than Vancouver and arguably better than Calgary

Forward depth is bad, defensive depth is ok, Demko is a question mark. Sometimes he is a top 5 goalie, sometimes he is bad. If Kuzmenko and Pettersson keep their pace of last year, they could compete with Calgary, Nashville, Winnipeg and Anaheim for the last wildcard spot

Defense is worse, but forward are better. They have more depth and more stars. Also, Markstrom >>> Demko and Gibson