What does the Pacific Division look like at the end of the season?

Edmonton
Anaheim
Calgary
San Jose
Arizona
Los Angeles
Vegas
Vancouver

Edmonton - They got a little bit better in the off-season and McDavid and the other young guys are going to better, no question. This team will win the division and will make some noise in the playoffs as well. They will easily eclipse the 100 point mark after being able to beat both Vegas and Vancouver by 4 goals every game.

Anaheim - They got a little better and kept the main team intact and adding a veteran back up goalie who can help Gibson out with his play. Anaheim will give Edmonton a run for their money at the end of the season but they will ultimately fall short and finish second in the division for the first time in 5 years. Depending on what their position is at the trade deadline they might make that last ditch trade to get a rental player who doesn't cost a lot to put that team over the edge. Should be a good season for them with their current team and they have a bright future with Steel, Jones and a few others waiting in the wings.

Calgary - Similar to Edmonton, they got better in the off-season. They have arguably one of the best defensive cores in the league with the addition of Hamonic. Hamonic might not be a top 2 d-man but helps the Flames solidify their top 6 and be able to shut down teams like Edmonton a little easier. They added Smith in goal, which was a great addition for them. He is used to 35 shots a game, that will change this season and he will get a lot less than that on average. Flames meet the ducks in the playoffs and finally are able to beat the Ducks in Anaheim but they fall short of advancing to the second round.

San Jose- They lost a top 6 forward and number 5 d-man. They did nothing to replace that and I think it will show during the season. They are expecting the depth players to pick it up this season and that will make or break their season. In the end if they do get into the playoffs, it will be by some help. I expect them to miss the playoffs entirely because of how strong the top 3 teams in the pacific are and how stacked the central is as well.

Arizona - They overhauled their roster in the off-season, trading away their starting goalie. In exchange, they were able to add a top 2 pairing d-man, a new goalie in Raanta, and a good center in Stepan. They will be a tough opponent all season long but I see them running out of gas at the end and barely missing the playoffs with San Jose. This team has a great upside for the future and could be dominate before they move to a different city.

Los Angeles - They got a little older. Kopitar did not play like a number 1 center last year and they will need their younger guys to step up. Quick is a good goalie but he will be tested often in this division and I don't think they will be able to do much with this current lineup. They need to find a partner for Brown and Gaborik, quick so they can add better pieces to the lineup. They also lost McNabb on the backend and added Cammy but who knows how much he will help out. This is almost the exact same team as last year. I also expect Carter getting one punched KO'd by kesler again. (Joking)

Vegas - This team has a bright future ahead with that being said, trust the process and build from the ground with the prospects. This team will be decent but I expect them to lose a lot and maybe get blown out in some games. They won't be as bad as Vancouver but that is because Fleury will keep them in a good portion of the games they win. I am excited to see what this team looks like in 3 - 4 years.

Vancouver - It might be time to sell the Sedins and stock up on draft picks. Time to rebuild and play playoff spoiler

1) they shouldn't trade the Sedins, and 2) either way, the Sedins won't waive their NMCs ... but anyway ...

In the regular season:
1 San Jose
2 Edmonton
3 Calgary
4 Arizona
5 Los Angeles
6 Anaheim
7 Vancouver
8 Vegas

I was gonna provide reasoning for my list, but then I realized my list is the exact same as awatt's, for the same reasons. #letstankVancouver!

I love the fact that that RAIF thinks the Ducks will finish 6th. That is just too funny

1 Anaheim- More complete team than Edmonton. Could be flipped between them an Edmonton but Anaheim have a more complete structure and foundation. Edmonton still has small holes to fill and youth to develop

2 Edmonton- Close 2nd. Can see them 3 or 4 points behind the ducks. I can see a breakout year for Klefbom and Cag.

3 Calgary- Great defense. Top 3 in the league IMO. Well depth in the back and Great acquisition with Mike Smith. Questioning their offence tho. Not a lot of depth up front and it showed in the playoffs. Would like to see them acquire another top 6 forward

4 San Jose- Similar team to last year. Marleau was a tough loss, but its time to retool the lineup and brining in younger names like Meier.

5- Los Angelas- Slowly falling, but still have elite talent on their team. Bounce back years for Kopitar and Toffoli could help them boost back to where they belong.

6- Arizona- Future looks bright but another year of developing could be the key to success

7- Vegas- They want to win now..... Problem is their team is trash. But you won't see this team trying to tank sadly.

8- Vancouver- Opposite to Vegas. A team that is desperate for an elite First overall playing in 2018 draft and Dahlin could be the answer to help that D Core

I said it might be time, not that they should. Two completely different meanings and you put it in bold...

I am guessing the reason why SJ in first, is because they are going to work better together as a team this season?

1. Edmonton
McDavid and Draisaitl is legitimately the next Crosby/Malkin. They have a decent supporting cast and that's all they need to be a powerhouse.

2. Anaheim
They only lost Shea Theodore, got a massive upgrade behind John Gibson, and their defense is young and stellar.

3. Calgary
Their top-four is now one of the league's best, and Mike Smith is an actual starter

4. San Jose
They lost Patrick Marleau, didn't replace him. They have a decent defense corps, but no one to come up in case of injuries, and very little forward depth too. This team is clearly trending downwards.

5. Arizona
A potential sleeper team. Keller, Dvorak, Strome are ready to storm onto the scene. Stepan is a fantastic stop gap until Keller becomes a number one centre, and I think Raanta can be a starter. Hjalmarsson is a rock.

6. Los Angeles
No forward depth at all. Old and slow. Thanks to Brown, Gaborik, Kopitar contracts, this team will suck for the next decade or so.

7. Vancouver

8. Vegas

1) oh, ok.
2) Yeah, i mean, in 5 years or so, the Sharks probably won't be great ... they don't have the best prospect group and they have a lot of older players, but right now they could be pretty good.

What if the Ducks miss the playoffs? What would you say if the Ducks didn't make it.

I've put some thought into the standings
1. Edmonton-it is kind of hard to root against McDavid and his band of merry men to finish first. Cam Talbot was unreal last year and I expect him to continue to be better. Jesse Puljujarvi will probably make the team and put up good numbers in the AHL (its hard for a teenager to put up a point a game in the AHL.) They do need to get a new backup because Brossoit is not going to cut it because I don't think that Talbot is one of those Price or Bob goalies who can play 65+ games a season.
2. Anaheim- It was tough not to say that Anaheim will win the division, they have one of the best, young defensive group. Bieksa can just sit in the press box every night and have their cheap guys play. It is their strongest feature by far. If Gibson can just stay healthy and Ryan Miller doesn't fall off a cliff that is a great tandem. The forward group is where I have questions, which I assume that young players like Sam Steel or Max Jones might challenge for roster spot.
3. Calgary-Bad goaltending will sink a team like a rock, reference the Blue Jackets in the 2015-16. Lazar can't fluke his way into another 1 goal in 37 games again. They have a great top 5 D and have some good D prospects. For forward Johnny Hockey and Sean Monahan are going to be good. They are going to live and die by their goaltending of Mike Smith and Eddie Lack. Lack is a fine goalie, who is prone to streaks.
4. San Jose- Just a solid team who I like could finish third. They are getting older and we will see how they will handle the up and coming teams. I don't know how they are going to handle the young speed.
5.Arizona-I love their off season moves but not this year. They are going to have one more year of missing the playoffs and might challenge for a wildcard spot. if Raanta and Domingue can hold the fort, they are going to be great next year. They have a couple of stop gaps. Much like Toronto, the young kids are coming. (I guess my 17 dollar tickets through ASU are going to go up a little.)
6. Los Angles-The sun is setting, they can't be too mad though. They'll just plug their ears with their cup rings. They have some great pieces like Toffoli and Muzzin. Kopitar will probably have a better year, but do they have some baaaaaaaaaad deals.
7. Vancouver- One more year of the Sedins, Then the rebuild truly starts. They have good pieces with Horvat, Boeser, Hutton. Demko, Joulevi, Goldobin, Dahlen plus a no worse than top 6 draft pick this year. They have pieces that are going to be good just have to suffer for a couple years. If they can send the Sedins away to contenders (which splitting them up proably won't happen) there are two first round picks right there. Sam Ganger is going to be a good stop gap and they can trade him too.
8. Vegas- I thought the expansion draft was going to be better than I think now. But Here is the good news, everyone is going to be traded. Before the trade deadline, Neal is going to be gone, Perron is going to be gone. Sbisa is going to be gone. Also over the next three years they have 10 picks in the first two rounds. Glass and Suzuki are going to be good.

What's wrong with the Flames goaltending ... they got Mike Smith.

"I cant believe the Ducks missed the playoffs" thats what I would say. Unless they have some significant injury problems like the Lightning had. Then it would be understandable. But as a healthy team (because why would I hope for players to get injured) this is still a team that will battle for the top seed in the west

Vatanen's out. Lindholm has an injury and though he's coming back for the start of the season he may not play his best right away.

Oh, and Cogliano's had injury problems too.

Lindholm will need 4-5 months to remover and that was at the end of may. So he could be back before November and miss like 10-15 games. Vatanen is still uncertain. Brandon Montour will be a nice replacement for the time being. I wouldnt put cogliano down as a significant injury problem. His 35 points is replacable if needed
When I said significant injury. I meant Getzlaf or Rakell or Kesler.
Its ok tho. Everyone else will be too busy bugging the other teams to notice

He was being sarcastic about Cogliano. He's never missed a game.

yeah it completely went by me. I've never seen RAIF make an actual joke or sarcastic remark on this site lol. Even if he was injured next season I wouldnt consider him a major loss

I was kidding about Cogliano.

no **** really? im just figuring this out

I hope you are joking. You're right "all star" Mike Smith. He's average, which average goal-tending can take you to the playoffs in a weak division, which the West as a hole is becoming weaker, however he is good at blocking high danger shots, however he is below average against medium and low danger shots. He's like Eddie Lack in a way that he is streaky. I expect him to be somewhere between a .910 and .915 Save %. He is just average. But Goaltending has been Calgary's Achilles heel for the past 5 years. Elliot didn't work out, Hiller is in Europe somewhere, Ramo was placed on waivers in his tenure. Chad Johnson was at least serviceable.
Its not like we haven't seen what bad goaltending can do to a team. Price went down and Montreal didn't make the playoffs (not saying that Condon and Scrivy were bad) but some teams--any team--can live and die by their goaltending. Calgary is just one of those teams. They are not going to be a team that scores a lot of goals.

Nobody thinks Mike Smith is an all-star caliber goalie, but that term doesn't really mean anything anymore. However, he was a quality goaltender this season for the Coyotes, so going to a team with better defensive structure and run support with Calgary should only help him. While he was inconsistent at times for the Coyotes, he'll put up much better numbers for the Flames than he did with the Yotes.

.910 to .915 is good. I think he'll be a great goalie in Calgary.

+1 .

http://hockeyviz.com/fixedImg/teamShotLocDefWi/1617/ARI/smithmi82/

https://www.dispellingvoodoo.com/save-v2-1617 (use this to compare Smith and Elliott.....there's always the danger Smith falls off with age, but he should be a noticeable improvement otherwise)

1. Anaheim (101 pts) - Still a good team, but with their primary scorers aging and some injuries to start the year, they won't be quite as good as last season.
2. Calgary (100 pts) - Should have major upgrades in goal and at 2RHD. Defense that's top 3 in the NHL. Jankowski, Foo, and Tkachuk's sophomore year should keep driving this team forward.
3. Edmonton (100 pts) - McDavid will get to 110 pts, but with Sekara out and Talbot undergoing a little bit of regression, the team will struggle out of the gate, yet still comfortably make the playoffs
4. Arizona (90 pts) - Massive upgrades at center and RHD with the potential to have a starting goalie of the future. If the kids can develop, expect a big jump
5. San Jose (85 pts) - Regression and age effects across the board, with next to no talent coming up in the pipeline. Rebuild is triggered partway through the year with Thornton trade.
6. Los Angeles (83 pts) - Still a solid team, but Quick is unreliable to play 60+, and Zatkoff is not good enough to carry the load. The team improves somewhat offensively, but Stevens still over uses Brown and Gaborik. Kopitar is better but still not nearly good enough.
7. Vancouver (70 pts) - Additions of MDZ and Gagner help stablize 2nd unit of powerplay, and Ericsson has a little bit of a bounce back year. Sedin trade is explored but ultimately nixed because the trade value isn't high and they aren't willing to be split apart.
8. Vegas (62 pts) - Sell offs through the year destablize the roster. Fleury and Pickard not as good as hoped. Bright spot in young D, but they still finish in the basement of the league by 7 points.

Chicago crosses over and plays Anaheim

CHI over ANA in 6
CGY over EDM in 6

CGY over CHI in 5

Not happening. We'd be lucky to hit 60 points. Eriksson is completely trash, there's no rebounding anymore. And our PP is a curse that shalt never be fixed sadly...

-_- smh