NHL '23-'24

[cestuneblague]

Yes hockey's back in the picture and even though the M's have distracted me I'm still excited for the season. Interesting in the fact there doesn't seem to be too much change in predictions from last season, just a lot of potential breakouts from the younger teams. Unfortunately none of my teams look promisinf this year but still excited to go to some games, got Panthers & Kraken and perhaps Red Wings on the docket. Anyways for the surely wrong progniscations:


Eastern Conference

1) Tampa Bay- Always seems like the cap is creeping up on them, but once again they seem primed to rule a stacked east. Smart offensive play and shutdown goaltending, don't really need much more than that and could see the first four-straight Stanley Cup appearances in generations. Target, meet back.

2) Toronto- Greatest regular season team, they'll outscore everybody and look dominant most nights, but until their goaltending can be effective consistently they're going to keep seeing playoff heartbreak.

3) Florida- Were at their best last year but also a bit lucky, got exposed a bit during the playoffs. If their offense can be more dominant early in games they can see a long playoff run, especially with those goaltenders, but their front lines still seem far from flawless.

4) Carolina- Boring but fairly brilliant, they have the easier division in a brutal east.

5) NY Rangers- As an Islanders fan it hurts to say this team is really good, especially behind the blue line. If their scoring stays consistent and they get a key breakout (namely Kokko) they could be a dark horse.

6) Pittsburgh- This is where it gets murky, I could see many teams competing for the last few playoff spots but all seem a few cuts below the top 5. Pitt still looks good enough to have one last hurrah, but it really is time to move on. Expect a clearance sale by January if they fall out of playoff contention.

7) Washington- Ditto all of the above.

Detroit- This is my no guts no glory prediction, Detroit has acquired so much young talent and they all have a great chance at a breakout year, Seider is my favorite young player next to Caufield and Beniers. Again, alot has to go right, but it looks lime the dynasty is coming back for a long time.

9) Boston- If they were healthy I would put them as a playoff team no exception, even with a heavily aging core. But so many injuries to key players, including many who won't be back till after the brwak, makes them a question mark. Can they make up a lot of ground so late in the season? Skeptical, but its very likely ill be proven wrong.

10) NY Islanders- Leagues steadiest team, donno if that's serving them well. They seem a long way off from their near-Stanley Cup appearance in 2021. Perhaps though their defensive-minded , keepaway-friendly hockey will help them earn a low playoff seed.

11) Colombus- Poached Gaudreau from the Flames, that was cute I guess, but despite some other decent moves they still need to do more to gain relevancy. However, they should be playing meaningful games in march.

12) Ottawa- Have made the right moves, should improve, but until they can stop the cheap goals they're not seeing the playoffs.

13) Devils- Have amassed some top young talent thanks to thumb-on-the-scale lottery luck good drafting, but still seem to be searching for consistency throughout their lineups and an overall identity. Jack Hughes staying healthy will be huge for them being relevant this year.

14) Sabres- Was impressed with how they handled the Eichel drama last year and were pretty competent overall on the ice. The east is too stacked for them to be competitive year-round, but for the third-times-a-charm this rebuild is actually going in the right direction.

15) Montreal- Wow they fell off hard after their Cinderella run, even with Carey Price healthy they don't seem anywhere near a playoff spot unless they're betting the farm on Kirby Dach. I donno, if Caufield and Suzuki have that long-awaited breakout they may be decent this year, but whether they want to admit it they're fully in reload mode these days.

16) Philadelphia- Both the twin dragons of bad luck and underachievment from their veterans have burned the franchise, its time to be awful and go after a Bedard and finally speed up a window of contention.


Western Conference

1) Colorado- Still the team to beat, even with some losses, back to dynasty mode in the west?

2) Edmonton- How will they respond now that expectations are so high? Not only the two best skaters but arguably top offensive lines in the whole game. Is Jack Campbell the answer in front of the net to keep them from giving up cheap goals? If he stays healthy watch out, and they should dominate the pacific. 150 points for Bedard?

3) Wild- Only worry was Kaprizov and he's here, this is a potentially fierce team that may finally push Minnesotta back to NHL relevance, but finally seeing postseason success is vital in making that happen.

4) Calgary- Gad jilting them at the alter for the Blue Jackets ps wasn't great PR, but honestly they still looks just as good as last year's team overall. Deciding whether to blow up an aging core will have to be done in the next couple of years, but could see a Battle of Alberta rematch in the spring.

5) LA Kings- Have had a really nice rebuild, and even with virtually the same roster have a chance to see even greater improvement with all their young talent.

6) St.Louis- Stanley Cup core slowly withering away but they still got a pretty good team, should be competitive even if the roster blowup may be coming soon.

7) Nashville- Have had a quiet but effective rebuild, and with better goaltending should lock up a lower seed.

Las Vegas- Everything caught up to them last year, but made some deft low-key moves that should see them at least return to the playoffs.

9) Vancouver- It sucks when you make so many win-now moves and don't win, but may have enough talent to sneak into the West's open-ended playoff race.

10) Winnipeg- Were a canuck favorite to end the national championship drought, but got exposed a bit last year. Have very similar team as last uear, so really have to prove last year was a hiccup and not a team that has fallen hard from their recent peak.

11) Dallas- Defense and toughness will keep them in the playoff contention, but shou!d still struggle to put the puck in the back of the net.

12) Anaheim- This is where the bottom of the west drops out. They have a lot of young talent and modestly overachieved last year, so they could surprise.

13) Seattle- Made some savvy off-season moves and having Matty B. all year should help them be more competitive and (with better goaltending mind you) stop getting destroyed on the power play, but likely will take another lottery and pick-rich year before they start having an eye on contention.

14) Chicago- Schadenfreude for their struggles? No this is all by design, another bad year for a chance at a top player to finally speed up a rebuild.

15) San Jose- No longer have the Evander distraction, but should still be pretty awful this year. Frontrunners in the Bedard sweepstakes.

16) Arizona- The El Misterio Voyage de Homer episode was less bizarre than the Coyotes story. No, its not a joke, they're playing home games at ASU stadium which has about 6000 seats. That's going to be nearly 80 bucks for nosebleed tickets to watch the Coyotes lose badly. If this doesn't work are they going to play their home games on a frozen lake in New Mexico? Its time to take Old Yeller to the back of the shed and put it out of it's misery, move the damn team already.


For playoffs I think its definitely plausible we see a Conference Finals repeat in both matches. For shits and giggles I'm picking for the Stanley Cup? Lightning over Oilers in 6, the former the new dynasty and McDavid ageees to a record-breaking contract in the near future with Edmonton.

[Romanelli]

Avalanche in 5.

That is all...
_________________
May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...

[junodog4]

Lots of points of agreement with cestuneblage...

EAST

Atlantic
1. Toronto - so much firepower up front; makes up for middling goaltending. Also helps that the other top teams in this division have cracks.
2. TB - Hard to argue with a core of Kucherov/Stamkos/Point/Hedman/Vasilievskiy, but the depth is starting to wane.
3. Fla - Lost too many players to stay 1st, but still have major horses.

Metro
1. Carolina - So deep. All they need is for the top-end guys to take over.
2. NYR - If they can get some 2nd line production, watch out.
3. NJ - Going on a limb. So much of the Metro is meh... thinking that the youth will bust out.

Wild card
7. Pit - Old. So old. But still effective. Could lose this spot to Buf or Ott.
8. NYI - Will actually be more fun to watch this year.

9. Bos - Missing too many pieces at the start of the season.
10. Was - Missing Backstrom will hurt.
11. CLB - Need a centre. Gaudreau will miss his CGY linemates.
12. Buf - With better D, they could go for a wild card spot.
13. Ott - With better D, they could go for a wild card spot.

14. Det - I don't see Chairot and Perron being the answer.
15. Phi - Fire the GM. Worst in hockey since Milbury.
16. Mtl - Full on rebuild.

WEST

Central
1. Col - No hangover. Makar has another level still.
2. Min - Kaprisov is a gamebreaker, and the team is deep.
3. STL - Like Carolina. Super-deep.

Pacific
1. Cgy - Weird offseason, but once they sort out chemistry, they actually look better.
2. Edm - McDavid is a cheat code.
3. Vegas - Ugh. Pains me to say it, but they'll be back in.

Wildcard
7. Nas - Step back, but Saros is the real deal.
8. Van - If their D holds up, they will be in.

9. Dal - Love the kids, but the vets are aging.
10. Wpg - Need an identity.
11. LA - On the right track, but other teams have improved after struggles last year.
12. Ana - Love the kids, but need more pieces,

13. Sea - Big drop off here. Bottom 4 teams will struggle. Kids have potential, but lacking everywhere else.
14. Ari - Small arena might actually help home vibe.
15. SJ - Like the Flyers. What's the plan?
16. Chi - Will be simply awful. Lock for last.

Way to early to tell, but I'm betting on a CGY/COL West final, and a NYR/TOR East.
_________________
Finnegan was super bad-ass.

[cestuneblague]

Well that was a crazy season, definitely wasn't expect the réussi ou echec of a lot of those teams but it's going to make for a fun playoffs. I was way off on the west, but more than pleasently surprised by the Kraken's second-season success. Matty B is the man. I think there's a good argument for at least five teams in the west to make it to the Stanely Cup, but all have their flaws. Going to be interesting to see if Nech's Oilers can be carried over the finish line by McDavid and Draistl alone, the former's season was pretty much 21st Century-unparalleled. Have the second best regulation record, all depends if their defense (?) and Not Jack Campbell holds up. I'm sure Juno wasn't too happy about Calgary underachieving, perhaps time to start over and get younger. IN the east it looks like it's all about if anybody can take down Boston, of course I thought it was going to be a down year with the injuries and then they have a historically great season. Hate to Say it, but the Rangers look pretty dangerous, especially their hot goaltending and efficient offense. Nice to see the Islanders sneak into the playoffs, though I doubt their games of keepaway are going to be able to sustain a cinderella run. Was dead wrong on the Red Wings emerging, their youth struggled this year, but the Hughes family staying healthy definitely helped the Devils immensely, though I still think they are too young at this point against a lot of experienced teams. Also wasn't expecting the Panthers to barely make the playoffs.


For playoff predictions, yeah I'm predicting a Rangers-Oilers finale, that should be fun. I'll believe a Maple Leafs 2nd round appearence only when I see it. Expect the Blackhawks to win the lottery (Conor Bedard) and get a collective middle finger from everybody outside of metro Chicago.

[Romanelli]

Avalanche in 5.


That is all...
_________________
May we all get to heaven
'Fore the devil knows we're dead...

[cestuneblague]

Yeah here's my playoff predictions:

Vegas over Winnipeg
Edmonton over LA Kings
Avalanche over Kraken (going with my head on this one, and the latter's regular season is reward enough at this stage)
Minnesotta over Dallas (predicting the first sorta upset, and it's 30 years in the making)


Boston over Florida (derp)
Tampa Bay over Toronto (again, even with the Maple Leafs looking better on paper, I need to see basic success before I can predict it. Also Lightning defense still strong)
Hurricanes over Islanders (again, going with my head)
Rangers over Devils


2nd Rnd

Oilers over Vegas
Avalanche over Minnesotta (unless Kaprizov gets really, really hot)

Boston over Tampa Bay
Rangers over Hurricanes


Conference Finals

Edmonton over Colorado
NY Rangers over Boston



Stanley Cup? NY Rangers over Edmonton, double derp-de-derp

[cestuneblague]

... I think I may have to rescind that western conference prediction. That Oilers game... was hard to watch. Oof da, bet Nech isn't too happy.

[Romanelli]

[craola]

[cestuneblague]

Yeah I agree that isn't just McDavid and Draistl who are excellent, productive players, but they are flawed ESPECIALLY behind the blue line (not just goalies). I was thinking because their top players were doing so well that may be enough to get them over the hump, but now I donno... but it's only been one game. Given every potential contender out west has a wide, exploitable achilees heel (or in Avalanche case, shaky health), so it's really impossible to predict who the winner out west.