In anticipation of the upcoming NHL season, I will take a look at all thirty teams and try to determine their strengths, weaknesses and chances at making it to the postseason. The preview will be in six installments, one per division, starting in the Western conference. Enjoy!
Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks finished in 8th
place in the Western conference and 3rd in the Central
division last year, behind Detroit and Nashville. They had a solid
showing against Vancouver in round one of the playoffs, coming back
from three games down to force a game 7. Expect bigger things from
Chicago this year.
There are no problems with their
offense, as they finished fourth in both Goals per game (3.07) and
Power-play percentage (23.1). Captain Jonathan Toews led Chicago with
76 points (32G, 44A), good enough for T-11th in the
league, while the speedy Patrick Kane averaged a point in each of his
73 games (27G, 46A). Expect these guys, if healthy, to be among the
top fifteen point-getters again this season.
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| Expect another big year from Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews |
On defense, the 'Hawks are led by
Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook, who both played full 82 game seasons
last year. Keith finished with the league's most ice time (26:53
mins), while Seabrook's 48 points (9G, 39A) tied him for 10th
amongst D-men.
With so much talent on both ends of the
ice, why did the Blackhawks barely make the playoffs in 2010-11? Two
reasons. First, they lost a lot of close games. The 'Hawks had a
one-goal game win percentage of just .421 last season, 25th
in the NHL. This leads me to believe that Chicago is a much better
team than a quick glance at last year's standings would suggest.
The other reason for the 8th
place finish is a weak penalty kill unit. Chicago killed only 79.2%
of penalties last year, also 25th in the league. This
shouldn't come as too much of a surprise, as the 'Hawks lost John
Madden and Kris Versteeg, stellar penalty-killers, due to salary restrictions after the team's 2010 Stanley Cup win.
If goaltender Corey Crawford has a
solid year like he did last season (2.30 GAA, .917 Sv%, 4 SO), expect
the Blackhawks to challenge Detroit for the Central division crown
and make a deep push into the playoffs.
Columbus Bluejackets
The Bluejackets finished at the bottom
of the Central division last season, and 13th in the
Western conference. They made a splash this offseason by acquiring
Jeff Carter from Philadelphia in exchange for
Jakub Voracek and a 3rd
round pick. While this might make for a more exciting team,
don't expect Columbus to make the playoffs this season.
Columbus has a lot of talent up front,
led by captain Rick Nash. In 76 games last season, Nash scored 66
points (32G, 34A) which tied him for 30th in the NHL with
new teammate Jeff Carter (36G, 30A). It will be up to these two to
provide much of the offense for the Bluejackets this year, while
two-way forwards Antoine Vermette and R.J. Umberger should provide
decent secondary scoring.
Much of Columbus' problems are on
defense, where the likes of Fedor Tyutin, Kris Russel and Jan Hejda
shoulder the bulk of the responsibility. None of these blueliners
finished in the top 50 in points for D-men last year, and all three
had negative plus/minus ratings. Talented goalie Steve Mason put up
fairly decent numbers last season (3.03 GAA, .901 Sv%) considering
the weak unit he had in front of him. Look
for the defense to improve with the free agent addition of
offensive-defenseman James Wisniewski, who put up 51 points (10G,
41A) split between the Islanders and Canadiens last year.
The Bluejackets finished last season
with just 217 goals for (24th in the league) and a -43
goal differential (26th). While these numbers may improve
with Carter and Wisniewski's help, I would be surprised if Columbus
didn't finish last in the Central division again this year.
Detroit Red Wings
The reigning Central division champs
made quick work of the Phoenix Coyotes in round one of last year's
playoffs before losing out to the Sharks in the second round. This
talented group of veterans seem to be a perennial powerhouse in the
Western conference, and this year will be no different.
The Red Wings' offense starts with
Pavel Datsyuk. The diminutive forward plays every aspect of the game
well, and makes everyone around him better. In 56 games last season,
Datsyuk had 59 points (23G, 36A), and had
an excellent showing in the playoffs, posting at least a point in all
but one of Detroit's eleven games, finishing with 4 goals and eleven
assists. Henrik Zetterberg is another elite NHL forward, who
averaged a point a game last season (24G, 56A), not dressing in only
two contests. Veterans Daniel Cleary, Johan Frazen and Todd Bertuzzi
provide grit and secondary scoring on which the Red Wings heavily
rely.
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| Zetterberg and Datsyuk are keys to success in Motown |
More veterans round out one of the
deepest defensive units in the NHL, led by the timeless Nicklas
Lidstrom. In what is quite possibly his last season, Lidstrom will
try to have another year like 2010-11 where he scored 62 points
(16G, 46A), good enough for 2nd amongst defensemen. Brian
Rafalski (48 points, +11) and Nicklas Kronwall (37 points, +5) are
both excellent D-men who should contribute to another solid season
from goaltender Jimmy Howard. Only Carey Price and Roberto Luongo had
more wins than Jimmy Howard's 37 last year, who did so with a 2.79
GAA and a .908 save percentage.
With talent and depth at all positions,
Detroit should be a top team again this season. The Red Wings scored
261 times last year, second only to the Canucks, and converted on
22.3% of their power-plays, fifth best in the league. This offensive
ability, combined with defensive depth and Mike Babcock's winning
formula should see Detroit make a legitimate bid for the Stanley Cup
this year.
Nashville Predators
The Nashville Predators had another
solid season last year under defensive-minded coach Barry Trotz. The
Preds finished second only to President's trophy winners Vancouver in
goals against with 194, and it was the Canucks who beat out Nashville
in round two of the playoffs. The
Predators have made the postseason in six of the past seven seasons,
and I expect them to do so again this year.
Nashville has a balanced offensive
attack with no true super-stars. Last season they were led in points
by Sergei Kostitsyn and Martin Erat with 50 each, and Patric
Hornqvist with 48. Mike Fisher, acquired at last year's trade
deadline from Ottawa, is a great two-way centre who will hope to rebound from a down statistical year.
The Preds struggled mightily on the power-play last season, finishing
26th in the league with a 14.2% success rate, worst among
playoff teams. This stat is slightly less painful when you consider
Nashville outscored opponents during even-strength play with a goals for/against ratio
of 1.16, tied for 5th in the NHL.
The Predators' defensive core is
centred around captain Shea Weber, who finished with 48 points (16G,
32A), 10th among D-men, while logging the 3rd most minutes in the league. Ryan Suter had a superb year, scoring 39
points (4G, 35A) and finishing with a +20 rating. Suter played in 70 games last year and was on the ice for an average of 25:12 minutes, 10th in the league. Expect Suter
to build on this stellar season and further establish himself as an
elite blueliner alongside his team's captain.
Another key to Nashville's defensive
brilliance is goaltender Pekka Rinne. Rinne finished second and third
respectively in save percentage (.929) and GAA (2.12). If Rinne can
repeat this amazing statistical performance this season, look for the
Preds to have another successful year, and build on the franchise's
first ever playoff series win.
St. Louis Blues
The St. Louis Blues are a balanced team with plenty of young talent. Last season they finished in 11th place in the
Western conference, 10 points out of a playoff spot. They made a big
deal during last season that saw the additions of Chris Stewart and
Kevin Shattenkirk from Colorado
in exchange for Erik Johnson and Jay McClement. Look for St. Louis to
improve on last year's campaign and make a run at a playoff spot.
The
Blues are led by their captain David Backes, a tough two-way forward
who put up a great all-around year in 2010-11. In 82 games, Backes
notched 31 goals and an equal amount of assists, while finishing
second in the league behind Zdeno Chara with a plus/minus rating of
+32. Newcomer Chris Stewart had an fantastic start to his season with
the Avalanche before breaking his wrist, missing twenty games.
Stewart never fully returned to his early season form after being
dealt to the Blues, but still managed to finish the year with 53
points (28G, 25A). Look for Stewart and fellow forward Patrick
Berglund to make significant contributions to St. Louis' offense
again this year.
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| New captain David Backes will look to build on his 2010-11 All-Star season |
St. Louis has a solid stable of
blueliners that is headlined by youngsters Alex Pietrangelo and Kevin
Shattenkirk. While these two players both put up 43 points last year,
Pietrangelo had a much better plus/minus rating of +18 to
Shattenkirk's -4. Barret Jackman and Carlo Colaiacovo provide solid
veteran support to this defensive unit that should only improve with more
time together.
This team has the potential to
challenge for a playoff spot in the competitive Western conference, depending on the seasons that their youngsters have. Possibly a
result of the Blues' inexperience was their poor away record of
15-20-6 last season. Jaroslav Halak is a talented goalkeeper that
proved what he is capable of once he gets in the playoffs, making
this team a potential sleeper for a deep run if the
Blues can squeak into the postseason.
Predicted division standings:
1. Chicago Blackhawks
2. Detroit Red Wings
3. Nashville Predators
4. St. Louis Blues
5. Columbus Bluejackets
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