New Jersey Devils- The Devils went on an impressive run to
the Stanley Cup final last season. Ultimately they fell just short of their
goal. I don’t see the Devils returning to that level of success but I don’t
think they’ll be slouches either. While the departure of captain Zach Parise
may weigh heavy on some fans hearts, it won’t have a major deterrent to the
season. Kovalchuk is the biggest
question mark on this team right now. He is brining the Devils a big time
Russian factor. It’s up in the air if he’ll return from Russia. If he does you
can see him brining 90 or so points with him. You’ve got secondary scoring in
Elias, and Henrique will undoubtedly build on his great rookie season. They’ve
got a good bottom six that can chip in with goals as well as grind other teams
down. The defense comes in with budding superstar Adam Larsson looking to
finally blossom. You don’t have any true stars on that blue line, but they are
all solid workhorses who get the job done. In true Devils style they’ll be for
the most part a boring team to watch. With a tough grinding bottom six, sturdy
shut down defensemen, and Marty Brodeur back in net they’ll be successful
again. Not flashy, not the first game I’ll look for on my hopefully free NHL
center ice package, but they will win. Maybe not as well as last year
especially with the Rangers being who they are and a healthy Crosby in
Pittsburgh, but fourth in the Atlantic with a playoff bid seems likely.
New York Islanders- It’s been a long 5 years for the
Islanders at the bottom of the Atlantic. This ship doesn’t look like it’s going
to be pulled up from the bottom, at least this season anyways. The biggest player news as of late is Lubomir
Visnovsky’s decision to stay in the KHL. Now we all know what the KHL is, and
he decided to stay there instead of coming back to the NHL. Starting goalie
Evgeni Nabokov did the same thing last season. This really goes to show what
players think of this organization. The Islanders offense does have players
that stand out to you, John Tavares, Matt Moulson, Kyle Okposo, and if he can
play well again Michael Grabner. Tavares is coming off an 81 point season. His
best to date. He should hover around this number again. After that you have Matt
Moulson who banged home 69 points last year. P.A Parenteau left for greener
pastures in Colorado. Brad Boyes was brought in to try and take his place. This
is the same Brad Boyes who hasn’t been impressive since 80-09. Not much is to
be expected of him and rightfully so. Put him with the rest of the
underachievers and you can see why Tavares’ point totals could dip this season.
Poor guy. Give him credit though he re-signed to stick out the rebuild. Moving
on to the defense well what is there to stay? According to the official
Islanders website they only have 3 defensemen on roster. Obviously Travis
Hamonic will get brought up from Bridgeport. It’s not a far stretch to think
Griffin Reinhart will get a shot with the team. They’ll miss Calvin De Haan
finally getting some real NHL action as he’s out with a separated shoulder.
Continuing on the prospect road, it’ll be interesting to see what they do with
Ryan Strome. Some were surprised to see him not make the roster last season.
He’s playing well in the OHL this year, and had a tremendous WJC. He may very
well land a spot on this team. All in
all, it’s all for not the Islanders. They can not run with the big ships in
this Atlantic, and they’ll be sunk for the sixth straight season. 
New York Rangers- Seems the mantra surrounding the Rangers
is always the same, “they’re the team to beat”. Last year it looked as if it
was finally true they were the kings of the east. Even if the Crosbyless
Penguins did push them to the absolute brink for that crown. Night in and night
out the team showed up to play. Stars like Gaborik and Richards got the job
done while grinders played their parts as well. Subtract the forgettable
Brandon Dubinsky and add Rick Nash this team has become scary good. Gaborik who
is oft injured played a full 82 game season for the first time in his career.
He’s coming back from shoulder surgery but in a short season he’ll be
exceptional. Look for him to be a Rocket
Richard Trophy contender. Expect bigger things from Derek Stepan this season,
his point totals rose in his sophomore campaign. They should rise again. While
Brandon Prust left for Montreal the toughness on this team is still there.
Rupp, Asham, and Bickel will protect the superstars and give them space. The
additions of Halpern and Pyatt make the team better defensively. They’ll be a
great shutdown third line. The defense comes back young and impressive, Del
Zotto needs to be re-signed but that should hopefully come easy. Staal wasn’t
as productive last season coming back from his concussion, but don’t expect him
to be a let down on defense this year. He’s a Staal, the family is full of NHL
studs he’ll be back and he’ll be better. As usual, Henrik Lundqvist comes in looking
great on, and off the ice. He was 3rd in wins last season and hasn’t
posted under 35 wins for six straight seasons. While that is a lofty goal for a
48 game season don’t expect to see him to outside of the top 5 in wins. However,
all that will not be enough to win the Atlantic. They’ll take second.
Philadelphia Flyers- Last season saw Scott Hartnell become a
goal scoring machine. Hartnell Down was one of the biggest ups for the flyers.
Outside of Claude Giroux that is, “G” plays with an edge, yet is flashy and
skillful. He should be next in line to wear the C for the Flyers. That is if
they plan on going with one this season. Outside of those two offensive dynamos
you have Danny Briere who can dazzle at the drop of a hat. He’ll miss the start
of the season but that gives more playing time to guys like Matt Read and Wayne
Simmonds. Believe it or not the departure of Jaromir Jagr is a blessing for the
Flyers. The young guns will be able to play more without hurting the ice time
of a legend. I’ve yet to mention Sean Coturier and Brayden Schenn, they will be
the X factors for the Flyers this season. They had modest point totals last
season, but I can see their roles increasing and the totals rising. If they
rise they flyers rise. The defense is solid even without Chris Pronger. Luke
Schenn joins his brother and gets a fresh start. Something that he has needed
immensely, even if Pronger can’t play Schenn will learn. What it comes down to
is what we saw kill the Flyers in the postseason; the enigma that is Ilya Bryzgalov.
Brzy didn’t just have the typical holes numbered 1 through 5. At times he had 6
and 7 holes. And, all of them were “Humongous big”. When he is on his game he’s
fantastic, but when he’s off his game it’s ECHL quality.
The Flyers will make the post season but they won’t pass the
big two in the Atlantic.
Pittsburgh Penguins- He’s Back. Hate him or love him, Sidney
Crosby is back, and he is the best player in the NHL. Sid was on pace for 131
points last season. He looked unstoppable. His playmaking was on point, and
scored on ten percent of his shots. He plays just as well on D as he does on
offense. Add him to last years deadly duo of Malkin and Neal who combined for
190 points. Mix them with Chris Kunitz, and Pascal Dupuis who add in on offense
they’ve got a solid core. While Jordan Staal might be gone Brandon Sutter fills
that void. He will play a different role than Staal, but he will play that role
well most likely chipping in 40 points along the way. On offensive the penguins
are the strongest team in the eastern conference. The defense packs as much of
a scoring punch with Kris Letang back there. Erik Karlsson not withstanding
there is no better pure skating offensively talented Defenseman. After that the
defense gets very defensive rough and tough with Derek Engelland and Brooks Orpik,
and smart with Paul Martin. People are worried about Marc-Andre Fleury coming
off his awful playoff performance, and I would be as well. At times he looked
like a varsity goalie and at times looked worse than that. The penguins traded
for and signed Thomas Vokoun not to pressure Fleury, but to play. This is a
goaltending tandem that rivals that of Halak and Elliot. The Penguins are the most
well rounded team in the NHL. I could go as far as calling them the best team
as well. The Penguins will win the Atlantic, as well as the East.
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