SOUTHEAST DIVISION PREVIEW

The Southeast Division looks a lot different this year.

For the last few seasons Washington has been the elite team in the division but with Tampa Bay's run to the Eastern Conference Finals last year the Lightning looks to be the biggest threat to the Capitals.

The other big change is the Atlanta Thrashers moving to Winnipeg to become the 2nd coming of the Jets. Granted the only thing Winnipeg is southeast of in the NHL is Edmonton but they are in the Southeast for only one more season until realignment takes place.

How will these three teams along with Carolina & Florida fare this season. Let's break it down. 

1. Washington Capitals: 

How They Finished: 48-23-11 107 points 1st in Southeast, 1st in East. Lost in 2nd Round to Tampa Bay. 

Additions: 

Troy Brouwer (Chicago) Jeff Halpern (Montreal) Joel Ward (Nashville) Roman Hamrlik (Montreal) Ryan Potulny (Ottawa) Tomas Vokoun (Florida) 

Subtractions: 

Marco Sturm (Vancouver) Matt Bradley (Florida) Eric Fehr (Winnipeg) Seymon Varlamov (Colorado) Boyd Gordon (Phoenix) Jason Arnott (St. Louis) Scott Hannan (Calgary) Brian Willsie (Montreal) Tyler Sloan (Nashville) 

Why They'll Succeed: 

They are still the most talented team in the division. Alex Ovechkin once again made his case for the best player in the NHL finishing with 85 points (32G, 53A)

Ovechkin leads a group of forwards that features Alexander Semin (28 Goals) Mike Knuble (24 goals) & Nicklas Backstrom (18 goals) that has no problem finding the back of the net.

Another reason the Capitals should succeed is because the core of players that helped lead Hershey to Calder Cup titles in 2009 & 2010 are starting to play a prominent role on the current roster.

Why They'll Fail: 

Last year the Capitals finished 15-4-1 down the stretch without defenseman Mike Green. When Green returned Washington struggled and were swept in the 2nd round by Tampa Bay.

This is not coincidental.

Green is a talented defenseman that is a threat to score whenever he touches the puck. He is also a liability on defense. After watching Washington last spring I'm starting to believe they will never win with Green in the lineup.

Another move they made this off-season was signing Tomas Vokoun to play goal instead of Michal Neuvirth. I liked what I saw out of Neuvirth & thought he deserved a chance to earn the job as starting goaltender. The Capitals decided to sign a goalie has decent stats but has never won a post-season series & hasn't played in the playoffs since 2007. 

Prediction: 

They still have the most talent of any team in the division. Tampa Bay may have swept them last post-season but the Capitals are still a better team over an 82 game schedule. Washington should win 5th straight division title. 

2. Tampa Bay Lightning 

How They Finished: 46-25-11 103 points. 2nd in Southeast, 5th in East. Lost in Conference Finals to Boston. 

Additions: 

Bruno Gervais (NY Islanders) Mathieu Garon (Montreal) Matt Gilroy (NY Rangers) Tom Pyatt (Montreal) Ryan Shannon (Ottawa) 

Subtractions: 

Marc-Andre Pouliot (Phoenix) Sean Bergenheim (Florida) Mike Smith (Phoenix) Simon Gagne (Los Angeles) Randy Jones (Winnipeg) Mike Lundin (Minnesota) Matt Smaby (Anaheim) 

Why They'll Succeed: 

It's starts at the top with their management.

With a good core of players already in place GM Steve Yzerman did an excellent job adding the necessary pieces & coach Guy Boucher pushed all the right buttons leading Tampa Bay back to the conference finals. Another year of experience will only make them better.

Martin St. Louis played like a Hart Trophy candidate (31G, 68A) and Steven Stamkos (45G, 46A) put his name in the same category as Sidney Crosby & Alex Ovechkin. Big seasons are expected from both of them once again.

On defense Victor Hedman continues to develop into a top notch defenseman & the additions of Matt Gilroy & Bruno Gervais gives the Lightning quality depth on defense. 

Why They'll Fail: 

Let me just start by saying I thought Dwayne Roloson was awesome last year in the post-season finishing 10-6 with a GAA of 2.51 and a save percentage on .924.

However he also started to get tired near the end of the playoff run.  He turns 42 years old and the Lightning will not be able to ride him all season like they did in the playoffs.

With Mike Smith now in Phoenix backup duties fall to Mathieu Garon who comes over from Montreal. He'll have to play well in games when Roloson has the night off. 

Prediction: 

I really like how the Tampa Bay roster is built. If the can find the right balance for when to play Roloson so they don't burn him out the Lightning could contend for the division crown.

They won't surprise anyone like they did last year but a 2nd place finish in the Southeast should be enough to get them back to the playoffs. 

3. Carolina Hurricanes 

How They Finished: 40-31-11 91 points 3rd in Southeast, 9th in East. Missed Playoffs. 

Additions: 

Brian Boucher (Philadelphia) Tim Brent (Toronto) Alexei Ponikarovsky (Los Angeles) Anthony Stewart (Atlanta) Tomas Kaberle (Boston)

 Subtractions: 

Joe Corvo (Boston) Erik Cole (Montreal) 

Why They'll Succeed: 

They just missed out on a playoff spot last year. Tomas Kaberle is an offensive presence on the blueline and will fill the void left by Joe Corvo going to Boston.

Eric Staal had another great season finishing with 33 goals & 43 assists. Jeff Skinner had a great rookie campaign finishing 2nd on the team with 31 goals. At 19 years old he should only get better.

Cam Ward went 37-26-10 in net finishing with GAA of 2.56 and a save percentage of .923. With Brian Boucher backing him up Ward won't have to be asked to play in every game for Carolina. 

Why They'll Fail: 

While the Hurricanes were able to replace Corvo the question of who will replace Erik Cole remains to be seen.

Alexei Ponikarovsky has the skills but only scored 5 goals last season. Anthony Stewart has the grit up front but only scored 14 goals last season. Both will have their work cut out for them trying to replace Cole.

On defense Carolina only had one defenseman (Jay Harrison) finish plus last year in plus/minus. Even with the addition of Kaberle I don't see that improving. 

Prediction: 

Carolina is the ultimate hit or miss team. They either get in the playoffs and go on a run or they miss the post-season.

In an improving Southeast Division the Hurricanes stayed pretty neutral with their roster. They'll be in the hunt but unless they make a deal during the season or one of the other playoff teams from last year stumble the Hurricanes will miss the playoffs again. 

4. Florida Panthers 

How They Finished: 30-40-12  72 points  5th in Southeast, 15th in East. Missed Playoffs. 

Additions: 

Brian Campbell (Chicago) Tomas Kopecky (Chicago) Kris Versteeg (Philadelphia) Scottie Upshall (Columbus) Jose Theodore (Minnesota) Ed Jovanovski (Phoenix) Tomas Fleischmann (Colorado) Marcel Goc (Nashville) Sean Bergenheim (Tampa Bay) Matt Bradley (Washington) 

Subtractions: 

Rostislav Olesz (Chicago) Marty Reasoner (NY Islanders) Darcy Hordichuk (Edmonton) Tomas Vokoun (Washington) Niclas Bergfors (Nashville) Alexander Sulzer (Nashville) Patrick Rissmiller (NY Rangers) Byron Bitz (Vancouver) Cory Stillman (Retired) 

Why They'll Succeed: 

When you haven't made the playoffs in 11 seasons any change is welcomed.

The Panthers did just that bringing in 10 new players some of whom have been successful in previous stops. The infusion of new talent does bring a little bit of a buzz to South Florida and should make the Panthers competitive. 

Why They'll Fail: 

We don't know what kind of chemistry this team is going to have. Of all the players they brought in the only one to make a big impact in the NHL is Jose Theodore who won a Vezina & Hart Trophy in 2002.

Ed Jovanovski's career is winding down and isn't the same defenseman he was when the Panthers drafted him. Brian Campbell has never lived up to the contract he signed in Chicago. Sean Bergenheim (14G, 15A) is trying to repeat the career year he had in Tampa while Kris Versteeg is looking to bounce back from a forgettable season in Toronto & Philadelphia. 

Prediction: 

The Panthers needed to do something. They were becoming the most irrelevant team in the NHL. The transactions gives them a little buzz going into the season but we don't know what to expect.

I have them finishing 4th in the division & missing the playoffs but if they start strong anything is possible. 

5. Winnipeg Jets 

How They Finished: 34-36-12 80 points 4th in Southeast, 12th in East. Missed Playoffs. 

Additions: 

Eric Fehr (Washington) Derek Meech (Detroit) Tanner Glass (Vancouver) Randy Jones (Tampa Bay) Kyle Wellwood (San Jose) 

Subtractions: 

Radek Dvorak (Dallas) Anthony Stewart (Carolina) Eric Boulton (New Jersey) 

Why They'll Succeed: 

When they were in Atlanta, I thought the Jets had a nice core of young players that were close to making an impact. Now that the franchise is in Winnipeg and playing in front of 15,000 passionate hockey fans every night the energy level will be insane. That can only inspire the players on the ice. 

Why They'll Fail: 

They are still the Atlanta Thrashers.

Just because you move the franchise doesn't mean things are going to get better right away. The downside of finally playing in front of 15,000 rabid hockey fans is there is a honeymoon period. The Jets could play bad hockey this whole season and hardly anybody in Winnipeg will care.

Another concern is Dustin Byfuglien. Not the fact he was arrested in the off-season for operating a boat while under the influence of alcohol (BWI) People make mistakes, that problem will work itself out.

What concerns me is that Byfuglien weighs 286 pounds going into the season. Weighing that much while trying to defend against the likes of Ovechkin, Stamkos, St. Louis & Staal is very difficult to do. 

Prediction: 

Teams that usually move from one city to another struggle their 1st season in it's new market. (Colorado is the exception to the rule) But that doesn't matter here. Hockey is back in Winnipeg and that's all the fans care about. I'll say 5th in the division for now with better days ahead.