Today we take a look at the Central Division. A division that has sent a team to the Stanley Cup Finals the last three seasons, winning the cup two of those times.
The big question in this division is can Chicago repeat as Stanley Cup champs or will Detroit rebound to retake the top of the division as they have for most of the last 20 seasons.
Will St. Louis, Nashville or Columbus have anything to say about it? Let's break it down.
Detroit Red Wings
Last Season: 44-24-14 102 points Lost in 2nd Round to San Jose
New additions:
Mike Modano, C (Dallas) Jiri Hudler, F (KHL) Ruslan Salei, D (Colorado)
Subtractions:
Andreas Lilja, D (San Jose) Brett Lebda, D (Toronto) Brad May, LW (Free Agent) Jason Williams, RW (Free Agent)
Why they'll succeed:
I think a better question is why wouldn't they. The Red Wings haven't missed the playoffs since 1990 which is the current longest streak in professional sports. Up until last season they have been a top four seed in the Western Conference since 1992.
The additions of Modano & Hudler will strengthen their 3rd line. Because of this the Red Wings have the ability to roll four lines throughout the entire game while other teams will have to shorten their bench.
Add those two players to a team that already has Henrik Zetteberg, Pavel Datsyuk & Johan Franzen and you can see why Wings fans are excited about their team.
Another reason they will succeed is because Nicklas Lidstrom returns on defense for another season. Make no mistake, no one player is more important to his teams success in the NHL than Nicklas Lidstrom. Without him the Wings would struggle to be a playoff team.
Why they'll fail:
They aren't as young as they use to be. I know each year I have to hear people make jokes about the Wings being an old team and then watching those same people eat a little crow when Detroit makes a long playoff run.
Last year it started to catch up Detroit as they slumped during the 1st half of the season. A strong finish after the All-Star break was enough for them to reach the post-season once again.
Another factor last season was injuries. At one point last season the Red Wings had $27 million dollars in players up in the press box because of injuries. They were able to overcome them but when you are an older team it takes longer to recover.
Playoff Team:
I don't see any reason they wouldn't be. Losing to San Jose in the playoffs may have been the best thing to happen to the Wings last season as they were able to get some well deserved rest.
With a lot of their players reaching the end of their careers the Wings should have enough left for one more run. If they stay healthy they should win the Central once again.
Chicago Blackhawks
Last Season: 52-22-8 112 points Won Stanley Cup
New additions:
Marty Turco, G (Dallas) Fernando Pisani, RW (Edmonton) Viktor Stahlberg, F (Toronto) John Scott, D (Minnesota)
Subtractions:
Dustin Byfuglien, RW (Atlanta) Andrew Ladd, LW (Atlanta) Ben Eager, LW (Atlanta) Brent Sopel, D (Atlanta) Kris Versteeg, RW (Toronto) Antti Niemi, G (San Jose) Adam Burish, RW (Dallas) John Madden, C (Minnesota)
Why they'll succeed:
Despite all the departures the core players of the Blackhawks are still in place.
Jonathan Toews won a Gold Medal for Canada, A Stanley Cup for Chicago, & the Conn Smythe Trophy for MVP of the post-season. Along with Patrick Kane they form a 1-2 punch that can only be rivaled by Sidney Crosby & Evgeni Malkin in Pittsburgh.
Forward Marian Hossa & Patrick Sharp still provide the necessary depth at forward for the Blackhawks to be able to skate with most NHL teams.
Duncan Keith & Brent Seabrook are still the main anchors on the blueline for the Blackhawks. Add Niklas Hjalmarsson & Brian Campbell and you have a core of four defenseman that a lot of other teams are going to have difficulty matching up with.
Why they'll fail:
They let a Stanley Cup winning goaltender walk away as a free agent and replaced him with a goaltender that for as good as people say he is has underachieved for most of his career.
Yes Antti Niemi is not going to be confused with Martin Brodeur or Patrick Roy at this point of his career but he came up big for the Hawks when they needed him last season.
Niemi is now in San Jose and is replaced by Turco whose whole career has been a letdown based on what people expected from him when he took over as the Stars in 2002.
How bad did it get for Turco this summer? He was let go by Dallas and replaced by Kari Lehtonen from Atlanta. In free agency the Philadelphia Flyers toyed around with signing him before settling on Michael Leighton.
It's not a good sign when you are replaced by a former Thrasher and even the Flyers won't sign you to play goal.
The other major loss this season was the trade of Byfuglien to Atlanta due to Salary Cap reasons. He did a lot of dirty work down in the crease and got the Blackhawks a lot of key goals in that area. Someone will have to step up and fill his skates.
Playoff Team:
Despite the departures the core players remain and this team should return to the post-season to defend their title. as to how far they go will depend on who steps up to fill the voids in the lineup and if Marty Turco can finally become the goalie everyone has expected him to be. I'm not holding my breath.
St. Louis Blues
Last Season: 40-32-10 90 points Did Not Qualify
New additions:
Jaroslav Halak, G (Montreal) Vladimir Sobotka, C (Boston) T.J. Hensick, C (Colorado)
Subtractions:
Keith Tkachuk, LW (Retired) Paul Kariya, LW (Free Agent) Mike Weaver, D (Florida) Chris Mason, G (Atlanta)
Why they'll succeed:
The addition of Halak gives St. Louis their best goalie since Curtis Joseph played for them in the mid 90's.
Simply put Halak was spectacular last post-season leading Montreal to upset wins over Washington & Pittsburgh. The Blues are hoping he isn't a one year wonder.
Helping out Halak in front will be a trio of defenseman, Barrett Jackman, Erik Johnson & Eric Brewer. Jackman & Brewer have been mainstays on the blueline for the last five seasons in St. Louis. Johnson returned from knee surgery to post 39 points in 79 games. The Blues are hoping the former number one pick takes the next step into becoming an elite defenseman this season.
Why they'll fail:
Their forwards have yet to reach their potential as a group. Now with Tkachuk & Kariya gone one or two of their young skaters will have to step up & fill the void.
The best bets are TJ Oshie (48 points last season) David Backes (48 points last season) & Brad Boyes (42 points last season)
Backes & Boyes are former 30 goal scorers looking to bounce back after scoring 17 & 14 goals last season.
Alex Steen looks to build on his 47 point season while Andy McDonald hopes to duplicate his 57 point season which led all St. Louis forwards.
Playoff Team:
The reason the Blues missed the playoffs for the 4th time in five seasons was because they struggled at home. That led to the firing of Andy Murray after 40 games. Davis Payne replaced him and went 23-15-4 the rest of the season.
This team is talented enough to be in the playoffs. Provided the can continue to play well on the road and take care of their issues at home the Blues should return to the post-season.
Nashville Predators
Last Season: 47-29-6 100 points Lost in 1st Round to Chicago
New additions:
Matthew Lombardi, C (Phoenix) Sergei Kostitsyn, LW (Montreal) Aaron Johnson, D (Edmonton) Ryan Parent, D (Philadelphia)
Subtractions:
Jason Arnott, C (New Jersey) Dan Hamhuis, D (Vancouver) Dan Ellis, G (Tampa Bay) Dustin Boyd, F (Montreal) Denis Grebeshkov, D (KHL)
Why they'll succeed:
Their core of defenseman may be underrated but it is one of the best in the league. Led by Shea Weber & Ryan Suter they are capable of shutting down any teams top scoring line on any given night.
Kevin Klein and the return of Parent gives the Predators a top four that would be recognized as one of the best in the league if they played just about anywhere but Nashville.
Pekka Rinne joins what has been a solid group of goalies to play for Nashville. It started with Tomas Vokoun in 2004 & continued with Dan Ellis in 2008 before both left Nashville. Predator fans hope that Rinne will be able to stick around in net.
Why they'll fail:
The lack of a go to scorer. Nashville was 18th in the NHL in scoring last season. The departure of Arnott to New Jersey leaves a void that the Predators are hoping Lombardi can fill. He scored 53 points in Phoenix last season. Nashville fans are hoping he is not a one year wonder.
Speaking of one year wonders Patric Hornqvist scored 30 last season for the Predators. Was it a one time thing or a sign of things to come? it's still too early to tell.
Playoff Team:
When I look at the scoring up front I say no. When I look at the defense & the goaltending I say it's possible. When I factor in head coach Barry Trotz and what he has done in Nashville (5 playoff berths in the last six seasons) I think they are a playoff team.
The truth is they will be lurking right around the 7th to 9th seed in the Western Conference most of the season. I'll say yes right now because Trotz hasn't given me any reason to think otherwise.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Last Season: 32-35-15 79 points Did Not Qualify
New additions:
Ethan Moreau, LW (Edmonton) Nikita Filatov, LW (KHL)
Subtractions:
None
Why they'll succeed:
They may have the best player in the NHL that no one has heard of in Rick Nash. The former number one pick in 2002 was a beast for Team Canada in the Winter Olympics. He led Columbus with 33 goals & 67 points.
Why they'll fail:
For one Nash did all that last season without playing with a true number one center. The Jackets drafted Ryan Johnson to fill that void but it will be a couple years until Johnson is where he needs to be to play with Nash.
Another question is which is the real Steve Mason. Is it the one that won 33 games in his rookie season and had a Goals Against Average of 2.29 in leading Columbus to their 1st post-season berth or is it the one that won only 20 games last season and had a GAA of 3.05. With the blueline Columbus has I fear it is the latter.
Playoff Team:
Not this year. They didn't make any significant additions to their roster from last season. Add the fact that the Central is one of if not the toughest division in hockey it's hard to see the Blue Jackets finishing anywhere other than last place.
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