SalarySwishSalarySwish
Forums/NHL

Metropolitan Division In Depth Analysis and Standings Predictions

19 sept. 2021 à 11 h 53
#1
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: avr. 2019
Messages: 3,446
Mentions "j'aime": 1,805
Modifié 12 oct. 2021 à 22 h 16
All lines are from DailyFaceoff



Carolina Hurricanes - 1st in the Central last year, have since swapped Brock McGinn, Morgan Geekie, Warren Foegele, Cedric Paquette, Dougie Hamilton, Jake Bean, Jane Hakanpaa, Petr Mrazek, James Reimer and Alex Nedeljkovic for Derek Stepan, Josh Leivo, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Ian Cole, Anthony DeAngelo, Brendan Smith, Jalen Chatfield, Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta. At 1C, Sebastian Aho is a remarkably consistent, elite offensive 1C. On his LW, Andrei Svechnikov is an all-offence, elite play driving 1LW. On the RW, Teuvo Teravainen was mediocre in small sample sizes last year but that likely doesn't continue. Assuming he bounces back he is an elite playmaking 1RW who is competent defensively. Overall, tremendous offensive first line. One of the best first lines in the NHL. At 2C, Vincent Trochek is a tremendous offensive 2C who played like a 1C last year. 50/50 on wether or not its repeated I'd say. Could be luck, could just be a great fit on a new team. Either way, great fit at 2C. Nino Neiderreiter is a terrific two-way 2LW. On the RW, Martin Necas is a great 2RW with potential to grow. Overall, really high end second line. At 3C, Jordan Staal is a tremendous two-way 2C. On his LW Jesperi Kotkaniemi is a terrific lockdown 3LW. On the RW, Jesper Fast is an elite defensive 3RW. Overall, terrific lockdown third line. At 4C, Steven Lorentz is a capable enough 4C. On his LW, Jordan Martinook is just an average 4LW. On the RW, Josh Leivo is a solid defensive 3RW. Overall, slightly above average 4th line. The forward group as a whole is great. Terrific first and second lines, great lockdown third line and capable fourth line. At 1LD, Jaccob Slavin is coming off of a down year, but is typically an elite two-way #1 d-man. His partner, Brett Pesce is coming off of a tremendous year. While he will inevitably fall off, he should still be a #1 d-man like he has been for 4 of the past 5 years. Overall tremendous first pair with two #1 d-men. At 2LD, Brady Skjei has been a tire fire in Carolina. Nothing more than a 3rd pairing PK specialist for the past two years. His partner, is something else.... Ignoring the obvious issues he's a terrific #2 offensive defensemen. Offensive in more ways than one. He's Tony DeAngelo. Bad second pair unless Skjei find his New York form. At 3LD, Ian Cole is decent defensive #5. His partner, Ethan Bear is an elite defensive, solid offensive #2 d-man. Terrific third pair that should be the second pair. In net, Frederik Andersen is on the decline and hasn't been elite for 2 years. Good 1A but not the elite starter he used to be. His backup, Antti Raanta is also a pretty solid 1A. Really good tandem with two 1As, but no elite starter. On PP1 its Staal-Aho-Svechnikov-DeAngelo-Necas. Should be a pretty good PP. Overall, really good first line, really good second line, great lockdown third line, capable fourth line, great first pair, bad second pair, great third pair, good tandem, good PP. If the second and third pairs flip flop then you have a terrific team top to bottom.




Columbus Blue Jackets - 8th in Central last year, have since swapped Cam Atkinson, Seth Jones and Michael Del Zotto for Jakub Voracek, Sean Kuraly, Adam Boqvist and Jake Bean. At 1C Jack Roslovic is a solid offensive 2C. On his LW, Patrik Laine is a pure goal scoring 2LW who does all of nothing past score goals. Oliver Bjorkstrand on the RW is a great goal scoring offensive 1RW. Overall this line is more of a solid second line than a first line. At 2C Max Domi is a solid middle 6C. Gustav Nyquist is now 3 years removed from his last every good season. He's probably a middle 6LW at this point in his career. Jakub Voracek is a remarkably consistent all-offence 2RW. Overall this is a sub-par second line. Serviceable, not bad by any means but its not great. At 3C, Alex Texier was awful last year and a solid middle 6C in his rookie year. Assuming he hits the median of those two, I'd assume that he should be a solid enough 3C this year. At 3LW, Boone Jenner is a solid 3LW. At 3RW, Liam Foudy is a 4RW. Overall, decent 3rd line, but still average to slightly below average. At 4C, Sean Kuraly is a solid 4C, PK specialist. Eric Robinson at 4LW, is a really good defensive middle 6LW playing way too low at 4LW. On 4RW, Emil Bemstrom is a rock solid defensive 3RW. Very good lockdown 4th line that is serviceable offensively. More of a low-end 3rd line than a 4th lien. Overall this forward is sub-par everywhere besides the 4th line. At 1LD, Zach Werenski is a solid offensive top pairing d-man. His partner, Adam Boqvist is a good offensive #3. Overall, not a terrific top pairing but a solid enough one. At 2LD, Vladislav Gavrikov is a good two-way top pairing d-man. His partner, Andrew Peeke is a third pairing d-man who has no business playing top 4 minutes. He drags down an otherwise good second pairing to sub-par. On the third pair, Jake Bean is a really good offensive #4. His partner, Dean Kukan is a solid defensive #4. This pair reads more as a good second pair as opposed to a third pair. Overall, solid and deep defensive core, yet unspectacular. In net, Elvis Merzlikins is a solid enough starting goalie. Joonas Korpisalo sucked last year, but realistically he should be solid 1B guy. Good tandem all things considered. On PP1 its Voracek-Roslovic-Bjorkstrand-Laine-Werenski. Not great, not horrible. I don't like Werenski as a PP QB which drops this PP to a more below average range. Overall this team is insufficient almost everywhere besides the fourth line, third pair, first pair and tandem. Second line at first, third line at second, sub-par third line, solid fourth. Solid first pair, bad second, second pairing at third. Solid tandem and a bad PP. Not a very good team.




New Jersey Devils - 7th in the East last year, have since swapped Nathan Bastian, Nick Merkley, Will Butcher, Ryan Murray and Aaron Dell for Tomas Tatar, Dougie Hamilton, Ryan Graves and Jonathan Bernier. At 1C, Jack Hughes is one of the best two-way 1Cs in the NHL who would have posted way better point totals if he had any luck or a good team. On his LW, Janne Kuokkanen is a solid middle 6 winger. On the RW Yegor Sharangovich is a solid all-offence goal scoring top 6 winger who should fit well with a great playmaker like Hughes. Overall, not a good first line. Sharangovich and Kuokkanen aren't great fits on the first line so its more of a really good second line. At 2C, Nico Hischier is a good all-offence top 6C. On his LW, Tomas Tatar is a tremendous two-way 1LW. On the RW, Jesper Bratt is a solid two-way 2RW. Overall this is a great second line. At 3C, Pavel Zacha was super lucky last year and performed to 2C capabilities. Given that he was already a wildly inconsistent player it is nearly impossible he recreates last season. I think 3C is a reasonable expectation all things considered. Miles Wood went from being impressively unlucky to incredibly lucky in just one year. Assuming it evens out this year he's a really good offensive middle 6LW. On the RW, Michael McLeod is a solid two-way middle 6RW. Overall a really good third line. At 4C, Jesper Boqvist is just a capable 4C. On his LW, Nolan Foote was a solid 4LW in small samples last year. I think its reasonable to expect that to continue. On the RW, Andreas Johnsson is a really good two-way middle 6RW who put up impressively unlucky results last year. Assuming he bounces back he should move up the lineup in short order. Overall its a decent 4th line made really good by Johnsson. The forward group as whole is great after an underwhelming first line. At 1LD, Ryan Graves is a solid lockdown #4. His partner, Dougie Hamilton is debatably a top 5 d-man in the NHL. Tremendous first pair. At 2LD Ty Smith is a good offensive second pairing d-man. His partner, Damon Severson is a really good two-way #2. Great second pair. At 3LD, Jonas Siegenthaler is a solid enough second pairing d-man. His partner, PK Subban is a good offensive second pairing d-man. Overall, this third pair is a capable second pair. Mackenzie Blackwood is coming off a down year but I expect to see a really good starting goalie this year. His backup, Jonathan Bernier is a capable 1A. Overall, really good tandem. On PP1 its Zacha-Hughes-Bratt-Hamilton-Smith. Should be a good PP. Overall, underwhelming first line, great middle 6, good 4th, really good defensive core top to bottom, really good tandem, capable PP.



New York Islanders - 4th in the East last year, have since swapped Jordan Eberle, Michael Dal Colle and Nick Leddy for Richard Panik and (Zach Parise?). At 1C, Mathew Barzal is a solid two-way, elite offensive 1C. On his LW, Anders Lee is a great offensive top 6 winger. On the RW, Kyle Palmieri is coming off of an awful year. Before last year he was an elite goal scoring 1RW. Assuming he returns to form he finishes off a great first line very nicely and should fit great with Barzal. At 2C, Brock Nelson is a great two-way top 6C. He's coming off a down defensive year but I think it is reasonable to expect a bounce back given his past. If he bounces back he's a tremendous 2C. On his LW, Anthony Beauvillier is a terrific two-way, very complete 1LW who I still think is improving. One of the most impressive players on the Islanders. On the RW, Josh Bailey is a good defensive middle 6RW with a bit of a scoring touch. With somebody like Beauvillier on this line who is a great playmaker I think he'll fit nicely. One of the NHL's better second lines. At 3C, JG Pageau is a super complete top 6C who is way too good to be a 3C. On his LW, maybe Zach Parise. If it is he's a really good offensive middle 6LW. On the RW, Oliver Wahlstrom is a terrific defensive middle 6RW with a scoring touch. Like a better Josh Bailey. Overall, terrific two-way third line. Could be a second line if needed. At 4C, Casey Cizikas is a terrific two-way 3C. Debatably the best 4C in the NHL. On his LW, Matt Martin is a great defensive 3LW. On the RW, Cal Clutterbuck is a good defensive 4RW. Overall, really good 4th line that could be a low-end third line. "IdEnTiTy LiNe" will always be the dumbest nickname in sports history though. At 1LD, Adam Pelech is possibly the best defensive d-man in the NHL. He had randomly elite play driving last year that I think will inevitably fall off. All things considered he's a great lockdown #2. Not the #1 you saw last year though. His partner, Ryan Pulock is a terrific two-way #1 d-man. Overall this is a top 5 pair in the NHL. At 2LD, Andy Greene has reached the end of his road. He's now just a third pairing PK specialist. His partner, Noah Dobson is on the complete other end of the spectrum. High potential d-man who is a decent second pairing guy right now. Overall, very bad second pairing given Greene sucks and Dobson, despite his great potential is a fringe second pairing guy. At 3LD, Sebastian Aho could be a decent #5 guy this year. His partner, Scott Mayfield is a terrific lockdown #4. The third pairing is very good. Better than the second pairing, that's for sure. In net, Semyon Varlamov is a great starting goalie. His backup, Ilya Sorokin is a really good 1A. One of the better tandems in the NHL. On PP1 its Lee-Pageau-Beauvillier-Dobson-Barzal. Decent PP1, Not sure Dobson is a good PP QB though. Very middling to sub-par group. Overall this team has a great forward group. Every line is very good for their spot in the lineup, the first pair is elite but the bottom 4... not so much. Great tandem and decent PP.




New York Rangers - 5th in the East last year, have since swapped Pavel Buchnevich, Colin Blackwell, Brett Howden, Brendan Smith and Anthony DeAngelo for Barclay Goodrow, Ryan Reaves, Sammy Blais and Patrick Nemeth. At 1C, Mika Zibanejad is an elite sniper 1C who doesn't do a ton past that. Alexis Lafrieniere is probably going to be a 2LW quality player this year, so he'll be in over his head on the first line. Kaapo Kakko is a solid two-way, elite defensive 2RW. Overall, pretty bad first line unless Lafrieniere and Kakko take massive strides, which is entirely possible, but as of now its bad. At 2C, Ryan Strome is a solid two-way 2C. On his LW, Artemi Panarin is an elite two-way superstar 1LW. One of the best LWs in the league. On the RW, Vitali Kravstov was a 4RW quality player last year. With progression I see him as a 3RW quality player this year. Overall, very high end second line simply because of Panarin. At 3C, Filip Chytil performed as a solid two-way 2C last season. On his LW, Barclay Goodrow is a solid two-way 3LW. On the RW, Chris Kreider is a terrific two-way sniper 1RW. Overall, this would be a really good second line. One of the best third lines in hockey. At 4C, Kevin Rooney is a good defensive 3C. On his LW, Morgan Barron posted an NHLe of 28 last year and played like a solid 3LW in small sample sizes. I think 3LW quality play is reasonable. On the RW, Sammy Blais is a good two-way 3RW. Overall, this 4th line is a capable 3rd line. The forward group as a whole is dominant past the first line. At 1LD, Ryan Lindgren was a tremendous defensemen last year who was elite defensively. If last year was any indication of what's to come he'll be a great fit here. His partner, Adam Fox, was the NHL's best d-man last year. Elite in every way. Tremendous top pair, one of the best in the league. At 2LD, K'Andre Miller was pretty bad last year. He may be a decent #5 guy for this season but isn't a great second pairing guy. His partner, Jacob Trouba bounced back quite well last year and looked like a solid #2 d-man. Overall, solid enough second pairing. Trouba is very good for his role and Miller is pretty bad so it evens out to be capable. At 3LD, Patrick Nemeth is analytically a #1 d-man. Obviously that is simply incorrect. That said, you don't post those results without doing something right so he is easily capable of second pairing minutes but his analytics are weird. His partner, Nils Lundqvist posted an NHLe of 29 last year which is very good. He should be a solid #3ish quality d-man this year. Overall a very good second pairing here that is labelled as third pairing. Very good defensive core top to bottom. In net, Igor Shesterkin is a very good starting goalie. Georgiev is a solid 1B. Really good tandem. On PP1 its Kreider-Strome-Panarin-Zibanejad-Fox. Very good PP. Overall terrific team that dominates everywhere besides K'Andre Miller and the first line. If you put Miller on the third pair and you flip Kreider and Kakko you are dominant everywhere. Terrific team.




Philadelphia Flyers - 6th in the East last year, have since swapped Jakub Voracek, Nolan Patrick, Phillip Myers, Shayne Gostisbehere, Robert Hagg and Brian Elliott for Cam Atkinson, Ryan Ellis, Rasmus Ristolainen, Keith Yandle and Martin Jones. At 1C, Sean Couturier is an elite two-way 1C. On his LW, Claude Giroux is still an elite two-way 1LW and was debatably the best two-way LW in hockey last season. On the RW, Travis Konecny is a wildly inconsistent player who from one year to the next can be an elite 1RW to being a middle 6RW. I think its reasonable to expect we see the 1RW version this year given that he played poorly last year. Overall, tremendous first line with two of the best two-way players in 4th NHL. At 2C, Kevin Hayes is a good offensive 2C coming off of an unlucky year. On his LW, Joel Farabee is a great 1LW sniper who may decline slightly from last year. Even if he does decline though, he would still be a great 2LW. On the RW, Cam Atkinson is a consistently good offensive 2RW. At 3C, Derick Brassard was useless from 2018-2020 then randomly became a Selke calibre defensive player last year. Not sure at all what to make of him as we've seen 4 completely opposite versions of him in the past 5 years. Lets just say he's a declined version of last year which would make a really good lockdown 3C. On his LW, Scott Laughton is a terrific two-way 2LW. On the RW, James van Riemsdyk is a great two-way 1RW. Overall this is a tremendous two-way line that is more of a sub-second line. Great third line. At 4C, Nate Thompson is nothing more than a reliable defensive 4C. On his LW, Oskar Lindblom is a solid two-way middle 6LW. On the RW, Nicolas Aube-Kubel is a reliable bottom 6RW. Overall, really good 4th line. Could be a bad 3rd line. The forward group as a whole is terrific top to bottom. At 1LD, Ivan Provorov is an impressively inconsistent defensemen coming off of an awful year. Given he plays well every other year for the past 4 lets say he rebounds to being a solid #2 d-man this year. His partner, Ryan Ellis is coming off of a down year but should rebound to his former elite two-way #1 d-man form this season. Overall terrific top pair that depends on two bounce back seasons, both of which I think are likely to happen. At 2LD, Travis Sanheim is an elite offensive #2 d-man. His partner, Rasmus Ristolainen is impressively god-awful. He has posted sub replacement level analytics for just about every year of his career. He has high point totals despite playing for Buffalo, but analytics that bad don't happen by accident. They are hard on him, like all Buffalo players but he likely isn't going to be a top 4 d-man. If he can be a good #5, which I think is a reasonable expectation than you have a really good second pairing all things considered. At 3LD, Keith Yandle is a great offensive, PP QB #4 d-man. His partner, Justin Braun is a really good lockdown 3-4. Terrific second pairing that is playing third pairing. In net, Carter Hart should rebound to solid starter form this year. His backup, Martin Jones isn't a capable NHLer anymore. This is likely his last NHL season if he mails it in again, which he will. The Flyers will still struggle in net this year. On the PP1 its van Riemsdyk-Couturier-Konecny-Giroux-Ellis. If Yandle becomes the PP QB, which will happen its a tremendous PP. Overall, terrific team top to bottom besides the backup goalie. Every line/pair is elite for their role and then you get to Martin Jones. Carter Hart should be gearing up for 65 games and I don't know if he's ready for that.




Pittsburgh Penguins - 1st in the East last year, have since swapped Jared McCann, Brandon Tanev, Frederick Gaudreau, Colton Sceviour, Mark Jankowski and Cody Ceci for Brock McGinn, Danton Heiden, Dominik Simon. At 1C, Sidney Crosby might be the best two-way player in hockey. After all these years still a top 5C in the NHL. On his LW, Jake Guentzel is an elite offensive 1LW. On the RW, Bryan Rust is a terrific offensive, goal scoring 1RW. Overall, tremendous first line. One of the best in the NHL. At 2C, Evgeni Malkin declined to more of a low-end 1C last season as opposed to the elite one he's been for 14 years now. To be honest I expect more of the same from here on out. He's 35 years old. Still one of the NHL's best 2Cs but no longer elite. On his LW, Jason Zucker is a sniper 2LW. On the RW, Kasperi Kapanen is a great scoring 2RW. Overall, really high-end second line. At 3C, Jeff Carter was randomly an elite 1C last year. After his inevitable regression he's probably a solid two-way middle 6C. On his LW, Brock McGinn was strong in a middle 6 lockdown role last year. On the Rw, Danton Heinen is a decent 3LW who is good at nothing and capable at everything. Overall good third line. At 4C, Teddy Blueger is an elite defensive middle 6C. On his LW, Zach Aston-Reese is the best defensive forward in hockey. On the RW, Evan Rodrigues, much like Heinen is a good at nothing, capable at everything bottom 6RW. Overall, terrific 4th line that would be a really good 3rd line. The forward group as a whole is top to bottom great on every line. At 1LD, Brian Dumoulin is a solid defensive second pairing d-man. His partner, Kris Letang is an elite offensive #1 d-man. Overall, solid first pair. At 2LD, Mike Matheson fits well in Pittsburgh as a solid #4. His partner, John Marino is an elite shutdown #2 d-man. Solid second pairing completing a very complete top 4. At 3LD, Marcus Pettersen is a solid two-way #3 d-man. His partner, Mark Friedman was a solid third pairing guy in limited minutes last season. Very good third pair completing a fairly good defensive core. In net, Tristan Jarry is the starter. Capable 1A. His backup is Casey DeSmith who has performed as a capable 1A in small NHL sample sizes over the past three years. Overall its a very capable goalie tandem. On PP1 its Rust-Malkin-Guentzel-Crosby-Letang. One of the best PPs in the NHL. Overall great first line, great second line, good third line, terrific fourth line, solid first and second pair, very good third pair, solid tandem, elite PP.




Washington Capitals - 2nd in the East last year, have since swapped Michael Raffl, Brendon Dillon and Craig Anderson for nobody. At 1C, Evgeny Kuznetsov is a good high-end offensive 2C. On his LW, Alex Ovechkin is still debatably the most elite sniper in the NHL even at the age of 36. On the RW, Tom Wilson is a good two-way, high-end 2RW. Overall, slightly underwhelming first line. At 2C, Nicklas Backstrom is still an elite two-way playmaking 1C. On his LW, Anthony Mantha is a really good two-way 1LW. On the RW, TJ Oshie is an elite lockdown, sniper 1RW. Terrific second line that would be a solid first line. At 3C, Conor Sheary is a solid two-way, capable 3C. On his LW, Lars Eller is a good two-way 2LW. On the RW, Daniel Spring is a decent bottom 6RW. Overall a terrific third line. At 4C, Nic Dowd is a solid bottom 6C. On his LW, Carl Hagelin is an elite defensive middle 6 LW. On the RW, Garnet Hathaway is a solid two-way 3RW. Overall really good 4th line that could be a third line. At 1LD, Dmitry Orlov is a solid two-way #2 d-man. His partner, John Carlson, is an elite #1 offensive d-man. Overall terrific first pair. At 2LD, Michael Kempny was a decent #5 in his last NHL season. His partner, Justin Schultz is completely awful and has been for his last three years. Overall an impressively bad second pair. At 3LD, Trevor van Riemsdyk is a solid two-way second pairing d-man. His partner, Nick Jensen is an elite lockdown second pairing d-man. Overall a really solid second pairing playing third pair. In net, Ilya Samsonov is a decent 1B type goalie. His backup, Vitek Vanecek is mostly the same. Fairly bad tandem. On PP1 its Oshie-Backstrom-Kuznetsov-Ovechkin-Carlson. Elite PP1. Overall a really good team. Underwhelming yet capable first line, terrific second, third and fourth lines, terrific first pair, solid third pairing and a underwhelming tandem. Besides the tandem and second pairing this team is great. I don't think the second pair will be too influential because the third pair is fairly good and the first line should be dominant considering the second line is literally a first line.



Don't worry too much about the standings, any of the teams ranked 1-6 could win the division or just as easily miss the playoffs altogether.

1. Carolina
2. Philadelphia
3. New York Islanders
4. Washington
5. New York Rangers
6. Pittsburgh
7. New Jersey
8. Columbus
AndrewLadd a aimé ceci.
19 sept. 2021 à 11 h 55
#2
Démarrer sujet
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: avr. 2019
Messages: 3,446
Mentions "j'aime": 1,805
Apologies for the semi-mass ping but if I tagged you I broke down your team in this piece and would like your feedback. Don't have to read it all but at least read your teams quip. All lines are pulled from DailyFaceoff. If the comment I tagged you in says "^" its because there's a 3 tags per comment rule and I had to do that to avoid it.
19 sept. 2021 à 12 h 11
#3
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: août 2021
Messages: 14,999
Mentions "j'aime": 12,084
Adam pelech’s elite play driving started in the bubble last season after he missed 5 months with an Achilles injury. He was 25 at time and his elite play driving carried on to the 20-21 season. No reason to think it will fall off.
UBS_ARENA et AndrewLadd a aimé ceci.
19 sept. 2021 à 12 h 39
#4
Farewell
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: juill. 2021
Messages: 3,060
Mentions "j'aime": 5,225
As usual, comprehensive analysis. A couple of points I disagree on:
1) Vanecek looked pretty darn good last year in net, and Samsonov was just behind him in numbers. How are they a worse tandem than Jarry-Desmith? I will be SHOCKED if Washington finishes behind the Pens.
2) Speaking of the Pens, I get you pulled the lines from Daily Faceoff, but only God knows how long Malkin will be out for, and Crosby is now recovering from wrist surgery that will sideline him for the first couple of weeks of the year. Time's running out on this group, and with the shaky situation in net, I wouldn't be surprised if they fall off a cliff and miss the playoffs completely this year, especially given how tight this division is.
3) I think you're underestimating the Islanders. They have such a balanced offense, and terrific defense, Greene will probably wind up getting benched for a combination of Aho/Chara at 2nd and 3rd, and the rest of the group (Pelech, Pulock, Mayfield and Dobson) is terrific. This is the year they finally win the division in my mind.
I do completely agree that this is the tightest and therefore hardest division to predict; wouldn't be shocked if any team besides Columbus (obviously) makes the playoffs.
My personal predictions:
1) New York Islanders
2) Washington Capitals
3) Carolina Hurricanes
4) New York Rangers
5) Philadelphia Flyers
6) New Jersey Devils
7) Pittsburgh Penguins (This is bold, I know, but like I said, I don't like their tandem, and injuries are catching up to their core)
8) Columbus Blue Jackets
19 sept. 2021 à 12 h 58
#5
Démarrer sujet
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: avr. 2019
Messages: 3,446
Mentions "j'aime": 1,805
Quoting: ConservativeLightningFan91
As usual, comprehensive analysis. A couple of points I disagree on:
1) Vanecek looked pretty darn good last year in net, and Samsonov was just behind him in numbers. How are they a worse tandem than Jarry-Desmith? I will be SHOCKED if Washington finishes behind the Pens.
2) Speaking of the Pens, I get you pulled the lines from Daily Faceoff, but only God knows how long Malkin will be out for, and Crosby is now recovering from wrist surgery that will sideline him for the first couple of weeks of the year. Time's running out on this group, and with the shaky situation in net, I wouldn't be surprised if they fall off a cliff and miss the playoffs completely this year, especially given how tight this division is.
3) I think you're underestimating the Islanders. They have such a balanced offense, and terrific defense, Greene will probably wind up getting benched for a combination of Aho/Chara at 2nd and 3rd, and the rest of the group (Pelech, Pulock, Mayfield and Dobson) is terrific. This is the year they finally win the division in my mind.
I do completely agree that this is the tightest and therefore hardest division to predict; wouldn't be shocked if any team besides Columbus (obviously) makes the playoffs.
My personal predictions:
1) New York Islanders
2) Washington Capitals
3) Carolina Hurricanes
4) New York Rangers
5) Philadelphia Flyers
6) New Jersey Devils
7) Pittsburgh Penguins (This is bold, I know, but like I said, I don't like their tandem, and injuries are catching up to their core)
8) Columbus Blue Jackets


I just decided that for this piece since I had no clear time table I’d assume Malkin and Crosby are ready for the season. That said if playoff Jarry returns and neither of Crosby or Malkin are ready then I think it’s reasonable to assume they miss playoffs
19 sept. 2021 à 13 h 8
#6
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: août 2021
Messages: 2,389
Mentions "j'aime": 795
I understand you pulled lines from dailyfaceoff but my gripe is they have no idea what theyre talking about imo. The lines are very off.
In terms of my islanders i disagree with 2 things.
1 - pelech i dont think is going to fall off. He doesnt put up points and probably never will but hes still an elite playdriver.
2 - right out of the draft and really until this year, the 1 knock on wahlstrom was his defense and compete level (especially on D). Hes always been a sniper who scores a lot of goals. As a 20 year old he was on pace for 22-23 goals playing for barry trotz, on a shutdown line, not on PP1, and playing 12:23 a night. Hes a sniper who put up a lot of goals given his situation, who added good defensive play to his game.
19 sept. 2021 à 13 h 12
#7
NoWah49
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: févr. 2018
Messages: 4,864
Mentions "j'aime": 1,432
I disagree with your points about Malkin. Throughout his whole career, Geno's had off years and then randomly just goes off the next. I think Zucker being on his line really brought his production down so I would personally bump him to the first line and play Rust with Malkin. I like this team and I like what you had to say, but I'm not nearly as confident as I was last year
19 sept. 2021 à 13 h 22
#8
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: oct. 2020
Messages: 12,657
Mentions "j'aime": 17,293
I feel like Philly, Carolina, NYI is the clear top 3 in the division, Philly has a great offense and defense so as long as hart and Jones don't suck a lot, they'll be good, same applies for the canes except it's as long as the goalies don't get injured and NYI is a clear playoff team after that it's a mess
AndrewLadd a aimé ceci.
19 sept. 2021 à 13 h 35
#9
Mods have power egos
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: juin 2018
Messages: 3,636
Mentions "j'aime": 1,262
Quoting: TheFlamingC
^


Got to the part where it says all zibby does is snipe and I’m not finishing it…. Never tag me again
19 sept. 2021 à 13 h 42
#10
Bo Horvat enjoyer
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: mars 2019
Messages: 10,711
Mentions "j'aime": 11,932
Agree w everything u said ab the islanders besides where u put them in the standings and Adam Pelech falling off a bit
19 sept. 2021 à 14 h 12
#11
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: août 2021
Messages: 14,999
Mentions "j'aime": 12,084
Quoting: UBS_ARENA
I understand you pulled lines from dailyfaceoff but my gripe is they have no idea what theyre talking about imo. The lines are very off.
In terms of my islanders i disagree with 2 things.
1 - pelech i dont think is going to fall off. He doesnt put up points and probably never will but hes still an elite playdriver.
2 - right out of the draft and really until this year, the 1 knock on wahlstrom was his defense and compete level (especially on D). Hes always been a sniper who scores a lot of goals. As a 20 year old he was on pace for 22-23 goals playing for barry trotz, on a shutdown line, not on PP1, and playing 12:23 a night. Hes a sniper who put up a lot of goals given his situation, who added good defensive play to his game.


In Wahlstroms 9 game stint with the isles in 19-20 his defensive play and compete level was really strong and that continued in the AHL. He was sent down because of a turnover. I think it’s fair to say that last season he was a very good defensive forward (1st among isles forwards xGA/60) with an elite shot. That was enough to put him at a 2nd line impact overall last season which is impressive given his ice time. If Trotz increases his minutes he can have a top line impact as soon as next season.
19 sept. 2021 à 14 h 32
#12
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: août 2021
Messages: 2,389
Mentions "j'aime": 795
Quoting: Db1899
In Wahlstroms 9 game stint with the isles in 19-20 his defensive play and compete level was really strong and that continued in the AHL. He was sent down because of a turnover. I think it’s fair to say that last season he was a very good defensive forward (1st among isles forwards xGA/60) with an elite shot. That was enough to put him at a 2nd line impact overall last season which is impressive given his ice time. If Trotz increases his minutes he can have a top line impact as soon as next season.


Thats not the reason he got sent down. He got sent down bc his contract wouldnt slide if he played 10 games.
And i never said his D was bad, it was very good, but his calling card is not his defense its his goal scoring ability.
19 sept. 2021 à 14 h 33
#13
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: août 2021
Messages: 14,999
Mentions "j'aime": 12,084
Quoting: UBS_ARENA
Thats not the reason he got sent down. He got sent down bc his contract wouldnt slide if he played 10 games.


That too - but Trotz made that comment about his play , but his defensive impact was nearly identical to this season.
UBS_ARENA a aimé ceci.
19 sept. 2021 à 15 h 42
#14
Démarrer sujet
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: avr. 2019
Messages: 3,446
Mentions "j'aime": 1,805
Quoting: NoWah49
I disagree with your points about Malkin. Throughout his whole career, Geno's had off years and then randomly just goes off the next. I think Zucker being on his line really brought his production down so I would personally bump him to the first line and play Rust with Malkin. I like this team and I like what you had to say, but I'm not nearly as confident as I was last year


Yes, but Geno has never been 35 coming off knee surgery before. I just don’t see another elite season in his future but I could be wrong
A_Habs_fan a aimé ceci.
19 sept. 2021 à 15 h 43
#15
Démarrer sujet
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: avr. 2019
Messages: 3,446
Mentions "j'aime": 1,805
Quoting: AndrewLadd
Agree w everything u said ab the islanders besides where u put them in the standings and Adam Pelech falling off a bit


Fair, my Pelech comment seems universally hated. Every year I do this with the Islanders and every year I’m wrong so it’s probably a good luck charm for you guys anyways
19 sept. 2021 à 15 h 47
#16
Démarrer sujet
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: avr. 2019
Messages: 3,446
Mentions "j'aime": 1,805
Quoting: NYRxLundqvist
Got to the part where it says all zibby does is snipe and I’m not finishing it…. Never tag me again


😂

Wrong side of the bed this morning?
A_Habs_fan et Devil a aimé ceci.
20 sept. 2021 à 7 h 45
#17
Speak of the Devil
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: nov. 2017
Messages: 23,925
Mentions "j'aime": 26,426
This is what I think the Devils lines would be
Tatar-Hughes-Sharangovich
Zacha-Nico-Bratt
Kuokkanen-Boqvist-Mercer
Wood-Mcleod-Johnsson

Defense looks good
Maybe Bahl makes it over Siegenthaler but that's 50/50 right now

PP
Kuokkanen-Hughes-Sharangovich
Smith-Hamiton

Zacha-Nico-Tatar
Bratt-Subban

PK
McLeod-Mercer
Graves-Hamilton

Nico-Sharnagovich
Siegenthaler-Severson

I do like the top 6, especially the 2nd line, the 3rd line has a ton of potential, and the 4th line is solid. The top 6D is very solid. So is the goaltending.

I also think the Devils finish 7th, but they won't be too far from the top 6 in the Metro
20 sept. 2021 à 9 h 5
#18
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: mai 2018
Messages: 19,149
Mentions "j'aime": 4,980
There are 2 things I want to disagree with here. Skjei has been excellent. You have to remember that he played parts of the regular season and most of the 1st round as the 1LD because Slavin was out. He's a fine 2LD, a PK specialist. He is a bit of an offensive blackhole but that's not his job. The other is TDA. TDA is a 50 point D man. We know that his issues are going to be off the ice. If he keeps that straight, he'll be a 40+ point guy. That's the only gripe I have. Otherwise, you're pretty spot on with Carolina... other than Fast, he's a very filler player.
TheFlamingC a aimé ceci.
20 sept. 2021 à 15 h 18
#19
Hakuna Matata
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: févr. 2020
Messages: 33,204
Mentions "j'aime": 20,733
In general the Metro is the hardest to predict. Almost all teams in that division could make the playoffs or come very close.

This could be the year we see one of Pittsburgh or Washington miss

Who knows

rn I got

Islanders (1st)
Carolina (2nd)
Washington (3rd)
Philadelphia (WC2)

Watch Pittsburgh prove us all wrong again and make it lul but still this be my early look based on the offseason
29 sept. 2021 à 10 h 3
#20
Craig Laughlin Fan
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: nov. 2019
Messages: 5,216
Mentions "j'aime": 5,708
WTF is daily faceoff on to say the Sheary is a C and Eller is an LW? Maybe they swapped them on accident?
3 oct. 2021 à 4 h 3
#21
Avatar de l'utilisateur
Rejoint: déc. 2017
Messages: 5,012
Mentions "j'aime": 3,523
1. CAR
2. NYI
3. NJD
4. WASH
5. PHI
6. NYR
7. PIT
8. CBJ

Yes, I'm a Devils fan. But, I'm highly confident they're the surprise team of the Eastern Conference this season. They're highly improved in all facets of the game. Particularly on special teams, where they were terrible last season.
 
Répondre
To create a post please Login or S'inscrire
Question:
Options:
Ajouter une option
Soumettre le sondage