that jersey is incredible. front runner for best rr this time around.

He wasn't all that good. He panicks alot. Goes for the puck carrier even if someone else is on him, he slides down too easily.
He's great at a first pass, breakout play, and hitting. But that's about it

romanov just reminds me of a much smaller but slightly better zadorov.

Let me know when Alex Romanov grows the balls to fight Milan Lucic 😤😤😤

He does not panic in the defensive zone. That’s literally a trademark of his game. His lateral mobility allows him to evade forecheckers and break the puck out. Scouching did a detailed analysis from a few games last year and the eye test + analytics said he was advanced defensively for his age.

To me Milano might be a candidate to sign a cheap deal with a strong contender who can play him in the top 6 (like Bunting) so that he can showcase his skills, wrack up points, and get a big fat contract (Like what we saw with Mikheyev and Marchment)

i wouldn't count on that

I have an acgm made today that I didn’t post yet that has the leafs trading for Sanheim

I just don't agree with that statement. I saw him panic a bunch of times last year, that resulted in goals.
Each to their own.

Sanheim is a LD though so we run into issues with that. Now if he was like Theodore and could play both sides effectively there is an option there

Sanheim probs will end up with the Kings

Sanheim-Brodie
Rielly-Liljgren
Gio-Niemela

Muzzin moved
Sandin moved (Sanheim deal)

I’m not giving you my opinion, it’s a fact. Overall he had one of the best defensive impacts on the Habs last season. He struggles on the PK and he’s been hesitant to do anything in transition.

If the isles were smart they would sign him and put him on a line with Brock Nelson.

Your takes straight up stink sometimes 😂

I feel Bellows should be in that spot as honestly I see a breakout season with him soon

No one asked your opinion

Lane Hutson > Quinn Hughes

I would go with:

Beauvillier-Barzal-Wahlstrom
Lee-Nelson-Milano
Bellows-Pageau-Palmieri
Parise-Cizikas-Clutterbuck


Milano would have two borderline elite finishers to pass to

Gannon Laroque > Lane Hutson

The guys named Gannon, that’s like worth at least 1 of JFRESH’s blue squares

Who?

I feel like Calgary is the perfect spot for him honestly. Not only do we have 1.5-2mil room to give him a one year deal (very mad we didn’t sign Stastny or Kessel, or both honestly), but we also have a good spot for Milano to slide right into on Kadri’s left wing. Kadri’s right wing (either Mangiapane or Toffoli, depending on which one doesn’t win the top line job) will be a shooter, and Kadri is a shooter. Milano is a playmaker that can complement them nicely. He’s also good enough defensively to turn that into an effective matchup line (pretty much all of our forwards are good defensively lol, with the lone exception of Huberdeau, who is actually good on the PK, and is elite enough that Sutter can probably mold him into a solid even strength defender too, like he did with Gaudreau).

Jack Rathbone>Gannon Laroque

Cant get more badass than RATH BONE

you just said that unironically?

Fun fact of the day; Kakko played against men

Now that every "significant" UFA has signed contracts and we can more or less have reasonable outlooks of the teams for the next year, I can finally post my 2022-23 season prediction.

Since this is going to be a long one, I'm going to give you this photo. You can use that to respond to me if you're not planning to read it lol.



NHL 2022-23 Season Prediction

Regular Season

East

Atlantic
1. Toronto Maple Leafs - Strong lineup overall. Goaltending is fairly sus but that didn't stop them last year either. Expecting a year free of major injuries, and challenging for the President's trophy.

2. Tampa Bay Lightning - Team has faced some core changes with the departure of Palat and McDonagh. However, Tampa's depth is still one of their bigger assets, and the additions such as Cole and Namestnikov do complement the strong core. They'll likely fight for the top positions in the regular season.

3. Boston Bruins - A team that I despise with a passion is having it's final moments before they'll be forced to rebuild. The team is deep and the key guys have signed such favorable team deals again, it creates an opportunity to bolster the roster further.

4. Florida Panthers - The president's trophy winners from last year have endured lots of changes past year. The strong core is no more, but the team is still extremely top heavy, and potentially quite dangerous. Will compete for a playoff position no doubt.

5. Ottawa Senators - The rebuild has been going on for the past half a decade, and slowly but surely the results are starting to creep in. The forward core on paper looks fairly formidable, and now they only need more games under the young core's belt. The defense is still an issue though. They'll likely compete, but I wouldn't bet on them making the playoffs quite yet.

6. Detroit Red Wings - Yzerman was one of the most active guys on the UFA market, adding quality guys like Copp and Perron to his team. In terms of forward core this group could be considered to be of similar level to Ottawa, but just like Ottawa's, their defense is still suspect. Still, an interesting team with a hopeful future.

7. Montreal Canadiens - Habs are smack dab in the middle of a rebuild, but the outlook of the team is...interesting to say the least. On paper the assets they've added are not necessarily bad at all, rather they've gathered some potentially decent assets, masqueraded as cap dumps more due to circumstance than anything else. They will not be a playoff team, but I don't think they'll be at the absolute bottom of the league with what they've got.

8. Buffalo Sabres - The eternal rebuilders are still in the middle of a long-term development project, and they hold one of the youngest groups league-wide. Could be an entertaining team to watch, but overall they lack quality to compete for a playoff spot. Contrary to popular belief I see them currently as the bottom team in the division in terms of current level.

Metropolitan

1. Carolina Hurricanes - one of my personal cup favorites, there's just something I like about this team. The fact they were able to add quality vets, which they were lacking in the first place, like Pacioretty, Burns and Stastny at the total cost of Lorentz+3rd is absolutely amazing. The team is very deep with a plethora of top talent as well.

2. Washington Capitals - I'm not a massive fan of the fact that their core rivals the pyramids in terms of age, but they've made some great moves during the offseason. The additions of Kuemper, Brown and Strome were exactly what this team needed. Their core is solid, and for their sake I hope injuries don't ruin it.

3. New York Rangers - An entertaining mixture of players in their prime, some highly potential youth and Jacob Trouba. Have taken a step down from last year, but the core, especially with Shesty, is too good to drop out of playoff contention.

4. Pittsburgh Penguins - This team is more or less running with the same lineup as they did last year, only Matheson has changed to Petry, and the depth guys Rodrigues and Heinen have been replaced by Poehling and Archibald. I don't think the core hasn't gotten any stronger or weaker. You can't never sleep on Crosby's team, but I don't see them as a contender. Playoff team most likely, but I'm expecting a first round exit again...maybe.

5. New Jersey Devils - This team got a lot stronger during the offseason, and they will be in for a solid future. That D core and forward core, without injuries, could challenge for a playoff spot. Additions of Palat, Marino and Vanecek have no doubt made them better.

6. Columbus Blue Jackets - One of the most talked about teams during the offseason for everyone's surprise. The Gaudreau signing left plenty of mouths agape, and for a reason. Interesting team for the future, but their process is still in progress.

7. New York Islanders - The veteran filled bunch from Long Island was on the decline last year after giving the toughest challenge for Tampa two years in a row. Unfortunately, barely nothing has changed, the only change in the team being Alex Romanov, which I don't see doing a lot in terms of returning to playoffs, especially with other teams developing in their division, quite significantly.

8. Philadelphia Flyers - This team is bonkers to me. There doesn't seem to be heads or tails in terms of direction of where they are heading. They attempted to strengthen their team during the offseason, and hiring a coach like Tortorella suggests they are definitely about to compete. Unfortunately, I don't see the team and coach being a match this time. However I would have to add that if there was one coach I could see turning this, or any struggling ship around, it would be an old-school coach like Tortorella. It worked in Calgary, it could work in Philadelphia.

West

Central

1. Colorado Avalanche - The Stanley Cup champion of last year is heading to the challenge, and the team is still very much competitive, even though the losses of Kadri, Kuemper and Jack Johnson no doubt hurt them a bit. Still, the D core rivals any D core in the league, and the top talent of this team can be considered the best in the league. Goaltending is a big question mark and could turn into a problem in the playoffs, but I don't see it being a problem for them in the regular season.

2. St. Louis Blues - That depth is still awesome. Great mixture of veteran presence and young and skillful talent. Wear and tear could become an issue with them, but I no doubt see them as a playoff team.

3. Nashville Predators - This team was neck on neck with Dallas last year, and the veteran additions of McDonagh and Niederreiter have made them an overall stronger group. Can be considered a playoff team no doubt.

4. Dallas Stars - My faves are gonna be fighting for a playoff spot next year, and it's likely going to be down to the wire. The team is fairly similar to what it was last season, with the greatest changes being Klingberg and Namestnikov getting replaced by Marchment and Miller. Assuming Marchment performs as well as he did in Florida, he's going to bring that much needed secondary scoring for Dallas. Unfortunately the loss of Klingberg means Stars D is looking quite thin. Goaltending is solid.

5. Minnesota Wild - The overachievers of last season are likely to suffer the consequences of the Suter and Parise buyouts this time. The loss of Fiala and massive overperforming by Hartman have in my prediction left them in a dangerous position where they think they're better than they actually are. I don't think the Wild is making an appearance in the playoffs this time.

6. Winnipeg Jets - The combination of pure offensive talent like Scheifele, Wheeler and Dubois combined with the offensive black hole coaching of Rick Bowness is going to end in disaster. They won't be competing in my opinion, and the only reason why they aren't worse than sixth in the division is because the two teams behind them are not NHL level at all.

7. Chicago Blackhawks - Being an original six team they did add some names during the offseason, most likely to sell later at the deadline. Still, after selling both DeBrincat and Dach, this team is way downward towards a rebuild. I’d wager that with individuals like Kane this team is able to beat Arizona down the line, but that’s about it.

8. Arizona Coyotes - Their approach of maximum rebuild is certainly interesting these days, but it's clear they won't compete for anything other than the first overall pick. Future is bright, but it's a long way out.

Pacific

1. Calgary Flames - After the loss of Gaudreau and Tkachuk everyone thought that they were going to drop bad…but honestly they’ve managed to bring in such short term quality in Huberdeau, Kadri and Weegar that I actually think they look even stronger now. Especially with that defense. My ranking has them fighting for the president’s trophy with Toronto, Carolina and Colorado.

2. Edmonton Oilers - This team is filled with lots of individual talent, but there’s some issues to tackle still. The defense is still relatively meh, and they didn’t do a thing to address the issue during the offseason. Also the goaltending is average at best. I can definitely see them being a playoff team though.

3. Los Angeles Kings - Kings proved to be a playoff team last year, and they’ve only gotten stronger with the addition of Fiala. I don’t see this changing next year. They’re a young team and only getting better.

4. Vegas Golden Knights - This group made a lot of questionable moves during the offseason, but there’s an ample amount of quality in this team. Regardless, injuries still are plaguing the team, and with Lehner out it’s going to be really tight for them to make the playoffs this time out. For their sake, I hope they don’t sustain more of them.

5. Vancouver Canucks - Nucks have been praised for having one of the best depth in the league, and on paper this holds true. Still, they ended up missing the playoffs last year, and I don’t think the additions of two Russian wingers will end up changing this. However, if the whole roster is able to tap into its full potential they have, I could see VAN actually topping the whole division at the end of the regular season. I just find this unlikely.

6. Seattle Kraken - The youngest franchise of the league is still being built, but they have added some real quality assets during the offseason in Burakovsky and Bjorkstrand, and they also have an interesting prospect in Beniers. I don’t think they will challenge for a playoff spot, but they will upgrade from last season.

7. San Jose Sharks - The two remaining Californian teams in the division are going to struggle, as they are very much in need, or in state of a rebuild. I think the Sharks as the more experienced team will likely top Anaheim in the standings, but I don’t see them being anywhere near the playoffs at the end of it.

8. Anaheim Ducks - One of the rebuilders in the league isn’t likely going for the new season with high expectations on their mind, the new GM Verbeek knows that their challenges are in the future, and they are just preparing for that this time around.


Playoffs

Round 1

East

TOR 3 - 4 PIT

- Toronto ends up winning the President’s trophy, but this will also mean that their curse will continue. Against the experience of Crosby, Malkin and Letang TOR is struggling to find the necessary goals to win the games, and it’ll get really down to the wire. Experience wins this time around, and PIT goes through here.

CAR 4 - 1 FLA

- CAR flies through the regular season with no trouble, while FLA gives their all to even get to the playoffs. Carolina eases through to victory in the series, giving FLA one game due to poor preparation or something like that.

TB 4 - 1 BOS

- Boston’s window is about to close down, and they face the top team of recent years. Bruins will give a proper challenge, but won’t be able to win the games after tough fights.

WSH 3 - 4 NYR

- Probably the tightest of the series in the East. These two teams prove to be very even, but Rangers will take the Game 7 simply by having more fuel in their tanks after such a tight series.

West

COL 4 - 2 DAL

- Much to my irritation, DAL simply lacks quality, especially in defense, to properly challenge COL in their series. I can see DAL taking maybe one or two games, but overall COL will be the better of the two, and take the series home.

CGY 4 - 1 VGK

- Calgary eases through the first round against crippled Vegas. Eichel will get his first playoff games under him, but that’s about the only thing VGK will get from this series. Sutter’s playstyle will have Vegas eaten alive, and the series will look a bit like that of the Flames vs. Dallas last year, but this time there isn’t a superior goalie on the other end saving Vegas.

STL 4 - 1 NSH

- Blues prove to be the better of these two central American teams. Preds won’t be able to give a great challenge for them. Saros will steal a game for them, but that’ll be it.

EDM 3 - 4 LA

- One of the bigger surprises of the playoffs, but I think the rematch between these two will end up in the Kings' favor. After the L they took last year they look to prove themselves to a better light. I can see Edmonton taking two first games in the series, and after thinking they’ll walk through easily from this series they end up going overconfident, at which point LA turns the series around, and eventually win the Game 6 and Game 7, too.

Round 2

East

CAR 4 - 1 NYR

- These two faced in the playoffs last year and it went very down to the wire between them. This time out CAR brings in a team that is better than last year, meanwhile the same can’t be said about Rangers. I’ll predict a slam dunk victory for the Canes, but I also predict for them to sustain an injury or two with Rags starting to play dirty.

TB 4 - 2 PIT

- Two teams that face each other in the second round who know the recipe for winning. Unfortunately, only one of them is not at the end of their window. PIT gives a challenge, but it’s for naught. Tampa goes through to the Top4 in the league, for the fourth time straight.

West

COL 4 - 3 STL

- The rematch of last year that ended up in COL’s victory will be much tighter this time around. Blues proved to be probably the toughest challenge for Avs throughout their amazing run last year, but that challenge ended with Binnington getting hurt and STL wasting too much energy on Kadri, who this time is not playing with the Avs.

CGY 2 - 4 LA

- After beating VGK, CGY comes to the second round with a hint of overconfidence. LA, who beat EDM after a massive fight, surprises Flames with the sheer momentum they’ve got on their side. LA takes two, three first games of the series before Flames pick their act up, but LA ends the series in the 6th game, reaching the top four for the first time in years.

Conference Finals

East

CAR 4 - 3 TB

- This series ends up being really tight. It wouldn’t be the first time CAR loses to Tampa in the playoffs, but I’d wager Canes are finally experienced and loaded enough to march through this series. They win the G7 and get a massive morale boost for the finals. Tampa is out of the finals for the first time since 2019.

West

COL 4 - 2 LA

- Kings’ Cinderella run ends against Colorado’s stacked defense. They’ve put everything they got to beat the giants of Alberta. Avs are looking to repeat their cup win from last year and reach the finals, relatively comfortably, in six games.

Stanley Cup Final

CAR 4 - 2 COL

- The morale boost that Carolina got from beating Tampa combined to Avs having a meh goaltending gives them a great advantage for the finals. Provided CAR goalies stay healthy, I think CAR will emerge as the victor in this clash of the titans. Sebastian Aho becomes the first Finn to get the Conn Smythe trophy, and Jordan Staal will close the season with lifting the cup high in the air with Raleigh going absolutely wild.

Awards

- Hart: D Cale Makar, COL - gets 100+ points as the first D in 30+ years.

- Art Ross: F Connor McDavid - breaks Kucherov’s point record in the 2000s by scoring 135 points

- Rocket Richard: F Auston Matthews - greatest goal scorer in the league, will net 66 goals this year.

- Norris: D Cale Makar, COL - obviously lol.

- Selke: F Patrice Bergeron, BOS - who else, this trophy is basically meant for him.

- Vezina: G Igor Shesterkin, NYR - right now this guy is different gravy, and with the Rags being what they are, he’s going to carry them. Can see him getting rivaled by only Saros for this trophy, but he takes the cake.

- Calder: F Matthew Beniers, SEA - the young center surprises a lot of people, and becomes Kraken’s top scorer with almost 70 point year.

- Ted Lindsay: D Cale Makar, COL - the sh*t this “quarterback” is doing just leaves people in awe.

- Conn Smythe: F Sebastian Aho, CAR - the Finn emerges as the cup winning team’s top scorer for the playoffs

Final Draft order (no trades included)

1. Arizona Coyotes
2. Chicago Blackhawks
3. Anaheim Ducks
4. Philadelphia Flyers
5. San Jose Sharks
6. Winnipeg Jets
7. Buffalo Sabres
8. Montreal Canadiens
9. New York Islanders
10. Seattle Kraken
11. Minnesota Wild
12. Columbus Blue Jackets
13. Detroit Red Wings
14. New Jersey Devils
15. Vancouver Canucks
16. Ottawa Senators
17. Montreal Canadiens (via FLA)
18. Vegas Golden Knights
19. Pittsburgh Penguins
20. New York Rangers
21. Dallas Stars
22. Nashville Predators
23. Boston Bruins
24. Washington Capitals
25. Edmonton Oilers
26. St. Louis Blues
27. Calgary Flames
28. Toronto Maple Leafs
29. Los Angeles Kings
30. Chicago Blackhawks (via TB)
31. Colorado Avalanche
32. Carolina Hurricanes