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Can you watch that? We are already in October and the puck will be lost for another NHL season on Wednesday night. The new campaign opens on a series of games that include the defending champion, the Washington Capitals, lifting their first Stanley Cup banner on the podium before receiving the Boston Bruins.
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Each new season brings countless forecasts, some more daring than others. It's hard not to stay on the starting line without thinking of what might happen in the next few months. So we decided to make our choice clear before the puck of the season. (Well, not technically on paper unless you print it, but you get the point.)
Let's try to guess who will be division champion and Stanley Cup winner at the end of the season, in addition to bold predictions to top it off.
Pete Blackburn: The Atlantic seems to have a three-headed monster at the top. The Leafs improved with the addition of John Tavares, while most of the Lightning and Bruins have remained pretty much the same. Nevertheless, Tampa has the most complete list on paper and I like them to defend their division title.
Cody Benjamin: The Atlantic is quite packed, and the Lightning should be the favorite, but Tavares, added to an already explosive unit in Toronto, is too tempting.
Kevin Skiver: Between the Lightning, Bruins and Leafs, this division should be the hardest part of hockey. But only one team has added one of the best hockey players to Tavares, so I'm leaving with the Maple Leafs coming off a solid season in 2017.
Blackburn: The Caps have won the subway in three consecutive seasons and will return most of their Stanley Cup winning squad, making it a tempting choice. But combine a short, alcohol-filled summer with the fact that the Caps have a new coach behind the bench and I think there's a chance they'll have some problems in the regular season. Matt Murray is expected to face a rebound campaign in Pittsburgh and the Penguins still have some of the best players in the world.
Benzoin: The Capitals have made their hearts, but the Penguins seem destined to bounce back after their oddly sloppy and slow start to the race for a year. We have not seen the last reign of Sidney Crosby yet.
Skiver: Sometimes when you are the best, all you have to do is stay upright. The reigning Stanley Cup champions did not do much to improve themselves, but they locked John Carlson before he entered the free agency. The Flyers have improved by signing James van Riemsdyk and they could beat the Penguins in the standings, but they could end up giving up a lot of goals this season with weak defense and low goal scoring.
Blackburn: It's really a mix between Pred and Jets, but I trust Nashville from start to finish. They are the title winners of the Presidents' Trophy with an outstanding defensive body and the reigning Vezina title winner. They will need Pekka Rinne to perform just as well this year as there is not much room for error in this difficult division.
Benzoin: The Predators still seem to be a safer bet than the Jets, but who can match the Winnipeg advantage? Patrik Laine alone makes it an obvious terror.
Skiver: It's a kind of coin between the Jets and the Predators. The Preds are the winners of the title President's trophy, and they have not really done it. The problem is that the Jets have not done much either. They lost Paul Stastny, whom they traded for at least a year and who was a good second-line player, but other than that, there was not really a major deal in Winnipeg.
Blackburn: Given that the Sharks can theoretically have at least one player among Erik Karlsson, Brent Burns and Marc-Edouard Vlasic on the ice for a majority of times this season, this makes them very difficult to contend with. This is a team that fought until the second round last year despite a multitude of injuries, then came out and added one of the best defenders of this generation. A pretty solid case for a division title.
Benzoin: The Pacific could really be wide open depending on whether Vegas regresses, if at all. This author rides on the hype train of the blue line and assumes that Erik Karlsson and Co. are going to wreak havoc on a playoff contender in San Jose.
Skiver: At the present time, the arms race is absolute on the west coast, as each transaction takes place at the Sharks or Golden Knights. The addition of Erik Karlsson has been a fun surprise late in the season, and this enhances what might already be the best defensive depth of the NHL.
Blackburn: lightning on sharks
At some point, the Lightning has to finish the job, right? Despite the fact that they have been regular contenders in recent years, they have been hit by injuries and difficult playoff finals. If they do not lift the Cup quickly, they may inherit the Capitals' label as busts in the playoffs.
Benjamin: Predators on the Maple Leafs
Everyone is talking about the Sharks right now, and rightly so. But do not forget that Nashville can also play in defense and has one of the best depths of the NHL. Oh, and Ryan Johansen is back. Toronto could easily be replaced by Tampa Bay, but anyway, the East will be represented with some firepower.
Skiver: Maple Leafs vs. sharks
The Maple Leafs lost seven games against the Bruins last year, but that 's the year they break their 50 – year curse. The Lightning is once again the team's biggest hurdle in the East, but the Maple Leafs who add this year's valuable free agent will make all the difference.
Bold forecasts
Blackburn: Mark Scheifele wins the Hart.
The post-season of last year was a kind of party for the center of Jets Mark Scheifele. Anyone who did not know his level of talent was quickly put out. Scheifele scored 14 goals and 20 points in 17 playoff games. At the dawn of his eighth season in the NHL, I predict that the 25-year-old will continue this momentum and will make his entry into the ranks of the league's elite, leading a dangerous Winnipeg squad to the point of the points. His offensive output, combined with his strong bilateral capabilities, will put him at the top of the Hart standings as the championship MVP.
Todd McLellan will be the first coach to be sacked.
Todd McLellan and Peter Chiarelli appear to be in the hot seat in Edmonton this season. After a promising campaign that allowed them to win a playoff series a few years ago, the Oilers had a disastrous follow-up season in 2017-18. There is not much reason to think that the Oilers could get much worse this year, but since they have not really done much this summer, there is not much reason to think that things are going to get worse. get better. If the team struggles at the start of the season, desperation could push Chiarelli to give McLellan a boost and see if another person can straighten the boat behind the bench.
Benjamin: The Panthers will play in the playoffs.
Florida was about to qualify for the playoffs a year ago, but it's daring, if you ask me, to predict that any team will emerge from a division hosting the Bruins, Lightning and Maple Leafs. And these are the Panthers we are talking about! Bob Boughner is just beginning the 2nd year of a young and rebuilt diet, and Florida has only been involved in the series twice in almost two decades. However, they have first-line talent and Mike Hoffman should help their opponent to play the offensive game at the end of the year.
Skiver: The Panthers will win a playoff series.
This team is significantly better since last season and this "bold" prediction is becoming so popular that it is less daring by the day. The Panthers were quietly at one point of missing the playoffs last year. They have the marks of a Cinderella team, and the addition of Mike Hoffman is only improving them.
Erik Karlsson will win his third Norris Trophy.
Nothing beats a good partner to improve a defender. Even on the stupid Sharks defense, Karlsson will stand out and win another Norris Trophy in his first season with San Jose.
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