Columbus should have big jump up or else that Babcock hire was huge mistake. Still to be fair, if Patrik Laine, Johhny Gaudreau or Werenski have injuries this season they are in tough spot also big question is does Elvis Merzlikins bounce back? I think he doesn’t but hope that Elvis would get back in the game. He might have some injury which isn’t told to Press and maybe have had time to recover of it in this summer.

The red wings pulled the cord. Chicago was in a steady decline for 5 years.

New medical staff , fingers crossed for a healthy season

You're right, that did surprise me. That number really puts things into perspective

Hello from Bruins Nation-I'm thinking you guys need enforcers. You got a very small top line, Caulfield and Suzuki are both under 6 ft. You're an original six club, enough is enough. It's time to start playing real hockey again. Since Zdeno Chara and Nik Richie left the Bruins, Patrice Bergeron has been taking a phenomenal amount of cheap shots over the past two seasons. We've noticed And that's why we're happy Milan Lucic is coming back! This game is getting faster and more athletic, but they're never going to replace a large Zdeno Chara or Nik Richie type enforcing on ice, taking the sin-bin and keeping scorers out there Making players think twice about clobbering their goalie on the head or putting a rookie in a chokehold. I'm glad they're bringing in a new medical staff, I hate to see any athlete being abused... But they're going to continue to be injured unless they bring in enforcers. Our 5 ft 9 inch lil rat 🐀 couldn't have gotten away with what he did, both positive and negative unless he had a Zdeno Chara or Nick Ritchie behind him During the hurricanes playoff series a year ago, we had no enforcer and our little rat was running around playing enforcer spending more time in the sin-bin than on ice in scoring position David pastrnak, top NHL goal scorer. Was being thrown around like a rag doll, flattened out like a pancake while he's trying to pass the puck Our Stars can't function without enforcers watching their backs We're never going to get away from needing enforcers-regular-season is gentleman's game... Playoffs is the real deal. Your top lines are getting beaten up all regular season, there's nothing left for playoffs And that's probably what happened to Patrice Bergeron. I'm an original sixer-we're the oldest rivals in professional sports... Got to keep original six teams going! They're calling us washed up has-beens! Get some enforcers, let's see the Habs come back as they were. Enough of this gentleman stuff. Let's get back to original six hockey

@@TheFoolintherainn Suzuki is 5'11 and 208 lbs, he is built like a tank. Compare that to say Elias Petersson in Vancouver. He may be 6'3 but he's 176 lbs. Which of them will be pushed around? Xhekaj 6'4, 238lbs is there as an enforcer. 6 of 7 defensemen are 6'2 or above. Plenty of size and weight to throw around. Mtl will be fine.

Wright will not live up to his 4th overall selection unfortunately, He could end up being a good 3rd line center though

Beniers is legit

@@julienbeaudry-tardif7982 yeah, I think it’s too early to tell I think he could be a second line center behind Matty at some point, he’s still only 19

@@julienbeaudry-tardif7982 he was only drafted a year ago its way to early to tell

If they get back Burakovsky it would probably help the team.

I agree totally. Injuries is what tanked them this year. But when they were healthy they could compete. Hopefully players spend more time on the ice then in the informary. Maybe we could see Caufield, Suzuki and Dach hit there best season this year and maybe get closer to playoff contention this year, tho i doubt we make top 16, but maybe close like Buffalo or Ottawa last year.

Might be able to sneak in a wc spot if they're lucky, guess we'll see.

@@paulthompson8793 As long as the Leafs make it 57 years with no Cups right? lol

Injuries happen - especially when you ice a fast-moving team of small-ish players. Last year's line-up was virtually all-new and it was always changing (due to the injuries) so it was hard to develop chemistry in each of the lines and in the D pairings. This year's line-up has talent and stability and they can absolutely win ten more than they did last year - not enough for a wc spot but competitive and in the hunt for most of the year. I think the addition of Newhook will help.

"This team is a lot better then most people think." while that may be true, they're still not better than the other 7 teams in their division.

I’m surprised he doesn’t change it to ‘skates’

What

Is his first name not "the hockey"?

​@@yourneighbour2401No, it's actually "Hockey".

It’s Scottish- Hockey The Guy.

Yeah, now, if only they could a find a goalie.

I'm sure the teams can resign players, can't you just buy out the contracts... It would be odd if you couldn't fire an employee.

​@Xerdoz you can buy out, I believe, only 1 contract per year. There's probably other restrictions too, I'm not sure.

Teams that can't sign their own players are almost always at fault for poor cap management. For example, Vancouver losing Horvat is 100% on them and you can point to 10 different things they should have or more importantly shouldn't have done (not trading for OEL and Garland would have been a great start). Teams like Tampa bleeding guys out year after year means the salary cap system is working as intended. Cup winners usually demand raises and you can't keep everyone so you won't have a single team dominating for a decade. Dominant teams will all eventually have to pay the piper.

@@willmuny9201 And as the head of the NHLPA, what is your stance on concussion protocol?

I'm thinking this as well and believe they - like Montreal and Dallas and their Cinderella runs to the finals - fail to get into the playoff the following season.

They also lost gudas in the off season so their defense will be a lot worse until at least december… idk I have a feeling they might stay a wildcard team

@@moomax8649 I agree. Although lots of people argue that Gudas isn't good. I think he's good.

@@jeffreym.8957 they can say all they want but Gudas showed how good he is in the playoffs. One of the main reasons why they went that far in my opinion

I agree, as a wild fan THG got it right. I'd love to see Dean mix it up with youngsters and stick looks for many losses to develop them long them at the top level. Won't happen but a guy can wish. Still need a #1 center.

@@aaronberg221 Definitely need a #1 center. And will soon need another right winger to replace Zuccy at some point. I'm hoping that Ohgren can be in the lineup in the 24-25 season if not sooner. Plus another Russian to compliment KK97 would be awesome as well. Perhaps an "Ov" line like the Red Wings had.

I could see them having a similar year to Detroit's last two. Good first few months, sell at deadline, end up around 9 in Lottery. Good feelings going into next

They’ve definitely upgraded offensively, kerfoot>fischer zucker>kassian durzi>nemeth

Still really spotty D core + they still rely on McD and Drai , not to mention the iffy goalies as well.

@@paulthompson8793 None of this has changed from last year except the defence has Ekholm for the full season which was my point and I didn't even mention Kane having two substantial injuries last season with the lacerated wrist and the broken rib.

@@obelisk21 Good points. I think they'll be better and will battle Vegas for first.

They fought for a playoff spot last year. They will be around a 88 point finish maybe 90.

there is no earthly world where arizona gets 90 pts.

Hahaha, that would be something to see, but I doubt it very much. Maybe if they develop players over the next couple years they can turn it into something... if the team doesn't move by then.

Stammer and Hedman are no longer in their prime. Still great though.

Steven "don't call me Steve" Stamkos isn't in his prime.

@@SverigeiSverige Stamkos is only a season removed from his highest point total in his Career. I get he isn't 20 something any mroe but y'all acting like he isn't still getting 80+ points a year when healthy.

@@jeffreym.8957 I could see heddy, but honestly I think he has had a bad case of injury bug last 2 years.

they are my surprise team for this year… i think they will comfortably make the playoffs

I think they should try and trade for Hellebyuck. They have a more high end prospects than they could even fit into their lineup and splitting games with Levy would allow the youngster to learn while taking the pressure off. I think they would be a top 4 team in the east if they did that

​@realistic321 I could see that. They have most of what they need, and I think we could see them have a breakthrough this season similar to what we saw from New Jersey.

Buffalo will make the playoffs easily if they get any kind of consistent goaltending.

@@darthvader3742 yea, i feel like it’s gunna happen this year… and i also think Tage is gunna go off

Not Tampa, they have significantly more rest and have gotten a bit younger, plus they tend to slack off when there’s not much contention in for that 3rd spot. You can legit look at their schedule of the last few years and see they get a massive points lead in December and January and ride it out until the end of the year. Agree with the other picks tho

Yeah I can't see TB or Boston falling out of playoff spot

@@paulthompson8793 Yeah and I can't see TOR winning just their third Prince of Wales title in 100 years.

Not Tampa. Their core is way too good.

Lottery luck? Bad drafting? Edmonton got McDavid, Buffalo got Eichel, Toronto got Marner and the Yotes took glacial-slow Dylan Strome. No lottery luck in 2018 - drafted Hayton. Colorado got Mackinnon, Rantanen, Makar and Landy all from early draft picks. Arizona just never seems to get the stars. This year they passed on Michkov - which also seemed risky.

Screw Carolina. Go Sabres!

They're always the team everyone says " watch out for them this year " , and then they do nothing. It's really going to depend on NYI and if they drop off or not, otherwise I can't see buffalo getting ahead of anyone.

@@paulthompson8793 Buffalo doesn't have to worry about the Islanders and whether they fail or not - they are getting 100 points this year for sure.

@@paulthompson8793 Buffalo massively improved last season from the year before, being a single (1) point from a playoff spot. How is improving from 75 points to 91 points from one season to the next "doing nothing"? And this is despite suffering some critical injuries to their D group while having AHL level goaltending (Luukkonen/Comrie) for most of the season. If their D stays healthy next season (particularly Samuelsson) and Levi plays up to par, they should easily contend for a playoff spot, especially with the Isles/Pittsburgh/Washington looking highly mediocre and teams like Boston and Tampa being gutted of depth.

If SC and Atkinson have career years they could stay similar.

Man their core is so old, just getting worse every year and not really making any meaningful signings...

@@paulthompson8793 I think Graves, Acciari and Reilly Smith were great pick-ups. But yeah - creaky-old.

Losing debrinc is kinda big though.

I think if Korpisalo stays healthy and is a league average starter, I think they will make it even if they lost Debrincat. If its another Goalie carasel again this year, they will miss out again.

@@paulthompson8793 Terrible defensive player though everyone says. Plus, he only scored 28 for Ottawa not like 40 plus for Chicago.

Same here man of course I’m a blues fan but I think they will be in 90 point range fighting for a spot I really think they have really good forward depth…yes the defense was abysmal last year but it was also largely the same defense on the team that gave colorado everything it could handle in 2021 just don’t let 2 backdoor tap ins happen each game and they will be alright

Would love to see that, but honestly it would set those teams up to fail having to play extra games, taking more injuries etc.

The current set-up makes teams try hard to win regular season games which should be the primary focus. People paying hundreds of dollars per game deserve the best entertainment value.

Bedards the biggest bust in nhl history, calling it right now.

@@rileyhrocks4731That’s crazier🤡

Blues fan, agree 100%, hawks undefeated confirmed

More likely than Duncan Keith getting a date on his looks alone.

lol😂😂

I don't think people see them substantially dropping. I think many saw them overachieving last year a little bit. Should be battling for a WC.

I could actually see Colorado getting better providing everyone other then Landeskog (who by the way didn’t play at all last season either) stays healthy. Last season the Av’s were lucky to get to 109 pts. It actually shows how much depth they have because aside from Landeskog there were a lot of other key players out too. Such as MacKinnon, Makar, Byram, and Nichuskin who including Landeskog were all out at the same time.

Avs are interesting for the coming season. Definitely a makeover with the additions and departures but with the same core so really dependent on how the additions pan out. Personally, I love what they did and like their chances of contending again and with the added rest this offseason, should be healthier. The downfalls of winning a cup is that players play through injuries and have less time to heal and it showed in 22/23.

At least you're a sensible Leafs fan. Your buddy joestrunk picked them to win the President's trophy! lol

The Sens ain’t making the playoffs lol

I would love to see Vancouver making the playoffs as a Canucks fan, but I just cannot fathom them improving enough to finish a full season above the playoff line.

@2Jim2u maybe your right, but I see the add of Korpisalo as a big upgrade in net from last year which was their biggest issue. That combined with the improvement of their young guys (especially on the back end like Zub and Sanderson) tied with Norris being healthy I think they'll surprise. I don't think losing Debrincat will mean much for them because he wasn't good for them last season. Scored 28 goals but was horrible defensively

@@protoman1365 they played pretty well after tocchet joined the team, and with the Flames and the jets likely to sell a bunch of their groups and Nashville significantly downgrading they have a chance just based on their conference being pretty weak.

Seems reasonable. Was surprised to see Vancouver, though. But who knows? With Calgary and Winnipeg they are hard to figure out.

You must not have heard about the Florida injuries during the playoff run?

I honestly could see 40-50 points, with them ending up out of the playoffs. Sounds rough, but the Atlantic projects to be a lot more competitive than it was last year. Hoping at least 2 of OTT, BUF and DET can make it

@@Joebob62911 I don't think any of the outside teams are going to sneak past the top 3 in the Atlantic, TO/Tampa/Bos are just strong teams. I don't doubt the burins are going to drop off, but it's not going to be massive.

@@paulthompson8793 And I don't doubt the Leafs will extend their NHL Active drought record.

Bergeron will come back one more year

@@Warshipgamers Then he'll be playing for peanuts on a significantly worse hockey team. The $5.4m in cap the Bruins have remaining will largely go to Swayman and Frederic. Sure the Bs could move DeBrusk and/or Ullmark, but both of those moves make them a worse hockey team. As much as I will miss watching Bergeron play, I think he's better off walking into the sunset. Risking further injury for a team that's likely a fringe playoff team with him on it doesn't seem like a very good bet. There's nothing else for Bergeron to prove, and I hope he prioritizes his beautiful family over one more longshot chance to make waves in the playoffs.

Wow. I think the first prediction would win a majority and the second prediction would be one of the lowest supported. Why would Calgary come back so high? Rebound from Hubie and a new coach? Sure. But they lost Toffoli and everyone seems set on leaving them?

@@jeffreym.8957 Obviously it depends on the coaching and who stays and who goes/what they get in return, but I think Sutter being gone helps tremendously. Huberdeau will definitely bounce back. Looking at their record over the last 5 years, I think they're a better team than they showed this past season and their defense is so underrated as THG has mentioned before. Their forward group has depth as well as a solid mix of veterans and young guys as well as champions in Coleman and Kadri. They have solid goaltending as well. Sharangovich is a hard worker and I think he was kind of buried in NJ. He wont replace Toffoli, but I think the offensive difference isn't as huge as others think it is. I also like their combination of size, speed, and grit. I think they at the very least take Winnipeg's wild card spot.🤷🏼‍♂️

Bubble team again.