2010-11 Preview: Vancouver Canucks

2010-11 Prediction 1st Western Conference

The Canucks finished the 2009-10 season in 3rd place in the Western Conference with a 49-28-5 record and 103 points. When you mention the Canucks the first thing most people think of is the Sedin twins and after their performances last season there's no wonder why. Henrik led the NHL in scoring and captured his first Hart Trophy and once again led the Canucks to the Playoffs. Daniel missed a good portion of time at the beginning of the season but when he returned he put together another very good campaign. The twins however couldn't get the Canucks to the Finals once again. The Sedins along with Ryan Kessler and Roberto Luongo will all need to improve their Playoff play if the Canucks want to make it further in the Playoffs this season.

Player to Watch: Henrik Sedin

2010-11 Preview: San Jose Sharks

2010-11 Prediction 3rd Western Conference

The Sharks finished the 2009-10 season in 1st place in the Western Conference with a 50-20-11 record and 113 points. Unfortunately for the Sharks and their fans they once again dominated the regular season but didn't make it to the Stanley Cup Finals. GM Doug Wilson didn't make any major changes to the already talented offense or defense but he did make a huge change in goal. He decided not to resign free agent goalie Evgeni Nabokov but to sign Antti Niemi who led the Blackhawks to the Stanley Cup Championship last season. We will see if Niemi is the piece the Sharks were missing to take the Sharks all the way.

Player to Watch: Antti Niemi

2010-11 Preview: St. Louis Blues

2010-11 Prediction 8th Western Conference

The Blues finished the 2009-10 season in 9th place in the Western Conference with a 40-32-10 record and 90 points. The Blues have been going through a major rebuilding process and that process will result in a Playoff appearance this season. They have built a very strong defense through the draft and some trades. Barret Jackman and Erik Johnson will lead the defense and with the addition of G Jaroslav Halak the Blues should improve on their already impressive 11th ranked defense. On the offensive side of the puck David Backes, Andy MacDonald and Brad Boyes will need to pick up their scoring to improve on a poor offenseive showing last season. The losses of Keith Tkachuk and Paul Kariya will certainly hurt the offense but you should expect to see some trades made to add some more scoring. St Louis is still a young team but they are ready to take a step forward and make a return to the Playoffs.

Player to Watch: Jaroslav Halak

Pourquoi y a-t-il de l'hockey dans les sud encore? or Why is there hockey in the South again?

In the event that anybody ever reads this blog (unlikely), or we have any readers from Canada (highly unlikely), I would like to apologize to them for the sins of the NHL father. On Saturday, October 2nd, over 60,000 fans gathered in some area of Quebec City called the Plains of Abraham to show their support, nay, their demand that local authorities spend nearly $400 million to produce and NHL ready arena with the intention of returning hockey to its rightful home.

I'm sorry. What am I sorry for? Being an American hockey fan, that's what. Somewhere along the lines in the 1990s, the NHL braintrust felt it was a good idea to throw caution to the wind and expand in to the Sun Belt and relocate teams from supportive markets (hockey's version of drill baby, drill).

Teams spouted up in San Jose, Anaheim, Dallas (via relocation), Atlanta, Miami, Tampa, Phoenix (also via relocation), and the gravest of errors Raleigh (good night sweet Whalers). The other night I was watching the NHL Network, and there were two giant X's on the Sharks ice. It honestly took a minute for the realization that it was to commemorate the 20th season in Sharks history. After I finished crying over where my life went, I was looking for an excuse to get my point of view out there. Sure, I have a medicore (at best...) blog, and I'm the type of narcissist to think my thoughts on this subject matter...but where was the convenient excuse?

Enter the rally in Quebec City. They lost their team years ago to Denver. It really had to be horrible to watch them raise the Cup years later with the core of their players still intact. Fans in Harford have felt the same horror, and Winnipeg has to feel worse than any of them because nobody in Phoenix seems to a) care about or b) be able to afford supporting the former Jets.

It is my hope and belief that the NHL will eventually come to their senses. The  experiment has gone alright in certain markets, and I'll concede its gone well enough to continue. San Jose has done well. Cities like Tampa, Dallas, Anaheim, and Raleigh (under protest) get a pass from me because they have lifted a Cup. I give this pass to them because at some point I'm sure many felt Pittsburgh wasn't worth having a hockey team, but I know first hand what seeing the Cup raised did for people in my age group and all those after it.

With that being said, that leaves Atlanta, Phoenix, and Florida as teams that probably should start the treck north. Florida could go to Quebec City, Winnipeg obviously has the right of first refusal on Phoenix, and Hamilton can have Atlanta. I think that would be pretty satisfying for everyone involved and while I take no pleasure in taking another city's team away from them, it seems likely that nobody in those areas would notice anyway. Now if we could just find a team for Hartford, and keep Kansas City distracted long enough to get them there....

2010-11 Preview: Washington Capitals

2010-11 Prediction 1st Eastern Conference

Any discussion of the Washington Capitals typically starts and ends with LW and Captain, Alexander Ovechkin. While the role of a Captain is certainly one that makes someone the center of attention in many areas, Ovechkin receives an unfair portion of the blame for his team's failures (perceived or real). The reason he doesn't deserve most of this blame is that Ovechkin holds up his end of the bargain. He puts butts in the seats, pucks in the net, and last time I checked does not assemble the roster of his team. In my opinion, any blame needed for what the Caps have or have not accomplished lies with GM George McPhee and Coach Bruce Boudreau (I'll come back to Ovie in a minute). These are the men that have failed to assemble a roster capable of grinding out a tough playoff series. While offensive free wheeling is a strategy I love to see in the regular season, when the playoffs roll around the game tightens up. As they enter this season, the Caps #1 area of concern is with G's Michal Neuvirth and Simeon Varlamov. These are 22 year olds that have an upside, but only if the team commits to playing tough in front of them in April, May, and June. Playing tough in front of the goal starts with your blue liners, and D Mike Green is the leader of this core. He is a talented regular season player, but so far he can best be described as a phantom in the playoffs. Tom Poti, Jeff Schultz, Tyler Sloan, and company will face their test in the playoff months. At this point, anyone who says otherwise as a Caps fan or organizational representive is either kidding themselves or disturbingly off in their priorities. At this ponit in the preview game, I'd rather not go through the list of forwards like C Nicklas Backstrom, LW Alexander Semin, and others stating the redundant about their flaws. For the Capitals, it all comes down to what they do in the playoffs. I believe they are clearly the top team in the East during the regular season. The roster will have to stiffen up or face some late changes to make a serious run at the Cup though. All in all, I am willing to write the words that most people in Pittsburgh will not: Alexander Ovechkin is a hell of a player, and I believe that someone of his talent level will win a championship sooner rather than later. It defies logic to expect a player of this impact to continue to be shut out for the rest of his 15 or so years left on the ice. Every year that he fails to win is an indictment on the guys around him, and his organization if you ask me. As I've said, he does his part. Show me a player with more hustle, more desire to win, and most likely I will show you a champion. Ovie will join them at some point, it's just a matter of those around him wanting hit half as much as he does.

Player to Watch: LW Alexander Ovechkin

2010-11 Preview: Toronto Maple Leafs

2010-11 Prediction 12th Eastern Conference

GM Brian Burke believes that this will be the season that Toronto returns to the playoffs. That makes one of us. Setting aside the immense pressure that this team faces (even more than most Canadian teams), this roster has a lot of holes and room to grow. D Dion Phaneuf figures to be a highlight and will be the Captain. Young C Tyler Bozak is joined by RWs Kris Versteeg and Phil Kessell (who is only 23) as the young forwards with plenty of upside. Add ex Penguin RW Colby Armstrong and in my eyes that rounds out the forwards worth discussing. This team does have some D-men, with Mike Komisarek, Tomas Kaberle, and 20 year old stud Luke Schenn. G Jonas Gustavsson will need to turn in many performances for this squad to hit the 90ish point target needed to be in the playoff picture.

Player to Watch: D Luke Schenn

2010-11 Preview: Tampa Bay Lightning

2010-11 Prediction 7th Eastern Conference

Bold predictions that nobody will ever call you out on: one of the founding principles of the internet, and here at Shootin' the Puck we subscribe to this theory. With that being typed, I give you the 2010-11 Lightning. I believe this team will make the playoffs. No really. While it may be a bit of a stretch, I think all the right pieces are there and the off the ice stuff has taken a turn for the better. The ownership situation has settled. Former Red Wings legend Steve Yzerman helped assemble a triumphant Canadian Olympic squad and is now in charge of getting the roster in shape and hiring the coaching staff. Guy Boucher has been selected as Stevie Y's first coach. I won't pretend to know a lot about this guy, but I have faith in Yzerman's knowledge of what it takes to build and preserve a winner. On the ice, vets like RW Martin St. Louis, C Vincent Lecavalier, and newcomer LW Simon Gagne are all very capable of changing a game. I look for LW Ryan Malone's role to blossom with a new coaching staff and the occasional tip from Yzerman. D Victor Hedman had a decent first season and figures to get only better and is joined by Mattias Ohlund, and Pavel Kubina. G's Dan Ellis and Mike Smith are the definite question marks for this team, but with regular playing time either of these guys could catch lighnting in a bottle (pun intended).  It's entirely possible that the 'ning could fall short of the playoffs, but for my money if C Steven Stamkos continues to emerge into a world class talent that points goals on the board, this team will have a strong chance.

Player to Watch: C Steven Stamkos