Predicting the Eastern Conference

It has been a long summer, but hockey is almost here. Last year at this time, I gave my predictions for the Eastern Conference. I had some good picks (Tampa, Detroit, Islanders) but also had some huge misses (New Jersey, Boston, Washington). With such obvious room for improvement and another season coming up, I am back to try again.

16. New Jersey Devils - 60 points. After relying on aging veterans, the Devils have accepted their fate and are starting the rebuild. I would put the point total even lower but Cory Schneider is an elite goaltender and will steal them at least a few wins.

15. Toronto Maple Leafs - 75 points. I actually like what Toronto is doing with the roster and they will be more competitive than people think. However, the lack of high-end skills makes me doubt their ability to win close games and they should crater after selling at the trade deadline.

14. Buffalo Sabres - 78 points. They made a number of great moves this offseason and as a result, I am expecting a 24 points improvement for the Sabres, a bigger jump than last year's Islanders. Nevertheless, when you are starting from the bottom of a deep hole it is going to take a little more to climb all the way out.

13. Carolina Hurricanes- 80 points. Peters looks to be a good coach as they put up solid possession numbers despite some tough injuries. With average goaltending, which I think they should get from Eddie Lack, they will put up a fight. That being said, while I think they are better than a typical 80 points team, their division is loaded so wins will be hard to come by.

12. Philadelphia Flyers- 84 points. Some nice offseason moves to improve the defending but Steve Mason should regress a bit. A solid team but not good enough to compete for a playoff spot in the suddenly surprising East.

11. Ottawa Senators- 87 points. Ottawa was on pace for an 87 point season before Andrew Hammond stole them a final playoff spot. I do not think he will be able to repeat his effort so they should regress a touch unless their young forwards take another step forward in their development.

10. Florida Panthers - 94 points. Florida put up a solid fight last year, remaining in the playoff hunt until the final months. I think they could take another step forward this year and make the playoffs but I don’t see them jumping any of the remaining teams without a little luck.

9. Boston Bruins - 94 points. While they made some head scratching moves this offseason, they still have a talented roster. If another team in the East stumbles, I could easily see Boston taking their place in the playoffs. But the defense and an aging Chara worry me enough to have them on the outside looking in.

8. Columbus Blue Jackets - 95 points. With a big late season, push and a big trade for Brandon Saad everyone is picking them to make the playoffs. Although I have them in the top 8 now, I'm not completely sold on them and wouldn't be surprised if Boston or Florida pushes them out.

7. Montreal Canadiens- 97 points. It took a historic season from Carey Price to get this team to the top of the Atlantic. He is an elite goaltender but the drop from All-World to Elite will be enough to drop them to the bottom of the playoff picture. I really like this lineup and if they fire the coach or change systems I would expect them to quickly rise up the standings.

6. Detroit Red Wings- 100 points. I like the moves this offseason and I have no doubt they will end up in the playoffs and contending. However, the team will need time to get used to Blashill and that is enough to keep them behind a superior Tampa Bay team.

5. New York Islanders -101 points. As the young players continue to develop and Halak bounces back, this team should improve. However, the Metro is going to be so tough that just maintaining their point total would be an impressive result

4. Washing Capitals- 101 points. They made a number of good moves this offseason to improve their depth scoring. But that defense is another year older and after a heavy workload Holtby should slow down a bit, so I can't put them into the top 3 just yet.

3. New York Rangers - 103 points. I see the Rangers taking a step back, although not for any real fault of their own. I like their team a lot and they should be a real contender again, but they just aren’t as good as the team above them.

2. Pittsburgh Penguins- 105 points. Many Metro teams will be better this season but will see little change in the standings, for that they can blame the Pittsburgh Penguins. The defense is slightly worse that last year, but the forward group could be the best in the league.

1. Tampa Bay Lightning - 108 points. I said Pittsburgh’s forward group could be the best in the league, but they may not be the best in their own Conference. Tampa was the Eastern Conference's representative in the Stanley Cup Finals and they only got better this offseason. The point total could easily be higher but I'm being conservative as I expect them to lock up the division early.

As you can tell, I am predicting an absolute dogfight to get into the top 8 and the Metro should be incredibly fun to watch. Any hint of an injury or even a slow start could really hurt some of those teams. Thankfully, we have the next 6 months to sit back and enjoy the show.