2009-10 NHL Season Previews

by James Mirtle on Sep 14, 2009 7:00 AM CDT Comment 29 comments

Mid-September: Time for training camp, hockey pools and, yes, season previews.

The gang at SBN Hockey will have you covered on the latter one, as all 30 of our NHL blogs (including this one) will have extensive season setups coming out over the next 15 days. The schedule, as seen below, goes alphabetically, with one team from each conference leading up to the last day of the preseason schedule.

Tomorrow: Atlanta & Anaheim
Sept 16: Boston & Calgary
Sept 17: Buffalo & Chicago
Sept 18: Carolina & Colorado
Sept 19: Florida & Columbus
Sept 20: Montreal & Dallas
Sept 21: New Jersey & Detroit
Sept 22: N.Y. Islanders & Edmonton
Sept 23: N.Y. Rangers & Los Angeles
Sept 24: Ottawa & Minnesota
Sept 25: Philadelphia & Nashville
Sept 26: Pittsburgh & Phoenix
Sept 27: Tampa Bay & San Jose
Sept 28: Toronto & St. Louis
Sept 29: Washington & Vancouver

Sept. 30 will be a day of rest in terms of on-ice action and then, on Oct. 1, the 2009-10 season is officially underway.

The previews I'll run here will be small excerpts from this year's issue of the McKeen's Hockey Yearbook along with polls and a couple other tidbits, but the team-based NHL blogs will have more extensive looks at things like depth charts and training camp battles. Stop by on the day we tackle your team and join the conversation.

Oh, and my annual NHL predictions post will wrap it up on the 30th.

Poll

Which team do you think will win the Presidents' Trophy this season?

Boston

35 votes

Chicago

47 votes

Detroit

66 votes

New Jersey

11 votes

Philadelphia

57 votes

Pittsburgh

69 votes

San Jose

229 votes

Vancouver

46 votes

Washington

85 votes

Other

77 votes

722 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

Washington getting 13 votes??

Unless they’re counting on the large amount of win padding in the Southeast, I can’t see it.

by Afino on Sep 14, 2009 10:27 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

It’s not as ridiculous as Vancouver being in this poll in the first place though.

by Resolute on Sep 14, 2009 3:23 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Agreed.

by Afino on Sep 14, 2009 3:33 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

As I’m sure you can see, I just took the top teams from last year’s standings.

Blogging on hockey at fromtherink.com

by James Mirtle on Sep 14, 2009 3:42 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, I knew that.

San Jose being so far out in front is really interesting to me. That was one hell of a mediocre club, all things considered, for the last half of last year. I don’t think they should be considered runaway favourites this year.

by Resolute on Sep 14, 2009 3:51 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

But then you have to consider that for the second half of the season, the Sharks were devastated by injuries, sometimes having 10 roster players out at a time. And they still managed to win the President’s Trophy.

I admit, I’m biased here, but I do believe the Sharks can repeat as President’s Trophy winners, especially now that the third line is shaping up to be more of a third scoring line rather than an offensive black hole like it was last year.

"I think I realized after the second or third punch, I should have taken his helmet off sooner." - Ryane Clowe
Proud member of the "Don't Trade Marleau" Club
Fools and Sages

by mymclife on Sep 14, 2009 11:19 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think they have a good shot too, but those lower lines are awfully thin. If the injury bug hits again next year (like last season), especially to someone in the top six, it should get very interesting.

Fear The Fin: Where Selling Your Soul Is The Likely Solution

by Mr. Plank on Sep 15, 2009 3:00 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

True, but the lower lines also have a lot more potential to score goals then they did last year. Just the addition of Mitchell and the continued presence of McGinn is a dramatic upgrade from the Grier-Goc-Cheechoo/Moen line, which couldn’t score if they were on a breakaway with an empty net (okay, Cheechoo probably could, but that’s it, as was displayed several times this season).

And then the top 6 is usually pretty healthy, save for Clowe. Marleau has averaged around 76 games played per year over the course of his career, Joe hasn’t missed a game yet, Pavelski missed 4 games last year, Seto missed one for a funeral, and Heatley is generally healthy. Clowe, if he gets injured, could probably be somewhat replaced by Frazer McLaren in the whole “big body in front of the net” aspect of his game. McGinn could be plugged in for top 6 duty, as could Mitchell if completely necessary. The fourth line isn’t going to blow anyone away, but its also not a downgrade from last season.

While the lack of depth compared to last season plus the salary cap restraints definitely concerns me (one of the reasons I’ve been so adamant against getting Heatley the whole summer), the threat of Thornton-Heatley will have other teams throw out their top shut-down lines against that one, leaving the possible Marleau-Pavelski-Clowe line to score more freely, as well as the McGinn-Mitchell-??? line to do some of that as well.

"I think I realized after the second or third punch, I should have taken his helmet off sooner." - Ryane Clowe
Proud member of the "Don't Trade Marleau" Club
Fools and Sages

by mymclife on Sep 15, 2009 4:09 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Right, but Mitchell battled an injury all last year and is currently wary about playing in the preseason. He’s had three months to rehab and still contains lingering issues, after his return date was consistently being pushed back until the playoffs last year. I’m not penciling him in until he’s… well, penciled in.

After that you’ve got Couture, who could probably fill the role well, but there’s no certainty there. McGinn should be good for about 10-15 goals I think, so there is some depth, but not enough to handle an injury bug, especially if one of the top six goes down. Suddenly you’ve got McGinn on line one/two and a real lack of proven scoring depth on your third and fourth.

Granted, an AHL player could come up and fill those holes, but there’s no certainty there. It’s all speculation and maybe a little bit of wishful thinking on both our parts. Guess that’s what the preseason is for…

Fear The Fin: Where Selling Your Soul Is The Likely Solution

by Mr. Plank on Sep 16, 2009 12:11 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

What about Greiss — doesn’t he worry anyone?

Blogging on hockey at fromtherink.com

by James Mirtle on Sep 16, 2009 12:15 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

He worries me a bit, but he played well enough towards the tail end of the AHL season last year where people aren’t rattling the cage all too much. Also, due to this Heatley deal and the subsequent cap space, it’s probably safe to say Nabokov won’t be re-signed next season. That makes Greiss the likely heir to the throne, and the hope (my hope) is that he gets around 25 starts this season so Wilson can make a more informed decision next offseason.

Mymclife and I have been the ones really banging the drum over at FTF about the cap troubles Heatley will cause next offseason (more here if you’re interested), and Greiss is a direct consequence of that. Same goes for the secondary scoring discussion we were having above.

Fear The Fin: Where Selling Your Soul Is The Likely Solution

by Mr. Plank on Sep 16, 2009 12:46 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Greiss worries me about the same as any new goalie would. While he was certainly less than impressive in his 3 games two years ago, he’s steadily improved and stood on his head at the end of last season to get Worcester in the playoffs. And then he continued to be amazing during the playoffs. He also looked pretty solid in the training camp footage I’ve seen, but since that was only about 20 seconds of tape, I’m not totally trusting it.

Bottom line is, though, Greiss only costs $550K and is signed for one more year after this on a non-ELC. He’s cheap, he knows the system and the players, and he’s playing behind a notorious workhorse goalie in Nabokov. While he’ll likely see more starts than Boucher did last year simply because of Nabokov’s age and the potential Nabby won’t be re-signed this off-season, he still has one of the best in the game available if he implodes. And then there’s always Stalock, Sexsmith, Sateri, and perhaps even Karlsson waiting in the wings to take over if something absolutely horrible happens.

And yeah, what Plank said – I haven’t yet recalculated the cap stuff after the Ehrhoff/Lukowich trade and now the Heatley deal, so I can’t really say what might happen with much certainty, but the Sharks’s cap situation resembles Chicago’s right now, just not as dire. Any place the Sharks can save money, they will (unless its re-signing depth players to multi-year deals, apparently), which includes goaltending.

"I think I realized after the second or third punch, I should have taken his helmet off sooner." - Ryane Clowe
Proud member of the "Don't Trade Marleau" Club
Fools and Sages

by mymclife on Sep 16, 2009 1:48 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

You don’t have to remind me about Mitchell. I’m just remaining incredibly optimistic about him, since that was the only way I got through last year. I am worried that he might not show up until Game 3 of the playoffs, but I do believe that his return, whenever it may be, will be completely worth it.

And while the lack of proven scoring depth is somewhat a cause for concern, I still think that the Worcester guys plugged in could be adequate replacements. They either have another year under their belt, or they are the new guys that sounded pretty impressive through the rookie tournament and now in training camp (still sad that Elrich got cut). I mean, just from other’s impressions, McLaren, Strong, Cantin, and Ferriero could all get NHL stints alongside of Couture, Vesce, Joslin, Moore, etc. (assuming none of them make the NHL roster at the end of camp). And then Petrecki, from all accounts, has been an absolute beast. I’m starting to waver on my opinion that he should have at least one year in the AHL before playing in San Jose.

"I think I realized after the second or third punch, I should have taken his helmet off sooner." - Ryane Clowe
Proud member of the "Don't Trade Marleau" Club
Fools and Sages

by mymclife on Sep 16, 2009 1:37 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Couture...

has a cap number of $1.24 million. It might be tricky fitting that into the final roster, unless Mitchell can’t go and he’s in his salary slot.

The Sharks accountant/cap geek will be busy this season.

by bison on Sep 16, 2009 12:37 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

30 % for San Jose?

No bandwagoners voting over here? NOOOO! San Jose will be lucky to win their division this year let alone the Presidents Trophy. Not to mention the main focus of McClellan and the coaching staff will be getting this team ready for success in the playoffs, not the regular season.

It's never about the eventual destination, but rather the long journey and its challenging obstacles that are presented and what it takes to overcome them, that makes the taste of success all the more worthwhile!!!

by hawks61 on Sep 14, 2009 5:22 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I think the division is pretty safe – nobody else in the Pacific strikes me as “contending” material.

by Resolute on Sep 14, 2009 7:54 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

What?!? You don’t think the Stars will completely blow everyone out of the water?

Haha just kidding.

by Brad_Richards_Rocks on Sep 14, 2009 9:10 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Anaheim. And Dallas had a ton of injuries: they will be better. Two seasons ago the Pacific was the best (not deepest, best, with 3 legit contenders) division in hockey.

by red army line on Sep 15, 2009 8:04 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

San Jose is not as good as this poll suggests.

Would have to do with Detroit or Washington this season…

Blue and Gold (of Buffalo)

by Ebscer on Sep 14, 2009 5:27 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Maybe not San Jose...

It just seems like things will be too weird with the Heatley shake-up and such. I could see Washington win it, though. Weaker division and the Ovechkin, the best player in the world could really benefit them.

by Brad_Richards_Rocks on Sep 14, 2009 5:52 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

It’s entirely possible Washington doesn’t even win their own division.

by Afino on Sep 14, 2009 8:41 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Washington 1st Overall?

Last time I checked it was their division rival Carolina in the conference finals, so I wouldn’t be so quick as to just give the Southeast Division to the Capitals. The talent is there but much like the Blackhawks may be hampered by unproven goaltending, although I would take Huet over Varlamov right now.
In my opinion I really think the President’s Trophy battle will come down to the Red Wings and the Blackhawks with both teams pushing each other throughout the season. Both teams do have weaknesses it would appear in goal, however overall both are as talented as anyone defensively and are both juggernauts offensively. Should be interesting.

by hawks61 on Sep 15, 2009 7:44 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

To all: is it really surprising to see Washington finish first? They took PIT to seven games (while CAR got swept) and it’s not as if they couldn’t beat Boston (3-0-1 in the regular season).
That being said I picked Pittsburgh. I think they will maintain a high level of play for most of the season, with no hangover, and win the President’s Trophy.

by red army line on Sep 15, 2009 8:06 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

red army line

To all: is it really surprising to see Washington finish first? They took PIT to seven games (while CAR got swept) and it’s not as if they couldn’t beat Boston (3-0-1 in the regular season).

Keep in mind that Cam Ward had a significant leg injury going into that series against Pittsburgh and had he been somewhat healthy it might have been a different series, not to mention that the Canes as a squad had just come off of 2 bruising 7-game series against the Devils and Bruins, while the Pens-Caps series was an explosion of offence but did lack the physicality that the other 3 2nd round series had. Underestimating the Canes at this point would be a huge mistake for they are a very good team with much better defence and goaltending.
The Capitals are probably the most dynamic team offensively in the NHL led by the GR8 Ovechkin but severely lack dicipline and are not responsible defensively which coud expose their (what could be perceived as weak) goaltending tandem of Varlamov and Theodore. Face it the Capitals do not have a defensive tandem like Lidstrom and Rafalski and/or Keith and Seabrook logging 25-30 minutes a game to help them defensively.

by hawks61 on Sep 15, 2009 11:07 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think you’re over-estimating the Canes. They’re a good team, but they not an elite team.

Don’t play the injury card. Every team is injured in the playoffs.

by RedBirdie on Sep 15, 2009 1:03 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

RedBirdie

Don’t play the injury card. Every team is injured in the playoffs.

Like to think that Cam Ward is a very important player that is the backbone of that team, how many teams in the playoffs suffered an injury to their #1 netminder let alone the backbone of their team?

by hawks61 on Sep 15, 2009 2:18 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Pittsburgh?

Boy I don’t know about the Stanley Cup Champions, for the losses of Scuderi and Gill on the blueline are really going to hurt them for both logged a lot of ice-time and played in key situations throughout the season especially when with Gonchar out at the start of the season. Not to mention that Sykora is gone now too, which is huge loss offensively to go along with Talbot being out for a longtime due to his shoulder injury leaves the Penguins vulnerable in many areas. Then add to the equation their division which includes the likes of the Flyers, Devils, and NYRangers which leaves the Penguns in a tough spot and let’s not forget about Bylsma, for it will be interesting to see how he manages this team through a slump for last year he came in at the end a guided them to a Cup but this year he’s in it for the long haul so it will be interesting to see how he guides them through the tough grind of the regular season.
Myself I’m going to wait and reserve judgement on the Penguins for they are the Cup Champions but are also the team at Valentine’s Day were struggling just to make the playoffs. Once again time will tell.

by hawks61 on Sep 15, 2009 10:49 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Philly

For this year, anyway, the Pronger deal combined with the continued growth of their young talent makes them one of the major contenders.

A couple of years from now, they may regret it as Pronger declines and Sbisa comes into his own, but if they have a the 2010 Stanley Cup, Flyers fans may not care. ;)

SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there)

by Doogie2K on Sep 15, 2009 8:57 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs