We Hit Dingers: NHL Preview - Metropolitan Division

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

I think Washington is the best team in the NHL, and I'm not certain it's even close. Ovechkin will be a monster again, and of course they have Backstrom, Carlson on defense, and Holtby in net. I don't think they'll get 120 points again, just because the teams that were really bad in the East last season will be better this year. The Capitals may not have a better chance to win a Cup than this year, since they may have to let some players go due to expiring contracts.

Going into last year, I wasn't excited about the Penguins roster and even less excited about the system former head coach Mike Johnston was using. That has all changed for this season. Of course, they won the Stanley Cup last season after acquiring various players during the season, and this upcoming season will be intriguing and exciting. The Penguins will probably go with a split in net between veteran Marc-Andre Fleury and rookie Matt Murray, whom they now see as the heir apparent to Fleury. This answers a lot of questions and helps them in the future and Fleury probably won't be with the team the entire season. I think the Penguins will be a better regular season team this year than they were last year, and the gap between they and the Capitals will be closer than last season.

This is where I begin to differ from last season's standings. I don't necessarily think that the Islanders improved much over last season, but some team needs to take the third spot in the division. They have Tavares, who is a superstar in the league and is an elite talent, and they added Andrew Ladd during the offseason. My only question for the team is in net, where Jaro Halak has struggled to stay healthy throughout his career. I think they will be good enough to get into the playoffs from the division instead of the wild card.

I think that the Flyers shocked a lot of people last year by sneaking into the playoffs and gave the Capitals a small scare in the first round. They didn't alter their roster much over the offseason, but their young players should develop further for this upcoming season. I am really excited about their defensive unit, especially about their future defensemen. I really like the job that Dave Hakstol has done in Philly and I think they will be better than last year.

First of all, I think five teams will come out of the Metro Division again this season. I struggled mightily with picking the bottom half of the division. I think that the Rangers will do just enough to get into the playoffs once again, but it won't be through their defense. I do not like this unit at all, and am downright scared by how bad they are, outside of McDonagh. I think Lundqvist wills them into the playoffs this year, but that they'll get eliminated very quickly and easily. For me, the Rangers' window to win a Stanley Cup with this roster group has nearly closed and and that next year they may miss the playoff entirely.

I thought deeply about including the Devils in the playoffs from the Metro, but ultimately decided the Rangers still have just enough left to beat them out. The Devils are a relatively young team still developing into who they will become. I think that the Devils will just barely miss out on the playoffs this season.

In my team preview for the Hurricanes I mentioned that I think they'll be competitive in the playoff race all season long, and I believe this to be true. I think the difference between the 4-7 spots in the Metro will be very small in terms of points and could easily see these teams switching positions. For me, Carolina still has enough questions on offense and in net to miss out on the playoffs and there will be a lot of reliance on a young defense.

I think they're the only bad team in the division, and the Blue Jackets are really bad. They don't have a true top line and their defense is susceptible after the second pairing. Ultimately though, it comes down to the fact that I just don't like John Tortorella or the system he coaches; I think he is a bad coach and it showed in the World Cup of Hockey.

We Hit Dingers