It’s October and that means the start of another NHL season. For me, that means back to work. Like a bear coming out of hibernation, I start to shake away my summer brain and I’m hungry for information on all teams.
As I do my prep, I develop a list of questions I have about teams, players and the league to keep an eye on throughout the year. For this month’s column, and starting with the Eastern Conference, I’ll share some of those questions. Next month I will focus on the Western Conference.
▘ Can the Pittsburgh Penguins three-peat as Stanley Cup champs? Despite losing key players Nick Bonino, Matt Cullen (sneaky good and great leader) and Marc-Andre Fleury, the Pens still have significant depth and skill. Logic says they’ll have a hard time winning again, but superstars Sidney Crosby and Geno Malkin don’t rely on logic to win. I think they can as long as Matt Murray is able to control the net and remain healthy.
▘ Do the Ottawa Senators have what it takes to go at least as far as the Eastern Conference finals again? If Erik Karlsson’s foot doesn’t heal properly and his play is impacted, there is no way they will be as good again. And can veteran goalie Craig Anderson continue to shine as brightly for the Sens? Lastly, does the team respond to head coach Guy Boucher’s system requirements as passionately as they did in his first year with the team?
▘ How good will Tampa Bay be this year assuming Steven Stamkos is — and can stay — healthy? The Lightning missed the playoffs last year and are poised to return to them under coach Jon Cooper. If Nikita Kucherov continues to dazzle offensively, Viktor Hedman dominates defensively and young goalie Andrei Vasilevsky becomes the No. 1 most think he should be, then fans in Tampa should be very entertained this season.
▘ How good of seasons will the young stars on the Toronto Maple Leafs have? Led by Auston Matthews, they are loaded with young talent that is making the hockey-mad city salivate. Management surprised many people by signing UFA Patrick Marleau to a three-year deal, since many thought it would be a gradual climb to the top. It’s apparent, however, that the time is now for this exciting team to reach new levels.
▘ What do the New York Rangers have left in the tank? They made some big offseason trades (including shipping Derek Stepan and Antti Raanta to the Arizona Coyotes) and now have some holes to fill. Is Mika Zibanejad a real No. 1 center? Can either Kevin Hayes or J.T. Miller step up and play the No. 2 center spot? How good will Henrik Lundqvist be after struggling at times last season? He has a pretty competent new backup in Ondrej Pavelec, but "The King" still likes to play a lot.
▘ Has Florida left the "Gong Show" season from last year behind and gotten itself back on track? After last year’s dismissal of coach Gerard Gallant, things never got going for the Panthers. Considered a young team on the rise, they struggled to find an identity all of last year. Dale Tallon is back in charge and new coach Bob Boughner should be effective for this team. Can Roberto Luongo play enough quality games to get them into the playoffs again?
▘ No team has been more patient in their rebuild lately than the Carolina Hurricanes. They have quietly amassed one of the NHL’s best young defenses (Noah Hanifin, Brett Pesce, Jaccob Slavin, Justin Faulk, Trevor van Riemsdyk) and finally have added some players with pedigree (Justin Williams, Marcus Kruger). Add goalie Scott Darling to the mix and this team seems to be playoff ready very soon.
▘ Now that the Boston Bruins have signed star right wing David Pastrnak to a six-year deal, what is the ceiling for this dynamic player? Can he and David Krejci create the same kind of magic that Krejci had with Nathan Horton or Milan Lucic a few years ago? How many quality games will the Bruins get out of their backup goalie, whomever that ends up being? They simply can’t have Tuukka Rask playing more than 60 if they want to be successful. How good will Brandon Carlo be this year? After playing all 82 games last year (he got concussed by an Alexander Ovechkin hit in the last game), Carlo will look to add a few more elements to his game. Can he add to the offense a little more from the back end? And finally, how many young players will step up to fill some very important roles for the B’s in the top six?
▘ Speaking of the Bruins … many hockey pundits blasted Boston for "not doing anything big" in the offseason. I don’t find that question to be very relevant, as the Bruins needed to continue the process of adding youth and speed to a solid veteran offensive core, and they did just that by getting players signed out of college (i.e., Anders Bjork and Jakob Forsbacka Karlsson). They also now have Charlie McAvoy for a full season on defense, and that is a huge addition. The Bruins’ ability to completely fill the cupboards with legit prospects over the past three years has been nothing short of amazing.
They now have one of the best prospect pools of any team in the NHL. And yes, while I know that doesn’t mean they will all be good NHL players, I am encouraged that many of them will be within a few years. Besides the previously mentioned three players, the list of top prospects 24 or under includes Sean Kuraly, Danton Heinen, Jake DeBrusk, Ryan Fitzgerald, Rob O’Gara, Matt Grzelcyk, Jakub Zboril and Jeremy Lauzon. This is an impressive group, and if these players continue to improve as they have over the past few seasons, the Bruins should be in good shape for years to come.
