Atlantic Division

1. Tampa Bay Lightning

This team is stacked and there’s no reason they shouldn’t get to the Conference Finals again.

2. Toronto Maple Leafs

They won the John Tavares sweepstakes and now they have their eyes set on the Stanley Cup.

3. Boston Bruins

They’re mixing in some good youngsters with their savvy veterans.

4. Florida Panthers

There’s plenty of talent here, but they play in a top tier division that won’t give up the top three spots easily.

5. Buffalo Sabres

They made some savvy moves in the offseason and it should improve their point total quite a bit.

6. Detroit Red Wings

This ‘Hockeytown’ will have to wait another year to be considered potential playoff contenders.

7. Montreal Canadiens

Rebuilding is never easy, especially when you still have one of the best goaltenders in the game.

8. Ottawa Senators

The only thing they will compete for is the number one pick of the draft. Continue reading →

Metropolitan Division

1. Pittsburgh Penguins

Their scoring prowess is almost unmatched in the league.

2. Washington Capitals

The defending champions will have to press on without their Cup winning head coach.

3. Columbus Blue Jackets

A big season ahead with two pending premier free agents in Panarin and Bobrovsky.

4. New Jersey Devils

Taylor Hall proved why he’s among the best in the league last year with an MVP trophy.

5. Philadelphia Flyers

There’s plenty of talent here except who do they have to rely on in net?

6. New York Rangers

The rebuild has begun, but it might not be too much longer before they’re back in contention.

7. Carolina Hurricanes

The youth movement is in full effect, but they haven’t solved their problem in net.

8. New York Islanders

Losing John Tavares just means they will hand the reigns over to Matthew Barzal now. Continue reading →