With the NHL realignment the Carolina Hurricanes find themselves with 6 new division combatants and only 1 carryover (Washington) from the old scheme. Much has been written about the increased level of competition and the need for the Canes to dial it up a notch to be competitive against the big market teams from the former Atlantic Division.
I will probably write another of these and address the teams in more detail once we get closer to the start of the regular season, but for the sake of making it through another day during the dog days of the NHL summer, here is a quick set of questions for each of the new division foes:
--New York Rangers
The Rangers are easily amongst the top handful in the league in terms of being built from the net out. Henrik Lundqvist is an annual mention in the Vezina chatter. The blue line is largely unheralded but is consistently very good at giving Lundqvist a chance which is all he needs. And the team is stocked with a pretty solid core of 2-way forwards. Last summer, the Rangers made what some proclaimed to be the last key addition – another elite level scorer in the form of Rick Nash to provide just a little more offense. But while Nash mostly lived up to expectations, the complementary pieces did not seem to fit. Previous offensive leaders never gelled with Nash ultimately resulting in Marian Gaborik being traded and Brad Richards becoming an alleged candidate for a compliance buyout (which could still happen next summer pending the outcome of the 2013-14 season).
Can this team that has seemed real close for a few years now put it all together, find the chemistry/production at forward and win the East (playoffs not regular season)? Or is it still stuck trying to figure out how to add a little more fire power without upsetting the strong defensive core?
--New York Islanders
While teams with more notable additions (Hurricanes included) stumbled and fumbled, the young core of the Islanders rose up and lifted the team to its first playoff appearance since 2007. The Isles led multiple times in a home game 6 versus the heavily favored Penguins and barely missed forcing an “anything can happen now” game 7. The team and fan base has legitimate reason for optimism coming out of the 2012-13 season.
Led by a strong young core, are the Islanders on the brink of becoming a regular playoff entrant? Or was 2012-13 a 1-year burst that will be difficult to replicate with the goalie situation in flux and departure of blue line anchor Mark Streit?
--New Jersey Devils
Since making the Stanley Cup finals and coming within 2 wins of hoisting the Stanley Cup in 2012, the Devils have witnessed 2 tumultuous off-seasons. Last summer saw the departure of captain and leader Zach Parise. After the subsequent playoff miss in 2012-13, this summer again saw the departure of a top player in Ilya Kovalchuk.
With the recent departures and goaltending situation that sees Cory Schneider in tow and 41-year old Martin Brodeur in the last year of his 2-year contract will this team officially enter rebuilding mode? Or will Lou Lamoriello find a way to retool on the fly and keep the team in the playoff mix for 2013-14
Pittsburgh Penguins
--Even minus Sidney Crosby for a quarter of the 2013 regular season, the Penguins entered the playoffs as the #1 seed in the East and with a head of steam that seemed to suggest a return to the Stanley Cup Finals. But following a sound and convincing 4-game whooping at the hands of the Bruins, the team entered the summer with a goalie controversy and questions as to whether the team was built to go deep in the playoffs.
Was the Bruins series just a bad run of hockey at the worst time of year? Or was it evidence that while the core is built to thrive in the regular season, changes are needed for post-season success?
Philadelphia Flyers
Following a disappointing playoff miss in 2012-13, the Flyers opted for a bit of a financial reset this summer with the compliance buyouts of Danny Briere and Ilya Bryzgalov. The team then added Vincent Lecavalier, Ray Emery and Mark Streit to a decent core of players.
With the volume of significant additions and subtractions will fairly significant roster turnover will GM Paul Holmgren find the right formula for a return to the playoffs? Or will the significant roster churn and lack of significant improvement defensively result in a significantly different but not much better formula in terms of reaching the playoffs?
Washington Capitals
After the mostly failed Dale Hunter experiment, the Capitals entered the 2013 season on a bit of a down note, with people beginning to even question whether Ovechkin was a long-term part of the core and with a new inexperienced coach. And the season started in a way where it looked it might just completely implode with a 2-8-1 start. But things then turned on a dime. Alexander Ovechkin started scoring. The team started winning. And Adam Oates started looking brilliant. When it was all said and done Ovechkin had a bit of a resurgence with an impressive 56 points in the shortened 48-game season and the Caps were solid after the slow start in making the playoffs. Despite the disappointing first round playoff loss that saw them miss on 2 chances to win the series, the Caps definitely exited 2012-13 better than they left it.
Will the trajectory continue with Oates making 2013 just a starting block for even better things to come? Or was it just a temporary bounce with new energy that will fade especially minus Mike Ribeiro to provide balance on offense and minus heart and soul player Matt Hendricks?
Columbus Blue Jackets
After what seemed like a decade of rumors, the Blue Jackets finally parted ways with Rick Nash. The team started slow and seemed destined for full rebuilding mode. But a funny thing happened on the way to the NHL cellar. The team was 1 of the best teams in the entire league for the 2nd half of the season and missed the playoffs only by a tiebreaker. The team reminds me a bit of the Jaromir Jagr-led Rangers team from a few years back that seemed way light on star power and name recognition but had an elite goalie and an underrated collection of solid 2-way forwards and solid defense. That Rangers team surprised and made the playoffs in 2005-06 and 2006-07. While the Blue Jackets ultimately missed the playoffs, I think this summer ironically finds 2-time trade partners Columbus and New York in similar positions. Both have a pretty solid foundation built on defense and from the net out with decent depth and balance. Both are trying to find a way to add a bit more offense without sacrificing the defensive core in the process. Columbus is doing it via Marian Gaborik (added at least year’s trade deadline) and the big name signing of Nathan Horton this summer.
Can the Blue Jackets successfully assimilate Gaborik and Horton to the tune of more scoring without upsetting the defensive balance that was the team’s strength in 2012-13? If so, Columbus looks like a playoff team. Or will the insertion of new players be 1 step forward (offensively) 2 steps back (defensively) leaving the team still seeking the right offense/defense balance and again on the outside of the playoffs looking in?
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