Guess we will have to wait and see right?


- Streit2ThePoint

Yes we will.

Yes we will.
- eichiefs9

They'll depend on Giroux and his willingness to stop grabing cops asses

They'll depend on Giroux and his willingness to stop grabing cops asses
- Barnaby36

Really?

Ok, let me try.

DUhhhhh Cindy go cry some more uhhhh duuurrrrrr

Really? I think they both got worse. I'm not saying that they suck, but I think both took steps back.
- eichiefs9

As stated by the flyers fan I think both teams addressed a need by with that trade, that being said , what will be the difference maker with the Cbj will be on how the younger players preform , can Jenner play like he did at the end of last year and in the playoff, can Johanson prove he's not a one year wonder, can Murray build on last years decent season. And also can Wennberg or Rychel steal a spot coming out of training camp.

Blue Jackets are screwed because they have that possession anchor Jack Johnson on their team. I always thought he was a good defender capable of logging tough minutes and producing offensively, but after seeing his Corsi, my entire mindset has changed. He's nothing more than a 3rd pairing defenseman that needs to play sheltered minutes. They should trade him for a guy like Thomas Hickey. He has some stellar Corsi.
- rangerdanger94

You sure like to troll , Rangers wont have it easy with the ''replacement'' players they got.

Jackets finish 4th or 5th.

As stated by the flyers fan I think both teams addressed a need by with that trade, that being said , what will be the difference maker with the Cbj will be on how the younger players preform , can Jenner play like he did at the end of last year and in the playoff, can Johanson prove he's not a one year wonder, can Murray build on last years decent season. And also can Wennberg or Rychel steal a spot coming out of training camp.
- Alexzanki

Sure, I don't disagree that CBJ's success will hinge a lot on Johansen keeping pace with his fantastic season last year. I don't think much of Umberger, he may be a decent bottom-sixer on the Flyers but overall I don't have much faith that they will be a particularly dangerous team this year. Of course, I hate them but I'm genuinely trying to be objective here.

Same goes for the Rangers. They are still a better team than the Isles, so I'm not trying to make this a pissing match as to who's team is better, it's them. No question. But I think when you look at who departed their squad and who they replaced them with, that they are not as good as last year's team. Let's not forget that they only made it into the playoffs by 6 points. That shouldn't take away from what was a great run to the Cup finals once they got there, but it's not like they were steamrolling over the entire league last season either.

As stated by the flyers fan I think both teams addressed a need by with that trade, that being said , what will be the difference maker with the Cbj will be on how the younger players preform , can Jenner play like he did at the end of last year and in the playoff, can Johanson prove he's not a one year wonder, can Murray build on last years decent season. And also can Wennberg or Rychel steal a spot coming out of training camp.
- Alexzanki

I think the Jackets will comfortably make the playoffs this year. I love both Murray and Jenner. Those kids are studs.

I'll say this about the Hartnell deal... I think he'll do well this up coming year, but overall, I think the Flyers got the better end of it simply based on the contracts. Both contracts suck, but Hartnell's is two years longer for a marginally better player that is prone to frequent acts of stupidity.

I was actually disappointed to see that trade because I love it when the Flyers choke on their horrible long term deals. I've seen enough of that clown Hartnell to know that he is a complete wild card as a player. He spends as much time annoying his own fan base as he does the team he's playing against.

I can see anywhere between a third place and a sixth place finish this season for Columbus.

I can see anywhere between a third place and a sixth place finish this season for Columbus.
- MidnightMarauder

I can agree on this , a wild card team.

You sure like to troll , Rangers wont have it easy with the ''replacement'' players they got.
- Alexzanki

I was sarcastically pooping on advanced stats. Jack Johnson is a great defenseman and that was my point.

Second or third. The Pens, Jackets, and Devils are better than the other Metro teams IMO.

I can agree on this , a wild card team.
- Alexzanki

The division is a complete toss up. There really is no certainty other than the Hurricanes being really awful this season.

The division is a complete toss up. There really is no certainty other than the Hurricanes being really awful this season.
- MidnightMarauder

I think Penguins and Rangers will be back and forth between 1 and 2 spots. Hurricanes in last. I think its a toss up between spots 3-7 given the recent trades/signings.

I think Penguins and Rangers will be back and forth between 1 and 2 spots. Hurricanes in last. I think its a toss up between spots 3-7 given the recent trades/signings.
- Streit2ThePoint

I have it that way as well; Penguins and Rangers fighting over the division. But, we all know, the best laid plans don't always work out as such.

The Devils and the Islanders are very interesting to me. Both could be markedly improved from last year. Philadelphia will continue to hang around too; they just have too much offensive talent to be a doormat. Columbus is definitely in the mix of teams that can have a solid season or end up missing the playoffs.

Unless the Capitals defense plays better than I anticipate, I just can't see them making the playoffs, this season.

I never actually made predictions for everyone to yell at yesterday.

Pens
Rangers
Devils
Jackets
Flyers
Caps
Islanders
Hurricanes

<20 points separate the whole division.

Same spot as last year, I still think the flyers and Rangers are better unless of major injuries.
- Alexzanki

Thank you. Finally someone who sees nothing major changed in the metro, teams will be basically the same. Isles and Caps got a bit better but the rest are just as good as last season. The only Question mark to me is if Flyers and NYR. Do they do better since they struggled quite a bit at the start of the season? If the Rangers don't struggle for as long as they did last season I think they actually would have challenged for 1st in the Metro.

Second or third. The Pens, Jackets, and Devils are better than the other Metro teams IMO.
- TheRollingPuck

Devils? The same team that missed the playoffs last year is going to be better why? Because of Cammaleri and Havlat? Havlat has been garbage since he left Ottawa, Cammaleri isn't that good. Jagr is what 42, age is going to start becoming a factor.

Devils? The same team that missed the playoffs last year is going to be better why? Because of Cammaleri and Havlat? Havlat has been garbage since he left Ottawa, Cammaleri isn't that good. Jagr is what 42, age is going to start becoming a factor.
- xShoot4WarAmpsx

Jagr will never age. He will play infinitely.

Jagr will never age. He will play infinitely.
- Streit2ThePoint

Somewhere in an attic there's a painting of him aging though.

Blue Jackets landing within 2nd to 4th is how its gonna be... 4th the least likely, that's if they just have a poopty season.

Also, Rangers gonna just end up in 7th now

Blue Jackets are screwed because they have that possession anchor Jack Johnson on their team. I always thought he was a good defender capable of logging tough minutes and producing offensively, but after seeing his Corsi, my entire mindset has changed. He's nothing more than a 3rd pairing defenseman that needs to play sheltered minutes. They should trade him for a guy like Thomas Hickey. He has some stellar Corsi.
- rangerdanger94

Devils? The same team that missed the playoffs last year is going to be better why? Because of Cammaleri and Havlat? Havlat has been garbage since he left Ottawa, Cammaleri isn't that good. Jagr is what 42, age is going to start becoming a factor.
- xShoot4WarAmpsx

The Devils will be better because:

1) Schneider over Brodeur. At this stage in their respective careers having Schneider as the undisputed #1 is a big upgrade over trading off with Marty.
2) Added some scoring. Cammalleri scored more goals in 63 games last year than anyone on NJ did in 82, and that on a pretty bad Flames team. He's no elite talent but is a very solid add up front. Havlat is a very low risk signing who could have good chemistry with Elias, similar to when we had Sykora in 2011-12 (he scored 21-23-44 that year, not bad). If Gelinas plays in almsot all 82 games that's a huge boost to our PP.
3) Addition by subtraction on D. Volchenkov was bad. Fayne wasn't bad, but Merrill, Larsson, and Gelinas played terrifically when they played, and having Fayne and Volchenkov around kept 2 of them out of the line-up frequently. Having those three kids (who will make some mistakes, don't get me wrong) around all season I think is a big upgrade over last year on the back-end.
4) The shootout. Quite simply the Devils can't possibly be worse in the shootout, and while I refuse to say the shoot-out is all luck, I think it's pretty flukey to go 0-13. If the Devils went 5-8 in the shootout last year (with zero other improvements) they would have made the playoffs. I expect an at least slight improvement in shootouts.

Not saying the Devils will be great or even that they'll definitely make the playoffs but I definitely believe they will be better than they were last year.

The Devils will be better because:

1) Schneider over Brodeur. At this stage in their respective careers having Schneider as the undisputed #1 is a big upgrade over trading off with Marty.
2) Added some scoring. Cammalleri scored more goals in 63 games last year than anyone on NJ did in 82, and that on a pretty bad Flames team. He's no elite talent but is a very solid add up front. Havlat is a very low risk signing who could have good chemistry with Elias, similar to when we had Sykora in 2011-12 (he scored 21-23-44 that year, not bad). If Gelinas plays in almsot all 82 games that's a huge boost to our PP.
3) Addition by subtraction on D. Volchenkov was bad. Fayne wasn't bad, but Merrill, Larsson, and Gelinas played terrifically when they played, and having Fayne and Volchenkov around kept 2 of them out of the line-up frequently. Having those three kids (who will make some mistakes, don't get me wrong) around all season I think is a big upgrade over last year on the back-end.
4) The shootout. Quite simply the Devils can't possibly be worse in the shootout, and while I refuse to say the shoot-out is all luck, I think it's pretty flukey to go 0-13. If the Devils went 5-8 in the shootout last year (with zero other improvements) they would have made the playoffs. I expect an at least slight improvement in shootouts.

Not saying the Devils will be great or even that they'll definitely make the playoffs but I definitely believe they will be better than they were last year.
- MannySilvers

1)Schnider played more games than Brodeur, not a huge factor.

2) Calgary was not as bad as people say last season, he played with some good young talent.

3) A veteran who had a bad season is still better than a young player. Young players make more mistakes and are still learning. You also lose a shot blocking physical machine with Volchenkov

4) is not a reason they are better. Teams that suck in the shootout don't magically get better at it. For all you know NJ plays only 5 SO games this season. That is like me saying the Flyers are better this year because Berube will have them in better shape than last season at training camp and Giroux wont be hurt. If NYR didn't suck for half a year they could have won the Metro, if Caps played better defensively they would have won more games. If the Isles didn't trade moulson.... There are Ifs on every team, they are irrelevant.

1)Schnider played more games than Brodeur, not a huge factor.

2) Calgary was not as bad as people say last season, he played with some good young talent.

3) A veteran who had a bad season is still better than a young player. Young players make more mistakes and are still learning. You also lose a shot blocking physical machine with Volchenkov

4) is not a reason they are better. Teams that suck in the shootout don't magically get better at it. For all you know NJ plays only 5 SO games this season. That is like me saying the Flyers are better this year because Berube will have them in better shape than last season at training camp and Giroux wont be hurt. If NYR didn't suck for half a year they could have won the Metro, if Caps played better defensively they would have won more games. If the Isles didn't trade moulson.... There are Ifs on every team, they are irrelevant.
- xShoot4WarAmpsx

1) Cory will likely play at least 20 more games this year. That's a pretty big factor when you missed the playoffs the year prior by 5 points.

2) Okay...but Calgary was by no means a "good" team. Cammalleri spent most of his time playing with Backlund, Zajac is a better version of Backlund. Zajac and Jagr being the possession machines they are having Cammalleri to set up instead of Zubrus is a big difference.

3) I totally disagree with this. Sometimes young players simply play/are better than their veteran counterparts. This was the case most of last year in NJ. Volchenkov could be a physical force at times but was usually just slow and ineffective.

4) I agree that doesn't "make them better" but my point is I think everyone can agree there is a bit of luck/chance involved in a lot of aspects of hockey and in my opinion shoot-out performance is up there in that respect, and the Devils simply couldn't have done worse last year, so simply the chances are, going purely on luck/probability/whatever you want to call it that the Devils will have better luck in the shoot-out next year because it simply can't be worse, and again a little bit goes a long way when you missed the playoffs by 5 points.