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Kevin and Ek’s Ridiculously Early Predictions:Atlantic Division; Thu's Buzz

July 29, 2021, 12:44 PM ET [34 Comments]
Eklund
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So it’s way too early to predict what will happen in the 2021-2022 NHL Season.

Anyone who would make a prediction on the divisional standings at this time would be insane…

So of course Kevin and I looked at all that and said…”Sure. Why not?” I think it will also be interesting to see what we think of these predictions come September/October. One more note: We made these picks without discussing these with each other at all…

“Kevin and Ek’s Ridiculously Early Post UFA Day Season Predictions: The Atlantic Division”

Kevin Allen’s Picks

Florida Panthers 
The Sam Reinhart acquisition was one of the best deals of the offseason. GM Bill Zito added a consistent 20-goal scorer to a very strong offensive group. Zito and coach Joel Quenneville have this group believing they can play with the league's top teams. The Panthers are hard to play against. Confidence combined with talent is a special combination. Ask the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Tampa Bay Lightning
Don't sleep on the Lightning. They lost their third line of Yanni Gourde, Goodrow and Blake Coleman. Their depth is eroded. But their offense is dynamic, their defense is game-tested and battle-ready and Andrei Vasilevskiy is the world's best goaltender. All they need to do is qualify for the playoffs and they have a shot to win it.

Boston Bruins
The Linus Ullmark signing was crucial given that Tuukka Rask will miss the start of the season because of surgery. It's fair to wonder whether we can expect Rask to play. The best guess is 'yes'. But anything is possible. Ullmark played well last season, but he's still unproven. The Bruins' talent level rates in the top five, but we may need a couple of months to get comfortable with their goaltending. The Bruins will be better in the playoffs than they will in the regular season.

Toronto Maple Leafs
Do you believe in Jack Campbell and Petr Mrazek in net? If you rated tandems, the Leafs' twosome rates in the second half of the rankings. The Leafs will  still will score goals, and their defense won't be as strong as we want it to be. The loss of Zach Hyman is significant. He is among the best at what he does.

Detroit Red Wings
The Red Wings have improved their goaltending (Alex Nedeljkovic), their offense (Pius Suter) and their defense (Nick Leddy and Moritz Seider). Their younger players are improving. They should take a half-step forward, although they are not a playoff team.

Montreal Canadiens
Shea Weber is likely finished. Philipp Danault went to Los Angeles. Carey Price's health status is slightly iffy. Plus, it's difficult to rediscover the magic you had during an impressive playoff run. 

Ottawa Senators
Much to like about Ottawa's collection of young talent. The Senators can bite any team that takes them lightly. But they are still at least a season away from being really ready to compete.

Buffalo Sabres
Based on the roster the Sabres have now and the expectation that they will soon move Jack Eichel, this season is going to be ugly.  Their goaltending is average, their offense will likely be anemic and their defense still needs work.

Eklund’s Picks;

Florida Panthers 
The additions of Lundell, Reinhart, and Mamin to an already deep forward core makes the Panthers 3+lines deep. A healthy return of Ekblad and what’s expected of Spencer Knight rounds this group into a true contender.

Tampa Bay Lightning
They are the two-time defending Cup Champs, but the loss of their entire energy line can not be just pushed under the rug. Throw the loss of Tyler Johnson in there and this is team that will have to re-invent themselves.

Boston Bruins
Boston has always done a great job at recognizing their needs and no team re-tools better. This off-season they signed Hall, Nosek, Foligno , Haula, Reilly and Ullmark. Even if they do lose Krejci they can rival Florida for the most depth in the division. If their top line continues to look ageless, it’s hard to see them out of the playoffs.

Montreal Canadiens
The Canadiens enter the post Shea Weber era, but at least they did address the loss by adding David Savard. The additions of Paquette, Hoffman, and Wideman are useful, but losing Danault will be hard to swallow. Is Price going to be ready by the beginning of the season? Will the coaching staff keep screwing with the younger players. Kotkaniemi, Caufield, madam Romanov are all NHL players.

Toronto Maple Leafs
It is impossible to argue that the Leafs are better off now than they were last season. There is still time to make adjustments and they will add at least a middle 6 forward. But no Hyman, and no Hyman replacement, Mrazek instead of Andersen really puts the pressure on Campbell. The Leafs depth, also of today at least, is extremely suspect.

Ottawa Senators
The Sens are one of my favorite teams to watch play and this year I can’t wait to see how Stutzle will look with a real 82 game season. Chabot is right there with Hedman for the best D in the division. With a top line whose ages are 21,22,23 the Sens could really be a wildcard.

Detroit Red Wings
The Red Wings are still a year or two away from being able to really make noise in this division. Yzerman still has to sign some key RFA’s and he could have some more tricks up his sleeve, but as of this writing the Wings are the worst in the division..by quite a bit.

Buffalo Sabres
The Sabres are clearly breaking it all down. I hesitate to put the Sabres here purely because I a huge fan of Don Granato and hate too bet against him, especially when the world is against his team.

What are your early picks?

Tomorrow…The Metro.




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