Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Northwest Division
Northwest Division Preview:
Edmonton - The Oilers have not finished atop their division since Wayne Gretzky was on the team, but they have a chance to do so this year. Despite the loss of Chris Pronger, the Oilers are an improved team from the one that nearly won the Stanley Cup. They will now be a force offensively after adding Joffrey Lupul and Petr Sykora who are both more than capable of 30- goal seasons. Ales Hemsky and Shawn Horcoff could both be point-per-game players while Ryan Smyth, Raffi Torres, Jaret Stoll, and others all add toughness and scoring ability. The Oilers defense definately took a big hit, but should still be adequate. Matt Greene enters the season as a top-6 defender for the first time and could have a breakout season after experience gained in the playoffs. The rest of the group is solid defensively, with only Marc-Andre Bergeron a scoring threat, but Oiler forwards will get enough goals that the blueline only needs to worry about keeping them out of their own net. That task will be made that much easier now that Dwayne Roloson gives the Oilers a quality starting goaltender, which alone cost the Oilers 10 points in the standings last year. Edmonton now has the momentum from the spring and as long as they avoid a let-down, they will be in the hunt again next spring.
Calgary - The Battle of Alberta should be at its best in 15 years now that both the Flames and Oilers are potent teams once again. Calgary takes exactly the opposite approach to Edmonton, however. The Flames will hope to ride Mikka Kiprusoff again this season and rely on their tough defense to keep opponents under control. Dion Phaneuf is a star in the making, and Robyn Regehr and Rhett Warrener solidify the defense corps. The Flames got some help for Jarome Iginla over the summer by trading for Alex Tanguay. Those two and Daymond Langkow should provide a scoring line that can also play physically. After that, the Flames are loaded with players who are strong defensively even if they lack scoring ability. As long as the top line produces as they should, Calgary should be able to grind out 2-0 and 3-1 games much like last year, though that lack of offense cost them in the playoffs. They hope Tanguay will help to prevent that from happening again. The battle between them and Edmonton should be fierce and come down to the wire.
Minnesota - The Wild had a big off-season, turning themselves from an also-ran into a team capable of winning their division. They are strong in goal with Manny Fernandez the clear cut starter now that Roloson is no longer sharing duties with him. The defense was improved with the signings of Kim Johnsson and Keith Carney, but the biggest improvment was definitely at forward. The days of the trap appear to be over for the moment now that the Wild suddenly boast two capable scoring lines after Mark Parrish and Pavol Demitra were signed to compliment Marian Gaborik, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, and Brian Rolston. Coach Jaques Lemaire's demand for defensive responsibility has been ground into many of the Wild players from previous years, so as a whole they should be a very good two-way team. Minnesota made the conference finals three years ago with a lesser team than they have now, so they should not be taken lightly. They should make it back to the playoffs, and could even be considered a dark-horse pick for the Stanley Cup.
Colorado - The Avalanche, now without the services of Rob Blake and Alex Tanguay seem to be in a gradual decline, and this could well be the year they fall out of the playoffs. They still have Joe Sakic, but even he can be expected to slow down one of these days. Milan Hejduk and Marek Svatos are both snipers, but after those three there is a big drop off in skilled forwards. The one position the Avalnche did upgrade was the blueline by acquiring Jordan Leopold, but at the expense of Tanguay. John-Michael Liles provides a good power play quarterback, and Karlis Skrastins, Brett Clark, and Ossi Vaananen's defensive abilities are under-rated. But perhaps most crucial to Colorado's success is the play of Jose Theodore. If he can rediscover the magic like another goalie named Patrick Roy did when he was traded 10 years ago, the Avs are definitely a playoff contender. But if he's the Theodore that got shipped out of Montreal after they eventually got fed up with his inconsistent play, Colorado is in trouble.
Vancouver - The Canucks are in a similar situation to the Avalanche. They have four good scoring forwards in Markus Naslund, Brendan Morrison, and the Sedin's, but after that the forward position has to be a cause for concern. While guys like Matt Cooke and Trever Linden might be good role players, the Canucks are going to need scoring from somewhere, and it wont be from their grinders. The previously solid defense is now no better than average after the departure of Ed Jovanovski. Mattias Ohlund, Willie Mitchell, and Sami Salo are a decent top-3, but if any of them get injured for an extended period of time the Canucks are in trouble. Roberto Luongo is a Vezina candidate in net, but he might not be as big of an upgrade is some people suspect. Dan Cloutier, for all the flack he took, was actually a pretty decent goaltender, at least in the regular season. As a whole, GM Dave Nonis has done a pretty fine job of turning the division winner that Brian Burke left him into a team that is unlikely to make the playoffs. The distraction that was Todd Bertuzzi will not be missed, but his points undoubtedly will be, as will Anson Carter's 30 goals. Unless Luongo records 15 shutouts, the Canucks will be golfing in April.
Top 8 in the West...................... Top 8 in the East
1. San Jose ................................1. Buffalo
2. Nashville ..............................2. Carolina
3. Edmonton ............................3. Philadelphia
4. Anaheim ..............................4. Ottawa
5. Calgary ................................5. Tampa Bay
6. Minnesota ...........................6. NY Rangers
7. Dallas ..................................7. New Jersey
8. Detroit ................................8. Boston
Stanley Cup: San Jose over Buffalo
Edmonton - The Oilers have not finished atop their division since Wayne Gretzky was on the team, but they have a chance to do so this year. Despite the loss of Chris Pronger, the Oilers are an improved team from the one that nearly won the Stanley Cup. They will now be a force offensively after adding Joffrey Lupul and Petr Sykora who are both more than capable of 30- goal seasons. Ales Hemsky and Shawn Horcoff could both be point-per-game players while Ryan Smyth, Raffi Torres, Jaret Stoll, and others all add toughness and scoring ability. The Oilers defense definately took a big hit, but should still be adequate. Matt Greene enters the season as a top-6 defender for the first time and could have a breakout season after experience gained in the playoffs. The rest of the group is solid defensively, with only Marc-Andre Bergeron a scoring threat, but Oiler forwards will get enough goals that the blueline only needs to worry about keeping them out of their own net. That task will be made that much easier now that Dwayne Roloson gives the Oilers a quality starting goaltender, which alone cost the Oilers 10 points in the standings last year. Edmonton now has the momentum from the spring and as long as they avoid a let-down, they will be in the hunt again next spring.
Calgary - The Battle of Alberta should be at its best in 15 years now that both the Flames and Oilers are potent teams once again. Calgary takes exactly the opposite approach to Edmonton, however. The Flames will hope to ride Mikka Kiprusoff again this season and rely on their tough defense to keep opponents under control. Dion Phaneuf is a star in the making, and Robyn Regehr and Rhett Warrener solidify the defense corps. The Flames got some help for Jarome Iginla over the summer by trading for Alex Tanguay. Those two and Daymond Langkow should provide a scoring line that can also play physically. After that, the Flames are loaded with players who are strong defensively even if they lack scoring ability. As long as the top line produces as they should, Calgary should be able to grind out 2-0 and 3-1 games much like last year, though that lack of offense cost them in the playoffs. They hope Tanguay will help to prevent that from happening again. The battle between them and Edmonton should be fierce and come down to the wire.
Minnesota - The Wild had a big off-season, turning themselves from an also-ran into a team capable of winning their division. They are strong in goal with Manny Fernandez the clear cut starter now that Roloson is no longer sharing duties with him. The defense was improved with the signings of Kim Johnsson and Keith Carney, but the biggest improvment was definitely at forward. The days of the trap appear to be over for the moment now that the Wild suddenly boast two capable scoring lines after Mark Parrish and Pavol Demitra were signed to compliment Marian Gaborik, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, and Brian Rolston. Coach Jaques Lemaire's demand for defensive responsibility has been ground into many of the Wild players from previous years, so as a whole they should be a very good two-way team. Minnesota made the conference finals three years ago with a lesser team than they have now, so they should not be taken lightly. They should make it back to the playoffs, and could even be considered a dark-horse pick for the Stanley Cup.
Colorado - The Avalanche, now without the services of Rob Blake and Alex Tanguay seem to be in a gradual decline, and this could well be the year they fall out of the playoffs. They still have Joe Sakic, but even he can be expected to slow down one of these days. Milan Hejduk and Marek Svatos are both snipers, but after those three there is a big drop off in skilled forwards. The one position the Avalnche did upgrade was the blueline by acquiring Jordan Leopold, but at the expense of Tanguay. John-Michael Liles provides a good power play quarterback, and Karlis Skrastins, Brett Clark, and Ossi Vaananen's defensive abilities are under-rated. But perhaps most crucial to Colorado's success is the play of Jose Theodore. If he can rediscover the magic like another goalie named Patrick Roy did when he was traded 10 years ago, the Avs are definitely a playoff contender. But if he's the Theodore that got shipped out of Montreal after they eventually got fed up with his inconsistent play, Colorado is in trouble.
Vancouver - The Canucks are in a similar situation to the Avalanche. They have four good scoring forwards in Markus Naslund, Brendan Morrison, and the Sedin's, but after that the forward position has to be a cause for concern. While guys like Matt Cooke and Trever Linden might be good role players, the Canucks are going to need scoring from somewhere, and it wont be from their grinders. The previously solid defense is now no better than average after the departure of Ed Jovanovski. Mattias Ohlund, Willie Mitchell, and Sami Salo are a decent top-3, but if any of them get injured for an extended period of time the Canucks are in trouble. Roberto Luongo is a Vezina candidate in net, but he might not be as big of an upgrade is some people suspect. Dan Cloutier, for all the flack he took, was actually a pretty decent goaltender, at least in the regular season. As a whole, GM Dave Nonis has done a pretty fine job of turning the division winner that Brian Burke left him into a team that is unlikely to make the playoffs. The distraction that was Todd Bertuzzi will not be missed, but his points undoubtedly will be, as will Anson Carter's 30 goals. Unless Luongo records 15 shutouts, the Canucks will be golfing in April.
Top 8 in the West...................... Top 8 in the East
1. San Jose ................................1. Buffalo
2. Nashville ..............................2. Carolina
3. Edmonton ............................3. Philadelphia
4. Anaheim ..............................4. Ottawa
5. Calgary ................................5. Tampa Bay
6. Minnesota ...........................6. NY Rangers
7. Dallas ..................................7. New Jersey
8. Detroit ................................8. Boston
Stanley Cup: San Jose over Buffalo
Comments:
<< Home
barbour, moncler outlet, vans, moncler, wedding dresses, supra shoes, moncler, louis vuitton, converse, moncler, pandora uk, marc jacobs, canada goose jackets, ugg, nike air max, louis vuitton, ray ban, louis vuitton, louis vuitton, thomas sabo, gucci, moncler uk, swarovski crystal, hollister, canada goose outlet, montre pas cher, juicy couture outlet, pandora jewelry, ugg,ugg australia,ugg italia, barbour uk, canada goose, hollister, lancel, pandora charms, coach outlet, canada goose uk, canada goose outlet, ugg,uggs,uggs canada, ugg uk, ugg pas cher, pandora jewelry, juicy couture outlet, swarovski, louis vuitton, links of london, replica watches, canada goose, moncler, canada goose outlet, converse outlet, doudoune moncler, toms shoes, canada goose
adidas stan smith
oakley sunglasses
canada goose outlet
burberry outlet
ray ban sunglasses
christian louboutin outlet
canada goose outlet
north face clearance
canada goose sale
ralph lauren
201711.8wengdongdong
oakley sunglasses
canada goose outlet
burberry outlet
ray ban sunglasses
christian louboutin outlet
canada goose outlet
north face clearance
canada goose sale
ralph lauren
201711.8wengdongdong
cheap wedding dresses
ugg boots clearance
lunette oakley
adidas superstar
ai max
nike free run
ugg australia
true religion outlet
sac vanessa bruno
mulberry handbags
2017.11.30chenlixiang
Post a Comment
ugg boots clearance
lunette oakley
adidas superstar
ai max
nike free run
ugg australia
true religion outlet
sac vanessa bruno
mulberry handbags
2017.11.30chenlixiang
<< Home
