CarterHud

           After another Metropolitan division victory, the Washington Capitals finally pulled through and won the Stanley Cup. Alex Ovechkin scored about 50 goals again. Evgeny Kuznetsov was a point-per-game player. And, they re-signed John Carlson. Before we look at their roster, here\’s some fast facts for the Washington Capitals.

Head Coach: Todd Reirdan
General Manager: Brian McLellan
Arena: Capital One Arena
AHL Affiliate: Hershey Bears
2017-18 record: 49-26-7 (105 points)
2017-18 placement: 1st
Division: Metropolitan
2017-18 goals leader: Alex Ovechkin (49)
2017-18 assists leader: Evgeny Kuznetsov (56)
2017-18 points leader: Alex Ovechkin (87)
2017-18 points leader (defensemen): John Carlson (68)
Captain: Alex Ovechkin
Assistant Captains: Nicklas Backstrom, Brooks Orpik
2018 first round pick: Alex Alexeyev

Offseason additions: Nic Dowd

Offseason subtractions: Phillip Grubauer, Jay Beagle, Alex Chiasson, Jakub Jerabek

Forwards: Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom are locks for 70 points when healthy, but TJ Oshie is coming off a year without 50 points. Lars Eller is coming off a season with nearly 20 goals. Jakub Vrana and Alex Burakovsky underperformed, and need to get 20 goals this year.

Forward lines:

Alex Ovechkin – Nicklas Backstrom – TJ Oshie
Jakub Vrana – Evgeny Kuznetsov – Devante Smith-Pelly
Andre Burakovsky – Lars Eller – Brett Connolly
Chandler Stephenson – Nic Dowd – Tom Wilson

Defensemen: John Carlson is coming off a season with nearly 70 points. Dmitry Orlov added 10 goals. Matt Niskanen is falling off, but Madison Bowey and Christian Djoos are rising. It is a good squad.

Defensive pairs:

Dmitry Orlov – John Carlson
Christian Djoos – Matt Niskanen
Madison Bowey – Michal Kempny
Other: Brooks Orpik

Goalies: Phillip Grubauer is gone, but Braden Holtby is still one of the league\’s best goalies. They are hoping that Pheonix Copley can bridge the gap until Ilya Samsonov is ready.

Goalie alignment:

Braden Holtby
Pheonix Copley
Other: Ilya Samsonov

Predictions:

Top five scorers:

Evgeny Kuznetsov
Alex Ovechkin
Nicklas Backstrom
TJ Oshie
John Carlson

Playoffs: Yes
Division: 2nd

I think the Washington Capitals will be eliminated in the first round of the playoffs.

               In their first season of existing, the Vegas Golden Knights surprised everybody, and won the Pacific division, but their Cinderella story ended when they lost in the Stanley Cup finals. Before we look at their team, here\’s some fast facts for the Vegas Golden Knights.

Head Coach: Gerard Gallant
General Manager: George McPhee
Arena: T-Mobile Arena
AHL Affiliate: Chicago Wolves
2017-18 record: 51-24-7 (109 points)
2017-18 placement: 1st
Division: Pacific
2017-18 goals leader: William Karlsson (43)
2017-18 assists leader: David Perron (50)
2017-18 points leader: William Karlsson (78)
2017-18 points leader (defensemen): Colin Miller (41)
Captain: None
Assistant Captains: Pierre-Edouard Bellmare, Deryk Engelland, Reilly Smith
2018 first round pick: None, selected Ivan Morozov 61st overall

Offseason additions: Max Pacioretty, Paul Stastny, Nick Holden, Dan Carr

Offseason subtractions: James Neal, David Perron, Tomas Tatar, Luca Sbisa, Nick Suzuki, Jason Garrison, Clayton Stoner

Forwards: James Neal and David Perron and Tomas Tatar are all out, and the only one to replace them is Max Pacioretty. Alex Tuch had a good rookie season. There is hope that Ryan Carpenter, Tomas Nosek and Ryan Reaves can step it up, and that Erik Haula can score nearly 30 goals again.

Forward lines:

Jonathan Marchessault – William Karlsson – Reilly Smith
Max Pacioretty – Paul Stastny – Alex Tuch
Tomas Nosek – Erik Haula – Ryan Carpenter
Pierre-Edouard Bellmare – Cody Eakin – Ryan Reaves
Other:  Dan Carr, Oscar Lindberg, Will Carrier

Defensemen: Nate Schmidt\’s suspension will hurt. Shea Theodore had a good rookie season, and Colin Miler lead Vegas defensemen in points. The rest is a little shaky, as Brayden McNabb, Nick Holden and Deryk Engelland are aging. Nic Hague and Erik Brannstrom are still at least a year away.

Defensive pairs:

Shea Theodore – Colin Miller
Brayden McNabb – Deryk Engelland
Nick Holden – Jon Merrill
Other: Brad Hunt
Suspended: Nate Schmidt

Goalies: Marc-Andre Fleury showed that he was an all-star goalie. The early season goalie saga showed the team a lot about their backups. Malcolm Subban is first, Oscar Dansk is next.

Goalies:

Marc-Andre Fleury
Malcolm Subban
Other: Oscar Dansk

Predictions:

Top five scorers:

Jonathan Marchessault
William Karlsson
Max Pacioretty
Reilly Smith
Alex Tuch
Erik Haula

Playoffs: Yes
Division: 2nd

I think the Vegas Golden Knights will be eliminated in the second round of the playoffs.

              As the 2017-18 season ended, the Vancouver Canucks saw their team get even worse, as Henrik and Daniel Sedin announced their retirement. But, it gives them a chance to look towards Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser and others to expand their farm system. It\’s a dark time in Vancouver. Let\’s look at some fast facts for the Canucks.

Head Coach: Travis Green
General Manager: Jim Benning
Arena: Rogers Arena
AHL Affiliate: Utica Comets
2017-18 record: 31-40-11 (73 points)
2017-18 placement: 7th
Division: Pacific
2017-18 goals leader: Brock Boeser (29)
2017-18 assists leader: Henrik Sedin (47)
2017-18 points leader: Brock Boeser, Daniel Sedin (55)
2017-18 points leader (defensemen): Alex Edler (34)
Captain: None
Assistant Captains: Alex Edler, Chris Tanev, Brandon Sutter, Michael Del Zotto
2018 first round pick: Quinn Hughes

Offseason additions: Jay Beagle, Antoine Roussel, Tim Schaller

Offseason subtractions: Henrik Sedin, Daniel Sedin, Jussi Jokinen, Derek Dorsett, Nic Dowd, Darren Archibald, Patrick Wiercioch

Forwards: With Bo Horvat, Sven Baertschi and Brock Boeser moving up to the first line, Elias Petterson and Nikolay Goldbin take their spots on the second line. Veterans Loui Eriksson and Brandon Sutter need to step it up, as they combined for just 21 goals last year. The fourth line is tight, with Jake Virtanen, Tim Schaller, Adam Gaudette and Markus Granlund fighting for two spots.

Forward lines:

Sven Baertschi – Bo Horvat – Brock Boeser
Nikolay Goldobin – Elias Pettersson – Loui Eriksson
Markus Granlund – Brandon Sutter – Sam Gagner
Antoine Roussel – Jay Beagle – Jake Virtanen
Other: Adam Gaudette, Tim Schaller, Brendan Leipsic

Defensemen: Alex Edler and Chris Tanev combine for the league\’s worst top pair. Olli Juolevi might finally make the team. Erik Gudbranson is actually fighting for his job, with Derrick Pouliot. It isn\’t a good core.

Defensive pairs:

Alex Edler – Chris Tanev
Michael Del Zotto – Olli Juolevi
Ben Hutton – Erik Gudbranson
Other: Derrick Pouliot, Troy Stecher

Goalies: Jacob Markstrom is still the starter, but Thatcher Demko is coming for him. It will be Demko\’s job next year.

Goalie alignment:

Jacob Markstrom
Anders Nilsson
Other: Thatcher Demko

Predictions:

Top five scorers:

Brock Boeser
Bo Horvat
Sven Baertschi
Elias Pettersson
Sam Gagner

Playoffs: No
Division: 8th

             After blowing game seven in the first round of the playoffs, the Toronto Maple Leafs rebounded, signing John Tavares, but losing James van Riemsdyk. Finally a good team, ket\’s look at some fast facts for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Head Coach: Mike Babcock
General Manager: Kyle Dubas
Arena: Scotiabank Arena
AHL Affiliate: Toronto Marlies
2017-18 record: 49-26-7 (105 points)
2017-18 placement: 3rd
Division: Atlantic
2017-18 goals leader: James van Riemsdyk (36)
2017-18 assists leader: Mitch Marner, Jake Gardiner (47)
2017-18 points leader: Mitch Marner (69)
2017-18 points leader (defensemen): Jake Gardiner, Morgan Reilly (52)
Captain: None
Assistant Captains: Patrick Marleau, Morgan Reilly, John Tavares
2018 first round pick: Rasmus Sandin

Offseason additions: John Tavares, Tyler Ennis, Josh Jooris

Offseason subtractions: James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak, Leo Komarov, Roman Polak, Matt Martin, Tomas Plekanec, Dominic Moore

Forwards: John Tavares and Auston Matthews form one of the best center duos in the league. Mitch Marner and William Nylander play alongside both of them. Andreas Johnsson and Carl Grundstrom are two rookies making their rookie seasons. There is a lot of good, young players that can score.

Forward lines:

Patrick Marleau – Auston Matthews – Mitch Marner
Zach Hyman – John Tavares – William Nylander
Andreas Johnsson – Nazem Kadri – Kasperi Kapanen
Josh Leivo – Carl Grundstrom – Connor Brown
Other: Par Lindholm, Tyler Ennis

Defensemen: Jake Gardiner and Morgan Reilly both finished with 52 points, but with Gardiner entering a contract year, it will be interesting to see how it plays out. Ron Hainsey is fighting with Andreas Borgman for a spot. Nikita Zaitsev and Travis Dermott seem to be pretty safe.

Defensive pairs:

Morgan Reilly – Ron Hainsey
Jake Gardiner – Travis Dermott
Nikita Zaitsev – Connor Carrick
Other: Andreas Borgman

Goalies: Entering his third year as starter, Frederik Andersen is arguably a top 15 goalie. Curtis McElhinney is still his backup, but Garrett Sparks isn\’t far behind.

Goalie alignment:

Frederik Andersen
Curtis McElhinney
Other: Garrett Sparks

Predictions:

Top five scorers:

Auston Matthews
John Tavares
Mitch Marner
William Nylander
Morgan Reilly

Playoffs: Yes
Division: 3rd
I think the Maple Leafs will be eliminated in the first round.

           In what ended up as one of the best regular seasons in team history, the Tampa Bay Lightning ended up going to the third round of the playoffs, but fell to the Washington Capitals. They followed that up by not doing anything in the offseason. Before we look at their team, here\’s some fast facts for the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Head Coach: Jon Cooper
General Manager: Julien BriseBois
Arena: Amalie Arena
AHL Affiliate: Syracuse Crunch
2017-18 record: 54-23-5 (113 points)
2017-18 placement: 1st
Division: Atlantic
2017-18 goals leader: Nikita Kucherov (39)
2017-18 assists leader: Nikita Kucherov (61)
2017-18 points leader: Nikita Kucherov (100)
2017-18 points leader (defensemen): Victor Hedman (63)
Captain: Steven Stamkos
Assistant Captains: Ondrej Palat, Ryan Callahan
2018 first round pick: None, picked Gabriel Fortier 59th overall

Offseason additions: Andy Andreoff

Offseason subtractions: Chris Kunitz, Andrej Sustr, Matthew Peca, Peter Budaj

Forwards: Nikita Kucherov broke out in 2017-18, showing that he is a superstar. He and Steven Stamkos combined for 186 points on the top line. Brayden Point also broke out, showing he could be a second line center. Yanni Gourde scored an impressive 25 goals as a rookie. JT Miller returns, after being nearly a point per game player after a trade from New York. Anthony Cirelli makes his rookie season, after an impressive 18 games last year.

Forward lines:

Ondrej Palat – Steven Stamkos – Nikita Kucherov
JT Miller – Brayden Point – Tyler Johnson
Alex Killorn – Anthony Cirelli – Yanni Gourde
Adam Erne – Cedric Paquette – Andy Andreoff
Other: Cory Conacher
Injured: Ryan Callahan

Defensemen: Victor Hedman is coming off a Norris winning season. He\’s also got Anton Stralman and Ryan McDonagh with him. Mikhail Sergachev is looking to avoid a sophomore slump. With vets Dan Girardi and Braydon Coburn on the bottom pair, this is one good core.

Defensive pairs:

Victor Hedman – Mikhail Sergachev
Ryan McDonagh – Anton Stralman
Dan Girardi – Braydon Coburn
Other: Slater Koekkoek

Goalies: Andrei Vasilevskiy had an amazing 2017-18 season. The Lightning believe in Louis Domingue to be his backup.

Goalie alignment:

Andrei Vasilevskiy
Louis Domingue

Predictions:

Top five scorers:

Nikita Kucherov
Steven Stamkos
Ondrej Palat
Victor Hedman
JT Miller

Playoffs: Yes
Division: 1st

I think the Tampa Bay Lightning will be eliminated in the Stanley Cup finals.