CarterHud

 The Philadelphia Flyers weren\’t a huge team this off-season but they made some moves. They lost forwards Sam Gagner (CBJ) and Ryan White (ARI) but replaced them with the signings of Dale Weise and Boyd Gordon. Both are solid penalty killers with Gordon being an amazing faceoff man and Weise can also add some scoring to the table. When defenseman Evgeny Medvedev signed with the KHL, the Flyers didn\’t need to sign anybody because former first round pick Ivan Provorov is going to make the team.      
     Forwards Claude Giroux, Jakub Voracek, Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds lead a solid offense. Forward Travis Konecny, 19, is looking to have a dominate rookie season playing with Voracek. Also, Calder finalist (best rookie) and powerplay specialist Shayne Gostisbehere leads a defense that can use work. Provorov, also 19,  adds youth to an aging defensive core. Goalies Michal Neuvirth and Steve Mason are both in their prime at age 28 and are solid goalies.
     In the first round of the 2016 NHL draft, the Flyers selected C German Rubstov with the 22nd overall pick. Rubstov can be a solid second line center behind Claude Giroux or he can be moved to the wing.
 The Flyers projected lines look like this:

 Brayden Schenn (Supended)- Claude Giroux- Wayne Simmonds
 Travis Konecny- Sean Couturier- Jakub Voracek
 Michael Raffl- Pierre-Edouard Bellmare- Dale Weise
 Chris VandeVelde- Nick Cousins- Matt Read

On defense is:
 Shayne Gostisbehere- Andrew MacDonald
 Ivan Provorov- Radko Gudas (Suspended)
 Brandon Manning- Mark Streit
 Steve Mason and Michal Neuvirth are in net. D Nick Schultz and F Boyd Gordon are scratched and F Scott Laughton and D Michael Del Zotto are injured.

     Finally, for my prediction, the Philadelphia Flyers, a team slowly on the rise, will make the playoffs in 2016-17.
 

 The Ottawa Senators were involved in the NHL\’s 3rd biggest trade in the off-season when they sent C Mika Zibanejad to the Rangers in exchange for C Derick Brassard. Brassard is a better player right now but Zibanejad should have a better future than Brassard being the younger player. Besides that, not much happened. The only notable player they lost was defenseman Patrick Wiercoich who signed a 2 year deal with Colorado. They also added C Chris Kelly, who signed a one year deal.
     Defenseman Erik Karlsson is definitely the most offensive defenseman in the league and arguably the best all-around defenseman in the league. C Kyle Turris, RW Bobby Ryan, LW Mike Hoffman and RW Mark Stone lead a potent offense which should not have trouble scoring this year. Behind Karlsson, Dion Phaneuf, Mark Methot and Cody Ceci are all solid defensemen. Goaltenders Craig Anderson and Andrew Hammond are aging which means that Ottawa needs to win now.
    In the first round of the 2016 NHL draft, before the New Jersey Devils were about to select someone with the 11th overall pick, Ottawa then traded the 12th overall pick (which was theirs) and a third round pick for the 11th pick. Ottawa then drafted C Logan Brown with the 11th pick. Brown\’s a big center (6.6) and can go along with some of Ottawa\’s wingers.
 The Senators\’ projected lines look like this:

 Mike Hoffman- Kyle Turris- Bobby Ryan
 Ryan Dzingel- Derick Brassard- Mark Stone
 Jean-Gabriel Pageau- Zack Smith- Curtis Lazar
 Matt Puempel- Chris Kelly- Chris Neil

On defense is:
 Dion Phaneuf- Erik Karlsson
 Marc Methot- Cody Ceci
 Thomas Chabot- Chris Wideman
 In net is Craig Anderson and Andrew Hammond. C Tom Pyatt, C Phil Varone and D Mark Borowiecki are scratched and LW Clarke MacArthur is injured.

  Finally for my prediction, the Ottawa Senators, a win now team but a team on the rise will not make the playoffs in 2016-17.

     

The New York Rangers were involved in the NHL\’s 3rd biggest trade this off-season when they sent C Derick Brassard to Ottawa in exchange for C Mika Zibanejad. Zibanejad only had a few less points last year than Brassard and is much younger. The Rangers also acquired former Hobey Baker winner (best college hockey player) Jimmy Vesey when Vesey signed an entry level deal with the Rangers in August. They acquired depth players in defenseman Adam Clendening and Nick Holden. They also acquired forwards Michael Grabner, Josh Jooris and Brandon Pirri.
      RW Kevin Hayes, LW Chris Kreider, C J.T. Miller and C/LW Oscar Lindberg are all looking to have solid years this year. Also, LW Rick Nash is looking to have a rebound year after scoring 42 goals in 2014-15 and only getting 15 last year. Captain Ryan McDonagh, Dan Giradi, Marc Staal and Kevin Klein lead an aging defensive core. Goalie Henrik Lundqvist is still a top 5 goalie but at age 34 the question is if he can still perform like a top 5 goalie. Backup Antti Raanta is in his second season with the Rangers after a decent first year. The Rangers did not have a first round pick in the 2016 NHL draft.

The Rangers\’ projected lines look like this:
 Chris Kreider- Derek Stepan- Mats Zuccarello
 J.T. Miller- Mika Zibanejad- Rick Nash
 Jimmy Vesey- Kevin Hayes- Jesper Fast
 Josh Jooris- Oscar Lindberg- Michael Grabner

 On defense is:
 Ryan McDonagh- Dan Girardi
 Marc Staal- Kevin Klein
 Nick Holden- Dylan McIlrath
 Henrik Lundqist and Antti Raanta are in net. F Brandon Pirri and D Adam Clendening are scratched.

     Finally, for my prediction, the New York Rangers, a win now team with an uncertain future, will make the playoffs in 2016-17.

 The New York Islanders\’ off-season was like no other. They lost 3 major free agents in C Frans Nielson (DET), RW Kyle Okposo (BUF) and LW Matt Martin (TOR). To replace them, the Isles signed LW Andrew Ladd to a 7 year deal and LW Jason Chimera to a 2 year deal. RW P.A. Parenteau returns to the Isles on a one year deal. Ladd might be a left winger but he\’s still a solid replacement for Okposo. Chimera is a solid replacement for Martin on the infamous 4th line with Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck. To replace Nielson, the Isles will need Ryan Strome to have a bounce-back year or C Matthew Barzal to have a good rookie season. LW Anthony Beauvillier is also making a push to make the team this year and prospects Michael Dal Colle and Josh Ho-Sang are still coming up in the system.
     Defenseman Ryan Pulock is looking to have a nice full season after playing a little of last season. Defenseman Brian Strait went to Winnipeg so the spot for Pulock is open. The Isles also acquired D Dennis Seidenberg. Captain John Tavares remains as one of the league\’s best players and Nick Leddy and Johnny Boychuk lead a solid defensive core. The goaltending is a little shaky with Thomas Greiss and Jaroslav Halak fighting for a starting spot. In the first round of the 2016 NHL draft, the Islanders selected LW Kieffer Bellows with the 19th overall pick. Bellows adds scoring and a little bit of grit to a future Islanders\’ lineup. Bellows should play with either Matthew Barzal, Ryan Strome or Brock Nelson in the future.
The Islanders\’ projected lines look like this:
 Andrew Ladd- John Tavares- Ryan Strome
 Anders Lee- Brock Nelson- Josh Bailey
 Nikolay Kulemin- Matthew Barzal- Anthony Beauvillier
 Jason Chimera- Casey Cizikas- Cal Clutterbuck

On defense is:
 Nick Leddy- Johnny Boychuk
 Calvin de Haan- Travis Hamonic
 Thomas Hickey- Ryan Pulock
 Jaroslav Halak and Thomas Greiss are in net.

D Dennis Seidenberg, C Alan Quine and C Shane Prince are scratched and Mikhail Grabovski is injured.  Plus after 9 games G Jean-Francois Berube will be called up if Beauvillier and Barzal are sent back to juniors.
 Finally, for my prediction, the New York Islanders, a team slowly on the rise, will make the playoffs in 2016-17.

     The New Jersey Devils were involved in a huge trade this off-season when they acquired LW Taylor Hall in exchange for only defenseman Adam Larsson. Larsson was a solid defenseman for New Jersey but Hall\’s impact offensively should boost this New Jersey team. New Jersey had a lot of contracts up this year but the players they didn\’t sign were not that important. The notable ones are the losses of Bobby Farnham (MTL), Jordin Tootoo (CHI), and Stephen Gionta (PTO w/ NYI). Patrick Elias and Tyler Kennedy are all still available in free agency. RW Vernon Fiddler was signed to be a fourth liner. They also signed defensemen Ben Lovejoy (3 years), Kyle Quincey (1 year) and Brandon Gormley (1 year) for depth.
     Captain Andy Greene and youngster Damon Severson lead a defensive core which can always be better. Hall, RW Kyle Palmieri and C Adam Henrique can make a pretty filthy line.  New Jersey\’s all-time point leader Patrik Elias remains unsigned but might come back at age 41. Cory Schneider is undoubtedly a top 5 goalie while Keith Kinkaid and Scott Wedgewood will fight for a backup spot.
     In the first round of the 2016 NHL draft, the Devils selected C Michael McLeod with the 12th overall pick. They decided to move back a spot after trading the 11th pick to Ottawa for the 12th overall pick and a third rounder. By doing that, they missed out on C Logan Brown, who I think will have a better future but McLeod will be pretty solid soon.
The Devils\’ projected lines look like this:

 Taylor Hall- Adam Henrique- Beau Bennett
 Michael Cammalleri- Travis Zajac- Kyle Palmieri
 Reid Boucher- Pavel Zacha- Devante Smith-Pelly
 Sergey Kalinin- Jacob Josefson- Vernon Fiddler

On defense is:
      Andy Greene- Damon Severson
      John Moore- Steven Santini
      Kyle Quincey- Ben Lovejoy
     Cory Schneider and Keith Kinkaid are in net. G Scott Wedgewood, LW Luke Gazdic and D Jon Merill are scratched and C Marc Savard is injured.
 Finally, for my prediction, the New Jersey Devils, a team slowly on the rise will not make the playoffs in 2016-17.