For the next four Thursdays, Sports World News will preview the 2014-15 NHL season with a division-by-division look into what fans can expect when the National Hockey League returns for another season of action in October. This week, we start with the Metropolitan Division.
The Metropolitan Division sent four teams to the playoffs and has seen a lot of personnel changes heading into the new campaign which could see some surprises. Here is a team-by-team preview of what to expect this season in the Metropolitan Division in order of how the teams finished in 2013-14.
Note: All projected line combinations are courtesy of NHL.com.
Pittsburgh Penguins (51-24-7, 109 points in 2013-14): The Penguins clinched the Metropolitan Division last season, but they once again fell flat in the playoffs, blowing a 3-1 series lead in Round 2 and losing to the Rangers. The postseason failures saw general manager Ray Shero and head coach Dan Bylsma get fired and Jim Rutherford and Mark Johnston were brought in as their respective successors.
As always, the Penguins have a great chance of once again claiming the division crown, but it's what they do in the spring that will truly judge how good the implemented changes were.
Sidney Crosby won the Hart Trophy last season, putting up a league-leading 106 points and 68 assists while adding 36 goals. Crosby is slated to be anchoring a line of Chris Kunitz (35-33--68 in 2013-14) and Pascal Dupuis (7-13--20) while Evgeni Malkin, will likely center a line of newcomer Patric Hornqvist, who was acquired after the Pens dealt James Neal to the Nashville Predators and Beau Bennett on the second unit.
Pittsburgh had some losses on the blue line, but brought in Christian Ehrhoff to align himself with Paul Martin on the top unit while Kris Letang is still a strong defensive presence in Pittsburgh's lineup.
In net, Marc-Andre Fleury needs to bounce back from inconsistencies, especially in the postseason, while he is coming off of a regular season where he finished second in the regular season with 39 victories.
For the Penguins to lift the Stanley Cup for the first time since 2009, they'll need strong and consistent play from Fleury and full commitment from their players down the stretch.
New York Rangers (45-31-6, 96 points): The Rangers were perhaps the biggest surprise last season, surviving a Game 7 with the Philadelphia Flyers and bouncing back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Penguins en route to their first Stanley Cup Final appearance in 20 years. Coming into the second year under Alain Vigneault, the Blueshirts have undergone a lot of changes since their improbable run last June.
The Rangers lost several key pieces to the team that went to the Stanley Cup Final, including Brad Richards, who was bought out and signed a contract with the Chicago Blackhawks. The Blueshirts also lost solid defenseman Anton Stralman, but the Rangers brought in Dan Boyle to replace him alongside Marc Staal on the team's second pairing while he'll also take the point on the power play that was vacated by the departure of Richards.
Rick Nash (26-13--39), Derek Stepan (17-40--57) and Chris Kreider (17-20--37) are slated to take the top line role for New York while Carl Hagelin, Derick Brassard and Martin St. Louis will round out the top-six.
Mats Zuccarello is the spark plug on a pivotal third line for the Blueshirts after leading the team with 59 points and 40 assists last season. Nash led the Rangers with 28 goals in 2013-14, but he'll have to prove he can play in the postseason if New York is to get back to where they were last year.
The Rangers defense is anchored by the likely soon-to-be captain Ryan McDonagh and the durable Dan Girardi who will lead the way along with Boyle and Staal. I
In net, Henrik Lundqvist is always a steady presence as one of the best netminders in the league and will have to be as sharp as he has been in recent years for the Rangers to get back to the Promised Land.
The Rangers will need their top veteran forwards to score more and for Lundqvist to be the backbone of the team that he always is if they are to replicate the successes of last season and take it a step further.
Philadelphia Flyers (42-30-10, 94 points): The Flyers had a relatively quiet offseason as they look to rebound after losing to the Rangers in seven games in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
One major loss for the team was Scotty Hartnell, who had 20 goals, 32 assists and 52 points last season. Hartnell was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets for R.J. Umberger, who had 18 tallies, 16 helpers and 34 points for Columbus last season.
Philadelphia's offense will once again run through Hart Trophy finalist Claude Giroux, who finished third in the NHL with 86 points and fourth with 58 assists while adding 28 goals. Giroux is projected to center the top line of Michael Raffl (9-13--22) and Jakub Voracek (23-39--62) while Jason Akeson, Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds are likely to round out the top-six.
With defensive anchor Kimmo Timonen suffering blood clots, the defense for the Flyers remains up in the air while the team brought in Nick Schultz to try and shore-up its blueline which has been questionable at times.
Steve Mason returns to the crease for Philadelphia after going 33-18-7 with a .917 save percentage and 2.50 goals-against average last year. The Flyers have a lot of talent, but they'll need to step up defensively if Timonen misses a lot of time and someone will have to help Giroux and Simmonds shoulder the load if the team is to get deep in the postseason this year.
Columbus Blue Jackets (43-32-7, 93 points): The Blue Jackets are hopeful to build off of a very successful season and will hope that the additions that they made in the offseason will help them do that. One of the biggest moves for Columbus was adding Hartnell in the trade that sent Umberger to the Flyers.
The Blue Jackets clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2008-09 last year and gave the Penguins a run for their money until eventually bowing out in the opening round of the postseason in six games.
Another key offseason move for the Blue Jackets was locking up forward Brandon Dubinsky, who was second on the team with 34 assists and added 16 goals for 50 points, which ranked third among his teammates. Columbus will look to a youth movement to help them get deeper into the playoffs this season.
Dubinsky is projected to center the second line alongside Matt Calvert and Cam Atkinson while Hartnell will play on the left side of the top line that is centered by Ryan Johansen, who led the team with 63 points off of 30 tallies and 33 helpers, and flanked by Nathan Horton if he can stay healthy.
On defense, James Wisniewski, who led the team with 44 assists and added seven goals for 51 points, will play alongside Ryan Murray while Jack Johnson and Fedor Tyutin will also log some heavy minutes.
In net, Sergei Bobrovsky will serve as the team's No. 1 goaltender and while he failed to notch a second straight Vezina Trophy last season, he had a solid campaign by going 32-20-5 with a 2.38 GAA and a .923 save percentage.
With solid goaltending and a young core in place, the Blue Jackets could very well get back into the postseason in 2014-15 and build off the crushing experience of losing in the first round. Columbus has the potential to be a dangerous team this season.
Washington Capitals (38-30-14, 90 points): Barry Trotz is the new head coach in the nation's capital and he'll look to help the Caps get back to the postseason after failing to qualify for the tournament in 2013-14. Trotz has vowed to get a complete game out of captain Alex Ovechkin and more consistency on both ends of the ice.
Ovechkin's offensive skill was in full force last season as he led the league with 51 goals, but he'll have to be a solid all-around team player if Washington is to get back into the postseason mix in 2014-15.
Ovechkin (51-28--79) is projected to play right wing on the team's top line that will be centered by Nicklas Backstrom (18-61--79) and will likely have Brooks Laich (8-7--15) on the left side. The team will be looking to find someone to fill the void left at the center position with Mikhail Grabovski departed for the New York Islanders.
On defense, Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen were given pricey contracts to defect from the Penguins, and if the two struggle at the blue line, those pacts may become even more scrutinized than they already are. Orpik will likely play alongside John Carlson on the top unit while Niskanen is projected to skate alongside Karl Alzner.
In the crease, the Caps will hope that Braden Holtby can fight off some of the inconsistencies that have plagued him after a season where he went 23-15-4 with a 2.85 GAA and a .915 save percentage.
For the Caps to compete this year, they'll have to hope that their defensive acquisitions will live up to their lofty price tags while Holtby will also have to remain consistent. The offense hinges on the ability of Ovechkin to continue to try and be more of a well-rounded player while they'll have to hope that someone steps up at center to fill the void.
New Jersey Devils (35-29-18, 86 points): The Devils will look pretty different coming off of a subpar season that saw New Jersey miss the playoffs for the second straight year as its 2012 trip to the Stanley Cup Final begins to feel more and more like a distant memory.
One of the key changes will be in the crease as Martin Brodeur is likely to sign with another team as he hunts down the 12 more victories he needs to reach 700. Cory Schneider came in to challenge Brodeur last season and significantly took away his playing time which eventually saw him get rewarded with a seven-year, $42 million extension to serve as the team's No. 1.
New Jersey brought in Scott Clemmensen to spell Schneider until Keith Kinkaid is ready. Schneider finished third in the NHL with a 1.97 GAA last season and had a 16-15-12 record along with a .921 save percentage.
The Devils also have some new faces at forward as they brought in Mike Cammalleri and Martin Havlat in through free agency. Cammalleri will likely earn himself a top-line role to play with Jaromir Jagr, who had a team-high 43 assists and 67 points along with 24 goals and center Travis Zajac (18-30--48) next season while Havlat is projected to fill a bottom-six role.
Patrik Elias (18-35--53), Adam Henrique (team-high 25 goals, 18 assists and 43 points) and Michael Ryder (18-16--34) will round out New Jersey's top-six forwards.
With Anton Volchenkov (Predators) and Mark Fayne (Oilers) gone, the Devils turn to a young defense led by Adam Larsson, who will skate alongside Andy Greene on the top unit while Bryce Salvador and Marek Zidlicky are also solid on the blue line.
The Devils are looking for a quick turnaround this season and if Schneider takes the reigns to the starting goalie job he has earned and runs with it and Jagr continues to produce at a high-level at age 42 on the team's top line, New Jersey could very well find its way back in the playoff picture for the first time since 2012
Carolina Hurricanes (36-35-11, 81 points): With the Southeast Division dissolved, the Hurricanes had a forgettable debut season in the newly realigned Metropolitan Division and new head coach Bill Peters and general manager Ron Francis will be tasked with solving the teams goal-scoring woes in 2014-15.
Considering they struggled and finished out of playoff contention by 10 points last season, it was a surprisingly quiet offseason for Carolina aside from re-signing some talent they already had and adding depth forwards. This could mean that Francis believes the talent is there and the team's offensive struggles in 2013-14 were just a blip in the radar.
Carolina's depth at forward may be an issue, and the team will need a bounce-back effort from Eric Staal if it is to compete this season. Staal led Carolina with 61 points last season, but he also finished with a minus-13 rating and failed to lead the team's power play to much success. The Hurricanes finished 28th in the league with a 14.6 percent conversion rate on the man-advantage.
Staal is projected to center the top line between Jiri Tlusty (16-14--30) and Alexander Semin (22-20--42) this season.
Eric's brother Jordan Staal (15-25--40) starts his third season with the team and will likely center the second line that is flanked by Jeff Skinner, who led the team with 33 goals last season while adding 21 assists for 54 points and Elias Lindholm (9-12--21), who played in 58 games as a rookie last year.
On defense, Andrej Sekera and Justin Faulk are slated to eat up the most minutes while Ron Hainsey and Ryan Murphy are slated as the second pair.
The goaltending situation could be interesting in Carolina as a mix of injury and inconsistency in the crease have put Cam Ward's No. 1 job in question. Ward dealt with a groin injury last season and when he was in between the pipes, he put up his worst stats in nine seasons.
Anton Khudobin was solid when he spelled Ward, going 19-14-1 with a 2.30 GAA average and a .926 save percentage that ranked fifth in the league.
If Ward struggles in training camp and the preseason, it will be interesting to see how short of a leash new coach Peters has for him once the puck drops on the regular season.
The Hurricanes stand pat approach this offseason was a bit curious with a new general manager at the helm and a rough 2013-14 campaign, but it appears as though Carolina is hopeful that it has the talent to turn around its woes.
The Hurricanes had inconsistent goaltending and scoring last season -- a recipe for disaster -- and failed to make the playoffs. If Eric Staal doesn't return to the leader he once was and the goaltending remains inconsistent, it could be another long year in Carolina as the years continue to pass since the team hoisted the puck in 2006.
New York Islanders (34-37-11, 79 points): Following a great shortened 2013 campaign where the team ended a five-year playoff drought, the Islanders weren't able to sustain the success when the NHL was back for an 82-game season last year, and they finished in last place in the Metropolitan Division. This year, the young group will look to show just how hungry they are to get back into the playoff picture in the final season at the Nassau Coliseum.
Injuries to some of its top talents cost New York down the stretch last season, but no matter who is in the lineup the team is going to have to improve on the ghastly 13 victories it won on home ice last season if the Coliseum is to go out on a high-note akin to the four consecutive Stanley Cups the Islanders celebrated from 1979-82.
No injury was more damning than the one that captain John Tavares suffered during the Sochi Olympics when playing for team Canada. Tavares sustained a partially torn MCL in the Sochi Games and was sidelined for the last 22 games of the season.
New York's captain comes into 2014-15 healthy and he finished second on the team in assists (42) and points (66) and third in goals (24) despite his lengthy absence. Garth Snow had a busy offseason, bringing in supporting pieces to add depth to the team.
Snow signed Mikhail Grabovski (13-22--35) and Nikolai Kulemin (9-11--20) to round out the team's forward unit. Snow also added goaltender Jaroslav Halak to hopefully shore up the team's issues in net.
Halak went 29-13-7 in games split between the St. Louis Blues and the Capitals last season with a 2.31 GAA and .931 save percentage.
Tavares is slated to center the top line between Brock Nelson (14-12--26) and Kyle Okposo, who led the team with 27 goals, 42 assists and 69 points last season -- all career-highs. Grabovski and Kulemin are slated to be on the second line for New York, which will feature Michael Grabner (12-14--26) on the left wing.
On defense, the Islanders top unit will be flanked by young blue liner Calvin de Haan and Travis Hamonic while Lubomir Visnovsky, who dealt with concussion issues in 2013-14, and Thomas Hickey are set to round out the top-four.
The Islanders brought in some quality depth pieces to add to their young talent and they addressed their goaltending issues in the offseason. New York could be a team to be reckoned with this season as long as everyone stays healthy and they aren't hurt by youthful mistakes.
The Metropolitan Division should be really solid this season as a lot of the teams have made improvements. The Penguins still seem to be the class of the division while the Blue Jackets and Islanders could potentially have big seasons thanks to the youth movement.
It remains to be seen if the many changes the Rangers underwent will lead them to sustained success while the Flyers could have some holes on defense. It seems like it could be a long year for the Capitals, Devils and Hurricanes if things don't break right.
Here are the predicted standings for the Metropolitan Division in 2014-15:
1) Pittsburgh Penguins
2) New York Rangers
3) Columbus Blue Jackets
4) Philadelphia Flyers
5) New York Islanders
6) Washington Capitals
7) New Jersey Devils
8) Carolina Hurricanes
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