The NHL Season is across the corner on the North American side of the water. Latest Jersey and Buffalo kicked the season off in Prague with the Global Series. Training camps and the preseason are almost done. This summer, there have been changes throughout the divisions as some top stars found latest homes.
NHL Rumors: Who Will Make The Biggest Splash within the Metro Division?
There may be all the time hope at first of a brand new season. The highest teams concentrate on winning the Stanley Cup. Those within the rebuilding phase look to be competitive so long as they’ll and show progress. Even when every team desires to win the Stanley Cup, there can only be one winner.
As NHLRumors.com has done over the past couple of seasons, we are going to preview the Eastern and Western Conferences, rating teams in each of the 4 divisions. Let’s welcome the brand new season by taking a look at the Metro Division first.
NHL Metro Division Rankings
1. Latest York Rangers (Last 12 months finished First)Â
The Latest York Rangers won the NHL Metro Division last 12 months with a record-setting pacing season. Additionally they won the President’s Trophy but lost to the Florida Panthers within the Eastern Conference Final.
NHL Rumors: The Latest on Latest York Rangers pending UFA goaltender Igor Shesterkin
Rangers GM Chris Drury didn’t do much within the offseason because the Jacob Trouba contract handcuffed the team. He traded for Reilly Smith to potentially fill in on the highest line with Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad. They hope Kaapo Kakko, who signed a one-year deal, can do this. Alexis Lafreniere stays with Artemi Panarin and Vicent Trocheck. Nonetheless, the Ranger’s success rides on Panarin and his health.
Ryan Lindgren, who signed a one-year deal, can be out injured, but apart from that, the Rangers signed guys which might be depth players. The large contract talk is whether or not the Rangers will sign Igor Shesterkin to a long-term deal. Not to say have the cap space for the next season to pay a few of their core players.
Nonetheless, the Rangers and Devils will battle for the highest spot within the NHL Metro Division. We’re to not sure the Rangers have as many points as they did last season.
2. Latest Jersey Devils (Last 12 months finished Seventh)Â
The Latest Jersey Devils have gotten their season underway in Prague against the Buffalo Sabres. Devils President and GM Tom Fitzgerald knew his team needed to be higher than a 12 months ago. As he said, perhaps he got too complacent. Nonetheless, after a disappointing season result, Fitzgerald went to work.
NHL Rumors: How the Latest Jersey Devils Landed Sheldon Keefe
After firing Lindy Ruff and replacing him with Travis Green, he decided to go and get Sheldon Keefe, who was let go by the Toronto Maple Leafs. After that, he acquired his number on goalie Jacob Markstrom, who looked good in game one in every of the season.
From there, he revamped the Devils to be tougher to play against, adding size in Brett Pesce, Johnathan Kovacevic, Brenden Dillon, Stefan Noesen, and Tomas Tatar. He also traded for Paul Cotter. Plus, the Devils have a healthy Dougie Hamilton to go along with Luke Hughes, Simon Nemec, and Seamus Casey.
Fitzgerald turned back the clock to 2 seasons ago when the Devils were a tricky team to play against. The Devils weren’t going to be pushed around this season, and everybody expects them to be within the playoffs, with Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier leading the way in which, even with learning a brand new system.
3. Carolina Hurricanes (Last 12 months finished Second)Â
The Carolina Hurricanes will take a small step back within the NHL Metro Division this season. They lost key pieces on defense including Pesce and Brady Skjei. They brought in Sean Walker and Shayne Gostisbehere to exchange those that departed on the blue line.
NHL News: Canucks, Islanders, Jets, Sens, Hurricanes, Penguins, Blue Jackets, Devils, and Utah
Expect the Hurricanes to play with that very same edge with Rod Brind’Amour behind the bench. If there may be a team that plays to their coach’s identity, it’s the Hurricanes. It can be interesting to see how they deploy Martin Necas now that he signed that latest deal. Jack Drury is predicted to step up, and it seems like that is Seth Jarvis‘s team, regardless that Sebastian Aho continues to be there.
They added Jack Roslovic to exchange Jake Guentzel, who was traded to Tampa Bay before free agency. The Canes is not going to be as explosive as they were, but Andrei Svechnikov and others can still put pucks in the online. The query is, will Pyotr Kochetkov finally take more games away from Frederik Andersen?
4. Washington Capitals (Last 12 months finished Fourth)Â
Some people scratch their heads after they see this, which is okay. Nonetheless, the Washington Capitals might be a sleeper within the NHL Metro Division this season. Many individuals don’t expect them to loaf around like they did last 12 months. Nonetheless, the moves they made this offseason say in another way.
The Washington Capitals Impressed Former Coach This Offseason
Washington added Logan Thompson to go along with Charlie Lindgren. They traded Jakob Chychrun and lost Nick Jensen. Washington also added Andrew Mangiapane, Matt Roy, and Pierre-Luc Dubois.
And PLD might be the X-factor here. If he lives as much as the potential of that contract he signed with the Los Angeles Kings before being traded to Washington, the Capitals found their substitute for Nicklas Backstrom.
Washington still has Sonny Milano, Dylan Strome, and Connor McMichael, as they began their retooling on the fly sooner than their rival. They’ll have LTIR cap space with T.J. Oshie, who is predicted to miss the complete 12 months. The Capitals might be loads higher than most think.
5. Latest York Islanders (Last 12 months finished Third)Â
The Latest York Islanders. What can we are saying concerning the Islanders? Look, this team is all the time so hard to predict. They’re in a category of their very own. And each 12 months after we talk concerning the Islanders, the one thing that all the time comes up is goal scoring.
NHL Injuries: Blue Jackets, Canadiens, Islanders, Rangers, Senators, Penguins, and Jets
Can this team rating enough goals to win? And each 12 months, the reply is not any. This 12 months is not any different, even with the addition of Anthony Duclair. We all know what Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal can do. Brock Nelson all the time consistently scores 30 goals. Nonetheless, the Islanders are an older team, and Kyle Palmieri is streaky.
Now, the players can have a full off-season under Patrick Roy, and you possibly can never underestimate Roy’s ability to educate. Noah Dobson helps on the backend, together with two elite goalies, Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov.
But this division is hard and so they have to overcome the Capitals, who appear to have their number.
6. Pittsburgh Penguins (Last 12 months finished Fifth)Â
It’ll be a tricky 12 months for the Pittsburgh Penguins. They appear prone to miss the playoffs for a 3rd straight season. We all know Sidney Crosby is coming back for at the very least two more seasons. Nonetheless, the Penguins are the oldest team within the NHL.
Will Sidney Crosby Play within the Playoffs Again with the Pittsburgh Penguins
Their rebuild must have began years ago after they could have chosen Kris Letang or Evgeni Malkin, not each. Nonetheless, ownership wants management to construct around Letang, Crosby, and Malkin for another crack on the Stanley Cup. Unfortunately, that isn’t happening. Not with the additions they made
Kevin Hayes is player but past his prime. Rutger McGroarty has the potential to be Jake Guentzel 2.0. Anthony Beauvillier is a serviceable player. Matt Grzelcyk is what he’s. There may be just nothing that stands out. And if Tristan Jarry can’t stop the puck, the Penguins are going nowhere.
7. Philadelphia Flyers (Last 12 months finished Sixth)Â
The Philadelphia Flyers were a surprise team within the NHL Metro Division last season. They were within the playoff mix right up until the tip. Nonetheless, everyone knew they weren’t making it.
The Philadelphia Flyers Could Be A Surprise Team Next Season
There may be lots of hype surrounding the Flyers this season with Matvei Michkov on the roster. He got out of the KHL deal and immediately got here to the Flyers. He suits in with Owen Tippett, Bobby Brink, and Morgan Frost. The Flyers have some nice young pieces, including two in between the pipes in Ivan Fedotov and Aleksei Kolosov, to go along with Samuel Ersson.
Travis Konecny signed a brand new eight-year extension with Philadelphia this off-season. Let’s see what head coach John Tortorella can get out of his group this season. With so many teams improving just like the Devils, it’ll be interesting to see where teams land within the standings this season.
8. Columbus Blues Jackets (Last 12 months finished Eighth)Â
This will probably be hard to write down, and let’s be honest: The Columbus Blue Jackets can have a difficult season this 12 months. Johnny Gaudreau‘s tragic passing has sent this team right into a tailspin that’s so hard to recuperate from. We are going to never know what might have been with Gaudreau and Sean Monahan. There was lots of hope and potential. Unfortunately, one in every of them was taken way too soon.
NHL Rumors: Philadelphia Flyers, and the Columbus Blue Jackets
The team on the ice continues to be young. Dean Evason is the brand new bench boss in Columbus. He expects his team to perform at a high level. Look, there are good pieces: Kent Johnson, Adam Fantilli, Monahan, Boone Jenner, Kirill Marchenko, David Jiricek, Zach Werenski, Ivan Provorov, and Damon Severson.
The query is, can they get a stop from Elvis Merzlikins? There may be some veteran assistance on the roster, too. But it’ll be an uphill climb. The one good thing is the outdoor door game on the Shoe on Ohio State’s Campus against Detroit. This will probably be a tricky 12 months in Columbus.
Â
