FD19372 Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 I am picking the Blue Jackets as my comeback team in the East. The acquisition of Brendan Saad gives them grit, leadership, experience and the speed and knack for the net that they need. His skating will be a good compliment to Nick Foligno's size and strength. This should allow Ryan Johansen to become more aggressive and should lead to more goals from him. The steady and physical play of Jack Johnson should continue on the blueline, helping them defensively, as should the development of Feder Tyutin into a very good all-around dman. I expect Bobrovsky to be a strong contender for the Vezina, and benefit from the better defensive play in front of him. I pick them to finsh 5th in the East. In the West, I think the LA Kings will be the team having the biggest bounce back season. Not every team would benefit from acquiring Milan Lucic, but I think the Kings are one. I think he will be hungry on a new team, and play with a chip on his shoulder (as will much of his team). The acquisition of Lucic won't make them a top-tier offense, but it will make them middle of the pack, so that they don't have to win every game 2-1. I think he will create space for Gaborik, who will score 30+ this season for the first time in 4 seasons. Dustin Brown will continue his solid all-around play, and Carter should also give them around 30 goals. The acquisition of Christian Ehrhoff gives them a very good skater on the blueline who can take the bulk of the offensive work and pressure off of Doughty, and will improve their PP, which was not bad, 9th in the league last season. They have to much moreso improve their PK which was 16th. Jonathan Quick had a very good season last year, and wasn't responsible for the Kings collapse last season. He should continue to be strong in net, and steal a few games for them. My pick is for them to finish 4th in the West. Thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 @FD19372 The Blue Jackets and Florida Panthers will rise in the East, I'm sure of it. Both have strong leadership, a solid back end, elite young forwards....things looking up for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unleashed Fury Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 I really think the Buffalo Sabres are poised for a big improvement. I mean they only won 23 games last year, but I see a 15-20 game improvement from last year. They even could be on the fringe of making the playoffs if they end up with 43 wins. I know one thing I really doubt the Sabres will have a worse record then last season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J0e Th0rnton Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 I am picking the Blue Jackets as my comeback team in the East. The acquisition of Brendan Saad gives them grit, leadership, experience and the speed and knack for the net that they need. His skating will be a good compliment to Nick Foligno's size and strength. This should allow Ryan Johansen to become more aggressive and should lead to more goals from him. The steady and physical play of Jack Johnson should continue on the blueline, helping them defensively, as should the development of Feder Tyutin into a very good all-around dman. I expect Bobrovsky to be a strong contender for the Vezina, and benefit from the better defensive play in front of him. I pick them to finsh 5th in the East. In the West, I think the LA Kings will be the team having the biggest bounce back season. Not every team would benefit from acquiring Milan Lucic, but I think the Kings are one. I think he will be hungry on a new team, and play with a chip on his shoulder (as will much of his team). The acquisition of Lucic won't make them a top-tier offense, but it will make them middle of the pack, so that they don't have to win every game 2-1. I think he will create space for Gaborik, who will score 30+ this season for the first time in 4 seasons. Dustin Brown will continue his solid all-around play, and Carter should also give them around 30 goals. The acquisition of Christian Ehrhoff gives them a very good skater on the blueline who can take the bulk of the offensive work and pressure off of Doughty, and will improve their PP, which was not bad, 9th in the league last season. They have to much moreso improve their PK which was 16th. Jonathan Quick had a very good season last year, and wasn't responsible for the Kings collapse last season. He should continue to be strong in net, and steal a few games for them. My pick is for them to finish 4th in the West. Thoughts?Sharks > Kings for comeback season chances Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted October 4, 2015 Share Posted October 4, 2015 I really think the Buffalo Sabres are poised for a big improvement. I mean they only won 23 games last year, but I see a 15-20 game improvement from last year. They even could be on the fringe of making the playoffs if they end up with 43 wins. I know one thing I really doubt the Sabres will have a worse record then last season. I dunno about the Sabres. They have a lot of young talent, but the defense is a work in progress and the goaltending....well, Lehner and Chad Johnson are not as good as last years crew. They might be slightly improved, but weak goalies and a suspect defense = no playoffs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.