Ponds and Pucks

New York Islanders

Notable moves and changes: Signed F Jon Sim (was with Atlanta), signed F Ruslan Fedotenko (was with Tampa), signed F Bill Guerin (was with San Jose and St. Louis), signed F Mike Comrie (was with Ottawa). Invited D Brian Berard to training camp.
Starting goalie: Rick DiPietro, though rookie backup Wade Dubielewicz saved the Isles’ arse late last season when DiPietro went down with an injury.
Summary of last year: Bringing their backup goalie, Garth Snow, in as GM. Signing Rick DiPietro to a 15 year contract. Hiring Ted Nolan to coach after years away from the NHL. Despite the departure of Mike Milbury (well from the GM role anyway), there were still plenty of reasons to make the Islanders the butt of the joke. They proved everyone wrong by improving by 14 points and sneaking their way past the Leafs into the final playoff spot in the East.
Prediction for this year: The players the Islanders lost in the off-season is an intimidating list: Jason Blake, Sean Hill, Viktor Kozlov, Tom Poti, Ryan Smyth, Alexei Yashin (just seeing if you’re paying attention), and Richard Zednik. They didn’t back down over the summer and signed a number of quality forwards to fill the gaps. Is it enough? And can the team survive a wholesale change of so many of its top scorers? Time will tell, but my money is on Ted Nolan to pull this one off.

New York Islanders, Jon Sim, Ruslan Fedotenko, Bill Guerin, Mike Comrie, Brian Berard, Rick DiPietro, Wade Dubielewicz, Garth Snow, Ted Nolan, Mike Milbury, Jason Blake, Sean Hill, Viktor Kozlov, Tom Poti, Ryan Smyth, Alexei Yashin, Richard Zednik

Toronto Maple Leafs

Notable moves and changes: Acquired G Vesa Toskala and F Mark Bell from San Jose for picks. Signed F Jason Blake (was with the Islanders).
Starting goalie:The money says Toskala, but Andrew Raycroft could cause trouble by having a stellar camp.
Summary of last year: The Leafs were one point out of the post-season after making a series of changes the previous off-season, including a new head coach and a new starting goalie. The Leafs aren’t in panic mode yet, but the Leafs Nation is starting to call for the head of GM John Ferguson Jr, especially since….
Prediction for this year: … is anyone even thinking of the season ahead, or are they looking at the Toskala trade and wondering if the goalie was worth the baggage in teammate Mark Bell? Bell has been suspended indefinitely by the NHL and placed in a substance abuse program after his guilty plea in a hit and run DUI in the US. He still has jail time to serve after the season is over, leading to questions about the effectiveness of his play and how much of a distraction he will be. Oh yeah.. the Leafs’ season. How much they miss the post-season by depends how long into the season Ferguson lasts, but the Leafs are likely no closer to the playoffs than they were last year.

Toronto Maple Leafs, Vesa Toskala, Mark Bell, Jason Blake, Andrew Raycroft, Leafs Nation, John Ferguson Jr

Montreal Canadiens

Notable moves and changes:Traded F Sergei Samsonov to the Chicago Blackhawks for D Jassen Cullimore and F Tony Salmelainen. Signed C Bryan Smolinksi (had been with Vancouver and Chicago), signed D Roman Hamrlik (had been with Calgary). Signed D Patrice Brisebois (had been with Colorado).
Starting goalie: Cristobal Huet
Summary of last year: Not much you can say when a team’s season comes down to the final game of the year against a divisional rival (Toronto). The Habs regular season points haven’t varied much over the past five years, from a high of 93 to a low of 77 — just enough to keep fans hoping and the playoff race interesting.
Prediction for this year: With the disappointing Samsonov out the door and Hamrlik installed on the blue line, the Habs haven’t made any jarring moves, but nicely got one of one problem and solved another. If Huet stays healthy and Saku Koivu continues to play like he did last season (sometimes it seems the Habs almost take Koivu for granted), the Habs stand a decent chance of actually not needing to beat the Leafs the final game of the regular season just to make the post-season.

Montreal Canadiens, Sergei Samsonov, Jassen Cullimore, Tony Salmelainen, Bryan Smolinksi, Roman Hamrlik, Patrice Brisebois, Cristobal Huet, Saku Koivu

Carolina Hurricanes

Notable moves and changes:Acquired C Matt Cullen from the Rangers for D Andrew Hutchinson and F Joe Barnes.
Starting goalie: Cam Ward
Summary of last year: The Hurricanes get to carry the unfavorable mark of a team that wins the Stanley Cup one year and doesn’t even make the playoffs the next. It’s tough not to feel bad for GM Jim Rutherford — how do you tinker with a team like that? Most of the standouts from the Hurricanes’ Cup win are still with the team, they’re just MIA. They need to be found fast for the Canes to have any chance at rebounding. Cam Ward, this means you.
Prediction for this year: Bringing Cullen back to the fold seems to be a acknowledgment of something lacking from this year’s group, but Rutherford must be banking on last year being an anomaly. Beyond Cullen, the biggest news out of Carolina in the off-season was the Staal brothers having a little too much to drink at a campground. Oh, those bad boys of the NHL.

Carolina Hurricanes, Matt Cullen, Andrew Hutchinson, Joe Barnes, Cam Ward, Jim Rutherford, Cam Ward

Florida Panthers

Notable moves and changes:Acquired G Thomas Vokoun from Nashville for picks. Signed F Richard Zednik (was with Washington and New York Islanders), and F Brett McLean (was with Colorado). Signed F Radek Dvorak (was with St. Louis).
Starting goalie: Thomas Vokoun
Summary of last year: No one expected much from Florida after the Roberto Luongo trade and Mike Keenan fallout, but they surprised with a steady, if not spectacular season, notching one more point in the standings than the year before.
Prediction for this year: Things appear to be falling into place for the Panthers — hopefully all will go as planned. Vokoun has to be the same goalie in Florida as he was in Nashville. He’s got a decent defence corps in front of him, lead by Jay Bouwmeester, Bryan Allen, Mike Van Ryn and as long as these guys keep getting better, goals against shouldn’t be a problem. Up front, their free agent signings join Olli Jokinen, Nathan Horton, and Stephen Weiss — all consistently great players. If these guys don’t show some sort of improvement, something is seriously wrong.

Florida Panthers, Thomas Vokoun, Richard Zednik, Brett McLean, Radek Dvorak, Thomas Vokoun, Roberto Luongo, Mike Keenan, Jay Bouwmeester, Bryan Allen, Mike Van Ryn, Olli Jokinen, Nathan Horton, Stephen Weiss

St Louis Blues

Notable moves and changes:Resigned C Keith Tkachuk, after re-acquiring his rights from Atlanta (Blues had dealt Tkachuk to the Thrashers at the trade deadline). Signed F Paul Kariya (had been with Nashville). Acquired G Hannu Toivonen from Boston for Carl Soderberg.
Starting goalie: Manny Legace
Summary of last year: Baby steps. After an embarrassing 2005-2006 effort, there was little doubt last season was going to be spent rebuilding. This resulted in the addition of coach Andy Murray and a 24 point jump in the standings.
Prediction for this year: Landing Kariya was no small feat, and boosted this club’s fortunes considerably. With Doug Weight and Tkachuk on the roster, the Blues have some veteran talent (my personal opinion of Keith Tkachuk notwithstanding), albeit a little too veteran for some. Lee Stempniak is only going to get better. The defence corps is a little young, but loaded with talent in Eric Brewer, and up and comers like Barret Jackman and newcomer Erik Johnson — defense is far from the Blues’ biggest problem. The Blues will still have a tough time making the playoffs in the Western Conference, but they’ll be in the fight come April.

St Louis Blues, Keith Tkachuk, Paul Kariya, Hannu Toivonen, Carl Soderberg, Manny Legace, Andy Murray, Doug Weight, Lee Stempniak, Eric Brewer, Barret Jackman, Erik Johnson

Boston Bruins

Notable moves and changes:Traded F Shean Donovan to the Senators for F Peter Schaefer, acquired G Manny Fernandez from Minnesota. Fired head coach Dave Lewis and named Claude Julien head coach. Signed F Shawn Thornton (had been with Anaheim).
Starting goalie: Manny Fernandez
Summary of last year: In a word: disappointing. Hopes had been high for Bruins fans with the signings of Marc Savard and Zdeno Chara in the off-season. While Savard put up excellent numbers, even Chara seemed unable to help the Bruins defense, and the Bruins wound up 29th overall in goals against.
Prediction for this year: The defense hasn’t been addressed, but the goaltending sure has. With the addition of Fernandez, the Bruins have a steady netminder for the first time in years. If Savard can keep up his pace, if Schaefer steps up, and if the younger guys like Phil Kessel and Patrice Bergeron can keep improving, the team looks as good as it has since Joe Thornton was dealt. The defence though is a huge question mark. Can Chara and the rest of the defence step up?

Boston Bruins, Shean Donovan, Peter Schaefer, Manny Fernandez, Dave Lewis, Claude Julien, Shawn Thornton, Marc Savard, Zdeno Chara, Phil Kessel, Patrice Bergeron, Joe Thornton

Columbus Blue Jackets

Notable moves and changes:Signed C Michael Peca (was with Toronto), signed C Kris Beech (had been with Washington). GM Doug MacLean fired, replaced by Scott Howson.
Starting goalie: Fredrik Norrena
Summary of last year: Miss the playoffs, rinse, repeat. The Jackets are only notable in that they are the only team yet to have made the post-season. Last year’s performance was a small regression from the year before, yet still their second best points performance ever (73).
Prediction for this year: Score bonus points if you remembered Sergei Fedorov is on this team. Peca has clearly been brought in to give the way over-worked Rick Nash a helping hand, but this team’s troubles go way beyond one free agent center. Fedorov, Fredrik Modin, Jason Chimera and Anson Carter all need to step up — the Blue Jackets’ scoring was abysmal last season, tied for 28th in the league. Defensively they don’t look much better. Anders Eriksson shouldn’t leave a gaping hole in your defence, but the departed d-man was second in defenceman scoring (23 points, all assists) and first on the team in plus/minus. Rostislav Klesla, Ron Hainsey and Duvie Westcott are all under pressure to improve. No, this isn’t going to be Columbus’s year either.

Michael Peca, Kris Beech, Doug MacLean, Scott Howson, Fredrik Norrena, Sergei Fedorov, Rick Nash, Fredrik Modin, Jason Chimera, Anson Carter

Edmonton Oilers

Notable moves and changes: Signed D Sheldon Souray (was with Montreal), acquired F Dustin Penner, after the Ducks declined to match the Oilers’ offer. Signed F Geoff Sanderson.
Starting goalie:Dwayne Roloson
Summary of last year: This was a team that lost its heart and soul when Ryan Smyth was traded at the deadline. Any poor performances or setbacks up to that point were recoverable, but the trade of Smyth sent the team into a freefall. Some would argue that freefall is still happening.
Prediction for this year: It would be too easy to discount this season as a write off, but as most Flames fans know, one can never underestimate the Edmonton Oilers. However, their off-season has been tumultuous at best, with controversial offers to the Sabres’ Thomas Vanek (Buffalo matched) and the Ducks’ Dustin Penner (the Ducks didn’t). Adding Souray, Sanderson, and Penner to the mix doesn’t look like it comes close to closing the gap left by Smyth, especially when you factor in the loss of Petr Sykora in the off-season. Shawn Horcoff, Ales Hemsky, Jarrett Stoll and Raffi Torres represent the remaining 30+ point players from last season and will need to step up.

Sheldon Souray, Joni Pitkanen, Jason Smith, Joffrey Lupul, Dustin Penner, Geoff Sanderson, Dwayne Roloson, Ryan Smyth, Thomas Vanek

Chicago Blackhawks

Notable moves and changes: Acquired F Sergei Samsonov from the Montreal Canadiens for D Jassen Cullimore and F Tony Salmelainen. Signed C Yanic Perreault (was with Phoenix and Toronto last season), acquired D Andrei Zyuzin in a trade with the Calgary Flames, and signed C Robert Lang (was with Detroit).
Starting goalie:Nikolai Khabibulin
Summary of last year:Few fans could argue with the appointment of Hawks legend Denis Savard as head coach, but it’s going to take a lot more than one coach to turn this ship around. The Hawks were 28th in the league in scoring, dead last on the power play and only Philadelphia had a worse home record than Chicago. Last season was dotted with the same inconsistencies, injury bugs and lackadaisical play that has kept the Hawks out of the playoffs for 8 of the past 9 years.
Prediction for this year: If this season’s Yanic Perreault is in fact, Yanic Perreault, long-suffering Hawks fans may finally have a free-agent signing to cheeer about. Samsonov and Lang add to the mix, but both have baggage from prior teams, and the Hawks have not historically fared well with project players. The bad news: Adrian Aucoin, Michal Handzus, Denis Arkhipov and Mikael Holmqvist are all gone in off-season deals. The good news: The future looks bright. Kids like Tuomo Ruutu and Brent Seabrook keep getting better, and two highly regarded prospects, Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, are expected to have an excellent shot at roster spots this year. This may not be the Hawk’s comeback season, but the building blocks are there.

Chicago Blackhawks, Sergei Samsonov, Yanic Perreault, Andrei Zyuzin, Robert Lang, Nikolai Khabibulin, Denis Savard, Tuomo Ruutu, Brent Seabrook, Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews

Washington Capitals

Notable moves and changes: Signed F Viktor Kozlov (was with the New York Islanders), C Michael Nylander (was with the New York Rangers), and D Tom Poti (was also with the Islanders).
Starting goalie: Olaf Kolzig — this last time Kolzig played less than 50 games for the Caps was the 1996-1997 season when he shared duties with Jim Carey.
Summary of last year: Alexander Ovechkin. Does anything else need to be said? He makes Chris Clark look like a first liner. Wait, what?
Prediction for this year: In a division that suddenly has a lot of up and coming talent, will these moves be enough? The Caps’ 286 goals against was 28th in the league and other than the addition of Poti, nothing concrete was done to address defense. Kozlov and Nylander are nice additions — depending on which versions of those players actually show up.

Washington Capitals, Viktor Kozlov, New York Islanders, Michael Nylander, New York Rangers, Tom Poti, Olaf Kolzig, Alexander Ovechkin, Chris Clark

Los Angeles

Notable moves and changes: Signed F Kyle Calder (was with Philly and Detroit last season), C Michal Handzus (was with Chicago), F Ladislav Nagy (was with Phoenix), and D Tom Preissing (was with Ottawa). Signed D Brad Stuart (was with Calgary). Signed D Jon Klemm (was with Dallas).
Starting goalie: Dan Cloutier
Summary of last year: Quick, name 3 LA King players from the 2006-2007 season without including Rob Blake, Michael Cammalleri or Alexander Frolov. Some of the more astute might remember a young rookie named Ante Kopitar who had an impressive season. Some might even remember Mathieu Garon, or Sean Avery, but there’s truly not much else to mark the Kings’ 4th straight year without making the post-season dance.
Prediction for this year: The Kings are lucky to have Phoenix in their division — it’ll at least keep them out of the basement. The Kings are consistent in that they always seem to have decent (if not spectacular) teams on paper, then quietly finish in the bottom third of the conference. In the off-season the Kings have nicely upgraded their blueline, brought in some steady forwards (Nagy is a huge question mark) and hung onto the key players of their team (Cammalleri’s signing came down to arbitration) (though some would argue the departed Sean Avery was key). If Cloutier can hold them in, the Kings could make a strong case this year, but they’ve been deceptive before….

Los Angeles, Kyle Calder, Philly, Detroit, Michal Handzus, Ladislav Nagy, Tom Preissing, Brad Stuart, Jon Klemm, Dan Cloutier, LA King, Rob Blake, Michael Cammalleri, Alexander Frolov, Ante Kopitar, Mathieu Garon, Sean Avery

Phoenix Coyotes

Notable moves and changes: Signed G Alex Auld (had been with the Florida Panthers), acquired C Kevyn Adams from the Chicago Blackhawks for F Radim Vrbata, signed G David Aebischer (had been with the Montreal Canadiens).
Starting goalie: Likely Aebischer, barring a stunning performance by Auld.
Summary of last year: The Coyotes had the dubious honor of having the worst record in the league for the second half of the season (yes, even worse than the Flyers). The Coyotes haven’t seen a hint of the playoffs in 4 years.
Prediction for this year: Do you call for the head of your head coach if he’s part owner of the team? How about if he’s Wayne Gretzky? The woes of this team are not entirely Gretzky’s fault, but this team is in a death spiral and help does not appear to be on the way. Both goalies signed in the off-season have a lot to prove, and on most teams wouldn’t be considered starters. New additions Mike York and Kevyn Adams need to step up their games considerably to make a difference, the young guys like Bill Thomas and Tomas Surovy need to continue to grow and contribute while veterans like Shane Doan and Steven Reinprecht need to return to form. The Coyotes didn’t even address their defensive woes — top d-man Ed Jovanovski played only 54 games last season and Nick Boyton and Derek Morris did not step up to fill in the gap. Not only are the playoffs unlikely, the Coyotes will struggle to fight their way out of the basement of the Pacific Division.

Phoenix Coyotes, Alex Auld, Florida Panthers, Kevyn Adams, Chicago Blackhawks, Radim Vrbata, David Aebischer, Montreal Canadiens, Wayne Gretzky, Mike York, Bill Thomas, Tomas Surovy, Shane Doan, Steven Reinprecht, Ed Jovanovski, Nick Boyton, Derek Morris, Pacific Division

Notable moves and changes: Signed free agent Daniel Briere (was with the Buffalo Sabres), picked up F Joffrey Lupul[/tags] and D [tag]Jason Smith from the Edmonton Oilers for D Joni Pitkanen and F Geoff Sanderson, and acquired F Scott Hartnell and D Kimmo Timonen from the Nashville Predators.

Starting goalies: Martin Biron, though Antero Niittymaki could challenge with a great camp.

Summary of last year: The Flyers were last in the league with a sobering 22-48-12 record, and were out of playoff contention well before the All-Star break. This team has nowhere to go but up.

Prediction for this year: If the off-season signings and trades are any indication, Flyers’ GM Paul Holmgren is serious about righting the ship and doing it quickly. Even at the trade deadline, the Flyers were making moves to strengthen the team, picking up most notably Martin Biron. There isn’t a position on the team that hasn’t been improved, defense shored up with Smith and Timonen, the signing of Briere and the acquisition of Biron. Will they go from last in the league to making the playoffs? There’s a good chance.

Daniel Briere, Buffalo Sabres, Joffrey Lupul[/tags] and D [tag]Jason Smith, Edmonton Oilers, Joni Pitkanen, Geoff Sanderson, Scott Hartnell, Kimmo Timonen, Nashville Predators, Antero Niittymaki, Paul Holmgren