by Donovan Prest
1. Red Wings
With a strong tender and loads of talent, Detroit looks to be the team to beat this season. Led by the ever-present Steve Yzerman and Norris candidate Nicklas Lidstrom, the Wings have been taking it to the opposition, pulling in 25 of 28 possible points so far. Plenty of depth is the name of the game and they can burn you with 3 scoring lines. But even if you manage to tame them offensively, a core of solid d-men and a great tender in Osgood will keep it close enough to punch through for the win. I rank them number 1.
2. Flyers
Next on my list are the Philadelphia flyers, a defensively skilled squad carried up front by a handful of superstars with Lindros, Leclair, and Brind'Amour. These 3 power houses can take you down and ring you out to dry. The only problem I see for the flyers is depth on the right wing and the question of whether or not Burke and Hextall can outplay the leagues other top-notch tenders.
3. Knights
I don't see how you cant favor the Knights to win a lot of games this season. The best goalie in the league is the insurance on a team that could easily push for the cup. They have so much talent it hurts with 3 very capable lines and some super-star defensemen in Niedermayer and Stevens. I feel for any team trying to score a powerplay goal on these guys with McKay, Holik, and those 2 playing D on the back-end.
4. Aeros
I really like the Aeros this year, backstopped by Eddy the Eagle. The defense alone is stacked, and at centre they have some very skilled centreman in Nieuwendyk and Modano who can play well in their own end and a PK specialist in Carbonneau. On the wings, they have some young talent in Langenbrunner, Savard, and Lehtinen, and I think they could do some damage this year.
5. Racers
Tearing it up this season are the Racers, forefronted by you guessed it, #$%@'in Jaromir Jagr. Mr. Unstoppable. This guy is so skilled children cry on a day to day basis. He currently leads the league in scoring, highlights an excellent powerplay and gets his passes from Francis, probably the best playmaker in the game. The ironic thing is that he has a multitude of assists. Anyway, with Barrasso, Roberts, and a nice first defensive pairing, the Racers are leading the World Conference and as long as Jagr keeps picking up points, theres no telling how far they can go this year.
6. Nordiques
Sakic, Forsberg, Roy. What can I say? Ouch. Ozolinsh and Foote on the backend help a bit too of course. The Nordiques are a club that has a lot of potential to do well because of the superstar status of the big 3, but success will depend on their production alone. After them, the team gets significantly weaker and could allow for some depth teams to take them out.
7. Jets
One team that could suprise some people are the Jets. After picking up Super Mario, they have a dynamo top line that bodes Tkachuk, Roenick and Mario himself. If there is anyone who has the ability to take down the racers line with Jagr, its Lemieux. However, after that line, the team gets thin but Numminen and Carney are solid d-men and the Bulin Wall is hefty, so we'll see where things go with them. I'll rank them 7th.
8. Canucks
These guys are a whale of a team. Get it? Whale? Yeah, I'm lame. Anyway, the canucks have a 4 stars including Messier, Mogilny, Naslund, and well, Bure is a megastar. If opposing teams can stop this guy from scoring, the team is going to suffer. Mainly, this teams strength is offense, as the team has a young group of up-and-coming defenseman, but they are not yet, ripe. Another problem they face is Right Wing depth which, after Bure, is non-existent. I would expect to see a trade in the near future.
9. Canadiens
A young and highly skilled Saku Koivu lights up this team on the first line with Corson and Recchi, each quality players. I like this team, especially with Damphousse quarterbacking the 2nd line. Some solid d-men and some depth providing 2 scoring lines, the Canadiens could see some big wins, as long as Thibault plays up to potential.Blades
10. Rangers
New York has a couple of lines that can score goals. The Great One's line being the better of the two. Paired with Graves and Kovalev, they can give any line a run for their money. Brian Leetch on defense gives them an edge over most teams since he can pretty much do everything. Yet, the team does lack some defensive depth and even with Richter in net, they could get eaten.
11. Eagels
This is Paul Kariya's team. The rest of the players are a supporting cast for the superstar. Muller and Kozlov give a nice centre combo but their Right Wing is weak and after the first defensive pairing, there are a few holes. Vanbiesbrouck IS between the pipes however and could steal a couple of games for the Eagels.
12. Blades
The Blades are another team that will depend on some top notch players for success. In this case its Kolzig and Bondra, the super-speedy sniper. After them, there is Oates, a better playmaker in this league and well, Phil Housley, the aging offensive d-man. Very little depth could be the downfall of this team but, the stars could also lift them to victory. The one-two punch of Oates and Bondra is a strong one.
13. Crusaders
Dominic Hasek is one of the best goalies in this league and will have to play that way if the Crusaders are going to get anywhere this season. With no other stars or big name players, it will be up to him to hold the team together. There are some bright spots though with youngsters Mike Peca, Miroslav Satan, and Steve Rucchin growing into bonafide NHL stars.
14. Blues
The Blues are a pretty good club and have potential if top notch scorer Brett Hull plays up to his ability. The only thing that could bring them down is depth at the right wing and the lack of an NHL 4th line centreman. Furthermore, with Chris Pronger and Pavol Demitra coming into their own, the future looks bright as long as they can find a replacement for an aging Fuhr.
15. Blackhawks
A defensive minded team, Chicago is going to be hard to score on. Unfortunately, a weak left wing and scoring depth will keep them from scoring many goals as well. But, they do have Amonte and with Zhamnov as his set-up man, they could steal a few games if Hackett stops some pucks. Look for a young Eric Daze to make a splash in the Calder race.
16. Oilers
Okay, when you look at the Oilers you see Doug Weight and Cujo. Mainly, the goalie is the cornerstone for this teams potential success. If he plays well, the team will win, if he plays poorly, they'll tank. As of yet, he's played great, holding them near the top of the NHL. Another good thing about this team is that they are very young from the d-men to the forwards and you never know where they could end up, pending the goalie.
17. Raiders
N.Y. is defined by 3 solid centreman, Ziggy Palffy, and a thin blue-line. Unless bright-spot Tommy Salo works some magic, they could be seeing the league basement this year. A severe lack of left wing prowess is probably going to be the downfall in any loses this season as they have no standouts on that side. Also, while he may end up putting the puck into his own net, Berard should be solid on the PP and pot some goals for the team.
18. Saints
I believe that the Saints could really do something special this year. They may not be riddled with talent but they have some very good players, depth, and a goalie who knows what hes doing in Mike Vernon. Teemu Selanne is one of the best goal scorers in the league and Mike Ricci is a prolific defender on the PK and can shutdown almost any line 5 on 5. However, the final straw will depend on how they are managed as any dark horse can end up in the gutter.
19. Sharks
Any team with a guy like Rob Blake is going to be able to pull off some big wins. He's as stallion as they come in this league and the Sharks will take advantage of it. Unable to throw on multiple scoring lines, look for the one-two punch of Blake and newly acquired Fedorov to light it up this year. I'm worried about both wings on this team as the right and left side could use some major improvements.
20. Leafs
Mats Sundin is the star of the show in Toronto and needs to play well for his team to advance into the top of the standings. Him and Wendel Clark are main men on this team as the offense goes from stunning to damaged after the first line. Some good quality younger players do fill out the defense in Smith, Schneider, and Yuskevich, and will play large parts in any wins this season. I wouldn't doubt either if 'Felix the Cat' single handedly won them some games as well.
21. Bruins
Ray Bourque headlines an otherwise suffering defense for the Bruins who have rookie stars Thornton and Samsonov on the front end. In order to win games, the B's will need strong play from them and great tending from Dafoe, a young star in his own right. The question with this team is if they can solidify a defense based around a 37 year old Bourque.
22. Whalers
An average team, the Whalers have no big standout players except Keith Primeau, but it could lead to an advantage as to what line is covered. O'Neill, Gelinas and Renberg may be able to steal a few points if Wesley and Kidd perform adamantly. Due to a lack of star-power though I have to rank them lower.
23. Flames
Calgary has a pretty good first few scoring lines but after them the team gets very weak. The defense is seriously lacking and they have no NHL caliber goalie to win them any games. Hopefully Fleury, Cassels, and Iginla can score some goals because they'll need them.
24. Senators
Four players. This team has four players in Yashin, Alfredsson, Redden and Rhodes. A severe lack of depth will leave them in the cellar unless some trades are made.
