Roster overview and ranking, 2014/15

[André]

Again I’ve mused myself with going through all teams rosters and come up with a ranking. It’s great for fantasy scouting and general hockey abstinence.

The lines are semi-accurate estimations for the quick overview only. I’ve also included teams’ draft picks from the first two rounds over the past three years. That’s a rough glance of the prospect pools only, but gives some hint of the organizational depth.

This is a combination of a roster ranking and prediction of the standings.
New this year is a quick grade of the teams’ forwards, defensemen and goalies. This is an attempt to visualize my assessment.

I’m sure I’ve missed a trade or two.

Here’s last year’s list:
http://www.letsgopens.com/scripts/phpBB ... w#p2512347

1, Chicago Blackhawks
Hossa – Toews – Sharp
Kane – Richards – Versteeg
Saad - Shaw – Bickell
Krüger – Smith – Morin

Regin, Teravainen
Schmaltz, Hartman
Grade: 5

Keith – Seabrook
Hjalmarsson – Leddy
Oduya – Rozsival

Rundblad, Cumiesky
Dahlstrom, Fournier
Grade: 5

Crawford
Raanta
Grade: 4

What can you say, really? They were in my top three already before snagging Richards for peanuts. Three producing lines and two of them are elite. They have skill, grit, snipers but also two way competence and work ethic as well as youngsters knocking on the door.

Defensively they’ve got a tremendous mix of skill and grit (or guys who have both) and currently eight good players under contract. They really are a prime example of big long term contracts paying of a few years later as the cap has gone up. Look at Seabrook, Keith and Hossa all with cap hits around five million, as well as Kane and Toews at six million. Next year will another story, and a challenge for them cap wise, but they’re my prime candidate for the cup this season.

2, Los Angeles Kings
Williams – Kopitar – Gaborik
Carter – Richards - Brown
Stoll – Lewis – Toffoli
Pearson - King – Klifford

Nolan, Cracknell
Kempe, Zykov
Grade: 5

Doughty – Muzzin
Voynov – Regehr
Greene – Martinez

Schultz
McKeown, Lintuniemi
Grade: 4

Quick
Jones
Grade: 5

It was tough not putting them first. It’s a coin toss really. I think the Hawks top five offensively with Kane, Toews, Hossa, Sharp and Richards made me lean towards them. Also, remove Doughty and the remaining defensive corps is still great of course, but not at the elite level of the Hawks. So while Quick gives LA and edge over Chicago in net I think the Hawks have tiny edges at forward and on D.
I say Los Angeles and Chicago will clash in the West again and the winner of that series raises the cup.

3, Boston Bruins
Smith – Bergeron – Marchand
Lucic – Krejci – Florek
Caron - Soderberg – Eriksson
Campbell - Kelly – Paille

Pastrnak, Donato
Grade: 4

Seidenberg – Chara
Boychuk – Krug
Hamilton – Mcquaid

Miller, Bartowski
Arnesson
Grade: 5

Rask
Svedberg
Subban
Grade: 4.5

The Bruins again field an excellent mix of skill, grit and size. Their roster is similar to last year’s minus Iginla, but Eriksson should be healthy from the get go and even more of a factor is how nicely Smith and Soderberg developed.

With the emergence of Hamilton and Krug their defensive corps is elite. A candidate for best in the league for sure.

They’re not about to sport the Art Ross winner, but they could potentially have seven forwards and four defensemen break 50/40 points. The above combined with how Rask was once again nothing short of stellar makes them a contender again, no doubt.

No suprises really with Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, and Anaheimin the top five. They are all recent champs for a reason (well recent is a stretch with Anaheim, but they fall in the same category), two of them more than once, and they’ve all managed to keep their key core and improve around them. This is something they’ve succeeded at better than the Penguins for example, who have not had as much success making the rest of the team beyond the core as good as possible.

4, St Louis Blues
Backes – Steen – Oshie
Tarasenko – Schwartz – Berglund
Lindstrom – Stastny - Lehtera
Lapierre – Ott– Paajarvi

Reaves, Porter
Fabbri, Barbashev, Letunov, Carrier, Kurker
Grade: 5

Bouwmeester – Pietrangelo
Jackman – Shattenkirk
Gunnarsson – Leopold
Cole

Vanelli, Schmaltz
Grade: 5

Elliott
Allen
Grade: 3.5

Two years removed from being my number one in this ranking they’re still among the elite, no doubt. Over those two years they have not improved as much as LA and the Hawks, however, and they aren’t as nasty as the Bruins. Nevertheless the same core and depth again plus additions of Stastny, Gunnarsson, Lehtera and Lindstrom is not to be trifled with.

On forward they take a step with Stastny, granted, and Lehtera and Lindstrom may surprise many. Their defensive corpse is just ridiculous, the best in the league on paper, and Elliot should be fine as finally the starter.

5, Anaheim Ducks
Silfverberg – Getzlaf – Perry
Heatley – Kesler - Smith-Pelly
Belesky– Cogliano – Palmieri
Etem – Thompson – Maroon

Rakell, Ritchie, Sorensen, Kerdiles
Grade: 5

Fowler – Lovejoy
Souray – Lindholm
Vataanen – Beauchemin

Allen, Fistric, Stoner, Pettersson, Montour, Theodore
Grade: 4.5

Anderson
Gibson
Labarbera
Grade: 3.5

Yes, I know. Gone are Bonino, Perrault, Winnik, Penner, Selanne, Koivu and Sbisa. All part of that ridiculous depth the Ducks fielded last year. I don’t care. This means some of their talent that was miscast last year gets more fitting roles. To some extent Koivu and Selanne were not needed and snatched positions from already very able youngsters. Up front I predict big years for Sifverberg, Etem, Smith-Pelly and Maroon. Which is an immediate reminder of how they’re still too stacked, as my suggestion above puts Etem and Maroon on the fourth line for crying out loud. And I’ve come this far without even mentioning Kesler and most importantly Getzlaf and Perry who whoever they’re paired with will form one of the best lines in hockey.

On defense it’s even more silly. In the suggestion above I have Allen (3.5 mil cap hit), Stoner (3.25) and Fistric (1.27) on the bench. Hah. I guess Souray is gone but still there will have to be a trade. There’s no moving Fowler or Beauchemin, they seem high on Lovejoy and Lindholm and Vataanen are already studs.

Now for the Achille’s heel: Goaltending. On paper this is rather unproven. Andersson had spectacular numbers last year though, and super stud Gibson is knocking on the door.

6, Tampa Bay Lightning
Kucherov – Johnson - Stamkos
Palat – Filppula – Callahan
Drouin – Killorn – Morrow
Panik – Boyle – Brown

Masin, Ferne, Hart
Grade: 4.5

Stralman – Hedman
Gudas – Carle
Brewer – Garrison

Ohlund, Barberio, Suster, DeAngelo, MacLeod, Koekkoek, Blujus
Grade: 4.5

Bishop
Nabokov
Vasilevski
Grade: 4

Now this is looking exciting to say the least. Young talents like Johnson, Palat and Killorn proved themselves last year already. Filppula was solid and Kucherov and Drouin and knocking on the door. Oh, and that Stamkos fella is pretty lethal. Add Callahan from the start as well as Boyle with his PK play and physical presence and things are looking great for sure.

At the blue line they’re stacked too. Hedman’s about to establish himself as a perennial Norris candidate, Gudas was great last year, Brewer is solid and Garrison and Stralman are quality additions. These guys really have the skill to complement the team’s forwards.

In net Bishop was outstanding last year, and Nabokov is just fine as the veteran backup keeping him honest.

I consider Tampa a serious contender to come out on top of the East.

7, Colorado Avalanche
Landeskog – Duchene – MacKinnon
Iginla - O’Reilly – Tanguay
McGinn – Mitchell – Briere
Bordeleau – Talbot – McLeod

Winchester, Cliché
Bleackley, Heard
Grade: 5

Johnson – Hejda
Stuart – Barrie
Elliot - Holden

Guenin, Redmond, Wilson
Biglas
Grade: 3.5

Varlamov
Berra
Grade: 4

Looking good. My most accurate prediction last year was probably calling the Avs the team that would improve the most, and now they could take another step. Where to begin? Landeskog had a tremendous season. He could really become an Iginla. Grit, physical edge and enough skill for 70 points or so. Duchene is close to elite. O’Reilly has definitely become more than I thought, and how about a third line of McGinn, Mitchell and Briere? Oh and they added this Iginla guy.

And then there’s MacKinnon. Look at his season and playoff showing. He grew fast, and they realized he was to get top minutes. How good is he really? It’s hard to put a cap on my enthusiasm for this kid. Calling him a Norris threat next year already is being carried away? I’m not entirely sure.

Varlamov’s been a stud for them, and their defense is better than it looks. They saw solid seasons from many of their blueliners, and Johnson might’ve started blooming towards what he was dubbed to become.

8, San Jose Sharks
Burns – Thornton – Hertl
Marleau – Pavelski - Couture
Nieto – Wingels – Sheppard
Kennedy - Burish – Torres

Brown, Scott, Desjardins
Goldobin, Rod, Boudreau, Tierney
Grade: 5

Vlasic – Braun
Demers - Hannan
Irwin – Mueller

Bergman, Mueller
Grade: 3.5

Niemi
Stalock
Grade: 4

Now this is just a tremendous group of forwards. Among the best in the league. Thornton and Marleau are still studs. Burns, Pavelski and Couture have become the same and now they got Nieto and especially Hertl on the rise as well. Wingels and Sheppard were both close to 40 points last year. Looking good for sure.

At the blueline they look good but they’re not at all as stacked. A move for a defenseman could be in the making?
Niemi is a solid starter, and behind him Stalock had some stellar numbers last year.

I see no reason why they shouldn’t be able to repeat or even improve on last season’s 111 points performance.

9, New York Rangers
Nash – Stepan – St Louis
Kreider - Brassard – Zuccarello
Hagelin – Lombardi – Hayes
Mueller – Fast - Stempniak

Moore, Glass, Miller
Nieves
Grade: 4.5

Girardi - McDonagh
Boyle – Staal
Klein – Moore

Kostka, Hunwick
Skjei
Grade: 4.5

Lundqvist
Talbot

Halversson
Grade: 5

Better than I expected beforehand. This is truly a solid lineup. Forward and defensive depth, and king Henrik as final outpost. They’re not too old, not too young, they got speed and skill but some hustle as well. The performance of St Louis and Nash is a question mark, but talking roster strength only I just can’t put them any lower.

10, Montreal Canadiens
Pacioretty – Desharnis – Gallagher
Galchenyuk – Eller – Parenteau
Bourque – Plekanec – Weise
Prust – Malhotra- Moen

Bournival, Sekac
Scherbak, McCarron, De La Rose, Lehkonen, Collberg
Grade: 4

Emelin – Subban
Gilbert – Markov
Weaver – Tinordi

Beaulieu
Thrower
Grade: 4

Price
Budaj

Fucale
Grade 4.5

Depth all over with a few star or even elite players thrown in there. They did fine last year and now they’ve upgraded by swapping Briere for Paranteau, having Weaver from the start, adding Gilbert and more importantly their young core is a year older. Pacioretty, Galchenyuk, Gallagher and Subban are all moving in the right direction.

Price is right. Elite numbers and a stellar olympic performance last season. He’s legit.

11, Pittsburgh Penguins
Bennett – Crosby – Kunitz
Hornqvist – Malkin – Downie
Comeau – Sutter – Dupuis
– Goc – Spaling

Adams
Kapanen, Blueger
Grade: 4

Letang – Scuderi
Martin – Ehrhoff
Maatta – Bortuzzo

Despres
Pouliot
Grade: 4

Fleury
Greiss

Jarry
Grade: 3.5

The Pens are tough to judge. The bottom six should definitely be better than these past few years, but the top six is not without question marks. Will Bennett break through? Could Downie be a legit top sixer? Will Dupuis be his old self again or will the injury and now age factor in to the beginning of a decline? I would like to see one more producing forward with a decent all round game. I felt they missed out by not landing one of those re-bound contracts. One of Roy, Ribeiro, Heatley, Booth or Lombardi would’ve been a nice low risk gamble. Shouldn’t the Pens have great appeal for those considering the potential top six gap they have?

Defensively they’ve lost two quality pieces and added one. The level of play from Scudery and Letang are question marks. If they’re what they can be this is still very solid, but that remains to be seen.

In net we once again find Fleury. Decent regular seasons, but five straight poor playoff showings before he was ok this past spring. I don’t like it. He’s an example of the Pens clinging to parts of their core for too long. As if prestige considering their drafting, or nostalgia/close relations have blinded them. Getting emotionally attached is not a fine trait for a GM. Fleury is not the starter for a team who’s a contender every year as long as they have Crosby and Malkin. Change more, not less. Fleury’s numbers are easily replaced. Get something for him if possible.

The Pens, unlike the Hawks and Kings, have not done well in complementing their core or changing part of the core. They’ve been to idle or patient. Consistency is great if all parts of the core plays up to their cap hit, but that has not been the case with for example Fleury.

12, Minnesota Wild
Parise – Koivu – Vanek
Pominville – Granlund – Niederreiter
Coyle – Brodziak – Haula
Cooke – Veilleux – Zucker

Fontaine, Tuch, Bussieres
Grade: 4.5

Suter – Brodin
Scandella – Spurgeon
Ballard - Folin

Blum, Olofsson, Dumba
Grade: 4

Backstrom
Harding
Grade: 3

These guys can spell scoring depth. That’s a tremendous forward squad. Looking at defense I’d be high on any squad lead by Suter backed up by Brodin.
Backstrom’s been in decline for a while, however, which could really prove an achille’s heel.

13, Philadelphia Flyers
Read - Giroux - Voracek
Simmonds – Schenn – Lecavalier
Umberger – Couturier – Raffl
Rinaldo – Rosehill – Akesson

Aube-Kubel, Laughton
Grade: 4

Streit – Macdonald
Schenn – Coburn
Timmonen – Grossman

Schultz, Gustavsson, Morin, Hagg
Grade: 4

Mason
Emery

Stolarz
Grade: 4

Again a tremendous top nine on paper. The Umberger Hartnell swap is mind boggling, and Lecavalier disappointed last year but the core of Giroux, Voracek, Schenn, Simmonds, Couturier and Raffl being a year older isn’t going to hurt.
At the blueline there’s great depth as well. They’ve got eight starting defensemen at the moment, actually.
Mason’s legit. Don’t get how so many managed to overlook his numbers last year.
They fought their way back into the playoffs last year and should be there with less urgency this year.

14, Columbus Blue Jackets
Horton – Johansen – Jenner
Hartnell – Anisimov – Foligno
Calvert – Dubinsky – Atkinson
Boll – Letestu – Gibbons

Tropp, Hjalmarsson, Milano, Wennberg, Rychel, Dano
Grade: 4

Wisniewski - Murray
Johnson – Tyutin
Savard – Prout

Erixon, Collins, Heatherington
Grade: 4

Bobrovsky
McElhinney
Dansk
Grade: 4

I definitely see the Jackets building on last year’s success. They’ve got some serious depth all over and an elite starter in net. Look at the numbers of the Calvert – Dubinsky – Atkinson line from last year, and consider how they might be the third line. Then figure in their significant group of top talents being a year older (Johansen, Jenner, Murray, Savard) and things are looking great for sure.

15, Nashville Predators
Smith – Roy – Neal
Jarnkrok – Ribiero – Forsberg
Stalberg – Fisher – Jokinen
Bourque – Cullen – Wilson

Nystrom, Gaustad, Clune, Fiala, Kamenev, Aberg, Sissons
Grade: 4

Weber – Josi
Jones - Volchenkov
Ellis – Ekholm

Bartley, Dougherty
Grade: 4.5

Rinne
Hutton
Grade: 4

This is tough bunch to get a grip on. I think they’ve over performed in relation to roster strength for a few years, but they did eventually miss the playoffs these past two years. Last year saw improvement however, and now they’ve bolstered their lineup.
Offensively they got some crazy depth now actually. My suggstion puts Cullen and Wilson on the fourth line, and Nystrom and Gaustad in the owner’s box. I may give Jarnkrok and Forsberg to much credit, but look at the formers production after joining the Preds last year, and Forsberg’s just a stud. They’ve lost a few pieces from last year but hey, they’ve added Neal, Jokinen, Riberio and Roy. And the mentioned swedes are a year older.

Defensively thinks look good indeed, and Rinne should be healthy again and have a shot at getting back to his former elite level.
With all this said, offensively they don’t have an elite guy. They have plenty of good skill players, but not a franchise forward. Is four good skill lines better than two great ones plus two more gritty lines? We’ll see.

16, Dallas Stars
Seguin – Benn – Nichuskin
Hemsky – Spezza – Sceviour
Peverly - Eakin - Garbutt
Cole – Horcoff – Roussel

Fiddler, Eaves, Pollock, Dickinson, Elie, Faksa, Winther, Shore
Grade: 4

Goligoski – Daley
Gonchar – Connauton
Dillon – Benn

Honka, Bystrom
Grade: 2.5

Lehtonen
Lindback
Campbell
Grade: 4

Alot to like here. The Stars surprised me last year when they nabbed the last playoff berth. They got there with one top line and a nice bottom six. With the additons of Spezza and Hemsky they all of a sudden have a very good top six, while they’ve retained their interesting mix in the bottom six.

Defensively they could really add another solid player, but it worked last year.

Lehtonen solid in net, with Campbell knocking on the door.

17, Toronto Maple Leafs
Van Riemsdyk – Bozak – Kessel
Clarksson – Kadri – Lupul
Booth – Santorelli – Kontiola
Frattin – Holland – Komarov

Smith, Brodie, Orr, Nylander, Gauthier
Grade: 4.5

Phaneuf – Robidas
Fransson – Rielly
Polak – Gardiner

Finn
Grade: 4

Bernier
Reimer
Grade: 4

Not too shabby. The Leafs have had some solid depth for a few years now and that’s the case once again. They’re pretty young too. Van Riemsdyk, Bozak, Kessel, Kadri and Lupul is a very good core offensively. There’s some grit and skill in the bottom six as well, with plenty of options in case of injury.

Their defensive squad is solid as well. Phaneuf, Fransson, Rielly and Gardiner were all around 30 points last year, and Robidas plus Polak are solid additions.

Bernier broke through in net and I think he’ll build on last year.

18, Edmonton Oilers
Eberle – Nugent-Hopkins – Hall
Perron – Purcell – Pouilot
Arcobello - Lander - Yapukov
Hendricks – Gordon – Joensuu

Gazdic, Draisaitl, Roy
Grade: 4.5

Schultz – Nikitin
Petry – Fayne
Ference – Aulie

Klefbom, Nurse, Marincin, Larsen, Musil
Grade: 3.5

Scrivens
Fasth
Grade: 3.5

Same old story? I’m not sure. People forget how close the Oilers were to the playoffs two years ago, and last year’s debacle can to some extent be blamed on injuries and defensive as well as goaltending woes. Now they’ve bolstered their D, have a new sold goaltending tandem, and offensively this is the best squad this generation of the Oilers have fielded so far. Perron, Pouilot and Purcell makes a difference. So does the emergence of Acrobello and Lander plus Yakupov being a year older. They could potentially role three productive lines. Unless they mess things up this should be a very potent lineup once one or both of Klefbom and Nurse matures.

I feel like I’m repeating myself, and could of course be wrong again, but I say they’ll be in the fight for a low playoff berth.

19, Detroit Redwings
Zetterberg – Datsyuk – Jurco
Franzén – Weiss - Nyquist
Tatar – Helm – Sheahan
Andersson – Miller – Abdelkader

Cleary, Glendening, Larkin, Mantha, Nastasiuk, Bertuzzi, Frk
Grade: 4

Ericsson – Kronwall
Quincey – DeKeyser
Kindl – Smith

Lashoff
Grade: 3

Howard
Gustavsson
Grade: 4

Better than I expected to think. They’ve failed to strengthen their defensive squad but it’s still decent and up front things look good. If they can stay healthy, that is. 45, 45, 54, 56 and 26. That’s the number of games played by Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Franzén, Nyquist and Weiss last year. Still they managed 93 points and a playoff berth. Behind that top five they’ve got a bunch of half talented guys approaching 0.5 points a game and some hustling two way forwards that can chip at almost that level as well. Jurco, Tatar, Helm, Sheahan and Abdelkader are nice as complementary players.

Howard did not have his best year but was still ok, and Gustavsson is starting to challenge him. In short; alot of things can go better for the Wings than last year, when they still made the playoffs.

20, Ottawa Senators
MacArthur – Turris – Ryan
Michalek – Legwand – Zibanejad
Greening – Smith – Chiasson
Condra – Hoffman – Stone

Neil
Lazar
Grade: 3.5

Methot – Karlsson
Cowen – Wiercioch
Phillips – Ceci
Gryba, Borowiecki
Englund
Grade: 4

Andersson
Lehner
Grade: 4

This is not too bad. Skilled, young, decent depth (I like that third line). Still, there aren’t many stand out players among these forwards. They’re really going to need a few of the young guys to really flourish if they are to get into the playoffs.

Defensively we find the the same formula. Young, skilled depth spiced with a veteran presence.

Andersson and Lehner is an excellent tandem in net.

Actually I think Ottawa could improve a lot just by being a year older. They could surprise their way into the playoffs.

21, Vancouver Canucks
Sedin – Sedin – Vrbata
Kassian - Bonino – Burrows
Jensen – Vey – Hansen
Dorsett – Richardsson – Matthias

Sesito, Virtanen, McCann, Gaunce, Mallet
Grade: 3.5

Bieksa - Edler
Hamhuis – Tanev
Weber – Sbisa

Corrado, Stanton, Horvat, Shinkaruk
Grade: 4

Miller
Lack
Markstrom
Demko

Grade: 4

They’ve filled some holes with Vrbata and especially Bonino (great addition). With that said; the Sedins failed miserably last season and the forward squad behind them just isn’t that good. They have to see significant improvement from their younger players as well as a bounce back from the Sedins in order to get back into the playoffs.

22, Washington Capitals
Johansson – Backstrom – Ovechkin
Wilson – Brouwer - Kuznetsov
Chimera – Fehr – Ward
Laich – Beagle – Volpatti

Vrana, Burakovsky, Sanford
Grade: 3.5

Niskanen – Carlsson
Green – Orpik
Alzner – Orlov

Erskine, Hillen, Bowey
Grade: 4.5

Holtby
Peters
Vanecek

Grade: 3

Looking at the Caps the obvious stand out is the defensive upgrade. They’ve made significant additions and have some serious defensive depth now. If Green and Orpik can do something of career bounce backs this could be one of the best defensive squads actually. That combined with a forward squad lead by Ovechkin and Backstrom should impress me more than it does, but I’m torn on their secondary scoring, goaltending and Ovechkin is a question mark for sure. They don’t need him winning the Maurice but with 28 assists and a +/- at – 35. Those two last stats are absolutely abysmal for a superstar captain. If he adds those 50ish assists to his 50 goals again, keeps their PP lethal but without being a minus player on equal strength this squad could do some damage for sure. He’s that much of a factor, either way.

23, New Jersey Devils
Elias – Zajac – Jagr
Cammalleri – Henrique – Havlat
Ryder – Clowe – Ruutu
Brunner – Gionta - Bernier

Quenneville, Matteau
Grade: 4

Greene - Larsson
Zidlicky – Salvador
Merill – Harrold

Jacobs, Santini, Severson
Grade: 2.5

Schneider
Grade: 4

Alright, what happened? The Devils are looking to roll four scoring lines? They landed both heavy weight Cammalleri and proven scorer Havlat on a re-bound contract. This while they already had a bunch of proven forwards. They’re old, and not exactly elite, but they sure do have managed to amass a bunch of veteran scorers who given their recent numbers still have gas in the tank. A weird, stand out setup that will be interesting to follow.

Defensively things undeniably look very thin, however. That’s Greene, Zidlicky and youngsters who haven’t established themselves yet.

Schneider is elite, and he’d better be considering how much work he’ll have.

24, New York Islanders
Lee – Tavares – Okposo
Kulemin – Grabovski - Nielsen
Clutterbuck – Bailey – Grabner
Conacher – Cizikas – Strome

Boulton, McDonald, Nelson, Martin, Dal Colle, Ho-Sang
Grade: 4

Hamonic – Haan
Visnovsky - Hickey
Carkner – Strait

Brennan, Donovan, Pulock, Reinhart, Pokka
Grade 3.5

Halak
Johnson
Grade: 3

Some great forward depth actually. Strome and Lee really impressed last year. Okposo took great strides, Tavares is Tavares and FA aquasitions Kulemin and Grabovski are pretty ok additions. My suggestion above could mean production from all over.

Defensively they’re weaker, no doubt.

Halak is good but not great.

25, Winnipeg Jets
Kane – Perrault - Wheeler
Ladd – Little – Frolik
Byfuglien – Sheifele – Tangradi
Slater – Thorburn – Peluso

Ehlers, Petan, Sutter
Grade: 4

Postma - Enstrom
Stuart – Bogosian
Trouba – Clitsome

Pardy, Morrisey
Grade: 4

Pavelec
Hutchinson
Comrie
Grade: 3

There’s some depth here actually. Up front they’ve got size and skill, and on D there’s definitely a lot of skill and young talent. I don’t see the premier players, however. Who’s the leader? The clutch guy? And Pavelec is not the starter you want if you have high ambitions.

26, Calgary Flames
Baertschi – Monahan – Hudler
Glencross – Stajan – Raymond
Granlund - Backlund – Gaudreau
Jones – Colborne – Bollig

Byron, Bouma, Klimchuk, Bennett, Smith, Poirier, Jankowski
Grade: 4

Giordano – Brodie
Wideman – Russell
Smid – Engelland

Sieloff
Grade: 4

Hiller
Ramo
McDonald
Grade: 3.5

Last year I dubbed the Avs the team that would improve the most. This year it’s definitely the Flames. There’s reason for excitement again, and it spells Monahan, Gaudreau, Baertschi and Granlund. That’s four top talents and they’re backed by decent support in Hudler, Raymond, Stajan, Backlund and Glencross. Heck, my suggestion above puts Jones, Colborne and Bollig on the fourth line. That’s not bad at all.

At the blueline things look good as well. Russell was a great acquisition, Giordano and Wideman are stars, Brodie and Smid are solid. Not bad at all.

In net they’ve got two potential starters, but likely not a top player.

27, Florida Panthers
Bjugstad - Barkov - Boyes
Jokinen - Huberdeau – Fleischman
Bergenheim – Bolland – Pirri
Upshall – Thornton – Kopecky

Hayes, Mackenzie, Hawryluk, McCoshen
Grade: 3.5

Campbell – Gudbrandsson
Kulikov – Mitchell
Petrovic – Olsen

Robak, Ekblad, Matheson
Grade: 4.5

Luongo
Montoya
Ellis
Grade: 4

Let’s start with one rather abysmal number: 37. That’s the amount of points required last season to be the Panther’s top scorer. Looking past that there’s actually some cause for optimism. On paper they might role three scoring lines, and their defense as well as goaltending actually looks great. Top talents Barkov, Huberdeau, Bjugstad, Gudbrandsson, Kulikov and Olsen could mean the Panthers are actually approaching a respectable future. On forward the surrounding cast doesn’t look very good though, unlike Calgary who can actually provide their youngsters with some support. Still, I see Florida doing better this season. Say 10th place or in that neighbourhood in the East.

28, Arizona Coyotes
Doan – Hanzal - Vermette
Boedker – Gagner – Erat
Moss – Klinkhammer – Korpikoski
Crombeen – Vitale – Chipchura

McMillan, Perlini, MacInnis, Dvorak, Domi, Dauphin, Samuelsson, Martinook
Grade: 3

Yandle - Schlemko
Michalek - Ekman-Larsson
Stone – Gormley

Murphy, Summers
Grade: 4

Smith
Dubnyk
Grade: 3.5

That’s a if able still mediocre bunch of forwards. Potential of late blooming has been shown by Hanzal, Gagner and Boedker but they’re not studs. Doan better hold up, and Erat bounce back if they hope for much offensive power. Decent competition in the bottom six.

This team wins by defense and Smith in net. That wasn’t enough last year, and looking at how stacked the west is I don’t see them making much noise this year either.

29, Carolina Hurricanes
Tlusty – E Staal – Semin
Skinner- J Staal – Lindholm
Dwyer – McClement – Malone
Nash

McGinn, Giuseppe
Grade: 3

Sekera – Faulk
Liles - Hainsey
Harrisson – Gleason

Murphy, Fleury
Grade: 3.5

Khudobin
Ward
Nedeljkovic
Grade: 4

Staal senior, Skinner and Lindholm are fine players indeed, but after them things go downhill into mediocracy in a hurry for the Canes. Khudobin’s emergance helps, but Ward’s contract for another two years doesn’t. They’re without scoring depth and an elite defender.

30, Buffalo Sabres
Moulson – Girgensons – Ennis
Stewart – Hodgson – Stafford
Foligno – Reinhart – Gionta
Mitchell – Mccormik – Kaleta

Grigorenko, Deslauriers, Flynn, Reinhart, Lemieux, Cornell, Karabacek, Compher, Hurley, Bailey
Grade: 3

Meszaros – Myers
Gorges – Ristolainen
Weber – McCabe

Ruhwedel, Zadorov
Grade: 3

Neuvirth
Lehner
Grade: 3

This is a tough bunch to grade. Looking at performance these past few years they’re a 2, looking at potential and talent I could put them at a strong 4. I think it was hard for them to stay motivated last year, but who knows what this bunch could do with a good start. Girgensons, Hodgson, Ennis, Reinhart, Myers, Grigorenko and Ristolainen is a group with some serious talent, no doubt, but they’ve done nothing so far. The additions of Meszaros and Moulson among others give them some support, but short term I think they’re in for another long season.

Summary/Standings

The above ranking would give us the following standings. Keep in mind though that this is more a ranking of roster strength than just prediction of standings. The Avs for example topped the West last year and is better this year. Still, I don’t see them eliminating the Hawks, Kings or Ducks in a playoff series. The same contradiction goes for the Blues. They’re third in the West when I rank rosters, but I’d bet on Anaheim if they bump into each other in the playoffs.

Western Conference

1, Chicago Blackhawks
2, Los Angeles Kings
3, St Louis Blues
4, Anaheim Ducks
5, Colorado Avalanche
6, San Jose Sharks
7, Minnesota Wild
8, Nashville Predators
9, Dallas Stars
10, Edmonton Oilers
11, Vancouver Canucks
12, Winnipeg Jets
13, Calgary Flames
14, Arizona Coyotes

Eastern Conference

1, Boston Bruins
2, Tampa Bay Lightning
3, Montreal Canadians
4, New York Rangers
5, Pittsburgh Penguins
6, Philadelphia Flyers
7, Columbus Blue Jackets
8, Toronto Maple Leafs
9, Detroit Red wings
10, Ottawa Senators
11, Washington Capitals
12, New Jersey Devils
13, New York Islanders
14, Florida Panthers
15, Carolina Hurricanes
16, Buffalo Sabres

[MalkinIsMyHomeboy]

No way the Rangers or Lightning (and probably the Canadiens too) have a better roster than us. I know that sounds really homerish but I think you're undervaluing Sid and Geno. 11th in the league? Not a chance.

[André]

No way the Rangers or Lightning (and probably the Canadiens too) have a better roster than us. I know that sounds really homerish but I think you're undervaluing Sid and Geno. 11th in the league? Not a chance.

Yeah it's one I'm really torn on. My frustration might make me too harsh on the Pens. Then again they were 6th last season and I see alot of others team definitely more clearly move forward, so it's not that bold a suggestion.

That said it's easy to value depth over edge when doing something like this. Geno and Sid are the best two players in the world in my honest opinion, so I might've been too hard.

[pcm]

I have no problem ranking the Lightning over the Pens. The biggest reason Tampa might not win the East is because the Metro is the weakest division in the league...

The Rags though won't be better than the Pens, in the reg season.

[MalkinIsMyHomeboy]

Derp

[pcm]

Is the Pens Top 6 really a bigger question mark than the Hawks'? Seems to me that Kane will really have to carry that line.

The Hawks do have a question mark on their 2nd line. But the Pens have a question mark on both top lines, as Sid and Geno will be expected to carry things as usual. So yes.

There are really only a few teams though that don't ? marks in their top 6.

[Gaucho]

Sorry for the confusion. I decided to delete my post when I realied I mixed up Brad and Mike Richards.

[André]

Gaucho, PCM:

Even if it would've been "only" Mike Richards they have so many options. Kane with Brad and for example Versteeg (0.5 p/g) is not bad, and then look at that ridiculously stacked first line. They can balance it out if they want. Also, look at my suggestion for a third. Shaw scored 20 goals and 40 points. Saad 47 points in 78 games and he's only 22.

I guess you could call it a top five consisting of Kanes, Toews, Hossa, Sharp and Richards, which can be complemented with Versteeg, Saad, Shaw or maybe a Tervainen. I would in no way say they have top six question marks.

[Gaucho]

It's an excellent Top 6, no doubt. Despite Versteeg.

[largegarlic]

I know this won't make too much of a difference to the overall rankings (which I largely agree with and appreciate, by the way), but doesn't Boston still have to dump some substantial salary to sign Smith and Krug? It seems like they have a little over $3 million in cap space once you factor in Savard going to LTIR, but I think that might be enough for one of Krug and Smith, not both.

I think you'd still have to rank their roster as the best in the East even if they have to dump a $3-4 million player for picks/prospects, but it would bring them back to the pack a little bit.

[André]

I know this won't make too much of a difference to the overall rankings (which I largely agree with and appreciate, by the way), but doesn't Boston still have to dump some substantial salary to sign Smith and Krug? It seems like they have a little over $3 million in cap space once you factor in Savard going to LTIR, but I think that might be enough for one of Krug and Smith, not both.

I think you'd still have to rank their roster as the best in the East even if they have to dump a $3-4 million player for picks/prospects, but it would bring them back to the pack a little bit.

True. With Savard on LTIR they should have 3.2 mil to sign Krug and Smith, which is very likely too little. We'll see what happens.