9 Predictions for 09-10

The NHL regular season kicks off this weekend, and for many reasons both on and off the ice, it looks to be a roller coaster ride. This off-season, the Phoenix Coyotes were the dominant story (and for a league with no national US awareness, it was embarrassingly the only story), and that teams financial issues are just the tip of the iceberg. Expect to see a lot more financial instability come to the forefront this season. But on the ice, the influx of young talent continues, as we’ve seen the last couple of seasons radically change the league’s look from older declining stars to younger, emerging stars. Here are 9 predictions and observations about the upcoming season.

1. The Florida Panthers will become this year’s Phoenix Coyotes. I don’t mean on the ice (though I don`t expect either franchise to be stellar). Deep financial problems and apathetic markets mark two of the NHL’s most troubled franchises. And with the true impact of the economic meltdown being realized this year, they won’t be the only franchises teetering on the brink. One other commonality: neither team will be playing in Hamilton in 2010-11.
2. I like that the Montreal Canadiens were agressive in trying to remake their team. However, I don`t see how assembling a smurf line of Mike Cammileri, Scott Gomez and Brian Gionta is going to help them in the long run, especially with the big and tough division rivals in Toronto and Boston. I can see hard hitting defencemen like Zdeno Chara and Mike Komisarek turning the smurfs into bleu, blanc et rouge skidmarks at the blue line.
3. Pat Quinn was an interesting choice as coach of the Edmonton Oilers. He’ll definitely bring a new perspective and mentality to the team, and I think some of the guys who have helped the team coast to mediocre records and no playoff appearances in the past three years should be very careful about getting on Quinn’s bad side. Edmonton is not a great team, but it’s a team with a number of talented players who could jump up into the playoffs this year, especially if Quinn rides them as hard as expected. The up-and-down Robbie Schremp is already the first victim, getting waived and picked up by the Islanders. With Edmonton’s new owner looking at a new arena development, mediocrity will not be an acceptable outcome.
4. Speaking of the Islanders, first overall pick (and would-be Islanders saviour) John Tavares is in for a rough ride. Expectations are sky high on a dreadful team, and there’s simply no way he can live up to them right away. Tavares won’t have the kind of supporting cast that Sidney Crosby enjoyed right off the bat, nor does he have the play-making wizardry that has allowed Alex Ovechkin to thrive in Washington with little else around him. Plus, there’s every possibility the Islanders could join the NHL’s caravan of moving franchises this season, further throwing his “welcome to the NHL” into disarray. Hopefully, he’s able to rise above it, but all the disaster warning signs are there.
5. Get used to seeing more and more 18 year olds playing in the NHL. This year, four players (Tavares, Victor Hedman, Matt Duchesne and Evander Kane) are expected to play full-time in the NHL, with a couple of others getting an early taste before returning to junior. Last year, we saw Steve Stamkos, Drew Doughty, Zach Bogosian and Luke Schenn make a solid impact as 18 year olds. Between franchises needing to create excitment with young stars, and maximizing the amount of playing time before free agency, except a lot of teams to take this approach in coming years. Some players will thrive, it some will end up rushed, like Kyle Turris.
6. Dany Heatley wanted to play professional pond hockey, and rejected the idea of being a complete player at both ends of the ice in Ottawa. Now he’s in San Jose, where hopefully they will let him float at the red line, ignore the concept of defensive play, and notch his 50 goals playing beside Joe Thornton.
7. As detailed here, I think Chicago Blackhawk forward Patrick Kane will elevate himself from emerging star to full blown superstar this season.
8. Part of a recurring theme in the league this year, the NHLPA is yet another disaster waiting to happen. After the player reps canned executive director Paul Kelly in what can politely be called a slightly questionable move, it laid bare the fractured and back-stabbing politics of the player’s union. You need only to see who has benefited from Kelly’s firing and taken control of the union to see that the union’s ship is taking on water fast. Former Canadian Auto Workers union boss Buzz Hargrove seems to have insinuated himself as the senior advisor to the new regime, a frightening concept when you realize just how much his “leadership” meant to Canada’s auto industry.
9. I see no reason not to believe that Detroit and Pittsburgh will meet in the Stanly Cup finals again this year. Chicago could step up and surprise in the West, and Ovechkin is talented enough to almost single-handedly will the Capitals into the finals in the West. But in terms of overall team strength, it’s the Red Wings and the Penguins for the third straight year.