By Michael Rifkin
In 2020 we saw some realignment due to Covid, but as we prepare for the 2021 NHL season, we are going back to the regular divisions. The Metropolitan division, top to bottom, might be the most competitive division in the NHL. The Metropolitan division has a nice mix of teams that can win now and teams with an incredibly bright future.
2019-20 standings: 1) Capitals 2) Flyers 3) Penguins 4) Hurricanes 5) Islanders 6) Blue Jackets 7) Rangers 8) Devils
Hurricanes (2020: 36-12-8) Carolina won the Central Division last season before losing to the Lightning in 6 games in the second round. But this is a different Hurricanes team; they lost defenseman Dougie Hamilton, goalie Alex Nedeljkovic, etc. They did bring in Goalies Freddie Anderson and Antti Raanta. Their most significant move this offseason was they extended head coach Rod Brind’Amour. A team led by forwards Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov as the future of this team, Carolina is going in the right direction. Martin Necas, who had 14 goals and 41 points in 53 games played last season, is the player to watch.
Blue Jackets (2020: 18-26-12) Opposite Carolina, Columbus finished last in the Central in 2020. They did not renew the contract of head coach John Tortorella and hired assistant Brad Larsen to be the head coach. Columbus made an interesting decision this offseason, trading star winger Cam Atkinson to the Flyers for former Blue Jacket Jakub Voracek. They were also able to re-sign winger Patrik Laine who they acquired from the Jets during the season. Laine last season had ten goals in 45 games for Columbus. They traded star defenseman Seth Jones to the Blackhawks. Player to watch: Jack Roslovic, the other piece in the Laine deal, had 12 goals and 34 points in 48 games last season. If Brad Larsen wants one extensive line, putting Roslovic with Laine and Voracek can be the answer.
Devils (2020: 19-30-7) The Devils have a good group of young forwards led by Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier. They spent this offseason upgrading their defense by acquiring Ryan Graves from the Avalanche and signing Dougie Hamilton from the Hurricanes to a massive contract. Adding these two, along with P.K. Subban and Ty Smith, who had a tremendous rookie season, the Devil’s future looks bright. Mackenzie Blackwood is an excellent goalie. Player to watch: Yegor Sharangovich, not just because the name is fun to say. Sharangovich had 16 goals and 30 points in 54 games last season. Watch for him to get in that 20-25 range this season.
Islanders (32-17-7) For the second consecutive season, the Islanders lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Conference Finals. But leave it to Lou Lamoriello to keep all of his free agents this offseason to keep this group together. Under the guidance of Lamoriello and Barry Trotz, the Islanders will be a force to be reckoned with this season. Anders Lee will return for the Islanders after tearing his ACL last season. They did lose Jordan Eberle in the expansion draft, but bringing back Kyle Palmieri and Anthony Beauvillier can soften the loss. Player to watch Oliver Wahlstrom, who scored 12 goals and 21 points in 44 games last season. With the absence of Eberle, maybe Wahlstrom can take advantage of that wicked shot he has. If he does, Oliver and Company could be on their way to the promised land.
Rangers (2020: 27-23-6) The New York Rangers just missed the playoffs last season, and with that, so did dynamics… John Davidson left as President of Hockey Ops, Jeff Gorton fired as G.M., and David Quinn fired as head coach. Fans can point to a few reasons they missed the playoffs: Artemi Panarin missed nine games due to personal issues, Mika Zibanejad got off to a slow start as he recovered from Covid, etc.… In my opinion, the Rangers were not a playoff team anyway. Stepping into the roles of G.M. and coach are former Ranger captain Chris Drury and Gerard Gallant, who last coached the Vegas Golden Knights. Chris Drury had a goal this offseason, and that was to make the Rangers a more challenging team to play against. He did just that by signing Barclay Goodrow from the Lightning, trading Pavel Buchnevich for Sammie Blais from the Blues, Trading for Ryan Reaves. This Ranger team carries enough skill with Panarin, Zibanejad, and Norris winner Adam Fox. Player to watch: Filip Chytil had eight goals and 22 points in 42 games last season. Chytil was off to a great start last season before breaking his collarbone. If he continues to progress, that will benefit the Rangers.
Flyers (2020: 25-23-8) Chuck Fletcher was very busy this offseason after the Flyers missed the playoffs last season. He added Ryan Ellis from the Predators, Rasmus Ristolainen from the Sabres, and Keith Yandle from the Panthers on the blue line. Shayne Ghostisbehere, Phil Myers, and Robert Hagg are gone. Fletcher also moved on the core, trading Jakub Voracek to the Blue Jackets for Cam Atkinson. Atkinson will provide Philly with a bonafide goal scorer. Carter Hart, who had a 3.67 GAA and a .877 save percentage last season, is the player to watch. Head coach Alain Vigneault sometimes threw Hart under the bus, but Hart can rebound with a new group of defensemen.
Penguins (2020: 37-16-3) The Pittsburgh Penguins won the East division last season before losing to the Islanders in 6 games in the first round. As long as the Penguins have Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang on their roster, they are in win now mode. They will miss Malkin for the first two months after knee surgery, Crosby had surgery on his right wrist and may miss the start of the season, and as of a few days ago, Jake Guentzel scored 23 goals last season tested positive for covid. That is 3 of the Penguin’s top 6 that they might not have early on in the season. Player to watch: Jason Zucker, who had nine goals and 18 points in 38 games played in 2020. With the early-season injuries, the Penguins need Zucker to produce offensively.
Capitals (2020: 36-15-5) The Washington Capitals’ significant move this offseason was resigning captain Alex Ovechkin to a five-year contract. The Caps have kept most of the same group that won the Stanley Cup in 2018. The Caps will look to rebound after losing to the Boston Bruins in 5 games. Watch for goalies Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek to take a step forward also. Player to watch: Anthony Mantha had four goals and 8 points in 14 games after coming over from the Detroit Red Wings at the trade deadline. The 27-year-old gives the Caps another dangerous weapon, especially on their deadly power play.
Predictions: 1) Islanders 2) Capitals 3) Hurricanes 4) Flyers (W.C.) 5) Rangers (W.C.) 6) Penguins 7) Devils 8) Blue Jackets
I think 4-8 are interchangeable, but this is the best division in the NHL.
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