Southeast Division

I've got nothing witty to say about this division. Let's just finish the east shall we? Thank my insomnia for this one.


Washington Capitals: Still flying fast and loose defensively. Ovechkin is the best offensive player in the league. If you don't want to say the best, as it my offend Miss Criesby in pittsburgh, you can say he's the most dynamic. But really look at his numbers, they're ridiculous. Washington will likely run up a ridiculous goal total again this season. Ovechkin, Semin, Backstrom, all of whom had 80 plus points. Hell Ovie and backstrom both broke 100 points this season. Mike Green was 4th on their team with 76 points. When's the last time you saw a Dman put up those kind of points?
This is all part of the problem though. Look over the defensive roster, and you see capable names, but nothing that really stands out as a strong stay at home defenseman. At least not to me anyway. Mike Green is a fine offensive talent, and is great on the power play, but i don't see him really shutting anyone down. That being said, i'd still want him on my team. The departure of Jose Theodore (well, minus a miracle re-signing which won't happen), it's now the Varlamov show down in DC. A russian responsible for security in Washington....the cold war is truly over. Ok that awful joke aside, Varlamov has been solid for the Capitals. Michal Neuvirth looks to be the new back up, who posted respectable numbers in his limited appearances. By all accounts Bruce Boudreau has more confidence in Varlamov than he had in Theodore, so that should translate into better performances.
Despite the offensive juggernaut this team puts forth, they will still only be as effective as their defense. We all saw what the Habs did against them in the opening round of the playoffs. without some tweaking to that back end, it'll be another cupless spring in Washington.


Atlanta Thrashers: After raiding the pantry of the Chicago Blackhawks, the thrashers have a new look. This will also be the first Kovalchuk-less season in Atlanta. The team put forth a solid effort after the trade. Bergfors and Oduya will be nice additions to this line up. Bergfors showed flashes of top 6 forward, and Oduya is a decent puck moving defensemen. Evander Kane will look to improve on his rookie campaign. it wasn't bad, but the foot injury certainly didn't help. Look for him to try and avoid the sophmore slump. The addition of Chris Mason, along with the returning Ondrej Pavelec should be a respectable goaltending tandem.
What will be the real wild card for this team will be new coach Craig Ramsey. He has a losing record for his career, and doesn't seem to command a team's attention. We'll have to wait and see how long this lasts. Atlanta is due for a decent season, relatively speaking anyway. We'll have to see what Byfuglien, Ladd and Eager will bring to this team.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Steve Yzerman has wasted no time placing his stamp on this team. Trading a bag of pucks for Simon Gagne was a terrific move. This gives the team two potent lines. Stamkos is coming off a ridiculous sophomore season. 51 goals (tied for the league lead) and overall a 49 point total increase. Steve Downie was also a nice surprise, putting up numbers he hasn't since junior hockey. If Lecavalier can have a better season, which he should with Stamkos being the threat he is, the Lightning will roll out two of the best offensive units in hockey today.
Dan Ellis was a great free agent pick up. If Mike Smith doesn't turn out the way they want, Ellis is more than capable of carrying a #1 work load. Hell if not for the play of Pekka Rinne, he'd probably still be in Nashville. I'm not wowed with the blueline of Tampa, but i'm not underwhelmed either. They should be just good enough to get them through some close ones, and the offense has enough power up front to be able to hang around in a back and forth game. There's really no place for the Lightning to go but up. Will they make the playoffs? .......eh. The possibility is there for a 8th seed, but i don't see them getting far if they do. who knows though.

Carolina Hurricanes: Old guys out. Carolina is ready for the youth movement. They've signed a lot of guys to entry level, or two way deals. This shows Carolina's commitment to the future, but it doesn't say much for the present. Eric Staal and company have a long road ahead of them. They managed to stay competitive last year, but after their abysmal start, and Cam Ward's injury, it's hard to come back into the playoff picture. If Ward stays healthy, and they can actually win some games early on, they could very well be in the hunt come spring time. I still think that they'll be on the outside looking in though. Still in this division, anything is possible.

Florida Panthers: I hope Dale Tallon likes to get his hands dirty, because this is a project. Sure there's some talent on this roster like David Booth....but that's about it. Taking a look at the stats, there are three players that are plus. I don't usually put a lot of stock into +/- but you have to see that and know that this team is not putting up a lot of offense. Dale Tallon stock piled draft picks and is looking to build up, but right now Florida fans...if you still exist, tough it out. You still have Vokoun that your teammates can beat up. As long as Dale can avoid the bonus fiasco that turned the blackhawks into the NHL equivalent of the 1997 Florida Marlins after the world series win, Florida will very much have a contender. Looking at this roster now though, it's going to be another year of early golfing.
(edit: i forgot that horton was traded, and the line up sheet i was looking at was older. my bad. whatever.)


Predictions: Washington (duh) - Tampa - Atlanta - Carolina - Florida