Goin' down South(east)

We'll now continue our journey down I-95, to some "unconventional" hockey markets. Four of the five teams in the conference came into existence in the 1990s (although you can argue Carolina existed before. Bring back the whale!). Anyway, the Southeast is home to some exciting hockey with the scoring machine in Washington and the Dynamic Duo in Tampa Bay. We also have some news to report that the Chicago Blackhawks have relocated to Miami. Well, alright, that's only partly true, and we'll get into that in a bit.

SOUTHEAST DIVISION:
Last year's standings.

Washington 48-23-11
Tampa Bay 46-25-11
Carolina 40-31-11
Atlanta/Winnipeg 34-36-12
Florida 30-40-12


Washington Capitals: While you car argue it would be difficult for the Capitals to get better, they did it this off season. Amongst rumors of Semyon Varlamov looking to go back to Russia, GMGM (George McPhee) managed to trade him to Colorado for 1st and conditional 2nd round draft pick, which is more than the compensation for his salary if the Avalanche tendered and offer sheet. The capitals also signed Nashville playoff phenom Joel Ward. As if that wasn't enough, they might have made the shrewdest signing this year, Tomas Vokoun, for roughly 1.5 million dollars. The Capitals have had some success with their young goaltenders, but now they have one of the best goalies in the league in recent years at a bargain basement price. Will this be the Capitals year finally? Unfortunately, Vokoun's playoff record is less than stellar, but with a team as deep as Washington's, this could be THE move to bring them over the hump.

Tampa Bay Lightning: What a bizarre summer for the Lightning. RFA scoring machine Steven Stamkos was a challenge to re-sign, but they managed to come to an agreement to keep Stamkos around for awhile. They're also bringing back Dwayne "Rollie the Goalie" Roloson. The ageless wonder continues to defy the critics, as well as nature seemingly. At 41, he appears to play about 10 years younger, with no real signs of stopping. He's possibly the best goalie the Lightning have had since their Cup run in 2004 with Khabibulin. Perhaps the most underrated component to their success is coach Guy Boucher. The Lightning have drafted well, but never managed to click, that is until Guy took the reigns and off they went.

Carolina Hurricanes: Ahh the Cardiac Canes. Or Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The Carolina Hurricanes have been as enigmatic as they've been exciting the past few seasons. With Eric Staal, Cam Ward and soon to be sophomore Jeff Skinner, the core of this team is still young and highly skilled. The problem lies in their consistency. Will they be a team that looks more at home in the AHL, or will they look like the team that has won the Stanley Cup 06? If the Canes can get their act together and play consistent hockey, they will soon return to the playoffs. If not, it's another year of outside looking in.

Winnipeg Jets (formally Atlanta Thrashers): A brief moment to say how nice it is to see the Jets back in the 'Peg. With that said, I don't see them making the playoffs this year. While it's not impossible, it doesn't seem like they did enough this year to get past their tougher divisional rivals. They do have some quality young players like Kane and Bogosian, as well as Pavelec in goal. This is another team that has the potential to make a run, if they can string together a nice string of wins, but with Tampa and Washington to climb over, it will be an incredibly tall order.

Florida Panthers: This is a team that has made a lot of noise this off season. GM Dale Tallon has stock piled draft picks and took on some salary to make this team more competitive. This year's draft pick Jonathan Huberdeau has a chance to make the lineup, but some of the more established acquistions this year include Kris Versteeg, Scottie Upshall, Theodore, Kopecky, Jovanovski and Brian Campbell. that's 3 cup winning Blackhawks acquired in less than a week. While a good portion of these players could be considered overpaid, they are winning vets who have a want to win, which is something that's been missing in Florida for quite some time. Will Jose Theodore returned to his Hart and Vezina winning form and help propel this team up the standings, or will he be simply an adequate stop gap replacement for Vokoun? Only time will tell, but on paper the Panthers have improved quite a bit.


Predictions: The Southeast Division is still a two horse race between the Capitals and Lightning, but the rest of the division has the potential to play spoiler to either their divisional rivals or other teams in the conference. It certainly looks like the Panthers have the potential to make the biggest splash in the division. However, the Cardiac Canes and Cats will still leave their fans perplexed and at times furious I'm sure. Look for Washington and Tampa Bay to duplicate their 1-2 position in the division once again this season.

Washington-Tampa Bay-Florida-Carolina-Winnipeg

The 2011 Entry Draft

The NHL Entry Draft is right around the corner. Unlike the hype of "Taylor vs. Tyler" from last year, there is no clear cut #1 draft pick amongst the group. While there is still plenty of talent in this year's draft, the number one pick could be any of the few top rated picks. The NHL's central scouting has both North American and European skaters ranked seperately, and TSN has them listed together. It looks like Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Adam Larsson have staked their claims as the number one ranked skaters in North America and Europe respectively. Will either one of these players be taken first overall, or will it be someone like Landeskog or Huberdeau? We'll find out on Friday. With that in mind, let's take a look at the teams in the top 5 and what they need to address right now.

1: Edmonton Oilers
Their second year in a row leading the dance, and while they have plenty of young fowards now, they still lack a legitimate top line center as well as a top shutdown defensemen. Obviously they can have their pick of the litter. What Edmonton really needs to decide is who can have the most immediate impact on the team. While a player like a Nugent Hopkins or a Huberdeau have number one center potential, my main concern with them right now is their size. RNH comes in at 6'0" and 164 pounds and Huberdeau is 6'1" 170 pounds. With a team like Edmonton, who lacks depth down the middle, these players won't have time to develop and mature physically. Instead they would be thrown to the wolves early on and take a beating. Certainly having them play another year of juniors or down in the AHL is a possibility, but the Oilers need help now. They could always go with Mika Zibanejad, the 6'1" 192lbs center from Sweden or Shane Couturier (6'4" 197lbs). Odds are they will go with RNG, but if they choose to address their defensive woes, Adam Larsson will be the number one pick in this year's draft.

2. Colorado Avalanche
The Avalanche are over flowing with centers, so the odds of them going after another centerman are probably low. They will look to add to depth to their wings or defense. Swedish born Gabriel Landeskog seems the best choice. Already a solid two way player, he has been compared to former Kitchener Rangers product Mike Richards, Landeskog comes in with decent size (6'1" 207lbs) and a scoring touch. He also has the ability to bang with the best of them if need be. Only reason I don't see him being a first overall pick is due to the Oilers depth on the wing. However their is the task of attempting to replace Adam Foote on the blue line. While definitely a cause for concern, the Avalanche aren't too thin in the back to have to use their first round pick on a player like Larsson (if available) and look for them to address their offensive deficiencies first.

3. Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers are a team who are simply looking to get the best player available. Assuming RNG goes first and Landeskog or Larsson goes second, the Panthers will look to get whoever they think will be the best for them. Look for them to draft Huberdeu if available or defenseman Dougie Hamilton. If he doesn't have a name made for hockey, I don't know who does. GM Dave Tallon was the architect behind the Stanley Cup winning Chicago Blackhawks, and certainly he's bringing his formula down to Florida with the same goals in mind.

4. New Jersey Devils
Draft lottery winners, the New Jersey Devils will not be turning down their first round draft pick this year. The Devils had one of the strongest 2nd half runs last season, and will look to build on that success. While they are currently coachless, the Devils still have GM Lou Lamoriello and "In Lou We Trust." The Devils are looking for a player who can become a top 6 center to replace either Patrick Elias or supplant Travis Zajac at the number one spot. The Devils will also look to pick up a puck moving defenseman. Some mock drafts have Couturier going to the NJ, and he would certainly add a nice physical presence down the middle. The knock on Larsson's game is that his foward skating isn't the best, making him an inconsistent puck carrier. Nathan Beaulieu could also be on their radar. Lou also has a knack for trading up or down if he sees something he likes, or dislikes. The Devils will be one of the more interesting teams to watch.

5. New York Islanders
Garth Snow again has a lottery pick and the Islanders once again look to be on the cusp of making some waves, but have to stay injury free. Look for last year's pick Nino Niederrieter to crack the line up next year, but until then look for the Islanders to follow the Panthers plan and simply draft the best player available. Looking at their roster, they have a solid crop of young fowards. I'm expecting them to target a defenseman, but as stated before whoever is the best player available.


With a draft class like this, plenty of solid players but few legtimate impact players, this will be a time to address depth and holes in the line up. Looking at the top ranked skaters, there are only a few who seem ready to make the jump right to the NHL. There are also plenty of rumors flying around, there seems to be a desire for teams to enter the top 10 or possibly top 5 via trades. Hopefully this Friday will be more interesting than the trade deadline. Thankfully the draft usually delivers. I'm sure we'll be watching.