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October 12, 2015
The Hockey News has been providing the most comprehensive coverage of the world of hockey since 1947. In each issue, you'll find news, features and opinions about the NHL and leagues across North America and the world.
5 NASHVILLE PREDATORS CENTRAL
DEFYING WIDESPREAD expectations of a basement finish in 2014-15, Nashville exploded for 104 points. GM David Poile liked what he saw and used the off-season to add depth, putting faith in his core group to build on its excellent first season under coach Peter Laviolette. Poile sprinkled his roster with minor UFA additions: Forward Cody Hodgson, recently bought out by the Sabres; Steve Moses, a pint-sized KHL scoring winger; and Barret Jackman, a longtime Blues stay-at-home D-man. The Preds battled for the Presidents’ Trophy in their first 60 games but finished 6-12-3 and couldn’t hold leads in the playoffs. This year’s group won't flirt with a division title but should make the post-season. Nashville’s offense was a respectable 14th, led by Calder finalist Filip Forsberg and firstyear Predator Mike Ribeiro, who each broke…
4 SAN JOSE SHARKS PACIFIC
SAN JOSE'S playoff meltdown against the Kings in 2014 sent the franchise into a daze. A season later, the Sharks missed the playoffs for the first time since 2003. Talk of a rebuild didn't persist, though, as GM Doug Wilson aggressively added to his middling club. Middle-six right winger Joel Ward, top-four D-man Paul Martin, and talented-but-unproven netminder Martin Jones are the notable additions. The roster is better on paper, but questions linger. Will echoes of the supposedly settled public rift between Wilson and Joe Thornton affect the club? Can new coach Peter DeBoer inspire? And, perhaps most importantly, is Jones a No. 1? The Sharks will have trouble climbing out of bubble territory but look improved enough to tack on some points and have a sniff at the post-season. Concerning is…
6. ISLES OR RANGERS?
OUTGUNNED The Isles have the youth and offensive weapons to overtake the Rangers as New York's best team. IT'S BEEN A WHILE SINCE THERE has been a role reversal on Broadway, but there will be new kings of New York in 2015-16. It’s no longer the Rangers set to run things in the Big Apple, as the Islanders are moving off the island and ditching Nassau Coliseum for new digs at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. And luckily for fans in New York’s biggest borough, the hype surrounding the Islanders isn’t only because they’ll play in a modern building. Rather, it’s because this isn’t a team simply looking to dethrone the Rangers as the top dog in New York State but also one that stands a real chance at competing deep into the post-season. The past…
7 NEW JERSEY DEVILS METROPOLITAN
A NEW ERA begins in New Jersey, as the organization starts a season without Lou Lamoriello as GM for the first time in 28 years. Ownership nudged 'Lou' to step aside and hire Ray Shero as the new GM, but Lamoriello lasted less than a summer on the sidelines as the Maple Leafs picked him up to be their GM. In Shero's first draft, he selected Pavel Zacha, who projects as a No. 1 center. That's a fine start to the rebuild, but the Devils are due for a nightmarish 2015-16. A quick glance at the depth chart makes it clear they will be among the first teams at the draft podium next year. Shero made two modest but useful acquisitions over the summer, landing Kyle Palmieri, who slots as a top-six…
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