It’s amazing how talking about a particular player can affect your perception of fundamental facts.
Erik Karlsson has had a huge profile for over a decade. He played for a Canadian team, was part of a massive trade a few years ago and has a higher cap hit than anyone at his position in the league. He’s also struggling with serious injuries and unfortunately a lot about the Swede in recent years revolves around a fading impact. Without really thinking about it, it feels like he’s in the latter half of his 30s.
To describe what Roman Josi has just finished as a “career year” would be like a description Reservoir Dogs a beautiful directorial debut for Quentin Tarantino. Josi scored 96 points last season, 31 more than ever before and the most we’ve seen from a blueliner in 29 years.
The fact that Josi is hitting new career highs right now I think makes him age a bit, which is what those best years for a player usually are. All of which means it stopped me when I realized that the Sharks’ D-Man and the Nashville captain are almost exactly the same age — like when their teams meet Friday in the Czech Republic at the start of a new NHL season , Karlsson will be 32 years, 129 days old while Josi will be 32 years, 128 days old.
Last year was an incredible season for defenders, as evidenced by Josi’s 23 goals and 96 points not even winning the Norris Trophy, an honor bestowed on super talent Cale Makar of Colorado. The years, compiled by Josi, Makar (86 points), and Victor Hedman (85 points), represent the three highest single-season point totals by D-men over the past decade.
Of course, if you go backwards, Karlsson’s name comes up a lot. Along with him and Josi, they have three of the top six results in a season, dating back to the 2011-12 season. Karlsson won the Norris that year as a third-year player in the league. By age 24, he had two of the trophies, and by the time he was 26, had finished first or second in the Norris voting four times. In contrast, Josi was firmly established as a fantastic player in his mid-20s but only received a nomination for Norris won the thing at 29.
A healthy Karlsson joining a goalscoring revolution in defence, which he actually helped beginning is what to hope for at this time of year: that’s the beauty of a new season.
How do you say “Let’s go!” in Czech?
1. Colorado Avalanche The defending champions are truly in a class of their own, especially in the Western Conference. Maybe winning the cup will make them lose their hunger for dogs, but they’re also finally out of the black cloud that has been hanging over them for the last few years and can play fast and free.
2. Tampa Bay Lighting Shoulder surgery means we won’t be seeing Anthony Cirelli for a while, but the Bolts are used to navigating the regular-season absence. This remains an elite squad and they can still beat you on the rare nights they don’t really have it thanks to Andrei Vasilevskiy.
3. Carolina hurricanes Max Pacioretty (Achillies) will be Deadline’s internal season acquisition to improve the score, while another former hab – Jesperi Kotkianemi – will try to prove he can handle second-line duties at centre.
4. Calgary Flames Honestly the only real question here is the chemistry as a few key parts have been swapped out. But there’s a chance this squad could do better than the one who finished third in the conference last season.
5. Toronto Maple Leaves The team may not be the best version of themselves as some players are overwhelmed. I really wish we could jump eight weeks into the future to see how this kink duo of Matt Murray and Ilya Samsonov will pan out.
6. Florida Panther Matthew Tkachuk’s takeover for MacKenzie Weegar and Jonathan Huberdeau feels like a version of a one-step-back-two-step-forward. That small step back now comes for last year’s Presidents’ Trophy winners.
7. Edmonton oiler Calgary stole the headlines during the Alberta offseason, but it was also a fine summer for the Oilers. Can they build on a Final Four performance?
8. Minnesota Wilderness Quick: How many teams finished ahead of Minnesota overall last year? You can count them on one hand without a thumb. Their dead-money cap crunch made it impossible to keep Kevin Fiala, but this team has built a lustrous talent pipeline.
9. New York Rangers You know the crease is in good hands with Igor Shesterkin, but how much would it move the needle if both Alexis Lafrenière and Kaapo Kakko made jumps this year?
10. St Louis Blues The top 9 has a really nice mix up front. With Ville Husso gone, it’s up to Jordan Binnington to get as close to his 2019 form as possible.
11. Pittsburgh penguins We’re now five years away from the Pens being at the top of the hockey world, but even if they’re in their mid-30s it’s difficult to completely rule out Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin — especially when both remain healthy year-round.
12. Kings of Los Angeles As one of last season’s pleasant surprises, there’s reason to believe the Kings can build on their unexpected success. Fiala was a big fish off-season, while the likes of Quinton Byfield, Arthur Kaliyev and Sean Durzi could be poised for big roles.
13. New York Islanders Last year was such a strange season for the Isles, who began by playing their first 13 games away from home while the finishing touches were put on the sparkling new arena. Matt Barzal signing a big overtime creates a good mood, Ilya Sorokin provides a great foundation for the goal and this is still a team to earn whatever you get.
14. Dallas Stars Jason Robertson is at it again. Next question: Is Playoff Jake Oettinger the version we’re getting forward? If so, that would really take Dallas up a notch.
15. Nashville predators It’s easy to forget that the Preds were a solid roster last year because they were gutted by Colorado in the playoffs after Juuse Saros was eliminated with an injury. Ryan McDonagh comes in to help the top 4 while Nino Niederreiter adds a 20-goal guy to the top 6.
16. Washington Capitals We really don’t know when Nick Backstrom will be able to return from major hip surgery and Tom Wilson is also out long-term with a knee injury. However, if Darcy Kuemper can play like the Vezina fringe contender he was in Arizona a few years ago, it will be a huge improvement over what the Caps had in goal last season.
17. Boston-Bruins The B’s always find a way, but the first few months will be about staying afloat until Brad Marchand (hip) and Charlie McAvoy (shoulder) return from their long-term injuries, not to mention the fact that Taylor Hall He is expected to miss regular season games with an upper body injury.
18. Winnipeg Jets With everything feeling like the Jets are about to implode, it’s worth noting that the top-6 forward team remains very strong, the defensive corps is passable, and Connor Hellebuyck is very much one of the league’s top-five goalies this year could be. Beneath all the noise in Manitoba is a very decent hockey team buried.
19.Vegas Golden Knights The fact that Robin Lehner is not there this year cannot be overlooked, but it hides the fact that there are reasons to like this team. Jack Eichel gets his first full drive in the desert and captain Mark Stone is back after an injury-plagued season.
20. Vancouver Canucks The Canucks had a .649 point percentage in 57 games after Bruce Boudreau took over as coach last season, a better mark than four of the teams that actually made the playoffs in the West in 82 contests. Entering the postseason won’t be an easy task for Vancouver, but the roadmap is clearly there.
21. New Jersey Devil Few teams have the jumping potential that the Devils possess. Both MacKenzie Blackwood and Vitek Vanecek were good preseason. If the goalies play well when the games count, New Jersey will be pushing for a playoff spot.
22. Columbus Blue Jackets Columbus have their shiny new toy in Johnny Gaudreau but it will be interesting to see how big leaps young players like Cole Sillinger and Yegor Chinakhov (four pre-season goals) can make.
23. Buffalo Saber I spent a few days in Buffalo earlier this week and it’s not hard to get the feeling that this is a team of young people who like each other and want to grow together in West New York. How far they can go this year remains to be seen, but there is undeniable reason for optimism in Buffalo.
24. Ottawa Senators Cam Talbot’s absence for more than a month is a blow to a side who have known all summer that the challenge will be keeping pucks out of their own net.
25.Detroit Red Wings Their offseason turn left no doubt that the Wings are trying to move forward with that rebuild. Thing is, they could go from 74 to 84 points and still be sixth in the Atlantic Division.
26. Anaheim Ducks Trevor Zegras was Rookie of the Year runner-up last year; Mason McTavish has a fantastic shot at being nominated this year. Things are coming together in Orange County as we enter the post-Ryan Getzlaf era.
27. Sharks of San Jose There’s a pretty clear page turn in Northern California. Mike Grier is the new GM after 20 years on the job for Doug Wilson; Brent Burns – a formative player and character with the Sharks since 2011 – was traded to Carolina. A new name will take time to form and it will likely be difficult to turn a profit for a while.
28. Philadelphia Flyer Say what you will about John Tortorella, he has a certain don’t-bet-against-him energy. But even if the new manager can get the most out of this squad, how much is there really?
29. Seattle Octopus Year 2 is obviously still about development – and possibly watching Matty Beniers win the Calder Trophy.
30. Montreal Canadiens First overall winner Juraj Slafkovsky will potentially spend most of the year in the AHL, which is fine for the Habs rebuilding. On the other hand, rookie defenseman Kaiden Guhle could look like a 10-year NHL veteran by November.
31. Arizona Coyotes It feels like the Coyotes have been red-circling the 2023 blueprint since Bill Armstrong took over as GM two years ago. Will the tank job pay off in the form of Connor Bedard?
32. Chicago Blackhawks For my money, the Patrick Kane Sweepstakes is the most intriguing subplot entering the new season.
#NHL #Power #Rankings #Optimism #high #Avalanche #start #top
Leave a Comment