The Central's For Real

[handyandy_101 0]

its about damn time.

i watched my first blackhawk game tonight (against the leafs), and those guys might just have a playoff team. st.louis made some good off season acquisitions and i think that they're paced to make a move. with ken hitchcock at the helm in columbus, they are also making vast improvements. and, as delapatated (is that a word?? idunno) as the preds lineup is, they can still make a few waves.

is it safe to say that we have our selves a real division??

i think that if this can hold up, it can really help us out come post-season time. a little bit of regular season competition with get us into that playoff state of mind before the playoffs even start, which is something that we have lacked for seemingly forever.

i welcome any comments or opinions

[Yemack 1]

watched the game against leafs too

what I saw was that Chicago plays very similar style to us. Puck possesion, focusing on winning little battles, puck cycles. Think their GM made good offseason movements and those rookies are flying real high. They really have a team that we should look out IMO

However, having said that, they are not what I would call a powerhouse. I would say Nashville last year was more of a threat than Hawks.

[Earthhuman 8]

-It's nice to see that Detroit is still dominant (thank you Z).

-Chicago trades their prospects away just as they start to get good.

-Preds are one injury away from a big slump.

-Columbus finishes bad, but Nash is finally picking it up, Leclaire just might pan out, and steady veteran acquisitions (Foote, Fedorov, Peca) are making them look like a real hockey club. If they don't make the playoffs this year, then they'll have a hard time clinging to that fanbase.

-St. Louis... well, we'll see. They just might be good. However, they do have Legace in net, so good luck getting anywhere in the playoffs.

Who knows, this could be more of the same, but everyone is still at least an NHL quality team.

[handyandy_101 0]

watched the game against leafs too

what I saw was that Chicago plays very similar style to us. Puck possesion, focusing on winning little battles, puck cycles. Think their GM made good offseason movements and those rookies are flying real high. They really have a team that we should look out IMO

However, having said that, they are not what I would call a powerhouse. I would say Nashville last year was more of a threat than Hawks.

absolutely i agree with that, nasheville last year was certainly a better team than chicago this year

that said, i am making more of a comment on the depth of the division...last year we played 24 games against three s***ty ass teams, that really did not serve to benefit our team at all in the long run....this year, on the other hand, were gonna have to work a bit more for those games, and i think that losing a few more games here and there is a small price to pay for something that could help us vastly in the long run

[Detroit # 1 Fan 2,204]

I think were going to be the only Central team in the playoffs, but for most of the season, it'll be pretty competitive.

[Echolalia 2,961]

st louis is going to sneak into the playoffs as an 8th seed, but im still convinced chicago has a bit longer to wait before a playoff berth.

[auxlepli 17]

In the early going it certainly seems the Central is much improved from top to bottom. Chicago is also playing surprisingly well so far. Babcock had a great post-game quote tonight. "People don't understand what a fine line it is between swimming and drowning in this league," Babcock said. So not only is the Central up, but so is the entire League, well except maybe Atlanta. I think it has a lot to do with the salary cap. It's another post-lockout change I really like. Sure we'll probably never see anymore dynasties, but every team has a legitimate shot now, and I think that increases fan interest across the nation. Because each team is competitive now, it places a great onus on scouts to do their job well. The Wings IMO have great scouts which is why they've stayed competitive post-lockout. The Thrashers don't and that's why, albeit last season, have remained a cellar dwelling team.

[daniel1 32]

My money is on Chicago grabbing the playoff spot over St. Louis. I think their D and goaltending is better than St. Louis. The offence I would say is about equal with Tkachuk/Weight/Kariya/Mayers and Lang/Toews/Sharpe/Kane/Lang being about even.

The "X" factor here would be Havlat, when healthy he's one of the top 10 offensive players in the NHL; if he returns to 100% and Chicago's rookies continue to develop then I wouldn't wanna face them in a 1 vs 8 matchup cause they will super loose and Khabibulin has potential to get hot and steal a couple games. Lapointe, Williams, Sopel and Lang would be uber-motivated to take us out too given their Red Wing connection.

*Side note* If Williams goes on to score 30 goals, was it a big mistake to get rid of him for what amounted to nothing seeing as how Calder was here for a cup of coffee and then moved on?

[Dabura 12,232]

The Central's still pretty much a fascist dictatorship.

[auxlepli 17]

This is about a week old, but Ted Montgomery hits upon the same thing.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/colu...ontgomery_N.htm

• The Central Division looks interesting. The Red Wings seem vulnerable, the Predators won't go away without a fight, and St. Louis and Chicago are both much-improved. Even Columbus, with its talented goaltender Pascal Leclaire, seems poised to make a move. Stay tuned … the balance in this division could shift immeasurably.

[chrisdetroit 189]

watched the game against leafs too

what I saw was that Chicago plays very similar style to us. Puck possesion, focusing on winning little battles, puck cycles. Think their GM made good offseason movements and those rookies are flying real high. They really have a team that we should look out IMO

However, having said that, they are not what I would call a powerhouse. I would say Nashville last year was more of a threat than Hawks.

Nasville a powerhouse last year? I think not. They were way overhyped and benefitted from playing in the same weak division that we were in.

We went 6-1-1 against Nashville. They were eliminated in 5 games in the first round (for the second straight year).

The Hawks are much improved and might make the playoffs. Same goes for St. Louis but neither are cup contenders. The BJ's are no better and the Preds are going to be much worse than last year.

This is about a week old, but Ted Montgomery hits upon the same thing.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/colu...ontgomery_N.htm

The Wings are vulnerable? Where did he get that from? We are 6-2-1 and lead the league in goals. Probably the same idiot that predicted that we wouldn't make the playoffs last year. Some of these guys need to actually start watching games.

[Dabura 12,232]

This is about a week old, but Ted Montgomery hits upon the same thing.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/colu...ontgomery_N.htm

I can't believe he gets paid to write garbage like that.

[HockeyCrazy3033 168]

I remember before the season started there was a thread here about who would be competitive in the Central. I remember saying the Hawks would give the Wings a hard time, and well..damn I was right so far. They're going to be good. Probably the only team in the central that we will have to worry about.

[BeeRYCE 2]

With 4 out of 5 teams over .500, it's looking good, but I don't see Columbus and St. Louis lasting too long.

[betterREDthandead 58]

*Side note* If Williams goes on to score 30 goals, was it a big mistake to get rid of him for what amounted to nothing seeing as how Calder was here for a cup of coffee and then moved on?

No. Williams was doing nothing for us and would have continued to do so. Sometimes a player can't produce for one team but thrives on another. If there's a mistake, it might have been trading him to a division rival - there's a reason teams are reluctant to do that. But we all loved the trade when it happened, so it'd be hypocritical of us to turn around and bash it later, seeing as how we'd all have been just as wrong as anyone.

[GMRwings1983 8,804]

It's too early to make predictions right now. Don't forget that at one point last year it looked like the Blue Jackets and Blackhawks might make a run for the playoffs, but eventually those teams faded. It seems like injuries have plagued all the teams in the Central over the last few years, but we've been the only team able to handle it well enough to make the playoffs. As someone posted earlier, I still expect the Wings to be the only Central division team in the playoffs, with maybe the exception of Nashville.

[Kp-Wings 3]

It's way too early to really know what'll happen, but I'll take a shot at it.

I expect that the Wings will still win the division. There are factors that go into it though. Z has to keep up his scoring pace the whole season like he is now. The 2nd line needs to start producing. Hasek needs to play better. And deny it all you want, the Wings need to keep Downey around, even if for only 2-3 minutes a game. Z said it himself: his fight really turned that San Jose game around, and gave the Wings a lot of energy. It's also nice to have someone who's willing to stick up for your teammates for once, which we've lacked for a long time now.

If all that is does, the Wings will run away with the Central again. Even if a few pieces are missing, they should still win it. It's an improved division, but the Wings still have more talent.

St. Louis will probably finish in 2nd. They did lose last night, but their a much better team, and have a good mix of skill and toughness. They should probably make the playoffs.

Chicago will finish 3rd, either in the playoffs or barely outside. Their prospects are playing some great hockey right now. If they can get consistant play from them, and decent goaltending, they could be a force this year. I don't know about a lenghty playoff run, but they should still make it.

Columbus will finish 4th, and out of the playoffs. They don't have enough talent, and despite Leclaire's 3 shutouts to start off the season, he'll tail off if he doesn't have a good team playing in front of him.

Nashville will finish 5th, and way out of the playoffs. Watching them this year, they look like a dead, uninspired hockey club. The impending sale of the Preds is either weighing on the players minds and forcing them to play bad, or they just don't care anymore. Either way, don't expect much from them this year, unless they turn it around real quickly.

Obviously I could be wrong about all of this. Any numbers of things could happen in the Central this year. This is just what I feel will probably happen.

Edited October 21, 2007 by Kp-Wings

[YoungGuns1340 1]

Id say St. Louis and Chicago have as much of a shot as Detroit does, barring serious injury. Then again, those teams are riding a serious high by getting off to a good start for the Blues, and beating the Wings twice for the Hawks. Both teams are putting a lot of weight on the young guys (Keith, Seabrook, Toews, Kane, Stempniak, Boyes, etc) and I could easily see them losing confidence or getting discouraged if they go through a little rough patch.

Either way, Ottawa was crap at the beginning of the season last year, and Detroit didnt look to hot either, so well have to wait and see how things actually pan out.