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[martyrme19 73]

My 2 cents:

The hawks aren't THAT much better than last year. I really think the deciding factor will be on Huet and what kind of season he has. Honestly, it could swing any way.

The thing Chicago has going for them is they BELIEVE they can win. There is a lot of stigma in the air that says they are #1 now just because of the news splash. My opinion is they will take this as motivation and prepare harder. If you think you're the best...thats half the battle right there.

The Red Wings better hope they don't get in the opposite funk. Not saying this is the case, but it could be easy to be a player on a team that just lost a lot of players and get down on themselves. Even though they are comprised of players that basically won a cup as is, its easy to get down and out over the loss of players just as it is to get pumped when one arrives.

I think SJ is still a force to be reckoned with and will finish 1st. They have a chip on their shoulders and they are still GOOD. Thorton can't be held out of the playoffs forever either.

Detroit will finish second

Chicago will finish a close 3rd but will lose to 6th place Stl. in the first round (you heard it here first)

Calgary will finish 4th

Van will finish 5th

Colombus will finish 7th

Dallas will finish 8th

thats how its gonna be.

as for the east, Montreal will make the playoffs and Washington will finish higher in the playoffs and beat Pitt IF they meet.

The cup winner will be Obama

Edited August 14, 2009 by martyrme19

[hockey23 79]

My 2 cents:

The hawks aren't THAT much better than last year. I really think the deciding factor will be on Huet and what kind of season he has. Honestly, it could swing any way.

The thing Chicago has going for them is they BELIEVE they can win. There is a lot of stigma in the air that says they are #1 now just because of the news splash. My opinion is they will take this as motivation and prepare harder. If you think you're the best...thats half the battle right there.

The Red Wings better hope they don't get in the opposite funk. Not saying this is the case, but it could be easy to be a player on a team that just lost a lot of players and get down on themselves. Even though they are comprised of players that basically won a cup as is, its easy to get down and out over the loss of players just as it is to get pumped when one arrives.

I think SJ is still a force to be reckoned with and will finish 1st. They have a chip on their shoulders and they are still GOOD. Thorton can't be held out of the playoffs forever either.

Detroit will finish second

Chicago will finish a close 3rd but will lose to 6th place Stl. in the first round (you heard it here first)

Calgary will finish 4th

Van will finish 5th

Colombus will finish 7th

Dallas will finish 8th

thats how its gonna be.

as for the east, Montreal will make the playoffs and Washington will finish higher in the playoffs and beat Pitt IF they meet.

The cup winner will be Obama

If Detroit gets the 2 seed, Chicago can't get the 3 seed. So if you want to make a bet on how it's gonna be, I'll be happy to.

[Buppy 1,720]

Personally, I think it would be a little bit of a relief if Chicago wins the Central, with the Wings as a 4th or even 5th seed. Start a playoff series on the road for the first time in around 10 years. Maybe not be favored for once, not have to listen to other team's fans talk s*** for a whole series then brag about how 'tough' they played us when they lose. I'd like to play the underdog for a while. Coast through the regular season, 40-45 wins, turn it on in the playoffs...It worked in 97.

[Heroes of Hockeytown 694]

I've got no idea what Vancouver is doing all the way up there. They signed Sammy and...? He's a cool dude, but he's not exactly going to put you over the top just by his addition.

[martyrme19 73]

If Detroit gets the 2 seed, Chicago can't get the 3 seed. So if you want to make a bet on how it's gonna be, I'll be happy to.

oops...um...any way i can say I meant to say overall point standings? no...no theres not is there....

ok somehow my miraculous future telling has obviously shed light on the fact that the playoff structure will be changed sometime along the season. ya thats it.

In any case what i was mainly trying to get at was that chicago will be a solid contender but fall a little short and that I think the real team to make a suprising push coming out of the central will be st. louis. yup.

[MadMan Mark 0]

[quote name='martyrme19' date='August 14, 2009 - 04:31PM' post='1766131'

I think SJ is still a force to be reckoned with and will finish 1st. They have a chip on their shoulders and they are still GOOD. Thorton can't be held out of the playoffs forever either.

I think SJ will have a mediocre reg season. That may be the best thing that happens to them. When the focus is on how great they played in the reg season, they trip on their own dicks in the first round. However, SJ has only 18 players signed, no cap room, no backup goalie. I believe they have over-used Nabokov in previous seasons and he runs out of gas. Also, the league apparently knows how to play Thornton and Marleau in the post-season. Best finish for SJ is a 2nd Round exit.

Wings still win the West. I think their toughest matchup is Calgary. . . keep an eye on the Wild. They are the big question mark this year. Not saying they'll win it, but no one knows what kind of game they'll play this year minus Lemaire

[BeeRYCE 2]

Washington took the stanley cup champs to 7 games. Anaheim is much better than Chicago: Hiller is WAY better than Huet, even with losing Pronger they have a better defense than Chicago and even though I hate them I would take Getzlaf/Perry over Toews/Kane anyday. Don't forget too that Chicago lost Havlat who led the team in points last year and his replacment will miss the begining of the season. Even if Kane isn't suspended they won't have a great offense until Hossa gets back.

Better D than Chicago? Nah... Not only did they lose Pronger, they also lost Beauchimenn, HUGE loss. They have Neidermayer he's still good. They also have Ryan Whitney, but the way I see it, he's a second d man on a s***ty team, and a third d man on a good team. Nick Boynton is a good shut down guy, but that's as far as that goes.

Chicago on the other hand, has Duncan Keith... I rate him as a top 8 d man in the league, only getting better (eva rates him 2nd, but meh)... Brian Campbell, while many consider overrated, he's still an asset. Barker and Seabrook will get better... So Chicago is stronger than the Ducks on D?

As far as offense goes, Chicago is way better. I don't know how you can say you'd take Getzlaf/Perry over Kane/Toews... Of those 4 players Getzlaf may be the best, but Kane and Toews are collectively better... Corey Perry isn't even really good to be honest, I think Bobby Ryan will be better than him this season.

Anaheim does have Chicago in goaltending, but I think the other factors overcome that.

[FireCaptain 563]

Really?? THAT'S the most significant departure? Not the trade of a certain gap toothed D-bag?

I certainly think the loss of Pronger trumps a goalie coach who's advice appears to be "Wear BIG pads".

9. Anaheim Ducks – Maybe the most significant departure here is highly respected goaltending coach Francois Allaire, who exited for Toronto. Allaire was credited for helping Jean-Sebastien Giguere(notes), Ilya Bryzgalov(notes) and Jonas Hiller(notes) all blossom during his time in Anaheim. Ex-NHL goalie Pete Peeters has been hired to replace Allaire.

Edited August 15, 2009 by FireCaptain

[Gutierrez 7]

Better D than Chicago? Nah... Not only did they lose Pronger, they also lost Beauchimenn, HUGE loss. They have Neidermayer he's still good. They also have Ryan Whitney, but the way I see it, he's a second d man on a s***ty team, and a third d man on a good team. Nick Boynton is a good shut down guy, but that's as far as that goes.

Chicago on the other hand, has Duncan Keith... I rate him as a top 8 d man in the league, only getting better (eva rates him 2nd, but meh)... Brian Campbell, while many consider overrated, he's still an asset. Barker and Seabrook will get better... So Chicago is stronger than the Ducks on D?

As far as offense goes, Chicago is way better. I don't know how you can say you'd take Getzlaf/Perry over Kane/Toews... Of those 4 players Getzlaf may be the best, but Kane and Toews are collectively better... Corey Perry isn't even really good to be honest, I think Bobby Ryan will be better than him this season.

Anaheim does have Chicago in goaltending, but I think the other factors overcome that.

Despite the losses on D the Ducks suffered, I still believe they are just as good as Chicago. Goal tending is by far the most important element in the playoffs and I'd rather have Hiller than Huet. I think the Ducks would present more match up problems for the Hawks than the Hawks would for the Ducks, and the playoffs are all about match ups. Chicago's style is not conducive in matching up well to the Ducks rough and tough play. I would also go as far to take Getzlaf/Perry over Kane/Toews. Getzlaf is more dominant and can take over a game more than Kane or Toews can. We all saw what Getzalf can do, we couldn't contain him but we were able to contain Kane and Toews. Perry, as much as I hate him, is solid as well and with Getzlaf on the same line, it's almost impossible to shut both of them down, Getzlaf's presence and ability alone make him and Perry better than Kane and Toews.

[titanium2 867]

lol you Detwat fans are on crack...Medicore D? We have the best D Core in the league. SEABROOK AND KEITH probably the best pairing in the league. Barker showed how good he is on both O and D last year. CAmpbell offensive force with average defense and Hjalmarsson showing how good of a stay at home D man he is. Wow lay off the pipe Detroit. Huet showed he can win with MTL, and Wash...not to mention he won 20+ with Chicago in limited starts. The Blackhawks have one of the best offenses in the league without Havlat and Hossa. All 4 lines can score...when November rolls around and Hossa is on the Ice look the f*** out. Detroits run is over..sorry

...Really? I mean... Seriously? No one can be that st... I mean, come on, really???

Well, congratulations, I guess. You've now demonstrated a Guinness level of stupidity only seen in Pens fans and other lower form of primates.

[hooon 1,089]

lmao wow. its like he drew names out of a hat. I cant think of a much worse prediction for the season.... fail all around.

[hooon 1,089]

pretty baffled that people still think chicago improved a whole lot. Not even speaking of the numerous ;legal distractions and problems they created for themselves...

They got rid of their best offensive player Havlat (77 points) and signed a MARGINALLY (debateable) better player in Hossa (71 points). Oh yeah and good job giving him a physical exam... oops, now hes out for nearly half the season.

They lost their all-star goalie (imo one of the main reasons they did as well as they did last season...)

Now their starting goalie is Huet LOL.

No improvements to their D, still have campbells absurd contract to wait out. Additionally, saying that seabrook and keith are the best defensive core in the leage is a complete laugh. They are hardly the best defensive core in chicago, let alone the league.

You took our absolute worst player from us and paid him about three times what he is worth. THANK YOU CHICAGO.

Good luck next offseason after you lose in the first or second round and are now faced with a pile of bigtime UFAs who dont want to play for a team that is a perrenial loser.

Campbell will continue to do his spinarama move every game... and NOTHING will ever materialize from it, and the bandwagoners in chicago will STILL cheer for it... 'omg did you see that guy do a twrily thing on the ice?!'

Joel fkn Quenville is your coach.... lol congrats. Good luck with that.

Please someone call me out on it if it happens..... but chicago will NEVER EVVVVVVVVVVVVVER finish ahead of detroit next season.

also, sorry to any other legit chicago fan... but the one guy who posted in this thread so far has been a pretty good demonstration of what the majority of blackhawks fans are: >14 year olds who have watched hockey for about 10 months, and have literally no intelligence whatsoever when it comes to talking about hockey in a sensible way. Keep up the good work guys!

Edited August 15, 2009 by hooon

[LeftWinger 5,153]

I think it is absolutely ridiculous that Pitts is #1. No this has nothing to do with them beating us or my hatrd for Kathy Lee Crysby, but c'mon! He goes on to talk about OUR departures yet keeps Pitts at #1 power team even after they lost Scuderi & Gill, two of the biggest reason (other than Bettman) that they won. I think they aren't going to be as good this year because of that. I also find it funny that the reason he gives for them being one:

Pittsburgh Penguins – Here’s a shocker: The Pens have sold out all 66 suites for the inaugural 2010-11 season in their new building across the street from The Igloo.

Ok, so they are number 1 because they have sold tickets? Stupid...

[Lidstrom for life 20]

Despite the losses on D the Ducks suffered, I still believe they are just as good as Chicago. Goal tending is by far the most important element in the playoffs and I'd rather have Hiller than Huet. I think the Ducks would present more match up problems for the Hawks than the Hawks would for the Ducks, and the playoffs are all about match ups. Chicago's style is not conducive in matching up well to the Ducks rough and tough play. I would also go as far to take Getzlaf/Perry over Kane/Toews. Getzlaf is more dominant and can take over a game more than Kane or Toews can. We all saw what Getzalf can do, we couldn't contain him but we were able to contain Kane and Toews. Perry, as much as I hate him, is solid as well and with Getzlaf on the same line, it's almost impossible to shut both of them down, Getzlaf's presence and ability alone make him and Perry better than Kane and Toews.

I was going to respond but this guy did it for me, thanks man! Also Ryan and Teemu (sp)? are scary good fowards to have as 3rd and 4th options AND in that Pronger trade they did pick up Lupul, a 25 year old 50 point scorer. With Hossa, yes Chicago has a better offense, without Hossa I am not so sure. Again I am not saying Chicago is going to have a bad season or that they aren't capable of beating the wings. I am saying that right now without Hossa there is no way they are the 2nd best team in the NHL.

Edited August 15, 2009 by Lidstrom for life

[NeverForgetMac25 483]

Washington took the stanley cup champs to 7 games. Anaheim is much better than Chicago: Hiller is WAY better than Huet, even with losing Pronger they have a better defense than Chicago and even though I hate them I would take Getzlaf/Perry over Toews/Kane anyday. Don't forget too that Chicago lost Havlat who led the team in points last year and his replacment will miss the begining of the season. Even if Kane isn't suspended they won't have a great offense until Hossa gets back.

Washington also pissed away that series. Hiller is better than Huet, but Chicago has more balance up front and your underestimating their D, especially with Keith. You've got the blinders on if you think their offense won't be solid even without Kane.

[NeverForgetMac25 483]

Yes, the Wings had turnover, but the loss of Hossa from the Wings is negated by his absence for the first part of the season (I really don't think he'll be on the ice until Jan). Huet has never won anything and the Hawks made no improvement, zero, to their most glaring problem. . . their D.

Wings only need to shuffle a few players. They still have two solid lines of O and D. The 3rd line will be fun to watch with Helm and whoever plays with him.

As I said, a quick start sets the tone. I also believe issues within an organization begin at the top. And with ALL the Hawks need to address next off-season, some of that turmoil may filter down to the ice. . . especially when your name is Toews, Kane or Keith and you start hearing you may not be back with the team (Personally, I think Kane should be the one, but since they made him the face of the Hawks, they'll keep him and probably let Keith go) If Huet screws the pooch early, the headhunters will be out in Chicago bitching about the Hossa signing because that money could have been better spent on improving the D, thus helping out Huet. . . no too far-fetched, IMO.

I don't have my blinders on, I am just not convinced that the Hawks improved enough to SERIOUSLY contend with the Wings.

But you can't assume a quick start. You're just speculating and the Wings are more likely to come out a little gassed due to their recent post-seasons.

The thing I find most humorous is how quickly some fans criticize other teams' off-season woes and completely disregard those that have happened to the Wings. Are the Wings better than Chicago: Yes. Did the Wings have quite a bit of roster turnover: Yes. Do the additions as well as the experience help the *4th* seed in the West improve: Yes.

This isn't a shot at Detroit, but for those that truly believe the Wings are untouchable its time to start taking the glasses off. Chicago is going to be an improved team this year, and we'll see how quickly the young guns in Detroit adapt.

That doesn't mean I think the Wings aren't going to win the division. Its just naive to think the Blackhawks who were only two seeds lower than Detroit and who gained valuable experience aren't going to push.

[MadMan Mark 0]

But you can't assume a quick start. You're just speculating and the Wings are more likely to come out a little gassed due to their recent post-seasons.

The thing I find most humorous is how quickly some fans criticize other teams' off-season woes and completely disregard those that have happened to the Wings. Are the Wings better than Chicago: Yes. Did the Wings have quite a bit of roster turnover: Yes. Do the additions as well as the experience help the *4th* seed in the West improve: Yes.

This isn't a shot at Detroit, but for those that truly believe the Wings are untouchable its time to start taking the glasses off. Chicago is going to be an improved team this year, and we'll see how quickly the young guns in Detroit adapt.

That doesn't mean I think the Wings aren't going to win the division. Its just naive to think the Blackhawks who were only two seeds lower than Detroit and who gained valuable experience aren't going to push.

Yes, but that experience will be on the bench until Dec (I say Jan). No chemistry will be developed between Hossa and his linemates (whoever they may be). Just ask yourself this question. . . with all that Chicago has done in the off-season, where have they REALLY improved? I'm not saying this as a Wings fan, but as a hockey fan. My answer is they replaced Havlat points, did nothing to improve their mediocre (my opinion) D, and downgraded in the net. To say that this team has done what is necessary to dethrone the perennial Central Division Champs and current Western Conference Champs is ridiculous. I will never understand the Hossa signing since the team is now handcuffed for future signings. I really don't know why they signed Kopecky to $1.2M/yr for 2 yrs. . . he brings nothing other than one hit every 4th or 5th shift. But after that hit, he's on his butt becasue he rarely ever stays on his skates.

Match the top 2 lines, offense and defense of Det and Chi and tell me the Hawks CAN even stay on the ice with the Wings. Now factor in goalies and continue to state your argument.

Wings will finish first, Chicago is still the red-headed basterd stepchild of the Central.

[elriqo28 2]

^ Well they do have Kopecky right?

esteef

nuff said!

[ComradeWasabi 109]

Seabrook and Keith, best defensive pairing in the NHL? What the f***?

[wmubronco420 25]

Seabrook and Keith, best defensive pairing in the NHL? What the f***?

where did you see that?

[55fan 5,133]

where did you see that?

post #23 in this thread.

[cusimano_brothers 1,655]

Is "Yahoo! © Sports Canada" assuming there will be a new Head Coach in Chicago?

[Lidstrom for life 20]

Washington also pissed away that series. Hiller is better than Huet, but Chicago has more balance up front and your underestimating their D, especially with Keith. You've got the blinders on if you think their offense won't be solid even without Kane.

I think I didn't make myself clear enough in earlier posts. I think Chicago will be good, I think they could even win the central I am just saying without Hossa they are not the 2nd best team in the league so in a power rankings which lists who the best team is right now they should not be in the top 5. You might be right, I definately could be understimating their defense BUT they lost the leading point scorer off last seasons team and a solid center in Pahlsson so you think they will be solid offensively if (and I realize its still an if) Kane is out at the begining of the season? They would have a good not great top line of Versteeg-Toews-Ladd and then a second line of Bolland-Sharp-Byfuglien thats not exactly scary, especially for a team with a below average goalie. Now when Hossa and Kane are both in the line up they will have a very good top 6 but again I am talking about the begining of the season.

[dallas27 7]

I'd argue Chicago is better on paper, which is why they are #2 in this ranking. However the Red Wings system/style of play is ahead of everyone else. One that usually prevails in the playoffs, which is all that matters.

[shoe 165]

The pens new deffence shouldn't make them#1

the sharks getting rid of those 2 geezers shouldn't make them #10

why Edmonton is ranked ahead of st Louis gets me if I had to make a bold prediction for this year it would be st Louis finishes ahead of Chicago.