NHL Preview: The West

By Lawrence Bailey

1. San Jose Sharks

Due to the number of exceptional teams, the top seed in the Western Conference is one of the tougher spots to slot someone. The Sharks get the edge for a handful of reasons from the chemistry that comes from bringing back the same core that went to the Western Conference Finals last season to the incredible balance and depth they boast at every position to, most importantly, the lack of any real competition for the top spot in their division.

Look for the Sharks to have the top spot in the Pacific locked up in early March, giving them an even better chance to make a run in the 2006 post-season. With the return of Marco Sturm and the emergence of Milan Michalek, the Sharks will also have one of the more potent offenses in the NHL this campaign.

2. Nashville Predators

This may surprise some, but I think the Predators will silently and steadily cruise along to the top of the Central Division. The Red Wings are their lone competition; the Blues, Blackhawks and Blue Jackets all have significant holes to deal with. But the Wings will be undone by a serious lack of depth–a huge key in the new NHL.

Much like the Sharks, the Preds return their core with few changes. The key additions they have made, Paul Kariya and Danny Markov, will improve them more than most think. With two more years of development for their youth and a very good netminder in Tomas Vokoun, the Preds are a team on the rise and there is a throne to be taken atop the Central.

3. Vancouver Canucks

The two best teams on paper, and likely on the ice, in the Western Conference are the Canucks and the Calgary Flames. That said, they are in the toughest division in the NHL and that will cost them in terms of effort expended to achieve regular season success as well as in terms of points in the standings. While the Preds do battle with the likes of Columbus, Chicago and Saint Louis, the Canucks go to war against Calgary, Edmonton, Colorado and Minnesota. The tougher grind isn’t hard to spot.

The real battle here is going to be between the Flames and the Canucks, and with a more skilled set of forwards and a handful of legitimate game breakers, the slight edge has to go to Vancouver–their questionable blueline notwithstanding.

4. Calgary Flames

It’s already started for the Flames and I believe it will be a constant theme in Calgary all year long: injuries. This is a team that showed it can carry on through injuries and rotate a number of players into key roles during last season’s playoffs. But a 28-game playoff run is not an 82-game season. The way they play the game–at top speed and with reckless abandon–will take its toll.

Another real problem spot with the Flames will be rediscovering that essential chemistry from last season, as they have moved a lot of pieces around their core. Look for this team to really hit their stride in the new year, but a grueling schedule and a lack of secondary scoring punch will keep them from running away with anything in the Northwest Division or the Western Conference.

5. Detroit Red Wings

It will be a tough season for Red Wing fans as they are hit with the harsh realities of the new economic order. Fortunately for them, General Manager Ken Holland hasn’t sold the farm like his counterparts in Toronto or Manhattan, but there is still an adjustment to be made and it begins this year.

Guys like Kronwall, Zetterberg and Datsyuk are the bright lights in the future, but with the contracts still on the books, the back end of this roster and the depth in the event of injuries is beyond suspect. The future isn’t doom and gloom, but the new NHL will not be immediately popular in Hockeytown, USA. They will play into May though, which is more than many of the former NHL powers can say.

6. Edmonton Oilers

Much like the Predators and Sharks, the Oilers have brought back the bulk of their core with the exception of two major additions, Mike Peca and Chris Pronger. However, they aren’t the same pair of solid guys headed out of town in their wake, Eric Brewer and Mike York.

Another knock on the Oilers is the lack of a top end offensive talent, but a team who was sixth in the NHL in even-strength scoring last time the league played didn’t really need that. Where they did need help was on special teams. The additions made will certainly address that.

Between the pipes there are legitimate question marks. The goaltending tandem of Ty Conklin and Jussi Markkanen have yet to prove themselves as an NHL caliber duo. However, the balance, depth and tenacity of the skaters the Oilers can ice night-in and night-out will see them battle their way to the playoff spot that eluded them in 2004.

7. Los Angeles Kings

While the Penguins are the big enigma in the East, the Kings are the real wild card in the West. They boast a bevy of firepower with Frolov, Roenick and Demitra, great leaders in Conroy and Robitaille, and some exciting young talent in guys like Mike Cammaleri and Dustin Brown.

Much like the Pens, however, there are question marks on the back end; both on the blueline and in net, although the goaltending could well be the Kings’ undoing.

In the end, the youth, the speed and the skill of the Kings stacks up well against some of their slow-footed division mates, enough so that they will be playing in the 2006 post-season.

8. Colorado Avalanche

If the Red Wings are well situated to move forward, the Avs are in just as good a position, but in a far tougher division. Sakic, Hejduk, Blake and Tanguay will not disappoint, but a second tier of also rans like Patrice Brisebois, Andrew Brunette and Pierre Turgeon will not get it done night-in and night-out against the Northwest.

The Avs are still good enough to beat up on the rest of the conference–especially weak sisters in Phoenix and Columbus–and should be able to sneak into the big dance before getting knocked silly in round one.

9. Dallas Stars

Here is a team that falls between the Avs and Red Wings and the Leafs and Rangers. The Stars won’t be atrocious this season, but they won’t be the Stars of old. Much like their Western brethren in Denver and Detroit, the bottom half of their roster leaves something to be desired. The flip side of the coin is that the top half, the talented elements on the team, aren’t up-and-comers: they are guys who have peaked and will, in the next few seasons, see their skill diminish.

Having to stack up against so many balanced and youthful teams on a regular basis will wear down the aging core of this club, which will show in their play by March.

10. Anaheim Mighty Ducks

“We’re going to play Brian Burke hockey. We’re going to play smash mouth, fast paced, score a lot of goals hockey. Exciting hockey.”

There you have it, from the mouth of Brian Burke himself. The question is: how will Todd Fedoruk help with that goal scoring? It’s a touch facetious, but the point remains: this is a team with a wonderful blueline and some great top line talent, but, oh me oh my, does it drop off quick after the second line.

If Brian Burke and Dave Nonis let their chat over Christmas egg nog drift to work, they may find a great opportunity to swap a forward for a defenseman. But until they do, the Ducks are going to be killing a lot of penalties, losing a handful of games and we’ll all have to suffer through Mr. Burke’s constant bitching and moaning.

11. Chicago Blackhawks

I like the Hawks. I think they’ll be fun to watch. But they won’t win a lot of games.

That blueline is packed with talent, but short on experience. Nikolai Khabibulin will be good, but not $7M good, and that contract will handcuff them after their young stars begin blossoming.

The one thing Hawk fans will be able to fall back on is that unlike some NHL bottom dwellers, this team will entertain. Watch for Tuomo Ruutu to live up to the hype, and for Mark Bell to have a statement season as a blossoming power forward.

12. Columbus Blue Jackets

Doug Maclean is building something great in Columbus; all centered around Rick Nash and Nikolai Zherdev. It’s an unfortunate situation that they won’t have Alex Svitov in 2005-2006, but they have one of the game’s great leaders, Adam Foote, and a great young netminder to groom, Pascal Leclaire.

Make no mistake, this team is a work in progress and will likely be a playoff club next year, but there are too many key players with too little experience for them to make a lot of noise this season.

13. Saint Louis Blues

After spending his extended off-season apparently enjoying the Andrei Medvedev diet, Keith Tkachuk set the tone for a Blues team that will be bad with a capital “B” this year. They wave goodbye to their leaders of the last decade, Pronger and Al MacInnis, and have a lineup that might see Scott Young and Dean McAmmond on second-line duty for much of the season. Not a recipe for success.

The biggest impact any player on the Blues roster will have is the late-season boost Doug Weight will have once he’s traded to a team headed to the post-season. The good news in Missouri is that the Blues have been able to compile some decent prospects, but that won’t make much of a difference for the next couple years.

14. Phoenix Coyotes

I like Wayne Gretzky and I’d love to think he will be able to work wonders with this team. But he won’t. Curtis Joseph was shaky last NHL season and will be a backup by the end of this one (hence his salary). The bad news for all 3,000 Yotes fans is he will be backing up a backup. Brian Boucher will be the answer to a trivia question for a long time but he is not the answer to anyone’s goaltending question.

There is a lot of talent on this roster, but no way of matching it up in a way that makes any sense at all.

15. Minnesota Wild

The Minnesota Wild are like the NHL’s version of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. They know they are building a good team, but they look at 16 games against cup contenders Calgary and Vancouver and another 16 against playoff clubs Edmonton and Colorado. They know their chances are slim to none.

It’s a shame, really. They could compete for the playoffs in any other division in the NHL (except for maybe the Northeast) but they are faced with a battle that is far too uphill to even conceive victory. Watching their young talent develop and build for two or three years is what the Wild are doing for one simple reason: it’s all they can really hope for as a team in the Northwest.