After a busy offseason filled with signings, trades and changes in the format of the divisions, the NHL Western Conference looks different heading into the season beginning Oct. 1.
Previously having three divisions per conference, the NHL’s Board of Governors approved the change to switch to two divisions.
One major change was the move of the Detroit Red Wings and the Columbus Blue Jackets to the Eastern Conference and the Winnipeg Jets to the Western Conference. These changes were made to reduce traveling costs and to have shorter time travel.
The reigning Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks look to repeat. They will win the division because the team has most of the same players that helped them last year. This team is stacked with great offensive talent such as Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews as well as a superb defense led by Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. They will have no trouble defeating teams within the Western Conference. The Dallas Stars made a big splash this offseason, acquiring budding superstar Tyler Seguin from Boston. Goaltender Kari Lehtonen is poised to have a big season, as the Stars look to make a huge improvement over last season. The St. Louis Blues have been a consistent threat in the West over the past two seasons, finishing as a top four seed over that time. They have one of the youngest and talented rosters in the league, featuring forward T.J Oshie and forward Vladimir Tarasenko. They also should have great years from goaltenders Jaroslav Halak and Brian Elliott. After drafting defenseman Seth Jones in the 2013 draft, the defense of the Nashville Predators looks good heading into the season. Their standouts include Jones and Shea Weber. Their quality of offensive production was horrendous, finishing second to last in goals with 2.27 per game. They have improved in that department this offseason by signing Matt Hendricks and Eric Nystrom. The Minnesota Wild reached the playoffs last season as the eighth seed but was ousted by the Blackhawks in the first round. The Wild are one of the league’s most balanced and consistent team. The Winnipeg Jets are a Western Conference team for the first time since 1996, the year in which they moved to Phoenix. This team has fallen short of the playoffs each of the past two years and it will happen again because of their lack of talent on the roster. Other than defenseman Dustin Byfuglien and forward Olli Jokinen this roster lacks talent. Adding number one overall pick Nathan McKinnon will not make the Colorado Avalanche drastically better and they probably won’t make the playoffs this season.
The San Jose Sharks have a roster full of talent. Some names that come to find include defenseman Brent Burns and Dan Boyle as well as forwards Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton, and goaltender Antti Niemi, who was one of three finalists for the Vezina Trophy Award (the league’s top goaltender). This team will take the Pacific Division Crown. Despite not having quite the talent that the Sharks have, the Los Angeles Kings will come in second place. The Kings will be lead by goalie Jonathan Quick and forward Dustin Brown. After trading away backup goalkeeper Cory Schneider to the New Jersey Devils, the starting goalie controversy for the Vancouver Canucks is over. Roberto Luongo will maintain the starting goalie duty. The Canucks “traded” head coaches with the New York Rangers. The Rangers fired John Tortorella, who was then hired by the Canucks, and the Canucks fired Alain Vigneault, who then was hired by the Rangers. The Phoenix Coyotes had a successful offseason this summer, re-signing some key pieces that have contributed to their success in three of the past four seasons. Last season, the Anaheim Ducks bounced back from a horrific 2011-2012 season, where they finished with the third worst record in the West, and came in second place in the 2012-2013 season. The Ducks are in for a year of disappointment because they do not have enough depth on the roster. They are not ready to make the playoffs. Led by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov the Edmonton Oilers feature one of the most talented young rosters in the league. No doubt will they be a good team in the next few years. Finally, the Calgary Flames traded away their top player, Jarome Iginla, last season. The Flames have serious holes to fill on offense, defense, and at goalie. In fact, the Flames have not even named a starting goalie yet. A logical guess would be that Karri Ramo, who was selected to the Russian Hockey League All-Star Team the past two seasons. Expect a last place finish for Calgary.
With just a few days away from the start of the season, it is time for fans to start gathering their favorite team’s gear and painting their faces. For the fan’s who are couch potatoes, order NHL Center Ice on Comcast. It’s time to get into hockey mode.
Greg Praver can be reached at gregory.praver@spartans.ut.edu.