The Atlantic

New Jersey Devils
Last season record: 49-24-1-8 107 points
Division: 1
Conference: 2

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: C Danius Zubrus(WSH/BUFF), D Karel Rachunek(NYR), D Vitaly Vishnevski(NAS/ATL), G Kevin Weekes(NYR), D Jean-Luc Grand-Pierre(EUR), D Ian Moran(ANA), LW Noah Clarke(LA), RW Arron Asham(NYI)
departures: C Scott Gomez, D Brian Rafalski, D Brad Lukowich, G Scott Clemmensen

The Devils had a tough off-season loosing two of their more popular players on their team. The Devils best centerman and defensemen. Scott Gomez and Brian Rafalski both bolted on July 1st to the Rangers and Red Wings respectively, leaving the Devils with some major holes. The Devils had to act fast to even get anyone who could fill in those holes with all the frenzy at the start of July. On July 3rd the Devils signed Danius Zubrus who was coming off a pretty decent playoffs with the Sabres to try to fill the hole left by Gomez. The Devils then signed Karel Rachunek who needs to find his offensive form again so he can help make up for the loss of Rafalski. They also grabbed Vitaly Vishnevski to had some physicality to the back-end. More pressure will be put on the Devils second best defensemen last season, Paul Martin to pick up most of the slack left by Rafalski. With Marty Brodeur looking a little tired in the playoffs, the Devils signed Kevin Weekes to take more of the load off Brodeur with still being able to win. Depth moves were also made by the Devils to finish up their roster.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- P.ELIAS-D.ZUBRUS-B.GIONTA
2- Z.PARISE-T.ZAJAC-J.LANGENBRUNNER
3- J.PANDALFO-J.MADDEN-D.CLARKSON
4- S.BRYLIN-M.RUPP-N.BERGFORS
E- C.JANSSEN-R.PELLEY-A.ASHAM
The Devils will need some players to pick up their performances with the loss of Gomez and hopefully those players will be able to do without him. Patrick Elias has been Gomez's line-mate for several seasons now and they gelled well together. Elias was productive last season notching 69 points in only 75 games played. Brian Gionta, Elias's other standard line-mate saw a major slip on his production last year from 89 points to 45 points. Gionta did only appear 62 games last year but for the offense to work Elias and Gionta have to click and with Zubrus who is more of a grinding center than a playmaker like Gomez. Zach Parise, the Devils most dangerous scorer last year, will be relied on heavily to be it again. His line-mate Travis Zajac has to continue to develop while Jamie Langenbrunner is solid and consistent on the right side. The Devils are also hoping young players like David Clarkson and Nicklas Bergfors can also crack the squad and contribute. John Madden and Jay Pandalfo make one of the leagues best shutdown tandems and are key to the Devils success.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- K.RACHUNEK-P.MARTIN
2- A.GREENE-C.WHITE
3- R.MATVICHUK-V.VISHNEVSKI
E- J.ODUYA-M.FRASER
The Devils should be able to go on without Rafalski, thought it will be tough. Paul Martin was the Devils second best defensemen last season and wasn't far behind Rafalski. Martin and Colin White will take most of the load for the Devils this season and they should be able to handle it fine. Rachunek was brought in to hopefully help the PP but it is uncertain if Rachunek will be able to do that after only scoring 26 points last season with the Rangers. Richard Matvichuk and Vishnevski add veteran leadership and more physicality to the Devils point. Andy Greene and John Oduya both FA's brought in by the Devils, showed that they can play in the NHL and will press to make the Devils roster this season.

GOALIES
1- M.BRODEUR
2- K.WEEKES
3- D.CARUSO
Brodeur will once again be the backbone of the Devils and carry them into the playoffs. Brodeur broke Bernie Parent's record for most wins in a season last year with 48 but looked a little over worked and not at his best in the playoffs. The Devils brought in Weekes to take some load off Brodeur and replace Scott Clemmensen, who the Devils just didn't have enough trust in for the last couple of years.

OVERALL
As long as Marty Brodeur is backstopping the Devils, the Devils will make the playoffs. Look for Elias and Gionta to take over the offense and have better years. Parise will have another monster season and I predicted he will score over 40 this year. If Zubrus doesn't work out for the Devils as their #1 center the Devils only have 45 million dollars locked up, so they will be able to look for a replace at trade deadline. I think the Devils need more offense to make a run in the playoffs but you never with Marty Brodeur.

Predicted Finish- 3rd Division, 7th Conference

New York Islanders
Last season record: 40-30-7-5 92 points
Division: 4
Conference: 8

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: LW Jon Sim(ATL), LW Ruslan Fedotenko(TB), RW Tim Jackman(LA), RW Bill Guerin(STL/SJ), C Mike Comrie(PHO/OTT), D Aaron Johnson(CBM), D Andy Sutton(ATL), C Josef Vasicek(NAS/CAR), G Joey MacDonald(DET/BOS), D Matthew Spiller(PHO), RW Darryl Bootland(DET), LW Kip Brennan(ANA), C Ben Walter(t-BOS)
departures: RW Jason Blake, G Mike Dunham(Retired), D Sean Hill, RW Viktor Kozlov, D Tom Poti, LW Ryan Smyth, C Alexei Yashin, LW Richard Zednik, C/RW Petteri Nokelainen

The Islanders lost the most key players in the off-season out of any other team. They lost their best RW and leading scorer Jason Blake, short lived emotional leader and best LW Ryan Smyth, #1 C Alexei Yashin even though they bought him out and their two best minute crunchers on defense, Tom Poti and Sean Hill. Inexperienced GM Garth Snow had a lot of work to do and not much to pick from. Blake, Smyth, Poti and Kozlov were all gone on July 1st as were most of the marquee free agents. It took a couple of days for Snow to act but he was able to bring in RW Bill Guerin who is coming off a 36 goal season and was immediately named captain. Mike Comrie was also brought in to get another shot at being a #1 center. Ruslan Fedotenko was added to fill in one of the LW spots but had a terrible year last year only notching 12 goals. More offense is needed from Comrie and Fedotenko and Guerin's age can't catch-up to him for the Islanders offense to succeed. D Andy Sutton was brought in to take up the minutes left behind by Poti and Hill but other than that not much work was done on an already pretty good defense. Other than the signing of Josef Vasicek and LW Jon Sim, the rest of the moves were minor.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- J.TAMBELLINI-M.COMRIE-B.GUERIN
2- R.FEDOTENKO-S.BERGENHEIM-M.SATAN
3- A.HILBERT-M.SILLINGER-T.HUNTER
4- J.VASICEK-S.BATES-R.PARK
E- J.SIM-F.NIELSEN-D.BOOTLAND
Suspended- C.SIMON
Lots of forwards will have to either pick up their play or continue with their good play in order for the Islanders to have any offense at all. It starts off with their big signings of Guerin and Comrie. Guerin has to continue on his success last year and cant let time catch-up to him. Comrie has to prove he is capable of being a #1 center after he fell out favor in Phoenix last year and played on the wing in Ottawa which he played pretty well at. Fedotenko has to pick up his game, he looked like a totally different player last year after he good playoffs in '04 and his 26 goal season in '05-06 and he only posted 12 goals. Miroslav Satan's production also slipped a little last year from 35 goals to 27 goals. The line of Andy Hilbert, Mike Sillinger and Trent Hunter was very good as the Islanders shut-down line last year and they are still capable of scoring some goals. Sillinger is another guy who can't let time catch-up to him. Young guys like Jeff Tambellini, who is a very good skater and should fit in good to the 'new' NHL and Sean Bergenheim have to take the next step and crack the line-up. The Islanders gave up alot for really nothing in the Ryan Smyth trade last year and their young guys have to step up.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- A.SUTTON-M-A.BERGERON
2- B.WITT-R.MARTINEK
3- C.CAMPOLI-B.GERVAIS
E- A.JOHNSON-F.MEYER
The Islanders had a very good defense last year, allowing the 3rd fewest goals in the East last year. The Islanders lost minute eaters Poti and Hill but they should be ok without them. Adding Sutton helps the cause, his big frame(6 foot 6, 245 pounds) adds size and some toughness. Adding Marc-Andre Bergeron last year helped the Islanders offense, he posted 21 points in only 23 games after being acquired from the Oilers. Brendan Witt and Radek Martinek should give the Isles a very good shut down tandem, Martinek was a +19 before being injured in game 43. Chris Campoli also has to continue to develop to take some of those minutes left by Poti and Hill.

GOALIES
1- R.DiPIETRO
2- W.DUBIELEWICZ
3- J.MacDONALD
Rick DiPietro finally proved himself as a #1 goalie even though he was sidelined with a concussion last season. With the Isles good defense and DiPietro between the pipes, the Islanders should once again not let up alot of goals. After Wade Dubielewicz's heroic performance at the end of the year which got the Isles into the playoffs, Snow figured that old back-up Mike Dunham was expendable, so the back-up job is Dubielewicz's to loose. The Isles added Joey MacDonald just for insurance.

OVERALL
The Islanders pulled off some miracles last season and made the playoffs. The loses seem to great in order for the Isles to pull that off again. The Isles will be able to keep the puck out of the net but the question is whether they will be able to put it in. The Islanders only have 41 million dollars locked up if, so there is room if Snow needs to add another piece to the puzzle. I think the Islanders will fall short of the playoffs, most other teams in the East improved and the Islanders didn't. It may not be that bad of a season for the Isles but I think you will find them near the bottom of the East at the end of the season.

Predicted Finish- 5th Division, 14th Conference

New York Rangers
Last season record: 42-30-5-5 94 points
Division: 3rd
Conference: 6th

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: C Chris Drury(BUFF), C Scott Gomez(NJ), D Andrew Hutchinson(t-CAR), C Joe Barnes(t-CAR)
departures: C Matt Cullen, LW Brad Isbister, C Michael Nylander, RW Jed Ortmeyer, D Sandis Ozolinsh, D Karel Rachunek, G Kevin Weekes

TWO MOVES, was all the Rangers needed to make themselves a favourite coming out of the east this season. The signings of Chris Drury and Scott Gomez on July 1st showed the hockey world the Rangers want to win again. The Rangers signed 2 of the 3 best centers available and upgraded their first and second line. Gomez signed for 7 years and Drury for 5 means the Rangers should be competitive for years to come. Both players bring huge playoff experience and Stanley Cup rings which was one of the things needed on the Rangers. The Rangers also signed G Henrik Lundqvist to another 1 year contract who is an elite goalie in the NHL after coming off consecutive Vezina nominations, they will be to lock him up long term next summer though. The Rangers defense was the weakest position on the team and some thought the Rangers would address that problem but nothing was done. Veterans Karel Rachunek and were let go which takes away depth from the Rangers blueline. Rookie Sandis OzolinshMarc Staal is projected to make the Rangers line-up and this should help them greatly. For two consecutive world juniors, Staal has been the ultimate shutdown defensemen and that is what the Rangers greatly needed. The loss of Matt Cullen as their #3 center could hurt them especially since they were unable to lock up C Mike Peca.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- M.STRAKA-S.GOMEZ-J.JAGR
2- S.AVERY-C.DRURY-B.SHANAHAN
3-M.HOSSA-B.DUBINSKY-P.PRUCHA
4- R.HOLLOWEG-B.BETTS-R.CALLAHAN
E- N.DAWES-J.IMMONEN-C.ORR
The Rangers will score alot of goals this year and with this unit should be a top 3 team in the east. The first line got a little bit of an upgrade with Gomez replacing Michael Nylander. Gomez is a better player than Nylander because of his youth and he is a better playmaker. Nylander did have good chemistry with Jaromir Jagr but Gomez shouldn't have a problem filling in. Giving Jagr for Gomez to pass to is also a upgrade for Gomez over Patrik Elias. Martin Straka has revived his career with the Rangers and should be good for 80+ points playing alongside Gomez and Jagr. The signing of Drury for the second line is where the upgrade really is. The Rangers had trouble finding a center to play in between Sean Avery and Brendan Shanahan last year and never could find a suitable player to fill in that spot. Drury is the perfect player for that spot, look for Shanny's and Avery's production to go up. The Rangers lack a little bit in depth but their 3rd and 4th lines should be fine. Petr Prucha has to find his form again after dropping to 22 goals last season. Brandon Dubinsky will also be counted on after he had some success late last year. Ryan Callahan showed lots of promise last season and playing beside Blair Betts, who has become a very good defensive player, should help.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- M.STAAL-M.ROZSIVAL
2- M.MALIK-F.TYUTIN
3- P.MARA-T.POCK
E- D.GIRARDI-A.HUTCHINSON
This could be a area of concern for the Rangers. Staal is really gonna have to develop fast and contribute big time for the group to have success. Michal Rozsival, like Straka is another former Penguin who has revitalized his career with the Rangers. He is the Rangers best defensemen and contributes both offensively, coming off a 40 point season and defensively, being a combined +45 the last two seasons. Fedor Tyutin also has to continue to develop after being just so-so last year. Paul Mara and Marek Malik are the veterans of the group and both have to be better this year in order for the Rangers to be an elite team. David Girardi also showed promise last year and along with Andrew Hutchinson gives the Rangers half decent depth. Also look for Darius Kasparaitis, who is trying to make a come back in camp. Some one will also have to step-up and help quarterback the Rangers powerplay.

GOALIES
1- H.LUNDQVIST
2- A.MONTOYA
3- S.VALIQUETTE
There are no problems here for the Rangers with Lundqvist coming off another Vezina nomination and stellar season. Lundqvist is capable of backstopping the Rangers to a Cup, proving that in the 2006 Olympics when he lead Sweden to a Gold medal. Al Montoya after all the hype surrounding him when the Rangers drafted him 6th overall in 2004 finally looks like he will make the jump to the NHL to back-up Lundqvist. He will be in tough for the job, having to battle out Stephen Valiquette for the job.

OVERALL
The Rangers are now an elite team in not only the east but in the NHL and have to be one of the favourites for the Cup going into the season. On that point, the Rangers should win their division easily and make a deep run in the playoffs. The defense will have to step up for this to happen but the addition of Staal will help the problem. If the Rangers do need a extra defense towards the end of the season they will have to make a trade because right now they are sitting at 51 million dollars towards the cap.

Predicted Finish- 1st Division, 2nd Conference

Philadelphia Flyers
Last season record: 27-48-6-6 56 points
Division: 5th
Conference: 15th

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: D Kimmo Timonen(NAS), LW Scott Hartnell(NAS), C Daniel Briere(BUFF), LW Joffrey Lupul(t-EDM), D Jason Smith(t-EDM)
departures: LW Dmitry Afanasenkov, G Robert Esche, LW Todd Fedoruk, D Joni Pitkanen, C/LW Mike York, LW Geoff Sanderson

OFF-SEASON
The Flyers have seemed to improve their team dramatically after finishing dead last in the NHL with 56 points last season.The Flyers didn't even wait till July 1st to start revamping the worst team in the NHL. In June the Flyers were able to acquire the rights to both LW Scott Hartnell and D Kimmo Timonen for the 1st round draft pick they had earlier acquired in the Peter Forsberg deal. The Flyers then immediately signed both players to 3 and 6 year contracts respectively. Timonen was considered by some teams the best defensemen on the market after posting back-to-back 50 points seasons and being a +20 last season. Then on July 1st the Flyers signed arguably the best center available in Daniel Briere to a 8 year contract which includes him making 10 million dollars this season, making him the highest paid player in the league. Briere will look to be the 1st line center the Flyers lacked when Forsberg was injured and now with Forsberg gone. Briere and Gagne could be on of the best duo's this season. Later on in the day, the Flyers added some leadership and heart to their defense when they acquired D Jason Smith along with RW Joffrey Lupul from Edmonton for young defensemen Joni Pitkanen and LW Geoff Sanderson. Pitkanen only 24 struggled last year with the Flyers posting a horrendous -25 and with lots of young talent left and the signing of Timonen, Pitkanen seemed expendable. Smith will had immediate leadership, grit and heart. I think this was a very good move by the Flyers because they get a guy in Smith who will do anything for his team to win.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- S.GAGNE-D.BRIERE-M.KNUBLE
2- S.HARTNELL-J.CARTER-S.UPSHALL
3- R-J.UMBERGER-M.RICHARDS-J.LUPUL
4- B.EAGER-R.POTULNY-S.KAPANEN
E- B.KANE-S.RUZICKA-B.REID
The Flyers ranked 23rd in the league for goals scored last year and that should change with the help of their new additions. The duo of Simon Gagne and Briere could be lethal for the Flyers. Gagne coming off back-to-back 40 goal seasons could easily get that mark up to 50 this year and be in contention for the Maurice Richard Trophy by the end of the year. Briere coming off his best season is the perfect player in today's new NHL. Putting Gagne and Briere together could be the start of something special. Adding Mike Knuble makes the line even better. Knuble was injured last year but still managed 24 goals and 54 points in only 64 games. Hartnell adds grit and scoring to the second line. Jeff Carter has to continue to develop but has show the potential to be a very good 2nd line center. After the trade from Nashville last year, Scottie Upshall played very well with Philadelphia. He tallied 13 points in only 18 games with the Flyers last season. This line will have to continue to develop and give the Flyers secondary scoring in order for the Flyers to rebound from their dreadful season last year. The Flyers third line could be a very good one too. Lead by C Mike Richards this line along with Lupul and R-J.Umberger will bring a ton of toughness and grit and will also be able to pot the odd goal. Lupul if he regains his form from Anaheim could also see time on the 2nd line. The Flyers are looking good on forward with good scoring and good grit heading into camp.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- K.TIMONEN-L.KUKKONEN
2- D.HATCHER-B.COBURN
3- D.GAUTHIER-J.SMITH
E- R.JONES-A.PICARD
The additions of Timonen and Smith will change the Flyers defense completely. Both players bring leadership and both can play defensive defense, Smith especially. Timonen will also help huge on the PP were the Flyers finished 2nd last in the league last year. Less pressure will also be put on Derian Hatcher to be the go to guy, considering he can be a complete pylon sometimes. The development of Braydon Coburn, Lasse Kukkonen, Alex Picard and Ryan Parent is also very important since the Flyers top 4 defensemen, Hatcher, Timonen, Smith and Denis Gauthier are all in their 30's. One final thing about the defense is that Mike Rathje is still on the Flyers roster just if anyone is wondering what happened to him. The Flyers placed him on the Long Term IR so that his 3.5 million dollar contract doesn't eat up space.

GOALIES
1- M.BIRON
2- A.NIITTYMAKI
3- S.MUNROE
This could be a question for the Flyers this season. Martin Biron has had some success as a starter but not great success and his numbers weren't great last season. His GAA was over 3 and that needs to come down for the Flyers to have success. Antero Niittymaki didn't have a great season last year either after he seemed that he would break out after that great performance at the 2006 Olympics. It is definitely too early to give up on him and I still think he will be the Flyers goalie in the future. This position will probably be better than last year with a better defensive supporting cast but it could be the difference towards the Flyers making the playoffs.

OVERALL
The Flyers have may more depth than last year and finally look like they are willing to take the time to draft and develop their prospects. This will be a different organization this year under GM Paul Holmgren and the Flyers just might make the playoffs this season. Personally I just don't think the Flyers will have enough goaltending to make the playoffs but will be close in the hunt all season. The Flyers have 48 million dollars locked up, so there is very little room for the Flyers to make some moves.

Predicted Finish- 4th Division, 9th Conference

Pittsburgh Penguins
Last season record: 47-24-5-6 105 points
Division: 2nd
Conference: 5th

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: G Dany Sabourin(VAN), D Darryl Sydor(DAL), RW Petr Sykora(EDM), C Nathan Smith(VAN), G Ty Conklin(CBM/BUFF), C Tim Brent(t-ANA), D Mike Weaver(LA)
departures: D Eric Cairns, LW Nils Ekman, D Joel Kwiatkowski, D Josef Melichar, RW Ronald Petrovicky, RW Michel Ouellet, G Jocelyn Thibault, C Chris Thorburn

The off-season wasn't very busy for the Penguins. They weren't going after that big all-star name, it was more of adding to the empire they already have formed. The biggest move was locking up NHL MVP Sidney Crosby to a 5 year contract. The Penguins were a little weak on the wings last year so that area was addressed. They started by re-signing veterans Gary Roberts and Mark Reechi to one year contracts. Then when the UFA's became available, the Penguins signed Petr Sykora who lead the lonely Oilers is scoring last season. Sykora really seemed to find his step again, showing that he is still capable of being a top 6 forward. The Penguins then signed one of the best veteran defensemen in the league when they locked up Darryl Sydor. Sydor will help Sergei Gonchar bring leadership to the defense along with a more defensive style of defense the Penguins were lacking. Dany Sabourin and Ty Conklin were both signed to fight for the back-up job left behind by Jocelyn Thibault. These signings were surprising to me because the Penguins seemed to prefer a veteran back-up to young Marc-Andre Fleury and that seemed like a logical move to have someone teach Fleury the shots and develop.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- J.STAAL-S.CROSBY-M.REECHI
2- G.ROBERTS-E.MALKIN-P.SYKORA
3- R.MALONE-E.CHRISTENSEN-C.ARMSTRONG
4- J.RUUTU-M.TALBOT-R.STONE
E- J.TAFFE-T.BRENT-G.LARAQUE
The Penguins should have no problems scoring goals again this year and they could even score more. The addition of Sykora will give the Penguins that little bit of extra depth on the wings for everyone to be more productive. Nothing has to be said about Crosby, he will once again be at the top of the league in scoring. Him and Reechi seemed to have some chemistry last year so look for them to be on a line together again. Look for Jordan Staal's production to go up from his 29 goals from last year if he plays alongside Crosby. Crosby and Staal could also form another great duo in the NHL. The second line is solid too, Malkin is covered by veterans Roberts and Sykora. Roberts will bring the grit to this line while Malkin and Sykora will finish on the opportunities made by Roberts. Pittsburgh is another team that could have a very talented 3rd line. Ryan Malone, Erik Christensen and Colby Armstrong have all produced in their career and Armstrong should continue to dish out more punishing hits this year, striking fear in Pittsburgh's opponents.
George Laraque and Jarkko Ruutu bring the toughness to the team and are the protectors of Crosby, Staal and Malkin.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- S.GONCHAR-B.ORPIK
2- R.WHITNEY-D.SYDOR
3- M.EATON-K.LETANG
E- R.SCUDERI-M.WEAVER
The Penguins finally have a very respectable top 4 d-men with Gonchar, Sydor, Ryan Whitney and Brooks Orpik. The development of Orpik and Whitney was huge for the Penguins organization last year, who had been very weak on their back end in previous seasons. Whitney produced 59 points last year and was huge on the PP. He was awarded with a new 6 year 24 million dollar contract in the off-season. The addition of Sydor will be a even bigger difference in the Penguins defense this year than last year. Sydor is the ideal veteran defensive defensemen the Penguins were looking for. If Mark Eaton can stay healthy, he can team up with rookie Kris Letang, who could be a candidate for the Calder Trophy and make a very good 3rd pairing for the Penguins.

GOALIES
1- M-A.FLEURY
2- D.SABOURIN
3- T.CONKLIN
Fleury had a very good season last year but had a couple of shaky games and will have to improve on those shaky games to become an elite goaltender. The Penguins obviously think Fleury will take the next step because they decided to not re-sign veteran Thibault or go after a veteran in free agency. Instead they signed Sabourin and Conklin to battle it out for the back-up job. I think Sabourin will take it especially since Conklin was signed to a two-way contract.

OVERALL
The Penguins have to be considered a elite team in the East this year. Crosby, Staal and Malkin are all one year older and the additions of Sykora and Sydor brings even more leadership, scoring and defensive defense the Penguins needed. The Penguins have to also be considered to even take it all this year. The Penguins could make a few moves around the deadline this year with only having 41 million dollars locked up. Look for new captain Sid the Kid to lead his team and probably win a couple of rounds in the playoffs.

Predicted Finish- 2nd Division, 4th Conference