The Northeast

Boston Bruins
Last season record: 35-41-2-4 76 points
Division: 5th
Conference: 13th

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: RW Scott Thornton(ANA), D Sean Curry(CAR), LW Peter Schaefer(t-OTT), G Manny Fernandez(t-MIN), C Peter Nokelainen(t-NYI)
departures: D Nathan Dempsey, RW Shean Donovan, RW Petr Kalus, G Joey MacDonald, RW Petr Tenkrat(EUR), D Jason York, C Ben Walter

The Bruins were one of the most quietest teams this off-season. The biggest move made by the Bruins was on draft day when they acquired G Manny Fernandez from the Minnesota Wild. Fernandez will have pressure to finally give the Bruins a legitimate #1 goaltender. Fernandez and Tim Thomas should make a very good goaltending duo. The only other big move made by the Bruins was the firing of 1 year coach Dave Lewis and the hiring of former Devils bench boss Claude Julien. These two moves should make the Bruins better but with almost every other team in the East also getting better, the Bruins will struggle this year. The Bruins added a bit more scoring with the acquisition of LW Peter Schaefer from the Ottawa Senators. The Bruins were more of a trading team than signing team this summer.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- M.STURM-M.SAVARD-G.MURRAY
2- P.KESSEL-P.BERGERON-B.BOCHENSKI
3- P-J.AXELSSON-D.KREJCI-P.SHAEFER
4- J.REICH-M.MOWERS-C.KOBASEW
E- J.HOGGAN-P.NOKELAINEN-S.THORNTON
The Bruins are relatively strong down the middle but the wings is where there are questions. Marc Savard and Patrice Bergeron make a very good 1-2 punch but will need more help from the supporting cast to make the Bruins competitive. Marco Sturm scored a respectable 27 goals last season could be better off as a 2nd line player but could prove me wrong playing on the 1st line this year. Glen Murray is a very good RW for playmaker Savard but needs to get over the 30 goal mark again to really be a legitimate RW. If Murray doesn't produce this season, it could be his last with his contract being up at the end of the season, so the pressure will be on. Phil Kessel's numbers could go up playing on the wing this year and playing beside Bergeron. Kessel coming off a rookie season where he had a cancer scare could be another feel good story if he really produces. Schaefer will add some much need depth and scoring help while Brandon Bochenski has to prove he can be a everyday NHLer after scoring 13 goals in only 41 games last season. P-J Axelsson has to stay healthy, he is a very important piece of the Bruins checking game and to their leadership to the young kids.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- M.STUART-Z.CHARA
2- D.WIDEMAN-A.FERENCE
3- A.WARD-A.ALBERTS
E- M.LASHOFF-B.ALLEN
The key to the defense is a better season from Zdeno Chara after last years season was average at least in Chara's books. Chara being the captain of the Bruins will have to help this very young group jell and develop. Andrew Ference and Aaron Ward bring the other leadership. Ference is a very capable top 3 defensemen showing grit and determination in every game he plays. He is one guy I wish the Flames didn't let go of. Ward also has to rebound from an average year while Denis Wideman showed some promise last year. Mark Stuart, Andrew Alberts and Matt Lashoff will all battle it out in camp for the final 2 spots on the roster and their development is key for the future of the Bruins.

GOALIES
1- M.FERNANDEZ
2- T.THOMAS
3- T.RASK
Acquiring Fernandez on draft day will give the Bruins along with Thomas a very good 1-2 combo. Fernandez will have to recover from a knee injury, suffered last year but should be just fine and just like in Minnesota will be capable of playing 50-60 games. Thomas will be able to take some of the load off Fernandez after showing that he is a good NHL goaltender last year. The future looks bright for the Bruins at the goalie position too after acquiring Tuukka Rask from the Toronto Maple Leafs last season in the Andrew Raycroft deal.

OVERALL
The Bruins have the makings of a very good team in the future with prospects like Rask, Lashoff, Stuart, Bergeron, Kessel and now Zach Hamill. Until those prospects are ready there will be some groin pains in the city of Boston. The hiring of Julien will also help the Bruins develop and move forward in the future. The Bruins will be bottom dwellers this season so should be sellers at the trade deadline with 47 million dollars locked up.

Predicted Finish- 5th Division, 15th Conference

Buffalo Sabres
Last season record: 53-22-3-4 113 points
Division: 1st
Conference: 1st

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: G Jocelyn Thibault(PITT)
departures: C Daniel Briere, C Chris Drury, RW Danius Zubrus

The off-season for the Buffalo Sabres was one to forget. The Sabres lost both co-captains Daniel Briere and Chris Drury to free agency and even worse to teams in their own division(Flyers and Rangers). they also lost RW Danius Zubrus who played very well in their playoff run. To make matters worse they had to over-pay to keep Thomas Vanek after the desperate Oilers put in an offer sheet for the RFA. The only UFA signing the Sabres made was G Jocelyn Thibault and it was a questionable one with starting goalie Ryan Miller just starting to become a top 5 goaltender in the league. Other than Vanek the Sabres were also able to lock-up C Derek Roy to a 6 year contract, valuable veteran Adam Mair to a 3 year contract and some good looking prospects in D Nathan Paetsch, C Mike Ryan and LW Daniel Paille. The Sabres also re-signed D Teppo Numinen in the off-season but he was just recently diagnosed with a heart condition and will need surgery, the time table of his recovery time is not know yet so this will leave the Sabres with just another hole in their line-up.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- J.HECHT-T.CONNOLLY-J.POMINVILLE
2- T.VANEK-D.ROY-M.AFINOGENOV
3- A.KOTALIK-P.GAUSTAD-D.STAFFORD
4- D.PAILLE-M.RYAN-A.MAIR
E- C.MacARTHUR-M.ZAGRAPAN-A.PETERS
The Sabres offense should once again have no problem scoring goals but will need players to step up in new higher pressure roles. Tim Connolly will replace Briere on the top line in between Jochen Hecht and Jason Pominville. This line should be very good but will be based on if Connolly can stay healthy. Connolly only appeared in 2 games last year and only in 65 games that last two combined. He has showed that he has the talent he can do it but the only question is health. Hecht is and has been a very capable top 6 forward the last couple of years and is coming off a career year after posting scoring 19 goals and 56 points last season. Hecht is also on a contract year so he should perform even better. Pominville is quietly becoming a star player. After scoring 18 goals in his rookie season, Pominville almost doubled his production last year potting 34 goals. Pominville is probably Buffalo's second best all around forward only to Roy. The pressure to produce even more after the huge contract signing will be enormous on Vanek. Vanek is now Buffalo's scariest sniper. After netting 43 goals last season, look for Vanek to reach 50 this season. The pressure will also be high on Vanek's linemate, Maxim Afinogenov who has been a big time season performer but a playoff no show so far in his career. The last piece of this line is Roy who just signed a new 6 year contract and is coming off his most productive year as to date, scoring 63 points. Roy is now the most valuable center on the depth chart as he can do everything including PP and PK. The only question about this line is whether they will be able to take the added pressure from other teams being Buffalo's 2nd line not 3rd. Young players, Drew Stafford, Mike Ryan and Daniel Paille all showed that they belonged in the NHL last season and should be every day NHLers this season. Stafford scored 13 goals in only 41 games last year and along with Paul Gaustad and Ales Kotalik could give the Sabres a very good 3rd line.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- B.CAMPBELL-N.PAETSCH
2- T.LYDMAN-H.TALLINDER
3- J.SPACEK-D.KALININ
E- A.SEKERA-M.FUNK
INJURED- T.NUMMINEN
This will continue to be a question for the Sabres this year, with the Sabres surprisingly not addressing the defense except with the re-signing of now injured Teppo Numminen. Brian Campbell is a legitimate top 3 defensemen but he is all by himself on the Sabres blueline to get that kind of recognition. Toni Lydman and Henrik Tallinder could be good top 3 defensemen but are often injured. If they are able to play a pull season well at least 75 games some of the question marks around the Sabres defense could be erased. Last years big signing of Jaroslav Spacek turned out to be a bust, Spacek never played close to what he did when he was with the Oilers during their '05 playoff run. Dmitri Kalinin is good at best and is very inconsistent. The injury to Numinen means Paetsch will have to step up and continue to develop.

GOALIES
1- R.MILLER
2- J.THIBAULT
3- A.DENNIS
This is one area on the Sabres where they are absolutely no question marks. Miller is really starting to become a top 5 goaltender in the league and was hands down Buffalo's best player during their playoff run. Thibault was added and is a very good back-up. Adam Dennis is the third goalie and could take over for Thibault if he is not re-signed next summer.

OVERALL
The Sabres will once again have no problems scoring goals and making the playoffs. How far they go in the playoffs is where the question is. Buffalo's defense will have to be way better and there are questions why the Sabres didn't use the money from the loss of Drury and Briere to bring in a defensemen like Darryl Sydor or like I said Brad Stuart. Questions will also be on Vanek and Afinogenov to not only produce more during the season but way, way more in the playoffs and whether Connolly will be able to stay healthy and be a #1 center. If the Sabres are looking to make moves near the end of the season, there is room to do that with only 45 million dollars locked up. The Sabres will make the playoffs but will have to add another defensemen to make the playoffs worth while.

Predicted Finish- 2nd Division, 6th Conference

Montreal Canadiens
Last season record: 42-34-1-5 90 points
Division: 4
Conference: 10

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: D Roman Hamrlik(CGY), C Bryan Smolinski(CHI/VAN), RW Tom Kostopoulos(LA), D Jamie Rivers(STL), D Mathieu Biron(WSH/SJ), D Patrice Brisebois(COL)
departures: C Radek Bonk, RW Mike Johnson, LW Sergei Samsonov, D Sheldon Souray

The Canadiens tried desperately to sign a big name free agent but failed. There were rumors that they put in an offer for home-grown C Daniel Briere but Briere choose the Flyers instead. The Canadiens then lost D Sheldon Souray to the Edmonton Oilers so they had a big hole on their defense and more importantly their PP. The Canadiens signed Roman Hamrlik before they had lost Souray for insurance if they did end up loosing Souray. Hamrlik is probably a better defensive defensemen than Souray but isn't as productive offensively. Hamrlik posted 18 points on the PP for the Flames last season so he or Andrei Markov have to really pick up their production for the loss of Souray. The Canadiens then signed Bryan Smolinski to add some depth to their center position. Smolinski should fill in well on the Canadiens 3rd line to replace Radek Bonk. Patrice Brisebois was signed as a surprising move by the Canadiens to add some depth on the blueline but he failed his physical at the start of training camp due to a groin injury.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- C.HIGGINS-S.KOIVU-M.RYDER
2- G.LATENDRESSE-T.PLEKANEC-A.KOVALEV
3- J.LAHTI-B.SMOLINSKI-A.KOSTITSYN
4- S.BEGIN-M.LAPIERE-T.KOSTOPOULOS
E- G.MURRAY-K.CHIPCHURA-D.MILROY
The Canadiens forwards will look alot like last year. Their top six forwards are all returning with only Smolinski, Janne Lahti and Tom Kostopoulos projected to be the new forwards. Chris Higgins started very hot last season before going down with a groin injury in December. He still managed to score 22 goals so his production should go up with a healthy season. Saku Koivu had a career year with 75 points mostly because he only missed 1 game. Michael Ryder is coming off back-to-back 30 goal seasons and him and Koivu seemed to have some chemistry late last season. Tomas Plekanec showed that he belongs in the NHL after netting 20 goals. He is a very good 2-way center and is now very valuable to the Canadiens. Alexei Kovalev has to rebound after a very so-so season where he didn't even score 20 goals. Playing alongside Plekanec could help though. Guillaume Latendresse had a very good rookie season and should improve playing on a line with Kovalev and Plekanec. Smolinski should be an upgrade over Bonk and Andrei Kostitsyn could have a break out season after starting out well at training camp. Maxim Lapiere was another rookie who developed well too last season for the Canadiens and will probably play on the 4th line but should take over Smolinski next season if the Canadiens fail to re-sign him.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- R.HAMRLIK-A.MARKOV
2- F.BOULLION-M.KOMISAREK
3- M.STRIET-M.DANDENAULT
E- J.GORGES-P.BRISEBOIS
The Canadiens have a few question marks on their defense. They replaced Souray with Hamrlik so that gives them a little bit of an upgrade on the defensive side. Markov is clearly the #1 on this defensive corps after scoring 49 points and being very valuable in the defensive zone. Mike Komisarek is the key to the defense this year, he really has to step up and become a top 4 defensemen. Francois Boullion is a solid defensemen who is coming off a injury plagued year so look for him to rebound too. Mark Striet and Mathieu Dandenault are decent 5-6 defensemen but Striet could see time at forward this season too. Josh Gorges and Patrice Brisebois give the Canadiens some good depth and some be ready and capable to fill in for injuries etc.

GOALIES
1- C.HUET
2- C.PRICE
3- J.HALAK
The Canadiens have very good depth at the goalie position but the question is do they have a #1 guy? Cristobal Huet put up half decent numbers(19 wins, 2.81GAA, .916SV%) last season before going down with and injury abut still needs to prove he can handle the work load and still be successful. Carey Price is the dark horse could be ready to not only take the place of Huet during the season but could win the starting job outright in training camp. Price made huge strides last season, winning gold with Canada at the world juniors then winning the Calder Cup and playoff MVP with the Hamilton Bulldogs. The only place left for Price to go is the NHL and I think that is where he will go. Jaroslav Halak played very well for the Canadiens at the end of last season keeping them in the playoff hunt but playing only 16 games from coming from no where just isn't good enough for me to say that he is a legitimate back-up and plus Price is a better goaltender.

OVERALL
The Canadiens with go though ups and downs through out the whole season. The lack of defense will hurt them but they should be in the playoff race right to the end of the season. Look for Price to really come into his own in the NHL and give the Canadiens some quality goaltending. If the Canadiens try to acquire another defensemen near the end of the season, they only have 45 million dollars locked up.

Predicted Finish- 3rd Division, 12th Conference

Ottawa Senators
Last season record: 48-25-3-6 105 points
Division: 2nd
Conference: 4th-Lost in Stanley Cup Final

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: D Matt Carkner(SJ), RW Niko Dimitrakos(PHI), D Matt Kinch(EUR), D Luke Richardson(TB), LW Denis Hamel(ATL/PHI/OTT), C Justin Mapletoft(EUR), RW Shean Donovan(t-BOS)
departures: C Mike Comrie, D Tom Preissing, LW Oleg Saprykin(EUR), LW Peter Schaefer

The Senators off-season was very quite and they will sport basically the same roster that lead them to the Cup Final last year again this year. The biggest move in the off-season was the firing of GM John Muckler, the promotion of former coach Brian Murray to the vacant GM spot and then the hiring of new coach John Paddock. Paddock will bring a relatively similar coaching as Brian Murray and is familiar with lots of the players from being an assistant coach with the Senators and the head coach down with Binghamton. The Senators biggest move on the player's side was the re-signing of G Ray Emery to new 3 year contract. Emery played awesome last year but there will be pressure on him this year to repeat that performance and make it even better. To free up cap space, the Senators traded LW Peter Schaefer to the Boston Bruins for RW Shean Donovan, swapping Schaefer's 2.1 million dollar contract for Donovan's 925 thousand dollar contract. The Senators also lost Mike Comrie and Tom Preissing in the off-season. Finding replacements for the two will be hard with Sen's GM Brian Murray hand cuffed by cap isssues and not being able to sign replacements in the off-season. Young Guns will have to fill the voids.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- D.HEATLEY-J.SPEZZA-P.EAVES
2- A.VERMETTE-M.FISHER-D.ALFREDSSON
3- N.FOLGINO-C.KELLY-C.NEIL
4- D.HAMEL-D.McAMMOND-S.DONOVAN
E- N.DIMITRAKOS-J.HENNESSEY-B.McGRATTON
Like I have already said the Senators will look alot like last year. The top 6 forwards are all the same with only Antoine Vermette being the only guy stepping up into a new role. Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza make probably one of the best 1-2 combo's in the league and will once again carry the load. Daniel Alfredsson is also part of Ottawa's 3 punch and will be looked upon to carry lots of the workload and make the 2nd line more productive. Spezza and Heatley are looking for a new winger and I think Patrik Eaves could take it if the Sen's dont add anyone else. The second line looks strong too, especially with Alfredsson. Mike Fisher just signed a new 5 year contract extension but is still nagged with a groin problem from last years Cup Final, he should be ready to go in time for the season. Vermette could have a break-out year with more ice time and playing along side Alfredsson and Fisher. Vermette scored 19 goals last year and will be looked upon to score more with the loss of Schaefer and Comrie. The 3rd line looks strong again with Chris Kelly and Chris Neil bringing some grit. Nick Folgino looks to be the only rookie to crack the roster and could fit well with Kelly and Neil. The final line with be gritty but wont score alot. Dean McAmmond is a wicked #4 center and along with Donovan, they could give some teams headaches. The Senators lack depth this season with the #4 RW spot up for grabs and the extra players to fill in for injuries are unknown.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- W.REDDEN-A.MESZAROS
2- C.PHILLIPS-A.VOLCHENKOV
3- J.CORVO-C.SCHUBERT
E- L.NYCHOLAT-L.RICHARDSON
As bad as Wade Redden looked at some points last year, I think he will rebound this year and show the Senators that it was a bad decision to even think about trading him. If he doesn't, the Senators will look to try to trade him. Andrej Meszaros continues to develop and is now a legitimate top 4 defensemen. Chris Phillips and Anton Volchenkov give the Senators probably the best shut down tandem in the league. Joe Corvo was too named in trade rumors to dump salary but there were no takers. He played fairly well last season and was most valuable on the PP. Christoph Schubert will play defense this season because once again the Senators lack of depth. He played better on forward then on defense last season but should do fine as the #6 defensemen. Luke Richardson was signed to add some depth.

GOALIES
1- R.EMERY
2- M.GERBER
3- J.GLASS
Emery proved he can be a #1 goalie last year, it is just a question if he can continue to succeed. He was given a new 3 year contract and I think he will have no problem be the Senators go to guy. Martin Gerber was the 3rd player that was tossed around in trade rumors in the off-season. He is way over paid and has never been the same since the playoffs in 2006 when he was with the Carolina Hurricanes. Jeff Glass is the 3rd stringer.

OVERALL
The Senators will once again be a very strong team and will once again be right in the hunt for the Cup at the end of the season. The only problem with the Senators is that they are very thin on depth charts at both the forward and defense positions. If the Senators are able to get rid of Gerber's huge 3.7 million dollar BACK-UP contract then they should be able to make some moves to make them even better. There where rumors that the Senators were interested in former Leaf Jeff O'Neill to fill in the RW spot on the Heatley-Spezza line and with 46 million dollars locked-up that could be a possibility.

Predicted Finish- 1st Division, 1st Conference

Toronto Maple Leafs
Last season record: 40-31-4-7 91 points
Division: 3rd
Conference: 9th

OFF-SEASON
arrivals: C Simon Gamache(EUR), G Vesa Toskala(t-SJ), LW Mark Bell(t-SJ), RW Jason Blake(NYI), G Scott Clemmensen(NJ), RW Dave Ling(EUR), D Derrick Walser(CBM)
departures: G J-S Aubin, C Travis Green, RW Jeff O'Neill, C Mike Peca, C Yanic Perrault

The Leafs had a fairly busy off-season but even with their moves there are still questions left. The Leafs started right on draft day acquiring G Vesa Toskala and LW Mark Bell from the San Jose Sharks. Goaltending was a area of weakness last year in the minds of the Maple Leafs even with Andrew Raycroft setting a club record for most wins. Toskala is projected to be the starter but should make an excellent duo with Raycroft. The Leafs then signed RW Jason Blake to play alongside Mats Sundin. Blake is coming off a a career year after scoring 40 goals, but there are questions whether Blake will be able to repeat his performance. Mark Bell who was also acquired in the Toskala trade ran into trouble with the law and had been suspended 15 games by the NHL. The rest of the signings made by the Leafs were to re-fill the depth charts.

FORWARDS
My Projected Lines:
1- A.PONIKAROVSKY-M.SUNDIN-J.BLAKE
2- N.ANTROPOV-K.WELLWOOD-D.TUCKER
3- A.STEEN-M.STAJAN-B.BATTAGLIA
4- C.KILGER-J.POHL-B.DEVEREAUX
Ev K.NEWBURY-S.GAMACHE-T.SALMELAINEN
SUSPENDED- M.BELL(15 games)
The Leafs look half decent up front. Lead by Sundin the Leafs offense was 10th in the league last year and with the signing of RW Blake to finally give Sundin someone to play with, the scoring could go up. Blake needs to prove that he is a legitimate goal scorer, that doesn't mean he has to pot 40 again but he needs at least 32-35 to really earn his money. Alex Ponikarovsky finally did something last year scoring 21 goals and whether he plays with Sundin and Blake or Kyle Wellwood, he should score another 20 goals this year. Wellwood also broke out last year before he got injured, so the Leafs will need him to stay healthy especially since they aren't incredibly deep down the center. Darcy Tucker just signed a new 4 year contract in February and is one of the Leafs best power forward even though he doesn't have great size. Tucker also missed 24 games last season so once again the Leafs will need him to stay healthy but he should be good for 30 goals. Alex Steen and Matt Stajan have to rebound after off years. The two together could make a good combo on the Leafs 3rd line. Bates Battaglia and Boyd Devereaux were late season call-ups last year and both proved that they deserve another shot in the NHL.

DEFENSE
My Projected Pairings:
1- B.McCABE-T.KABERLE
2- P.KUBINA-C.COLIACOVO
3- H.GILL-I.WHITE
E- A.STRALMAN-S.KRONWALL
There is only one player on this blueline who doesn't have any question marks around him is Tomas Kaberle. Kaberle was second on the team in scoring with 58 points and proved that he is not only good offensively but also very good in his own end. Bryan McCabe although very successful offensively and on the PP, is surrounded with question marks about his play in his own end. Really if you think about it he would be nothing without Kaberle, Kaberle sets up most of his goals on the PP and saves his ass in the Leafs zone when McCabe starts acting like a pylon. Without Kaberle all McCabe would be was a defensemen with a wicked shot. Pavel Kubina also has huge question marks around him, he was terrible last year offensively and defensively. Right now he is considered a bust for the amount of money the Leafs signed him for and if GM John Ferguson Jr. losses his job, the Kubina signing will be on of the things held against him. Carlo Coliacovo has to somehow learn how to stay healthy. In two seasons with the Leafs, Coliacovo has only played in 69 games. Hal Gill had his moments of goodness last season including leading the team with a +11 but still showed that he can be a pylon. Ian White has really come along the last couple of years and is second to Kaberle with least amount of question marks around him.

GOALIES
1- V.TOSKALA
2- A.RAYCROFT
3- J.POGGE
Like I said earlier, Toskala and Raycroft will make a very good combo. In my mind Toskala is the better goaltender and I think the Leafs acquired him for the reason of all the question marks around their defense so they could have Raycroft for trade bait. Toskala and Raycroft should split the games pretty evenly with Toskala with a few more games probably going 57-45. Justin Pogge is battling for the third spot in training camp with newly signed Scott Clemmensen and I think Pogge will win it and Clemmensen will be released.

OVERALL
The Leafs haven't made the playoffs for 3 years now and I think that will continue. The Leafs have way too many question marks or should I say pylons on their defense to go anywhere. Even with an upgrade in goal with Toskala and more scoring with the combo of Sundin and Blake, the Leafs will score 4 but let in 5 because of their defense. If the Leafs were smart they would use Raycroft as trade bait and trade him for a defensemen. A trade is really the only option for the Leafs with 49 million dollars locked up in cap space.

Predicted Finish- 4th Division, 13th Conference