2011/12 predictions: Southeast Division

My trek around the Eastern conference brings me to the third and final division, the Southeast division.

Two teams broke the 100-point mark in this division last year with the Washington Capitals finishing with 107 and the Tampa Bay Lightning finishing with 103, which provided both with a playoff. The other three teams in the division failed to progress through to the post season as Carolina, Atlanta and Florida all fell short.

The Washington Capitals topped both their division and the conference last season and will feel that they are easily capable of repeating events again this time around. They recorded 48 wins last year and will definitely be pushing to make it a 50 win season this year and will also want to have a stronger post season than last year.

Yet to lift the Stanley Cup, the Caps are one of a few sides in the NHL who has a roster that is very strong in depth and has sheer class throughout. For that reason alone you have to give a label of ‘serious contenders’ to Washington even before you start to consider the other factors.

The Caps, who lost to the Bolts in the conference semi-finals last year, boast a strong net minding unit where they have three goalies who are all capable of doing a great job in the NHL. Backed up by a good crowd in the nation’s capital, the seven time division champions will feel they can have a good crack to add the Stanley Cup to their list of titles.

In terms of improvements on last season I would like to see their defence improved on the powerplay especially. Defending powerplays against the Bolts in last years playoffs was why the Caps crashed out in my opinion. They looked very lost at times and when Tampa went on the powerplay, a goal looked inevitable throughout the two minutes. I feel the Caps would also like to see their defenders being more offensive and chipping in with a few more points than they did last year to support Ovechkin. A division title scrap will take place between Washington and Tampa Bay and will certainly be as close as it was last year.

2010-11 conference finalists the Tampa Bay Lightning will go into the start of the season in October with high levels of confidence after a very good campaign last year. The Bolts lost to the Bruins in game seven by one goal, which just shows how close the two teams were in terms of skill and stamina last season.

The Bolts lifted the Stanley Cup for their first and only time in 2004 and I feel 2011-12 will be the Bolts best chance to lift it again and I feel they will be the ones lifting the cup in 2012. In my opinion they have the strongest roster in the league with huge amounts of experience and skilful youth. The huge variety in the roster is what makes it stand out as you can look at 36 year old Martin St.Louis who tallied 99 points last year and then 21 year old Steven Stamkos who had 91 points. Having two players who can score over 90 points a year is invaluable to a team.

On powerplays they are a class act as they pass the puck quickly and efficiently and don’t give the opposition a sniff of the puck. They scored 69 pp goals, the second most in the league and this means teams playing the Bolts will have to be very disciplined. When Tampa’s discipline let them down they also defended very well on the powerplay, using the simple four man box method very effectively and holding strong.

Tampa gave a new contract to veteran 41-year-old goaltender Dwayne Roloson, signing him on a $3 million 1 year deal. He was huge to their success last season especially in the playoffs where he was a serious contender to get the MVP award a times. Roloson will have huge confidence going into the new season after a huge playoffs and a fresh contract. I am going to say the 2012 Stanley cup winners will the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Carolina were agonisingly close to the playoffs last season falling just two points short of grabbing the eighth and last playoff spot. With one Stanley cup to their name, the Hurricanes have only entered the post season five times in their history. This season they will definitely have their eyes on making that six and I feel they have a very good shot at the playoffs.

Unfortunately all of my playoff spots have been snapped up by other teams meaning the Canes won’t be making the top eight in my opinion. I feel Carolina’s season will be very similar to that of last year, falling just short of playoff hockey whether it is by a single point or five points. Carolina do posses some world class forwards that can pose threats to any of the best teams up front. 19-year-old Jeff Skinner recorded 63 points last year and showed a huge amount of talent that will undoubtedly increase as years go on and if Carolina can hold onto him it will be a massive bonus. They also have one of the best goalies in the league in Cam Ward and if the forwards score their goals there is no reason why the Hurricanes can’t have a good year with Ward adding solidity in net.

I feel that Carolina will struggle to win the crunch games against the big sides that ultimately make the difference between playoffs or no playoffs. My point will be proven or not proven for that matter in the first month of the Hurricane’s season. They face the Bruins x2, Capitals, Lightning, Flyers and Blackhawks all in October and this will give a huge indication what their season will be like.

So, there are two teams that remain in my Eastern conference predictions. I would move on to the Atlanta Thrashers but obviously they do not exist in the NHL anymore as they have been replaced by the Winnipeg Jets. The Jet’s roster is obviously made up mainly of ex-Thrashers but they have made the odd addition such as Washington’s Eric Fehr who will bring much needed experience and consistency.

With the Jets surrounded by a new environment you can’t have expectations that are too high early on. They are lacking that 70-80 point scorer that a decent side must have. They do have Andrew Ladd and Dustin Byfuglien who will easily get 50 points respectively and if other players chip in around them with a few points then I think the Jets can be competitive in the NHL. The Jets have a tough first month but I am going to give them a solid fourth place finish in the Southeast division.

Finally I reach the last team of my predictions who I feel will struggle this year yet again after a poor year last year. The Florida Panthers finished last in the East last year. The Panther’s playoff drought currently stands at ten seasons and I am pretty confident that it will continue to eleven unfortunately.

I look for positives in the Florida’s last campaign but struggle to take any away. Their top scorer made 49 points which is nothing to write home about at all, they scored under 200 goals and came bottom of the conference. I can’t see where their goals are coming from and with an unproven defence and a weak goaltending unit I can’t see the Panthers contending at all this year.

Final standings predictions:

Tampa Bay- 109 points
Washington- 103 points
Carolina- 89 points
Winnipeg- 83 points
Florida- 69 points

My Eastern conference playoff teams (no particular order):

Philadelphia;
New York Rangers;
New Jersey Devils;
Boston Bruins;
Buffalo Sabres;
Ottawa Senators;
Washington Capitals; and
Tampa Bay Lightning.