Atlantic Standings Predictions Thread

[Boss Man Hughes]

Only people living in an imaginary world are Habs fans if they think they're gonna be any good this season.

No. People with a clue. If Dach makes it through 60 games they will make a lot of improvement. Not likely a playoff spot but not bottom 5.

 

[wetcoast]

Three points to consider. If CP and Monty replicate their numbers prorated would drop GA by about 36 goals. Caufeild,Suzuki and Slafkovsky scored 54 of their 81 goals in the last 41 games. Prorated for 82 games would be 104 goals giving an improvement of 49 goals on the goal differential. To add to this they may have an actual second line.

It doesn't actually work this way, we saw CC have that burst a couple of seasons ago and still here we are waiting.

Maybe the Habs have some stuff come together but the teams they are trying to pass are also getting better and have arguably more impact type of players that can make the difference in their teams ascension this year.

I actually think that we could see 6 teams grouped quite tight for playoff positions and maybe even the sens get it together this year somewhat....time will tell.

 

[Satanphonehome]

You said they are faster, that's objectively true.

You said they are harder, that's objectively true.

You said they are more accountable with Lindy Ruff as their coach that's going to be objectively true.

You know what you didn't say? You didn't say that they were better,and I suspect I know why.

You said they were faster, harder and more accountable because you believe those things to be true, and I agree.

You did not say they are better, because they are not, and regardless of if you want to admit it or not you know it.

Even if they are better, and I don't think they are, but even if they are they aren't good enough to finish top 4 in the Atlantic and that's what It's going to take.

Which one of Toronto, Boston, Florida or Tampa are they overtaking? They aren't unless one of those teams suffer SEVERE injury and not just 1 either.

Truthfully I'm not convinced they are better than Ottawa or Detroit.

They are 5th in the Atlantic at best, 7th at worst

Oh, I think they are better..

I don’t blame you for being smug. Boston, Toronto and Tampa have been safe for so long, and Detroit, Buffalo and Ottawa bad so long, that it’s easy for people believe that’s the way it’s always going to be.

Time changes everything and often that change comes quicker than you think.

 

[bert]

No. People with a clue. If Dach makes it through 60 games they will make a lot of improvement. Not likely a playoff spot but not bottom 5.

Last in the division pretty easily.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Oh, I think they are better..

I don’t blame you for being smug. Boston, Toronto and Tampa have been safe for so long, and Detroit, Buffalo and Ottawa bad so long, that it’s easy for people believe that’s the way it’s always going to be.

Time changes everything and often that change comes quicker than you think.

It's been 13 years, quick left the building about a decade ago It's gone

 

[Satanphonehome]

It's been 13 years, quick left about a decade ago

Didn't your team miss the playoffs 10 out of 11 years then suddenly improve from 69 points to 95 and never look back?

Colorado went from 48 points to 95 after missing 6 of 7 and has stayed a contender.

Carolina missed 9 in a row, then jumped from 83 to 99 and hasn't missed since.

Oilers 12 of 13 missed before 2020.

How many people had the Canucks jumping from 83 points to 109 last year after missing the playoffs 7 of the previous 8 years?

How about New Jersey from 63 to 112 2 years ago after missing 10 of 11?

Quick happens for some long-suffering fanbase, pretty much every year, usually right after somebody on HFboards makes it very clear that it will never happen.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Didn't your team miss the playoffs 10 out of 11 years then suddenly improve from 69 points to 95 and never look back?

Colorado went from 48 points to 95 after missing 6 of 7 and has stayed a contender.

Carolina missed 9 in a row, then jumped from 83 to 99 and hasn't missed since.

Oilers 12 of 13 missed before 2020.

How many people had the Canucks jumping from 83 points to 109 last year after missing the playoffs 7 of the previous 8 years?

How about New Jersey from 63 to 112 2 years ago after missing 10 of 11?

Quick happens for some long-suffering fanbase, pretty much every year, usually right after somebody on HFboards makes it very clear that it will never happen.

My team had Matthews, Marner, Nylander, Hyman all coming up at the exact same time, they also had acquired Fredrik Andersen to be their #1 goalie

They also had the Best version of Andreas Johnsson who was a 20 goal scorer in Toronto.

They also had Arguably the best version of Conor Brown who also scored 20 goals in Toronto and was on the PK.

They also had the best version of Kasperi Kapanen another 20 goal scorer.

They also had Mike Babcock who was considered a top 3 coach in the NHL at the time

AND Lou as GM.

So basically you are attempting to compare this coming years Sabres to a team with.

3 super rookies

The best farm system in the league at the time

A young but established #1 goalie

A top 3 coach at the time

And a hall of fame GM.

The Sabres don't have most of if any of that, especially when we compare Adams to Lou, I assure you Adams is not Lou.

Teams generally don't have what my team had, I could live to be 160 and I doubt I will see that again.

That doesn't happen for everyone.

 

[voyageur]

1. Detroit
2. Toronto
3. Buffalo
4. Florida (the Hangover)
-----------
Boston
Tampa
Montreal
Ottawa

 

[Satanphonehome]

My team had Matthews, Marner, Nylander, Hyman all coming up at the exact same time, they also had acquired Fredrik Andersen to be their #1 goalie

They also had the Best version of Andreas Johnsson who was a 20 goal scorer in Toronto.

They also had Arguably the best version of Conor Brown who also scored 20 goals in Toronto and was on the PK.

They also had the best version of Kasperi Kapanen another 20 goal scorer.

They also had Mike Babcock who was considered a top 3 coach in the NHL at the time

AND Lou as GM.

So basically you are attempting to compare this coming years Sabres to a team with.

3 super rookies

The best farm system in the league at the time

A young but established #1 goalie

A top 3 coach at the time

And a hall of fame GM.

The Sabres don't have most of if any of that, especially when we compare Adams to Lou, I assure you Adams is not Lou.

Teams generally don't have what my team had, I could live to be 160 and I doubt I will see that again.

That doesn't happen for everyone.

Reads a post listing a half-dozen teams in the past decade that suddenly made a big jump into the playoffs after years of being shitty.

Replies 'Leafs are a special case we'll probably never see again in our lifetime.'

Thanks, you've given me a lot to think about.

 

[BostonBob]

1. Detroit
2. Toronto
3. Buffalo
4. Florida (the Hangover)
-----------
Boston
Tampa
Montreal
Ottawa

Detroit and Buffalo ahead of Boston......I highly doubt that.

 

[Habs7631]

I don't care, I just want Florida as low as possible. We have their 1st this year. They won the cup, they can enjoy a year off.

Sorry Panthers fans, I have absolutely nothing against you guys. In fact I was cheering for you guys against Edmonton! It's just business. I'm sure you understand.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

1. Detroit
2. Toronto
3. Buffalo
4. Florida (the Hang

-----------
Boston
Tampa
Montreal
Ottawa

I'd argue there is no shot that even 1 of Detroit or Buffalo finish ahead of Tampa and Boston.

To suggest both of them will put a 1000$ on that you'd be rich

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

I don't care, I just want Florida as low as possible. We have their 1st this year. They won the cup, they can enjoy a year off.

Sorry Panthers fans, I have absolutely nothing against you guys. In fact I was cheering for you guys against Edmonton! It's just business. I'm sure you understand.

So then you need to root for Boston in the first 2 games.

As a habs fan isn't cheering for Boston basically illegal?

 

[Habs7631]

So then you need to root for Boston in the first 2 games.

As a habs fan isn't cheering for Boston basically illegal?

If it benefits the Habs, I will cheer for Boston no problem.

Bruins can win those 2 games 6-0 for all I care. Get us that Florida pick to drop.

 

[Aurinko]

1. Detroit
2. Toronto
3. Buffalo
4. Florida (the Hangover)
-----------
Boston
Tampa
Montreal
Ottawa

Looking at this group, it's really hard to see hangover florida being anywhere else but in the top 2. And even that is with the expectation that they are hangover and/or banged up.

 

[Wayfarer13]

It doesn't actually work this way, we saw CC have that burst a couple of seasons ago and still here we are waiting.

Maybe the Habs have some stuff come together but the teams they are trying to pass are also getting better and have arguably more impact type of players that can make the difference in their teams ascension this year.

I actually think that we could see 6 teams grouped quite tight for playoff positions and maybe even the sens get it together this year somewhat....time will tell.

The factor in this case with CC is a shoulder injury that took until about game 72 to heal enough that he had his shot back.He is still really early in his career. When they shut him down he could have continued to played but there was no long term to have done so.There no were reports of any setbacks on the shoulder and he made progress in other areas of his game.Between him NS and JF I am expecting at least a 100 goals scored.Lots to positive here.

 

[Pavels Dog]

I'd argue there is no shot that even 1 of Detroit or Buffalo finish ahead of Tampa and Boston.

To suggest both of them will put a 1000$ on that you'd be rich

I don't agree with that guy's rankings but there is such a hivemind about these things. Any takes outside the box are met with replies such as yours. Last offseason 97% of hfboards predicted the Devils would make the playoffs. Around 2% predicted the Caps would.

The balance of power IS going to start shifting in the Atlantic some day soon.

I'd argue both Tampa and Boston are starting to ice the kind of rosters that, while not bad, are certainly more vulnerable if they suffer injuries or underperformances. Florida's most likely still going to be very good, but cup hangovers have happened in the past and it wasn't that long ago they made the playoffs with just 92 points. Not even Toronto feels like that much of a dominant force considering the constant turmoil surrounding them and the fact they were tied with Buffalo for the 4th most Regulation Wins in the division last season.

The dominance that these teams have had is already a statistical anomaly in the NHL (they are 4 of the 7 longest playoff streaks), and not even Montreal is in full tank-mode any longer. There's not going to be much room for any of them to slip without someone jumping them from below.

"No shot"? That's too much confidence in something that's a question of "when", not "if".

 

[GOALOFSSON]

My team had Matthews, Marner, Nylander, Hyman all coming up at the exact same time, they also had acquired Fredrik Andersen to be their #1 goalie

They also had the Best version of Andreas Johnsson who was a 20 goal scorer in Toronto.

They also had Arguably the best version of Conor Brown who also scored 20 goals in Toronto and was on the PK.

They also had the best version of Kasperi Kapanen another 20 goal scorer.

They also had Mike Babcock who was considered a top 3 coach in the NHL at the time

AND Lou as GM.

So basically you are attempting to compare this coming years Sabres to a team with.

3 super rookies

The best farm system in the league at the time

A young but established #1 goalie

A top 3 coach at the time

And a hall of fame GM.

The Sabres don't have most of if any of that, especially when we compare Adams to Lou, I assure you Adams is not Lou.

Teams generally don't have what my team had, I could live to be 160 and I doubt I will see that again.

That doesn't happen for everyone.

My team has the longest playoff drought, including all the talent we've collected throughout the whole thing.

Two 1OA defensemen and one 4OA. A pretty deep list of upcoming forwards. Potentially two really good goalies.

That doesn't happen for everyone either. But go on believing we'll keep missing the playoffs for several more years and that we'll magically be bad forever.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

I don't agree with that guy's rankings but there is such a hivemind about these things. Any takes outside the box are met with replies such as yours. Last offseason 97% of hfboards predicted the Devils would make the playoffs. Around 2% predicted the Caps would.

The balance of power IS going to start shifting in the Atlantic some day soon.

I'd argue both Tampa and Boston are starting to ice the kind of rosters that, while not bad, are certainly more vulnerable if they suffer injuries or underperformances. Florida's most likely still going to be very good, but cup hangovers have happened in the past and it wasn't that long ago they made the playoffs with just 92 points. Not even Toronto feels like that much of a dominant force considering the constant turmoil surrounding them and the fact they were tied with Buffalo for the 4th most Regulation Wins in the division last season.

The dominance that these teams have had is already a statistical anomaly in the NHL (they are 4 of the 7 longest playoff streaks), and not even Montreal is in full tank-mode any longer. There's not going to be much room for any of them to slip without someone jumping them from below.

"No shot"? That's too much confidence in something that's a question of "when", not "if".

I know the balance of power will shift, of course it will, and I havel said many times that I feel like Tampa is in the very early stages of decline but It's going to take 3 years, and if Geekie and Moser develop it could take a little longer.

But regardless they are in the early stages and they would pull another Brayden point out of the draft to really stop it.

But 3 years from now that's not 24-25

That's 2027

 

[JianYang]

I think Montreal will surprise a lot of people.

Dach & Dvorak (2 & 3 C) out basically all season. They didn’t have the depth to absorb that at all.

Pearson, Pezzetta, White, Ylonen and Stephens were all 35-42% xGF player which is ATROCIOUS and unacceptable for bottom 6 players, and they played a lot of minutes for us. We should get no minutes from them except maybe pezzetta.

In the bottom 6 RHP was injured early on and came back flat. Anderson has an outlier really bad year. Jake Evans played a lot of minutes in the middle 6 and he is overmatched there. 3 players who should improve easily on their 40% possession numbers playing on the 4th line.

Dvorak on a contract year and a long summer of getting back in shape. Should solidify the bottom 6.

PP underperformed a lot early on, but looked promising later in the year with the first line clicking.

Despite all this they had a close to flat goal differential 5v5 and 46 % xGF….

I think they are in the fight for one of the 2 WC spot.

1. Toronto
2. Florida
3. Boston
4. TB
5. Montreal
6. Buffalo
7. Detroit
8. Ottawa

A bit of a wish cast but I’ll stand by it!

Montreal will likely finish in the 6-8 range.

I expect they will tease with their potential for certain stretches but ultimately, it will be hard to keep the good times rolling for 82 games.

I anticipate that they will hit the skids really hard at some point, but show enough glimpses that it will leave the fanbase optimistic about where the team is heading.

 

[JianYang]

Looking at this group, it's really hard to see hangover florida being anywhere else but in the top 2. And even that is with the expectation that they are hangover and/or banged up.

We've only seen a team make the finals three times in a row once since the 80s. That was the lightning during the covid years.

I believe the lightning were the best team assembled in thr cap era, though. I can certainly see Florida having some hiccups over the course of a long season. It's just alot of hockey accumulation.

 

[Panthaz89]

I'd argue there is no shot that even 1 of Detroit or Buffalo finish ahead of Tampa and Boston.

To suggest both of them will put a 1000$ on that you'd be rich

Tampa aren't exactly the world beaters they used to be they have been hanging onto WC spots lately a single injury to Kucherov and they could sink a lot in the standings.

 

[NewtJorden]

1. Panthers
2. Bruins
3. Maple Leafs
4. Red Wings
5. Lightning
6. Senators
7. Sabres
8. Canadiens

 

[HockeyVirus]

Oh, I think they are better..

I don’t blame you for being smug. Boston, Toronto and Tampa have been safe for so long, and Detroit, Buffalo and Ottawa bad so long, that it’s easy for people believe that’s the way it’s always going to be.

Time changes everything and often that change comes quicker than you think.

Every single one of these threads as far back as since the Matthews draft people have said Toronto misses and been argued the entire offseason. I'll believe it when I see it. Leafs likely to get their 2-3 seed they always get.

Only people living in an imaginary world are Habs fans if they think they're gonna be any good this season.

I hope they are good. No #1C after a rebuild guarantees no cup like the last 30+ years without a true #1C.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Tampa aren't exactly the world beaters they used to be they have been hanging onto WC spots lately a single injury to Kucherov and they could sink a lot in the standings.

I agree, that's why I keep saying Tampa is in the very early stages of decline, but I still think they are top 4 in the Atlantic and until that changes for one of Tampa, Toronto, Florida or Boston nothing changes in the Atlantic except the order of Buffalo Detroit Montreal and Ottawa