Speculation: Early Buyer/Seller predictions.

[Petes2424]

Really.... I could easily see Tampa falling out. Does Florida have a hangover season as we have seen so many times?? Bruins are still weak down the middle. The Leafs while the current class of the Atlantic have many question marks particularly 4th line, defense and goaltending. Top 9 is awesome as of September 18th, 2024.

Yep, and another point the Top 4 crowd isn’t thinking about is, there’s no longer 4 pushovers in the division now… You don’t get to take all those nights off, the Big 4 have been accustomed to.

Detroit, Ottawa and Buffalo, will hit you in the mouth if you take a night off. We’ll see if Montreal wants to join the crowd too, but it’s now probably the best division we’ve seen in recent memory. If one of the 3 up and comers gets off to a hot start, they may never fall out of the Top 3. If Buffalo and Ottawa find that consistency, and if Detroit’s D keeps maturing, or they add another Top 4, these 3 teams will be in the mix. In fact, I’d argue 2 of them could finish in the Top 4 this season. All those young, monster Dmen are all another year older, and they’re not easy to play against.

 

[iago]

Yes. Walman wasn't some reliable seasoned veteran. He has basically 2 seasons and had glaring issues that became more apparent as the team got into more meaningful games. Edvinsson has 2 short stints but it's a safe bet with rookie mistakes included he will be a net positive over Walman at minimum. I could be very wrong about that but size, skating ability, transition game, defensive play I think all are an improvement for Ed over Walman in the very near future.

Detroit is in the mushy middle like you said... could regress with injuries, goaltending or defensive issues if they continue. I won't argue that. They definitely have the potential and have been trending in the right direction so as a fan I'm hoping for year 6 of improvement. With the Atlanic and Eastern conference.. that may not be enough to be in top 8.

I think this seasons expectations are playoffs in Detroit but I'm likely in the minority that I won't be devastated if they miss as long as the younger players continue to develop. I still think everything is moving in the right direction, coaching would be the wild card in all that as Lalonde hasn't shown me much for better or worse, yet.

I agree with you on both counts. Walman was very incostitent. He could make a really good play, but would often follow that up with minor league level giveaways - sometimes in the same shift. Edvinsson will start the season as Walmans equal, and by mid season, willbe a significant improvement.

I also agree with you about Lalonde. Too often, his Red Wings look totally lost, just as bad as they did under Blashill. Detroit needs to become much harder toplay against defensively, and that starts with Lalonde being much tougher to coach against. Personally, I think Detroits season depends mostly on Lalondes coaching improving, and I think he is on a short leash. If the Wings haven't improved defensively in the first 20 to 30 games, Newsy will be replaced by either Gallant or Quennville by the new year.