Which team with some expectations for success will be the biggest flop in the league this season?

[PaulD]

You mean like when you can help but stare at a car accident ?

leave the leafs play offs out of this

This is basically how I pictured the forum's usual Oiler haters last year after whooping it up in the first two weeks of the season thinking they were in for a fun year until mid-November swiftly whacked them upside the head.

looks more like a leaf fan watching the Pastrnak in game 7 OT

 

[bossram]

I wonder if the Preds are a bit overrated going into the season.

Yes. One of the teams I've been fading.

Flashy additions, but I don't really think they're much better. I think there are legit arguments that defensively, they are worse.

I also wonder how they integrate the new players on the PP. Stamkos is one of the premier left flank PP shooters. But that is/has been Forsberg's home on the PP for years. Does he work net front? Right flank? They can't put him on PP2. Interesting to see anyway.

 

[bossram]

They won't miss the playoffs, but I can see Carolina underachieving this season. They have question marks at every position that other contenders don't:

• Andersen's ability to stay healthy
• The defense's actual defensive capability after replacing Pesce and Skjei with Walker and Gostisbehere
• Center depth and whether one of KK or Drury can turn into a bonafide top6 centermen

Canes will be worse. I don't know if you can call it "underachieving" when everyone expects them to be worse, given the offseason roster churn.

Yep. And Hellebuycks play off game is bound to leak into the regular season one of these seasons.

WPG is another fade. Team is not good. Their top players get outscored consistently at even-strength. Pionk is a massive liability in the top-four. Hellebuyck is their only redeeming feature and he can't carry them forever. With his usage, he fades and we see it every postseason.

 

[bringbacktheskate604]

Vancouver - Silovs/Demko both not 100%, defence was downgraded and lacks speed.

Edmonton - still a wild card, will you get the version that almost lost in the second round? Or the version that made it to the finals? Skinner and Arvidsson are alright additions but both have some big questions marks around them. Coaching groups have more footage to see how Knob runs his plays now.

According to Allvin Silovs is 100% and with Demko it's nothing more than pain management.

I get Zadorov had a great playoffs but I don't see a downgrade on defense at all. Maybe a push but a very likely chance Soucy doesn't miss 30 games while the top pair and Deharnais continue to get better.

Or things could go off the rails but I'll let the oilers fans among others predict our demise, just like last year.

 

[hirawl]

Rangers in the east and Canucks in the west. Both way worse than what the general expectations seem to indicate. Frauds even.

 

[bobholly39]

Oilers

Oilers are the one team I feel 100% confident will have a good season.

It helps that we witnessed them come back from a horrid start last - as well as a horrid McDavid start - and still end up wiht a great year. Hard to envision them wiht a worst start

 

[CanadienShark]

I could see a lot of movement between playoff teams. Meaning teams expected to make it that miss and vice versa.

 

[BFLO]

The thread title is...

"Which team with some expectations for success will be the biggest flop in the league this season?"​

I think there are many fans out there that have some expectations of success for the Sabres, this year, again.

Again. What expectations?

There is no main board "The Sabres are finally going to make the playoffs this year" thread, most people have them in 6th or 7th in the Atlantic standings prediction thread.

Expectations are low for the Sabres this year. Last year a lot of people had them making the playoffs because they only missed by 1 point the year before. There's no such enthusiasm this time around.

 

[PuckG]

According to Allvin Silovs is 100% and with Demko it's nothing more than pain management.

I get Zadorov had a great playoffs but I don't see a downgrade on defense at all. Maybe a push but a very likely chance Soucy doesn't miss 30 games while the top pair and Deharnais continue to get better.

Or things could go off the rails but I'll let the oilers fans among others predict our demise, just like last year.

Don’t give Oilers fans too much credit, everyone is in here predicting their demise including Canucks fans. Just have a read..

 

[Machinehead]

The Leafs and Sabres are weird picks. I don't know what you could possibly be expecting such that those teams aren't meeting your expectations.

 

[GhostfaceWu]

Vancouver is gonna go back to being a bubble team.

 

[NyQuil]

Buffalo and Ottawa, like always every year never living up to the hype.

You used "Ottawa" and "hype" in the same sentence leading into this season.

Thank you.

I think it's the first time I've seen those words together in the off-season.

Nice to see some people with expectations out there for the Senators.

 

[Kamus]

As an oilers fan, and for haters, the goal is cup. Winning is hard, chances are they won’t with the luck that is also needed. Hence, there is a good chance that Oilers do not meet the threshold everyone will place on them.

 

[Grifter3511]

Vancouver is gonna go back to being a bubble team.

Agree that Canucks will take a step back. Disagree that there's enough quality teams in the division to turn them into a bubble team.

 

[SeanMoneyHands]

It could be Vegas. They lost like 6 roster players this summer and haven't really replaced them.

 

[chaz4hockey]

Never surprised if the Rangers take a step back after a deep run.

Their core is still too good for this year and probably next but since most of them are now in their 30's it's a lot closer to your reality than not.

 

[benfranklin]

Ill go Canucks and Leafs. Probably not shockers there. Oilers will go out in the 2nd round too.

 

[snag]

According to Allvin Silovs is 100% and with Demko it's nothing more than pain management.

I get Zadorov had a great playoffs but I don't see a downgrade on defense at all. Maybe a push but a very likely chance Soucy doesn't miss 30 games while the top pair and Deharnais continue to get better.

Or things could go off the rails but I'll let the oilers fans among others predict our demise, just like last year.

The NHL Players Assistance Program, brought to you by our sponsor: Pfizer!

 

[MNRube]

Jets, Canucks, Islanders

 

[OVO16]

Canucks are a good bet imo.

 

[Sheppy]

rangers, oilers and bruins will be struggling.

What makes you say the Bruins will be struggling? They're a better team than they were last year, lol.

 

[NYRfan85]

Vancouver likely won't win the division and takes a step back, but they'll still be good. Vegas I absolutely see falling and missing the playoffs.

In the East, the Canes lost a lot of players to free agency, so I can see them taking a step back. They'll still make the playoffs though because the rest of the division outside of them and the Rangers isn't very good.

 

[SheldonJPlankton]

The Leafs have fallen 13 points over the last two seasons. With the lateral moves and wishful expectations they have banked on over the off-season, I expect them to slide further away from the President's Trophy and to continue their inability to contend for the Stanley Cup.

 

[CuuuJooo]

I think that Dallas is rated higher than they should be. Their defence is not that great.

 

[Armourboy]

Nashville IMO is one or two seasons ending injury(ies) away to become Calgary 2.0

Yes and no. The big difference between Nashville and a lot of teams in this situation is we have a lot of young guys that are kind of due to be getting shots in the NHL, but because of the signings this season they will get pushed back. So while we may not live up to the hype, its not really the same situation. This is a cap team that still has all of its picks and prospects, which is not normal.

Expectations in Nashville by most fans ( on this board anyways ) is that we should at least be able to win a playoff round, but with the exception of maybe one guy, none of us really think we are legit contenders. The thought of us being contenders is really all from the outside.