Welcome to the FanIQ NHL Season Previews. On the day that the NHL season officially starts (in Prague of all places), we finish up with the Pacific Division. Tomorrow we will have a live thread of the first watchable NHL game season of the year.
It’s no secret that the Pacific Division has recently been one of the toughest in the league, and this season is no exception. It’s difficult to rank the top three in any sort of order, because on any given day of the season any one of these three could sit on top. Look for a thrilling division race toward the end of the season between all three. The other two teams will be more competitive than they have been in recent years past as well; Los Angeles is chock full of bright, tough, young talent and Phoenix has been climbing the ladder quietly.
Los Angeles Kings
With all of the talent and potential on this team, you can see the beginning of the end for the rest of the division on the horizon. Just not quite yet. A fantasy owner’s dream, the Los Angeles Kings offense is full of explosive young players. Between Dustin Brown, Anze Kopitar, Alexander Frolov, & co. there’s no question that these guys can get the puck past a goalie. The Kings brought in veteran Sean O’Donnell to add a little dimension to the defense full of – yep, you guessed it – young players.
A team on the back end of a rebuilding phase, the Kings have missed the playoffs for five years in a row now. Enter; Head Coach Tim Murray to replace Marc Crawford behind the bench. Unfortunately, a coaching change isn’t going to bring LA into the playoffs. Unless one of the young goal tenders can come in and prove he is the man between the pipes to cure their perennial goal tending woes and the very young defense surprises the league, the Kings could see GM Lombardi cut loose. Who’s sitting in the wings waiting for his job? Rumor has it: Kings fan favorite Luc Robataille.
Phoenix Coyotes
Another team that hasn’t made the playoffs in 5 straight years, the Coyotes will likely surprise the league this year. On paper, the offense appears to be solid, as long as they can build chemistry before the season gets too deep into full swing. The acquisition of Olli Jokinen from Florida was a great move, and if he, Shane Doan, and Peter Mueller run the first line as expected, the offense may be powerful with the depth provided in part on the second line by another new addition; Todd Fedoruk.
Anaheim Ducks
One two things Anaheim has going for them this season is the unquestionable return of Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne. The hem-hawing by both of them last year hindered the Ducks, leaving them in limbo until after the All-Star Break. They also bring in Brendan Morrison from Vancouver, and hold on to Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf, and Chris Kunitz; which should provide much needed depth on offense. Love him or hate him, Pronger provides an air of intimidation on the blue line with Scott Niedermayer when he’s not sitting in the penalty box or serving a suspension. These two, with Kent Huskins and Francois Beauchemin rounding out the top four, will supply JS Giguere plenty of help keeping the puck out of the net.
Carlyle is an extremely defense minded coach, and one thing that hurt Anaheim was the unimpressive performance of the offense last year. It’s never a good thing when the bulk of your defensemen lead the team in points and the best of those has 43 total points on the year. If they expect to make another run for Stanley, they’ll need to rectify this issue by peppering the net. Marksmanship isn’t a problem on this team of talent; it’s a lack of taking chances.
Dallas Stars
The media favorite to dominate the division this season are the Dallas Stars, with their complete balance on offense, defense, and goal tending. However; they lost a lot of key players this year – Stu Barnes, Niklas Hagman, and Mattias Norstrom – to name just a few. Stu Barnes retired in the off season after 16 years as an NHL’er, but we’ll still see him behind the bench in Dallas as he takes up a position at assistant coach. Also, the jury is still out on whether or not Sergei Zubov will perform up to par this year, recovering from pre-season hip surgery. Turco is generally consistent, but don’t be surprised to see his save percentage drop this year (he’s due).
The Stars did pick up Sean Avery and Doug Janik, but as fun as Avery is to watch and as much grit as he will add, neither of these acquisitions should have a huge affect on the team. While the Stars boast balance, the defense seems to be somewhat anemic, depending on what happens with Zubov. The offense will be dominant though with Mike Ribeiro, Brad Richards, Brendan Morrow, and Jere Lehtinen returning; indisputably concrete even without the mention of Mike Modano.
San Jose Sharks
Last season Nabokov finished with an impressive 46-21-8 record, and with the acquisitions of Dan Boyle (TB) and Rob Blake (LA), don’t expect that number in the wins column to drop significantly this season. Nabby and his defense will be keys to the success of the Sharks this year; especially in the post-season.
For the regular season, this team seems to have what it takes to remain at the top of the division all year. The offensive support remains intact with Joe Thornton, Jonathan Cheechoo, and Patrick Marleau all returning. These three haven’t proven to be clutch players as of late, performance from all three dropping when it counts; but this year they’re hungry and most likely playing for their jobs.
FanIQ Predicts
Sharks
Stars
Ducks
Kings
Coyotes
Read all of the previous previews; Atlantic, Northeast, Southeast, Central, Northwest - and enjoy the season!
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