2009 preview: Pittsburgh Penguins

Last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins won a game seven Stanley Cup final to win the title for the first time since 1992.

Now, as defending champions, everyone will be gunning for them. Teams will try to build confidence, and a regular season victory over the Stanley Cup champs will be seen as a victory for some teams.

The Pens will have to stay on their toes for the rest of the season.

Story of the season: Will there be a Stanley Cup hangover? Many teams have trouble staying motivated the season after winning the Stanley Cup. The intensity of games are lower, losing a game doesn’t mean as much and you don’t see the same team for days on end. The penguins, a young team, could be in trouble by becoming loose as the season wears on. As we’ve seen from countless other teams, intensity isn’t a switch you just turn on and off: You need to build up to it.

Former Habs: None

Blog to follow: The Pens Blog

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Pool Picks: Jordan Staal. Last season, he scored 49 points. He’s locked up to a long-term high-salary deal, so he won’t be there just to play defence. Expect an offensive break-out year from him. Stay away from:As I warned last year, stay away from any one you may hear that will be playing with Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin. The lines switch so often, you may only get a few good games at your winger before they get moved to the third line.

Award nominees:Jordan Staal for the Selke trophy

Expected Finish: First in the Atlantic, Second in the east

Cheerleader: Not sure who this is, but it’s the only photo I could find.

2009 preview: St Louis Blues

 The St. Louis Blues surprised everyone last year by making it to the playoffs.

They won’t be doing that again.

Teams are going to be ready to play this young team that matured quickly last season.

The Blues will have to play their best every night if they want to make it back to the postseason.

Story of the season:How will some of the Blues players react to a decrease in ice time? Last year saw a lot of injuries to the Blues. Paul Kariya played only 11 games. Andy McDonald played only 46. Erik Johnson missed the whole season. Now that these players are back, a lot of the guys who stepped up last year are going to see their ice time decrease. And that will probably mean less points, and more talk about not living up to last year’s potential. How the Blues handle it will go a long way to whether they can make the playoffs or not.

Former Habs: None

Blog to follow: Bleedin’ Blue

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Pool Picks:Paul Kariya. He may be off the radar because of an injury last year, but he had 15 points in 11 games before that. Look for him to get about 75 points this season . Stay away from:David Backes. He exploded onto the scene last year with 54 points, which matched what he got in the previous two years combined. He was fortunate to get more ice time because of injuries on the team. He won’t be as fortunate this year, and will probably finish with 30 points.

Award nominees:Paul Kariya for the Masterton

Expected Finish: Fourth in the Central, 10th in the west

Cheerleader:Kimora Lee Simmons is from St. Louis.

2009 preview: Philadelphia Flyers

When it comes to knocking off the Pittsburgh Penguins stranglehold on the Eastern conference playoffs, the Philadelphia Flyers have the best chance.

They’re a young team that is maturing quickly. They can play rough and physical hockey. They can get involved in high-scoring affairs. And they now have the dirtiest defenceman in the game in Chris Pronger (which is a good thing).

The Pens had better be careful.

Story of the season:Will this finally be the year that the Flyers have a #1 goalie that can lead them to the Stanley Cup? Despite getting superstar forwards and hard-hitting defenceman, the Flyers have always skimped out when it came to goalies. Instead of signing the best goalie on the market, they would go for the 10th best and hope it would be enough (it wasn’t). Now, they have Ray Emery, a former #1 goalie in Ottawa, and a Stanley Cup finalist. He also has the Ron Hextall mean streak. Don’t be surprised if he drops the gloves a couple of times this season.

Former Habs:Aaron Asham, Jason Ward

Blog to follow: Broadstreet Buzz

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Pool Picks:Claude Giroux. The 21-year-old had a great start to his career last year, with 27 points in 42 games. If he plays the whole season, he should be able to crack 50 points easily. Stay away from:Braydon Coburn. Sure, he’s a young defenceman, and with offensive upside. But now with Chris Pronger in a Flyers uniform, Coburn’s ice team should be decreasing. Look for Coburn to finish with about 30 points.

Award nominees:Danny Briere for the Masterton trophy.

Expected Finish: Second in the Atlantic, fourth in the conference

Cheerleader: The Flyers have an ice crew (not pictured: the ice)

2009 preview: San Jose Sharks

The San Jose Sharks will undoubtably be one of the best teams again this season.

Just like they are every season.

Domination throughout the regular season. Beating up on teams. Making things look good for poolies.

And then we get to the playoffs.

Story of the season: Can the Sharks win in the playoffs? No matter what the team does in the regular season, if they don’t reach the third round of the playoffs, it will be considered a bust. There’s only so many times a team will get chances before changes have to be made. This will probably be one of their last chances.

Former Habs: None

Blog to follow: The San Jose Sharks blog

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Pool Picks:Rob Blake. Sure, he’s old, but he’s one of the leaders on the team. He had 45 points last year, but I expect the team to do score more overall (partly because of Dany Heatley). Look for Blake to crack 50 points. Stay away from:I want to say Jonathan Cheechoo for old time’s sake, but I’ll go with Ryane Clowe. He’s a Newfie, and I like that, but I think he’ll get lost in the shuffle there.

Award nominees: Rob Blake for the Norris

Expected Finish: First in the Pacific, first in the West.

Cheerleader: Kate Walsh from Grey’s Anatomy is from San Jose

2009 preview: New York Rangers

The New York Rangers are a team in limbo.

They just don’t realize it yet.

They don’t have a lot of young superstars in waiting, they have overpaid some of their players and they have a few people who are a distraction to the team (including the coach).

It’s going to be a long season in New York.

Story of the season:How much more money will the Rangers throw at people? They’re paying $33 million to five people (Wade Redden, Marian Gaborik, Chris Drury, Henrik Lundqvist and Michal Rozsival). Chris Higgins can expect to make about $4 to $5 million next season if he resigns with New York.

Former Habs: Donald Brashear, Chris Higgins

Blog to follow: The New York Rangers blog

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Pool Picks:Brandon Dubinsky. He should be the #1 centre, and will be playing on a line with Marian Gaborik. Look for him to get about 65 points. Stay away from: Chris Drury. His numbers have gone downhill for the past three years. He’ll probably finish somewhere around 45 points this season.

Award nominees:Marian Gaborik for the Lady Byng

Expected Finish: Fourth in the Atlantic, 12th in the East

Cheerleader: The Rangers don’t have ice girls, so I went with the Islanders instead.

2009 preview: Phoenix Coyotes

How can fans continue to support this team, knowing that a) they could be moved at any time and b) they have the longest playoff drought in the NHL? And it doesn’t look to end anytime soon. While this will be a young, competitive team, the smart money is on them going through a disastrous year.

Story of the season: There’s really only one story in Phoenix this year. Will the off-ice situation affect the on-ice product? It already has, with head coach Wayne Gretzky not showing up to training camp and then stepping down a week before the season begins.

Former Habs: None, apparently.

Blog to follow: Five for Howling

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Pool Picks:Radim Vrbata. His numbers increased every year for four straight years before an injury-plagued season in Tampa Bay last year. Look for Vrbata to hover around 60 points.  Stay away from: Matthew Lombardi. Sure his stats from last season looks good (46 points in 59 games), but this is a team in turmoil, and last year was a bump in the statistics. I think Lombardi will finish with about 35 points.

Award nominees: Radim Vrbata for the Masterton trophy.

Expected Finish: Fifth in the Pacific, 15th in the West

Cheerleader: This is Brittany. She’s a member of the Pack, which is an on-ice dance team for the Coyotes.

2009 preview: Columbus BlueJackets

The Columbus Blue Jackets has a style of play where they put the fans and opponents to sleep by playing a dull first period.

They play defensively, which is why the goalies have always posted such good numbers.

It’s not fun to watch, but it’s working.

Story of the season: Can the Blue Jackets improve on their playoffs? Last year, they made the playoffs for the first time in the team’s history. But they were swept by the Red Wings in the first round. This year, they’re looking to improve on that. Call it baby steps. This year, win a few games, next year a round or two. With plenty of young players and Rick Nash signed to a long-term deal, this will help the team grow up so it can be successful in a few years.

Former Habs:Mathieu Garon

Blog to follow: Light the Lamp

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Pool Picks: Derick Brassard. He had 25 points in 31 games last year before getting injured. He’ll be playing on a line with Rick Nash. How could you not take him? Stay away from: All of the defencemen. They don’t have one guy with a powerful shot, and won’t be counted on to lead the team on offence in any way imaginable.

Award nominees:Manny Malhotra for the Selke

Expected Finish: Third in the Central, eighth in the West

Cheerleader: The Blue Jackets have an ice crew. This is one of them.

2009 preview: Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes is a team that shouldn’t sneak up on anyone, but will probably still catch a lot of fans off-guard. They don’t get a lot of media attention, and despite some decent playoff success the past five years, a lot of people don’t believe they are for real. Look for a lot of angry fans this year as they wonder “How did our team lose to the Hurricanes?”

Story of the season: The Hurricanes shocked the hockey world last spring when they made it to the playoff semifinals. After knocking out the Devils and Bruins in seven-game series, they ran out of gas against the eventual Cup champion Penguins. Can the Hurricanes repeat that feat this year?

Former Habs: Tom Kostopoulos, Michael Leighton, Sergei Samsonov

Blog to follow: Red and Black Hockey

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Pool Picks: Erik Cole has played his best hockey in Carolina. Last year, he was traded to the Oilers a few months into the season, but never did well there (27 points in 63 games). Look for him to rebound this season into the 60 point range. Stay away from:Rod Brind’Amour. For me, the cutoff for whether to choose a player is if he can be expected to score 50 points this upcoming season. Brind’Amour still managed to score 51 points last year, but I think he’ll fall down to the low 40s or high 30s this season as more young guys are expected to shoulder the offensive load.

Award nominees: Cam Ward for the Vezina trophy

Expected Finish: Second in the southeast, seventh in the East

Cheerleader: The Hurricanes have a cheerleading squad called the Storm Squad.

2009 preview: Anaheim Ducks

This team reminds me of my fantasy hockey team.

Young at forward, old on the defence and a mix for goaltending.

They’ll be a contender this season. They have enough experience all around to be one of the top teams in the west. It just depends if they have enough experience to be a contender in the playoffs.

Story of the season: How will the defence do without the big three? The Ducks traded Chris Pronger in the offseason, and lost Francis Beauchemin to free agency. Scott Nidermayer may retire at the end of the season. That’s a lot of big minutes that need to be taken up by the rest of the players. Can they handle it?

Former Habs: Saku Koivu (sniff)

Blog to follow: Battle of California

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Pool Picks: Saku Koivu. He won’t have to worry about carrying the team on his back. He won’t have to worry about any controversy about if he knows French or not. He’s playing with his best friend. I see Koivu getting 65 points at least. Stay away from: Ryan Whitney. He’ll finish the season with about 40 points.

Award nominees: Jean-Sebastien Giguere for the Vezina

Expected Finish: Second in the Pacific, fourth in the West

Cheerleader: The Ducks have their own ice girls.

2009 preview: Colorado Avalanche

If recent history is any indication, the Colorado Avalanche will make the second round of the playoffs, only to be swept at that point.

The Avalanche, once one of the heavyweights of the NHL and sold out every game every season, is now relegated to bottom-feeder status. They have to rebuild this team, and it may take a couple of years to do so. Let’s see how supportive the fans are now that the team is struggling.

Story of the season:Where will the leadership come from now that Joe Sakic (retired) and Ryan Smyth (traded) is gone? While Adam Foote can help on the back end, Darcy Tucker is not the one you want leading a dressing room that has young players in it.

Former Habs: Craig Anderson, Darcy Tucker

Blog to follow: Anyone But Detroit

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Pool Picks:Paul Stastny. He missed a lot of time last season, so he may be off the radar for a lot of poolies. If he can stay healthy, he’s good for at least 75 points. Stay away from:Wojtek Wolski. A lot of people were high on him after he collected 50 points as a rookie three seasons ago. But his numbers have decreased slightly since then. Look for him to continue to struggle.

Award nominees:Matt Duchene for rookie of the year.

Expected Finish: Third in the Northwest, 11th in the West

Cheerleader: No ice girls or cheerleaders for the Avalanche (boo), but Jessica Biel is from Colorado (yea).