The Hockey News has put together 32 questions for each team site reporter to answer in advance of the upcoming 2023-24 season.
The Hockey News has put together 32 questions for each team site reporter to answer in advance of the upcoming 2023-24 season.
Today we're straying away from Blue Jacket conversation, and instead talking about NHL predictions. There may or may not be a few CBJ nuggets in here. Let's take a look.
1. Who will win the Hart Trophy? Connor McDavid, again.
2. Who will win the Art Ross? Connor McDavid, again. But he won't hit the 153 he had last season. 140 is my prediction
3. Who will win the Rocket Richard? Auston Matthews will score 60 this season and lead the league, just barely beating out McDavid.
4. Who will win the Norris Trophy? Cale Makar will make his comeback, running away with the Norris. The Avs will need him to play well. Don't go anywhere, I'll tell you why.
5. Who will win the Vezina Trophy? Jake Oettinger and the Stars are going to have a big year. Oettinger will be a big deal in the big D.
6. Who will win the Calder Trophy? Adam Fantilli, who else? I need to keep my readers happy.
7. Who will win the Selke Trophy? Mitch Marner. Have they renamed this award to the Patrice Bergeron Trophy yet?
8. Who will win the Jack Adams Award? Rod Brind'Amour. It's time for the Carolina Hurricanes to take the final step.
9. Who will be the first coach fired? Mike Sullivan. Dubas is taking a swing for the fences one last time for the Pittsburgh Penguin legends Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Unfortunately, they get in an early hole and Dubas hires his own coach for the future.
10. Which GM is feeling the heat the most? Pierre Dorion. The Ottawa Senators have spent to the cap ceiling, brought in Joonas Korpisalo at goalie, and play in a tough division. And he just gave Jake Sanderson a ton of money. Not sure how his seat isn't hot.
11. Which player is due for a breakout? Patrik Laine. If he stays healthy and plays with Adam Fantilli, Kent Johnson, Johnny Gaudreau, Boone Jenner, or Kirill Marchenko, he has a good shot at 40-45 goals. I have to keep the Columbus readers engaged here.
12. Which team is due for a breakout? The Columbus Blue Jackets. De-railed by injuries last season, they're getting everyone back healthy and will play better, there's no doubt about that. I'm still trying to keep my readers happy, can't ya tell?
13. Which player will suffer a setback? Nikita Kucherov. It's finally time for the Tampa Bay Lightning to start coming back to the field.
14. Which team will suffer a setback? The Vegas Golden Knights. They'll experience a Stanley Cup Hangover next season. With the Edmonton Oilers, LA Kings, Seattle Kraken, and possibly the Calgary Flames breathing down their neck, they will finish 4th or 5th in the Pacific.
15. Who will win the Presidents’ Trophy as the best regular season team? Colorado Avalanche, but barely.
16. Who will win the Stanley Cup? Colorado vs. Carolina - Colorado takes it in 7.
17. Who will win the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP? Nathan Mackinnon plays otherworldly and wills his team to their 2nd Stanley Cup in 3 seasons.
18. What Canadian team will go the furthest? Edmonton will play in the Western Finals vs. the Avs and lose in 6.
19. Who will have the best odds of winning the Draft Lottery? The San Jose Sharks. Will Smith won't be around to help them next season as he is going to college, and Erik Karlsson has been traded to Pittsburgh, so yeah, they'll be the worst team in the league and have the best odds of winning the draft lottery.
20. What player will benefit the most from a change in scenery? Joonas Korpisalo. He was a career backup in Columbus and played well during his time with the CBJ. He was traded to LA and played well for them down the stretch and did well in the playoffs, but decided to sign in Ottawa. Korpisalo is going to play well as expected and will sneak his team into the playoffs. Columbus fans will have a second team to root for next year.
21. Which team will suffer the most from buyer’s remorse? The Pittsburgh Penguins. They brought in Erik Karlsson to give Crosby and Malkin one last shot at a cup run, but having four years left on his contract and making what he makes, it's going to hamstring them for a few years. That and Erik Karlsson will take a major step backward in points production.
22. Which star player will be traded (and to where)? Elias Lindholm to The Dallas Stars. Dallas has the scoring and goaltending to win, adding Lindholm could push the Stars over the top.
23. Besides Connor Bedard, which rookie are you the most excited to see? Adam Fantilli obviously. I'll have a front-row seat this season and can't wait to watch this kid play. He will be the top-line center by Christmas. Jackets fans deserve this.
24. Who will challenge Connor McDavid for the Art Ross Trophy? Leon Draisaitl. He won it in 2020, and between he and McDavid they've won 6 of the last 7. Draisaitl is the greatest German-born NHL player already, next season he may beat him again.
25. What off-season move will be the most impactful? Mike Babcock. The Jackets needed a coach who is prepared for games and was a winner. They have that now, healthy players, and scoring talent. They will improve this season there is no doubt about it.
26. Who is the NHL’s most overpaid player? Artemi Panarin. With an AAV of $11.642 million, he's the highest-paid winger in the league. He has 341 points in 268 games for the New York Rangers, but they haven't made it to the Cup Final yet. The way the Metro is looking, they will have a tough time making it there too.
27. Who is the NHL’s most underpaid player? Tage Thompson. The Buffalo Sabres signed him to a 7-year, $50 million contract before the 2022-23 season. What does he do? He goes out and scores 47 goals and 94 points, 26 points higher than the previous season. The AAV of $7.1 million is an absolute steal, and will only continue to be a steal for the next 6 years.
28. Whose bad season was an indicator of reality? To please CBJ fans, it has to be the Penguins. They're getting older and older and it's time they take a step back, and their fans need to be ready for it. They won't be, but need to be.
29. Whose good season was an aberration? The Boston Bruins. Somehow they pulled off what they pulled off last season. They had a historic season that ended in failure. With Bergeron retiring and Marchand aging, it's going to be a far different season for the B's. They'll be lucky to make the playoffs.
30. What older player will show signs of aging? This one is easy, see question 21.
31. What backup goalie could end up as a No. 1? Daniil Tarasov. If Elvis Merzlikins struggles again this season, it should probably be the Tarasov show. In an ideal world, they both play better this season and push this team to a wild card spot, if not, they'll be tough moves to make.
32. Which city will get the next NHL team? Salt Lake City of course. It's beautiful there.
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