2015-2016 Season: Division Predictions part 2 - Metropolitan Division

EASTERN CONFERENCE - Metropolitan Division

1. Washington Capitals

They've gotten nothing but stronger. After being knocked off in the second round by the Rangers in the '15 playoffs, the Caps will sit atop the Metro division and aim for a deep playoff run that could possibly include a trip to the Cup finals. Superstar Alex Ovechkin will continue to be in the goal scoring race and be the backbone of his team. Two key additions at right wing will bolster the Capitals' forward corps and some much-needed depth, as veteran Justin Williams and shootout-star TJ Oshie were brought in via free-agent signing and trade, respectively. The Capitals' defense will be led olympian John Carlson and veterans Brooks Orpik and Matt Niskanen. Braden Holtby will provide solid goaltending for Washington yet again and backstop them to a division title. 



2. New York Islanders 

After an unbelievable regular season that saw the them come from out of nowhere and put together one of their most successful seasons in a awhile, the Isles will set their sights on a high seed playoff placement in 2016. 2015 runner-up points leader John Tavares will take his captaincy into its third year and will remain the heart of his club. Emergences of Brock Nelson and Anders Lee, as well as blue liners Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy in 2015, are what Islanders fans can look forward to seeing again in the upcoming season. The Isles also may have the best and most destructive 4th line in hockey: Matt Martin + Casey Cizikas + Cal Clutterbuck = hitting...and lots of it. Jaroslav Halak continues seems to get better every season and that trend will continue for him in his first full season with Islanders. Look for the Isles to make a push further than another first round exit. 

3. Pittsburgh Penguins

The Penguins were the recipients of the most coveted player on the trading block this offseason: sniper Phil Kessel. Kessel will be entering a new environment after leaving the tumultuous Toronto locker room, which will pay extreme dividends to him and to his new team. He will play on the top line with Sidney Crosby on his center and Chris Kunitz taking the opposite wing. The point total that will be amounted from Kessel while playing with the best player in hockey at his center will be off the charts. The Penguins new top line will rank among the most lethal and hockey now. Not to mentioned they have maybe the second best player in the league playing on the second line: Russian center Evgeni Malkin. Defensive dynamo Kris Letang will be getting top minutes with young prodigy Olli Matta. Pittsburgh will be looking to add more strength to their D come trade deadline. Marc-Andre Fluery will remain solid in the crease for the Pens with hopes that he can overcome his notorious playoff jitters. Pittsburgh can aim for a middle-seed playoff spot. 

4. New York Rangers

The Rangers will suffer a bit of a regression in the upcoming season, but not so severe that they will miss the playoffs. A wild card spot is where they can look to finish. Henrik Lundqvist  is the rivaling Carey Price as the best goaltender in the league, and at 33 will be entering his  13th year with the Rangers. The Blue Shirts will be led upfront by scoring threat Rick Nash. Nash is the top point scoring for his team and needs to continue his pace from last year if he wants a spot in the playoffs. D-man Ryan McDonagh will lead his defensive troops along with Dan Girardi and fellow US olympian Keith Yandle, who was acquired from Arizona during the last trade deadline. The Rangers lost a bit of speed when they traded away LW Carl Hagelin to Anaheim, but got back a bit of speed with forward Emerson Etem and Viktor Stalberg. 

5. Columbus Blue Jackets 

CBJ is a really a team that could go either way. They could exceed or fail expectations. For now, I place them as finishing just outside of a wild card spot. The Jackets made a big splash in the offseason, when they acquired stud LW Brandon Saad from Chicago in a muti-player deal. Saad will fit in quite well on the top line along side Ryan Johansen and captain Nick Foligno. With two Stanley Cups already under his belt, the 22 year-old will provide some experience to a very young team. Columbus lacks defensive strength. There is not much depth there and will require tinkering at the trade deadline. This team has potential to snag that last wild card spot, they just need to put it all together. Sergei Bobrovsky needs to be a force in net if CBJ wants to be playing in May. 

6. Philadelphia Flyers

The Flyers have potential, but in this author's opinion are not quite there yet. What Philly lacks is a strong defense and goaltending, and like so many other teams, will look to upgrade in those areas in February's trade deadline. The Flyers have two top-15 point scorers in Claude Giroux and Jakub Voracek who both embarked on some their most productive seasons in their careers last year. These two linemates will continue to feed off of last years performance. However, this will not be enough for the Flyers. They will miss the playoffs for a second straight year in 2016 and will continue to build. 

7. New Jersey Devils

John Hynes' new team has suffered a very mediocre last few seasons. Finishing in the bottom of the league standings isn't exactly ideal for any team, but New Jersey went through a huge management change with the resigning of GM Lou Lamoriello and a head coaching change, the Devils have rebuilt their management, not just their team. It was a quiet offseason for New Jersey, with the only move that really stood out was the acquisition of RW Kyle Palmieri from Anaheim. Palmieri will take the first line RW job playing with center Travis Zajac and left wing Mike Cammalleri. Goaltender Cory Schneider was solid in his first full year as a Devil, and looks to build on last seasons performance. While New Jersey just does not have a strong enough team to make a push this season, they are headed down the right path.

8. Carolina Hurricanes

The Hurricanes are just not a very good team right now. Not a lot of offense, not a lot of defense, the goaltending could be better, the real bright spot is the future. The Hurricanes selected highly-touted defenseman Noah Hanafin with 5th overall pick back in July, and Hanafin will be thrown right into the starting lineup. Elias Lindholm is a promising young forward, and the Swede will aim to continue on his 14-15 success. Captain Eric Staal needs to step up. Last season was one of his worst, and the Canadian needs to get back to his former ways. No moves were made in the forwards category, but the Hurricanes did acquire defenseman James Wisniewski and goaltender Eddie Lack. Wisniewski will take over top pairing duties and Lack will be backing up Cam Ward. The Hurricanes won't have success in the immediate future, but like New Jersey, they are headed down the right path.