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GDT: Around the League 2019-20 v27: Congratulations, Tampa

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GretzkytoKurri9917

GretzkytoKurri9917

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BlackMcDog said:
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I'll take Kane to win.


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Zaddy

Zaddy

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BlackMcDog said:
Meh...seems like the Oilers are a bit low surprisingly. :sarcasm:

Canadian Division Power Rankings: Who’s the best in the land?
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Shocker that they have Leafs at #1.

I think it's pretty close between the Canadian teams at the moment but Oilers have to be the clear frontruner at the moment. Two best players in the league and just added a lot of depth and adressed a huge need on defense with the Barrie acquisition. Goaltending is a big question mark to be sure but that's really the only thing.

Flames have not gotten drastically better, they are what they are. A middle-of-the-pack team. Markström is overrated and not sure Tanev is an upgrade on Brodie.

Nucks get underrated too. They lost Markström and Tanev sure, but a Demko/Holtby tandem should be more than fine and they added a hell of a defenseman in Schmidt (big upgrade on Tanev IMO). Toffoli is really the only player that they lost that will sting. But they had a strong season and a young team that will continue to get better most likely.

No idea what to make of the Leafs. Get hyped every year and then falls flat. Brodie is a nice addition but guys like Bogosian, Simmonds and Thornton are non-factors on the ice. Maybe they can provide some valuable leadership though but doubt it's going to make a massive difference. They also lost two reasonably productive players in Kapanen and Johnson.

Meh. I'd probably have it something like:

1. Oilers
2. Leafs
3. Canucks
4. Flames
5. Jets
6. Habs
7. Sens

With 2-4 being pretty close.
 
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Delicious Pancakes

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Zaddy said:
Shocker that they have Leafs at #1.

I think it's pretty close between the Canadian teams at the moment but Oilers have to be the clear frontruner at the moment. Two best players in the league and just added a lot of depth and adressed a huge need on defense with the Barrie acquisition. Goaltending is a big question mark to be sure but that's really the only thing.

Flames have not gotten drastically better, they are what they are. A middle-of-the-pack team. Markström is overrated and not sure Tanev is an upgrade on Brodie.

Nucks get underrated too. They lost Markström and Tanev sure, but a Demko/Holtby tandem should be more than fine and they added a hell of a defenseman in Schmidt (big upgrade on Tanev IMO). Toffoli is really the only player that they lost that will sting. But they had a strong season and a young team that will continue to get better most likely.

No idea what to make of the Leafs. Get hyped every year and then falls flat. Brodie is a nice addition but guys like Bogosian, Simmonds and Thornton are non-factors on the ice. Maybe they can provide some valuable leadership though but doubt it's going to make a massive difference. They also lost two reasonably productive players in Kapanen and Johnson.

Meh. I'd probably have it something like:

1. Oilers
2. Leafs
3. Canucks
4. Flames
5. Jets
6. Habs
7. Sens

With 2-4 being pretty close.
Click to expand...

I don't mind TSN and Sportsnet ranking the Oilers lower. Maybe it'll put a chip on their shoulder. Plus it'll be funny if the Oilers win the division because we'll get to see the talking heads try to justify and excuse their rankings and the play of the Leafs/Flames/Canucks.

It kind of seems like the justification for ranking the Oilers lower from Sportsnet and TSN doesn't apply to some of the other Canadian teams. This offseason the Oilers improved at forward, took a step sideways on defence, and didn't make any changes in goal (although Smith is another year closer to retirement). They crushed special teams last year and with the added personnel their powerplay might be even better, while the PK might take a bit of a hit losing Sheahan. While they got bounced by Chicago in the play-ins a lot of the issues the Oilers had in that series could be traced to not having played in months, running into some bad luck and Crawford playing outstandingly well. However the sports media seem to think that's the true measure of the Oilers and only selectively apply that logic to the other Canadian teams.

Let's look at the other Canadian teams' offseasons:

Vancouver - Goaltending: A little worse - Defence: Even - Forwards: A little worse
Calgary - Goaltending: Better - Defence: A little worse - Forwards: At best even but probably a little worse
Winnipeg - Goaltending: Same - Defence: Even - Forwards: A little better
Toronto - Goaltending: Same - Defence: Shuffled deck chairs, possibly better - Forwards: More experience/character, but a little worse
Montreal - Goaltending: Better - Defence: A little better - Forwards: A little deeper, but losing Domi in favour of Anderson...a gamble
Ottawa - Goaltending: Better - Defence: A little Better - Forwards: Better

So given how they finished in the standings and then fared last year I would say Vancouver will be worse than last year and they were below the Oilers in the standings last year. Calgary will probably be a little better, but if Markstrom struggles and their top players don't bounce back after somewhat down years then the Flames could go sideways in a hurry. Winnipeg will probably be a little better with Stastny in and an injured Little out, and the Byfuglien situation being over helps. Toronto had to shed salary and got a little worse, past their prime Thornton and Simmonds don't change that, but maybe Brodie and a some blueline depth help and the different supporting cast makes a positive difference. The trade for Anderson seems like selling low on Domi who struggled in a contract year, but otherwise Bergevin did well upgrading the roster. Montreal had a down year last year, I think the media are selling the Habs short in spite of the Domi trade and if Anderson is a good fit and bounces back along with other Canadiens players who had sub-par years then Montreal should be a playoff team. Ottawa improved but not enough to catch the other Canadian teams but a 75 - 80 point season pace (for an 82 game season) wouldn't be surprising especially if Murray can get his game back together in net, Dadonov can produce and the youngsters like Norris, Brown and Brannstrom can step in and make a positive impact.

So to me, based on the above and how the teams finished in the standings I would rank the teams as follows:

Edmonton - Finished ahead of Toronto last year, and overall the net outcome of their off-season transactions were better than Toronto's.
Toronto - Still ahead of the other Canadian teams.
Calgary - Upgrade in net keeps them competitive, but I'm not sure the Flames have the horses to make any noise in the playoffs without a shakeup to that core.
Montreal - I have them level with Calgary and Winnipeg with their moves, they're the biggest wild card for me and it wouldn't surprise me if they finish higher on the list.
Winnipeg - Level with Calgary and Montreal, need Laine to bounce back, Roslovic to take a step forward and Hellebuyck not to regress.
Vancouver - Losing Markstrom hurts and while the team does have depth and did perform well in the playoffs adding Schmidt and Holtby doesn't make up for the pieces lost so I'm not convinced this roster even makes it back to the playoffs.
Ottawa - Still not ready to seriously contend for the playoffs but they've got some exciting pieces and might finish higher if another team slips.

In a 7 team Canadian division it would be a surprise if Edmonton or Toronto miss the playoffs, and the other 2 playoff teams could be any combination of Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg or Montreal. That said, an all-Canadian division in a shortened season where these teams only play each other could spell trouble for a team that doesn't match up well with the other Canadian teams.
 
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Delicious Pancakes

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U.S. based GMs pick Leafs as favourites for top spot in Canadian division

Apparently TSN polled 15 NHL GMs, scouts, executives about who would finish 1st in an all Canadian NHL division. Here's the breakdown of 1st place votes:

9 votes: Toronto
4 votes: Calgary
2 votes: Montreal

These polls and rankings have got to irk the Oilers. I can't imagine McDavid and Draisaitl not being a little fired up when it seems that nobody in the league thinks the Oilers will finish higher than 4th in an all-Canadian division.

FWIW here are Canadian teams' records against other Canadian teams last year (keep in mind some teams played other teams more/less):

Winnipeg: 9-3-0
Montreal: 10-3-2
Calgary: 8-4-2
Toronto: 7-3-4
Edmonton: 7-6-1
Vancouver: 5-9-0
Ottawa: 2-8-4
 
barry halls

barry halls

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On paper the Oilers look to be 1st or 2nd in the Canadian division, but what most people here seem to be forgetting is that we really struggle against every Canadian team except for Montreal.
 
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