BOLD PREDICTIONS PART 3- CENTRAL

Jared Rotenberg

Upon breaching the middle point of the 2021-22 NHL season, the “Bold Predictions” series moves over to the center of the continent, in order to break down and predict the fate of the eight teams residing within the Central Division. This list will include regular season, trade deadline, and playoff predictions for this intriguing and incredibly close division. So without further ado, let’s get started!

Colorado Avalanche: Strong, but Not Strong Enough

It is no secret that the Central Division runs through the mountains of Colorado, as the Avalanche have been by far the best team in the division, and easily one of the most dominant teams in the league. They currently sit first place overall in league standings, with 37 wins, ten losses, and four overtime losses, for a whopping 78 points in just 51 games played. With that being said however, regular season success is not what the Avalanche are striving for this season, coming off yet another second round defeat in last year’s playoff. For this reason, the pressure is on, and they absolutely have to find playoff success this time around. Anything otherwise, and their entire season will be regarded as a failure. My prediction for the Avalanche is that they will ultimately get out of second round mediocrity and win the Western Conference, however, at the end of the day, they will still come home without that shiny silver trophy they so heavily desire. The Avalanche are playing amazing hockey right now, and offensively they have the skill to go toe to toe with any opponent in the league, however it is their goaltending and shutdown ability as a team that makes me doubt their chances of coming away with the Stanley Cup this season. Despite their efforts and the elite hockey they have played up to this point, I simply don’t trust Darcy Kuemper to take them through four playoff rounds, and ultimately for Avs fans, despite making the finals, they will be left waiting for their turn to hoist Lord Stanley’s cup, one year longer.

St. Louis Blues: Deep as the Ocean Blue

Aside from the team on top of the rankings, taking a stranglehold on the Central Division lead, the remainder of the division has been incredibly close, with just two wins and seven points separating the 2nd place team from the 5th place team. This does make predictions for the rest of the division somewhat difficult, as there is still room for significant change within this division. However, my prediction is that the second place St. Louis Blues maintain their position within the division, and ultimately make some noise come playoff time- winning at least a round (purely dependent on who they have to play). The reason I am so high on the St. Louis Blues is the fact that they are a very deep team that is also capable of playing a shutdown and physical style, making them a team that is very much built for the playoffs. With All-Star Jordan Kyrou having a breakout season with 45 points in 46 games, and considering he is still playing on their third line, their depth cannot be called into question. As well, the resurgence of Vladimir Tarasenko (46 points in 45 games), and the fantastic play of offseason addition Pavel Buchnevich (45 points in 44 games), has made them a team to watch out for. This is something that will most definitely help them come playoff time, and is the reason that I believe they have what it takes to witness some postseason success. Of course, it must be mentioned that last year they got swept in the first round at the hands of the Colorado Avalanche, however, I really think they will at least be a competitive team when the post-season comes around, based on the dangerous style of play they utilize. The one area of concern for the Blues is their goaltending, and a decision on whether Jordan Binnington or Ville Husso will be their starter come playoff time is an absolute necessity. However, even with their question marks in net, their defensive ability and their depth should have what it takes to bring the Blues at least through a round of the playoffs, as long as they can avoid a matchup with the top dogs of the Western Conference (i.e, the Colorado Avalanche, or Vegas Golden Knights).

Minnesota Wild: Wild Expectations, Another Early-Exit

The Minnesota Wild were sprung into relevance last season with the addition of star forward Kirill Kaprizov. With his phenomenal play, the Wild snuck under the radar and played a phenomenal first round series, pushing the heavily favoured Vegas Golden Knights to the brink of elimination, before ultimately being defeated in game seven. But this year, however, it is a completely different story. They are a great team, who have been very good so far this season, however, they are beginning to become a commonly predicted team to go far, which is a prediction I simply do not see coming to fruition. Credit where credit is due, this team is skilled and have been getting production from all four of Kirill Kaprizov (62 points, 47 games), Mats Zuccarello (52 points in 41 games), Kevin Fiala (42 points in 48 games), and Ryan Hartman (37 points in 48 games), any deeper and the well dries-up. They do absolutely have skill beyond that, including rookie sensation Matt Boldy (16 points in 17 games), but still, there remain questions regarding the depth of the Wild. This does call into question their ability to compete in a playoff series, as, if their top stars are shut down, they may not have the deep skill to keep them competitive. Another area of concern within the Minnesota Wild roster, is their goaltending. Now, both Kaapo Kahkonen and Cam Talbot are not having bad seasons by any stretch of the imagination, however, ask yourself if you truly trust that goaltending to take the Wild on a deep playoff run. I personally do not, which is the reason for my prediction. The Wild are not a bad team, and with some upcoming prospects, the future is definitely bright in Minnesota. However, unless they use their cap space and make a big splash at the deadline, I personally do not believe this is their year.

Nashville Predators: Hunting For a Big Deadline Acquisition. Klingberg?

The Nashville Predators have easily been one of the NHL’s biggest surprises this season, shocking the hockey world, including myself, by solidifying themselves amongst the top dogs of the Central Division. Despite making the playoffs last season, it was expected by many that this would be a year in which the Predators drop heavily in league standings. However, great play by goaltender Juuse Saros, and bounce-back years by Matt Duchene (46 points in 47 games), Filip Forsberg (44 points in 38 games), and Mikael Granlund (40 points in 49 games), as well as continued dominance from one of the league’s best defenseman in Roman Josi (53 points in 49 games) has made them a force to be reckoned with. Given the unloading of contracts they did last offseason, they freed up significant amounts of cap space, which leads to my prediction that they will be very busy picking up the phones at the deadline. When analyzing their roster, they have very clear issues when it comes to offensive depth, however, their biggest weakness is easily their right side on defense. For this reason, and considering the fact that they currently have a projected $10.5 million dollars worth of cap space, I predict that they will be the team that ultimately ends up acquiring right-shot defenseman John Klingberg from their divisional opponent, the Dallas Stars. Klingberg currently has a cap hit of $4.25 million dollars, one that they very much have room to take on, while still leaving them with enough space to address their offensive-depth issues. Of course, the issue with any team going after John Klingberg, is the fact that he is on an expiring contract, and will be a UFA (Unrestricted Free Agent) by the end of this season. This is not a problem for the Nashville Predators, however, as they have enough cap room to sign and extend him for the future. A defensive pairing of Roman Josi and John Klingberg is absolutely terrifying to imagine, and I could absolutely see this offensive defenseman ending up in Music City within the upcoming weeks as the trade deadline approaches.

Dallas Stars: Heat Up, then SuperNova

In 2020, the Dallas Stars made a surprise run to the Stanley Cup Finals, but after a major COVID outbreak in 2020-21, they ultimately missed the playoffs, a major disappointment for a team that was just two wins away from the greatest prize of all just the season before. But this season, in their quest to get back to the postseason, the Stars started off absolutely terrible. However, as of recently, they have actually picked up their game. They still sit at 5th overall in the division, however, being only two wins and seven points back of 2nd in the division, the Dallas Stars are absolutely still in contention for a playoff spot. They are also currently tied with the Edmonton Oilers for the final wildcard spot in the Western Conference, meaning they are right in the mix to end up in the playoffs. They have been a relatively under the radar team this season, but through the great play of Joe Pavelski (53 points in 50 games), Jason Robertson (46 points in 42 games), and Roope Hintz (43 points in 48 games), as well as the amazing performance from second-year goaltender Jake Oettinger, the Stars have jumped back into the hunt for a playoff spot. So you may be asking yourself, what’s my prediction for the Dallas Stars then? Well, I think the Stars will continue to heat up, and will make the playoff-race incredibly close, but ultimately, I believe they will blow up in dramatic fashion in the final weeks of the season, missing the playoffs by an incredibly small margin. The Stars are a good defensive team that is capable of playing a “playoff style” shutdown game, however their lack of depth scoring, and inexperienced goaltending make it difficult to bet on the Dallas Stars clinching the playoffs, despite how quietly close they have now gotten to doing so. Top that off with the fact that John Klingberg, one of their best defenseman, is all but certain to be shipped out of Dallas at this year's trade deadline, and you can see just how difficult it is to truly picture the Stars making it with all those odds stacked against them. I understand that it would have been way more fun to say that they’ll break through all the adversity and clinch a playoff-spot, but with all that standing in their way, I simply can’t make this prediction, choosing to take the safer bet in this instance.

Winnipeg Jets: Soaring to the Finish Line

While I may have taken the less-fun, safer bet in my previous prediction, that was only to leave room for easily my boldest take of this entire list. The Winnipeg Jets, somehow, someway, are going to find themselves making this year's playoffs, in the final wildcard spot within the Western Conference. The Jets have been absolutely atrocious so far this season, and based on the way they have been playing, there is no reason to suspect that they will turn it around. However, based on the talent they have there is simply no excuse for them to miss the postseason, and for this reason, I believe something will click within this team, and they will get it together with a dominant final few weeks of the season. Despite their top players scoring in bunches, highlighted by Kyle Connor’s 55 points in 51 games, the depth scoring, defense, and even goaltending have struggled mightily. But even with their terrible play, they only sit just six points back of the final wildcard spot in the Western Conference. They still need to leapfrog many other teams to crack a playoff spot, but the Jets have more than enough talent to string together wins in the final 30 or so games of the season in order to make the playoffs, which leads me to the belief that they will wake up and begin to play the way they were expected to by many before the season began. Considering the disappointing first half they’ve had, the Jets have already fired their head coach Paul Maurice, in order to give the players a “new voice”, and with head coach Dave Lowry now at the helm, the struggles have still continued. Still however, the talent is there, and there is more than enough time for them to turn their season around. With Connor Helleybuyck in net, who is due to return to form, the Winnipeg Jets cannot be doubted, and if they can in fact get their goaltending going, they have the talent to fly up the standings and crack a playoff spot in no time, even having the potential to do some damage if / once they get there.

Chicago Blackhawks: A Fleury of Trades

It is no secret that the Blackhawks are a rebuilding team. They had a productive offseason last year, where they brought in defenseman Seth Jones, and goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, among other pieces. However, even with this offseason, a quick glance at their roster tells you everything you need to know about the Chicago Blackhawks, as they are young, youthful, and not quite ready to be a competitive hockey team. With that being said, it is no surprise that Chicago is set to be a major seller at this year's deadline, tanking for what they hope will be a high draft pick and a chance at the first overall pick. For starters, a piece that is heavily rumoured to be on the move is goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. Fleury is currently in the final year of his contract, with a cap hit of $7million dollars. This is, of course, an expensive cap hit for a team to take on smack dab in the middle of the season, however, for the many teams with glaring problems in net (i.e., the Edmonton Oilers), they will have no choice but to bite the bullet and take on this cap hit in order to improve their goaltending for the playoffs. What must be noted is the fact that Fleury does have a 10-team no trade list, which will make finding a trade partner more difficult, however for Chicago, it seems certain that Fleury will find himself out the door sooner than later. Another player who may find himself on the move at this year’s trade deadline, is forward Dylan Strome. Strome was once a 3rd overall pick, back in 2015, however a failed tenure with the Arizona Coyotes led him to Chicago. Since coming to the Blackhawks, he has actually found decent production, often playing with superstar Patrick Kane. Now, with a $3million dollar cap hit, and an expiring contract, Dylan Strome will most likely find himself on his 3rd team since being drafted, as a team looking for offensive depth on the hunt for a playoff spot will absolutely pay the price for a boom or bust player, such as Strome. Chicago is most definitely a team to watch out for at this year’s deadline, and their roster could be broken apart as soon as in the coming days, as we rapidly approach the trade deadline, currently about a month away.

Arizona Coyotes: Leaving the Pack

Lastly, to finish off with the Arizona Coyotes, they as well are a rebuilding team that currently sits at 32nd overall in league standings, putting together only 13 wins and 30 points in the 51 games they have played so far this season. With that, there is no doubt that they will be an active seller at this year's deadline, shipping out enough talent as possible to give them the best chance at a first overall pick in this year's draft when the season wraps up. When looking at their roster, there is truly no safe name from ending up on the trade board, and everyone on the Coyotes, aside from forward Clayton Keller, currently has no certainty of a future with this team. While there will undoubtedly be many trades involving this tire-fire of a team, the most interesting trade piece likely to be dealt this year is easily young defender Jakob Chychrun. Chychrun is currently on a $4.6million dollar deal, which is set to expire at the end of the 2024-25 season. Considering he is a 23 year old defenseman with loads of potential, this is actually not crazy expensive, and a contending team in need of a left handed defenseman will absolutely give up the prospects, draft picks, and future talent needed in order to get a deal like this completed. The current favourites to land Chychrun, are the Los Angeles Kings, who have the cap space, as well as the future prospects and picks that would be necessary in order to pull off a trade of this magnitude. However, considering the Kings are very much overachieving, and even then, are only two points clear of a playoff spot, I personally don’t believe the Kings would sacrifice their future in order to make this trade. For me, the team that I predict will acquire Jakob Chychrun, is the mean ol’ Boston Bruins. The Bruins have the picks and prospects necessary, and as well, are currently listed as having $3.1million dollars in cap space, meaning that they are not too far off cap-wise, and would only need to get a cheap contract off the books in order to have the space for this player. As well, the Bruins have an immense lack of strong, left-handed defenseman to match up with their superstar right-shot defenseman Charlie McAvoy, which leads me to believe that they would absolutely be interested in Chychrun. The Bruins, unlike the Kings, are also a team that looks fairly guaranteed at this point to make the playoffs, and do some damage once they get there, which is why I believe they are the more likely team to go after this dynamic young defenseman. For the reason that the Arizona Coyotes will be unloading talent in order to get worse, while also stacking up prospects for the future, ironically, this may be the most active team at this year's deadline, and they absolutely will be a team to watch with a close-eye as we approach deadline season.