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Tim Williams - AccuScore Analyst
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Back at the start of the NHL season I made my predictions on the winners of each division.  With the NHL heading in to their All-Star break, I thought I would re-visit those predictions, and look ahead to the remainder of the season.  Below you will find the predictions I made back at the start of the season, the analysis I gave, and my reaction to what has actually taken place in the league.

Atlantic Division

Prediction:  Pittsburgh Penguins

Prediction Analysis:  The Penguins may have lost Ryan Malone and Marian Hossa from last year’s Eastern Conference championship team, but they still retain two of the best players in the game in Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.  Throw in some suitable replacements on offense in Miroslav Satan and Ruslan Fedotenko, and the Penguins’ offense should be a power house in the Eastern Conference once again.  Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury was a wall in the second half of the season, and if he carries that success over in to the 2008-09 season, the Penguins should have no problem coasting to another Atlantic division title.

Analysis at the Break:  The Penguins offense has not disappointed.  Malkin and Crosby rank first and second in the league in the NHL in scoring, with Malkin holding a ten point lead over his teammate.  The team as a whole ranks tenth in the NHL in total goals scored.  The major problem is the defense.  Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney were injured for the majority of the first half, with Gonchar still out.  On top of that, Hal Gill and Kris Letang have also missed time, leaving the Penguins without at least two of their top defenders at all times.  This has led to 146 goals, which is two more than the Penguins have scored, and ranks as the sixth worst total in the NHL.

Looking Forward:  If the season ended today, the Penguins would not make the playoffs, one year after making the Stanley Cup finals.  Pittsburgh recently traded for Edmonton goalie Mathieu Garon as a backup to push Marc-Andre Fleury.  What they really need is for their defense to get healthy, specifically Sergei Gonchar.  The division may be out of reach right now, but the Penguins should make a push and successfully make the playoffs.

Northeast Division

Prediction:  Montreal Canadiens

Prediction Analysis:  Montreal was the best team in the Eastern Conference last year, but failed to make it out of the second round of the playoffs.  Winning the Northeast division won’t be a problem this year.  The Canadiens traded for Robert Lang at center, and forward Alex Tanguay in the off-season.  Those two will add to a talented offense in Montreal that already consists of Saku Koivu, Alexei Kovalev, and young promising players like Tomas Plekanec, Andrei and Sergei Kostitsyn, and Christopher Higgins.  The key to the success will lie in net with Carey Price, who went 11-3 for Montreal last year, following the trade of Cristobal Huet.

Analysis at the Break:  The Canadiens haven’t really disappointed, as their 60 points rank fourth in the Eastern Conference.  The problem has been the red-hot Boston Bruins, led by goalies Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez.  The Bruins have gone 34-8-5 for 73 points, which is by far the best in the Eastern Conference, and tied with the Sharks for the best in the NHL.

Looking Forward:  The Canadiens should have no problem making the playoffs.  They hold a seven point lead for second place in their division, and rank right up there with the leaders of the other two divisions.  If Thomas and Fernandez can keep up this pace, Boston will easily run away with this division, and the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

Southeast Division

Prediction:  Washington Capitals

Prediction Analysis:  Last year the Capitals finished first in the Southeast for the first time since the 2000-01 season.  This was mostly due to the emergence of young players like Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Semin, and of course Alexander Ovechkin, easily one of the best in the league, if not the best.  Washington returns a similar roster as last year, with one key change coming in net.  Cristobal Huet was brought in at the trade deadline, and sparked the run that carried Washington to the top of the Southeast.  Huet departed in the off-season, but was replaced with Jose Theodore, who helped carry the Colorado Avalanche to the playoffs last year.  Washington might have a challenge with a talented Tampa Bay squad, but should win a close division race on the back of Ovechkin and Theodore.

Analysis at the Break:  Washington holds a big lead in the Southeast division, with a 30-15-3 record and 63 points.  Carolina ranks second with 51 points.  Jose Theodore hasn’t disappointed, with a 17-9-1 record and a 2.81 GAA, but the big boost for the Capitals has been Brent Johnson, who is 11-6-2 with a 2.74 GAA.  Ovechkin, Semin, and Backstrom are leading the Washington offense, with Ovechkin ranking third in the NHL in points, and first in goals.

Looking Forward:  The Capitals are by far the best team in the Southeast division, and barring injury to one of their top offensive players, they should maintain their lead and win the division.

Central Division

Prediction:  Detroit Red Wings

Prediction Analysis:  Detroit is a scary team.  They dominated the regular season, and cruised through the playoffs, only to complete their season by manhandling the best team in the Eastern Conference, the Pittsburgh Penguins.  To follow that up, they retained their star players, and added the best free agent on the market, Marian Hossa.  The emergence of Johan Franzen late last season, combined with the addition of Hossa, gives Detroit a solid number two line, which could easily be better than the number one line on most teams.  The only question mark will be the durability of Chris Osgood in net without Dominik Hasek.  However, Detroit added Ty Conklin, who fared well for Pittsburgh last season.  Detroit should coast to another Central division title, and most likely another Stanley Cup.

Analysis at the Break:  It’s not really a surprise that Detroit is leading the Central division.  Their 31-9-6 record, and 68 points rank second in the Western Conference.  The Chicago Blackhawks rank second in the division with 58 points, and should make the playoffs this year, thanks to great play from talent young players like Patrick Kane and Patrick Sharp, and great goaltending from Huet and Nikolai Khabibulin.

Looking Forward:  The Red Wings won’t have any problems maintaining their lead, but keep an eye on a talented Chicago team come playoff time.

Northwest Division

Prediction:  Edmonton

Prediction Analysis:  After just missing the playoffs last season, the Edmonton Oilers are my sleeper team in the Northwest division.  Edmonton suffered a lot of injuries last year to guys like Shawn Horcoff and Sheldon Souray, but despite the injuries, saw their younger players rally to finish the season 14-5-1.  The addition of Erik Cole from Carolina will help the offense, while Lubomir Visnovsky from Los Angeles will boost an already strong defensive unit.  Edmonton has one of the deepest goaltending units in the league, adding another advantage.  Probably the best advantage of all would be the division.  Colorado has a big question mark in net with Peter Budaj, and aging leaders of offense in Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg.  Minnesota lost a lot of players from last season, which could make it hard to improve on their results.  If Edmonton can avoid the injuries this season, they have a great shot of going from a team that barely missed the playoffs, to the Northwest division winners.

Analysis at the Break:  Calgary is currently leading the Northwest division, with Edmonton tied with Vancouver for second.  The Oilers have seen their goaltending struggles, with Mathieu Garon posting a 6-8-0 record, and a 3.17 GAA before being traded to Pittsburgh.  Dwayne Roloson takes over as the starter with a 15-9-3 record, while Dany Sabourin comes over from Pittsburgh, where he posted a 6-8-2 record and a 2.85 GAA as Marc-Andre Fleury’s backup.

Looking Forward:  The Oilers are in line to make the playoffs if the season ended today.  Calgary has Miikka Kiprusoff in net, with a 28-12-3 record and a 2.82 GAA.  Unless one of the Edmonton goalies can step up, the Oilers don’t have much of a chance of passing Calgary in the Northwest, and may even finish fourth behind Vancouver and Minnesota.

Pacific Division

Prediction:  Anaheim

Prediction Analysis:  Anaheim was 15-15-4 to start the season last year without Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne.  Niedermayer returned on December 16^th, and Selanne returned on February 5^th to lead the Ducks to an amazing 32-12-4 finish, with a 20-5-2 record after Selanne’s return.  Niedermayer and Selanne will start the season with Anaheim this year, hoping to avoid the 15-15-4 start that cost them the division last season.  The Ducks have a great defense with Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger, one of the best goalies in the league in Jean-Sebastien Giguere, and a talented offense that includes Selanne, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Chris Kunitz, and newly acquired center Brendan Morrison.  The question shouldn’t be “Can the Ducks win the Pacific?”  The question should be “Can the Ducks win the Cup?”

Analysis at the Break:  Not only have the Ducks struggled with a 23-21-5 record for 51 points, but the San Jose Sharks have been running away with the division.  San Jose has a 34-6-5 record for 73 points, which is tops in the Western Conference, and tied with Boston for the best in the NHL.  The rest of the division is separated by eight points, with Phoenix in second with 53 points, and Los Angeles in fifth with 45 points.

Looking Forward:  The Sharks pretty much have this division locked up, especially with their excellent play at home, featuring an incredible 22-1-2 record.  Dallas has struggled with some key injuries to Brandon Morrow, and a suspension to Sean Avery, while Los Angeles lacks a strong goalie to make the move needed to advance in the division.  That leaves the Ducks and Coyotes trying to make the playoffs, with both teams currently near the bottom of the Western Conference playoff race.  Despite the standings, the Ducks have been better than Phoenix this year, including a 3-1 head to head record, and should finish in second place with a spot in the playoffs.