2014-15 Outlook: Pacific Division

Its a look at California, Western Canada, and that team in the desert. Enjoy!

Weighing The Options

There are two nights left in the regular season. 16 teams have clinched playoff spots, but now its putting them in their appropriate place to determine the postseason matchups.

Tuesday Thoughts

Photo: Zumapress/mvphotos.com

Meet The New Divisions: Pacific Division

Today we look at the new Pacific Division:

Russo's Chat of Gold

Today, Mike Russo used a Wild off day, to take part in one of his few Wild chats throughout the year. I took to reading the chat replay this evening, with very low expectations. I love Russo and think he is simply one of the best in the business, but his chats in the past have been rather, well, not informative enough (Some of the questions that get asked are ridiculous. I can only imagine the ones he doesn't answer).

But this chat was definitely not lacking useful information this time.

If you want to read the full chat, click here. Meanwhile, for those staying (Thanks!), I am going to go over those great nuggets of info Russo left for us today. Here we go...

• White jerseys will be revamped next year, while red and green ones will remain. Its probably already been mentioned by Russo at some point this year, but its worth mentioning again. Get ready to part ways with the road jerseys circa 2000. Maybe look for something similar to either Houston Aeros white jersey (Main, alternate)?
• The Aeros will most likely be leaving Houston and relocating to Des Moines, Iowa. It will be nice from a fan's perspective, making road trips to the farm team much easier and less costly. But I have read the Wild did not want their AHL team to leave Houston, and have been trying tirelessly to keep the team there.
• The Wild will definitely be looking into re-signing Jason Pominville. Well given the kings ransom we just gave up for him (Just saying!), and the fact he has looked sharp in two games despite little practice, I would dear god hope so.
• The Wild have inquired about Thomas Vanek from Buffalo. I think we can wait out another year until he hits free agency. Trading for him next year, with the cap going down to $64.3M, is dicey. 
• The salary cap will continue to go up following the 2013-14 season. Lets hope for this, so we actually have a chance at getting Vanek.
• If the Wild need a defenseman, for whatever reason, Marco Scandella will be that defenseman. When the Aeros season ends, the Wild can recall any player from Houston, without that player's salary counting towards the cap. Scandella has not had the best season, but maybe another shot at playing on the big club will get his game to take off.
• Clayton Stoner will not be a healthy scratch this year. In Russo's blog last night, he mentioned how Yeo was impressed with Stoner's game against Columbus. Yeo believes that Stoner can only get better from here, so playing him is better than sitting him. I hope Yeo is right.
• The Wild can beat Vancouver, Detroit, and Anaheim in a playoff series. Given the domination of all three teams lately, this team very well can. The Wild may not have a win against Anaheim, but they dominated play in the last two games. If the two teams meet in the playoffs, it should be a much different outcome for the Wild.
• The Wild can not beat St. Louis, Los Angeles, and Chicago in a playoff series. It took shootouts for the Wild to beat Los Angeles and Chicago at home. Road games against the Hawks and Kings have been horrendous. St. Louis plays very big, (which does not matchup well for the Wild) and has dominated the Wild as well this year. Meanwhile, the Kings and Blackhawks, are quite fast, and the Wild are a bit lacking in the speed department.
• My favorite point: Russo does not whine about traveling, he just critiques persistent maintenance delays. If you follow Russo on Twitter, you frequently finding him having some sort of delay that is preventing him from traveling. I find it very entertaining when this happens, as he loves to point out the flaws. Others call this whining.

So as you can see, lots and lots of info from the great Russo in this chat. Probably won't see another until the end of the season, whenever that is.

Follow Giles on Twitter @gilesferrell

NHL 2013 Preview: Pacific Division

5. Dallas Stars-Dallas brought in Jaromir Jagr, Ray Whitney, and Derek Roy to help bolster their top 2 lines. So now, they have 2 solid scoring lines. Problem is, their 3rd and 4th lines will struggle, and their defense doesn't project to be that good. They have Kari Lehtonen in the net, and he has been solid since he arrived in Dallas. The Stars had the worst powerplay in the league last year (13.5%), and ranked in the bottom half of the league in total scoring (22nd in goals scored). The new additions will help, but they still are facing an uphill battle in this division. The Stars come in the cellar, in a close race with Anaheim.

4. Anaheim Ducks-A slow start will doom the Ducks in 2013. They have aging veterans Saku Koivu and Teemu Selanne. Their stars Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry are set to be free agents after the season ends. So should the Ducks have a bad start, Getzlaf and Perry could end up being traded, so the Ducks dont walk away empty handed if they leave.The Ducks have 2 solid lines, and their defensive core is average at best. A healthy Jonas Hiller will be between the pipes trying to keep the Ducks in games. In an incredibly strong division, the Ducks will come in 4th, but they will battle it out with Dallas for this spott. They just simply wont be able to keep up with the others, even in a shortened 48 game schedule.

3. Phoenix Coyotes-A surprise run to the conference finals, was how the Phoenix Coyotes season went last year. They are a gritty hockey team, that wins games on its defense keeping pucks out of the net. And last year, they saw Mike Smith have a huge breakout year, which was a big help with Phoenix coming in 5th in the NHL in goals allowed. They did lose their leading scorer Ray Whitney, who signed with division rival Dallas, but other than that, they kept the core of last year's team intact. Phoenix will be a tough team to play every night, and scoring on them will not be easy. This will be a team that competes for a low seed in the playoff mix, and with a short season, Phoenix will have plenty of competition to get in the playoffs.

2. Los Angeles Kings-Everyone has the Kings pegged to win this division and make a deep postseason run again. Im not denying that the defending Cup champs will make a deep postseason run. They are returning the same roster from last year (The only player the lost or added was Ethan Moreau who retired). But they will be without their star Anze Kopitar for a few weeks to begin the year. They have great depth all around the roster. Conn Smythe winner Jonathan Quick is set to return after having back surgery in the offseason. But, the Kings finish second in this division. They make the playoffs, but the lack of Kopitar to begin the season will hurt them in the end.

1. San Jose Sharks-San Jose had a down year in 2011-12. They finished 7th in the West, and had a first round exit after two straight years of making the conference finals.The Sharks have good balance all around their lineup. They really dont have any flashy players, they just have guys who get the job done. What makes the Sharks better this year, is that they had 11 players playing overseas during the lockout, and for the first time in a few years, they are no longer considered the favorites in this division. So look for Joe Thornton and company to make one last push before age finally catches up with them. The Sharks get off to a fast start, and it helps carry them to a division title.


Follow Giles on Twitter @gilesferrell

NHL 2011 Preview-Pacific Division

5. Phoenix Coyotes-The Coyotes have made the playoffs in each of the past two seasons. But they did so more on the strength of their defense and goaltending. But they lost key players D Ed Jovanovski and G Ilya Bryzgalov this past offseason. And the Coyotes now are looking to Mike Smith to fill Bryzgalov's shoes between the pipes. Not exactly the best guy for the job. You have to give coach Dave Tippett a lot of credit for what he did the past few years there. But the run ends this year.

4. Dallas Stars-With Brad Richards, the Stars were a team that was contending for a playoff spot. Without Richards, this is a team that won't be anywhere near the postseason. Yes, the Stars still have Loui Eriksson and Mike Ribero. But they lack a good supporting cast and solid goaltending. Kari Lehtonen has posted poor GAA and Save Percentages, and will be too heavily relied on this year. Don't expect much from the Stars this year, as they finish towards the bottom of the Western Conference.

3. Anaheim Ducks-Anaheim boasts one of the best lines in all of hockey, with Bobby Ryan, Ryan Getzlaf, and reigning MVP Corey Perry as their number one line. Its a line that put up nearly 250 points last year, and will be expected to do the same again. Teemu Selanne and his 80 points also return to the Ducks this year. The main concern for Anaheim is on the defensive side. They ranked 20th in defense last year, and made no big acquisitions to help correct that deficiency. They also don't know what to expect from their net minder Jonas Hiller, who suffered Vertigo symptoms last year. Despite those issues, the Ducks still make the postseason, but will see a first round exit.

2. Los Angeles Kings-On the day before the NHL Draft in June, the Kings made a huge offseason splash, by trading for Flyers C Mike Richards. It made this team a real contender in the western conference. They were a horrible offensive team last year, but thanks to their great defense, they were able to make it into the playoffs for a second straight year. Richards and Simon Gagne will help add some more scoring depth to the Kings. And this team is now instantly a top 4 team in the West. So hopefully, they can make an appearance in the second round of the playoffs.

1. San Jose Sharks-The past two years have seen San Jose make it to the Western Conference Finals. But both times, they didn't even come close to the Campbell Trophy. So, a change was needed. And they turned to the Wild for some needed change. The Sharks first acquired D-Man Brent Burns from MIN, then eventually traded sniper Dany Heatley for Martin Havlat. The Sharks have brought in those new faces to help bring a new result to San Jose. There is literally no weakness on this team, and they should be making another deep run in the playoffs come next April. But can they put the past behind them and finally make it into the Cup finals?

Tomorrow's post looks at the Central Division

Hockey Background

Late last night, I finally kicked off this blog. And I gave you a few fun facts about myself. Today, I'm going to dig a little deeper and give you a bunch of fun facts about me and the game of hockey. Then I think tomorrow, I will actually get to the Wild themselves with a offseason recap.

• Growing up, I had no pro hockey team to watch here (North Stars were gone by the time I paid attention to hockey). So my favorite team was the Anaheim Mighty Ducks. They had a great logo, and obviously they had those movies made about them, so that helped me love them more. But they had some great talent with Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne so the actual Ducks were really fun to watch too.
  
• I was a big Brett Hull fan back then as well. He was great with the Blues, but then went on to win the Cup with Dallas (Damn Norm) and Detroit. One of the best shots the game has ever seen, and clearly the best shot I've ever seen.
  
• I made it to one Minnesota Moose game when I was young. I still have their jersey in my closet. If I remember correctly, the Moose lost in overtime. It was an interesting atmosphere in the old Civic Center, watching a game, compared to the one we have now at the X.
• But then finally the Wild came around. As I mentioned in my earlier post, my first game was in December of their inaugural season. I got to sit in one of the lower level corners. It was a great memory. And what made it better was the fact it came against the Ducks.
• I have made it out to a Wild game at least once a year since they have returned. The best game I have seen, is by far the game in which Marian Gaborik scored 5 goals against the NY Rangers (ironic isn't it?).
  
• In their memorable season of 2002-03, I got to sit on the bench during warmups before a game. As a kid who never saw a game from that close before, it was really an eye opener to see how big those guys were.
• I got to go to the 2004 NHL All Star Game when it was held here in St. Paul. My aunt was at the game and she came across one of the coaches wife, who was looking to give it away for free. FOR FREE! So she took it and asked if I wanted to come. That was a great day. Great atmosphere at the X.
  
• You can find me as one of those crazy folks who camp out for single game tickets every season. I have done it for 7 consecutive years now, and I have no intention of stopping either.
• Also I mentioned in my earlier post that I have made it to two playoff games. One came in 2007 against the Ducks, which the Wild won (Their only win in the series). The other came the next year against Colorado (Game 5), in which the Wild lost. Those were some fun games. I could only imagine what it was like for the playoff games of 2003 in the X.
  
• Then this past summer, I got to attend the first round of the NHL Draft. Great experience again. It was great to see the variety of fans come to the X. Had a good conversation with some Oilers fans that sat in front of us. Then the Wild, stole the show, and had arguably the best draft day with their selections and their trade of Brent Burns to San Jose. But I'll get more in to that tomorrow.

As I before said, tomorrow, I'll get into the Wild's offseason. Today I was more focused on giving you all a little info on myself, much like I have with my Twins blog.