NHL 2013 Preview: Southeast Division

5. Winnipeg Jets-Last year, the Jets were a surprise team in the East. They didnt make the playoffs, but they were in the race until mid-March. The Jets return in 2013, as virtually the same team from last year. Their biggest offseason acquisition was F Olli Jokinen (Woof!), and they saw two of their biggest stars (Ondrej Pavelec and Evander Kane) have some off ice issues. With the other teams in this division making bigger moves in the offseason, the standing pat Jets will suffer greatly in 2013, coming in last in the division and out of the playoffs.

4. Florida Panthers-Another surprise in this division last year, found the Florida Panthers winning the Southeast division. They were a replica of what the 02-03 Wild were like. Not a flashy goal scoring team, won games with defense and goaltending, and had no huge star on the roster. But unlike the 02-03 Wild, Florida was unable to get past the first round of the playoffs. They lost their best defenseman in the offseason (Jason Garrison-Vancouver), and added no one of great consequence (Unless you are high on Peter Mueller or Filip Kuba). Florida has some regression in 2013, and will ultimately miss the playoffs as well.

3. Tampa Bay Lightning-2011, Tampa made it all the way to the Eastern Finals. 2012, Tampa made it all the way to the golf course when the playoffs began. Why? One reason: Goaltending. Tampa had the worst goaltending in the league last year (Allowed a league high 282 goals). So of course, it was addressed this offseason, when the team got Anders Lindback from Nashville. They also added Matt Carle to help bolster their blue line and solidify their play in the defensive zone. Tampa is lead on offense by 60 goal scorer, Steven Stamkos, Martin St. Louis, and Vinny Lecavalier. This team rebounds quite nicely from the bad 2011-12 campaign and finds its way into a playoff spot.

2. Carolina Hurricanes-It was the Carolina Hurricanes who made the biggest splash of the offseason, on draft night, when they pulled the trigger on a trade that sent two players and the #8 overall pick to Pittsburgh in exchange for C Jordan Staal. Staal had put good numbers for Pittsburgh as a third line center, but his numbers should increase now that he is playing first line next to his brother Eric. The Canes also added Alex Semin to a one year deal, and he is slotted to play top line with the Staals. This team is decently assembled defensively, and they have former playoff MVP Cam Ward between the pipes. Carolina doesn't take the division, but they are a sure bet for a playoff spot.


1. Washington Capitals-This division is wide open. And yet, it will be the Capitals who come out of it with the title. They let Alex Semin leave, and they now have former Cap Adam Oates behind the bench now. Despite the loss of Semin, the team still has good depth. Again, a big concern for Washington will come from between the pipes. Braden Holtby stepped up for them during their playoff run last year, and is slated to start the season as the team's #1. The Caps will need to get big production from their leader Alex Ovechkin, who is averaging 35 goals over the last 2 seasons after frequently scoring 50 in his first 5 seasons in the league. The Caps figure it out, and win the division over Carolina and Tampa by a narrow margin.


Follow Giles on Twitter @gilesferrell

NHL 2011 Preview-Southeast Division

For those who have been following my Twins blog, you will remember that prior to each season, I will give my division predictions and then my world series and award winner predictions. So I would like to carry that over to hockey as well. So today, I kick off my first of eight (6 divisions, playoff/awards, and a Wild prediction post) posts on how this hockey season will go down. Today I am starting with the Southeast Division.

5. Winnipeg Jets-It will be really nice having hockey back in Winnipeg. But, remember, they inherited the Atlanta Thrashers. The team has some nice young talent featuring F Evander Kane, D Dustin Byfuglien, F Andrew Ladd, and G Ondrej Pavelec. But, the team lacks scoring and their defense is one of the worst in the NHL (They ranked 29th in defense in 2010-11). So don't look for the Jets to make any noise in their one year stint in the Southeast Division. Because all they will find is a last place finish.

4. Florida Panthers-Hard to believe I picked Florida ahead of somebody. But they made some solid additions this summer (D Brian Campbell, F Kris Versteeg, F Scottie Upshall, and F Tomas Fleischman), to help bolster a lineup that finished 28th in the NHL in scoring last season. The team brought in G Jose Theodore to man the net, after he had a decent season as Nik Backstrom's backup in Minnesota. The Panthers still won't be an easy team to watch in 2011-12, but they will be vastly better than their 2010-11 team.

3. Carolina Hurricanes-Last season the 'Canes finished just two points out of the final playoff spot. With their young players now breaking into the NHL, the Canes have higher expectations than 9th place this season. But, the team lost one of their best players, F Erik Cole this summer, and left to fill the spot from within their organization. They still have NHL stars Eric Staal and Cam Ward, and their Calder Trophy winner from last year Jeff Skinner. But a reasonable expectation for the 'Canes would be to be in the 8-9-10 seed range this year. Especially with the teams at the top being so good.

2. Tampa Bay Lightning-The Lightning boast one of the best offenses in the NHL. But, their defense is what holds them back from truly being one of the NHL's elite teams. The team is essentially bringing back the same defensive core, and resigned the "ageless" Dwayne Roloson to be the team's starting netminder for 2011-12. True, this was a team that was able to get within a game of the Stanley Cup Finals. But, their moves this offseason were minimal. Not exactly the best thing to do from a team that almost was the best in the East. The Lightning to have a bit of cap room, so they could add a solid D-Man at somepoint this year. But until they do, they will still be second best.

1. Washington Capitals-It hurts me to pick Washington first. Lets face it, they are a great regular season team. They have a good offense and a solid defensive core. But they have been lacking a solid presence in goal. And their answer for that problem this year is Tomas Vokoun. Not exactly the best solution. So once again, you will see this team will have a great regular season. But when it comes time to play when it matters most, who knows what will happen. I will say its possible they can win the east, but they have this thing about not making it out of the second round. So for now, I say its another second round playoff exit following a Southeast Division Title.

Tomorrow's post predicts the season in the Atlantic Division.