S10 Metro Division Standings Prediction/Write Up

Well I'm gonna give this divisional prediction/write up thing another go. Last season I did the Metro and Pacific but got lazy and didn’t do the Atlantic and Central. Unlike last season, I'm looking for Owners/Gms/AGMs to let me know about draft picks that are playing, AHL call ups, and line combos so I can have a better idea of how each team is really gonna look. I'm hoping I can get some more responses before I post the other 3 divisions. All will be posted late at night over the next few days because I'm on vacation and that's the only time I spend working on these. Anyways here we go with the Metro Division.



1) New York Rangers


Well this team has finished 1st in the Metro back to back seasons so why not put them there again. They're regular season champs who will continue to be questioned until they make it out of round 1 of the playoffs. I will say, this is an interesting roster that Bo and Reap have assembled but it's going to be hard to play against. This team loves to trap and they put a ton of cap into their defence. Joker at 1 mil was the most they spent on a forward in bidding. That is actually insane but their offence is still very capable of scoring goals. Reap will C with their 1st round pick, SirGabQc and Krazy-try who is coming off a season which he only lost 1 game in regulation. Mikey/HabsDan/Joker will be the 2nd line and don't underestimate these guys. They may not be top end skill guys but they know how to play, and will frustrate teams. DeadlyDangles/DarkWarfare/Mclub will be on the third. Mclub has been a regular in the NHL, DeadlyDangles was impresive in his short stint with the team last season but DarkWarfare is gonna have to prove his worth after a sub par season on Carolina.


On defence this team is absolutely loaded and is easily the best dcore in the league. Weapon/Lafond will play with the top line, Bo/BigGren will play with the second line and Skotlas/LeGal will play with the 3rd line. This teams balance on all 3 pairs is fantastic. Factor in that the Rangers always seem to buy into playing a very tight trap defensively, it's gonna be even tougher for other teams to score against any line. Each pair is also capable of moving the puck efficiently and providing effective offensive support.


In net the Rangers have a great tandem with Crofto coming back after a Vezina caliber season and Calder trophy nominee Soulplane backing him up.



2) Washington Capitals


PTP and McLovin are back running the Caps so they will be at, or near the top of the Metro once again. PTP decided to play forward this season and will probably play with Sooksta who's on the 3rd season of his 5.5 mil contract, and GoCanucks who re signed at 1 mil. McLovin will probably C with Kerslake and Crispy as his wingers. The top 2 lines for Washington consist of 2 Elite C's, with 2 great scoring LW's and 2 cheap, fantasic support RW's. Both are easily 1A caliber lines and will give teams trouble all season long. The third line isn't very impressive but if good lines run from Washington they might be able to get some wins. Mxster and Oshlag are coming off 20 and 25 point seasons while Hra-ow is coming off a good season but we'll see how long his line mates can handle him for.


On defence Spooer re signed at 7 mil and will lead the way on the back end. They picked up Desyd who is one of a couple RD's under 4 mil that I thought might have went for more in bidding. Jbarnett is on a nice 500k contract but after those 3 dmen I dont see anyone that should be in the NHL tbh. GetBigOrGetHuge and Travi3yTML have both had average AHL stats and Badou is a natural forward who hasnt played a full season since S5. Doing some digging through the AHL and TC players the only name I recognize is Snipeshot but they dont have the cap to call him up. Maybe some moves in the works, who knows.


In net Jonez is back as the starter and as long as he's not spiking at 1000 ping he's one of the best goalies in the league. Key Tops is the backup once again and I definitely thought a team was gonna grab Key Tops to be their starter but he goes for 1 mil and is back in Washington.



3) New Jersey Devils


I've honestly been impressed with the teams that Gour has put together and how they have performed each season. This season is no different. On offence Dustin/Labrat/Chipy are all returning on cheap contracts and should have no issues picking up a lot of wins again this season. Their big acquisition on offence you could say is..... Tasty (Insert bass boost effect). KushNastyy at 9 mil is a really good contract if he actually tries. He will likely team with JF5 and Jopz making the offensive talent on this line..... Groceries. The third line looks like it will be iKing/Mongee/FatGeezer. All 3 are at 500k and have proven they are capable of getting at least 50 points. I dont know if any of them have ever played together but this could be a very good line for the Devils.


On defence Gour leads the way after a very impressive first season on defence. They got a steal in ShroomSmoke at 1 mil. The depth on RD in bidding was solid but how he went for 1 mil is beyond me. They also picked up Zwiggy at 5.5 mil and like I usually say with Xbox guys that I dont know, "he's got good stats." This gives New Jersey a very nice trio of RD's for each line. On LD they picked up EnforcerBlues at 3 mil. No idea who that is but he had good stats in S2. I thought Goouu was the one who said he was going on a trip for a few weeks mid season and if so that sucks, but 2 mil isnt bad for him. DcSkins is back in the NHL after a few AHL seasons and this is a guy I really like as a 3rd pair LD for this team. Overall this is a well balanced dcore.


In net the Devils are going with CapitalsFan who is a proven starter and quickscope who will be the backup after a few great seasons in the AHL.



4) Columbus Blue Jackets


Well apparently Frank doesnt make playoffs when he's management but I think they can grab a wildcard spot this season. He's got his line mate from last season in Vexe to play with, but they're going to have to beat some good lines this season if this team is gonna be successful. Last season they tore apart some 3rd lines but only finished with 16 and 14 wins. My guess is that they'll have Gally on RW who has put up 60 points in 5 of his last 6 seasons. Mino/Larkin/FrostyLocks should be the 2nd line and Mino in my opinion was a great pickup for this team. They shed a lot of cap and got a guy who can score around 30 goals and get 50+ points. Silva/SCY/McInnis on the 3rd is quite a nice line as well. Silva at 500k is a great contract and playing with 2 guys who are capable of getting 50 points each, I'm expecting Silva to step up his game. He's definitely got it in him.


On defence Columbus went out and got ACgee in a re sign and trade with Nashville. Might seem like a bit much for him, but again, the depth at LD wasnt great in bidding. Behind him on the left side will be Statistician and BabaGannosh who I think are very suitable 2nd and 3rd pair LD's. On the right they have Prometheus who I've only played 2 or 3 games with but was quite impressed. Small sample size, but I thought he was good offensively and defensively. They also got Malkin and RustyTrombone who are 2 steady dmen that can play in the team's top 4 or top 6.


In net JadeDragoon is coming off a great season with Columbus and will be the starter again. Backing him up will be Lach who hasnt had great stats since S4 in the NHL.



5) New York Islanders


After shocking everyone by first making the playoffs and then knocking out the Rangers in round 1, BigFreeze is back and will have to prove any doubters wrong again. Up front the Islanders dont have any standout players, but their depth is solid. The one thing this team is missing is a #1 C. It's really tough when some guys are only willing to play on certain teams though and it puts owners like Freeze in tough spots. They have some nice cheap contracts however in JdFrye, Vish and Twister (If he can hit open nets) but Joshb, Skinner and Jeff are really going to have to step up offensively for this team if this team is going to compete for a playoff spot again this season.


The problem with trying to do write ups is that you cant wait until Sunday at 6pm to do them, so you have to deal with potential trades that occur during the week leading up to games. Despite not being a fan of the LaFleur trade, I am keeping the Islanders in the #5 spot. Counter took GM of this team and while I might not agree with some of the moves he makes, he has proven that he can get the job done when managing teams. Freddy and GeneralPatten are 2 guys I dont know about, but Ive heard a lot about Freddy so we'll see how he pans out. Vikes is back after taking a few seasons off and 5th overall pick GotemCoach will start in the NHL. I played a few games with this guy and while he may have some things to work on, I fully expect him to develop into a very reliable dman in this league.


In net, Counter couldnt resist and got Chuck to be the starter. I really don't know why people say Chuck is washed. I get he's not as good as he was in NHL 17 but the guy is still one of the better goalies in the league and helped backpack Florida for 6 weeks last season when we struggled to score. Backing him up will be Eazykill who racked up 35 wins on Niagra last season. High cap hit for a backup who might have been carried by a high scoring CHL team. If he doesnt pan out tho he could just be sent down.



6) Philadelphia Flyers


Well this is the one team that I feel is gonna be hard for me to talk about because I dont know half the guys on the team. The reason I have them at 6 in the Metro is because if the core players on this team play the way they should this team might do good and perform better than where I have them. If not I think it could be a disaster. On forawrd Woy/Pheno/Carm/Dom are the core forwards but after that Kaner is the only one I recognize and he's a dman. Pheno is great but is coming off an abysmal 33 point season, Dom got roster dropped and went for 2 mil less and I wonder if anyone has bought Woy a new controller yet? I feel like this team could contend for a wild card spot or possibly blow up. If the guys above dont perform it could be a struggle for this team.


On defence Philly doesnt look bad, but doesnt look great either. I think Vega at 5.75 mil is a fair contract for him but when it comes to Turmoilz, even though he isn't as bad as his 9 win and -40 S9 went, I dont think he should have went for 5.75. Pasta and Montoni are solid dmen on cheap contracts which helps the depth of this dcore a lot. Not a whole lot of Europeans in LG but Corked is back for his 10th season. Though never a top guy it's pretty impressive that he's been able to stick around for that long. 1 of 4 draft picks that will be relied upon by the Flyers is DJ4040. I've never seen him play but this guy ripped it up with Niagara last season. It'll be interesting to see how well he transitions to playing better competition.


In net the Flyers are going with 2 draft picks. I have no idea if anyone's done this before but I'm really curious to see how it turns out. TheSavagePain is coming off a memorial cup win with the Brandon Wheat Kings and IcePick is coming off a very good season with the Peterborough Petes. Both guys are gonna have their work cut out for them this season.



7) Pittsburgh Penguins


Well it might be a surprise to people, but I'm not putting Pittsburgh in last. In fact I don't think they're that far from possibly competing for a playoff spot. In bidding I dont think they did a bad job but it definitely could have been better. Their first 2 lines are shaping up to be DeathClown/Skillzy/DynoMike and Biologics/Unluckeux/MattKiinno. Both lines aren't going to go out and dominate teams but they will definitely compete. Though I dont think Biologics is a bad player, I think Pittsburgh should have used his cap + any extra to get a good C. Unluckeux is one of the better faceoff takers in LG but is much better suited as a 3C. The 3rd line will consist of Nismo/Landamov/MrFreddy. If this line can pick up some wins and the first 2 lines have success, this team could do alright. I think the downfall of the offence though is going to be it's lack of strength down the middle but they have some very good scoring wingers.


On Defence Merana is really going to have to put the backpack on. He's capable of doing it but I'm not sure how the other 2 dpairs are gonna shape up. Dparns is a bit overpaid especially considering he wont be playing on west. He'll be playing with HeartNSoul who had good stats in the 16 games he played with the Devils last season. The 3rd pair will be S4 and either a draft pick, AHL callup or someone acquired in a trade. If they can upgrade the defence a bit, their top 2 lines could do alright this season and give this team a shot.


In net Pittsburgh has UnshippedOwlCat who has some successful seasons under his belt but im not sure why they spent 1 mil on iCb4uC considering his 1 NHL season wasnt very good and he's going to be the backup.



8) Carolina Hurricanes


Straight up, Carolina is here because I dont like the make up of this offence at all. Their C depth is Mesmerize, SedinPower and Soupy who is a draft pick. Mes is a LW, SedinPower is a dman and I've never seen Soupy before. The reason I have Carolina here however instead of Pittsburgh, is skill on the wings. Pittsburgh should be able to score while I dont have that much faith in Carolina's offence. JPH/Doer/DirtyTrix on LW, and Bruchboi/metroboomin/EVO on RW with the lack of good support down the middle is gonna be tough in my opinion.


On defence they'll be alright because they picked up a big LD and RD in Tom and Patches. The problem is this is not the type of team that should be spending 15+ mil on 2 dmen. Tom and Patches should do fine playing on separate pairs to give this team defensive balance and Jazz, PattyIce, WHLHockey and Nino should be good depth guys to fill in the other 4 spots. I really do think if they got a couple dmen for less than Tom and Patches to allow them to put more cap into their offence, I would have them higher up in the standings.


In net Carolina scooped up General and AhlAllstar. If things go south early, I'm expecting General to make a quick exit, and AhlAllstar is looking to rebound after a very tough S9.


Well that concludes the first write up. The other 3 are basically done, just would like more input from Owners/GMs/AGM's. Regardless they'll all be posted. Let me know what you guys think and if I can do anything better.

 

Great writeup codyyy

 

Fantastic write up Cody, good stuff

 

yikes

 

What?

 

Awesome job Cody

 

I do not have my controller yet, and if I don't get it before my first game my contract is void and we'll try again next season.

 

Lmao dropped but on a better contract now. Good write up Cody!

 

Great writeup, would enjoy reading other divisions if you were to get around to it

 

Purple sexy af making these writeups.

Needs to come play with me though when I move out west this spring permanently

 

Great writeup cody!

 

Unlucky

 

I am a LW but made the switch to C for the team, I was a C before I was LW, I am capable of playing a good two way game, we do have a lot to prove though. Good write up non the less, I enjoying reading different perspectives on teams.

 

tuff

 

Good write up

 

Cbj baby

 

I was pretty accurate with these predictions. Top 3 were easy, I just got the wrong order and I wasn't far off with teams 4-8.


Not much beef in the comments for this one.


"Well apparently Frank doesnt make playoffs when he's management but I think they can grab a wildcard spot this season."

Back to bidding he goes.....


Counter took GM of this team and while I might not agree with some of the moves he makes, he has proven that he can get the job done when managing teams.


Again, gets the job done.


"Well it might be a surprise to people, but I'm not putting Pittsburgh in last. In fact I don't think they're that far from possibly competing for a playoff spot."


If anyone wants to add their 2 cents, have at it.

 

It's fun that you go back on your own predictions and see how correct or how wrong you were.

I think that it was pretty accurate for the metro.

Can't wait to see playoff predictions now