Welcome everyone to THE MONTH WITHOUT NHL HOCKEY, or as everyday people call it, August.
As we head into the dog days of summer, named after the saint patriarch of dogs, Google it. Here are my Power Rankings for the Metro division as of August 2022; let’s get into it! We look ahead to the upcoming season, which starts on October 11th.
Dead Last in the Metro: Philadelphia Flyers
Chuck Flecther should write a book, “How to alienate a fanbase and make enemies,” because he is doing that. When Johnny Gaudreau hit the free agent market, fans dreamed of him coming to Philly; the man was born in the area.
Chucky’s phone needs to search to see if he attempted Johnny. If it shows he didn’t, he should have his stuff thrown out onto the broad street, end of discussion! Anyway, I’m ranting; they let Oskar Lindblom, A CANCER SURVIVOR, walk for Anthony DeAngelo. Justin Braun is sticking around for reasons, as is Nicolas Deslauriers. The only bright spot is John Tortorella; the head coach of this train wreck should be fun to watch.
It’s going to be a long season Philly; at least the Eagles are looking good next door.
At Seventh in the Metro: New York Islanders
Lou Lamoriello, or as I call him, “Crazy Uncle Leo,” didn’t do much since most of his team was locked up. His core of Anders Lee, Josh Bailey, Cal Clutterbuck, and Jean-Gabriel Pageau are still around.
It’s the same squad as last year, except without the long road trip.
The only real difference is that Lane Lambert is now the head coach after several assistant gigs with Nashville and DC.
This team is a wild card; last year could have been a fluke because of COVID and injuries. However, could this team need a true superstar like John Tavares or Connor McDavid? This team is missing that one star to get them over the hump. Perhaps Zach Parise fills that void?
Sixth in the Metro Is the New Jersey Devils
It put up or shut up for the boys of Newark, and Lindy Ruff knows it!
After two years of rebuilding on top of a rebuild and injuries plus COVID, Devils fans are screaming for any progress. Adding Vitek Vanecek will help Mackenzie Blackwood split starts in that tandem; getting Dougie Hamilton healthy should support the Defense. However, my issue is when Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes will take the next step to become stars of Newark. We knew they could score, but it feels like they are missing leadership.
Enter Ondrej Palat from Tampa; he will guide these younglings to glory!
I eagerly await the day Kevin Bahl starts full-time in NJ. This team has playoff potential, but it is all that it is, but it is potential.
Fifth in the Metro: Columbus Bluejackets
The surprise of the offseason was the Blue Jackets winning the Johnny Gaudreau sweepstakes!
In addition, re-sign Patrik Laine and have Jakub Voracek with a returning Boone Jenner; this team could be a sneaky good squad. The bottom six are serviceable, with Brendan Gaunce, Carson Meyer, Jack Roslovic, and a returning Alexandre Texier. Goaltending is young Elvis Merzlikins and Joonas Korpisalo, both 28, with Joonas expiring at the end of the season. Columbus is a Wild Card team, a team that could hang around the playoff picture or falls off entirely.
Fourth in the Metro: The Pittsburgh Penguins
Putting my boys this low hurts, but this is the price for keeping the old core around. This team is the oldest in the league at 30.1, barely beating the Capitals at 30.0. As the card-carrying yinzer of this network, I was happy to see Geno return for three years.
The Rickard Rakell signing was a head-scratcher, thinking that was the deal meant for Malkin.
However, the actual head-scratcher is resigning Kris Letang for six years when he is 35! When his contract expires, he will be 41; even Zdeno Chara looks at that and laughs! Re-signing Rusty was a good move, and this team’s top six of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bryan Rust, Jake Guentzel, Rickard Rakell, and looks around; let’s say, Jason Zucker, looks good on paper. But, alas, it’s the bottom six where this squad’s weakness will lie.
If those six stop scoring, they don’t have the depth to keep up with the Broadway Blues or the Strom Runners. The Penguins are a playoff team at best and will hang around the Wild Card hunt all season.
But anything short of that could or will cost Ron Hextall his job.
Third in the Metro: Washington Capitals
This team is old! Alright, that was a cheap shot with me talking about the last group, but they are; the forwards are 29.4, the defense is the average age of 30, and both goalies are; I’m digressing. So why is this team so high, with Nicklas Backstrom out with hip surgery and Tom Wilson with an ACL tear? Simple, they have Alex Ovechkin, who is on a mission to destroy the all-time goal record, and nothing will stop him! Connor McMichael and Axel Jonsson Fjällby survive waivers; they could be a good bottom six addition. Joe Snively made an excellent late-season impression last season and others down in Hershey as the pipeline reloaded. Washington will make the playoffs, whereas a Wild Card or guarantee three is to be determined.
Before we get to the top two, I want to say, both of these teams are good and interchangeable at either spot.
Number Two in the Metro: Carolina Hurricanes
Maybe it’s just me, but something seems off about the Canes after their second-round bounce. This team is excellent, don’t get me wrong; Sebastian Aho, Andrei Svechnikov, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, and Teuvo Teravainen, to name a few, can light the lamp almost at will. The defense is solid with Jaccob Slavin and Ethan Bear. Brady Skjei and now add an ancient Brent Burns to the mix. On paper, this team is a Cup contender; however, I feel they are missing that one extra piece to get them over the hump. Max Pacioretty could have been that, but he is starting the season on the IR. Goaltending is questionable as well, I’m sorry, Canics, but Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta don’t strike fear into the hearts of other Cup contenders. This team will be a contender, and they NEED a deep run this season; if not, it may get ugly in Raleigh. Just ask Toronto how it feels to underachieve with gobs of talent.
The Number One Team in the Metro, a Group With the “No Quit,” Is the New York Rangers
What is not to love about these young broadway Blueshirts? They can score at will with Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Vincent Trocheck, Filip Chytil, and Kaapo Kakko; I could go on about their forward depth. The defense is young and hungry; your Captain Jacob Trouba, Adam Fox, could be in the running for a Norris this season.
In addition, Zachary Jones, K’Andre Miller, and Libor Hajek are all grown up in Hartford and are ready to take the next step.
However, its star in the net, the pride of 34th Street or 36th Street in the second period, and OT, Igor Shesterkin, the man has taken Henrik’s throne and claimed it as his own. Jaroslav Halak has come in a one-year, come-in relief deal which should ease the burden on Igor. Finally, the Rangers have expectations as big as the signs in Times Square; good luck, Rangers.
I hope everyone has enjoyed this hack’s power rankings of the Metro division. Enjoy your summer, and hockey will be back before you know it.
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