Nashville Predators: Offseason Central Division Power Rankings

The preseason opener is just over a month away, but our focus shifts to where the Nashville Predators stand in the daunting Central Division.

Time still hasn’t healed the pain of the Nashville Predators being prematurely ousted from the playoffs by a fellow divisional foe. The Winnipeg Jets played just slightly better than the Predators to send themselves to the Western Conference Finals.

An unexpectedly tough six-game series with the Colorado Avalanche, another Central Division foe, may have depleted the Predators’ energy just enough to keep them from playing their best against Winnipeg. The NHL playoffs are grueling, even if you’re roster looks stacked on paper.

Now the Predators find themselves in great shape to have another solid year. Their roster is mainly the same going into the upcoming season. Aside from some minor roster moves, we should know what to expect out of the Predators. However, the Central Division will look very different. Here’s where the Predators stand in our divisional power rankings.

Chicago Blackhawks

Biases aside, it’s hard to fathom putting the Blackhawks in the last spot. However, their window slammed shut last season. It doesn’t mean they won’t gradually start building a contender again, but it’s not going to happen this quickly.

The problem the Blackhawks have is depth. They’re relying on unproven or inexperienced commodities that have to start carrying more of the load. They do have some bright, young stars like Alex DeBrincat. However, the Blackhawks need more than just one of the younger stars to show up.

Then you have the questions at goaltender. It’s still Corey Crawford‘s net, but he has to come back strong after missing over half of the regular season this past year. If Crawford returns in top form, then the Blackhawks might be a long shot for a playoff spot. You need stability in the net, and the Blackhawks don’t have that currently.

The Blackhawks have a lot of great talent that will keep developing. I just can’t put them ahead of any other team in a ridiculously stacked Central Division. If everything falls in place for them, their veteran firepower led by Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane will at least allow them to make a slight improvement from their abysmal 76-point total from last season.  Not good enough in the Central.

Dallas Stars

This team fell apart down the stretch of the regular season. They were regulars in the wildcard spots nearly all season, then collapsed. Quickly following the shocking miss of the playoffs, the great Ken Hitchcock announced his retirement just one season into his return to the Stars’ bench.

With the Stars bringing in another new head coach, Jim Montgomery, they now have to learn a new system. The change may be for the best in the long run, but it raises questions and concerns about how they’ll start.

One thing they certainly have going for them is their top line of Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin and Alexander Radulov can stand toe to toe with any top line in the league. It gives them a fighting chance against every team, so you have to keep that in mind.

Much like the Blackhawks, their depth and goaltending is an issue. You need depth to survive the grind of an 82-game season, and I don’t see the Stars having that. Ben Bishop can go on hot streaks, and then go cold just as fast. If some unforeseen players erupt, then the narrative will certainly change. Where we stand in the offseason, the Stars will take a step back into the 80-85 point range and miss the playoffs by a wider margin.

Minnesota Wild

You can usually count on the Wild to have a solid regular season, and there’s no reason to expect anything less this season. They didn’t make too many changes over the offseason, keeping them in line to remain competitive. Every divisional team will have to play their top game to get two points against this club.

The Wild coming in at the ranking they’re at is a product of their division. Points are hard to come by, and I’m not sure they did enough in the offseason to move past the top dogs. In fact, other teams around them getting better might drop them out of the 100-point club. I do like that they kept key contributors like Matt Dumba around. However, their modest free agency moves don’t move the needle enough for me.

Devan Dubnyk is obviously a game-changer at goaltender. He’s coming off of another stellar season with 2.52 goals against average and nearly a 92 save percentage. He keeps the Wild dangerous even with their playoff woes. As a regular season team, they’re going to remain relevant.

I knock the Wild back because I see the teams around them doing much more in the offseason to move ahead of them. They’ll still make the playoffs again, but they have to prove they can get past the first round to move them up any further.

Colorado Avalanche

We saw loud and clear that the Avalanche are on the rise when they gave the Predators everything they could handle in the first round of the playoffs. The Predators may have taken them for granted early on, but you still have to credit the Avalanche putting up an impressive fight.

Heading into this season, the Avalanche are looking to maintain their momentum. Their top two scoring threats, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, make the top line deadly. There are question marks after that, but I see some promise for improvement for role players like Matthew Nieto and Tyson Jost. It’s a gamble to say they maintain their surge up the division hierarchy due to their depth.

The Avalanche are in an interesting situation at goaltender. They have a battle between Philipp Grubauer and Semyon Varlamov. Both are good enough to keep the Avalanche in plenty of games. I expect Grubauer to end up being the primary starter when the season starts.

Can MacKinnon repeat his MVP-caliber season with another? I think he can, but that won’t be enough to carry them to fourth in the division. If a few role players take the load off the top line, they’ll take another step forward.

Nashville Predators

It’s been a productive offseason for the Nashville Predators. All of the important cogs fueling the recent success of the franchise are retained for the long-term future. They virtually have the same team returning at the top of the lineup. Losses of Scott Hartnell and Mike Fisher hurt depth slightly, but others will get a chance to offer a jolt of youth.

I’m intrigued to see how Pekka Rinne and Juuse Saros split their time as starters. When it’s all said and done, Saros become the primary goaltender heading into the playoffs. Either way, the Predators will be solid once again in the net to win games even when the offense isn’t clicking. Robby Stanley of NHL.com likes the Predators to compete for back-to-back division titles, but their younger core of players need to step up.

The JoFA line is returning all intact once again, and the second line will also be the same with Kyle Turris at center. Last year’s team had a lot of changes, whereas this year’s team largely is the same. The addition of Dan Hamhuis from Dallas is an excellent move and will be an upgrade to the departed Alexei Emelin. It makes the Predators’ defense from top to bottom one of the best in the league.

The Predators didn’t make any huge free agency splashes, but they’re mainly the same team from a year ago. That’s not a bad thing. They’re in great shape to defend their division crown, but I can’t put them ahead of who ousted them in a grueling seven-game series.

Winnipeg Jets

Even if they’re not the defending division champs, the Jets are now the hunted in a division full of contenders. They took out the Predators in seven games in a series where each team respectively laid it all out there. The Jets came out on top against an elite Predators team that returns the same team once again this year. Without a regular season game to be played, the Jets get the slight nod over the Predators.

The Jets have a 2018 Vezina finalist in Connor Hellebuyck that makes them already tough to score on. That alone would make them a terror to go up against, but they couple that with a loaded scoring attack. Their 273 goals last season put them second behind Tampa Bay for tops in the NHL. They return the same scoring threats that got them that finish, led by Patrik Laine‘s 44 goals. Then you add in Blake Wheeler and they’re stacked group of centers and you’ve got yourself a top Stanley Cup contender.

It will come down to the Predators and the Jets most likely for the division, with the exception of any major injuries. There are outliers, like St.Louis, but it comes down to two teams. It’s a rivalry that will pick up more steam in the upcoming season. The Jets and Predators had productive offseason, but the Jets have the upper hand until the Predators can exorcise their demons from the last meeting.