Steve Yzerman - No doubt here Yzerman will lead the class of 2009 into Hall. Steve played his entire career with the Detroit Red Wings and led them to three Stanley Cups. Yzerman won many major trophies as an NHL player including the Lester B. Pearson Award, Conn Smythe Trophy, Selke Trophy and Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. Steve sits sixth all time in league scoring and has a better point per game average then great like Gordie Howe, Ron Francis and Mark Messier. If you put all the accolades aside, one thing every one will remember about Yzerman was his heart. He loved the game and played through a lot of major injuries, and was one of the best leaders in all of sports. Steve’s best individual season was in 1988 – 1989 when he recorded 155 points with 65 goals, and was voted by the players as the leagues MVP. He also represented Canada on the international scene, highlighted by Olympic Gold in 2002, playing on a line along side Mario Lemieux. No doubt Yzerman will be inducted next year and deservingly so, he is a true Hall of Famer.

Brett Hull - Son of Hall of Famer, Bobby Hull, Brett will be inducted when he is eligible next year. Hull was a pure goal scorer, with a lethal and fast one timer. Hull made his living on the power play and quite possibly was the best sniper of his generation. Brett sits third on the all time goals list with 741 goals, playing for five franchises, Calgary, St Louis, Detroit, Dallas and Phoenix. The biggest goal he ever scored was a controversial one, that won the Stars the Cup in 1999. Later in his career he won another cup in 2002 with the Red Wings, along side two other players that will be on this list Luc Robitaille and Steve Yzerman. Hull holds a dual citizenship, but played internationally for the USA, highlighted by a World Cup title in 1996 and an Olympic Silver in 2002. Hull’s best season was in 1990 – 1991 when he scored an amazing 86 goals, he scored 50 plus goals 5 times in his career. Brett Hull will not be over looked next and will go into the Hall, on his first year on eligibility.

Brian Leech – Leech is quite possibly the best American born player of all time, and becomes eligible for the Hall of Fame next year. He was a tremendous offensive defenseman, who could make something out of nothing on the ice. He won the Norris Trophy as the leagues top defenseman twice and the Conn Smyth as playoff MVP in 1994. He also was the rookie of the year in 1989 and is only one of a handful of defenseman to score 100 points in a season. Leech will always be remembered as a New York Ranger, he played 17 seasons with the blue shirts, before finishing his career with Toronto and Boston. His best season was 1991 -1992 when he recorded more then 20 goals and 102 points on the season. He owns multiple Ranger records including most goals by a defenseman, most career assists and most points by a defenseman. Leech was an 11 time all star and retired with 1028 points which will easily get him into the Hall on his first try. Brain Leech might be the best player to ever play for the New York Rangers.

Luc Robitaille - “Lucky Luc”, is one of the most under rated players in NHL history. Luc is widely remember for his 14 seasons he played for the Los Angeles Kings, but he also played in Detroit, Pittsburgh and New York. He is the highest scoring left winger in the history of the National Hockey League. Robitaille won the Calder Trophy as the leagues top rookie in 1987 when he scored more then 40 goals in rookie campaign. Luc went on to score 40 plus goals 8 times in his career, highlighted by 63 goals in the 1992 – 1993 season. Four times Luc had more then 100 points in a season and retired with more then 1300 for his career. He was an 8 time all star and won a Stanley along side many great Hall of Fame players in Detroit in 2002. Luc Robitaille was a great NHL player, and although he probably didn’t get the recognition of Yzerman, Hull and Leech he deserves to go in the Hall along side them.

Being enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame is a tremendous honor that can cap off a terrific career. All four of these players have earned the right to be along greats like Wayne Gretzky, Gordie Howe and Maurice Richard in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Yzerman, Hull and Robitaille all celebrated a Stanley Cup together in 2002, and now it is time for them to celebrate together again.

10 – Buffalo Sabres - I didn’t see this happening before the season started, but the Sabres are off to a great start. They have a very deep set of forwards with guys like Roy, Vanek, Kotalik, and Pominville off to good starts. Right now Thomas Vanek looks like a true all star and has become the leader up front for this team. Great goaltending by Ryan Miller has gotten this team off to a 6 – 1 – 2 and leading there division. Buffalo is a great team to watch they have a great mix of speed and aggressiveness and seem to beat there opponents in many different ways.

9 – Minnesota Wild - Well I really don’t understand this one and I would have to say I am not sold yet. There isn’t a whole lot of talent on this team especially with Gaborik being hurt, but you cannot over look the fact that they are winning hockey games. They win by playing a great defensive system, they are allowing a league low 2 goals a game. To this point they still haven’t lost a game in regulation and are the leaders in the Northwest division.

8 – Anaheim Ducks – The Ducks got off to a horrible start, but seem to be getting it together. The reason for there bad start was that the team just wasn’t gelling, there seemed to be no unity on the ice. Top forwards Perry, Getzlaf and Selanne seem to be breaking out of there funk and will start to lead this team to more consistent victories. This team has great goaltending and a solid defense, if they get some goals they will win more then there share of games in the Western Conference. Keep your eye on this team, I think they will start playing as they should.

7 – Calgary Flames – Another team that didn’t get off to a great start, but seem to be putting it all together. Before the season I thought Calgary was truly a cup contender and I am not ready to take them off this list yet. Iginla, Bertuzzi and Cammalleri are starting to get some chemistry and will lead this team throughout the season. For this team to stay on this list Miikka Kiprusoff is going to have to play like the all star he should be. To me the Flames look like a building team that will only get better as the year goes on.

6 – New Jersey Devils - The Devils are still good, because they still have Martin Brodeur. Brodeur is still the best goalie in the world and as long as New Jersey has him they will be a top 10 team. The goaltending is great, but they still need to find away to score more goals, they are only scoring 2.5 goals a game. If they manage to get some more goals and get healthy this team will be near the top of the Eastern Conference all season long. The Devils have some injury problems in the forward lines, but still need to take the pressure off the goaltending and defense  by manufacturing some goals.

5 – Pittsburgh Penguins – You can’t over look the talent on this team, they are off to a bit of a slow start, but they will only get better as the year goes on. Recently they have been playing all world forwards Malkin and Crosby together and they have been scoring at a high pace. The injuries to there puck moving defense has really made it hard for this team in the early going. Fleury is also playing some great goal for the Penguins and gives them a shot to win every night. To win consistently the Pens will need secondary scoring from Staal, Satan and Fedotenko. In my opinion this team has no where to go, but up on this list.

4 – Montreal Canadiens – Still Stanley Cup favorites, and off to a great start. Not a lot of weaknesses on this squad, they are fast, balanced and get great goaltending every night. If they keep it up, they will be at the top of this list all season long.

3 – San Jose Sharks - The Sharks are proving they are still a great regular season team and will be near the top of the Western Conference all year. Highlighted by great goaltending and a solid group of forwards, there is no doubt the Sharks are one of the most talented teams in the league. If they continue to get secondary scoring they will have no problem being in the top three all year long.

2 – New York Rangers - They have slowed a bit from there great start, but still are right at the top of the NHL. Secondary scoring has really led this team with Dubinsky, Zherdev and Voros all off to great starts. They have gotten the great goaltending and defense that they expected, and if that continues I see them near the top of this list all season long. The Rangers are a great team in a great market and it is good for the league to have them playing this well.

1 – Detroit Red Wings – Defending Stanley Cup champions, and still the most talented team in the league. After a loss on opening night, they have played some great hockey and will only get better. A team full of stars like Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Hossa and Lidstrom, this franchise continues to be the best in the league. They are perfect on the road, and if they play any where near this good all year they will fight for the Presidents trophy. Detroit will be at the top of this list until another team proves they can play as consistently great as they do.

Toronto Maple Leafs vs Ottawa Senators
The first battle of an Ontario of this season, and both teams will be looking to have a good showing. The Maple Leafs have started off better then some expected and they would like nothing more then to beat the Sens on Hockey Night in Canada. Ottawa on the other hand is off to a tough start, and already seem to have a goalie controversy. Martin Gerber is off to a bad start and the Senators coaching staff is searching for ways to win. They have split up there big three, Heatley, Alfredsson and Spezza, trying to find the mix that will work. The Maple Leafs lineup has been different every night and you never know who will be in there. The Leafs don’t have near the talent of the Sens, but they work hard and play a good defensive system. These teams are kind of opposites Ottawa has no problems scoring while that is the Leafs biggest problem. Toskala is Toronto’s advantage in net, while Gerber just can’t figure it out in Ottawa. There might some new players and the teams might not be as good as they once were, but that doesn’t change the fact these franchises don’t like each other. If Ottawa gets decent goaltending and defense they should win, but you can’t count on that.

New Jersey Devils vs Philadelphia Flyers
Philly still hasn’t won a game this year and if they want to get that win on Saturday they will have to beat future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur. Brodeur is off to an amazing start and has proved that he is still the best goalie in the National Hockey League. Philadelphia is deep up front, but struggle playing defense and haven’t gotten very good goaltending thus far. The Flyers have to win eventually, they are to good to be playing this bad. They will be hard pressed to beat the Devils trap. These two franchises are in the same division and that usually makes for a high energy game. Every time the Devils play you have to expect a low scoring game, they will trap from the drop of the puck to the last buzzer. It’s the only afternoon game and probably won’t be the most exciting game you have ever seen. If the Flyers want to win there defense is going to have to play way better then they have and they will have to take advantage of any opportunity the Devils give them. The Flyers can score, but the question is can they score on the Devils.

Detroit Red Wings vs Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks are young and this game will be a measuring stick for them. In the past couple of years Chicago has played Detroit well and have had more success against them then any other franchise. Detroit is off to a fine start, but haven’t been as dominate to start the year as some predicted. Detroit is still the better team then Chicago, but the Hawks have some good young talent. The Blackhawks will be up for this game and look to continue there dominance of the Wings. Since Quenneville took over as the coach in Chicago, the team has played well and look like they might just be a playoff team this year. Both teams can score at will sometimes and to win this game the goalies will have to play well. If you like to watch stars this will be the game for you, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Hossa and Lidstrom vs. Kane, Toews, Havlat and Campbell. This should be a high energy, fast game that might be the most entertaining of the evening.

Pittsburgh Penguins vs New York Rangers
Two of the best teams in the East will do battle on Saturday night. Since Pittsburgh have started playing there super stars Malkin and Crosby together they have been on fire. New York has slowed a little bit, but still boast two very good scoring lines. The story early on has been the Rangers second line of Zherdev, Voros and Dubinsky who have played great hockey and produced for the blue shirts. Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist is off to a great start and the Penguins have a good goalie of there own in Marc Andre Fleury. This will be a premiere match up and I don’t think it will disappoint. Any time you get a chance to see great players and great teams go head to head it makes for great entertainment. There might even be some fights in this game, and I look for a tough physical affair. You can’t go wrong if this is the game you choose to watch, big stars, big game and on a big stage.

Other big games on this night will be Canucks vs Oilers, San Jose vs Tampa Bay and Anaheim vs Montreal. This should be a whole night of great National Hockey League action, and will make all hockey fans extremely happy. Whether you like offense, defense or physical play you will be able to find a game for you on Saturday October 25th. Enjoy the action and for all you fantasy players I hope you have a big night.

Edmonton Oilers vs Calgary Flames Home and Home
These teams historically don’t like each other and they will play a home and home series this weekend. If you watch these games you can expect a high emotion level, as if were a playoff game. The crowds will be into the games, and cheering as if the games were life or death. Both these teams are good and expect to make the playoffs this season, and both are fun to watch. Edmonton is young, fast and creative on offense and might be the most entertaining team in the league. Players like Hemsky, Horcoff, Cole, Gagner and Cogliano will lead the Oilers attack . Calgary plays a tough physical and solid all around hockey game. The pressure will be on there defense to stop the high flying Oilers. If Calgary wants to win these games Dion Phaneuf and Robyn Reghir will have to play like the all stars they are. Up front Calgary have some talent of there own, Jerome Iginla is one of the best players in the league and Todd Bertuzzi and Mike Cammalleri will help out. The problem for Calgary to this point of the season has been goalie Miikka Kiprusoff, who has looked horrible. Kiprusoff will have to play like he used to because Calgary doesn’t really have a useable back up. If Edmonton wants to win these games they will need to match the physical intensity of Calgary and get some secondary scoring. I am going to watch these games, they should be highly entertaining. Calgary vs Edmonton is the best rivalry in hockey and I would expect these two games to be filled with emotion. Look for two close games that are fast and physical. I don’t like to pick hockey games, but I would expect these games to be split.

San Jose Sharks vs Anaheim Ducks
Friday night, we will be treated to a match up of favorites in Western conference. These two teams are off to completely different starts, San Jose has looked great and Anaheim has looked brutal. The Ducks have looked bad everywhere goaltending, goal scoring, defense and special teams. The Ducks need to stay out of the penalty box, if they don’t they will continue to lose hockey games. Anaheim desperately needs there stars to show up, guys like Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Teemu Selanne need to be productive. San Jose is off to a 4 -0 start and have looked like the best in the West. Goalie Nabokov has been excellent and the team has been producing in front of him. Patrik Marleau looks like the coaching change has allowed him to play like the player of old and Joe Thornton is still a star. These two teams are very familiar with one another and would expect a good game on Friday night. San Jose is playing a lot better then Anaheim right now, but playing an old rival in San Jose might be the boost that the Ducks need. Ducks win, I just think they will be up for this game. Close game it might even come down to a shootout.

New York Rangers vs Detroit Red Wings
An all original six match up, that should be fun to watch. Both teams are highly talented and have huge expectations for this season. The Rangers are coming off there first loss of the season and the Red Wings are yet to get it going. The Rangers have leaned a lot on there second line for production, but will need there stars like Drury, Gomez and Naslund to play well to beat the Wings. The Red Wings are full of Stars like Hossa, Datsyuk, Zetterberg and Lidstrom, and it is hard to find any weaknesses. These teams don’t get a chance to play that often and the fans of the two franchises should be excited to see what happens. This could be a measuring stick game for both team and I expect a close battle. Two of the best teams in the league, you can’t go wrong if you choose to watch this game.

Boston Bruins vs Ottawa Senators
Northeast battle, both teams are off to a 1-1-1 start. I think these teams will fight it out all year and battle for playoff spots. Senators captain Alfredsson may miss this game and leave the Sens looking for some help. Boston is a deep team with guys like Bergeron, Ryder, Savard and Chara. Both teams have the same question marks, goaltending is the key to both teams. Neither team is overly comfortable with starting goalies and which ever goalie plays the best will lead there team to victory this weekend. In the Sens want to win Spezza and Heatley will have to play great games and put some points up on the power play. Look for a fast physical game between these two, before the years out the Senators and Bruins will hate each other. I will pick the Bruins to win, because I really don’t like Gerber as the goalie in Ottawa.

Should be a great weekend of hockey and there are even more games to check out. Toronto vs New York and Vancouver vs Buffalo on Friday. Saturday has some great match ups Colorado vs Dallas, Phoenix vs Montreal and Philadelphia vs San Jose. With a full schedule, this seems like the official start of the National Hockey League season. Original six match ups, home and home series and divisional rivalries rule this weekend. Watch as many games as you can, enjoy the action and cheer on your team.

Alexei Cherepanov – The news that young hockey star Alexei Cherepanov has passed away at the age of 19 was tragic and devastating to the hockey community. Cherepanov was a highly touted 1st round pick of the Rangers and was playing in Russia when the tragedy happened. I don’t want to get into the circumstances about his death because its not worth it, all I know is a young man passed away long before his time. It makes you realize that hockey is just a game and there are so many more important things in this world. I am sure Alexei will be missed and our hearts go out to his family.

Ryan Hollweg - I don’t really know what to say about this guy, he is a high energy player, but he keeps putting himself in bad spots. Hollweg got suspended for the 2nd time already this year for boarding or hitting from behind. He received his 4th game misconduct in 41 games and was suspended for a mandatory 3 games. This last hit wasn’t the worst I have ever seen, but obviously the referees and the league have a close eye on him. It has been said for years that Hollweg is a dangerous player, but I don’t know about that. It is obvious that he needs to get himself under control on the ice before he gets in a Chris Simon like situation or worse he hurts somebody. One thing is for certain, if he gets another boarding misconduct the league will punish him for a lot more then 3 games.

Anze Kopitar - The LA Kings have been struggling for a lot of years now, but they have a young star in Kopitar. The kings locked him up, signing him to a seven year contract extension. Its yet to be determined whether Kopitar is a franchise player, but its nice for the Kings fan base to know that they will have there most exciting player around for a long time. Judging extensions for young players is a difficult thing, but I like Anze as a player and the Kings couldn’t risk losing him in the future. I think he will become a star and hopefully lead the Kings back to respectability.

New York Rangers - A lot of hockey people thought the Rangers would be a good team this year, but this far they have been great. They are off to a 5 – 0 and have looked like they are unstoppable.  Henrik Lundqvist is off to a perfect start and if he keeps this pace up the Rangers will be great all year. Lundqvist has posted a 1.25 goals against average and close to .950 save percentage. Possibly the biggest surprise is the players who are leading the team up front, the Rangers second line has been great. Aaron Voros, Nikolai Zherdev and Brandon Dubinsky have led the team offensively. The three players have combined for 19 points in five games and have been a more then a pleasant surprise for the club. With great goaltending, secondary scoring and solid defense the Rangers are the best team in the league right now. Rangers fans caution yourself, there is no such thing as a perfect NHL season and there will be rough times ahead, but 5 games in they look amazing.

Bad Starts – Yes, it is just a few games in, but they are a few teams still without a win. Bigger then that there are a few teams that a expected to do big things that haven’t got a win in the column yet. Anaheim Ducks, Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Chicago Blackhawks are all winless to this point. All these teams have one thing in common, they have had trouble scoring goals in there first few games. Don’t read to much into this 3 or 4 bad games doesn’t mean its time to panic in these cities.

Jose Theodore – The Capitals went out and got Theodore to be there number one goalie this year and he is off to a bad start. Theodore has a GAA of 4.00 and a save % if .842, those are horrible numbers. Jose has been inconsistent in recent years, but one thing is for certain if the Caps want to make the playoffs Theodore will have to play a lot better then he is now. I like the Caps, and I hope Jose can pull it together, but you just never know with this guy.

Marian Gaborik - Rumors are flying around about Minnesota Wild all star Gaborik, the reports that he wants to be traded. Reportedly he turned down a 10 year big money contract to stay in Minnesota and if he’s not traded will leave at the end of the year to test free agency. The Rumored destinations are Vancouver and Montreal. My thoughts is that Gaborik will get traded soon and to Vancouver so he can play with is former teammate Pavel Demitra. Any team that wants Marian will have to give up a lot, but if you get him early in the year he can have a big impact on a franchise. We don’t usually see stars traded early in NHL season, but this might be an exception.

The season just started and there is know reason to be to high or to low about your teams start. If we have learned anything early on in this season, it is that every day is a gift and we should live life to the fullest. Hockey is just a game, but we all love it.

Detroit Red Wings
The Wings have about $450 000 in cap space currently, but have a couple of players on injury reserve. Chris Chelios and Darren McCarty are hurt and if they are going to be on the roster, Detroit’s management will have to make a move. Detroit also likes to add veteran pieces at the deadline and that will tough with there current cap situation. Detroit was forced to put a couple of good young players in the minors and I think they will want them to be with the big club sooner rather then later. The Red Wings have a few moveable pieces, they could make a trade and get some room. Kyle Quincey is the 8th defenseman on the team and is out of options and might be traded for a pick when Chelios is ready to come back. Detroit is also deep in the forward lines and could trade pending free agents like Mikael Samuelsson or Thomas Kopecky to create room for younger players. The Wings are the best team on paper this year, but they aren’t immune to cap problems. If they stay healthy look for them to make a move relatively early in the year.

Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers are a great team, but they are flirting with the cap. They have less then $200 000 in room and have a lot of money committed to forwards. They have almost $30 million committed to there top six forwards and have some good young talent almost ready to come up. Top prospects like Claude Giroux could come up and contribute with the team. I think they will look to move one of there top six forwards and the easiest one to move will be Mike Knuble. Knuble is a free agent at years end and makes $2.8 million this season. The Flyers are also currently carrying three goaltenders and might look to move either Nittymaki or Aubin to a team that needs a solid NHL goalie.

New York Rangers
The Rangers might be in the worst shape overall, with 6 contracts that are more then $4 million annually. The thing about the Rangers is that they have a lot of players locked up long term and there is no obvious player they could trade to get some space. The Rangers have been rumored to want Mats Sundin and Brendan Shanahan and they won’t be able to get them without moving one of there big contracts. Beyond the big names this team isn’t overly deep and might find it hard to move money. They do have guys like Petr Prucha who is a restricted free agent next year and other teams would want him. The bottom end of there roster is filled with guys who will be restricted or unrestricted at years end. In the long run I think they will eventually have to trade some of there high price talent, but that will probably happen in the off season. For now they could move Paul Mara ($1.95 million) or Aaron Voros ($1 million). New York’s real problem will be next year when a lot of there players are free agents.

Phoenix Coyotes
Phoenix is in great shape, with more then $9 million in room. Phoenix has a great young team and are looking to make the playoffs this season. In my opinion the Coyotes management will be ready to take advantage of some teams who will be looking for cap relief. Phoenix might be able to make some one sided deals to improve there team and help them make the playoffs and sell some tickets. They might be able to add some expiring contracts of good veterans to improve there team and help the young players progress in there careers.  If great players like Sundin, Shanahan and Forsberg want to return, Phoenix might be able to take a real shot at them if they truly want to make a run this year.

Vancouver Canucks
Much like the Coyotes, the Canucks are in great shape cap wise and ready to take advantage. The Canucks have been looking for offense all off season and you can be guaranteed that if solid offensive players become available they will be involved. They have some guys who will be free agents at years end, so they won’t be looking to take on long term contracts. They have already made a pitch for Sundin and if they can get a guy like Prucha from the Rangers or Samuelsson for the Wings I am sure they will jump at the chance.

We have already seen some movement early this year, with the Schneider trade and players like McLaren, Schaefer and Khabibulin being put on waivers. If Forsberg, Sundin and Shanahan return some teams will be forced to scramble to find the cap room. I think we will see a lot of moment early this year and teams with cap room will be able to make excellent trades to improve there teams. Good teams like Vancouver, Phoenix, Columbus and Dallas could make moves and take the next steps with there franchises. It should be interesting to watch and I look forward to see which teams will be the most creative and improve there teams.

Dallas Stars - This is an interesting team and I think they may be one of the best in the league. Dallas is very deep up front with players like Mike Modano, Brendan Morrow, Brad Richards and Mike Ribeiro. They added super pest Sean Avery and highly touted Swedish forward Fabian Brunnstrom. With great goaltending by Marty Turco and a solid defense led by Sergei Zubov, the Stars look prepared to take a run in the West. Dallas will be disappointed if they don’t win there division and at least make in to the conference final.

Detroit Red Wings – Defending champs and perennial favorites, the Red Wings seemed poised to have another great season. They added Marian Hossa to play on the top two lines and will team up with Datsyuk and Zetterberg to score a lot of goals. They have a  great defense headlined by Nik Lidstrom and solid goaltending from Osgood. If this team stays healthy, its hard to say that aren’t the Cup favorites this year, anything less then the Stanley Cup will be a disappointment.

Edmonton Oilers - Goals, goals and more goals, Edmonton is an offensive power house this year. They are deep and young up front with players like Ales Hemsky, Eric Cole, Shawn Horcoff and Sam Gagner. They also have a solid defense, and goaltending. The key is Mathieu Garon in net, if he is good the Oilers should be a playoff team.

Florida Panthers – This team has been selling potential for years and soon they will have to live up to that potential. They lost there best player in Jokinen in the off season, but made a trade for Brian McCabe who should fit in nicely with Boumeester. They have solid goaltending and some good young forwards, but I still don’t see them as a playoff team.

Los Angeles Kings – Sorry Kings fans, but they are horrible again. They have some good pieces up front with Kopitar, Dustin Brown and Frolov. Still have a lack a defense and no goaltending, the Kings look like they will finish last in the West.

Minnesota Wild - Hard team to explain this year, they have been close a few times, but didn’t do much to improve there team. They are solid and play a good defensive game, but may not score enough goals. They still have dynamic forward Marian Gaborik for at least this year, but they might trade him if they are not fighting for a playoff spot. I don’t think they are a playoff team this year.

Montreal Canadiens - The Canadiens are good and I think East favorites this year, Strong forward lines with players like Kovalev, Tanguay, Lang and Higgins. The key to there success will be whether or not young goalie Carey Price can be as good as they think he is. If Price is good and the defense holds up, look for Montreal to have a great year. Anything less then an appearance in the East final will be a failure.

Nashville Predators – The Preds are having a lot of financial problems, and continue to have low player salaries. They are not as good as they were last year, but still have some good players in Arnott, Erat, Dumont and Hamhuis. They might be a surprise team this year and fight for a playoff spot.

New Jersey Devils - One of the most consistent franchises in the NHL, the Devils will be much of the same this year. As long as Brodeur is with this team, they will be contenders. They are not great, but they are good enough to compete in the East with players like Elias, Gionta and Rolston. Solid defense will be the way they win, the same old boring Devils team.

New York Islanders – Well not much to say here, they are not good. Not much to talk about they have very little talent and won’t compete in the Eastern Conference. They have a good goalie in Dipietro, but ultimately that won’t be enough.

New York Rangers – The Rangers expect to compete in the East this year. Led by great goaltending by Henrik Lundqvist and a solid group of forwards with Drury, Gomez and Naslund. Defense is the way they are going to win hockey games, they will play a solid team game. They need good years out of guys like Prucha and Zherdev to add secondary scoring and balance to the line up. Look for the Rangers to be near the top of the Eastern Conference and compete for the East title.

Ottawa Senators – The Sens are looking for a bounce back season. Last year they started off looking like one of the best teams in the league, but faded and lost out in the first round of the playoffs. They still have great forwards in Spezza, Heatley and Alfredsson and they will score enough goals. The defense is a question mark, but the real problem is in net with Martin Gerber. Ottawa needs Gerber to play better then he has in his entire career and the defense may not be good enough to cover up mistakes. The dynamic forwards will help the Sens compete, but they will have to battle for one of the final spots in the Eastern Conference.

Stockholm Sweden - The Pittsburgh Penguins and. Ottawa Senators, will play two regular season games in Sweden. The NHL has sent there poster boy Sydney Crosby across the pond to grow the game in new markets. The league has shown that they will use Crosby in special events and he will participate in high profile games for the second straight year, last year he played in the Winter Classic. Last years Winter Classic was a success for the league and they hope that this years European schedule will be much of the same. The Penguins are going to use this trip as a team building experience, they hope this trip will bring the team closer together. There are big expectations on Pittsburgh this season after they made the Cup final a year ago. The team has some new faces in the locker room this year and there hope is when they come back to North America the team will be one and ready to have a great year. Yes Crosby is in Sweden, but he probably isn’t going to be the fan favorite, Senators forward Daniel Alfredsson is a home town hero. Alfredsson will be met with great fan fair and the expectations of putting on a good show in his home country. Daniel will skate on the top line with Spezza and Heatley, and they will look to put on a show. Ottawa will be looking for a bounce back year and will need to get off to a good start in Europe. These teams will play two games one on Saturday night and the other on Sunday night and should be fun to watch.

Prague Czech Republic - In Prague the New York Rangers will play the Tampa Bay Lightning in two regular season games. Both these teams made big changes in the off season and are looking forward to having big seasons. The Rangers have two Czech players in Petr Prucha and Michal Rozisal, that will no doubt be the fan favorites. The Lightning have some of the NHL’s biggest stars in Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St Louis and 1st overall selection Steven Stamkos. Stamkos will play in his much anticipated NHL debut and will draw attention from both sides of the pond. Tampa Bay has a lot of new players and will be looking to build some chemistry and build towards what they hope is a much improved season.  The Rangers are a big market team and the NHL will be looking to draw a lot of fans out to the games. Both these teams will be looking to get off to good starts, to prove that they are favorite teams in the Eastern Conference. The games will be Saturday and Sunday, the crowds should be rocking and hopefully the NHL gives them a good product.

Traveling to Europe has ups and downfalls for these four teams.  The travel and time change can take a lot of the players and put a damper on early season expectations. On the other hand, you can use these trips as team building experiences and bring the teams closer together. The teams are going to end up being in Europe for almost two weeks this season, I would expect when they get home it will take a while to get readjusted. Last year Anaheim and Los Angeles played in London and both teams got off to rough starts when they got home. Hopefully all four of these teams will adapt well and there will only be positive impacts on there seasons.

The future in Europe for the NHL is yet to be determined, but it makes sense for the league to expand its European fan base. The NHL more then any other North American professional sports league has a lot of European talent. Stars like Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Marian Hossa and Henrik Lundqvist all are European, and could go along way to the NHL being a success in Europe. In my opinion I like that four teams are going to these countries to start the year, but that is enough. You don’t need to send anymore then that, go over to Europe for a couple weeks and show off the great product the league has. This is not a vacation for these teams, the games matter and it will be important for them to get off to good starts.

It has been said that maybe there will NHL franchises in Europe within the next 10 years. I’m not sure I agree with that, the travel would be tough on everyone and the time changes would make it hard on the schedule makers. In my opinion if there is a good European league I could see an opportunity for the NHL’s Stanley Cup Champions to play the European Champion in a series at the seasons end. I’m not sure that will ever happen, but it might be interesting.  Whatever the NHL does, they need to capture the hockey market in Europe. Hockey is big in Sweden, Russia and the Czech Republic and the league has a lot of great stars from those countries. Who knows what the future holds, I hope the fans in Europe enjoy the NHL games this weekend and continue there love for hockey.

Detroit Red Wings – Defending champs and once again the Wings will be the Cup favorites heading into the ‘08 / ‘09 season. The Wings management didn’t rest on the fact that they pretty well had last seasons Cup winning team returning for this year, they made a big splash signing all star forward Marian Hossa to a one year contract. Hossa will join NHL stars Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg to create one of the most dynamic offensive teams in the league. The forwards are good, but this team is lead by the defense men and captain Nick Lidstrom. Detroit has the best top four defencemen in hockey with Brian Rafalski, Brad Stuart,  Niklas Kronwall joining Lidstrom. Chris Osgood will come into the season as the starting goalie and they added Ty Conklin as the back up. The Red Wings have an excellent mix of veterans and youngsters, future hall of famer Chris Chelios isn’t the player he used to be, but will be a leader in the room. Valtteri Filppula and Jiri Hudler should rise up and become the players the Wings always thought they could be. The Wings might be the best offensive and defensive team in the league. No doubt this season will be a failure unless they repeat and win the Stanley Cup once again.

Montreal Canadiens - Montreal had a great year last year and some surprising young players stepped up and become NHL stars. This year those same players will be expected to improve and lead this team. The Canadiens will start a future Vezina winning goalie in Carey Price, and if he can play like he did last year it will go along way to help the team become Stanley Cup champions. Once again Montreal will be led by veteran forwards Saku Koivu , Alex Kovalev and young brothers Andrei Kostitsyn and Sergei Kostitsyn. The Canadiens added to there depth up front with former Calgary Flame Alex Tanguay and veteran Robert Lang. If Tanguay and Lang can regain past form and play like all stars the Canadiens will rival the Red Wings for best top six forwards in hockey. Montreal will look for youngsters Kyle Chipchura, Maxim Lapierre and Guillaume Latendresse to produce and add depth to the forward lines. If the Canadiens have a downfall it is on the back end, Andrei Markov, Roman Hamrlik and Mike Komisarek will lead the group throughout the year. If the defense holds up and Price is a star in net, then look for the Canadiens to win the East and make a run at the Cup.

Calgary Flames - The Flames have been good for a few years now, but there problem has always been depth up front. The front office thinks they have fixed that for this year adding streaky forward Mike Cammalleri and big veteran Todd Bertuzzi. If Bertuzzi can be the player of old, along side team leader Jerome Iginla the Flames may just have enough depth to compete in the playoffs. Iginla is a perennial MVP candidate and will need to be just that for the Flames to have a great year. The defense is big and physical led by Dion Phaneuf and Robyn Reghir. The key to Calgary’s success will no doubt be goalie Miikka Kiprusoff, if he has a Vezina like year Calgary will be near the top in the Western Conference. To win Calgary will need secondary scoring and will look at Daymond Langkow , Matthew Lombardi and Craig Conroy to provide it. If Kiprusoff and Iginla are great and if they have finally found that extra scoring they have always needed Calgary should win there division and go into the playoffs as one of the teams to beat.

New York Rangers - The Rangers made some changes in the off season, but one thing remains the same at that is great goaltending. Henrik Lundqvist will be returning and looking to lead the Rangers to the promise land. Chris Drury, Scott Gomez and newly acquired Markus Naslund will lead the offensive charge. The Rangers hope young stars like Nikolai Zherdev, Dan Fritsche and Petr Prucha will fill out the depth out front and provide much needed scoring. New York signed free agent Wade Redden to lead the defense and the future may be now for Marc Staal on the blue line. Lundqvist is the key, without him this team becomes ordinary, but if he is good the Rangers will be good. If Naslund and Redden turn around there careers in New York this team should be near the top of the Eastern Conference.

When the season starts, all teams will be optimistic that this year might be the year for them. You won’t find a lot people that will argue that the Red Wings are the favorites to win, but anything can happen over a 82 game schedule. To win a Stanley Cup you need to stay healthy, have some surprise contributions from players you may not expect it from and a lot of luck go your way. These are the favorites to win in my opinion, but the NHL is a balanced league and you never know what is going to happen. The East is starting to catch up with the West and I am personally looking forward to a great season. Hockey is back and I can’t wait to see what will happen this year.

The Stanley Cup, is awarded annually to the Champion of the NHL. Unique to the National Hockey League the same Stanley Cup is awarded ever year and carries a lot of history and tradition. The name of the winning players, coaches, management, and staff are engraved on it for future generations to appreciate. The Stanley Cup was donated by Lord Stanley to be presented to the best amateur hockey team in Canada, but was purchased by the NHL in 1947, although he had been contested for by the NHL since 1926.

The 25 year original six era was dominated by dynasties. The Toronto Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup nine times in the 25 years, but have not been able to win it since 1967. The Montreal Canadians won five straight Stanley Cups 1956 – 1960, led by “The Rocket”. From 1948-1954 the Detroit Red Wings won seven consecutive regular season titles, no other team in NHL history have ever matched there regular season success.

Maurice “The Rocket” Richard of the Montreal Canadians became the first player to score 50 goals in one season in 1944-1945. Scoring 50 goals became the mark that all NHL goal scorers would try and reach, and is still the benchmark today.” The Rocket” played in Montreal from 1942 to 1960 and was widely considered the best player in the game and was idolized by Canadians fans. Richard was the first player to reach 500 goals in a career, he had 544 goals and 965 points over his career with Montreal.

Gordie Howe or Mr Hockey as you may know him played his first professional game in 1946 as a member of the Detroit Red Wings. He was an 18 year old right winger, who quickly established himself as a tremendous goal scorer and play maker. Gordie was a great goal scorer, but its important not to over look his physical toughness, he was as feisty as they come not shying away from fights. The saying “Gordie Howe hat trick” was coined for the way Gordie played. a goal, an assist, and a fight in one game. Mr. Hockey’s career spanned five decades and he retired as the highest scoring player in NHL history. Howe and Richard will go down as the best players of the era and be compared to each other forever.

In 1958 the colour barrier was broken in the NHL when Willie O’Ree played for the Boston Bruins. Willie only played 45 career NHL games, and faced constant taunts and racism, he scored four goals in his career. In 1956 Jacques Plante a goalie with the Montreal Canadians became the first to wear a face mask. Hard to imagine today, but goaltenders used to block shots with nothing protecting there face from the puck. Plante was good , but Terry Sawchuk was arguably the best goalie of the Era. Terry made his NHL debut in 1950 as a member of the Detroit Red Wings and amassed 501 wins and 115 shutouts over his career (including playoffs) Terry helped lead the Toronto Maple Leafs to there final Stanley cup in 1967.

In the early days a lot of the NHL was controlled by the Norris family, they had a stake in as many as four NHL teams. The Norris family owned the Detroit Red Wings, had a partnership with the Blackhawks and had control of Madison Square Gardens where the New York Rangers played. The Chicago Blackhawks history has always been one of disappointment, never having a team that was dominant for an extended period of time. Chicago did win a cup in 1961 led by the newly acquired Ted Lindsay and Glen Hall, but haven’t managed to win one since.

In 1952, Hockey Night in Canada was brought to the airways. The CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) put a hockey game between t

weekly game quickly became the highest rated shows on Canadian television and still is highly rated to this day. The first players union was introduced in 1957, by Red Wings forward Ted Lindsay as a result of the owners not opening up the books. The players wanted increased wages and pensions, this caused a rift between the players and the ownership and Lindsay was traded to the Blackhawks as a punishment.

The NHL has had its ups and downs in its historic run as the dominant hockey league in the world. A lot of hockey people will tell you that between 1942 and 1967 you could have witnessed the best game ever. The rivalries were great between the teams and there players. Dynasties ruled the era with the Montreal Canadians, Toronto Maple and Detroit Red Wings battling it out every year for the right to win Lord Stanley’s Cup. Hockey will never be as pure as it was in the original six era, we will never see players like Gordie Howe or Maurice Richard in today’s game. The mixture or skill and toughness made the game exciting no matter what brand of hockey you preferred. Along the way technology made the game more excess able and a lot of people were exposed to the game for the first time. All hockey fans should look back at the history, I guarantee you will have a better appreciation for the game. The NHL is full of history that is un-matched in any other professional leagues. Hockey players dream of skating around the ice lifting Lord Stanley’s Cup or having there name written along the sides of there idols.