Despite dealing away Tomas Vokoun, Kimmo Timonen and Scott Hartnell plus not re-signing Kariya, the Preds still have a solid defensive core. Shea Weber is the best of the bunch and one day could win a Norris. Marek Zidlicky will put up points but is shaky in his end. Ryan Suter could reach double digits in goals and increase his scoring. Dan Hamhuis is reliable and vet Greg de Vries is serviceable.

The Preds still have Jason Arnott and David Legwand centering their top two lines. JP Dumont and Martin Erat are solid players and Alexander Radulov is a future 40-goal sniper. Veteran Martin Gelinas adds grit as does former Ranger Jed Ortmeyer who should help them shorthanded. Radek Bonk also can take draws.

It’s still a competitive roster but how will Chris Mason fare as the No.1 netminder? There’s only the inexperienced Dan Ellis backing up. Guess who drafted him. Dallas.

The Stars didn’t make any drastic changes following a disappointing seven-game first round loss to Vancouver. And this time, Marty Turco couldn’t be blamed. It was the offense. Mike Smith is a solid backup.
Is there enough O? Well, Sergei Zubov and Phillippe Boucher should each be good for at a combined 100 points from the blueline. They’ll need Mike Modano, Jere Lehtinen and Jussi Jokinen to produce. It would also help if team leader Brenden Morrow stays on the ice because he means so much to the fabric of the Stars.

They could also use Mike Ribeiro who led them in scoring last season but will be out to mid-October due to a high ankle sprain.

If there are question marks, it’s the supporting cast. Can vets such as Stu Barnes and Niklas Hagman really be relied on for offense? Joel Lundqvist plays with a ton of energy. If they need a boost, expect Junior Lessard to get a shot. The former Minnesota-Duluth star had a good preseason.

No Longer Blue? When Andy Murray took over behind the bench in St. Louis, the Blues responded by playing better hockey and even made a run at the final playoff spot before the teams above them pulled away.

GM John Davidson did a wonderful job getting plenty back for Keith Tkachuk and Bill Guerin. Now Tkachuk is back hoping to help lead an improved team to its first postseason in four years (’03-04). The power forward will look to mesh with new Blue Paul Kariya and budding forward Lee Stempniak. They’ll look for Brad Boyes to step up production after coming over from Boston last year. He’ll work with vets Martin Rucinsky and Doug Weight.

The blueline could get a boost from rookie Erik Johnson, who after spending a year at Minnesota is ready to play in the NHL. The 2006 first overall pick has drawn comparisons to former Blue Chris Pronger. For now, he’ll try to blend in with vets Eric Brewer, Barret Jackman and Christian Backman. Manny Legace had a good first season in St. Louis and will man the goal while ex-Bruin Hannu Toivonen backs up for now. Former No.1 Marek Schwarz could also be recalled.

Working Their Way Back: For supporters of the Kings and Blackhawks, there hasn’t been much to cheer about lately. Maybe that might change this season.

While Los Angeles GM Dean Lombardi couldn’t make the big free agent splash this past summer, he did make some nice additions adding Ladislav Nagy, Michal Handzus and Kyle Calder up front to a core which already has a good core in the young trio of Michael Cammalleri, Alexandre Frolov and Anze Kopitar.

With Brad Stuart and Tom Preissing added to a blueline which includes new captain Rob Blake who should have a better season plus the often overlooked Lubomir Visnovsky and youngster Jack Johnson, the Kings appear to be very formidable.

The big question is in net with Jason LaBarbera and 2006 first rounder Jonathan Bernier. Can a 19 year-old rookie netminder backstop a team into the playoffs? Only time shall tell.

As for the Blackhawks, there’s more excitement due to a pair of promising rookies in 2006 third overall pick Jonathan Toews and 2007 first overall selection Patrick Kane. Much is riding on the teenagers’ shoulders. Toews is iffy for their first game due to two broken fingers.

They should get help from Martin Havlat, who’s one of the game’s most gifted players. If he stays healthy, 40-plus goals and 100 points isn’t out of the question. The problem is the ex-Sen almost always goes down. If he doesn’t, Havlat will start with vets Sergei Samsonov and Robert Lang. Vet Yanic Perreault is usually good for 20 goals and reliable on faceoffs.

If there are questions with this team, it’s whether Nikolai Khabibulin can regain the form he showed in backstopping the Lightning to the Cup three years ago. The blueline remains young with much expected of Brent Seabrook, Duncan Keith and James Wisniewski.

They might be another year away.

Bottom of Barrel: If you’re in this category, it’s probably not too promising. But it is just pre-rankings. Will any of the three bottom feeders silence us?

It’s hard not to admit that the Oilers improved even if GM Kevin Lowe can’t seem to attract big stars due to his reputation. Maybe if he wasn’t such a snake and knew how to run that once proud franchise, they’d be in better shape. If only he could lace up the skates and re-team with Gretzky, Messier, Kurri, Anderson, Coffey and Fuhr.

Sheldon Souray brings his cannon with him to Western Canada. The Oilers are banking on the former Hab to have a repeat of his NHL record 19 power play goals as a defenseman. That will be tough to match. As Joffrey Lupul found out, it’s not easy to play in Edmonton. He was soon shipped out along with popular captain Jason Smith to the Flyers for Joni Pitkanen, who Lowe is banking on to team with Souray to form a dynamic duo. Offensively, they should be fine. But there could be a few adventures in their end. Steve Staios is steady.
How desperate was Lowe to land a big name? After inking Thomas Vanek to a seven-year $50 million offersheet which Buffalo not only matched but made a threat about future Oilers (get the popcorn ready), the GM decided to get a little revenge from the team he hooked up last year by signing Dustin Penner away from the Ducks- giving the forward $21.5 million over five years. The recently turned 25 year-old from Manitoba is coming off a 29 goal, 45 point rookie season.

His size (6-4, 245) should fit in well on a first line with Shawn Horcoff and Ales Hemsky. Jarret Stoll, new captain Ethan Moreau and Raffi Torres will be relied on for secondary scoring. Vets Marty Reasoner and Geoff Sanderson provide depth. Much hinges on Robert Nilsson and 2005 first rounder Andrew Cogliano.
The biggest problem is in net where vet Dwayne Roloson fell back to earth last year. Mathieu Garon backs up after failing in L.A. Can you win with an aging No.1 and an unknown entity? Maybe Lowe should see if Mikhail Shtalenkov or Bob Essensa are still available.

At least the Oilers have a respectable roster which could compete. The same really can’t be said for the Blue Jackets or Coyotes. These teams could fight for the worst league record.

Columbus continues to look like they’re not going anywhere fast. Sergei Fedorov has had a distinguished career but the tank is running on empty. How could the 37 year-old Russian be their top pivot? Playing on this team must make him long for the days of Anna Kournikova and Detroit.

Rick Nash should have a better season under Ken Hitchcock and David Vyborny deserves to be on a contender. The problem for the Jackets is unless the latest Russian enigma Nikolai Zherdev fulfills potential, there isn’t much here to get excited about. Gilbert Brule plays with fire and should improve. Manny Malhotra is solid defensively and on the PK. Dan Fritsche as your second center? The pressure’s on.

Ron Hainsey will put up points from the backline but former 2002 first rounder Rotislav Klesla has been a disappointment. Ex-third rounder Kris Russell will try to help improve the D. It doesn’t get much better in net with veteran Fredrik Norrena. On a team like this, isn’t it time to find out what former 2001 first round pick Pascal Leclaire has?

If you think this team is bad, wait till you see the Coyotes. Former 2006 first round pick Peter Mueller is centering their top line. There’s still Shane Doan, Steve Reinprecht but where are they going with Mike York, Niko Kapanen and Radim Vrbata?

This is what Ed Jovanovski signed up for? At least the D has Keith Ballard and Zbynek Michalek. What game will Jovanovski go down in?

A.Game 8- out 2 months  B.Game 16- out indefinitely  C.Game 25- done for season

Hey. It’s better than watching this team Gretzky’s former agent did a bang up job on. Well, at least they got David Aebischer in net. And that’s supposed to be a good thing?

In The Hunt: One thing about this conference is it’s very top heavy. With the exception of the Central where Detroit should roll, the Pacific and Northwest will be awfully competitive. You could see some exciting races down to the wire like last year.

The Northwest might be the toughest to call. With the revamped Avs back in the mix and the Oilers a little better, the division games should be even more fun to follow.

You can never underestimate Jacques Lemaire’s Wild. When supplied with good players, the wise coach who led the Devils to a Cup usually delivers. With a nucleus which features Marian Gaborik, Mikko Koivu, Brian Rolston, Pavol Demitra and Pierre-Marc Bouchard, he has plenty of speed and smart players to send out. Mark Parrish isn’t bad on the third line either.

There really isn’t a standout on D but Brent Burns, Kurt Foster and Nick Schultz are capable. Kim Johnsson struggled in his first season.

If Niklas Backstrom falters in net after a great 2006-07 which made Manny Fernandez expendable, Josh Harding is more than capable of filling in.

One team they’ll compete with is the Flames. They relied too much on Miikka Kiprusoff to bail them out last Spring and paid the price. With ex-Bolt Cory Sarich in supplying some beef and Adrian Aucoin set to replace Roman Hamrlik, the blueline looks bolstered. Especially if Robyn Regehr stays healthy while Norris hopeful Dion Phaneuf continues to improve.
Alex Tanguay, Jarome Iginla, and Daymond Langkow are a terrific top line. Matt Lombardi and Kristian Huselius are coming off career seasons. How will Huselius perform under Mike Keenan? He was the one who shipped him from Miami to Alberta. Owen Nolan is a Keenan kind of player and Mark Smith, Craig Conroy and Marcus Nilson comprise a solid checking line.

This team has a nice mix. The only question is will they listen to Keenan? They could go very far or flop.

They’ll be chasing the Canucks who are similar in terms of personnel. Roberto Luongo will be looking for his first Vezina and should get help from a balanced D which includes Kevin Bieksa, Mattias Ohlund, Willie Mitchell and Lukas Krajicek. Ex-King Aaron Miller is a decent addition to this corps.

Up front, it’s the usual suspects in The Sedins who will create most of the offense. They’ll need more from captain Markus Naslund and Brendan Morrison who will be teamed with Taylor Pyatt. Pyatt is coming off a career best 23 goal campaign and could be in line for 30. They’ll need it along with usual offense from an active blueline.

Matt Cooke is underrated and Ryan Kesler must pick it up. If the well runs dry in the winter, don’t be surprised if they take a run at Naslund Swedish buddy Peter Forsberg. His addition would make sense for a team that’s not far away from its first Cup.

Last season, the Ducks wealth of experience and young talent proved to be too much in a very competitive conference. Chris Pronger’s addition to a blueline which already featured Scott Niedermayer gave them a clear edge over opponents. With second-year players such as Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry stepping to the forefront to team with Andy McDonald and veteran sniper Teemu Selanne plus a reliable checking line anchored by Sami Pahlsson, they won their first championship.

Even if Niedermayer retires and Selanne doesn’t return, Brian Burke’s club should still remain in the hunt. Despite losing Penner to Edmonton, he signed Todd Bertuzzi, who already hasn’t looked out of place so far. Chris Kunitz is one of the best kept secrets in the league. Travis Moen isn’t far behind. 2005 first rounder Bobby Ryan finally made the roster and starts out on the third line.

Burke did bring in Matt Schneider from Detroit to boost the D but the vet will miss some time with a broken ankle. There’s still Pronger to anchor it along with underrated Francois Beauchemin and vet Sean O’Donnell. They’ll manage.

While Jean-Sebastien Giguere recovers from hernia, Ilya Bryzgalov and Jonas Hiller are filling in.

The Ducks should definitely still be competing for the Pacific but the Sharks look to have the upper hand this time. The top line of Patrick Marleau, Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo is scary. Will the trio remain intact? Milan Michalek worked well with Jumbo Joe and Cheechoo last year. And Marleau can always move down if Joe Pavelski struggles. Steve Bernier and Ryan Clowe are a year older.

The Sharks also have a dynamite checking line which has Patrick Rismiller and Mike Grier on it. With promising rookie Devin Setoguchi in the mix, they just might boast the deepest four lines. Vet Jeremy Roenick isn’t what he used to be but he shouldn’t hurt either.
San Jose’s blueline is just as balanced with Kyle McLaren and Christian Ehrhoff anchoring a unit which features offensive talent Matt Carle along with Marc-Edouard Vlasic and vet Craig Rivet.

If Evgeni Nabokov performs well without Vesa Toskala, it all looks in place. The Russian could be a sleeper Vezina candidate and lead the Sharks to their first Cup Final.

The Red Wings should definitely again be fighting to go deep into next Spring. With Dominik Hasek back for another year, what’s not to like? Just as long as Chris Osgood doesn’t have to play every night.

Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk and Tomas Holmstrom are dynamic. Johan Franzen, Valterri Filpulla and Mikael Samuelsson are underrated and will play bigger roles. Jiri Hudler should improve.

They replaced Schneider with ex-Devil Brian Rafalski who should feel right at home in a similar system which gets the most out of players. Nick Lidstrom is still the best defenseman on the planet. Niklas Kronwall and Brett Lebda continue to improve. Can anyone believe Chris Chelios still plays and well?

Playoff Crystal Ball

Conf. Qtrs

(1) Wings over (8) Stars

(2) Sharks over (7) Avs

(3) Canucks over (6) Wild

(5) Flames over (4) Ducks

Conf. Semis

(5) Flames over (1) Wings

(3) Canucks over (2) Sharks

Conference Champion: Canucks

Stanley Cup Champ: Rangers

2007-08 Awards

Hart- Jason Spezza

Vezina- Henrik Lundqvist

Norris- Chris Pronger

Calder- Jonathan Toews

Selke- Mike Fisher

Byng- Joe Sakic

Adams- Jacques Martin

Smythe- Jaromir Jagr