October Report Cards, Part 1

Note: Records are prior to games on November 1st.

Anaheim Ducks (10-3-1)
Grade: B+
It's nothing short of a miracle that Anaheim has notched 21 of a possible 28 points with their special teams being this bad. They cannot sustain this streak if the power play and penalty kill continue to falter. I don't care how good their other metrics are, when you don't punish teams for committing penalties and don't bail yourself out when shorthanded, you're not going to see long-term success.

Boston Bruins (8-4-0)
Grade: B+
An uncharacteristically sloppy penalty kill is the story here. Boston is getting enough goal scoring and playing stellar defense as usual, but that PK needs a boost. Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand are off to slow starts, but the slack has been picked up by David Krejci (11 assists) and Milan Lucic (12 points) thus far. They suffered a tough loss to Pittsburgh the other night but rebounded nicely in a shootout win over Anaheim.

Buffalo Sabres (2-12-1)
Grade: F
I really didn't want to give this team an F simply because this is a rebuilding year and many correctly pegged this team to be the worst in hockey, but after scanning their stats I couldn't justify giving them a better score. If the PK were in the top ten I probably would've bumped them to a D- on the grounds that they were doing something right. However, 82%, while serviceable, isn't anything to celebrate. Trading Thomas Vanek for Matt Moulson was a complete fleece job by Darcy Regier as he continues to stockpile picks.

Calgary Flames (5-5-2)
Grade: B-
Was going to give them a higher grade until I saw the defense and special teams. Make no mistake, their record is still a surprise to me (hence the probably inflated B-), but it's a far cry from their hot start in the first few games. Sean Monahan has been the catalyst for this group, though he's disappeared a bit in their last few outings. They need to get him going again. They also need to figure out the goaltending situation, because the committee so far hasn't gotten it done.

Carolina Hurricanes (4-5-3)
Grade: D+
They should thank the rest of the Metropolitan Division (sans Pittsburgh) for being so putrid this season, because somehow the 4-5-3 Hurricanes are in second place. Nobody has reached double digit points yet and only four players have a plus rating. The goaltending has quite literally been a three-ring circus, with Cam Ward and Justin Peters faltering while Anton Khudobin has been sharp. Khudobin's on IR now though, so Ward and Peters have to play better... Ward especially, since he's the starter.

Chicago Blackhawks (8-2-3)
Grade: B+
They're scoring, they're converting on the power play, and they're getting a lot of pucks to the net. Defense has been an adventure so far, though, with the NHL's worst PK not helping matters. You can only mask bad defense with good offense for so long, but if the Hawks are driving possession and applying a solid forecheck, the penalty kill numbers will come up some.

Colorado Avalanche (10-1-0)
Grade: A
This team was doing everything right until Semyon Varlamov turned himself in to police amid charges of kidnapping and domestic violence. Backup Jean-Sebastien Giguere has been great so far, so it looks like the Avs will be alright for the time being in net. Who would've thought they'd be 10-1 through the first month and that it would be the defense that got them there? The trade that brought in Max Talbot will only help them continue to be solid in their own end.

Columbus Blue Jackets (5-6-0)
Grade: C
The Blue Jackets look like a team that is just trying to stem the tide right now. They're still without Nathan Horton for the foreseeable future so they will be missing a major offensive weapon going forward, but even at 5-6 they're right in the thick of it in the Metropolitan Division, where they sit in 4th place. They have to improve the special teams and find some more scoring, but if they're above .500 when Horton comes back, look out.

Dallas Stars (5-6-1)
Grade: D+
Given the fact that the Central Division has delivered in terms of being iffy in the middle, the last-place Stars don't deserve any better of a grade. They're 1-2-1 against their division rivals thus far and that will not get it done. They've been the model of mediocrity to this point in the NHL and have to improve in all areas of the game if they want to climb up the mountain. I believe it's an issue of depth with this team, as they simply don't have enough on the wings or on defense.

Detroit Red Wings (7-4-2)
Grade: C+
Let me put it this way: this team is not trending in the right direction. The offense has not produced, they've gotten almost nothing from Stephen Weiss so far, and the special teams have been meh. Defensively, they've been good enough to have a winning record, but again the scoring isn't there. Detroit has just 20 points from its defensemen so far, led by Niklas Kronwall with eight. They need more from the backend.

Edmonton Oilers (3-9-2)
Grade: F
This team has been a complete trainwreck after such high hopes to begin the year. Taylor Hall is hurt, Nail Yakupov has been nonexistent, the defense has continued to suck as only they can, and the special teams continue to not produce. This squad is doing nothing well right now. Mark Arcobello is off to a nice start with 10 assists, but when he's tied for your team's lead in scoring, there are serious issues that need to be addressed.

Florida Panthers (3-7-2)
Grade: F
This grade is another case of me wanting to be soft on a team that everyone knew was bad preseason but being unable to justify it. The Panthers have been absolutely brutal so far. Tim Thomas has not been healthy and it's been clear that his body isn't in playing shape yet. Brad Boyes has slowed down, Jonathan Huberdeau hasn't gotten untracked yet and Shawn Matthias is struggling. They need more from their best players.

Los Angeles Kings (9-5-0)
Grade: B
They're currently sitting in fifth place in the stacked Pacific Division, but that's no reason to count the Kings out. Aside from their goal scoring, they've been solid overall. Anze Kopitar is off to a great start and the defense has both kept them in and won games. They'd like to see an increase across the board; these are not the numbers of a Stanley Cup contender. However, they don't need to be yet, that can wait until the playoffs.

Minnesota Wild (6-4-3)
Grade: B-
I can't figure this team out. They aren't scoring, but have a great power play. The defense has been stingy, but the penalty kill has been a sieve. Josh Harding has played admirably in net so far, but this team needs Nicklas Backstrom to be healthy and playing his best hockey if they're going to improve upon their success from a season ago. Also, where has Dany Heatley been? Has anyone seen him?

Montreal Canadiens (8-5-0)
Grade: B+
With the statistics that they've put up across the board, Montreal should probably have a better record than they do. They're trending in the right direction, but they need to get more pucks to the net. It's going to be tough to maintain such a low goals against average, so the more they can help out the goaltending by driving possession, the better off they'll be.

30 Teams, 30 Days - Chicago Blackhawks

You can pretty much pick and choose what you thought was the one single highlight of the Chicago Blackhawks season and have a valid claim. You could choose their epic run of 24 games, which was half of the shortened season, without a regulation loss. You could pick their regular season record of 36-7-5, getting 77 of an available 96 points (80.2%). Maybe it was their 11-point cushion on the rest of the conference, 17 on their division, and the Presidents' Trophy. Or perhaps their comeback from being down 3-1 against Detroit in the Conference Semifinals. What most people would say, including the players, coach Joel Quenneville, and the team personnel, is of course the Stanley Cup they won. Chicago defeated Boston in a thrilling six games, including their furious comeback in the third period of Game 6, scoring twice in a span of 17 seconds to win it all. Just like they did in 2010, the Blackhawks parted ways with several role players this offseason, and what's left is the same core with different supporting parts trying to repeat.

Projected Forward Lines:

Patrick Sharp - Jonathan Toews - Patrick Kane
Bryan Bickell - Brandon Pirri - Marian Hossa
Brandon Saad - Andrew Shaw - Jeremy Morin
Marcus Kruger - Michal Handzus - Brandon Bollig
Jimmy Hayes - Ben Smith

With Viktor Stalberg, Dave Bolland, Michael Frolik, and Daniel Carcillo gone, the opportunity is there for some of the younger players to step in and make an impact this season. Enter Brandon Pirri, who scored 75 points in 76 games for Rockford of the AHL. He appears ready to step into a top six role and should center Marian Hossa, so he'll have chances to fill the stat sheet on a nightly basis. The top line remains the most dangerous, though perhaps they swap Sharp and Bickell to balance them a bit better. The third line will serve as the energy line, with three kids leading the charge, and the fourth is a traditional checking line. The Blackhawks are one of the few teams that can roll four lines against any team, at any time, in any situation, and that is quite possibly the best luxury to have in hockey. The #2 ranked offense in the NHL will yet again be a force to be reckoned with.

Projected Defensive Pairings:

Duncan Keith - Brent Seabrook
Niklas Hjalmarsson - Johnny Oduya
Nick Leddy - Michal Rozsival
Sheldon Brookbank

No changes on the backend to report, and that's for the best, since they allowed the fewest goals in the league last year. Nick Leddy is a guy who has greatly improved since he came into the league. Once a liability in his own end, he has now become a responsible puck mover. Hjalmarsson just inked himself a new five-year extension worth $20.5 million. It's a small raise over what he was already making ($600K more per year), but it's well deserved for the man called "Hammer" by Chicago fans. Keith and Seabrook are the best top pair in the NHL, bar none. They got it done in their own zone every night and were impressive offensively as well. The duo combined for 47 points (11G-36A), a +28 rating, and five power play goals. They're ready to do it again, so I think it's fair to say that the rest of the league is on notice.

Goaltending:

Corey Crawford
Nikolai Khabibulin

Not to be forgotten on the extension talk, Corey Crawford recently signed a 6-year, $36 million contract that kicks in next year. He had a stellar campaign, going 19-5-5 in 30 games while putting up a 1.94 GAA and a .926 save percentage (16-7, 1.84/.932 in the playoffs). With Ray Emery now in Philadelphia, Crawford will get a bigger share of the starts. I'm expecting him to play about 65 games, with veteran backup Khabibulin getting the rest of the calls. Crawford was helped greatly by the defense last year, as the Blackhawks finished 4th in the NHL in shots against. The only question here is how the short summer will affect him and if it will cause a slow start. Either way, the Blackhawks should be fine in net.

Special Teams:

Chicago will definitely look to improve its success on the power play this season. They were 19th in the NHL last year, which means they definitely underachieved, given the talent level present. I honestly don't see a scenario where the Blackhawks aren't better on the man advantage. With Kane, Toews, Sharp, Hossa, Keith, Seabrook, Saad, Pirri, Bickell, Leddy, and whoever else they decided to roll out there, this group is too good to fail again on these opportunities. The penalty kill was a much different and better story last year. Chicago finished 3rd and with the entire defense corps coming back this season, they are poised to remain in the top five. The forward units are a bit cloudy with the departures, but they should be able to figure out who will be on the PK in training camp and the preseason. They say that your best penalty killer needs to be your goalie, and Crawford is about as good as anyone to have back there. Expect to see a good number of kills credited to his play in net.

X-Factor:

I think the X-Factor for Chicago is Bickell. He scored 17 goals in his first full season for Chicago, but that number has dipped to nine in each of the past two campaigns. He has an elevated role this year in the top six, and he has to step it up offensively and provide them with reliable secondary scoring and depth. Of course, when you want your scoring numbers to increase, you can't do much better than Kane, Toews, and Hossa as potential linemates. If his sets new career highs, then there's no doubt in my mind that the Blackhawks are the favorites to win the Western Conference.

The Blackhawks will make the playoffs if...

... they don't go down in a plane crash. Chicago is the best team in a weak division, and they along with St. Louis will have a healthy cushion on the rest of the field. As I was writing this post, I sat here and thought of possibilities that would cause Chicago to miss the playoffs... I'm coming up empty. They get to play everyone in their division not named the St. Louis Blues 24 times this year. To say they're going to fatten up on the Central Division is an understatement. Chicago is going to lay waste to the competition and win the division, and potentially more.

The Blackhawks will miss the playoffs if...

... every single star player on this team and most of the depth players gets injured, the aforementioned plane crash happens, or both... can't be too careful. Chicago is easily the biggest mortal lock to make the postseason in the NHL. I'd bet the farm on it.