October Report Cards, Part 2

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

Nashville Predators (6-5-2)
Grade: C
Would it really be Nashville Predators hockey if we weren't talking about a sputtering offense and a pretty good defense? Seems like every year the Predators insist on trying to win every game 2-1 and all anyone ever talks about is how tough they are to play against. They need to work on maintaining leads in the next few games, as they blew a 3-0 first period lead in Phoenix the other night, losing 5-4 in a shootout.

New Jersey Devils (3-5-4)
Grade: D
Hard to make an argument for a group that's lost nine of 12 games so far and is towards the bottom of the NHL in scoring while also in the bottom half in defense. Given the dearth of offensive talent on this team, the power play has been pretty good, coupled with an average penalty kill. The signing of Ryane Clowe has not worked out for this team, as I expected.

New York Islanders (4-5-3)
Grade: C-
I still believe that the Islanders are a better team than their record indicates and what they've shown so far this season. They're putting the puck in the net and have been good on special teams so far, but last night's 57-shot effort in Ottawa aside they're not winning that battle and they haven't been able to keep the puck out of their net.

New York Rangers (5-7-0)
Grade: C-
They get a bit of a pass due to all the injuries they've sustained thus far, but they still haven't been playing good hockey. The offense hasn't hit its stride yet, though that's to be expected when it has yet to be at full strength. The special teams have been pretty good so far but the Rangers are the NHL's worst team at 5 on 5 this season.

Ottawa Senators (4-6-2)
Grade: D+
Yikes, there are a number of defensive issues with this team. They were already 28th in the NHL in shot differential before last night's -26 against the Islanders. Goal scoring hasn't been a problem for the Senators and they've also been pretty good 5 on 5 and on the penalty kill, so I expect them to turn it around soon. They just have to avoid the defensive breakdowns and sustain the forecheck better.

Philadelphia Flyers (3-8-0)
Grade: F-
Yes, the Flyers get an F-, the worst possible grade on this scale. Their grade is even worse than the Sabres, Panthers, and Oilers because Philadelphia was expected to have a bounce back year. They've been beaten soundly all over the ice and some of their best players haven't shown up yet this season. Not that it factors into their grade, but last night's 7-0 loss at home to Washington is a microcosm of the laughable failure this team has suffered.

Phoenix Coyotes (9-3-2)
Grade: B+
Phoenix is looking like a serious contender out west, and the shocking thing to me is that they're tied for third in the NHL in scoring. The defense hasn't been as sharp as we're used to seeing under head coach Dave Tippett, but aside from that they are firing on all cylinders. They have the most points by defensemen in the NHL, and the trio of Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Derek Morris, and Keith Yandle has combined for eight goals and 23 assists through the team's first 14 games.

Pittsburgh Penguins (9-4-0)
Grade: A-
Props to the Penguins for being the class of a bad division so far, because even with Evgeni Malkin's recent scoring drought they're still winning games. Jussi Jokinen has been on fire with six goals in October. Marc-Andre Fleury has been good, and it's really helped this team get settled in through the first month. The penalty kill has been a bit weak so far, but there's plenty of season left for that to improve.

San Jose Sharks (10-1-2)
Grade: A+
The Sharks are the NHL's best team through October, though fans in Colorado and St. Louis could easily make cases for their teams. Rookie Tomas Hertl has cooled off after his ridiculous start to the season, but now Joe Pavelski has the hot stick and it goes to show that their depth is their biggest weapon. Antti Niemi has been a brick wall in net, but I wonder if he's getting overused early on.

St. Louis Blues (7-1-2)
Grade: A
A light schedule in October has seen the Blues play just ten games (not including last night's win over Florida), but that hasn't stopped them from making quite an impression in the early going. If you haven't seen this team play yet, you need to fix that problem. Over the years I've never thought of the Blues as a particularly fun team to watch, but this season they are making me tune in regularly with their inspired play at both ends of the ice.

Tampa Bay Lightning (8-4-0)
Grade: B+
They've been impressive so far, but this is once again a stereotypical Lightning start to a season. They're always the team that comes out of the gate hot, but then as time goes on their defensive issues catch up to them and they fall back into the pack. All of their metrics look good except for the shot differential, where they've been outshot by 1.4 per game through the end of October. They need to get that number positive.

Toronto Maple Leafs (10-4-0)
Grade: A-
I had a feeling that the Leafs would be a solid team this season, but I didn't expect a 10-4 run through the first month of the season. There's a huge red flag with this team, though, and it's possession. The Leafs have been terrible in the faceoff circle and are 29th in the league in shot differential. However, they have won every game in which they outshot their opponent, and they are 4-2 in games that they have trailed after either the first or second period.

Vancouver Canucks (9-5-1)
Grade: B
This grade would be higher if John Tortorella hadn't already made their power play as horrible as he did the Rangers' during his tenure in New York. They're getting scoring from many sources, but not all at once and it has left them in the middle of the NHL in scoring. The penalty kill has been very stingy so far and Roberto Luongo is off to a nice start. They're headed in the right direction.

Washington Capitals (5-7-0)
Grade: C-
They don't deserve a higher grade than this for their play in October, but they get an A++ for their 7-0 win in Philadelphia last night (and it was without Ovechkin too). The problem for the Caps is even strength play; they're a minus in that department and it's led to their sub-.500 record even though their power play and penalty kill rank third and second, respectively.

Winnipeg Jets (5-7-2)
Grade: D
I think it's time to end things with Ondrej Pavelec. He's a bad goalie, and Al Montoya has played wonderfully in his limited playing time so far. Stands to reason that they should give Montoya more starts, right? The offense has not produced so far, the new acquisitions have not fit into the lineup well and the power play has been punchless. Their 44.1% on faceoffs is the second-worst in the league, only ahead of Calgary.

30 Teams, 30 Days - Phoenix Coyotes

After the 2011-12 season, when the Phoenix Coyotes did the unthinkable - win not just one playoff series, their first since moving to the desert from Winnipeg, but two, they couldn't sustain that success amid injuries and a sputtering offense that couldn't get it going in the shortened season. They want to recapture the success from that memorable run, where they won the Pacific Division title and then knocked off Chicago in six games before dominating Nashville in a five-game series win. The run ended in the Western Conference Finals at the hands of the hated Los Angeles Kings. Now, with a true top center finally on the roster in Mike Ribeiro, a healthy Mike Smith, and most of the roster back from last year's team, the Coyotes appear poised to return to the playoffs.

Projected Forward Lines:

Mikkel Boedker - Mike Ribeiro - Radim Vrbata
Lauri Korpikoski - Martin Hanzal - Shane Doan
Chris Brown - Antoine Vermette - David Moss
Rob Klinkhammer - Kyle Chipchura - Brandon Yip
Brandon McMillan - Paul Bissonette

This is about as good a top six as Phoenix has had since Keith Tkachuk, Jeremy Roenick, Tony Amonte, and Cliff Ronning were in town. This group will be much better on offense with Ribeiro's skill and passing ability. Expect a jump in goals from the top line and power play unit and Ribeiro's presence is the reason why I believe that Boedker will have a breakout season. The second line has a good mix of size and speed with Korpikoski, Hanzal, and captain Doan. Vermette is good enough to be on the top six, and could shift to wing if the team feels they need his abilities on the second line. The fourth line is a gritty energy line that will see different players frequently, as coach Dave Tippett should rotate McMillan and Bissonette in as needed. All in all, this looks like a good forward group.

Projected Defensive Pairings:

Oliver Ekman-Larsson - Zbynek Michalek
Derek Morris - Keith Yandle
David Schlemko - Michael Stone
Rostislav Klesla

Klesla will be back in the lineup once he returns from the nasty concussion he suffered last week at the hands of Jordan Nolan of the Kings. For now, it'll be Schlemko and Stone on the bottom pair, but there is still a battle for those last to slots between them, David Rundblad, Chris Summers, and Brandon Gormley. More injuries would get them into the lineup, and they're capable players who can fill holes as needed. Ekman-Larsson has developed into a complete player and he is close to being a top-tier defenseman in the NHL. Don't be surprise if he garners some votes for the Norris Trophy this season. Michalek and Morris are the veterans of the group, and former All-Star Yandle is the best puck mover on the team and should produce offensively. This is a balanced backend that will provide quality defense and respectable offense.

Goaltending:

Mike Smith
Thomas Greiss

Based off of what he did two years ago, we all know what Smith is capable of, and his injury-riddled campaign last year saw a dip in his numbers. He needs the team in front of him to keep play in the other end and block more shots, because the Coyotes averaged 30.6 shots against per game last year, 21st in the league. They actually outshot opponents by .3 per game last year, and that number needs to increase so that Smith can stay fresh. Having a significant upgrade at the backup position will be a huge help as well. Greiss has experience at the World Championships and the Olympics for Germany, and has been a serviceable backup for the Sharks the past few years. Expect at least 20 games from Greiss this year to keep Smith from wearing down.

Special Teams:

Phoenix was once again anemic on the power play, finishing 25th in the NHL at 14.8%. They should find much more success with Ribeiro in the lineup, who helped key Washington's league-best unit last year. Having Vrbata healthy will be significant too, as he missed 14 games last year. He's their best pure shooter and should be right at home with Ribeiro feeding him. Yandle and Ekman-Larsson should also play big roles on the power play, the former with his vision and the latter with his booming slap shot. One thing that coach Tippett always preaches to his teams is discipline, and the Coyotes lacked that at times. They were even on the differential last year, but that's still 169 times shorthanded. Their usually solid penalty kill had some cracks last year, finishing 22nd at 79.9%. Bringing in Yip in free agency should help the PK, and they have capable defensemen in Michalek and Morris to fill roles when shorthanded.

X-Factor:

I think the area that would most help this team reach new heights is secondary scoring. The top line is going to be productive now that Ribeiro's in town, but what about the other units? Doan has been a model of consistency in his career and is good for 55-60 points on an annual basis, but can Hanzal and Korpikoski step up and produce more offensively? If not, can they find someone who can? Do they put other wingers with Ribeiro to try and get them going? The only thing holding them back is offense. If they find it, the sky's the limit.

The Coyotes will make the playoffs if...

... offense is found past the first line, Smith returns to the form he showed two seasons ago, and the defense continues to be stingy. The organization loves to say that they play "hockey the hard way." I can't disagree with them, as many of the Coyotes' wins involve tight, one-goal margins coupled with impressive stands by the defense late in the third period. This group is capable of lighting the lamp more often now and as we learned from their run two years ago, this is a scary team when the offense is clicking. Smith has to be better this year, and he should be as long as the forward lines drive possession. Making the playoffs is a tall order in the NHL, but this team is up to it.

The Coyotes will miss the playoffs if...

... the offense struggles again, Smith can't find his game or gets hurt again, and the special teams don't improve. Phoenix is one of those teams that can be really good but they also can't afford to beat themselves, and they did that last year by failing to capitalize on opportunities and letting too many shots through. They have to play a more opportunistic game this season if they want to return to the postseason. With Vancouver and Edmonton now in their division, the Coyotes will have to raise their game. I believe that they'll get back to the playoffs, but as they say, anything can happen.

The Phoenix Coyotes' Ownership Saga Ends

Finally.

That's what everyone in Arizona, and likely league-wide, is saying right now. The ownership group known as IceArizona, headed by George Gosbee and Anthony LeBlanc, has closed on its purchase of the Coyotes from the NHL today. The deal will keep the Coyotes in Glendale for at least five more years, and I for one hope that their stay becomes permanent.

After talks of the team potentially being moved to Seattle, Hamilton, and many other locales in the United States and Canada, the fanbase, the players, the coaches, and the front office should all be thankful that the madness of the last few years is now finally behind them.