Hockey Local Hockey Preseason Power Rankings by Will Wiegelman September 30, 2019 The NHL season begins this week and all four NHL teams we cover here at Double G Sports have playoff aspirations. These power rankings will be a weekly occurrence, coming out every Monday. Combining the minds of our group of hockey writers, I will rank the teams based on a basic points system, four points for a first place vote, three for a second place vote and so on, based on the team’s performance the week before. The first rankings are for the best team overall, not just the best team in the past week. During the season, they will be based on the past week. We had four voters this week and these are the results; New York Islanders (14 points, 2 first-place votes) The Islanders are the only team in this group to make the playoffs last season so there is little surprise here. In the offseason, the replaced Valtteri Filppula with Derick Brassard and Robin Lehner with Semyon Varlamov. What the Islanders have yet to do is improve an offense that finished 21st in goals for. Barry Trotz’s group will look for bounce back seasons up front to help boost the team to another playoff appearance. 2. New York Rangers (12 points, 2 first-place votes) The Rangers have been in a strange place the past couple of seasons. Rebuilding. A few high draft picks like Vitali Kravtsov, Lias Andersson and 2019 second overall pick Kaapo Kakko along with trades bringing in guys like Mika Zibanejad and Jacob Trouba plus new free agent signing Artemi Panarin have given the Blueshirts expectations this season. If Henrik Lundqvist can play well and the young players make strides this season, the Rangers will be in playoff contention and playing meaningful games in April. 3. New Jersey Devils (8 points) The Devils had a busy offseason, first at the draft when they took Jack Hughes first overall and then traded for P.K. Subban from the Nashville Predators on day two of free agency. Then, they signed Wayne Simmonds to a low-risk one year deal at $5 million on July 1st. Still boasting Taylor Hall and Kyle Palmieri up front, the team could have a lethal power play however, there are question marks in goal. Cory Schneider has struggled in the past three seasons, even going 14 calender months without a victory at one point. He also hasn’t had a save percentage above .908 since the 2015-16 season. Backup goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood has just 10 games of NHL experience under his belt but is a former second round pick and the Devils hope he can take a step this season. 4. Philadelphia Flyers (6 points) Bringing up the rear are the Flyers. After a disappointing year from players like Ivan Provorov, who got a long contract extension, and Shayne Gostisbehere, the Flyers are looking for a ton of bounce-back seasons. One thing that will help will be a new face in goal. Carter Hart will begin his first full season with the team as the goalie of the present rather than the future. One cause for concern is Nolan Patrick’s migraine disorder which will keep him out, at the very least, the start of this season and could keep nagging on him his whole career. Overall, the Flyers can finish as high or low as their defense takes them. Hart will be solid and Claude Giroux will continue to lead the offense. Post Views: 1,272 The following two tabs change content below.BioLatest Posts Will Wiegelman Latest posts by Will Wiegelman (see all) Lou Lamoriello Nominated for GM of the Year - September 10, 2020 In Movement Led by Hockey Diversity Alliance, NHL Postpones Playoff Games - August 27, 2020 UBS Arena: A New Home for the Islanders - July 22, 2020 Ilya Sorokin Signs with NY Islanders - July 13, 2020 Related TopicsNew Jersey DevilsNew York RangersPhiladelphia Flyers Click to comment You must be logged in to post a comment Login Leave a Reply Cancel replyYou must be logged in to post a comment. Newsletter Subscription Can't Miss Posts! Women in Sports: NHL Network Host, Jackie Redmond by Nicholas Durst | posted on March 4, 2019 Women in Sports: Podcast Host, New York Riptide Sideline Reporter, Dani Wexelman by Luke Porco | posted on March 3, 2020 From Paramus High School to CBS Sports, Spero Dedes is making waves in sports broadcasting by Sunil Sunder Raj | posted on October 27, 2020 Lochte, Dressel and Ledecky all Chasing Gold at 2021 Tokyo Olympics by Anthony Paradiso | posted on April 18, 2021 “Overtime” l Ep. 28: TopSpin Celeb-Athlete Tournament – Dec. 6, 2018 by Stefany Romero | posted on December 19, 2018 More in Hockey Tim Peel is Discharged After Caught on Hot Mic Tim Peel was Discharged from the NHL After He was Caught on the Hot... NHL, Amazon Web Services Partner to Develop New Stats, Data, and Insights The National Hockey League (NHL) is partnering with Amazon Web Services (AWS) in an... You Know I’m Right, Episode 81: ESPN’s Arda Ocal (Audio/Video) On the 81st episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... You Know I’m Right, Episode 80: MSG Network’s Bill Pidto (Audio/Video) On the 80th episode of You Know I’m Right, Nick Durst and Joe Calabrese are joined by... Islanders Puck Talk – The Waiver Wire Islanders finalize regular season roster