First week of NHL play

The first week of NHL play is coming to a close and there are a few surprises so far and a couple expectations that have been met by a few teams.





The East:
I am a little surprised at the performance of some teams in the first couple games of the season particularly the Bruins, Rangers and the Flyers.  Or their lack of performance so far in their first 4 games this year.  All three teams are only at two points so far, which isn't a big deal yet, but I figured that they would be a little better to start the season.
Boston has not scored at the rate I thought that they would with their line up.  They've only netted a total of 4 goals in 4 games which will not cut it.  They know that and we know that. And like I said before, it is super early in the season to start to worry too much about it, I'm sure they will get it together.  When it starts to get to 9-10 games and they are still only getting a goal maybe two in a game, start to worry.  I know they play close games and the scores are usually lower with them, but they should be scoring more. Just keep telling yourself Bruins fans, it will come. Don't worry.

The New York Rangers are another team that I'm a little surprised about. They've scored more than the Bruins, currently sitting at 11 goals for,  but their goals against is a bit shocking so far.  They have 19 goals against for a differential of -8.  They are 0-2 at home and on a 3 game losing streak, as are the Bruins.  And much like the Bruins, Rangers fans should not worry, yet.  They have a team that can play well and score. Not to mention a goaltender who is one of the best in the league. They just need to play a little more defensively by the sounds of it.  It's not something they should have an issue with and their coach is more than capable of turning this problem around. Look for the Rangers to pick it up a lot and return to be one of the top teams in the East.

The Philadelphia Flyers are in the same boat as the Rangers.  The only difference is the Flyers haven't had the bounces go their way and they currently sit at 0-4 to start the season.  Their goal differential is only -5 and they have more than enough top end talent to score some goals. Look for them to continue to play some tight games the rest of the season but they should have a better goal diff and be in the top half of the conference.

A surprise on the good side of things so far the season is the New York Islanders.  With the talent that they happened to get right at the start of the season is helping them a lot.   Currently they have played 3 games and won all of them. They have a goal differential so far of +6 and have turned a lot of heads so far this year.  They have a lot of speed, a new (for them) goalie in Halak and strong leadership in Johnathan Tavares.  I'm not sure they can maintain this pace for the whole year, but so far they look like they have a lot of jump and may be a threat towards the end of the season for a playoff spot.

The West:
So for the Western teams so far this year, I am not too surprised to see how things are playing out.  About the only two teams that are a little surprising with their goal differential and their win/losses are the Dallas Stars and the St. Louis Blues. 
The Stars have a 1-1-1 record and are a -2 goal diff so far.  They have an amazing amount of fire power that should bring them back on the positive side of things and it shouldn't take long.  They have a goaltender who is more than able to play around 60 games this year (health permitting) and a defense group that should be hard to play against and gain the zone on.  Look for them to pick it up and start putting some wins in the W column consistently. 
The St. Louis Blues have a better goal diff at +2 and have only played 2 games so far this year (1-1) so there is absolutely nothing to worry about with them.  They are going to be a solid team again this year but it may take a bit for them to get rolling.
Look for them to be in the top half of the conference again this season.

The West isn't too surprising so far.  Plus it is very early in the season to jump to conclusions about how terrible or great a team is.  Many teams will have ups and downs through the season but it should shake out pretty much how everyone has expected.  The wild card for me right now, the Islanders.  They could be the underdog team of the year that surprises a lot of people and teams. 
Until next time.
Share, comment and +1 this.