5 takeaways from Week 1 of the 2019-20 NHL season

The Metropolitan Division Is Going To Be Fun

The Metropolitan Division should be a ton of fun this season. Sadly, the Columbus Blue Jackets are probably going to be left out of it, although their early struggles aren’t nearly as bad as they might seem. With two huge question marks in goal, the Blue Jackets are the Metro team I feel least confident about. Plus, losing Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky has left them without a true star.

Also, even though it’s early, the Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes are clearly the class of the division. They entered the season as the top two contenders to win the division and nothing I’ve seen suggests they’re anything short of Stanley Cup contenders. These two teams might not have a rivalry yet, but tensions between the two teams are quickly heating up.

However, the rest of the division is hard to predict, which is why it’s so darn fun. The Philadelphia Flyers might be a wild card team or they might challenge the Blue Jackets for the worst record in the division. It all depends on Carter Hart exorcising the Flyers’ well-documented goaltending demons.

The New York Rangers probably aren’t going to continue scoring at the rate they are. Mika Zibanejad leads the league in scoring with eight points in his first two games. The Rangers have scored 10 goals in two games. It’s pretty clear they’re going to be a team that hopes to outscore their defensive issues. I look forward to watching them try.

On the other end of the spectrum, the New York Islanders are going to try to win every game 2-1. While they won 4-1 against the Winnipeg Jets, I wouldn’t put too much stock in that game considering how bad the Jets defense is right now. Barry Trotz has a track record of winning, so it’s hard to bet against the Islanders.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have the longest playoff streak in the NHL, having made it in each of the past 11 seasons. However, that streak is in severe jeopardy thanks to Malkin’s injury which head coach Mike Sullivan described as “long-term”. Still, I utterly refuse to count out a team that has Sidney Crosby on its roster.

Here’s how I think things will wind up after 82 games.

1. Capitals
2. Hurricanes
3. Islanders
4. Devils
5. Penguins
6. Flyers
7. Rangers
8. Blue Jackets

But honestly, you could put together any combination from 3 to 7 and I’d likely believe it. Buckle up, this is going to be a fun ride.