#5 Boston Bruins: The Bruins are coming of age and it shows. They are a much better and quicker team and in Tim Thomas they have a truly underrated show stopper of a goalie. Much depends on Julien and Kessel figuring out a happy place, because as we saw at the end of the playoffs last year, Kessel is gamer and the Bruins finally started to realize that. He is young and one-dimensional but he is a gamer. As the Flyers get Gagne, the Bruins get Bergeron who could have a major impact. The Bruins could finish anywhere from 3-9.

#6 New York Rangers: It's all about Lundqvist's knees. My opinion is that on his game- Lundqvist is the best goalie in the East. But beyond King Henry, who? That is an issue, and another issue I still have with the Rangers is identity. The Rangers were a REALLY solid defensive team when they came much closer than anyone cares to admit two playoffs ago against the Sabres. That team was on the right track and was as tough as the Devils to score on, but with more offense. Then they added Drury and Gomez and this summer Naslund, and Zherdev...but does Renney (perhaps my favorite coach in the East) want to play run and gun like the GM appears to? The Rangers could finish as high as #2 low as #8.

#7 Buffalo Sabres: The Sabres are a Western Conference team playing in the East. Speed to burn and youthful legs and energy to burn as well. Plus Miller is #2 to King Henry in this Conference in my opinion, and Miller is healthy. Roy is an All-Star, Vanek started to grow into his contract. Stafford will be a factor this season as will Pominville and the rest of the speedy Sabres. Rivet is a good pickup, however I still feel they are lacking the transition game needed and would probably benefit from Bryan Berard if he doesn't stick in Philly. The Sabres are all about speed and energy. TJ Brennan is the answer but not until next year. The kid was a lacrosse player until 2005, but he has all the skills needed to speed up the Sabres from the back end. The Sabres could finish from #6-#12.

#8 Ottawa Senators: Get Khabibulin in here and I will put the Sens in the top 4. There is just way too much talent still and the Sens could honestly have dominated this Conference with a goalie who has game. There is always the chance that Gerber takes them into the top four, and maybe even a better chance that Auld takes them there. Auld is a Wildcard here. Foligno and Lee will need to step it up and need to be given a chance to step it up as well. Hartsburg is a VERY good choice for this group and I fully feel that the Sens may jump out of the gate again. The forwards on this team are as good as any in the NHL and I feel that the defense is better than advertised despite losing Redden and Mezsaros. The Sens could finish anywhere from #3 to #9.

On the Bubble...The Lightning and the Devils.


more in the morning...

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Last year's episodes were the highest rated show on the Saturday nights they ran on CN8* and On Demand and we can't wait for this year's season!


Well now that the dust has settled and the entire state of Texas hates me, (hey I could be VERY wrong) I boldy step into the Eastern Conference. The East remains not on par with the West in my opinion, although I do admit that the East is gaining momentum as some new teams are rising to power quite rapidly.

As I said before, I hate making these picks, because you are destined to piss people off, so take faith that no pundit is ever 100% right about anything.


#1-Pittsburgh Penguins: Ok you can talk all you want about what they lost, but what they kept is so much more important. The Penguins have the two best players in all of hockey, and I am still not certain which of them is the absolute best. The Penguins young defense is only going to improve. I am very concerned about Gonchar's current injury. Last I heard, as of last night, the swelling still hadn't subsided to the point where Gonchar's shoulder could even been examined fully. However, unless he is gone for several months I am still putting the Pens at #1. I think that Satan will easily take the Malone points and perhaps even better them, and keeping Orpik was huge to me and I admit completely surprising. MAF is only going to get better as well. And we could easily see Gaborik here at the deadline.

#2-Washington: The Caps will finish with more points than Montreal only due to the division in which they play. So note that although I put them here, I still feel the Canadiens are the better team...All that aside, the Caps are for real and they are oh so impressive to watch. OV is obvious, but Semin, Backstrom, and Green are going to be hard to keep off the All-Star team this year as well. I like Jose in goal as well because his style is custom made for this run and gun team. Much more so than Huet.

#3-Montreal Canadiens: The Habs are the fastest team in the East, maybe the NHL. I think Tanguay will be a real serious addition and I also think that we haven't seen all we can see yet from the Canadiens. I do have some concerns about a sophomore slump from Price, but those concerns are minor at best. The Habs are just too strong in the transition game and it will make for one crazy fun Centennial celebration. I will say this however: If the Canadien's power play goes south they could be caught in the division by a team that will return to greatness this year and took these same Habs to 7 games last we saw them.

#4-Philadelphia Flyers: The Flyers are stacked this year. Carter will lead this team in scoring with 40+goals and 100+ points. Mark that one down. Holmgren has built a team that could win any division in the NHL that didn't have the Pittsburgh Penguins in it. The defense is solid, the goaltending is extremely solid. Biron was a monster in the playoffs (Habs fans?) and you can see that he now knows deep down that he deserves the #1 title. There is a sincere confidence in Marty right now in Camp and on the ice...I also expect a huge year from Briere and Richards as they both are more comfortable in their roles. And remember, although the Flyers didn't go out and get a UFA they are adding a former 50 goal scorer who as a UFA would have been a great pickup in Gagne. Coburn and Timonen are a great pair. Could the Flyers overtake the Pens? Yes, but it won't be easy and it will require a consistency that they battled to maintain last year.


ASN SECURES NHL BROADCAST RIGHTS FOR ASIA

HONG KONG/NEW YORK (September 25, 2008) – The National Hockey League
(NHL) and All Sports Network (ASN) of Hong Kong today announced the signing
of a multi-year deal giving ASN rights to broadcast the NHL via all forms
of television including HDTV and IPTV throughout much of Asia, including
the Indian sub-continent. The content will be a key part of the offering
on ASN, a new channel Yes TV has launched across Asia.

NHL programming, which will broadcast on ASN at the start of the
NHL’s 2008-09 season, will include more than 130 NHL regular-season games,
the NHL All-Star game, NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs and Stanley Cup Final, as
well as NHL highlight programs.

“Hockey is such a dynamic sport with relatively simple rules and the
National Hockey League has great potential for development in Asia,” said
Thomas Kressner, Yes TV CEO. “We are thrilled to be able to bring another
big American sport to Asian sports fans.”

“We are very pleased with the growing number of partners broadcasting
ASN, especially in China with our distribution and equity partner XFMedia,”
added Mr. Kressner. “Ice hockey is quite popular in the northern parts of
China and its popularity is growing. The NHL represents the pinnacle of
professional ice hockey and we are proud to be bringing the best of this
exciting sport to the fans in China through the strong, nationwide platform
of XFMedia."

"We have been very impressed by ASN’s aggressive rollout plans and
their commitment to a growing roster of sports programming," said Ken
Yaffe, NHL Senior Vice President, International. “Partnering with ASN
represents a significant step in expanding our broadcast footprint
internationally, and we are excited to begin offering our fans in Asia a
comprehensive, season-long game schedule.”

Korean distribution of NHL games through ASN will begin during the
second year of the deal. This deal does not extend to Japan, Australia and
New Zealand.

Ek's Note: This is very interesting on several levels and is a great move by this very progressive NHL...and goes along with a rumour we have been following here...a high-ranking official says that an NHL team will be heading to either China or South Korea for an exhibition game before next season.


more to come