Chernoff's Prediction: Pre-Season Eastern Conference Rankings

The Penguins and Flyers will tussle on the ice and jostle for a shot at the Cup.

With about a week and a half left until the season starts, and since Rowe put out his pre-season predictions, I've decided to make a rankings post all my own. Behold, the almighty Shane Chernoff pre-season Eastern Conference rankings. West will come tomorrow, 

Eastern 

1. Philadelphia Flyers- With the addition of Jagr and Bryzgalov, the Flyers will dominate their sport much like their baseball counterparts the Phillies. 

2. Boston Bruins- Boston didn't lose much if anything at all important in the off-season, so look for them to pick up right where they left off. 

3. Washington Capitals- The addition of Tomas Vokoun finally gives Washington a piece to the puzzle they've never before had; despite losing Fleischmann, still plenty of offensive firepower. 

4. Pittsburgh Penguins- Even without Crosby, Pittsburgh managed to make it to the conference semifinals last year. The main question for them is what kind of a player Sid will be when they get him back. 

5. Buffalo Sabres- After absolutely loading up on D, putting the puck past Ryan Miller and the Sabres seems to be a improbable if not impossible task. 

6. New York Rangers- The addition of Brad Richards (however overpaid) finally gives Marian Gaborik a robin to his batman. It will be interesting to watch Derek Stepan to see if he hits the wall after an impressive rookie season. 

7. Tampa Bay Lightning- The team that came within one game of the Stanley Cup Finals will try to engineer another Cinderella run this season. I see no reason to believe they can't. 

8. Florida Panthers- Yes, the perennially awful Panthers will finally end their 11 year drought and return to the playoffs for the first time since the Pavel Bure era. Dale Tallon completely revamped this team and the Panthers shall finally make their fans proud after adding guys like Brian Campbell, Tomas Fleischmann, and drafting hyped-up rookie Jonathan Huberdeau. For more on Huberdeau, check out Steven's post on the former St. John's Sea Dog.

See the teams who didn't make the playoffs after the jump.

9. New Jersey Devils- Peter Deboer finally gets a legitimate shot to lead a team to the playoffs. New Jersey got really hot really late last season, and getting Parise back is a large boost for them. 

10. Montreal Canadiens- Jacque Martin's team lost some important pieces to free agency. But if the Price is right, perhaps they can ride Carey to a little bit higher than tenth. 

11. Carolina Hurricanes- Despite having everyone's favorite prom date Jeff Skinner and adding Tomas Kaberle, Caniacs will be disappointed as it will be an off year in the land known as Carolina. 

12. Toronto Maple Leafs- Fans in hockey's most rabid market will once again be let down as Toronto simply didn't add enough pieces in the offseason to be considered a threat. But hey, there's always Reimer to be happy about. 

13. Winnipeg Jets- Fans will rejoice about having the highest level of hockey back in Winnipeg for the first time since before I was six years old--- but that's about all they'll be rejoicing over. No playoffs here. 

14. New York Islanders- A team with a very bleak future will have a pretty bleak present as well; young talent is there, it's just gonna take a little bit more time.

15. Ottawa Senators- Awful draft, awful free agency, not-awful Erik Karlsson. Sure, he's great, but this team will be doomed from the time the puck drops on their season. Maybe next year, Sens.

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