With the calendar flipping, let's see if Hellbie had any idea what the hell he was talking about, shall we?
+Avs repeat as Cup champions, assuming they keep Kuemper in net (the free agency pool for goalies is... not kind, so Kuemper or bust)
OK,ok, so maaaybe they found a way around Kuemper leaving for Washington. And you know what? Georgiev has been rock solid most nights. I'm not as confident in them winning it all again right now- it'll depend on whether they can get healthy by springtime. But outside of maybe Washington, no team has been hit harder by the IR-bug, and when the Avs can start getting their full roster on the ice again, this is still a very, very good team. I'll eat crow on Kuemper, but I still think the rest of the prediction is plausible at least.
+The East undergoes a significant upheaval, with the Penguins, Bruins, and Capitals all sliding out of the playoff picture- one of them might make a low spot, but none of them have open windows anymore.
Huh... well, let's see here. The Penguins have been wildly inconsistent, but have at least shaken off that early bad start to stay relevant, and I'd pencil them for a playoff spot most likely- they're in a wild card spot right now, and I don't see them sliding. The Capitals, like the Avs, have been mauled by injuries to everyone not named Ovechkin, and while they're on the bubble right now I think they'll right the ship more as people return to the ice.
Aaaaand that leaves Boston, which... find me anyone who thought the Bruins would be this good- particularly starting the year without some of their most important players. Anyone? Bueller? Yeah, I got that wrong, but there's not a fan out there who got this right either.
+Watch for a big Islanders bounce-back from a bad year.
...kinda? I mean they're on the playoff bubble- if the playoffs started today, Jan.1, they'd be a wild card. But I admit, I assumed we'd see better than this, particularly with the above prediction seemingly opening the door for them, this genuinely baffles me. There's too much talent to be this 'eh', I'm expecting a move at the deadline to try to fix things for them.
+Watch for a big step forward for the Canucks.
...into a vat of acid, apparently. Same as the Islanders but even more surprising, there's a lot of talent on this roster- seeing them get pooched night after night is very confusing. The West doesn't have a lot of really great teams, and they're only six points out of a playoff spot as of now, but... despite the West not having great teams they're still six points out. Players want out, the coaching hot seat looks like a Supernova after an alpha-strike... I really don't get this one- or how to fix it at this point beyond blowing it all up and starting over AGAIN.
+Watch for Vegas to do something desperate to fix the cap mess.
Kinda? Their cap is still ugly, but they're back to their 2021 dominant look with surprising results from the spot they seemed weakest at- their net. The news that Lehner would miss the season seemed almost comical after the way the team ran Fleury out of town, but to his credit Logan Thompson has gone from 'who?' to 'HIM' status in no time flat. We also got an answer to the question 'is Jack Eichel any good?', and that answer is 'yyyyep'. With Colorado struggling, Vegas is looking like the team to beat in the West... for now, at least.
+Arizona is STILL going to struggle to sell out their arena most nights.
OK, so hear me out. That arena is kinda fun actually, so long as you keep your digits safe from visiting Bruins fans. Tiny, yes, but fun. And the team has had a little bit of spirit to show for it- not a lot of WINS, but they're a tough opponent most nights. The lure of seeing this weird arena has helped put butts in seats- whether that will continue down the stretch as the novelty wears off and the Coyotes fade further and further from the playoff picture seems unlikely, but kudos so far for making this seeming train wreck work reasonably so far.
+Buffalo is better than they have been in years- outside the net. Fix that, and we might have an interesting team there.
Got THIS one... mostly. That's a very interesting team developing in upstate NY right now, with a monster defenseman on the rise in Owen Power, Tage Thompson having a breakout year, it all seems very positive for the Sabres for the first time in ages. Their reward is... to be six points out of a playoff spot, like the Canucks- but with a lot tougher of a road to climb to get into the playoff picture. Same as with the Isles, the apparent decline of some of the Eastern powerhouses seemed to open the door a bit for the rise of new ones, and Buffalo seemed like as solid of a choice as any- so far though, the fun and talented roster isn't resulting in as many wins as they'd like. This is a work in progress- I really like what I see, but they need more consistency.
So, yeah, not great so far, eh? We've had some big surprises that skewed things everywhere- none more so than the Bruins, who should have been treading water and desperately trying to stay alive until getting people back in late December and early January. Instead, the big three IR guys (Marchand, Grzelcyk, and MacAvoy) returned earlier than expected (methinks their training staff fibbed a little about timetables), Bergeron drank from the fountain of youth, guys like Hall and Lindholm stepped up big, and Linus Ulmark turned into a clone of Dominik Hasek. While we sit here nursing New Years hangovers, Boston still hasn't lost a game in regulation at home this season- that's absolutely bonkers.
So, let's update again at the end of the season, but for now... this league is just full of the unexpected.
