“Freedom lies in being bold.”-Robert Frost
Everybody likes to be right. In fact some people like being right so much that even when they are wrong, it seems that they have convinced themselves that the facts are incorrect. Like everyone else I enjoy the hell out of being correct, or to put it differently, accurate. In the world of sports, there are always predictions that range from the outcome of every game to the coin flip that precedes it.
It’s always fun to go out on a limb and reach for a bold prediction. Whether you believe it will happen or not is a completely different question. Call it instinct or call it outright craziness, here are my bold predictions for the month of November.
-The Philadelphia Flyers will go on a roll and creep into contention in the Metropolitan Division. They have won three straight and believe me it won’t be another 16 games before Claude Giroux scores again.
-Colorado will start to fall in the standings. A combination of losses from them and wins from Chicago, St. Louis and Minnesota will flip the top four in the NHL Central.
-Speaking of the NHL Central, St. Louis and Chicago will start to put some space between themselves and the rest of the division. Chicago in particular will be impressive with eight of their next nine games on the road.
-The Edmonton Oilers will make at least one blockbuster trade. Speaking of the Oilers, Ilya Bryzgalov is going to be very, very good for Edmonton. They will be ahead of Calgary by December 1.
-The New Jersey Devils will be involved in, or be rumored to be in a blockbuster trade. It may not happen in November, but Lou Lamoreillo is one of the most calculated and savvy general managers in the NHL. The fact that the Devils are competitive means that they could be looking to add a piece to their squad.
-Sidney Crosby is going to catch fire and start to run away with the Art Ross Trophy. Conversely, his individual success will not translate into team success, as the Penguins will find themselves in a dogfight at the top of the Metro Division.
-The Islanders need goaltending and might not be done dealing with Buffalo. Ryan Miller could be an Islander or the Isles could try to snag Viktor Fasth from Anaheim. They are fast approaching sink-or-swim time and they want to win now.
-Vancouver will make a serious run and get into the elite fray of the Pacific Division. They have a six game home stand where they have been average. The Canucks will have some signature matchups with San Jose and Chicago on Rogers Centre ice to prove themselves.
-Not sure why I feel this way, but the Los Angeles Kings are going to tank. Jonathan Quick is nicked up and the team seems like it has an identity crisis.
-Martin Brodeur will be traded to a contender. Hahahahaha!!! Just kidding, he’s going nowhere. Even though he approached the subject and said he would agree to it, Marty is a Devil for life. Particularly with the injury bug that can pop up any time.
-Craig Anderson is going to step up and become, well, Craig Anderson like we all thought he would be. It will spur a big run by Ottawa that will see them climb to second in the Atlantic Division.
-There will be a line brawl between two division rivals that will spur more of the stupid “ban fighting” debate. No one will be seriously injured, but it will be the carnival-type spectacle that will have hockey pundits using words like “niche” or “fringe sport”. Most likely teams: Boston-Ottawa, Toronto-Pittsburgh/Montreal, maybe Colorado-Chicago.