As most of you hockey fans may know, the NHL Central Division in the Western Conference is by far the best division in the NHL right now. Not a single team in the Central has a losing record through Wednesday night’s games.
The Chicago Blackhawks are tied with Minnesota, just a single point ahead of St Louis, and two for Colorado. Dallas, Winnipeg and Nashville round out the seven-team group. Who are the Contenders and pretenders? Let's find out.
The Chicago Blackhawks are the most dangerous team in the division right now. Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp, Duncan Keith, and Jonathan Toews lead the way for the defending champion Blackhawks. Goaltender Corey Crawford may be a cup winning goaltender but still has some work to do before he can be considered elite. The team didn't have the start they had to last season, but have quickly established themselves as one of the Stanley Cup favorites. Chicago will win the division and have the best overall record in the West.
The St Louis Blues are also a contender for the division crown. Alexander Steen is having the best season of his career with 17 goals in the first 20 games. T.J Oshie is also playing well, chipping in 14 assists. Goaltender Brian Elliott has a remarkable 1.94 GAA, showing a return to his form from 2012. They're out to a red-hot 13-3-3 start and trail the Wild by a point in the central. The Blues are going to be very dangerous this year and they will make a run for the NHL Central crown as well. St. Louis is a playoff team and look ready to make a deep run into the playoffs.
The Minnesota Wild are having a dream year so far. Zach Parise leads the team with 18 points (10 goals and eight assists) while Jason Pominville leads the team with 12 goals so far. Josh Harding is also having a great year filling in for Nicklas Backstrom. Harding has a 1.28 GAA this year and can be considered an early favorite for the Vezina Trophy. Captain Mikko Koivu leads the team in assists so far this year with 13. This team is going to finish 3rd and will make the playoffs again. Last year was no fluke. They're going to challenge Chicago and St. Louis down the stretch.
I really don't believe in the Colorado Avalanche this season. I think they're a pretender. They started out the season red-hot but I they are quickly losing ground in the division. They were first in the division for October but Chicago, Minnesota, and St Louis have since leap-frogged them. Patrick Roy has done a fantastic job with the Avs this season and the fans are seeing reasons to believe in the future. The Avalanche are one year away from making the playoffs. They will finish 4th in the division.
Another pretender in the division are the Dallas Stars. The Stars have been a mediocre team over the past few years and seemed to fall short of the playoffs finishing around 10th or 11th in the West. Stars captain Jamie Benn and newcomer Tyler Seguin have developed a nice chemistry together and Kari Lehtonen has done a great job in goal for them. Lindy Ruff, the new coach on the helm, has also done a very good job with the Stars this year but they will miss the playoffs.
The Winnipeg Jets are also a pretender. They are a very interesting team though with a hungry and vocal fan base. Evander Kane is one of the most underrated players in the NHL. Bryan Little, Dustin Byfuglien and Andrew Ladd are key players as well. This team was very close to making the playoffs last year, finishing a few points behind the New York Islanders for that 8th and final playoff spot. This team is heading in the right direction but it won’t b enough to break through this year.
Finally there is Nashville who was just so bad last season. Pekka Rinne, one of the best goaltenders in the world, is hurt and is most likely going to miss at least a few more weeks. David Legwand leads the team with 13 assists but it just won't be enough for Nashville this year. Captain Shea Weber and Seth Jones have been the few bright spots for the Predators this season. Even with Rinne healthy they are still a few years away. Not enough offense in Music City for the Predators to be competitive yet.