Lebrun article that has him asking/interviewing 15 US based team coaches/GM's to predict the order of finish for an all-Canadian division.
Toronto
Calgary
Edmonton
Montreal
Vancouver
Winnipeg
Ottawa
Toronto
Montreal
Vancouver
Calgary
Edmonton
Winnipeg
Ottawa
Toronto
Vancouver
Calgary
Montreal
Edmonton
Winnipeg
Ottawa
Toronto
Calgary
Edmonton
Montreal
Winnipeg
Vancouver
Ottawa
Calgary
Toronto
Edmonton
Montreal
Vancouver
Winnipeg
Ottawa
Calgary
Edmonton
Toronto
Winnipeg
Vancouver
Montreal
Ottawa
Calgary
Montreal
Toronto
Edmonton
Winnipeg
Vancouver
Ottawa
Calgary
Toronto
Montreal
Winnipeg
Vancouver
Edmonton
Ottawa
Montreal
Toronto
Vancouver
Edmonton
Winnipeg
Calgary
Ottawa
Toronto
Montreal
Calgary
Vancouver
Edmonton
Winnipeg
Ottawa
Toronto — “So much skill and talent. Young players are not so young anymore.”
Montreal — “Like their offseason moves. Gained a lot of confidence and played well in bubble and No. 31.”
Edmonton — “97 will win the Hart Trophy this year.”
Winnipeg — “Window is closing but goalie is just getting going.”
Vancouver — “Took a step forward last year, will see what they are made of this year.”
Calgary — “Not consistent enough.”
Ottawa — “Could see them moving up. Good offseason moves and play a hard-nosed game but not enough (wins) to move them up the list.”
Montreal
Edmonton
Vancouver
Winnipeg
Toronto
Calgary
Ottawa
Some of the comments
Quote:
“Not an easy one at all,” said one Eastern Conference team executive. “In my mind, little separates the top 4/5 teams.”
But he chose the Leafs tops.
“Just based (on) overall skill set throughout the top nine and believe Andersen can still play,” he said
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Quote:
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A member of a Western Conference coaching staff, who is clearly penalizing the Canucks for losing Jacob Markstrom to Calgary in free agency: “Yes, huge loss,” he said. “Plus 3-4 guys off to free agency.”
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Quote:
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Again, Markstrom looms large when it came to placing the Flames tops for a member of an Eastern Conference coaching staff: “Think the goalie will make a big difference,” he said.
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Quote:
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Eastern Conference team executive, who picked the Flames as his No. 1 team and cited Markstrom, head coach Geoff Ward as being underrated and that he felt the D would be better.
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From Pierre himself:
Quote:
For a division that many people view as very competitive, the Leafs ended up getting nine first-place votes out of the 15 respondents. The Flames got four first-place votes and the Habs got two first-place nods. The Canucks seem to have paid the price, perception-wise from their peers around the league, after losing Markstrom.
When it comes to offseason moves changing a team’s perception, no doubt the Habs and Flames got high marks for their moves
The Oilers didn’t get much mention in these responses. They lost to Chicago in the play-in last summer and I think hockey people still see goaltending and lack of roster depth as a problem.
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https://theathletic.com/2230862/2020...ce=weeklyemail