Trietley: Preseason NHL predictions

It’s the best time of the year for sports. College and pro football are underway, baseball is… It’s the best time of the year for sports. College and pro football are underway, baseball is racing toward its postseason, and, best of all, hockey starts in a week.

Hockey again, already? I’m dizzy from the anticipation. I’m not thinking sensibly right now — I’m too excited! So here are seven bold, possibly crazy predictions for the season ahead, one for each day until Carolina and Minnesota kick off the season next Thursday at noon.

#1: The Columbus Blue Jackets make the Western Conference Finals.

I’ll start with the gutsiest one. The Blue Jackets finished 14th in the conference last season, but they rode rookie phenom Steve Mason’s play in goal into the playoffs the year before that. They have a very good, skilled forward group with veteran depth on the lower lines.

And Mason is still around. He struggled last year, but he’s just 22 years old. Marc-André Fleury started games at Mason’s age and went through the same ups and downs before establishing himself as a starter.

The defense needs improvement, but Columbus has the cap room and prospects needed to land a top defenseman — Tomas Kaberle — at the deadline. With an elite blueliner on board, Columbus completes the cinderella formula: young forwards maturing before our eyes, a hot goalie and just enough of Mike Commodore’s hair.

#2 The Washington Capitals fall early in the postseason again.

The Capitals won the Presidents’ Trophy with 121 points last year, but they collapsed in the first round of the playoffs against a Montreal team that scored 103 less goals than they did in the regular season. It’s going to happen again.

Washington isn’t built for the playoffs. Football’s Indianapolis Colts rolled with a high-powered offense for years without a Super Bowl. Only when they improved the defense did Peyton Manning win his championship.

You could drive a car through Washington’s linebackers, er, defense right now. Mike Green scored 76 points last year, but the Canadiens tore him apart in his own zone and shut him down in theirs. Until Washington balances out their lineup, teams will find a way to stop their offense in the playoffs.

I’ll say New Jersey does it this year.

#3 Sidney Crosby sets a career high in assists.

Crosby’s best total so far is 84 assists during the  2006-07 season. Only Joe Thornton has put up a better number since the lockout.

Sid the Kid’s total dropped to 58 assists last year, as he didn’t have any great linemates to finish chances (so he did it himself — 51 times.) This summer, though, the Penguins signed MikeO, who has two 30-goal seasons under his belt. Chris Kunitz is healthy again, and prospect Eric Tangradi will make an impact soon.

The Penguins will suddenly have a wealth of options when Jordan Staal returns from his foot injury. It’s crazy to think that Crosby has done so much with so little on his wings. He hits 90 assists this year.

#4 New faces hit the 30-goal plateau.

Wayne Simmonds of the Kings hits it, as does Philadelphia’s Claude Giroux. Comrie falls a goal short and scores 29, which isn’t bad for $500,000.

#5 Carey Price will play well in Montreal.

In this summer’s demonstration of selling high, Montreal shipped playoff superhero Jaroslav Halak to St. Louis for winger Lars Eller. In the process, Carey Price became the de facto starter for the franchise.

Googling “Carey Price pressure” brings up articles titled “Carey Price Yet to Prove He Can Handle Pressure in Canadiens’ Crease” (NESN.com), “Shadow of Halak Looms Large Over Carey Price” (NHL FanHouse) and about 143,998 other results.

But this is nothing new for Price. This will be his fourth year dealing with the Montreal media. If anything, he’s relieved the competition just left town.

Besides, management will face the brunt of the criticism if Price struggles. General Manager Pierre Gauthier traded away his top man for a winger of questionable value and put too much pressure on Price to carry the load. That’s the headline.

#6 A goalie wins the Hart Trophy.

A goalie hasn’t won the Hart Memorial Trophy, awarded to the league’s most valuable player, since José Théodore received the prize in 2001-02. But league scoring has trended downward since the lockout, and a goaltending renaissance is around the corner.

Ryan Miller and Ilya Bryzgalov both had Hart-worthy seasons last year, and they finished fourth and fifth, respectively, in the voting. Miller has a good shot again this season, as does Bryzgalov, Martin Brodeur, Henrik Lundqvist, Roberto Luongo, Pekka Rinne, Tuukka Rask and a few other full-time starters. Rask, notably, shined in Boston’s defense-first system last postseason.

#7 Opening game prediction.

Carolina beats Minnesota, 4-1. Just a wild guess.