By Rant On Contributor, Jordan Ikner
9/29/2021
Is hockey here already? Don't take it from me, our hockey guy, Jordy is going to tell us all about it.
“ If you’re a Sabres fan, I’d recommend ordering a 20-piece every game day and a six-pack of your preferred beer of choice.”
NHL - The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly
Welcome back, NHL.
I have missed you. I can’t think of a better time of the year than when we have: College Football every Saturday, NFL on Sunday’s, NBA and NHL games sprinkled in the week, and a classic Davis Mills Thursday Night Football game, just because.
Folks, I welcome you to the most exciting time of the year for sports. While I could go on about any of the above topics, today I choose the NHL. And for your sake, I hope you do too.
For starters, I think some background is required. I grew up in Daphne, AL, about 10,000 miles from the nearest NHL Arena. But from a very young age, I have always loved the game. Whether it was watching the local minor league teams beat the hell out of each other (Go Mysticks and Ice Flyers) or watching Patrick Roy torture a few of the Red Wings players in the early 2000’s, I’ve always had a draw. I’m an avid Pittsburgh Penguins fan and have been following the team since around 2006 (post Lockout, Crosby’s early days). I have been on quite a journey with the team through the years. One that began Detroit-Lions/Cleveland-Brown’s-y, has had Tom-Brady-New-England-Patriot’s highs, and Atlanta-Falcons-Super-Bowl-loss lows.
I worked in the industry for roughly two years and now I am the common man ordering the all-inclusive NHL Center Ice Package each season who enjoys a good Edmonton Oilers/LA Kings 10:30pm puck drop on a Tuesday night. I have some very average takes and ones that can be easily dismissed, pointed out for flaws and cause minor chest pains.
So, I’m absolutely thrilled to share some of my hottest takes with you. We’ll keep it simple. The Good, The Bad, The Surprise and the Let Down for the 2021 season. Let the judgement begin.
The Good
Colorado Avalanche
Why are they first on my list? Well, mainly because of Nathan Mackinnon. He is without a doubt one of the most dangerous scorers in the league. He’s fresh out of a 65-point season (only 56 games total) and proved to the league why he’s still one of the best. Not to mention the guy trains with Sidney Crosby in the off-season, so it makes sense why he seems to get better each year. To compliment one of the most dangerous forwards is arguably the most skilled young defenseman in the league, Cal Makar. At only 21, he was fifth on the entire team in scoring with 44 points (6 goals). Not to mention he brought in the absolute BAG this offseason (6 years/$54 million). They did lose some key pieces (G Phillip Grubauer, F Brandon Saad, D Ryan Graves) however with Captain Gabriel Landeskog returning, the likes of Mikko Rantanen adding as another high-scoring, high-skilled forward, and the addition of veteran goaltender Darcy Keumper, the Avs seem to have the right pieces in place to make a solid playoff run. Let’s just give the world what it wants: a Tampa Bay/Colorado Stanley Cup Final.
The Bad
Buffalo Sabres
Well… you could say things sucked majorly for the Sabres this off season. For starters, your Captain, and most talented player, Jack Eichel has a lingering, serious back injury that is continuing to drag out without any resolution, he’s refusing to get surgery on it, and the Team just stripped him of his captaincy. The team’s asking price for a returned trade on him seems to be too steep for other teams to bite, Eichel has made it public he doesn’t want to play another game for the Sabres in his career, and they signed zero big time Free Agents this offseason. Craig Anderson was their biggest addition. Let that sink in… They also are poised to play most of their regular season games against the Islanders, Rangers, Flyers, Penguins, and Capitals. On the plus side, they have buffalo wings. If you’re a Sabres fan, I’d recommend ordering a 20-piece every game day and a six-pack of your preferred beer of choice. The best way to enjoy their season is probably by just pretending it isn’t happening.
Surprise
New York Rangers
Alright, hear me out. But maybe New York City, arguably the toughest and most critical city to play professional sports, is a bit of a stressful atmosphere for an 18-year-old forward, one who was drawing comparisons to Sidney Crosby and Conor MacDavid before the draft began, to begin their career. Alexis Lafreniere did manage to tally 21 points in 56 games his rookie year, which was ninth on the team. Yes, he could’ve done better. But this is kid is nowhere near his prime, and the Rangers have a ton of skill around him to allow him the time he needs to groom his game. Let’s not forget this team has two more electric forwards Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin, the team’s top two scorers from last year returning. Adam Fox is a young skilled defenseman to head the blue line, and Ryan Reaves was brought in to beat Tom Wilson’s ass. Maybe we shouldn’t write off a 19-year-old kid just yet, and maybe we can allow ourselves to see a bigger sample size first? I’m not saying he’s Mario, but if Lafreniere takes a few steps forward this year, this team could have three fast, high-scoring forwards tearing up a division that seems to get older by the season. I’m not writing this in stone, but don’t be surprised if the Rangers make a sneaky run at the Metro Division.
Disappointment
Pittsburgh Penguins
(Yes, this hurts to write) But the Pens are in a major hole to start the year – a Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin sized hole to be exact. Crosby could be out the first 10 games and Malkin may not play until Christmas. Yes, they did retain Jeff Carter and re-sign Teddy Bleuger, however the loss of Jared McCann really leaves the middle of the line-up in a tough spot. This is usually the time where a team can turn to some exciting, young prospects to fill the void and gain experience, but that’s an area the Penguins are also lacking (except for maybe two or three NHL ready players). Don’t be surprised if 2019 First Round Pick Sam Poulin gets a crack at the top six to start, but behind him the Penguins will hope a Brian Boyle, Evan Rodrigues, Radim Zohorna, or any other warm body they can find can be a glimmer of hope to piece things through until 2022. In addition, the Front Office put every marble in the Tristan Jarry basket, who fumbled that basket in embarrassing fashion last postseason. Though he may rebound well in the regular season, mental errors could loom large for Jarry. He must be the MVP of the team this year if the Penguins are able to keep their 15-year post season streak alive.
Something tells me we have a special year on our hands.
Regardless of any take, I’m just so happy we have a full season slated ahead for us, fans will be back in the buildings, and we get to see those Kraken jerseys in real life. Additionally, having games on ESPN and TNT really excites me to reach the game out to audiences that haven’t paid much attention to it over the years. I hope I find you cheering on the Pens somewhere this season. Unless you’re in Buffalo. Then I hope you find yourself some damn good wings and hopefully a nice hug, too.
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