Monthly Evaluation: Eastern Meddling Middle

New Jersey: Where would this team be without Parise & Brodeur? The greatest goaltender in the history of the NHL, Brodeur is not letting up as he gets up in age, having played in all 10 games of his team and sporting a nasty 2.16 GAA with 2 shutouts. And that is a good thing too as this team is not generating much offense. Parise has elevated his game and is among the league leaders with 9 goals and 14 points but this group of forwards scare very few in the league.

Greene, Martin, Oduya, White, Mottau & Salvador form a nice group that appears better than they are due to stellar goaltending behind them.

It's hard to see this group win the Atlantic but it's also hard to see them slip down much. This is a hard working group that belongs right there in the middle of the pack.

Rating: C
Outlook: same


Pittsburgh: What does that tell you when a team has the best goalie in the league (so far) and 2 of the top 3 point leaders and is 7th in the conference standings? Something will need to be done to find wingers for Crosby & Malkin! and not bottom shelf free agency pick ups like Satan & Fedetenko (shouldn't the fact the Islanders didn't want them tell you something???). Jordan Staal doesn't appear ready to resign before reaching restricted free agency next summer so it would be wise to see what type of return he may bring before Carolina or another team lays out a long heavy-handed contract for him.

On the back end, youngsters Letang & Goligoski are picking up the slack for injured Gonchar but this team will need better stay-at-home defensemen than Hal Gill, Eaton & Scuderi to be considered a complete team. Especially with smallish, offensive-minded guys like Gonchar, Letang & Goligoski, this team will need some strong complements to provide some support to Fleury, even though the young goaltending finally seems to blossom into one of the elite.

Rating: D-
Outlook: going up


Toronto: This is simply unbelievable. How can this team be 5-4-3 and 8th in the Conference?? Noone has more than 9 points, the goalies are not even over .900 in save percentage & Dominic Moore is playing 16mins a night.

Ron Wilson deserves some serious credit for turning this team into a tough opponent. It seems to be a case of Buffalo jr with all lines contributing their little bit with the team somehow finding a way to win.

I really doubt this will continue though. Goal differential (34 goals for, 41 against) do show that there is a far amount of luck and "good breaks" which tend to disapear as things get heated and the season progresses.

Still a great step in the right direction for the Leafs... unless it turns management's head and they think they have the makeup of a contender and move away from the rebuilding process.

Rating: A
Outlook: way down


Washington: Weren't the Caps supposed to run over the SouthEast this year? Maybe once Ovechkin gets back on track and decides to score more goals than Dave Steckel but this is a team with many holes. Semin & Green have been great but there is flagrant lack of talent at the forward position. Fleischmann, Gordon, Steckel, Fehr, Bradley have all shown some nice potential but seem unable to get over the hump and produce at the NHL level.

The defense corps has the makings of a nice group with Green, Schultz & Erskine but some serious talent will need to be added if the goaltending situation is not addressed. The Theodore signing which looked like a passable yet desperate move in August is now looking like the mistake of the year, Free Agency wise. The Caps would have been better saving that money and going with Brent Johnson until the kids grow up or a better option appears.

Missing the playoffs would be extremely disapointing for last year's Cinderella team.

Rating: D
Outlook: going up


Tampa Bay: The simple fact a team coached by Barry Melrose has more than 1 win is quite an accomplishment and should warrant an A rating! Regardless of their weird coaching choice, I like the retooling done by the Lightning.

They lack some toughness but can roll out 4 good lines, 3 of them extremely quick on their feet which affects opposing defense more than it may appear too.

The defense group is quite .... let's go with non-descript to stay polite. The group is however mobile and has the ability to make a good first pass out of the zone which might be all that is needed if Mike Smith continues with his .941 save percentage!

Tampa might end up battling for the Southweak division title but I think a hard battle for the 8th spot is where they will end out.

Rating: C
Outlook: same