Pens, Wings top SN's 2009-10 Power Poll
Craig Custance - SportingNews.com
Jun 22, 2009
The Stanley Cup champion Penguins, led by Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, are young, fast and talented enough to do what the Red Wings could not -- win two straight titles. A look at how all 30 teams stack up heading into the offseason and what they need to accomplish:
1. Penguins
Ruslan Fedotenko will soon be a free agent.
Rob Scuderi is due a big raise, and the Pens will have to decide how much strong playoff performances from pending free agents Ruslan Fedotenko and Bill Guerin are worth.
2. Red Wings
Signing Marian Hossa is a priority, but the Wings also must open up regular-season roster spots for such young players as Darren Helm and Jonathan Ericsson.
3. Blackhawks
Dale Tallon would like to re-sign Martin Havlat, but he needs enough cap space so Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews and Duncan Keith can sign long-term deals in the near future.
4. Sharks
This team has the talent to win a Stanley Cup, but G.M. Doug Wilson must find the right mix of talent, grit and determination.
5. Capitals
Any chance G.M. George McPhee can find a taker for goalie Jose Theodore? Bolstering the defense would help the Caps take the next step.
6. Bruins
David Krejci's long-term deal could mean center Marc Savard is expendable, especially with Savard entering the last year of his contract.
7. Devils
There will be changes up front with the possible departures of unrestricted (or retired) free agents Bobby Holik, Brendan Shanahan, Brian Gionta and John Madden.
8. Cancks
For the first time, people are questioning the decision to build a franchise around goalie Roberto Luongo. The important question: Is G.M. Mike Gillis one of those people?
9. Hurricanes
Impressive playoff performances could have priced Chad LaRose and Dennis Seidenberg right out of Carolina. That won't be a problem for potential free agent Erik Cole.
10. Ducks
Jonas Hiller has established himself as a starting-caliber goalie. Now G.M. Bob Murray must find somebody willing to take Jean-Sebastien Giguere and his $6 million annual salary.
11. Flyers
Long-term deals with Danny Briere, Mike Richards, Scott Hartnell, Joffrey Lupul and Kimmo Timonen don't give the Flyers much flexibility with salary cap space at a premium.
The future looks bright for Patrik Berglund and the young Blues.
12. Blues
With so many talented young players, the Blues will get better just by getting older. It's good that Keith Tkachuk will have the chance to retire in St. Louis.
13. Flames
If Calgary can't sign potential free agent Mike Cammalleri, it needs to find a way to replace his 39 goals -- on the cheap.
14. Rangers
Glen Sather's last two summers have produced huge contracts for Scott Gomez, Chris Drury, Wade Redden and Michal Rozsival. Might be time to rethink that summer strategy.
15. Stars
Though Sergei Zubov is coming off hip surgeries and pushing 40, the Stars would be wise to bring him back. They're a different team when he's on the ice.
16. Blue Jackets
If G.M. Scott Howson can sign Rick Nash to a long-term deal, it will be a successful summer.
17. Canadiens
New coach Jacques Martin stresses defense, so look for the Habs to be aggressive in rebuilding their blue line.
18. Sabres
The Sabres have signed most of their core players to long-term deals, so there is not a lot of money left for free agents.
19. Kings
Dean Lombardi has been patient while developing a good young core group. Now it's time to fill holes with a splash in free agency.
20. Maple Leafs
Brian Burke jokes that it would take $60 million to sign all the players he is rumored to be after. But look for Burke to be one of the most active G.M.s this summer.
21. Panthers
Defenseman Jay Bouwmeester will probably leave Florida over the offseason.
With only three defensemen under contract for next season and Jay Bouwmeester likely to walk, there are major holes to fill.
22. Wild
Maybe new G.M. Chuck Fletcher and coach Todd Richards will entice Marian Gaborik to stay. If not, the Wild will need scoring help at forward.
23. Oilers
Edmonton's first big move was bringing in coach Pat Quinn and associate coach Tom Renney. Now G.M. Steve Tambellini needs to get them a goalie.
24. Senators
Bryan Murray, who likes the makeup of this team, started his summer shopping early by acquiring goalie Pascal Leclaire at the trading deadline. One more top-six forward is a priority.
25. Predators
Closure -- by trade or a return to Nashville -- in the Alexander Radulov saga would be nice. So would a contract extension for goalie Pekka Rinne.
26. Coyotes
It already has been a tumultuous offseason for the Coyotes, but the on-ice product would benefit from adding veteran scorers up front.
27. Thrashers
Getting Ilya Kovalchuk signed to an extension is a must for a team that showed improvement toward the end of last season.
28. Avalanche
Colorado will be in the market for a goalie and a replacement for Joe Sakic if he retires as expected.
29. Lightning
The Lightning have two valuable assets to spark their rebuilding effort: Vincent Lecavalier and the No. 2 pick in the draft. Both are available for the right price.
30. Islanders
Garth Snow deserves credit for one of the best free-agent signings last year in Mark Streit. Another shrewd decision -- along with John Tavares or Victor Hedman in the draft -- and the Islanders will be back in business.
Craig Custance is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at ccustance@sportingnews.com.
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