The first media predictions for the season are starting to come out. Please aggregate any links here for discussion:
The Athletic's Dom and Shayna place tiers based on "Top 100 players" here:
NHL Player Tiers: Breaking down each team?s placement in the top 100
The relevant portion to our fans:
This analysis is based on proven players, not on projected growth from within. Seems the kings are going to need a lot of growth if we are going to cruise to a playoff spot.
The Athletic's Dom and Shayna place tiers based on "Top 100 players" here:
NHL Player Tiers: Breaking down each team?s placement in the top 100
The relevant portion to our fans:
Tier 4: Bubble Teams
5-10 points
Los Angeles, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Vancouver, Nashville, San Jose, Islanders, Columbus, Washington
Nine teams reside in this tier, all of which have some sort of playoff aspiration ? whether those hopes are legitimate or not. Looking at you, San Jose.
Of the nine teams, only two have players residing in Tier 1 or Tier 2. That?s essentially the difference-maker between teams on the right side of the playoff bubble and those on the wrong side. Nashville is one of those teams with Roman Josi all the way in 1C, but the Predators only have one other player on the list: Filip Forsberg in 3B. Columbus is in a similar boat. The Blue Jackets also have a franchise player in Johnny Gaudreau who sees himself in 2B, but only one other inclusion with Zach Werenski in 4B. That?s a one tier difference from Nashville?s duo. Washington is the only other team to make the cut with just two skaters, but both fall in Tier 3 which helps the Capitals stay above the cutoff.
Los Angeles leads the pack with four inclusions. All four of the Kings fall on the low-end of the spectrum which is how they fall just below the cutoff for playoff teams. Drew Doughty is the highest in 3C, followed by three forwards scattered in Tier 4.
The rest of the group has at least three players each, placed somewhere between Tier 3 and Tier 4. Winnipeg and Ottawa have two players each in Tier 3 which puts the two clubs above Vancouver, while the Sharks are the only team here without any player in Tier 3 or higher. Three players in Tier 4 helps keep San Jose afloat here, though the Sharks probably deserve to be closer to the tier below.
This analysis is based on proven players, not on projected growth from within. Seems the kings are going to need a lot of growth if we are going to cruise to a playoff spot.