5 current NHL playoff teams poised to miss out in 2018-19
By C.L. Kohuss
The 2018 NHL playoffs might still be in full swing, but that isn’t going to stop us from looking unbelievably far ahead. In fact, today we’re looking all the way to the 2019 NHL playoffs. More specifically, we’re taking a stab at which five teams that made it to the postseason this year are poised to miss out next time around.
For the sake of clarity, there are a lot of factors involved in a team missing the playoffs. Some, like injuries, can’t be foreseen. Others, such as free agents walking, can be noted as keys to whether or not a team has what it takes to contend. The NHL is full of parity and one wrong move can be the difference between contending and pretending.
We also have to keep in mind the divisions that each team plays within. Being enclosed by multiple teams of equal or great talent is going to make it that much more difficult to reach the postseason on a yearly basis. For example, the Metropolitan Division had five teams in contention. The Central Division could have featured six had the Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues not fallen apart.
These are simply prognostications and, as stated, anything can happen during the course of a team’s run. But if your favorite club has already been knocked out, it sure is fun to daydream about the future. That sometimes eases the swelling of an early exit. Unless, of course, your team is on this list.
5. Columbus Blue Jackets
The Columbus Blue Jackets made the playoffs this year with 97 points after posting 108 last year, but it was close. The Florida Panthers made an incredibly impressive run to close the gap to a single point before the regular season ended. So the Blue Jackets could have missed to start with. They did tie with the New Jersey Devils, but let’s look at the teams around them.
New Jersey has Taylor Hall. The Devils also have plenty of cap space to resign both Michael Grabner and Patrick Maroon while adding other quality pieces in free agency (if the pitch is right). Florida as mentioned made a run of its own. If not for a sluggish start, it would have easily made the playoffs over either the Devils or Columbus. The Panthers are also two years removed from winning the Atlantic Division. So they could be considered about equal in terms of recent success.
Figure too what the New York Islanders do if they are able to resign Tavares while adding depth from the market. This is more of a numbers game and a case of which team has to lose out. What matters is whether or not the Blue Jackets are better than the Devils, Islanders, Panthers or Philadelphia Flyers by the time the offseason is over. Four of those teams were all within two points of each other. At least two of those clubs could be dramatically better. We also like the idea that the Islanders are not only going to resign Tavares, but they’ll do whatever they can to make the team stronger right away. They have the cap space to compete and get right back into contending for the division title.