Things are starting to get cooler outside, but things are just starting to heat up on the ice as another hockey season is upon us. Here’s how the Atlantic Division will shape out.

Atlantic Division

1. Montreal Canadiens (51-25- 6) 108 Pts.

The Canadians are getting their star Netminder back this season in Carey Price, after going down for the season last year with a strained inner ligament in his right knee. Look for the Canadians to come out fired up this season with two solid lines led by Max Pacioretty and Tomas Plekanec, who both had 50 points last season. Carey Price should continue to be a brick wall this year as he showed all signs of it in the World Hockey Championship. The team also added Shea Weber and Alexander Radulov this offseason to add onto an already defensive team.

2. Tampa Bay Lightning (49-25-8) 106 Pts.

Tampa Bay is looking to defend their Atlantic Division title with almost no losses this offseason. Coach, Jon Cooper, has all the keys to success and the team could possibly make it a long way in the playoffs with a solid overall team.

3.  Florida Panthers (46- 30-6) 98 Pts.

Florida surprised a lot of people with the impressive season they had last year. They have a 1st and 2nd line who could potentially be 1st lines on any other team led by Jaromir Jagr, Jonathan Huberdeau and Jussi Jokinen, but their defence is what concerns most people. With only one defense pairing that is arguably above average in Aaron Ekblad and Keith Yandle; Florida will need to make a couple moves in order to get deep into the playoffs because Goalie Roberto Luongo will have to stand on his head with their first line Defense pairing off the ice.

4. Boston Bruins (39-32-11) 89 Pts.

Boston might be able to squeeze into the playoffs this year. They have 3 lines that will produce points each led by Patrice Bergeron, newly acquired David Backes and Matt Beleskey, who are all goalscorers. They also have fan-favorite hitting defensemen, Zdeno Chara and Torey Krug High plus/minus guys to go along with a high number of hits and assists.     

5. Detroit Red Wings (36-33-13) 85 Pts.

Detroit has two solid lines that will produce points, but that’s about all. Every other aspect of this team is either average or below it. Mike Green and Dan DeKeyser being their top line of defense just won’t get it done for this team. With a decent goalie in Jimmy Howard in net this team will be in a fight for a playoff spot but I see them falling short of it.

6. Ottawa Senators (33-38-11) 77 Pts.

The senators have a team that can get a lot of assists. But looking at their roster they don’t really have any scorers. Fortunately they do have a very young team with a lot of potential in the future, but that might take a couple years and having a subpar netminder in Craig Anderson does not help the cost.

7. Buffalo Sabres (33-43-6) 72 Pts.

For the Sabres fans out there this will be yet another tough season to watch with the division they are in. They will have a lot of upcoming high first round draft picks to look forward to. They have 3 forward lines that show a lot of promise in the future. On the other hand, the defense that they have will be just horrendous  with their first line being Dmitry Kulikov and Rasmus Ristolainen who would be a potential second line on any other team. And with their Goaltender situation they will be fighting for a lottery pick.

8. Toronto Maple Leafs (32-46-4) 68 Pts.

In good news, this team has a very bright future ahead of them. However,Toronto just won’t be able to do anything this season. One line you might want to watch is that of Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Matt Martin who are all very young line with a lot of upside. They won’t be able to carry this team above 500 on the season.