Tri-State Hockey Preview
Written by Jeff Ramella on October 17, 2019
By Cathryn Pace
Tri-State Hockey Preview
The 2019-2020 season in the National Hockey League should be an interesting one for the tristate area. The New York Islanders started their season off on Friday October 4th against the Washington Capitals. The Isles are coming back from an upsetting previous season. Last year the Islanders lost their long time captain John Tavares to the Toronto Maple Leafs where he is now the 25th captain of the Leaf franchise. The Islanders managed to cling a spot in the playoffs last year and swept their first opponents, the Pittsburgh Penguins. Unfortunately, in the second round, the tables turned and it was in fact the Islanders who were swept by the Carolina Hurricanes. Heading into this season the Islanders main focus will be capitalizing with the players they have. Though they lost their first game of the season against the Capitals 2 -1, they fought hard and proved that they are still a competitor to watch. With big players like Anthony Beauvillier who had an assist in the opening game, Mat Barzal, and Derick Brassard, a new face in the organization acquired this summer by the franchise, this years Islander team will be a fun team to watch compete. The New Jersey Devils also have a big season ahead of them. With the first overall pick of the 2019 drafts, the Devils drafted the American prodedgy Jack Hughes. Building the team further the franchise also acquired former Nashville Predator defenseman P.K Suban. The season opener for the Devils on October 4th was a fast paced, high scoring game that went into an eight player deep shootout. Unfortunately for the Devils, Blake Wheeler of the Winnipeg Jets managed to get the puck past Devils goalie MacKenzie Blackwood to win the game. No pretense was set by this loss; this spunky, young, strong New Jersey team has big, impactful players like Nico Hirscher, Taylor Hall, Andy Greene, and so many more so they will be going places. Given the chance this stacked team will pounce, so keep an eye on them. The New York Rangers on the other hand won their season opener on October 5th against Winnipeg, 6-4 in regulation. The Rangers also put in some work over the summer to strengthen their team with things like the acquisition of Kappo Kakko, their 2nd pick overall of the 2019 draft. The Rangers also acquired Jacob Trouba, a defenseman from Winnipeg that racked up points in that game with a goal and two assists, and Artemi Panarin, a skilled left wing from the Columbus Blue Jackets. Panarin also started his season with the New York Rangers off on a good foot with a goal and an assist. These new faces partnered with the skilled familiar ones like Mika Zinbadejad and Henrick Lundquvist, the franchise is ready to compete at its full potential. The Rangers are just about out of their rebuild period and are ready to prove themselves to the city and their fans after the last few seasons of let downs. All in all these three teams are going to be big competitors in the league this year and are all ready to compete and prove themselves to the league, their cities, and their fans. Get ready for a year filled with great hockey.
