Yeah, I was trying to be bold and go out on a limb a bit, but honestly? The Sharks just don't impress me at all. Thornton, Boyle, Marleau and Havlat are all either aging and not what they once were or so injury prone that a fly landing on them could shatter their bones (as I am a Hawks fan, I think you know which player I'm looking at here).

Yes, Couture is an allstar caliber player and I think that Pavelski has that kind of upside as well. Clowe is also a solid top six / top nine player that most teams would be happy having on their roster.

But their defense is suspect at best and while I like Niemi for obvious reasons, I still think that he can be inconsistent at times. So you combine all of that (an aging core, a suspect defense and an inconsistent goaltender) and I think that they have the potential to sink this year.

Mind you, I'm going out on a limb here. They could easily be a playoff team. Or, if the Ducks, whose roster I actually like better, can be the team that they were in parts of the second half last year, combined with the rest of what looks to be a tough division... I dunno.

I could see the Sharks falling. Will they fall that far? Probably not. But someone has to finish last in that division.

What do you prefer for NHL jerseys: ones with the player name and number or just blank (no name or number)

I didn't care until I got a Mark Messier jersey. Now I will always prefer player name/number or personalized.

Baraka, the Sharks D doesn't really have a chink in the armor. Boyle and Burns are great. Stuart and Vlasic make a solid second pair. Even the bottom pair, Murray and Demers, is a physical, hard-hitting duo. If there's a weakness on the Sharks it's Niemi and the fact that the talent up front drops significantly after the second line. Not a lot of depth in San Jose.

What's the latest? Has the whole thing been cancelled?

Games through 10/25 have been canceled.

For me, it's just the same with their defense as it is with their offense. It's solid, but it impressed me a lot more a few years ago when the window was wide open and they looked to be on the cusp. Now it looks like the window has just about closed and they're playing in what looks to be a pretty tough division this year.

I do think that the addition of Burns last year was a good move, as he's a very solid compliment on the top line to Boyle's offensive capabilities and I especially like it when considering the fact that Devin Setoguchi hasn't taken the next step yet for Minnesota.

But Boyle's 36 now and to me, he wasn't quite the player last year that he was in the previous seasons (excluding his injury year of course).

I also liked Vlasic alot more about three or four seasons ago when it looked like he was heading upwards. I think that Demers was a bit of a flash in the pan and while Stuart was a solid pickup who should be highly motivated now that he's back on his old team, the whole group together screams good, but not great. I'll say above average at best.

Don't get me wrong, the Sharks are still a good team on paper. But given the age of the core, the fact that they have nothing good coming up through the pipe this year and what not, I could easily see this being a cliff year for the Sharks. But believe me, I can absolutely see why you'd disagree with that.

I definitely see where you're coming from dude, I just don't think Anaheim is capable of getting out of the cellar. Sure, their top line is still among the best in the entire league, maybe #1, with lines like Gaborik-Richards-Nash, Kunitz-Crosby-Neal, and Booth-H. Sedin-D. Sedin also being contenders. However, the rest of their offense consists of grinding forwards and guys who are way over the hill. Their defense isn't going to scare anyone and neither does Hiller in net.

On another note, I've been playing a season mode save in NHL 13 with my two brothers and one of their friends. We divided up the 30 teams in a draft, two of us have 7 and two of us have 8. I wound up with Phoenix, Minnesota, Columbus, Carolina, Ottawa, Montreal, and Philadelphia. We've played games through 10/17 and have played a few on 10/18, and the standings are, well, not entirely what one would expect thus far, though we attribute that to different skill levels.

Atlantic Division
1- NY Rangers (3-0-0, 6 points)
2- Pittsburgh (2-1-1, 5 points)
3- Philadelphia (2-1-0, 4 points)
4- New Jersey (1-2-0, 2 points)
5- NY Islanders (1-3-0, 2 points)

Northeast Division
1- Montreal (3-0-0, 6 points)
2- Boston (2-0-1, 5 points)
3- Ottawa (2-1-0, 4 points)
4- Buffalo (1-1-0, 2 points)
5- Toronto (0-2-0, 0 points)

Southeast Division
1- Carolina (3-0-0, 6 points)
2- Florida (2-1-0, 4 points)
3- Washington (1-1-2, 4 points)
4- Tampa Bay (1-1-0, 2 points)
5- Winnipeg (0-1-1, 1 point)

Central Division
1- Nashville (1-2-1, 3 points)
2- Chicago (1-1-0, 2 points)
3- Columbus (1-1-0, 2 points)
4- Detroit (1-1-0, 2 points)
5- St. Louis (0-2-0, 0 points)

Northwest Division
1- Edmonton (2-0-0, 4 points)
2- Minnesota (2-0-0, 4 points)
3- Colorado (2-1-0, 4 points)
4- Calgary (2-1-0, 4 points)
5- Vancouver (1-3-0, 2 points)

Pacific Division
1- Phoenix (3-0-0, 6 points)
2- Dallas (1-2-0, 2 points)
3- Anaheim (1-2-0, 2 points)
4- San Jose (0-2-0, 0 points)
5- Los Angeles (0-3-0, 0 points)

Thus far, our league leading scoring is Alex Semin (5G, 3A) with 8 points. The top goalie is Tuukka Rask, with a .973 save% and 0.66 GAA. Not exactly realistic, but whatever, we're having fun with it in the absence of the real sport.

The lockout is over and the NHL is back in business! I can't wait to see the new schedule.

I thought that I saw an article stating that teams would only play in-conference for this 48 game regular season schedule. That can't be right, can it?

Either way, I'm really looking forward to not only having hockey again, but to seeing the craziness that unfolds leading up to the start of the season. I'd have to assume that players will be amnestied, trades might be made, salary might be shed to become cap compliant etc.

I'll be curious to see what it all looks like once the dust settles.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the cap for 12-13 is down to 60 million, right? I thought I read that, but then read that teams can spend to 70 million? I dunno, I guess I'm still just trying to take it all in...

Either way, totally pumped that hockey's back!!

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! GO BRUINS!

The 48 game intraconference schedule is what happened in 94-95 when that season was shortened to 48 games, so it's not outside the realm of possibility. They're also looking at a 50 game balanced schedule as well.

The cap for this season is around $70 million and drops to about $64 next season.

And yes, I can't wait for hockey.

Here's your opening day schedule for the 2013 NHL Season:

(All times Eastern)

Pittsburgh @ Philadelphia, 3 PM
Ottawa @ Winnipeg, 3 PM
Chicago @ Los Angeles, 3 PM
NY Rangers @ Boston, 7 PM
Toronto @ Montreal, 7 PM
New Jersey @ NY Islanders, 7 PM
Washington @ Tampa Bay, 7 PM
Carolina @ Florida, 7:30 PM
Detroit @ St. Louis, 8 PM
Columbus @ Nashville, 8 PM
Phoenix @ Dallas, 8 PM
Colorado @ Minnesota, 9 PM
Anaheim @ Vancouver, 10 PM

Might be going to the Bruins first game of the season against the Rangers c:

Damn, the Kings are getting housed in their own building right now. 4-0 early in the second.

Bruins won 3-1! Chris Bourque missed an empty net goal though wtf!

The Red Wings need to find some defense, and soon, because last night's 6-0 ass-raping at the hands of the Blues did not sit well with me. Our defense is way too complacent, and as a result our offense can't seem to manage even a short sputter in the offensive zone.

St. Louis was 4-for-5 with the man-advantage and also had a short-handed goal. In all honesty, though, given our poor defensive play and complete lack of offensive zone penetration, it looked as if St. Louis was on the power play throughout the entire game.

I really wish that we would've picked up Redden when he became a free agent. He could've contributed much in the manner that Lidstrom did prior to his untimely retirement. I just hope that Mike Ilitch does something in terms of roster improvement prior to the trade deadline, because this team, based on last night's performance, is not going to make it to the postseason for a 22nd straight season. Twenty-one straight postseason appearances is certainly nothing to sneeze at, though.

It's funny that you mention Redden, because I had been talking with a friend of mine about how it'd be interesting if he had landed in Detroit instead of St. Louis.

Blues rookie Vladimir Tarasenko is too amazing. he had 2 goals on his first 2 shots. he had one on his first shot today. 3 goals 6 shots on the season.

first year i will be really into hockey, hopefully my blues got this season in the bag..

Tarasenko has definitely been impressive so far. Speaking of impressive play, Marian Hossa and Thomas Vanek have turned in great starts for their teams.

Blues might take that first L... just not converting shots into goals..

On my way back from the yotes game. I love having hockey back!

My bruins fell to the rangers 4-3 in OT. Nathan Horton scored his first goal since January of last year, when he got his second concussion that put him on the shelf until last Saturday. Márion Gáborík finished off the bruins with a great goal. He fired a shot at Tuukka Rask, Rask deflected it and Gáborík hit the puck in as it was in the air. Bruins next game is Friday against the New York Islanders.

My Rangers played great that first period, can't say much about the other 2. A miracle we pulled that win out. These first three games have been incredibly sloppy. They need to step it up and get their ass in gear on the PP cause it's pathetic right now

Blues hottest on power plays.

I really am proud of myself to dedicating myself to hockey this year. i never realized how good it is.

I feel like i would be annoying to veteran hockey fans. i am just so into hockey for the first time in my life. i have always been a blues fan, but i feel like i have something to cheer for. I really do apologize to those of you who are annoyed by my 1. lack of knowledge. 2. constant posts about my team even though i am a new fan. i dont want to appear as a band wagon...