NHL Metropolitan Division Breakdown

With the Penguins victory over the Edmonton Oilers last night, the new Metropolitan Division has seen every team play at least 5 games.  Lets take a look at the standings as of Wednesday October 16th:

METROPOLITAN		GP	W	L	OT	PTS	ROW	GF	GA	HOME	AWAY	L10
	PITTSBURGH	6	5	1	0	10	5	23	15	4-0-0	1-1-0	5-1-0
	CAROLINA	7	2	2	3	7	2	15	21	1-1-3	1-1-0	2-2-3
	NY ISLANDERS	6	2	2	2	6	1	19	17	1-0-2	1-2-0	2-2-2
	COLUMBUS	5	2	3	0	4	1	12	12	0-2-0	2-1-0	2-3-0
	WASHINGTON	6	2	4	0	4	1	17	22	2-2-0	0-2-0	2-4-0
	NEW JERSEY	6	0	3	3	3	0	11	21	0-0-1	0-3-2	0-3-3
	NY RANGERS	5	1	4	0	2	1	9	25	0-0-0	1-4-0	1-4-0
	PHILADELPHIA	7	1	6	0	2	1	10	20	1-3-0	0-3-0	1-6-0

As you can see, the Penguins hold a 3 point cushion over the 2nd place Carolina Hurricanes (who have played one more game than Pittsburgh) and have distanced themselves amongst the rest of the pack.  Not to say this division is sewed up after 6 games.  When you play 82 games, there are peaks and valleys, but don't think it isn't too early to see trends.  To me, the most telling sign of a team is the goal differential.  Typically, teams with the best goal differential are the ones contending for the division crown.  The Penguins sport a nifty +8 while Carolina bucks that trend with a -6 differential.  Teams that are struggling like the Capitals (-5), Rangers (-16 no thats not a joke), and the Flyers (-10) all share a common bond...struggling to keep the puck out of the back of the net.

Surprise - To me the surprise of the division is the Carolina Hurricanes so far.  They have always had the talent with Semin, the Staal brothers, and Skinner, but the injury to Cam Ward made them extremely vulnerable on the back end last year.  Ward is back and healthy, and you can tell the difference between last year's squad and this year's just by Ward being between the pips.

Disappointment - The Bottom 4.  Sure, most people didn't see the Devils contending with so many stars departing (some that I refuse to name going back to Russia), but the Flyers, Capitals, and Rangers have been extremely underwhelming out of the gate.  The Rangers -16 goal differential doesn't look like Lundquist is in goal, but he is...they are just playing that poorly.  The Washington Capitals are getting solid production from Ovechkin, but Holtby can't keep the puck out of the net.  The Flyers...well...they are struggling but have the talent to climb back into the race quickly.  If the Flyers could post a win against the Penguins on Thursday would certainly give them a needed boost, but that is a BIG "if".

When all is said and done, I'm sure this division chart will look extremely different.  I'm pretty certain the Penguins will find themselves towards the top at the end of the 82 game tilt, but what order they finish will certainly be something to keep an eye on.