NHL 2006-07 Northeast Division

Boston Bruins

Forwards

• Phil Kessel, Boston's number one pick in the 2005 entry draft, will be making his NHL debut this season. He opted to leave college and play in the big leagues. Last season, while playing for the University of Minnesota, Kessel had 51 points in 39 games. I'm still not sure what to expect from him in the NHL this soon.
• Patrice Bergeron signed a five year deal with the Bruins. That was a good pick up. Last year, Bergeron recorded 31 goals and 42 assists in 81 games.
• Brad Boyes had an excellent rookie season (69 points in 82 games), earning NHL all rookie honors. Look for him to just get better this season.
• The Bruins also signed center Marc Savard over the summer. Last season Savard played with the Atlanta Thrashers getting 28 goals and 69 assists.

Defense

• The Bruins brought in big man Zdeno Chara during the offseason. The 6'9" defenseman signed a 5-year, $37.5 million contact. Chara will be a huge addition on the ice as well as a veteran roll model to the younger Bruins defensemen.

Goaltending

• Tim Thomas signed a 3-year extension with the Bruins, and Hannu Toivonen will battle it out for the number one spot.

Montreal Canadiens

Forwards

• Sakic Koivu is still uncertain how his eye will do during training camp. He is having trouble with peripheral vision. It is unknown whether Koivo will start the season.
• The Canadiens signed left wing Sergei Samsonov over the summer. Samsonov scored 23 goals and had 30 assists over 74 games with the Boston Bruins and Edmonton Oilers. He will certainly add more speed to the Canadiens.

Defense

• The defensive corps of the Canadiens is still intact with Francis Bouillon, Mathiew Dandenault, Andrei Markov, Craig Rivet, Sheldon Souray and Mark Streit.

Goaltending

• Christobal Huet had an outstanding season last year, posting an 18-11-4 record with seven shotouts. His goals against average (GAA) was 2.20 and he had a .929 save percentage. Maybe that's why the Canadiens offered him a 2-year, $5.75 million contract June 26th.
• The Habs acquired David Aebischer from Colorado for struggling goaltender Jose Theodore. Huet will probably get the start just to see how steady he really is.

Buffalo Sabres

Forwards

• The Sabres lost J.P. Dumont by declining the 1-year, $2.9 million arbitration award, but did agree to Daniel Briere's $5 million contract that was awarded to him through arbitration.
• They also resigned Maxim Afinogenov to a 3-year, $10 million contract, and Jason Pominville to a 3 year, $3.1 million contract.
• Tim Connolly is not expected to be cleared to play by the time training camp starts. He is still feeling the effects of his last concussion that he received on May 8th.

Defense

• The Sabres defensive lineup appears to be strong with Brian Campbell, Dmitiri Kalinin, Teppo Numminen, Jaroslav Spacek, Toni Lydman and Henrik Tallinder.
• Kalinin was resigned on a 2-year, $4 millon contract. Toni Lydman was also resigned, but to a 4-year, $11.5 million contract.
• Expect to see Brian Campbell to once again quarterback the Sabres powerplay.

Goaltending

• The Sabres can now breath easier with the resigning of starting goaltender Ryan Miller. Miller signed a 3-year deal said to be worth $8 million. According to the Canadian Press, he will earn $2 millon this season, $2.5 million next season and $3.5 million in the 2008-2009 season.
• Martin Biron did sign the Sabres qualifying offer of a 1-year, $2.1 million contract, but he wants to be traded to another team.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Forwards

• The Leafs signed center Michael Peca to a 1-year, $2.5 million contract during the off-season, adding a solid two-way player. Peca definitely fills one of the holes left by departing Eric Lindros and Jason Allison.
• Darcy Tucker had a career year last season, netting 28 goals. He finished the season with 61 points in 74 games.
• The Leafs also resigned Kyle Wellwood to a 2-year contract in July.

Defense

• Toronto resigned Carlo Colaiacovo, Jay Harrison and Brendan Bell to 1-year contracts. The Leafs Signed Hal Gill to a 3 year, $6.3 million and Pavel Kubina to a 4-year, $20 million deal.
• Expect to see Tomas Kaberle and Bryan McCabe back as the number one defensive pairing, leaving two spots open for the youngsters. Most likely, Colaiacovo will have one of the open spots.

Goaltending

• With Andrew Raycoft coming via trade signing a 3-year, $6 million contract, I'd expect him to be the number one goaltender, leaving J.S. Aubin and Mikael Tellqvist fighting it out for the number 2 job. The odds are in Aubin's favor, though, after that last minute push last season.
• Both Aubin and Tellqvist signed 1-year contracts with the Leafs during the offseason.

Ottawa Senators

Forwards

• The Ottawa Senators were busy signing and resigning forwards during the off-season. The team signed center Dean McAmmond (Blues), center Serge Payer (Panthers), left wing Brian Maloney, left wing Peter Schaefer, right wing Chris Neil, right wing Chris Kelly, left wing Antoine Vermette and Jason Spezza.
• Along with superstars Daniel Alredsson and Dany Heatley, the Senators should be contenders again this year. Well, as long as they can overcome their playoff jitters.

Defense

• The loss of Zdeno Chara is huge for the Senators, but they still have quite a capable defense with Anton Volchenkov, Wade Redden, Chris Phillips and Andrej Meszaros
• Ottawa also brought in Joe Corvo from the Kings and Tom Preissing from the Sharks, and they resigned Jamie Allison.

Goaltending

• The Senators brought in veteran goaltender Martin Gerber during the off season, who will most likely get the number one job with Ray Emery getting the backup spot.
• Emery had a decent year last season with a 23-11-4 record, a 2.82 GAA and a .902 save percentage. Still, the Senators are going to want a proven veteran in net, and Gerber can supply that. Gerber's record last season was 38-14-6 with a 2.78 GAA and a .906 save percentage.

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