With a 56-game season approved by the NHL Players’ Association, the 2021 NHL season is set to begin in the coming weeks. While it is exciting to see hockey return after the postseason bubbles, there are several twists. Fans will not be allowed in most venues, several strict protocols will be in place when teams are on the road, and a taxi squad will be in place if injuries occur. However, the most notable difference will be who teams play. In order to limit travel, NHL teams will be arranged geographically into four divisions for 2021: the East, Central, West, and North Divisions. The East, Central, and West Divisions will have eight teams each, but the North will contain the seven Canadian teams. The East Division is going to be quite the battle.

With this idea, the league will play eight games between each opponent in the States and, at most, ten games between Canadian opponents, with many of the games falling on consecutive game sets. With the new divisions in line, the question remains as to how teams will fare in the new climate. Some teams will benefit and others will struggle from these changes, but how will the divisions look? With this question in mind, we polled our writers and will be revealing our predictions for the upcoming season by division. We will be sharing our cumulative rankings for each division, as well as the team that we predict will represent each division in the Conference Finals. To start, let’s take a look at the 2021 NHL East Division and its eight teams.

#8. New Jersey Devils

Starting at the bottom of the 2021 NHL East division is the New Jersey Devils. Last year was a disaster for the Devils, as a horrible start early sunk them out of playoff contention down the stretch. The rough patch led to former head coach John Hynes and GM Ray Shero getting fired, along with Taylor Hall being traded to the Arizona Coyotes. Replacing Shero is former interim GM Tom Fitzgerald. In Hynes’ stead comes an experienced head coach in Lindy Ruff, but coaching may not be able to fix everything this year.

The offense has talent with names such as Nico Hischier, Kyle Palmieri, Nikita Gusev, and former number one pick Jack Hughes. The goaltending also got a shakeup with Corey Crawford joining one of the most underrated goalies in Mackenzie Blackwood, creating a solid tandem. However, the defense is very questionable heading into this season. Outside of Will Butcher and Dameon Severson, there isn’t much to ride home about, including P.K. Subban who had a bad year in 2019-20. As a result, the team will have to be carried by goaltending, and that isn’t a viable long term solution, especially playing top teams most nights. With this in mind, the Devils will be looking to retool from last year’s disappointment.

#7. Buffalo Sabres

The seventh place team in the East is the Buffalo Sabres. Last year, like the Devils, was a disappointment in a different way than New Jersey. The team started out strong and was in the thick of the playoff hunt in December. However, the team reverted to mediocrity from there, once again missing the postseason. The lost season, including the struggles of Jeff Skinner, Colin Miller, and Henri Jokiharju, ultimately cost Jason Botterill his job among others. With the Sabres looking to get over the hump, the team had a rather intersting offseason.

The big name the Sabres brought in was Taylor Hall on a one year deal. He and Jack Eichel will make for some fun hockey watching on the same line. The team also made some non-flashy, veteran signings to sure up the depth, including Cody Eakin, Curtis Lazar, Eric Staal, and Matt Irwin. However, the question for them lies in net. Linus Ullmark had a solid campaign in 34 games last season, but Carter Hutton struggled. Although some of it may be due to a shaky defense, the team will look to get some consistency in net moving forward.

#6. New York Rangers

Even with the defeat and loss of Lundqvist, the team managed to get even better. The team was able to earn the number one pick after a Qualifier team won the first overall selection. This adds Alexis Lafreniere to an already tremendous Rangers offense. MVP finalist Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad are the headliners to the unit, complemented by Kreider, Ryan Strome, and Pavel Buchnevich. Kaapo Kakko struggled last season, so he will look to take a greater role this season. Shesterkin and Alex Georgiev make up a very solid one-two punch in net. However, the question once again lies in defense. Not much really changed on that front, even with the loss of Marc Staal. Adam Fox is burgeoning into a strong option, but no one else is tremendous at that position, and bringing in Jack Johnson doesn’t help matters tremendously. As a result, the team will look to see some emergences or bounce back years on that front in order to get back into the postseason.

#5. Pittsburgh Penguins

The last team missing the playoffs in our predictions is the Pittsburgh Penguins. The team was odd in the regular season, often going through both hot and cold stretches throughout the year and missing names such as Jake Guentzel and Sidney Crosby throughout the year. However, the team was still very much in the running for a top seed and invested in Jason Zucker at the trade deadline. However, the team sputtered when the season stopped and had to play the #12 seed Montreal Canadiens in the Toronto bubble. Although many predicted Pittsburgh to have their way with the Habs, the team couldn’t figure out Carey Price, and several key names underperformed. As a result, Pittsburgh was stunningly upset by Montreal in four games and left in a very odd state going into the offseason.

In the offseason, Pittsburgh didn’t really get better nor worse. They were able to cut bait with Jack Johnson’s contract but replaced him with another subpar defender in Cody Ceci. Also, the team traded Patrick Hornqvist to the Florida Panthers but received a hefty contract in Michael Matheson in exchange. Pittsburgh was also slated to have a top 15 pick, but GM Jim Rutherford swapped the pick and prospects for a package that included Kasperi Kapanen. Add the loss of goaltender Matt Murray, and Pittsburgh is a really weird team this year. A Crosby and Malkin led team will always be in contention, but it is unknown if what they have is enough to put them into the postseason.

#4. Washington Capitals

The first NHL playoff team in the East for 2021 is the Washington Capitals. Last season was a standard fare for the Caps, as they once again were a strong team in the regular season. Alex Ovechkin scored his 700th NHL goal, Jakub Vrana continued to develop as a top six option, John Carlson broke out as one of the best offensive defensemen in hockey, and Ilya Samsonov developed as the heir apparent to Braden Holtby. Once the regular season stopped, it seemed the Capitals lost their momentum. The team slipped in the round robin, finished third in the seeding, and was defeated by former head coach Barry Trotz and the Islanders in round one in five games. After the loss, the Capitals ultimately decided to fire head coach Todd Reirden and replace him with Peter Laviolette.

The offseason was one of lateral moves for the roster. Holtby was not re-signed by the Caps, giving Samsonov the starting role moving forward. While the team intended to help his transition by signing Lundqvist to back him up, he announced his decision to sit out the upcoming season due to a heart ailment before the season. This led to the Caps bringing in Craig Anderson on a try-out to fill the void he left behind. The team signed Justin Schultz to bolster the defense and Connor Sheary for bottom-six depth as well. Washington also brought in Zdeno Chara on a one year deal to provide leadership and depth to the defense. While none of these signings are game changers, it helps to supplement depth for the team moving forward. As a result, although it won’t be as easy as prior years, Washington is still one of the more talented groups in the East Division and NHL, making them a threat in 2021.

#3. New York Islanders

Coming in at number three is the New York Islanders, a team that benefited from the suspension of play. The team started the season white hot, embarking on a ten game winning streak and 17 game point streak. While they continued to play strong hockey into 2020, Adam Pelech suffered an Achilles injury, forcing him out of the lineup for several months. His absence hurt the team for the rest of the regular season, as the defense never truly clicked without him. Even with the additions of replacement Andy Greene and center Jean-Gabriel Pageau, the team still struggled heading into the pause. However, the pause was a godsend, allowing them to get healthy by getting Pelech back and reset for the postseason. Once in the bubble, the team was phenomenal, beating the Florida Panthers in the qualifiers, the Capitals in round one, and the number one seeded Philadelphia Flyers in a thrilling seven game series. However, the team’s magic ran out in the Eastern Conference Final, as the team couldn’t keep up with the Tampa Bay Lightning and lost in six.

The team’s offseason is still in doubt moving into training camp. The team had three key RFA’s to sign after the season: Devon Toews, Mat Barzal, and Ryan Pulock. Although Pulock signed a two-year bridge, Toews demanded too much for the team to handle. Due to these demands, he was traded to the Colorado Avalanche for two second-round picks. Although the team has verbal agreements in place with Matt Martin, Greene, and Corey Schneider, Barzal looms large. The team also saw a massive shakeup on defense with Johnny Boychuk ending his career due to injury. This news sets the stage for Noah Dobson to step up in his absence. Oliver Wahlstrom and Kieffer Bellows will be names to watch as well due to the departure of Derick Brassard. As a result, the team has had an odd offseason, but Trotz can get more with less at his disposal. He has done it before and can do it again this year.

#2. Philadelphia Flyers

The team really didn’t change too much in the offseason. Even with the retirement of Matt Niskanen, most of the group that made this impression remain and Erik Gustafsson was added to the blue line. If Hart and the aforementioned skaters can continue to develop as expected, the team can potentially be a dark horse Stanley Cup and East division champion in the NHL in 2021.

#1. Boston Bruins

Earning the title of the 2021 NHL East Division champion is none other than the Boston Bruins. After falling one game short of the Stanley Cup the year before, Boston rolled through the regular season. David Pastrnak emerged as an elite goal scorer, Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak played rock solid between the pipes, and the Bruins had one of the most well rounded rosters in hockey. However, after the Coronavirus hit, the Bruins lost their footing. Several players had to quarantine or had injury problems, so the team could never get to full speed. This led to the Bruins falling all the way to the bottom of the round robin standings at the four seed despite being the Presidents’ Trophy winner. They defeated the Hurricanes convincingly in round one, but the Lightning knocked them out in five in round two.

While most of the talent remains, there are several differences. Torey Krug leaving for St. Louis is a noticeable enough change in itself, it’s the end of an era in Beantown. Chara, the team’s captain, played his final game as a Bruin, as the 43 year old signed a one year deal with the Capitals. They were able to bolster the middle six with the signing of Craig Smith, but the team will need to see someone step up to replace both Chara’s leadership and Krug’s production on defense. As a result, the team still looks very good on paper and is our pick to take the East Division in the NHL in 2021, but the team will need to see younger pieces take initiative moving forward.

Conference Finalist:

The representative of the division in the Conference Final was a very close race between Boston and the Islanders. Philadelphia received slight consideration, but the Islanders and Bruins were the two top teams in the vote. However, by a one vote margin, the Islanders are our predicted Conference Finals team. While it is true the team lacks big game talent, they have the upper hand in coaching. Trotz has done wonders for the team in his two years behind the bench, and his group will have a hunger to go above and beyond where they went in the summer. They may not be the best group, but they have the work ethic to get the job done, and that is what will get them far this season.

Matthew Page

I am a first year student at Hofstra University and an avid Islanders fan. I have been writing for Drive4Five since March 2020. My family has been season ticket holders for the team since 2016, and hockey is my favorite sport. As I expand my knowledge in the field of Journalism, I am writing to express my love for the Islanders and the NHL.