Prior to the start of the Anaheim Ducks 2018-19 season, I made it a point to make some bold predictions, how have they held up now that the season is wrapping up?
I like to speculate almost as much as I love my Anaheim Ducks, I love trade rumors, I love figuring out who is a good fit where, and to see if I can maybe see something that others don’t. Following the first day of Free Agency on July 2nd, I made 11 predictions, some bolder than others, 8 of these 11 I can make a judgment on right now, the remaining 3 are a bit up in the air but never-the-less let’s take a look at how they’re holding up.
Prediction 1: St. Louis will rebound and make the playoffs, winning at least one playoff series.
The start of this season, this looked like a really, really bad take. Starting the season 7-9-3, firing their coach and proceeding to go 7-7-1 to head into the Christmas Break, But here we are with 4 games remaining in the season and the Blues have rebounded to go 28-12-4 since then and currently sit perched in the 3rd seed in the Central Division, likely setting up a playoff matchup with either the Nashville Predators or Winnipeg Jets in the first round, both of which considered favorites in the West, but both on a bit of a cold streak as they sit 5-4-1 and 5-5 in their last 10 games respectively.
Result of Hot Take: So far so good. Playoffs are an entirely different animal, but the Blues have clinched a playoff spot and could be a formidable foe in the playoffs if Jordan Binnington proves to be more than just a flash in the pan, and they can get some big play from Vladimir Tarasenko and Ryan O’Reilly.
Prediction 2: Toronto will make it past the first round of the playoffs, but not past the Lightning
Toronto has been a team on the rise the past couple seasons, they came into this season signing the biggest free-agent in recent memory bringing home John Tavares to play for his childhood favorite team. Toronto started the season incredibly strong, with Auston Matthews, Tavares, and Mitch Marner all putting up awe-inspiring numbers and Morgan Reilly putting up numbers offensive numbers reminiscent of a forward. The Leafs have had a bit of an up-and-down season, at times looking like a Stanley Cup contender, and others leaving fans wondering if the team is more smoke and mirrors than substance. Since the beginning of March, the Leafs boast a record of 6-5-3, not exactly inspiring, but not overly alarming on the surface. But digging deeper you’ll see that over that stretch the Leafs won only 1 game against a team who is projected to make the playoffs (That being the Calgary Flames the beginning of March). They show losses to Tampa, Vancouver, Chicago, Nashville, the Rangers, the Flyers and the league-worst Senators twice. Needless to say, the Leafs have shown the potential to be a threat in the league, but they’ve also shown some streakiness.
Result of Hot Take: This one hasn’t come to fruition yet, and as we sit here right now I’m less than confident in the take. The Leafs will all but certainly play the Boston Bruins in the first round of the playoffs, a Bruins team that has defeated the Leafs 2 out of their last 3 trips to the playoffs, including last season. The past is the past, but that history could linger in their heads and affect the outcome, but as of right now, this take is not finished.