NHL Picks: Rangers spoil Blackhawks' banner-raising party, Habs top Leafs – CBSSports.com
Welcome to the NHL Daily Picks, where CBSSports.com hockey writers Chris Peters and Adam Gretz share their predictions for select games every day.
New York Rangers at Chicago Blackhawks, 8 p.m. ET, NBCSN
Every year, when the NHL opens another season, it represents a new beginning for almost every team. But opening night also marks an end for one. The Chicago Blackhawks will experience that Wednesday night when they open their season on home ice against the New York Rangers.
In raising their 2015 Stanley Cup banner, the Blackhawks are closing the book on the championship celebration. Wednesday night, it will be time to get back to work and the Blackhawks will be doing it with a significantly altered roster and a slight sense of uncertainty. After the summer the team just had, things are going to be a little different.
The Blackhawks are used to roster turnover, but there remains an elephant in the room that will make opening night in the city more uncomfortable than your normal hockey game. Star forward Patrick Kane remains under investigation after being accused of rape in early August.
That probably won’t be prevalent in the minds of the fans watching the banner ascend to the United Center rafters, nor will it for the players that have a game to focus on, but Kane’s status is still very much a part of the Blackhawks’ story this season and will be probably even after the investigation is resolved. It still could go before a grand jury as it had previously looked like it would, or the Erie County District Attorney could decide to drop the case. Either way, it’s a topic that can’t be ignored, especially since we don’t know the outcome yet.
There is still a hockey game to be played, however, and a season to be opened. The Blackhawks-Rangers contest highlights the opening-night slate of four games throughout the league. It’s a great matchup of two of the league’s better teams and it of course has that extra allure that Original Six matchups tend to bring.
The Blackhawks have to contend with the post-ceremony malaise that can plague some teams after a banner raising. It gets the players out of their routine and provides a bit of a distraction. On top of that, the Rangers have a pretty good hockey club that is going to test Chicago’s defensive group with speed and physicality. And there’s also that Henrik Lundqvist fella between the pipes.
The Blackhawks, meanwhile, will be debuting a new lineup after losing some significant players, particularly out of its top six. Patrick Sharp, Brandon Saad and Brad Richards are gone. Shutdown defenseman Johnny Oduya is, too. Meanwhile, youngsters like Teuvo Teravainen, rookie Artemi Panarin, Trevor van Riemsdyk and college free agent signing Kyle Baun could be thrust into substantial roles right away. New additions Artem Anisimov, Trevor Daley and Ryan Garbutt, all of whom were part of the team’s most significant trades this summer, will take their place in a new lineup and see how they fit in.
Given the significance in roster turnover, the pageantry that will precede the actual game and the fact that the Rangers represent the toughest opening-night opponent for the Blackhawks in each of their three most recent banner-raising nights, look for the Rangers to spoil the party. Pick: Rangers 3, Blackhawks 2
Picks for the rest of Wednesday night’s games:
Montreal Canadiens 3, Toronto Maple Leafs 1
Calgary Flames 2, Vancouver Canucks 1
Los Angeles Kings 4, San Jose Sharks 2 (NBCSN)
The Blackhawks will send their sixth Stanley Cup banner to the rafters. (USATSI)
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