New Jersey Devils Additions: Adam Larsson, Cam Janssen, Eric Boulton Losses: Brian Rolston, Colin White Last season was nothing short of a disaster for one of the most successful franchises of the last two decades. Star goalie Martin Brodeur was injured; the $100M Man Ilya Kovalchuk had 14 goals and was a -29 at the All-Star break; rookie head coach John MacLean was fired before Christmas; star forward Zach Parise was lost 12 games into the season; and the Devils missed the playoffs for the first time since 1995-96. After greatly underachieving, getting Parise back and a healthy Brodeur should boost the morale, and fourth overall pick Adam Larsson should make an immediate impact on defense. It will be interesting to see how new coach Peter DeBoer fits in with the veteran locker room, and if he is able to get the most out of Kovalchuk, but I believe there is too much pride and experience on the Devils roster for them not to bounce back into the playoffs. Last season: 4th in the division, 11th in the East. Prediction: 3rd in the division and 7th in the East. New York Islanders Additions: Brian Rolston, Evgeni Nabokov, Marty Reasoner Losses: Zenon Konopka, Trent Hunter, Doug Weight The young Islanders are making a lot of internal strides, and their young core looks very promising, but unfortunately for their fans this will not be the year they get back into the playoffs. John Tavares is going to be a star; Michael Grabner may join Matt Moulson as a perennial 30-goal guy; Kyle Okposo and Frans Nielsen are solid all-around players. Getting Mark Streit back from injury will be a big boost to their underwhelming blueline, but that is still a weak spot on their roster. Another annual problem is found in net, as Rick DiPietro is never healthy. Potentially Evgeni Nabokov could come in and play solid enough to keep them in more games, but he is 36-years-old and more than a year removed from his last NHL game. The future looks bright, but the present looks like more of the same. Last season: 5th in the division, 14th in the East. Prediction: 5th in the division, 13th in the East. New York Rangers Additions: Brad Richards, Tim Erixon Losses: Chris Drury, Brian McCabe This blue collar group does all of the little things necessary to win hockey games: block shots, take out their man, sacrifice for their teammates, kill penalties, play defense. They have a solid young group up front (Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Callahan, Brian Boyle, Mats Zuccarello) and on the blueline (Marc Staal, Ryan McDonagh, Michael Sauer), and one of the best goalies on the planet (Henrik Lundqvist). Bringing in a point-per-game center in Brad Richards will really elevate their offense and balance out their top three lines. Hopefully, Richards will also help Marian Gaborik to find his scoring touch, as he dropped from 42 goals to 22 last year. The Rangers also suffered many injuries last year, and if they stay healthy and can pick up one more veteran defenseman to help on their power play, they could make a lot of noise. Last season: 3rd in the division, 8th in the East. Prediction: 2nd in the division, 5th in the East. Philadelphia Flyers Additions: Ilya Bryzgalov, Jaromir Jagr, Brayden Schenn, Wayne Simmonds, Jakub Voracek, Maxime Talbot Losses: Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, Ville Leino, Kris Versteeg, Nikolai Zherdev, Darrel Powe, Brian Boucher No team in the NHL had more turnover this offseason except for maybe Florida. And it surprised everyone, because Philadelphia was the class of the Eastern Conference for much of last season, ultimately finishing second and losing in the second round to Boston. They jettisoned their captain and best goal scorer in two separate deals on the same day, and in total saw over 200 points leave their roster from last season, while welcoming back under 100 points (plus Jagr). The hope is that Jaromir Jagr can be a 60-point player upon his return, but that may be a lot to ask. A lot of the forwards they acquired this offseason are third-line players for the coming season, which will not really help them repeat as division champions. Yes, Brayden Schenn is probably the best prospect league-wide, but he should not be counted on to replace Carter or Richards this year. Also with Richards gone, Philadelphia loses their best defensive forward, which will have more of an impact than many figure. Using all of that money on Ilya Bryzgalov may help, but will he be so much of an upgrade over Sergei Bobrovsky and his expected improvement from a solid rookie year? I am predicting a big slide from the Flyers. Last season: 1st in the division, 2nd in the East. Prediction: 4th in the division, 11th in the East. Pittsburgh Penguins Additions: Steve Sullivan, Jason Williams, Boris Valabik Losses: Alexei Kovalev, Maxime Talbot The Penguins did not make any big additions this offseason, but to be honest it was not necessary. They did not lose anyone of significance, and if they are able to get back a 100% healthy Sidney Crosby (32-34-66 in 41 games), Evgeni Malkin (37 points in 43 games played mostly unhealthy) and Jordan Staal (30 points in the final 42 games) to be a dominating force in the league. Dan Bylsma is one of the top-3 coaches in the league, Kris Letang emerged as an offensive leader on the blueline, and Marc-Andre Fleury can ride a hot streak as well as any goalie in the league. They have lots of solid wingers who know their role and are defensively responsible, and defensemen who play smart in their own end. And I almost forgot James Neal, a 30-goal threat acquired last season who should get a chance to play with Crosby or Malkin. The Penguins tied the Flyers with 106 points last year, and a healthy roster will be able to overtake them. Last season: 2nd in the division, 4th in the East. Predicition: 1st in the division, 2nd in the East. Nick is RealGM’s NHL Feature Writer. You can reach him by email [email protected] or on twitter @NickObergan