Rank: NHL's Best Mascots

The Vegas Golden Knights debuted their team mascot over the weekend. The team decided to go with a Gila Monster named "Chance". Just like everything else this organization has done so far, they got it right. Mascots are supposed to be fun, unique and somewhat intimidating. Chance fits the bill. That got me thinking, who are the best mascots in the NHL today?

In this edition of Rank, we will countdown the NHL's top ten mascots. This is totally biased and opinionated. But hey, we're ranking mascots here. To make this list the mascot has to cover three criteria. First, be appealing to kids. Second, be unique enough to standout in a crowd of 20,000 people. Last, be somewhat intimidating.

NHL Predictions 2017 Edition

The 2017-18 NHL season starts tonight! So I better get right down to business and make my final predictions for the new season. Below is who (I think) will win each of the major awards this year. As a frame of reference, I went a blistering 2 for 11 on my predictions last season. That's a woeful 18% percent for everyone keeping track at home, but this is just about having some fun before the season.

Hart Trophy (MVP) - Connor McDavid 

It is just too hard to pick against this guy. He won the MVP and scoring title last season and he is only getting better. The only thing that may hold McDavid back is the rest of his team getting better and not relying on him so much.

Art Ross Trophy (Most Points - Player) - Nikita Kucherov 

I like to gamble and if there is a long shot worth betting on, its Kucherov. The Lightning are going to be massively better this season and Kucherov was already one of the league's top players this past season. With all of Tampa Bay's dynamic offensive weapons, Kucherov will get a lot of opportunities to fill the stat sheet.  

Richard Trophy (Most Goals) - Vladimir Tarasenko

It is no secret that I am a big fan of Tarasenko's game. He is as silky smooth as Patrick Kane with a wrist shot like Phil Kessel. The Blues also lean on him as much as any team leans on their star player for scoring. St. Louis has a lot of great two-way players, but only one superstar scorer. There will be lots of competition from Matthews, Crosby and Ovechkin; but Tarasenko is my guy. If I had to pick a dark-horse, it would be Jack Eichel. 

Vezina Trophy (Best Goalie) - Braden Holtby

This award is always up in the air. It really comes down to a team that won a lot of games also had a great goalie. This season I'm taking Braden Holtby. I expect the Capitals to have a bit of a backslide as a team this season, but Holtby will be the one that keeps them in the playoffs. His team will be counting on him more than any prior season. If he steps up to the challenge, he deserves the award.

Norris Trophy (Best Defenseman) - Erik Karlsson 

He is the best defensemen in the NHL every season. He is also the glue that keeps the Senators near the top of their division. When healthy he is one of the top five players in the game. The knock on Karlsson used to be that he was just an offensive defender and a liability in his own zone. That is not the case anymore. I see him as a lock for the Norris if he can stay healthy. 

Selke Trophy (Best Defensive Forward) - Jonathan Toews

The same guys get nominated for this award each season and it just gets passed around. I think Toews is due for it this year. No knock on the players who keep getting nominated. They are all great two-way players and well deserving. I think Chicago will have more of a defensive mindset this season. Trading Panarin for Saad was an obvious sign. Toews will be the beneficiary of that. He is great at faceoffs and can shutdown the opponent's top center.

Jack Adams Award (Best Coach) - Mike Yeo

Mike Yeo is an underappreciated NHL head coach. He also happens to be the coach of one of the most talented teams in the NHL, the St. Louis Blues. I predicted the Blues to win the Central Division and Tarasenko to win the Richard. So I have to pick Yeo to be the coach of the year. He has a plethora of talent to coach. Great offense, depth and defensemen. The Blues only concern is in net. Its Yeo's job to make that concern go away. 

President's Trophy (Most Points - Team) - Edmonton Oilers

They made their huge leap last season. All the young stars have had a full season to develop and this team knows what it takes to win. The Oilers are primed to win their division. With the Coyotes, Canucks and Golden Knights to beat up on in their division, there is plenty of opportunity to stockpile points. I expect the Oilers to win the President's Trophy by a lot.

Surprise Team - Calgary Flames

Their success will not be a huge surprise this season, but I really do not see a surprise team coming. The Flames totaled 94 points last season. I expect them to add to that total in 2017-18. They have a lot of young talent and depth. I do not think the addition of Jagr makes the team much better on the ice, but he will be a good addition to the locker room. A great mix of youth and veteran talent gives Calgary a chance to compete for the Stanley Cup this season. 

Disappointing Team - Montreal Canadiens

The Habs have been teetering at the top of the Atlantic Division for a few years. They are due to fall off. Montreal has great goaltending, but not enough beyond Carey Price. Scoring is going to be too important to their success. They simply do not have enough. Also, the rest of their division is better. The Leafs are ready to compete. The Lightning are healthy. Ottawa proved they are a great team last season. Expect Montreal to miss the playoffs. 

Stanley Cup Champion - Pittsburgh Penguins

I know, I know 3-peats just do not happen in modern sports. However, there is just something special about this team. They have two of the best players in the world, including the greatest player of his generation. Kris Letang is healthy, don't forget they won the cup without him last year. Murray has another year of maturity and he has never lost a playoff series. The scoring depth on this team is unmatched. Kessel, Hornqvist, Hagelin and Guentzel are all qualified top line forwards. The majority of the defensive core returned from last season. Winning a third straight Stanley Cup will not be easy, but everyone said winning back-to-back was impossible too. 

Metropolitan Division Preview

We continue our breakdown of each division in the NHL, team by team. Today we will breakdown the always entertaining Metropolitan Division. This is easily the most top heavy division in the league. On one end you have the defending Stanley Cup champion and the defending President's Trophy winner. On the other end you have the teams that earned the top two picks in the draft. The top three teams in this division seem to be a lock, the rest are all questions marks vying for a wild card spot.

8. New Jersey Devils

Some people are buying into this team too much. They were the worst team in the NHL for a reason last season, but I have seen some outlets projecting them as a wild card team. This is still a very bad team. The addition of Nico Hischier is great, it always helps to have the first overall pick, but Hischier isn't McDavid or Crosby. Also, signing Marcus Johansson provides a little more offense, but his career high in points is only 58. Signing Brian Boyle adds a little snarl to the lineup, but no more scoring. Offensively this team is going to be bad. Taylor Hall is not good enough on his own to spark this team. Their best hope was Ilya Kovalchuk return to the NHL and they could trade him for assets, but he screwed the Devils again. The Devils are woefully bad defensively. I know this because Ben Lovejoy is a top four defensemen on their team. I see no way the Devils do not secure themselves a lottery pick again in the 2018 NHL draft.

7. Philadelphia Flyers

I do not see anywhere the Flyers improved from last season. Their only off-season addition was Brian Elliot, so they actually got worse in net. They drafted Nolan Patrick with the #2 pick, but I do not expect much impact from him in his rookie season. This team is also embarrassing on the blue line. Their best defensemen is Shayne Gostisbehere and he is just a winger lined up as a defensemen. The rest of their defense core is garbage. Radko Gudas is not even a quality NHL defensemen and he is maybe their second best blue liner. I honestly fear that Flyers could give up a record number of goals. That is how bad they will be in their own end. The one saving grace for them is they have some very talented forwards. Giroux, Voracek and Simmonds are all worthy top line scorers and have proven themselves. For this team to have any hope of making a wild card push, these guys will each need to score well over 30 goals.