Nostradumas, or nostra-dumb-"butt"

As I was trying to restrain my excitement for the up coming season, I came to a revelation about the future of hockey.

1. A team that everyone considers "playoff caliber" will have injuries to their franchise players(Boston,Toronto) thus they will get the right to draft Alexander Ovchekin.

2. Eric Stall and Tuomo Ruutu will start the season on fire and everyone will say they'll win the calder. But Pitkanen will.

3. The Avalanche will trade for a goalie

4. Atlanta will struggle without Heatley, but will be respectable. Kovalchuk will have sub-par stats.

5. Their will be a surprise team in the Eastern Conference finals, but NJ will win it again

6. Columbus will finish near the middle of the pack, just not quite playoffs

7. It'll be a constant farewell tour with this being the last seasons for Yzerman, Chelios, Messier, Forsberg, Hull, Hasek(again), Lemieux, and Andreychuk

8.Cujo will be unhappy in Detroit for two months before he finally leaves for an Eastern Conference team(N.Y. Rangers)

9.Colorado will score so many goals, that other teams will just stand back and watch...WHILE THEY'RE PLAYING THEM

10. When Gaborik comes back, he will struggle, as will the Wild

11. Mike Comrie will be traded to an Eastern Conference team

12. Mike Milbury will be fired from the Isle.

13. Brodeur will win Vezina, and be nominated for Hart, but Sakic will win it along with Ross. His stats(30 goals, 70 assists).

14. The Norris nominees could all be Red Wings(Lidstrom, Chelios, Hatcher)

15. Colorado will win Presidents trophy, with Vancouver barely behind them

16. That smell from Nashville is not the crappy music.

17. Keenan and Dudley will battle it out in the papers(Bouwmeester will long for the quiet days of Medicine Hat)

18. Ottawa will make playoffs, and that's it. But Spezza will light it up

19. The young stars will make their move to take over the NHL

20 Marc-Andre Fleury will see so much rubber he'll ask if he can play forward...in the Czech Beer League

21.The Stanley Cup finals will go seven games, with Colorado beating the Devils. Forsberg will win the Conn Smythe and announce his retirement two days later.

22. THE 20004-2005 SEASON WILL BE PLAYED, BUT SHORTENED

Woo, fun, let me try.

1. Kovalchuk will silence most critics while putting up more than 50 goals.

2. The Avs will have five players that score over 100 points.

3. Detroit will force Cujo to play in Grand Rapids.

4. Even without Heatley, Atlanta will make the playoffs after a midseason callup to Lehtonen.

5. Lidstrom will win his fourth straight Norris, but will get stiff competition from a healthy Pronger and Leetch.

6. Columbus will finish last in the Western Confernce, again.

7. Through his deal with the Devil, Dudley's Panthers finish with the fifth overall pick, but get first overall through the lottery.

8. While upset he didn't get Ovechkin, MacLean is happy to walk away with Schremp or Wolaski.

9. Zherdev will play in NA this season, for the Crunch as they make a playoff run.

10. Leclaire will post great numbers in the Cuse and may get a callup late in the season.

ok I'll take my predictions

1. Atlanta will take a step back without Heatley, Kovalchuk will be asked to do more then he expects and it will hurt Atlanta in the long run

2. Evegeni Nabakov will be stellar for San Jose, only to have them trade him mid season or just before the trade deadline to colorado for A few prospects/ draft picks

3. Andrej Nedorost will fall short of his goal as a full time NHLer (again), playing for Syracuse most of the season

4. Felix Potvin will have new life, dragging Boston to the second round of the playoffs

5. Vancouver will fall short of Stanley Cup champs again, Too many stupid penalties.

6. Minnesota will challenge but fail to earn a spot in the playoffs

7. Nashville will start out respectable, fade towards the end of feb.

8. NYR will not make the playoffs, Sather will be fired, veterns will be released, Larry Robinson will come in and remake the team around defenseman Fedor Tutin, Forwards Garth Murry, Hugh Jessiman and Goalie Dan Blackburn

9. Pascal LeClaire will finally realize that Karl Goehring has been a much better goaltender then him and will step up, taking a winning record in Syracuse

10. Los Angeles will not be as bad as they were last year, a playoff team.

BTW: I thought Zherdev couldn't play in the AHL, he's only 18, don't you have to be 20?

BTW: I thought Zherdev couldn't play in the AHL, he's only 18, don't you have to be 20?


That rule only applies to CHL players, I believe. DiPietro was playing in the AHL right after his freshman year in college, no?

You know that it is Nostradamus, not Nostradumas, right?

You know that it is Nostradamus, not Nostradumas, right?

Does that really matter? You came here to just type that? :rolleyes:

That rule only applies to CHL players, I believe. DiPietro was playing in the AHL right after his freshman year in college, no?

I think you are correct. I am not sure about College, but I am fairly certain that europeans can play in the AHL before they turn 20

As I was trying to restrain my excitement for the up coming season, I came to a revelation about the future of hockey.


8.Cujo will be unhappy in Detroit for two months before he finally leaves for an Eastern Conference team(N.Y. Rangers)



If he thinks he is unhappy now wait until he is a Ranger. He has never played for as bad a team as the Rangers.

1. The Jackets will miss the playoffs, but barely.

2. Columbus will face a goalie controversy when Brathwaite goes on a hot streak and Denis grows unhappy.

3. Pascal Leclair will begin to show his skills in Syracuse and will get a game or two of NHL experience.

4. The gradual collapse of the RedWings will continue. By the end of the season it will be obvious both Yzerman and Chelios should have retired after last year.

5. The Western Conference will be a dogfight, with all of the traditional powerhouses (Detroit, Dallas, Colorado) taking steps back, Anaheim stepping up and Vancouver treading water. Out of all this parity, Vancouver will play St. Louis in the conference finals.

6. Philly will disappoint and the Sens will finish atop the East and make it to the finals. Carolina will prove last year was no fluke.

7. Florida will finish last but lose the lottery to Chicago, which will draft Ovechkin, prompting some smartypants to comment that Florida should have tried harder to make its publicity-stunt at last year's draft stick.

1.The Jackets will be sitting in the 7th spot when injuries hit at the end of February and MacLean wont pull the trigger on any deadline deals because of the CBA. We'll narrowly miss the playoffs.

2. Nashville will be the worst team in the league and draft Ovechkin and we'll have to play against him alot.

3. Atlanta will play out of thier skull this season and make the playoffs on sheer guts. They will lose in the first round in a hard fought 5 games to the eventual cup champs.

4. A few left behind old vets, including Adam Graves and Rob Ray, will sign with someone and help thier teams deep into the playoffs.

5. The Avs will have injury troubles and the star power they have assembled will never really materialize. Columbus will win one game against them at home.

6. Zherdev will be the talk of the league. The NHL will get him over around the middle of November and he will impress for stretches of 10 games at time but finish the season on IR.

7. Fedorov will put up better numbers than he has in years, and Giguere will be better as well.

8. Vancouver will make it to the Cup Final and lose.

9. Toronto will make it to the Confernce Final and lose.

10. A surprise team (Boston?) will win the cup after Jersey has an off year due to an injury to Brodeur down the stretch.

11. Finland will win the World Juniors and the Czechs will win the World Cup. Russia will not attend the World Juniors in a tiff with the IIHF and NHL over the Zherdev case. The Russian players will attend the World Cup against the wishes of the organization.

12. The new CBA will be reached and we will see that the whole situation was blown out of proportion.

Pessimestic Projections
1.Injurys Take There Toll on the Blue Jackets

2.Jackets finish 2nd to last in the West, 2nd to last in the Central, and 3rd to last in the NHL

3.Nikolai Zherdev never comes over.

4.Espen Knutsen and another D Man wont be with the team at the end of the year.

5.Jody Shelley will get a very long suspension

Optomistic Picks

6.CBJ wins the Draft Lottery

7.No Lockout

8.Rostislov Klesla will come back

9.Andrej Nedorost will win the calder, thus making Jackets 63 eat his words(Im only half kidding on this one)

10.Rostislov Klesla is truly something special, as he has one hell of a season.

Just a little bump because I dont want to lose track of this thread for the end of the year. Im doing ok on a few of these.

I would never shamlessly bump a thread just to show that I have a few right or close to right so far now would I? A good old fashioned sticky would stop a guy from doing it.

I would never shamlessly bump a thread just to show that I have a few right or close to right so far now would I? A good old fashioned sticky would stop a guy from doing it.


If Aaron wants to Sticky this, he can. Its completely his call.

If Aaron wants to Sticky this, he can. Its completely his call.

I only ask because it might be neat to keep an eye on it as the season unfolds, but its not really the type of thread you add to unless you want to point out how right you are. :p

Going to bump this so we can all gloat/make our excuses

To Review. Ones in Bold Are Correct. Ones Underlined are still up in the air)

1.Injurys Take There Toll on the Blue Jackets(Got This Part Right

2.Jackets finish 2nd to last in the West, 2nd to last in the Central, and 3rd to last in the NHL(Still up in the air. Should get 2/3 of this right)

3.Nikolai Zherdev never comes over.(Wrong, although nobody saw this coming)

4.Espen Knutsen and another D Man wont be with the team at the end of the year.(The D-Man us Darryll Sydor. Right Again)

5.Jody Shelley will get a very long suspension(IMO, 3 Games consititutes Long in the NHL. Right again.

Optomistic Picks

6.CBJ wins the Draft Lottery(Ive had Ovechkin on the mind since the begining of the year)

7.No Lockout(Who Knows)

8.Rostislov Klesla will come back(I have no clube what I ment by this)

9.Andrej Nedorost will win the calder, thus making Jackets 63 eat his words(Im only half kidding on this one)[Wrong!, although I dont feel he was given a fair shake]

10.Rostislov Klesla is truly something special, as he has one hell of a season.(Wrong!, a hell of a season sitting on the IR)


If anyone remembers taht far back, it was me that had the "Nikolai Zherdev, Top Prospect" Avatar in the month proceding the draft. Mabye Ill be right this year.

1.The Jackets will be sitting in the 7th spot when injuries hit at the end of February and MacLean wont pull the trigger on any deadline deals because of the CBA. We'll narrowly miss the playoffs.

2. Nashville will be the worst team in the league and draft Ovechkin and we'll have to play against him alot.

3. Atlanta will play out of thier skull this season and make the playoffs on sheer guts. They will lose in the first round in a hard fought 5 games to the eventual cup champs.

4. A few left behind old vets, including Adam Graves and Rob Ray, will sign with someone and help thier teams deep into the playoffs.

5. The Avs will have injury troubles and the star power they have assembled will never really materialize. Columbus will win one game against them at home.

6. Zherdev will be the talk of the league. The NHL will get him over around the middle of November and he will impress for stretches of 10 games at time but finish the season on IR.

7. Fedorov will put up better numbers than he has in years, and Giguere will be better as well.

8. Vancouver will make it to the Cup Final and lose.

9. Toronto will make it to the Confernce Final and lose.

10. A surprise team (Boston?) will win the cup after Jersey has an off year due to an injury to Brodeur down the stretch.

11. Finland will win the World Juniors and the Czechs will win the World Cup. Russia will not attend the World Juniors in a tiff with the IIHF and NHL over the Zherdev case. The Russian players will attend the World Cup against the wishes of the organization.

12. The new CBA will be reached and we will see that the whole situation was blown out of proportion.

1. Not even close
2. I still think they are the worst team in the league, but at the time I meant standings. So another no here
3. Thought I was doing ok here until they collapsed
4. Ray goes back to the Sens. But I dont think that counts. Andreychuk has done well as well in TB. But I dont think he counts either.
5. Hey! I'm 1 for 5!
6. Half right. Hope Im wrong about the last part, but you never know with this team. Everyone else has gone down.
7. Ouch.
8. Incomplete
9. Incomplete
10. Could happen
11. Glad I was wrong about the WJC and Russia's participation. The rest, who knows?
12. Really hope Im right here

Woo, fun, let me try.

1. Kovalchuk will silence most critics while putting up more than 50 goals.

2. The Avs will have five players that score over 100 points.

3. Detroit will force Cujo to play in Grand Rapids.

4. Even without Heatley, Atlanta will make the playoffs after a midseason callup to Lehtonen.

5. Lidstrom will win his fourth straight Norris, but will get stiff competition from a healthy Pronger and Leetch.

6. Columbus will finish last in the Western Confernce, again.

7. Through his deal with the Devil, Dudley's Panthers finish with the fifth overall pick, but get first overall through the lottery.

8. While upset he didn't get Ovechkin, MacLean is happy to walk away with Schremp or Wolaski.

9. Zherdev will play in NA this season, for the Crunch as they make a playoff run.

10. Leclaire will post great numbers in the Cuse and may get a callup late in the season.

1. While he won't hit 50, he could still win the Rocket and he has silenced his critics ("Kovalchuk doesnt pass" etc.)
2. Way off
3. Got this one right
4. wrong
5. Lidstrom probably won't get the Norris
6. Could still happen
7. Won't happen, thank God
8. Hopefully we get Sheep
9. Right on the first part, wrong on the second
10. While not "great numbers", he has shown improvement and has been called up one

ok I'll take my predictions

1. Atlanta will take a step back without Heatley, Kovalchuk will be asked to do more then he expects and it will hurt Atlanta in the long run

2. Evegeni Nabakov will be stellar for San Jose, only to have them trade him mid season or just before the trade deadline to colorado for A few prospects/ draft picks

3. Andrej Nedorost will fall short of his goal as a full time NHLer (again), playing for Syracuse most of the season

4. Felix Potvin will have new life, dragging Boston to the second round of the playoffs

5. Vancouver will fall short of Stanley Cup champs again, Too many stupid penalties.

6. Minnesota will challenge but fail to earn a spot in the playoffs

7. Nashville will start out respectable, fade towards the end of feb.

8. NYR will not make the playoffs, Sather will be fired, veterns will be released, Larry Robinson will come in and remake the team around defenseman Fedor Tutin, Forwards Garth Murry, Hugh Jessiman and Goalie Dan Blackburn

9. Pascal LeClaire will finally realize that Karl Goehring has been a much better goaltender then him and will step up, taking a winning record in Syracuse

10. Los Angeles will not be as bad as they were last year, a playoff team.

BTW: I thought Zherdev couldn't play in the AHL, he's only 18, don't you have to be 20?


1. Undecided, Kovalchuk has had a good season, but he's missed games and been benched for violating rules or not showing up to practices or something

2.Nabokov has been good, but he wasn't traded

3. half right/half wrong again....

4.This one is still up in the air too

5.This one is up in the air too

6.Ok so they didn't challenge much, but they aren't going to make them anyways

7.This one was wrong

8. Only one part has come true so far...veterns leaving

9. So far so good with this one

10. I was close here...it looked like they were going to do it, but too many injuries

Along with these predication, please allow me to tell you tonight’s mega millions numbers are 8 14 22 33 41 and the mega ball is 45. All predications equally accurate.

JUNE 2004: Failing to win the draft lottery, Doug MacLean will pull off a draft day deal for Alexander Ovechkin, but to avoid the Nikolai Zherdev problems Ovechkin will not return to Russia following the draft. The will infuriate the Russians and as a protest will pull out of the World Cup of Hockey. Doug MacLean is a hero in the eyes of CBJ fans.

JULY 2004: The CBJ season schedule will be released and fans will cry foul when the end of the season consists of a 7-game west coast road trip and back to backs with Detroit and Colorado. This string of games will be the single reason cited by fans as to why the CBJ did not make the playoffs.

JULY 2004: The internet rumors come true and Doug MacLean hires University of North Dakota head coach Dean Blais to replace Gerard Gallant. Fans scream for Doug MacLean to be fired.

AUGUST 2004: ABC/ESPN announce a new hockey TV deal worth about 30% less than the previous offer. Pressure mounts on settling the CBA.

AUGUST 2004: As NHL2NIGHT is not longer a part of the ABC/ESPN deal, John Buccigross is named new play-by-play man for the Columbus Blue Jackets TV coverage.

AUGUST 2004: Gary Bettman announces that if there is a long work stoppage, six teams will cease operation. While the list is never released, speculation on Nashville, Washington, Florida, Pittsburgh, Anaheim and one Canadian franchise spreads throughout the league.

SEPTEMBER 2004: Ohio State football begins and no one but the people on this board gives a rat’s ass about hockey.

SEPTEMBER 14, 2004: Sensing the loss of 120 jobs, the NHLPA agrees to the CBA. In exchange for a salary cap, The NHLPA is given partial ownership in certain league operations.

OCTOBER 2004: Once the CBA is finalized, the CBJ will make three major free agent signings. One player will come from the Detroit Red Wings, as the Wings are forced to shed salary under the CBA. The CBJ payroll will begin the season at $35m. $5m less than the $40m cap. Geoff Sanderson is claimed off waivers from Vancouver, but his contract is restructured

SOMETIME BEFORE THE END OF 2004: David Vyborny will suffer a season ending injury. The CBJ will fall apart and all of us will realize what we already know. The heart and soul of this team rests with Number 9.

TRADE DEADLINE 2005: The CBJ will be six points out of the eighth playoff spot. DM fails to make any significant trades. Vets Andres Cassels, Scott LaChance and Luke Richardson are traded. But, no one notices.

END OF SEASON 2005: The CBJ end the season 12th overall in the conference. Nash has 35 goals and 25 assists. Zherdev has 40 assists, but less than 10 goals. Nash, Zherdev and Malhotra will be the number one line most of the season.

AUGUST 2004: As NHL2NIGHT is not longer a part of the ABC/ESPN deal, John Buccigross is named new play-by-play man for the Columbus Blue Jackets TV coverage.

I'm not sure if you were joking or not, but I for one would love that ;) I bet he would too.

I'm not sure if you were joking or not, but I for one would love that ;) I bet he would too.

When I play the lottery, I expect to win...but rarely do...

Same goes for these predications...as far as Bucci...it would be great. He almost had the gig, but couldn't come to terms with DM on salary.

Bucci takes over as Radio man, A new coaching staff consisting of Head coach Bill Davidage and Associate coaches George Matthews and Dan Kelly takes over.... :lol

Bucci takes over as Radio man, A new coaching staff consisting of Head coach Bill Davidage and Associate coaches George Matthews and Dan Kelly takes over.... :lol
:banghead: