Over the course of the next couple of weeks so called hockey analysts and hockey experts will be making their predictions for the upcoming hockey season (and yes that includes yours truly). However before everyone gets their predictions in, we thought it would be fun to look at some atypical predictions for the 2015-2016 NHL hockey season. We have sprinkled in some legit topics, but we wanted to take a look at some of the more zany sides of the game. These predictions do not include pre-season, these predictions are for the NHL regular season which begins on
20 Wacky NHL Predictions for 2015-16
- First player to take a penalty: Tyler Bozak – Toronto Maple Leafs
- First coach to be fired: Claude Julien – Boston Bruins
- First Superstar to get injured: Nick Backsrom – Washington Capitals
- First player to score a hat trick: John Tavares – New York Islanders
- First Goaltender to get a shutout: Carey Price – Montreal Canadiens
- First team to win a OT in the new 3-on-3 format: Edmonton Oilers
- First team to 10 wins on the season: Tampa Bay Lightning
- First 4+ game losing streak: Carolina Hurricanes
- First player to score 20 goals: Phil Kessel – Pittsburgh Penguins
- First big name to be traded: Dion Phaneuf – Toronto Maple Leafs
- Team in which Connor McDavid scores his first NHL goal: St. Louis Blues (game #1)
- Team in which Jack Eichel scores his first NHL goal: Columbus Blue Jackets (game #3)
- # of Canadian NHL teams that will make the playoffs: Three
- First team to lose to the Toronto Maple Leafs: Buffalo Sabres
- Will Jamie Benn defend his Art Ross Trophy as the league’s top scorer: No
- # of Oilers jerseys thrown on the ice at Rexall Place this season: Two
- # of 20 goal scorers on the Anaheim Ducks this season: Four
- Average number of minutes Duncan Keith will average on the ice per game for the Chicago Blackhawks: 25:40
- # of points that Jaromir Jagr will put up for the Florida Panthers as a soon to be 44 year old: 44
- # of times Milan Lucic will play the Montreal Canadiens: Two
Bonus: # of time Milan Lucic will play the Vancouver Canucks: Five
There you have it some wacky predictions for the upcoming NHL season. Stay tuned for our upcoming Division previews and NHL season award predictions.
