The 2004-05 Predictions

It seems kind of appropriate that this season's review would fall on a Canadian holiday when very few people are at work. As you may know, the 2004-05 NHL season was in jeopardy when the NHL and the NHLPA couldn't come to an agreement on the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, and the players were officially locked out on September 16, 2004. There were fingers pointed and words said both on and off the record about who was to blame, but players started heading to Europe to find places to play in anticipation of a deal being made. As time moved forward into a new year, the hope for that season dwindled, and on February 16, 2005, the NHL canceled the season entirely, marking the first time the league wouldn't award the Stanley Cup to an NHL team since the 1919 Spanish flu pandemic. It might have been for the best, too, because The Hockey News wasn't really in the prediction mood when they wrote the 2004-05 Yearbook.

We hit the tenth Yearbook in this project only to find Hockey Night in Canada personality Don Cherry graces the cover this season? Four Toronto covers, four Edmonton covers, a Calgary cover, and now Don Cherry? In what world would The Hockey News promote a controversial character like Don Cherry? I guess the lockout had everyone searching for something different, and THN certainly delivered that with the 2004-05 Yearbook cover.

The Hockey News decided, once again, to end their standings predictions in this year's edition of the THN Yearbook. That makes my job easier because The Hockey News just tosses caution to the wind when it comes to their Stanley Cup winner predictions, I can safely say that they'll likely be 0/1 on their prediction again this season. However, just for kicks, let's see who their choice was to hoist the Stanley Cup had there been a 2004-05 NHL season.

Here is the Stanley Cup winner prediction as per The Hockey News.

For the second year in a row, Mike Brophy hitches THN's wagon to the Ottawa Senators because they brought in 39 year-old Dominik Hasek to play net. While it's true that the Senators had the likes of Spezza, Alfredsson, Hossa, Havlat, Redden and Chara still playing for them, the Senators - also picked by The Hockey News one year earlier - fell in the opening round to their provincial arch-rival in the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2004. Of course, this is all moot since there was no season, but I'm in the camp that the Senators would have fallen short this season regardless of who was playing in the blue paint.

Since there was no season, The Hockey News doesn't have to worry about a score for their prediction of the Ottawa Senators winning the Stanley Cup. The good news is that there would be a 2005-06 season for everyone as a new CBA was finally reached on July 13, 2005, but the NHL world would look vastly different from what it did before with the new agreement changing the landscape entirely.

We'll see how future seasons play out with these predictions and if THN's accuracy improves next season with the new rules as we move forward chronologically!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!