The 2012-13 Predictions

We marched into the 2012 offseason with another labour dispute hanging over our heads, and it came to pass that the opening night for the 2012-13 NHL season was cancelled due to this ongoing battle between the NHL and NHLPA. However, the two sides finally figured out their differences come 2013, and we would have a shortened, 48-game season that would begin on January 19 following the two sides agreeing on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement six days earlier. The end result was that the 48-game season would strictly be intra-conference, so that definitely may have affected standings at the end of this season. Would it affect the predictions made by The Hockey News for the 2012-13 season with the Yearbook coming out prior to the owners locking out the players? We'll soon find out!

The Jets, now entering their second season of play, get bumped again by not one, but both Alberta teams as THN coverboy Jarome Iginla and Edmonton's Taylor Hall share the cover this year. I honestly don't understand The Hockey News and their reluctance to put any of the Jets on the front cover in the last two years being that they were the shiny, new thing on the prairies, but we can add a half-point to each of the Flames' and Oilers' total cover appearances with the dual-team cover.

The Hockey News continues its standings predictions this year, so we'll examine and score these predictions as we have before. After a letdown in predictions one year earlier following a banner year, THN needs to bounce back this season. Just remember that we're talking about a 48-game, intradivisional schedule here. Will that throw THN's accuracy way off?

Here are the standings predictions as per The Hockey News.

Click on the picture if you'd like to view it at a larger size.

STANDINGS

I'll award one point for every team correctly predicted as to their final conference standing. I'll also award one point for every correctly-predicted playoff team in the right standing, and 0.5 points for a playoff team not in the correct standings spot. I'll continue to award up to three points for the division winners as well. That's a potential total of 15 points for the standings, another 3 points for divisions winners, and 8 points for the playoff teams for a total of 26 points per conference in this section.

The final Eastern Conference standings in 2012 in the NHL are listed first with The Hockey News' predicted team to finish in that same spot listed second.

1. Pittsburgh (NHL) vs. Pittsburgh (THN)
2. Montreal vs. Boston
3. Washington vs. Washington
4. Boston vs. New York Rangers
5. Toronto vs. Philadelphia
6. New York Rangers vs. Tampa Bay
7. Ottawa vs. Buffalo
8. New York Islanders vs. Ottawa
9. Winnipeg vs. Carolina
10. Philadelphia vs. Florida
11. New Jersey vs. New Jersey
12. Buffalo vs. Toronto
13. Carolina vs. Montreal
14. Tampa Bay vs. Winnipeg
15. Florida vs. New York Islanders

THN moved closer to respectability this season. They had three teams - Pittsburgh, Washington, and New Jersey - finishing in the right spot in the standings for 3 points on the standings board. They scored both Pittsburgh and Washington as division winners for a 2/3 score. They had Pittsburgh and Washington in the right spots for playoff spots for 2 more points, but they only had three of the six remaining teams correctly making the playoffs for 1.5 points (3 x 0.5) for a total of 3.5 points for playoff teams. All totaled, The Hockey News scored 8.5/26 points for the Eastern Conference.

The Western Conference follows the same listing and scoring for 26 possible points.

1. Chicago (NHL) vs. St. Louis (THN)
2. Anaheim vs. Vancouver
3. Vancouver vs. Los Angeles
4. St. Louis vs. Chicago
5. Los Angeles vs. Minnesota
6. San Jose vs. San Jose
7. Detroit vs. Detroit
8. Minnesota vs. Nashville
9. Columbus vs. Dallas
10. Phoenix vs. Phoenix
11. Dallas vs. Anaheim
12. Edmonton vs. Calgary
13. Calgary vs. Edmonton
14. Nashville vs. Colorado
15. Colorado vs. Columbus

The Western Conference saw THN continue a decent round of predictons. They scored 3 points for having San Jose, Detroit, and Phoenix in the right standings spots. They had Vancouver as a correctly-predicted divison winner for 1/3 points. And then they also added 2 more points for having the right seeds for San Jose and Detroit while adding 2.5 points for having five of the six teams remaining (5 x 0.5) making the playoffs for 4.5 total points there. The final total for the Western Conference was 8.5/26 in 2013!

STANLEY CUP WINNER

Adam Proteau came back to handle the byline on the predictions, and he had the magazine putting all its eggs in the baskets of two teams as they predicted by the Stanley Cup champion and the finalist. Let's see how that went for The Hockey News this year.

• VANCOUVER CANUCKS WILL DEFEAT THE PITTSBURGH PENGUINS TO WIN THE STANLEY CUP. Except they didn't as the 2013 Chicago Blackhawks needed six games to eliminate the Boston Bruins to win the Stanley Cup. Vancouver, the predicted champions, lasted just four games as the third-seeded Canucks were swept out of the playoffs by the sixth-seeded San Jose Sharks that year while the Penguins certainly fared better as they made the Eastern Conference Final before the Boston Bruins swept them in that third round. To add a little salt to that wound, the Penguins scored just two goals in four games against the Bruins while Vancouver scored more than two goals in any game against the Sharks just once - a 4-3 overtime loss in Game Four to end their playoffs.

THN scored 0/2 in these predictions, and didn't predict a finalist for the second-straight year.

The Hockey News made up some ground when compared to one year earlier as their predictions this season scored them 17 out of 54 possible points for a major drop to 31.5% accuracy. Again, betting on a Stanley Cup champion or either team as a finalist would have cost you money in Vegas, but I think it's pretty safe to say that we all would have stopped betting based on THN's accuracy by this point, right?

We'll see how future seasons play out with these predictions and if THN can continue improve next season as we move forward chronologically!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!