Welcome to the NHL FanHouse 2008-09 season preview. While other sites are previewing "30 teams in 30 days," we decided to take advantage of the extra time off before the start of the season to bring you all 30 previews over the next three weeks. We're counting down in reverse order of finish from last season in each conference every weekday from now until October 3. Look for an Eastern Conference preview every morning and a Western Conference preview every afternoon. Click here to read them all.
Who's In: Jarkko Ruutu, F (FA - PIT), Filip Kuba, D (Trade - TPA), Alex Auld , G (FA-BOS), Jason Smith, D (FA-PHI), Brendan Bell, D (FA-PHX), Ryan Shannon, F (Trade -VAN), Brad Isbister, F (FA-VAN)
Who's Out: Ray Emery, G (FA - KHL), Andrej Mezaros, D (Trade - TPA), Cory Stillman, F (FA - Florida), Luke Richardson, D (UFA - Unsigned), Wade Redden, D (FA - NYR), Brian McGrattan, F (FA - PHX), Mike Commodore, D (FA - CBJ), Lawrence Nycholat, D (Trade - VAN)
What's Changed: The Blue Line, that's for sure. Redden's departure was written in the stars last fall, so there's no surprise there. We'll see how well he handles the pressure of playing in New York, since we all saw how well he handled it in Ottawa. If you think this team is Cup material, consider this addition by subtraction. Then again, one has to have a defense to even get to the playoffs, and Redden is solid enough to get you there.
Couple that with The Lisp holding the line on contract numbers with Mezaros and we have the first trade of the Cap Era forced by the threat of an RFA Offer Sheet. So, out go two of the team's Top 4 defensemen (not to mention rental Mike Commodore) and in return come Filip Kuba, Alexandre Picard and war-horse Jason Smith. What's changed is that Ottawa's blue line will be meaner than previous versions as both Mezaros and Redden are not what you'd call physically dominant.
