I also wouldn't write off Buffalo for next season yet. Their D is going to be very solid next year, and their forwards have the potential to be good or at least serviceable next year (Carter, Staal, Bertuzzxi, O'sullivan, Kopitar). If they can pick up a good goalie in free agency they could make the playoffs next year.
The Hawks are also in good shape for the future, but I could actually see Buffalo being a better club than Chicago next year. Perhaps a good matchup (rivalry) is shaping up.
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To NYIslander: Daniel Tjarnqvist, Duvie Westcott, Ilja Bryzgalov, Pat Rissmiller, Tom Poti, Bjorn Melin, Karri Ramo, Tom Gilbert
To Boston: Chris Pronger, Doug Murray, Jocelyn Thibault, Ken Klee, Wade Brookbank, Denis Istomin, Viktor Dovgan
Unless guys like kopitar have huge years, i mean neck and neck for the calder, then I dont see us making playoffs next year with this roster. We'll be bad for a while. We have alot of guys that will take a while to get good, so maybe 4-5 years we'll be cup contenders.
On a side note, we got a nice little discussion going on here.