Sadly, nobody should be surprised that a pro-Canadian hockey media outlet has the Carolina Hurricanes -- coached by Kirk Muller and a crack staff, led by Cam Ward, Eric Staal, Jordan Staal, Tim Gleason, and Tuomo Ruutu, with talent like Jeff Skinner, Justin Faulk, Alexander Semin, Jussi Jokinen, etc. -- finishing in NINTH PLACE in the Eastern Conference, behind OTTAWA and BUFFALO:

http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/48196-The-Hockey-News-201213-NHL-regular-season-predictions-No-7.html

Okay, so I'm jaded here, but c'mon, really? With the HUGE improvement in the level of play last year, PLUS adding Semin, Staal, and to a degree Corvo (ack--choking on those words), with potential improvements and contributions from guys like Dalpe, Bowman, and maybe Murphy, how in God's name do we finish ninth? The only two negatives -- ONLY TWO -- we have going against us is losing Sutter and Allen, who, for better or worse, were role players.

God, I hate -- HATE -- pro-Canadian hockey media.