Coming into this season, the Central division was thought of as the toughest division in the NHL. The division sent five teams to the playoffs in 2013-2014, and with the emergence of young talent in Dallas and Colorado, this division looked poised to be a gauntlet once again. However, as always, this division had a couple surprises for us this season.  

Nashville Predators

The team that is stealing all the attention right now, and rightfully so, is the Nashville Predators. They lead the Central division at the halfway point with 65 points going into the All-Star break. While Peter Laviolette was thought to make them into a better team this season, they do not appear to have quite enough talent to compete in a loaded division. The return of Pekka Rinne was another reason for optimism in Nashville, but it was unclear if his return would be as beneficial as advertised because of the way Carter Hutton played in his absence last year. But that does offer confidence that Hutton can keep Nashville near the top of the division in light of Rinne’s recent injury.

Another uncertainty was bringing in older centers like Mike Ribiero and Derek Roy to offset not having Mike Fisher for the first part of the season. But, Laviolette has managed to put together a solid group of forwards that get it done, including offseason acquisition James Neal. People forget that Laviolette is a Stanley Cup-winning coach. He won the Cup with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2006 and took the Flyers to the Finals in 2010.The Predators are fully capable of keeping it up for the rest of the season and getting one of the top three spots in the playoffs. 

St. Louis Blues

St. Louis added Paul Stastny in the offseason. He has been serviceable but not necessarily worth the franchise player money they paid him. In fact, he has the third most points among their centers. David Backes leads them in points with 33, Jori Lehtera is second with 30. The real story of the season, aside from goaltending, has been Vladimir Taresenko. He leads the team with 24 goals and 47 points. If Tarasenko can be that elite offensive player that they have been missing for the last few years, then they could be dangerous in the playoffs.

The one thing that remains an issue is exactly the one that has been a thorn in their side for years -- goaltending. Other than Brian Elliot, neither Jake Allen or Martin Brodeur has been effective. Allen’s goals against doesn’t look so bad because their defense is so good, but a save percentage of .900 is concerning. Brodeur’s sits at .899. He simply doesn’t have what it takes to be a #1 goaltender anymore. He could be a good mentor and veteran presence in the playoffs, but the burden is going to be on former backup Elliot if they are to get past Chicago or Los Angeles in this year’s playoffs.   

Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks were the trendy pick to win the West and the Stanley Cup this season and for good reason. They return a young team based on a young core of Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane on offense as well as Duncan Keith on defense. Goaltending always seemed to be the question, but so far Crawford has been excellent. He has a save percentage of .921, tied for 7th in the league, and a goals-against average of 2.26, 7th in the league. Having a shutdown defense in front of him helps, but he has carried his share of the load this season. They will be even more dangerous if Teuvo Teravainen can get it going before the playoffs.

Another welcome addition has been Trevor Van Reimsdyk, who has given them some quality minutes when healthy. Brad Richards has been effective as a #2 center with 28 points, fifth on the team. It is hard to argue with what Brandon Saad has been able to do as well. The Blackhawks enter the All-Star break tied with the Blues at 62 points (but have played 47 games to St. Louis’ 46), but they are in a good position to pass St. Louis in the second half of the season. 

Winnipeg Jets

The Winnipeg Jets have been surprising as well. They were nearly a unanimous pick to finish last in the Central, but now they look primed to be a playoff team. The goaltending situation has finally be solidified with the arrival of Michael Hutchinson, who has been stellar with a .935 save percentage and has allowed just 1.9 goals per game. Ondrej Pavelec has been decent with a 2.47 goals-against average and .913 save percentage.

For a team that has as many high picks at forward as they do, it is somewhat surprising they have become a playoff contender as a defense-oriented team. They are 5th in goals allowed in large part because of Hutchinson. Picking up Mathieu Perreault was a savvy move. He is fifth on the team with 29 points. With 60 points through 48 games, the Jets will be able to hold off the other three teams in the division and take a spot in the playoffs.

Colorado Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche have fallen from where they were last season. Last year, they started fast and held on at the end of the season before holding onto the top spot in the central over the Blues to close last season. Seymon Varalmov has been banged up, and with their struggles on defense, they absolutely need to have him in the net in order to just scrape out a playoff spot this season. Varalmov’s 2.66 goals-against average doesn’t look too good, but he has a good save percentage at .921. Calvin Pickard has been good in his stead, with a .936 save percentage and 2.18 goals allowed per game.

For a team known for their young forwards in Gabriel Landeskog, Matt Duchene, and Nathan MacKinnon, they are actually led in points by two veterans in Alex Tanguay and Jerome Iginla (32 and 31 points, respectively). Their defense is just too problematic for them to make the playoffs. Eric Johnson is so much better than the rest of their mediocre at best defensemen, and it shows as he is averaging 24:25 minutes per game. He’ll be worn out when they need him most.  

Dallas Stars

The Dallas Stars added Jason Spezza in the offseason, and he has been a productive player, but some of the other problems the Stars did not patch up in the offseason have come to the forefront -- noticeably the lack of defense. John Klingberg has been arguably their best defenseman this season. They brought in Jason Demers from the Sharks, trading away one of their interesting young defensemen in Brandon Dillon. Now they are rolling through bunches of inexperienced defensemen after Demers, Daley and Goligoski. While Klingberg has held his own, Benn is limited and Jokipakka/Oleksiak are not NHL ready yet. Daley is a good offensive defenseman but is a defensive liability.

The best player on the team has been Tyler Seguin, who is putting up MVP-caliber numbers. He leads the league in goals with 28 (tied with Rick Nash) and is second in points with 52. With 49 points through 46 games, they are not entirely out of it. However,  the may finish just outside the playoffs. They are just too inconsistent. They play well for a few games and then terribly for a few. That will not cut it.  

Minnesota Wild

The Minnesota Wild have been a major disappointment. Thomas Vanek returned to his home state to play for the Wild this offseason, and he has not been productive in a Wild uniform. He has merely nine goals, but he does have 20 assists. The offense as a whole has not done well; the Wild are 14th in the league in goals. Zach Parise leads them with 19, and he is also second on the team in points with 36. Jason Pominville leads them in points with 38, 29 from assists.

The goaltending situation has been horrible -- so bad they brought in Devan Dubnyk as reinforcement. Darcy Kuemper is their most talented goalie, but he has really struggled this season. Still, his .904 save percentage is the best on the team. Nicholas Backstrom is nothing more than a #2 goalie anymore. It is almost amazing how a team with such bad goaltending and offense stays in the playoff hunt. All they do is puck possession. But that will not be enough; they will finish in the bottom of the division.