The online wagering crowd is ready for the NHL regular season to start this Thursday, but there may be some fans who will be disappointed by the results of their favorite teams this year. Last season was exciting right down to the finish when the Boston Bruins emerged as Stanley Cup champions. This year, the results could be much different.

New York Rangers

The Rangers do have a good team on paper but, as they say, the games are not played on paper. Winning the Brad Richards lottery got the Rangers a quality center, but it did not address the problems the Rangers were having on defense. The Rangers will struggle, once again, to make the playoffs despite a talented roster.

Phoenix Coyotes

The Coyotes lost some key players in the off-season. The most notable loss was goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov. A good goaltender is what takes a team deep into the playoffs, and now that Bryzgalov is gone the Coyotes will struggle just to make the playoffs.

Chicago Blackhawks

Chicago fans were hoping for a long run of Stanley Cup champions ala the New Jersey Devils or Edmonton Oilers of the past. But the price per head bookmaking experts saw the Chicago reign coming to an end when the team had a fire sale right after winning the Cup two years ago. It is hard to maintain Stanley Cup champion in the era of the salary cap, and Chicago will find it difficult just to stay .500 this season.