Luke - Edmonton will miss the playoffs

AGAINST: In test sims I have only seen the Blizzard do very well. And this continued into preseason. On top of that, only 29 of 294 Season Predictions have the Blizzard as lower than 2nd in the Northwest, which means I'm not the only one to notice their potential. Luke's pre-season power rankings even has the Blizzard at the very top. I think there's virtually no way Edmonton misses this one without serious unforeseen FHM nonsense like Tony Pepperoni getting eaten.

bbjygm - Hamilton will do well and everybody will be very calm and cool about it when they do

AGAINST: Of course Hamilton will do well. How is that a hot t- oh. Yeah no that's not happening. People love to unite against a common enemy, and until somebody else causes a scene Hamilton is that enemy in today's SHL. A Hamilton cup my even cause a non-Seattle riot. The East is looking very top heavy right now with Manhattan, New England, Buffalo, and Chicago all poised to do some damage this season. Hamilton has proven they can always find a way around this rat race. But they won't be applauded for it.

Y-man - New England will still miss the playoffs

AGAINST: I don't buy this at all. The Wolfpack are another team like the Blizzard that have shown great promise in preseason and test sims. They make second on Luke's power rankings and feature a heavy hitting forward group that is guaranteed to light up the league. Especially the current fantasy darling Ola Wagstrom. Not to mention their 3rd best defensive pairing according to Reid Sutherland. Granted, they'll have to prove themselves against the reigning Challenge Cup Champions, but I think its possible they steal that first spot in the Atlantic.

Katth - Toronto will not finish last in the league

FOR: The first warm take of the list. But I think we all know Harold Carpetticus won't allow a last place finish from Toronto. That power ranking I love so much has Toronto at just 14th, above Texas and Tampa. But I think even West Kendall could slip under them. It's a real toss up who will get beat on the most in the East, and as we learned last season, Toronto is a very unpredictable animal.

Fordyford - Hamilton will finish dead last in the league

AGAINST: See bbjygm answer. This one is just bait.

Luke - Toronto will win fewer than 7 games

AGAINST: As I explained in the Katth answer I don't think Toronto will be the worst team, and If they aren't then I can't see them winning less than 7 in a 50 game season. The Toronto over/under is 10.5 in the Casino and I think the over is a popular choice.

Donini - Winnipeg will make the playoffs

AGAINST: While I do think the Chiefs will out tank them in the Northwest, I don't believe the Jets will fair much better. In my opinion they are not on the best rebuild path and won't be getting very much better, and not quite enough to reach playoffs.

JayWhy - The Buffalo Stampede will finish just outside the playoffs, at 5th place in the East

AGAINST: I hate to be a homer... No I don't. Buffalo is making the playoffs end of discussion. The power rankings actually disagree with me on this one, but with my secret inside Buffalo knowledge that I cannot share in public, I am very convinced that Buffalo is working on yet another cup run this season. The public knowledge however is that the Stampede has the #1 ranked defensive pairing of Poopity Scoop and Cassius Darrow, according to Reid Sutherland and fantasy teams everywhere. Combined with new leadership from captain Monkey D. Luffy, this team is raring to take down the big teams of the East and climb back on top.

hotdog - Aleister Cain will finally take home an award

FOR: Everyone knows Cain deserves it. He's had bad luck his whole career and its tempting to blame it on the Specters being cursed. Spooky Specters, spooky curse? But I think realistically it's just his time with the switch to FHM. I don't think I have to tell you that he is THE top goalie right now with a whopping 1745 TPE. I think NOLA will surprise people this season and it will be Cain leading the charge.

Puolivalmiste - TEX goalie White Goodman will be Rookie of the Year

AGAINST: White Goodman is good, man. But its pretty pie in the sky to think a goalie will win ROTY, much less one about to take a beating like Goodman will for Texas. Look at Alexei Rykov or Ivan Maximus to take home the Jesster.

JayWhy - The Chicago Syndicate are going to be top 3 in the league in both goals for and goals against

FOR: I'll take a chance and say this one could be correct. They have a high shooting, high scoring offense, and D that needs a little help.

Mike Izzy - In their 19th seasons, one of either Robert Phelps or Mike Izzy will win one of the awards for the S53 season.

AGAINST: The Dragons and Steelhawks are looking good this season, but Izzy and Phelps are just not at the top level anymore. There are far more likely candidates even on their own teams to take Award spots.