Bodog Beat

The Nashville Predators hope their young team takes the next step this year. (AP Images)

Pity the St. Louis Blues. The franchise has missed the playoffs three years in a row after a 25-year postseason streak. There’s hope for the future, but the future looks a long way off right now; St. Louis is near the bottom of the league as a  50-1 long shot to win the Stanley Cup. Worse, defenseman Erik Johnson is out until the spring after a freak accident on the golf course. He was a close second to Barret Jackman on the Blues defensive depth chart as a rookie.

St. Louis opens the 2008-09 season at home against a Nashville Predators team that could be one of the sleeper picks of the year. Losing Alexander Radulov to Russia’s KHL is tough, but he was one of three very good right wingers for Nashville along with J.P. Dumont and Martin Erat. Watch for goalie Dan Ellis to shine this year.

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