y think of it as like this is the wild card round or any

Thanks to the return of the worlds greatest goalie, the Montreal Canadiens are among last seasons nonplayoff teams that could take the NHL by storm this season. When setting the new seasons expectations, teams who were previously stung by injuries or bad luck are often underrated, as are the potential impacts of hot goalies, rookies and new coaches.In fairness, it is incredibly difficult to predict the NHL standings, and which teams will be playoff-bound on April 9, 2017. In fact, a projection based purely on ranking teams by their previous season goal differentials has been shown to be just as accurate as the informed opinions of expert pundits.Making these predictions more difficult are the handful of teams that dramatically defy expectations every season, like last seasons Arizona Coyotes, Washington Capitals, Dallas Stars and Carolina Hurricanes, who improved by between 15 and 22 points each.Drawing on the experience of these four examples, and many more since 2005-06, the following surprise team index was crafted to provide at least some indication of which todays teams possess the factors that have led to unexpectedly strong seasons in the past; put another way, stash these team names away as your potential dark-horse contenders. Phillip Lindsay Womens Jersey .ca NHL Power Rankings for the second straight week, ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Colorado Avalanche. Drew Lock Womens Jersey . Aaron Harrison scored a 22 points for Kentucky (6-1), which has won four in a row following a Nov. 12 loss to current No. 1 Michigan State. Julius Randle overcame a scoreless first half and added his sixth double-double in as many games with 14 points and 10 rebounds. http://www.broncosrookiestore.com/Broncos-Drew-Lock-Jersey/ . Peter Gammons, an analyst for Major League Baseballs network and website, drew the ire of hockey fans on Sunday when he criticized the two NHL teams on Twitter for their physical game the night before. Brian Dawkins Womens Jersey . "We have always prided ourselves on the way we play defence. Having two big pieces back is going to be a key for us moving forward for years to come," said Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen. Peyton Manning Womens Jersey . -- Timbers coach Caleb Porter didnt stray from his business-like approach to the season even after Portland downed the two-time defending league champion Los Angeles Galaxy to gain crucial playoff position. A look at Thursdays NFL preseason matchups:NOW YOU SEE HIMThe Falcons latest hope for boosting their pass rush, defensive end Dwight Freeney, is expected to make his Atlanta debut against the Browns after reaching a deal on Aug. 2. The Falcons, last in the NFL with 19 sacks last season, have ranked no higher than 28th since 2012. Freeney, 36, is expected to play in nickel packages.He may make only a brief appearance on Thursday night -- or in any preseason game, for that matter.Falcons coach Dan Quinn joked I dont think hell lead the league in playing time this preseason.Freeney had eight sacks in 11 games with Arizona last season. No Falcons player had more than four sacks.---FAMILIAR FACEWhen the Detroit Lions lost Calvin Johnson to retirement in the offseason, they immediately signed receiver Marvin Jones.The Lions take on Jones old team when they host the Cincinnati Bengals. Jones had one catch in Detroits win over Pittsburgh last week.Cincinnati lost Jones and fellow receiver Mohamed Sanu to free agency. It signed Brandon LaFell and drafted Tyler Boyd in the second round, but LaFell has an injured right hand and didnt play last week against Minnesota.---TAKING RISKSFor Oakland quarterback Derek Carr, the preseason is the time to take some risks that he might normally try to avoid when the games count.I definitely do stuff that I want to work on in a game setting against live bullets, he said. I definitely do that, nothing that would go against hurting or anything. But, I want to see if we can get better. I want to see if, `Man if we can do that, that would help you know? So I definitely do that sometimes, he said.Carrs next chance to try that out will be Thursday night when the Raiders visit Green Bay, which hopes to give backup quarterback Brett Hundley the majority of snaps if his injured ankle allows it.---END OF A LONG WEEKAfter practicing together this week and enduring a couple of scrums and shoving matches, the Patriots and Chicago Bears will play at Foxborough, Massachusetts.It culminates a weeklong reunion between Patriots tight end Martellus Bennnett and his former team, who traded him in March.ddddddddddddHe shared hugs and pleasantries with several of his former teammates and coaches during three days of joint practices. But the outspoken Bennett and his brother, Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett, made a couple of nasty comments about Bears quarterback Jay Cutler in the last month.Still, Chicago coach John Fox assured there is no ill will toward Bennett.Tom Brady may see some action for New England, but Jimmy Garoppolo will get the majority of the work.---PLAYOFF REMATCHSeattle and Minnesota are meeting for first time since the Seahawks beat the Vikings 10-9 in the playoffs last season.This is a playoff team, won the Super Bowl a couple years ago and the NFC championship game a couple years ago, Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said of the Seahawks. So, our guys know the competition that theyre facing. I dont think they think of it as like this is the wild card round or anything like that, but I think itll be good competition.Seattle continues to lean toward undrafted rookie Trevone Boykin as its backup quarterback to Russell Wilson. Boykin completed 16 of 26 passes and threw a 37-yard touchdown to Tanner McEvoy on the final play of regulation to give the Seahawks 17-16 win.---PENNSYLVANIA SPECIALSteelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, running backs LeVeon Bell and DeAngelo Williams and wide receiver Antonio Brown will not play in the game against the Eagles.It remains to be seen whether the Eagles use new receiver Dorial Green-Beckham. He was acquired from Tennessee on Tuesday for offensive lineman Dennis Kelly.---Associated Press sports writers Charles Odum in Flowery Branch, Ga., Kyle Hightower in Foxborough, Mass., Josh Dubow in Napa, Calif, Noah Trister in Allen Park, Mich. Dave Campbell in Eden Prairie, Minn., Tim Booth in Renton, Wash. and Tom Canavan in East Rutherford, N.J. contributed to this report.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '