5 Bold Predictions for the Pittsburgh Penguins in the New Year

It's been an eventful start to the 2014-15 season for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

As if introducing a new general manager and coach and turning over a good portion of the lineup didn't create enough intrigue, a steady parade of injuries and illnesses have created a revolving-door effect, with ever-changing rosters and line combinations from one game to the next.

Thankfully, it looks like the worst is over. The walking wounded are returning to action, and all the while the Penguins have clung to the top spot in the Metropolitan Division.

Here's the outlook from Steeltown for 2015.

The Penguins Fend off the New York Islanders to Win the Metropolitan Division

Kathy Kmonicek/Associated Press

For the last two seasons, the Penguins have comfortably won their division, finishing 13 and 16 points ahead of the New York Rangers in 2013-14 and 2012-13, respectively.

After a strong start, Pittsburgh has once again been the dominant team in the Metropolitan Division, but this year it is facing a new challenger—the upstart New York Islanders.

The Islanders made the playoffs in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, falling to the Penguins in the first round. They took a step backward last year, ending up last in the Metropolitan.

This season, some new veteran free agents including goaltender Jaroslav Halak have helped them start strong. While the Penguins stumbled through their injury issues over the last month, the Islanders have stayed consistent and have now caught Pittsburgh with 53 points in 39 games played—though the Penguins get the edge in the standings thanks to two more regulation and overtime wins.

The bad blood between these two teams spans decades. The Islanders ended the Penguins' two-year Stanley Cup reign back in 1993; this year, they hold a 2-1 edge in the season series so far.

New York could keep pressing until the final days of the campaign, but Pittsburgh will prevail to earn the right to host a wild-card team in the first round of the playoffs.

Steve Downie Leads the League in Penalty Minutes

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Just one year ago, it would have been unthinkable for an agitator like Steve Downie to collect more penalty minutes in a season than any of the league's tough guys—who tend to count in fives instead of twos.

In 2013-14, Tom Sestito of the Vancouver Canucks ended the season with a league-high 213 minutes and 19 majors. Downie finished 28th with 106 minutes and just four fights during his time with the Colorado Avalanche and Philadelphia Flyers.

Downie has five fights in 34 games as a Penguin this year, but he also leads the NHL with 28 minor penalties as well as six misconducts—no one else has more than two. That gives him a comfortable lead in this year's penalty parade—141 minutes compared to 85 for second-place Cody McLeod of the Buffalo Sabres.

If he stays healthy, Downie could break the 300-minute barrier this season—something that hasn't happened since Zenon Konopka did it with the New York Islanders back in 2010-11.

Despite all that time spent in the penalty box, Downie is not a one-trick pony. He has also been a valuable offensive contributor among Pittsburgh's new forwards, logging just over 13 minutes of ice time per game and contributing seven goals and 20 points.

Marc-Andre Fleury Leads the League in Shutouts

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It's good to be Marc-Andre Fleury.

The Penguins goaltender turned 30 on November 28 with a new four-year contract extension in his pocket and is putting up the best goaltending numbers of his career.

His goals-against and save percentage are both among the top 10 in the league, but his most impressive stat is his six shutouts in 31 appearances. He has never before logged more than five in an entire season.

Fleury has started 31 of Pittsburgh's 39 games this season. If he can keep up his pace for the rest of the year, he would hit the 12-shutout mark and put himself in some lofty company. The only goalies in the modern era who have hit or exceeded that number were Dominik Hasek of the Buffalo Sabres with 13 in 1997-98 and Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils with 12 in 2006-07, according to QuantHockey.

Fleury is already just one shutout off the team record of seven, which was set by Tom Barrasso in 1997-98, per Hockey-Reference.com. He'll make some history before this year is out.

Evgeni Malkin Wins the Art Ross Trophy

Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press

For all the drama that has surrounded the Penguins' injury-prone lineup this season, Evgeni Malkin has been a steady, effective presence.

Despite missing all of training camp and preseason with an undisclosed health issue of his own, Geno was ready to go for Game No. 1 and has been piling up the points ever since.

Through 39 games, Malkin has 17 goals and 43 points—good enough to tie him for fourth place in the NHL scoring race.

He's currently five points behind leader Jakub Voracek of the Philadelphia Flyers, but he has a few things working in his favor down the stretch.

• His team will need goals and points as it fights for playoff position.
• He's a two-time Art Ross Trophy winner already—from 2008-09 and 2011-12.
• He has hit the 100-point plateau three times in his career; Voracek's career-best to date is 62 points last season.

Expect to see experience triumph over youth as Malkin guns for his third scoring title in 2014-15.

Mike Johnston Is Snubbed as a Jack Adams Finalist

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Stepping straight from junior hockey to the NHL couldn't have been an easy transition for Penguins head coach Mike Johnston.

The new bench boss has been silky-smooth in moving from the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League to one of the NHL's highest-achieving franchises, where anything less than a Stanley Cup is considered a disappointment.

Despite the Penguins' achievements this season, including pressing through some difficult waters with a depleted lineup, don't expect to see Johnston's name on the list of finalists for this year's Jack Adams Award as coach of the year.

Voters like coaches who conjure up rags-to-riches tales, like winner Patrick Roy did last season with the Colorado Avalanche.

Plenty of last year's non-playoff teams like the Islanders, Nashville, Washington, Vancouver and Winnipeg are currently in the postseason hunt. Those narratives will garner more attention than a 57-year-old rookie coach who took the reins of a good team—and kept it good.

The Adams is awarded based on regular-season performance. Johnston's true test of mettle won't arrive until the playoffs.

Stats courtesy of NHL.com.