Offseason Roadmap: Central Division

It's officially the offseason, meaning the time is right to look into the future. We continue our division-by-division preview of the potential wheeling and dealing with the Central Division.

The Chicago Blackhawks are trying to build off a magical season. Columbus got its first taste of playoff hockey, while St. Louis returned to the playoffs after a far-too-long absence. Meanwhile, Nashville is trying to rebound after just missing the cut for the Western Conference playoffs.

Chicago Blackhawks: After a great season that saw this young group take a huge step forward, it's time for Chicago management to figure out how to get this team to take that final leap. The Blackhawks earned the fourth seed in the Western Conference playoffs, then won six-game series against Calgary and Vancouver to advance to the Western Conference Finals. It was there that Detroit dispatched of Chicago in five games.

The Blackhawks have strength all over the ice, thanks to young stars like Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Sharp, Duncan Keith, and Brent Seabrook. While the Blackhawks have plenty of cap room (14 players signed for just over $36 million), they have some important decisions to make, most notably unrestricted free agent Martin Havlat and goalie Cristobal Huet. While Huet is signed for over $5.5 million a year through 2012, he was a disaster in his first playoff start against Detroit, and the main starter during the playoffs, Nikolai Khabibulin, is a free agent.

If Chicago wasn't already forking over $7 million a year to Brian Campbell, I'd suggest they get seriously involved in the Jay Bouwmeester sweepstakes. Instead, they need to look for cheaper ways to fill a couple defensive holes while continuing to build impressive forward depth.

Columbus Blue Jackets: Finally, Columbus got a taste of playoff hockey. The Jackets were in the race for much of the winter, and they got in as the seventh seed in the Western Conference. In the end, it was just a taste of playoff hockey, as Detroit dispatched of them in a four-game sweep.

Columbus has successfully built a young team around star forward Rick Nash for the first time. Nash has thrived as team captain, continuing to put up great numbers despite being the only truly great offensive threat on the team. He gets support from the likes of Kristian Huselius, R.J. Umberger, Fredrik Modin, and Jakub Voracek, but no one besides Nash is a true star. Of course, young goalie Steve Mason has become the defensive backbone of the Blue Jackets, and he will continue to get help from the likes of Mike Commodore, Rostislav Klesla, and Fedor Tyutin next season.

With 18 players signed for just under $41 million next season, there is some flexibility for the Blue Jackets. They're in a position to be aggressive on the free-agent market, and perhaps try to reel in a goal-scorer like Marian Gaborik, or get involved in a potential trade for Dany Heatley. While it's unlikely that Columbus will want to hand over $8 million or so per year for Gaborik or make an expensive trade for a big-money guy like Heatley, the Blue Jackets would be smart to think outside the box, as Nash is entering his contract year.

Detroit Red Wings: In case you missed it, here is Susan Slusser's piece outlining the upcoming offseason for Detroit.

Nashville Predators: Down the stretch in April, the Predators weren't quite good enough. A 2-4 finish to the regular season doomed Nashville, and a promising season went up in smoke.

However, there is plenty of reason for hope in the Music City. Pekka Rinne emerged as a top goaltender, and he should benefit greatly from the fact that the team's core is already signed for next season. The most prominent defenseman set to be a free agent is 36-year-old Greg de Vries, who had a very so-so season and probably shouldn't be expected back.

The Predators have just under $34 million locked up with 14 players for 2009-10, so they should be able to bring back veteran forwards Radek Bonk, Vernon Fiddler, and Steve Sullivan at reasonable prices. Under-30 forwards David Legwand and Martin Erat are locked up long-term, and captain Jason Arnott, 34, has two years left on his contract.

It might be a dream scenario, but Nashville would be smart to pursue free-agent forward Mike Cammalleri. He's only 27, is capable of putting up big numbers, and wouldn't be expected to be the main star in Nashville. His signing would give the Predators three front-line centers. Nashville also needs to get a bit stronger defensively, and it may be worth it for them to take a run at a second-tier guy like Jordan Leopold.

St. Louis Blues: It may have been a year sooner than people thought, but a wonderful stretch run by the Blues put them in the playoffs. Unfortunately for the Blues, it wasn't a long stay, as Vancouver swept them out of the postseason.

There were plenty of positives in the Blues' surge. Forwards T.J. Oshie and David Backes may have emerged as real stars for this team. The defense held up nicely, even though captain Eric Brewer and youngster Erik Johnson combined to play just 28 games all season (Brewer played in 28, while Johnson missed the entire season with a knee injury). Any kind of contribution from those two will significantly improve St. Louis' play on the blue line (not to mention Johnson's presence only helps an already-lethal power play).

It's not likely that the Blues will do much in free agency, given that they already have over $47 million locked up in 20 players. There are a lot of backup-quality goalies the Blues could sign to spell Chris Mason, assuming they don't want Ben Bishop on the big club so he can play 20 games.

The future is quickly becoming "Now" in St. Louis, as smart drafting and solid player development are paying off.