Pre-camp preview: Central Division

In case you were wondering, a class system does exist in the NHL. It's in the Central Division, where powerhouses Detroit and Nashville remain at a level clearly above the other three teams.

Last season, the Red Wings and Predators feasted on their intra-divisional rivals from Columbus, Chicago and St. Louis, the three teams that brought up the rear in the Western Conference. The points won't be as easy to come by this season, but the gap between Detroit, Nashville and the rest remains significant.

Tough vet Chris Chelios returns to the Red Wings at age 44. (Getty Images)

Look for a change at the top, with the significantly improved Predators set to end Detroit's stranglehold on the division. The Wings are still among the league's most talented teams, but Nashville has gotten bigger, more skilled and a little grittier, which makes a very good team even better.

The rest of the division has improved as well, although not enough to concern the two front-runners for now. Chicago has added some talent up front, but the key to the Blackhawks' season will be the play of goalie Nikolai Khabibulin, a disaster last year after signing a lucrative free-agent contract, and Tuomo Ruutu and Adrian Aucoin, who spent much of their time on the disabled list.

Columbus' young scoring star Rick Nash is healthy and Sergei Fedorov will be in the lineup from the outset, which means the Blue Jackets should be a lot more productive offensively. But there are enough questions on defense and in goal to make a first playoff spot for this franchise something of a long shot this season.

Hitting the playoffs won't be any easier for the St. Louis Blues, but in the aftermath of the franchise being sold, they will get back on the road to competitiveness. The Blues did a lot of free-agent shopping this summer, most of it in the bargain basement section, but at least now they'll look like a team that belongs in the NHL.

Here's a closer look at what Central Division teams have done since the end of last season.

Dominik Hasek (Getty Images)

Detroit Red Wings: They can't spend as freely as they once did, so the Red Wings took a more cautious approach to free agency this offseason and ended up with few spoils. Not that last year's Presidents' Trophy winners needed all that much upgrading.

Detroit will have to get used to life without Steve Yzerman, who ended his era by retiring, and Brendan Shanahan, who found a new home this summer. But they won't be shedding the "graybeard" moniker they've had for years because 44-year-old defenseman Chris Chelios and 41-year-old goalie Dominik Hasek are coming back.

Hasek's signing was Detroit's most notable move of this summer, but adding hard-hitting defenseman Danny Markov could have as much of an impact. Overall, there is still plenty of talent here for the Red Wings to remain among the elites.

Jason Arnott (Getty Images)

Nashville Predators: After a disappointing first-round playoff loss, the Predators did a lot of house cleaning this summer, saying goodbye to several well-known players including centers Scott Walker, Mike Sillinger, Yanic Perreault and Greg Johnson, and defensemen Brendan Witt and Markov.

The Predators managed to add enough much-needed size to be considered among the preseason favorites to win the Stanley Cup. Key moves came early this summer when Nashville signed one big center, Jason Arnott, and traded for another, Josef Vasicek. This week, the Predators took advantage of another opportunity by adding versatile, offensive-minded winger J.P Dumont after the Sabres walked away from his arbitration award.

Still, the best news around Nashville this summer came when goalie Tomas Vokoun was cleared to return after suffering a blood clot. He still has to sign a new contract, but that should be a formality.