{"id":336006,"date":"2025-12-09T00:21:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T00:21:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/336006\/"},"modified":"2025-12-09T00:21:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T00:21:08","slug":"which-nhl-teams-are-off-to-the-most-disappointing-starts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/336006\/","title":{"rendered":"Which NHL Teams Are Off to the Most Disappointing Starts?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Florida Panthers,
\nEdmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs are all performing below
\nexpectations. Can they turn it around?<\/p>\n

There\u2019s still roughly four months left in the regular season,
\nbut it sure looks like we won\u2019t be seeing the same two teams in the
\nStanley Cup final for a third straight time.<\/p>\n

It also appears the NHL\u2019s longest Stanley Cup drought will
\nextend another year.<\/p>\n

The two-time defending champion Florida Panthers are near the
\nbottom of the Eastern Conference, and the two-time defending
\nWestern Conference champion Edmonton Oilers are fighting for a
\nplayoff spot with a record hovering around .500.<\/p>\n

The Toronto Maple Leafs, meanwhile, don\u2019t look like anything
\nlike a team capable of ending their fans\u2019 misery.<\/p>\n

There is enough time for these teams to turn it around, but it
\ndoes seem like two of these teams are deep into Stanley Cup
\nhangovers and all three are still desperately searching for
\nanswers.<\/p>\n

Florida Panthers<\/p>\n

The Panthers figured to struggle out of the gate with captain
\nAleksander Barkov (knee) possibly out for the season and star
\nforward Matthew Tkachuk (groin) missing the first few months.
\nSteady defenseman Dmitry Kulikov (upper body) and role players
\nJonah Gadjovich and Tomas Nosek are also on the injured list.<\/p>\n

Only Vancouver, New Jersey and Pittsburgh have lost more player
\ngames due to injury than Florida.<\/p>\n

To the surprise of nobody, the Panthers aren\u2019t nearly as strong
\nan offensive team this season compared to 2024-25.<\/p>\n

Taking away Barkov\u2019s standout two-way play and Tkachuk\u2019s
\nstanding as one of the game\u2019s premier power forwards has left a
\ngaping hole. Only Brad Marchand (16) and Sam Reinhart (15) have
\ndouble digit goals for the Panthers.<\/p>\n

\"Florida<\/p>\n

Florida\u2019s power-play percentage (19.0%) is down from last season
\n(23.5%), but the bigger problem is at the dot. The Panthers are
\n25th in faceoff percentage, a problem that can be directly
\nattributed to Barkov\u2019s absence.<\/p>\n

With Marchand and Reinhart on pace to surpass 30 goals, the
\nblame for the stagnant offense falls mostly on Carter Verhaeghe,
\nSam Bennett and defenseman Gustav Forsling.<\/p>\n

Verhaeghe scored a career-high 42 goals in 2022-23 but dropped
\nto 34 the following season, 20 in 2024-25 and has eight goals this
\nseason (he has been hot lately with six goals in his last six
\ngames). Bennett has been limited to seven goals after he netted 25
\nin 2024-25 and Forsling has just one so far after he tallied 11
\nlast season. That lack of offense has made the team\u2019s margin for
\nerror much smaller.<\/p>\n

Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky has also seen his numbers plummet,
\ngoing from a 2.44 goals-against average last season to 2.98 in
\n2025-26. That ranks him 32nd among all qualified goalies.<\/p>\n

Despite these issues, there\u2019s plenty of reasons for Panthers
\nfans to remain optimistic, chief among them that Barkov hasn\u2019t been
\nruled out for the playoffs and Tkachuk could return this month.<\/p>\n

While Florida is languishing near the bottom of the East, the
\nAtlantic Division lead is well within reach. If the Panthers get
\nhealthy and have some positive regression, nobody in their right
\nmind would want to play the three-time defending conference champs
\nin the playoffs.<\/p>\n

\nMore From Opta Analyst\n<\/p>\n

Edmonton Oilers<\/p>\n

Nobody would blame the Oilers for subscribing to the age-old
\nadage that you have to lose before you can win. After losing in the
\nfinals the past two seasons, this seemed like Edmonton\u2019s time. But
\nthere\u2019s a lot of work to be done if the first two months of the
\nseason are any indication.<\/p>\n

The dynamic duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl remains
\nelite with both among the league scoring leaders. The Oilers can\u2019t
\ncomplain about the production from Evan Bouchard (27 points) or
\nRyan Nugent-Hopkins (22 points), and Jack Roslovic (10 goals) has
\nbeen a pleasant surprise.<\/p>\n

Edmonton is waiting for former 50-goal scorer Zach Hyman to find
\nhis stride with just two goals in 10 games after he missed the
\nfirst month of the season following offseason wrist surgery.<\/p>\n

Defense, or lack of it, is the biggest issue plaguing the Oilers
\nright now.<\/p>\n

Edmonton has allowed four goals or more 13 times. Only Buffalo,
\nColumbus, Detroit and Vancouver have done that more often. The
\nOilers and Canadiens are also the only teams to surrender at least
\nseven goals twice.<\/p>\n

\"Worst<\/p>\n

Ugly defensive numbers would suggest Edmonton\u2019s starting goalie
\nis struggling and while Stuart Skinner\u2019s 2.86 goals-against average
\nis nothing to get excited about, it\u2019s right in line with last
\nseason\u2019s 2.81. And despite some lackluster regular seasons, he\u2019s
\nbeen good enough to take a team to consecutive Western Conference
\ntitles.<\/p>\n

The bigger problem may be backup Calvin Pickard, who sports a
\nleague-worst 4.04 GAA in nine games.<\/p>\n

The tandem of Skinner and Pickard rank near the bottom of the
\nleague in goals saved above expected, a sign that the Oilers
\ncouldn\u2019t be blamed for lacking confidence in that pair.<\/p>\n

Maybe the most distressing thing for the Oilers is their
\nperformances against the best teams in the league \u2013 a 9-1 home loss
\nto NHL-best Colorado on Nov. 8 and an 8-3 loss to Dallas on Nov.
\n25. Also troubling is a 5-1 loss to Eastern Conference-worst
\nBuffalo on Nov. 17.<\/p>\n

Even McDavid shouldn\u2019t be immune to some of the blame as he\u2019s
\ncurrently minus-6 on the season.<\/p>\n

Certainly, that number is reflective of the team\u2019s struggles
\nsince the three-time Hart Trophy winner rarely leaves the ice. But
\nMcDavid was a plus-20 last season and a plus-35 the previous year.
\nHe hasn\u2019t been a minus player since 2019-20.<\/p>\n

Much like the Panthers, the Oilers still have reason to be
\noptimistic with so much season left to play.<\/p>\n

The Pacific Division is still up for grabs with no dominant team
\nand the Oilers are just six points behind the first-place Anaheim
\nDucks.<\/p>\n

Also working in the Oilers\u2019 favor is their favorite month is
\nstill to come.<\/p>\n

The Oilers have gotten back on track each of the last two
\nseasons with impressive stretches that started late in the calendar
\nyear and continued through January.<\/p>\n

Edmonton won 16 consecutive games in December and January during
\nthe 2023-24 season. Last season, the Oilers had a 22-6-1 stretch
\nfrom November to late January to get right back in the divisional
\nhunt.<\/p>\n

\"Most<\/p>\n

The Oilers have begun to show signs of yet another positive
\nstretch, outscoring Seattle and Winnipeg 15-6 in consecutive wins
\nthis past week.<\/p>\n

Toronto Maple
\nLeafs<\/p>\n

It\u2019s well-documented that the Maple Leafs haven\u2019t won a Stanley
\nCup since 1967 and that drought has only been made worse because
\nthey flame out in the playoffs year after year despite outstanding
\nregular seasons.<\/p>\n

\"Best<\/p>\n

Through 28 games last season, the Leafs were 17-9-2 and two
\npoints behind the Panthers for the Atlantic lead.<\/p>\n

Toronto last missed the postseason in 2015-16, so qualifying for
\nthe postseason hasn\u2019t been an issue. But that appears to be a
\nlegitimate concern this season in a super crowded Eastern
\nConference. Only Buffalo has fewer points in the East than
\nToronto.<\/p>\n

Injuries, inconsistency and disappointing individual
\nperformances have all played a role in Toronto\u2019s mediocre season
\nthus far.<\/p>\n

Superstar Auston Matthews missed two weeks last month with a
\nlower-body injury and is well behind his usual goal-scoring pace
\nwith 11 in 23 games. William Nylander is the team\u2019s leading scorer
\nwith 32 points but has 11 goals after tallying a career-high 45
\nlast season.<\/p>\n

Despite those shortcomings, Toronto ranks fifth in the NHL with
\n3.39 goals per game even though the power play ranks 30th in the
\nNHL at 14.1%.<\/p>\n

At the opposite end, the Leafs\u2019 3.29 goals-against average would
\nbe the franchise\u2019s worst in a single season since the 2008-09 team
\nallowed 3.49 per game.<\/p>\n

The biggest problem resides in the net. Starter Anthony Stolarz,
\nwho has a 3.51 GAA in 13 games, hasn\u2019t played since he was injured
\nagainst Boston on Nov. 11 and backup Joseph Woll was hurt at
\nCarolina on Dec. 4 and is expected to miss at least a few games.
\nDennis Hidelby played well when called upon with a .927 save
\npercentage in eight appearances.<\/p>\n

The optimistic fans in Toronto can choose to believe postseason
\nsuccess will follow a middling regular season this time. But the
\nLeafs need to get there first, and they haven\u2019t played like a
\nplayoff team so far this season.<\/p>\n

\nFor more coverage, follow along
\non social media on\u00a0Instagram<\/a>,\u00a0Bluesky<\/a>,\u00a0Facebook<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0X<\/a>.<\/p>\n