An NHL power ranking in August should probably be accompanied by at least a small explainer.<\/p>\n
Given we\u2019re in the dog days of the summer, you could be forgiven for assuming this exercise was about ranking teams\u2019 off-seasons. Or, perhaps, you could think it\u2019s something akin to a 2026 Stanley Cup odds piece since we\u2019re not that that far from predictions season.<\/p>\n
But we\u2019re not handing out medals purely for off-season moves, nor are we ranking teams based on their chances to be the last club standing in 2026.<\/p>\n
The question we\u2019re asking is, if they decided to drop the puck on a new NHL season tomorrow, how would the teams stack up? Basically, it\u2019s a regular ol\u2019 power ranking like you\u2019ll find all season long on Sportsnet.ca, but dropped when most players are still swinging sticks on the golf course.<\/p>\n
So, with our preamble out of the way, here\u2019s our summertime ranking of all 32 clubs.<\/p>\n
1. Dallas Stars \u2013 Had the Stars finished last season 3-3-1 instead of 0-5-2, they probably would have finished second overall. Combine Mikko Rantanen\u2019s first full year in Texas with a new-coach bump from hiring Glen Gulutzan, and Dallas is a great bet to hit the ground running.<\/p>\n
2. Vegas Golden Knights \u2013 Mitch Marner was the biggest addition any team made this off-season, and he transforms Vegas\u2019 previously underwhelming winger situation. Even with the loss of Alex Pietrangelo on the blueline, the Knights will be a wagon.<\/p>\n
3. Washington Capitals \u2013 It\u2019s tempting to say the Caps will take a step back after surprising so many people last season, and maybe that\u2019s true. That said, Washington didn\u2019t sustain any high-level losses from its roster, has a great goalie duo in Logan Thompson and Charlie Lindgren and seems like it\u2019s just getting started under reigning Jack Adams winner Spencer Carbery.<\/p>\n
4. Carolina Hurricanes \u2013 Free agent signing Nikolaj Ehlers is a meaningful add to a forward group that should see some internal growth, too, with the likes of Logan Stankoven and Jackson Blake finding their NHL footing.<\/p>\n
5. Colorado Avalanche \u2013 The Avs will benefit from having a competent goalie battery right out of the gate in Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood. Of course, captain Gabriel Landeskog will start the regular season for this club for the first time since 2021, and unlike last year when he was still serving a suspension, Colorado will have scorer Valeri Nichushkin right from puck-drop this October.<\/p>\n
6. Edmonton Oilers<\/a> \u2013 Are the Oilers more fatigued or hungry after two straight losses in the final? It\u2019s hard to imagine they\u2019ll have the pedal to the metal out of the gate, but \u2014 with the high-end talent on the club \u2014 Edmonton can still be one of the best teams in the league even before hitting top gear.<\/p>\n 7. Winnipeg Jets<\/a> \u2013 The Presidents\u2019 Trophy winners from 2024-25 have a high floor thanks to back-to-back Vezina winner Connor Hellebuyck manning the crease. Still, it\u2019s going to be an interesting scene down the middle, as Adam Lowry misses a chunk of time recovering from hip surgery and newcomer Jonathan Toews finds his way after two full years out of the league.<\/p>\n 8. Toronto Maple Leafs<\/a> \u2013 Losing Mitch Marner hurts, but the Leafs could conceivably have a 50-goal scorer in Auston Matthews, a 40-goal guy in William Nylander and two 30-goal scorers in Matthew Knies and John Tavares. Plus, you have to think the remaining group will be determined to show there\u2019s still a strong team here despite Marner\u2019s departure.<\/p>\n 9. Florida Panthers \u2013 The Panthers aren\u2019t trying to be the best team in November; they\u2019re trying to win a third straight Cup. Even if the Cats achieve that goal \u2014 and are you really betting against them? \u2014 that doesn\u2019t mean they\u2019re going to come flying out of the gates. With Matthew Tkachuk possibly sidelined for a while and the toll of three consecutive long springs wearing on their bones, it\u2019s hard to see Florida setting the world on fire right from the jump.<\/p>\n 10. New Jersey Devils \u2013 The Devils have had a season to adjust to coach Sheldon Keefe and will at least start the year in good health after losing Jack Hughes in February last season. Speaking of the name \u2018Hughes,\u2019 could Year 3 be a monster breakout for Luke Hughes on the Devils’ blueline?<\/p>\n 11. Los Angeles Kings \u2013 The Kings were surely hoping for a needle-moving add up front this off-season, but it never happened. The frame of a strong team is here, but L.A. is still lacking that top-tier finish.<\/p>\n 12. Tampa Bay Lightning \u2013 Other than 35-year-old Victor Hedman, nobody in Tampa\u2019s upper-level core is older than 32. One of these seasons, the bill for the good times will come due, but we\u2019re not there yet.<\/p>\n 13. Ottawa Senators<\/a> \u2013 Ottawa looks great down the middle now that deadline acquisition Dylan Cozens will be the 2C for an entire season. Jordan Spence was also a nice add to the right side of the defence corps, and you wonder if Year 2 in Ottawa will be a little smoother for goalie Linus Ullmark.<\/p>\n 14. St. Louis Blues \u2013 The Blues\u2019 strong finish was not smoke and mirrors. Robert Thomas is officially a stud 1C, Jim Montgomery \u2014 one of the league\u2019s best coaches \u2014 gets to start the year with this club, and he\u2019s overseeing a roster bolstered by the emergence of under-25 players like Dylan Holloway, Jake Neighbours, Philip Broberg and maybe even rookie Jimmy Snuggerud.<\/p>\n 15. New York Rangers \u2013 What exactly does the bounce back look like? This is obviously a better team than it showed last year, and J.T. Miller getting a full year on Broadway will help. The problem with just putting the Rangers back in the playoffs, though, is a couple of Eastern Conference teams that took steps last year \u2014 we\u2019ll get to them shortly \u2014 figure to be right back in the post-season chase again.<\/p>\n 16. Minnesota Wild \u2013 Two of Filip Gustavsson\u2019s three years in Minnesota have been good ones. If he can be solid this year in tandem with fellow Swede Jesper Wallstedt, it\u2019s very easy to envision Minny back in the playoffs. This team made it last year with Kirill Kaprizov missing half the season.<\/p>\n 17. Montreal Canadiens<\/a> \u2013 On one hand, you could say the Habs massively overachieved last season by sneaking into the playoffs. On the other, Montreal is adding two pretty serious talents \u2014 defenceman Noah Dobson and rookie Ivan Demidov \u2014 to a squad that was good enough to make the dance last year.<\/p>\n 18. Columbus Blue Jackets \u2013 The Jackets took a meaningful step last season and have several young pieces \u2014 from Adam Fantilli to Kirill Marchenko to Kent Johnson \u2014 who are ascending. How much faith are we putting in goalie Jet Greaves\u2019 .938 save percentage in 11 outings?<\/p>\n 19. Utah Mammoth \u2013 Cracking the top 8 in the West will be tough, but Utah is clearly headed in the right direction. Adding JJ Peterka to the top six is fantastic, and the defence will look better as a whole with Sean Durzi and John Marino not being sidelined for over half the season, as was the case last year.<\/p>\n