Hockey prediction season won\u2019t conclude until early October, but we near the end of the theoretical phase. Before training camps start, before we get a more accurate sense of line deployments and positional battles and injuries, we judge every revamped NHL roster by the names we see on paper.<\/p>\n
Last week, I identified five teams that look the most improved heading into 2025-26<\/a>. Which teams appear visibly weaker than they were when last season ended? Consider these five. Note my exclusion of the New York Islanders <\/a>despite the fact they traded No. 1 defenseman Noah Dobson for futures. Including a team that was comfortable deliberately taking a step backward would violate the spirit of the exercise. We\u2019re focusing on teams that didn\u2019t necessarily want to get worse but did.<\/p>\n In: Brent Burns, Victor Olofsson<\/p>\n Out: Charlie Coyle, Jonathan Drouin, Ryan Lindgren, Miles Wood, Erik Johnson, Calle Rosen<\/p>\n It may feel like the Avs still always have a chance with Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar in their primes. But as my colleague Paul Pidutti pointed out,<\/a> recent superstar duos like Crosby\/Malkin and Kane\/Toews actually stopped making deep playoff runs by their late 20s to early 30s as their salaries spiked and the depth around them eroded due to cap crunches. The Avs are clearly in that phase of their contention cycle, down 14 players from their 2021-22 Stanley Cup winning roster three years later. Their point total has declined three consecutive seasons, a period during which they\u2019ve won a single playoff series. With little cap space, they had to say goodbye to top-nine forwards Coyle (trade) and Drouin (free agency) and top-four blueliner Lindgren (free agency) this summer. New addition Burns will probably get a Hall of Fame call someday but is on his last legs at 40. Goal-scorer Olofsson was a wise depth signing but doesn\u2019t offset the losses. Don\u2019t be surprised if the Avs\u2019 decline continues to the point where they\u2019re a Wildcard team this season.<\/p>\n In: Ike Howard, Andrew Mangiapane, Curtis Lazar, Riley Stillman<\/p>\n Out: Corey Perry, Evander Kane, Viktor Arvidsson, Connor Brown, John Klingberg, Jeff Skinner, Olivier Rodrigue<\/p>\n On one hand, the Oilers always knew they\u2019d have to shed depth for 2025-26 given Leon Draisaitl\u2019s and Evan Bouchard\u2019s extensions kick in at a combined $24.5 million, with Connor McDavid\u2019s new deal looming for 2026-27. On the other hand: it has to sting to loose this much from the bottom half of your lineup. Of the 23 skaters who dressed for games during Edmonton\u2019s run to the 2024-25 Stanley Cup Final, six are gone. That\u2019s 26 percent lineup turnover, before we even factor in that first-line right winger Zach Hyman (wrist surgery) isn\u2019t a lock to be ready for opening night. Even if freshly acquired Ike Howard, the reigning Hobey Baker Award winner, defies the odds and is immediately effective in the NHL despite zero minutes of pro experience, and even if Mangiapane can plug a hole with a decent temporary Hyman impression\u2026this team simply isn\u2019t as good as last year\u2019s. You\u2019re lying to yourself if you believe otherwise. That doesn\u2019t mean Edmonton\u2019s pursuit of a third straight Cup Final appearance is doomed. Any team with McDavid, Draisaitl and Bouchard will contend. But a shallower team makes the task taller \u2013 and makes Edmonton far more vulnerable if any of the big three gets banged up.<\/p>\n In: Joel Armia, Cody Ceci, Brian Dumoulin, Corey Perry, Anton Forsberg<\/p>\n Out: Vladislav Gavrikov, Jordan Spence, Tanner Jeannot, Trevor Lewis, David Rittich<\/p>\n The Kings are the rare team that may have gotten worse as much because of their additions as their subtractions. Fine, Armia can help the penalty kill, Forsberg is a solid backup goalie and Perry will provide veteran leadership. But Ceci is one of the worst defenders in hockey, full stop, and Dumoulin got caved in for most of last season, albeit on a bad Anaheim Ducks<\/a> team. Subbing that duo into what was the best defensive team in the NHL, and removing high-end shutdown defenseman Gavrikov, plus the promising Spence, makes for an ugly trade-off. It\u2019s especially worrisome given the Kings did not add any impact scorers. Defense needs to be their calling card again in that case, and it\u2019s clearly not as good on paper at it was a year ago.<\/p>\n In: Nicolas Roy, Matias Maccelli, Dakota Joshua, Michael Pezzetta, Henry Thrun<\/p>\n Out: Mitch Marner, Max Pacioretty, Pontus Holmberg, Ryan Reaves<\/p>\n There\u2019s no way Toronto avoids this list after losing the fifth-ranked scorer in the franchise\u2019s 108-history, smack in his prime at 28, coming off a career-high 102 points. Marner\u2019s playoff struggles, particularly deeper in series, were very real, but getting to the playoffs will be tougher without him. Sitting seventh in NHL scoring since debuting in 2016-17, he\u2019s as responsible as any Leaf for their nine consecutive playoff appearances, the longest active streak in the league. Yes, GM Brad Treliving did well to recoup something for Marner, landing third-line center Roy in a trade with the Vegas Golden Knights<\/a>. And, yes, the Leafs made shrewd buy lows on Maccelli and Joshua. But that doesn\u2019t change the fact they\u2019re down an all-star right winger. They added even more size and toughness this summer, but they were already the biggest team in the NHL. Ever heard of the law of diminishing returns? The Leafs will be harder to play against in the postseason but will have a much tougher time earning home ice in Round 1 this season.<\/p>\n In: Jonathan Toews, Gustav Nyquist, Tanner Pearson<\/p>\n Out: Nikolaj Ehlers, Brandon Tanev, Mason Appleton<\/p>\n The loss of Ehlers alone was tough to paper over. He was consistently one of the league\u2019s most efficient scorers and chance generators on a per-60 basis at 5-on-5. They did not replace his speed and skill and instead will have to hope Cole Perfetti keeps improving. Captain Adam Lowry will miss the start of the season due to hip surgery, and betting on Toews to fill that hole is quite the gamble for a Presidents\u2019 Trophy winning team with plenty to lose. Toews, 37, hasn\u2019t played an NHL game in more than two years due to Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome. Fellow UFA additions Nyquist and Pearson are also long in the tooth. Winnipeg is now the NHL\u2019s oldest team by average age<\/a>. It feels like this team needed to go all the way last year. Icing a first-place operation won\u2019t be nearly as easy going forward.<\/p>\n _____<\/p>\n POST SPONSORED BY bet365<\/p>\n Recently by Matt Larkin<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Hockey prediction season won\u2019t conclude until early October, but we near the end of the theoretical phase. 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