And as with all great teams, we build from the net out\u2026<\/p>\n
Goalies<\/p>\n
Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators<\/p>\n
While the free-agent spending spree got most of the headlines, the biggest question in Nashville last year was, what happened to Saros? After four straight years of finishing in the top six in Vezina voting, Saros saw his play crater with by far the worst numbers of his career. Was it a fluke, just the sort of outlier season that happens to most goalies eventually because the position is so darn weird? The Predators had better hope so, since the eight-year extension he signed a year ago is only kicking in now.<\/p>\n
Mackenzie Blackwood, Colorado Avalanche<\/p>\n
We know he\u2019s better than what they had this time a year ago. We\u2019re not sure if he\u2019s good enough to out-duel Jake Oettinger in a seven-game series, but we\u2019ll probably get another chance to find out in the spring. In the meantime, let\u2019s see if he can live up to last year\u2019s promise, and maybe work his way into a Team Canada role.<\/p>\n
Honorable mentions: Jet Greaves is the future in Columbus, and you wonder how quickly that future will fully arrive, and just how good it could be for a franchise that\u2019s rarely had stability in goal. And I swear I didn\u2019t do this on purpose just to annoy you, Preds fans, but Yaroslav Askarov, the kid they picked the veteran Saros over, has a chance to cement himself as part of the next generation of dependable starters in San Jose.<\/p>\n
Defensemen<\/p>\n
Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres<\/p>\n
It\u2019s somehow been seven years since Dahlin was the No. 1 pick in what turned out to be a great draft for offensive defensemen (with Quinn Hughes, Noah Dobson and Evan Bouchard also going). Of that group, Hughes has clearly established himself as the best of the bunch, with a Norris in 2024 and a spot as a finalist last year. Meanwhile, Dahlin finished a career-best sixth in voting. That\u2019s a great season, but it still feels like there\u2019s another gear here. If so, it\u2019s time to find it, because I\u2019m not sure there\u2019s a viable path back to relevancy for the Sabres that doesn\u2019t involve Dahlin making The Leap.<\/p>\n
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\n Is this the year Rasmus Dahlin takes another step? (Rebecca Villagracia \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Charlie McAvoy, Boston Bruins<\/p>\n
In hindsight, it maybe feels like the whole \u201cstar goes to international tournament, plays well, develops a serious infection under mysterious circumstances and then has his season wrecked by it\u201d story didn\u2019t get as much attention outside of Boston as it probably deserved. Or maybe that\u2019s just the kind of subtle foreshadowing you need to lay down before springing a great redemption story on everyone. Either way, McAvoy may be the most important skater in Boston in terms of preventing this season from being as bad as so many seem to want it to be.<\/p>\n
Adam Fox, New York Rangers<\/p>\n
In a sense, Fox is like Dahlin: a blueliner in his prime who\u2019s settled in just outside of the truly elite. The difference is that Fox has been to the top of the mountain, with a Norris already under his belt. That came way back in 2021, and he followed it with three top-five finishes before falling out of the top 10 last year. He\u2019s still an elite player at the position, but there was a time when we talked about him in the same breath as Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes. Maybe we still should. If the Rangers are going to get back into contention, we\u2019ll probably have to be talking like that.<\/p>\n
Luke Hughes, New Jersey Devils
Jackson LaCombe, Anaheim Ducks<\/p>\n
He\u2019s good. Is he $9 million worth of good? That\u2019s a trickier question, for both guys.<\/p>\n
For Hughes, forget about him being the highest paid of the three brothers \u2014 that\u2019s a weird artifact of timing. The bigger question is how much progress he can show this year toward being worth that cap hit for as many of those seven years as possible. (And how many of his brothers he\u2019ll be playing with by the end of them, but that\u2019s a subplot for next year.) Meanwhile, LaCombe goes from being one of the league\u2019s best-kept secrets to the pressure of a superstar\u2019s contract.<\/p>\n
Rasmus Andersson, Calgary Flames<\/p>\n
Wasn\u2019t he getting traded? I was pretty sure that was a thing, and so was the captain<\/a>, but here we are. OK, now what? Probably a bit of showcasing before a midseason deal, but in the meantime, a Flames team that could be better than we all think should have a motivated veteran playing for a big contract.<\/p>\n Honorable mentions: I\u2019ll admit I wondered a bit about the Florida Panthers adding Seth Jones (and his contract), but he seemed like a great fit and now we get to see if that first impression holds up over a full season. Meanwhile, don\u2019t sleep on Morgan Rielly as a dark-horse pick to become the new scapegoat in Toronto now that Mitch Marner has fled.<\/p>\n Forwards<\/p>\n Kirill Kaprizov, Minnesota Wild<\/p>\n The new deal doesn\u2019t kick in until next season, but that\u2019s a technicality. Kaprizov has the richest contract in NHL history in terms of AAV, and it\u2019s not close. Under the circumstances, that doesn\u2019t mean he has to be the best player in the league to justify the $17 million a year he\u2019ll make on the extension. But he needs to at least be in the conversation, right? That starts with staying healthy, which he couldn\u2019t do last year. If he can, he\u2019s a solid bet for the Hart Trophy discussion. But if not, or if he struggles, the second-guessing is going to overwhelming.<\/p>\n Jack Eichel, Vegas Golden Knights We can group these two together, as both got in just under the wire by signing max-length extensions before the season started. Neither got anywhere close to Kaprizov money, as Wild fans no doubt noticed. But both did well for themselves, becoming just the eighth and ninth players to cross the $12 million AAV mark. Both deals feel mildly pricey now but almost certainly won\u2019t once the cap has a few more years of growth behind it. For now, Eichel and Connor will be under pressure to have big years \u2013 both for their NHL teams chasing the Cup, and Team USA chasing gold.<\/p>\n Ivan Demidov, Montreal Canadiens<\/p>\n Last year, I used Lane Hutson for the Habs\u2019 pick, gently chiding Montreal fans for how hard they were hyping a kid who might not even be ready for full-time NHL duty. Then I conceded that \u201cif he can stick around all year, then maybe a Calder run isn\u2019t even out of the question.\u201d No, I guess it wasn\u2019t. This year it\u2019s Demidov getting the future superstar treatment, and I\u2019ll learn my lesson and keep any doubts to myself.<\/p>\n Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks<\/p>\n I mean the forward, not the defenseman, by the way. And it\u2019s appropriate to have to include that weird clarification, because I\u2019m not sure there\u2019s a player in the league about whom I\u2019m more confused about exactly who he is. An MVP-level superstar, like he was in 2022-23? Sure, could be. An overpaid bum with one of the worst contracts in the league, like he was in 2024-25? I don\u2019t think so, but I can\u2019t rule it out. With J.T. Miller gone, you\u2019d at least figure there are no more excuses.<\/p>\n Mikko Rantanen, Dallas Stars<\/p>\n Last year was one of the weirdest seasons we\u2019ve ever seen from a star in this league, with not one but two midseason trades and what ended up being the highest-scoring season ever from a player who appeared for three teams \u2014 and then things got really interesting<\/a> once the playoffs started. This year, there\u2019s no contact to worry about and more than enough stability for him to show us what he can do.<\/p>\n Brandon Hagel, Tampa Bay Lightning<\/p>\n A career-best 90 points, a top-10 Selke finish, second-team All-Star honors and a prominent role on Team Canada? Sure, we could call that a good year. The question is whether that was a ceiling he\u2019ll have trouble living up to, or a rare (but not unheard-of) case of a 26-year-old introducing himself as a legitimate star for years to come. If it\u2019s the latter, that $6.5 million cap hit through 2032 starts to look almost ridiculously team-friendly<\/a>.<\/p>\n Connor Bedard, Chicago Blackhawks<\/p>\n OK, maybe we were out over our skis a bit on that second-year MVP talk. Sidney Crosby did it. McDavid did it. Bedard did not, and in fact he took a step back from a solid rookie season. At this point, it doesn\u2019t seem like he\u2019s the generational talent some expected. But there\u2019s a ton of room to work with below \u201cMcDavid\/Crosby generational legend,\u201d and superstars such as Nathan MacKinnon and Leon Draisaitl took a few years to really find their game. It would be nice if Kyle Davidson eventually gave him a linemate or two, but for now, we wait.<\/p>\n Tim St\u00fctzle, Ottawa Senators<\/p>\n In 2022-23, he finished with 39 goals and 90 points, but his offensive numbers have fallen since then and it\u2019s fair to say the defensive side of things has yet to emerge as a strength. Here\u2019s the thing \u2014 he\u2019s 23, and from the same draft as guys such as Quinton Byfield and Alexis Lafreni\u00e8re, who are very much still considered works in progress. St\u00fctzle absolutely should be, too, but Sens fans might appreciate a little reassurance that they haven\u2019t already seen the peak.<\/p>\n Trevor Zegras, Philadelphia Flyers<\/p>\n The good news is that he doesn\u2019t have to worry about going down in history as the weirdest pick as a video game cover athlete, since Peyton Hillis exists<\/a>. Still, it\u2019s been a weird few years for Zegras, who legitimately felt like one of the league\u2019s next big stars just three years ago. Since then, we\u2019ve seen him fall out of favor in Anaheim and be anointed the league\u2019s most overrated player<\/a> by his own colleagues. Now he gets a fresh start in Philadelphia, and while it would be overly dramatic to call it a last chance, it certainly feels like it\u2019s time for him to take control of the narrative again.<\/p>\n \n Andrei Svechnikov scored eight goals for the Hurricanes in the 2025 playoffs. (Jared C. Tilton \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n Andrei Svechnikov, Carolina Hurricanes<\/p>\n Nikolaj Ehlers is the more obvious pick in Carolina, where the expectations and the cap hit are high for a guy who\u2019s never hit 65 points, and you could also make a case for K\u2019Andre Miller given how much they gave up to get him. But I think Svechnikov is the real key, seven years removed from debuting but still just 25 years old. He\u2019s been good and seemed well on his way to great a few years ago before sputtering in recent years. Last year\u2019s playoffs showed flashes, with eight goals in 15 games, so let\u2019s see where this goes.<\/p>\n Emmitt Finnie, Detroit Red Wings<\/p>\n The rebuilding Red Wings are counting on their youth to carry them back to the playoffs, and some of that may come from an unlikely source. Two years after being the No. 201 pick in the draft, Finnie has been penciled in on the first line alongside Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond. That\u2019s on the strength of a strong camp and exhibition season, one that\u2019s won over a big chunk of the fan base. It\u2019s a fun underdog story. Can it last? They rarely do, but rarely isn\u2019t never.<\/p>\n Honorable mentions: JJ Peterka gets a fresh start in Utah, and a chance to settle the debate over whether he\u2019s really as good as his offensive numbers would suggest. Seattle gets a full season of Kaapo Kakko, who didn\u2019t look like a star after last year\u2019s trade but was at least close enough to earn one more year before we close the book on him being more than a quasi-bust. Dylan Strome had never had a 70-point season heading into last season, and he still hasn\u2019t because he jumped all the way to 82 points, which makes you wonder if he can maintain that level for Washington. And yes, as sick as Penguins fans probably are of all the trade talk, it\u2019s going to be all eyes on Sidney Crosby until either the deadline passes or the Penguins play well enough that it doesn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n Coach and GM<\/p>\n Jim Montgomery, St. Louis Blues<\/p>\n He had the Blues playing at a 105-point pace last season, and now he\u2019s had his first training camp to work through. I\u2019m not sure anyone\u2019s all that excited about the Blues\u2019 roster, so if they overachieve expectations again this year, we know where a lot of the credit will go. By the way, Montgomery comes into the season one hundredth of a point back of Scotty Bowman\u2019s .657 points percentage for best record by a coach with more than 250 games. Though in the loser-point era, that\u2019s not bad.<\/p>\n Stan Bowman, Edmonton Oilers<\/p>\n Our last spot is also the easiest call in this entire piece. With Connor McDavid signed to an absolute gift of a contract, the pressure is now entirely on Bowman and the Oilers\u2019 front office to build a winner around their generational talent before he walks once and for all. They have three years to win, and the good news is, they\u2019re already so close that it feels inevitable they\u2019ll get there. The bad news, at least as far as Bowman is concerned, is that every slump, or loss, or (especially) bad goal against will feel like a referendum on his vision. No pressure, Stan.<\/p>\n
Kyle Connor, Winnipeg Jets<\/p>\n![\"Andrei](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2214420427-scaled.jpg\")
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