The Florida Panthers have dominated the NHL for the past two years, and the Edmonton Oilers have dominated the Western Conference for the past two years. But is that domination going to continue after a hectic offseason? Only time will tell. Here is The Pitt News’ preview for each conference.
Western Conference Preview
If you’re ever up for some late night hockey, the Western Conference has plenty to offer this season in the NHL, featuring a mix of some of the league’s top contenders and playoff underdogs alike.
En route to their Presidents’ Trophy win, Winnipeg topped the Central Division pretty easily last season, finishing 10 points clear of second-place Dallas. But they lost winger Nikolaj Ehlers, a key part of their forward group, to Carolina in free agency.
Meanwhile, Dallas and Colorado retained most of the firepower they acquired at last year’s trade deadline. The Stars will get their first full season of Mikko Rantanen after signing him to an eight-year, $96 million deal. And the Avalanche kept Brock Nelson with an expensive contract as well.
These three teams should all make the playoffs again, but all of them are susceptible to falling back a few spots if they aren’t careful. St. Louis and Minnesota took both Wild Card spots last season and still have competitive clubs, and Nashville is looking to bounce back after they went all-in on 2024’s free agency class and skidded out of control last season.
My sleeper team in the Central this year is Utah. Much of their talent was clouded by arena uncertainties and an unofficial relocation from Arizona to Salt Lake City, but the newly named Mammoth have quietly turned a corner in their lengthy rebuild. They finished seven points out of a Wild Card spot last season. Now, after a summer where they acquired JJ Peterka from Buffalo and shored up some depth issues, the Mammoth could snag a Wild Card spot if their goaltending holds up.
Over in the Pacific, things are a little more top-heavy.
Edmonton has represented the West in the Stanley Cup Final two years in a row, and even though they lost some pieces from last year’s team, they’re the Western Conference champs until someone derails them.
Las Vegas has the best chance at that. Last year’s Pacific division winner also won the Mitch Marner sweepstakes this summer, adding him to an already stacked forward corps. Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, the Kings revamped their defense and depth up front in a desperate bid to not lose to the Oilers in the first round for the fifth year in a row — yes, you read that right.
San Jose, Anaheim and Seattle are probably still all a year away. The Sharks and Ducks are just coming out of their rebuilds, and no one quite knows what the Kraken are doing. So that leaves Vancouver and Calgary.
One of these two will make the playoffs, and goaltending is the key for both.
The Flames lost out on the playoffs due to a tiebreaker with St. Louis, but they have the roster that can get them back there. If they can get another great season out of Calder Memorial Trophy runner-up Dustin Wolf, he can lead them to a playoff appearance.
If Vancouver can get a healthy season from Thatcher Demko — who has missed significant time twice in the last three years — the Canucks can rally and get back into the postseason. My money is on Calgary in that race.
But perhaps the most fascinating stories coming out of the West are taking place off the ice.
In Minnesota, 28-year-old Wild forward Kiril Kaprizov’s pending free agency is looming over the team. The team remains confident they can get a deal done, but the Russian winger reportedly turned down an eight-year, $128 million extension — the richest contract in NHL history — a few weeks ago, as his camp and the team continue to negotiate.
And in Edmonton, the consensus best player in the world right now is less than a year away from unrestricted free agency.
Like Kaprizov, 28-year-old Oilers center Connor McDavid was eligible to sign an extension starting July 1 — just two weeks after his Oilers lost to Florida in the Stanley Cup Final for the second straight year. McDavid is saying all the right things to the press, but his lack of extension is a story that’s growing by the day, including getting a mention from the Canadian Prime Minister, Mark Carney.
Eastern Conference preview
The Eastern Conference in the National Hockey League will provide a ton of tough competition and competing storylines throughout the season.
The Florida Panthers are on the hunt to become the first team to three-peat as Stanley Cup champions since the New York Islanders did so in the 1980 to 1983 seasons. They are well on their way on the personnel front, resigning three of their big pieces from last year’s run in Aaron Ekblad, Sam Bennett and Brad Marchand.
Likely behind them in the running for the cup from the east is the Carolina Hurricanes, who haven’t performed well in the playoffs despite regular-season dominance in recent years. Will they play like their earlier counterparts in the Washington Capitals teams of the 2010s that broke their curse in 2018? Only time will tell.
Following those two teams, there is a massive mix of possible competitors. The Mitch Marner-less Toronto Maple Leafs may be competitive, but with such a mix in the roster, it is unclear at this point. The Washington Capitals nearly won the Presidents Cup last season, but Alex Ovechkin is still getting older. Can they deal with a possible regression from Ovechkin by having their young talent step up, or will they falter following a miracle season?
The New Jersey Devils, Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens all have young talent that could make serious strides, but will need a lot to go right for them to top the Eastern Conference. The same likely goes for the New York Rangers and Ottawa Senators, who will both need to power through a rough previous year to rise this season.
The New York Islanders, Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins all have serious personnel concerns, but could become the surprise team of the year, similarly to the Capitals of last season. None of the teams are likely to contend for the Stanley Cup, but could make some noise when it comes to the playoffs.
The remaining teams in the conference — which include the Philadelphia Flyers, Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins and Columbus Blue Jackets — should go through seasons that are full of tough losses in a rebuilding year. Despite coaching changes and personnel shifting, none of these teams likely stand a chance of even making the playoffs.
When it comes down to it, the Panthers are most likely to rise above all others in the Eastern Conference once again, but I do believe that teams like the Canadiens and Islanders have a chance to surprise heading into the quickly approaching season.
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