Originally posted on ClutchPoints
Hockey fans, we finally made it to NHL opening day. It’s been exactly 107 days since one of the most thrilling Stanley Cup Finals in recent memory concluded, with the Florida Panthers avoiding the epic collapse in Game 7 and defeating the Edmonton Oilers 2-1 to capture their first ever championship.
It was elation for the Cats at the end of June in Sunrise, and heartbreak for Conn Smythe Trophy winner Connor McDavid and his Oil. After a quick summer, both powerhouse clubs will try again to reach the pinnacle of the sport in around eight months time. But first, we’re back to the regular season.
On Tuesday afternoon, NHL hockey will resume in Seattle, Florida, and, for the first time ever, Salt Lake City, Utah. The Hockey Club will kick off festivities by welcoming Connor Bedard and the Chicago Blackhawks to the Delta Center. But first, newly signed Jeremy Swayman and the Boston Bruins will head to South Beach to take on the defending champs. And before that, the St. Louis Blues will make the trip to Seattle to kick off the opening night tripleheader against the Kraken.
Of course, it isn’t technically the beginning of the campaign, as the New Jersey Devils are fresh off a two-game drubbing of the Buffalo Sabres in the 2024 Global Series in Prague, Czech Republic. With a new goaltender and a new coach, the Devils look like they mean business, outscoring the Sabres 7-2 in the series and sending Lindy Ruff and co. back to Western New York reeling.
As always, there are no shortage of questions heading into another unpredictable hockey season. Do the Panthers have what it takes to go back-to-back after a couple of important offseason subtractions? Can the New York Rangers finally get over the hump after winning last year’s President’s Trophy? Who will capture the Calder in a wide-open field headlined by 2024 No. 1 pick Macklin Celebrini, Matvei Michkov and Lane Hutson? Will McDavid return to Art Ross form after nuclear seasons from Nikita Kucherov and Hart Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon in 2023-24?
All of those questions will be answered in due time, but hockey fans are just happy that the beautiful game is back. And for the second time, ClutchPoints will be compiling a weekly NHL Power Rankings series, beginning with Week 1 ahead of puck drop on Tuesday. We captured 27 weeks of Power Rankings last season, and after a frenetic summer, there’s already been quite a bit of movement compared to the end of last year.
Apologies in advance if your team didn’t debut in the No. 1 spot. The beauty is, we still have about 26 weeks to do this before the end of April. Without further preamble, here’s Week 1 of ClutchPoints’ NHL Power Rankings.
For the second consecutive year in the NHL Power Rankings, the team that won the Stanley Cup will start the season in the esteemed No. 1 spot. It’s the easy pick, but there’s no reason to think that this roster won’t be in the mix for another ring next June. There were a couple free agency departures, the toughest being top defenseman Brandon Montour, but the core is still in place. Sam Reinhart won’t score 57 goals again, but along with Matthew Tkachuk, Sasha Barkov, Carter Verhaeghe, Aaron Ekblad, Gustav Forsling and Sergei Bobrovsky, this is still an elite squad and one of the favorites to win the Atlantic Division. Tuesday night against the rival Bruins should be a lot of fun as the title defense kicks off in earnest.
It was a heartbreaking ending to the 2023-24 season for McDavid and the Oilers, who authored an incredible SCF comeback but ended up coming up just short in Game 7. Still, after a nightmare start to the campaign, Edmonton almost fully climbed the mountain, proving the roster can hang around with the best in the league and prevail. The additions of Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner make this top-nine even more scary. The defense is somewhat lacking after the departures of Cody Ceci and Philip Broberg, but it’s still solid and will likely be improved midseason. This is again a favourite to come out of the Western Conference, especially the way McDavid and Leon Draisaitl turn things on in the playoffs.
Outside of the two Stanley Cup Finalists — and maybe even including them — the Stars probably have the best roster in the league on paper heading into 2024-25. Joe Pavelski’s retirement was difficult but expected, and Wyatt Johnston is ready for his breakout in Year 3. The offense is an excellent mix of productive veterans and exciting young talents, with Johnston, Mavrik Bourque and Logan Stankoven making up the latter. Along with Miro Heiskanen, Thomas Harley and Esa Lindell each anchoring a pair, the blue line is also one of the league’s better units. Add a budding superstar in Jake Oettinger between the pipes and this is a premier hockey club, both on the ice and in the NHL Power Rankings. The dream ended against the Oilers in the West Final in 2024, but this roster has the potential to bring a Stanley Cup back to Texas for the first time since 1999.
Jacob Trouba said that this could be the last dance for this iteration of the New York Rangers, and the captain could very well be right. He will probably get traded next summer, Igor Shesterkin is going to break the bank with his next contract — he reportedly already turned down a mammoth $88 million offer that would have made him the highest paid goalie in history — and Alexis Lafreniere will also be due for a huge raise after this season. The roster is still elite, led by star power at every position, but the clock is ticking to get the job done after advancing to two Eastern Conference Finals in three years and losing both times. Artemi Panarin returning to full health is a great start.
The Colorado Avalanche are a very different looking team today than they could potentially be in a couple of months. All of Gabriel Landeskog, Valeri Nichushkin and Artturi Lehkonen will watch from the press box when the season begins, but the trio could be back to full health by December. If that happens, the Avs go from Stanley Cup contenders to favorites, but there’s no guarantee how effective any of them will be after extended absences. Still, Colorado is a wagon driven by Hart Trophy winner MacKinnon, perennial Norris Trophy favorite Cale Makar and one of the league’s best right wingers in Mikko Rantanen. Can the Avalanche return to their 2022 glory? A big part of that will be Alexandar Georgiev’s play between the pipes, and he’s definitely going to be challenged by up-and-comer Justus Annunen this season. Watching the full time debuts of Nikolai Kovalenko, Calum Ritchie and Ivan Ivan — one of the better names in hockey — will be a lot of fun.
The Swayman drama dominated the headlines in Massachusetts this summer, but player and club were able to reach an agreement at the last. The 25-year-old won’t be in net against the Panthers on Tuesday, with Joonas Korpisalo set to get the nod. But Swayman should handle the bulk of the starts with his new contract finally in the rearview, and he’s still got a great defensive unit in front of him led by Charlie McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm and Brandon Carlo. Add Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov to an already deep roster and this is again looking like an Atlantic Division favorite. The Bruins should have no trouble hanging around with the league’s best all campaign long, and a couple of breakouts could have them much higher in the NHL Power Rankings by the end. How will Brad Marchand fare coming off of three offseason surgeries?
The Pacific Division looks like it’s getting weaker and weaker, and the Vancouver Canucks should challenge the rival Oilers for the top spot in the division in 2024-25. It was a brutal Game 7 loss at home to Edmonton in Round 2 of the playoffs, but still an extremely encouraging campaign in British Columbia. The Nucks went from pretenders to legitimate playoff threats in one year, with captain Quinn Hughes breaking out for 92 points en route to his first Norris Trophy. The star core also took another step forward, with Brock Boeser scoring 40 for the first time, JT Miller snapping for 103 points and Thatcher Demko finishing as a Vezina finalist. His health is monumental to success, but if and when the American is fully healthy, this remains a top team in the West. That’s especially true after the savvy additions of Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen and Daniel Sprong.
What a start to the season for the Devils, who finished 24th in the league last year. Early returns say nothing like that will be happening in 2024-25 after New Jersey took Buffalo to the cleaners in Czechia. After having one of the worst team save percentages in the NHL, GM Tom Fitzgerald said enough is enough and brought Jacob Markstrom to Newark. That was a monumental add, and if Dougie Hamilton can stay healthy, this is already a much, much better roster. Let’s give Jack Hughes a full season of health as well; he’s just too good to be watching from the sidelines. Another big addition was Brett Pesce, who was back on the ice in North America on Tuesday and could be an option as early as Thursday. After a forgettable 2023-24 campaign, expect a huge bounce back from this club this time around.
The Hurricanes suffered a mass free agency exodus this summer, watching as two heart and soul defensemen in Pesce and Brady Skjei — maybe the best second pairing in hockey — took their talents elsewhere. Along with prized trade deadline acquisition Jake Guentzel and longtime forward Teuvo Teravainen leaving, it was certainly a difficult summer. But Carolina remains elite — although maybe a little too high on the NHL Power Rankings — led by Sebastian Aho and Jaccob Slavin, who are both locked up long term. Both Seth Jarvis and Martin Necas should continue to get better, while the defensive unit was shored up by the additions of Sean Walker and Shayne Gostisbehere. The expectations are certainly a bit lower than usual, but fans in Raleigh should still be treated to playoff hockey next April. Will Pyotr Kochetkov finally take over the starter’s net in 2024-25?
The hockey world didn’t expect too much from the Predators last year, but they proved everyone wrong. Nashville went on an unbelievable second half run, winning 18 of 20 games from mid-February to mid-March. Although it ended disappointingly to the Canucks in Round 1, it was a supremely encouraging sign that the roster was good enough for the playoffs. And elite GM Barry Trotz wasted no time building on that, adding three Stanley Cups in Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault and rounding it out with Skjei on the back end. This was probably the most improved team over the summer, and Juuse Saros is ready to challenge for the Vezina with his long-term contract ironed out. This could be the best roster the Preds have had since they marched to the Stanley Cup Final in 2017.
Admittedly, this is probably a little too low for the Leafs, who are a constant threat to win the Atlantic Division. Still, there is some uncertainty on the blue line and between the pipes, with Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz set to duel for starts. Timothy Liljegren is looking like he might get traded, leaving Conor Timmins and Simon Benoit to man the third pair. The top end talent is still as good as any in the league, with the Core Four ready for one more crack at playoff success before Mitch Marner and John Tavares’ contracts expire. Chris Tanev is going to fit like a glove on the back end, but the offensive depth and overall blue line is still a bit of a concern. Still, the Leafs are a candidate to make a few early jumps in the NHL Power Rankings.
After winning their first Stanley Cup in 2023, the Golden Knights were unable to repeat, losing in Game 7 to the Stars in Round 1. And adding insult to injury, Vegas lost seven pieces from the championship team, most notably Marchessault, Chandler Stephenson, Will Carrier and Mike Amadio. The offense is lacking compared to previous years, but Tomas Hertl should be able to help mitigate those concerns. The depth will certainly be tested up front, but the blue line remains one of the best units in the game, and that’s especially true after the addition of Noah Hanifin. With Logan Thompson shipped to Washington, it’s now Adin Hill’s net to lose, and he looks to be ready for the challenge. It’ll be intriguing to see if the Knights can return to a top-three finish in the Pacific after falling into a wildcard spot last season.
The Jets put together one of their best ever seasons in 2023-24, finishing just behind the Stars in the Central Division and entering the postseason on an eight-game heater. But they were taken apart by the Avalanche in Round 1, being outscored 22-8 in the last four games of the series — all of them losses. The Jets have only been past the first round once since 2018, and the core of Mark Scheifele, Connor Hellebuyck, Kyle Connor and Josh Morrissey isn’t getting any younger. Still, the Jets are more than capable of cracking into the NHL Power Rankings’ top-10 sooner rather than later. Gabriel Vilardi is ready for his breakout, and the 25-year-old could be a key cog in the wheel in 2024-25. Will Nikolaj Ehlers be traded this season?
Bolts GM Julien BriseBois certainly didn’t make any new fans when he shipped a pair of two-time Stanley Cup champions out of town this summer. Mikhail Sergachev was blindsided after getting traded to Utah, but no one could have expected that captain Stamkos would be low balled and eventually forced to sign elsewhere. The addition of Jake Guentzel certainly helps, and a top line featuring him, Kucherov and Brayden Point is downright horrifying. But the depth gets worse every year, and that’s true about both the offense and defense this time around. The Lightning badly need vintage Andrei Vasilevskiy back if they hope to make it three Stanley Cups in six years.
After an up-and-down campaign, Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals snuck into the final wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference on the last day of the regular season. But it ended quickly, with Washington getting swept by New York and The Great Eight failing to manage a single point in four games. As Ovi approaches the twilight of his career, the front office decided to give him even more help, bringing Thompson, Matt Roy, Andrew Mangiapane, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Jakob Chychrun to Virginia. This is going to be one of the more interesting teams to watch after a ton of roster turnover, but the spotlight will remain on Ovechkin’s chase for Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goal record. He needs 41 to tie after potting 31 last season. Is this the year? We all hope so.
Steve Yzerman has got to feel his seat heating up, as the Red Wings have now gone eight years without a playoff appearance. They were oh-so-close in 2023-24, but it ended in crushing disappointment. Detroit is going to be a very fun team to watch this season, with a fully healthy Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko now part of the equation, but this still projects as a bubble squad. A huge factor will be the three-headed goalie monster of Cam Talbot, Ville Husso and Alex Lyon. If one of them can get hot and run with the starter’s job, the Red Wings have a great chance to break the long postseason drought. But in a gauntlet of a division, it’s going to be tough. They get the No. 16 slot in the NHL Power Rankings, and could fluctuate significantly up or down as the season goes along.
Only one more year will the buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter cause nightmares for GM Bill Guerin. Next summer, the club will finally have the money to really improve this roster, and they’re already looking to the future after re-signing top goaltending prospect Jesper Wallstedt. Minnesota isn’t used to missing the playoffs, but they did last year despite a winning record. Calder Trophy finalist Brock Faber should be even better in his second full season, and Jared Spurgeon looks to be fully healthy after missing most of last year. But the team can’t rely on Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy and Joel Eriksson Ek for all of the offense; the depth needs to come through. A bounce back from Marcus Johansson, Ryan Hartman and Marcus Foligno could help this squad sneak a wildcard berth — and make a climb up the NHL Power Rankings in the process.
It was a tough pill to swallow for the Kings to lose to the Oilers for the third straight time in 2024. It took seven games in 2022, then six games in 2023, then only five for Edmonton to defeat LA, and it’s now been a full decade since their last series win. That came in 2014 when the Kings beat the Rangers to capture their second Stanley Cup in three campaigns, but it’s been tough sledding since. Losing Matt Roy over the summer was a tough blow for an already questionable D-core, and Drew Doughty’s injury is an absolute disaster. He’s month-to-month, and although Brandt Clarke is ready for his shot, this is not the roster it once was. The offence remains solid, but with Darcy Kuemper between the pipes, is this a club capable of making a fourth straight postseason appearance? Only time will tell.
Ilya Sorokin is finally healthy after undergoing back surgery this summer, but can he return to form in 2024-25? He had one of his worst NHL seasons last year, and that can’t happen again. Semyon Varlamov is now 36-years-old, and you know the Islanders would love to not have to play him so much. At their best, the two Russians make up probably the best tandem in the NHL, and they are critical to New York’s success. The Isles lost to the Hurricanes for the second straight time in the 2024 postseason, and they’re going to have a tough time getting back there. The roster is getting old, and there aren’t exactly a ton of young prospects waiting in the wings. Still, Mathew Barzal and Noah Dobson will lead the charge in the quest for a playoff berth next April.
It seems that every season in Western New York begins with some optimism, and at some point, that turns into the all-too-familiar crushing disappointment. The Sabres brought back legendary coach Lindy Ruff this summer, who helped them reach back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals nearly two decades ago. But things could not have started worse; not only did Buffalo go 0-2 against New Jersey in Europe, but Zach Benson and breakout candidate JJ Peterka were both injured. It’ll be a quick regroup after flying back across the pond before the Sabres host the Kings on Thursday night, and they badly need a win to get back on track. It’s a long season, but a nightmare start for Buffalo nonetheless.
Welcome to North America, Matvei Michkov. The ultra-talented winger is already jumping into the boards after scoring preseason empty net goals, and this kid is ready is ready to become a fan favorite in the City of Brotherly Love. He probably is already. What he certainly is is an early Calder Trophy contender, and the 19-year-old looks ready for the show after an excellent exhibition showing. So is 18-year-old Jett Luchanko, who was selected 13th overall this year and has managed to blow away the front office to earn a spot. The kids are alright in Philadelphia. But the main problem for the squad is between the pipes; neither of Ivan Fedotov or Samuel Ersson inspire too much confidence, and Alexei Kolosov remains a wild card. Still, there aren’t a ton of expectations on the Flyers this season despite an encouraging 2023-24 showing, but there is definitely playoff potential here if the stars align.
What an exciting time to be a fan of the Utah Hockey Club. The sport is back in Salt Lake City for the first time since the 2002 Winter Olympics, and the Delta Center figures to be rocking on Tuesday night. Utah is quite a bit better than last year, with Sergachev and Ian Cole now involved to stabilize the blue line, along with the expected step forward from one of the league’s better young cores. New captain Clayton Keller remains elite, and the emergence of Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley into stars could help this team make up some serious ground in the NHL Power Rankings in 2024-25. If Connor Ingram can channel the form he showed for about three quarters of last year, we could have a postseason berth on our hands in Utah’s inaugural campaign.
The Blues get their season going in Seattle, and it’s really hard to predict how this team is going to fare in 2024-25. The loss of Torey Krug for the season is just brutal, and and the D-core is certainly hurting because of it. Broberg is a nice add, but there’s just too many aging veterans there — Colton Parayko, Ryan Suter and Nick Leddy, etc. The forward core also doesn’t inspire too much confidence, although a Jake Neighbours breakout could be coming. A lot will be asked of Jordan Binnington yet again, but he proved last year he’s up to the task. Can STL sneak back into a playoff spot after back-to-back misses?
Like the Sabres and Red Wings, the Senators project as a bubble team in the Atlantic looking to break a long drought. Ottawa hasn’t advanced to the dance since marching to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final in 2017, and they haven’t really been close. But they should be this year, and that’s mainly due to Linus Ullmark. The 2022-23 Vezina Trophy winner is a huge upgrade from Joonas Korpisalo, and he should help the club concede many less goals. But it really is up to the locked up young core to get this team over the hump: Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, Josh Norris, Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot all need to be even better if this roster wants to take the next step. Even with Ullmark between the pipes, they’re going to have a tough time keeping pace in a difficult conference.
This is probably the lowest the Penguins have ever started the season in any NHL Power Rankings since before Sidney Crosby was drafted, but it’s well-deserved. The team is just not looking great on paper, and it’s even worse with Bryan Rust on the IR. Crosby will line up for Pittsburgh’s home opener with Drew O’Connor and Anthony Beauvillier. Evgeni Malkin gets to play with Michael Bunting and Rickard Rakell. And it only gets thinner from there. The Pens need another otherworldly campaign from No. 87, and a bounce-back from Erik Karlsson wouldn’t hurt. Tristan Jarry needs to be much better than last year if this club hopes to return to the playoffs after back-to-back misses. And with Alex Nedeljkovic injured, he needs to come through. If things go south, this could be the year the rebuild begins in Pennsylvania.
The Canadiens are probably being underappreciated heading into the new season, but after a ghastly 2023-24 campaign, they’re going to have to earn a respectable showing in the NHL Power Rankings. The addition of Patrik Laine sparked all kinds of excitement in hockey’s most storied city, but the Finnish sniper was injured in the preseason and will likely be in the press box for 2-3 months. Although that’s brutal, getting Kirby Dach back will be massive for this club, and former No. 1 overall pick Juraj Slafkovsky is ready to go nuclear along with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield. The Habs are young and fast, but still probably a few years away from contention. Still, Lane Hutson is going to be a great player in this league, and he has a legitimate chance to steal the Calder from Michkov and Celebrini.
In three years of existence, Seattle has been middling twice and phenomenal once. What kind of showing will we get from the Kraken in Year 4? They should certainly be better than last year after the huge offseason signings of Brandon Montour and Chandler Stephenson, although both players are getting paid way too much. Still, the Kraken don’t really have any star players, and it’s going to take a committee approach to make a triumphant return to the playoffs. The more likely outcome is another miss, but that could depend largely on the play of Philipp Grubauer and Joey Daccord between the pipes. Seattle is off and running against St. Louis on Tuesday.
An under-the-radar Calder Trophy contender is Cutter Gauthier, who forced his way into a trade out of Philly and projects to get a ton of minutes to start the season in California. He joins a young core that hasn’t been able to break through yet but still oozes with talent. Troy Terry, Leo Carlsson, Mason McTavish and — ideally — Trevor Zegras should have good years, although the blue line is one of the weakest units in the league. John Gibson needs to bounce back in a huge way else he lose the starter’s net to Lukas Dostal. Either way, it could be another long season in Anaheim, throwback logo and all.
How will Year 2 fare for Connor Bedard? The young phenom was under the finest of microscopes in 2023-24, and he performed admirably with 61 points in his first 68 NHL games. That’s especially impressive considering he missed time with a broken jaw and came back looking like the same player. Although the Hawks were awful last year, they should take a step forward after the additions of Teuvo Teravainen, Tyler Bertuzzi and Ilya Mikheyev up front, along with veterans Alec Martinez and TJ Brodie on the blue line. This still isn’t a good team, and probably a few years away from playoff contention, but Bedard has the opportunity to go nuclear in his sophomore season. Can he help a healthy Taylor Hall return to form?
The Flames are a shell of their former selves after GM Craig Conroy began the fire sale and never looked back. Lindholm, Zadorov, Hanifin, Markstrom, Tanev and Mangiapane are all no longer part of the equation, and Yegor Sharangovich going down week-to-week is supremely disappointing. Calgary doesn’t have too many ringers left, and there’s no indication that Conroy is finished, with Rasmus Andersson likely the next domino to fall. The Flames are now entering a rebuild, and although No. 30 in the NHL Power Rankings is probably a bit unfair, this is not at all the team it once was. Can Dustin Wolf change the narrative between the pipes?
After an absolutely abysmal season, the Sharks were gifted with the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft — and the right to select Macklin Celebrini. He’s the next Connor Bedard, and should make an immediate impact with his new team in 2024-25. So will Tyler Toffoli, Will Smith, Jake Walman and Cody Ceci. Will it be enough to get San Jose out of the league basement? That’s the million dollar question, although they already improved on their No. 32 showing in the NHL Power Rankings to end the year. Even if the Sharks aren’t yet good, they’re young and fast, and should be a lot more fun to watch this season.
The Blue Jackets were forced to reckon with an unimaginable tragedy this summer. The passing of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau will forever be felt within the organization, and it’ll be hard for the franchise to focus on business after the heartbreaking accident. But the team must play 82 games nonetheless, and on paper, it looks like it’s going to be a long season on the ice. General manager Don Waddell traded Patrik Laine to the Montreal Canadiens to get him a change of scenery, and captain Boone Jenner and Dmitri Voronkov were both placed on injured reserve prior to opening night. With that, the Jackets boast probably the worst roster in the league, and a last-place finish is the most likely outcome in 2024-25.
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Originally posted on ClutchPoints
Published: 2 weeks ago
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