The time is upon us: We’re within a month until the NHL season opens up, so naturally everyone is feeling inclined to give their projections and opinions on who will be contenders, who will flounder, and who will ultimately win the Stanley Cup. Opinions are typically disagreed with, while projections are almost always considered wrong, no matter the math and statistics used. I personally am enjoying Dom Luszczyszyn‘s Season Preview with the Athletic so far (Here’s Arizona’s from today, but reminder there’s a paywall). It’s backed by statistics, has fun visuals, and he’s acknowledged that the model isn’t perfect and there will be flaws, so I don’t question it.
As such, I’d like to share my “Teams to Watch”. These won’t be entirely stats-based. There won’t be fun graphs, maybe a gif or two if I feel so inclined. You’ll notice that some of these teams are those that I feel will fare better than projections, while some are just teams that I think will be interesting to watch through training camp and into the season. Disagree with my opinions? Let me know!
(these are in no particular order)
Toronto Maple Leafs
As if this wasn’t obvious.
The Leafs are going to be one of the most exciting teams in the NHL to watch this year. Led by the Holy Trifecta of Auston Matthew, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander, the Buds were expected to step into the upper echelon of the NHL this year prior to their free agency moves. The team then went and added veterans Patrick Marleau, Ron Hainsey, and Dominic Moore to a largely-unchanged roster and now you have a team that could conceivably go deep in the playoffs come April (currently knocking on every piece of wood in site).
The excitement surrounding the Leafs is more than palpable; all eyes will be on all the young guns to see who takes a leap forward and if anyone take a step back. That being said, there are a few questions that surround the team:
- Will Auston and Willy continue to build on their chemistry and put themselves in the “best linemates in hockey” conversation? The two complemented each other extremely well after Nylander’s punishment on the fourth line; if they develop as expected, their play together could be lethal to other teams.
- How will Patrick Marleau fit on this team? Everyone has him taking Zach Hyman’s position on the Matthews line (myself included), but he could arguably be slotted anywhere. Maybe he plays on the third line with Nazem Kadri and Connor Brown, moving Leo Komarov down to the fourth line, an option that doesn’t actually sound too awful. (Update: I wrote this before Bob McKenzie tweeted it during a Q&A this afternoon. I have original thoughts, I promise!)
- Which of the many sophomores will suffer the inevitable slump? With this many young players, it almost seems like a foregone conclusion that someone will.
- Of the dearth of wingers that the Leafs have in the minors, are there any who break through on the opening night?
- What about on defense? Will Hainsey gel well with Morgan Rielly? Or does he move down the lineup to play with Connor Carrick. Does Martin Marincin have the final spot on the point locked down? Or does someone else from within the organization step up?
As you can see, lots of hypotheticals floating around. Regardless, this team will still be very exciting to watch, and I can’t wait to see how the Leafs fare this season.
Vegas Golden Knights
This is the only gif I could find of the Knights. I guess that makes sense.
The Golden Knights are undoubtedly going to be the team to watch this season for a number of reasons. Firstly, I think they have potential to at least look competitive on the ice, relative to the other teams being projected at the bottom of the league (Detroit, New Jersey, Colorado, etc.). Their forward group is comprised of a few quality players such as James Neal, Jonathan Marchessault, Reilly Smith (assuming he returns to form), David Perron, and Erik Haula, who I think will have a breakout year in an increased role. Add in to the equation Russian import Vadim Shipachyov, and the top 6 isn’t as awful as you’d think. There is the question of whether or not Shipachyov will be able to replicate the success he had in the KHL, but either way the Knights forwards won’t be awful to watch.
On defence, GM George McPhee has built a young corps; only Jason Garrison, Clayton Stoner, and Deryk Engelland are over the age of 30. In all likelihood only Garrison will see regular ice time of those three; I imagine Stoner will be banished to the minors and Engelland will be a press box regular, being an active member of the community (as the only Las Vegas native on the team) and slowly transitioning to an off-ice role with the team after his contract ends. The rest of the D will be made up of players ranging in age from 22 to 28, with the likes of Griffin Reinhart and Shea Theodore hopefully seeing meaningful minutes this season.
For prospects, they’ve done a really good job of building up a prospect cupboard in such a short amount of time. Having three first-round picks absolutely helps that, but it doesn’t stop there. Getting Alex Tuch from Minnesota at the expansion draft was a very good get, plus the trade for Keegan Colesar was pretty underrated. He’s a more NHL-ready prospect than what they would have drafted in the second round. anyways. Speaking of the second round, getting Nicolas Hague there this year was excellent value.
I’m mostly interested in seeing just how this team shapes up once training camp begins. It seems as though no one knows how Golden Knights head coach Turk Gallant will build his lineup, which creates lots of intrigue heading in to the season.
Arizona Coyotes
The ‘Yotes have a stupid amount of young prospects ready to step in and make an immediate impact for the team and are being projected by many to finish as a lottery team, which should help them be competitive in another year or so. Sound like another team from last year? I’ll give you a hint:
While I don’t think they’ll be this year’s Toronto Maple Leafs, I do think that many season predictions are underrating the Coyotes. Dylan Strome may not have had the best start to his NHL career, but he still projects as a dependable top-6 forward and he’s still young; plenty of opportunity to flourish. Clayton Keller compares in many ways to Willy Nylander; he was drafted at the tail end of the top-10, yet has quickly become heralded as one of the best prospects of the draft; he’ll certainly crack the top 6.
The Coyotes also have a number of young wingers who will look to make more of an impact with added experience. Lawson Crouse had a shaky rookie season, however is still a powerful winger with plenty of opportunity to prove it. Anthony Duclair just signed a fresh new contract and will look to regain his form from two seasons ago, in which he potted 20 goals and 44 points. And in a season of strong rookies, Christian Dvorak quietly had a very strong freshman campaign last year. Let’s also not forget that Max Domi is only 22 and coming off of a productive season, albeit limited by injuries.
Oh, and they traded for some Derek Stepan guy. He should fill the #1 centre role effectively, I guess.
On defence, the fun doesn’t stop. Oliver Ekman-Larsson is the most underrated defenceman in the league; he’ll continue to be the face of this franchise for a long time. Jakob Chychrun proved to everyone why the Coyotes absolutely stole him so late in the first round last year by making the team out of camp and turning in an excellent rookie campaign. Aside from that, they brought in sure-handed D-man Niklas Hjalmarsson to shore up their top 4 alongside Alex Goligoski.
Add to the mix new tender Antti Raanta, and the Coyotes likely had one of the best offseasons this year.
Needless to say, I’ll be watching the Golden Knights home opener closely. Can the season start already?
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