After nearly four months, the NHL season is upon us. While the casual fan might think the offseason was quiet, the true fan knows this is anything but true. For this season’s preview, we will look at the biggest moves and signings, teams with a good chance to win the Stanley Cup, and of course, the St. Louis Blues.
There’s always some eye-catching trades or signings during the offseason, and it proved to be no different this year. Undoubtedly, this summer’s biggest move was Erik Karlsson being traded from San Jose to Pittsburgh. The addition of Karlsson to the Pittsburgh blue line will provide a boost to the Penguin’s defense, which turns sub-par in a hurry after their first line pair, with the incredible Kris Letang. Pittsburg was likely so aggressive and willing to take 10 of the 11 million dollars of his contract to continue their full push at another cup while their aging core reaches its final stages. After Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang retire, who knows where the Penguins will be in the standings?
Of course Karlsson was not the only notable signing. Vladimir Tarasenko signed a one-year deal with the Ottawa Senators. With Tarasenko, that’s a scary first power play unit Ottawa will be rolling out. Additionally, Toronto Maple Leaf Auston Matthews became the new highest-paid player in the league, signing a whopping four-year, $53 million contract extension for an average annual value of $13.25 million. This certainly falls in step with the Maple Leafs’ previous moves signing players to extremely high contracts. This seems to be working out well so far in the playoffs…
Moving along, what would a season preview be without listing some teams that could legitimately win the Cup? The chances of Florida reaching the final again seem much less likely than Vegas doing so as the Eastern Conference is more stacked overall. The door also seems to be closing on the Tampa Bay Lightning. What a stretch of total domination they put together – but their offense is severely lacking in comparison this year to those Cup-winning teams. From the Western Conference, I would pinpoint the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars. Even though they will once again miss their captain Gabriel Landeskog, Colorado’s game-changers – Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and Cale Makar are all in their prime. If the rest of their lineup can also get rolling and goaltender Alexander Georgiev can maintain a high level of play in the playoffs, they certainly have a shot. You might question the ability of the Stars, and you’d be a fool. Dallas has been a final-four team or better twice in the last four playoffs. Their star players: forwards Jason Robertson and Roope Hintz, defenseman Miro Heiskanen, and goalie Jake Oettinger are all amongst the best in the league at their positions. Throw in some of their older guys still performing at a high level, Joe Pavelski and Jamie Been, and they could easily become a threat once again. While you might be wondering about the Edmonton Oilers, even though they have Connor McDavid, they still need a more reliable defense and goaltender to go all the way.
From the Eastern Conference, the most likely contenders will be the Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, and New York Rangers. Carolina, recently, has been consistently good throughout the playoffs. They even made it to the conference final without Andrei Svechnikov and Max Pacioretty. They play a boring, defensive game that can easily frustrate opponents. New Jersey was a bit of a surprise with their extreme success last season. Even though they lost in round one last year, they have a high-scoring offense and a solid defense that, when put together, could be a tough challenge. New York is a tricky team to predict. I included them in this list as they have the capability to win a cup, especially with Igor Shesterkin, arguably one of the top three netminders in the league. I don’t buy the Maple Leafs hype at all.
Finally, let’s take a look at the St. Louis Blues. After a terrible season, finishing with only 81 points, the primary question is whether they can rebound successfully or if they should enter into a rebuild. General Manager Doug Armstrong has stated that, “we’re at the 50-yard line and I’m hoping to go towards the offensive zone, not the defensive zone from the 50.” He has also stated that with the core group of Brayden Schenn (recently named captain), Pavel Buchnevich, Jordan Kyrou, Robert Thomas, Torey Krug, and Jordan Binnington, he does not believe the Blues are going to enter into a rebuild. For St. Louis to reach the playoffs again they will need more production from Kyrou and Thomas, as well as for Binnington to regain his 2019 form. A save percentage of .894 certainly won’t get the Blues anywhere this year. Also, the Blues were 22nd on the power play and 30th on the penalty kill last season after ranking second and fifth respectively, in 2021-22. To make the playoffs, the special teams will need to show great improvement.
Safe to say there’s a lot to look forward to this season. There’s a lot of young talent in today’s game and the pace is becoming faster and faster every season. It will be interesting to see how Connor Bedard performs in the spotlight this season as well. As always, Let’s Go Blues!
