The entirety of the National Hockey League has completed their first quarter of regular season competition for the 2022-2023.
This means that what we have seen will most like be come the end of the regular season. 75-90% of teams sitting in a playoff spot will remain there.
The Boston Bruins sit atop the league standings, the Eastern Conference standings, and the Atlantic Division standings.
The New Jersey Devils sit atop the Metropolitan Division.
The Vegas Golden Knights sit atop the Western Conference standings and the Pacific Division standings.
The Dallas Stars sit atop the Central Division standings.
Basing my stats on the league standings from Saturday night’s contests, November 26, here is where I see where these teams end up come the end of the regular season, given most teams will be where they are.
Contenders:
1. Boston - best team in hockey. They’re risking it all now. All the rentals. The lack of picks. This is their must win season.
2. Vegas - Jack Eichel. Mark Stone. Phil Kessel. Alex Piterangelo. This is a contender with the worst cap management.
3. Dallas — the quietest team, but not on my radar. Their young stars are meshing with their depth. Also Peter DeBoer has first year success everywhere he goes. New Jersey v Los Angeles. San Jose v Pittsburgh.
4. New Jersey — the dark horse. After a 13 game winning streak, they feel like this season’s New York Rangers and the COVID year Islanders.
5. Carolina — Between the additions of Brent Burns, Paul Stastny, and Max Paccioretty, they’re screaming must win now.
Can’t Ever Count Them Out
1. Colorado — most recent cup champs. MacKinnon and Makar can only get better.
2. Tampa Bay — 3 consecutive cup finals.
3. Pittsburgh — Crosby, Malkin, and Letang. Can’t bet against winners
Dark Horse
1. New York Islanders — quietly strong start to the season, changed the culture with going more offensively minded with a defensively built structure.
2. Edmonton Oilers — Connor McDavid and Leon Drasatil can carry them to the Conference Finals alone.
Pretenders
1. Florida — last season’s Presidents Trophy winners. Can’t keep changing everything thinking everything will change. The turnover has them outside the wild card.
2. Detroit — over exceeding expectations, can’t see this last. Hoping Larkin gets 8 by $9.5M.
3. NY Rangers — over exceeded last season, didn’t think they were a playoff team then and now. Too young. Need the time to develop and mature. Patrick Kane will move them into automatic contender.
4. St. Louis — horrible start, and now where they should be. Won’t last with the strength atop the conference.
5. Minnesota — the risk isn’t working with the buyouts to Parise and Suter.
6. Winnipeg — don’t have the depth but have maybe a top 5 goalie with Hellybuck. The core is toxic. Move Scheifele and Wheeler and Dubois. Can’t keep bad attitudes.
7. Seattle — too early. Love Beniers and Wright, but not yet.
8. Los Angeles Kings — they’re so close to being contenders.
9. Nashville — everyone having career years last season and having their reality year now. Shocking even with McDonagh and Niederreiter that they’re this mediocre.
10. Calgary — I thought they got better this summer, even with the losses they made. The guys they brought in made sense. If the problems resolve, they’re a contender.
Biggest Disappointment
Washington — this is shockingly bad. How do you punt on two young goalies and the vets don’t help. Sure there’s so many injuries, but there’s still Alexander Ovechkin, Evgney Kuznetsov, and John Carlson.
Don’t Know What to Think
Toronto — they work as Contenders and Pretenders. I’d love to see them win with Matthews, Marner, Nylander, and Tavares. Losing to bad teams never helps. I believe in Samsonov as their number one if they win.
Suck Hard for Bedard Sweepstakes
The rest.
Ottawa — shockingly bad.
Buffalo — the rest of the division got stronger, and bought depth at full price, if not more. They’re close to moving to the pretender stage.
Philadelphia — Fire Fletcher.
Montreal — overexceeding but they’re going to suck soon. Start selling Drouin, Monahan, and Dadanov.
Anahiem — Zegras—Bedard—Terry
Just move Gibson, he’s too good and is now a product of a bad team.
Columbus — if it’s breathing, it’s broken. Injuries to Laine, Voracek, Werenski, Bean, Boqvist, Kuraly, Merzlikins, Korpsialo, Blankenburg, Danforth, Gudbranson, Johnson, Chinakov, and Roslovic already tho season missing at least a game.
San Jose — move Karlsson at 50% salary and recover all the picks.
Ariozna — stay in school. Add picks, win in the new arena.
Chicago — move All your rentals. Also be smart with the RFAs this time and not just walk from players like Kubalik and Strome.
Vancouver — I’m so confused. They shouldn’t be this bad? Right? Maybe the worst defense aside Quinn Hughes, and only one legit goalie in their entire system with Thatcher Demko. But their offense is so elite with Petterson, Boeser, Garland, Mikheyev, Miller, Horvat, Podkolzin, Hoglander, I’m just not sure what this team needs aside a full cap restructure.
With the player stats:
McDavid is first in points. That’ll stay the same. He’s going to win most of the trophies.
Jason Robertson wins the Rocket. Maybe? Horvat, McDavid, and Pasternak may round out unless Horvat is moved. Matthews and Ovechkin are the dark horses.
Erik Karlsson wins the Norris. He’s the healthiest he’s been. Makar is the dark horse with Morrissey.
Ruff wins the Jack Adams. Without a doubt.
Masterton should go to Eichel. Went through hell. And is leading his team atop the West.
Linus Ullmark for Veznia, followed by Hellybuck and Sorokin.
Calder is for Matthew Beniers. Kent Johnson and Jake Sanderson are right there.
Selke — Bergeron. Next.
King Clancy — Nazem Kadri. Look at his summer with Calgary and the cup.
Lady Byng — Jack Eichel. No penalties this season. Wow. 12th in league scoring with 26 points in 23 games.
GM of the Year — Devils Tom Fitzgerald. Can’t give it to Boston with Miller.
Jennings — Ullmark and Swayman
Messier — Bergeron. True leader.
Columbus Blue Jackets Blogger • 
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