(4) | I thought the Bruins would struggle out of the gate because of some injuries. But on the other hand, I still thought they could compete atop the Atlantic Division. What I did not see coming was the best regular season in NHL history.
2(11) | Coming into the 2022-23 season, the Oilers hadn't addressed many of the issues that plagued them the year before. However, Edmonton used the trade deadline to bolster its defense and Stuart Skinner has played like a No. 1 goalie. Now, the Oilers are a serious Cup contender.
3(8) | As has been the case for most of the season, injuries plagued the Avs right out of the starting block. Colorado got off to a slower start than expected, but the Avalanche have won seven straight games, and a second straight Stanley Cup is very much on the table for this group.
4(15) | In our preseason bold predictions, I picked the Devils to make the playoffs, but I suspected they would be battling for a wild card spot in the final week of the regular season. New Jersey is battling in the last week of the regular season, but it is for the Metro Division title. The development of Jack Hughes and the rest of the young core has allowed the Devils to take a big step forward.
5(6) | For the first time in years, the Stars have gotten reliable scoring outside its first line. Add in a tremendous offensive season from defenseman Miro Heiskanen and continued brilliance from Jake Oettinger, and Dallas has remained among the top teams in the league all season.
6(2) | The Hurricanes were a top-two team in these rankings for most of the season, and they even held the No. 1 spot for a short time. The issue is that injuries to Andrei Svechnikov and Max Pacioretty have put a dent in the offense down the stretch, and other players must step up in the postseason.
7(10) | Coming into the season, the Rangers looked like a team that could go on a deep postseason run. The additions of Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrick Kane at the trade deadline have only made the blueshirts even more dangerous. With Igor Shesterkin rounding into form at the right time, New York can beat any of the East's top teams.
8(4) | Unfortunately for the Golden Knights, injuries have played a major factor. Mark Stone has been out since Jan. 31, but he could be back in time for the playoffs. Despite his absence, Vegas has still managed to put itself in position to win the Pacific Division. After a disappointing 2021-22 campaign, the Golden Knights have met expectations this season.
9(12) | Poor shooting luck contributed to a bit of a slow start for the Leafs, but they eventually got going and looked like one of the best teams in the NHL. Toronto hasn't necessarily been dominant over the last month, but it still looks like a complete team capable of winning it all. First, the Maple Leafs have to get over that first-round hump.
10(21) | I wasn't high on the Wild coming into the season, and Marc-Andre Fleury got off to a brutal start in goal. Luckily for Minnesota, Filip Gustavsson has stepped up between the pipes, and he has carried his team to more than a few wins in the last month. The question now is whether the Wild can give him enough run support in the playoffs.
11(25) | After getting burned by the Kraken in 2021-22, I was very skeptical of them this season. However, Jared McCann and Vince Dunn took big strides, and players like Matty Beniers and Andre Burakovsky have added a lot to the roster. Most importantly, Seattle's goaltending hasn't been the worst in the league by a country mile this season.
12(18) | Outside of the crease, the Kings were one of the NHL's best teams this season. Midway through the season, Los Angeles completely remade its goaltending duo by trading Jonathan Quick and adding Pheonix Copley and Joonas Korpisalo.
13(9) | I loved the Panthers' addition of Matthew Tkachuk in the offseason, and he has been nothing short of spectacular so far, but it took a while for the rest of the team to come around. Aleksander Barkov has gotten hot down the stretch, and that has allowed Florida to climb back into playoff position after being on the outside for most of the year.
14(19) | The Jets defied expectations for roughly half of the 2022-23 season. They were battling the Stars for first place in the Central Division and sat in or around the top 10 of the power rankings. However, the team started to fall apart sometime in January, and they have drifted back toward their original ranking.
15(14) | The Bolts' 2022-23 season has been bookended by a pair of slumps. Tampa struggled to get up to speed at the start of the season, and that is understandable given that the team has been to three straight Stanley Cup Finals. However, the Bolts have looked mortal down the stretch, and we'll see if they can turn it on in the playoffs.
16(16) | Buffalo deserves a lot of credit for hanging around in the Eastern Conference from start to finish. The Sabres still have hope in the playoff race, but they have zero room for error. Regardless of what happens, this season has been a success for a Buffalo franchise that has been in need of hope for a long time now.
17(28) | I was way too low on the Islanders this year, if only because I should've known Ilya Sorokin would keep them in the playoff picture for 82 games. Sorokin has been a strong Vezina Trophy contender, and the Isles have already proven me wrong, whether they're able to squeak into the postseason or not.
18(5) | For the first couple weeks of the season, the veteran Penguins seemed determined to beat Father Time, and I was too high on them as a result. Pittsburgh struggled to maintain that level for 82 games, and it has really faded in the last few weeks. Now, the Pens are just trying to scrape into the playoffs.
19(27) | Like the Islanders, but perhaps to an even greater degree, the Predators might be closer to their original ranking if not for goaltending. Despite being sellers at the trade deadline and losing a handful of their best players to injury in the last month, the Preds have remained alive in the playoff race. Most of that credit goes to Juuse Saros, who has been borderline unbeatable.
20(1) | Yikes is not a strong enough word. The Flames were my preseason pick to win the Stanley Cup, and they were eliminated from playoff contention on Monday night. Calgary has the makeup of a talented team, and its underlying numbers have been pretty strong all season. However, the goaltending and general vibes have been subpar all season. It wouldn't be shocking to see the Flames make some significant changes.
21(13) | Ottawa got off to a quick start in 2022-23, and I may have overreacted to that just a little bit. There is no denying that the Senators are an improved team, but they should not have been considered a threat to make the playoffs at any point. If Ottawa can add some more blue line help and improve goaltending in the offseason, they will be a more dangerous squad next year.
22(32) | Going more than two weeks without getting a win to start the season will hurt a team's standing in the power rankings. Vancouver eventually made a coaching change and replaced Bruce Boudreau with Rick Tocchet. Since that switch, the Canucks have looked better, and it'll be interesting to see what Tocchet can do in 2023-24.
23(7) | I was very wrong about the Blues last season, so I assumed they could keep winning despite atrocious underlying numbers again this year. That was not the case. St. Louis couldn't keep the puck out of its own net, and the team completely cratered before becoming one of the biggest sellers at the trade deadline.
24(20) | After some key offseason additions, the Red Wings were thought to be an improved team. That turned out to be true, but not by much. Detroit was more competitive, but it's clear Steve Yzerman has more work to do before the Wings are a true Stanley Cup contender again.
25(17) | I anticipated a step back for the Capitals, but I didn't see a complete collapse coming. Washington had some of the worst injury luck in the league this season, and that certainly contributed to the team's underwhelming performance, but it's hard to see this team contending again in the next couple of years. Will Alex Ovechkin get another shot at a Cup before he retires?
26(24) | This was kind of an ideal season for the Canadiens. Expectations weren't high for this group, and some of the team's best young players got ample ice time, and the Canadiens remained competitive more often than not. Yet, Montreal is still within range to get a top-two pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
27(31) | The Sharks were always going to be terrible this season, but it was good to see Erik Karlsson find his groove again. That was a pleasant surprise because Karlsson is one of the most fun players to watch when he's at his best, and he might have played his way onto a better team for the 2023-24 campaign.
28(26) | The Blue Jackets made a huge splash last offseason when they signed Johnny Gaudreau to a massive seven-year contract. This summer, they will hope to make a splash by calling Connor Bedard's name in Nashville.
29(22) | Generally speaking, John Tortorella's first season in Philly went about as expected. The team wasn't very good. Some players thrived. Other players very much did not. Torts got salty here and there. This was always going to be a long-term project for Tortorella, but the process might get expedited depending on where the Flyers are drafting.
30(30) | Credit to me for having a deep enough knowledge of hockey to predict that the Coyotes would not be very good this season. As everyone with a brain between their ears suspected, Arizona was not very good, and the team is very well-positioned in the draft lottery. That said, there were some positives, like the play Clayton Keller and Matias Maccelli.
31(23) | Chicago was committed to the tank from the moment Kyle Davidson was hired as GM. That commitment was only reaffirmed ahead of the trade deadline when the Hawks traded any player capable of helping the Blackhawks avoid last place. The draft lottery was kind to Chicago in the past. Will that be the case again?
32(29) | If you're looking at the negatives in Anaheim, the young players didn't exactly take a notable step forward, and the blue line still has a long way to go before this team can compete for anything. On the other hand, we might get to see Connor Bedard play alongside Trevor Zegras, Troy Terry, and Mason McTavish.
