September 24, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers right fielder Riley Smith (91) skates during his home debut against the New York Islanders in the first period at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images Carolina Hurricanes
Director: Rod Brind’Amour (7 seasons)
Last season: 52-23-7, 111 points, 2nd place in Metropolitan Division
This Season: A perennial top-tier club, the Hurricanes swung for the fences last season, missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs in the second round for the third time in four seasons. Carolina had some turnovers but needs to push again. Nonetheless, the championship window appears to be closed.
What’s new: Forwards William Carrier and Jack Roslovic and defensemen Sean Walker and Shayne Gostisbehere have been brought in to fill big holes left by the departures of forwards Jake Guentzel, Teuvo Teravainen and Stefan Noesen and defensemen Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei.
Player to Watch: Goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov has taken the No. 1 spot and should be the rock as the new-look Hurricanes come together with new faces and players taking on more roles.
columbus blue jacket
Director: Dean Evason (first season)
Last season: 27-43-12, 66 points, 8th place in Metropolitan Division
This season: The deaths of star forward Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew on the eve of training camp will be the biggest cloud over the club. This season was going to be a challenge for the talented Gaudreau as well. It may be insignificant in the grand scheme of life, but making the playoffs will be a much bigger challenge.
What’s new: Another new beginning in Columbus with a new coach. On the ice, the club signed free agent Sean Monahan with the hopes of relaunching his career alongside Gaudreau. Monahan will now take on the role of mentoring the team’s younger players. The Blue Jackets also signed James van Riemsdyk and acquired defenseman Jordan Harris in the deal that sent Patrik Laine to Montreal.
Players to watch: With the future in mind, much of this season will be about the development of young forwards like Kent Johnson, Adam Fantilli, Cole Sillinger, Yegor Chinakhov and defenseman David Jiricek.
new jersey devils
Director: Sheldon Keefe (first season)
Last season: 38-39-5, 81 points, 7th place in Metropolitan Division
This season: Last season was a disaster due to key injuries and subpar goaltending. Not only should the Devils get back into the playoffs, but they should be a force to be reckoned with if everything comes together.
What’s new: Goaltending was the biggest target, and the Devils made a big move by acquiring Jacob Markstrom from the Calgary Flames. The major moves didn’t end there. Forwards Stefan Noesen, Paul Cotter and Tomas Tatar were added, as were defensemen Brett Pesce and Brenden Dillon.
Player to watch: The defense begins the season without Luke Hughes (shoulder), but Dougie Hamilton will return after missing most of last season with injury and give the Devils another shock.
New York Islanders
Manager: Patrick Roy (second season)
Last season: 39-27-16, 94 points, 3rd place in Metropolitan Division
This season: The Islanders will likely be in a similar position to last year in the playoff mix, but they will never be a top team. New York has a lot of great players, especially their underrated defense, but they’ll have to work hard to make the playoffs. No one will be surprised if the Islanders succeed.
What’s new: Looking to add some much-needed speed, the Islanders signed Anthony Duclair in the offseason and brought Maxim Tsyplakov to the NHL from Europe.
Player to watch: The Islanders’ biggest problem is their scoring ability. Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal could be having point-per-game seasons, and Duclair would have a golden opportunity to click with them. The issue is scoring depth, with guys like Brock Nelson, Kyle Palmieri and Anders Lee expected to add.
new york rangers
Manager: Peter Laviolette (second season)
Last season: 55-23-4, 114 points, 1st place in the metropolitan area
This season: The Rangers, a team that lost to the Cup champion Panthers in the Eastern Conference finals and won the regular season title with a franchise-record 55 wins, should be a Cup contender again with a team loaded with stars at every position. .
What’s new: Not much. Naturally, there was little turnover in the summer other than the additions of Reilly Smith and Sam Carrick. Perhaps the bigger surprise was the fact that veteran defenseman Jacob Trouba and young forward Filip Chytil were not traded. And the Rangers will likely be loaded at the deadline and might even be willing to trade Chytil or Kaapo Kakko if they want to cash in on some big chips.
Player to watch: In the league’s best equation, goaltender Igor Shesterkin is entering the final season of his contract and is set to become an unrestricted free agent. There’s a good chance he’ll re-sign, but this is a very important storyline.
philadelphia flyers
Director: John Tortorella (third season)
Last season: 38-33-11, 87 points, 6th place in Metropolitan Division
This season: The Flyers missed the playoffs by just four points, but wisely they resisted the urge to quickly fix their rebuild. If everything goes right, they could even make the playoffs. If everything goes wrong, you can take a step back.
What’s New: It’s been a quiet offseason, but not without some excitement. Matvei Michkov, an extremely talented 2023 first-round draft pick, is making the leap to the NHL faster than many expected (one of the reasons he fell to seventh in the draft). The 19-year-old Russian forward is considered a frontrunner for the Calder Trophy as the league’s best rookie.
Player to watch: Whether the Flyers decide to play Michkov alongside Sean Couturier or Morgan Frost is worth following. Philadelphia has a thin roster other than guys Travis Konecny and Owen Tippett, and there are a lot of question marks on defense and goals.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Director: Mike Sullivan (10 seasons)
Last season: 38-32-12, 88 points, 5th place in Metropolitan Division
This season: After missing the playoffs in back-to-back seasons, the Penguins are holding out hope that veteran stars Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Erik Karlsson can make the playoffs once more. Maybe so, maybe not.
What’s new: After trade deadline sales, the Penguins filled holes with players like forwards Kevin Hayes, Blake Lizotte, Anthony Beauvillier, Cody Glass, Rutger McGroarty and defenseman Matt Grzelcyk. McGroarty was a highly touted prospect who was acquired after refusing to sign with the Winnipeg Jets, giving the Penguins at least one new, young player for the future.
Player to watch: Carlsen had a poor first campaign in Pittsburgh after being acquired from the San Jose Sharks last season. Not only did he fail to provide the dynamic offense he expected, but he surprisingly had the third-worst power play in the league.
Washington Capitals
Manager: Spencer Carbery (second season)
Last season: 40-31-11, 91 points, 4th place in Metropolitan Division
This season: After a surprise run to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Capitals are trying to stay relevant as Alex Ovechkin looks to break Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goal scoring record of 894. Ovechkin has 853 goals.
What’s new: The Capitals, who have done some offensive work to remain a playoff team, added veteran forwards Andrew Mangiapane and Pierre-Luc Dubois, who need to restart their careers, as well as defenseman Jakob Chychrun and goaltender Logan Thompson.
Player to watch: Beyond Ovechkin’s quest for the record books? There really isn’t much to do other than see how Dubois bounces back from his terrible season with the Los Angeles Kings and whether No. 1 goaltender Charlie Lindgren can build on a fantastic campaign that will see him backstop the Capitals all the way to the postseason.
–Field level media
