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NHL Power Rankings: Washington Capitals begin title defense

By Dave Stevenson

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 7:The Washington Capitals celebrate around the Stanley Cup after Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Washington Capitals and the Vegas Golden Knights at Capital One Arena on Thursday, June 7, 2018. (Photo by Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 7:The Washington Capitals celebrate around the Stanley Cup after Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Washington Capitals and the Vegas Golden Knights at Capital One Arena on Thursday, June 7, 2018. (Photo by Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post via Getty Images) /
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NHL power rankings
Photo by Patrick Gorski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images /

As the Washington Capitals title defense and the 2018-19 NHL season get underway, this week’s NHL Power Rankings takes a look at where each team stands.

Hockey fans have survived another summer. This offseason was an exciting one. It saw John Tavares sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Erik Karlsson got traded to the San Jose Sharks. Contenders have been loading up for a Stanley Cup run. This week’s NHL power rankings will take a look at how each team looks going into the season.

It’s always tough to gauge how teams will do when they haven’t even played meaningful games yet. However, there are certain teams who are going to contend for a Stanley Cup and those who won’t. But part of the fun of the NHL is each team starts every season with a clean slate. The Vegas Golden Knights surprised everyone by nearly winning the Stanley Cup in their first year. Could another team pull off a similar surprise?

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Let’s take a look at the NHL power rankings to start the 2018-19 season.

31. Ottawa Senators

The Ottawa Senators started the 2017-18 season with a lot of hope. They were coming off a Cinderella run to the Eastern Conference Final and were a goal away from beating the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 7.

My, how the mighty have fallen. This team was going to be horrible even with their captain Erik Karlsson. Without him, the Senators should be the worst team in the league. Usually, that’s a good thing because you at least have a good chance of getting the first overall pick in the draft. But the Senators don’t even have that going for them.

Mark Stone and Matt Duchene will be free agents after this season as well. Trading them appears to be inevitable. Once it happens, the Senators are going to ice one of the worst rosters the NHL has ever seen.

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