NHL power rankings: Where is each team trending?
By Jeremy Tuch
Tier 2: Bubble In Tier
San Jose Sharks
Last Season: 46-27-9, 101 points, Eliminated by St. Louis in Conference Final
Summer Changes: Joe Pavelski, Gustav Nyquist, and Joonas Donskoi all walked in free agency. Erik Karlsson re-signed forever, and Joe Thornton is coming back yet again.
Trending: Down
The summer of 2019 was always going to be a tough one for the Sharks once Erik Karlsson came to town last year. Not because of him, but because of the money he would demand and eventually receive. That money pushed Joe Pavelski and Gustav Nyquist out of San Jose, two pieces they’d have really liked to have kept. Now that their competitive window is closing with some main core components aging fast, the Sharks are going to need to step up more than before to try and buck Father Time for another chance at the Cup for Jumbo.
Nashville Predators
Last Season: 47-29-6, 100 points, Eliminated by Dallas in First Round
Summer Changes: Signed Matt Duchene, though it came at the cost of PK Subban.
Trending: Peaked
Last year’s issue for Nashville was clearly offense, or the lack there of. They addressed that issue by winning the Matt Duchene sweepstakes, but it would have consequences for their cap. That resulted in a draft day deal with the Devils, shipping out PK Subban for the space to sign Duchene. They are still strong enough to make a run, but their big pieces aren’t getting any younger, so success will have to come soon for this group of Predators.
Carolina Hurricanes
Last Season: 46-29-7, 99 points, Eliminated by Boston in Conference Final
Summer Changes: Traded Calvin de Haan for Gustav Forsling, picked up Eric Haula and Ryan Dzingel in lieu of Micheal Ferland, traded for Patrick Marleau before buying him out, and matching the first offer sheet signed in years, keeping Sebastian Aho around. Added Jake Gardiner days before camp broke. Justin Williams is taking a step away from hockey for now.
Trending: Up
The Jerks surprised everyone by stunning the defending champion Capitals in a game seven classic, before advancing all the way to the conference final against the Bruins. This year, everyone will be taking the Canes seriously. Some relatively minor changes were made with the roster along with a big add in Jake Gardiner, so Carolina should be in great shape to keep the good times rolling. No word yet if the Storm Surge is returning, though. We can hope.
Winnipeg Jets
Last Season: 47-30-5, 99 points, Eliminated by St. Louis in First Round
Summer Changes: Traded Jacob Trouba for Neal Pionk and their first round pick back, lost Kevin Hayes, Tyler Myers, Ben Chiarot, and Brandon Tanev to free agency, among other players. Kyle Connor and Patrik Laine are still restricted free agents.
Trending: Peaked
This has been a tough couple of months for the Jets. 2018-19 was supposed to be their year, but they never quite pieced together a dominant run, and exited the playoffs meekly in the first round. Then, they were forced to trade Jacob Trouba (whom they weren’t going to get under contract) for an underwhelming return, and lost several pieces to free agency. Additionally, they still have yet to get their two young studs under contract, still waiting for Kyle Connor and Patrik Laine to sign. It may be that the Jets’ best chance to contend has passed us by.
Dallas Stars
Last Season: 43-32-7, 93 points, Eliminated by St. Louis in Second Round
Summer Changes: Signed Joe Pavelski and Corey Perry, let several free agents go, including Jason Spezza, Mats Zuccarello, and Ryan Hartman.
Trending: Up-ish
Last year’s Stars were among the best teams at keeping the puck out of the net. Unfortunately, they had trouble scoring outside of Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn. Now that they’ve signed Joe Pavelski, it should add some of the scoring depth they sorely lacked last year. Their stellar (pun intended) defense and goaltending is back and ready to go, so the Stars should be able to ride that to another playoff berth.
Colorado Avalanche
Last Season: 38-30-14, 90 points, Eliminated by San Jose in Second Round
Summer Changes: Signed Joonas Donskoi, traded for Andre Burakovsky and Nazem Kadri. Out are Tyson Barrie, Alex Kerfoot, Carl Soderberg, and Semyon Varlamov. Mikko Rantanen has still yet to sign.
Trending: Up
The Avalanche were quite literally a fraction of an inch from the conference finals last spring. This year, they will have a different looking team. They made moves to the middle of the lineup, and will have a full season of Cale Makar making moves on the back end. The Avalanche are hoping that these changes will be beneficial for taking that next step that everyone is expecting after their successful draft and summer so far.
Florida Panthers
Last Season: 36-32-14, 86 points
Summer Changes: Signed Brett Connolly, Noel Acciari, and Anton Stralman to help bolster the effort in front of new goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. Roberto Luongo retiring is the only major exit from the team.
Trending: Up
One of the teams everyone is expecting big steps forward from this year is Florida, though we’ve been saying this for a few years now. It was no secret they’d be looking for a new goalie, and they got their guy in Sergei Bobrovsky. What this means for the long term, who knows? But in the short term, the Panthers look that much better for this year and may help them finally take that step up and make a run at the playoffs. It’ll take a herculean effort in the Atlantic division, but the Cats should be up for the task.