3 reasons to get excited for the NHL preseason

3. Looking at new trades in action

It’s no secret that this offseason was particularly crazy. More moves were made on the first day of Free Agency this year than last year, which made for a particularly crazy day! All of this means that when the preseason starts, we’ll have brand new teams across the divisions to watch, which is always fun! We’ll be able to see how those new people work with their new team, and we’ll be able to see them getting to know their new team.

Looking at the moves that were made, I’m most excited to see Darcy Kuemper in the role of starting goalie for the Colorado Avalanche after losing Phillip Grubauer to the Seattle Kraken. It will be interesting to see how Kuemper does on a team that relied so heavily on Grubauer. Will Kuemper be able to step up? More importantly, will he be able to fill the space that Grubauer left behind?

I’m also interested in looking at Nolan Patrick on the Golden Knights. While I’m sure he’ll be able to find his place on the Knights, I’m more worried about the void he’ll leave behind on the Flyers. Will the Flyers be able to cope without Patrick? He was definitely an important player on the team and he’ll leave behind a hole that maybe won’t be able to be filled quite as easily as the Flyers think.