NHL Weekly Power Rankings: The Start of the 2023 NHL Preseason
By Jim Lynch
20. Detroit Red Wings
The Red Wings very well could jump into the playoffs this season. It is going to require their star players to be at their very best, but it is possible. Detroit did have a lot of turnover on their roster this offseason adding Alex DeBrincat, J.T. Compher, Shayne Gostisbehere, Daniel Sprong, Christian Fischer, Klim Kostin and James Reimer.
19. Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames did not have a season to remember last year. But now with a new coach in Ryan Huska maybe the Flames can prove last year was just a blip in the team’s success. There are a lot of questions around this team’s future so playing well early will be the best thing possible for the Flames otherwise they could be in sell mode by American Thanksgiving.
18. Ottawa Senators
The Senators finally have a new owner so that is a win. This team missed the playoffs despite going out and adding a lot last season. With Tarasenko now in a Senators jersey maybe this year will be different.
17. New York Islanders
The New York Islanders had a pretty quiet offseason. They said goodbye to Josh Bailey and Zach Parise but they did not add a heck of a lot to the team. Last year the Islanders were one of the last teams to make the playoffs, and this year could be very similar.