I don't think the image used does the last month of NHL action any justice whatsoever. Or the title. Or the triple-usage of the word Wild.
Yes, Quinn Hughes being traded to the Minnesota Wild will arguably be seen as the biggest storyline from the last month of action. And people will have their reasoning to justify it; not only does adding Quinn Hughes provide Minnesota with additional scoring depth and a reinforcement for both ends of the ice, but it also justifies Minnesota's place in the playoff race outside of their already-stellar goaltending.
And Minnesota is already 3-0-0 since announcing the Quinn Hughes trade; their most recent result being a 5-0 win over the Washington Capitals.
But in terms of team-focused headlines, the Wild all but announcing themselves as borderline-contenders is just the tip of the iceberg.
This article will recap some of the most notable/wild runs, win streaks, and standings-related movement from across the NHL, while also highlighting three teams to watch in January and as the NHL heads towards the Olympic break.
Sharks remain consistent, Oilers push their way into the Western Conference playoff picture after a strong start to the month, but are not enough people talking about Calgary?
When I looked at the NHL standings after the first month, I was shocked to see San Jose in a playoff spot.
Granted, Macklin Celebrini was off to a tremendous start, but even in my wildest early-hockey-season dreams could I have thought the Sharks, who were poised for another long season, would find themselves in a playoff spot, let alone a playoff race, heading into the New Year.
After the second month of the season? I'm still shocked, but nonetheless amazed. Unlike Chicago (more on them in a bit) and Anaheim (to an extent), San Jose would continue their winning start to the season, posting a 9-6-0 run from November 18th through to December 15th.
As for the Ducks, Anaheim would cool off a little, going 8-6-1 since starting the season 11-6-1, however, the team is still well within the top-three of the Pacific Division; as of December 15th, the Ducks are second in the Pacific Division with a two-point lead on LA for third and a three-point edge on Edmonton for a top-three spot. On the other end of the young-teams-breaking-through-spectrum, Chicago had lost control of their playoff spot courtesy of a 3-9-2 stretch following a 5-2 win over Calgary on November 18th. And with Connor Bedard now set for a stint on the injured reserve, the Blackhawks could potentially spiral even further before their star forward gets re-evaluated in the New Year.
One team that has pounced on the Blackhawks' losing run? Edmonton, which is currently in the process of writing the third installment in their annual hit series "Let's Start Slow and then act like the Presidents Trophy Winners from mid-November onwards." If you haven't watched it, it's definitely worth the watch. It stars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl as they drag their team from the depths of October towards a deep playoff run, with each series ending the same way: a heartbreaking loss to the Florida Panthers.
Jokes aside, Edmonton is 7-3-2 since November 20th. And with the Oilers pulling off a trade for goaltender Tristan Jarry, who had himself a solid debut against Toronto on Saturday night, it's safe to say that Edmonton could solidify itself as a playoff team once more as the calendar flips to 2026.
In terms of Canadian teams out west, there isn't much else on the docket. Despite the Canucks potentially finding their footing following the Quinn Hughes trade, Winnipeg is trying to find its footing despite playing .500 hockey.
But is Calgary flying right under our noses? They have shaken off their rebuilding title for the time being, given their recent winning run, and they play some big intra-division/intra-conference matchups throughout their next ten games, which could help improve their place in the standings. I will mention Calgary a little later on in my article, but for now, I will say that if the Flames can achieve another set of decent results over the next while, they could be poised to play meaningful hockey down the stretch.
Out East, Boston and Montreal hold their playoff spots despite slides, Detroit and Tampa Bay work their way in, while Pittsburgh is in big trouble.
In the Eastern Conference, it's been quite wild as well.
Not only are the Atlantic Division's eight teams separated by just seven points as of the morning of December 15th, but even the Buffalo Sabres, who are last in the Eastern Conference, are well within striking distance of the Montreal Canadiens for the final playoff spot.
Add on the fact that, as of December 15th, every Eastern Conference team is above .500, and you have the recipe for chaos, chaos, and more chaos.
Despite the wacky and wild nature of this opening salvo of the NHL season, Boston and Montreal did succeed in holding their place in the playoff picture. Despite an 0-4-1 mid-November stretch that saw the Habs give up 26 goals while scoring just ten, Montreal has gone 7-8-2 since their November 8th win over Utah. While they did lose the lead in the Atlantic Division and (briefly) a playoff spot, they have since rebounded and find themselves within the top three of the Atlantic Division.
As for Boston, despite winning just four of their last nine games in November, the Bruins have opened December with a 5-2-0 start; their most recent result was a 4-1 win over the Utah Mammoth. Despite falling out of a playoff spot briefly on December 3rd, the Bruins have since regained their hold on a postseason place, currently sitting in second in the Atlantic Division.
On that note, another team that has regained control of a postseason place is Detroit. A 6-1-1 start to the month of December, capped off by a 3-2 win on Tuesday over the New York Islanders, would propel Detroit into first in the Atlantic Division.
Elsewhere, despite going 2-5-1 to open December, the Tampa Bay Lightning were able to obtain control of a playoff spot with seven straight wins to close out November.
On the slightly more negative side of the Eastern Conference standings, the Pittsburgh Penguins are currently on the brink of disaster. On November 8th, they were 9-4-3 and looking strong on top of the Metropolitan Division.
One month later, they're 14-9-9 and on the outside looking in following a 5-5-5 stretch from November 9th onwards. Roster-wise, Pittsburgh just traded goalie Tristan Jarry to the Edmonton Oilers for Stuart Skinner - ironically enough, Tristan Jarry would beat Stuart Skinner in the latter's first Penguins start on December 16th - and if things don't improve beyond the more-frequent overtime point, the Penguins might auction off more assets as we head towards the NHL trade deadline.
The three teams I'm watching in January
Florida Panthers
To say the least, the Florida Panthers haven't exactly enjoyed the greatest start to their three-peat bid.
After already being down forward Matthew Tkachuk following an offseason surgery, they lost Aleksander Barkov during training camp and then others like Eetu Luostarinen, who suffered a non-hockey injury.
As a result, the Panthers find themselves four points out of a playoff spot with a sluggish 16-13-2 record through their first thirty-one regular-season games.
That said, the good news for Florida is coming in droves. Despite their slow start, the Panthers do benefit from a closer-than-ever Atlantic Division, one where the first place Tampa Bay Lightning is only seven points ahead of the last-place Buffalo Sabres in the standings. As a result, simply getting on a short win streak could take Florida from their current standing (fifth) all the way into the top-two spots.
In terms of the roster, Eetu Luostarinen is back, and Matthew Tkachuk is aiming for a return before the Winter Classic. Elsewhere, Tomas Nosek is projected for a January 4th return, while Jonah Gadjovich might hit the ice again closer to February.
As more key pieces return for the Florida Panthers, it will be interesting to not only see how well they re-integrate with the rest of the lineup, but also how much the team's record improves if at all.
And with the Panthers once again expected to be major players in the trade market, it might not be time yet to wave the white towel in Sunrise, Florida.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Like the Florida Panthers, the Leafs struggled off the line in their first regular season campaign sans Mitch Marner. A 9-10-3 start, combined with injuries and struggles galore, sent the Leafs to the bottom of the Atlantic Division.
The Leafs have started to find their groove, going on a 6-2-2 run since that 22nd game of the season, and they remain in the mix for the playoffs even at this stage of the season. However, they're stuck in what is currently the NHL's equivalent of a DRS train; the Canadiens sit in fourth in the division and in the last playoff spot with thirty-three games played and thirty-eight points in hand, however every team behind Montreal, including the Leafs, has games in hand or is within a win of overtaking them in the Wild Card standings. For the Leafs, winning their game in hand would bring them a point behind Montreal in the standings.
More good news for Toronto? Chris Tanev and Joseph Woll are both back at practice. While Joseph Woll made his return in a 3-2 comeback win against Chicago, Tanev's return is going to take place in the near future.
Even then, the Leafs are about to hit a critical stretch in their schedule. After a three-game road trip that takes them to Washington, Nashville, and then Dallas, they close out the 2025 portion of their schedule with four consecutive games against teams in the Wild Card race. The first two games, which will be played at Scotiabank Arena, will see Toronto play Pittsburgh and then Ottawa in a rematch of their first-round Stanley Cup Playoff series from last spring. As of December 15th, the Penguins are the first team out of the East playoff picture, while the Senators are a point behind Toronto for sixth in the Atlantic Division.
After a trip to Detroit to play the Red Wings, who are second in the Atlantic Division, the Maple Leafs will close out their 2025 stretch with a home game against the New Jersey Devils, who are three points ahead of the Leafs in the Wild Card standings.
If Toronto can put together a few more wins to close out 2025, they will no doubt be in contention to continue their streak of postseason berths; their nine-straight seasons in the playoffs is the longest such active streak in the NHL.
Calgary Flames
When one thinks of playoff contenders, teams like the Colorado Avalanche, who are actually on pace to barely pass the Boston Bruins' 135 points in 2022-23, tend to be top of mind.
Other typical playoff teams like Tampa Bay and Carolina are off to slower starts but are starting to pick up the pace ahead of midseason, while others like Vegas and Washington are mired in close divisional battles.
But Calgary? Despite losing 6-3 to San Jose last night and being projected to play Tank Bowls galore from December onward, they are finding ways to remain in the playoff hunt. Since November 11th, the Calgary Flames have been on a 9-5-2 run that has seen them overtake the Vancouver Canucks to escape the Pacific Division basement and that had even pulled them level with the Seattle Kraken for sixth in the division.
They'll have a chance on Thursday to overtake Seattle in the divisional standings before another big divisional matchup on December 20th against the Vegas Golden Knights. Then, it's a home-and-home Battle of Alberta with the also-resurgent Edmonton Oilers before closing out the 2025 portion of their schedule with home games against Philadelphia and Boston.
Obviously, the key games in their end-of-2025 stretch will be the Seattle Kraken game on the 18th and the two Edmonton games on the 23rd and the 27th. If Calgary can earn at least four points over that stretch, the Flames could be a mid-season playoff threat at the very least.
Beyond that? If things fall the right way, then we might be talking about the Flames as a potential playoff team.