NHL prospect tournaments are fast approaching and training camp will begin shortly thereafter.
So, what questions linger about each team ahead of the regular season, which begins Oct. 8?
Here is the biggest question facing each team in the Eastern Conference (teams listed in alphabetical order with last season’s record in parentheses).
Boston Bruins (47-20-15, 109 points) | Is Boston a more playoff-ready group?
The Bruins made the right call in trading from a position of strength — their goaltending — to address issues down the middle. In the playoffs, it’s a challenge to win when a big cap hit is on the bench every game. Adding center Elias Lindholm should, in theory, make them a more dangerous playoff opponent, but he is coming off two consecutive questionable seasons.
Buffalo Sabres (39-37-6, 84 points) | How good are their best players?
Buffalo spent a bunch of money this offseason revamping its forward lineup, particularly the depth. The Sabres finished 25th in five-on-five high-danger chances per 60 minutes last season, according to Natural Stat Trick. They’re betting their best players didn’t take a step back offensively — they just need better support defensively down the lineup.
Carolina Hurricanes (52-23-7, 111 points) | What’s the plan at center?
Despite being an elite regular-season team, Carolina hasn’t made deep playoff runs. It needs elite scoring, better goaltending and must be better down the middle. Despite several attempts, Carolina hasn’t been able to successfully fill the second-line center role since Vincent Trocheck left for the New York Rangers in free agency.
Columbus Blue Jackets (27-43-12, 66 points) | Will they be able to focus after a tragedy?
Johnny Gaudreau’s death was a stunner. Typing it still doesn’t feel real and makes talking about hockey feel trivial. Columbus already had issues going into the season. Dealing with grief and pain amid the backdrop of a young core coming off a tough season could prove difficult.
Detroit Red Wings (41-32-9, 91 points) | Are we there yet?
They’ve been in rebuilding mode for a long time, but flipping the switch to contention is difficult. In all its years rebuilding, Detroit acquired several blue-chip prospects who are close to NHL-ready. Forwards Nate Danielson, Marco Kasper and Carter Mazur, defensemen Axel Sandin Pellikka and William Wallinder and goaltender Sebastian Cossa could have NHL futures sooner than later.
Florida Panthers (52-24-6, 110 points) | How strong is the process?
Florida mastered the art of reclaiming and rehabilitating castoffs — defensemen Brandon Montour, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Gustav Forsling and center Sam Bennett, for example. Montour and Ekman-Larsson are gone, and the Panthers acquired two new castoffs to replace them (defensemen Adam Boqvist and Nate Schmidt). If the Panthers found a market inefficiency the rest of the league is missing, watch out for another deep playoff run.
Montreal Canadiens (30-36-16, 76 points) | Does Montreal have enough depth to win?
The current top six looks like it can put the puck in the back of the net a lot. The bottom six and defense still look questionable. The goaltending has been above average in a chaotic environment, but counting on all but the very best goaltenders to continue performing under those adverse conditions is a fool’s errand.
New Jersey Devils (38-39-5, 81 points) | Can Jack Hughes remain on the ice?
This is a team ready to take its place among the NHL’s upper class. GM Tom Fitzgerald addressed every hole while still maintaining a tremendous young core of players and a reasonably solid prospect pool. Center Hughes has averaged 19 missed games because of injury the past three seasons. He’s electric when healthy.
New York Islanders (39-27-16, 94 points) | Were the Patrick Roy Islanders real?
The team’s vaunted defensive structure collapsed last season. The Islanders finished 21st in five-on-five high-danger chances against per 60 minutes, mostly saved by good tandem goaltending and timely scoring. According to Natural Stat Trick, they were the fifth-best team in the league in that same category from Jan. 21 on — the 37 games when Patrick Roy served as head coach. He’s back for more.
New York Rangers (55-23-4, 114 points) | Is the Mika Zibanejad decline underway?
The Rangers need more at five-on-five to take that next step. That starts with center Zibanejad, who suffered one of his worst seasons in New York. He had a hot start to the playoffs, but he ultimately fizzled out with just three points in the team’s last eight playoff games. If he’s declining and can no longer be counted on as a top-line center, the questions about this team will multiply.
Ottawa Senators (37-41-4, 78 points) | Can the centers live up to their potential?
Ottawa might have one of the stranger dynamics in the NHL — it has three young, talented centers who vary on the spectrum of potential from good to superstar. Those players — Tim Stutzle, Shane Pinto and Josh Norris — come with baggage on and off the ice. Ottawa addressed other issues this offseason, so its success could hinge on the performance of this unit.
Philadelphia Flyers (38-33-11, 87 points) | What is Sean Couturier’s role?
The center was a healthy scratch twice late last season because of concerns about the direction of his game, according to head coach John Tortorella. Couturier, who turns 32 in December, grades out favorably as one of the better defensive centers, but his offense has fallen off after two years of battling back injuries and there isn’t a natural successor on the roster. What happens if the guy who Tortorella scratched twice late last season — the guy who is supposed to be their No. 1 center — is the same guy to start this season?
Pittsburgh Penguins (38-32-12, 88 points) | Can Pittsburgh’s nearly league-worst power play be revived?
The Penguins fired power-play coach Todd Reirden, replacing him with former New York Rangers and San Jose Sharks head coach David Quinn. Pittsburgh went from a slightly above league average 21.7 percent power-play team in 2022-23 to a near-worst 15.2 percent power-play team last season despite the addition of Erik Karlsson, maybe the greatest power-play quarterback in league history. Even if the Penguins had been league average last season, they’d have scored an additional 16 goals on the power play and probably played in the postseason.
Tampa Bay Lightning (45-29-8, 98 points) | Are they ready for life after Steven Stamkos?
Longtime standout and captain Stamkos signed as a free agent with Nashville, so it’s a new era in Tampa Bay. Even in moving out defenseman Mikhail Sergachev, the defense probably improved with the additions of J.J. Moser and Ryan McDonagh. At 35, McDonagh still seems to have the goods as a shutdown defender. A fully healthy Andrei Vasilevskiy and the arrival of Jake Guentzel should also help keep Tampa competitive.
Toronto Maple Leafs (46-26-10, 102 points) | Is Craig Berube Toronto’s savior?
With a Stanley Cup drought dating to 1967 and only one playoff series win in 19 seasons, the Maple Leafs continue to disappoint their fans. Auston Matthews is now the captain, but John Tavares seems poised to continue in a big role. Firing HC Sheldon Keefe and hiring Berube to replace him while signing two defenseman looks like Toronto’s latest answer to their playoff conundrum.
Washington Capitals (40-31-11, 91 points) | Is this offseason enough to keep them relevant outside of Alex Ovechkin’s chase of Wayne Gretzky?
After sneaking into the playoffs with a goal differential of -37, the Capitals got aggressive during the summer. Only six teams in the NHL had a mark worse than that, and none of them even sniffed a playoff spot. Washington went to work, adding winger Andrew Mangiapane, center Pierre-Luc Dubois, winger Brandon Duhaime, defensemen Jakob Chychrun and Matt Roy and new backup goaltender Logan Thompson. All of this is backdropped against the 41 goals that stand between Alex Ovechkin and Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goal-scoring record.
