The 2024-25 NHL season is thru its first two months and a lot of the league’s groups have already began to separate themselves as professional Stanley Cup contenders or pretenders.
Right here, we’re going to check out the Jap Convention.
Groups that ought to begin planning on subsequent season: Montreal Canadiens, Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Crimson Wings
Not solely are these groups not even worthy of being known as pretenders, they already look like groups that needs to be apprehensive about subsequent season. Montreal and Columbus are within the early levels of rebuilds and nonetheless years away from critical competition, whereas Buffalo and Detroit are caught in what look to be failed rebuilds.
Playoff pretenders: Pittsburgh Penguins, Ottawa Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Islanders
This quartet is barely higher than the primary group, and certainly one of these groups would possibly even sneak right into a playoff spot, however none of them have an inside observe on a spot. The Flyers have an rising celebrity in Matvei Michkov and what needs to be a powerful future, however it’s nonetheless simply that – a future. It isn’t their time but.
Ottawa is a barely higher model of Buffalo and Detroit when it comes to a failed rebuild however has sufficient high-end younger expertise to nonetheless be attention-grabbing, particularly if beginning goalie Linus Ullmark can flip issues round within the second half.
The Penguins and Islanders are two of the older groups within the league and are sort of caught between contending and rebuilding. The Penguins nonetheless have some Corridor of Famers (Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Erik Karlsson), however they don’t defend properly and goaltending goes to carry them again. The Islanders have the goaltending however don’t do anything properly.
Stanley Cup pretenders: Boston Bruins, New York Rangers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals
Every of those groups is more likely to make the playoffs, however in addition they all have a big flaw that’s going to carry them again towards really elite competitors.
The Bruins and Capitals lack the kind of true No. 1 middle that each Stanley Cup-winning group must win.
The Lightning nonetheless have their high-end core of expertise, led by MVP candidate Nikita Kucherov, however they merely should not have the depth at ahead or on protection that can get them by means of one other deep playoff run.
The Rangers are nonetheless too depending on goalie Igor Shesterkin and their energy play, don’t defend properly sufficient, and are nonetheless a really mediocre 5-on-5 group. They could win a spherical or two, however they aren’t successful a Stanley Cup with this core of enjoying type.
The Stanley Cup contenders: Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers
These 4 groups needs to be the category of the Jap Convention this season.
Toronto is the one that can draw probably the most skepticism as a result of we now have seen this film from them earlier than, the place a proficient, top-heavy group wins lots of common season video games after which fizzles within the playoffs, however the goaltending and protection each appear totally different this season.
New Jersey’s addition of goalie Jacob Markstrom and defenseman Brett Pesce had been precisely what they wanted to bounce again from final 12 months’s disappointing season, to not point out some considerably higher damage luck. They’ve the high-end expertise (Jack Hughes), the robust protection, and now the goaltending to significantly compete for a championship.
Florida and Carolina would possibly merely be the 2 finest groups within the Jap Convention with the fewest weaknesses.
Florida has an elite offense that’s as deep as any group within the league, whereas Carolina’s defensive construction stays relentless. The Hurricanes additionally lastly have an elite scorer (Martin Necas) breaking out that might assist drive their offense for a playoff run.
Guess on certainly one of these 4 groups successful the Jap Convention.