With training camp slowly starting up, and players returning back to their respective clubs, we know there is a lot of movement for all 32 NHL teams, as they begin to plan out their season, learn the respective systems, and GM’s making roster cuts to get under the cap. Therefore we know there will be a lot of news emerging, and for us here at Two Guys, we want to note 10 key storylines that both Evan and I are looking at monitoring this year. Now these aren’t in specific order and there isn’t a hierarchy, but here is Here goes:
- Canadian Stanley Cup Champions? It’s hard to believe it’s been since 1993 since we have seen a Canadian team (The Montreal Canadiens) hoist Lord Stanley. There have been a few teams that have come close, but ask any Canadian and they will tell you it feels like a bias against them, as the Cup continually is hoisted by an American team, but perhaps this year is different. With that being said, looking at the 7 Canadian teams, we can count Montreal out, as they are in a rebuild, all while Calgary, Vancouver and Ottawa are on the cusp (and yet didn’t make the postseason last year). Winnipeg could go on a run if Hellebuyck can stand on his head and not be overplayed, but they still need some pieces, and therefore we are left with both Edmonton and Toronto, both teams who have depth, top end talents (Matthews, McDavid, Marner, Draisaitl) and solid defence (not like Carolina or Vegas, but still solid enough) that they can respectively finish first in each of their divisions (Pacific and Atlantic). But we won’t know till April of next year, and see who makes the playoffs and how far any of these teams go.
- Golden Lord Stanley. Speaking of Stanley Cup winners, will the Vegas Golden Knights be able to come into this year, get over the Stanley Cup hangover, and try to win it all again (back to back like Tampa and Pittsburgh did)? They did have some changes (out are Reilly Smith, Phil Kessel, Jonathan Quick, & Laurent Brossoit) all while Robin Lehner has been placed on LTIR for a hip injury. Can they repeat as they are bringing back a lot of the same players, but can they do it again (given how we know how hard it is to win in this league).
- Playoff Rise and Fall. Speaking of playoffs, every year, fans get overhyped for the new season as it is a fresh slate and each team starts 0-0-0. Therefore playoffs are often possible for all 32 teams, until the season starts. But last year there were many who predicted (myself included) that Boston would miss, and yet they went on to have one of the best seasons ever. But there are also only 16 spots for the playoffs and there are a lot of teams that have worked on improving their rosters and hope to make the playoffs (I’m looking at the Atlantic with Buffalo, Detroit and Ottawa). There is a lot of pressure on a lot of teams like Calgary, Vancouver, Columbus, as well as the ones that I mentioned before, have a lot of pressure on them. Therefore, which team will we see make and which will miss and how will this affect those organizations. The question is; what team will make the Playoffs that missed last year (and vice versa).
- Trades, Trades, Trades. Fans love trades and love dissecting what player, prospect and draft picks go where, and so it is interesting to see what happens this year with any big trades and will we see a dark horse trade that no one expects? The NHL Trade Deadline Mar. 8, 2024, but sometimes trades happen within the season. There are a lot of RFA and UFA coming up next season and you wonder with the cap going up, where will people be moved to make their teams better.
- An Arizona Base. We are looking at you Arizona Coyotes to see if the organization will finally be able to formalise an agreement to have a set arena to play as they cannot continue to play a Mullett Arena, because as cool as it is to play on a College campus, you need to have a new arena for fans and to really commit to the market. There needs to be an agreement sooner rather than later, otherwise we could see a relocation of the team (and it is possible Salt Lake, Utah is the most obvious situation). But we shall have some clarity by the end of the year for this story.
- EK65. After so much speculation in the past year of where Karlsson was going to go, he finally got traded to Pittsburgh, and it looks like Kyle Dubas is pushing Pittsburgh to make the playoffs (after missing last year in over 16 years) even though they will be one of the oldest teams in the NHL. Can the core of Crosby, Malkin, Letang and now Karlsson get it done and push for one more cup? Will it be enough and what will that powerplay look like?
- The Calder Race. We all know that Connor Bedard is going to be a stud and will put up points, but let’s not forget all the other elite young rookies/prospects that are coming into the league this year (Adam Fantilli, Logan Cooley, Tyson Foerster, Matthew Knies, Matt Coronato, Luke Evangelist) just to name a few, and so we will be gifted with a lot of young raw talent. Who then will win the Calder trophy? Certainly you can make the safe bet that Bedard is the front runner, but don’t discount any of the other talents for all other teams. Should be fun to watch.
- Chasing History. There have been many players chasing history like Alexander Ovechkin trying to beat Wayne Gretzky’s total goal count, and although he may not do it this year, he can really push himself even further this year (he is 72 goals away). On top of that, he is also 15 points away from 1,500 Points, while he counterpart Sidney Crosby, is only 48 assists from reaching a 1000 assists in the league and with Erik Karlsson on the back end, this may happen sooner rather than later. We also get to watch Boston celebrate their centennial this year and we will see how they respond after such a successful regular season last year.
- The 2024 NHL Draft. We all know that this past year’s draft was stacked (similarly to what we saw in 2015) but we also know a new year brings new players and prospects into the league and there will be teams who will be hoping to get the 1st overall draft pick (San Jose Sharks, Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers). Right now all eyes are on Macklin Celebrini, who is a Canadian junior ice hockey forward for the Boston University Terriers of the NCAA. But as you all know Evan does his Rev Top 15, so you will have to tune in to see his picks.
- The Rest of it All! Hockey isn’t immune to drama (as seen recently with the Mike Babcock and Columbus Blue Jackets saga) and there will most certainly be other issues that emerge throughout the season with highs and lows, winning and losing streaks, players being benched or moved, coaches and possible GM’s being fired, and possible retirements. Just know that throughout the season, we will be here to report all of it as it happens and continue to report on it.
Thoughts? Lots is ramping up as we near the beginning of the season. Therefore remember to tune in each week to get all the latest news in the world of hockey.
For more hockey news, different takes or if you want to chat about anything hockey give me a follow @hockey_two on TWITTER and give us a follow on YouTube, or at https://twoguysandhockeytalk.com/.
- Pawel ‘The Cat’
