The next plot for the NHL season 2021-22

There doesn’t seem to be any logical path for Jack Eichel to return Buffalo Sabers and play for that team again. His constant loss, lack of direction, and significant disagreement over his medical treatment seem to have made the situation ripe for a divorce. The question is where will the Sabers trade him and how much damage has been done to the value of his trade? Anaheim, Los Angeles, New York, Calgary all seem like reasonable options.

The last time we saw a new team join the NHL, Vegas Golden Knights played in the Stanley Cup Finals in their inaugural season. That would raise the bar for the Seattle Kraken, who entered the tournament with identical open draft rules. The only problem: The other teams haven’t perfected the way they did during the draft Vegas expansion, and Seattle doesn’t seem to be taking full advantage of the options available to it. The good news for Kraken is that they play in a weak division, which should help them stay competitive. They also invest a lot in scoring. The Stanley Cup Final probably isn’t a realistic goal, but a knockout might be within reach.

Alex Ovechkin won’t match Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goalscoring record this season but he could get a little closer. If he scores 40 more goals during the season, he would climb to 3rd on the NHL’s all-time list and move closer to the magic tally of 894 goals. It won’t be easy for the next few years, but it’s certainly within reach.

Connor McDavid won another scoring title and his second MVP of the 2020-21 season topping the 100-point mark in 56 league games. That’s close to a 150-point rate in 82 games. He won’t have the luxury of only playing against Canadian teams this season, but he is entering the season at 25, generally his prime years as an attacking player. What is he capable of this season?

After a great run to the Stanley Cup Finals, Montreal Canada underwent major changes this season, losing Philip Danault, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Tomas Tatar to new teams, and also losing Shea Weber to injury. Then, just before the start of the season, it was announced that starting goalkeeper Carey Price, the biggest factor in that Stanley Cup Final, had joined the league’s player support program and would be absent. present this season. Some of the most important players in that Stanley Cup Final will not feature at the start of the season.

NS Chicago Blackhawks has been included in all the offseason news for two very different reasons. The most significant of which are two separate lawsuits filed by former players alleging a former coach sexually assaulted a video. The team vowed to publish the findings of the investigation and make the appropriate changes, but superintendent Stan Bowman remained in charge even though he was superintendent at the time and knew of the allegations.

They also made headlines about overhauling the roster with the addition of Marc-Andre Fleury, Seth Jones, Caleb Jones, and Tyler Johnson, as well as the return of Jonathan Toews.

Gaudreau has been the Flames’ player of the year for the past seven years and is entering the final year of his contract. His future with the team is still very much in doubt. He has been the subject of commercial rumors for years, and while he has said all the right things about wanting to stay here will be his biggest chance to cash in and pick the team that he doesn’t. he chooses. He also has a no-trade clause that allows him to choose the five teams he wants tackled for the season, so the Flames could find themselves in the awkward position of potentially losing him without a deal. What’s up after the season if they can’t work a new contract.

The big deal last season was sent by Columbus Pierre-Luc Dubois come Winnipeg Jets for Patrick Laine. It’s a swap of disgruntled players looking to get out of their current situation and an early return is bad for both teams. Especially Laine in Columbus. He has struggled to make an impact, is often in coach John Tortorella’s cage and is not playing well. Now he has a fresh start with a new coach and a full, regular season. A return to his 35-40 target would be a huge development for the Blue Jackets, who need that type of player, and for Laine when it comes to his contract situation.

Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Bryan Rust all have expiring contracts for Pittsburgh Penguins after this season and that will be a big challenge for general manager Ron Hextall. There will be pressure for Malkin and Letang to end their careers in Pittsburgh, and they should, but how much money the Penguins could allocate to them in a fixed league based on their age and composition remaining back of the team? Rust seems to be the player most likely to leave.

After not participating in the 2018 Olympics, the NHL will return for the 2022 games in Beijing, China. It’s always exciting to see the best in the world represent their countries, and Canada is considered the favorite heavyweight to enter the tournament. This will be Connor McDavid’s first time representing Canada at the Olympics, and he will do so alongside Sidney Crosby at the top of its list.

Tuukka Rask unsigned but also not completely out of the picture. Until he returns (or if he does) the target will fall on the addition of free agent Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman. Swayman has shown potential, and Ullmark is coming from a brutal situation in Buffalo, but it’s certainly a question mark for a team that still has a lot to offer to become Stanley Cup title contenders.

There’s a lot going on in San Jose right now, and not a lot of it is good. Obviously the team is in need of rebuilding and contains many old players with big signings. There are also big questions regarding their two best players, for very different reasons.

Evander Kane has always found himself the subject of investigations, from allegations that he threw his team’s game, to allegations of physical and sexual abuse from his ex-wife, to the investigation that he had may have submitted a fake vaccination card. His future with the team, short and long term, is in great doubt.

Then there’s Tomas Hertl, who is entering the final year of his contract and is an unrestricted free agent after this season. With the Sharks likely to miss the playoffs again, he could find himself moving ahead of the NHL trade deadline.

NS Tampa Bay Lightning has become the gold standard for winning in the NHL right now, topping the league in regular-season wins and playoff wins for the past seven years. Since then, they have been in 5 Conference Finals, 3 Stanley Cup Finals and have each won the past 2 Stanley Cup Finals. They will win the NHL’s first peat third since the early 1980s when the New York Islanders won four in a row. They lost quite a bit to the team last year, but they are still making a comeback with all their superstars.

It hasn’t happened since the 2003-04 season, and this current core has lost in the first round for five consecutive seasons. That is simply not good enough for the level of talent and financial investment here. Changes will have to be made if they fail again and play in the Atlantic Division they will almost certainly get a brutal round 1 whether it’s Tampa Bay, Boston or an improved team. quick good Florida Panthers team.

Doug Jarvis’ record of 964 consecutive games in a season played could fall this season as Keith Yandle and Phil Kessel contributed to it. Patrick Marleau, if he signs with a team, could also pass that mark this season. So it’s possible that Jarvis’ 964-game tally could end this season as the fourth-longest streak in league history. Yandle is the closest to the marker and will have a chance to pass it as a member of Philadelphia Flyers.