I am finishing my part of the ranking with the Central division.
8: Chicago Blackhawks (Finished 8th Last Season)
(My Projected Lines):
Bertuzzi – Donato – Bedard
Burakovsky – Nazar – Teravainen
Reichel – Moore – Mikheyev
Foligno – Dickinson – Lafferty
Vlasic – Rinzel
Grzelcyk – Murphy
Korchinski – Levshunov
Knight
Soderblom
I do not see the Blackhawks improving much this upcoming season. They did not add much during the offseason. Their young players being a year older will help, but there are still several issues I see with this Blackhawks lineup. Besides Connor Bedard they do not really have any high-end skill (unless young players take a leap in production). Even their secondary scoring is not great. Their defense is very young, and unexperienced which means there will be mistakes. Spencer Knight is a talented young goalie. However, going from the two-time reigning Stanley Cup champs to the Blackhawks likely isn’t an easy transition. On top of that he hasn’t been a starting goalie for a lengthy amount of time, which will also take some time getting used to.
7: Nashville Predators (Finished 7 Last Season)
(My Projected Lines):
Forsberg – O’Reilly – Marchessault
Stamkos – Svechkov – Evangelista
Bunting – Haula – L’Heureux
Smith – McCarron – Gambrell
Josi – Perbix
Skjei – Barron
Hague – Blankenburg
Saros
Annunen
The Predators were very underwhelming last season after their solid 2023-24 campaign and buying hard in free agency. I do not see last season as a fluke. A lot of their core is older and at risk of falling in production. They are weak down the middle, lack offensive depth, and have poor defense on the right side. I do not see them being any better this season than last.
6: St. Louis Blues (Finished 5 last season)
(My Projected Lines):
Holloway – Thomas – Kyrou
Buchnevich – Schenn – Snuggerud
Neighbours – Suter – Bjugstad
Toropchenko – Sundqvist – Joseph
Fowler – Parayko
Broberg – Faulk
Tucker – Mailloux
Binnington
Hofer
I see the Blues being competitive for a wildcard spot but falling short. They have a solid lineup, but there are just better teams in the Central. Their defense is average, same as their goaltending. Their offense is solid with some good scorers and solid depth, but nothing spectacular.
5. Utah Mammoth (Last Season Finished 6th)
(My Projected Lines):
Keller – Cooley – Schmaltz
Guenther – Hayton – Peterka
Crouse – McBain – Carcone
Kerfoot – Stenlund – O’Brien
Sergachev – Marino
Schmidt – Durzi
Cole – Maatta
Vejmelka
Vanecek
Last year was a good developmental season for Utah. They had their first winning season since covid and several of their young stars took a big leap in production. Despite me having them at five the Mammoth are very capable of taking another step in the right direction and maybe even making the playoffs. The Mammoth displays a great top 6, but their depth is nothing exceptional. If their defense can stay healthy unlike last season, it should be way better. Over the past few seasons, they have managed to find a goalie to have a solid season, but it has not been the same one consistently. Goaltending is a question mark coming into the season. If they can stay healthy and the young stars can continue to be game-changing presences in the Mammoth’s lineup, this is a team to watch out for.
- Winnipeg Jets (Last Season Finished 1st)
(My Projected Lines):
Connor – Scheifele – Vilardi
Perfetti – Namestnikov – Nyquist
Niederreiter – Lowry – Iafallo
Pearson – Toews – Barron
Morrissey – Demelo
Samberg – Pionk
Fleury – Schenn
Hellebuyck
Comrie
I see the Jets taking a bit of a step back from their president trophy season. Losing Ehlers is a tough loss, their second line center remains an issue, and their secondary scoring isn’t great. However, they have some high-end skill, solid depth, and very strong defense. On top of that they have the best regular season goalie in the NHL, which obviously goes a long way. They have a good chance of making the playoffs, but I do not think they will reach their presidents trophy fetes of last season.
- Minnesota Wild (Last Season Finished 4th)
(My Projected Lines):
Kaprizov – Rossi – Boldy
Zuccarello – Eriksson Ek – Tarasenko
Johansson – Yurov – Hartman
Foligno – Sturm – Trenin
Brodin – Faber
Middleton – Spurgeon
Buium – Jiricek
Gustavsson
Wallstedt
Last season the Wild had a tough time staying healthy and still managed to make the playoffs. If Kirill Kaprizov and their other stars can stay mostly healthy, I am confident in them. They are strong on offense, defense, and goaltending. Having a player like Kaprizov obviously helps too. His contract situation can be a bit of a distraction, and if they end up having to trade him that would hurt them a lot for this season. However, their roster is currently very solid, so I feel good about the Wild.
2. Colorado Avalanche (Finished 3rd Last Season)
(My Projected Lines):
Landeskog – MacKinnon – Necas
Lehkonen – Nelson – Nichushkin
Colton – Drury – Olofsson
Kiviranta – Ivan – Kelly
Toews – Makar
Girard – Manson
Malinski – Burns
Blackwood
Wedgewood
The Avalanche are arguably a more well-rounded team than the past couple of seasons. They have Mackenzie Blackwood for a whole season, captain, Gabriel Landeskog is back, and they have added a couple other star veterans in the last year.
- Dallas Stars (Last Season Finished 2nd)
(My Projected Lines):
Robertson – Hintz – Rantanen
Benn – Johnston – Seguin
Steel – Duchene – Bourque
Lindell – Heiskanen
Harley – Lyubushkin
Bichsel – Lundkvist
Oettinger
DeSmith
The Dallas Stars have lost in the semifinals the past three seasons and I think this might be the season that they get over the hump. Having Mikko Rantanen for a full season and Miro Heiskanen back from injury are two huge wins for Dallas. They have so much skill throughout their roster, from offense to goaltending, I see them as a potential president trophy threat.
