The Pacific Division sent a team 3 years in a row to the Stanley Cup Final.
The Edmonton Oilers have lost in the Final the last 2 years. The Vegas Golden Knights won the Cup 3 years ago. The Los Angeles Kings join those 2 teams as the only teams with a chance to win the Stanley Cup from the Pacific Division this season.
1. Vegas Golden Knights – The Vegas Golden Knights were a great team before they added 100 pt scorer Mitch Marner. Marner may disappear in the playoffs but he will be seen all season lighting the lamp with the great Jack Eichel . Mark Stone, Tomas Hertl, William Karlsson and Ivan Barbashev lead a supporting cast that have no weaknesses. They have size, skill and grit. Shea Theodore , Noah Hanifin and depth on the blueline allows Alex Pietrangelo time to return from injury. Adin Hill is a Cup winning goaltender.
2. Los Angeles Kings – The Los Angeles Kings have been a very good hockey team for 3 years. They just can’t beat the Edmonton Oilers. The Kings Captain, 2 time Stanley Cup champion Anze Kopitar announced this is his final year. The Kings are built to send him out in style. Kopitar’s right wing Adrian Kempe is the most underrated winger in the NHL. Andrei Kuzmenko fit right in on the left side of that line. Quinton Byfield is ready to take over for Kopitar after a wonderful 2024-25 season. Big Q’s right winger Alexis Laferriere is ready for a breakout season. 2 time Champion defense Drew Doughty is healthy. His top pairing partner Mickey Anderson is as steady as they come. Brain Dumoulin and Cody Ceci have been added for their experience. Darcy Kuemper is not flashy but wins games in net.
3. Edmonton Oilers – The Edmonton Oilers have been to the last 2 Stanley Cup FInals . Only to come up short. Edmonton has the best player in the world Connor McDavid. Leon Draisaitl is one of the 5 best players in the world. The Edmonton Oilers rely too much on them . Power forward Zach Hyman pulls his weight. So does longest serving Oiler Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. This season the Oilers are depending on Kasperi Kapanen and Trent Frederic to do some heavy lifting. Defenseman Evan Bouchard looks like a Norris Finalist in the playoffs but not in the regular season. Grizzled veteran Mattias Ekholm is hoping to stay healthy. Darnell Nurse is a good defenseman just not worth his large contract. Much maligned goaltender Stuart Skinner has been only 3 wins away from winning back to back Stanley Cups
4. Anaheim Ducks – The Anaheim Ducks will be exciting to watch this season. Leo Carlsson , Mason McTavish and Cutter Gauthier are exceptionally skilled young forwards. Troy Terry is an underrated proficient scorer. Kris Kreider and Mikael Granlund have been brought in for leadership. Radko Gudas and Jacob Trouba provide leadership on the back end. Blueliners Jackson Lacombre, Olen Zellweger and Drew Helleson are ultra talented kids. Lukas Dostal has finally been given the net in Anaheim. He will be a cornerstone of this franchise for many years. Hall Of Fame head coach Joel Quinneville knew which team to return to the NHL with because the Ducks are on the rise.
5. Vancouver Canucks – The Vancouver Canucks were a soap opera last season. The Canucks 2 best forwards Elias Pettersson and JT Miller could not get along. To solve the problem GM Jim Rutherford traded the better JT Miller. He also let respected head coach Rick Tocchet leave. Then he brought in renowned club house cancer Evandrer Kane. Pettersson remains along with consistent scoring winger Brock Boeser. Canucks captain Quinn Hughes is the 2nd best defenseman in the NHL. There is a countdown clock on when he will relocate to play with his brothers in New Jersey. Thatcher Demko is a top flight goalie on the rare occasions he’s not injured.
6. Calgary Flames – The Calgary Flames play hard but they don’t score enough goals. Dustin Wolf is the best young goalie in the NHL. Wolf has a mishmash blueline in front of him. MacKenzie Weeger is one of the best in the NHL. Calgary 2nd best defensemen Rasmus Andersson always has one foot out the door. The Flames are also a mishmash upfront. Nazem Kadri is miscast as a number 1 center. Jonathan Huberdeau has never regained his Florida form. Connor Zary and Matt Coronato are skilled wingers but they don’t have centers who can consistently get them the puck.
7. San Jose Sharks – The San Jose Sharks are ready to leave the Pacific basement. Rookie sensation Macklin Celebrini will have a super sophomore season. Celebrini is Superman. The Sharks have 2 skaters auditioning to be Batman. Celebrini’s super skilled winger Will Smith and rookie 2nd line center Michael Misa. Tyler Toffoli and Jeff Skinner will benefit from the young play makers .The Sharks talented kids will be protected by Barclay Goodrow and Ryan Reaves. The Sharks defense employs veterans Dmitry Orlov and John Klingberg. Each of whom will be auditioning for a playoff team at the deadline. It’s goaltender Yaroslav Askarov’s time to live up to the hype.
8. Seattle Kraken -The Seattle Kraken have been treading water their entire existence. The Kraken acquired superb young winger Mason Marchment but he is not enough to keep them from sinking. Jared McCann gets his goals but doesn’t win games. Seatltle’s young centers Matty Beniers and Shane Wright have not met their lofty expectations. Chandler Stephenson is an overpaid 2nd line center. The Kraken defense is led Vince Dunn and Brandon Montour is above average Goaltenders Joey Daccord and Phillip Grubbier are good enough to lose close games.
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