What a fun offseason. The Atlantic and Metropolitan divisions are back after another summer of free agency. No one outside the Sunshine State has won the conference or Stanley Cup finals the last five years. While a good number of teams out west improved, Metropolitan teams like New Jersey and Washington made trades to bolster their rosters and re-signed important depth players. The Rangers and Hurricanes are more determined to finish what they started last postseason. Then there are younger teams like Detroit and Ottawa with long-term playoff aspirations.
It’s time to break down which four teams in each division can make the push back to or surprise a lot of people in making the 2024-25 playoffs.
Metropolitan
Carolina Hurricanes
Starting with the easier division, Carolina’s a quick pick. From center to goaltender, the deep Hurricanes should roll through the regular season.
New York Rangers
The Rangers did their best until eventual champion Florida eliminated them in the conference finals. New York was top ten on offense, defense and the power-play. That shouldn’t change throughout the year.
New Jersey Devils
This sites prediction about New Jersey was accurate last year. Goaltending, team defense and injuries held back a young, talented core. General manager Tom Fitzgerald addressed that by signing Jacob Markstrom and Jake Allen in the offseason. The defense got upgrades with Brett Pesce, Brenden Dillon, Jakub Zboril and Colton White signing in free agency. Finally, new coach Sheldon Keefe was a perfect hire for this young, talented team. The Devils should be much better.
Washington Capitals
It was hard to pick the fourth team. The Islanders didn’t add much in the offseason and kept Patrick Roy as their coach. Pittsburgh could get in if drastic changes are made by the trade deadline. Washington was the best choice with their offseason additions and how well they played for coach Spencer Carbery last year. Defense will be the focus again this season, but the offense should improve after trading for Jakob Chychrun, Andrew Mangiapane and Pierre-Luc Dubois. The needed roster and scoring depth will make the Capitals hard to beat throughout the year.
Atlantic
Florida Panthers
The reigning champs head into the regular season with most of last year’s deep, Stanley Cup winning roster. It should be fun to watch them defend their title.
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Leafs were great the last two years. Now they have Craig Berube as their new coach. For the first time in decades, Toronto should be a Stanley Cup contender.
Detroit Red Wings
At last the franchise is a playoff contender. General manager Steve Yzerman’s roster isn’t finished yet, but the depth, talent and hunger to make the postseason means this is a pivotal year for Detroit. There shouldn’t be a drop-off at any point, even if captain Dylan Larkin gets injured again.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Franchise great Steven Stamkos might’ve signed with Nashville in free agency, but general manager Julien BriseBois patched things up by signing Jake Guentzel and Cam Atkinson and trading for Ryan McDonagh. The deeper Lightning also have franchise goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy back to full health, something they didn’t have last year. Tampa Bay’s talent and coaching gets the nod over Boston (aging) and Ottawa’s (younger) roster.
JD's Sportscorner 
Nice read
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