1 Prediction for Every NHL Team Ahead of 2024 Training Camp

NHL training camp is right around the corner, and there's so much potential for this to be one of the most exciting seasons in recent memory. The salary cap is rising, there's more parity than ever, and several potential generational players are either in their primes or headed there.

We've still got a month until opening night, so let's ease back in with a prediction for each NHL team.

The Prediction: The Ducks are going to finish the season just below .500, which will be a significant improvement on last season's 27-50-5 record.

Why?: Because the youth movement and head coach Greg Cronin took a step forward and meshed together quite well at times last season. Trevor Zegras is healthy and is rocking a biblically accurate mullet, which feels ominous. Also, management elected to keep Frank Vatrano last trade deadline to provide the "kids" with some high-scoring veteran presence.

They're doing it right, and that doesn't mean they're going to have a winning record next season, but they're going to take another big step forward.

Prediction: Jeremy Swayman will be signed by opening night.

Why?: Imagine you're Swayman's agent. Arbitration was already tough and Swayman publicly said he felt unappreciated. Then he comes in and puts up career numbers that rank among the best in the league, which he only elevates in the playoffs.

Then as he hits restricted free agency, his tandem partner, Linus Ullmark, gets traded. You rarely see anything like a 50-50 tandem between two Vezina-caliber goalies, let alone one leaving while the other is unsigned.

This is leverage an agent absolutely needs to milk, and Swayman's camp is doing so. Both sides realize the situation they're in, and it's leading to some drama and reluctance to budge all around. But you get the feeling something will give in time for the regular season.

Prediction: Devon Levi will break out.

Why?: Look, I lean negative on the Sabres because I'm wrong every time I'm positive. But if we zoom in, enticing young goalie Levi had some time to taste the NHL last season, and he was under immense pressure through no fault of his own.

We expected too much out of him because the Sabres put him in that position, but his and our expectations are tempered now. He's going to have a strong season in net, regardless of what'll go on around him.

Prediction: Jonathan Huberdeau has a bounce-back season.

I can't imagine how much pressure there is when you sign what you probably know is a ridiculously inflated contract, meanwhile your trade counterpart is doing the doggie paddle next to the Stanley Cup paying virtually no taxes somewhere in South Florida.

Not to mention, literally every key teammate is also having a down season. Huberdeau's monster 100-plus-point year in Florida wasn't representative of his consistent ability, but he can and will do better than 12 goals, 52 points and a minus-29 next season.

Prediction: Seth Jarvis will become a star.

Why?:

Prediction: Connor Bedard good.

Why?: That's all I got. Enjoy the Winter Classic, folks.

Prediction: Nathan MacKinnon will keep the ship tight.

Why?: The Avalanche are missing a few key players, and there's significant buzz around the team as a result. If anything, I only see the noise motivating reigning Hart Trophy winner, Nathan "pregame swimmer" MacKinnon more.

This team is still great, its pillars are MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Jared Bednar's silver mullet. Everything will be fine.

Prediction: New GM Don Waddell will keep things in perspective.

Why?: I covered the Carolina Hurricanes and traveled with them for years while Don Waddell was GM. We've had our fair share of disagreements, but I've never once questioned his priorities or heart. There's a reason every GM in the league had been willing to make borderline silly deals benefiting the Canes, and that reason is certainly not Canes owner Tom Dundon.

In what's going to be an excruciating year for the Blue Jackets and the hockey world, the team is in the right hands. Waddell prioritizes family and the hockey community above all else, and this taught me a few hard lessons in pursuit of the "scoop" while interacting with him.

Prediction: Wyatt Johnston is going to take the entire NHL by storm.

Why?: Johnston seemingly came out of nowhere and led the the stars in scoring with 32 goals as a 20-year-old center on a Cup-contending team. Well, he didn't come out of nowhere—he had 24 the season prior at 19.

I love Macklin Celebrini, I love Connor Bedard, I love each of your team's best young players. But Johnston is absolutely my No. 1 young player to watch this season.

Prediction: I don't know, but I'm starting to get itchy

Why?: What does it mean to trust the Yzerplan in 2024? As someone who has loved the vision, and who thinks the Red Wings are generally on schedule, I feel a bit uneasy. Why? Oh yeah, because Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond are unsigned when the whole point of the Yzerplan was to re-sign them and build accordingly.

OK, breathe. They'll get signed and it'll be fine. But re-signing Patrick Kane over and over while I wait for the core and—dare I ask for a goalie—makes me uneasy. Then again, signing veterans like Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko is easier than figuring out long-term contracts for your core pieces. But it's kind of annoying!

Prediction: It's time to win the Stanley Cup.

Why?: We've seen the trend of great disappointment on the way to great results with recent Cup winners. We've seen the creativity and the unrelenting explosiveness of the Oilers offense, and we've seen the same now on defense. With the good vibes of the Leon Draisaitl signing headed into the season, anything is possible.

Especially when the "anything" is winning literally one more game.

Prediction: They aren't going anywhere, anytime soon.

Why?: Florida is a battle-tested wagon with a savvy front office. It's OK to pay playoff Bob playoff Bob money when you've got other options waiting in the wings. The core has re-signed without major departures.

Prediction: Drew Doughty's usage will reflect the vibe.

Why?: As great as it is that Doughty thrived last season putting up insane minutes, he shouldn't have to do that, and it eventually showed. It's not fair to anyone for a playoff-caliber team to have to rely on a veteran like that.

Prediction: Kirill Kaprizov enters the "NHL star" conversation.

Why?: We're all sick of the Mid-esota Wild at this point, and Kaprizov keeps showing he's about to break into star-tier status. Let's send Marc-Andre Fleury off right with a memorable performance on the other side of the ice, too.

Prediction: Not that bad, actually.

Why?: With Kirby Dach healthy and Patrik Laine with something to prove in the fold, the Montreal Canadiens might be back. To what extent? That's up to you to decide.

Prediction: Juuse Saros will have a career year

Why?: Fresh off a fat contract, with all the enforcements and good will Barry Trotz has invigorated the team with, it seems like the best few years for Saros to remind us all why he's so lauded.

Prediction: Jacob Markstrom will deliver.

Why?: Two years, low stakes, something to prove, and a pretty good defense around him. The Devils aren't perfect, but they're a pretty good chance for Markstrom to really make a statement as a top goalie in the league.

Prediction: Islanders fans will find a reason to pick apart any prediction, good or bad.

Why?: Because that's why we love them.

Prediction: It'll be a monster season from Igor Shesterkin.

Why?: We don't know how his upcoming contract negotiations will play out, and this could be the last chance we get to enjoy the best goalie in the league before he gets the pressure of becoming the highest-paid goalie in the league. He'll handle the pressure well, as he typically does.

Prediction: They'll become who they were supposed to be.

Why?: Linus Ullmark, Shane Pinto and because the rest of them are sick of losing.

Prediction: Matvei Michkov will win the Calder Trophy.

Why?: I simply feel it in my bones.

Prediction: The Penguins will do the same thing they've done the past two seasons: barely miss the playoffs in a crushing manner.

Why?: Their refusal to die, which is at least respectable. And also, the nature of the Metropolitan Division is too fickle for any leniency.

Prediction: We'll need to be patient with Macklin Celebrini.

Why?: The BU product was the youngest player in men's college hockey last season, and the youngest ever to win the Hobey Baker. The Sharks have done a decent job shoring up the roster, but that isn't saying much compared to where it was at.

There's no doubt in my mind—especially catching a few BU and BC games in person last season—that Celebrini and Will Smith are going to do great things in this league for years to come. But my plea? Let them make their rookie mistakes and grow. That'll yield the best long-term result.

Prediction: Shane Wright breaks out.

Why?: The Kraken let the top-10 draft pick, who unexpectedly fell to them, cook for a bit with the Firebirds. And cook he did throughout the regular season and the Calder Cup run. With the professional experience now under his belt, he seems primed for a full-time job with the big club. We'll see how training camp goes.

Prediction: The soft rebuild works.

Why?: The haters said it couldn't be done. But two offer sheets later, suddenly the Blues have a nearly complete young core without ever having to truly rebuild.

Prediction: They'll continue to stick around and annoy the rest of the league.

Why?: Replacing Steven Stamkos with Jake Guentzel was diabolical and, unfortunately, a great idea.

Prediction: Auston Matthews will be a great captain.

Why?: Look, these are predictions, not hot takes. I appreciate that the Leafs didn't automatically go the "young core player for captain" route, but it didn't really get them anywhere—not that I think doing it would've got them somewhere.

I like the way John Tavares passed the torch, I like the torch entering Matthews' hands at this stage in the franchise, and I like it all happening under Craig Berube. We'll see.

Prediction: It'll be better.

Why?: At the very least, the new owners aren't a complete disaster. The team has already made splashes, trading for established players like Mikhail Sergachev, and they actively want the team to succeed. What a time to be alive!

Prediction: Thatcher Demko's usage will dictate the vibes.

Look, I've long been championing the cause of using goalies less throughout the regular season. The problem? None of them who are as good as Thatcher Demko want to do that. Of course, it tracks, and look to Swayman's negotiations as a reason.

There's also a fundamental lack of understanding of how goalies work, what they're worth, and how to pay them in the NHL. I understand wanting to prove yourself in this position, and there's a real pressure to have to do so.

But playing too many regular-season games just makes you more susceptible to injury. There needs to be some sort of goalie union where they all decide to play fewer regular-season games for the benefit of themselves and their teams.

Until then, the Vancouver Canucks need to figure out how to use Demko the perfect amount to keep him fresh without risking over-usage injury. That's all I got.

Prediction: Less funny business.

Why?: Jonathan Marchessault has been pretty vocal about how he feels the Golden Knights have handled not re-signing him. He's had such an impact on and off the ice for the new franchise, that it feels different than other chatter Vegas has ignored with its devil-may-care transactions.

Prediction: Alex Ovechkin doesn't break the record this year.

Why?: He doesn't have to. Ovechkin became the first player in NHL history to have 18 30-goal seasons last year, and he's 42 goals away from breaking the record. He broke 30 goals in a down year when he appeared to slow down, which makes me absolutely confident he'll break the record next year.

He's got two years left on his contract, and putting too much pressure on himself to eclipse last year's total might result in injury or bad vibes instead of a broken record. All he has to do is what he's always done—score at least 20 goals—for two more seasons. That feels more likely than 42 in one season, and why put that pressure on yourself when the proof's in the pudding?

Prediction: Cole Perfetti's contract structure will dictate the vibes.

There's little doubt in my mind that Perfetti and the Jets will reach an agreement soon. But will that agreement be a bridge deal or a long-term lock up? The Jets and GM Kevin Cheveldayoff love to sign star players to "prove yourself" deals.

Patrik Laine, Andrew Copp, Jacob Trouba all come to mind as players who left after these bridge deals. To be fair, Josh Morrissey stands out as an exception (granted, the Jets had virtually no cap space at the time).

But what have the Jets and Cheveldayoff proven to their players in return?

Perfetti has star-level upside and perhaps he would benefit from the security of a long-term deal while he develops. But wouldn't we all.