With the NHL season set to kick off in a matter of hours, we are ready to put some thoughts on paper including some of our boldest predictions!
Taking the whole season into account, other than Nathan MacKinnon
and Cale Makar who will have the greatest offensive impact this season?
Adrian: My vote is on Val Nichushkin. I do believe he will get a long, hard look on the top line alongside Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas. His net-front presence and driving ability should bode well when accompanied by MacKinnon and Necas’ speed. I expect a ton of rebound and open net tallies for Big Val.
Jackie: I feel like Martin Necas is the easy answer here but is he going to be around the full season? Even if he makes it to just the trade deadline it still might be Necas. He has the task to fill those Mikko Rantanen sized shoes so for the Avalanche to continue to have a successful regular season Necas really needs to contribute a sizable portion of the offense.
Jess: For me, I think Ross Colton certainly has the potential to have a massive offensive impact this upcmoning season. It’s not exactly a secret that he’s been injured the past couple of seasons, but when he’s been healthy, he’s shown to be a great fit in this offense, and I expect him to have a massive impact offensively this year.
How many in-season trades will Chris MacFarland make?
Adrian: One really big one…
Jackie: Does five sound conservative at this point? Including the trade deadline, five seems realistic so that’s what I’ll go with.
Jess: Three is my lucky/favorite number, so that’s what I’ll rock with. On top of that, it also just feels like a plausible number in my opinion.
Ryan: One big trade followed by a smaller trade.
Predict where the Colorado Avalanche will finish in the regular season standings and the number of points?
Adrian: I think the Avs finish 2nd in the Central with 106 points. This will be the year of one-score victories as well.
Jess: I think they’ll finish 2nd in the Central but with 110 points, that’s just a nice, round number to predict.
Jackie: Each year over the last five seasons Colorado’s points percentage has declined. I expect that dip to continue but barring catastrophic injury I think this team can still get to 100 points and make the playoffs.
Ryan: I expect Colorado to finish 1st in the Central Division. However, there’s no guarantees in the playoffs.
Name one surprise team to both miss and make the NHL playoffs?
Adrian: Surprise team: Minnesota Wild. Tons of people forget that the Wild were among the hottest and most successful squads early in the 2024-25 campaign, and now that Kirill Kaprizov is healthy and extended, I think they follow up on that with another explosive start. If Kaprizov can stay healthy, they may have a shot at winning the Central.
Jackie: I’ll pick the Buffalo Sabres to finally do the thing and make the playoffs, it has to happen at some point and they actually have been close. I’ll add a bonus I’m getting the feeling the young Anaheim Ducks could have a miracle year. To miss the playoffs, the Washington Capitals are a team I like on the rise but growth isn’t always linear so sadly I’ll predict them to take a step back this season.
Jess: I’m going to agree with Jackie and go with the Sabres to finally make the playoffs. They were my dad’s childhood team, and I’d love to see them have success finally. To miss, I’ll go with the Blues. Maybe I’m just a hater, but I don’t think they’ll be as good as they were last year and go on the tear that they did. Furthermore, I could see the another team like the Mammoth doing better than them and taking that wild card spot that St. Louis had last year.
Ryan: Red Wings make the playoffs and the Blues miss. Detroit had one of the worst penalty kills in the history of the NHL last year, but they’ve done enough improvements over the offseason to put a band aid over it temporarily. Their offense will do most of the work and having John Gibson between the pipes doesn’t hurt, either.
State your boldest predictions for the season here!
Adrian: The Avalanche and Martin Necas will come to a stalemate due to market volitility and Necas along with a depth defender will be packaged for…
Jess: For a Colorado prediction, the Avs will get Necas signed, maybe I’m too optimistic (and I probably am), but I think everyone involved wants to get something done and understands the importance of getting it done. For a bold wider NHL prediction, I’ll say that the Edmonton Oilers will, for the third year in a row, fail to win the Stanley Cup, whether that means they make it to the finals or get knocked out before then. As long as their goaltending is an issue, I don’t see them getting it done.
Jackie: For the Avs, Sam Malinski will get traded by the deadline. Finland wins gold at the Olympics. Carolina finally wins the Stanley Cup.
Ryan: Sam Malinski gets dealt at the deadline and Marty Necas gets signed. If the Oilers decline this year, maybe they trade Connor McDavid…to the Red Wings…
