The Boston Bruins and/or the Pittsburgh Penguins will miss the playoffs.
The East Division is set to be one of the most competitive divisions this season, teams will be battling it out to make it to playoffs. The East consists of the Rangers, Devils, Islanders, Sabres, Capitals, Flyers, Penguins and Bruins. All of these teams have a chance at making the playoffs, but only four will advance into the playoffs. With the unexpectedness of the NHL, anything could happen such as two consistent teams missing the playoffs.
The Bruins have been a very good team, but this offseason they lost Torey Krug and Zdeno Chara, two big pieces of their defense. Along with that, some of their star players are expected to be out for the start of the season.
The Penguins haven’t had the greatest offseason as well, trading away Patric Hornqvist and Matt Murray and bringing in Cody Ceci and Michael Matheson in two bad moves. With the tough competition in the East, it won’t be surprising if one of these two teams will miss the playoffs.
Jack Hughes will have a breakout year with 45+ points while Kaapo Kaako will struggle again.
Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kaako were the first and second overall picks in the 2019 NHL Draft. Unfortunately, their rookie season did not go as planned as both of them heavily struggled offensively and defensively. Hughes put up 21 points while many people questioned if he was strong enough to play in the NHL while Kakko put up 23 points and was the worst player in the league defensively. However this season Hughes will have a breakout year due to an increased role on the Devils, better linemates and adding 14 pounds of muscle this offseason. On the other hand, Kaako may struggle next season by being over-shined by the superstars in New York.
The Chicago Blackhawks will finish last in the NHL.
Earlier this offseason, the Blackhawks stated they will be rebuilding after all of their success this past decade. This season is not going to look good for the Blackhawks with a weak roster. On offense, they have to play without Kirby Dach, Jonathan Toews and Alex Nylander as all of them are on LTIR. Defensively they don’t have too much talent, a mix of aging and inexperienced defensemen. In net, they have the duo of Malcolm Subban and Collin Delia which is the worst in the league. Even though the Blackhawks still have veterans that can produce, they will not succeed with the roster they have right now.
Kirill Kaprizov will win the Calder Trophy.
At the start of the season, everyone projects the first pick to win the Calder due to their great skill and high potential to become a superstar. In the 2020 Draft, Alexis Lafreniere was the first pick and is considered one of the best prospects in recent memory. However, this year a dark horse will enter into the Calder race, Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov. Kaprizov was drafted in the fourth round in 2015 but had spent the last five seasons tearing up the KHL. Two huge advantages Kaprizov has on Lafreniere and all of the other prospects is the amount of additional experience he has with 5 years in the KHL and Kaprizov will have a big role on the Wild, being their first-line left-winger. The Calder race will be close, but in the end, Kaprizov will win the Calder Trophy.
The Vegas Golden Knights will win the Stanley Cup.
Last but certainly not least, the Stanley Cup. Every year teams start their season with one goal in mind, to win the Stanley Cup. Out of all 31 teams, this season the Vegas Golden Knights will hoist the Stanley Cup. After being added to the league, the Golden Knights have always been a consistent team, led by their good and tough playing style. They have made some significant moves that made them true contenders in the league. On top of that, this offseason they made a big splash, signing star defenseman Alex Pietrangelo to a massive deal. This signing completed their roster, giving them solid forwards and defensemen with a great goalie duo of Robin Lehner and Marc-Andre Fleury. The Knights are a scary team in the West and with the roster they finally win the Stanley Cup.