Sports

Expert picks for the 2022-23 NHL season: Stanley Cup, division winners, awards

Published

2 years ago

October 11, 2022

admin

7:00 AM ET

ESPN staff

The 2022-23 NHL season is set to begin Tuesday night with a doubleheader on ESPN and ESPN+, but we’re looking beyond just those two matchups.

Will the Colorado Avalanche repeat? Which team will top the standings in each division? Who will take home all of the individual hardware?

We’ve gathered our cross-platform ESPN hockey family together to predict the winners of each division, along with the Stanley Cup champion and players who will win all of the major awards.

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Power Rankings, key intel

Atlantic Division

Sean Allen: Maple Leafs
Blake Bolden: Panthers
Brian Boucher: Maple Leafs
John Buccigross: Maple Leafs
Ryan Callahan: Lightning
Sachin Chandan: Maple Leafs
Chris Chelios: Maple Leafs
Ryan S. Clark: Lightning
Linda Cohn: Maple Leafs
Ray Ferraro: Maple Leafs
Leah Hextall: Maple Leafs
Emily Kaplan: Lightning
Tim Kavanagh: Lightning
Hilary Knight: Maple Leafs
Don La Greca: Lightning
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Maple Leafs
Steve Levy: Maple Leafs
Vince Masi: Maple Leafs
Victoria Matiash: Panthers
Sean McDonough: Maple Leafs
Mark Messier: Maple Leafs
AJ Mleczko: Panthers
Dominic Moore: Maple Leafs
Arda Öcal: Maple Leafs
Kristen Shilton: Maple Leafs
Kevin Weekes: Lightning
Bob Wischusen: Panthers
Greg Wyshynski: Lightning

Totals: Maple Leafs (17), Lightning (7), Panthers (4)

Matthew Tkachuk chats with Emily Kaplan about being traded to the Florida Panthers and now becoming a division rival of his brother Brady and the Ottawa Senators.

Metropolitan Division

Sean Allen: Rangers
Blake Bolden: Hurricanes
Brian Boucher: Hurricanes
John Buccigross: Rangers
Ryan Callahan: Rangers
Sachin Chandan: Hurricanes
Chris Chelios: Rangers
Ryan S. Clark: Hurricanes
Linda Cohn: Rangers
Ray Ferraro: Rangers
Leah Hextall: Rangers
Emily Kaplan: Rangers
Tim Kavanagh: Hurricanes
Hilary Knight: Rangers
Don La Greca: Hurricanes
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Rangers
Steve Levy: Rangers
Vince Masi: Hurricanes
Victoria Matiash: Rangers
Sean McDonough: Rangers
Mark Messier: Rangers
AJ Mleczko: Hurricanes
Dominic Moore: Hurricanes
Arda Öcal: Rangers
Kristen Shilton: Hurricanes
Kevin Weekes: Rangers
Bob Wischusen: Rangers
Greg Wyshynski: Hurricanes

Totals: Rangers (17), Hurricanes (11)

Central Division

Sean Allen: Wild
Blake Bolden: Avalanche
Brian Boucher: Avalanche
John Buccigross: Avalanche
Ryan Callahan: Avalanche
Sachin Chandan: Avalanche
Chris Chelios: Avalanche
Ryan S. Clark: Avalanche
Linda Cohn: Avalanche
Ray Ferraro: Avalanche
Leah Hextall: Avalanche
Emily Kaplan: Blues
Tim Kavanagh: Avalanche
Hilary Knight: Avalanche
Don La Greca: Avalanche
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Avalanche
Steve Levy: Predators
Vince Masi: Wild
Victoria Matiash: Wild
Sean McDonough: Avalanche
Mark Messier: Avalanche
AJ Mleczko: Avalanche
Dominic Moore: Avalanche
Arda Öcal: Avalanche
Kristen Shilton: Avalanche
Kevin Weekes: Blues
Bob Wischusen: Avalanche
Greg Wyshynski: Avalanche

Totals: Avalanche (22), Wild (3), Blues (2), Predators (1)

Pacific Division

Sean Allen: Oilers
Blake Bolden: Kings
Brian Boucher: Flames
John Buccigross: Oilers
Ryan Callahan: Oilers
Sachin Chandan: Oilers
Chris Chelios: Flames
Ryan S. Clark: Oilers
Linda Cohn: Oilers
Ray Ferraro: Oilers
Leah Hextall: Flames
Emily Kaplan: Oilers
Tim Kavanagh: Golden Knights
Hilary Knight: Golden Knights
Don La Greca: Oilers
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Oilers
Steve Levy: Flames
Vince Masi: Oilers
Victoria Matiash: Flames
Sean McDonough: Flames
Mark Messier: Oilers
AJ Mleczko: Flames
Dominic Moore: Oilers
Arda Öcal: Oilers
Kristen Shilton: Flames
Kevin Weekes: Oilers
Bob Wischusen: Flames
Greg Wyshynski: Flames

Totals: Oilers (15), Flames (10), Golden Knights (2), Kings (1)

Trevor Zegras talks with John Buccigross about his highlight-reel goals and the criticism he has faced for his flashy moves on the ice.

Stanley Cup champ

Sean Allen: Oilers
Blake Bolden: Avalanche
Brian Boucher: Rangers
John Buccigross: Oilers
Ryan Callahan: Oilers
Sachin Chandan: Flames
Chris Chelios: Avalanche
Ryan S. Clark: Oilers
Linda Cohn: Oilers
Ray Ferraro: Avalanche
Leah Hextall: Flames
Emily Kaplan: Avalanche
Tim Kavanagh: Blues
Hilary Knight: Avalanche
Don La Greca: Hurricanes
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Rangers
Steve Levy: Panthers
Vince Masi: Hurricanes
Victoria Matiash: Flames
Sean McDonough: Avalanche
Mark Messier: Rangers
AJ Mleczko: Hurricanes
Dominic Moore: Avalanche
Arda Öcal: Maple Leafs
Kristen Shilton: Hurricanes
Kevin Weekes: Rangers
Bob Wischusen: Avalanche
Greg Wyshynski: Oilers

Totals: Avalanche (8), Oilers (6), Rangers (4), Hurricanes (4), Flames (3), Blues (1), Panthers (1), Maple Leafs (1)

Greg Wyshynski takes fans through the chaos of the NHL offseason, which had everything from blockbuster trades to record extensions.

Hart Trophy (MVP)

Sean Allen: Leon Draisaitl
Blake Bolden: Connor McDavid
Brian Boucher: Auston Matthews
John Buccigross: Auston Matthews
Ryan Callahan: Connor McDavid
Sachin Chandan: Jonathan Huberdeau
Chris Chelios: Connor McDavid
Ryan S. Clark: Kirill Kaprizov
Linda Cohn: Connor McDavid
Ray Ferraro: Connor McDavid
Leah Hextall: Connor McDavid
Emily Kaplan: Kirill Kaprizov
Tim Kavanagh: Mark Stone
Hilary Knight: Leon Draisaitl
Don La Greca: Cale Makar
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Nathan MacKinnon
Steve Levy: Connor McDavid
Vince Masi: Connor McDavid
Victoria Matiash: Kirill Kaprizov
Sean McDonough: Connor McDavid
Mark Messier: Igor Shesterkin
AJ Mleczko: Connor McDavid
Dominic Moore: Auston Matthews
Arda Öcal: Igor Shesterkin
Kristen Shilton: Auston Matthews
Kevin Weekes: Auston Matthews
Bob Wischusen: Connor McDavid
Greg Wyshynski: Connor McDavid

Totals: Connor McDavid (12), Auston Matthews (5), Kirill Kaprizov (3), Igor Shesterkin (2), Leon Draisaitl (2), Jonathan Huberdeau (1), Mark Stone (1), Cale Makar (1), Nathan MacKinnon (1)

Art Ross Trophy (scoring leader)

Sean Allen: Leon Draisaitl
Blake Bolden: Connor McDavid
Brian Boucher: Connor McDavid
John Buccigross: Connor McDavid
Ryan Callahan: Connor McDavid
Sachin Chandan: Connor McDavid
Chris Chelios: Connor McDavid
Ryan S. Clark: Connor McDavid
Linda Cohn: Connor McDavid
Ray Ferraro: Connor McDavid
Leah Hextall: Connor McDavid
Emily Kaplan: Connor McDavid
Tim Kavanagh: Connor McDavid
Hilary Knight: Connor McDavid
Don La Greca: Connor McDavid
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Connor McDavid
Steve Levy: Kirill Kaprizov
Vince Masi: Connor McDavid
Victoria Matiash: Kirill Kaprizov
Sean McDonough: Connor McDavid
Mark Messier: Connor McDavid
AJ Mleczko: Nathan MacKinnon
Dominic Moore: Connor McDavid
Arda Öcal: Connor McDavid
Kristen Shilton: Connor McDavid
Kevin Weekes: Connor McDavid
Bob Wischusen: Connor McDavid
Greg Wyshynski: Connor McDavid

Totals: Connor McDavid (24), Kirill Kaprizov (2), Leon Draisaitl (1), Nathan MacKinnon (1)

Check out the five best goals from last year as we prepare for the upcoming season.

Rocket Richard Trophy (goal scoring leader)

Sean Allen: Auston Matthews
Blake Bolden: Auston Matthews
Brian Boucher: Auston Matthews
John Buccigross: Auston Matthews
Ryan Callahan: Auston Matthews
Sachin Chandan: Auston Matthews
Chris Chelios: Auston Matthews
Ryan S. Clark: Auston Matthews
Linda Cohn: Auston Matthews
Ray Ferraro: Auston Matthews
Leah Hextall: Leon Draisaitl
Emily Kaplan: Auston Matthews
Tim Kavanagh: Kirill Kaprizov
Hilary Knight: Auston Matthews
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Leon Draisaitl
Steve Levy: Leon Draisaitl
Vince Masi: Kyle Connor
Victoria Matiash: Auston Matthews
Sean McDonough: Auston Matthews
Mark Messier: Leon Draisaitl
AJ Mleczko: Auston Matthews
Dominic Moore: Auston Matthews
Arda Öcal: Auston Matthews
Kristen Shilton: Auston Matthews
Kevin Weekes: Auston Matthews
Bob Wischusen: Auston Matthews
Greg Wyshynski: Auston Matthews

Totals: Auston Matthews (21), Leon Draisaitl (4), Kirill Kaprizov (1), Kyle Connor (1)

Auston Matthews talks with John Buccigross about moving past last season’s Game 7 playoff loss to the Lightning.

Norris Trophy (best defenseman)

Sean Allen: Adam Fox
Blake Bolden: Cale Makar
Brian Boucher: Cale Makar
John Buccigross: Cale Makar
Ryan Callahan: Cale Makar
Sachin Chandan: Roman Josi
Chris Chelios: Cale Makar
Ryan S. Clark: Cale Makar
Linda Cohn: Cale Makar
Ray Ferraro: Cale Makar
Leah Hextall: Cale Makar
Emily Kaplan: Cale Makar
Tim Kavanagh: Miro Heiskanen
Hilary Knight: Cale Makar
Don La Greca: Cale Makar
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Adam Fox
Steve Levy: Miro Heiskanen
Vince Masi: Quinn Hughes
Victoria Matiash: Cale Makar
Sean McDonough: Cale Makar
Mark Messier: Cale Makar
AJ Mleczko: Roman Josi
Dominic Moore: Cale Makar
Arda Öcal: Cale Makar
Kristen Shilton: Cale Makar
Kevin Weekes: Cale Makar
Bob Wischusen: Cale Makar
Greg Wyshynski: Cale Makar

Totals: Cale Makar (21), Adam Fox (2), Miro Heiskanen (2), Roman Josi (2), Quinn Hughes (1)

Cale Makar reflects on his offseason after winning the Stanley Cup and what the Avalanche are hoping to achieve this season.

Vezina Trophy (best goaltender)

Sean Allen: Jack Campbell
Blake Bolden: Igor Shesterkin
Brian Boucher: Igor Shesterkin
John Buccigross: Igor Shesterkin
Ryan Callahan: Igor Shesterkin
Sachin Chandan: Juuse Saros
Chris Chelios: Igor Shesterkin
Ryan S. Clark: Andrei Vasilevskiy
Linda Cohn: Igor Shesterkin
Ray Ferraro: Igor Shesterkin
Leah Hextall: Juuse Saros
Emily Kaplan: Ilya Sorokin
Tim Kavanagh: Thatcher Demko
Hilary Knight: Igor Shesterkin
Don La Greca: Ilya Sorokin
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Juuse Saros
Steve Levy: Igor Shesterkin
Vince Masi: Juuse Saros
Victoria Matiash: Jacob Markstrom
Sean McDonough: Igor Shesterkin
Mark Messier: Igor Shesterkin
AJ Mleczko: Igor Shesterkin
Dominic Moore: Jacob Markstrom
Arda Öcal: Igor Shesterkin
Kristen Shilton: Jake Oettinger
Kevin Weekes: Igor Shesterkin
Bob Wischusen: Ilya Sorokin
Greg Wyshynski: Andrei Vasilevskiy

Totals: Igor Shesterkin (14), Juuse Saros (4), Ilya Sorokin (3), Andrei Vasilevskiy (2), Jacob Markstrom (2), Jack Campbell (1), Thatcher Demko (1), Jake Oettinger (1)

Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy talks with John Buccigross about being denied a three-peat at the hands of the Avalanche and Russia producing incredible NHL goalies.

Calder Trophy (rookie of the year)

Sean Allen: Matty Beniers
Blake Bolden: Mason McTavish
Brian Boucher: Owen Power
John Buccigross: Owen Power
Ryan Callahan: Matty Beniers
Sachin Chandan: Matty Beniers
Chris Chelios: Jack Quinn
Ryan S. Clark: Owen Power
Linda Cohn: Shane Wright
Ray Ferraro: Matty Beniers
Leah Hextall: Dylan Holloway
Emily Kaplan: Owen Power
Tim Kavanagh: Marco Rossi
Hilary Knight: Matty Beniers
Don La Greca: Owen Power
Peter Lawrence-Riddell: Matty Beniers
Steve Levy: Mason McTavish
Vince Masi: Jake Sanderson
Victoria Matiash: Cole Perfetti
Sean McDonough: Matty Beniers
Mark Messier: Matty Beniers
AJ Mleczko: Matty Beniers
Dominic Moore: Logan Thompson
Arda Öcal: Matty Beniers
Kristen Shilton: Owen Power
Kevin Weekes: Matty Beniers
Bob Wischusen: Owen Power
Greg Wyshynski: Matty Beniers

Totals: Matty Beniers (12), Owen Power (7), Mason McTavish (2), Jack Quinn (1), Shane Wright (1), Dylan Holloway (1), Marco Rossi (1), Jake Sanderson (1), Cole Perfetti (1), Logan Thompson (1)

Sports

New team, new timeline? What to expect out of Ritchie, Minten, other traded NHL prospects

Published

20 hours ago

March 13, 2025

admin

New team, new timeline? What to expect out of Ritchie, Minten, other traded NHL prospects

Rachel DoerrieMar 13, 2025, 07:00 AM ET
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The 2025 NHL trade deadline featured some major players on the move and vaulted both the Florida Panthers and Dallas Stars to the top of the Stanley Cup contender conversation.

Close behind them are the Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers, Carolina Hurricanes and Winnipeg Jets. Many of those teams moved high-end prospects to bolster their lineup, meaning some less-competitive teams got key pieces for their future.

How will those prospects impact their new teams? When will they play meaningful minutes at the NHL level? Teams and their fans are asking all those questions. Here are scouting notes on eight of the most prominent, including Calum Ritchie, Fraser Minten and Brendan Brisson.

Sports

Fights, penalties fill wild 3rd in Sabres-Wings

Published

20 hours ago

March 13, 2025

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Fights, penalties fill wild 3rd in Sabres-Wings

Associated Press

Mar 13, 2025, 12:45 AM ET

DETROIT — Buffalo‘s Alex Tuch and Detroit captain Michael Rasmussen were the first to drop the gloves in the fight-filled third period of the Red Wings’ 7-3 victory Wednesday night.

They weren’t even among the 11 players assessed 10-minute misconduct penalties in the final frame. Six were from Buffalo, the other five from Detroit.

The final tally from the third: 136 of the game’s 150 penalty minutes, all but two of those either roughing, fighting or misconducts.

The scuffles, including a near-brawl with multiple simultaneous fights, overshadowed the fourth five-point night of Patrick Kane‘s 18-year career in the highest-scoring game of the season for the Red Wings, who stopped a six-game losing streak. Kane had two goals and three assists.

The Detroit lead was 6-3 when Tuch and Rasmussen faced off with eight minutes remaining. They posed with their fists raised for almost as long as the fight lasted, which was only a few seconds.

Less than a minute later, Detroit’s J.T. Compher and Jordan Greenway of Buffalo got tangled up. After the whistle, their scrum was very brief — but bad enough that both went to locker room with game misconducts. Greenway gave officials an ear full on his way off the ice.

The other nine misconducts came at the 16:51 mark, punctuated by one of the referees announcing a roughing penalty for Detroit defenseman Simon Edvinsson before saying, “All the other guys are going to have a misconduct.” The list included Edvinsson.

Buffalo had just five players on the bench by game’s end after Beck Malenstyn was sent off for roughing in the final minute along with Detroit’s Moritz Seider.

“There was a lot of emotion out there,” the Sabres’ Tage Thompson told reporters. “And we had a lot of frustration with how things had gone during the game.”

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Sports

Rantanen happy in Dallas, denies ex-coach’s claim

Published

20 hours ago

March 13, 2025

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Rantanen happy in Dallas, denies ex-coach's claim

Associated Press

Mar 12, 2025, 07:19 PM ET

FRISCO, Texas — Newly acquired Dallas Stars forward Mikko Rantanen says he’s pleased with where he landed while denying his former coach’s claim that he gave Carolina a list of teams he preferred in a trade, and the Hurricanes weren’t on it.

Rantanen addressed reporters after his first practice with the Stars on Wednesday. He played two games in Canada on a four-game road trip interrupted at the halfway point by a four-day break.

The star forward had a goal and an assist in a 5-4 loss to Edmonton on Saturday, then scored again on an empty-netter in a 4-1 victory in Vancouver the next night.

The Stars play at Central Division-leading Winnipeg on Friday before a Sunday visit to Colorado. Rantanen was abruptly traded by the Avalanche to Carolina on Jan. 24, then moved again with the Hurricanes worried they would lose the 28-year-old in free agency without getting anything in return.

Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour told a radio station in Raleigh, North Carolina, this week that Rantanen told the front office he was only willing to sign his next contract with four teams, and Carolina was not on that list.

“I saw some things were said that I had a list of teams ready when I went (to Carolina), but that’s false,” Rantanen said. “Obviously, it was a big shock to leave Colorado, but I went (to Carolina) with an open mind and tried my best on the ice.”

The Dallas deal came together the morning of the trade deadline Friday, after Stars general manager Jim Nill went to bed the night before believing the sides wouldn’t be able to agree on a contract extension to complete the deal.

Rantanen signed an eight-year, $96 million contract with Dallas as part of the trade. The Hurricanes acquired promising young forward Logan Stankoven along with two first-round picks and two third-rounders.

“When I put the jersey on there, I tried my best and just decided just a little bit before the deadline that Carolina would probably get a better return for me if I would do a sign and trade,” Rantanen said. “That it would be better for their team rather than me being a rental and going somewhere to play. So that was the decision. I want to make it clear that I was open-minded in Carolina and really thought about staying there.”

Rantanen will have to wait to see how fans react to his return to Colorado. The 10th overall pick of the 2015 draft spent his first nine-plus seasons with the Avalanche, getting 681 points (287 goals, 394 assists) in 619 regular-season games. He has 101 points (34 goals, 67 assists) in 81 playoff games.

“Colorado was always where I wanted to stay, but I understand it’s business and they made a decision,” Rantanen said. “I tried my best in Carolina and I’m here now and I’m so happy to be here, locked in for eight years with a good team and with good coaches. I’m thankful for Dallas to have the trust in me.”