Every NHL Team's Secret Weapon for the 2023-24 Season
The NHL offseason is a blur where most of the big moves all tend to happen with a one-week stretch between the draft and the first couple of days of free agency.
Most rosters, with the exception of a few random moves that could be made here and there, are pretty much set.
Now that we have at least some idea of what each team might look like on opening night, it is time to start analyzing what they have.
Here we are going to take a look at each team's secret weapon for the 2023-24 season.
What exactly is a secret weapon? Well, it's a player that might be sneaking under the radar a little bit and could make a larger-than-expected impact.
It could be a prospect waiting to make their debut.
An overlooked offseason acquisition that got lost in the shadows of a bigger deal.
Or an X-factor player that could significantly swing a team's success in one direction or another.
Let's go through each team and try to identify who that player could be.
Arizona Coyotes: Jason Zucker
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The one big theme for this year's free agent class was short-term, one-year deals.
Jason Zucker was one of those players.
Zucker signed a one-year, $5 million deal with the Coyotes in free agency and is going to be a great addition to a young, rebuilding Arizona team that needs as much offense as it can get. He is coming off an outstanding year for the Pittsburgh Penguins and is going to bring a lot of what the Coyotes need.
As long as he is healthy, he should be a solid bet for 20 goals and a tireless work ethic, while being a strong veteran presence on a young team that needs a lot of that.
Is he going to make this a playoff team? Not even close.
But he will give them a fighting chance whenever he is on the ice and bring some fire and passion to the roster. Those are good things.
Anaheim Ducks: Jamie Drysdale
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The Anaheim Ducks have done a really good job assembling a core of young forwards in recent years with Trevor Zegras, Troy Terry, Mason McTavish and Leo Carlsson (this year's No. 2 overall pick) leading the way.
But let's not forget about the potential importance of Drysdale to the Ducks' development.
Given that Drysdale has barely played 100 games in the NHL and missed all but eight games of the 2022-23 season, it might be a little easy to forget about him.
He will be back this season with an opportunity to not only make a big impact, but also show that he is going to be a cornerstone player for the Ducks long-term.
His NHL track record to this point is very limited, but he has shown flashes of being a top-pairing defenseman. The Ducks need somebody like him to make a big leap on defense, and if he does it could be a significant game-changer for the Ducks' rebuild to put that behind their young forwards.
Boston Bruins: Pavel Zacha
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After looking like a borderline bust for seven years with the New Jersey Devils, Zacha had a chance to get a fresh start with the Bruins during the 2022-23 season and he took full advantage of it.
Zacha had a career year in his first season in Boston, scoring 21 goals to go with 36 assists in 82 games.
He was a wonderful complementary addition to the Bruins' veteran core.
If Patrice Bergeron and/or David Krejčí decide to not return, Zacha could find himself thrust into an even bigger role. That potential -- and perhaps likely -- departure of Bergeron and Krejci would leave a massive hole at center. Zacha would be one of the internal options to help fill them.
He already showed this past season he can be a very productive player that scores at a top-six rate and if he gets more ice time, (perhaps more power-play time to go along with it) he could be in line for an even bigger breakout performance.
The Bruins might need it.
Buffalo Sabres: Devon Levi
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The Buffalo Sabres took a huge step forward last season and look ready to end their 12-year playoff drought.
They have an outstanding offense and a great young defense led by Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power and Mattias Samuelsson. If they had been able to get just a little bit of goaltending they probably would have already been back in the playoffs.
While they didn't do much to address goaltending this offseason, they do have some internal hope with Devon Levi being ready to make the jump to the NHL.
He is going to be the Sabres' secret weapon this season and potentially a significant one.
Levi is one of the best goaltending prospects in hockey and held his own during his first cup of coffee in the NHL late in the season. His 2.94 goals against average and .905 might seem pedestrian, but he had some outstanding games down the stretch.
If he can step into the lineup this year and live up to the hype, the Sabres will not only get back to the playoffs for the first time since the 2010-11 season, they might have a chance to make some serious noise when they get there.
That is putting a lot of pressure on a prospect that has never been a full-time starter in the NHL, but the talent level is definitely there.
Calgary Flames: Yegor Sharangovich
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The Flames are undergoing some major changes this offseason both on and off the ice.
Darryl Sutter is gone as head coach, they have a new general manager in Craig Conroy, and there have been some changes to the roster.
Nothing will do more to help the Flames get back on track than bounce-back years from Jonathan Huberdeau and Jacob Markstrom. And while those two will play a big role in the direction the Flames' season takes, they won't be enough to change things on their own.
One of the more intriguing players on the Flames' roster right now is Yegor Sharangovich, the young forward acquired from the New Jersey Devils in the Tyler Toffoli deal.
After showing a lot of promise during his first two years in the league, Sharangovich took a small step backward last year and had his worst season as a pro. But he might be primed for a bounce-back year, especially with a fresh start in Calgary.
A lot of his struggles in New Jersey this year were centered around a 9.9 percent shooting percentage, significantly below his first two years in the league. If that bounces back it could get him back to the 25-goal potential he showed in his first two seasons, and with him now entering his age-25 season (which is typically when scorers start to hit their peak) he could be in line for a big breakout year.
That would be a welcome addition to a Flames lineup that needs a young star.
Carolina Hurricanes: Seth Jarvis
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The Hurricanes have one of the best rosters in the league and have been a consistent Stanley Cup contender for the past five years.
They have a lot of established veterans at the top of the lineup, but they also have some really intriguing young players that are just starting to hit their stride and their prime years in the league. Jarvis is one of those up-and-coming players that could be in line for a breakout.
The 21-year-old Jarvis has played 150 games and has already shown flashes of being a very strong top-six forward, and perhaps even a star.
Even though his goal total and point production showed a slight regression in his second season, almost all of his underlying numbers painted the picture of a player that was really starting to get the feel for the NHL.
He generated more shots on goal in his rookie season and was much better at driving possession and helping to dictate the pace of the game. He averaged more than 2.25 shots on goal per game while the team controlled more than 58 percent of the total shot attempts with him on the ice.
But because his shooting percentage was cut in half from his rookie season (going from 15 percent down to seven percent) it looked like his production got worse. If he maintains that shot volume and possession-driving ability, he could be in line for a star turn if that shooting percentage number jumps back up. That would make an already great Hurricanes team even better.
Chicago Blackhawks: Lukas Reichel
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No. 1 overall pick and phenom Connor Bedard is going to be the focus in Chicago this season, if not the entire NHL.
And while Bedard is going to be the focal point of the next chapter in the Blackhawks' story, he isn't the only young player they are going to be counting on to drag the franchise out of the NHL's basement.
There are some other intriguing young talents here, including 2020 first-round pick (No. 17 overall) Lukas Reichel.
Reichel didn't get a ton of playing time this past season in Chicago, but he showed a ton of promise when he did.
He scored seven goals with 15 total points in 23 games, numbers that would have projected out to 25 goals and 53 points over an 82-game season.
He was also one of the most efficient scorers on the team during 5-on-5 play.
His 0.99 goals per 60 minutes were tops on the team among players with at least 20 games played, while his 1.77 total points trailed only veterans Max Domi and Patrick Kane.
And he did all of that as a 20-year-old rookie.
He is going to get lost in the shadows of Bedard this season, but don't overlook his potential or what he is also capable of. He has a chance to be a core building block for the next good Blackhawks team a few years down the road.
Colorado Avalanche: Bowen Byram
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The Avalanche have an embarrassment of riches on their defense with players like Cale Makar, Devon Toews and Sam Girard leading the group.
That defense has been what separates them from other contenders in the NHL, perfectly complementing their talented group of forwards.
That group has a chance to keep getting better with the emergence of Byram.
The 22-year-old Byram has only played 91 regular season games in his brief NHL career, but he has excelled in that limited time and seems poised to be one of the top players on the Avalanche blue line for years to come.
Injuries have been the only thing that have slowed him down so far.
He only appeared in 42 games during the 2022-23 season but still scored at a 20-goal, 50-point pace from the blue line while already averaging more than 21 minutes per game.
If he stays healthy and is able to give the Avalanche a full season he is going to make what is already one of the best defensive units in the league even better.
Columbus Blue Jackets: Kent Johnson
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As bad as the 2022-23 season ended up being for the Columbus Blue Jackets, they did have a couple of bright spots emerge among their young prospects.
Kirill Marchenko had a promising rookie year with 20 goals and is going to be counted on to play a big role offensively this season.
Johnson was right there with him in terms of promising rookie campaigns, scoring 16 goals with 40 total points in his first full season in the NHL. That performance didn't get him any Calder Trophy votes, but he showed promising signs of being a potential top-six center in the NHL.
Columbus now has a pretty promising group of young center prospects with Johnson, Cole Sillinger and 2023 first-round pick Adam Fantilli being the long-term building blocks.
Sillinger went through a sophomore slump after a promising rookie campaign, but the talent is still there for him to be a core player. Johnson is right there with him and they need him to avoid a similar sophomore slump and build on his strong rookie season.
If he does, the Blue Jackets might finally have something to build around offensively.
Dallas Stars: Nils Lundkvist
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Lundkvist's debut season in Dallas had its share of ups and downs.
There were stretches where he found himself playing top-pairing minutes and filling in for an injured Miro Heiskanen, and there were stretches where he made some obvious blunders and ended up being a healthy scratch.
Those inconsistencies are pretty common and should be expected for a young defenseman.
Overall, however, there was a lot to like about the way he played and there remains a lot to like about his future on the Stars' blue line.
And the 2023-24 season might be the start of him really starting to establish his presence as a key part of that defense.
Even with his struggles at times, Lundkvist's underlying numbers were still very strong last year and compared favorably to the Stars' more established veteran defenders. When he was on the ice during 5-on-5 play, the Stars had a 53.5 percent share of the expected goals, the second-highest mark of any Stars defender trailing only Heiskanen. He was also better than 52 percent across the board in terms of shot attempt share and scoring chance share (all numbers via Natural Stat Trick). In other words, when he was on the ice good things were typically happening for the Stars.
Dallas not only has a great core of veteran talent, it also has a wave of young talent in players like Lundkvist and Wyatt Johnston that are going to rapidly become significant contributors to that core.
Detroit Red Wings: Daniel Sprong
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Over the past two offseasons, Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has made some pretty significant offseason additions. It continued this year with the moves to bring in J.T. Compher and Alex DeBrincat.
But one of the more intriguing signings that could end up playing a significant role was the addition of Sprong.
The Seattle Kraken didn't offer Sprong a qualifying offer as a restricted free agent, allowing him to hit the open market. The Red Wings pounced with a one-year deal. It has a chance to be one of the better deals signed this summer.
Sprong's game has some obvious flaws, and he is far from a complete player away from the puck.
But the one thing he does well is a very important element in hockey -- he can put the puck in the net.
Despite playing in only 66 games and averaging just 11 minutes of ice time a year ago, he still scored 21 goals with 46 total points. In terms of efficiency, few players in the NHL were more productive than Sprong.
Among the 382 forwards that logged at least 500 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time, Sprong's 1.45 goals per 60 minutes were eighth best in the NHL.
The Red Wings need more skill and finishing ability up front. Sprong can definitely bring a ton of that.
Edmonton Oilers: Philip Broberg
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It has taken longer than it should have, but the Edmonton Oilers have finally started to piece together a pretty good roster around Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. And that is especially true on defense where Evan Bouchard has become a top-pairing talent while they also acquired Mattias Ekholm at last year's trade deadline.
They have another promising young defender that is ready to take a big step forward and join that group as a major contributor in Philip Broberg, the team's No. 8 overall pick from the 2019 NHL Draft.
Broberg has not played a ton of hockey at this point in his career, appearing in just 69 games over parts of two seasons, but he has looked like he belongs in the NHL. Bottom line: he has a chance to be a big-time contributor.
It is time for him to take that big step forward this season. And there is every indication that he can.
Broberg's underlying numbers were among the best of all Oilers players, as the team was over 57 percent in terms of shot attempt shares and expected goal shares when he was on the ice during 5-on-5 play. The only player on the team that rated higher than him in those areas -- forward or defense -- was Ekholm in his 21 games following his acquisition from Nashville.
Florida Panthers: Spencer Knight
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Knight has been regarded as the future of the Panthers' net ever since he was drafted in the first round (No. 13 overall) of the 2019 NHL Draft.
At times, he has shown the talent and potential that made the Panthers use such a premium pick on him.
But during the 2022-23 season, he left the team to enroll in the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program and did not play a game after Feb. 18.
He returned to the team this summer and was skating at the team's rookie camp. He is expected to be ready to go in the fall when the 2023-24 season kicks off.
That could be a significant development for the Panthers.
It is easy to forget that Knight is still only 22 years old. He also has the ability and potential to be an upper-level starting goalie in the NHL.
Veteran Sergei Bobrovsky went through a huge bounce-back season this past year for the Panthers, especially in the playoffs and played a massive role in the team's surprising Stanley Cup Final run as the No. 8 seed out of the Eastern Conference.
As good as he was, he is still going to be 35 years old on Opening Night and his 2022-23 postseason performance was a massive outlier from recent seasons. There is no guarantee he plays at that level again.
It would be helpful for the Panthers to have another goalie that can take some of the workload off of him and be an insurance policy in case he reverts back to the level he was at prior to the second half of 2023. Knight has the ability to be that goalie.
Los Angeles Kings: Quinton Byfield
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Can a recent No. 2 overall pick really be considered a secret weapon? Because you expect that player to be a star for you, especially a few years into their career.
But in the case of Byfield and the Kings, it might be true.
Byfield has yet to reach his potential in Los Angeles and is now finding himself in a situation where the Kings have a trio of established, high-level centers ahead of him in Anze Kopitar, Philip Danault and Pierre-Luc Dubois.
But maybe that is the sort of situation he needs to start finding his place in the NHL.
The Kings' newfound center depth could result in a permanent shift to wing where he might be able to focus more on his offensive game. A move to the wing could give him a chance to play on a top line with a talented veteran next to him (as in any of the Kings' current centers) that can not only help drive possession, but also take some of the defensive pressure off of him.
He has just eight goals in 99 career games, but he's a 6-5, 220-pound forward with immense skill and talent. You always want to give a player like that every opportunity to succeed, and while the early results have not always been there we have seen some glimpses of the potential he has.
There have also been some signs of improvement across the board each year he has been in the league.
His assist numbers jumped this past season, while he has also improved his shot volume and underlying possession numbers. If he can put it all together for the Kings this season, it would turn an already strong Stanley Cup contender into a serious championship threat in the Western Conference.
Minnesota Wild: Brock Faber
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With the Wild's salary-cap situation being a royal mess over the next two years due to the Zach Parise and Ryan Suter buyouts, it is essential for the team to find cheap talent that can make an impact.
That means smart free-agent signings and trades, as well as a steady pipeline of talent through the farm system.
Faber, the key player acquired in last year's Kevin Fiala trade, could be one of those players coming through the system as soon as this season.
He is one of the Wild's top prospects and got his first taste of NHL action at the end of last season, appearing in two regular-season games and playing in all six of the team's playoff games.
He should be ready for a more permanent role this season, and along with Calen Addison could give the Wild a very intriguing young duo on defense.
While Addison's game is geared more toward offense at this point, Faber is a strong defensive player with advanced defensive instincts and has the potential to be a solid top-four defender in the NHL. All of that potential was on display in the playoffs where he never really looked out of place and held his own against one of the best teams in the league.
In 80 minutes of 5-on-5 hockey in the playoffs with Faber on the ice, the Wild didn't allow a single goal.
Montreal Canadiens: Alex Newhook
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For the second year in a row, the Canadiens are taking a chance on a highly touted prospect that did not realize their full potential with their initial team.
Last year, it was Kirby Dach coming over from the Chicago Blackhawks.
This year, it is Newhook coming over from the Colorado Avalanche.
Given how well the Dach acquisition worked out, there is a lot of reason to like Newhook's chances in Montreal for a similar development.
There is no denying Newhook's talent and potential, but he seemed to get lost in the shuffle in Colorado playing behind such a talented group of forwards. The Avalanche weren't necessarily in the business of developing young prospects. They were in the business of trying to win a Stanley Cup and that sort of situation can stunt the growth of a prospect like Newhook.
Now, he gets an opportunity to play more of a primary role in Montreal where he should get more minutes, more power-play minutes, and have an opportunity to really be a focal point of the offense.
It is the type of situation where a young, talented player could really excel, especially under an offensive-minded coach like Martin St. Louis who has had some success in helping young players take some big steps forward in the NHL. Dach had his best season in Montreal, while Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki also took big steps when St. Louis took over behind the bench.
Let's see what he can do with Newhook.
Nashville Predators: Denis Gurianov
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Gurianov is a new addition to Nashville this week and a very interesting reclamation project for a team that is going through an organizational transition.
A couple of years ago, Gurianov looked like a rising star in Dallas and somebody that could easily join their core.
It never happened.
He fell out of favor, his production plummeted and he was eventually traded to Montreal.
The 2022-23 season was the worst of Gurianov's career, but he has shown the ability to be a top-nine player and brings a lot of speed to Nashville's lineup. Given how thin the Predators' lineup is he should have an opportunity to get some minutes and get his career back on track.
During his first two years in the league, he was one of the most efficient 5-on-5 goal scorers in the NHL before he started to lose playing time in Dallas. When he arrived in Montreal some of that goal-scoring started to return with more ice time.
He is a nice low-risk, potentially high reward signing for a re-tooling Predators team that needs more offense.
New Jersey Devils: Luke Hughes
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The Devils are one of the most loaded rosters in the NHL and should be entering the 2023-24 season as a top Stanley Cup contender.
Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, Jesper Bratt and Timo Meier form an outstanding core of forwards, while their defense led by Dougie Hamilton was one of the most impressive units in the league this season in terms of generating offense and shutting things down in their own end.
That defense is also loaded with prospects, including 19-year-old Luke Hughes, the No. 4 overall pick from the 2021 NHL Draft.
We didn't get to see a ton of Hughes at the NHL level last season, but he did make a very promising debut after a dominant college career at the University of Michigan. The Devils' have a handful of defense prospects climbing the ladder to the NHL, with Hughes and 2022 No. 2 overall pick Simon Nemec leading the way.
When those guys get to the NHL and join Hamilton, John Marino and Jonas Siegenthaler on the New Jersey blue line, the group has the potential to be one of the best units in the entire league. If not THE best unit in the league.
Hughes is the closest of those prospects to the NHL and he has a chance to be another immediate star on what is already one of the most exciting teams in the NHL.
New York Islanders: Pierre Engvall
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Engvall has a chance to be one of those players we look at and say, "he is pretty good .... it is his contract that is the problem."
Maybe the Islanders gave him too much money over too many years (seven!), but he is the type of player the Islanders need to help balance out their lineup and provide some necessary scoring depth.
He has scored at least 15 goals in each of the past two seasons and really looked like a strong fit for the Islanders after he arrived on Long Island late in the 2022-23 season. His production at 5-on-5 play has been outstanding, not only in terms of his ability to produce offense (he has scored more than one goal per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play in two of the past three years), but also his ability to drive possession and keep the play moving in the right direction.
When you factor in that he gets almost no power play time and doesn't get top-line usage, the fact he is able to still give you 15 goals and 30 points is very solid production.
The Islanders need as much of that as they can get, especially in a bottom-six that has spent too many years focussing on grit and checking people and not enough on trying to actually score goals.
New York Rangers: Zac Jones
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The Rangers have had a lot of talented young defensemen roll through their farm system in recent years, with Adam Fox, K'Andre Miller, Braden Schneider and Nils Lundkvist (traded to Dallas) all becoming NHL regulars.
Jones could be the next in that line of talent and the fact he received a two-year contract this offseason is a pretty good sign that they like his chances to do exactly that.
Jones has seen some NHL action over parts of the past three seasons, but he hasn't really locked down a roster spot or a consistent role.
But with Peter Laviolette taking over for Gerard Gallant behind the Rangers' bench, there is a new system in town and one that might be better suited for a player of Jones' ability.
Jones never seemed to fit Gallant's style of play, while the former Rangers' bench boss seemed to be more in favor of having safer, more defensive-minded players throughout his defense. It didn't always produce the best results, or seem like a winning formula against some of the team's better teams.
Jones has the ability to bring a dimension to the Rangers' defense that it is severely lacking outside of Fox and Miller. He is not the biggest player or the fastest player, but he has strong vision on the ice and is an excellent passer and playmaker. Perhaps a fresh start with a new coach in a system that is more geared for his skillset is exactly what Jones needs to start making a more consistent impact in the NHL.
Ottawa Senators: Jake Sanderson
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Ottawa has assembled a very promising young roster in recent years and worked very hard to make sure they are all locked in place on long-term contracts.
While the forward group gets most of the attention, they have also started to assemble an impressive defensive unit led by Thomas Chabot and trade deadline acquisition Jakob Chychrun.
Sanderson is another very promising player within that group, and he might be ready for a big step forward this season.
The 2022-23 season was Sanderson's first in the NHL and he held his own as a 20-year-old rookie playing his first full year in the league.
The Senators were consistently on the positive side of every major possession metric when Sanderson was on the ice as he produced 32 total points.
He did that while stepping into a top-four role with no prior NHL experience. He played meaningful minutes at both even-strength and on the power play, showing a ton of promise. Chabot and Chychrun are going to be the players tasked with playing the biggest minutes this season, but don't overlook the impact that Sanderson can make entering his second season.
He has a chance to be another cornerstone player for a rapidly improving Senators team.
Philadelphia Flyers: Noah Cates
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If you are a Philadelphia Flyers fan you need to be preparing yourself for a brutal season ahead.
They were already one of the worst teams in the league, spent the offseason selling off more veteran players and don't have any prospects in the immediate future that can significantly impact the current roster.
The best move of the offseason was drafting Matvei Michkov, a prospect that is still probably a couple of years away from even arriving in Philadelphia, although he might be worth the wait).
That doesn't mean there is nothing to watch for this season. Because there is.
The big goal for the Flyers this season is going to be bringing along the young talent that is on the roster and making sure it gets better. Cates is one of those players at the top of the list.
He had a promising rookie season that saw him score 13 goals, while also displaying a very strong defensive game that actually netted him seven Selke Trophy votes.
He is going to be a player the Flyers are going to have to lean on a lot this season and he might be one of the few players on this roster that has a chance to actually be a part of the next good Flyers team.
Pittsburgh Penguins: Drew O'Connor
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The biggest problem for the Penguins this past season was that their bottom-six was a complete black hole in every sense of the game.
They didn't score.
They couldn't stop anybody from scoring.
And they did nothing to swing a game in the Penguins' direction.
New general manager Kyle Dubas has spent the offseason trying to re-tool that group with the offseason additions of Noel Accairi, Lars Eller and Matt Nieto.
But one of the most intriguing -- and potentially most impactful -- players in their bottom six might be a player that was already on the roster. And that is O'Connor.
He has not played a ton over the first two years of his career, but when he has good things have generally happened for the Penguins. He probably should have gotten an even bigger role this past season given how bad the rest of the bottom-six was. He certainly couldn't have done any worse.
He brings some much-needed youth and speed to what is the oldest roster in the NHL. He is very aggressive on the forecheck and defensively while also displaying some sneaky good offensive ability.
If he can earn the trust of head coach Mike Sullivan and get more than 10 minutes of ice time per game, he might be able to make a surprising impact.
San Jose Sharks: Anthony Duclair
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This might end up being one of the most important offseason additions any team made this summer.
It at least has the potential for that.
The Sharks were able to take advantage of the Florida Panthers' need to dump salary and were able to land Duclair for Steven Lorentz and a fifth-round draft pick.
That is an alarmingly small price for a player with Duclair's skill and production in recent years.
Ever since he got away from John Tortorella in Columbus, Duclair has quietly produced at a top-line rate and been an outstanding goal scorer for both Ottawa and Florida. Since joining the Senators at the end of the 2018-19 season, Duclair has scored at a 28-goal pace per 82 games while mostly getting just 15 minutes of ice time per game.
That is efficient production.
Now, he is going to a rebuilding Sharks team where he is going to have an opportunity to play big minutes, get premium power-play time, and have a chance to be a go-to player offensively.
Put all of that together and he has a chance to break the 30-goal mark for the second time in three years.
Seattle Kraken: Eeli Tolvanen
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Pretty much everything the Seattle Kraken touched in 2022-23 turned to gold and Tolvanen was just one of the many examples.
The Kraken snagged him off of waivers from the Nashville Predators in mid-December and he immediately started to make an impact. He ended up scoring 16 goals in his 48 games with the Kraken (that is a 27-goal pace over 82 games for those of you scoring at home) and started to resemble the impact player Nashville always hoped he would be.
And there was nothing about that production that seemed to be a fluke.
His ability to generate shots (2.02 per game) was the best of his career, while the Kraken owned 54 percent of the total shot attempts while he was on the ice during 5-on-5 play. He also did not have to rely on an outrageously high shooting percentage to score all of those goals.
He was just .... good. Really good. And he is now starting to enter his prime years and he should get an increased role this season following the Kraken's decision to let a player like Daniel Sprong go in free agency.
If Tolvanen can get an increase in ice-time and maintain the underlying numbers he displayed last season it would not be a surprise to see him make a run at 30 goals this season. All for the low price of $1.4 million against the cap. N
Not bad for a guy they got for nothing on the waiver wire.
St. Louis Blues: Jakub Vrána
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Things did not work out for Vrána with the Washington Capitals or Detroit Red Wings, but there is still a ton of talent here. St. Louis might be able to bring out the best in him.
The Blues were able to get a glimpse of that at the end of the 2022-23 season after acquiring him at the NHL trade deadline. Vrána scored 10 goals in his first 20 games with the team, and looked like the player both the Capitals and Red Wings thought he could be.
When Vrána has been on the ice in recent years he has shown a scoring touch, and has done very well in terms of his goals scored per minute.
The Blues have a very strong offensive team and are going to have a lot of talent around Vrana at forward. If he can give the Blues a full season's worth of games, he has the skill to be a 30-goal scorer and could be an under-the-radar game-changer. The Blues gave up almost nothing to take a chance on him and the early returns were very encouraging.
This could be a very good situation for him to finally put everything together and realize all of his potential.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Tanner Jeannot
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The Lightning shocked the hockey world at the trade deadline when they sent five(!) draft picks to the Nashville Predators for Jeannot.
The thought process behind it was understandable.
Tampa Bay was in a win-now mode and didn't really care about draft picks, while Jeannot checked all of the boxes that the Lightning tend to look for in a trade-deadline acquisition. He was in a prime-year age (mid-20s), had a cheap contract, had team control remaining beyond that particular season and he'd shown that he could play at the NHL level.
The initial returns weren't great. Jeannot struggled to make much of an impact and ended up scoring just one goal in 23 games (including playoffs) after the trade.
Overall, he scored just six goals all season after scoring 24 as a rookie.
But don't give up on Jeannot just yet.
When the Lightning paid a similarly high price to get Brandon Hagel from the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2022-23 season, he also had a painfully slow start with the Lightning after the trade. He came back the next year with a fresh start and turned out to be one of the Lightning's best players.
That doesn't mean Jeannot is guaranteed to push the 25-goal mark like he did during his rookie season, but he was crushed by an unsustainably low shooting percentage this season and fits the Lightning's style of play very well. A fresh start in the new year and some better shooting luck could help him get back on track. Don't give up on this trade just yet.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Max Domi
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The Maple Leafs haven't yet done anything dramatic to their core, while all of the Core-4 forwards still remain on the roster.
What they have done under new general manager Brad Treliving is completely re-tool their depth with the signings of Tyler Bertuzzi, John Klingberg, Ryan Reaves and Domi.
And that is a much-needed development.
While all of the focus in Toronto is always on their ability to defend and their goaltending, the 2022-23 Maple Leafs were actually one of the best defensive teams in hockey and got some surprisingly strong goaltending that even lasted through the playoffs. The defensive play and goaltending were good enough to go a long way and seriously compete for a championship.
It was the offense that let them down.
Specifically, the offense from their bottom-six when none of their core-four players were on the ice.
When none of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares and William Nylander were on the ice during 5-on-5 play the Maple Leafs averaged just 2.04 goals per 60 minutes (via Natural Stat Trick). That's the worst their depth players have done over the past five years, and it really hurt them in the playoffs when they scored just two goals in each of their final seven playoff games.
The offseason additions might help fix that, and especially Domi who figures to play a prominent role in the bottom-six.
He is not a great defensive player by any means, but he is a very skilled playmaker with the ability to score 20 goals. Bertuzzi is the player that garnered most of the offseason attention in Toronto, but don't sleep on what Domi can do for their bottom-six. They need somebody like him, and he is not costing them much against the cap.
Vancouver Canucks: Carson Soucy
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In recent years, the Vancouver Canucks offseason has always featured the front office thinking the team is better than it is. They end up throwing big money at a veteran player they don't need that does anything to advance their rebuild, re-tool, or whatever they want to call their perpetual state of mediocrity.
That has not really been the case this offseason and if anything, they made one of the smarter moves in free agency by adding Soucy from the Seattle Kraken.
Soucy is not going to provide a ton of offense to the Canucks' blue line, but he isn't a complete zero in that regard, either. He is just one year removed from a 10-goal season in Seattle. But do you know what he can do really well? He can defend and help keep the puck out of their own net.
And they desperately need that, especially given the unsettled nature of their goalie position.
The Canucks were a bottom-10 team in the NHL last year in terms of expected goals against during 5-on-5 play, while Soucy posted better-expected goal numbers than pretty much every player on the team's blue line.
With Soucy added to the mix and a full season of Filip Hronek on the way, Vancouver might actually be able to put together a respectable top-four around Quinn Hughes.
Vegas Golden Knights: Logan Thompson
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Adin Hill came out of nowhere to be the surprising star in goal for the Vegas Golden Knights on their way to a championship and it earned him a nice new contract extension this summer.
Not bad for a guy that started the year as the third-string goalie.
But for as impressive as Hill was in the playoffs, and for as much money as the team paid him this summer, there is a very real possibility that he is not the best goalie on the roster and should not be the full-time starter this season when everybody is healthy.
Thompson is still on the roster and he is expected to be ready for the start of the 2023-24 season.
And if he is, don't forget about him and what he is capable of.
Before he was lost to a season-ending lower-body injury in February, he was playing at a very high level in the Vegas night and doing his part to solidify the position following the season-ending injury to veteran Robin Lehner.
Over the past two years, he has maintained a .915 save percentage over 56 games, which is far above the league average.
Among the 50 goalies that have played at least 50 regular-season games the past two years, that save percentage is 13th best in the league, while his .922 even-strength save percentage is 11th best out of that group.
He's been good. Very good. And he is kind of being forgotten about because of Hill's hot streak over a few weeks in the playoffs. If he returns healthy and plays the way he did prior to his injury, the defending Stanley Cup champions might be even better.
Washington Capitals: Matthew Phillips
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This is a bold pick, but let's get weird with this.
Phillips isn't the most prominent name the Capitals added to their roster this offseason (that would be Max Pacioretty), but he might be the most intriguing.
Phillips has played just three games in the NHL in his career and would be one of the smallest players in the league if he makes the Capitals' roster at any point.
What makes him so fascinating is that he might be the type of player that simply needs a chance. While his NHL resume is almost non-existent, he has spent the past two years absolutely ripping up the American Hockey League, scoring 67 goals in 131 games.
He has talent and he has goal-scoring ability. He just needs an opportunity.
Recent NHL history is full of players that were considered too small or undersized to get an opportunity. Jonathan Marchessault is one of the most prominent examples of what can happen when a talented player gets a chance.
Expecting Phillips to perform at that level is probably setting expectations a little too high, but if he turns out to be the next Conor Sheary or a comparable player, that would be quite a find for the Capitals at that price.
Winnipeg Jets: Gabriel Vilardi
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When it became known that Pierre-Luc Dubois did not want to stay in Winnipeg long-term it would have been easy to think that the Jets had little leverage in trade talks.
Trade values are almost always underwhelming in the NHL these days and when you have a restricted free agent due for a big raise that everybody knows you need to deal, it brings that value down.
But the Jets did surprisingly well when they traded Dubois to the Kings and got a couple of really nice players in Vilardi and Alex Iafallo to help their forward group.
Vilardi is by far the most interesting of the two given his age (he is still only 23 years old) and the fact he is coming off a really strong season.
Vilardi was one of the few young Kings players that actually started to make a meaningful impact and scored 23 goals in only 63 games.
With Dubois and Blake Wheeler out the door, the Jets are going to have some big shoes to fill offensively in their top six, and Vilardi figures to be somebody that can step into that role. He had a breakout season of sorts in 2022-23 and could be poised for an even bigger year this season with an increased role.
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.jpg?w=600 "Mike McCarthy Talks Lemon Call")
