NHL: 5 Teams with the Most Question Marks This Offseason

The Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks won't return to the NHL playoffs if they don't first answer pressing roster question marks. 

The Montreal Canadiens, Columbus Blue Jackets and Toronto Maple Leafs will continue to be part of the NHL's doormat if they don't answer their biggest roster question marks.

While every team faces some sort of roster dilemma, these fives teams—Boston, Columbus, Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto—have to grapple with the most vexing questions.

Whether it's questions about goaltending, whether to trade their star player or trying to figure out what went wrong, if they don't answer their big questions, they'll be on the outside looking in.

If they don't figure out the answers to these questions, they will not contend. 

In hockey, like in other sports, it's adapt or die.

Teams that respond best to crises end up performing well. Teams that don't end up in the gutter. 

Will the Bruins and Maple Leafs respond to goalie questions? Will the Canucks figure out how things went so bad, so quick? Will the Blue Jackets trade their star player? And will Montreal improve their offense?

Read on to find out what they need to do to contend next season. 

Boston Bruins

After winning the Stanley Cup in 2010-11, the Bruins were on top of the world.

It hasn't been as easy since.

Boston finished second in the Eastern conference, but lost in the first round of the playoffs.

To make matters worse, star goalie Tim Thomas announced he was taking a year off.

Thomas has been the backbone of this team for years, and losing him will be tough, with highly-touted backup Tuukka Rask replacing him.

Last season, Rask went 11-8-3, with a 2.05 goals against average and a .929 save percentage.

In 2009-10, Rask played in a career-high 45 games, and posted an impressive 1.91 goals against average and a .931 save percentage. He went 22-12-5

Those are very good numbers, but now he's the starter and all the pressure is on him.

In addition, Rask is a restricted free agent, so a team could sign him to an offer sheet the Bruins can't match.

If that happens, Boston is really in trouble. 

Besides the goalie issue, the B's would like to add a defenseman or two.

If Rask cannot handle a starting job, then the Bruins will not come close to their Stanley Cup form. 

Columbus Blue Jackets

To trade Rick Nash, or not to trade Rick Nash, that is the question.

The Blue Jackets flirted with trading their captain at the deadline, but didn't find an offer suitable.

Nash wants out, but because he is an elite player, the Jackets will want a sizable package in return.

If they are smart, they can use Nash to fill holes on their roster.

While they have some talent, especially with Derick Brassard and Jack Johnson, the Jackets need more scoring, better defense and a consistent goalie.

The Rangers are one of the teams involved in the Nash talks. At the deadline, their rumored offer consisted of Brandon Dubinsky and some of their top prospects. 

The Rangers will have to, most likely, part with either Chris Kreider or Ryan McDonagh to get Nash.

Teams like San Jose—who could offer up Logan Coture—Boston, Toronto and Philadelphia will all be interested.

Trading Nash is the right move. He wants out and they can start anew. If they can get a good package in return, they will be better off for it.

Still, the Jackets have to play this correctly. They can't ask for too much and scare teams off, but they can't ask for too little and regret their decision later.

They need to find an appropriate balance.

With multiple teams interested in Nash, they can have a nice bidding war and reap the benefits. 

This is a crucial moment for the franchise. If they trade Nash for a number of quality players, they will be better off and contending sooner rather than later. If they hold on to Nash, they will continue to toil in obscurity. 

Vancouver Canucks

Vancouver won the President's Trophy as the team with the most points in the regular season.

And then they lost in the first round to the Kings.

Of course, the Kings would go on to win the Stanley Cup, but this was not how the Canucks envisioned their postseason going. 

The biggest question is whether they will trade goalie Roberto Luongo.

Luongo is still good, as he posted a 31-14-8 record, along with a 2.41 goals against average and a .919 save percentage.

But there's been rumblings that he could be on the way out.

If they decide to trade him, the Canucks will have to rely on Cory Schneider.

Schneider has been excellent in backup duty, and it is his presence that makes Luongo expendable.

Schneider went 20-8-1 last season, with a terrific 1.96 goals against average and a .937 save percentage. 

Besides deciding on Luongo, the Canucks will have to figure out why they went from best team in the regular season, to out in the first round of the playoffs. 

It won't be easy. Their playoff run was, in large part, flummoxed by Jonathan Quick, who ended up winning the Conn Smythe trophy as the playoffs' most valuable player. But they were wholly outplayed by the Kings, a team that barely made the playoffs.

One of their best players, Ryan Kesler, was one of their worst performers in the series. Their defensive unit—solid in the regular season—fell flat on their face in the postseason.

The Canucks can decide to clean house or, more wisely, add another defenseman and scorer to help out. The Canucks would benefit with a few more gritty players.

Vancouver were the best team in the regular season, so not all is lost. But NHL success is measured in playoff success; the 2010-11 team was a failure.

Adding a few key parts should get them back to the mountain top. Staying pat will produce another disappointment.  

Montreal Canadiens

Finishing last in the Eastern conference is just not good enough for the Canadiens.

It was a rough season in Montreal, and it resulted in a lot of people losing their jobs, with the Habs hiring Michel Terrien to be their new bench boss. 

Their main order of business will be getting P.K. Subban and Carey Price under contract.

Price is key to this team, and will have to play more like he did in 2010-11, where he posted a 2.35 goals against average.

They will need to upgrade their offense after they finished 20th in the league in goals and 28th in power play.

Their defense isn't terrible, although they only have four D-men under contract.

The Habs will try to rid themselves of Scott Gomez's contract, but that's easier said than done.

They might be interested in Rick Nash; he would be a huge upgrade.

The Canadiens will look at anyone who can improve their power play—someone like Dennis Wideman might work. 

This offseason will be all about offense and adding consistency. If Terrien proves to be the right choice, Montreal will be on the right track.

But if they cannot add offense, they will provide a repeat performance as the conference's worst team.

The Canadiens expect excellence, so this season was a massive disappointment. If it happens again, there will be a lot of change in Montreal.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Toronto finished third to last in the Eastern Conference and has struggled to contend for a few years now.

This will be their first full season with coach Randy Carlyle. In 18 games with Carlyle at the helm, the Leafs went 6-9-3.

Toronto doesn't have a bad offense, they just really need to improve their back end.

The first question is at goalie: Will James Reimer be healthy enough? If he is, is he the goalie they want going forward?

Reimer posted a 14-14-4 record, along with a 3.10 goals against average and a .900 save percentage.

The Maple Leafs could decide they want to go after Roberto Luongo. He would present an upgrade.

They will need to improve a defense that finished 29th in the league in goals against. 

Going after defenseman Ryan Suter would go a long way towards fixing that. If not Suter, someone like Matt Carle or Bryce Salvador would be smart.

Improving their defense could turn Toronto into a contender. If they decide to stand pat, they will suffer. 

Fixing their back end will be the imperative for the Maple Leafs this offseason and failure to do so effectively will result in another poor season.