6 NHL Storylines That Will Define the Rest of the 2024-25 Season
There's fewer than a month remaining in the 2024-25 NHL regular season, and we've seen no shortage of storylines come to fruition this year.
The 4 Nations Face-Off exceeded even the highest expectations, replacing the annual All-Star Game with high-level international hockey that took the sports world—and the ratings—by storm.
The Winnipeg Jets have followed up their historic start to the season with consistent victories, holding firm with their league-leading record. Meanwhile, the Washington Capitals are anything but a fluke as the best team out East.
With that all in mind, heere are the six biggest happenings still developing that will define the rest of the season.
The Gr8t Chase for Alex Ovechkin
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Alex Ovechkin entered this season at 39 years old, needing 42 goals to break Wayne Gretzky's record of 894 career goals -- a record that has held up since 1999.
The question was less "Is Ovechkin going to break it?" since he has had 20 consecutive 20-goal seasons and has one more year after this left on his contract. It was more, "will he do it in 2024-25?"
It's looking like the answer is "yes," but it's going to come down to the thrilling wire.
Despite enduring one of the longest "out with injury" periods of his career this year, Ovechkin has 34 goals this season and needs just eight more with 14 games left to become the NHL's all-time leader.
It's been an unexpectedly great season for the Capitals, who rank No. 1 in the East and have been consistently at the top all season. Considering Ovechkin's time out with injury, and that he has given up a few opportunities to shoot and own the record sooner for the greater good of his playoff-bound team, it'll be extra special if he pulls it off this season.
The Race for the Wild-Card Spots in the Eastern Conference
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If you're already itching for a playoff feel with your hockey, look no further than the race for the wild-card spots in the Eastern Conference.
There are five teams—the Senators, Rangers, Canadiens, Red Wings and Blue Jackets—realistically fighting for the two spots.
The holder of the No. 2 spot rotates a few times per week at this point, with the Canadiens (73 standings points) currently hanging on over the Rangers (72) by just one point. The Islanders, Blue Jackets, and Red Wings are all tied right behind them with 70 points.
Will the Senators keep their good vibes going after the Canadiens just snapped their crucial six-game win streak? Will the Rangers, the team that was in a playoff spot on American Thanksgiving, fully bounce back from their inconsistent season and finish strong with a playoff ticket?
Perhaps the Red Wings and their ridiculously good power play will prevail, or maybe the Blue Jackets will turn their recent luck around and make it happen. The Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Lane Hutson experience in Montreal is too good to count out as well.
Each team in this race has its flaws, and each team brings something unique to the table. We'll all just have to watch closely to see how this one plays out.
The Playoff Race in the Western Conference
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The Eastern Conference playoff race might be tighter with more teams realistically still in the fight, but the Western Conference playoff race is just as juicy. The drop off from the top of the pack to the bottom is palpable with the Wild and the Canucks separated by a healthy six points in the respective first and second wild card positions.
After that, the Canucks are tied in points with the Blues, the Flames are behind them by two points, and the Hockey Club is behind the Flames by two points.
The philosophy out West is more “who’s gonna blow it?” compared to the East’s “who’s gonna rise above?,” but that’s entertaining in its own right.
Will the Canucks conclude their disappointing season falling from grade and out of the playoffs, or have they got something cooking with their 6-2 win over the Jets Tuesday? Did the Flames decide to essentially stand pat at the deadline for nothing, or will Calder candidate Dustin Wolf lead them to the postseason? Oh yeah, and will Jim Montgomery coach the Blues to the playoffs as the Bruins miss out?
The Western Conference playoff race is great entertainment for the haters among us.
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The Brawl-for-All in the Atlantic Division
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The wild-card races are intense, but the last month of the regular season isn't just a walk in the park for the teams at the very top.
While the adage "you have to beat the best to beat the best" rings true in the Stanley Cup playoffs, seeding and home-ice advantage never hurt anyone.
The Toronto Maple Leafs know that better than most as they have fallen to the Bruins year after year. But with Boston essentially out of the picture now, the Leafs find themselves in a heated race for a top seed in the Atlantic.
The Panthers, who just beat Toronto 3-2, currently own the top seed with 85 points. The Lightning hold the No. 2 seed with 83 points and 34 regulation wins, while the Leafs are in third with 83 points and 32 regulation wins.
The Leafs get two more regular-season cracks at the Cats on April 2 and 8. They will face off against the Lightning for the final time on April 9.
All of this means seeding, like most things when it comes to this year's Eastern Conference, will come down to the wire. The recent Panthers-Leafs game was electric, so it's a treat to have two more consequential regular-season outings from these teams.
The Hart Trophy Race for NHL MVP
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This year's Hart Trophy discussion might open up a can of worms that has been sitting in the back of the cupboard since legendary goaltender Carey Price last opened it a decade ago: What does it take for a goaltender to win the NHL award for the most valuable player?
Connor Hellebuyck is the most valuable player on his Winnipeg Jets team and the most consistently excellent goaltender in the league. It's all the more impressive when you note that he plays significantly more games than most goalies (bar Andrei Vasilevskiy) and holds the league lead in both goals against average (2.05) and save percentage (.924).
Most would argue Hellebuyck is the top reason the Jets have had so much success as the best team in the league this season, but many Hart voters are hesitant to go the netminder route.
It comes down to one question: Does your MVP have to play every single game to qualify for the award?
If your answer is yes, you're looking at either Nathan MacKinnon or Leon Draisaitl to finish the year off strong.
MacKinnon has followed up his 2023-24 Hart Trophy season with another stellar performance, and he’s done it through much more turmoil as the goaltending situation threatened to throw off the Avalanche early on, and he recently said goodbye to longtime linemate Mikko Rantanen.
MacKinnon leads the league with 103 points in 68 games, and he leads all forwards with an average 22:51 time on ice.
This season, Draisaitl got the opportunity to prove what fans knew all along: He's so much more than just Connor McDavid's sidekick. In a down year for McDavid, Draisaitl has stepped up and dragged the team through its slumps to end up back around the top now.
He's just two points behind the only other current member of the 100-point club, MacKinnon, with 101. He’s got a league-leading 49 goals to MacKinnon's 27, and the 49 goals are 11 more than William Nylander's next-best 38. Draisaitl's 10 game-winners also lead the league.
The Calder Trophy Race for NHL Rookie of the Year
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We have been treated to three Calder Trophy-worthy performances this season, and it might have been four if a certain Flyers head coach didn't have a penchant for benching his stars.
At this point, it's down to Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson, Flames goaltender Dustin Wolf and Sharks center Macklin Celebrini.
Hutson's flavor of defense feels like the final form of the new-era positionless vibe. He’s leading the bunch in overall points with five goals and 53 points in 67 games. He’s on pace to become the first rookie defenseman to hit 60 points in a season since Nicklas Lidstrom in 1991-92 (Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar were on pace to do the same in their rookie year before the COVID shutdown).
The Canadiens probably aren’t this close in the playoff race without Huston’s growth throughout the season, and he’s a joy to watch.
Celebrini’s No. 2 in points but has the edge in goals, with 21 goals and 50 points in 56 games. It’s a shame an early injury robbed Celebrini of 10 games, especially with how his game flourished once he settled in. But it is what it is, and the reality of the situation is it may have cost him the Calder Trophy with such a high level of competition in this class. That’s up for debate though, especially if he spends the next month on a tear.
Wolf’s emergence in net is realistically the biggest reason the Flames are in the playoff race. The Flames were expected to be among the worst teams in the league before he stole the net, and his .912 save percentage has held them steady. His 41-game workload is impressive as a rookie, especially under so much pressure.
Every game is going to count as these three battle it out for rookie of the year this month.
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