NHL Teams Experiencing the Most Early Problems in 2015-16 Season

Sports aren't all fun and games.

A surprising number of NHL teams have had a tough time getting into gear at the beginning of the 2015-16 regular season. Even more surprisingly, a good portion of that group is made up of teams that were expected to make some positive strides this year.

Rather than simply focusing on the teams that aren't winning, this slideshow spotlights the teams whose starts have fallen well below offseason expectations. It looks at the specific challenges they're facing and whether the teams will be able to make the necessary adjustments to get back on track.

Anaheim Ducks

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What Were the Expectations? Stanley Cup, baby! The Hockey News, for one, pegged the Anaheim Ducks to take hockey's top prize next June as part of its 2015-16 season preview.

What Are the Problems? Offense. Anaheim has scored just one goal in the first four games of the new season and sits 13th in the Western Conference with an 0-3-1 record.

Making matters worse for their fans, three of those four games have been played at the Honda Center, where the Ducks are traditionally less-than-welcoming hosts for opposing teams.

Can They Rebound? One would think so. Anaheim tied for 10th in league scoring last season. The team boasts one of the top one-two punches in the league in Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, as well as a solid arsenal of secondary-scoring talent.

Though they were outshot 44-27 on the road by the San Jose Sharks in their season opener, the Ducks have outshot all three of the opponents they've faced on home ice. Every sharpshooter goes a little cold from time to time—it's just rare for an entire team to be afflicted all at once.

Boston Bruins

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What Were the Expectations? The Boston Bruins were looking to bounce back after missing the playoffs in 2014-15. New general manager Don Sweeney took bold steps to shuffle his stale lineup by shipping out key players Milan Lucic and Dougie Hamilton.

What Are the Problems? The Bruins have a 1-3-0 record in the early going. They've done alright in the goal-scoring department, where David Krejci leads the way with six points, but they are having trouble keeping pucks out of the net.

Injuries have been an issue, especially on a blue line that took a body blow when Johnny Boychuk was traded before the 2014-15 season, even before Hamilton departed.

Steady defenseman Dennis Seidenberg is expected to be sidelined until mid-November after undergoing preseason back surgery, while captain Zdeno Chara missed the first two games of the year with an upper-body issue. In addition, two-way winger Brad Marchand suffered a concussion during Boston's second game, against the Montreal Canadiens, that has knocked him out of action indefinitely.

Can They Rebound? A good team effort earned the Bruins their first win of the year on October 14—a 6-2 decision against the Colorado Avalanche.

The victory offers a glimmer of hope, but there's no getting around the inexperience on Boston's blue line. Once you get past Chara, Torey Krug, Adam McQuaid and the injured Seidenberg, the Bruins are pulling from a pool of five defensemen who are all making less than $1 million this year, according to General Fanager.

Kevan Miller is the veteran of the group with 92 games played, Zach Trotman brings 30 games of NHL experience and Joe Morrow, Colin Miller and Tommy Cross are all rookies.

It appears the Bruins will be forced to stick with this trial-by-fire approach to their back end. The team doesn't have enough cap space to add a veteran defender without moving out a salary from the forward ranks. As long as Chara's reasonably healthy, he's part of the solution—not a trade chip at this time.

Calgary Flames

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What Were the Expectations? A breakout season in 2014-15 and some high-profile personnel additions had the Calgary Flames poised to move from pretender to contender in the Western Conference.

What Are the Problems? The Flames are 1-3-0 through their first four games of the season, with their only win coming in overtime against Vancouver.

On paper, Calgary's defense looks great, especially after the offseason acquisition of Dougie Hamilton. But the Flames are giving up an average of 3.5 goals a game and are struggling to settle on a long-term goaltending tandem.

Injuries are also proving to be an early-season issue. Defenseman T.J. Brodie remains sidelined with a broken hand, suffered in preseason, while feisty forward Lance Bouma broke his leg on October 14 against the St. Louis Blues, per the Canadian Press (via Sportsnet).

Can They Rebound? The Flames may have overachieved last season, but along the way, they developed a never-say-die attitude that led to a 13-14-3 record when the team trailed by one period, according to NHL.com.

It's unlikely Calgary's determined team-first approach will be dimmed too much by a small setback like a slow start. Expect the Flames to start giving opponents plenty of trouble before too long.

Columbus Blue Jackets

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What Were the Expectations? The Columbus Blue Jackets ended the 2014-15 regular season as the NHL's hottest team, posting a 15-2-1 record over the last month to help erase the memories of a campaign that was largely derailed by injuries.

After naming Nick Foligno captain, acquiring Brandon Saad and getting a healthy David Clarkson back into the mix, optimism abounded heading into the new campaign.

What Are the Problems? In their first five games, the Blue Jackets have failed to earn a point and have given up a nightmarish 26 goals—by far the worst in the league.

Back-to-back losses to Presidents' Trophy holders the New York Rangers to start the season seemed reasonably palatable, but the Jackets have gone on to lose 4-2 to the Buffalo Sabres, 7-3 to the Ottawa Senators and 6-3 to the Toronto Maple Leafs. That's a grim picture.

Can They Rebound? The Jackets' defensive future is being built around David Savard, 24, who broke out last season and signed a rich five-year, $21-million contract extension in early September, per NHL.com.

Savard's off to a bumpy start with a minus-7 rating through five games but should find his footing as the season wears on.

The other good news for coach Todd Richards is that 2012 second overall draft pick Ryan Murray is healthy. After a promising start to his NHL career, Murray was sidelined during the Jackets' 2014 playoff run, then played just 12 games last season because of more injury issues.

Murray was a plus-one against Toronto on October 16 and led all Blue Jackets players with 23:57 of ice time. He's an important building block for the Columbus if the team hopes to bounce back from this tough start to the season. 

Edmonton Oilers

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What Were the Expectations? New coach. New general manager. New starting goaltender Cam Talbot. New top-level UFA defenseman Andrej Sekera. And some kid named Connor coming out of the draft with a good chance of making the team.

This was supposed to be the year that the perpetually struggling young Oilers finally turned things around for real.

What Are the Problems? The Oilers' early schedule hasn't been easy—all Central Division matchups with two games against the St. Louis Blues and singles against the Nashville Predators and Dallas Stars. Still, the hope that rose from a 6-1-1 preseason has quickly evaporated after an 0-4-0 start, during which Edmonton has scored just five goals.

Edmonton's missing a key piece up front in injured Jordan Eberle, but the rest of the roster is healthy.

Can They Rebound? The entire Oilers organization will benefit when the hype surrounding Connor McDavid dies down. The rookie has shown some good speed and savvy hockey sense in his first few games but, like most 18-year-olds, won't be carrying a franchise on his back anytime soon.

More changes may be in store in Edmonton as this new group works to create an identity for the team. Don't expect to see the Oilers in the playoff picture, but at this point, there's nowhere to go but up.

Los Angeles Kings

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What Were the Expectations? After missing out on a playoff spot and a chance to defend their Stanley Cup title by just two points last spring, the well-rested Los Angeles Kings were expected to return to action with guns a-blazin' after a long summer of training and rejuvenation.

What Are the Problems? The NHL's 20th-ranked offense from 2014-15 has come up empty once again. L.A. scored just two goals in its first three games, all losses, before Anze Kopitar capped off a 2-1 overtime win against the Minnesota Wild for the team's first points of the season. 

Can They Rebound? The Kings' swagger took a hit last season as their playoff dreams crumbled, and the organization spent the offseason dealing with plenty more drama: Slava Voynov's incarceration and eventual return to Russia, Mike Richards' arrest and the termination of his contract and Jarret Stoll's drug arrest.

The fallout from those issues could continue to cause ripples in a dressing room that was known for its cohesion when the Kings were on the winning track. To put all this behind them, the Kings need to embrace the adage that whatever doesn't kill them will make them stronger.