25 bold predictions for the 2025-26 NHL season
If you’ve ever watched The Bachelor franchise, you know the show’s host, whether it be Chris Harrison or Jesse Palmer, has a tongue-in-cheek tradition of declaring every season “the most dramatic one yet.”
That’s how I feel about the 2025-26 NHL season. I know the league never lacks for drama, particularly with the Edmonton Oilers reaching the past two Stanley Cup Finals, but, seriously…this season shapes up to be one of the most dramatic ever.
We have so many storylines to navigate, from Connor McDavid’s contract to how the Toronto Maple Leafs fare without Mitch Marner to the injury-depleted Florida Panthers’ quest for a threepeat.
How will this season play out? I’ve tried my hand at 25 bold predictions here.
1. Uncertain about his future but still believing the Edmonton Oilers can win a Stanley Cup soon, Connor McDavid re-signs…for three years.
McDavid is worth $20 million annually but “settles” for something in the Kirill Kaprizov range, hoping that gives GM Stan Bowman enough cap space to put a championship-caliber team on the ice. We fire up the handwringing once more when McDavid arrives at his 2028-29 walk year as a 31-year-old.
2. Auston Matthews takes the Toronto Maple Leafs on his back and wins his second career Hart Trophy.
For any PHWA voter who follows the purist Hart mantra that the award goes to the player judged most valuable to his team, the Matthews narrative could be catnip. Without gifted playmaker Marner on his wing, Matthews might not lead the league in goals and won’t come close in points. But if last season’s mysterious nagging injury doesn’t hold him back again, and he logs 75 games…he could do so with elite play at both ends of the ice. Imagine a season in which Matthews puts up 45 goals and 95 points and plays Selke-Trophy-caliber defense on a Toronto team that doesn’t lose too much of a step without Marner. Matthews would be deemed extremely valuable to his team in that scenario. Perhaps the most valuable.
3. The American men finally break their best-on-best drought and capture gold at the 2026 Olympics.
Team USA had no Quinn Hughes, no Charlie McAvoy and a husk of Matthew Tkachuk at the 4 Nations Face-Off and still came within a single shot of winning the tournament. This time, their peerless depth, not to mention their physicality, will get them to the summit, taking down Canada in the rematch.
4. The Olympics’ biggest shocker: a Cinderella bronze medal for Germany.
Led by Leon Draisaitl, Tim Stutzle and JJ Peterka at forward and Moritz Seider on defense, Germany has never iced a team this competitive in best-on-best play. It has a legitimate chance to finish second in Group C behind USA and reach the knockout round, at which point any team is capable of pulling off an upset or two.
5. Playoffs or no playoffs, Tage Thompson carries over his 2024-25 momentum, tops 50 goals and wins the Rocket Richard Trophy.
The towering talent has seasons of 47 and 44 goals to his name. He led all NHLers in 5-on-5 goals per 60 minutes last season. If the Buffalo Sabres can improve their power play even to the middle of the pack, Tage and his trusty one-timer will deliver a career year.
6. Ivan Demidov Mania takes over as the sensational rookie brings the Montreal Canadiens their second consecutive Calder Trophy.
Demidov’s size, smarts and breathtaking puck skills give defenders fits, and he’s ready to be an impact player in his first full NHL season. This year: at least 65 points and rookie of the year honors. He’ll climb the next rung toward superstardom the season after that.
7. After a 12-point improvement last season, the Utah Mammoth make the final push and reach the playoffs.
The Mammoth were an 89-point team a year ago, they added Peterka, Nate Schmidt and Brandon Tanev to that group, and they should see continued growth from rising stars Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther. They also barely got half-seasons from top-four blueliners John Marino and Sean Durzi last year due to injury. Bet on Utah to snag a Wildcard spot and play its first postseason hockey since Bill Armstrong took over as GM in 2020 when the Mammoth were still the Arizona Coyotes.
8. Vastly improved under new coach Joel Quenneville, the Anaheim Ducks fall just short of a Wildcard spot.
Their rise from 59 to 80 points was last season’s biggest jump, and they climb again to 95 points this season, but the crowded Central Division claims five playoff spots, leaving only three for the Pacific. Still, with a core of Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier, Mason McTavish, Jackson LaCombe, Lukas Dostal and more, the Ducks won’t miss the playoffs for a long time after this season.
9. Jake Oettinger finally delivers a dominant wire-to-wire season and captures his first Vezina Trophy.
Also: he snatches the Team USA starting job from Connor Hellebuyck and is the goalie of record in the gold-clinching contest.
10. With better health luck, the New Jersey Devils course correct and are a top-five team in the NHL.
Jack Hughes has a relatively healthy season, freshly signed brother Luke enjoys a true breakout on the blueline, and the Devils’ deep roster rises comfortably north of 100 points.
11. After making Kirill Kaprizov a $17-million man starting next season, the Minnesota Wild miss the playoffs this season.
It may come down to the final day, but a team that didn’t make enough splashy summer additions and must spend a good chunk of the season without Mats Zuccarello will get leapfrogged by Utah. Defenseman Zeev Buium nonetheless will be a treat to watch as a rookie, while Kaprizov will post some stellar individual numbers.
12. First coach fired: Andrew Brunette, Nashville Predators.
The Preds were a colossal disappointment last season, dropping their first five games and never forging the right chemistry with all their exciting offseason signings. While it’s true they had bad puck luck in 2024-25, they’re now caught between (a) their top veterans all being in their 30s and past their primes and (b) their best prospects all being too young to play in the NHL yet. That means another disappointing year, and there’s no way GM and Nashville royalty Barry Trotz falls on the sword. ‘Bruno’ will have to be the scapegoat.
13. With his veteran-heavy team sinking, Pred GM Barry Trotz holds a fire sale in Music City.
From Ryan O’Reilly to Jonathan Marchessault to perhaps even Steven Stamkos, Nashville strips it down to the studs at the Trade Deadline just as the Boston Bruins did last winter.
14. The year’s sneakiest 30-goal breakout: Shane Wright with the Seattle Kraken.
The Kraken have slow-played Wright’s development, sometimes maddeningly so. But his deadly release was heralded when he came up as a prospect, and it yielded 19 goals last season in just 14:04 of average ice time. Now finally established as a full-time NHLer, he will see his minutes and his scoring-chance volume rise – especially given all the injuries to Seattle’s forward group. With his efficiency, even a modest jump in playing time should produce a nice scoring spike.
15. Adam Fantilli delivers an All-Star-caliber season and leads the Columbus Blue Jackets to the playoffs.
It’s easy to forget Fantilli, the 2023 Draft’s third-overall pick, was such a star prospect that he would’ve gone No. 1 overall in 2022. He’s a beast. He had 24 goals and 39 points in 44 games after Jan. 1 last season. The Jackets were close to making the playoffs last year and, with Fantilli levelling up again, they’ll get the extra few wins needed to snatch a Wildcard berth.
16. The biggest name moved at the 2026 Trade Deadline: Artemi Panarin, New York Rangers.
The Blueshirts might hang around the playoff periphery but will ultimately hope to make their big improvements via the stacked 2026 UFA class. Rather than re-sign Panarin, who turns 34 this month, they can move him for a bushel of picks and prospects next March. Who will be the top suitor for the Bread Man?
17. Honoring a tradition ordained by the ancient hockey gods, the Pittsburgh Penguins finish last overall and win the 2026 NHL Draft lottery.
Every 21 years, the Pens select a generational talent with the first pick: Mario Lemieux in 1984, Sidney Crosby in 2005, and it shall be Gavin McKenna in 2026.
18. Sidney Crosby remains a Penguin all season.
Despite significant leaguewide interest approaching the Trade Deadline, Crosby, who is signed through 2026-27, decides not to waive his no-movement clause. He stays around to mentor McKenna at the start of next season. Crosby is more likely to change teams in winter 2027 during his walk year.
19. Evgeni Malkin does not.
‘Geno’ waives his no-movement clause and heads to the Panthers for one last playoff run to close out his career. Or is it? Perhaps he re-ups there on team-friendly deal for another kick at the can in 2026-27.
20. The new playoff salary cap leads to some shocking lineup scratches when Round 1 begins.
The days of the Tampa Bay Lightning icing a team $18 million north of the cap during the postseason are over, and GMs who trade first and think later at the 2026 Deadline end up having to squeeze out a few decent players for cap compliance during the trial-and-error process.
21. The Washington Capitals remain a playoff team but take a significant step back as all their career years regress to the mean.
The Caps had the highest 5-on-5 shooting percentage in the NHL last season as Aliaksei Protas, Tom Wilson, Dylan Strome, Jakob Chychrun, Connor McMichael and more posted personal bests in goals. This time, their puck luck levels off, costs them 10 points in the standings and pushes them down closer to the Eastern Conference Wildcard pack.
22. Alex Ovechkin ups his goal total from 897 to 930 and retires from the NHL at 40 when his contract expires.
Ovi’s Capitals make the playoffs again for another short run, and he heads home to play at least one more pro hockey season in the KHL with his hometown team Dynamo Moscow.
23. Having made few improvements to a team that missed the playoffs last season, the Vancouver Canucks miss again, and the Quinn Hughes trade chatter explodes in early summer 2026.
Brothers Luke and Jack will push for a reunion in New Jersey, but Canucks president Jim Rutherford and GM Patrik Allvin will host all suitors in search of a blockbuster sign-and-trade during the 2026 NHL Draft weekend.
24. The Buffalo Sabres’ playoff drought reaches a record 15th season, and GM Kevyn Adams gets the axe.
His runway ends after six years and an offseason that saw him trade Peterka for 75 cents on the dollar. Perhaps Adams’ next NHL gig comes in a place with palm trees.
25. The Carolina Hurricanes defeat the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2025-26 Stanley Cup Final.
Carolina achieves the ideal mix of top-end scoring (Seth Jarvis, Sebastian Aho, Nikolaj Ehlers), depth and emerging youth (Logan Stankoven, Jackson Blake, Alexander Nikishin, Bradly Nadeau), with enough cap space for GM Eric Tulsky to make a major Trade Deadline addition, perhaps in net and/or at forward. Carolina slips past Vegas in a seven-game nailbiter of a series and becomes the first Presidents’ Trophy winner to hoist the Cup since the 2012-13 Chicago Blackhawks.
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