Where do Golden Knights stack up in an improved Pacific Division?
The Pacific Division had an adventurous offseason.
The Golden Knights lost a number of players that helped them win the Stanley Cup in 2023. They reacted by adding some low-risk, high-reward players in the hopes of making another run.
The other seven teams in the division were busy as well. There should be plenty of competition for playoff spots given four clubs from the Pacific made the postseason a year ago and the Edmonton Oilers made it all the way to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.
Here’s a look at what the Knights’ seven division foes did this offseason as training camps start to get underway around the NHL.
Teams are listed in order of their finish last season. The Knights (45-29-8) finished fourth and earned the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
1. Vancouver Canucks (50-23-9; lost in Game 7, 2nd round to Edmonton)
Key additions: left wing Jake DeBrusk, left wing Danton Heinen, right wing Daniel Sprong
Key departures: centers Sam Lafferty and Elias Lindholm, right wings Vasily Podkolzin and Ilya Mikheyev
It didn’t take coach Rick Tocchet long to change the culture in Vancouver.
The Canucks are 70-35-13 since he took over in 2023 and were a goal away from advancing to the Western Conference Final last year.
Adding DeBrusk and Sprong gives the Canucks depth on the wing they didn’t have last season. DeBrusk could score 30 goals for the first time next year if he skates with center Elias Pettersson or center J.T. Miller.
2. Edmonton Oilers (49-27-6; lost in Game 7 of Stanley Cup Final to Florida)
Key additions: Podkolzin, left wing Jeff Skinner, right wing Viktor Arvidsson
Key departures: Left wing Dylan Holloway, defenseman Philip Broberg
Edmonton shut down one large potential question mark this offseason by signing superstar Leon Draisaitl to an eight-year, $112 million extension.
Next up is likely center Connor McDavid, who is eligible to ink a massive deal of his own July 1.
It’s safe to guess that Draisaitl’s deal means the Oilers remain in Cup-or-bust mode. Skinner and Arvidsson should provide the team’s forward group with more depth scoring and speed as it looks to get over the hump this season.
3. Los Angeles Kings (44-27-11; lost in Game 5 of 1st round to Oilers)
Key additions: Goaltender Darcy Kuemper, defenseman Joel Edmundson, right wings Tanner Jeannot and Warren Foegele
Key departures: Arvidsson, center Pierre-Luc Dubois, defenseman Matt Roy
The Kings’ starting goaltenders in the playoffs the past three seasons include Jonathan Quick, Cam Talbot, Joonas Korpisalo and David Rittich.
The only player remaining from that group, which has posted an .884 save percentage in the postseason, is Rittich, who is now Kuemper’s backup.
Los Angeles needs stability in net. It hopes Kuemper, a Stanley Cup champion with Colorado, provides it.
5. Calgary Flames (38-39-5; missed playoffs)
Key additions: Right wing Anthony Mantha
Key departures: Right wing Andrew Mangiapane, goaltender Jacob Markstrom
Things aren’t going well in Calgary.
Right wing Matthew Tkachuk has been to the Stanley Cup Final twice and won it once since being traded from the Flames to the Panthers in July 2022.
Meanwhile, Calgary is trying to rebuild its roster while remaining competitive. The Flames have to hope young players like center Connor Zary, left wing Jakob Pelletier and goaltender Dustin Wolf are ready for full-time roles this season and can get the team back on track.
6. Seattle Kraken (34-35-13; missed playoffs)
Key additions: Center Chandler Stephenson, defenseman Brandon Montour
Key departures: Defenseman Brian Dumoulin, left wing Tomas Tatar, goaltender Chris Driedger
The good news for the Kraken is they allowed the eighth-fewest goals in the NHL last season. The bad news is they scored the fourth-fewest.
Seattle tried to address its issues by signing Stephenson and Montour to huge deals. It also fired coach Dave Hakstol and replaced him with Dan Bylsma, who led the team’s American Hockey League affiliate, Coachella Valley, to back-to-back Calder Cup Final appearances. Bylsma also won the 2009 Stanley Cup as coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
7. Anaheim Ducks (27-50-5; missed playoffs)
Key additions: Dumoulin, left wing Robby Fabbri
Key departures: Right Jakob Silfverberg
It’s going to be another long year for the Ducks, barring anything drastic happening.
Youth will dominate the top of the lineup. Leo Carlsson, the second overall pick in 2023, is likely Anaheim’s first-line center. He could play with forward Cutter Gauthier, who led Division I college hockey in goals last season with 38 in 41 games.
Center Mason McTavish, the third overall pick in 2021, and defenseman Pavel Mintyukov, the 10th overall pick in 2022, could also get larger roles. The Ducks may choose to put forward Beckett Sennecke, the third overall pick in June’s draft, into the NHL right away as well.
8. San Jose Sharks (19-54-9; missed playoffs)
Key additions: Goaltender Yaroslav Askarov, right wing Tyler Toffoli, center Alexander Wennberg, left wing Barclay Goodrow, defenseman Jake Walman
Key departures: Right wing Kevin Labanc, defenseman Kyle Burroughs
The Sharks’ future appears to be set.
They drafted center Macklin Celebrini first overall in June to accelerate their rebuild. Celebrini will be joined in the NHL by 2023 fourth overall pick Will Smith, who had the most points in Division I college hockey last season with 71 in 41 games.
San Jose surrounded the two youngsters with a few veteran forwards in Toffoli and Wennberg. The club also added its future No. 1 goaltender in Askarov, acquiring the 11th overall pick in the 2020 draft from Nashville for a package that included former Knights first-rounder David Edstrom.
The Sharks will likely spend this season at the bottom of the standings again. But there are plenty of reasons for hope for the future.
Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.
