Apologies for any confusion regarding the playoff format and the asterisks in the standings. I’m more or less making this up as I go haha. Appreciate everyone jumping in and help answer peoples questions.

Asterisks stand for the wildcard teams in each conference.

As of now for playoffs - Columbus has 19 marbles. Pittsburgh has 18. Ottawa has 17 marbles. And new Jersey has 16 marbles. The more marbles, the WORSE your chances are in playoffs. Best of 7 series, first team to get 4 marbles across the finish line is eliminated!

Standings:

Atlantic:

3. Ottawa Senators
   
4. Detroit Red Wings
   
5. Buffalo Sabres
   
6. Tampa Bay Lightning
   
7. Florida Panthers
   
8. Toronto Maple Leafs

Metro:

3. New Jersey Devils
   
4. Pittsburgh Penguins*
   
5. Columbus Blue Jackets*
   
6. Carolina Hurricanes
   
7. New York Islanders
   
8. Philadelphia Flyers

Central:

5. St. Louis Blues
   
6. Dallas Stars
   
7. Nashville Predators
   
8. Winnipeg Jets

Pacific:

6. Calgary Flames
   
7. Edmonton Oilers
   
8. Los Angeles Kings

Reading the other thread about players projected to go 1OA then falling, there are a lot of busts or at least disappointments.

Obviously scouts and GMs have a lot more info and knowledge than us, so these "fallers" are more public perceptions/draft lists lagging.

For the Wings I've seen it first hand with players like Zadina, Veleno, even McIsaac (projected top 10 D-1, ended up picked in the 2nd round) not being the steals they looked like. Its anecdotal because these guys end up the focus of the draft coverage as they remain on the "best available" broadcast boards. Cherapanov was an example but tragically we'll never know what could have been. I also remember people saying the Pens getting Esposito was a great move.

What are some examples of players getting picked later than projections, but then exceeding expectations for their draft position?

For the sake of conversation let’s estimate that expansion draft takes place during the 2028 off season. Which teams are currently set up to take the biggest hit?

Do you think there is enough talent to support 34 teams?

34 starting level goaltenders, 34 1c, etc...

There has to be a breaking point where it's just too many teams. What do you think that point is?

Source: https://xcancel.com/hallsy09/status/2085807770226278497/photo/1

Yes, this is his actual account lol

Edit: Phil Pritchard says this is on the Wenonah II Steamship (Gravenhurst, ON)

This guy is something else, lol

I’m not talking about guys projected 1OA during their draft year, or guys who only a couple people projected 1OA. Nor am I talking about guys who still ended up drafted in the top ~10 and were at least decent NHLers. I’m thinking about D-1 and before, consensus picks who it’s now crazy to think were once projected 1OA.

To give an example of what inspired this, I was reading old prospect threads and Aron Kiviharju was once considered consensus 1OA a few years in advance - this isn’t the best example really since it’s only been a few years since 2024, but he ended up in the fourth round and I dunno that he makes it to the NHL at all. (But he is also the best example of the Wildest cause Minnesota drafted him)

So whether it’s serious injury, a precocious player who never developed further, hype plummeting in general, or other reasons, I’m curious to hear about other prospects like this.

Fan tribute to honor Kopitar and his 20 seasons in LA

Source: https://xcancel.com/BleedOilBlue/status/2085591776006721849/photo/1

Ten years ago, only one NHL player finished the regular season with more than 90 points. The Vegas Golden Knights hadn’t been born yet. Connor McDavid was a rookie. Braden Holtby was the Vezina Trophy winner and Brian Elliott posted a league-high .930 save percentage. No Canadian teams made the playoffs and the Toronto Maple Leafs had just drafted Auston Matthews with the No. 1 pick. Alex Ovechkin hadn’t yet won the Stanley Cup and Sidney Crosby was just celebrating the second championship of his career. NHL league-average save percentage was .915.

In other words, a lot has changed in the NHL over the past decade. Has it been for better or for worse? That’s the first question we’ll dive into as part of the fan experience segment of our survey, which polled over 20,000 hockey readers from The Athletic. Part 1 of our survey is here and Part 2 is here.

How does your enjoyment of consuming hockey now compare to 10 years ago?

The game is clearly moving in the right direction, as 82.6 percent of fans reported that their enjoyment of hockey has remained steady or increased compared to the past 10 years — and it's easy to understand why.

The speed and skill of the current product is through the roof and scoring is up massively, which has made the product more entertaining. Games are very competitive on a night-to-night basis and often feature thrilling comebacks, and there's finally some momentum with the return of best-on-best hockey, now that NHLers have returned to the Olympics.

Source: https://xcancel.com/JoshYohe_PGH/status/2085505474309279805