What teams do have the best chances to suck in 2022-23 season?

[WingsMJN2965]

Buffalo, Detroit, San Jose, Seattle, Arizona, Minnesota, Nashville are some candidates I'd look to. I wouldn't rule out Pittsburgh, Washington, NYI, New Jersey, Florida, Vancouver, Montreal, Anaheim, Calgary either.

Some of these are uhh... Bold.

 

[Rayquaza64]

wouldnt be surprised if washington is up there for 2023, ottawa is going to probably still be bad, bufallo calgary anaheim san jose, seattle maybe, cbj, philly, stars maybe, same with preds. will be interesting.

 

[GermanSpitfire]

I hope Arizona gets one of Weight, Bédard, Michkov. I believe they have a good chance at it too.

Buffalo has a shot at it although i’m doubtful.

Boston, Washington and Pittsburgh could have their fall from grace by then given the age of their cores.

I just don’t believe in Nashville anymore, as good of a time as any to rebuild.

Detroit should be on the upswing but Stevie Y definitely wants a shot at the 3 prospects mentioned earlier.

Columbus/San Jose/Arizona have the best shots though.

 

[M2Beezy]

Whoever this guy is still GM of

 

[StreetHawk]

To win 2023 draft's top2 picks?

Really had to even guess for the 21-22 season who will land in the bottom 3 in the standings. To guess 22-23 is even harder.

Tor, Edm, Win don't see them fading to the bottom. Montreal, may not be great, but don't see them as terrible over that time. Ottawa, their rebuild would have fallen apart if they are down there. Van, similar situation as their terrible cap situation will be off the books for the 22-23 season, so if they are that bad, they would have screwed up. Calgary, the most likely Canadidan team to be there as they could choose a rebuild option since they seem stuck in mediocrity.

NYR, NYI, Pit, Phi, Was, Bos - unlikely to be terrible. Buffalo, can't trust them to break out of their situation until they actually do it. NJ, still need help in multiple areas and are relying on Hughes to break out at some point. Buffalo is the most likely, then NJ.

LV, Col, Min, STL - have enough to not be terrible. STL looking like they will just be average. Min has enough talent to keep them afloat. Chi - team transitioning from Toews/Kane to DCat and Dach. But, they lack Dmen. Not expecting to be a contending team, but likely with Kane, still have enough to not be terrible. LA, rebuild would fail if they are at the bottom in 2023. Anaheim, AZ, & SJ most likely. Ducks have limited Forward talent. Have multiple secondary guys, but not enough top end guys. Even with a solid D and top goalie, bottom of the NHL this season. AZ, limited talent. Between the Hall trade and the draft punishment, lost some prospects. Money issues, so not likely to spend money. SJ, lots of expensive 30 plus year olds under contract. Fate depends on how well they age.

TB, Dal, Fla, Car, Nas, Det, Cbs, - Of this group, if Det is that bad again in 22-23, that is a bad rebuild and would likely mean that older prospects like Zadina and all of their 2nd/3rd round picks from 2017-2019 didn't pan out. If the decide to move Larkin then I could see them falling that badly. CBS, have the D and goalie, like Anaheim. Need a 1C to get back to being a solid team. But, they have had too many UFA/top players want out so that is a concern and would put them in contention given their offense right now.

Seattle, depending on how they choose to go with their ED, very well could be there.

So, I would say, Seattle, Arizona, SJ, Ana, Buf, Cal the most likely to be in the bottom 3. Strong chance of Det and NJ being there, but would mean that their rebuild is not on track.

 

[NHL Dude 120]

I think Ottawa deserves one of Wright or Lambert

 

[NyQuil]

I think Ottawa deserves one of Wright or Lambert

 

[Bevans]

Philadelphia has drafted poorly and its core is getting old.

Excuse me?

Is "drafted poorly" code for "I don't like Nolan Patrick?"

 

[Breakers]

If Benning continues to take part in free agency

Then Vancouver

 

[Eggtimer]

I’m surprised more people haven’t gone NJ. If Blackwood gets hurt , I can easily see another bottom 5 finish. We have a good prospect pool but our key pieces are still developing . Holtz Mercer Foote Shakir Bahl etc still will probably need another year marinating in the AHL .

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Really had to even guess for the 21-22 season who will land in the bottom 3 in the standings. To guess 22-23 is even harder

Seattle, depending on how they choose to go with their ED, very well could be there.

So, I would say, Seattle, Arizona, SJ, Ana, Buf, Cal the most likely to be in the bottom 3. Strong chance of Det and NJ being there, but would mean that their rebuild is not on track.

I agree with your first statement, but if they're ever was a time for an expansion team to go with the traditional: " we suck cause we're supposed to but we'll be good later" it's Seattle right now. I doubt they could pull off a Vegas style instant contender start anyway. I'd be 100% focusing on young players and futures if I was Francis.

 

[Nikolajs Sillers]

Sabres. Always Sabres.

 

[Tube Skates]

Seattle and Pittsburg for me

 

[wetcoast]

Buffalo, Detroit, San Jose, Seattle, Arizona, Minnesota, Nashville are some candidates I'd look to. I wouldn't rule out Pittsburgh, Washington, NYI, New Jersey, Florida, Vancouver, Montreal, Anaheim, Calgary either.

Wow 21 reply’s before the Ducks are included.

They have a better “shot” than most of the first group outside of their west coast rivals in San Jose and Seattle.

 

[Aceboogie]

Calgary has a great shot if they offload Gaudreau in the offseason. Not much else on the roster to do anything. Althoug, Markstrom isnt elite but could be good enough to keep them out of the bottom 3

Detriot is probably the nest suited though

 

[Mikeshane]

All the California teams and Calgary. Surprised at how few people are picking LA.

It depends on how teams are run. Detroit has most of their contracts coming off the books by then for instance so if you believe Yzerman is a good GM it's hard to believe they would be that bad by then with all the flexibility he'll have..

 

[StreetHawk]

All the California teams and Calgary. Surprised at how few people are picking LA.

It depends on how teams are run. Detroit has most of their contracts coming off the books by then for instance so if you believe Yzerman is a good GM it's hard to believe they would be that bad by then with all the flexibility he'll have..

Factor in that some teams their GM would get fired if they suck that bad in 2 years time, thus moves would be made to improve the roster.

 

[Eternal Leaf]

I think San Jose, Anaheim, Detroit, Vancouver, Buffalo, Arizona, and Seattle will be in the race for both drafts.

I also think Montreal is going to fall apart in 2023 and tank hard for that Bedard/Michkov draft.

I'm not a fan of the Canucks but I'd love to see Bedard go there. It's always unique to see a generational prospect actually go to the city he developed in. Plus, you'd get to see McDavid and Bedard in the same division.

 

[Mersss]

Some of these are uhh... Bold.

Webr is likelly gone, Price looks closer to LTIR than ever. It could very well happen

 

[StreetHawk]

I think San Jose, Anaheim, Detroit, Vancouver, Buffalo, Arizona, and Seattle will be in the race for both drafts.

I also think Montreal is going to fall apart in 2023 and tank hard for that Bedard/Michkov draft.

I'm not a fan of the Canucks but I'd love to see Bedard go there. It's always unique to see a generational prospect actually go to the city he developed in. Plus, you'd get to see McDavid and Bedard in the same division.

There are 2 off-seasons before the 22-23 season begins, so a lot can change.

SJ - lots of veteran contracts which they can't move. So, if there are not many young players coming in and the expected decline as those vets age, could very well see them near the bottom.

Ana - Lack high end offensive talent. Clearing cap space with Getzlaf, Backes, and Perry's dead cap drops down by $4.6 mill. That's $17 mill in cap space right there for them to do something with. I expect Murray to be on the Hot Seat. If the Ducks are still near the bottom in 2 years, that would be 5 straight no playoffs under his watch and could cost him his job.

Det - change in GM in 2018. So Yzerman has time. But, they have been bottom 5 in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021, they will finish with either the 5th or 6th worst record depending on how the Canucks do in the final 7 games. That's 4 straight bottom 6 finishes. Likely another in 2022 to get to 5. To be in the bottom 6 for 6 straight years would be a bad culture for their young guys to come up in. But, again, Yzerman got their after their first bottom 6 finish.

Vancouver - if Benning is still around, I would be concerned. He has no plan of building a team to compete at a certain point in time. Just year by year it seems. A boatload of cap space opens up in 2022 when Eriksson, Luongo, Beagle, Roussel, Holtby come off the books. $19 mill right there. Should be fired after this season if the owner was competent.

Buffalo is a mess. If Eichel demands out, they will be bad for a while longer. Even with Eichel the team needs massive changes to get better.

AZ - not much high end on their team. Lack elite talent and limited picks in 2020/2021 drafts with the Hall/Draft penalty. I don't expect a new arena built in AZ now that the Suns are getting their arena renovated. So, if the owner doesn't spend money to bring in talent, see them in the bottom for a couple of years.

Seattle - depends on what they do at the ED. I personally expect high priced vets like McDonaugh, Duchene, etc. to be made available. They have 3/4 solid/good years left, but the term of their contracts has another 2 years on top of that where they likely will decline. If they push early on, they would pay for it in years 4/5 of their existence.

 

[EichHart]

With the news of Eichel and Reinhart wanting out of Buffalo, you can almost guarantee we finish last the next 2 seasons.

 

[StreetHawk]

With the news of Eichel and Reinhart wanting out of Buffalo, you can almost guarantee we finish last the next 2 seasons.

Eichel, a year left before his nmc kicks in and he dictates destination. Right now, Buffalo can send him anywhere. reinhart, rfa with arbitration rights and a year from ufa. Is file for arbitration and force Buffalo to trade him if I was him. Risto is entering the final year of his contract as well. Should not sign an extension with Buffalo. That is their own first round picks from 2013, 2014, and 2015 right there.

 

[Maplebeasts]

The Wings, Sabres and Sharks.

 

[Maplebeasts]

Wow 21 reply’s before the Ducks are included.

They have a better “shot” than most of the first group outside of their west coast rivals in San Jose and Seattle.

It really depends on Drysdale and Zegras. If both develop as expected and Gibson rebounds even a little they should be clear of the basement.

 

[StreetHawk]

It really depends on Drysdale and Zegras. If both develop as expected and Gibson rebounds even a little they should be clear of the basement.

Zegras is a winger in the NHL, so I don't think he'll be able to lift the offense up enough. But, if they land Beniers in the draft, then they become a duo that could lift the Ducks out of the bottom spot.

But, those other young forwards like Comtois, Steel, Jones, Lundestrom, Groulx, Terry, etc. need to step up to give them middle 6 scoring punch.