One thing that basically never changes from the time we’re three years old: if something is shiny and new, it has our attention.
Every off-season brings a bevy of big names changing sweaters, and one of the most closely watched things out of the gate is how these players perform in their new surroundings. Expectations vary, obviously, but there’s no doubt fans are glued to the new guy as they contemplate what this new toy can bring to their team.
So, whether you’re talking about big stars Erik Karlsson or Pierre-Luc Dubois changing homes, or more low-key moves meant to drive fourth lines and third pairs, we figured this week’s Power Rankings were a good time to do a new-guy check with all 32 clubs.
1. Vegas Golden Knights (9-0-1) There was precious little turnover on the roster of the defending champs last summer and the results are definitely an endorsement of an “if it ain’t broke” approach. Vegas’ success has come despite injuries on the back end, and though he’s technically not a new guy, let’s highlight the performance of 2019 second-rounder Kaeden Korczak. The 22-year-old — who had 11 career NHL games on his resume before this season — has shown offensive flash, netting a goal and three helpers for four points in just six games. Clearly, there’s a little something there with the right-shot D-man.
2. Boston Bruins (8-0-1) We have a whole rookie-themed power rankings slated for the not-too-distant future, so I am trying to stay away from freshmen like Vegas’ Korczak and Boston’s stellar rookie Matthew Poitras wherever possible. So, despite the fact Poitras is the headliner in terms of new guys in Beantown, let’s focus on veteran James van Riemsdyk. The winger had three goals in four games out of the gate, but has yet to hit the back of the net since. He could be a key secondary scorer for the B’s, especially on the power play.
3. Colorado Avalanche (7-2-0) Ryan Johansen has always been a pass-first guy, so it’s a little surprising to see the Avs’ new second-line centre have an early Cy Young line of four goals and one assist through eight games.
4. New York Rangers (7-2-0) Nobody expected Blake Wheeler to put up the numbers he did during his prime Jets years, but the full goose egg line of 0-0-0 through nine games is pretty tough. Erik Gustafsson, however, has kicked in a couple goals from the back end.
5. Dallas Stars (6-1-1) After going pointless in his first four games with the Stars, Matt Duchene is coming alive: he’s recorded four points in Dallas’ past four games.
6. Los Angeles Kings (5-2-2) Wipe off Cam Talbot’s first start, and the 36-year-old has a .920 save percentage this season. It would be a massive development for the Kings if Talbot can consistently provide a strong presence in the crease.
7. New Jersey Devils (5-2-1) Everyone liked the Tyler Toffoli deal in the moment and you better believe Devils fans love it now after the veteran has fired off seven goals in his first eight games with Jersey.
8. Toronto Maple Leafs (5-3-1) Nobody needs to panic, but newcomers Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi have not settled in the way Toronto hoped. Expect more line-juggling on the top three trios until more chemistry presents itself.
9. Carolina Hurricanes (6-4-0) Michael Bunting scored in his first game wearing Canes red and has eight points through 10 games with Carolina.
10. Vancouver Canucks (6-2-1) We have to fudge this one because Filip Hronek has been so productive for the Canucks this season. The 26-year-old (happy birthday, Filip!) played just four games for Vancouver after coming over from Detroit last season and has posted eight points in nine games out of the gate playing beside Quinn Hughes. Is this a good time to remind everyone Hronek’s contract is up at the end of the season?
11. Tampa Bay Lightning (4-2-3) What a story Jonas Johansson has been, filling in for the injured Andrei Vasilevskiy. Tampa could have snatched someone on the waiver wire or tried to swing a small trade when its No. 1 stopper went down, but — whether because they believed in him or because they were stifled by the salary cap — the Bolts went with the in-house option and Johansson has rewarded them with a .922 save percentage.
12. Detroit Red Wings (6-3-1) Alex DeBrincat’s hot start in his home state isn’t just a Michigan headline, it’s got the attention of the entire league. That focus, mind you, has obscured the fact new defenceman Shayne Gostisbehere is off to a fantastic start himself, with nine points in 10 games.
13. New York Islanders (4-2-2) The Islanders did basically nothing to the roster in the off-season, so we’re going to have to cheat again. Bo Horvat’s first full season with the club is off to a good start, with the top-line centre netting four goals in eight outings, though Pierre Engvall — also acquired before last season’s trade deadline — has yet to hit pay dirt this season.
14. Florida Panthers (4-3-1) Evan Rodrigues inked the first sizable contract of his career early on in free agency and, so far, his $3-million cap hit (for four years) is looking like a bargain as he shines on the top line with eight points in eight games. Also, Oliver Ekman-Larsson is hauling huge minutes for this team while Brandon Montour and Aaron Ekblad recover from injuries. The hope in Florida is that Ekman-Larsson won’t have to miss any time after being on the receiving end of a hit from Charlie McAvoy on Monday that earned the Bruins D-man a four-game suspension.
15. Winnipeg Jets (4-3-1) Gabe Vilardi served as the centrepiece of the return from L.A. for Pierre-Luc Dubois, but he injured his knee three games into the season. Related, another guy from that swap — Alex Iaffalo — has seen his ice time spike from under 15 minutes per contest in first four games with the Jets to nearly 20 minutes per night in his past five games.
16. Montreal Canadiens (5-2-2) Alex Newhook’s Habs tenure got off to a roaring start with three goals in three games, but he’s hasn’t scored since and has one assist this season.
17. Edmonton Oilers (2-5-1) OK, so we knew the Connor connection wasn’t going to be the same as it was with the Erie Otters, when Connor Brown netted 128 points playing alongside 16-year-old Connor McDavid. Still, we sure thought Brown would be on the board after eight games instead of staring at a 0-0-0 statline.
18. Buffalo Sabres (5-5-0) Nobody expected defenceman Erik Johnson to move the needle too much for Buffalo, but the 35-year-old’s underlying numbers are pretty gruesome.
19. Washington Capitals (4-3-1) Matthew Phillips left Calgary in search of a better opportunity, and although he’s not always playing a tonne in Washington, he has yet to be a healthy scratch and did stick it to the Flames by scoring his lone goal of the season against his former team.
20. Anaheim Ducks (6-4-0) Again, we’ll do a full rookie report as part of power rankings soon enough, but when it comes to new Ducks, who else can you highlight besides goalie Lukas Dostal — the NHL rookie of the month for October — top-line centre Leo Carlsson and 19-year-old Pavel Mintyukov, who’s tied with New Jersey’s Luke Hughes for the scoring lead among rookie D-men, with six points.
21. Ottawa Senators (4-4-0) It took Vladimir Tarasenko time to ultimately ink with the Sens this summer, and he’s been a dream fit, with nine points in eight games. It sure looks as though one of former GM Pierre Dorion’s final moves with the Sens was a good one.
22. Philadelphia Flyers (4-5-1) Sean Couturier has been gone so long — almost two full years without an NHL game — it’s like he’s a new guy! It’s great to see the Flyers’ No. 1 centre back and playing so well with four goals in eight games.
23. Minnesota Wild (3-4-2) When Pat Maroon inked with the Wild, most of the conversation revolved around the intangibles the serial Stanley Cup Final participant brought. However, his value has been incredibly concrete in Minny, as the 35-year-old has put up seven points in his past six games.
24. Pittsburgh Penguins (3-6-0) Nobody should have reasonably expected Erik Karlsson to come in and chase another 100-point season. There was always going to be an adjustment period. That said, if the power play is still a bottom-third unit a month from now and the record hasn’t improved, the heat is going to be white-hot on everyone … if it isn’t already.
25. Nashville Predators (4-5-0) Ryan O’Reilly just played the 1,000th game of what’s been an absolutely sparkling career. The veteran is Nashville’s top-line centre and has produced a solid seven points in nine games.
26. Arizona Coyotes (4-4-1) Fantasy hockey participants everywhere were on breakout alert when Arizona acquired Sean Durzi from the Kings. If you were one of them, hopefully you went ahead and picked him up because Durzi has taken the new opportunity and run with it to the tune of seven points in nine games.
27. St. Louis Blues (3-4-1) St. Louis is having a heck of a time scoring goals — only the Blues (1.75) and the lowly San Jose Sharks (1.0) are averaging fewer than two goals per game — and it doesn’t help that Kevin Hayes hasn’t popped a single goal yet.
28. Columbus Blue Jackets (3-4-2) For the most part, it’s probably not ideal to have a defenceman at the top of your scoring charts, but it still speaks well of Ivan Provorov’s early days in Columbus that he has a team-best seven points in nine games.
29. Seattle Kraken (3-5-2) Brian Dumoulin has played only 10 games in his Kraken career, but he’s already matched his goal total — one — from the 82 games he played in Pittsburgh last season.
30. Chicago Blackhawks (3-6-0) Chicago’s plan to put 2010 first-overall pick Taylor Hall with 2023 first-overall selection Connor Bedard was a sound one, but the former has been sidelined by a shoulder injury. As it stands, another veteran picked up in the off-season, Nick Foligno, is now flanking Bedard.
31. Calgary Flames (2-7-1) Yegor Sharangovich scored just three times in the second half of last year, which is at least partially why Flames fans weren’t necessarily over the moon when he was the primary return for Tyler Toffoli. So far, Sharangovich has managed a single goal during this miserable Flames season.
32. San Jose Sharks (0-8-1) The Sharks could really use some of their new guys — Mike Hoffman, Mikael Granlund (who’s been hurt), Anthony Duclair — to start scoring, so they could possibly extract some draft capital for them in trades.
