One player who has to deliver for each team in NHL’s Central Division

One player who has to deliver for each team in NHL’s Central Division

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From top to bottom the Central Division has a wide variety of team types to offer. There are a couple of legitimate Stanley Cup contenders, a few teams that could finish on either side of the playoff cutline and maybe even steal a round, and another in the deepest of rebuilds at the bottom.

Still, each has something to play for and some players who have something to prove.

Each new season comes with a renewed outlook for franchises and individuals. Continuing our run through each of the NHL’s four divisions, we look at the Central, and one player who needs to step up in some way for each team.

Dallas Stars: Jake Oettinger

As RFA Jeremy Swayman’s contract talks with the Bruins drag out into September and training camps a little over a week away, we’re wondering how Jake Oettinger’s next contract will go. There is little doubt the Stars highly value Oettinger, and rightly so. He was considered a Vezina favourite by some heading into last season, is one of five goalies with 100 wins over the past three seasons combined, and is ranked eighth in save percentage among netminders with at least 100 appearances in that time. He’ll be considered a Vezina contender again heading into 2024-25.

At the same time, his 2023-24 was inconsistent, with a mid-season run through December, January, February and March where his save percentage dipped below .900. He rounded into form by the playoffs and was one of the best goalies all post-season, but there have been questions about how heavy of a workload the soon-to-be 26-year-old can handle.

Still, Oettinger is one of the best young players at his position and there’s little doubt a deal will get done. On track for RFA eligibility next summer but one year away from UFA status, now is the time for a long-term extension. A Vezina worthy season would push his number higher, while any more inconsistency — or even a playoff letdown — would certainly make for interesting discourse.

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Winnipeg Jets: Cole Perfetti

Still without a contract, there is some indication that it’s not all bad on the Perfetti front. With NHL Player Media day beginning in Las Vegas, Perfetti is still set to represent the Jets, unlike Swayman, another RFA who was supposed to be Boston’s rep before pulling back.

On the latest 32 Thoughts Podcast, Elliotte Friedman said all indications were that Perfetti was happy to continue as a Jet and that there was no problematic breakdown in the relationship to overcome. Assuming a deal gets done, Perfetti becomes an important player in Winnipeg’s season. An argument could be made that he should have received more ice time last season, so that will be one of the main things to watch. Scott Arniel is the new coach, though he was previously on the bench as an associate under Rick Bowness.

There’s also a question as to who Winnipeg’s No. 2 centre will be, with Mark Scheifele locked in at No. 1 and Adam Lowry a better fit for No. 3. Perfetti has not played much there in his NHL career yet, but is one of the candidates to do so. It would go a long way for Winnipeg if he was able to establish himself as a productive young player in that position.

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Colorado Avalanche: Casey Mittelstadt

The Avs paid a hefty price at last season’s trade deadline to get Casey Mittelstadt, but as bright as Bowen Byram’s future is on the blue line, Colorado was trying to fill a hole in its lineup. And the early returns of Mittelstadt as an effective second-line centre on the Stanley Cup contender were promising.

In 18 regular-season games with Colorado, Mittelstadt’s line heavily tilted scoring chances in the opposing end at 5-on-5 and it continued into the playoffs, where he also contributed three goals and nine points in 11 games.

When the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in 2022, they were paying Nazem Kadri $4.5 million to be their 2C, and he provided immense value at that cost and stability at a critical position. They felt his loss the next season and it continued to be a weakness well into 2023-24. After signing Mittelstadt to a three-year extension with a $5.75 million cap hit, they’ll be getting similar contract value as the cap rises to $88 million this season and perhaps up to $92 million in 2025-26. With Gabriel Landeskog hoping to be on track to return to the lineup some time this season as well, having Mittelstadt in the middle of a second unit will bring far greater depth to their forwards.

Nashville Predators: Steven Stamkos

There are a couple good candidates here, from Juuse Saros bouncing back from a down year, to Jonathan Marchessault sticking it to yet another former team. But we’ve got to go with Steven Stamkos who, turning 35 years old in February, is out to prove to the Tampa Bay Lightning (and Team Canada) he’s still got it — and to the rest of the hockey world that he can still stack up the goals away from Nikita Kucherov.

After a contract negotiation that never seemed all that pleasant, the Lightning did the unthinkable and turned away from their own first-overall pick from 2008. After years spent trying to keep as many pieces of the Cup-winning core together as they could, Tampa Bay chose to go in a different, younger direction up front, and signed Jake Guentzel with Stamkos’ money.

Under GM Barry Trotz, the Predators have made an attempt to become a more explosive and offensive team. Head coach Andrew Brunette leans into that style and the aforementioned signing of Marchessault should help accomplish the task as well. But can they take a step in the standings, or are they caught in the league’s mushy middle?

Stamkos paying off at $8 million, over a contract that will end when he’s 38, will go a long way in ruling on Nashville’s situation. He’s 45 goals away from becoming the 22nd NHL player to reach 600 in a career (assuming Crosby, five away, gets there first). Heck, if Stamkos averages 36.25 goals per season over the life of this contract he’d reach 700 career goals, something only eight other NHL players have done before.

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St. Louis Blues: Philip Broberg

All power to Philip Broberg for using his situation to maximize his earnings and get a $4.58 million contract for two years in St. Louis that the Oilers weren’t ever going to present. Money aside, the move to the Blues will also finally put Broberg in position to play on his preferred left side, something there wasn’t room to do in Edmonton.

Torey Krug’s season-ending injury even opens the door for Broberg to be a top four left-side defender all season long. However, part of the reason why Edmonton let him go, and why Broberg spent most of last season in the AHL, was that they still didn’t really know what they had in the 23-year-old. Would he hit on the potential he had as the eighth-overall pick of the 2019 draft if put in the right position, or are there holes limiting that upside? We’re about to find out the whole picture in St. Louis.

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Minnesota Wild: Filip Gustavsson

When Filip Gustavsson first arrived in Minnesota from Ottawa, it looked like the Wild stole a promising young goalie from the Senators. In 38 games two years ago, Gustavsson went 22-9-7 with a .931 save percentage and 2.10 goals-against average splitting the net with Marc-André Fleury. Last season was a different story, however, as both goalies finished with sub-.900 save percentages and Gustavsson’s GAA ballooned to over 3.00.

While this coming season is set to be Fleury’s last in the NHL, opportunity is there for Gustavsson to prove capable of being part of future plans when his contract expires in 2026, or he could take a backseat to the next goalie up. Jesper Wallstedt, the 20th-overall pick of the 2021 draft, has been improving over two years in the AHL and GM Bill Guerin has said it’s time to start finding ways to give him more NHL looks. Gustavsson could play his way into a future tandem, or out of Minnesota and become trade fodder in March.

Utah Hockey Club: Mikhail Sergachev

With a fresh look in a different city, the NHL’s “newest” club has so far taken a different approach. Where the Arizona Coyotes were salary-floor penny pinchers hoarding draft picks and patiently building, the Utah team used some of that capital and cap space to add NHL players.

The defence has been completely rebuilt, with Sean Durzi, John Marino and Ian Cole some headline names added via trade and free agency. But the new No. 1 in town is Mikhail Sergachev, acquired from Tampa just before he heads into Year 2 of an eight-year deal. With the Lightning, Sergachev always played in the shadow of Norris winner Victor Hedman, and while that kind of mentorship will certainly help the 26-year-old in the next stage of his career, this is a much different challenge going from a Cup champion to a breakout hopeful. Utah will lean on Sergachev more than even Tampa did, and The Hockey Club is hoping to compete far more quickly than Arizona ever did.

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Chicago Blackhawks: Taylor Hall

Heading into last season, the idea was for Taylor Hall to play alongside super rookie Connor Bedard and be the one offensively productive veteran next to him on a wasteland of a rebuilding roster. But Hall only made it 10 games into the season, scoring two goals and two assists, before an ACL injury ended his year.

The Hawks are only slightly more competitive in 2024-25 and Hall is expected to be able to return to the lineup, hopeful to pick up his original spot and hang with last year’s Calder winner. While it’s entirely possible that a productive season could lead to Hall becoming a trade candidate at the deadline the 32-year-old (turning 33 in November) also has a new contract to play for, as he’s set to become a UFA in July.

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