NHL Power Rankings: How teams stack up heading into training camp

The start of training camp is a signature event on the NHL calendar and talking about how we think teams will fare is a staple of this time of year.

That can mean only one thing: time for the first Sportsnet.ca Power Ranking of the 2026-27 campaign.

This pre-season edition will serve as an appetizer to the weekly ranking we’ll do once the puck drops on the new campaign. To be clear, topping this list is not a synonym for being the Stanley Cup favourite.

Obviously, our top club — and two handfuls of teams underneath — have championship hopes, but this ranking reflects how we see the squads stacking up as we hit the ground running in less than two weeks.

Preamble — like the pre-season itself — should be as short as possible, so without further delay, let’s unveil our ranking of all 32 clubs.

1. Colorado Avalanche The Avs — four years removed from the 2022 title — are a scary combination of talented and hungry.

Colorado finished first overall last year, then ended the season on a sour note by losing the Western Conference Final in four games to the Vegas Golden Knights. Nathan MacKinnon just turned 31, Cale Makar (battling a minor lower-body injury) has been extended; Nazem Kadri is here for the full season to make the centre depth incredible; and the goalie tandem provides a solid foundation.

All that’s left to do is get 41-year-old Brent Burns his ring.

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2. Dallas Stars After three straight trips to the Western Conference Final, the Stars bowed out in the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, and didn’t look particularly great doing so.

A long summer reset probably wasn’t the worst thing in the world for this club, which returns a deadly and deep lineup.

3. Washington Capitals It’s fair to have chemistry questions about the Caps, who are incorporating two new top-six wingers into the mix in Jordan Kyrou and Alex Tuch.

Still, don’t let a one-year blip of missing the playoffs throw you off; Washington finished second overall in 2024-25 and has a fantastic mix of veteran players supported by really, really good up-and-comers like defenceman Cole Hutson, banging winger Ryan Leonard and the hulking Protas brothers, Aliaksei and Ilya. Underpinning it all is the top-notch goaltending of Logan Thompson, who has finished fourth in Vezina voting in each of the past two seasons.

If you’re sleeping on the Capitals, time to wake up.

4. Carolina Hurricanes Truthfully, you could consider ranking the defending champs a little lower on this list when you factor in big-time fatigue and the fact Seth Jarvis is on the shelf for a chunk of the year.

Does anybody really expect Carolina to come charging out of the chute? Still, the Canes are one of the safest bets to excel in the league and have gone from wondering what they have to do to get over the hump to knowing they’ve got the stuff to hang a banner.

5. Tampa Bay Lightning Continuity is king here, and assuming John Carlson replacing Darren Raddysh as the right-shot D-man on the power play goes smoothy, the Bolts should be good to go.

6. Minnesota Wild The uncertainty surrounding Quinn Hughes’ future is a bummer of a distraction.

For now, though, Minny is ready to roll with two stud wingers in Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy, a drool-worthy top pair of Hughes and Brock Faber and a strong Swedish duo of Filip Gustavsson (still recovering from hip surgery) and Jesper Wallstedt in goal.

7. Montreal Canadiens The Canadiens could not find the stud forward they’ve been after for months during the off-season, but veteran Chris Kreider falling in their lap on the eve of camp could workout great.

Even if improving on last season’s 106-point showing is a big ask, there’s no denying something special is coming together in Montreal.

8. Buffalo Sabres The Sabres have been linked to suspended Winnipeg Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck more than any other club.

Regardless of whether that megadeal comes together, Buffalo is the real deal and has young players coming to skate into voids left by winger Alex Tuch and defenceman Bowen Byram.

9. Edmonton Oilers We’ll see exactly what new-coach bump looks like under Mike Babcock.

There’s a clear sense, after a first-round exit, the Oilers are rested, re-focused and placing greater significance on the regular season.

10. Florida Panthers If we were doing Cup odds here, the Panthers would be much higher.

They’ve still got a roster that screams playoff success. It might take a minute for the new pieces to fall into place, though, and so much of this season for the Cats will come down to how Jacob Markstrom fares as Sergei Bobrovsky’s replacement.

11. Vegas Golden Knights It’s hard to imagine the defending Western Conference champs coming out of the gate with the pedal pinned.

It’s a long game for the Knights, who need their veteran-heavy lineup to be at its peak come playoff time.

12. Utah Mammoth They’re good now and have the prospect powder to pull off another huge deal if something — would the Jets trade Hellebuyck within the Central?

— comes up. The arrow is pointing way up in Utah.

13. Anaheim Ducks All the drama around Leo Carlsson’s offer sheet and the drawn-out negotiations with sniper Cutter Gauthier shouldn’t distract from the fact this is one of the best up-and-coming squads in the league.

14. Ottawa Senators We’re not going to call losing Brady Tkachuk addition by subtraction because that’s overlooking what a unique player profile the former Sens captain had.

Still, it feels like Drake Batherson putting pen to paper on a new extension officially helped kick off a new chapter for Ottawa, which is icing a club that’s strong down the middle and features one of the best young blueliners in the world in Jake Sanderson.

15. Toronto Maple Leafs There’s always a lot of attention on the Maple Leafs to start a new season, but all the new faces bring an added layer of intrigue as Toronto tries to snap right back into Cup contention.

There’s lots of top-six talent, a crew of new bottom-sixers who embrace their role and a tandem to believe in with Sergei Bobrovsky backed up by Anthony Stolarz. The Leafs’ fate will come down to how the blueline fares.

16. Boston Bruins Boston is the seventh Atlantic team we’ve listed and we’re only halfway through the league.

Man, it’s going to be a real slog in that group. For the B’s, they can bet on known quantities in goal (Jeremy Swayman), on defence (Charlie McAvoy) and up front (David Pastrnak).

If James Hagens can be an offensive threat as a rookie and newcomer JJ Peterka finds his stroke playing on the top line, Boston will be in business.

17. San Jose Sharks Most squads would kill for this team’s five-year future and, in a mid West, this could be the first of many consecutive seasons in the playoffs for Macklin Celebrini and the Sharks.

18. Philadelphia Flyers Be honest, did you remember the Flyers made it to the second round last spring?

Getting back into the playoffs will be a big ask, but Porter Martone will be a favourite to win rookie of the year and already feels like he’s Mr. Flyer.

19. New Jersey Devils It’s tempting to pick the Devils as a bounce-back candidate and there’s certainly skill to bet on.

That said, the goaltending is a huge question mark, Jack Hughes always seems to miss 20 games and — as far as we know — the rumours of acquiring a third Hughes brother that dogged the dressing room last season have not gone away.

20. Winnipeg Jets No team has more pressing uncertainty around it thanks to the drama involving Connor Hellebuyck.

Just remember, the Jets played well into November without key players Adam Lowry, Dylan Samberg and Cole Perfetti last year. Winnipeg won the Presidents’ Trophy 16 months ago and the Jets will surely play with a collective chip this year.

As long as Stuart Skinner and any goalie who comes back in the eventual Hellebuyck deal hold the fort, it’s foolish to write off the Jets.

21. Los Angeles Kings Year 1 without Anze Kopitar should be interesting.

Actually, with the Kings, everything feels kind of boring at this point. We’ll see if new bench boss Peter Laviolette can squeeze enough offence out of a group that gets Artemi Panarin for a full season.

22. St. Louis Blues The Blues have underperformed for a couple years, but there’s sneaky potential on this club.

They not only kept Robert Thomas, they made him captain. If newcomer Mason McTavish can be a solid 2C and Joel Hofer further solidifies his grip on the starting role, there’s a clear roadmap back to the playoffs.

23. Pittsburgh Penguins Look, last year was a delightful surprise in Steeltown and the Pens could very well back it up with another post-season appearance.

Finishing four points out of the final wild card would be a bummer, though, because as good as GM Kyle Dubas’ retool is going, at some point Pittsburgh needs to draft back up in the range where it got Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin many moons ago.

24. New York Islanders Even though he technically took over at the end of last season, we’re still making Pete DeBoer eligible for new-coach bump consideration.

Ilya Sorokin provides a solid foundation and Matthew Schaefer lets you dream about the future, but — as always — you just wonder if the Isles can score enough.

25. Detroit Red Wings Until there’s resolution on Dylan Larkin’s future, it’s hard to know what to make of the Wings.

Detroit is thin down the middle with Larkin and, obviously, it gets way worse — depending on the return — if he leaves. Hard as it is for playoff-starved Wings fans to hear, a small reset might be in order.

26. Columbus Blue Jackets Columbus’ roster warrants being much higher in this ranking.

The problem, though, is there are major questions surrounding the futures of Kirill Marchenko and Zach Werenski, to say nothing of unsigned centre Adam Fantailli. There are just too many big-time questions swirling around Ohio to have faith in the Jackets right now.

27. Nashville Predators The Preds could look very different by season’s end if this is the year that the likes of Ryan O’Reilly (a pending UFA) and Steven Stamkos (two years left on his deal) move.

The likes of Matthew Wood, Brady Martin and newcomer Mavrik Bourque need to put their stamp on this team in transition.

28. New York Rangers Don’t get too swept up in Rangers retool talk; the Blueshirts still have capable forwards, an all-world defenceman in Adam Fox and a goalie, in Igor Shesterkin, who keeps your floor relatively high.

29. Chicago Blackhawks We’ve arrived at the final club in our ranking where, if you really do some mental gymnastics, you could talk yourself into it making the big dance.

Maybe. Here’s hoping Connor Bedard is back as soon as possible, giving Hawks fans some legit hope.

30. Seattle Kraken Chase Reid was an exciting pick last June at seventh overall, but genuine thrills still seem so far away in Seattle.

31. Calgary Flames Unlike recent campaigns, Calgary enters this season with no questions about which veteran guy could be gone by February.

It’s all about the kids now and, with one more twirl at the Saddledome before moving to the new rink, this should be a fun — if loss-filled — year in Southern Alberta.

32. Vancouver Canucks This is right where the Canucks figure to be for a few years and that’s just fine when you’re entering a long build with clear eyes.

May the lottery gods be kind …