1 Penguins The champs. Again. Looking for a three-peat, they deserve the benefit of the doubt. They have the ultimate blend of veteran star power, big-play youth and a long-term No. 1 goalie. 1 40-23-0

2 Blue Jackets Their early playoff exit was not pretty. But John Tortorella's lineup should be even more dangerous with Artemi Panarin in the fold. 2 33-22-0

3 Oilers How can you not be excited about what's going on here? Connor McDavid won't have Jordan Eberle's support, but the Oilers are still scary. 4 37-25-0

4 Ducks Keeping Patrick Eaves around should make for some nice offensive chemistry. 2 29-33-0

5 Blackhawks Brandon Saad will probably do well back in the Windy City, just as Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews hoped. But are Kane and Toews enough to keep running the show anymore? 2 32-30-0

6 Predators They have such admirable depth, and if Pekka Rinne hadn't faltered on the road, they would probably be going for a repeat title in 2017-18. Still, it'll be hard to top their playoff run. 9 35-26-0

7 Capitals Re-signing T.J. Oshie was smart, but for eight years and $46 million? Maybe not. This team needs new life, not a mirror image of the unit that keeps coming up short in the postseason. 6 41-20-0

8 Canadiens Jonathan Drouin should give the offense some explosiveness. The question is whether Montreal is giving up too much long-term blue-line talent to get that explosion. 3 31-31-0

9 Maple Leafs Year Two of Auston Matthews? This should be fun. 7 36-25-0

10 Senators Like the Preds, their defensive grit made them surprise contenders. They need more consistency to get as far as they did in 2016-17, however. 4 25-34-0

11 Rangers How much longer can this team bank on big nights from Henrik Lundqvist? 3 37-28-0

12 Sharks They could swing in either direction here. Disappointing playoff exit aside, the Sharks still have the top-line talent to compete -- even if Joe Thornton somehow departs. 2 29-36-0

13 Wild Coughing up way too much for Martin Hanzal proved ineffective. The Wild set the bar high for much of 2016-17, and topping that will be a challenge. 4 35-27-0

14 Blues Jake Allen's playoff performance was a promising sign. 2 42-19-0

15 Flyers Of non-playoff teams, they have the juice to get back in the mix right away. Nolan Patrick was a gem of a pick for Philly -- an obvious gem, but a gem nonetheless. 4 41-21-0

16 Bruins Can Bruce Cassidy's interim fire carry over into a new season? Free agency will be a big factor for this team. 5 44-14-0

17 Flames They've infused some flare into their lineup by landing Travis Hamonic. But their playoff dud was a reminder of the journey still ahead. 4 36-27-0

18 Lightning Look out down the road, when Mikhail Sergachev could start chipping in. 1 43-21-0

19 Islanders They could certainly finish better than this, but their sights should probably be set a little more on building for the future -- like via the Hamonic deal. 1 35-23-0

20 Stars No. 20 almost seems too low for Dallas considering the stock they've put in making an immediate turnaround. Ken Hitchcock and Ben Bishop should up their chances. 5 37-24-0

21 Kings Their core failed to deliver a playoff berth in 2016-17, and it's a little too early to say they'll get things together this time around. 1 29-35-0

22 Hurricanes Scott Darling will make for an interesting addition in the net. The Canes need more than another late-season rally, though. -- 38-25-0

23 Jets Patrik Laine, part two. We'll see if the Jets can help him out with more concrete long-term support and goaltending. 2 37-28-0

24 Red Wings The hunt for a return to the playoffs begins. A Dylan Larkin rebound would help. -- 17-49-0

25 Panthers Losing Jonathan Marchessault might have been the most quiet, albeit significant, move of the Panthers' offseason. 2 35-26-0

26 Devils Nico Hischier. All eyes are on him. And it's about time the Devils gave Taylor Hall some help. 1 28-29-0

27 Coyotes For some reason, they've almost approached the offseason in "win-now" mode. Maybe it helps them surprise this season, but it also throws more question marks onto a needed rebuild. 1 33-29-0

28 Sabres Tough to put them much higher than here, at least for the time being. Their 2016-17 finish was about as ugly as it gets. 2 30-31-0

29 Golden Knights Yeah, yeah. Expansion teams aren't first-year contenders, you say? That's fine. But Marc-Andre Fleury in the net and a decent crop of defensemen should make them worth a watch. NR 39-24-0

30 Avalanche Somehow we're still talking about Matt Duchene. Their poor draft positioning was not a great start to the offseason. -- 42-20-0