NHL 2021/2022 season preview Hockey
Lightning win second straight Stanley Cup
Tampa Bay defeated the Montreal Canadiens 1-0 in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, becoming the first team to repeat as champion since the 2016 and 2017 Pittsburgh Penguins. Goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy won the Conn Smythe Trophy and recorded his fifth straight shutout in a series-clinching game.
With the win, the Lightning improved to 15-0 immediately following a loss over the past two postseasons, the longest such streak in NHL history. Defeating Montreal is the 15th series win for the Lightning since 2015. In that span, no other team has won more than nine series.
| Tampa B. - Montreal | 4 : 1 |
| Vegas - Montreal | 2 : 4 |
| Tampa B. - NY Islan. | 4 : 3 |
| Montreal - Winnipeg | 4 : 0 |
| Colorado - Vegas | 2 : 4 |
| Carolina - Tampa B. | 1 : 4 |
| Boston - NY Islan. | 2 : 4 |
| Vegas - Minnesota | 4 : 3 |
| Edmonton - Winnipeg | 0 : 4 |
| Colorado - St Louis | 4 : 0 |
| Florida - Tampa B. | 2 : 4 |
| Carolina - Nashville | 4 : 2 |
| Toronto - Montreal | 3 : 4 |
| Pittsburgh - NY Islan. | 2 : 4 |
| Washing. - Boston | 1 : 4 |
| Central Division | ||
| 1 | Carolina | 80 |
| 2 | Florida | 79 |
| 3 | Tampa B. | 75 |
| 4 | Nashville | 64 |
| 5 | Dallas | 60 |
| 6 | Chicago | 55 |
| 7 | Detroit | 48 |
| 8 | Columbus | 48 |
| East Division | ||
| 1 | Pittsburgh | 77 |
| 2 | Washing. | 77 |
| 3 | Boston | 73 |
| 4 | NY Islan. | 71 |
| 5 | NY Ran. | 60 |
| 6 | Philadel. | 58 |
| 7 | N. Jersey | 45 |
| 8 | Buffalo | 37 |
| North Division | ||
| 1 | Toronto | 77 |
| 2 | Edmonton | 72 |
| 3 | Winnipeg | 63 |
| 4 | Montreal | 59 |
| 5 | Calgary | 55 |
| 6 | Ottawa | 51 |
| 7 | Vancouv. | 50 |
| West Division | ||
| 1 | Vegas | 82 |
| 2 | Colorado | 82 |
| 3 | Minnesota | 75 |
| 4 | St Louis | 63 |
| 5 | Arizona | 54 |
| 6 | LA Kings | 49 |
| 7 | San Jose | 49 |
| 8 | Anaheim | 43 |
NHL 2021/22 key dates
After two seasons shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic, NHL fans will finally be treated to a full, 82-game schedule during the 2021/22 campaign. The league will return to the previous alignment with East and West conferences. The Seattle Kraken will be placed in the Pacific Division and the Arizona Coyotes will be moved to the Central Division.
- October 12: Regular season begins
- February 4-22: Olympic Break
- February 4-5: All-Star Weekend
- March 21: Trade deadline
- April 29: Regular season ends
- May 2: Playoffs begins
- June 30: Last possible day of Stanley Cup Final
Stanley Cup favorites
These are odds to win NHL 2021/22 Championship published by online bookmakers before the start of the season:
| Team | Odds | Team | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avalanche | 7 | Flames | 40 |
| Lightning | 8 | Blackhawks | 40 |
| Golden Knights | 9.5 | Canadiens | 40 |
| Maple Leafs | 13 | Jets | 40 |
| Bruins | 15 | Devils | 50 |
| Islanders | 18 | Kraken | 50 |
| Hurricanes | 21 | Canucks | 50 |
| Panthers | 21 | Kings | 65 |
| Penguins | 21 | Predators | 65 |
| Oilers | 23 | Sharks | 80 |
| Wild | 23 | Blue Jackets | 100 |
| Rangers | 26 | Ducks | 150 |
| Capitals | 26 | Coyotes | 150 |
| Flyers | 31 | Red Wings | 150 |
| Stars | 36 | Senators | 150 |
| Blues | 36 | Sabres | 200 |
The Colorado Avalanche are still looking for another Stanley Cup trophy after four straight postseason appearances. Last season the Avalanche went 39-13-4, first in the West Division, and again, they lost in the second round to the Vegas Golden Knights. The most important pieces of off-season business were done: re-signing captain Gabriel Landeskog before he could leave in free agency, and then acquiring Darcy Kuemper to replace Philipp Grubauer in net. They have top end talent throughout the lineup and should be the best team in the re-formed Central Division.
This is introduction to 2021/22 NHL season. Latest news, statistics, results and predictions you can find on our main NHL page.
Despite their offseason losses due to the salary cap, the Tampa Bay Lightning head into the 21/22 season as one of the leagues most well rounded teams. The have good depth at both forward and defense and a proven starting goaltender. All of their top players are back, and Nikita Kucherov will be regular season ready this time. The Lightning will once again be a major threat to win it all this year as they usually are every season.
The Vegas Golden Knights rewrote the rules for expansion teams with exceptional success from their infancy. The Golden Knights were a top-five team on both sides of the puck and there haven't been any major downgrades to the forward or defensive units. This season presents new challenges as Vegas says goodbye to Marc-Andre Fleury and Ryan Reaves. Robin Lehner is a strong No. 1, but if he has to miss any time, Laurent Brossoit won't give the same cover as Fleury.
Coaching changes
| Arizona Coyotes | Andre Tourigny |
| Buffalo Sabres | Don Granato |
| Columbus Blue Jackets | Brad Larsen |
| Montreal Canadiens | Dominique Ducharme |
| New York Rangers | Gerard Gallant |
| Seattle Kraken | Dave Hakstol |
The Stanley Cup finals in the last five seasons
| 2021 | Tampa Bay Lightning - Montreal Canadiens | 4:1 |
| 2020 | Tampa Bay Lightning - Dallas Stars | 4:2 |
| 2019 | Boston Bruins - St. Louis Blues | 3:4 |
| 2018 | Vegas - Washington Capitals | 1:4 |
| 2017 | Pittsburgh Penguins - Nashville Predators | 4:2 |
| Team | Titles | 16/17 | 17/18 | 18/19 | 19/20 | 20/21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montreal | 24 | 1/8 | - | - | 1/4 | finals |
| Toronto | 13 | 1/8 | 1/8 | 1/8 | 1/8 | 1/8 |
| Detroit | 11 | - | - | - | - | - |
| Chicago | 6 | 1/8 | - | - | 1/4 | - |
| Boston | 6 | 1/8 | 1/4 | finals | 1/2 | 1/4 |
| Pittsburgh | 5 | title | 1/4 | 1/8 | 1/8 | 1/8 |
| Edmonton | 5 | 1/4 | - | - | 1/8 | 1/8 |
| NY Islanders | 4 | - | - | 1/4 | - | 1/2 |
| NY Rangers | 4 | 1/4 | - | - | 1/8 | - |
| New Jersey | 3 | - | 1/8 | - | - | - |
| Tampa Bay | 3 | - | 1/2 | 1/8 | title | title |
| Los Angeles | 2 | - | 1/8 | - | - | - |
| Colorado | 2 | - | 1/8 | 1/4 | 1/2 | 1/4 |
| Philadelphia | 2 | - | 1/8 | - | 1/2 | - |
| St. Louis | 1 | 1/4 | - | title | 1/4 | 1/8 |
| Dallas | 1 | - | - | 1/4 | finals | - |
| Calgary | 1 | 1/8 | - | 1/8 | 1/4 | - |
| Carolina | 1 | - | - | 1/2 | 1/4 | 1/4 |
| Anaheim | 1 | 1/2 | 1/8 | - | - | - |
| Washington | 1 | 1/4 | title | 1/8 | 1/4 | 1/8 |
| Vegas | - | finals | 1/8 | - | 1/2 | |
| Ottawa | - | 1/2 | - | - | - | - |
| Minnesota | - | 1/8 | 1/8 | - | 1/8 | 1/8 |
| San Jose | - | 1/8 | 1/4 | 1/2 | - | - |
| Vancouver | - | - | - | - | 1/2 | - |
| Arizona | - | - | - | - | 1/4 | - |
| Buffalo | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Florida | - | - | - | - | 1/8 | 1/8 |
| Winnipeg | - | - | 1/2 | 1/8 | 1/8 | 1/4 |
| Columbus | - | 1/8 | 1/8 | 1/4 | 1/4 | - |
| Nashville | - | finals | 1/4 | 1/8 | 1/8 | 1/8 |
The table shows the overall number of NHL titles since 1918 and team success in the last five seasons.
Key players
Anaheim Ducks
Center Trevor Zegras, Wings Max Comtois and Rickard Rakell, Defenders Hampus Lindholm and Jamie Drysdale, Goaltender John Gibson
Arizona Coyotes
Center Nick Schmaltz, Wings Clayton Keller and Phil Kessel, Defenders Jakob Chychrun and Conor Timmins, Goaltender Carter Hutton
Boston Bruins
Center Patrice Bergeron, Wings Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak, Defenders Derek Forbort and Charlie McAvoy, Goaltender Linus Ullmark
Buffalo Sabres
Center Dylan Cozens, Wings Jeff Skinner and Victor Olofsson, Defenders Jake McCabe and Henri Jokiharju, Goaltender Dustin Tokarski
Calgary Flames
Center Elias Lindholm, Wings Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk, Defenders Noah Hanifin and Christopher Tanev, Goaltender Jacob Markstrom
Carolina Hurricanes
Center Sebastian Aho, Wings Nino Niederreiter and Martin Necas, Defenders Jaccob Slavin and Brett Pesce, Goaltender Frederik Andersen
Chicago Blackhawks
Center Tyler Johnson, Wings Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane, Defenders Calvin de Haan and Seth Jones, Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury
Colorado Avalanche
Center Nathan MacKinnon, Wings Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen, Defenders Samuel Girard and Cale Makar, Goaltender Darcy Kuemper
Columbus Blue Jacket
Center Boone Jenner, Wings Patrik Laine and Jakub Voracek, Defenders Zach Werenski and Jake Bean, Goaltender Elvis Merzlikins
Dallas Stars
Center Joe Pavelski, Wings Roope Hintz and Jason Robertson, Defenders Ryan Suter and Miro Heiskanen, Goaltender Jake Oettinger
Detroit Red Wings
Center Dylan Larkin, Wings Tyler Bertuzzi and Filip Zadina, Defenders Danny DeKeyser and Filip Hronek, Goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic
Edmonton Oilers
Center Connor McDavid, Wings Zach Hyman and Jesse Puljujarvi, Defenders Darnell Nurse and Tyson Barrie, Goaltender Mike Smith
Florida Panthers
Center Aleksander Barkov, Wings Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Reinhart, Defenders MacKenzie Weegar and Aaron Ekblad, Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky
Los Angeles Kings
Center Anze Kopitar, Wings Alex Iafallo and Viktor Arvidsson, Defenders Mikey Anderson and Drew Doughty, Goaltender Calvin Petersen
Minnesota Wild
Center Joel Eriksson Ek, Wings Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello, Defenders Jonas Brodin and Matt Dumba, Goaltender Cam Talbot
Montreal Canadiens
Center Nick Suzuki, Wings Tyler Toffoli and Cole Caufield, Defenders Alexander Romanov and Jeff Petry, Goaltender Jake Allen
Nashville Predators
Center Ryan Johansen, Wings Filip Forsberg and Eeli Tolvanen, Defenders Roman Josi and Philippe Myers, Goaltender Juuse Saros
New Jersey Devils
Center Jack Hughes, Wings Janne Kuokkanen and Yegor Sharangovich, Defenders Ryan Graves and Dougie Hamilton, Goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood
New York Islanders
Center Mathew Barzal, Wings Anders Lee and Kyle Palmieri, Defenders Adam Pelech and Ryan Pulock, Goaltender Ilya Sorokin
New York Rangers
Center Mika Zibanejad, Wings Alexis Lafreniere and Chris Kreider, Defenders Ryan Lindgren and Adam Fox, Goaltender Igor Shesterkin
Ottawa Senators
Center Josh Norris, Wings Tim Stuetzle and Drake Batherson, Defenders Thomas Chabot and Nikita Zaitsev, Goaltender Matt Murray
Philadelphia Flyers
Center Sean Couturier, Wings Claude Giroux and Travis Konecny, Defenders Ivan Provorov and Ryan Ellis, Goaltender Carter Hart
Pittsburgh Penguins
Center Jeff Carter, Wings Jason Zucker and Bryan Rust, Defenders Brian Dumoulin and Kris Letang, Goaltender Tristan Jarry
San Jose Sharks
Center Logan Couture, Wings Timo Meier and Kevin Labanc, Defenders Mario Ferraro and Brent Burns, Goaltender James Reimer
Seattle Kraken
Center Jared McCann, Wings Jaden Schwartz and Jordan Eberle, Defenders Vince Dunn and Adam Larsson, Goaltender Philipp Grubauer
St. Louis Blues
Center Ryan O'Reilly, Wings Brandon Saad and Vladimir Tarasenko, Defenders Torey Krug and Justin Faulk, Goaltender Jordan Binnington
Tampa Bay Lightning
Center Brayden Point, Wings Ondrej Palat and Nikita Kucherov, Defenders Victor Hedman and Jan Rutta, Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy
Toronto Maple Leafs
Center Auston Matthews, Wings Nick Ritchie and Mitchell Marner, Defenders Morgan Rielly and T.J. Brodie, Goaltender Jack Campbell
Vancouver Canucks
Center Elias Pettersson, Wings J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser, Defenders Quinn Hughes and Tyler Myers, Goaltender Thatcher Demko
Vegas Golden Knights
Center Chandler Stephenson, Wings Max Pacioretty and Mark Stone, Defenders Alec Martinez and Alex Pietrangelo, Goaltender Robin Lehner
Washington Capitals
Center Evgeny Kuznetsov, Wings Alex Ovechkin and Tom Wilson, Defenders Trevor van Riemsdyk and John Carlson, Goaltender Ilya Samsonov
Winnipeg Jets
Center Pierre-Luc Dubois, Wings Kyle Connor and Evgeny Svechnikov, Defenders Josh Morrissey and Nate Schmidt, Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck