1 Word for Every NHL Team's 2023-24 Season (2024)

The 2023-24 NHL season is behind us, and we're in the twilight of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Panthers and the Oilers.

With the final game - (or games?) of the campaign about to be played, it's the perfect time to look back at the highs, the lows and everything in between for every NHL team.

So, what did we learn?

Let's assign one word to each NHL franchise's campaign.

No one expected the Ducks to make a run at the Stanley Cup in 2023-24, but we hoped to see the future vision with the youth movement after an abysmal 2022-23.

Anaheim made good on that and perhaps exceeded expectations with a convincing start to the season and some glimmers of hope throughout.

They're still lingering at the bottom of the West—only San Jose and Chicago ended with fewer points—and their goal differential remained terrifying at minus-91.

However, new head coach Greg Cronin and his team weren't focused on the standings, they were intent on creating chemistry and getting in the reps.

The proof is in the power play. It was fun to watch Mason McTavish, Leo Carlsson, Pavel Mintyukov and others connect knowing we'll be talking about that core in a more serious way in a few years.

Anaheim kept Frank Vatrano around for some goal-scoring leadership, and they traded for the rights to 2022 No. 5 overall Cutter Gauthier (who they signed).

The future is bright, but the present isn't so miserable in Anaheim.

The Bruins' top two centers retired ahead of the season, and not only did they have no cap space to replace them, but they also had to surrender several other key forwards to remain compliant.

They still beat the Leafs in the first round before falling to the Stanley Cup finalist Panthers in the second round.

We may look back on this era of Bruins hockey as a disappointment due to their historic 2022-23 regular season and ensuing collapse, but making it to the second round of the playoffs with this squad wasn't too shabby.

The Sabres missed the playoffs for an NHL-record 11th straight season, and they did it in typical, brutal Buffalo fashion.

They started the season 3-0-0 and 5-1-1 but followed up with a 5-18-5 stretch that almost took them out of the conversation completely in the packed East.

In true, miserable Sabres fashion, they spent the rest of the reason almost making a comeback. They lost at least five straight games four times, right when you thought they were getting it together.

Spoiler alert: Once again, they did not get it together.

I'm not sure what you even do at this point if you're Calgary general manager Craig Conroy.

Trade Jacob Markstrom to the Devils for a 2025 first-round pick and Kevin Bahl, I guess.

The Markstrom trade is the latest in the Flames core's mass exodus that leaves a middling team at a crossroads.

Conroy wants to keep the team competitive while acquiring draft capital, but the core has dwindled and the whole saga is growing tired.

The Carolina Hurricanes were one of the most complete and consistent teams in the league this regular season, and it's been this way for five years now.

It was time to make a big trade-deadline swing and go all-in, and the front office did so with the Jake Guentzel acquisition.

An extremely hard-fought, close battle with the Rangers ended Carolina's season in the second round, largely due to a lack of juice on the power play and perhaps a need for more elite goaltending.

This was the toughest postseason exit for the Hurricanes of all in their current window, partially because this offseason is bound to see some major losses.

We'll see if new GM Eric Tulsky can navigate it and give the team a better opportunity to finally get it done next season.

The Blackhawks' much-anticipated 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick Connor Bedard emerged on the scene, and the Calder Trophy finalist did not disappoint.

The 18-year-old jumped right into the role of first-line center for the depleted Hawks in his rookie year, ending with 22 goals and 61 points in 68 games.

Bedard made a horrible team fun to watch and produced highlight after highlight with not much help around him.

Nathan MacKinnon was special in his career year, amassing 51 goals and 140 points in 82 games, good for No. 2 in the league.

Though the Avalanche fell to the Dallas Stars in the second round, they proved they aren't fading away after their 2022 Cup win.

Maybe new GM Don Waddell is starting to curate a new vibe for the Blue Jackets after firing head coach Pascal Vincent after one season.

However, the year started off rough with the puzzling hiring and departure of Mike Babco*ck before the first game.

The vibes continued to deteriorate on the ice, and emerging young players such as Adam Fantilli were sheltered and ice time was restricted for no particular reason.

We'll see what the Waddell era can usher in, including a potential change of scenery move featuring Patrik Laine.

The Dallas Stars were rightfully lauded for having one of the most complete teams in the NHL this regular season, and there was a feeling they could follow up their trip to the Western Conference Final with a trip to the Stanley Cup.

Dallas emerged from a gauntlet featuring reigning champion Vegas and 2022 winners Denver, but it ended up losing 4-2 to the high-octane Oilers in the Conference Final.

Still, there's a lot to love about the season that was, especially the emergence of up-and-comers such as Wyatt Johnston and Logan Stankoven, who aren't even close to their primes.

The Yzerplan is two or three bigger pieces and one solid goaltender away from taking the next step and making the playoffs.

Patrick Kane's twilight wasn't the answer, but it didn't have to be. Last season's competitiveness was a step in the right direction.

With context, it's all going to be OK.

Funnily enough, the comeback story of the regular-season Oilers might become the comeback story of the Stanley Cup Final.

The regular-season Oilers had no choice but to persevere with an injured version of Connor McDavid, and that's where Zach Hyman emerged.

Now you've got McDavid closing in on Wayne Gretzky's records with a confident team around him.

Every position was filled when it came to the 2023-24 Florida Panthers, and that's exactly why they've been so dominant throughout the playoffs and came out so strong against the Oilers.

Will Edmonton's star power win out in the Cup Final, or will it be Florida's depth?

At no point in the season did I believe the Kings were going to do anything special, and that's because they didn't believe they were going to do so themselves.

It was hard to get a gauge on them, and it was difficult to believe Pierre-Luc Dubios was going to lead them to victory.

They've got great, emerging pieces, and it's a win that they were able to trade Dubois for Darcy Kuemper (goaltending insurance) without buying him out.

I try to avoid repeats in these articles, but the Minnesota Wild have been referred to as "mid" at least three times now, and they've given me no reason to stop.

This time, they didn't even make it to the first round.

Keep biding your time, Montreal. We see you.

In about eight years, you'll be more insufferable than ever, and we'll have no choice but to nod our heads.

I respected the comeback and Barry Trotz's moves in his first season as GM.

Instead of trading Juuse Saros and starting the rebuild, he got a few scorers in exchange for late-round picks. It mattered.

I loved the fight in this Predators team, and I'm excited to see what Trotz does next.

All the Devils needed was a goalie.

Every person on Earth knew this going into the season, and that's why the team itself seemed to give up.

Losing seemingly every game 7-6 must be soul-destroying. I love Jacob Markstrom and his candid desire to win, so hopefully this changes the conversation.

Can't believe the team that does nothing did nothing.

If we've learned one thing from the 2023-24 Cup Final, it's that special teams matter.

In a league with so much parity, your best players have to perform when it matters. For the most part, these Rangers did.

The Presidents' Trophy winners set the standard, and they're going to try to run it back.

It gets frustrating hyping up all of the Senators' up-and-comers with nothing to show for it.

I was very high on this team headed into 2023-24, but yet again something just wasn't connecting. Perhaps Shane Pinto's first full season will fix it.

I genuinely believed in the 2024 Philadelphia Flyers, but it was actually fun.

Maybe I respect a fluke, even when it all falls apart so easily.

Missing the playoffs by a few games twice in a row feels lethal for a franchise that has done more than enough and traded away a clear piece that got it there. It's over, I fear.

Respect the tank.

The Sharks were bad and may have made a side deal to get Barclay Goodrow from the Rangers off of waivers, but they have the No. 1 pick and he will be Macklin Celebrini.

This season's suffering will be worth it if the 18-year-old is a franchise player.

Aren't we all Matty Beniers in this photo when it comes to the Kraken? What's the vibe?

If it's a Ron Francis-run team, which it is, the vibe is homegrown talent. And the Firebirds are currently facing the Hershey Bears in the Calder Championships in the AHL. Give it a few years.

No NHL team is more undedicated to anything. Are the Blues rebuilding? Are they making the playoffs? Maybe the better question is what should they do, and the answer is: "I have no idea."

This is like the worst situationship you've ever been in.

When Pearl Jam sang "I'm still alive," they were talking about the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The team lost to its in-state rivals who eventually went on to the Cup Final, so you have to give it a bit of respect. At the same time, though, they only won one game in the first round.

They're still alive, and that's honestly respectable considering the aggressive moves they've needed to make to stay a team after the Cup wins.

Does it even matter that they had a good regular season? They lost in the first round again.

This is tough. The writing had been on the wall for the Arizona Coyotes for years, but it seemed like the franchise was sold and changed in a day. That's showbiz, baby?

There's no going back now, so let's look ahead and rank the best potential names for Utah Hockey Club.

Finally, this core has persevered to be something.

They did it in perfect Canucks fashion, with a lot of drama along the way. But they did it with Petersson, Boeser, Miller and Co., and they're prepared to keep going.

They also did it without their Vezina-caliber goalie for much of the time. It's only up from here.

No one does more than the Vegas Golden Knights, and they've created a wake.

I love their strategy of trading for active good NHL players while they are in their prime.

As they descend from that prime, though, it's fair to wonder what the franchise looks like without many draft picks to work with.

Has a team ever been more aggressively ousted from the conversation?

The Capitals were the only team swept in the 2024 postseason. They had a brutal goal differential this regular season, and while Alex Ovechkin had his moments, he struggled without his familiar teammates.

Charlie Lindgren has been awesome in net, Spencer Carbery has been a great coach, and good things are coming. But it appears the old guard is done.

What does it mean for Ovechkin's records? He should find a way to get them, and the team will work with him. But we learned this season that it won't be easy.

The first round between the Avalanche and the Jets was perhaps the best series of the entire playoffs.

Unfortunately for the Jets, they completely fell apart and regular Vezina-caliber goalie Connor Hellebuyck had some rough games.