An NHL offseason that was supposed to be filled with crazy trades and lots of player movement has disappointed, to say the least.

The result? The good teams in each conference last season will look the same next season, while the teams on the outside looking in will struggle to break through. Sure, there’s always a team or two that surprises when the real games begin, but it’s difficult to imagine more than one or two new teams sneaking into the postseason in the 2025-26 season.

Here are my offseason power rankings for the top teams:

Eastern Conference

1. Florida Panthers — They might not finish first in the regular season, but when the playoffs begin, you’re not picking anyone over this group, especially with Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad and Brad Marchand back in the fold.

2. Tampa Bay Lightning — They had a disappointing postseason performance, but with high-end talent at each position, they’ll be back.

3. Carolina Hurricanes — Almost the opposite of the Panthers, a team that could easily win the conference playing in a poor division. But when the postseason starts, is anyone confident they have the high-end players to get it done?

4. Toronto Maple Leafs — No Mitch Marner, but maybe that’s not a bad thing. Toronto did well to extort Nic Roy from Vegas because of potential tampering issues with Marner. Still, the Leafs are not exactly a team that fills you with confidence when April rolls around.

5. Ottawa Senators — I’m a big fan of their young talent at premium positions, including Jake Sanderson on the blue line. Goaltender Linus Ullmark should get better with another year in the system.

6. New Jersey Devils — Everything fell apart after center Jack Hughes got hurt, but there’s still a lot of talent on this team. Of course, Hughes’ inability to stay healthy is a reason why they may never make the jump.

7. Montreal Canadiens — With the young talent they’ve accumulated and the addition of defenseman Noah Dobson, they could easily climb these rankings as the season goes on. A flawed but talented group.

8. Washington Capitals — Is it sacrilege to put the President’s Trophy-winning team this low? Perhaps. They have a good coach, which helps their cause, but everything went right for this team last season. A goaltending dip in the second half of the season is a major concern.

Outside looking in

Columbus Blue Jackets — Improving young talent could help them sneak in, but it was an underwhelming offseason considering the cap space they had to weaponize.

Western Conference

1. Vegas Golden Knights — A deep, deep team up front that will likely find a way to replace defenseman Alex Pietrangelo at some point during the season. There’s a cluster at the top of the West without a whole lot of separation. But that’s a really strong team.

2. Edmonton Oilers — Yes, their goaltending is a massive question mark. There’s no getting around that. They also have Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl and have managed two straight Stanley Cup Final appearances even with those question marks.

3. Dallas Stars — Having to give away forward Mason Marchment for very little stings but they’re still a deep and strong team. As long as Jason Robertson isn’t traded prior to the season, they’ll be in the running for the top spot in the Central yet again.

4. Colorado Avalanche — They’re set at all the premium positions but still have work to do around the edges. The bottom six needs some work as Charlie Coyle has not been replaced, but a full season of Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood in net gives them a chance to win the division.

5. Winnipeg Jets — They lost a near point-per-game player and haven’t done anything to replace him. The Jets are still a good team, but with no Adam Lowry to start the season, all eyes will be on Jonathan Toews to show he can still be an effective NHL player.

6. Los Angeles Kings — Sounds like this will be the swan song for Anze Kopitar, one of the league’s best all-around players over the last 20 years. A good team with no one that really scares you, a big reason why they haven’t been able to get out of the first round.

7. Utah Mammoth — Yes, I’m buying Mammoth stock. They added a potential 30-goal scorer without giving up a key cog in what they do. Goaltending may be their downfall, but this is a talented group that looks ready to take another step.

8. Minnesota Wild — If wing Kirill Kaprizov is healthy, they should be in the mix. He’s a game-changer. Defenseman Zeev Buium is the real deal and should be in the Calder Trophy hunt. But you win with power down the middle and, while Joel Eriksson Ek is very good, he’s not a true top-line center.

Outside looking in 

Anaheim Ducks — Call me crazy (and some have), but I have a feeling this is a team that takes another step and makes things interesting in the wild-card race.

What I’m hearing

—This could be the final NHL season for several legends. Anze Kopitar is likely entering his last year. He’s not alone. Evgeni Malkin is almost certainly leaving the NHL after this season and the same might be true for Alex Ovechkin. It’s hard when you’re overshadowed by some guy named Sidney Crosby, but Malkin was an absolute force in his prime. It’s the end of an era.

—Several Avalanche players are already in town skating regularly at Family Sports, including Brock Nelson and newcomer Brent Burns. If you wander over there on a weekday, you’ll likely catch an informal skate. It’ll be a slow trickle of players showing up before the majority of them arrive around Labor Day.

What I’m seeing

—We’ll see if he plays in the NHL this season, but No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer seems like one heck of a young man. It’s well known he lost his mother to cancer at a young age and when he signed his entry-level contract, the New York Islanders invited 20 children who also lost a parent to meet him. He spent at least 15 minutes with each and every one of them.

—Beautiful tribute from Josh Manson to his late mother at The Players’ Tribune. I would highly recommend everyone give it a read.

What I’m thinking

—No, I don’t have the St. Louis Blues, arguably the hottest team in the league down the stretch last season, in my top eight. I might look stupid doing that. While I’m a big Jim Montgomery fan, I’m not buying that roster. The new coach bump is a real thing and nothing about that defense really stands out on paper.

—The Sidney-Crosby-to-the-Avalanche hype is a bit much for me, but I wonder if he changes his mind next summer. Malkin is likely retiring. Erik Karlsson, Bryan Rust and Rickard Rakell could be traded, and they’re clearly rebuilding there. I get he’s loyal. He’s also competitive. Eventually, you’d think he’ll want to play in the playoffs again.

And no, I don’t think the Avalanche would be a lock to get him because of Nathan MacKinnon. Montreal makes sense and actually has trade assets that would entice a team looking to rebuild.