The NHL season is wrapping up with only four weeks left of the regular season. It’s allowed us to reflect on the season that was and some of the new things that made it unique. Every season, everyone learns something about hockey and the NHL at large, and this season was no exception.
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What has stood out from this season? While there’s some confirmation on previous beliefs, with new contenders and bottom feeders around the league, there are insights into the teams that have made significant strides this season.
Rebuild Work When Executed Well & So Can Retools on the Fly
Teams around the league will look at what the Boston Bruins and New York Islanders did with their retools last season and try to emulate them. The Bruins traded multiple players at the 2025 trade deadline and had to take their medicine to finish out the season but it gave them a good young base to rebound this season. The Islanders traded Brock Nelson but with the lottery win and a few moves, they are back in the contention discussion.
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Both teams needed some luck to pull off their rebuilds. However, both teams also bet on the bouncebacks from star players, notably, their goaltenders, to fuel their strong seasons. The good thing for them is that they still have prospects on the way, yet are set up to make the playoffs this season, an ideal spot for retooling teams.
This season is also showing that a well-executed rebuild can work out as well. The Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Montreal Canadiens all did the teardown a few years back. Yet, they stuck to the plan and built around the young stars. It’s paying off now as these teams are all in the playoff picture and look poised to contend for the Cup in the near future.
There are a few new faces in the rebuilding category. Teams like the Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Vancouver Canucks are grappling with the possibility of a rebuild and want to avoid one, knowing how long they usually take before they pay off. The teams that are having success this season have shown that with patience and the right steps, a rebuild can work.
A New Wave of Stars Has Arrived
Macklin Celebrini is the next superstar in the NHL, and he’s already in the Hart Trophy discussion. Matthew Schaefer is the defenseman who already looks like a generational talent who will probably not win the Norris Trophy this season but it’s a matter of time before he wins a few. With those two and a handful of young players stepping up this season, it’s clear that the next generation of NHL greats has arrived.
In some ways, this season is a passing of the torch for the NHL. Every few years, there’s a wave of stars who take over the league. Hockey historians will look at the Alexander Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, and Patrick Kane era that helped the NHL recover from the 2004 lockout. The next generation came with Connor McDavid, Cale Makar, Auston Matthews, Nikita Kucherov, and Nathan MacKinnon.
Now, fans will get to know Celebrini and Schaefer but also other big names like Connor Bedard, Adam Fantilli, Leo Carlsson, and Lane Hutson. And who knows? Maybe the upcoming draft will have a few generational talents as well to add to this era.
Don’t Wait on a Big Trade
The second a player is put on the trade block, or the moment their name is floated around in trade rumors, the value is highest. A player with two years left on a contract is more valuable than a player with one year and certainly more valuable than a rental.
It’s why the best time to make a big trade is early on, especially since both sides benefit the most from the deal. The buying team knows early on that they are contending while the selling team gets the most bang for their buck.
The Quinn Hughes trade is a prime example of a deal that can be early. Many wondered if the Canucks should have waited but they saw the best offer on the table and pounced on it. Looking back, it’s hard to deny that they got a great haul. The Minnesota Wild, meanwhile, have been a significantly better team since that deal, with the entire team buying in after the addition of an elite defenseman.
Then some teams played the waiting game and either got underwhelming returns or couldn’t make a deal at all. The Philadelphia Flyers set their price for Rasmus Ristolainen, and nobody wanted to offer it while the St. Louis Blues had a high asking price for Robert Thomas that was never met. There’s a good chance both teams will never get a better offer than the ones they received at the previous trade deadline.
The Modern Day Enforcer is Developed in the AHL
In a full-circle moment, fighting is back in the NHL. While hockey won’t return to the 1970s, when players would fight anyone, including the fans, the five-on-five line brawls and all-out fights have been a common occurrence this season.
Many will look at the Four Nations or the Florida Panthers as the start of this moment but it’s part of the game these days. Teams want to add toughness to round out their rosters and also need a modern-day enforcer to take the target off their skilled players’ backs. It used to be that Tom Wilson was a unicorn. Now, every team has its version of Tom Wilson.
The question is, where are these players coming from? Where is the modern-day enforcer developed? Junior and college hockey have strict rules against fighting and big hits, so even if a player has that in their toolbox, they can use it until they play at the next level.
It’s why the American Hockey League (AHL) is the development league, not just for prospects but enforcers as well. Multiple coaches around the league have talked about how many players come into the league with a lot of skill but skill alone won’t get them into the NHL. Likewise, some players can only survive by carving out a physical role. It explains how a lot of young players are being developed to add that to their teams, and they have this season. Teams are tougher, and it starts with the AHL.
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Tagged: AHL, Macklin Celebrini, Matthew Schaefer, nhl