5 storylines to follow in 2023-24 NHL season: Connor Bedard, Patrick Kane and more originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
A new hockey season has arrived.
The 2023-24 NHL campaign begins Tuesday with three games on the opening night slate. The Nashville Predators and Tampa Bay Lightning will open things up followed by Chicago Blackhawks No. 1 overall pick Connor Bedard making his highly anticipated NHL debut against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The nightcap will see the defending champion Vegas Golden Knights raise the franchise’s first Stanley Cup banner before taking on the Seattle Kraken.
Before the opening puck-drop, here are five storylines to follow this NHL season.
Can the Vegas Golden Knights repeat?
What a first six seasons it’s been for the Golden Knights franchise. Vegas made a stunning run to the Stanley Cup Final in its inaugural 2017-18 season, starting a stretch of four consecutive playoff appearances. Then, after missing the postseason for the first time in 2021-22 despite posting 94 points, the Golden Knights reached the mountaintop last season, beating the Florida Panthers in five games to capture the Stanley Cup.
There are just eight NHL franchises that have won consecutive Stanley Cups in the modern era (since 1943-44), with the Lightning being the last to do so in 2020-2021. While the Golden Knights parted ways with “Original Misfit” Reilly Smith in a cost-cutting offseason move, they return a team that’s certainly capable of repeating.
Another MVP for Connor McDavid? And what about a Stanley Cup?
This is far from a hot take, but Connor McDavid is extremely good at hockey. The Edmonton Oilers captain has led the NHL in points and been a top-two Hart Trophy finisher in each of the last three seasons. He was a near-unanimous Hart Trophy winner in 2022-23 after recording a staggering 153 points (64 goals, 89 assists), the most by a player since Mario Lemieux in 1995-96.
McDavid enters his age-27 season as a three-time MVP. With one more Hart Trophy, he would tie Eddie Shore for the third-most ever, which seems like a very attainable feat. After that, the question would become whether McDavid can challenge Gordie Howe’s six Hart Trophies or even Wayne Gretzky’s nine.
McDavid may very well capture his fourth MVP this season, but the current best hockey player in the world is still seeking his first Stanley Cup Final appearance. With McDavid and Leon Draisaitl leading the way, the Oilers remain right up there with the top contenders in the Western Conference along with Vegas and the Colorado Avalanche. Is this the season Edmonton finally breaks through?
Just how good is Connor Bedard right away?
Speaking of McDavid, Connor Bedard is about to embark on possibly the most-anticipated NHL rookie season since the Oilers center’s debut 2015-16 campaign. The 18-year-old Bedard was the consensus No. 1 pick after racking up 271 points (134 goals, 137 assists) over 134 games in the WHL.
Bedard has drawn comparisons to McDavid, but will he hit the ground running in similar fashion? McDavid posted 48 points in 45 games as a rookie and captured his first Hart Trophy by Year 2. Could a similar meteoric rise be in store for the Blackhawks rookie center?
One of the NHL’s biggest stars enters the new season as a free agent. Patrick Kane, who turns 35 in November, remains on the open market after undergoing hip resurfacing surgery on June 1. He wasn’t expected to sign with a new team until after the 2023-24 season began, though, as he faced a recovery timetable of four to six months.
After spending the first 15-plus years of his career with the Blackhawks, Kane was dealt to the New York Rangers ahead of last season’s trade deadline. He recorded five goals and seven assists over 19 regular-season games with New York, adding one goal and five assists in seven playoff contests.
Wherever he winds up (his hometown Buffalo Sabres reportedly have interest), the three-time Stanley Cup winner will make for quite the in-season addition.
How close does Alex Ovechkin get to Wayne Gretzky?
Seventy-two goals — that’s what separates Alex Ovechkin from tying Wayne Gretzky for the most goals in NHL history at 894. Ovi passed Gordie Howe for second amid a 42-goal season in 2022-23, giving him a career tally of 822 goals.
The Washington Capitals winger’s career-high mark for goals in a season is 65 and that came all the way back in 2007-08, so it’s safe to say he won’t break the record in 2023-24. But it will be fun to watch just how big of a dent the 38-year-old can put into the 72-goal gap that stands between himself and the Great One.
