What's Real And What's Not In The Early Stages Of The NHL Season?

Most NHL teams have only played either two or three games through the first week of the 2026-27 season, so the results we've seen need to be taken with a grain of salt.

The same franchises that look like they could be trending in the right direction could also be headed for a steep fall.

With that said, we're going to attempt to identify what trends are real and not real through the start of the regular season. Let's get to it:

Yes, the Sharks needed overtime to win both of their first two games, but they beat two teams in the Los Angeles Kings and Florida Panthers that are veteran-heavy teams. And San Jose is thriving because their young stars are leading the way. 

Superstar center Macklin Celebrini already leads the team with five assists despite missing their third game of the season with a lower-body injury, while youngsters Will Smith and Igor Chernyshov each have a pair of goals and three points.

After getting thumped in a 5-0 shutout win by the Dallas Stars — who came in hungry after two frustrating losses to start the season — it's clear that this team will go as far as Celebrini can take them.

The Sharks' next three games come against the St. Louis Blues, Edmonton Oilers and Boston Bruins, so we're going to see what they are made of sooner than later. Regardless of how things play out in this short stretch, no team has a brighter future, and their strong start to the year is a harbinger of the great things to come for this franchise.

The Rangers started the season with a 4-1-0 record, and they're currently on a four-game win streak, with victories over the Tampa Bay Lightning, Detroit Red Wings, Utah Mammoth and New York Islanders. Igor Shesterkin has been outstanding, but his 1.75 GAA and .926 save percentage almost certainly aren't sustainable, so a course correction is likely coming for the Rangers.

The Kraken currently sit in a playoff spot because they've had the good fortune of playing the abysmal Calgary Flames twice in their first three games. Seattle beat the Flames by a 6-1 score in both games, but they lost to the Oilers in the third game.

It's going to get much harder for the Kraken, as evident with their 6-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. They will now take on the Washington Capitals, Philadelphia Flyers, Lightning and Panthers in five of their next seven games. The Kraken are flawed, and their weaknesses will soon be apparent.

The Mammoth currently sit in first place in the Central with a 3-1-0 record. They've outscored their opponents by an impressive 17-8 mark and are building off an impressive off-season in which they picked up two veteran stars in Vincent Trocheck and Anders Lee.

Leading scorers Nick Schmaltz, Clayton Keller, Dylan Guenther and Mikhail Sergachev have combined for 26 points in the early going so the Mammoth look like a team that will be consistently excellent.

Now, are the Mammoth good enough to overtake one of the Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars or Minnesota Wild for a top-three spot in the Central? We wouldn't go that far just yet. But certainly, this Utah team now has the horses and the experience to ensure themselves of a post-season berth.

In losing their first three games of the season – falling to the Penguins, Devils and Carolina Hurricanes – the Flyers have been outscored 17-5. Read that again. Philadelphia has been outscored by a more than 3-to-1 ratio. That's abominable, but the Flyers have too much talent to continue being humbled by that particular stat.

It's encouraging that first-year Flyers goalie Joseph Woll has put up a .929 SP in two games, but they need more out of Dan Vladar, who got lit up in a 7-0 loss to the Penguins.

And when only two Flyers have more than one point – and those two players (Travis Sanhem and Travis Konecny) have only two points apiece – that’s not going to cut it.

Ultimately, we expect more out of the Flyers in both zones, and better days are likely coming. Head coach Rick Tocchet is going to close the gap between their offense and defense, and that will make Philadelphia much more competitive. 

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