The 2025-26 NHL season is here, and with that comes fun prediction articles. The team at the Hockey News' Utah Mammoth site has put together 32 predictions for the NHL season.

Quentin Carney and I give our honest opinion on each question. Some answers that could make us look like geniuses and some that will make us look silly at season's end.

Happy opening week, Mammoth fans. Enjoy.

Who will win the Hart Trophy? 

• Quentin -  Nikita Kucherov will get the Hart this time.
• Spencer - Connor McDavid wins it.

Who will win the Art Ross?

• Quentin - Nikita Kucherov will get it for the third year in a row. 
• Spencer - Connor McDavid, it’s hard to bet against him.

Who will win the Rocket Richard? 

• Quentin - Kirill Kaprizov. Not only is he fired up because of the new contract, but he’ll be looking to play hard after missing half the season last year.
• Spencer - Auston Matthews will return to form and prove he doesn’t need Mitch Marner on his wing.

Who will win the Norris Trophy?

• Quentin - Cale Makar. It would take a really strong showing from someone else and a little bit of a down year from Colorado in order to take it away from him.
• Spencer - Cale Makar will win again. It’s going to be a tight race between him, Werenski, and Quinn Hughes, but I think Makar takes it.

Who will win the Vezina Trophy?

• Quentin - Sergei Bobrovsky. It’ll probably be Connor Hellebuyck again, but Bobrovsky will find the fountain of youth and will be a dark horse to look out for.
• Spencer - Connor Hellebuyck will win it again, but can he show up in the playoffs?

Who will win the Calder Trophy? 

• Quentin - Ivan Demidov will benefit by being on the Canadiens who were more than comfortable relying on last year’s winner Lane Hutson. Plus, Montreal feels like a team trending in the right direction and Demidov should help with that.
• Spencer - As my colleague mentioned, it will be close. My picks are between Ivan Demidov and Matthew Schaefer of the New York Islanders. I do think Schaefer will beat out Demidov.

Who will win the Selke Trophy?

• Quentin - Sam Reinhart will keep the award in Florida as his role elevates with Barkov out.
• Spencer - Anthony Cirelli will win it with Aleksander Barkov out for the year.

Who will win the Jack Adams Award?

• Quentin - Andre Tourigny. Utah looks poised to take a step forward and Tourigny will be a big reason why. What will determine if he wins it is if Utah can exceed a Wild Card berth.
• Spencer - Craig Berube, it’s about time a Maple Leafs coach gets some love from the voters.

Who will be the first coach fired? 

• Quentin - Andrew Brunette. A slow start will probably end up leading to a somewhat premature firing because of the ups and downs of Nashville's past couple seasons.
• Spencer - For me, it’s a toss-up between Andrew Brunette and Lindy Ruff. I would say that it will be Ruff, especially if they go on a long losing streak like years past.

Which GM is feeling the most heat?

• Quentin - Kevyn Adams. The Sabres haven’t been able to figure it out and will need something flashy and exciting in order for Adams to lose  heat.
• Spencer - Kevyn Adams in Buffalo. The Buffalo Sabres have been a dumpster fire for the last 10 years. It may be time to start fresh and bring a whole new front office.

Which player is due for a breakout?

• Quentin - Logan Cooley. Honestly, Utah could have Guenther, Cooley and Peterka all take a step forward this year, but Cooley’s chemistry with Keller should improve and he’ll likely be more consistent this year. Plus, he’ll be playing for a new contract this year. 
• Spencer - For me, it’s a toss up between Connor Bedard and Shane Wright. Both players have so much pressure on them. I will ultimately say Bedard, I’d love to see him dominate this season.

Which team is due for a breakout? 

• Quentin - Utah Mammoth. Utah went under the radar last year, but were competitive very late into the season last year. This season feels like a turning point and the year Utah will become much more relevant nationally.
• Spencer - Detroit Red Wings, they have been rebuilding for a while but the NHL is better with them in the playoffs. Hopefully, this is the year they can figure it out and get into the playoffs. 

Which player will suffer a setback? 

• Quentin - Mitch Marner, it won’t last all season, but Marner will take longer than expected to adjust to life without Auston Matthews and have a slight regression before eventually having a strong performance.
• Spencer - Alex Ovechkin, after breaking the record it feels like he has done everything he wanted to do in the NHL. In what could be his last NHL year, it seems like he could struggle a bit this season.

Which team will suffer a setback? 

• Quentin - Dallas Stars, firing Pete DeBoer felt like an overreaction. Dallas should still be a great team, but the change in head coach could end up backfiring. 
• Spencer - Washington Capitals, last season it was all about Ovechkin. Now that the chase is over, I feel like they will come back down to earth.

Who will win the Presidents’ Trophy as the best regular-season team? 

• Quentin - Vegas Golden Knights, an already good team decided to keep being aggressive in the offseason. That sounds like a recipe for lots of wins.
• Spencer - Toronto Maple Leafs, this team has something to prove after losing Marner. They will want to show everyone they are just as good and the best way to do that is by winning the Presidents' Trophy. 

Who will win the Stanley Cup? 

• Quentin - Edmonton Oilers, third time's the charm right? The playoff experience and success of the last years will finally pay off.
• Spencer - Dallas Stars, they’ve been a powerhouse in the West for years, this is the year they do it.

Who will win the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP? 

• Quentin - Connor McDavid will be rewarded for taking a team friendly deal and staying loyal to the Oilers.
• Spencer - Mikko Rantanen will have a full year under his belt in Dallas, he will carry the club to the promised land and win playoff MVP.

What Canadian team will go the furthest? 

• Quentin - Edmonton Oilers, they’ll continue to do what they have been doing the last couple years.
• Spencer - Toronto Maple Leafs - it’s just their time.

Who will have the best odds of winning the Draft Lottery? 

• Quentin - It's impossible to tell, New York and Utah rose the most even with much worse odds last draft. It truly could be anyone at this point 
• Spencer - Pittsburgh Penguins, Lemieux had Crosby, Crosby will have McKenna.

What player will benefit the most from a change in scenery? 

• Quentin - JJ Peterka will benefit from being in a team that is young, improving and playoff hopeful.
• Spencer - Most will say Marner, but we all know he will be a no-show in the playoffs. So, I’m going to say Nikolaj Ehlers with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Which team will suffer the most from buyer’s remorse?. 

• Quentin - I’ll agree with Spencer on this one. This season, more teams will regret not having spent as much in the offseason. As a result, Nashville will definitely still have major regrets from last offseason if they can’t right the ship.
• Spencer - It has to be the Nashville Predators still, no? They spent millions last off-season and had a terrible year. The same could happen again this season.

Which star player will be traded (and to where)? 

• Quentin - Eric Karlsson to Carolina. The Hurricanes have the cap space so this trade could reasonably happen
• Spencer - Evgeni Malkin to the Florida Panthers while Barkov is out injured.

Which rookie are you the most excited to see? 

• Quentin - Ivan Demidov, seeing back-to-back rookies of the year would be very exciting especially since Montreal was a playoff team last year. Would love to see if that happens 
• Spencer -  Michael Misa, the Sharks remind me of the Maple Leafs. They have a ton of young stars. I’m excited to see what Misa can do. 

Who will challenge Connor McDavid for the Art Ross Trophy?

• Quentin - Nikita Kucherov, if anything, it’s McDavid who has to challenge Kucherov especially if he can overcome voter fatigue.
• Spencer - Leon Draisaitl, how cool would that be? Two teammates and best friends battling it out for the Art Ross Trophy?

What off-season move will be the most impactful? 

• Quentin - the firing of Pete DeBoer. This move will move the needle in the West in some way. Either the Stars finally will get over the hump because DeBoer was the problem, or they will regress in some way. Plus, this will be Rantenen’s first full season, which will only add more attention to this team.
• Spencer - Noah Dobson of the Montreal Canadiens. He got traded, got the big extension, he has a huge opportunity to help that franchise.

Who is the NHL’s most overpaid player?

• Quentin - Karol Kaprizov. It’s not that he isn’t a good player and more so due to the fact that he set an NHL record despite missing half the season.
• Spencer -  I have to agree with Jason, Darnell Nurse’s contract is atrocious. 

Who is the NHL’s most underpaid player?

• Quentin - Going in a different direction, there’s a great chance Utah's Karel Vejmelka contract will age very well considering he’s only the 24th highest paid goalie. With a healthier Utah defense and the starting job secured, Vejmelka should have a better statistical season. 
• Spencer - It has to be Sidney Crosby. For almost his entire career, he has earned $8.7 million to give his team a chance to win.

Whose bad season was an indicator of reality?

• Quentin - Boston Bruins, teams usually don’t bounce back from collapses very fast. 
• Spencer - The Penguins, last season, were proof that they need to rebuild and fast.

Whose good season was an aberration?

• Quentin - it’s a little unfair, but the St. Louis Blues. The Blues went on an impressive late season win streak and should have come out as first round upsets, but it’d be surprising if they pull that off again.
• Spencer -  I’d have to agree with Jason, it has to be the Capitals.

What older player will show signs of aging?

• Quentin - Alex Ovechkin. It was so exciting watching him chase the record last season, but Ovechkin's 40. There will probably be some signs even if it’s just his role becoming a bit more diminished or injuries.
• Spencer - Steven Stamkos, after leaving Tampa Bay, it felt like only a matter of time until he fell off completely. 

What backup goalie could end up as a No. 1?

• Quentin - Can’t help but be curious to see what ends up happening with Connor Ingram in Edmonton, but Greaves seems to be set up for a great shot at starting goalie.
• Spencer - Jet Greaves may be the only viable answer. He will likely start as the backup, but will become the starter by season’s end.

Which city will get the next NHL team?

• Quentin - Why not Milwaukee. It’s not as flashy or sought after as other places like Houston, but Wisconsin is very loyal to its sports teams.
• Spencer - I want to say Quebec, but I think it’ll be Houston.

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