NHL power rankings: Ranking every Atlantic Division team by chances to win the Cup

One year after losing in the Stanley Cup Final, the Florida Panthers hoisted the Stanley Cup for the first time in franchise history. They were expected to be one of the best teams entering the year, lived up to the hype in the regular season, and finished the campaign off by winning it all.

Expectations for the 2024-25 Panthers are high as well, obviously, but several Atlantic Division teams entered the year with legitimate Stanley Cup aspirations. An argument can be made that seven of the eight teams in the division had their eyes on a playoff berth.

The Atlantic Division has mostly underwhelmed thus far relative to preseason expectations, but with how the standings look as of this writing, an argument can reasonably be made for six or seven of the eight teams to make the playoffs. Once there, anything can happen, as we saw from Florida in the 2022-23 season.

With that in mind, let's rank every Atlantic Division team by their chances of winning the Stanley cup.

8. Montreal Canadiens

Nick Suzuki is averaging more than a point per game. Cole Caufield is tied for third in the NHL in goals. Lane Hutson has been an assist machine from the blue line in his rookie year. The Montreal Canadiens have gotten solid production from players they hope will be centerpieces on their next Stanley Cup-winning team, but the team sits at 9-13-3 as of this writing. They have the fewest points in the Eastern Conference and the third-fewest points overall.

The Canadiens have some good building blocks, but the team lacks depth and just isn't particularly good at anything. The 3.72 goals that they've allowed per game ranks 30th in the league, and the 2.80 goals that they've scored per game is tied for 22nd - that's with Caufield breaking out the way he has. Expectations were low, and we're seeing why.

7. Detroit Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings were as close as any team to making the playoffs last season, but fell just short. Adding veterans Vladimir Tarasenko and Cam Talbot to the mix while re-signing Patrick Kane felt like a recipe for success. The Red Wings surely had a team capable of making the playoffs for the first time since the 2015-16 season, right?

Well, not exactly. The Red Wings are 10-11-4 as of this writing, and are in sixth place in the Atlantic Division. Surprisingly, the offense has been what has held Detroit back. The Red Wings average 2.60 goals per game, good for 25th in the league. Kane having just three goals and 10 points in 20 games has played a role in the team's struggles.

As if that isn't bad enough, the Red Wings penalty kill which ranked 14th in the NHL last season is ranked 32nd as of this writing - quite the drop-off. They have the talent to turn things around, and proved that they can play well when the pressure is on down the stretch last season, but they ought to start winning games sooner rather than later.

6. Ottawa Senators

Similarly to Detroit, the Ottawa Senators are in the middle of a long playoff drought. The last time they had a chance to compete for a Stanley Cup was in the 2016-17 season. Also similarly to Detroit, they've gotten off to a sluggish start despite having legitimate playoff aspirations.

The Senators' biggest issue last season was the team's goaltending, so, they acquired Linus Ullmark - a proven No. 1 goaltender - to mitigate that issue. Unfortunately, while he has had back-to-back solid games, he has a subpar .888 save percentage. The Senators rank in the top half of the league in goals per game, but rank 27th in goals against per game.

With a goaltender of Ullmark's caliber, you'd think they'd be able to do a better job preventing goals. They have the offensive firepower to compete for a playoff spot, at the very least, but until Ullmark steps up, this team isn't going anywhere.

5. Buffalo Sabres

The Buffalo Sabres quietly got off to a strong start to their season. In fact, just nine days ago they were tied for third place in the Atlantic Division. Unfortunately, they've lost four in a row since and are now 11-12-2 on the year. They've gone from tied for third in the division to seven points back of third, and three points back of a playoff spot entirely. Their last game featured a 4-0 lead blown to the Colorado Avalanche in a 5-4 defeat.

This Sabres team is littered with talent with guys like Alex Tuch, Tage Thompson, Rasmus Dahlin, and JJ Peterka leading the way. However, they rank 17th in goals per game and 19th in goals allowed per game. Their penalty kill has been decent, but despite having guys like Tuch, Thompson, and Dahlin, their power play ranks 29th in the NHL. Buffalo has even gotten mostly solid goaltending from
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.

There's reason to believe that this team can make the playoffs, but based on how inconsistent they've been, making a real run at a Stanley Cup will be tough.

4. Tampa Bay Lightning

It sure looks like the Tampa Bay Lightning made the right decision moving on from Steven Stamkos and replacing him with Jake Guentzel. The Lightning got younger, and Guentzel is averaging nearly a point per game with his new squad. He's one of six Lightning players with over 20 points.

The problem with this Lightning team, though is that only one other player on their roster, Nick Paul, is in double figures when it comes to points. Tampa Bay's top six is elite, but they won their Stanley Cups thanks in large part to depth. That is sorely lacking on this team right now.

Still, their high-end talent is as elite as they come with Nikita Kucherov playing at his usual Hart Trophy-caliber level (when healthy) and Victor Hedman looking like a Norris Trophy candidate. Plus, they're always going to have at least a puncher's chance with Andrei Vasilevskiy in net by the time the playoffs roll around - if they can squeak in. As of this writing, the Lightning are one point back from a playoff spot. There's a lot to like, but also a lot to dislike.

3. Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins got off to a putrid start to their season to the point where Jim Montgomery was fired. He looked like nothing more than a scapegoat at the moment, but Boston has gone 6-2 since the move, and at 14-11-3 overall, they sit in third place in the Atlantic Division. They're closer to first place in the division than they are to fourth.

The coaching change might've helped somewhat, but Jeremy Swayman playing like the elite goaltender he is after a shaky start to his season has helped Boston a ton. The team still has a lot of work to do - particularly in the goal scoring and power play departments - but David Pastrnak is shooting a career-worst 8.0 percent. He has nine goals despite leading the league with 112 shots on goal. Once he starts going, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Boston get really hot.

With Swayman in net, Pastrnak's goal-scoring ability, a strong defensive unit, and tons of playoff experience, the ingredients are there for the Bruins to loom as dark horse threats to win the whole thing.

2. Toronto Maple Leafs

As usual, the Toronto Maple Leafs have gotten off to a strong start to their season. At 16-7-2, they sit at the top of the Atlantic Division. Their 34 points have them just outside of the top five overall despite playing fewer games than four of the teams ahead of them.

Mitch Marner is third in the league in assists, William Nylander is tied for third in the NHL in goals, and even John Tavares has a league-leading five game-winning goals. They've played as well as they have despite Auston Matthews missing time due to injury. Their defense is quite good, and Joseph Woll has allowed just 2.13 goals per game. The ingredients are there for this team to make a deep run and win it all.

Will it happen though? The Maple Leafs' struggles in the playoffs are well-documented. They're often good enough to get there and put themselves in a good position to make a deep run, but it never happens. Until it does, there's reason to be skeptical, no matter how good the team looks in December.

1. Florida Panthers

The Florida Panthers won the Stanley Cup last season, made it to the Stanley Cup Finals as a No. 8 seed the year before, and have as good of a shot as any to win another one.

The Panthers might sit behind Toronto in the Atlantic Division for now, but at 15-9-2 overall they're just two points behind the Maple Leafs. They've gotten some shoddy goaltending to start the year, but history suggests that Sergei Bobrovsky will be just fine by the time that the lights get bright. Plus, the Panthers rank fourth in the league in goals per game.

The simple fact is when the Panthers are playing their game, nobody can beat them. As evidenced by their wins against the Hurricanes (2x), Maple Leafs, Jets, Stars (2x), Golden Knights, and Bruins (2x), the Panthers can beat just about anybody. When it's time for them to lock in, there's reason to believe they'll do just that.