"After getting humiliated as a Presidents' Trophy winner in 2022 -- swept by the Tampa Bay Lightning as their historic offense was mostly silenced -- Florida rebuilt its identity under Bill Zito and Paul Maurice, traded for toughness with Matthew Tkachuk, leaned into defense and the goaltending of Sergei Bobrovsky, and turned those lessons into a championship blueprint: three straight Stanley Cup Final appearances, back-to-back titles and a bona fide dynasty."
"To help sort out which clubs have the most on the line in this prove-it 2025-26 season, we grouped 13 of them into five categories of teams with work to do and boxes to check. These range from longtime contenders still knocking on the door to hyped up-and-comers, possibly-past-their-prime powers and franchises whose fans would simply love them to prove they can make the playoffs every so often."
"The common thread for all is that they have to change the story around their team, just like Florida had to do a few years ago. Let's unpack each -- and see who's under the most pressure to get the job done this season. The now-or-nevers We've written about it here before, but the primary victims of Florida's success in recent seasons have been the teams that repeatedly came close to a title but couldn't break through."
The Florida Panthers rebuilt under Bill Zito and Paul Maurice after a 2022 collapse, trading for Matthew Tkachuk, leaning into defense and Sergei Bobrovsky's goaltending, and converting that approach into consecutive Stanley Cup championships. That dominance forces other NHL teams to change narratives and validate their trajectories in the 2025-26 season. Thirteen clubs are sorted into five categories ranging from now-or-nevers and longtime contenders to hyped up-and-comers, possibly past-their-prime powers, and inconsistent franchises. Each group faces distinct tasks, timelines, and performance benchmarks that must be met to alter expectations this season.
Read at ESPN.com
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