Teams at the bottom see the future as a way to climb higher than their current station. Teams in the middle see the future as a way to break through to reach the elite. Teams at the top see the future as a chance to sustain their success or stave off the inevitability of potentially returning to the bottom.
This is why the future matters. It can bring promise, it can bring results or it could bring a team to its knees if it’s not careful.
With opening night of the 2022-23 NHL season approaching on Oct. 11, it’s time for another edition of the Future Power Rankings.
To determine which NHL clubs are in the best shape for the next three seasons, we had a panel of writers and editors rate each team in four categories — roster (with an emphasis on players 26 and under); prospects; cap situation and contracts; and front office, ownership and coaching — using this scale:
100: A+ (Elite)
90: A (Great)
80: B (Very good)
70: C (Average)
60: D (Very bad)
50: F (Disastrous)
After averaging the results from the panelists, each of the four categories was weighted to create the overall score: roster (35%), prospects (25%), cap/contracts (20%) and owner/GM/coach (20%). The result is a comprehensive ranking based on how well each team is positioned for the future, plus insights on every team from Ryan S. Clark, Kristen Shilton and Greg Wyshynski.
