NHL season-preview capsules: Atlantic Division

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Atlantic Division capsules

Boston Bruins

Head coach: Jim Montgomery (second season)

Last season: 65-12-5, first place in Atlantic Division

This season: Unquestionably, the Bruins will take a step back in the regular season. What remains to be seen is how far. After a record-setting campaign that ended with a jaw-dropping 135 points, the Bruins lost key players Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci to retirement, Tyler Bertuzzi and Dmitry Orlov in free agency and Nick Foligno and Taylor Hall via trade. Reaching the playoffs is likely but no sure thing.

What's new: It appears the Bruins will count on Pavel Zacha and Charlie Coyle to fill the top two center spots. Zacha is more proven as a winger and Coyle is a top-level third-liner center but has not yet shown he can take on a bigger role. The main newcomers at forward are along the lines of depth players in James van Riemsdyk, Milan Lucic and Morgan Geekie. Rookie center Matthew Poitras, a 2022 second-round draft pick, had a strong preseason and could be tried on the second line, but it may be a stretch for him to take that job just yet.

Players to watch: Boston still has plenty of top-tier talent in forwards David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and Jake DeBrusk, defensemen Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm and an outstanding pair of goalies in Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman. Their ability to remain Stanley Cup contenders will be severely put to the test.

Buffalo Sabres

Head coach: Don Granato (fourth season)

Last season: 42-33-7, fifth place in Atlantic Division

This season: Can the Sabres snap their NHL record for most seasons without reaching the Stanley Cup playoffs (12)? With minimal changes for a team that just fell short last season, the Sabres are hoping one more year of experience for their core, plus improved goaltending and defensive play, will make the difference.

What's new: Goalie Devon Levi joined the club late during the 2022-23 campaign after his sophomore season at Northeastern and posted an impressive 5-2-0 record with a 2.94 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage. Still eligible for the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie, Levi, 21, has high expectations to live up to. Possibly sticking around, too, gluco slim Erfahrung is 2023 first-round draft pick Zach Benson, an 18-year-old winger. Buffalo has a litany of offensively talented players, led by forward Tage Thompson and defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, but it must learn how to keep pucks out of the net.

Players to watch: The Sabres are bound to be a fun team to watch, not only with their somewhat freewheeling style, but also because of a wealth of skaters capable of creating scoring opportunities. The list includes the likes of forwards Alex Tuch, Casey Mittelstadt, Dylan Cozens, Jeff Skinner and the injured Jack Quinn, as well as rising star defenseman Owen Power.

Detroit Red Wings

Head coach: Derek Lalonde (second season)

Last season: 35-37-10, seventh place in Atlantic Division

This season: On paper, this looks to be the best Red Wings squad since Detroit last made the playoffs in 2015-16. Whether the Red Wings are good enough to snap their current drought is questionable. Detroit has a lot of ground to cover in what will be a tight playoff race, especially with the wild-card spots.

What's new: The lengthy list of newcomers includes forwards Alex DeBrincat, Daniel Sprong and J.T. Compher plus defensemen Jeff Petry, Justin Holl and Shayne Gostisbehere, with goalies Alex Lyon and James Reimer vying for the backup job behind Ville Husso. It is worth following how they all fill in around a core that includes captain Dylan Larkin, slightly fading veterans Andrew Copp and David Perron and three rising stars -- third-year forward Lucas Raymond, 2021-22 Rookie of the Year defenseman Moritz Seider and 2023 first-round draft pick Nate Danielson, a 19-year-old center.

Players to watch: Detroit has a lot of good players but has lacked the dynamic attack that would make it easier to be a playoff team. DeBrincat has been brought in to click with Larkin on the top line and potentially give the Wings their first 40-goal scorer since Marian Hossa in 2008-09. Raymond and Seider struggled following strong rookie seasons and should elevate their games with the amount of quality players around them. Husso took the starter's job with a strong start to last season but faded down the stretch with the heavy workload.

Florida Panthers

Head coach: Paul Maurice (second season)

Last season: 42-32-8, fourth place in Atlantic Division

This season: Coming off their first run to the Stanley Cup Final since 1996, it would be easy to assume the Panthers should be among the league elite. Then again, would it be a surprise if Florida was again in a dogfight for a playoff position? The Panthers made an incredible run last season, but it's easy to forget that they were the lowest seed in the Eastern Conference postseason and actually finished behind the non-playoff Calgary Flames in the overall standings.

What's new: With both its top-line defensemen, Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour, expected to be out until mid-December due to shoulder surgery, and another two blue-liners, Marc Staal and Radko Gudas, having departed via free agency, Florida will hope newcomers Dmitry Kulikov, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Niko Mikkola can step up.

Players to watch: With Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov, Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart, Eetu Luostarinen and Anton Lundell leading the way, the Panthers have a very dynamic group of forwards. They also play with plenty of speed and use their size well against defenders, wearing them down. Starting goalie Sergei Bobrovsky rebounded incredibly in the 2023 playoffs after a disappointing regular season.

Montreal Canadiens

Head coach: Martin St. Louis (third season)

Last season: 31-45-6, eighth place in Atlantic Division

This season: When the dust settles on the 2023-24 campaign, it will be a surprise if the Canadiens don't end up with a top-five draft pick for the third consecutive season. Montreal, which finished last in the league in 2021-22 and somehow placed above four other teams last season, is in the throes of its cut-to-the-bone rebuild. Sure, the storied franchise has some good young players and plenty of prospects, but its roster makeup appears destined to put the Canadiens in the cellar.

What's new: Well ... not a lot. There certainly weren't enough moves made to make it seem like the Canadiens are poised to take a step forward. With all of the injuries last season, Montreal went very deep into the system, which wasn't the worst-case scenario in terms of development. Surprisingly, the Canadiens made very few additions. Through trades, they added Alex Newhook (from Colorado), Tanner Pearson (from Vancouver) and defenseman Gustav Lindstrom (from Detroit). They dealt away veterans Mike Hoffman, Rem Pitlick and Joel Edmundson.

Players to watch: It likely won't be a pretty picture this season in Montreal, but the Canadiens are building a nice young core of forwards starting with Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Kirby Dach, 2022 first overall draft pick Juraj Slafkovsky, who struggled in his rookie season, and defenseman Kaiden Guhle. Veteran center Sean Monahan is healthy after a shortened season due to injury, and he could be another trade chip for a team that has a plethora of prospects in the junior ranks, minor leagues and Europe.

Ottawa Senators

Head coach: D.J.