Last year, the Central Division ran through Colorado all season after a historic start to the year. The 2026-2027 Central Division should be more competitive. Dallas and Minnesota expect to be in the divisional race all season; Utah added some depth and skill to their lineup after making the playoffs last season; and St. Louis and Chicago look like they are ready to return to the playoffs. At the same time, Nashville and Winnipeg will need to show us they can compete each night. Entering camp, there are the Makar extension and Hellebuyck trade request, among other big storylines in the Central Division.
The Avalanche have had the continued expectation to win since their Cup-winning season in 2022. When you have 2 of the top-5 players in the league in Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar, the pressure to succeed will be in Colorado as long as those players are there. This offseason, the team and Makar came to a historic agreement, the largest contract in NHL history when he signed an 8-year, $163.2 million extension. The team also re-signed veteran defensemen Brett Kulak (5-years) and Brent Burns (1-year) and added veteran forward Jaden Schwartz in Free Agency to a 3-year deal.
Last season, the team won the Central Division, the Presidents’ Trophy for the best record in the league, and the William Jennings Trophy for least goals-against team goaltending; they will look to repeat last year’s regular-season success. The roster has a new look following a busy offseason where they traded Ross Colton and Jack Drury to Nashville in separate deals, and sent fan-favorite Valeri Nichushkin to Columbus. The goal was to recoup some younger assets like Fedor Svechkov and Zachary L’Heureux, who are expected to fill those depth roles this year.
X-Factor Player: Nazem Kadri, Forward. After rejoining the team at the trade deadline last year, a lot felt familiar quickly. The power play went from 17.1% to 21.4% and remained at 20.6% in the playoffs. A team this skilled needs to have a top-end power play.
Bold Prediction: MacKinnon wins a consecutive Rocket Richard Trophy, and Cale Makar has 100 assists on the season.
The Stars are looking to bounce back following a disappointing first-round loss to the Wild in the playoffs last year. The offseason got off to all but a smooth start, as they once again had contract negotiations drag out with Jason Robertson, but was somewhat resolved with a 1-year, $12 million contract. The team had to part with Mavrik Bourque and Ilya Lyubushkin to ensure they had the cap space to sign Robertson, but are expecting to have Tyler Seguin ready for training camp after missing the majority of last season to injury.
Dallas expects to have a strong team again this year, but will look for better results in the playoffs in a gauntlet that is the Central Division. Superstar players like Mikko Rantanen, Wyatt Johnston, Miro Heiskanen, and Jake Oettinger are all signed long-term and will be leaned on to lead the team to success for the next few years. With the remaining “old” core players like Seguin and Jamie Benn seemingly winding down their careers, the “new” core will be relied on for leadership and production.
X-Factor Player: Wyatt Johnston, Forward. During his first year in the NHL, you could tell he would lead the way for Dallas as the core aged. He has improved his stats every year in the league and will be relied upon to do so for his team.
Bold Prediction: They start the season poorly, and Jason Robertson gets traded before Christmas, but they make a huge run to get into the playoffs.
The Wild and GM Bill Guerin made the biggest trade in recent history when they acquired Quinn Hughes from Vancouver last season. Following that trade, Minnesota has the pressure to take that next step as a team, a step they have been looking to take since they entered the league: make it to the Stanley Cup Finals. The team has skill and grit, but depth has been the difference in the playoffs. Acquiring Blake Coleman in a trade with Calgary adds to the depth at Center, but that is the biggest change made to the roster.
The hope that Hughes re-signs long-term is still the team’s top priority, as his future with the Wild will determine the direction of the team for the future. The team will rely on goaltending to stay close in games, as it doesn’t have as much offensive depth as the other teams in the Central Division, but has as much star power as any team with Kirill Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, Hughes, and Brock Faber. The expectation is to make the playoffs, but they need to show they have the depth before they are considered a true contender.
X-Factor Player: Joel Eriksson Ek, Forward. Many argue he’s not a number one center, but he is for Minnesota. He’s a strong two-way player who doesn’t cheat for points. The Wild don’t have the depth like other teams in the Central Division and need to find scoring somewhere.
Bold Prediction: Extremely slow start to the season; Quinn Hughes forces a trade to join his brothers. Miss the playoffs and additionally trade either Gustavson or Wallstadt to retool for the future.
Following their inaugural season in 2024-2025, the Utah Hockey Club became the Utah Mammoth for the 2025-2026 season and made the playoffs as a wild card team. This young group wasn’t satisfied with making the playoffs; they made sure the Vegas Golden Knights earned their way past them as they pushed the series to 6 games. The Mammoth made some big moves this offseason; they traded for Vincent Trocheck from the Rangers and signed Anders Lee in Free Agency. The added veteran leadership to this young, skilled group looks to help them take the next step and win in the playoffs.
The Mammoth will have a new-look tandem in net after they acquired goaltender Sebastian Cossa from Detroit in the offseason; the goaltending in the Central Division is one of the stronger among the divisions. The offensive firepower in the Central Division also means keeping pucks out of your net is just as important as scoring, maybe more so. The Western Conference is loaded again, and young teams like this need to keep growing and keep up with the other up-and-coming young teams. The stability around Utah has made the players much more comfortable and could be a team that makes major strides in the near future.
X-Factor Player: Logan Cooley, Forward. After a breakout season in 2024-2025 in which he scored 65 points, an injury set him back a little this year. As one of the team’s most skilled players, and given his chemistry with Guenther, he will be a leader for years to come.
Bold Prediction: They push for the top of the Central Division all season, but finish just shy of first place.
Since their Cup-winning team in 2019, the Blues have seemed to be looking to find that same consistency as a team, but they are such a different group. Only Robert Thomas, Colton Parayko, Jordan Binnington, and Oskar Sundqvist (reacquired at last year’s deadline) remain from the 2019 season. To expect the same success following the turnover isn’t easy in the Central Division, but they look to make it back into the playoffs. The Blues traded Jordan Kyrou to Washington for Connor McMichael, Milton Gastrin, and the 16th-overall pick in this summer’s draft. Additionally, they added Mason McTavish from Anaheim for picks 15 and 29 in the 2026 draft, and traded two third-round picks (73 and 76) for Brandon Carlo.
The team hopes Binnington can rediscover the consistency he showed in 2019 and be the goaltender he has shown the ability to be for Team Canada at the Olympics and Four Nations Face-Off. They also need Thomas, Pavel Buchnevich, and Dylan Holloway to carry the offensive load alongside McTavish and McMichael. Carlo adds another big body on the back end, Philip Broberg looks to continue his growth, and Cam Fowler hopes to repeat his resurgent season from last year. If Binnington has a slow start to the season, Joel Hofer could become the preferred option in net, and may see Binnington involved in trade talks again.
X-Factor Player: Jordan Binnington, Goaltender. He has shown his ability as a number-one goalie for Team Canada, but he has been inconsistent for St. Louis. The team signing his paychecks hopes they can get him back to that level for them.
Bold Prediction: Newly named Captain Robert Thomas scores 100 points, and they find their way into the playoffs as a Wild Card team.
This Nashville group is interesting; you look at the roster on paper, and it looks stacked, until you realize the age of those names. Steven Stamkos (36), Ryan O’Reilly (35), Filip Forsberg (32), Jonathan Marchessault (35), Roman Josi (36), Juuse Saros (31). It felt like they were all in their primes not long ago, but the game has gotten so fast; once you lose a step, it’s like losing 3 steps. Following the trade of Luke Evangelista to New Jersey, team speed looks to be even slower.
The team is hopeful that newly hired GM Chris MacFarland can retool on the fly and get them back into the playoffs. He has already acquired Colton and Drury from Colorado, Mavrik Bourque from Dallas, and Adam Edstrom from the Rangers. Overall, they need to be more consistent as they have shown signs of being in the mix for the Central Division but just have had too many losing streaks to stay there over the full season.
X-Factor Player: Mavrik Bourque, Forward. A young player with a new opportunity and looking for more responsibility. Following the trade of Evangelista, there is a spot in the Top-6 up for grabs, and he should get plenty of looks as we enter training camp.
Bold Prediction: Juuse Saros requests a trade out of Nashville before Christmas.
For Winnipeg, there doesn’t seem to be a lot to look forward to this season. Star goaltender Connor Hellebuyck has made his trade request public, and aside from a few signings, this is the same team as last year. Mario Ferraro, Stuart Skinner, Henry Thrun, and Noah Gregor all signed in Free Agency, but don’t expect them to be game changers. The Jets drafted Viggo Bjork with the 8th overall pick this summer and signed him to an entry-level contract; he adds youth, speed, and skill. It is still to be determined if he makes the team out of camp, but he should get a lot of looks before opening night.
The rest of the teams in the Central Division have made moves and signings to make their groups stronger, but the Jets seem stuck in the middle of whatever happens with Hellebuyck; they don’t know what their team really can look like and what their plans will be. The return for players that make their requests public always seems to be underwhelming, and Winnipeg isn’t high on many free agents’ lists of preferred destinations, so this move is crucial in a volatile market. They hope they aren’t moving out of town again because of the lack of team success and support.
X-Factor Player: Cole Perfetti, Forward. He has been on the verge for too long, and the team needs him to step up and be the player they hoped he would be when they drafted him 10th overall in 2020. After a 50-point season in 2024-2025, he regressed to 32 points in 68 games. It could be his last chance in Winnipeg.
Bold Prediction: The Jets trade Hellebuyck and finish dead last in the NHL.
The winds feel like they are shifting in Chicago, and it looks like they are on the rise to being a contender in the Central Division again. Connor Bedard had a breakout season and looks to make another step in his development. Fellow young players Anton Frodell (19), Frank Nazar (22), and Artyom Levshunov (20) look to show major growth. They traded for Bo Byram from Buffalo and signed him to a 6-year, $75 million contract extension, and signed Patrick Kane to a 2-year contract in free agency.
The Blackhawks are hopeful Bedard can be healthy for the season, but following an offseason injury while training, he won’t be expected until November following surgery. Until he returns, expect Chicago to give their other young players more ice time, and expect some to produce and contribute at the NHL level, moving the rebuild into the next level of competitiveness and lift them back into the playoffs over the next couple of seasons.
X-Factor Player: Patrick Kane, Forward. The return of a legend, Kane is likely wrapping up his career where it all began. While he may not see another Cup in his return to Chicago, they hope he can guide the next generation of Blackhawks stars.
Bold Prediction: Bedard and Kane find chemistry, and Bedard scores 50 goals.
Colorado and Dallas will still be toward the top of the Central Division again, but Utah looks poised to move up in the Central Division rankings. Makar will silence the doubters that anyone is worth $20 million, and MacKinnon will further prove he is a top goal-scorer in the league. Robertson has lost his place in the Stars locker room. Trocheck unlocks Utah’s potential, and Tij Iginla makes the team.
Minnesota falls back and has to retool following a trade request from Hughes. The Blues and Blackhawks battle it out for a Wild Card spot, and both are conservative buyers at the deadline. The Wild and Blues both have different-looking goalie tandems by the end of the year.
Nashville finds a team identity but lacks the depth to compete in the Central Division; some big names ask for their way out of town. MacFarland gets to fully rebuild and make this team his own after inheriting the roster in Colorado.
Winnipeg will hope to still have a team following the season, but expect other star players to explore their options after the Hellebuyck trade, they know what they are working with. Heavily favored to win the draft lottery and end up with multiple top-10 picks in the upcoming draft.
Predicted Final Season Standings:
See the rest of the Divisional previews on my page here.
If you love sports, download Stadium Rant from the Apple App Store and join one of the fastest-growing social sports communities. Be sure to follow us on socials too — you can find all our profiles on our Linktree.
