The Columbus Blue Jackets will look noticeably different next season, and that's overstating the obvious.
But so will many of the teams in the Metropolitan Division, for better or worse. We've broken down each of the eight teams to help give you a better idea of what the division will look like come October.
Columbus Blue Jackets
The Skinny:
When the Blue Jackets lost Artemi Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Matt Duchene on July 1, it wasn't hard to imagine the club taking a step back. In the fall, we'll learn if Elvis Merzlikins and Joonas Koprisalo can minimize the impact of Bobrovsky, and if youngsters like Emil Bemstrom and Alexandre Texier can be the next wave of impact players.
Additions:
Gustav Nyquist, Emil Bemstrom
Subtractions:
Artemi Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky, Matt Duchene, Ryan Dzingel, Adam McQuaid, Keith Kincaid
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Pittsburgh Penguins
The Skinny:
The Penguins, disappointed in a first-round sweep at the hands of the New York Islanders, shipped Phil Kessel to the desert in exchange for Alex Galchenyuk and made a questionable long-term signing of a bottom-six player, Brandon Tanev. If Galchenyuk can find some synergy with Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin, watch out, but it's unlikely they're as dangerous without Kessel.
Additions:
Alex Galchenyuk, Brandon Tanev, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Dominik Kahun
Subtractions:
Phil Kessel, Olli Maatta
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Washington Capitals
The Skinny:
The Capitals were upset in Game 7 of the first round by the surprisingly competitive Carolina Hurricanes, but this is a team that finished 1st in the Metropolitan Division last year. So much for a Stanley Cup hangover. Their stars are getting older but bet against them at your own peril.
Additions:
Radko Gudas, Garnet Hathaway, Richard Panik, Brendan Leipsic
Subtractions:
Matt Niskanen, Andre Burakowsky, Brett Connolly
Trending:
Flat
Carolina Hurricanes
The Skinny:
The Hurricanes offseason talk has been dominated by Sebastian Aho's offer sheet saga, where the 'Canes star forward signed an offer sheet from the Montreal Canadiens at a surprisingly low dollar value. Unsurprisingly, Carolina matched it, and the club's owner mocked the Canadiens while thanking them for saving him time this summer in contract negotiations. Beautiful stuff.
Additions:
Erik Haula, Patrick Marleau (since bought out), Gustav Forsling, James Reimer, Brian Gibbons
Subtractions:
Curtis McElhinney, Calvin de Haan, Aleksi Saarela, Adam Fox
Trending:
Flat
Philadelphia Flyers
The Skinny:
The Flyers traded for the rights to Kevin Hayes, a perfectly reasonable and capable second-line center, then gave him $50M over the next seven years ($7.14M AAV). It's the kind of contract that's likely to look really bad in a few years, especially because it looks kind of bad today.
Additions:
Matt Niskanen, Kevin Hayes, Justin Braun, Tyler Pitlick, Kurtis Gabriel, Andy Andreoff
Subtractions:
Radko Gudas, Ryan Hartman, Andrew MacDonald
Trending:
Flat
New York Islanders
The Skinny:
The Islanders successfully brought back many of their own free agents, including captain Anders Lee, Jordan Eberle, and Brock Nelson, but lost Robin Lehner to the Chicago Blackhawks. They replaced him with Semyon Varlamov, but it's been an otherwise quiet summer.
Additions:
Semyon Varlamov
Subtractions:
Robin Lehner
Trending:
Flat
New York Rangers
The Skinny:
On February 8, 2018, Rangers' management sent a letter to its fans announcing its plans to rebuild the team, asking for patience. Well, 18 months later, and things couldn't be more different. The Rangers were able to acquire Artemi Panarin, Adam Fox, and Jacob Trouba simply because they either weren't happy in their previous spot or because they specifically wanted to play on Broadway. Oh, and they moved up to the second pick in the lottery in a draft with two-can't miss prospects.
Additions:
Artemi Panarin, Jacob Trouba, Kappo Kakko, Adam Fox, Greg McKegg
Subtractions:
Neal Pionk, Jimmy Vesey
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New Jersey Devils
The Skinny:
The Devils made perhaps the biggest splash of any team on NHL Draft weekend, selecting dynamic prospect Jack Hughes with the #1 overall pick and then trading for P.K. Subban. Subban is probably not as impactful as he once was, but he's also just one year removed from being a Norris Trophy finalist.
Additions:
P.K. Subban, Jack Hughes, Wayne Simmonds, John Hayden
Subtractions:
Steven Santini, John Quenneville
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