2016-17 record: 50-21-11 (111 points)
Won the Stanley Cup
Captain: Sidney Crosby
Just when you thought it was safe to count out the Pittsburgh Penguins last season, they decided to rise from near death to not only make a great first impression, but also come off the mat three times en route to becoming the first team since the 1997 and 1998 Detroit Red Wings to win back-to-back Stanley Cups. This time around, there are a few notable changes, but the one constant is that the key players remain.
The mark of a great player is that he makes his teammates better, no matter who they are or their skill level. Exhibit A: Sidney Crosby and his linemates in Jake Guentzel and Bryan Rust. Bear in mind that Guentzel finished his first year as a pro after a few years of college and Rust is more of a role player. The same can be said for Evgeni Malkin, whose primary linemates were Patric Hornqvist and Conor Sheary. The lone question mark is who centers Carl Hagelin and Phil Kessel, as Nick Bonino left for Nashville after the season. Defensively, the Penguins were average, and that was BEFORE Kris Letang went down to injury prior to the start of the playoffs. No matter, as Justin Schultz stepped up in a big way to lead the unit. Letang returns, and the unit as a whole is full of solid, if unspectacular types. In goal, they couldn't hold back Matt Murray for much longer, and though it was a team effort in the playoffs, as Marc-Andre Fleury and Murray had the starting job in the playoffs at varying times, the torch has officially passed to Murray. Antti Niemi will be expected to fill in every once in a while and hopefully not mess things up too badly. The power play was good enough to finish third in the league, but had its moments of lapses while the penalty kill has room to improve.
Prediction: 1st in the Metropolitan Division
The only things that could derail the Penguins' hopes of three-peating are injuries and the short rest from the past two seasons. Crosby and Co. aren't exactly over the hill yet, so the window to win more championships is still wide open.
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