Happy Wednesday, Razzball faithful!

It’s your new/old hockey writing friend, MarmosDad, back with another divisional preview as we start knocking games off of the NHL calendar.

Last week, I gave you the final Eastern Conference preview with the Metropolitan Division (you can click it to check it out!).

This week, we head West with a peek at the Central division, and boy, am I excited to get rolling on this one!

I nearly jumped the gun and went straight to the Central when I started writing these up, just because I’m kind of obsessed with a certain Winnipeg Jets prospect who opened some eyes in training camp.

That should be enough of a teaser to get us through this preview, especially because the Jets round out our teams at the bottom of our profiles today.

So let’s close our eyes, take a deep breath, and try to find our Central, er, center, as we head out to visit the place with the least creative division name of all…

The Central Division

(All team positions are based on final 2024-2025 standings)

Chicago Blackhawks – 25-46-11. 61 PTS – 8th in the division.

IN: Andre Burakovsky, Sam Lafferty

OUT: Phillip Kurashev, Patrick Maroon, Craig Smith, Andreas Athanasiou, Joe Veleno, T.J. Brodie, Alec Martinez

DEPTH CHART

LEFT WING	CENTER	RIGHT WING
Ryan Donato	Connor Bedard	Andre Burakovsky
Teuvo Teravainen	Frank Nazar	Tyler Bertuzzi
Colton Dach	Jason Dickinson	Ilya Mikheyev
Nick Foligno	Ryan Greene	Sam Lafferty

LEFT DEFENSE	RIGHT DEFENSE
Alex Vlasic	Sam Rinzel
Matt Grzelcyk	Connor Murphy
Wyatt Kaiser	Louis Crevier

GOALIES
Spencer Knight
Arvid Soderblom

Other notable names on the depth chart: Lukas Reichel, Landon Saggert, Joey Anderson, Artyom Levshunov, Ethan del Mastro, Kevin Korchinski, Anton Frondell, Laurent Broissoit

Marmo Magic – One name to expect good things from this year

Connor Bedard – At just 20 years old, “Bedsy” could have been our youngster pick from Chicago. But the fact that he’s been tabbed as the next big thing and is already heading into his third full season in the league is nothing to turn our noses up at. This kid doesn’t turn 21 until next July, and already has 3 points in his first four games this year. He has yet to crack the 70-point mark in the big show, but this could be the year that he breaks through that benchmark and then some. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him play a full 82-game season and record at least a point a game in his junior year.

Marmo Meh – A player I’d avoid drafting or adding to my roster (for now)

Any defenseman – As positive as the outlook is for Chicago’s young franchise center, their defense situation stinks like rotten cheese. When your big off-season signing on the back end is Matt Grzelcyk, you know you’re not getting much help from your blueliners. 21-year-old Minnesota native, Sam Rinzel, is slated to be the PP1 quarterback alongside Bedard, so if you need to pick a Blackhawks defenseman, he’s your guy.

Marmo Marvel – A Rookie/Youngster who has the potential to impress. Add these guys to your Dynasty rosters right now

Spencer Knight – Speaking of Blackhawks defensemen, the Florida Panthers moved their trade chips all-in last season when they dealt for Chicago’s best D-man (Seth Jones) to bolster their own back end for a second consecutive Stanley Cup run. It cost the Panthers a pretty penny, though, as Florida not only took on $7.5 million of Jones’ $9 million annual salary, but they also sent a first-round pick and Spencer Knight to Chicago as a ransom for the ace defender.

Knight was considered the heir apparent to Sergei Bobrovsky and was the first-ever goaltender to be drafted in the first round by the Panthers (13th overall in 2019). The defencemen in Chicago might not impress many this year, but fans have two absolute gems to watch in Bedard and Knight. The future is bright in ChiTown.

Colorado Avalanche – 49-29-4. 102 PTS – 3rd in the division.

IN: Brent Burns, Ronnie Attard

OUT: Jonathan Drouin, Chris Wagner, Charlie Coyle, Miles Wood, Jimmy Vesey, Ryan Lindgren, Erik Johnson, John Ludvig

DEPTH CHART

LEFT WING	CENTER	RIGHT WING
Arturri Lehkonen	Nathan MacKinnon	Martin Necas
Gabriel Landeskog	Brock Nelson	Valeri Nichushkin
Ross Colton	Jack Drury	Victor Olofsson
Joel Kiviranta	Parker Kelly	Gavin Brindley

LEFT DEFENSE	RIGHT DEFENSE
Devon Toews	Cale Makar
Josh Manson	Brent Burns
Samuel Girard	Sam Malinski

GOALIES
Mackenzie Blackwood
Scott Wedgewood

Other notable names on the depth chart: Ilya Solovyov, Logan O’Connor, Ivan Ivan, Zakhar Bardakov, Danil Gushchin, Jack Ahcan, Trent Miner

Marmo Magic – One name to expect good things from this year

Martin Necas – 83 points in 79 games last year, and now a full season with Nathan McKinnon setting him up at even strength AND on the powerplay? We don’t need to say anything else here, but he has started the year on fire: 4 GP, 3 G, 5 A, +9, and a 33.3% SHT percentage. Hook your wagon up quickly because this guy is headed for a 90+ point season if he stays healthy.

Marmo Meh – A player I’d avoid drafting or adding to my roster (for now)

Gabriel Landeskog – It’s not really fair to knock Landeskog here, as he’s missed a bunch of time due to injuries. If he were a much younger winger, I’d be more optimistic that he’ll come back and put in a full season with top-end production. But at 32 years old, I’m not so sure he’s a good enough pick outside of those deep leagues where the waiver wire is full of picked-over scraps. And let’s not forget that the last time he laced up his skates in an NHL game was the 2021-2022 season.

Marmo Marvel – A Rookie/Youngster who has the potential to impress. Add these guys to your Dynasty rosters right now

Zakhar Bardakov – The Russian Minstrel, Bard(akov) signed a one-year entry-level deal with Colorado way back on Cheech and Chong’s birthday (April 20th). The 24-year-old center scored 17 goals and added 18 assists in 53 KHL games last year, and will start the year with the Colorado Eagles in the AHL. With guys like Jack Drury and the winner of the least creative name award, Ivan Ivan, ahead of him on the depth chart, Bardakov could force the front office to make some moves before Christmas if he can start the year out on a hot streak.

Dallas Stars – 50-26-6. 106 PTS – 2nd in the division.

IN: Radek Faksa, Vladislav Kolyachonok, Trey Taylor

OUT: Mason Marchment, Cody Ceci, Mikael Granlund, Brendan Smith, Matt Dumba, Evgenii Dadonov, Matej Blumel

DEPTH CHART

LEFT WING	CENTER	RIGHT WING
Sam Steel	Roope Hintz	Mikko Rantanen
Jason Robertson	Matt Duchene	Tyler Seguin
Wyatt Johnston	Radek Faksa	Mavrik Bourque
Jamie Benn	Justin Hryckowian	Colin Blackwell

LEFT DEFENSE	RIGHT DEFENSE
Esa Lindell	Miro Heiskanen
Thomas Harley	Nils Lundkvist
Lian Bichsel	Ilya Lyubushkin

GOALIES
Jake Oettinger
Casey DeSmith

Other notable names on the depth chart: Oscar Back, Nathan Bastian, Arttuu Hyry, Alexander Petrovic

Marmo Magic – One name to expect good things from this year

Mikko Rantanen – The big winger signed an 8-year extension with a $12 million AAV and immediately became the Stars’ biggest threat to hit 90+ points. Rantanen’s best year was in 2022-2023 when he scored 55 goals and finished with 105 points. Now that the free agency distraction is all over with, look for Mikko to take a run at the century mark again, this time in the Lone Star state.

Marmo Meh – A player I’d avoid drafting or adding to my roster (for now)

Jamie Benn – It’s always tough to see former stars start to lose their shine (pardon the pun), but at 36 years old, Jamie Benn isn’t likely to give us even a 50-point season like he did last year. Take it from someone with experience, we don’t get any faster as we age. And Benn isn’t sniffing 30 goals again anytime soon. EDIT: I wrote this up earlier last week, just before the Stars announced that Benn would be placed on the LTIR with an “upper body injury” and miss “at least” the first 6 weeks of the season. Oof.

Marmo Marvel – A Rookie/Youngster who has the potential to impress. Add these guys to your Dynasty rosters right now

Thomas Harley – A kid heading into his 5th season of action at the NHL level hardly seems like a rookie/youngster kind of pick, but Harley is just 24 years old and is already turning heads with his output. He had a 47-point season two years ago and followed that up with 50 points in 79 games last year. The only thing slowing him down from taking over as the PP1 guy on the back end is Miro Heiskanen, but if anything happens to the big Finn, Harley will be more than ready to step up and fill the void.

Minnesota Wild – 45-30-7. 97 PTS – 4th in the division.

IN: Vladimir Tarasenko, Nico Sturm, Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Ben Gleason, Matt Kiersted, Cal Peterson

OUT: Marc-Andre Fleury, Justin Brazeau, Jon Merrill, Frederick Gaudreau, Gustav Nyquist, Devin Shore, Brendan Gaunce, Declan Chisholm

DEPTH CHART

LEFT WING	CENTER	RIGHT WING
Kirill Kaprizov	Joel Eriksson Ek	Mats Zuccarello
Matt Boldy	Marco Rossi	Vladimir Tarasenko
Marcus Foligno	Ryan Hartman	Yakov Trenin
Marcus Johansson	Nico Sturm	Vinnie Hinostroza

LEFT DEFENSE	RIGHT DEFENSE
Jonas Brodin	Brock Faber
Jacob Middleton	Jared Spurgeon
Zeev Buium	Zach Bogosian

GOALIES
Filip Gustavsson
Jesper Wallstedt

Other notable names on the depth chart: David Spacek, David Jiricek, Liam Ohgren, Nicolas Aube-Kubel

Marmo Magic – One name to expect good things from this year

Joel Eriksson Ek – 30 points in 46 games last year before being shelved with multiple abdominal injuries is a tough pill to swallow. However, if we’re looking at this year and wondering if the core muscle surgery was successful, we don’t have to wonder for long. He’s got 4 PTS in 3 GP so far, and is slated to center the newly extended Kirill Kaprizov for the entire season. He’s going to blow away that career high of 64 points (2023-2024) and should take the next step towards 80+ points this year.

Marmo Meh – A player I’d avoid drafting or adding to my roster (for now)

Marcus Foligno – If I’m putting together a real-life team, or a squad on NHL 26, give me all the Marcus Foligno I can get. His hits alone can change the flow of a game, and his intimidation factor is off the charts. Unfortunately, that doesn’t help us in points-only leagues. If you’re ok to draft a guy who will struggle to reach 30 points, but will give you a ton of hits, then this is your guy. If you need more point production, look elsewhere.

Marmo Marvel – A Rookie/Youngster who has the potential to impress. Add these guys to your Dynasty rosters right now

Brock Faber – It was a bit of an odd sophomore season for Faber last year. He finished with 29 points in 78 games after recording 47 points in 82 games in his rookie year. That said, Faber improved his shooting percentage last year, moving up from 5.9% to 8.1%. Minnesota’s back end has been plucked straight from the day care preschool with Zeev Buium (19), David Jiricek (21), and the ‘grizzled veteran’, Faber (23). Look for Faber to get some PP time, along with Top 2 5-on-5 minutes, and take a jump forward to the 50-point plateau in his third full season this year.

Nashville Predators – 30-44-8. 68 PTS – 7th in the division.

IN: Erik Haula, Nicolas Hague, Nick Perbix

OUT: Jeremy Lauzon, Jakub Vrana, Colton Sissons, Kiefer Bellows, Marc Del Gaizo

DEPTH CHART

LEFT WING	CENTER	RIGHT WING
Filip Forsberg	Steven Stamkos	Jonathan Marchessault
Michael Bunting	Ryan O’Reilly	Luke Evangelista
Zachary L’Heureux	Erik Haula	Michael McCarron
Cole Smith	Fedor Svechkov	Joakim Kemell

LEFT DEFENSE	RIGHT DEFENSE
Roman Josi	Nick Blankenburg
Brady Skjei	Nick Perbix
Nicolas Hague	Justin Barron

GOALIES
Jusse Saros
Justus Annunen

Other notable names on the depth chart: Tyson Jost, Spencer Stastney, Adam Wilsby, Jordan Oesterle, Andreas Englund

Marmo Magic – One name to expect good things from this year

Filip Forsberg – He already has 3 points in 4 games and is poised to bounce back from a disappointing year. Everyone came up flat in Music City last year, but if Nashville is going to pick up the pieces from a rough season, it’ll have to start with Forsberg leading the way. I’m betting on a final stat line much closer to the 94 PTS in 82 GP from 2023-2024 and Forsberg taking another run at that elusive 50-goal mark.

Marmo Meh – A player I’d avoid drafting or adding to my roster (for now)

Steven Stamkos – I remember watching Stammer dismantle our local OHL team way back in 2007-2008 and wondering if it was a sign of things to come. It’s rare to see a kid who can see the ice as well as he did back then, and it’s a surefire sign of better things to come at the NHL level (more on that below). So what does that have to do with this season? Well, that was 18 years ago, or when his current RW was in Kindergarten. Now, it’s tough to project the 35-year-old for a bounce-back season. Stamkos’s 53 points were the lowest since his rookie year (if we exclude years where health setbacks or shortened seasons came into play). He might give us 60-70 points, but I’m not drafting him expecting much more than that.

Marmo Marvel – A Rookie/Youngster who has the potential to impress. Add these guys to your Dynasty rosters right now

Luke Evangelista – The 23-year-old winger ended his holdout last week and has 2 PTS in his first 3 GP this year. It might seem counterproductive to recommend a winger right after saying one of his team’s centermen is a fade. Still, Evangelista should be playing most of the year with Ryan O’Reilly and Michael Bunting. If those two can feed him the puck, and he can get some increased PP minutes, he should be able to build on the 32-point, 63-game season he had last year.

St. Louis Blues – 44-30-8. 96 PTS – 5th in the division.

IN: Pius Suter, Nick Bjugstad, Logan Mailloux

OUT: Radek Faksa, Ryan Suter, Zack Bolduc, Nick Leddy

DEPTH CHART

LEFT WING	CENTER	RIGHT WING
Pavel Buchnevich	Robert Thomas	Jordan Kyrou
Jake Neighbours	Brayden Schenn	Jimmy Snuggerud
Dylan Holloway	Pius Suter	Mathieu Joseph
Alexandre Texier	Nick Bjugstad	Nathan Walker

LEFT DEFENSE	RIGHT DEFENSE
Cam Fowler	Colton Parayko
Philip Broberg	Justin Faulk
Tyler Tucker	Logan Mailloux

GOALIES
Jordan Binnington
Joel Hofer

Other notable names on the depth chart: Alexsey Toropchenko, Oskar Sundqvist, Matthew Kessel, Adam Jiricek, Vadim Zherenko

Marmo Magic – One name to expect good things from this year

Jordan Kyrou – “I’m a kid who finished 4 (full years). Each day I grow some more. I’m a guy who likes to score. I’m Ky-rou. So many things to do. I’ll play the PP, too. I’ll get some points for you. I’m Kyrou. Kyrou. Kyrou.”

Please don’t hate me. I made the ultimate sacrifice and planted my own earworm for this one, too.

Marmo Meh – A player I’d avoid drafting or adding to my roster (for now)

Torey Krug – He missed all of last year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if his ankle X-rays looked like the aftermath of a slow raccoon crossing a dimly lit highway in front of a transport truck at 3 AM. Krug has two years left on his deal, but even the GM thinks that’ll get paid out while Krug sits on the long-term IR. If you drafted him for the name value, get him slotted as a drop for a free agent pick-up this week. He’s not coming back anytime soon.

Marmo Marvel – A Rookie/Youngster who has the potential to impress. Add these guys to your Dynasty rosters right now

Jimmy Snuggerud – What do you get when you cross a 21-year-old RW with a Sesame Street Muppet’s last name? I’m not so sure, but at the very least, it’s a kid who’s destined to get Top 6 minutes before we get too far into the season. Add in a healthy splash of that coveted PP1 time, and we’ve got ourselves a front-runner for the Calder trophy.

Utah Mammoth – 38-31-13. 89 PTS – 6th place in the division.

IN: JJ Peterka, Brandon Tanev, Nate Schmidt, Scott Perunovich, Vitek Vanecek

OUT: Robert Bortuzzo, Nick Bjugstad, Josh Doan, Michael Kesselring, Matias Maccelli

DEPTH CHART

LEFT WING	CENTER	RIGHT WING
Clayton Keller	Logan Cooley	JJ Peterka
Dylan Guenther	Barrett Hayton	Nick Schmaltz
Lawson Crouse	Jack McBain	Michael Carcone
Alexander Kerfoot	Kevin Stenlund	Brandon Tanev

LEFT DEFENSE	RIGHT DEFENSE
Mikhail Sergachev	John Marino
Nate Schmidt	Olli Maatta
Ian Cole	Sean Durzi

GOALIES
Karel Vejmelka
Vitek Vanecek

Other notable names on the depth chart: Kailer Yamamoto, Daniil But, Liam O’Brien, Kevin Rooney, Tij Iginla, Dmitri Simashev, Juuso Valimaki, Andrew Agozzino

Marmo Magic – One name to expect good things from this year

Mikhail Sergachev – This guy first made league-wide news when he was dealt from Montreal to Tampa for Shea Weber. Ugh. He looked like he was going to be the next big blue liner in the Sunshine State until Tampa dealt the now 27-year-old to “Utah” in the summer of 2024. Sergachev took hold of the #1 D perch and never relinquished it, logging an average of 25+ minutes of ice time for the Coyote-Mammoths last year. I think he smashes his personal high of 53 points (last season) with a full year of health this season.

Marmo Meh – A player I’d avoid drafting or adding to my roster (for now)

Lawson Crouse – Last year, he burned all of us who rostered him with a 12 G, 18 P output in 81 GP. He’s still a banger leagues gem, and the good news is he can’t be worse than he was last year, but he needs to triple that point output to even be a marginal bench guy in straight point leagues with 12+ teams. I’d pass on any build that doesn’t have hits and goals as boosted categories.

Marmo Marvel – A Rookie/Youngster who has the potential to impress. Add these guys to your Dynasty rosters right now

JJ Peterka – With three full seasons in Buffalo, Peterka isn’t really a rookie but a 23-year-old who put up 66 points in 77 games last year and has a wide open lane to Top 6 and PP1 minutes? Yep. I’m thinking it won’t be long before Sabres fans are screaming about that trade being terrible, if they aren’t already.

Winnipeg Jets – 56-22-4. 116 PTS – 1st in the division.

IN: Tanner Pearson, Jonathan Toews, Gustav Nyquist

OUT: Nikolaj Ehlers, Brandon Tanev, Rasmus Kupari, Mason Appleton

DEPTH CHART

LEFT WING	CENTER	RIGHT WING
Kyle Connor	Mark Schiefele	Gabriel Vilardi
Cole Perfetti	Jonathan Toews	Gustav Nyquist
Nino Niederreiter	Vladislav Namestnikov	Alex Iafallo
Tanner Pearson	Morgan Barron	Cole Koepke

LEFT DEFENSE	RIGHT DEFENSE
Josh Morrissey	Dylan Demelo
Logan Stanley	Neal Pionk
Haydn Fleury	Luke Schenn

GOALIES
Connor Hellebuyck
Eric Comrie

Other notable names on the depth chart: Nikita Chibrikov, Rasmus Kupari, Adam Lowry, Walker Duehr, Dylan Samberg, Colin Miller

Marmo Magic – One name to expect good things from this year

Jonathan Toews – I really wanted this to be Cole Perfetti, but a twisted up ankle in the final preseason game means he’s out for a few weeks to start the year. Gabe Vilardi is the easy choice for a solid break here, but he feels like too obvious a pick. I’m going with the return of Captain Canada – Jonathan Toews. The former Blackhawks and Canadian “C” is back after a bit of a strange hiatus and should be able to chip in close to 50 points in a quieter role than he had with those old Chicago dynasties. He’ll get PP time, too, and if you have a short-handed points category in your league, he’s even more valuable.

Marmo Meh – A player I’d avoid drafting or adding to my roster (for now)

Gustav Nyquist – I said it last week with Pierre-Luc Dubois, ironically also a former Jet, but once a guy burns me a couple of times, it’s tough to buy back in. Nyquist can still blow past defenders with his speed and has a sneaky shot (12.7 SHT%), but that 75-point year in Nashville in 2023/2024 is one of the biggest outliers in hockey. He’ll struggle to score 35-40 points again in a full season.

Marmo Marvel – A Rookie/Youngster who has the potential to impress. Add these guys to your Dynasty rosters right now

Kevin He – Oh, baby. A high-end prospect with a last name that oozes with pun potential? SIGN ME UP! He’s our guy! I said above that I was very excited to write up this division so I could profile this kid, and for good reason.

He’s been with the OHL’s Ice Dogs for three seasons now, and was just sent back for his fourth as a now overager. Niagara’s captain is the kind of talent that stands out on the ice and makes other players look like they’re still playing high school hockey. Seriously. He’s team is the closest to our hometown, so GrandpaMarmo, the mini-Marmos, and I have had the pleasure of watching Him work. As I said above with Stamkos, it’s been a while since I saw a kid who can dominate a game like He can. And that’s pretty impressive. That said, He’s not exactly omnipotent, even if it feels like I’m writing about God when I write His name.

If you need actual proof, click on this.

Like I said, I could write a whole article on He on his own, but being the first ever Chinese-born draftee is a pretty big deal (the Sabres’ pick of fictional Japanese prospect “Taro Tsujimoto” in 1974 doesn’t count!).

Lastly, here’s a good clip if you’re wondering if the kid has the mental makeup to succeed in the league.

He’s about as down-to-earth as you’re going to find, and the leadership skills are already off the charts. If He can find his way to Winnipeg while Toews is still there, there isn’t much better to have in the locker room beside you as a mentor. It might be a few years before we see him lock down a permanent spot in the NHL, but I’d be locking He in in keeper leagues as soon as possible.

That’s all, folks! I hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to drop any questions or comments below, and be sure to come back to visit me next Wednesday when I finish off the Western Conference and the 2025-2026 previews with the Pacific Division.

Follow me @marmosdad on Twitter/X and Bluesky @marmosdad.bsky.social