Regardless of the outcome, there are lessons to learn from the NHL conference finalists Dallas, Edmonton, Florida and Carolina.
Here are three takeaways from the NHL's final four.
1. The superstars may matter more than you think.
There's a common refrain that has developed in the analytics era: Stars and superstars don't matter as much as you think. That's because even the best players in the world won't play half a game.
The goals are coming... https://t.co/7lG0A1L8ST pic.twitter.com/EIleFWNAsL
— Mike Kelly (@MikeKellyNHL) May 23, 2025
Despite this, the well-established regular-season superstars look dialed in this postseason. Connor McDavid kept the Oilers afloat after a difficult start in the opening round, when Edmonton trailed Los Angeles 2-0. In the next two games, McDavid's five points (one goal, four assists) in 52:30 of ice time helped save Edmonton's season from a premature demise.
Meanwhile, the performances of the Dallas Stars' Mikko Rantanen against Colorado and Winnipeg included a stretch of 14 points in four games. Plus, he led a headline-grabbing, third-period comeback in Game 7 against the Avalanche, his former team.
If stars are a big part of team success during the regular season, they need to be a big part of team success during the postseason.
2. Getting to the playoffs matters. Winning in the playoffs matters more.
This debate has taken on a life of its own among hockey media.
Winger Mitch Marner finished the playoffs with one point in the last four games of Toronto's season. Marner just completed his first 100-point regular season, and his 92 points per 82-game prorated career average puts him firmly between superstars Nathan MacKinnon (96) of Colorado and Rantanen (89).
Conversely, Florida center Sam Bennett has received support in some major league circles to become the next $10M player despite being about average among scorers at his position. Bennett, like Marner, is a fourth overall pick. He had a slow start to his career offensively, but he has scored at a respectable 52 points per 82-game pace over the past five regular seasons. On his regular seasons alone, he's not worth $10M a season.
In the past three playoffs, however, he is seventh in goals (21) and first in hits (253). Raw counting stats can be tricky to evaluate, but few players are near the top of the leaderboard in both. Bennett won't likely tip the scales tremendously in terms of helping get a team to the postseason, but his play is tipping the scales in helping his team win in the postseason in a critical role.
AFP Analytics, a free contract projection tool, doesn't expect him to get near $10M, but it's clear Bennett is in line for a big pay raise this summer because of his postseason play.
Keep thinking about the immense value of Sam Bennett-- speed, toughness, 25-30 goal player (maybe more with bigger role), & playoff effectiveness whether he scores or not (and he produces! 38pts last 51 games), he's a 10 million dollar player. Look at some these players who make…
— BucciOT.Com (@Buccigross) May 19, 2025
3. Cap hits aren't always directly comparable.
AFP's average projection for Marner is around seven years and $13M annually. Someone is probably going to pay this — maybe even exceed it. NHL teams are businesses, and the value of selling a fan base on being competitive is critical with 41 home dates each year.
That doesn't make Marner a better player than Bennett or Bennett a better player than Marner. If anything, Marner will likely pay for his postseason shortcomings in a different way — less money than other players of his reputation or ultimately signing in a worse situation.
Bennett, meanwhile, will probably be paid a premium compared to the average second-line center as a result for the opposite reasons. That probably won't get him to $10M annually, but no one will shed a tear for a guy who might flirt with $8M annually.
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The New York Islanders are entering a new era under a revamped front office, and signs point to a potential retool—or even a rebuild. The most telling move came at the NHL Draft in June, when the team traded star defenseman Noah Dobson to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for two first-round picks. It’s a rare move in today’s NHL to deal your top blueliner, and it raised eyebrows across the league. Analysts and fans have wondered if more moves are coming. Since there are several teams looking for quality assets at a reasonable salary cap, it’s a logical question. Is Bo Horvat A Potential Trade Candidate? During an appearance on the Cam and Strick Podcast, newly appointed assistant to the general manager Matt Martin—an Islanders fan favorite and longtime forward—revealed a humorous but telling moment from inside the locker room. Martin, now working closely with the Isles’ new GM, said that Bo Horvat texted him immediately after the front office changes were announced. “You better not trade me,” Horvat reportedly wrote. The comments from Martin suggest that Horvat has no desire to leave the team, even if the Islanders aren’t set to be competitive this coming season. If the team is dumping some of their best talents, he does not want to be among those the organization chooses to sell. Horvat likely didn’t have to worry. He has a full no-trade clause as part of his contract, and even if management were open to asking him to waive it, he could have blocked any deal. It sounds like that would be his intention, so he was getting ahead of things by making sure they knew not to even ask.
Shortstop Carlos Correa is in his fourth season with the Minnesota Twins after debuting in the majors with the Houston Astros in 2015. The former first overall pick in the 2012 MLB Draft lived up to expectations early, winning AL Rookie of the Year in his first full season. Over seven seasons in Houston, he earned two All-Star selections, a Gold Glove award, and helped the Astros capture two World Series titles. Correa joined Minnesota in free agency prior to the 2022 season, and made his third career All-Star appearance last year—his first with the Twins. However, a flare-up of plantar fasciitis in his right foot sidelined him for nearly the entire second half. He still finished 2024 with a strong stat line, hitting .310 with a .905 OPS and 14 home runs over 86 games. During Tuesday’s game against the Boston Red Sox, Correa was removed from the game in the second inning and replaced with Brooks Lee. Manager Rocco Baldelli provided an update during the game, “Carlos was a little lightheaded out there and it didn't go away so we're going to get him out of the game.” This season, Correa has yet to regain the offensive form he showed last year. Through 92 games, he’s batting .265 with a career-low .701 OPS and has hit just seven home runs. His struggles have contributed to Minnesota’s disappointing 51–55 record, and the team now looks poised to be sellers at the trade deadline on Thursday.
The 2025 season will be a crucial one for the Pittsburgh Steelers and all of the decision-makers that completely revamped the roster during the offseason. The depth chart looks much different than it did back in 2024, so there will be several adjustments that need to be made. One positional group that looks relatively similar, but has been affected by some reshuffling, is the offensive line. Troy Fautanu is back after an injury-plagued rookie campaign, and Broderick Jones will finally get to play left tackle on a consistent basis for the first time in his professional career. Jones is, without a doubt, one of the most important players in the entire projected starting lineup. Keeping Aaron Rodgers upright will be crucial, and the third-year lineman has not necessarily proven that he can be trusted. He suffered an injury to begin training camp, but is reportedly going to be just fine and return to the field sooner rather than later. No one knows how important it is to have a strong offensive line more than future Hall of Fame quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers' legendary signal-caller never got to play with Jones, but he keeps tabs on the team and shares his thoughts often on his podcast, Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger. On the most recent episode, he highlighted how critical it is so have a good group up front blocking, and he mentioned Jones by name. "I would probably start, as I do a lot of times, about the importance of the offensive line," Roethlisberger began. "I'd say that's the biggest question, and it should be because to me, the line is always the MVP. The way the line plays, run game, pass game, everything revolves around that. More specifically, Broderick Jones, moving now back to left tackle." Training camp hasn't gotten off to a great start for Jones with the injury, but some may be happy that he lost some weight during the 2025 offseason. Roethlisberger said he understands why, but is still concerned. "I've heard he's thinned down, which is good to a certain extent, right," Roethlisberger said. "They want to work on getting tackles out and running the outside zones and stretch plays. So, you got to be a little, you know, more agile, but you know, you also don't want to be too small when you're supposed to be a tackle. So, that's always going to be a concern of mine, is him and the line in general staying healthy." There are some massive edge rushers in the NFL, and Roethlisberger is right in saying that being too small as a tackle can be problematic. Jones will have to go up against Myles Garrett twice in 2025, and the offseason weight loss won't look like a good thing if he is manhandled throughout those matchups. The Steelers' offensive line might be the unit that makes or breaks the team's season. Staying healthy will be the number one priority, but it is almost imperative that the group actually is successful. If edge rushers are constantly bulldozing through Jones, it could be serious cause for concern. It seems as if that it what Roethlisberger has some reservations about. If Jones doesn't perform at a high level in 2025, the 2023 NFL Draft day trade-up in the first round will be looked at as a failure. The organization has to make a decision on Jones' fifth-year option during the 2026 offseason, so the left tackle better hope that some of the weight he had shed ends up helping him significantly, instead of the other way around. Steelers Will Need Entire Offensive Line To Be Elite In 2025 While Jones is going to be the number one scapegoat if things go south, the big men up front will be a huge part of Pittsburgh's offensive failures or successes as the season progresses. Roethlisberger's comments regarding the starting left tackle's offseason will certainly cause a little bit of worry, but the unit as a whole has to prove consistency when the games matter.
Liverpool were already, by far and away, the best team in the Premier League last season, and they were the closest team to beating eventual Champions League winners PSG, too. But they are not done trying to upgrade their squad this summer. That’s the difference between a club with ambition and one that is content with stagnation. Liverpool don’t just want to be a one-and-done team to win the Premier League title, nor are they satisfied with only winning the Premier League. Although Liverpool already signed a top-class striker who can be a short and long-term upgrade on the frustratingly inaccurate and inconsistent Darwin Nunez, the Reds want more than just Hugo Ekitike. After selling star left winger Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich for a pretty penny (75 million euros, to be exact), Liverpool are driving even harder after yet another world-class striker – one who is even more acclaimed than Ekitike and closer to his prime. Alexander Isak is taking matters into his own hands Alexander Isak has been a hot topic for Premier League clubs, but if the Swedish superstar were to leave Newcastle after a career year in the 2024/25 season, then Liverpool would be his only landing spot. And it looks like Isak is putting Newcastle’s feet to the fire and is willing to push his way into making a leap to the best team in the Premier League, forming a formidable striker partnership with Ekitike at Anfield instead of at St. James’s Park. According to a report from TBR Football’s Graeme Bailey, Alexander Isak has not been showing up to Newcastle’s training camp. He even pulled out of their tour to Asia and has decided to train away from the team at home. This is a clear and obvious indication to anyone that Isak wants to leave Newcastle, and whenever you see a star player like this taking matters into his own hands and not showing up to training, you know that the player’s days are numbered no matter what the club say or do. Isak sees a superior sporting project at Liverpool, and with Liverpool showing serious interest in him, he wants to jump ship. Liverpool have a chance to sign one of the best strikers in the world and someone who could legitimately go toe-to-toe with Manchester City’s Norwegian ace Erling Haaland in the scoring charts, especially in the explosive attacking environment that Arne Slot has fostered at Anfield. This transfer is one that looks increasingly likely to happen, especially with the latest information that Isak is essentially going on striker, with all signs pointing to Liverpool as his destination.