The NHL is only a week into its 2026-27 season, which is exactly when the panic starts to sound loudest. Small samples can lie, sure, but they can also reveal a team or player already skating on thin ice. And right now, a handful of names are drawing attention for all the wrong reasons.
Detroit is sitting at the bottom of the Atlantic Division, and that alone would be enough to sour the mood. But the real mess goes beyond the standings. The Dylan Larkin situation has been hanging over the franchise all offseason, and now Simon Edvinsson has added another layer to it by telling the team he would rather be traded than sign an extension.
That is not the kind of headline the “Yzerplan” needed. The whole thing already feels like it could snowball if the Red Wings do not start winning soon. Larkin, meanwhile, was booed during home opener introductions, and that atmosphere is not likely to improve when - if - he actually gets on the ice.
Jason Robertson is dealing with a different kind of early-season pressure in Dallas. The Stars may be fine in the long run, but they have opened with a pair of losses and managed just one goal total, which is hardly the start anyone wanted.
Robertson, coming off a contentious contract summer, has not helped settle things down. Through two games, he has no points, is minus-3, and has only three shots on goal while being on the ice for six against.
He’s averaging 19:15 a night, so the opportunity is there. That’s what makes the sluggish start worth watching. This is the stage where Robertson is supposed to show he deserves the massive deal he has been pushing for, and if he keeps fighting it, the Stars could find themselves in trouble in a Central Division that will not offer much breathing room.
Then there’s the strange pressure surrounding the Toronto Maple Leafs and Gavin McKenna. The moment McKenna went first overall in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, the expectations shot through the roof for both him and the team.
Early on, though, it has been rough going. Toronto is 1-2-0 and averaging just two goals per game, while McKenna has no points, is minus-3, and is playing a little over 14:30 a night.
He’s 18, and the league is never easy, even for a player with that kind of hype. Still, the Maple Leafs are staring at a tough road in what many view as the league’s toughest division, and starting slowly only makes the climb steeper.
Edmonton’s goaltending remains its own familiar headache. The Oilers keep searching for help, because what they have seen so far has not been good enough.
Tristan Jarry had a rough opener in a loss to the lowly Vancouver Canucks, allowing six goals on 23 shots. Devon Levi replaced him and got shelled for seven goals on 22 shots in a wild 9-7 win over Vancouver, though he bounced back two nights later by stopping 19 of 20 shots in a 3-1 win against the Seattle Kraken.
The Oilers do not need perfection in net. They just need something far better than what they’ve been living with over the last several seasons and in the first three games of this one.
Calgary’s young defense pair of Simon Nemec and Zayne Parekh has also gotten off to a rough start. The Flames put a lot into both players, including trade capital to land Nemec, but the early returns have been ugly.
Nemec is logging nearly 21 minutes per night and has no points, a minus-6 rating, and a 19-7 shot deficit while he’s on the ice. Parekh has one assist, but his minus-6 and 23-7 shot deficit are hard to ignore.
Both players are still very young, and defensemen usually take time. Even so, Calgary has invested heavily in this duo and would like to see signs of growth sooner rather than later.
Of course, it is still far too early to lock in any of these storylines. Two or three games can flip fast, and teams can put together runs before anyone gets comfortable with the standings.
But these are the kinds of starts worth keeping an eye on. The season is young, and there is still plenty of time for some of these problems to get fixed - or get worse.
In Other News...
Oilers Already Face One Roster Question Despite Hot Start
Even with a fast start, the early-season roster picture in Edmonton has already created a familiar kind of front-office puzzle. General manager Stan Bowman is reportedly weighing ways to balance the group by using a surplus on the blue line to address the forward side, where injuries have left the Oilers thinner than they would like to be. It is not a wholesale search for help, just the kind of depth-management decision contending teams often face when the calendar is still young.
The interesting part is how measured this all sounds. There are no specific targets attached to the discussion, and Edmonton does not appear eager to force a deal just to make one. Still, the possibility of moving a defenseman for a forward is now on the table, which says plenty about how the Oilers are trying to protect their early momentum while keeping an eye on where the roster could use a little more balance. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Early Lineup Is Creating A Few Unexpected Winners
The early part of the season has already started sorting out a few surprises for the Oilers, and Vasily Podkolzin has been one of the biggest. Skating beside Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, he has looked far more dangerous than a typical fill-in winger, giving Edmonton a legitimate jolt at the top of the lineup while the team settles into its 2026-27 rhythm. There has also been a defensive shuffle worth watching, with Ty Emberson back in the lineup in place of Shakir Mukhamadullin, and the pairing of Connor Murphy and Ryan Shea drawing positive attention for the way it has held up so far.
Alex Formenton has been part of the other side of that early-season sorting. After a brief look in the top six, he has been pushed down the lineup even though he has still contributed offensively, which makes his next stretch something to monitor closely. Edmonton has already shown it is willing to make quick judgments in these first few games, and Formenton may not be done getting chances higher up if the right opening comes again. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Face One Costly Question In Any Lucas Raymond Pursuit
Detroits long-term picture has suddenly gotten murkier, and any discussion around Lucas Raymond starts with the reality that the Red Wings may be headed toward difficult decisions. For Edmonton, that makes the winger an obvious name to monitor if Detroit decides it needs to reshape the roster rather than simply tweak around the edges.
The Oilers, though, would have to ask a painful question before even getting serious: how much of their future are they willing to move for another high-end piece on the wing? Any pursuit of Raymond would come with a steep cost, and the kind of package it would take is exactly the sort of deal that forces a contender to weigh present help against everything it may need a few years from now. [Read more 🡒]