11 NHL Players to Watch During the 2024-25 Season

The puck has officially dropped on the 2024-25 NHL season, and it feels like we're dealing with more individual skill and talent than ever.

Young players are showing us they've mastered the basics alongside some new tricks, while older names are looking for 30-goal seasons in the chase for scoring records.

And goalies are fighting for proportional contracts as the cap raises.

As we enter the first month of a season full of possibilities and new storylines, here are 11 players to keep tabs on this year.

Calder Trophy winner Connor Bedard lived up to hype last year despite suffering a broken jaw, and he ended his rookie campaign with 22 goals and 61 points in 68 games as the Chicago Blackhawks' first-line center.

The 19-year-old also handled the influx of media in his stride, had a good grasp for knowing when to say the usual stuff and keep the focus on the ice, and when to break the fourth wall and have some fun with it all.

His sophomore season kicked off with more of the same Tuesday.

It all started with a starring role in a tongue-in-cheek league promo video.

He then recorded two assists in Chicago's 5-2 loss to the Utah Hockey Club.

The levity and awareness he's had since putting on an NHL jersey will come in handy as he navigates his second year in the league, a time when pressure and expectations collide for many budding stars.

However, with Taylor Hall returning in good health and the additions of Tyler Bertuzzi and Teuvo Teravainen, Bedard will have some reinforcements by his side to help avoid a slump.

Also consider that he was thrust into the NHL on one of the worst teams and immediately given first-line center minutes.

This isn't a winger enjoying a hot streak and seeing if it lasts, this is the center expected to lead the next generation of NHL stars.

So far, so good.

Year two brings even more pressure and expectation, but it looks like Bedard can handle it.

How quickly will 2024 No.

1 overall pick Macklin Celebrini make an impact at the NHL level and how quickly will that accelerate San Jose's rebuild? Let's be real: The Sharks have been an almost historically bad NHL team the past few seasons, and it's going to take more than one man to solve that problem.

To be fair, several new bombshells have entered the villa with Will Smith, William Eklund, Tyler Toffoli and Yaroslav Askarov joining the team this year.

Regardless, you have to start somewhere, and Celebrini's rookie campaign is as good as any place.

The Boston University product is expected to jump right into the lineup as first-line center, a fitting role for San Jose's first-ever No.

1 pick.

When the 18-year-old gets acclimated to the NHL, he's going to be a sound two-way player with a scoring flare.

For San Jose, it's all about building the basics and Celebrini holds the first block.

The Dallas Stars have been rightfully lauded for the consistency and depth throughout their lineup as they've risen to perennial contender status, and their ability to get scoring from the whole roster has been a pillar of their success.

It's also allowed them to quietly debut several future "stars" throughout the team with little pressure, and now there are a handful of under-25 players who have become roster mainstays and have ridiculously high ceilings.

Center Wyatt Johnston, 21, burst onto the scene in 2022-23 with 24 goals and 41 points in 82 games.

He jumped 32 goals and 65 points last season.

Perhaps the most exciting development, though, was his 10 goals and 16 points in 19 playoff games last year.

Then there's Calder Trophy-eligible Logan Stankoven.

He got called up at the end of last season and immediately produced, with six goals and 14 points in 24 games.

His production and minutes did dip in the playoffs with three goals and eight points in 19 games, but the beauty of these Stars is the aforementioned depth and Stankoven wasn't expected to move mountains.

The 21-year-old did get crucial playoff experience as he enters his true rookie season, though, so let's see if he can take a few steps this season and get into a consistent groove.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are transparently one foot in, one foot out as they navigate the post-Jake Guentzel era under general manager Kyle Dubas.

For the past two seasons, they've missed the playoffs in Shakespearean form; a game or two here, a slump or two there.

Nobody wants to go through this three years in a row, and you can't really see the Penguins doing any better than either just missing the playoffs or limping through the first round.

The willingness to let go of Guentzel at last season's deadline shows they'd possibly be willing to let go of Erik Karlsson this time around if things appear bleak again.

Perhaps a more optimistic team could take him if Pittsburgh is willing to retain some of his $10 million cap hit.

Sorry to come out the gate so negative, Penguins fans, but hopefully Sidney Crosby gets one more go at a successful season.

We've cried wolf about "do-or-die" for the Maple Leafs a few too many times, but now stuff's getting real with Mitch Marner's odd-one-out contract negotiations coming up.

This may be the last season we see the homegrown 27-year-old navigate the highs and lows of playing for his dream team and often finding himself the scapegoat.

The good news? Teammate William Nylander was in a similar position last season and absolutely popped off, earning a significant raise.

Could this put the right kind of pressure and urgency on Marner, after years of some debatably more nonsensical pressure? It's time to find out.

Matvei Michkov is a super-exciting player to watch because he's entering the show with a unique blend of experience, skill and endless youthful possibility.

The 19-year-old winger is expected to jump right in with the Flyers' top six.

He had 41 points (19 goals, 22 assists) in 47 games playing on loan with Sochi last season.

This was the most points in the KHL among players under 20 and tied for the second-most of all time among under-20 players in the league, behind Kirill Kaprizov (42 points, 2016-17).

The 2023 No.

7 overall pick could be the star the Flyers have been waiting for, and the dynamics with hard-nosed head coach John Tortorella are sure to provide us with some buddy-cop material.

The Edmonton Oilers signed Darnell Nurse to a massive contract carrying a $9.25 million cap hit that kicked in during the 2022-2023 season.

The eighth-highest cap hit among NHL defenders comes with inevitable pressure and criticism, all of which Nurse has faced with varying levels of success the past few seasons.

In this era of almost positionless hockey and record-breaking scoring, points matter more than ever for well-paid defensemen.

No matter how sound Nurse can be in his own end, every mistake is inflated, and he isn't producing enough to warrant the cap hit.

He ended last regular season tied for 49th in defensive scoring, and he didn't do much to rectify that during the Oilers' playoff run with two goals, nine points and a minus-nine through 25 games.

Compounding this is the 29-year-old's no-movement clause, which modifies to "only" 10 teams in...2028.

Barring a buyout, the Oilers are more-or-less stuck with Nurse, and it must have been difficult for the former top-10 draft pick to not live up to the pressure.

Maybe this year will provide a fresh start and Nurse pitches in a bit more.

Alex Ovechkin became the first player in NHL history to have 18 30-goal seasons last year, which leaves him 42 away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's all-time goals record (894).

The 39-year-old has two years left on his contract, so it's not like he has to whip out all 42 goals over the course of the next 82 games.

But knowing the Great Eight, he's going to try, and it's going to be prime entertainment for the rest of us.

All eyes are on Ovechkin to maybe do it this year, but he will inch that much closer to finish it off in 2025-26.

Well, well, well.

The Bruins figured out Jeremy Swayman's contract situation, and the discourse almost immediately turned to Igor Shesterkin's incoming contract year.

According to ESPN's Kevin Weekes , Shesterkin turned down an eight-year, $88 million offer from the Rangers.

The deal would have made him the highest-paid goalie in NHL history, and the $11 million AAV would have paid him more per year than Jeremy Swayman ($8.25 million) and Connor Hellebuyck ($8.5 million).

Shesterkin, 28, is entering the final season of a four-year, $22.67 million contract he signed in August 2021.

His current deal carries a $5.67 million cap hit, which he has outplayed and cemented himself as one of the bestand most consistentgoaltenders in the league.

That being said, the Rangers have some pressure to capitalize with this core and make a long run to follow up their Eastern Conference Final loss last season.

Will Shesterkin use the pressure coming at him from all directions and put up a career season, which would also be one of the best seasons of any goaltender in NHL history? This photo of Brady Tkachuk will be my exact facial expression if the Senators still can't figure it out this season.

I believe they're in a better position to succeed than they have been in the past few years, with Vezina winner Linus Ullmark in the fold, Shane Pinto back for a full season and the rest of the squad healthy.

Tkachuk, 25, is entering his fourth year as captain of the Senators, and falling short of the playoffs over and over despite decent rosters will be wearing on him.

Ottawa needs to get off to a good start in order to make the playoffs this year.

There are too many bubble teams fighting in the East, and there have been to many squandered opportunities to allow the Sens any wiggle room.

All eyes are on Tkachuk as the first few months of the season, but you have to wonder if he could be headed elsewhere at the deadline if the Senators have another disappointing start..

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