Not with a shot to land Connor Bedard, the well-grounded North Vancouver wunderkind who sent expectations for his pro career into orbit while rewriting the record book during the world junior championship. Hockey may be a team game, but the best NHL teams are all powered by stars. They are, by and large, homegrown stars mined from the top end of the draft and tasked with turning around flailing programs. Run through all of the best teams since the NHL introduced the only hard salary cap found in North American sports and you’ll find a common theme. Chicago won the Cup three times in six years on the backs of Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews.

Source: The Star January 07, 2023 02:48 UTC