NHL Global Series games, Ovechkin's record chase, Utah Hockey Club debut among top 2024-25 storylines

The 2024-25 NHL regular season opens when the Buffalo Sabres face the New Jersey Devils in the 2024 NHL Global Series Czechia presented by Fastenal on Friday (1 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, MSGSN, MSG-B), the first of two games between the teams at O2 Arena in Prague.

Those games are the start of a nine-month journey that will end with one team lifting the Stanley Cup in June.

Here are some of the storylines to watch during what promises to be an exciting and, potentially, history-making season:

NHL goes Global again: After the Sabres and Devils play in Prague on Friday and Saturday (10 a.m. ET; NHLN, SN, MSGSN, MSG-B), it will be the Florida Panthers' and Dallas Stars' turn when they play in the 2024 NHL Global Series Finland Presented by Fastenal at Nokia Arena in Tampere on Nov. 1-2. The games could feature seven players from Finland, including Florida's Aleksander Barkov, (a Tampere native), Anton Lundell, Niko Mikkola and Eetu Luostarinen, and Dallas' Miro Heiskanen, Roope Hintz and Esa Lindell.

Panthers repeat bid: After winning the Stanley Cup last season for the first time in their 30-season history by defeating the Edmonton Oilers, the Panthers will try to become the first team to repeat as champions since their cross-state rivals, the Tampa Bay Lightning, in 2020 and 2021. The Panthers, who lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2023 Cup Final, also will try to match the Lightning (2020-22) by reaching the Cup Final in three consecutive seasons.

Oilers quest for redemption: Losing in the Cup Final last season left Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers hungry to take the next step and win their first championship since 1990. Edmonton will need to overcome losing forward Dylan Holloway and defenseman Philip Broberg after opting not to match the two-year offer sheets each signed with the St. Louis Blues. Edmonton also will begin the season without forward Evander Kane, who is expected to miss 5-6 months following abdominal surgery Sept. 20.

Welcome Utah: The Utah Hockey Club joins the NHL after acquiring the hockey assets of the Arizona Coyotes, who became inactive after last season. Utah inherited an up-and-coming team with young stars such as Logan Cooley, 20, and Dylan Guenther, 21, and established star Clayton Keller, then added Mikhail Sergachev, John Marino and Ian Cole to strengthen its defense during the offseason with the intent of challenging for a Stanley Cup Playoff spot.

Ovechkin within striking distance of Gretzky: Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin enters the season with 853 goals, 42 away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's League record of 894. The 39-year-old has scored at least 42 goals in a season 13 times in his NHL career, including as recently as 2022-23. Although Ovechkin dropped to 31 goals last season, 23 came in his final 36 games.

Swayman-Bruins standoff: The Bruins appear headed toward beginning the season without No. 1 goalie Jeremy Swayman, who remains an unsigned restricted free agent; coach Jim Montgomery said Monday that Joonas Korpisalo will start the season opener against the Panthers on Oct. 8. General manager Don Sweeney has said he hopes to have Swayman signed before the Dec. 1 deadline for him to eligible to play this season. But going that long without Swayman could hurt Boston's chances of qualifying for the playoffs.

Celebrini celebration: Macklin Celebrini, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, represents hope for the future for the San Jose Sharks after they finished last in the NHL standings last season. Celebrini won the Hobey Baker Award as the top NCAA men's player as a freshman at Boston University last season. It will be fun to see what the 18-year-old center can do in his first NHL season.

Playing for Johnny Hockey: The Columbus Blue Jackets will try to honor the memory of forward Johnny Gaudreau with their play throughout this season. Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, were killed when they were struck by a car while riding bicycles near their home in Salem County, New Jersey on Aug. 29.

'Stammer' time in Nashville: Steven Stamkos brings his offensive skill and leadership to the Nashville Predators after 16 seasons and two Stanley Cup championships (2020, 2021) with the Lightning. After he had 81 points (40 goals, 41 assists) in 79 games last season, the 34-year-old forward could help boost the Predators to Cup contender status. Stamkos' return to Tampa Bay's Amalie Arena on Oct. 28 promises to be an emotional night.

Last ride for Maple Leafs core four?: Auston Matthews and William Nylander are signed long-term with the Toronto Maple Leafs, but Mitch Marner and John Tavares can become unrestricted free agents after this season. So this could be the last chance for that foursome to lead Toronto to postseason success. With only one playoff series win since 2004 (against the Lightning in 2023), Toronto hired Craig Berube to replace Sheldon Keefe as coach to help push the group farther.

Bedard's encore: Connor Bedard appears poised to have a big second season with the Chicago Blackhawks after winning the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year last season. Despite being limited to 68 games because of a broken jaw, Bedard led the League's rookies in goals (22) and points (62), and tied for first in assists (39).

Crosby-Ovechkin rivalry turns 20: Where did the decades go? Ovechkin and Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby each is beginning his 20th NHL season and their teams likely will battle each other for a playoff spot again. Crosby is chasing milestones too. Already 10th in NHL history with 1,596 points (592 goals, 1004 assists), the 37-year-old needs eight goals to reach 600, four points to reach 1,600 and 46 points to surpass Joe Sakic for ninth (1,641 points).

Orange you excited about the Ducks? The Anaheim Ducks' future looks bright and not just because of their dazzling new orange home uniforms. There are plenty of reasons to watch the Ducks this season with Trevor Zegras healthy and a promising collection of young players such as forwards Leo Carlsson, 19; Cutter Gauthier, 20; and Mason McTavish, 21; and defensemen Pavel Mintyukov, 20; and Olen Zellweger, 21.

Wrigley redux: The Blackhawks will play the Blues in the 2025 Discover NHL Winter Classic on New Year's Eve at Wrigley Field. The iconic home of Major League Baseball's Chicago Cubs previously hosted the Winter Classic in 2009, when Chicago played the Detroit Red Wings. This time it will be Bedard's turn to step into the outdoor hockey spotlight.

Landeskog's return: Gabriel Landeskog is hoping to be near the end of his long road back from a knee injury that has sidelined the Colorado Avalanche forward since the 2022 Stanley Cup Final. The 31-year-old isn't expected to be ready for the start of the season, but he and the Avalanche are optimistic he will play at some point.

2025 4 Nations Face-off: Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States will go head-to-head from Feb. 12-20 in Montreal and Boston in the NHL's first best-on-best tournament since the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. Each team already has selected six players. The first few weeks of the NHL season will serve as a tryout for the remaining spots on the 23-player rosters (20 skaters, three goalies).

Devils ready to run again: After a busy offseason in which they upgraded their defense and goaltending, the New Jersey Devils are eager to rebound from a disappointing season when they fell from reaching the second round of the playoffs in 2023 to seventh in the Metropolitan Division (38-39-5) last season. Trading for goalie Jacob Markstrom, signing defensemen Brett Pesce and Brenden Dillon and defenseman Dougie Hamilton returning from a torn pectoral muscle should help New Jersey improve from allowing 3.43 goals per game last season, tied for the fifth most in the NHL.

Outdoors at "The Horseshoe": The Blue Jackets will become the 30th team to play in an outdoor game when they host the Red Wings in the 2025 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series at Ohio Stadium on March 1. Nicknamed "The Horseshoe," Ohio Stadium has a listed capacity of 102,780 for Ohio State football, with its largest crowd being 110,045 on Nov. 26, 2016, when the Buckeyes hosted Michigan. Could the NHL attendance record of 105,491 for the 2014 NHL Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium between the Red Wings and Maple Leafs be in jeopardy?

Can Matthews score 70? Matthews nearly did it last season when his 69 goals in 81 games were the most in the NHL since Mario Lemieux scored 69 in 70 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins 1995-96. The Maple Leafs center will try again to become the ninth player in NHL history to reach 70 and the first since Teemu Selanne and Alexander Mogilny each scored 76 in 1992-93.

McDavid magic: After leading the NHL with 64 goals in 2022-23 and getting 100 assists last season, what eye-popping numbers will McDavid produce this season? With 982 points (335 goals, 647 assists) in 645 career games, the Oilers captain can become the third fastest player in NHL history to reach 1,000 if he gets 18 points or more in his first 11 games. That would surpass Mike Bossy, who reached 1,000 points in 656 games. Only Gretzky (424 games) and Lemieux (513) did it in fewer games.