A fresh season represents a fresh opportunity for NHL teams. For the best of them, it represents the possibility of being immortalized on the Stanley Cup. For others, it's a potential stepping stone on the road to a championship down the road. For the worst teams, it's still a chance to develop young players and add a top prospect at the draft.
With free agency slowing to a near-halt, this is a good time for us to look at the league's 30 teams and honestly assess their reasonable upper and lower limits for next season. The best and worst case scenarios which follow both generally assume some breaks (for good or for bad) and allow for a wide range in-between, where most teams will finish.