Heading into the annual NHL holiday roster freeze, the Lightning, Capitals, Predators and Golden Knights lead their respective divisions. History suggests that only two of these teams will remain in first place when the season ends, but which ones?
Since the new four-division format was introduced for the 2013-14 season, exactly half of the 16 teams that were leading their division at this point of the season ultimately won the crown. Seven of the remaining eight teams made the playoffs in a lower position. The only team to fall out of the playoffs entirely were the Montreal Canadiens, who led the Atlantic with 43 points at this point in 2015-16, but who had lost Carey Price to a knee injury and secured only 39 more points in the remaining 48 games.