David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports
October is always the best time to overreact to your NHL team’s season prospects. The Nashville Predators are on a downward spiral and the Winnipeg Jets look like world beaters, and with that comes all the doomsayers and plan-the-parade types.
However, some things work out exactly as they should. Such is the case with these five NHLers, who are off to the best start of their careers. Here’s why you should believe in it:
Cole Caufield, RW, Montreal Canadiens
It’s been a slow and steady rise for the Canadiens’ undersized sniper, but he appears to be finally settling into the role of an elite NHL scorer with six goals and seven points in seven games.
Consistency is something that takes time for a scorer, and he seems to have figured out a few more things playing with better linemates. Four of his goals came against quality opponents in Toronto, Boston and the New York Islanders, so he’s not just targeting weak teams.
His shooting percentage of almost 30 percent is expected to drop, but he has shown incredibly consistent shooting volume that could absolutely produce a 40-goal season. He would be Montreal’s first 40-goal man since Vincent Damphousse lit the lamp 40 times in 1993-94.
Jake Sanderson, D, Ottawa Senators
Last season, Sanderson was already the undisputed number 1 D-man in Ottawa, clearly taking over from Thomas Chabot as a 21-year-old. But with 38 points in 79 games, offensive contributions meant Sanderson wasn’t an elite defender who could match up with the league’s best.
However, with six power play points in six games through the 2024-25 season, Sanderson has emerged as a very, very early Norris Trophy candidate. Especially if that translates into a more competitive Senators team.
While the Sens offense is finally starting to flow through him, he’ll need to clean up himself to reach the top ranks of NHL defensemen. According to moneypuck.com, he is barely breaking even in shot attempt percentage and unblocked shot attempt percentage.
Dylan Guenther, RW, Utah Hockey Club
The Utah Hockey Club has shot out of a cannon to kick off their inaugural season, and who better than Guenther to score the franchise’s first goal? He was drafted ninth overall in 2021 and promises to be a core part of Utah’s emerging group. He parlayed that fast start into five goals in his first three games.
Guenther has slowed down in his past five games with just one assist, but he’s still a prime breakout candidate after putting up an impressive 35 points in 45 games last season. Guenther is the regular on Utah’s first power play unit, and seeing him play alongside talented sophomore Logan Cooley will be fun to watch all year long.
Anton Lundell, C, Florida Panthers
After a career-high 44 points as a rookie in 2021-22, Lundell fell to seasons of 33 and 35 points. However, since the start of the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, Lundell has recorded 26 points in 33 games.
This season, an injury to franchise center Aleksander Barkov opened the door to a top role alongside 50-goal scorer Sam Reinhart. Lundell has scored five goals and nine points to start the season, proving he belongs at the top of an NHL lineup.
Although Barkov will return on short notice, playing with Carter Verhaeghe and Matthew Tkachuk may not be a big step back for Lundell’s production. Power play time is the key to more offensive options, so he’ll likely have to dethrone Sam Bennett for that right.
If that doesn’t happen this year, Bennett’s contract expiring at the end of the season could be the break Lundell needs to cement himself as the Panthers’ second center behind Barkov.
Ross Colton, LW, Colorado Avalanche
Amid the chaos of the Colorado Avalanche’s poor start and goaltending woes, Colton has been a surprise.
Colton was a crucial depth piece for the Tampa Bay Lightning during their 2021 and 2022 Cup runs, but the Avalanche are looking to get a little more out of the 2016 fourth-round pick, who reached a career-high of 40 points in 80 games with the team last season .
Not everyone can keep up with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, but Colton has held his own, scoring seven goals and eight points to start the year. Yes, the Avs are missing Jonathan Drouin, Artturi Lehkonen and Gabriel Landeskog, so it’s not guaranteed that Colton will keep his top role all year, but it’s hard to argue with results. Colton’s 25 percent shooting percentage is high, but low compared to the other seven top scorers in the NHL.
Outside of the Avs’ top line, which has scored seventeen goals, the rest of the roster has only produced twelve. Even if players return to the lineup, Colton has the opportunity to convince Colorado they have no reason to move him down.
