2025 NHL Western Conference Preview | Predictions, Point Totals & Stanley Cup Pick - video Dailymotion

Peter Klein

The Western Conference is a gauntlet once again in the 2025 NHL season — and only one team can survive it all.  In this full preview, longtime hockey commentator Peter Klein breaks down point totals, playoff predictions, and my Stanley Cup pick out of the West.  🏒 Key topics in this Western Conference preview: - Why the Chicago Blackhawks are wasting Connor Bedard - The case for fading the Predators, Blues & Kings - Why the Utah Mammoth are ready for their first playoff run - The Minnesota Wild and Colorado Avalanche outlook - Why the Dallas Stars are my pick to win the Cup - Breaking down the Pacific Division race with Vegas, Edmonton & Vancouver  🔥 Full playoff bracket predictions — including why I have Dallas vs. Carolina in the Stanley Cup Final.  👇 Comment your picks below — who do YOU have winning the West this season?  👉 Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE for NHL previews, betting breakdowns, and season-long analysis!  🎧 Listen on: Apple https://apple.co/49NGm2L | Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/3QgazeHcSKSteZbBIubcuM?si=icY7NEBvT7yZadv_JFlT6Q  💬 Follow for live breakdowns: X.com/primetimepk | Twitch.tv/primetimepk  | Kick.com/primetimepk  🔗 Support the Show:   - Tip Jar: https://streamelements.com/couchpotatodiary/tip (fuels more content!)   - Partners: C of Dead http://cofdead403.ca/ | Swift Energy https://www.swiftenergy.gg/?ref=mriusnqm PROMO CODE: PKPrimetime for 25% Off!

Transcript

00:00The Western Conference in the NHL is generally a gauntlet, and that continues this year.

00:05We have some fantastic teams battling it out for that top spot, but there can only be one.

00:10So who will it be? Let's preview the Western Conference in the National Hockey League.

00:21Alright, NHL preview continues now.

00:24Um, did the East already, now it's time for the West.

00:29And we start by taking a look at the Central Division.

00:34And one team that I thought that just quite frankly needed to do more this offseason, and didn't do it.

00:40It is the Chicago Blackhawks.

00:42Their total is at 68.5.

00:44I, I hate this roster.

00:46Um, I hate how they have built around Conor Bedard.

00:49I am, I, I suppose impressed that they didn't just completely blow everything up,

00:55and try to make some rash moves to surround Conor Bedard with some higher-end talent,

01:02and try to go down a bit of a spiral that way.

01:05That being said, I don't think this is a good roster.

01:08I think they are wasting Conor Bedard's, uh, what seemed to be very high potential.

01:12And it's another bad season for Chicago.

01:16This is an easy under for me at 68.5.

01:20Up next, it is the Nashville Predators.

01:22They had just an atrocious season last year.

01:25Some talk that they may try to go the younger route for this year, but they haven't done that.

01:31They are sticking with this group.

01:33And you could talk yourself into a Nashville bounces-back season here.

01:39Everyone, a full-off season together, not a weird training camp, all these sorts of things.

01:45I don't see it.

01:46I, I just, I think that it is a accumulation of a lot of veteran talent that is kind of on the other side of it now.

01:53And I, I think the goaltending is probably going to get worse here.

01:57So, I, I think Nashville continues to fall off.

02:01I think this is a pretty easy under at 84.5.

02:04Up next, it is the St. Louis Blues.

02:06A playoff team on the last day of the regular season last year.

02:09Their total is at 92.5.

02:12And much like the Atlantic Division in the East, this is a very deep, very talented division.

02:19And so, you're going to have some good teams on the outs.

02:21And that's where St. Louis finds themselves at this particular time.

02:25I, I have them under this.

02:27I, I like, again, I like a lot of the talent that they have.

02:30Um, but there's a lot of pieces I don't like.

02:34And I have concerns about a team that had to go on just an absurd run last season to get into the playoffs.

02:41I don't think they're that much better.

02:43So, this one's under for me at 92.5.

02:46Up next, it is a team that I have making the playoffs for the first time in their new digs.

02:51It's the Utah Mammoth.

02:53I have them over 91.5.

02:55I think that they have a very exciting young core that has been knocking on the door for a bit.

03:00Obviously, that gets delayed a little bit because of the weirdness around how they exited Arizona and the final season there.

03:06But they have some big, good, young pieces coming up.

03:10Um, getting Paterka was a fantastic move as well.

03:13I just, I like so many pieces on this roster.

03:16And they have a lot of very exciting pieces that they could move in a trade to try to improve this group.

03:22So, they're, they're in for me.

03:25I am, I am very much in on the Utah Mammoth.

03:28I have them over 91.5.

03:31Up next, the Minnesota Wild at 96.5 points.

03:35I like them a lot.

03:36I like Kaprizov.

03:38Eric Sinek has just been kind of steady for a little bit now.

03:41You have Brock Faber on the blue line.

03:43Some good veteran pieces that can still contribute.

03:45And a goaltender who can be inconsistent but can be very good when he is on.

03:50I, I like this Minnesota team.

03:51I think they're really exciting.

03:53And I think now that they have a little bit more wiggle room because of the buyout situation

03:57and the salary cap improving.

03:59Obviously, a lot of that gets tied up next year with Kaprizov's contract.

04:02But I think they're going to be a player.

04:04Again, I have Minnesota in the playoffs and over 96.5.

04:08In third place in the Central, I have Colorado at 104.5 points.

04:12Probably a touch under for me with that.

04:15I didn't love the offseason that they had.

04:17I felt like they had a couple of moves where you would look at it and say,

04:20who were you negotiating against here, right?

04:25So, yes, Landis Cog, all of that.

04:29I think that the moves that they made at center didn't really help them out a ton last year.

04:33And then doubling down on the Nelson piece, I guess I can see that.

04:36But I just, I don't love a few pieces on here.

04:40The high-end talent is obviously incredible.

04:42It really is.

04:42Like McKinnon, Makar, Daves, all like just, the list goes on, right?

04:48It's a fantastically talented hockey group.

04:51Um, I just worry about some of the secondary pieces a little bit more.

04:56With this team in a tight division, that plays out, I think.

05:00And that kind of shows up.

05:02In second place, I have the Winnipeg Jets, the President's Trophy winners from last year,

05:06down to 98.5 points.

05:07I get Ehlers left.

05:09I felt Ehlers was underutilized in Winnipeg,

05:12so I don't view that as as massive of a loss as maybe they would have had.

05:16I like the idea of Jonathan Taves in Winnipeg.

05:19And I, I think this is a great regular season team.

05:22And we were able to take advantage of this last year,

05:24where everyone, the last thing we saw of Winnipeg was Winnipeg struggling.

05:28So, well, they're going to struggle again, right?

05:30Doesn't work that way.

05:32I, I like Winnipeg to go over 98.5.

05:35And then number one in the Central Division, it's the Stars.

05:38A full season with Rantanen there.

05:41Another year of development for some of the young kids that they have in this organization.

05:46And I think you can get very excited very quickly about where Dallas is going.

05:51I, I think if they make a move, say with Calgary for Rasmus Anderson,

05:54this turns into like the team in the National Hockey League.

05:58I think they're a defenseman away from that right now.

06:00They have three guys that you trust.

06:01You add Rasmus on the right side of that.

06:04This is a terrifying team.

06:05They could, they could win it all as is.

06:07But they're a couple slight improvements away from being just awful to have to deal with.

06:13So, that's how I see the Central Division playing out.

06:17Uh, hey, if you could help us out with sharing this video, that would help me out a lot.

06:22Um, whether, wherever you are tuning into this, hit that share button.

06:26Would really help grow this channel in the ways that we would want.

06:30All right, one division to go.

06:32It is time for the Pacific Division.

06:34Up first, it is the San Jose Sharks at 71 and a half.

06:37I, I want to go kind of a sneaky over on this, but I still think they are, like, I think when

06:44they make a step, they'll make a couple in a row.

06:46I think that they're just before that point.

06:48So, I have them under 71 and a half.

06:50I like a lot of the young pieces and I like what they are building there, but they're,

06:55they're a bit away still, I think.

06:57Um, next, I have the Calgary Flames at 82 and a half.

07:01I know that this is quite the drop from last year and we were wrong on going under 81 and

07:05a half last year, but the backup goalie situation in Calgary is horrendous.

07:09They are going to lose one of their best defensemen at some point this season.

07:13And while there are exciting prospects coming up that can score, this team just in general

07:18doesn't score a whole lot.

07:20And they required superhuman performances from their goalie a season ago.

07:25If he is only good this year, they have a problem.

07:29So, I just, I think they kind of need everything to go right to get to around this number again.

07:33I don't think that's going to happen.

07:35So, I'm going to go under 82 and a half on the Flames.

07:37Next, it's the Seattle Kraken at 78 and a half.

07:41I have them going under as well.

07:43Um, just not as under as Calgary, I guess.

07:47They strike me as a team that, like right now, there aren't a lot of tanking teams.

07:51And I think Seattle, maybe not tanking, but they have a lot of players on one-year deals

07:57that I think they could move and get some pretty good pieces in and try to kind of get ahead

08:02of the curve that way.

08:03So, I think that this is going to be a bit of a sell-off season in Seattle.

08:07So, I have them under at 78 and a half.

08:10Next is the LA Kings.

08:13This one, I am so under.

08:1698 and a half.

08:18I, I loved how they played down the stretch last year.

08:22After the trade deadline, adding some offensive firepower to that group with Kuzmenko was hugely

08:28impactful.

08:29I hated their offseason, um, and we saw in Calgary, Kuzmenko can have a very big impact

08:35one year and then disappear the next.

08:38He's just on a one-year contract, so I think that helps.

08:40But, I, I just, I feel like trying to take that next step with Dumoulin and CeCe and those

08:48guys, it's just, it's not the way.

08:50Um, I think this division is getting better and I think the Kings got quite a bit worse

08:56this last offseason.

08:57I, I just, I, I hated the moves that they made.

09:00Um, so I'm, I'm all the way out on the Kings.

09:04I have the Ducks ahead of them next in the division here.

09:07Their total is at 83 and a half.

09:08I'm going over on it.

09:09Not over enough to get them into the postseason, but I'm going over on this team.

09:12I, I wasn't a big Zegras fan, so them losing him isn't much for me.

09:18Um, I thought they were going to be a bit more aggressive this offseason, but they do

09:22have some young pieces that I think are ready to take some steps and be very dangerous in

09:26this league.

09:27So, I think they're going to be around.

09:29I think they're going to be competitive.

09:30I don't think they're in the playoffs, but I think they're ahead of 83 and a half.

09:34And then you have Vancouver at 89 and a half.

09:37I'm going over on this one.

09:39It is requiring a lot.

09:40Um, health from Thatcher Demko, for one, like that has to be the case.

09:46Um, you, you are requiring Evander Kane to not be the giant distraction that JT Miller

09:51was a season ago.

09:52But I think when you look at what could improve this year, Quinn Hughes is obviously a stud

09:57still.

09:57That's, that's not going to change.

09:59But I, I think that there are some improvements coming and the, not the least of which is

10:07Elias Pettersson.

10:08Um, he has been dreadful since signing that contract at his best.

10:12He's one of the most talented players in the National Hockey League.

10:15It shouldn't be as bad as it's been the last 365 days for this guy, given the talent that

10:21he has out on the ice.

10:22I think having Besser locked up just eliminates a lot of questions there as well and creates

10:26a bit more comfort in the locker room that way.

10:29So, I just, I, I think there's a lot going on there.

10:32Also, we don't do a lot of fantasy hockey here.

10:35Watch out for, um, I, I've always known it as LeCaramaki, but I, I think that kind of

10:40LeCaramaki, you know who I'm talking about.

10:42Either way.

10:43Um, the, the kid, and now it's one preseason, whatever, but he is a fantastic goal scorer

10:48at every level.

10:49And it feels like watching him in training camp and in the preseason, it feels like he's

10:54kind of taken another step this year to be like that kind of a guy.

10:58Hoaglander being out for the first, um, couple months of the season stings a lot.

11:02But I, I think, uh, LeCaramaki can be a weapon for this team and another top six forward that

11:10they have been missing out in Vancouver that I think gets them back into the playoffs.

11:14Second place in the division, I have the Edmonton Oilers, obviously no longer having to deal

11:18with any Connor McDavid drama, but they still have a bottom six that is subpar and they still

11:25have a blue line that I have questions about and they still have a goaltending situation

11:28that I have major questions about.

11:30It's still obviously a playoff team.

11:32It is a team that is going to go deep into the playoffs, but, uh, 105 points, I'm not there.

11:37Um, I think, like I said, this division's getting better and I, I think there's just too

11:42much inconsistency in a lot of their games to, I don't think it's a hammer under or anything

11:47like that, but I would go under 105 and a half.

11:49And my Pacific division winner are the Vegas Golden Knights.

11:53I think Mitch Marner getting added to the fray there helps out a lot.

11:56I think he, he fits their style perfectly in a number of different ways.

12:01They are going to need to address secondary scoring a little bit more and adding teams

12:08that Mitch Marner's on don't tend to do very well secondary scoring wise, but I, I think

12:14they're going to find a way with how aggressive they are as a front office to get a little

12:17bit more scoring punch behind the big guys at the top of the lineup.

12:21And so I have Vegas winning this division.

12:25So now the playoffs, um, up first, it would be Vegas against Utah in the first round, Edmonton

12:31against Vancouver, Dallas playing Minnesota and Winnipeg, Colorado.

12:36I have Vegas moving on against Utah.

12:38Like I like where Utah is going.

12:39That would be quick, thorough, um, Edmonton gets past Vancouver.

12:46Like I said, I like a lot of what is developing in Vancouver, but the Oilers are on another

12:50level at this point.

12:51So that would be your Pacific division final.

12:53And then I would go Dallas, uh, with the win over Minnesota and Winnipeg.

12:57Um, I think Dave's does help in that locker room come playoff time to get them over the,

13:01the Colorado hump.

13:03So pretty chalk on the, the, the side there for Vegas.

13:08I have, or sorry, for the, uh, the, the West, I have Vegas beating Edmonton in the second

13:13round of the playoffs and I have Dallas beating Winnipeg in the second round.

13:16So the two division winners go head to head and I have Dallas winning that one.

13:21Um, didn't do this with the East cause I'd ran out of time on the stream, I believe.

13:25Um, but the playoff matchups that I have out East are Carolina against Ottawa, uh, the

13:31Devils against the Capitals, Montreal as the Atlantic division winner taking on Florida

13:36and then Tampa Bay against Toronto.

13:38In the second round, it is Carolina against New Jersey and Florida, Tampa Bay.

13:43So I do have the lightning beating the Leafs in the playoffs.

13:46Um, I have Florida with what would look like an upset of a wildcard team over division winner.

13:50Um, but that experience is what it is, right?

13:54So there's that.

13:54And then Carolina and New Jersey, that feels pretty safe.

13:57Um, in the Eastern Conference final, I have Carolina and Florida again, but I think the

14:02miles catch up to Florida.

14:03And I do think that the Hurricanes are a improved hockey team.

14:06I love the signing of Ehlers and some of the other stuff that they have done.

14:10So give me Carolina to go to the cup final, which would give me Dallas against Carolina

14:14in the Stanley Cup.

14:16And my Stanley Cup pick, the Dallas Stars.

14:20That is who I have winning the Stanley Cup for the 2025 season.

14:26What do you guys think?

14:26I can't imagine every one of those predictions, just 32 for 32, nailed it right on the dot.

14:31What do you guys think?

14:32Let me know in the comments or get at me on social media at PrimetimeKline.

2025 NHL Western Conference Preview | Predictions, Point Totals & Stanley Cup Pick

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