The tricky thing with making bold predictions is remembering to hold yourself back when your imagination takes over your brain the way Connor McDavid takes over your game. Again, what may be too incredible when you consider that Quinn Hughes didn't even make it to Christmas with the Vancouver Canucks this season?
For all the talk of the trade market closing earlier this year, we've already seen a colossal swap – Hughes to the Minnesota Wild for four grand – that represents the biggest trade we've seen in years.
And that's saying something, considering that Mikko Rantanen was traded not once, but twice last season alone. (Seriously, who had this among their bold predictions for 2025?)
Player movement will certainly be a big part of our bold hockey predictions for 2026, along with Olympic performances, individual accomplishments and, of course, some success in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
So, with 2026 just a few days away, here are some examples of what we'll see in the hockey world next year.
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• A year after Team USA's Cole Hutson, thankfully OK after taking a hit to the back of the head against Switzerland, became the first defenseman to lead the World Junior Championships in scoring last January, Canada's Zane Parekh will be second in 2026.
• The Canucks and Devils are planning a non-Hughes trade in January that would send Kiefer Sherwood east to Jersey.
• Marie-Philippe Poulin would score two goals in her final Olympic gold medal match.
• Sweden will win men's hockey gold on the 20thth anniversary of the 2006 Olympic triumph. The Czech Republic will suffer a shock defeat in the playoff round, and the backlash from Canada for not dressing Connor Bedard and America for replacing Jason Robertson will be severe.
• Buffalo Sabers to extend contract Alex Tuch to an eight-year deal and trade defenseman Owen Power ahead of the March 6 trade deadline.
• Nathan MacKinnon will become the first scorer to score 70 goals since Teemu Selanne and Alex Mogilny in the 1992–93 season.
• The Calgary Flames will make the playoffs.
• The Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche will play a seven-game second-round series that includes a total of six-plus periods of overtime.
• Marc-Andre Fleury will play in the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
• The Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning will meet in the Eastern Conference Finals for the ages.
• The Seattle Kraken will win the NHL Draft Lottery and select Gavin McKenna first overall. The Pittsburgh Penguins will then burst onto the scene to take on defenseman Keaton Verhoeff at No. 2, while the Vancouver Canucks will begin their next great Swedish romance with Ivar Stenberg at No. 3.
• The Boston Bruins will accelerate their organizational retooling with the eighth and 12th overall picks, with Toronto in 2026 having the No. 1 seed in its pocket in 2025.
• Carolina Hurricanes to sign with UFA Artemy Panarin to a six-year, $66 million deal on July 2.
• The Minnesota Wild will hire Pete DeBoer as their new coach this summer.
• Alex Ovechkin will sign a two-year extension with the Capitals.
• After missing the playoffs by two points, the Leafs will have a conversation with their captain about the cards on the table. Auston Matthews as a result, he was traded to the Sharks for a package built around Michael Misa.
• After missing the playoffs by three points, the Jets will bolster their aging core by bringing back Sean Monahan from the retooled Columbus Blue Jackets.
• Quinn Hughes will sign an eight-year contract extension with the Wild in late summer before the CBA's new term limits take effect. As a result of the happy fallout, Minnesota fans will immediately start speculating about Jack Hughes becoming the team's No. 1 center as a free agent in 2030.
