We're just about a month away from the NHL season and a lot of teams have improved over the summer to make themselves possible Stanley Cup contenders.
Let's take a look at five teams who may surprise you this season.
Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo really improved their team over the offseason. And while they may not make the playoffs this season, they will make some noise in the Eastern Conference. Getting Ryan O'Reilly was a great move by general manager Tim Murray and Jack Eichel looks like he's going to be very good his rookie year. Did I forget that they also have a healthy Evander Kane now as well? Their defense is a little shaky but it looks as if they're trying to land Cody Franson, who would really bolster their blue line going into the season. Tyler Ennis and Matt Moulson also will both be very good again for Buffalo. If you're a Sabres fan, you should be excited for this season and beyond.
Dallas Stars
After making the playoffs in the 2013-2014 season, the Stars surprisingly missed the playoffs last season. This year should be a lot different for the Stars. They have some of the best offensive players in the league in Jason Spezza, Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn (who won the Art Ross last year for most points), and Patrick Sharp. The defense was also upgraded when the Stars signed Johnny Oduya to a two-year deal. The goaltending is now better with Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen. Dallas has a good enough team to make the playoffs and it wouldn't surprise me at all if they win the Central this year.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Despite earning a playoff spot, the Penguins were a major disappointment last season. Many experts project that the Penguins will not finish in the top three of the Metropolitan division because other squads improved a great deal this offseason. However, the Penguins are one of those teams that improved. They added Phil Kessel (who's one of the best pure goal scorers in the league), Eric Fehr, Matt Cullen, and Nick Bonino to make their forward depth among the best in the NHL. Their defense is a little shaky but they are just one top four defenseman away from being a serious cup contender. It should shock no one if they win the Metropolitan division this coming season.
San Jose Sharks
Last year was just a complete disaster for the Sharks and their fans. They missed the playoffs for the first time in a decade and they missed it by a wide margin. This season, the arrow could be pointing up for the Sharks. First off, they have a brand new coach in Peter DeBoer, which was needed when Todd McLellan missed the playoffs. Secondly, they still have their core in tact. Patrick Marleau, Logan Couture, Joe Pavelski, and Joe Thornton should all be good next season and Tomas Hertl will surely have more goals then he did last year (13). The defense was upgraded this season with the signing of Paul Martin, who was excellent in his time with the Penguins. Martin Jones is the new starting goaltender this year but he should be great for them. Don't sleep on San Jose this season.
Florida Panthers
Florida is on the rise and they look to be even better then last season when they were very close to making the playoffs. Aaron Ekblad is looking like he's going to be one of the best defensemen in the NHL in a few years. Players such as Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov will only continue to get better as their young careers move forward. Roberto Luongo is still a great goaltender and it showed last year where his GAA was 2.35. The ageless wonder Jaromir Jagr can still bring it every night. It just looks like this team may very well be a playoff team this coming season.