2025-26 Pacific Division Rankings
- Harry Loomis
- Sep 24
- 4 min read
As we approach the final month before the 2025-26 NHL season, every division has its tiers of contenders, pretenders and offenders.
The Pacific Division is the antithesis of this, as they have claimed a Stanley Cup Final spot and the league’s worst team in each of the past three seasons.
Does one or either of those streaks reach four years this season? It’s tough to say. However, all eight of these teams think they’re on the right track to the top.
1. Vegas Golden Knights
Insert cap circumvention joke here. Historically, Vegas takes a small step back a year after winning the division. However, you may have heard that they acquired Mitch Marner, one of the best regular-season playmakers in the league. Even with Alex Pietrangelo’s career likely being over, the tandem of Marner and Jack Eichel should be more than enough to help the Golden Knights pace a relatively weak division.
2. Edmonton Oilers
Regardless of whether or not Connor McDavid signs an extension before the season, his contract status will define the Oilers’ 2025-26 season. The best player in the world doesn’t exactly have to earn a huge contract, rather the team needs to show that they have enough for him to win with. As always, the big question will be in net. The Oilers are sticking with Stuart Skinner, for better or worse. Regardless of whether or not he steps up, the trio of McDavid, the newly paid Leon Draisaitl and the newly paid Evan Bouchard will be more than enough to have the Oilers safely in the playoffs.
3. Los Angeles Kings
All due respect to Ken Holland, who made the Detroit Red Wings arguably the best organization in sports in the early 21st century, but what the hell was he doing in free agency? Corey Perry was an understandable overpay with his recent playoff experience, but Brian Duomolin and Cody Ceci each getting over $4m is horrific cap management. Add Joel Edmundson’s overpay the last offseason, and the Kings’ 4-6 defensemen are making over a combined $12m for the next three years. This team still has to pay pending UFA Adrian Kempe too. Losing a top-line star because you overpaid for bottom pair defensemen is how bad teams stay bad. The Kings, however, are a good team. They have three legit scoring lines and a solid goalie tandem. That’s the perfect combo to hopefully get revenge on the Oilers in the playoffs. Don't let Anze Kopitar go out on a sour note.
4. Anaheim Ducks
There’s a lot to like about the Ducks this season. The team that is full of young forwards added veterans Chris Kreider and Mikael Granlund to their middle-six. Yes, they’re overpaid, but the Ducks have plenty of cap space and can use more offensive depth. If new head coach Joel Quenneville can get continued growth out of guys like Jackson LaCombe, Cutter Gauthier and Leo Carlsson, the Ducks will work themselves into playoff contention very soon. Beckett Sennecke, the third pick in 2024, also appears ready to head to the show. Quenneville, who last coached the Florida Panthers in 2021, is a bit of a question. However, the bigger question is in net. The Ducks finally moved on from John Gibson, trading him to the Red Wings. It’s now officially Lukas Dostal’s net. He started 54 games last year, but Ville Husso and Petr Mrazek aren’t the security blanket that Gibson was. How will he handle things?
5. Vancouver Canucks
The Canucks are a tragic tale. It’s not because they’re awful, because they’re not. They should be so much more than what they are, and that’s been the case for about five years. Quinn Hughes is breathtaking, Thatcher Demko looked like a future Vezina winner before injuries and Brock Boeser is hot and cold, but he’s back despite rumors of him expecting to sign elsewhere. However the biggest fall issue with the Canucks may be Elias Pettersson, who came out looking the worst after his public feud with JT Miller. Vibes with this team seem as low as ever, as evidenced by Rick Tocchet bailing for the Philadelphia Flyers job. They don’t seem to be a bounce-back candidate this year, and things may get worse before they get better.
6. Calgary Flames
The Flames punched above their weight last year. They had a very commendable 96-point season when many projected them to finish near or at the bottom of the division. That said, a regression to the mean feels likely. Dustin Wolf is a future Vezina winner and signed a great contract, but he struggled in the second half. Nazem Kadri’s contract has aged better than the Flames could have expected, but he and Jonathan Huberdeau leading the team in scoring won’t cut it. What happens with pending UFA Rasmus Andersson? There are more questions with the Flames than there are answers.
7. San Jose Sharks
The worst days are in the rear-view mirror for the Sharks. They are a long way from competing still, but the pieces are starting to be put into place. Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith are great and will only get better. Michael Misa could’ve easily gone first overall in the 2025 draft. Yaroslav Askarov should get the lion’s share of starts in net. Around them is a healthy group of veterans for the kids to lean on, including Jeff Skinner, Nick Leddy, Dmitry Orlov and Tyler Toffoli. The goal for the Sharks this year is continued growth. They certainly won’t be a 52-point team again.
8. Seattle Kraken
There isn’t much to look forward to for the Kraken. The team signed two terrible contracts last offseason- Chandler Stephenson and Brandon Montour, only to add Ryan Lindgren this summer. The high-end talent and depth simply aren’t there and Joey Daccord can’t drag this team like some starters can. They also have questions at GM and head coach, as Jason Botterill and Lane Lambert’s bodies of work do not inspire confidence. At least Shane Wright is finally starting to look like a fourth-overall pick.
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