NHL Stars Facing the Biggest Question Marks in the 2015-16 Season

The 2015-16 NHL season won't start up until early October, but now is as good a time as any to look at some players who will enter the season with some questions in need of answering.

Some enter the season seeking to prove that last season was a fluke. Others are looking to prove that last year's success wasn't a fluke, and others are simply trying to prove that they are worth the hype. Ultimately the players named are not being singled out for negative reasons, but they simply have some intrigue surrounding them.

With that in mind, here are the NHL stars facing the biggest question marks in the 2015-16 season.

Since there are so many players who could be looked at, here are a few with less pressing questions than those featured in the main slides.

Evander Kane, Buffalo Sabres: Can Kane actualize his elite offensive potential now that he's on a new team with a chip on his shoulder and prove that the Winnipeg Jets were wrong about him?

Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres: Can the most highly touted American prospect since Mike Modano leave his mark on his rookie season?

Thomas Vanek, Minnesota Wild: Are Vanek's best days behind him? In his first season with the Wild, he tallied 21 goals, his lowest single-season total in a full 82-game season.

Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals: Holtby received a fat new contract after posting a career year. With stable finances and job security, can Holtby post another season of dominance, or will he regress?

Zdeno Chara, Boston Bruins: The 38-year-old Bruins captain appeared in fewer than 65 games for the first time since he was the 1998-99. Could this be the last year he is a legitimate top-pairing defender?

Henrik and Daniel Sedin, Vancouver Canucks: The Twins found a way to get back to being offensive dynamos in 2014-15 under new bench boss Willie Desjardins. Are they back on the right track, or was last year a byproduct of breaking out after being underutilized in 2013-14?

Kyle Okposo, New York Islanders: The Islanders scoring forward suffered an injury that resulted in a detached retina last season. He struggled upon returning to the lineup, so could the injury impact his ability to be a first-line forward?

Marian Gaborik, Los Angeles Kings: Gaborik signed a deal that pays him $4,875,000 a season until 2021. Last year he scored 27 goals in 69 games, but will his nagging groin problems cause him to miss more time in 2015-16?

If there's a player not named here or in the subsequent slides, feel free to point them out in the comments below.

The Question: Can Connor McDavid have a "Crosby-like" rookie season?

Analysis: McDavid is being heralded as the savior of the Edmonton Oilers, a difference-maker who will enable them to return to the playoffs. He spent the 2014-15 season with the Erie Otters and tallied 120 points in 47 regular-season games, and he ended his OHL career with 49 playoff points in 19 games. 

McDavid is a gifted offensive thinker, and in Edmonton, he will get the opportunity to play with forwards who can make the most of his skills. He didn't have a ton of like-minded teammates in the OHL, but at the NHL level, he may be able to do some serious damage.

Conclusion: Like Crosby, McDavid is a gifted passer and an accomplished skater. These attributes will translate well to the NHL, and they should allow him to have success from the start of the season.

Players who are primarily goal scorers tend to struggle early because they face real goalies for the first time and have to learn to score from multiple areas on the ice. McDavid may not tally 102 points, but he has a chance to lead the team in scoring.

The Question: What type of impact will Phil Kessel have on the Penguins?

Analysis: Kessel was traded from the Toronto Maple Leafs to the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 1, and it is expected that the elite goal scorer will explode offensively while riding shotgun to Evgeni Malkin or Sidney Crosby.

The concept is good in theory, but Kessel is a forward who thrives with the puck on his stick. He didn't have a true center in Toronto, so more often than not, he would drive the puck himself before snapping it into the net.

Malkin and Crosby are both elite puck-handlers and offensive players, and it is going to be interesting to see how they share the puck with Kessel.

Conclusion: In many ways, Kessel will fill the void that was left when James Neal was traded to the Nashville Predators.

Patric Hornqvist had a fine season, but he isn't a natural goal scorer like Neal. Kessel was able to generate big numbers playing with inferior talent in Toronto, and he should thrive in Pittsburgh. There's a chance that he will tally more assists this season than he has in the past, and that could lead to fewer goals.

The Question: How will Ryan O'Reilly perform in Buffalo under the weight of a new contract and with less talent surrounding him?

Analysis: O'Reilly signed a contract extension this summer that will pay him $7.5 million a year. It doesn't kick in until the start of the 2016-17 season, but this will be his first season with the Buffalo Sabres.

The former Colorado Avalanche forward is going to be in a situation where there are talented players such as Evander Kane, Jack Eichel and Matt Moulson up front, but they don't quite measure up to Nathan MacKinnon, Matt Duchene or Jarome Iginla.

Conclusion: O'Reilly's game took a huge dip in 2014-15, as his points per game fell from 0.80 the year prior down to 0.67. His ice time remained practically the same, unless you consider six seconds a game major, so there is reason to be concerned if you are a Sabres fan.

The Question: How will he Brandon Saad perform when he isn't skating with Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa? 

Analysis: Saad has proven to be a talented player in his limited NHL career of 208 games, scoring 52 goals and 74 assists for 126 points.

The threat of an offer sheet led to a trade to the Columbus Blue Jackets, and he was subsequently signed to a six-year deal that will pay him $6 million a season. It could be looked at as a gamble because he's had a short career to date, and because he has spent a significant amount of time playing with Toews and Hossa.

Conclusion: Saad should play well with center Ryan Johansen, but he could struggle out of the gate. Sean Tierney of Today's Slapshot pointed out that Saad's possession numbers were poor in time spent away from Hossa and Toews, and that could be troublesome, because he is strongest with the puck on his stick. 

The Question: Can Jiri Hudler maintain his 2014-15 success?

Analysis: Last season, Jiri Hudler tied for No. 8 in the NHL in total scoring with 76 points, and it was the greatest statistical season of his career to date. For the majority of his career he's been a good secondary contributor, but 2014-15 was the first time that Hudler was a legitimate first-line scorer.

The newfound success came in a year in which Hudler turned 31, so there is definitely reason to believe that his success is unsustainable.

Conclusion: Hudler is slated to line up with Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau again, and that should enable him to put up some modest offensive numbers. He won't finish No. 8 in the league in scoring again, but don't be surprised if he helps one of his linemates become a league-leading scorer. 

The Question: Was 2014-15's offensive explosion a fluke, or has Nick Foligno redefined himself as a player?

Analysis: Heading into 2014-15, Foligno had never scored more than 18 goals or 47 points in a single season, but he changed that with an All-Star effort. The Blue Jackets' captain tallied 31 goals and 73 points and was named a captain at the All-Star Game in Columbus. It was an impressive season, but will he be able to repeat it in 2015-16?

Conclusion: On Halloween, Foligno will turn 28, and there's a good chance he will fall back down to earth, despite the fact he will likely play with Brandon Saad and Ryan Johansen. Foligno has career averages of 0.21 goals and 0.51 points per game, and his 2014-15 campaign saw him post a 0.39 and 0.92 in those respective categories.

The odds of him having another career year are slim, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him return to being a 20-goal and 50-point player.

The Question: Could this be Rick Nash's last season with the Rangers?

Analysis: Rick Nash is coming off a playoff run in which he tallied five goals and 14 points in 19 games, and it was a significant improvement from his output during the year the Blueshirts went to the Stanley Cup Final. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, as the Rangers were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Final after getting shut out in Games 5 and 7 on home ice.

Although Nash has been an amazing regular-season player for the Rangers—89 goals and 150 points in 188 games—the franchise may look to create some significant cap space by dealing him and his $7.8 million cap hit if he can't help the team win a Stanley Cup.

Conclusion: Nash has been one of the Rangers' best regular-season players in recent memory, and his current contract expires after the end of the 2017-18 season. He scored a career-high 42 goals last season, and there isn't a player on the roster who can replace his production.

He may be 31, but he still has a lot to offer his team. If he were to be moved, it would be next year, because teams would be willing to add a goal scorer like Nash knowing he would only have a year and change left on his contract.

The Question: How much game does the living legend have left?

Analysis: The Great 68 will turn 44 in February 2016, and by all accounts, he wants to keep playing until he is physically unable to do so. Last year, it looked like Jagr was running out of gas, as he struggled to tally 11 goals and 29 points with the New Jersey Devils.

He was moved at the trade deadline with the Devils out of serious contention, and he joined a feisty and lovable Florida Panthers squad. He showed new life after being dealt, and in a short span of 20 games, he left his mark. Jagr tallied six goals and 18 points, and it truly came out of nowhere when juxtaposing it with his work earlier in the season.

Conclusion: Jagr is a special physical specimen and one of the last of the old-school NHL players who just put on their skates and played. It is safe to say he gained some new life playing with youngsters like Aleksander Barkov and Aaron Ekblad, and it wouldn't be shocking to see him tally 20 goals with the Panthers in 2015-16 if he remains healthy.

The question: Was Devan Dubnyk's Vezina-worthy season an anomaly?

Analysis: If Dubnyk wasn't between the pipes for Minnesota in 2014-15, the Wild wouldn't have made the playoffs. At one point in the season, the team was out of playoff contention and there were even rumors that head coach Mike Yeo would be fired. Dubnyk joined the team, and in a short span of time, things turned around in a huge way.

The Wild netminder finished the season with 27 wins in 39 games, and he maintained a .936 save percentage and 1.78 goals-against average.

Conclusion: Dubnyk had an amazing year, but it shouldn't be discounted as an anomaly. While he may not have a year in which he posts a save percentage of almost .930 and a low 2.00 goals-against average, he has shown in the past that he's a good goalie.

With the Oilers, he posted a save percentage of .916, .914 and .920 in consecutive seasons from 2010 to 2013, and they decided to deal him after he slumped to a .894 margin. Last year, he posted a .916 save percentage with the Arizona Coyotes, and it improved by 20 points when he joined a better team. He has the skill to be a difference-maker, and the Wild were wise to re-sign him on a multiyear deal.

The Question: Will impending free agency be a distraction?

Analysis: There is still a lot of time left in the summer, but it is fair to say that Steven Stamkos would have liked a new contract by now. In January, he stated to ESPN that he has every intention of re-signing with Tampa, and it will be interesting to see what happens if he enters the season without a contract.

The emergence of Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat and Nikita Kucherov has been a bit unprecedented, and they will need new contracts in the next year or two as well. The Lightning may not be able to keep all of the players, and it will be interesting to see what happens if the trio continues to dominate and Stamkos struggles with free agency on his mind.

Conclusion: I don't expect Stamkos to struggle or be bothered by impending free agency because he knows that he is going to get a payday. The question becomes who will end up paying him, although Stamkos ultimately wants it to be the Lightning if possible.

Stats via Hockey-Reference unless otherwise noted. Financial information via General Fanager.