More of This Feature • Part 1: Sharks and Canucks lead the way

Related Resources • Ten NHL Players at the Crossroads • Six NHL Teams at the Crossroads • A Team, a Star and an Experiment Gone Wrong

Anaheim Mighty Ducks
They'll score more goals this year, for starters, and even a mediocre power play would help turn Paul Kariya back into one of the NHL's most dangerous players. The blueline is a little thin, but plenty of teams would love to have Jean-Sebatian Giguere in net and Mike Babcock comes to his first NHL coaching job with excellent credentials. If it all comes together the Ducks might be in the playoff hunt. But any kind of progress at all will be a welcome change for a team that wrote a new book on bungled management.
The question is: Does anyone on the Might Ducks remember how to win?

Florida Panthers
The Panthers might not make the playoffs. But they will be a better team this year, and a little better the year after and a little better still the year after that. Their under-24 talent ranks near the top of the league. Coach Mike Keenan is on a long-term contract, so the Panthers seem prepared to take the slow and steady approach. It requires patience, of course, and disappointments and setbacks are inevitable. But if even half of their youngsters turn out to be solid NHL players, the Florida Panthers might soon have the kind of revival season the New York Islanders enjoyed last year.
The question is: Is Rick Dudley the general manager to see it through? His previous attempt at a youth program, in Tampa Bay, never got off the ground.

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