The NHL season is just days away from dropping the first puck, and last year's playoffs planted the seeds for some intriguing storylines to watch.
After back-to-back Stanley Cup titles, the Tampa Bay Lightning were dethroned by a Colorado Avalanche side that looked nearly unbeatable. Both teams return similar casts with small alterations, and it would be no surprise to see these sides as the last two standing when it is all said and done.
Meanwhile, young phenom and arguably the new face of the league, Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, showed he is more than a regular season performer as he took his team to the brink of the Stanley Cup Finals.
McDavid, the Toronto Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews and the Minnesota Wild's Kirill Kaprizov look set to be leading the charge for the league's most valuable player, and all three are yet to turn 26, indicating this season could be a changing of the guard as the next generation takes over.
Can the Avalanche repeat as Stanley Cup champions?
The Avalanche were just too good in last season's playoffs. They were completely dominant, amassing a 16-4 record without losing consecutive games at any point.
Their Stanley Cup Finals win against the then-reigning back-to-back champions Tampa Bay included a 7-0 thrashing at home, and two gutsy road wins with goaltender Darcy Kuemper was named player of the game.
It is undeniable that Kuemper was a massive part of the Avalanche's success during his breakout season, but with his rapid ascension came a rapidly rising price tag, and he cashed in with a five-year, $26million free agent deal to the Washington Capitals.
Replacing him is last year's backup Pavel Francouz – who performed admirably in games Kuemper missed – as well as new signing Alexandar Georgiev, who was Igor Shesterkin's backup with the New York Rangers.
With offensive stars Gabriel Landeskog, Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon returning, as well as elite defenseman Cale Makar, the frightening core of the Avalanche remains intact.
The third-highest scoring team in the NHL last season (312, behind Toronto's 315 and the Florida Panthers' 340), there is no reason to believe Colorado will not remain in the top echelon of offensive teams.
But ultimately seasons can be decided by the man you trust to protect your net, and the Avalanche will need to be proactive in addressing the issue if Francouz and Georgiev are not up to the task.
Is the Lightning dynasty still alive?
Tampa Bay have now reached three consecutive Stanley Cup Finals series, collecting titles in 2020 and 2021 before falling short against the Avalanche.
As history shows, sustaining that level of success deep into the playoffs in consecutive years is one of the hardest feats, largely due to the fact teams are playing 100-game seasons and absorbing so much extra physical wear-and-tear.
Their seemingly impenetrable defense and future Hall of Fame goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy looked vulnerable in the finals, and they started preseason with a combined losing margin of 14-2 in their first three games.
But this is the Lightning, and they still boast one of the best goalies in the sport, as well as a core of Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Victor Hedman still in their prime.
They have earned the benefit of the doubt, and are still the team to beat in the Eastern Conference.
Will this be the year for McDavid and the Oilers?
The best player in hockey and two-time winner of the Hart Memorial Trophy for league MVP, McDavid enjoyed his first taste of playoff success as the Oilers won two series before being knocked out by the Avalanche in the Western Conference finals.
Prior to that, McDavid only had one series win in his first six seasons in the league, but he has led the NHL in points now on four occasions and it took an unbelievable 60-goal season from Toronto's Matthews to deny the 25-year-old his third Hart Trophy.
The trio of McDavid, Leon Draisaitl (who won the 2020 Hart Trophy and scored 55 goals last term) and Evander Kane constitute one of the best offensive units in the league, and they had won six of their past seven playoff games before being swept by the Avalanche.
With McDavid, the Oilers have one of the most talented players in the history of the sport who still may have his best hockey ahead of him. After falling just short last season, it would be no surprise to see him carry his team another step further.
Who are the Hart Memorial Trophy contenders?
McDavid will enter the season as the favourite, as alongside fellow 25-year-old and former top overall draft pick Matthews, he figures to reign over the league for the foreseeable future.
If he was on another team, Draisaitl would have to be considered a true contender, having already won the award in 2020, but playing next to McDavid limits the number of votes he can receive.
The Wild's Kaprizov is on an ascending trajectory, having won the 2021 Calder Memorial Trophy for Rookie of the Year before rising to All-Star status this past campaign, and could be a dark horse.
There has only been one goaltender to win the award since 2002 – Carey Price with the Montreal Canadiens in 2015 – but Shesterkin from the Rangers and Vasilevskiy from the Lightning both possess the ability and the star power to enter consideration if their teams put together outlier defensive seasons.
Warriors claim crucial road win amid Mavericks protest controversy, Morant and KAT return
The Golden State Warriors claimed rare back-to-back wins with Wednesday's 127-125 victory at the Dallas Mavericks but the game was marred by controversy after Kevon Looney's third-quarter uncontested dunk.
Stephen Curry scored 20 points with 13 assists as the reigning NBA champions secured consecutive wins on a road trip for the first time this season at American Airlines Center.
But the Mavs were left raging after Looney's uncontested dunk with 1:54 left in the third quarter from a Warriors inbound after a timeout, which Dallas had thought was their ball, meaning they subsequently lined up on the other half of the court.
Mavs owner Mark Cuban said they would contest the result of the game due to the incident which he labelled the "worst officiating non call mistake possibly in the history of the NBA" on Twitter.
Despite that, the Mavs could have won the game on merit, with Luka Doncic missing a two-point attempt under pressure from Draymond Green with 3.2 seconds left at 125-122.
That came after Curry's bounce-pass set up Green's three-point play, before the reigning NBA Finals MVP glided in for a two-point shot to open up the three-point buffer with 8.1 seconds to play.
Doncic, in his return after missing five games with a thigh injury, scored 30 points with seven rebounds and 17 assists. Doncic shot 11-of-27 from the field and six-of-10 from the stripe.
In Kyrie Irving's absence, 20-year-old guard Jaden Hardy was outstanding with six three-pointers in his 27 points.
The win is a major boost for Golden State's playoff hopes, moving to sixth in the West with a 38-36 record, while the Mavs drop to ninth with a 36-37 record, having lost five of their past seven games.
It was Golden State's first road win when trailing after the first quarter, having entered the game with a 0-20 record.
Morant and KAT make successful returns
Ja Morant made his successful return for the Memphis Grizzlies off the bench for the first time in his career as they won their fourth straight game, beating the Houston Rockets 130-125.
Morant returned after his NBA-imposed eight-game suspension with 17 points and five assists, receiving a standing ovation from the home fans upon his injection into the game.
Jaren Jackson Jr scored a season-high 37 points with 10 rebounds and Desmond Bane added 20 points as the Grizzlies clinched the Southwest division.
It was a night of returns as Karl-Anthony Towns was back for the first time since November due to a calf strain, scoring two game-winning free-throws with 3.6 seconds left as the Minnesota Timberwolves won 125-124 over the Atlanta Hawks.
Lakers stay right in playoff hunt
The Los Angeles Lakers ensured they remained firmly in the congested race for Western Conference playoff and play-in tournament spots with a 122-111 victory over the Phoenix Suns.
Anthony Davis scored a team-high 27 points including 20 in the second half, with nine rebounds, while Austin Reaves backed up Sunday's 35-point game with 25 points and a career-high 11 assists.
Devin Booker scored 33 points on 11-of-16 field shooting with six rebounds but seven turnovers for the Suns, who remain fourth in the West but with a 38-34 record.
The Lakers move up to 10th, just behind the Mavs in ninth, with a 36-37 record and LeBron James not far from a return from injury.
Raducanu exits in Miami Open first round against former US Open champion Andreescu
Emma Raducanu was bundled out of the Miami Open in the first round by form US Open champion Bianca Andreescu in a three-set match that lasted two hours and 35 minutes on Wednesday.
The Briton, who won the US Open in 2021, went down 6-3 3-6 6-2 in a genuine tug-of-war against the 31st-ranked Canadian.
Andreescu sent down seven aces for the match, including four in the first set along with 12 winners as she claimed an early lead.
Raducanu responded with greater aggression, securing the crucial break in the eighth game, before serving out to level the contest.
But Andreescu showed composure and quality in the big points in the final set, winning the final four games to round out the victory, sealing a second-round clash with seventh seed Maria Sakkari.
Andreescu finished with 32 winners compared to Raducanu's 20, while the Briton committed 40 unforced errors.
World number 42 Shelby Rogers edged out USA compatriot Sloane Stephens in just under two hours, winning 6-4 3-6 6-2. Rogers will take on second seed Aryna Sabalenka, who is arguably the tournament favourite after top seed Iga Swiatek's withdrawal, in the next round.
Rogers was one of five Americans to progress, including 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin who defeated Australia's Storm Hunter 6-0 7-6 (7-5).
World number 35 Amanda Anisimova retired down 7-6 (7-5) 5-2 to countrywoman Madison Brengle.
Leylah Fernandez, the player whom Raducanu beat in the 2021 US Open final, advanced into the second round with a 6-4 6-3 victory over Lesia Tsurenko in 88 minutes.
Zion Williamson cleared for Pelicans return but will miss two more weeks
Zion Williamson has been cleared to return to on-court activities but will need at least two weeks to get up to speed.
The New Orleans Pelicans announced Williamson's return to fitness on Wednesday – a significant boost for a team whose season has gone off the rails.
At the time of Williamson's hamstring strain in January, the Pels were third in the Western Conference, just a game behind the first-placed Denver Nuggets.
Since then, however, New Orleans are 12-23, slipping to 12th place on the outside even of the play-in race.
Williamson has not been the only Pelican to miss time with injury, but Brandon Ingram's return has not improved the team's fortunes.
With the Pels set to re-evaluate Williamson in two weeks' time, he is on course to miss a minimum of seven more games.
New Orleans only have 10 games remaining.
A return in the final week of the regular season could be just the boost the Pels need, but they could also very realistically be out of postseason contention by then.
This has been another season wrecked by injury for Williamson, the former first overall pick.
He played only 24 games in his rookie season and 61 the following year before missing the entire 2021-22 campaign with a foot fracture.
The Pels still handed Williamson a five-year rookie extension worth up to $231million, with $193m guaranteed.
Although he continued to miss games on occasion, the initial signs were encouraging as Williamson averaged 26.0 points through 29 games.
But the hamstring injury derailed his and the Pels' season, with time running out to set it back on track.
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