Defense might win championships, but scoring goals is what wins games in the NHL regular season. With a little over a week played so far, there have been some teams that have stood above the rest offensively.
Fans have already been blessed with some big goals this season. Connor Bedard has already registered his first NHL goal, and Connor McDavid has submitted another highlight-reel goal that could be the best of the season.
Some teams are built to win with their offense leading the charge, while others are playing more defensive games. Either way, teams can be successful. So, let's dive in with what the standings would look like based on how many goals the team has scored.
The NHL standings ordered by goals scored:
- Carolina Hurricanes — 20 goals in 4 games
- Ottawa Senators — 19 goals in 4 games
- Detroit Red Wings — 19 goals in 4 games
- Vegas Golden Knights — 15 goals in 4 games
- Toronto Maple Leafs — 14 goals in 3 games
- Pittsburgh Penguins — 14 goals in 4 games
- Tampa Bay Lightning — 13 goals in 4 games
- Vancouver Canucks — 12 goals in 3 games
- Los Angeles Kings — 12 goals in 3 games
- Colorado Avalanche — 11 goals in 3 games
- Minnesota Wild — 11 goals in 3 games
- Chicago Blackhawks — 11 goals in 4 games
- New York Rangers — 10 goals in 3 games
- New Jersey Devils — 10 goals in 3 games
- Montreal Canadiens — 10 goals in 3 games
- Edmonton Oilers — 10 goals in 3 games
- Winnipeg Jets — 10 goals in 3 games
- Calgary Flames — 9 goals in 3 games
- Nashville Predators — 9 goals in 4 games
- Philadelphia Flyers — 8 goals in 3 games
- Florida Panthers — 8 goals in 3 games
- Anaheim Ducks — 7 goals in 2 games
- Columbus Blue Jackets — 7 goals in 3 games
- Boston Bruins — 6 goals in 2 games
- Buffalo Sabres — 6 goals in 3 games
- Arizona Coyotes — 5 goals in 3 games
- San Jose Sharks — 5 goals in 3 games
- New York Islanders — 4 goals in 2 games
- Dallas Stars — 4 goals in 2 games
- Washington Capitals — 4 goals in 2 games
- St. Louis Blues — 3 goals in 2 games
- Seattle Kraken — 3 goals in 4 games
Carolina, Ottawa and Detroit all look like electric offensive teams that can score a lot of goals. Luckily fans won't have to wait long to see them faceoff as the Red Wings and Senators faceoff on Saturday, Oct. 21.