Welcome back to The Journey, where we track the development of prospects as they excel in junior, make the NHL, and push towards stardom. This week, we will conclude the New Year's series where I put on my rose-coloured glasses and try to imagine what might be in store for the development of each team's prospects and young players in 2023. In case you missed it, read Part One here.

The entry draft this summer seems poised to change the trajectory of several of the NHL's lowliest franchises, but I have kept the speculation more general for those teams in the running because everything is still up in the air in terms of who will pick whom.

We have had enough grim reality over the past few years, so these takes—though grounded in the reality of contracts and production—are certainly optimistic. Just grab a final glass of eggnog, sit back, and imagine…how would your favourite team's outlook be impacted by everything breaking just right for its young guns in 2023? It is pleasant food for thought.

Nashville Predators

Philip Tomasino's AHL success earns him a call up and he sees meaningful minutes with Filip Forsberg at even strength and on the top PP unit. Juuso Parssinen slides down to the third line and reignites the snakebitten Tanner Jeannot on a dynamic checking line. Cody Glass continues to improve at the face off dot, which keeps him in the top six; he scores at a 50-point pace for the remainder of this year. Down with the Admirals, Yaroslav Askarov finishes 2023-24 as the AHL's top goaltender at the age of 21, posting better numbers than Igor Shesterkin (NYR) did in his one season in the minors but at a much younger age.

New Jersey Devils

Luke Hughes finishes above a point per game in his second NCAA campaign, sees a few games in a Devils uniform at the end of 2022-23, then sticks with New Jersey out of training camp next October. Simon Nemec picks up his scoring pace down the stretch to finish in the top five among rookie AHL defenders. He also makes the Devils to start 2023-24, shoring up the team's only remaining area of weakness. Akira Schmid claims the backup role, allowing New Jersey to trade Mackenzie Blackwood for draft capital. Alexander Holtz excels with a sustained stretch of games alongside either Nico Hischier or Jack Hughes, and Dawson Mercer hits his Breakout Threshold halfway through next year and scores 60 points while driving his own line, giving the Devils a dynamic top nine.

New York Islanders

Aatu Raty, Simon Holmstrom, and William Dufour all find permanent roles with the Isles by the end of 2023, injecting speed and creativity into an often-lacklustre offence. Oliver Wahlstrom hits his BT and finally starts scoring goals with sustained minutes and opportunity. Noah Dobson continues to emerge as a high-end number one defenceman, taking on harder minutes and still upping his scoring into the 60s. He finds a steady partner in Samuel Bolduc, who brings physicality and another heavy shot to the Isles blue line after percolating in the minors for the last three years.

New York Rangers

Alexis Lafreniere is not traded. He and Kaapo Kakko—who are both only 21 still, by the way—pass 200 games and finally take the significant offensive steps forward that everyone has been waiting for, hitting the scoresheet regularly while continuing to drive play in the Rangers' top six. K'Andre Miller runs the second PP unit and keeps scoring regularly at even strength—giving New York two high-end offensive defenders in addition to the steady physicality of captain Jacob Trouba. Young defenders Zac Jones and Braden Schneider acclimate to the NHL and begin to drive play without being sheltered. Vitali Kravtsov hangs in the top nine and provides useful secondary scoring.

Ottawa Senators

Shane Pinto never gets injured again, casting off his Band-Aid Boy Trainee designation with a dramatic 30-goal season in 2023-24 as Ottawa's second-line center. Josh Norris goes a point per game in his return from injury. Erik Brannstrom is traded at the deadline for a second-round pick in the 2023 draft and the Sens use that pick to draft a skilled prospect like David Reinbacher who should not have still been there for them. Mads Sogaard's third full AHL campaign in 2023-24 is his best yet, and the big Dane, 22, increasingly looks like Ottawa's goalie of the future.

Philadelphia Flyers

Cam York, 22, maintains his stellar defensive play, becoming Philly's regular PP2 quarterback. Last year's Hobey Baker Award winner, Bobby Brink, returns from injury to give the Flyers a feisty offensive spark in a sheltered role. Owen Tippett, 23, continues breaking the hearts of Panthers fans by doing exactly what he was drafted by them to do: shoot and score goals—but for a different team. He throws a couple hits per game and breaks out for 30 goals in 2023-24. Morgan Frost keeps shooting the puck (+3 per game) and finally rewards Flyers fans for their patience with a 50+ point campaign.

Pittsburgh Penguins

With Kris Letang in and out of the lineup, the Penguins throw Ty Smith as many PP minutes as he can handle; he responds with a surprising 50-point season in 2023-24. Sam Poulin (2019, #21) sticks with the team out of training camp and becomes a useful part of their bottom six. Valtteri Puustinen and Alex Nylander get called up as capable injury replacements to score in spurts after going a point per game for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (AHL) this year. After a couple stellar Liiga campaigns, promising goalie prospect Joel Blomqvist, 20, crosses over from Finland and takes over the starter's role in the minors.

San Jose Sharks

The Sharks' top nine gets an infusion of skill as both Thomas Bordeleau and William Eklund graduate from the minors, where they lead the Barracuda in scoring. Both flirt with 45+ points in their first year. Filip Bystedt, 18, re-ups for another year in Sweden's top division, where his skating and hockey sense develop to match his other above-average tools. One of Eetu Makiniemi or Strauss Mann distinguish themselves and become a viable option in net behind whoever the Sharks move forward with after James Reimer's contract is up at the end of 2022-23.

Seattle Kraken

Matty Beniers takes another step forward in his second year into consistent point per game territory. Shane Wright, fresh off a deep Memorial Cup run, joins the Kraken's middle six and begins to show more of the high IQ and intangibles that had him in the conversation for first overall in the 2022 draft. Jagger Firkus puts on 20 pounds without compromising his speed and transitions well to the pro game with his creativity and high-end shot. Ryker Evans spends the rest of this year in the minors but forces a call up with a hot start to 2023-24 with the Firebirds (AHL). Recent waiver wire acquisition Eeli Tolvanen, 23, builds on his PP success and begins earning regular ice time in Seattle's top nine.

St Louis Blues

Zach Bolduc comes out swinging as an AHL rookie after a dominant four-year QMJHL career. Jimmy Snuggerud returns for another year in college and continues to raise his stock as an intelligent, two-way forward with no real holes in his game. Scott Perunovich returns from injury and does his best Calen Addison (MIN) impression to push Torey Krug off the top PP and rack up points with the man advantage as a rookie. Joel Hofer, who has had an incredible year with Springfield (AHL), replaces Thomas Greiss as the back up in St. Louis and pushes Jordan Binnington for starts as he acclimates.

Tampa Bay Lightning

Poolies quickly learn Niko Huuhtanen's name as the 19-year-old Finn takes his impressive puck skills from the Liiga to the AHL. His production dips at first while he adjusts to the new context but swells in the early months of 2024. Nick Perbix, Mikhail Sergachev's steady rookie partner this year, further establishes himself as a key member of the Lightning's top four, pushing his point totals into the thirties. When injuries strike, Alex Barre-Boulet finally plays a sustained stretch of games in Tampa's middle six, providing spurts of production with limited ice time. In net, current AHL starter Hugo Alnefelt claims the backup job after Brian Elliott retires.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Ilya Samsonov, 25, continues to pull away with the starter's job, posting excellent numbers and backstopping Toronto to their most successful playoff push in decades. The Leafs give him a multi-year extension in the offseason. Nick Robertson stops getting injured and earns a permanent job in Toronto's top six. His shot, IQ, and tenacity stand out and draw comparisons to his brother, Jason. Matthew Knies concludes a point-per-game college career and becomes one of the Marlies (AHL) leading scorers as a rookie, battling for the honour with OHL scoring champion Ty Voit. Rasmus Sandin and Timothy Liljegren each take a step forward as a key part of Toronto's top four.

Vancouver Canucks

Expiring veteran contracts on the blue line create an opportunity for Jack Rathbone to play regular minutes. He runs PP2 in 2023-24 and capably steps up whenever Quinn Hughes misses time. Vasily Podkolzin, 21, and Nils Hoglander, 22, play consistently in the top six—both exceeding 40 points for the first time. Over in Sweden, Jonathan Lekkerimaki, 18, has a much-needed bounceback year in the second-tier Allsvenskan and regains his trajectory as a top-six scoring winger. Linus Karlsson joins Vancouver's middle six after leading Abbotsford (AHL) in scoring and makes a strong impression with his competent two-way play.

Vegas Golden Knights

After an eye-opening rookie year in which he was one of the NHL's best goalies, Logan Thompson maintains his starting role in a 1A/1B situation with a healthy Robin Lehner. Pavel Dorofeyev opens 2023-24 with the Golden Knights and scores 40 points in a middle-six role. Down in Henderson (AHL), Brendan Brisson and Lukas Cormier lead the team in scoring in their second pro seasons, supported by rookie Zach Dean. Daniil Miromanov solidifies his place in the top four on the Vegas blue line.

Washington Capitals

Connor McMichael, 21, gets back on track, scoring 20 goals with the Capitals after spending most of 2022-23 in the minors. Ivan Miroshnichenko also continues to re-establish his star trajectory after a cancer diagnosis ahead of the 2022 draft; he plays most of the year in the KHL and does well with minimal ice time. Aliaksei Protas takes on an expanded defensive role, shutting down opposing teams' best forwards. Hendrix Lapierre leads Hershey (AHL) in scoring in his second pro campaign.

Winnipeg Jets

Cole Perfetti follows up a top-five finish in the 2022-23 rookie scoring race by pacing for 60+ points the following year. Ville Heinola finally sticks with the Jets and plays a strong two-way game as a rookie despite receiving minimal PP time. Dmitri Rashevksy, 22, concludes his KHL career after scoring an incredible 62 points in 95 games over two years; he slides smoothly into Winnipeg's middle six with an already-polished pro game. Rutger McGroarty joins fellow 2022 pick Brad Lambert on the Moose (AHL).

Thanks for reading! Follow me on Twitter @beegare for more prospect content and fantasy hockey analysis.