Much like last week's Eastern Edge power ranking of the Metro Division, the team at the top of the table is a no-brainer: The Florida Panthers are the best team in the East and are one win away from cementing themselves as the best in either conference. However, heading into next season the rest of the Atlantic is up for grabs with a number of franchises aiming to make their mark. July's free agency and frenetic roster movements will clearly impact how these teams will look come training camp, but for now this is how the Atlantic Division stacks up.

8. Montreal Canadiens

Sorry, La Belle Province, the Montreal Canadiens’ time as a playoff-relevant squad is still a few years out, so for now, the basement is where they once again sit heading into the upcoming campaign. However, another great year from Nick Suzuki, a stepping-out season for Juraj Slafkovsky, big numbers from Mike Matheson, and a clear starting netminder in Sam Montembeault all provide promise and fantasy hockey intrigue. Until the Habs form an identity with their core and improve a wack-looking blue-line currently anchored by Matheson and David Savard, they will continue to struggle to put points in the win column and will remain a punching bag of the division.

7. Ottawa Senators

Easily one of the biggest disappointments of the 2023-24 season, the Ottawa Senators underachieved across the board this year. Expectations for the Sens were sky high back in October, but off-ice issues and inconsistent on-ice play quickly turned those lofty playoff goals into a battle to beat out the Habs for the final spot in the division – something they did by only two points.

Draft pick penalties, front-office shuffles, Shane Pinto's suspension, ownership questions, you name it and Ottawa went through it all, and that clearly impacted the team's ability to play consistent hockey at both ends of the rink. With that said and not to make excuses, but the Senators have far too much young talent to not at least be battling for a wild-card spot in 2024-25. Moreover, fantasy value can be had up-and-down Ottawa's lineup with the likes of such studs as Brady Tkachuk, Drake Batherson, Tim Stutzle, and others, but the main issue lies in the cage with the shaky duo of Joonas Korpisalo and Anton Forsberg. The Sens allowed the fifth-most goals overall this past year and until they find an answer between the pipes, they won't be making any noise in the Atlantic

6. Detroit Red Wings

Speaking of question marks in the blue paint, aside from that being a theme for the bottom-five teams in this division, how about a tandem of career backups in Ville Husso and Alex Lyon the Red Wings are likely to be rocking next season? Husso was one of those attractive fantasy targets after putting up big numbers for the St. Louis Blues two years ago to the tune of a 25-7-6 record, 2.56 goals-against average, and .919 save percentage but he's really fallen off during his short stint in the Motor City. Not to hang all of the Wings' woes on Husso, who has dealt with injury and mental health struggles, but he was brought in to be the guy and an .895 SV% and 3.22 GAA is just not going to cut it with the likes of such offensively-loaded teams as the Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers, and even Buffalo Sabres. Much like the Senators, the Red Wings have a lot of intriguing young stars up front and on the blue with the likes of Moritz Seider, Lucas Raymond, and Alex DeBrincat, but until someone takes the reins in the crease Detroit remains on the outside looking in. No disrespect to Alex Lyon, who was actually quite good at times this season posting a .904 SV.% and 21-18-5 record, but he's not the goalie to carry the Wings to the playoffs, let alone through a series or two. Be weary of how much you invest fantasy-wise in this Detroit club next year.

5. Buffalo Sabres

The Sabres went from scoring the third-most goals in the league in 2022-23 (293) to a disappointing 23rd in overall scoring this season with 244 – for a team that hangs its hate in the offensive zone that's going to be a major problem. Down years from Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch, Dylan Cozens, and others not only gave fantasy GMs fits but also led the Sabres to miss out on the postseason for a 13^th consecutive season. The future is still extremely bright with a young and wildly talented young core that also includes Owen Power, Rasmus Dahlin, JJ Peterka, Jack Quinn, and Zach Benson, so it actually would come as very little surprise if Buffalo makes moves up the board to pass a team like the Toronto Maple Leafs in future rankings. The Sabres will be heard from in the Atlantic this season, double-circle all the names just mentioned for draft targets come September.

4. Toronto Maple Leafs

What can be said about the state of the Toronto Maple Leafs that hasn't already been covered to an exhausting degree? Questions abound on what Toronto's lineup will look like once the puck drops on the upcoming season and everyone and their uncle knows about what's going on with Mitch Marner. However, the Leafs will still run out a three-headed offensive monster of the best goal scorer in the NHL in Auston Matthews in addition to William Nylander and perennial triple-digit-point threat that is No. 16. Can Toronto outscore their main defensive issues? Will Craig Berube finally instill a determined, gritty, and responsible defensive brand of hockey with this Leafs franchise? Does Joseph Woll have what it takes to remain healthy and be a number one option? The Buds are at a tipping point and right now things aren't exactly moving in the right direction. Aside from the big three and Morgan Rielly, do your research before getting too involved with the blue and white from a fantasy standpoint.

3. Boston Bruins

Three things immediately come to mind when thinking about the Boston Bruins heading into the summer: restricted free-agent goaltender Jeremy Swayman is going to get paid, Don Sweeney's phone is going to blow up calls on Linus Ullmark, and the Bruins really need to do something to assess their offensive forward group – especially at the centre position. Boston is clearly still good enough to get into the playoffs, but their lack of offensive punch and overall scoring depth is going to catch up with them, even if Swayman is able to run it back and post numbers similar to his 25-10-8 record, 2.53 GAA, and .916 SV% from this season. This is going to be a critical summer for the Bruins' front-office group and the roster will need tinkering if Boston wants to return to the deeper rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

2. Tampa Bay Lightning

The window for winning with the current core in Tampa is closing, but it's not shut yet and until then the Bolts should be considered a dangerous team that's well-coached, balanced, and battle tested. The Lightning are a potent offensive bunch that scored the fifth-most goals overall last season while rocking the league's deadliest power-play that clicked at a staggering 28.6%. Credit due to one of the best coaches in the business in Jon Cooper, but realistically, the shoutout goes more directly to the likes of Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point, Victor Hedman, and to a lesser extent, the Brandon Hagels, Nick Pauls, and Anthony Cirellis of the world. Andrei Vasilevskiy was shaky at times last year, posting only a mediocre .900 SV% and 2.90 GAA, but with a bounce-back season being a fair expectation and a great team in front of him, the wily Russian veteran is more than capable of taking this team to the top of the division.

1. Florida Panthers

In a matter of hours this is likely the 2023-24 Stanley Cup champion. Enough said.