Will Ovechkin ever slow down? (and other questions for the new NHL season)

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The NHL season opens tonight (again) (sort of).

Confused? You're not alone. Technically, the 2022-23 season began Friday, when the Nashville Predators earned their first of two wins over the San Jose Sharks in Prague. Tonight, the NHL returns to North America, but with just two games: an all-U.S. doubleheader featuring Tampa Bay vs. the New York Rangers and Vegas vs. Los Angeles. Tomorrow might be considered the "real" opening night, with Colorado raising its Stanley Cup banner before taking on Chicago and the first four Canadian teams hitting the ice as Toronto visits Montreal and Vancouver travels to Edmonton.

Given tonight's all-American slate, and the fact that we previewed all seven Canadian clubs in Friday's newsletter, here are some key questions involving the NHL's U.S.-based teams for this season:

Can the Avalanche repeat? With 2022 Conn Smythe and Norris Trophy winner Cale Makar already locked up long-term and superstar forward Nathan MacKinnon now signed to one of the biggest contracts in NHL history, the Avs have laid the foundation for a potential dynasty. But the defending champs lost key forwards Nazem Kadri and André Burakovsky in free agency, while captain Gabriel Landeskog is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury. There's also a big question mark in net, where the Avs hope former Rangers backup Alexandar Georgiev can fill the hole left when Darcy Kuemper signed with Washington.

Is the Lightning dynasty* coming to an end? It's debatable whether this team is worthy of that distinction, but Tampa Bay became the first club in 37 years to reach three