Last season was one of the most dramatic in recent NHL history. Between blockbuster trades, superstars asking out, offer sheets and coaching upheaval, the league had enough off-ice drama to keep buzzing all summer. So what can the NHL do for an encore? As a new season begins tonight, I spoke to executives around the league and conducted in-depth conversations with some of the game's biggest stars at the NHL Player Media Tour in Las Vegas.

Opening night on Tuesday includes a tripleheader of games on ESPN: Florida Panthers-Carolina Hurricanes at 5 p.m. ET, New York Rangers-Boston Bruins at 8 p.m. ET, and Chicago Blackhawks-Vegas Golden Knights at 10:30 p.m. ET. The Tkachuk brothers finally get their chance together. Brady Tkachuk told me the Ottawa trade was "a really hard decision" and called his return to Ottawa on Oct. 21 cinematic.

Minnesota Wild GM Bill Guerin completed the biggest trade last season landing Quinn Hughes, now entering the final year of a contract at $8.25 million AAV versus Cale Makar's new $20.4 million deal. Hughes made competing for a Stanley Cup his top priority.

The article also tracks Connor McDavid's future and other situations to watch.