NHL.com continues its preview of the 2015-16 season, which will include in-depth looks at all 30 teams.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Not much changed in the offseason for the Minnesota Wild, who will attempt to reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the fourth consecutive season in 2015-16.

The front office likely wasn't inclined to make many moves after the Wild were one of the NHL's best teams over the final two months of the 2014-15 regular season.

Minnesota is counting on several young players to take another step in their development so it can move past the Western Conference Second Round of the playoffs for the first time since 2003.

"There are a lot of good young players in the organization, and I think it shows," defenseman Ryan Suter said. "I think they've done a good job. They can make plays and they are fun to watch."

DETROIT -- The 2015-16 Detroit Red Wings are a combination of elite veterans, solid veterans and young players who have been impressive at times but are still developing.

It will be first-year NHL coach Jeff Blashill's job to meld them into a cohesive group that can extend the Red Wings' streak of Stanley Cup Playoff appearances to 25 seasons.

Here are three X-factors that will help determine whether Detroit can make the postseason and go on a run:

Evgeny Kuznetsov and Alex Ovechkin on a 2-on-1 rush less than a minute into overtime? Kuznetsov holding on to the puck and blasting a shot from the left circle? Ovechkin crashing the net in case there was a rebound?

You bet the Washington Capitals would take that scoring chance any day, twice if they could get it.

But, said Capitals coach Barry Trotz, "You've got to hit the net."

Ah yes, there is that, and in 3-on-3 overtime hitting the net might be more important than at any other point in the game. Because odds are a misfire, such as the one Kuznetsov had against the Carolina Hurricanes on Sept. 21, one that ricocheted off the end boards and popped back out, will lead to an even better scoring chance the other way.

Kuznetsov's miss led to a 3-on-1 for the Hurricanes, and the result was a tic-tac-toe goal by Kris Versteeg off of passes by Ryan Murphy and Eric Staal.

TORONTO -- Erik Karlsson would like to set the record straight.

Not that he really needs to, considering everything the Ottawa Senators defenseman has accomplished over his career, but Karlsson wants to make clear he does indeed work out over the summer months.

Karlsson said at the end of August that he did his conditioning on the ice and doesn't do much training over the summer, if any. It was a surprising comment in the NHL today, when players are often working hard most of the offseason to maintain their conditioning.

When asked about his summer of physical inactivity during the NHL Player Media Tour earlier this month in Toronto, Karlsson quickly stepped in to make a correction.

"Well, that's a little bit exaggerated," Karlsson said. "I work out frequently throughout the summer. But I've been going hard now for five, six, seven summers in a row, and this summer I just felt like I was worn down a lot and decided to take a little more time off than I normally do."

NHL.com continues its preview of the 2015-16 season, which will include in-depth looks at all 30 teams.

OTTAWA -- The Ottawa Senators head into the 2015-16 season hoping to pick up where they left off last season.

"It's a new season. It's going to be totally different," Senators captain Erik Karlsson said. "Hopefully it's going to make us realize we need to start off better than we did last year. If it's Game 1, 2, 5 or 10, or 72, it still matters the same.

"For us, we need to be a little bit more consistent. That showed us a lot last year."

The Senators are back with much the same cast of young players who sparked their rally. The hopes in Ottawa are the experiences of last season will help the 2015-16 Senators find that consistency.

OTTAWA -- The Ottawa Senators were 14 points out of a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Feb. 10. A historic finishing kick of 23-4-4 vaulted them into the postseason.

Not even the most optimistic Senators fan is expecting them to come close to that kind of performance for an entire season, but here are three X-factors that will help make them a playoff team again in 2015-16:

WINNIPEG -- The Winnipeg Jets set franchise records of 43 wins and 99 points last season to reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2007 before being swept by the Anaheim Ducks in the Western Conference First Round.

After a quiet offseason when the Jets lost four regulars from last season's lineup, they will rely on an infusion of youth to fill in the gaps.

Here are three X-factors that will have an impact on whether Winnipeg can duplicate or surpass last season's performance:

NHL.com continues its preview of the 2015-16 season, which will include in-depth looks at all 30 teams.

WINNIPEG -- The long-term mindset for the Winnipeg Jets is a draft-and-develop plan to build an organization able to compete on a yearly basis.

The Jets' short term could be a bit different, however, for a coaching staff and locker room that has sampled the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Balancing short- and long-term goals will be one of the many tasks facing coach Paul Maurice this season.

Winnipeg reached the playoffs last season for the first time since 2007, setting a franchise record with 99 points and tying a franchise record with 43 wins. Even a four-game sweep by the Anaheim Ducks in the Western Conference First Round did not dampen the enthusiasm of Maurice and his players.

"I think we came into the season last year expecting to be one of the hardest-working teams and go through the process of being a team that is hard to play against [each] night, and I thought we did that," captain Andrew Ladd said.

With unrestricted free agency looming for Ladd and defenseman Dustin Byfuglien, there is pressure for the Jets to navigate the Central Division and reach the postseason again. After an offseason when veteran forwards Michael Frolik, Lee Stempniak, Jiri Tlusty and Jim Slater left Winnipeg, Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff will trust that his prospects-oriented approach is ready to provide homegrown solutions to fill the lineup vacancies.

Right wing Nikolaj Ehlers, the ninth pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, highlights the group of prospects pushing for a spot on the Jets roster.

PITTSBURGH -- This season could be pivotal for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

They are again expected to be one of the favorites to win the Stanley Cup, as they've consistently been for several seasons, but that level of hype hasn't panned out since they won their most recent championship in 2009. The tools are there, with a revamped offense, a more experienced coach, and a defense whose youth could make the attack more lethal.

This season must be different, however. With the core of forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, defenseman Kris Letang and goalie Marc-Andre Fleury in its prime, Pittsburgh cannot afford many more seasons of early exits from the Stanley Cup Playoffs if this era is to be evaluated as successful.

Health has played an issue in seasons past, as have unexpected slumps in crucial moments. Malkin, who struggled with a sprained ankle through Pittsburgh's five playoff games in 2015, had the appropriate attitude toward last season.

"I don't remember," Malkin said. "That was last year. I'm looking to a new season."

If Malkin's teammates share his focus, Pittsburgh could re-emerge in 2015-16. Here are three X-factors that could determine if the Penguins will find success this season:

NHL.com continues its preview of the 2015-16 season, which will include in-depth looks at all 30 teams.

PITTSBURGH -- Reports of the Pittsburgh Penguins' demise at the end of last season might have been premature.

After limping to a 4-9-2 record in their last 15 games and qualifying for the Stanley Cup Playoffs on the final day of the regular season with a 2-0 win against the Buffalo Sabres, the Penguins failed to score more than one goal in four of their five games against the New York Rangers in the Eastern Conference First Round. The sound loss to New York could have dealt a significant blow to Pittsburgh's current era led by forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

Instead, the Penguins responded to the lackluster performance with an aggressive offseason aimed at retooling an offense in desperate need of balance. A defensive youth movement could add further firepower back into Pittsburgh's arsenal, and goalie Marc-Andre Fleury seems poised to continue the steady play he's showcased through the past two seasons.

With a reinvigorated group, led by a more experienced Mike Johnston as coach, the Penguins could rejoin the Eastern Conference upper echelon in 2015-16.