Lou Lamoriello spent 28 years as general manager of the New Jersey Devils. He'll celebrate his 73rd birthday next month.

But when he does, he'll be general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs. After nearly three decades in New Jersey, he admitted he didn't envision working anywhere else.

"Never a gleam in my mind," Lamoriello said in an interview with TSN's Bob McKenzie on Monday.

Lamoriello first stepped down as Devils GM on May 4, hiring former Pittsburgh Penguins GM Ray Shero as his replacement. Lamoriello, though, was to stay with New Jersey as team president.

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

TORONTO -- Success for the Toronto Maple Leafs this season won't necessarily be measured in victories.

Rather, new coach Mike Babcock will be pleased if his players buy into his system, which basically requires dedication on and off the ice as well as simple hard work.

"All we're going to do is build a process here, and I will make it very clear to the guys that I will be happy," Babcock said as he began his first training camp as coach of the Maple Leafs. "I like being happy, period. The two things that irritate me the most are lack of preparation and lack of compete. That's not happening."

TORONTO -- It is the dawn of a new era in Toronto.

With the addition of coach Mike Babcock, along with general manager Lou Lamoriello and team president Brendan Shanahan, the feeling is the Maple Leafs are headed in the right direction.

However, it is going to take time for the Maple Leafs to meet their ultimate goal of being a Stanley Cup contender. It is important to note the management team has not put a timeline on reaching that goal.

Here are three X-factors that can help the Maple Leafs be the disciplined, hard-working team Babcock aspires to coach:

EDMONTON -- Although most of the attention will be on Connor McDavid and the rest of the young core, the Edmonton Oilers' success could hinge on the supporting cast.

Here are three X-factors that will determine whether the Oilers can compete for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season:

EDMONTON -- After an eventful offseason highlighted by the selection of center Connor McDavid with the No. 1 pick at the 2015 NHL Draft, the Edmonton Oilers are a much different team than the one that was 28th in the NHL standings last season.

Not only did the Oilers win the NHL Draft Lottery on April 18, they also made sweeping changes to the front office and coaching staff before drafting McDavid on June 26.

Two days after their fourth lottery win in the past six years, Edmonton put former Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson in charge, naming him CEO of Oilers Entertainment Group.

BUFFALO -- The Buffalo Sabres' fortunes this season hinge upon getting a host of new players to work together and help them out of a hole that saw them finish last in the NHL each of the past two seasons.

Here are three X-factors that will impact whether the Sabres can climb out of the basement:

Their other No. 2 pick -- Competition is going to be a big part of Sabres training camp at forward and on defense, but forward Sam Reinhart, who they selected in the first round (No. 2) at the 2014 NHL Draft, has gotten lost in the mix.

The additions of Jack Eichel, the No. 2 pick in 2015, and Ryan O'Reilly, who signed as an unrestricted free agent, have pushed Reinhart out of the spotlight at center. With Zemgus Girgensons returning from an ankle injury that ended his 2014-2015 season, the addition of veteran David Legwand, and the solid play of Johan Larsson last season, Reinhart is in for a big test in training camp.

NHL.com's preview of the 2015-16 season will include in-depth looks at all 30 teams.

BUFFALO -- The Buffalo Sabres head into the 2015-16 season with a much different look and feel about them compared to the recent past.

Since February, Buffalo has added high-end players in trades, through free agency and at the 2015 NHL Draft, and the fruits of a rebuild that began in earnest in 2013, the Sabres hope, will start to show this season.

After having the worst record in the NHL each of the past two seasons, hopes are high in Buffalo that wins will outnumber losses and the days of missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs will come to an end in the near future.

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Coyotes finished last in the Western Conference last season and have not made the Stanley Cup Playoffs since reaching the Western Conference Final in 2012. They spent the offseason trying to remedy those issues.

"Our whole organization put in a lot of work this summer," coach Dave Tippett told the Coyotes website on Thursday. "There was a lot of things that we had to address. … You just don't go through a season like we did last year without trying to fix a lot of things and that was the case this summer."

Some of that work included signing former Coyotes players (defenseman Zbynek Michalek and forwards Antoine Vermette and Boyd Gordon), who are expected to have an impact this season. But the play of captain Shane Doan and goalie Mike Smith are among the factors that will influence whether the Coyotes reach the playoffs or take part in the NHL Draft Lottery again next spring.

Here are three X-factors that will determine the success of the Coyotes this season:

NHL.com's preview of the 2015-16 season will include in-depth looks at all 30 teams.

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Coyotes followed up their most disappointing season in the desert with even more bad luck, stuck on the outside looking in while the Edmonton Oilers and Buffalo Sabres scooped up the two "can't miss" prospects at the 2015 NHL Draft.

But general manager Don Maloney rebounded from missing out on Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel with a very active few weeks of trades and free agent acquisitions. They are also very pleased with the No. 3 pick, forward Dylan Strome, although another year in juniors is the likely scenario.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- It hasn't taken long for Artemi Panarin to catch the attention of fans and coaches alike in the Chicago Blackhawks' first two days of training camp at the University of Notre Dame.

Playing left wing on a line with highly-touted Finnish center Teuvo Teravainen and fellow Russian forward Viktor Tikhanov, Panarin has shown high-end skill in three scrimmages held at Compton Family Ice Arena.

He scored a goal Saturday during 5-on-5 play that tied the game for his team, set up two goals in 3-on-3 play and has shown great vision thus far. Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville has noticed.