Western Conference top team 1 month into season debated by NHL.com

The top teams in the Western Conference have been absolute beasts through the first month of the 2023-24 NHL season.

The defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights are 11-1-1 and have the most points (23) in the League. They did not lose their first game in regulation until Nov. 5, 4-2 against the upstart Anaheim Ducks, who are off to a surprising 7-4-0 start.

The Dallas Stars, who lost to Vegas in the Western Conference Final last season, are 7-3-1 and sitting atop the Central Division. The Colorado Avalanche (7-3-0), who won the Stanley Cup in 2022, are one point behind the Stars.

The Vancouver Canucks, who last made the playoffs in 2020 and have missed the postseason in seven of the past eight seasons, are second in the Pacific Division at 9-2-1. Forward Elias Pettersson leads the NHL with 21 points (six goals, 15 assists) in 12 games. Teammate Quinn Hughes leads NHL defenseman with 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) in 12 games. Goalie Thatcher Demko has a .948 save percentage and a 1.61 goals-against average in nine games, each among the top five in the League (minimum three games).

The Los Angeles Kings (7-2-2) are third in the Pacific, three points behind the Canucks.

Colorado hosts the New Jersey Devils (7-3-1) at Ball Arena in a nationally televised game Tuesday (10 p.m. ET; MAX, TNT, SNP, SNO, SNE, SN1). Vegas and Los Angeles meet in a nationally televised Pacific Division showdown at T-Mobile Arena on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; MAX, TNT, SN360, TVAS).

With so much firepower at the top of the Western Conference, which team is the best a month into the season? We had five NHL.com writers make a case for each of the five top teams.

Colorado Avalanche

I like what I've seen from the Avalanche despite losing three of their past four games (1-3-0). They have an embarrassment of riches up front in forwards Nathan MacKinnon (four goals, five assists), Mikko Rantanen (six goals, eight assists), Artturi Lehkonen (three goals, four assists), Ryan Johansen (four goals, one assist) and Valeri Nichushkin (one goal, five assists), and possess one of the deepest defensive units in the League with Cale Makar (three goals, eight assists), Devon Toews, Bowen Byram, Samuel Girard, Josh Manson and Jack Johnson. When they're at their best, Colorado is tough to defend. The core group didn't have a real chance to repeat as champions last season due to an injury-depleted lineup, but they're battle-tested, know what it takes to win and are hungry for more. My one question to consider might be goaltending, but Alexandar Georgiev has provided just what Colorado has needed to begin the season after he was seventh in voting for the Vezina Trophy as the best goalie in the NHL in 2022-23. The Avalanche can play any style of game, whether it's a track meet with the speed in their lineup or neutralizing their opponent with a defensive scheme. -- Mike G. Morreale, staff writer

Dallas Stars

I got to see the Stars up close throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season and I was impressed. And it looks like they're picking up where they left off, with the hopes of breaking through to the Stanley Cup this season. Yes, the defending Cup champion Golden Knights, who the Stars lost to in the conference final last season, are on a crazy tear, but give me the Stars in the West. They've been steady as well, be it home (3-2-0) or away (4-1-1). Joe Pavelski remains ageless. Roope Hintz's speed is incredible. The Stars have gotten balanced scoring in the early going and Jake Oettinger has been his reliable self in goal (5-2-1, 2.11 goals-against average, .933 save percentage in eight games). The Stars weren't far off last season. They just tinkered with the roster during the offseason and I like where they're sitting right now. -- Tracey Myers, staff writer

Los Angeles Kings

While the Kings are built for the future, I think their time is coming a little earlier than some might have expected. They have the third-most points in the Western Conference, have won three straight, and are making me into a believer. Their two regulation losses have been to elite teams in the Boston Bruins and Avalanche, and they have shootout losses to the Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes. They're scoring 4.27 goals per game, second in the NHL to the Canucks (4.50), even with a middling power play (18.4 percent, tied for 17th with the Avalanche). I like the pieces they added, especially forward Pierre-Luc Dubois, who has six points (three goals, three assists) in 11 games. Add in the strides that forward Quinton Byfield has made, with 10 points (two goals, eight assists) in 11 games, and the resurgence of forward Trevor Moore, who has 11 points (six goals, five assists) in 11 games after he had 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 59 games last season, and you have the makings of an excellent team. The only question is the goaltending, where Cam Talbot has asserted himself with a .923 save percentage and 2.14 GAA in nine games, but I'm team Kings all the way. -- Amalie Benjamin, staff writer

Vancouver Canucks

The Canucks have taken Tocchet Hockey to heart. Vancouver is playing in the mold of coach Rick Tocchet, who took over from Bruce Boudreau on Jan. 22 and set out to change the culture of the team. Tocchet called into question Vancouver's work ethic in his second game as coach and set high expectations for the team. This season, the Canucks are intent on outworking their opponents and have been successful so far. They are being led offensively by Pettersson, and they're also getting major contributions from Hughes, who was named captain prior to the start of the season. Hughes was named NHL First Star on Monday for his play last week, when he had eight points (one goal, seven assists) in three games. The Canucks' 6-2 win against the Edmonton Oilers on Monday gave them wins in four straight and at least a point in eight in a row (7-0-1). -- Derek Van Diest, staff writer

Vegas Golden Knights

The Golden Knights finally lost a game in regulation when they let a two-goal lead slip away in a loss to the Ducks on Sunday. That was the reigning Stanley Cup champions' first regular-season loss in regulation since a 7-4 loss to the Oilers on March 28 of last season, a span of 20 games. Vegas' depth, commitment to team defense and goaltending put them over the top in the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season and remain the reason why they're the best team in the Western Conference, and likely the NHL, this season. Vegas is fifth in the NHL in scoring at 3.77 goals per game. Eighteen skaters have scored at least one goal and nine players have at least three, led by Jack Eichel, Jonathan Marchessault and William Karlsson with six goals each. The Golden Knights are fourth in the NHL in allowing 2.15 goals per game with Adin Hill (6-0-1, 1.81 GAA, .938 save percentage, one shutout in seven games) and Logan Thompson (5-1-0, 2.31 GAA, .923 save percentage in six games) providing quality goaltending. If there was any question about the Golden Knights' status in the West, they put them to rest with a dominating 7-0 win against the Avalanche on Saturday. -- Tom Gulitti, staff writer