100 Bold Predictions for 2026-27: Spin the Wheel
Bold predictions are usually vibes. These are not. Each of the hundred is the edge of a range we already publish: a skater reaching the top of his projected points range, a goalie reaching the top of his wins range, or a star sliding to the bottom of his. Ten rules each picked ten players from the projection table, so the data made the calls and we just wrote them down.
They stay hidden until you spin. The wheel lands on one of the ten categories and reveals a call from it you have not seen yet. No repeats, and nothing is listed here in advance.
100 calls across 10 categories, all hidden. Each spin lands on a category and reveals one of its calls. No repeats.
How the calls were made
Each category is one rule, and it takes the ten players who fit it best. No player appears in two categories.
- Breakout, Wire gem, Blue line boom, Rookie splash, Old reliable: the call is the top of the player's projected points range, only for players we project for 70 points or fewer, where the top of the range is a believable season. The rules: the widest gap over last season, the best range among players 30% rostered or less on ESPN, the best range among defence outside our projected top 15, the best among true rookies (no earlier NHL season of 25 games), and the best among players 33 or older.
- Power-play surge and Goal rush: the biggest projected jumps over last season.
- The fade: of last season's top 60 scorers, the biggest projected drops. The call is the bottom of his range.
- Hit parade: the forwards we project for the most hits. The call is that he leads them all.
- Crease king: the widest gaps between a goalie's projected wins ceiling and last season's wins.
A ceiling is not a projection. Most of these will land short, and that is the point of calling them bold. We will grade all hundred in April, in public.