Training camp has officially opened for the National Hockey League, meaning it's almost time to drop the puck on another season.
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It was a busy offseason around the league with teams drafting new future superstars, off-ice incidents bringing a black cloud over several clubs and impact players and coaches finding new homes. Plenty can still happen between the opening of training camp and the first slate of regular season games on Oct. 7, so there is plenty to keep an eye on around the league.
Here are five key storylines to watch for heading into the race to crown the 2015-16 Stanley Cup champions.
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1) The Reigning Champs and the Patrick Kane Drama
The Blackhawks went through myriad offseason changes, but perhaps the thing that will impact them the most had nothing to do with hockey. Kane, 26, has been under police investigation after a sexual assault accusation was levied on him this past August in Hamburg, N.Y., but he hasn't been convicted of a crime. A grand jury is slated to reconvene soon in order to assess new findings in the case, but in the meantime Kane, who was the subject of trade rumors when news of the investigation first broke, is attending training camp with his teammates.
Since winning the Stanley Cup in June, there have been a lot of changes to the Blackhawks roster on the ice, including Brandon Saad being traded to the Blue Jackets and Patrick Sharp being dealt to the Stars.
2) Steven Stamkos' Contract Issues
After his team fell two wins shy of hoisting the Stanley Cup in June, Steve Yzerman said re-signing Steven Stamkos to a long-term deal was his "No. 1 priority." Thus far, the speedy face of the franchise remains under contract only through the end of the 2015-16 season, where he'll make $5.5 million.
Stamkos was second in the NHL with 43 goals last season and had seven tallies in 23 playoff games. It will be interesting to see if the contract drama becomes a distraction during the season. There are a lot of rumors flying around that one road block could be over coach Jon Cooper wanting Stamkos to play right wing instead of center.
3) New Faces in New Places
It was a busy summer for personnel change in the NHL as some of the game's biggest names will report to new teams for training camp. Among the notable changes, Phil Kessel will suit up for the Penguins to give Pittsburgh a great forward corps led Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin after being traded from the Maple Leafs, while T.J. Oshie joined Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom in Washington.
Other big moves saw Milan Lucic get traded to the Kings, Dougie Hamilton get dealt to the Flames, Joel Ward sign with the Sharks, Brad Richards and Mike Green join the Red Wings and Matt Beleskey land with the Bruins.
4) Worst to First?
The Sabres finished last in the NHL with 23 wins and 54 points in 2014-15, but they are feeling optimistic heading into the season after a lot of changes were made. Buffalo added Jack Eichel through the draft with the No. 2 overall pick and he's expected to be an immediate difference-maker. The Sabres also added Ryan O'Reilly and Jamie McGinn in trades with the Avalanche and then Robin Lehner in a swap with the Senators to shore up the crease.
The Oilers finished 13th out of 14 teams in the Western Conference, so they weren't necessarily the worst, but they once again were armed with the No. 1 overall pick. Edmonton predictably selected highly-touted prospect Connor McDavid and it will be very compelling to see if he lives up to the comparisons to Wayne Gretzky and Sidney Crosby. The Oilers are armed with young talent up front and among their other notable additions on the back end are Cam Talbot between the pipes and Andrej Sekera at the blue line.
5) 3-on-3 Overtime
The NHL has tweaked its rules for overtime heading into the season as instead of a five-minute four-on-four period if the game is tied after regulation, the teams will now skate with three players a side on the ice. The new initiative is a way for the league to scale down on the percentage of games that are decided by a shootout.
The league has picked 45 select games in the preseason to automatically go to overtime regardless of the score at the end of regulation so that coaches and players can adjust to the new rules. The first game with this distinction will be contested between the Panthers and Predators on Sunday.
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