from Luke Fox of Sportsnet,

At the centre of every good (and bad and ugly) hockey story, you’ll find people. Here are the 19 newsmakers and game-breakers who are defining the 2018-19 NHL season — ranked in order of importance.

1. Kyle Dubas

In truth, we also considered putting Mike Babcock, Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander (still unsigned), Jake Gardiner, and John Tavares on this list. But because a Top 19 ranking comprised of 37 per cent Maple Leafs might not sit so well with the non-Torontonian readership, we only list their boss. All Dubas, the 32-year-old rookie GM of hockey’s most scrutinized franchise, must do is fit four elite forwards into a salary cap, work with a strong-minded coach under his own pressure to win a playoff series (or four) already, and make the right call on whether to trade, sign or let a 50-point defenceman walk. This ain’t the Marlies. Welcome to the process.

2. Erik Karlsson

Karlsson’s move to California, where he’s combined forces with another Norris winner in Brent Burns, does not bring an end to a saga that has seen yet another star player leave Ottawa under dubious circumstances. Positioned to rake Drew Doughty dollars ($11 million per annum) if/when he hits the open market next summer as the league’s most coveted unrestricted free agent, Karlsson must prove that 2017-18’s bad-ankle-hindered step back was an aberration. And the Sharks — able to sign the right-shot defenceman for as many as eight years once the ’19 trade deadline passes — must convince the player that he looks good in teal. The sailing (so far) has been less than smooth, but there’s time to find a groove.

17 more names...