We are less than a month through the NHL schedule, and most teams are just approaching double-digit games played. But based on a number of factors, including circumstances, ice time, shot metrics and a touch of common sense, we can already spot trends of players on the rise and others whose slow starts are likely to become down years.
Let's have a look at one player from each Western Conference team who is on his way to more success and another who could be in for an extended slump.
Pacific Division
Anaheim Ducks
Trending up: Goalie John Gibson
The Ducks' puck possession game has been an utter disaster in the opening 10 games of the season. No team has allowed more even-strength shot attempts against, and Anaheim is dead last in Corsi for percentage. Luckily, the 25-year-old goalie has given them seven quality starts in eight games and has stopped 226 of 234 even-strength shots. Gibson has proven to be a top-notch goalie, but the Ducks can't ask him to perform at this level for much longer without getting burned.
Trending down: Defenseman Cam Fowler
Talk about unsustainable models: Fowler has been on the ice for 116 shots against and only 79 for his team at even strength, but the Ducks have outscored opponents 8-3 in his 187 minutes. The shots against aren't just from the outside, either. The site Natural Stat Trick credits Ducks opponents with nearly twice as many scoring chances against than those for Anaheim. During the past few seasons, Fowler appeared to have found his place as a mainstay with the Ducks, but his slow start means a quick turnaround will be necessary for the team to stay at the top of the Pacific race.
Arizona Coyotes
Trending up: Defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson
While the Arizona offense has been anemic to begin the season, Ekman-Larsson is driving possession and production for the Coyotes. After signing on to stay in the desert long term this offseason, the Swedish star has been on the ice for an 85-63 shot advantage and 7-5 scoring edge at even strength. He's also playing a team-leading 23:08 ice time per game. Ekman-Larsson's excellence shouldn't be overlooked even if his team struggles.
Trending down: Center Dylan Strome
If the 2015 No. 3 overall pick is going to take a big leap forward, he should get the opportunity to do so this season. But so far, he's playing less than 15 minutes per game and has not yet been on the ice for an even-strength Coyotes goal in eight games.
Calgary Flames
Trending up: Left wing Matthew Tkachuk
After two strong seasons to start his career, the 20-year-old winger has found the perfect spot alongside underrated center Mikael Backlund. Not only does the power winger have 12 points in nine games overall, but when Tkachuk is on the ice with Backlund, the Flames have a 60.4 Corsi for percentage.
Trending down: Left wing, James Neal
Neal was reinvigorated last season on a special Vegas team that found itself in the Stanley Cup final. But the magic has not yet carried over to Calgary, as the former 40-goal scorer has only one goal in nine games, and his shots per game have dipped from 2.8 last season to 2.0 with the Flames.
Edmonton Oilers
Trending up: Left wing Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
One of the quickest ways to figure out which direction a player is headed is by looking at who they are playing with. In Nugent-Hopkins' case, he has spent 108 of his 115 even-strength minutes alongside Connor McDavid. Unsurprisingly, he is producing more than one point per game (nine points in seven games). This might be the opportunity the talented No. 1 overall pick from 2011 needs to top his underwhelming career high of 56 points.
Trending down: Left wing Milan Lucic
The former Bruin and King was once projected to put pucks in the net alongside McDavid, but he's just an expensive third-liner at this point. Lucic has produced one goal, and the Oilers have been outshot 27-44 in his 84 minutes this season.
Los Angeles Kings
Trending up: Left wing Alex Iafallo
Reality might be setting in for a Kings team that is aged and lacks depth, but luckily for Iafallo, his linemate Anze Kopitar is still one of the NHL's best players. After a 25-point rookie season, good things could be on the way for the 25-year-old winger. He has not only shown flashes as a playmaker, but has a 52.9 Corsi for percentage as well.
Trending down: Defenseman Dion Phaneuf
If the Kings' hope was that Phaneuf's career would be sparked by a change of scenery, it hasn't worked. He has been on the ice for one even-strength Kings goal this season, and the team has been outshot 51-74 in his ice time, while he has played largely on the third pair.
San Jose Sharks
Trending up: Right wing Timo Meier
It shouldn't come as a surprise with Erik Karlsson in the mix that the Sharks have been a dominant possession team. One of the beneficiaries has been Meier, who has five goals in nine games. Natural Stat Trick credits Meier, who has played the majority of his minutes with Logan Couture, with 74 on-ice scoring chances and 48 against.
Trending down: Goalie Martin Jones
It speaks to the excellence of the Sharks' skaters that Jones has an .899 save percentage and has still won four of seven games. Since landing in San Jose, Jones has been consistent with season save percentages of .918, .912 and .915 in his three seasons. So there's no reason to panic -- unless there's an injury we don't know about -- but life could be a little harder on him if the Sharks' defense is playing even more wide open with Karlsson.
Vancouver Canucks
Trending up: Defenseman Derrick Pouliot
While Pouliot has only two points, the Canucks are making it clear that they are going to give him the consistent ice time he never received in Pittsburgh. The eighth overall pick in 2012 is third on the Canucks in even-strength ice time, and Vancouver has scored more 5-on-5 goals with him on ice than any other player.
Trending down: Left wing Loui Eriksson
There haven't been many signs of life from Eriksson since joining the Canucks in 2016-17, but the start to this season has been particularly poor. He is averaging less than one shot per game and is averaging only 12:13 in ice time.
Vegas Golden Knights
Trending up: Center Jonathan Marchessault
There might have been some flukey things about the Golden Knights' run to the Cup final last spring, but the extraordinary performance of Marchessault was not among them. He has produced 10 points in eight games, and the Golden Knights have outshot opponents 77-48 with him on the ice. Vegas has found itself a legitimate top-line star in the undersized forward.
Trending down: Left wing Erik Haula
Following a breakout 29-goal season, Haula has started off slow with just one goal and one assist in his first nine games. The speedy forward has been a part of the Golden Knights' dominating puck possession numbers, but it's questionable whether he can get back to his 2017-18 pace after previously notching a career high of 15 goals.
Central Division
Chicago Blackhawks
Trending up: Right wing Dominik Kahun
If you haven't learned the name yet, it might be time to do so. Kahun, who spent the past three seasons playing in Germany, has been placed alongside Jonathan Toews and Alex DeBrincat, and the trio has a 54.5 Corsi for percentage in 105 minutes. Kahun has five assists and might earn more power-play time as the season goes along if he continues to perform.
Trending down: Left wing Chris Kunitz
Late in his career, Kunitz made a successful transition from Sidney Crosby's linemate to a role player, but the end comes for even the most durable and intelligent players. The Blackhawks have been outscored 2-7 while Kunitz has been on the ice this season, and he has just one point.
Colorado Avalanche
Trending up: Right wing Mikko Rantanen
After scoring more than a point per game last season playing alongside Nathan MacKinnon, Rantanen is on an even more torrid pace that might push him toward 100 points this season. He leads the NHL in assists with 12 in nine games, and has been on the ice for 11 Avs goals and only three for Colorado's opponents at even strength. The first-rounder from 2015 is playing a major role on what could be the NHL's best line.
Trending down: Center Tyson Jost
A first-round pick in 2016, Jost still hasn't turned 21, so avoid the panic button for now. But the young center is playing fourth-line minutes and has just one goal and one assist in nine games, despite the opportunities to move up Colorado's top-heavy lineup.
Dallas Stars
Trending up: Center Jason Spezza
By the end of last season, it appeared Spezza's time as an offensive threat was over. He notched just 26 points all of last season, 11 of which came on the power play. With seven points in eight games, he's on pace to surpass his 2017-18 total by December. Spezza is playing second-line center and has a near break-even 49.7 Corsi for percentage. With few other options behind Tyler Seguin, Dallas will need the ex-Senator to continue to turn the clock back in order to have any offensive threats beyond the top line.
Trending down: Center Radek Faksa
In the past two seasons, Faksa has grown into a solid shutdown type center who can add occasional offense. So far, he hasn't done either. The Stars have been outshot 47-70 with Faksa on ice and he's scored just one goal.
Minnesota Wild
Trending up: Goalie Devan Dubnyk
Year after year, Dubnyk reminds us that since joining the Wild he has been one of the best goalies in the NHL, with a .923 save percentage and 60.2 percent quality start percentage in 256 games in Minnesota. He has come out of the gate blazing hot, with a .944 save percentage in six starts. The concern for the Wild is that they have won only three of those starts.
Trending down: Right wing Nino Niederreiter
In 2016-17, Niederreiter was a dominant possession player and terrific even-strength scorer. But an injury-filled 2017-18 slowed him to just 32 points, and he hasn't yet rebounded. If it were just small-sample bad luck, Niederreiter's struggles wouldn't be a big concern, but his shot rate has dipped to less than two shots per game, and his ice time has been reduced to under 15 minutes per game.
Nashville Predators
Trending up: Left wing Filip Forsberg
Forsberg has put his name on the map as a legitimate star player in the playoffs, with 32 points in 35 postseason games the past two years, but he hasn't quite reached the offensive plateau of some of the league's best first-liners. This might be his shot to do so, with six goals in his first nine games, a career high in ice time and dominant even-strength numbers. Forsberg has been on the ice for 33 "high-danger" scoring chances compared to just 21 for opponents in 127 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick. If that pace continues, he will put up big numbers.
Trending down: Left wing Kevin Fiala
The next step was expected from the 22-year-old winger, but he hasn't gotten out of the gate strong after scoring 23 goals last season. While his lines have only been on the ice for one even-strength goal, Fiala's shot metrics are solid, which indicates he could bounce back.
St. Louis Blues
Trending up: Center Ryan O'Reilly
The Blues had to be over the moon when they acquired the two-way center for a song. Even with a low shooting percentage, he has posted 10 points in eight games and won 61.9 percent of his faceoffs. O'Reilly is also averaging more than 21 minutes per game.
Trending down: Goalie Jake Allen
Someday the Blues will find consistent goaltending, but that day doesn't appear to be right around the corner. The up-and-down Allen has opened the campaign with serious downs, allowing a league-high 26 goals in seven games. The biggest concern: His even-strength save percentage is in the basement at .883.
Winnipeg Jets
Trending up: Defenseman Josh Morrissey
The Jets proved worthy of being called a Cup contender last season in part because of their defensive depth. If the 23-year-old can continue his growth, Winnipeg will be even harder to stop. Morrissey has seven points in nine games after producing just 26 all of last season and has a solid 52.2 Corsi for percentage. He is also being given nearly three minutes of ice time per game than in 2017-18.
Trending down: Left wing Nikolaj Ehlers
There are both reasons to be concerned and reasons for patience with Ehlers' scoreless start to the season. He has only 17 shots on goal and has seen a dip in ice time. However, the offensive dynamo has more than 60 points in each of the past two seasons and plenty of time to get rolling again.