FOCUS TURNS TO NHL FREE AGENTS
With entry draft in rear-view mirror, teams look to players available on the open market
And just like that, poooooooooof! It's over.
Delayed from its original date by more than 100 days because of the pandemic, the much-anticipated NHL draft has come and gone. Not exactly in the blink of an eye, because Rounds 2-7 Wednesday dragged on forever (hence, the extra O's in the poof above).
So now what?
How about a July 1 event held on Oct. 9?
Here comes free agency.
Teams will start filling out their rosters, at the top end in some cases, on Friday for a 2020-21 season the league wants to start in 2021. (The target date is Jan. 1, says NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.)
Topping the list of unrestricted free agent skaters is Alex Pietrangelo, Taylor Hall and Torey Krug. But standing out above everything else is how the market will be flooded with good, solid, veteran goalies like never before, says Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin.
Included (unless they've been re-signed since I started this column) are Braden Holtby, Jacob Markstrom, Corey Crawford, Anton Khudobin, Cam Talbot, Thomas Greiss, Jimmy Howard, Craig Anderson and Henrik Lundqvist, although all signs point toward The King heading to Washington as a backup.
Meanwhile, Nashville Predators GM David Poile appears to have positioned himself for a run at a big name (Hall, perhaps?) by moves he made Wednesday. First, he shed some salary with the trading of veteran Nick Bonino (along with picks Nos. 37 and 70) to Minnesota for Luke Kunin and pick No. 101.
He also placed Kyle Turris on unconditional waivers. If he goes unclaimed, which is all but a certainty, the Predators will give Turris US$2 million a year for the next seven seasons not to play for them.
Will the bad contract Poile gave Turris three years ago provide a warning great enough to stop other GMs from making unwise signings on Friday?
Not on your life.
GUESS WHAT'S BRUIN
Bruce Cassidy is getting comfortable in Boston. One month after winning the Jack Adams Award as the NHL coach of the year, NHL writer Joe McDonald says the Bruins bench boss has become a U.S. citizen. Cassidy, who has worked in the U.S. since returning from a four-year stint as a player in Europe, was born and raised in Ottawa and is a former 67's star. He's been in the B's organization since joining their Providence AHL affiliate as an assistant in 2008, and he's been Boston's head coach the past four seasons. ... Overheard on the NHL Network was this analysis of Mason Lohrei, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound defenceman selected by the Bruins from the USHL's Green Bay Gamblers with the 58th pick: “He's big, but not much stands out about his game. Bruins are smart so they must be doing something right.” The scouting report of Steve Kournianos at TheDraftAnalyst is a lot more promising, calling
Lohrei “a smothering two-way defenceman” with “ice water in his veins,” adding he has “a high panic threshold” and that “beating back a forecheck is more science than art and Lohrei executes them at a doctorate level.” Apparently, the Bruins are smart.
BETWEEN PERIODS
It appears the Habs landed a nice pick when they took 6-foot2, 203-pound forward Luke Tuch with the 47th pick.
Tuch is the brother of Alex Tuch, the impactful winger of the
Vegas Golden Knights. He told reporters he plays the game a bit like Jamie Benn, and approaches it like Matthew Tkachuk.
“I like to get in players' faces,” he said, “and I like to mix it up a bit.”
TO THE POINT
The Jets have signed pending UFA Dylan DeMelo to a fouryear, $12 million deal. “My first choice was Winnipeg,” said DeMelo. “I'm glad we were able to work something out.” ... One of the NHL's fastest skaters is
looking for work after the Oilers decided not to qualify Andreas Athanasiou. ... All hell broke loose (in a fun way) during the United States Hockey League's Lincoln Stars practice on Wednesday when it appeared the coach brought everybody's attention to the video board and news that defenceman Jake Boltmann had been drafted in the third round by the Flames. Boltmann was suddenly mobbed by teammates like he had just scored the playoff winner in overtime.