A HOBBY REVIVAL OUT EAST

If there’s one takeaway from the 2019 NHL Dra , it’s this: e hockey hobby is poised for a big resurgence on the East Coast. A er years of dwindling interest as their teams settled into mediocrity, major cities like New York and Philadelphia are poised to become powerful market drivers again. GM Jeff Gorton has done a masterful job with his reconstruction of the Blueshirts, capped off at this event with the acquisition of Finnish prodigy Kaapo Kakko. e second-overall pick is an outsized talent, ideally suited for the bright lights of Broadway. Add in the five first-rounders from the past two dra s – particularly Lias Andersson, Filip Chytil and Vitali Kravtsov – and the Rangers are loaded with the kind of exciting, young talent that wins games and drives collectors to local shops.

e same can be said for Philly, another team on the verge of a rebound a er years of frustration. Cam York (14th) is a brilliant puck mover who consistently makes the smart play. Bobby Brink (34th), the 2019 USHL Forward of the Year, is a natural goal scorer who fits ideally on the second line. Ronnie Attard (72nd) was the USHL Player of the Year and Defender of the Year a er scoring 30 goals, a single-season record for blueliners in that league. Not all of these pieces will click but, like the Rangers, the Flyers are building towards something special.

en there’s the Devils. New Jersey has experienced plenty of on-ice success in years past. ey’ve even been home to one of the hobby’s true legends in Martin Brodeur. But over all those defense-first seasons, they’ve never been a team that fans could really get excited about.

at’ll change with the arrival of Jack Hughes. e first-overall pick is a human highlight reel, an offensive machine who’ll draw the casual fan to check out a Tuesday night game against Florida. Add in P.K. Subban, acquired in a dra day trade, 2018 MVP Taylor Hall and 2017 top pick Nico Hischier and this is a Devils team that will be fun to watch...and fun to collect.

Nothing will happen overnight, of course. ese kids, even the best of them, will need some time to settle in and develop their skills. But you can sense the excitement building on the East Coast.

It’s a renaissance the hobby badly needs.