Perry Set To Join Exclusive Hockey Group
If Team Canada and Corey Perry are able to win the World Cup, one of hockey’s most elite groups will double in size. In an article by The Hockey News’ Ken Campbell, he points out that only Perry’s former teammate and current Ducks assistant coach Scott Niedermayer has won a Stanley Cup, Olympic Gold Medal, World Championship, World Junior Championship, Memorial Cup, and World Cup. With everything else all checked off, Perry just needs three wins to join his friend in hockey’s winningest (albeit obscure) group.
Perry, who was a late addition to Team Canada following the injury of Jeff Carter, is just happy to be on the team and hasn’t given much thought to his potential history-making achievement. Ironically, it all began with him being a late addition to another team. Perry barely made Canada’s World Junior team in 2005, where he played alongside future team mate Ryan Getzlaf, Sidney Crosby, tournament MVP Patrice Bergeron and more on one of the best World Junior teams of all-time. After easily taking the Junior tournament, Perry returned to the OHL’s London Knights, where he finished off a 130-point season with help from Dave Bolland, Marc Methot, and more and then led the team, with a stellar playoff performance, to the Memorial Cup title. Perry made his NHL debut the next year, in 2005-06, and just one year later, he contributed 44 regular season points and 15 postseason points en route to the 2007 Stanley Cup championship. With the stats and titles to back him up, Perry was an easy choice for Team Canada at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, and again in 2014 in Sochi, winning a gold medal at each Games. Finally, Perry won a World Championship for Canada this past spring, joining the team after the Ducks were upset early in the playoffs.
Perry, who is also a three-time All-Star, Hart winner, and Maurice Richard winner, among many other accolades, still holds on to his humility. Although he is on the cusp of joining a group that Bobby Orr, Wayne Gretzky, and Mario Lemieux could not even make it in to, his sights are still just set on helping out his team mates and winning for his country. He’s grateful just to be on the team and to get the chance to enjoy the opportunity. Perry is a proven winner, and don’t be surprised to see his name join more elite groups as his decorated career continues.
Blues Re-Sign Alexander Steen
The first day of 2016-17 training camp was also the first and only day that Alexander Steen was an impending free agent. The St. Louis Blues forward has signed a four-year extension, the team announced today. The deal is reportedly worth $23MM, a cap hit of $5.75MM through 2020-21.
Steen has been a consistent producer throughout his career, and will try to continue to be a reliable scorer and defender for the Blues. After a strong start to his career with the Toronto Maple Leafs, during which he scored 122 points in his first three seasons, Steen was traded to St. Louis in 2008-09 alongside Carlo Colaiacovo in exchange for Lee Stempniak. Steen has been a mainstay in the Blues’ top six ever since. With great awareness on the ice, which allows him to be a great play maker and two-way player, Steen can be counted on for at least 50 points and special teams excellence in every season that he is healthy. In fact, Steen scored over 60 points in back-to-back season in 2013-14 and 2014-15, while also being a Selke candidate.
With David Backes now gone, Steen’s role on the Blues will be somewhat different starting this season. He will have more responsibility, both in the locker room and on the ice, and will be looked upon as a leader more than ever. However, being locked up long-term with fellow stars Vladimir Tarasenko and Jaden Schwartz has to give Steen some confidence as to his role on the team, and the Blues were smart to get an extension done as soon as possible this season, allowing Steen to focus on getting St. Louis to that elusive Stanley Cup.
The Anaheim Situation
No training camp in the entire NHL will be getting as much attention as the the Anaheim Ducks. As Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register writes, there are so many question marks still remaining for the reigning Pacific Division champs. With less than a month to puck drop on a new NHL season, there is a lot of work to be done on the Ducks.
The most important story line to follow is the status of unsigned restricted free agents Hampus Lindholm and Rickard Rakell. Both players are coming off strong seasons and have shown success and sustainability early in their careers. Lindholm may actually be Anaheim’s best all-around defenseman, while Rakell provides much-needed offensive depth. Yet, neither former first-rounder has signed on for the new season. The young Swedes don’t have much bargaining power, since they are RFA’s with no arbitration rights, but a scenario has already occurred this off-season where an unhappy RFA has signed elsewhere, with Dallas’ Valeri Nichushkin bolting for the KHL. The Ducks have just $7.5MM in cap space as of right now. Can they find a way to bring back their young talent, or at least trade one or the other, or will Lindholm and Rakell decide to play outside the NHL in 2o16-17?
Should Lindholm sign, not only will Anaheim face a cap crunch, but they will also have a logjam on defense to deal with. The Ducks have the best defensive depth in the NHL, with recently re-signed Sami Vatanen, 2015 acquisitions Kevin Bieksa and Simon Despres, and veteran Clayton Stoner, as well as up-and-coming prospects Shea Theodore and Brandon Montour. The odd-man out in all of this could be home-grown star Cam Fowler, who’s name has been on the trade block for months now. The Ducks simply cannot keep all of these defenseman, and Fowler may have overstayed his welcome in Anaheim after the first mediocre season of his young career in 2015-16. While teams would be lining up to trade for Lindholm, Fowler would have quite the market as well. Whatever decision the Ducks decide to make about shipping out a defenseman, many believe that it begin a series of reactions across the league as one D-needy team agrees to a deal and the others finally lock up market stragglers like Kris Russell and Jakub Nakladal.
If Rakell doesn’t sign, the Ducks will be even more eager to make a trade for some help up front, as their depth right now is currently lacking. Top-six mainstays Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Ryan Kesler, and Andrew Cogliano are in place, but without Rakell, more pressure to produce will be thrust upon newly-signed veteran Antoine Vermette, swift winger Jakob Silfverberg, grinder Ryan Garbutt, and the unproven Nick Ritchie. The Ducks would like to alleviate some of that pressure by adding another body up front, hence their interest in the trade market, as well as their camp invites to David Booth, Sean Bergenheim, and most recently David Jones. Even if Rakell does return, expect Anaheim to be in the hunt for forward talent.
As if roster management concerns weren’t enough, the Ducks also have a “new” coach in Randy Carlyle and a new dynamic in net, with John Gibson taking over for the departed Frederik Andersen as the starter and trade acquisition Jonathan Bernier looking to hold off three or four legitimate threats and win the backup job. There is still a long way to go and a lot of questions that need to be answered for the Anaheim Ducks. Stay tuned.
Snapshots: Franson, Conacher, Cleary, Bradford
Cody Franson is hoping that a number change might bring him better luck in his second (and final) season with the Buffalo Sabres. Last summer’s Kris Russell, the negotiation war for Franson lasted until mid-September, when he finally signed a two-year, $6.65MM pact with Buffalo. Expected to be a big piece of their back end, Franson was instead a huge disappointment, playing in just 59 games and scoring a career-low 17 points. Franson stated earlier today that his first season with the Sabres, wearing #46, was the “worst” of his career. Now switching over to #6, Franson looks to get back on track with a number that he “likes”.
More probable than the luck of a jersey number is that Franson’s struggles in 2015-16 were medical. Sabres beat writer Bill Hoppe reports that the big defenseman was in fact having visual processing problems on the ice, with his right eye tracking faster than his left. This makes sense given Franson’s specific issues on the ice last season, as a normally-skilled possession defenseman had a hard time moving the puck and making and receiving passes. With the medical problem now fixed, Franson seems likely to have a comeback season in a contract year.
Elsewhere around the league:
- As training camp begins for the Tampa Bay Lightning, Cory Conacher acknowledges that this may be his ” last chance” at the NHL. The former “future star” is happy to be back with the Tampa Bay Lightning, where his NHL career got off to a hot start with 24 points in his first 35 games in 2012-13, before he was traded to the Ottawa Senators for Ben Bishop in one of the more lopsided deals in recent history. After struggling to find success with several different teams over the past few years, Conacher is back where it all began, looking to carve out a role for himself in the Tampa system the fit him so well.
- Dan Cleary is also getting another chance to extend his playing career, as he has signed a one-year deal with the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins, the team announced. Clearly had previously been invited to Detroit Red Wings camp, but after signing with their affiliate, he is guaranteed a contract for the coming year, while keeping his hopes alive of returning to the NHL. A veteran of almost 1,000 NHL games, Cleary played for Detroit for a decade, from 2005 to 2015, before being relegated down to the AHL level last season. While the numbers have certainly tailed off for the old two-way forward, he still brings leadership, a great hockey sense, and a genuine love of the game to the ice. While it seems unlikely that Cleary will make it back to the big leagues, fans should root for one of hockey’s great guys as he keeps living the dream.
- One athlete who never got his chance to play pro hockey, but has found success (and plenty of money) elsewhere is new Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Bradford. In a story by Chris Tomasson of Pioneer Press, he outlines how Bradford is “right at home in the State of Hockey”. As a great young hockey player, Bradford had NHL aspirations that some believed were actually reasonable. However, the struggles of making hockey fit into the life of a multi-sport student-athlete in Oklahoma were too much. Travel and time constraints eventually led to Bradford committing to football. A Heisman Trophy, number one overall selection, NFL Rookie of the Year Award, and more money already than most NHLers make in their whole career seem to prove that he made the right call, but Bradford’s love for hockey is still alive. While the Minnesota Wild likely won’t need his services this season, if he can lead the Vikings to success this season while supporting and frequently showing up at Wild games, he’ll soon make people forget all about Teddy Bridgewater.
Flames Re-Sign Freddie Hamilton
One of the last unsigned restricted free agents is off the table, as the Calgary Flames have extended forward Freddie Hamilton. The deal, which was first reported by TVA’s Renaud Lavoie, is for two years at only about $613K per season. Surprisingly though, it is a one-way deal as well, meaning Freddie will either stick around at the NHL level with brother Dougie Hamilton or face waivers in order to be sent down to the AHL. This portion of the contract was likely the hold-up that kept the RFA center from signing earlier in the off-season.
In his first season with the Flames organization in 2015-16, Hamilton played in just four games with Calgary, recording two points and finishing +1. While that may not sound impressive, relative to the 24-year-old’s earlier NHL action it was quite a step up. In 29 games with the San Jose Sharks and Colorado Avalanche the two years prior, Hamilton had just one point and was -7. Hamilton also had his best AHL season last year with the Flames’ affiliate, the Stockton Heat, putting up 43 points in 62 games.
While some opine that Freddie is simply in Calgary as a measure to keep little brother Dougie happy – and his NHL numbers seem to support this – the Flames are also in need of some role players in the bottom six, a position that Hamilton can fill. Should he struggle this season though, the lengths that the Flames will go to to keep the reportedly temperamental Dougie Hamilton content will be tested. A waiver claim of his big brother in the midst of another down season could see Dougie try to force himself out of Calgary like he did Boston.
Breaking Down Bovada’s 2016-17 Projections
Over the past two weeks, Las Vegas odds-maker Bovada has provided hockey fans with a pretty clear picture of how they think the 2016-17 will play out. With both Stanley Cup odds and regular season point total over/unders now released, you can see just about everything that the folks in Vegas expect to occur before they finally have their own team in the mix. Below are the projected final standings for each conference, as well as a breakdown of the potential story lines and playoff match-ups if Bovada does indeed prove to have their predictions correct:
Eastern Conference
- Washington Capitals (Metro): 107.5 pts, 10/1 Cup odds
- Tampa Bay Lightning (Atlantic): 106.5 pts, 10/1 Cup odds
- Pittsburgh Penguins (Metro): 103.5 pts, 9/1 Cup odds
- Florida Panthers (Atlantic): 98.5 pts, 16/1 Cup odds
- Montreal Canadiens (Atlantic): 96.5 pts, 25/1 Cup odds
- New York Islanders (Metro): 95.5 pts, 25/1 Cup odds
- New York Rangers (Metro): 95.5 pts, 25/1 Cup odds
- Boston Bruins (Atlantic): 92.5 pts, 25/1 Cup odds
- Detroit Red Wings (Atlantic): 90.5 pts, 25/1 Cup odds
- Philadelphia Flyers (Metro): 89.5 pts, 33/1 Cup odds
- Columbus Blue Jackets (Metro): 84.5 pts, 66/1 Cup odds
- Buffalo Sabres (Atlantic): 83.5 pts, 50/1 Cup odds
- New Jersey Devils (Metro): 82.5 pts, 50/1 Cup odds
- Ottawa Senators (Atlantic): 80.5 pts, 50/1 Cup odds
- Toronto Maple Leafs (Atlantic): 80.5 pts, 50/1 Cup odds
- Carolina Hurricanes (Metro): 78.5 pts, 66/1 Cup odds
In what can be considered a testament to the top four teams in the East, Bovada essentially doesn’t care where the Canadiens, Islanders, Rangers, Bruins, and Red Wings finish in the regular season, as they all have the same low odds of reaching the Stanley Cup if they have to go through the Capitals, Lightning, Penguins, and Panthers. At least Montreal can be proud that a Canadian team is finally back in the postseason. As it looks now, these final standings would result in first round series between Boston and Washington (likely not the Caps preferred opponent), the Rangers and Tampa Bay (Rangers lose the alphabetical tie-breaker), the Islanders and Pittsburgh in the Metropolitan match-up, and Montreal and Florida in the Atlantic match-up. Wins by the top seeds would then see a battle for the panhandle state between the Lightning and Panthers and a 2016 re-match between the Capitals and defending champion Penguins. On the outside looking in are the Detroit Red Wings, whose postseason streak will finally be snapped, and sadly in the final year of Joe Louis Arena to boot. They are joined by another 2015-16 playoff team, the Philadelphia Flyers, whose drop from 96 points last year to a projected 89.5 points seems harsh. However, the Flyers dropping out of the running early does set up a great “Subway series” between the Rangers and Islanders for playoff positioning and a repeat of last year’s race between Original Sixers Boston and Detroit for the final playoff spot, two events that hockey fans would love to see. The odds-makers clearly hate the Blue Jackets as a playoff team, as their Stanley Cup odds are worse than all but one of the teams who finish behind them in the standings. That one team, the Carolina Hurricanes, is slated to finish last in the East, tied for the worst odds at the Cup, after just narrowly missing the playoffs last year and injecting top-end prospects into their roster this season. Keep that in mind, you gamblers out there.
Western Conference
- Chicago Blackhawks (Central): 102.5 pts, 9/1 Cup odds
- Dallas Stars (Central): Off the board, 12/1 Cup odds
- St. Louis Blues (Central): 101.5 pts, 14/1 Cup odds
- San Jose Sharks (Pacific): 100.5 pts, 14/1 Cup odds
- Los Angeles Kings (Pacific): 99.5 pts, 16/1 Cup odds
- Anaheim Ducks (Pacific): 98.5 pts, 16/1 Cup odds
- Nashville Predators (Central): 98.5 pts, 16/1 Cup odds
- Minnesota Wild (Central): 94.5 pts, 25/1 Cup odds
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Edmonton Oilers (Pacific): 87.5 pts, 33/1 Cup odds
- Calgary Flames (Pacific): 87.5 pts, 50/1 Cup odds
- Winnipeg Jets (Central): 87.5 pts, 50/1 Cup odds
- Colorado Avalanche (Central): 86.5 pts, 50/1 Cup odds
- Arizona Coyotes (Pacific): 76.5 pts, 66/1 Cup odds
- Vancouver Canucks (Pacific): 76.5 pts, 66/1 Cup odds
Since the Stars are currently off the over/under table until Tyler Seguin‘s injury is sorted out, their position was an estimate. Their Cup odds were set at 12/1, and since their goal tending last spring (still unchanged) did not inspire much hope about their postseason play, their odds being greater than that of the Blues has to be a reflection of their better chances of being the top seed in the conference. If this Western Conference configuration looks familiar, that is because it contains the exact eight playoff teams as 2015-16. In fact, other than the Oilers (somehow), Bovada appears to not consider any other team in the West to be a legitimate playoff contender. There is also heavy favoritism in seeding, teams, and odds toward the Central. Within the playoff picture, it looks like another tight race at the top of each division, as seven teams battle for position and the Wild sit contently in the eight spot. As currently constituted, these standings would produce first round playoff match-ups between the Wild and Blackhawks, the Predators and Sharks (again), the Blues and Stars (again) for the Central, and the Ducks and Kings for the Pacific. Should the top seeds all advance, it would set up showdowns between Chicago and Dallas in a barn-burner, and San Jose and L.A. in a great rivalry throw-down. If all goes according to plan, there are some excellent series in the West coming next spring, and Bovada’s projection may not be far off. None of the bottom six in the conference look like contenders, and the Canucks seem likely to fulfill their destiny as the worst team in the NHL in 2016-17. Let the Nolan Patrick sweepstakes begin!
2016-17 NHL Over/Unders
After giving us their opening Stanley Cup odds last week, Las Vegas odds-maker Bovada was back at it again today, releasing their over/under for each NHL team’s total points in the upcoming season. Not included on the list (below) are the Dallas Stars, who were left off the board by the odds-makers until more information is available regarding the injury to Tyler Seguin. The Stars are an unpredictable pick at this point regardless, as both Seguin and Jamie Benn are banged up, Valeri Nichushkin is suddenly gone, and the defense is still a risk following the departure of three starters.
While the points projections generally mirror the Stanley Cup odds, Bovada has certainly predicted some interesting scenarios. Despite having the highest Cup odds in the East, the Penguins are again expected to finish behind the Capitals in the Metropolitan Division. On second thought though, a slow start to the regular season for the defending champs would not be much of a surprise, nor would another postseason collapse for Washington. Elsewhere in the division, the Islanders and Rangers are projected to be in a dead heat for that final divisional seed, with the loser slipping into a wild card spot. Staying in the East, they see the Canadiens and a healthy Carey Price skyrocketing from their 82 point finish a year ago to 96.5 points in 2016-17, with the Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators taking a corresponding dip in the standings. Out West, the battles atop each division promise to be similarly tight as they were last season, but the projected jump by Calgary and Edmonton of 10+ points from bottom dwellers to playoff contenders may be a story to watch. The good news for Vancouver Canucks fans is that they’re expected to finish with more points this season than last. The bad news? It will be good enough for last place in the league.
The easiest over to take out of this group is likely the St. Louis Blues. Although they lost captain David Backes and have to see if Jake Allen can handle his bigger workload in net, the Blues are set at 101.5 points, a mark they have beaten easily in each of the past three seasons. The Ottawa Senators are another good over, as they have hardly changed their roster this summer and finished with 85 points last year and more than that the two years prior. Their 80.5 line seems unwarranted unless you believe the rest of the Atlantic Division is in for a big year. That seems unlikely, especially when it comes to the aforementioned Canadiens, who are an easy under. Yes, the loss of Price for much of 2015-16 hurt the Canadiens, but they also had a lot of trouble scoring goals as well. The effects of the trade-off between P.K. Subban and Lars Eller for Shea Weber, Andrew Shaw, and Alexander Radulov have yet to be seen, but one would think that it’s not enough to justify a 14 or 15 point increase in points. The Oilers, somewhat obviously, are also a good choice for an under. If this many seasons of “this is the year” followed by a lottery pick haven’t tempered your expectations of Edmonton yet, nothing will. Even if they do finally improve in 2016-17, will it really be to a high-80’s point total? Doubtful.
Washington Capitals 107.5 points
Tampa Bay Lightning 106.5 points
Pittsburgh Penguins 103.5 points
Chicago Blackhawks 102.5 points
St. Louis Blues 101.5 points
San Jose Sharks 100.5 points
Los Angeles Kings 99.5 points
Anaheim Ducks 98.5 points
Florida Panthers 98.5 points
Nashville Predators 98.5 points
Montreal Canadiens 96.5 points
New York Islanders 95.5 points
New York Rangers 95.5 points
Minnesota Wild 94.5 points
Boston Bruins 92.5 points
Detroit Red Wings 90.5 points
Philadelphia Flyers 89.5 points
Calgary Flames 87.5 points
Edmonton Oilers 87.5 points
Winnipeg Jets 87.5 points
Colorado Avalanche 86.5 points
Columbus Blue Jackets 84.5 points
Buffalo Sabres 83.5 points
New Jersey Devils 82.5 points
Ottawa Senators 80.5 points
Toronto Maple Leafs 80.5 points
Carolina Hurricanes 78.5 points
Arizona Coyotes 76.5 points
Vancouver Canucks 76.5 points
Wingels’ Roster Spot In Jeopardy
Kevin Kurz of CSN Bay Area writes today that after a disappointing 2015-16 season, Tommy Wingels is no longer a guarantee to be on the San Jose Sharks roster to start the season. The gritty forward put up just 18 points last year after back-to-back 30+ point seasons. That level of output might not be enough this year to take a roster spot from one of the Sharks’ up-and-coming young players.
A 6th-round pick of the Sharks out of Miami (Ohio) in 2008, there were never any great expectations of Wingels. He was a high-energy guy who played a tough game and had the ability to dig the puck out of the corner and occasionally contribute a goal or two. His first few seasons in San Jose showed just that, as he put up mediocre numbers, but carved out a role for himself as a reliable bottom-six player. Then, in 2013-14 Wingels game took a huge leap forward. He scored 38 points for the Sharks that season, the second highest point total of his entire hockey career, going all the way back to juniors. Excited with his progress, San Jose signed Wingels to a three-year extension worth $7.425MM. Wingels was able to replicate his success the next year as well, with 36 points in 75 games, making the contract look like a bargain. He also became a key part of the power play, contributing four goals with his crash-the-net style. Although his once-stout defensive game struggled a bit, his newfound offensive skill and new role on the team made the change to his game an acceptable one.
However, 2015-16 told a very different story. Wingels came out flat last season, showing no sign of the point production of the past two seasons nor the two-way ability he was originally known for. Although he tried to remain an offensive presence while also turning up his physicality, it only resulted in a -10 rating and a career-high in penalty minutes. As the year dragged on for Wingels without much success, he began seeing less and less time under new coach Peter DeBoer. He ended up playing in only 68 games with his lowest average time on ice since his rookie season.
Now, Wingels has a tough road ahead of him to get back into favor with the Sharks and their fans. DeBoer has watched his team go all the way to the Stanley Cup with Wingels playing a limited role, and may decide that he can do without the forwards physical play if it means a promising young player doesn’t make the team. As it stands, the addition of Mikkel Boedker and the development of Joonas Donskoi and Chris Tierney have all but locked up the top nine in San Jose. It will be in Wingels’ best interests to come to camp with his regular high compete level and be satisfied with securing a fourth line role where his toughness and intensity can be put to good use. If DeBoer decides that he’s willing to pay nearly $2.5MM for an energy liner, than Wingels will keep his job and be on the road to redemption in 2016-17. If not, the majority of Wingels time in San Jose this season could be spent wearing a Barracudas jersey instead of a Sharks jersey.
North America Injury Notes
The young and talented Team North America is set to face Group B leader Sweden today, but they will do so without their starting goaltender. Penguins playoff hero Matt Murray was injured in the team’s last World Cup game against Russia and is currently being treated as day-to-day. The injury is to his thumb on his blocker hand, which makes it difficult for him to grip the stick and handle the puck. With NHL training camp right around the corner, the team, as well as the Pittsburgh brass, feels that those essential skills are worth a few days of rest and rehab.
For their final round robin game, which will determine whether they move on to the semifinals or head home, North America will go to Ducks goalie John Gibson, with Jets youngster Connor Hellebuyck backing him up. Gibson, in fact, has more pro experience than Murray and may be a better option for North America going forward. Murray has allowed five goals through two games with an .886 save percentage, so a fresh face starting in net might provide a boost for the team.
North America has other injury concerns as well:
- Blue Jackets defenseman Ryan Murray is also dealing with an injury. While the exact details have not been disclosed, the young blue liner has developed a bit of an “injury-prone” reputation early in his hockey career. Although coach Todd McLellan expects Murray to play and has confirmed that he will at least skate in warm-ups, his status is a game time decision.
- If Murray cannot play, North America will be forced to dress 13 forwards and five defenseman, with the Panthers’ Aaron Ekblad having already left the team with a neck injury. Rangers forward J.T. Miller would be pressed into action, and the defense would have to rely on some heavy minutes from each of their five members.
Traverse City NHL Prospects Tournament Round-Up
The 18th annual NHL Prospects Tournament in Traverse City, Michigan took place this weekend, with games kicking off on Friday afternoon and finishing up tonight. The tourney featured eight teams, split into two divisions of four teams each playing in a round robin, followed by a series of games today between corresponding finishers in each division.
The field included the Columbus Blue Jackets, Chicago Blackhawks, St. Louis Blues, and host Detroit Red Wings in the “Gordie Howe Division” and the Carolina Hurricanes, Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars, and New York Rangers in the “Ted Lindsay Division”. Each team came in locked and loaded with their top prospects, as teams got the opportunity to evaluate their young talent and the players looked to impress and make a push for a shot at an NHL role.
Playing in the 7th-place game this afternoon were the Wild and Blackhawks. Minnesota went 0-3 in divisional play, while Chicago was able to pick up one win en route to a 1-2 record. However, when the teams met head-to-head, the Wild were able to finally get a “W” with a 2-1 result. The 5th-place game featured the Blues and Stars, with Dallas taking it by a convincing 5-3 score. The Stars just missed out on finishing second in their division, losing earlier in the tournament in overtime to the Rangers to fall to 1-1-1. They proved to be too much for the 1-2 St. Louis squad though and can be satisfied with a 5th-place finish.
The 3rd-place game that ended earlier tonight was between the top prospects for the Rangers and Blue Jackets, two teams who played well in the divisional round with 2-0-1 and 2-1 records respectively. The Jackets came out on top in the end, with a 6-4 win, continuing a strong offensive performance in the tournament. However, they did see their two-year championship run in Traverse City come to an end. While the Rangers couldn’t find victory, they have to be happy with the strong play of free agent phenomenon Jimmy Vesey. Finally, the tournament finale came down to the hometown Red Wings and a stacked Hurricanes team. Carolina had dominated their opponents all weekend and came into the 1st-place game undefeated and nearly unstoppable, and their luck did not change. Led by 2016 1st-rounders Julien Gauthier and Jake Bean, the Hurricanes took the title by a score of 6-4 over the 2-1 Detroit team and the best efforts of Tyler Bertuzzi.
The teams will all now head home and re-group, as they get ready for training camp and a handful of the tournament’s best players prepare for their first taste of NHL action.