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NHL Announces 2023 King Clancy Memorial Trophy Nominees

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In an announcement made Tuesday afternoon, the NHL unveiled the list of nominees for the 2023 King Clancy Memorial Trophy. The award is presented annually to the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities both on and off the ice, as well as making a noteworthy humanitarian contribution to their community.

The list of nominees for this year’s award is an impressive one, featuring some of the league’s most well-respected captains, such as Boston’s Patrice Bergeron and Florida’s Aleksander Barkov.

One notable nominee is one of the youngest captains in the league – Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk. Tkachuk, in a few short years as a Senator, has already implanted himself in the community, especially in recent seasons. Working with the Boys and Girls Club of Ottawa, Tkachuk hosts the ’Tkachuk’s Captains’ program, which works with kids at club locations across Ottawa to help develop leadership skills.

That’s not to diminish the off-ice efforts of anyone else named on the full list of nominees, found below. While an often-overlooked award, it’s a great way to highlight some players who focus on making positive contributions to their communities.

Anaheim: Kevin Shattenkirk
Arizona: Travis Boyd
Boston: Patrice Bergeron
Buffalo: Alex Tuch
Calgary: Mikael Backlund
Carolina: Jordan Staal
Chicago: Connor Murphy
Colorado: Devon Toews
Columbus: Zach Werenski
Dallas: Jason Robertson
Detroit: Dylan Larkin
Edmonton: Darnell Nurse
Florida: Aleksander Barkov
Los Angeles: Mikey Anderson
Minnesota: Matt Dumba
Montreal: Jordan Harris
Nashville: Juuse Saros
New Jersey: Jack Hughes
NY Islanders: Anders Lee
NY Rangers: Jacob Trouba
Ottawa: Brady Tkachuk
Philadelphia: Scott Laughton
Pittsburgh: Evgeni Malkin
San Jose: Luke Kunin
Seattle: Chris Driedger
St. Louis: Brayden Schenn
Tampa Bay: Victor Hedman
Toronto: Morgan Rielly
Vancouver: Elias Pettersson
Vegas: Reilly Smith
Washington: Tom Wilson
Winnipeg: Blake Wheeler

New York Rangers Expected To Make More Coaching Changes

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The New York Rangers are making more modifications to their coaching staff after parting ways with head coach Gerard Gallant, says The New York Post’s Larry Brooks. The Rangers are expected to relieve assistants Mike Kelly and Jim Midgley of their duties, while assistant Gord Murphy will remain on staff pending the determination of their next head coach.

This latest move comes after the Rangers finished the 2022-23 season by losing their First Round series against the New Jersey Devils in seven games despite holding a 2-0 lead in the series. The decision to part ways with Gallant came as a surprise to many, as he had been with the team for two successful regular seasons, but multiple reports later said exit interviews with Rangers players weren’t kind to Gallant.

The Rangers will now make some deeper structural changes behind the bench as they look to revamp their coaching staff. Kelly, who worked with Gallant during his times with the Florida Panthers and Vegas Golden Knights, heads to the open market with 10 years of experience as an NHL assistant. Midgley, 45, had been with the Rangers since Gallant’s hiring in 2021 but has no previous NHL coaching experience.

Murphy, who also spent the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons as an associate coach with the Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, remains in the fold for now.

New York Rangers Not Expected To Pursue Joel Quenneville

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The New York Rangers joined the fray of teams looking for a new head coach next season after parting ways with Gerard Gallant last night after just two seasons. Speculation about Gallant’s firing and potential candidates began days before the announcement, though, with multiple reports drawing connections between the Rangers and storied coach Joel Quenneville.

Late last night, however, Larry Brooks of the New York Post relayed reports from sources that Quenneville will not be part of the Rangers’ search for their next bench boss. It means, for now, Quenneville remains unable to freely take any job in the NHL.

That’s because Quenneville is currently barred from league work by commissioner Gary Bettman after his involvement in the 2010 Chicago Blackhawks’ coverup of former coach Brad Aldrich’s alleged sexual abuse of then-Blackhawk Kyle Beach. For Quenneville to return to coaching, a team would need to initiate the process by requesting Bettman review Quenneville’s eligibility. The Rangers will not pursue this, Brooks said.

One name that could step into the role, Brooks says, is current AHL bench boss Kris Knoblauch. The 44-year-old has guided the Hartford Wolf Pack as their head coach for four seasons and earned himself an appearance at the 2020 AHL All-Star Game.

New York Rangers Part Ways With Gerard Gallant

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In an odd mix between being a surprising yet expected move, the New York Rangers have announced today that they have agreed to part ways with head coach Gerard Gallant. This will mark the end of his two-year stint in New York, and the Rangers now become a new player on the head coaching market this summer.

Gallant’s first stint in coaching came when he joined the Columbus Blue Jackets as an assistant coach for their inaugural season in the league. As the franchise got off to a slow start, as was typical for expansion franchises at the time, Gallant was promoted to head coach of the Blue Jackets halfway through the 2003-04 season. Getting off to a 5-9-1 start to the 2006-07 season, Gallant was fired by the Blue Jackets organization and finished his first head coaching stint with a 56-76-4-6 record.

Between 2008-2014, Gallant would spend time with the New York Islanders and Montreal Canadiens, both in the assistant coach position. Between those two stops on his coaching journey, Gallant would spend three seasons in the QMJHL as head coach of the Saint John Sea Dogs. Finally, after moving on from the Canadiens, Gallant would get his next opportunity as a head coach in the NHL, joining the Florida Panthers before the 2014-15 season.

In Florida, Gallant had the benefit of joining a team that could seemingly only improve. In the 2013-14 season, Florida finished 29th in the league and would be awarded the number one overall selection in the 2014 NHL Draft, selecting Barrie Colts defenseman, Aaron Ekblad. In his first full season coaching Florida, the team improved better than expected, improving by 25 points in the standings year-on-year, and barely missing the playoffs.

In the 2015-16 season, the Panthers would finally make it back to the playoffs, finishing first in the Atlantic Division, but ultimately losing in the first round of the playoffs to the Islanders. After an 11-10-1 start to the 2016-17 season, Gallant was once again let go at the beginning of the season.

It would not take long for Gallant to find his new home, as he was hired by the newest expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights, before their first season in 2017-18. Accomplishing one of the most unexpected feats in NHL history, Gallant would lead the Golden Knights to the Stanley Cup Final in their first season, losing to the Washington Capitals in five games. Taking a step back during the 2018-19 season, the Golden Knights would once again make the playoffs, but this time losing in the first round to the San Jose Sharks.

Just missing the 50-game mark of the 2019-20 season, Gallant would coach the Golden Knights to a 24-19-6 record and would be subsequently fired midseason once again in his head coaching career. He would finish his stint in Vegas with a 118-75-20 record over 213 games.

Finally, he once again found his way to the Big Apple, joining the Rangers as head coach starting in the 2021-22 season. In his two-year stint in New York as head coach, he would lead the Rangers to a 99-46-19 record, leading the team to the Eastern Conference Finals last year. Heading into the 2022-23 NHL offseason, the Anaheim Ducks, Calgary Flames, Blue Jackets, Capitals, and now the Rangers all have head coaching vacancies to fill.

2023 Norris Trophy Finalists Announced

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The National Hockey League is announcing finalists for all of their end of season awards this week. Today, they have revealed the three players that are up for the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman. In the running are Adam Fox of the New York Rangers, Erik Karlsson of the San Jose Sharks and Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche.

Fox has quickly become known as one of the best offensive defensemen in the league, and his 72 points in 82 games are proof of that. He has also become a well-rounded defender and is regularly on the ice for the Rangers against the other team’s top players, and routinely takes over the play when he is on the ice. He also averaged over two minutes of ice time per game while his team was shorthanded, proving he can be counted on in all situations. The 25 year old has already won a Norris Trophy once, in 2021, and is now up for the award for the second time after playing just his fourth NHL season.

Karlsson had an incredible bounceback season for the Sharks. After scoring 97 points in 158 games combined over the previous three seasons, the 32-year-old defenseman had his best season yet by scoring 25 goals and 101 points. This was the first time a defenseman reached 100 points since Brian Leetch did so with the New York Rangers 31 years ago. Karlsson’s game is geared heavily towards offense and not as much towards defense, which could cost him in his quest for a third Norris Trophy after winning the award in 2012 and 2015. However, it is hard to argue the value of a defenseman that can score 101 points.

Makar has stormed onto the NHL scene much like Fox. Once they arrived, they immediately became stars. The 24-year-old defender won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie in 2020, the Conn Smythe in 2022 as Playoffs MVP and he also took home the Norris Trophy last season. He was limited to 60 games this season, but made his mark by scoring 17 goals and 66 points while being a tremendous defensive presence as well. No one in the entire NHL averaged more time on ice per game than Makar’s 26:23 per contest and he is among the league’s best in all situations.

The Norris Trophy will be handed out on June 26th at the NHL Awards ceremony.

Patrick Kane "Was Never 100%. May Have Offseason Surgery

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The New Jersey Devils are entering Game 1 on the road tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes with the status of their main trade deadline acquisition uncertain. Winger Timo Meier is a game-time decision after taking a hard hit from New York Rangers captain Jacob Trouba in the team’s Game 7 win on Monday, per head coach Lindy Ruff.

  • Now-pending UFA winger Patrick Kane told reporters at the Rangers’ end-of-season availability today that he was never 100 percent healthy after the trade to New York, but praised the team’s training staff for trying to get him there. Kane did not rule out off-season surgery for the lower-body injury that plagued him the entire 2022-23 season. Kane recorded one goal in seven playoff games for the Rangers and posted a career-low 57 points in the regular season (in a full season).

Filip Chytil, Kaapo Kakko Heading To World Championship

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New York Rangers forwards Filip Chytil and Kaapo Kakko will join Team Czechia and Team Finland, respectively, at the 2023 IIHF Men’s World Championship, they told reporters today.

Coming off the heels of a disappointing first-round loss, the two Rangers youngsters now get a shot at redemption at the closest thing to a best-on-best tournament in men’s hockey today. The 2023 edition of the tournament, which will take place in Tampere and Helsinki in Finland, begins next week.

Neither Czechia nor Finland have announced their full rosters for the tournament. They’ll be competing in separate groups, with Finland among the assumed leaders in Group A alongside Sweden and the United States, while Czechia is at the higher end of Group B with Canada and Slovakia.

This will be Chytil’s fourth appearance with Czechia at the tournament. In 20 games combined in the 2018, 2019, and 2021 tournaments, he’s registered four goals and eight points. After a breakout season this year in which he broke the 20-goal and 40-point plateaus for the first time, expect a rejuvenated performance from him.

For Kakko, it’s his second appearance at the tournament after scoring six goals in 10 games with Finland in 2019, leading the team to a gold medal. Finland has reached the final game in three consecutive tournaments.

Rangers Assign Several Players To Minors

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  • As their season came to an end on Monday night, the New York Rangers have assigned Jonny Brodzinski, Jake Leschyshyn, Libor Hajek, and Louis Domingue to their AHL affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack. Because their services are no longer needed for the year in the NHL, these four will undoubtedly help Hartford compete for the Calder Cup. As things stand currently, Hartford is one win away from knocking out the Providence Bruins, shortly after knocking out the Springfield Thunderbirds in the first round.

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New York Rangers Linked To Joel Quenneville

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With the New York Rangers’ disappointing Game 7 shutout loss in the rearview mirror, speculation about changes to the team’s roster and coaching staff fired up as soon as the horn blew to end the game. Today, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that speculation includes longtime NHL coach Joel Quenneville as a possible replacement behind the bench if the Rangers opt to move on from head coach Gerard Gallant. ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski doubled down on ties between the Rangers and Quenneville.

Any move involving Quenneville will be met with a great amount of scrutiny. Quenneville currently requires approval from the commissioners’ office to work any job in the league again due to his involvement in the 2010 Chicago Blackhawks’ response to former video coach Brad Aldrich’s alleged sexual abuse of former player Kyle Beach.

Per the investigation report released by independent legal firm Jenner and Block, multiple witnesses stated Quenneville participated in a meeting to discuss the Aldrich allegations shortly after the Blackhawks advanced to the 2010 Stanley Cup Final, where he and other Blackhawks leaders opted to defer action on Aldrich until the end of the playoff run so as to “not cause a distraction” to the team’s on-ice success. Prior to the report coming to light, Quenneville had claimed publically he had no previous knowledge of the allegations against Aldrich.

Dreger confirmed that Quenneville has not yet been cleared by the league to return to coaching and said that an official interview request from the Rangers would “likely encourage commissioner approval.”

Quenneville last coached in 2021-22 with the Florida Panthers, posting a 7-0-0 record before resigning and being conditionally held out of NHL work by the commissioner’s office.

Maxim Barbashev, Ryder Korczak Join Hartford Wolf Pack

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As junior seasons end, top prospects will get a short opportunity to get their feet wet professionally before the offseason begins. Today, the Hartford Wolf Pack announced an amateur tryout agreement for Maxim Barbashev, that will keep him with the team through the Calder Cup Playoffs.

He’ll be joined by Ryder Korczak, who has been assigned back to the Wolf Pack from the Moose Jaw Warriors.

Barbashev, selected 161st overall by the New York Rangers in 2022, has played the last three seasons with the Moncton Wildcats of the QMJHL. This season he posted 32 goals and 65 points in 67 games, but could not overcome the Halifax Mooseheads in the second round.

Not yet signed to an entry-level contract with the Rangers, this will be his first opportunity at the pro level. The 19-year-old forward is the younger brother of Vegas Golden Knights deadline acquisition Ivan Barbashev.

Korczak, meanwhile, is returning to a Hartford team that he played five games for earlier this season. After going scoreless in that short stint, the 2021 third-round pick returned to Moose Jaw and dominated, racking up 69 points in 48 regular season games.

He has already signed his ELC with the Rangers, and will likely spend all of next season in Hartford.

The 20-year-old center also has ties to the Vegas organization—his brother Kaedan Korczak was a second-round pick by the Golden Knights in 2019 and played ten games this season.

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