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Poll: How Long Of A Contract Should Mike Hoffman Be Seeking?

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More than two weeks into unrestricted free agency, winger Mike Hoffman is the top player that’s still unsigned and he has been for a little while now.  The fourth-ranked player in our Top 50 UFA list, the 30-year-old has been one of the more consistent goal scorers in the league in recent years and is particularly adept with the man advantage.  Plenty of teams could use him in their top six.

So why is he still unsigned?  Money, of course.  The flattening of the salary cap has greatly impacted the free agent market, especially up front.  Many players have had to sacrifice from their initial requests in terms of salary, number of years, or both.  It certainly seems that Hoffman will be in that situation and he has indicated a willingness to accept a one-year deal and there is considerable interest in him on a short-term deal (cap space permitting, of course, which is a caveat we’re going to see plenty of over the next couple of months).

But is that the right course of action for Hoffman?  Unlike Taylor Hall, he’s not really in a situation where he’s looking to restore his value.  Even with the pandemic, Hoffman is coming off of one of the best statistical seasons of his career.  It’s not as if taking a one-year deal will put him in a better situation to hit the market a year from now.  Regardless of where he plays, he’s a safe bet to score around 25 goals and 55 or so points.

The reality of the COVID-19 situation is that its mark will be felt on league revenues for a while yet.  The salary cap isn’t going up next summer and the cap space squeeze is going to be quite significant again.  It’s not as if things are going to drastically change for the better from a financial perspective.

With that in mind, would he be better off taking a multi-year deal now even though it would assuredly come at an amount lower than he was expecting and a cut from the $5.1875MM AAV he had over the last four seasons?  A two-year deal would take him through the new US television contract which could help send the Upper Limit of the cap back up, albeit slowly and the cap clutter could clear to an extent by then.  A longer-term contract would again likely cost a team less but give him some certainty for his future at a time where, quite frankly, there isn’t a whole lot of certainty.

The ideal scenario for Hoffman was to get a big contract and get off the board early.  Clearly, that’s not happening now so it’s time for Plan B.  What term should Hoffman’s camp be pursuing at this point, short term, long term, or something in between that gives him a bit of security but another shot at the market down the road?  Have your say by voting in the poll below.

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Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Poll: Who Should Win The 2020 Jack Adams Award?

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The finalists have been announced for all the major awards, but like every year there is much debate over who should take home each piece of hardware. In fact, with a shortened season and unorthodox playoff scenario, the views and reasoning behind each vote will perhaps vary even more wildly.

So as we get closer to the return of NHL hockey in Edmonton and Toronto, where 24 teams will try to chase the Stanley Cup, we’re going to ask you, the PHR faithful, to explain who you would vote for if given the chance.

After looking at the Calder Trophy finalists, let’s shift our focus to the Jack Adams Award, given to “the NHL coach adjudged to have contributed the most to his team’s success.”  In recent years, teams with top records have been overlooked with ones overachieving relative to early-season expectations often getting the nod.

This year’s group of finalists features someone from both groups with Bruce Cassidy (Bruins), John Tortorella (Blue Jackets), and Alain Vigneault (Flyers) comprising the top three.

Cassidy helped lead Boston to the top record in this shortened season where the Bruins still managed to reach 100 points in just 70 games with a 44-14-12 record.  While they were expected to be a contender heading into the year featuring a strong attack and one of the stingiest goaltending tandems in the league, they were the class of the field for most of the season which certainly makes Cassidy deserving of the nomination.  He has never won this award in the past despite putting up a very quiet 161-66-34 record since going behind their bench.

After being gutted in free agency with the departures of Artemi Panarin, Matt Duchene, and Sergei Bobrovsky (among others), expectations were low for Columbus heading into the season.  Instead, it was believed that they’d be in for a transition year, especially since they opted to go with the relatively unproven tandem of Joonas Korpisalo and Elvis Merzlikins between the pipes.  Instead, while they struggled as expected offensively, they became one of the stingiest defensive teams in the league and were in the mix for a playoff spot when the pandemic hit despite a litany of injuries to core players.  Tortorella is a two-time winner of the award after winning in 2004 with Tampa Bay and 2017 with Columbus.

As for Vigneault, he helped lead Philadelphia to their best points percentage in nearly a decade at .645 with a top-ten offense and defense.  In doing so, the Flyers went from a team that missed the playoffs to one that still has a chance at the top seed in the Eastern Conference as a 9-1 record in their final ten games allowed them to leapfrog Pittsburgh for the second spot in the Metropolitan Division; in doing so, they qualified for the round robin seeding games instead of the play-in round.  If he wins, it would Vigneault’s second Jack Adams Award as he also won in 2007 with Vancouver.

There’s a strong case to be made for each coach but which one should take home the prize?  Cast your vote below.

Mobile users, click here to vote.

Poll: Who Should Win The 2020 Calder Trophy?

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The finalists have been announced for all the major awards, but like every year there is much debate over who should take home each piece of hardware. In fact, with a shortened season and unorthodox playoff scenario, the views and reasoning behind each vote will perhaps vary even more wildly.

So as we get closer to the return of NHL hockey in Edmonton and Toronto, where 24 teams will try to chase the Stanley Cup, we’re going to ask you, the PHR faithful, to explain who you would vote for if given the chance.

We’ll start with the Calder Memorial Trophy, annually awarded to “the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the NHL.” The rookie scoring race was incredible this season and likely would have gone down to the wire, while some others that were left out of the finalist group had good cases of their own.

The ones that did make that top-3, were Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks and Dominik Kubalik of the Chicago Blackhawks.

Makar, 21, came into the 2019 playoffs like a freight train, immediately becoming one of the most dynamic players on the Avalanche roster. That impressive debut didn’t take away his rookie eligibility, but it did give him an experience base to rely on as his first full season began. When things kicked off on the 2019-20 season, Makar was already in high gear, recording points in each of his first five and nine of his first 11 regular season games. By the end of November it was apparent that Makar wasn’t going to slow down his scoring pace, as he had put up eight goals and 26 points in his first 26 games.

Unfortunately, he suffered an injury in early December that kept him out for a handful of games and he would finish the season with only 57 games played. His 50 points weren’t quite enough to topple Hughes for the rookie lead, though he did score at a higher pace.

No, the Vancouver defenseman would end up taking home the scoring title among first-year players with an amazing 53 points on the season. The sweet-skating Hughes was a revelation for the Canucks, who started to rely on him more and more as the season went on. By the end of it, Hughes seemed to be starting every Vancouver possession by escaping pressure with his edges and carrying the puck up the ice. In his first 20 games of the season, Hughes averaged just over 20 minutes of ice time a night. In his final 20, that number grew to more than 22 and a half, including several nights when he pushed close to 30.

The University of Michigan product is a catalyst for offense in Vancouver and will be for years to come, but he did only actually score eight goals. That was four fewer than Makar, and 22 fewer than the third finalist who comes with much less fanfare.

Kubalik arrived in Chicago as something of an unknown, after being drafted by the Los Angeles Kings seven years ago and then playing in Europe until the age of 24. It wasn’t clear if he would even be able to hang in the NHL (though frequent readers of our PHR chats will remember his name being thrown around as one to watch), but he did more than just keep his head above water. After a few early healthy scratches, Kubalik put his stamp on the Blackhawks roster with 30 goals in 68 games, with only four of those tallies coming on the powerplay. That production comes despite averaging just over 14 minutes a night, though that number was substantially higher by the end of the year when he found himself playing alongside Chicago’s top players.

The soon-to-be-25-year-old Kubalik is a deserving candidate to be sure, but there were other names that many believed should end up in the conversation as well. Adam Fox of the New York Rangers put up 42 points and was arguably the team’s best defenseman by the end of the year, while Columbus Blue Jackets netminder Elvis Merzlikins was among the league leaders with a .923 save percentage in his first season.

There’s an argument to be made for many of these names, but who will you cast your vote for? Take part in the poll below and then jump into the comments to defend your decision!

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Poll: Who Is Most Deserving Of The No. 1 Pick?

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We asked and you voted and the Pittsburgh Penguins are the team that readers least want to see win the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft by means of a second draft lottery. The Penguins were closely followed by the Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers and unsurprisingly these are three teams loaded with star power who finished in the top-five among teams in the qualifying round. Yet, the Carolina Hurricanes, who hold the second best record among qualifying round teams, gained just 1% of the vote, while the Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Blackhawks, the worst teams to qualify from each conference, finished fourth and fifth respectively in voting. This begs the question: who do you think is most deserving of the top pick?

Obviously, with the NHL Draft Lottery playing out as it did with each of the league’s bottom seven teams missing out on the top slot, the most deserving teams like the Detroit Red Wings, Ottawa Senators, or Buffalo Sabres won’t be an option for No. 1 this year. Instead, it will be one of the to-be-determined playoff teams out of the 16 who will play in a “knockout round” to open the expanded 24-team playoff field. All of these teams finished above .500 this season, so a good team will only get better in the form of Alexis Lafreniere, the elite talent at the top of the draft board. All eight losers of the qualifying round will have even odds in a second running of the lottery, but which franchise is most deserving of this boost?

The NHL has no shortage of teams with a history of losing, but the Florida Panthers have a strong argument for the title of unluckiest. Florida, who entered the league in 1993, has just 18 playoff wins in franchise history. A dozen of those wins came in the team’s run to the Stanley Cup Final in 1996, in which they were swept by the Colorado Avalanche. The remaining six wins have come in just four playoff series over the past 22 season, none of which have been won by the Cats. This series win drought is the longest current streak in the NHL. The team has also struggled with attendance over the years, due both to location and performance. The Panthers finished just 29th in capacity attendance this season and could use a young star player to draw more fans. The current Florida roster is not without talent but is strapped for cap space and set to lose some strong players in free agency. An affordable entry level deal for a top pick would go a long way to keep the Panthers competitive in the Atlantic Division.

The Winnipeg Jets have improved since moving from Atlanta, but the team’s legacy is still one of failure. The Thrashers franchise, which has since become the second iteration of the Jets, entered the league in 1999. In 19 seasons, the club has qualified for the playoffs just four times and has won only 11 games and two series. Like the Panthers, the bulk of those wins came in just one postseason as the Jets won nine games in 2017-18. Unlike Florida, they have never appeared in a Stanley Cup Final. The Jets playoff fortunes have increased since leaving Atlanta, where they failed to win a single postseason game in more than a decade. The club may be able to figure out how to get to their first Cup Final without luck, but playing in a remote city with a passionate but small fan base limits the Jets financially and they could definitely use an affordable superstar like Lafreniere, even though the roster already contains a number of strong young players.

The Columbus Blue Jackets have an identical 11-20 playoff record to the Thrashers/Jets and seeing as how they entered the league one year later in 2000, it would seem they have been slightly more successful. Additionally, all of those wins have come within the past six seasons and the team has qualified in each of the past three years. However, the Blue Jackets have the unfortunate distinction of never coming close to a Stanley Cup in a way that no other NHL team can claim. Columbus has won just one playoff series – just last year in fact – in their existence, the fewest in NHL history, and in that season was eliminated ten wins short of a title, the furthest distance that any team can claim is their best. Columbus also lost three of their best players from the team that finally won a series last season. The Blue Jackets may be improving, but their fans have seen less playoff success than any team in the NHL and their roster is not one that seem likely to produce a Stanley Cup any time soon. Lafreniere would be a boost to the franchise the likes of which have never been seen.

The Blue Jackets’ partners in the 2000 Expansion class, the Minnesota Wild presented a return to the State of Hockey for the NHL and have always had the benefit of immense fan support. Yet, the Wild have struggled to give their fans much to truly root for. While their 26 playoff wins since they entered the league is far better than some of their peers, Minnesota has never made it to the Stanley Cup Final and were swept out of their lone Western Conference Final appearance, which came back in 2002-03. Minnesota has largely been a one-and-done team, winning just four playoff series in their existence. Regular season success can only get you so far and it would be good for the team and the league for Minnesota to see some more results in the postseason. The timing could not be better to land Lafreniere either; the Wild snapped a six-season playoff appearance streak last year and their roster is one of the oldest in the league. The team could desperately use a young centerpiece.

The original Winnipeg Jets, who moved to Phoenix and became the Arizona Coyotes in 1996, also deserve inclusion among teams who could use some luck. The Coyotes franchise is the oldest to have never appeared in a Stanley Cup Final, dating back to the Jets’ birth in 1979-80. In that time, they have just 41 playoff wins overall have qualified for the postseason just three times in the past 16 years. They have one of the longest active postseason droughts in the NHL, dating back seven years. The team also has the very unfortunate distinction of having the highest cap payroll in the league this season while placing just 28th in capacity percentage attendance. While star players have been a part of the franchise from time to time throughout its history, the current roster is lacking a young superstar, which is exactly what they need to increase fan interest as well as affordably improve their roster. Lafreniere would be the perfect fit.

As for other teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs have the longest active Stanley Cup drought at 51 years and are second only two Florida with a playoff series win drought of 14 years, so while they have a young, loaded roster, they may still deserve some sympathy. Similarly, while the Montreal Canadiens are the winningest team in NHL history and don’t need any more titles just yet, they are technically the worst team in the qualifying round and could desperately use the boost, as maintaining relevancy in the 21st century has proved difficult for the once-great franchise. The Vancouver Canucks are the oldest team never to have won the Stanley Cup and got painfully close with a Game Seven loss in the 2011 Final and have not won a series ever since. The Nashville Predators have also never won the Stanley Cup, but have gotten close. Like several other teams, sustained success in Nashville would have a beneficial affect on grassroots hockey. Finally, the New York Islanders are a strong team this year and have staying power in the Metropolitan Division, but their glory days of the 80’s are long gone and they have not made a Cup Final appearance in 35 seasons. Lafreniere landing in the New York market could also be great exposure for the game.

What do you think? Which team is most deserving of the No. 1 pick?

[Mobile users vote here]

Poll: If The Season Ended Today, Who Would Win The Norris?

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With the NHL season getting suspended and little idea of when it may or may not resume, there are a lot of experts who are beginning to wonder if there is any point in bringing back the remainder of the regular season. Many feel it makes more sense that when the NHL is ready to return, the league should start immediately in playoff mode. If that’s the case and the regular season ended on Mar. 11, then who would win the Norris Trophy?

PHR has already conducted similar polls on the Calder Trophy, the Hart Trophy and the Vezina Trophy.

There are a number of interesting candidates for the top defenseman in the league, but it really falls to a two-man race between Washington Capitals’ John Carlson and Nashville Predators’ Roman Josi. Both players had dominant seasons with their respective teams.

The 30-year-old Carlson had a breakout year back in the 2017-18 season when he tallied 15 goals and 68 points, leading the Washington Capitals to their first Stanley Cup victory that year. He signed a long-term deal and duplicated another impressive season last year, boasting a 13-goal, 70-point season. However, what he’s done this year is nothing short of amazing with 15 goals and a career-high 75 points and that’s in just 69 games, averaging an impressive 1.17 points per game that would rank him among the top 10 in points-per-game for a defenseman over the last 30 years.

Josi, however, isn’t far behind. The Predators’ blueliner also had career highs in a (currently) shortened season. The 29-year-old has 16 goals and 65 points in 69 games and the Nashville Predators are a better team on shot suppression and save percentage when Josi is on the ice than Carlson.

While Carlson has the edge with offensive dominance, voters are expected to judge Norris candidates by their overall skill, which includes their defensive dominance, which is where Josi has the advantage who played even better on the defensive end of the ice when Nashville was without one of their other top blueliners in Ryan Ellis.

If you’re looking for a third option, the best candidate might be St. Louis Blues’ captain Alex Pietrangelo, who has had one of the best offensive performances of the season as well. The 30-year-old currently has career highs in goals and points with 16 goals and 52 points, which has propelled the Blues back into first place after a Stanley Cup victory.

So the question is, which defenseman should win the Norris Trophy if the season doesn’t continue?

For Pro Hockey app users, click here to vote.

Poll: If The Season Ended Today, Who Would Win The Vezina?

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While the NHL has made it clear it intends to do everything it can to save its season this year, there are many who feel that while the playoffs are still likely, even if they come at the end of the summer, the likelihood of the regular season playing out are a little less likely. Pro Hockey Rumors has already conducted polls on who might win the Calder Trophy and the Hart Trophy. So, the next question is, if the season ended on Mar. 11, who would walk away with the Vezina Trophy?

Perhaps the top candidate to receive the award is the goaltender for the best team. The Boston Bruins have dominated all year with a 44-14-12 for 100 points and much of their success could be credited to goaltender Tuukka Rask, who has had one of the best seasons of his career, which compares to his Vezina Trophy season in 2013-14 when he had a 2.04 GAA and a .930 save percentage in 58 starts. This year, Rask has accumulated 28 wins in 41 appearances with a 2.12 GAA and a .929 save percentage after carrying his team to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. He also has accomplished that with an often injured blueline in which has seen almost every member of the defense see injured reserve at different points throughout the season.

Perhaps his top competition would be Winnipeg Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck. The 26-year-old’s numbers might not compare well to Rask, however, the netminder has had a tougher road in terms of challenges. The Jets lost quite a bit on defense last offseason, which included the losses of Dustin Byfuglien, Tyler Myers, Ben Chiarot and Jacob Trouba with only Neal Pionk being a major addition to the team. Despite the major losses on defense, however, Hellebuyck was the difference-maker, keeping Winnipeg relevant for much of the season and helping them to a current wild card spot, if the playoffs began today. He has already appeared in 58 out of 71 games and, while his 2.58 GAA is just OK, he’s had an impressive .922 save percentage this year.

The other candidate would be Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy, last year’s Vezina winner. While the goaltender got to a slow start early on in the season, he’s been much more dominant in the second half of the season. In 28 appearances through December, Vasilevskiy had just a .906 save percentage, not up to his usual greatness. However, he was more dominant once 2020 hit, posting a 9-0 record in 10 appearances in January, while boasting a dominant .948 save percentage and was looking to have a good March as well before the season got cut down. In all, Vasilevskiy has a 2.53 GAA and a .918 save percentage.

One other interesting candidate, Arizona’s Darcy Kuemper, might be an interesting one affected by injury. The 29-year-old was near the top of Vezina Trophy consideration in December before suffering a lengthy lower-body injury that held him out for nearly two months. Unfortunately, he has only appeared in 29 games for the season, but his 2.22 GAA and .928 save percentage were dominant. However,

It’s impossible to include every candidate and there are other interesting goaltenders in there not getting consideration like Dallas’ Ben Bishop and St. Louis’ Jordan Binnington, but we’ll keep the list to four goaltenders.

For Pro Hockey app users, click here to vote.

Poll: If The Season Ended Today, Who Would Win The Hart?

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Over the weekend, we asked the PHR readership which outstanding rookie would win the Calder Trophy should the season end without any additional regular season games being played. Quinn Hughes was the runaway winner with more than 51% of the vote, while Cale Makar turned in a solid showing.

Today, we’ll ask you to answer a similar question: Who would take home the Hart Trophy if the season ended today?

The award is given out to the “player judged most valuable to his team,” which has always started plenty of healthy debate. It’s true that last year’s winner, Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov, was also the league leader in scoring with 128 points. But the league MVP is not always the player who takes home the Art Ross for most points. In fact, in 2018 Taylor Hall took home the award despite finishing sixth in league scoring with 93 points, 15 fewer than third-place finisher Connor McDavid.

That’s why it’s not necessarily a lock that Leon Draisaitl, the highest-scoring player of the current season, is the clear favorite. Not that he wouldn’t be a fine candidate. Draisaitl has proven without a doubt this season that he can carry a line without McDavid, scoring at an even more impressive rate since the two were broken up. With 110 points in 71 games he had already set a career-high, but he also had a chance to become the first player to score at least 130 in a single season since Mario Lemieux in 1995-96.

That kind of production is obviously incredible, but supporters of other players will point to the fact that Draisaitl did play the beginning of the season with McDavid, still gets to see the ice with him on the powerplay, or plays against weaker competition because of him. The Oilers’ captain is a candidate in his own right, despite having played just 64 games. McDavid, a two-time Art Ross winner and the 2017 Hart recipient has 97 points in those 64 contests and is still widely considered the best offensive player in the league. Because the Oilers have both of them, some will point to more isolated offensive players as the “most valuable.”

One such name is Artemi Panarin, who currently checks in tied for third in league scoring. The New York Rangers forward has 95 points in 69 games, 20 and 36 more than the second and third place players on his team. Panarin has been an absolute force for the Rangers in the first season of the whopping seven-year, $81.5MM deal he signed in the offseason.

Those aren’t the only candidates though. David Pastrnak may be part of one of the most dynamic lines in hockey, but his 48 goals are tied with only Alex Ovechkin for the league lead.

Normally Nathan MacKinnon is surrounded by elite linemates of his own, but given the injuries the Colorado Avalanche have suffered this season that hasn’t been the case.  MacKinnon has outscored his closest teammate by 43 points and was on track to crack the 100-point threshold for the first time in his career (he has finished with 99 and 97 the past two seasons).

There also may be arguments for defensemen and goaltenders, like Connor Hellebuyck for example. The Winnipeg Jets netminder has been as important to the club as any other player this season, posting a .922 save percentage in his lead-leading 58 appearances. John Carlson of the Washington Capitals leads all defenders in scoring and still had a shot at becoming the ninth defenseman to ever score at least 90 points in a single season (Ray Bourque, Paul Coffey, Phil Housley, Brian Leetch, Al MacInnis, Bobby Orr, Denis Potvin, and Gary Suter say hello).

It’s impossible to list every candidate, so we’ve included the top names in our poll. If you believe another player deserves recognition, make sure to leave a comment down below explaining your position.

[Mobile users click here to vote]

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Poll: If Season Ends Now, Who Should Win Calder Trophy?

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The NHL has every intention in trying to finish out the regular season and have a playoffs to cap off the 2019-20 season. However, with the unknown nature of the quickly changing COVID-19 virus, the season already has been suspended and could be pushed back further and further to avoid players contracting the virus. There has been talk of a drop-dead date as the league doesn’t want the 2019-20 to interfere with the 2020-21 season, which could make the regular season expendable if things begin to extend further and further into the summer. If the regular season ended on March 11, who would walk away as the league’s top rookie?

At midseason, it looked like an obvious choice as Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar dominated the first half of the season after coming over from UMass-Amherst last season. The 21-year-old had a dominant 11 goals and 37 points in 41 games before the all-star break. While his numbers dipped slightly, Makar has still been impressive in a much more limited second half. He did miss five games with an upper-body injury in late February where Colorado lost three of those five games, yet he still had a goal and 13 points in 16 games since the break. In total, however, Makar currently has 12 goals and 50 points in 57 games, an impressive feat for a rookie blueliner.

While Makar seemed like the inevitable choice early on, Vancouver Canucks rookie defenseman Quinn Hughes came on late to have his own impressive season. Hughes has been a solid addition to a Canucks defense at the end of last season as he came out of the University of Michigan. While he had solid numbers in the first half, with five goals and 34 points in 48 games before the all-star break, he did explode in February with 15 points in 13 games and tallied eight goals and 53 points in 68 points. While Makar might have had a better points-per-game average, it was Hughes who provided the healthier player on the ice.

There are several other candidates who will receive some consideration, including Chicago Blackhawks forward Dominik Kubalik, who scored 30 goals already in just 68 games in his first season in North America. The 24-year-old had spent his entire career overseas in the Czech League and the NLA, but adjusted to North American skating rinks quickly and was a key piece to the Blackhawks’ squad.

Several goalies dominated this season, but New Jersey Devils goalie MacKenzie Blackwood so far has a 22-14-8 record on a struggling Devils team. While he did post a 2.77 GAA, his save percentage suggests that he has been a dominant netminder for the Devils this season at .915.

So, if the regular season ended today, who would be the Calder Trophy winner?

For Pro Hockey app users, click here to vote.

Poll: Who Will Be The Chicago Blackhawks’ Starting Goalie In 2020-21?

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One of the most surprising moves of the trade deadline was the Chicago Blackhawks dealing goaltender Robin Lehner to the Vegas Golden Knights. While the 28-year-old Lehner signing a one-year deal in Chicago this summer was strange in the first place, it was beginning to look like it was merely the first step in a long-term relationship between the two sides. Lehner, although splitting time evenly with Corey Crawford, was enjoying a good season and looked like he could be the team’s starter moving forward with the 35-year-old Crawford also on an expiring contract. Instead, he was traded away for backup Malcolm Subban, a prospect, and a second-round pick. His recent comments about his time in Chicago make it all but certain that Lehner will not be playing for the Blackhawks again.

Chicago’s situation in net is now more unclear than any other team in the NHL. Yet, even without any potential long-term solution in place, GM Stan Bowman told the Chicago Sun Times’ Ben Pope that the team will definitely have a “proven NHL goalie signed for next year.” The question is who?

Bowman specifically named Crawford, Subban, Collin Delia, and Kevin Lankinen as internal options for next season. However, any of those names would come as a disappointment to ‘Hawks fans as next season’s starter. The veteran Crawford is in the final season of a six-year, $36MM contract, over the course of which he has gone from elite to replacement-level and has missed significant time to boot. Crawford can no longer be relied upon as an NHL starter, at least not for a playoff team, and giving him an extension would not be well received by many of the team’s supporters. With that said, he would still be the best option if the team stays internal. None of Subban, Delia, or Lankinen could possibly fit Bowman’s description of “proven”; Subban and Delia have a combined 83 NHL appearances and Lankinen has yet to make his on-ice debut in the league. Subban struggled in his role as primary backup to Marc-Andre Fleury in Vegas, forcing the aging netminder to take on a heavy workload, while Delia also had a difficult time in the role for a brief time last season. Neither appears to be NHL starter material at the very least and Lankinen is completely unproven. So are any of the current Blackhawks keepers really candidates to be Bowman’s starter?

If the Blackhawks want to return to relevance in the NHL, they must bring in an outside candidate to take the starter’s job next season. However, the open market also doesn’t offer any obvious fits. With Lehner presumably off the table, the top candidates who could be available in free agency are Braden Holtby, Jacob Markstrom, Anton Khudobin, Jaroslav Halak, Thomas Greiss, and Mike Smith.

Holtby is undoubtedly the top available name and the best fit as a true workhorse starter for the Blackhawks, but with nearly $72MM committed to just 15 players for next season, Chicago would have to work some magic on the cap to make space to sign Holtby. Even with room to sign him, they would also need to take into account that Holtby is also on the wrong side of 30 and has struggled this season with the Washington Capitals.

Next in line would be Markstrom, who from an ability, age, and cost perspective makes a lot of sense for Chicago. The problem is that he also makes a lot of sense to the Vancouver Canucks, who are expected to re-sign him. If Markstrom is out there, expect the Blackhawks to be one of a number of interested suitors, but potentially the leader of the pack.

Based on recent results, the trio of Khudobin, Halak, and Greiss would be the next level down. All three veterans have been stellar over the past two years albeit playing in backup roles. Any of them could improve the Blackhawks’ results when in net, but the problem is that they would likely leave upwards of 35-40 games for the likes of Delia, Subban, or Lankinen (assuming the latter two RFA’s are qualified) to handle. This does not exactly sound like a fix for Chicago, but it could be better than nothing. All three would be relatively inexpensive additions who have a track record of getting the job done, given adequate rest. Khudobin has been the best of the three this season, while Halak is the most experienced and Greiss’ role with the New York Islanders in recent years has most closely resembled a starter.

Smith is another strong candidate, assuming he is available. Like Markstrom, there is a good chance that Smith could re-sign with his current team, the Edmonton Oilers. There is also the possibility that the 38-year-old could retire. If not though, Smith checks a number of boxes. While serving as more of a split-time goalie this season, Smith has been a starter for much of his career, dating back to the late 2000’s. His numbers are not fantastic – in fact, Crawford has been better this season – nor is he a long-term plan, but Smith would provide a change in net and stable if unspectacular play. His price should not be high and his market should not be overwhelming. If the Blackhawks are simply looking for a fresh face and a stopgap while they wait for superior options, Smith could be the guy.

Of course, the team could also go the trade route this summer. The New York Rangers could be selling either superstar Henrik Lundqvist or young Alexandar Georgiev, either of whom would provide and upgrade in the Chicago net. Struggling starters Martin Jones of San Jose and Pekka Rinne of Nashville could become available, as could former starters who have been replaced such as Arizona’s Antti Raanta or Pittsburgh’s Matt Murray. The signings of Holtby, Lehner, and others could also displace other names. It’s hard to predict the off-season trade market at this point, but given the lack of obvious options in free agency, it is safe to assume that Bowman will kick some tires. But will cap constraints and lacking trade capital limit their ability in this market as well?

What do you think? Who will be the Blackhawks’ starting goalie in 2020-21?

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Poll: Which Team Was The Biggest Trade Deadline Winner?

at CDT | by 11 Comments

The trade deadline this season was more eventful than usual. After a number of deals went down in the days leading up to February 24th, the actual event was still something to behold. 32 transactions went down, including names like Vincent Trocheck, Brady Skjei and Jean-Gabriel Pageau switching teams. Several of the rebuilding squads added assets for the future, while contenders loaded up for a chance at the Stanley Cup.

But who was the biggest winner?

The first team that may come to mind is the Carolina Hurricanes, who added three legitimate NHL talents to their already impressive group. Skjei, Trocheck and Sami Vatanen join a team that went to the Eastern Conference Finals a year ago, making them even more dangerous. But it’s important to remember that the Hurricanes aren’t even guaranteed a playoff spot at this point in the crowded Metropolitan, and had to give away several future pieces to bring in this new talent.

At the other end of that spectrum of course are the Ottawa Senators, who parted with a few pending unrestricted free agents but added five more draft picks to the cupboard. While re-signing Pageau may have been more exciting for a fanbase that has watched so many players leave over the years, getting first- and second-round picks for him is an impressive accomplishment. The Senators did exactly what they hoped to do at the deadline, even if it won’t result in an improved product this season.

There are other teams too that had interesting days, including the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights. Ken Holland and the Oilers front office brought in some extra talent to play with Connor McDavid and company, while the Golden Knights nabbed the best goaltender on the market to secure their net in the postseason. The Anaheim Ducks sold off several pieces to bring in some high-upside talent, though few of the moves seem to really push the needle at this point.

With a few days of clarity on the situation, which team do you think “won” the trade deadline? Which team executed their plan and filled their needs? Cast your vote below and make sure to explain in the comments. The full trade deadline breakdown can be found here, though feel free to explain why some of the other recent deals could influence your vote.

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