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Schedule

NHL Standings By Points Percentage

March 12, 2020 at 2:27 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee 8 Comments

One of the biggest questions now that the NHL has decided to temporarily suspend the season is what will happen in the playoffs. The league did not explain what the plan was at this point because there is no clear timeline on when the season will resume (if at all), but many have speculated about how they would decide which teams qualify should there not be time to play any more regular season games.

The prevailing thought if the season is forced to go right into the playoffs, would be that points percentage—rather than points in the standings—is how the seeding is determined.  That’s because teams have not played the same number of games to this point, with the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Islanders bringing up the rear with 68 games played, three fewer than those who have completed the most.

In that case, some interesting changes would happen to the standings. The Atlantic Division standings would stay the same, with the Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs still leading in points percentage. The Metropolitan would be where it would come into play however, as the Islanders currently have a better percentage than the Blue Jackets, despite trailing them by one point in the standings. The Blue Jackets just so happen to hold the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.

Over in the Western Conference there is a similar situation. The Nashville Predators are just barely ahead of the Winnipeg Jets in percentage, despite being two points behind them in the standings. The Vancouver Canucks are also just ahead of the Calgary Flames, meaning both divisions would have a swap.

Of course, none of this is certain to play out at this point. The NHL may resume the regular season and play out the dozen or so games left for each team, or may not be able to return to normal at all this year. There are also other options like a play-in tournament that some have suggested. For now, we’ll just have to wait and see what comes about in the next weeks and months. The full standings by points percentage is as follows:

Atlantic Division

x-Boston Bruins: .714, 44-14-12
x-Tampa Bay Lightning: .657, 43-21-6
x-Toronto Maple Leafs: .579, 36-25-9
Florida Panthers: .565, 35-26-8
Montreal Canadiens: .500, 31-31-9
Buffalo Sabres: .493, 30-31-8
Ottawa Senators: .437, 25-34-12
Detroit Red Wings: .275, 17-49-5

Metropolitan Division

x-Washington Capitals: .652, 41-20-8
x-Philadelphia Flyers: .645, 41-21-7
x-Pittsburgh Penguins: .623, 40-23-6
w1-Carolina Hurricanes: .596, 38-25-5
w2-New York Islanders: .588, 35-23-10
Columbus Blue Jackets: .579, 33-22-15
New York Rangers: .564, 37-28-5
New Jersey Devils: .493, 28-29-12

Central Division

x-St. Louis Blues: .662, 42-19-10
x-Colorado Avalanche: .657, 42-20-8
x-Dallas Stars: .594, 37-24-8
w1-Nashville Predators: .565, 35-26-8
Winnipeg Jets: .563, 37-28-6
Minnesota Wild: .558, 35-27-7
Chicago Blackhawks: .514, 32-30-8

Pacific Division

x-Vegas Golden Knights: .606, 39-24-8
x-Edmonton Oilers: .585, 37-25-9
x-Vancouver Canucks: .565, 36-27-6
w2-Calgary Flames: .564, 36-27-7
Arizona Coyotes: .529, 33-29-8
Anaheim Ducks: .472, 29-33-9
Los Angeles Kings: .457, 29-35-6
San Jose Sharks: .450, 29-36-5

x = Divisional Playoff Spot
w = Wildcard Playoff Spot

Schedule| Statistics

8 comments

Overseas Notes: Coronavirus, World Championships, Sticks, Jokipakka

March 1, 2020 at 4:00 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 2 Comments

As the coronavirus crisis continues to creep into every corner of day-to-day life, it was only a matter of time before it started to have a major impact on hockey. IIHF President Rene Fasel has revealed to the Swiss media that the threat of coronavirus is being taken seriously as it pertains to upcoming international tournaments. Fasel states that the IIHF’s medical commission is currently meeting to discuss the potential cancellations of any international events in March and April. This would include the U-18 World Junior Championships, scheduled to be held in Michigan in April. Should the sickness persist, the IIHF will also have to consider cancelling the 2020 World Championships, slated to take place in Switzerland in May. Fasel gives March 15th as the date when these difficult decisions will begin to have to be made. This appears to be a decision based wholly on health risks, as the tournaments are insured against cancellation and neither the IIHF nor the hosts would be facing financial loss. With that said, Fasel also ruled out the possibility that tournaments could still be held but just closed to the public. With no end to the coronavirus outbreak in sight, it appears more likely than not that the U-18’s and World Championships this year could be the next victims of the disease.

  • Of course, this is not the first link between coronavirus and hockey, as the mass shutdown of the Chinese economy has greatly limited the supply of sticks to the NHL and other levels of the game. Both Bauer and CCM have their primary factories in the country most greatly affected by this outbreak and neither have been in operation for weeks, while shipping to North America has also been halted. Players across the league have begun to stock up on sticks as they face the possibility of a coming shortage. NHL players, who often order custom sticks in small batches, may have to work with what they have through the rest of the season and possibly into the postseason.
  • In non-pandemic news, former NHLer Jyrki Jokipakka has benefited greatly from a move to Europe. Now with his second team in his third season since leaving North America, Jokipakka was the undisputed top defender for the KHL’s Sibir Novosibirk this season, leading the team in time on ice and finishing near the top in assists, points, and blocked shots. He also finished among the top-ten producers on defense league-wide. While Sibir has not yet begun their Gagarin Cup playoff campaign, Jokipakka is already the bright spot of the season for the team. The club opted to reward him for his success with a new two-year extension. Jokipakka flashed ability in the NHL, but never able to put it all together in stops with the Dallas Stars, Calgary Flames, and Ottawa Senators. So, while the 28-year-old could have waited to see if there was NHL interest this off-season, it seems like he has made the right choice to stick with where he has finally found consistent success and is valued as a top contributor.

Calgary Flames| Dallas Stars| IIHF| KHL| Ottawa Senators| Players| Schedule Jyrki Jokipakka| World Championships

2 comments

Wild To Host Blues In 2021 Winter Classic

February 23, 2020 at 8:43 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose 4 Comments

Earlier this month, the NHL revealed that Carolina would be hosting their first-ever outdoor game next season (against an opponent that’s yet to be determined) but it wouldn’t be in the Winter Classic.  Now, we know which two teams will be competing on New Years’ Day as the league announced that the Wild will host the Blues for the 13th edition of the event that first began in 2008. It will be the 31st outdoor game in NHL history.

This will be Minnesota’s first-ever time hosting the event though it won’t be their first outdoor game.  They hosted a game against Chicago as part of the Stadium Series back in 2016 and won that game 6-1.  Meanwhile, this will also be the second time that St. Louis plays outdoors.  They hosted the 2017 edition of the Winter Classic (also against Chicago) and won that game 4-1.

That will be the only other outdoor game on the schedule for the 2020-21 season.  There have been talks about another Heritage Classic game in Canada but that won’t come until 2021-22 at the earliest.

Minnesota Wild| Schedule| St. Louis Blues

4 comments

League Notes: Rescheduling, Julien, Kane

February 17, 2020 at 10:25 am CDT | by Zach Leach 6 Comments

After the game between the St. Louis Blues and Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday was postponed following Jay Bouwmeester’s cardiac event on the bench, it was clear that the Blues’ schedule would be in for a shake-up in order to make up the game. With limited time left in the season – adding a 23rd game to the Blues’ schedule over the remaining 48 games of the regular season –  was not going to be easy, especially when the team needed to return to Southern California despite not having any more road games scheduled against the Pacific Division. The NHL did their best to find the best time to play the game and the Blues have announced the re-worked schedule. The team will now resume their game with the Ducks on Wednesday, March 11th. Their home game against the Florida Panther that had been scheduled for March 10th has now been moved up a day to March 9th as well. St. Louis will now wrap up a road trip through New York, New Jersey, and Chicago on March 8th, return home on the 9th, fly to Anaheim for the 11th, and then head back home to face the Sharks on the 13th. It will be a busy week for sure, but likely preferable to making the game up with an extra day after the end of the regular season, as the Panthers and Bruins did two years ago. As for the postponed game itself, the league has decided to keep the points on the board but re-start with a fresh 60 minutes rather than account for the first nine minutes of play from the previous game. As such, the Blues and Ducks will begin the game at 1-1, but there will be no other changes from a typical regular season game.

  • Montreal Canadiens head coach Claude Julien has been fined $10,000 for remarks he made about the officiating in the team’s game on Saturday, the league announced. The game in question, a 4-3 overtime loss to the Dallas Stars, featured a number of missed penalties suffered by the Canadiens. In fact, the team did not have a single power play in the game. A frustrated Julien listed many of the missed calls in his postgame availability and called the officiating “embarrassing”. Perhaps the most incriminating line was Julien’s implication that the calls were skewed in Dallas’ favor, as he stated that Montreal “had to beat two teams.” While it fair to criticize officiating and to wish that there was more accountability for a poor job by the referees, the league is never going to tolerate such public comments, especially by a head coach. Julien had to have known that a fine was coming, so this should not come as much of a shock, fair or not.
  • San Jose Sharks forward Evander Kane is also unhappy with the league’s officials, both on the ice and within the Department of Player Safety. Kane was suspended three games for an elbow to the head of Winnipeg defenseman Neal Pionk on Friday. Kane spoke out on the suspension and his gripe was not with his individual penalty, but with the inconsistency of the call. “There have been countless incidents of the same nature through this season and past seasons that have gone unsuspended or (un)fined,” Kane said. “No one person can tell you what is and isn’t a suspension in today’s game, it’s a complete guess. There is a major lack of consistency with NHL Department of Player Safety… You can’t continue to give some players a pass and throw the book at others.” The Hockey News’ Ken Campbell concurs with Kane’s statement, pointing out a very recent example. Just last week, Arizona Coyotes forward Lawson Crouse hit Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy in the head with an elbow and received only a roughing minor. Not only was the hit nearly identical to that of Kane on Pionk, but it was also very similar to another hit in the same game, a check by the Bruins’ Jeremy Lauzon on the Coyotes’ Derek Stepan that earned Lauzon a two-game suspension. The inconsistency of the Department of Player Safety, as well as on-ice officials, is well-documented, but this is the first time that any player has spoken out so publicly about it. Perhaps Kane’s call to action will do more than just earn him an additional fine. He is advocating for a third party to review all questionable hits and penalties rather than the NHL, which could become a bargaining plea for the players in the next CBA if the league does not improve in this area.

Anaheim Ducks| CBA| Claude Julien| Florida Panthers| Montreal Canadiens| NHL| Penalties| Schedule| St. Louis Blues Evander Kane| Jay Bouwmeester| Neal Pionk

6 comments

Boston Bruins Extend Jeremy Lauzon

February 14, 2020 at 1:40 pm CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Fresh off of serving his two-game suspension, Jeremy Lauzon is getting a nice new contract. The Boston Bruins have signed Lauzon to a two-year extension that carries an average annual value of $850K. The young defenseman was scheduled to become a restricted free agent at the end of the year, but will now be under contract through 2021-22.

Lauzon, 22, was originally selected 52nd overall in 2015 and is now on the precipice of becoming a full-time NHL player. Though he has only spent 23 games at that level so far in his short career the future, both in terms of performance and situation, look bright. The Bruins have three significant defenders—Torey Krug, Zdeno Chara and Kevan Miller—all scheduled for unrestricted free agency, and with it opportunity for some of the younger options.

The fact that Lauzon is now under contract for so little will only help his chances of staying in Boston. An $850K cap hit is just a little more than the league minimum, meaning they can fit him in even if they were to spend big to keep Krug around. There are plenty of options for the Bruins, but they obviously believe that Lauzon can contribute down the road.

The young defenseman could potentially be eligible for Group VI unrestricted free agency at the end of the deal, should he fail to play in another 57 games at the NHL level. That likely won’t be an issue, but is at least something to remember over the next two years.

Boston Bruins| Schedule Jeremy Lauzon

0 comments

Columbus Blue Jackets Extend Dean Kukan

February 7, 2020 at 11:09 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 3 Comments

The Columbus Blue Jackets have decided to reward one of their emerging defensemen with a new contract. Dean Kukan has signed a two-year extension with the club. Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports the deal will pay Kukan $1.3MM in 2020-21 and $2.0MM in 2021-22 (for an AAV of $1.65MM). Blue Jackets’ GM Jarmo Kekalainen released a short statement:

Dean is a smart and quick, puck-moving defenseman that has improved steadily since joining our organization in 2015. We are very happy that he will continue to be an important part of our club’s deep and talented group of defensemen.

Kukan was scheduled to become a restricted free agent at the end of the season and currently carries a $725K cap hit. The 26-year old undrafted defenseman came to the Blue Jackets organization as a free agent in 2015 after several years in the Swedish Hockey league, and has slowly worked his way up the depth chart. This season he has suited up 33 times in the NHL and has five points, though a recent injury has kept him out of the lineup.

The Blue Jackets, intent on proving they were always more than just Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky, have exceeded expectations this season with a core led by Seth Jones, Zach Werenski, Cam Atkinson and Pierre-Luc Dubois. The first three names of that group are signed at very reasonable prices for the next several years, while Dubois is coming off his entry-level deal. With savvy extensions for depth players like Kukan and a development system that is churning out NHL-level talent, Kekalainen’s organization is looking like one of the strongest in the Eastern Conference.

The question now will be how they work their way through a few drafts without much pick capital after spending it at the deadline last season, but acquiring players like Kukan has softened the blow.

Columbus Blue Jackets| Schedule Dean Kukan

3 comments

Minor Transactions: 12/30/19

December 30, 2019 at 9:41 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

With just one game on the schedule for this evening, teams are licking their wounds waiting for the New Year and the second half of the NHL season. The Ottawa Senators and Pittsburgh Penguins will be in action, but even those on a rest day will be making minor tweaks. As those come in, we’ll list them here.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs recalled Timothy Liljegren and Teemu Kivihalme, two defensemen yet to make their NHL debuts. The Maple Leafs already lost Jake Muzzin to a broken foot and need to replace him on the roster. It seems Kivihalme will get the first shot, as Liljegren has already been returned to the AHL Marlies.
  • With Charlie McAvoy going onto injured reserve, the Boston Bruins have recalled Jeremy Lauzon under emergency conditions. McAvoy hasn’t played since before Christmas, though the injury isn’t expected to keep him out long-term. The Bruins got some good news on the injury front as well, activating forward Karson Kuhlman from the injured reserve and assigning him to AHL Providence.
  • Calvin Pickard has been recalled by the Detroit Red Wings once again, giving them another healthy goaltender. Pickard has ended up playing two games for Detroit this season, but has a 5.32 GAA and .818 save percentage.
  • Mathieu Joseph is heading back to the minor leagues once again, something the Tampa Bay Lightning have done several times this month. The young forward has still spent most of his season with the NHL club, but is bouncing back and forth lately.
  • The San Jose Sharks have recalled forward Joachim Blichfield from the AHL Barracuda, giving the youngster another opportunity after he made his NHL debut early last month. Blichfield has been one San Jose’s best minor league forwards this season and the struggling Sharks could use an offensive boost if he can translate his game to the next level.
  • Daniel Sprong is back in the NHL after a brief layover with the AHL’s San Diego Gulls. The Anaheim Ducks called up the young forward, who has spent considerable time with the team this year, but has only actually played in one game. Sprong recorded 19 points in 47 games with the Ducks last year and already has 19 points in 25 games with the Gulls, so he has the potential to make an impact in Anaheim if given the chance.
  • With the Minnesota Wild activating captain Mikko Koivu, the team has reassigned rookie forward Nico Sturm to AHL Iowa. Sturm, a highly sought-after college free agent last spring, has 12 points in 25 games wIowa this year and a pair of points in six games with Minnesota as well.

AHL| Anaheim Ducks| Boston Bruins| Detroit Red Wings| Injury| Ottawa Senators| Pittsburgh Penguins| San Jose Sharks| Schedule| Tampa Bay Lightning| Toronto Maple Leafs| Transactions Calvin Pickard| Charlie McAvoy| Daniel Sprong| Jake Muzzin| Mathieu Joseph| Timothy Liljegren

0 comments

Blues’ Robert Bortuzzo Suspended Four Games For Cross-Checking

November 24, 2019 at 4:15 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 3 Comments

4:24 PM — The Department of Player Safety announced they have suspended Bortuzzo four games for cross-checking Arvidsson, who is now listed as being out for four to six weeks because of the incident. Bortuzzo will sacrifice $67,073.16 in salary.

8:47 AM — Nashville Predators forward Viktor Arvidsson celebrated his 300th career NHL game with just 4:15 of ice time. While he managed to record an assist in that brief period, he left the game early in the first period with a lower body injury as a result of repeated cross-checks from St. Louis Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo. Bortuzzo received a two-minute minor on the play, even though each of the two cross-checks likely deserved its own penalty. However, the league will make up for that on-ice error. The NHL Department of Player Safety announced last night that Bortuzzo will sit for a hearing. It has been scheduled for Sunday, ensuring that there is a decision before he could potentially face the Predators again on Monday night.

The play in question occurred just six minutes into Saturday night’s game (video). Arvidsson, standing in the St. Louis crease as the puck was loose in front of the net, initially receives a forceful check from behind from Bortuzzo, pushing him into the net. Bortuzzo actually turns and complains to the refs about how easily Arvidsson went down, even though the forward was completely blindsided by a hit from a much bigger, stronger player. Bortuzzo then turns back to Arvidsson and hits him with another cross check as he is trying to get up, one that is arguably harder and more dangerous and certainly more intentional. Arvidsson appears to feel this second check even more. For good measure, Blues goalie Jordan Binnington then shoves Arvidsson back into the goal again, although Binnington is not expected to receive any supplemental disclipline.

Few will be surprised to see Bortuzzo’s name linked to a player safety incident. The often-overly aggressive defender is a repeat offender, with his most recent suspension coming just last year after an elbow to the head of Washington Capitals defenseman Michal Kempny. He lost two preseason games and one regular season games for that incident and the league will likely want to dole out a harsher penalty for yet another infraction. Bortuzzo has made his career off of being the biggest and toughest player on the ice, but has been known to lose his cool and end up in the penalty box or in trouble with the league. This was clearly a case of Bortuzzo purposefully committing a dangerous penalty against an opponent with an intent to injure. As such, Player Safety may choose to send a message to a player who clearly has yet to learn his lesson. Expect a suspension of at least two games for the St. Louis blue liner this time around.

Injury| Nashville Predators| Schedule| St. Louis Blues| Washington Capitals Jordan Binnington| Michal Kempny| NHL Player Safety| Robert Bortuzzo| Viktor Arvidsson

3 comments

Minor Transactions: 10/31/19

October 31, 2019 at 10:12 am CDT | by Gavin Lee 2 Comments

Happy Halloween hockey fans! There are just two games on the schedule tonight, but it’s hard to imagine a better venue for a dress-up night than in Vegas where the Golden Knights will welcome in the Montreal Canadiens. Last night saw some spooky finishes too, with Taylor Hall of the New Jersey Devils even saying that the team is “kind of battling their own fans” after being booed consistently as they fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-6.

As always, here are the minor moves around the hockey world.

  • The Ottawa Senators have recalled J.C. Beaudin and Filip Chlapik once again, the same move they’ve made a few times now. Ottawa doesn’t play until Saturday night and is trying to keep their young players as fresh as possible with game opportunities in the minor leagues as well.
  • With a back-to-back coming for the Columbus Blue Jackets, the team has recalled Markus Hannikainen as an extra forward. Columbus is in St. Louis tomorrow to take on the Blues before returning home for a date against the Calgary Flames on Saturday night.
  • Kyle Capobianco is on his way back to the AHL, indicating that the Arizona Coyotes may be getting someone back from injury soon. The 22-year old defenseman has played in six games this season, even scoring his first NHL goal.
  • Alexander Volkov apparently did enough to stay with the Tampa Bay Lightning in his NHL debut last night, as the team has instead sent Cory Conacher back to the minor leagues.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins have sent Sam Lafferty back to the minor leagues, another sign that Evgeni Malkin will indeed return on Saturday as planned. The 24-year old Lafferty showed that he could contribute at the NHL level, scoring six points in ten games this season despite relatively limited minutes.

Columbus Blue Jackets| Ottawa Senators| Pittsburgh Penguins| Schedule| St. Louis Blues| Tampa Bay Lightning| Transactions| Utah Mammoth Filip Chlapik| Markus Hannikainen

2 comments

College Hockey Round-Up: 10/30/19

October 30, 2019 at 9:01 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 1 Comment

The college hockey season is a month old, but only a handful of teams have played more than six games so far. Yet, just three schools remain undefeated (not including the Ivy League’s of course, who have yet to begin play.) Those three teams are No. 1 Denver, No. 2 Minnesota State, and No. 5 Notre Dame. The Pioneers are an impressive 6-0 and have a good chance of remaining unbeaten through their upcoming weekend series with Niagara. The Mavericks are 5-0-1, with their one tie coming against another national powerhouse, No. 14 North Dakota. Other than that one tie, Minnesota State has allowed just four goals in their five wins. The Fighting Irish sit in fifth nationally behind UMass and Cornell as their 4-0 record has not exactly featured the most menacing competition in Air Force and Lake Superior State. Yet, as they begin Big Ten Conference play, Notre Dame is sure to be tested with series against Minnesota, No. 13 Ohio State, and No. 7 Wisconsin next up. Which team will stay undefeated the longest? And could an Ivy League like Cornell or Harvard enter the battle of the unbeaten?

Recent Results

Two weeks ago, college hockey fans were treated to an epic early-season clash between the defending NCAA champions, No. 6 Minnesota-Duluth, and a popular pick to win it all this season, Wisconsin. The two-game series in Madison wasn’t as close as many expected though, as the young, star-studded Badgers took both games by a combined score of 9-3. The Bulldogs edged out two wins against their flagship rival Minnesota this past weekend to sit at 3-3 on the year and have their recent seasons of dominance to thank for their continued presence in the top ten, but that won’t save them all season. Meanwhile, Wisconsin suffered a shutout loss to No. 11 Clarkson this weekend, but picked up the win in the second game. Through six games, the team is tied for the NCAA lead in goals for, led by college hockey’s top goal-scorer, Cole Caufield (MTL), and his fellow first-round pick Alex Turcotte (LAK).

The program tied at the top of the scoring race with the Badgers is No. 8 Providence College. The Friars are spreading the scoring wealth, with three players among the top six in points. Jack Dugan (VGK) and his 14 points lead the NCAA by a relatively wide margin, as the 2017 fifth-round pick is off to a blazing start. Tyce Thompson (NJD) is tied for second with 11 points and Greg Printz, who led the way after two weeks, sits in sixth. Despite the considerable offense from Providence, the team is 4-2 with a stunning loss to Holy Cross early on and a heartbreaker against No. 17 UMass Lowell this weekend.

And what of the top teams in the country? Denver has certainly earned their top billing in college hockey so far. They picked up two wins against a loaded No. 15 Boston College squad two weeks back, including a 3-0 shutout. Freshman keeper Magnus Chrona (TBL) continues to be stellar in net with a .930 save percentage and 1.83 GAA in six wins for the Pioneers, while highly-regarded defenseman Ian Mitchell (CHI) is one of the league leaders in scoring among defenseman. Also among that group is UMass freshman Zac Jones (NYR), who is showing that the Minutemen can indeed survive without Cale Makar. After a tough loss to Northeastern – and arguably the best goalie in college hockey thus far, graduate transfer Craig Pantano – UMass rebounded with a convincing sweep of Union and a win over nearby American International. Behind a shutdown tandem of Matt Murray and Filip Lindberg (MIN), it may prove hard for opponents to pick up wins in Amherst this year. The team hopes to prove that point when they face the Huskies again in a home-and-home this weekend. Finally, Minnesota State stayed unbeaten with a win and tie against North Dakota and two easy W’s against Alabama-Huntsville. The team’s stingy defense – eight goals allowed in six games – and the serious skill of Nathan Smith (WPG) make Mankato a dangerous place to play this season.

What To Expect From Cornell

The Cornell Big Red have played exactly zero games so far this season. Yet, they have held on to their No. 4 spot through a month of play. After an impressive 2018-19 campaign, expectations are high for Cornell to replicate their success. But are those expectations realistic?

The team unofficially kicked off their season this weekend with an exhibition game against the U.S. National Team Development Program. While this isn’t the historic USNTDP group of last year, it is still a talented squad that features many of the players who will be star freshman in the NCAA next year. Yet, the Big Red made them look like the junior team they are, shutting out the American standouts 3-0. Next up is Michigan State, before they begin their ECAC schedule.

The unrivaled star of the team is Morgan Barron (NYR). The Rangers pick has far exceeded his sixth round expectations already and just narrowly missed out on a point-per-game campaign last year. Barron led Cornell in goals and points last season with his physical brand of offensive ability. However, he’s now missing the lightning to his thunder, as slick winger Mitchell Vanderlaan graduated and moved on to the ECHL. If the Big Red are to avoid regression this season, Barron will need to be even better and the likes of Cam Donaldson, Michael Regush, and impressive goaltender Matthew Galajda will have to step up. Fortunately, the veteran group is accustomed to playing with one another; it’s one of the team’s greatest strengths and could allow a potential impact freshman like defenseman Alex Green (TBL) to play a more confident game right away.

Connor Mackey Drawing Interest

While Minnesota State’s defensive prowess over the past few years has most often been credited to talented netminder Dryden McKay, NHL scouts have their eyes on another key member of that effort. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that defenseman Connor Mackey has met with at least seven NHL teams about his impending free agency. Mackey is expected to be one of the top college free agents available this spring.

Many actually believed Mackey, 23, would turn pro this past summer, but he decided to go for another run at an NCAA title with the Mavericks. However, it’s hard to imagine the junior blue liner making that decision a second time. Mackey already has four points in six games to go along with a team-leading 13 penalty minutes, which is right in line with last season, when he recorded 25 points a team-high 55 penalty minutes. A dual-threat puck-mover and physical force, Mackey plays a well-rounded style and has matured his game at the college level. Mackey may not have elite skill, size, or skating ability, but he does everything well and projects as an all-situations defender at the pro level.

Friedman speculates that the Winnipeg Jets, who suddenly have a massive need for both immediate and long-term defensive help, could be the top suitor for Mackey’s talents. However, the Minnesota Wild are surely keeping an eye on the nearby prospect, while the Chicago Blackhawks could also pursue the Illinois native. And that’s just three teams. With at least seven interested in October, it could be quite the pursuit later this season when Mackey moves on from Mankato and begins his pro career.

Chicago Blackhawks| Free Agency| NCAA| New York Rangers| Schedule| Winnipeg Jets Cole Caufield| Elliotte Friedman| Ian Mitchell

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    Eleven Players Elect Salary Arbitration

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    Hurricanes Sign Nikolaj Ehlers To Six-Year Deal

    Sharks Sign Dmitry Orlov, Claim Nick Leddy

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