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Snapshots: Award Voting, League FAQ, World Championship

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Over the weekend, our readership chose Quinn Hughes as the overwhelming favorite for the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie, should the season end without any more games being played. If the same question were asked of the staff at The Athletic, they’d give you a different answer.

Many of the top writers from around the hockey world got together and mock-voted on the awards (subscription required), resulting in Cale Makar edging out Hughes for the trophy. It is a shame that these two phenoms may not be able to finish out their freshmen seasons, but both will certainly have long careers. That’s not the only surprising outcome in The Athletic’s piece, which includes finalists for each award.

  • The NHL released an updated FAQ regarding the paused 2019-20 season, and one thing now included is the determination that the 2020-21 season will be played in its entirety. That’s a line deputy commissioner Bill Daly has been repeating in recent media appearances, making it clear that one of the league’s top priorities is maintaining an 82-game campaign next season.
  • Speaking of frequently asked questions, the IIHF did the same for their recently canceled 2020 World Championship. Interestingly though, they include a note that says “at this time, it cannot be determined if it will be possible for the World Championship to be postponed to a later date in 2020…” potentially leaving the door open to hold the tournament at some future point this year.

Snapshots: 2020-21 Season, Trade Conditions, 2020 Draft

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While hockey minds are hard at work trying to come up with a plan to fairly complete the 2019-20 NHL regular season and playoffs, if and when the league returns to action, those strategies cannot interfere with a full 2020-21 season. TSN’s Pierre Lebrun relays word from NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly that the league sees an 82-game season next year as imperative and will not entertain any options that call for a shortened 2020-21 season due to the interference with the 2019-20 campaign. With that said, LeBrun adds that the league will be flexible when it comes to start and end dates and schedule density next year, so long as each team plays 82 games. This could allow for the NHL to adopt an idea that has become popular amongst players during the break: a brief training camp and resumption of regular season play in July, an August and September postseason, an October off-season, and a return to action for a condensed 2020-21 season at some point in November. LeBrun notes that a cancellation of bye weeks and All-Star events next year could help to make a plan like this become reality. The NHL will look at all of their options, assuming there is a possibility that the current season can resume, to make next season run as normally as possible with 82 games being the critical criteria.

  • Should the NHL not be able to complete the 2019-20 season as scheduled, TSN’s Frank Seravalli states that one of biggest things that the NHL will need to clarify is a policy on trade and contract conditions. Those conditions are made with the implication of an 82-game schedule, as well as a full postseason. If those things become an impossibility, is there a fair way to determine whether conditions were met or not? Seravalli uses last summer’s trade between Pacific Division rivals Edmonton and Calgary as an example. In the swap of Milan Lucic for James Neal, a unique condition was added that awards the Flames a 2020 third-round pick if a) Neal scores at least 21 goals and b) Lucic scores ten or more goals fewer than Neal. As it stands, Neal has 19 goals on the season, so the first condition would not be met if the season ended today. However, since the deal was made with the assumption of 82 games, a pro-rated result would see Neal with 23 goals and Lucic with nine, which would result in Calgary landing the pick. The problem, as Seravalli describes, with either strategy is that it does not accurately make up for missed games. With a number of conditional picks and bonus clauses in play, the NHL would face the tough task of how it decides to treat conditions if the regular season and possibly the playoffs as well cannot be completed. Seravalli even mentions compensatory draft picks as a possibility to offset effected trade conditions.
  • One league event that is certain to occur, at some point and in some manner, is the 2020 NHL Draft. The draft is likely to remain in Montreal, but the June 26-27 dates look unlikely and the usual public audience and organized fanfare would be even more improbable if the event does go on as scheduled. In all likelihood, the draft will be postponed, but it will occur all the same. As such, NHL.com has released their updated March rankings of the top 31 players in the class. Although there hasn’t been much new film to study in recent weeks, with junior leagues paused, the college season cancelled, and most European leagues ending as well, the staff at NHL.com has made a notable changes since their last edition earlier this month. Finnish forward Anton Lundell has snuck into the top ten, supplanting Russian goaltender Yaroslav Askarov. Much like eventual Florida Panthers pick Spencer Knight last year, there was heavy top-ten talk about Askarov this season as well, but it has cooled somewhat of late as the depth of elite forward in the class could make it difficult to select a netminder so early.

Snapshots: Timelines, Juniors, College Signings

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It sounds like many NHL players are as restless as the average hockey fan while waiting for the season to resume. The panel on TSN’s Insider Trading outlined a return to action timeline that a group of players has been developing and will submit to the NHLPA, which includes playing the rest of the regular season games in late July.

A plan like this would obviously be exciting for fans as hockey would be played throughout the summer, but there would be an incredible amount of logistics to be worked out. Part of the reasoning behind the plan may also be financial in nature, as players want the league to recoup all of their potential gate revenue in order to not get dinged with even higher escrow numbers than expected. None of the timelines being discussed have any legs at this point, given how there is so much uncertainty there still is on when the season could be allowed to resume. Remember however, that deputy commissioner Bill Daly was clear when speaking with Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic recently that the league does not intend on shortening the 2020-21 season if they can help it, at least in terms of games played.

  • The QMJHL has canceled the remainder of their regular season, meaning playoff seeding will be based on points percentage should it resume at some point. That same move is expected by the WHL according to Bob McKenzie of TSN, with the OHL also discussing their future tomorrow on a conference call. McKenzie suggests that the CHL playoffs at this point are a “long shot” and also notes that the Memorial Cup, which was originally set to start on May 22nd, is scheduled in a province that recently mandated no sporting events with more than 50 people could take place before June.
  • While college free agents continue to sign with NHL organizations, there is some concern rising around the league that some teams are gaining an unfair advantage in negotiations according to Andy Strickland of Fox Sports Midwest. Strickland suggests that some teams may find it more difficult to pay out bonus money to college and European signings while in a suspended league state, noting the difference in cash flow between organizations like the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers. It’s not clear however what would be done to stop teams from negotiating, especially when any contract signed would likely be ticketed to start with the 2020-21 season.

Snapshots: GM Conference Call, SHL Playoffs, Kubalik

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NHL general managers held a conference call with the league this afternoon. TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that much of the call revolved around the memo that the NHL sent out Friday regarding what teams can and cannot do during this self-isolation that the league has set due to the Coronavirus. There is a chance that players may be allowed to skate at team facilities in small groups at a later date, but nothing concrete has been set.

LeBrun added that there was no discussion on a potential schedule or playoffs when the NHL lifts its suspension. It is believed that it is far too early to begin discussing potential scenarios with not enough information available yet on when the season may begin again.

  • The Swedish Hockey League reported on their own website (translation required) that due to everybody’s health and safety due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the league has requested to the Swedish Ice Hockey Association that they cancel the SHL playoffs, which would end their season. The team announced earlier this week that they had postponed the playoffs until Mar. 24, however, the league looks to be reversing course like many leagues have done in the past few days. A decision is expected on Sunday. The Swedish Ice Hockey Association is responsible for competition rules and the playoffs, which is why the SHL must clear it with them first.
  • The Athletic’s Scott Powers and Mark Lazerus reported that the Chicago Blackhawks top priority this offseason is to lock up restricted free agent Dominik Kubalik to a new contract. The 24-year-old rookie signed a one-year entry-level contract this offseason out of the NLA and has seen his career take off with a 30-goal, 46-point season so far this season. While Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes have garnered most of the attention for the Calder Trophy this season, Kubalik is right up there as well. The scribes write that Kubalik’s agent traveled to Chicago this week to discuss a contract with general manager Stan Bowman in hopes of getting a deal done soon.

Snapshots: League Cancellations, Bjugstad, Hamonic

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As the spread of COVID-19 continues around the world, professional sports leagues and organizations are starting to feel the effects. The San Jose Sharks are the first NHL team that is dealing with the consequences, as gatherings of more than 1,000 people have been banned in Santa Clara county. Kevin Kurz of The Athletic (subscription required) examined the situation in full, noting that the possibility exists that the Sharks will play in front of no fans later this month.

It’s not just individual teams feeling the changes though. Today, both the EBEL and DEL, leagues in Austria and Germany respectively, have cancelled the remainder of their seasons, including playoffs. The EBEL also includes teams from Hungary, Italy and the Czech Republic.

  • It has become routine among the Pittsburgh Penguins this season to expect injury, though one still has to feel for Nick Bjugstad. The forward has suffered another lower-body injury that is unrelated to any prior, and has been listed as “week-to-week” once again according to head coach Mike Sullivan. Bjugstad has played just 13 games this season, scoring two points.
  • Travis Hamonic was back at practice in full for the Calgary Flames today, skating alongside T.J. Brodie on the second defense pairing. That suggests the veteran defenseman will return to the Flames’ lineup later this week for the first time in over a month. Calgary is barely holding onto their third place position in the Pacific Division, meaning Hamonic’s return will be a welcome one as they prepare for the stretch run.

Snapshots: Three Stars, Fines, Wisconsin

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The NHL has released their Three Stars from last week, and the five-goal man is at the top once again. Mika Zibanejad was always going to be the first star after scoring five goals in a single game (including the OT winner). The New York Rangers center scored seven on the week, giving him a career-high 39 through just 55 games this season.

Second and third place go to two Western Conference stars in Gabriel Landeskog and Leon Draisaitl, who continued their scoring ways with nine and eight points respectively. That means Draisaitl is up to 110 on the season, an incredible feat given he has only played 69 games so far.

  • St. Louis Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist has been fined $5,000 for his roughing of Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Adam Boqvist, which resulted in a line brawl between the two teams. Sundqvist tried to lay a check along the boards, but when he missed his left hand (while clutching his stick) came around and hit Boqvist in the face. The amount is the maximum allowable under the CBA, and will affect other supplementary discipline in the future.
  • While other college players are starting to sign with teams in the NHL, a few names from the Wisconsin program have yet to make their decisions. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports that the Montreal Canadiens will meet with Cole Caufield over the next week while his colleague Rick Carpiniello adds that the Rangers have been in contact with K’Andre Miller but the prospect defenseman has not yet made a decision.

Snapshots: College Free Agents, Ceci, Perunovich

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While we have to way until July to get any free agent action among NHL players, the college season will be ending a little sooner. The end of the line for the best NCAA players means a feeding frenzy for NHL organizations, who will be snapping up talent in the hopes that they can step directly into the professional ranks. With that in mind, Frank Seravalli of TSN breaks down five names who are on the radar.

The top name as expected for most of the season is Connor Mackey, who has drawn plenty of speculation over the years. Seravalli reports that 28 of the league’s 31 teams have shown interest in Mackey, including nine that apparently are willing to sign him to an NHL contract this season—allowing him to burn the first year of the entry-level deal he will be restricted to. Remember, to do that the team must have an empty slot under their 50-contract limit, something that the Edmonton Oilers and Tampa Bay Lightning currently do not.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs, who will surely be one of the team showing interest in the college defenseman, are getting back one of their own blueliners. Cody Ceci has been activated from injured reserve, adding some more experience to a group that has very little at the moment. The Maple Leafs have been forced to play Travis Dermott, Rasmus Sandin, Justin Holl, Timothy Liljegren and Calle Rosen all at the same time, a quintet that has 291 games of NHL experience between them. Ceci, for all his faults, has played in 494.
  • Speaking of college defensemen, the St. Louis Blues are monitoring one of their own draft picks very closely in Scott Perunovich, who is having another outstanding season for the University of Minnesota-Duluth. Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic (subscription required) examines the situation and exactly what options Perunovich will have after his year is done. Rutherford points out that there may not be a ton of opportunity right away in St. Louis, which has many speculating about whether the dynamic defenseman will try to find a different destination to start his professional career.

Snapshots: Shanahan, Doughty, Draft Lottery

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While the Toronto Maple Leafs have distanced themselves from the Florida Panthers of late and look to have a firm hold on the third playoff berth in the Atlantic Division, the same spot they held last year, most have seen this season as a disappointment for the club. The Leafs have endured an up-and-down campaign and even at their best have never truly competed for the division lead with rivals the Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning. In fact, the Leafs still sit 18 points back of Boston and nine points back of Tampa, who hold a game in hand. Yet, president Brendan Shanahan is choosing to see the positives in Toronto’s season and Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston relays that the Hall of Famer is happy with the direction of his team. “Adversity is something that every NHL team will go through, for all teams and not just ours,” Shanahan said, “and it’s something that you can either meet and grow from or you can use it as an excuse and I like to think that our players aren’t using it as an excuse, certainly not in management or coaching.” Shanahan continued that the team is “never going to [be consistent] all 82 games in a row, but certainly doing it more often than not, and that’s something that our guys are learning and it’s something I’m very confident that they are going to continue to grow at.” Shanahan speaks further about the team, noting how hard it is to sustain success in the NHL, but stating that he is confident that the Leafs can learn to be more consistent to make the most of their considerable talent.

  • Another name choosing to be positive in a tough situation is Drew Doughty, whose L.A. Kings face the Maple Leafs on Thursday. The Kings went from perennial Stanley Cup contender to a long-term rebuild quicker than anyone could have expected and Doughty, signed long-term in L.A., would obviously rather be back competing for titles every year. That doesn’t seem likely any time soon though and the veteran is just trying to take things day-by-day. “It’s very hard, but it’s the position I’m in, and I gotta try to stay positive every day, as hard as it is,” Doughty told TSN, “I have to make the best of it and just try to get better every day, both as a team and individually.” Doughty says that he is happy to see the talent of the prospects in the Kings’ pipeline, as well as the team’s numerous picks, and has already seen “flashes” from many of the current young players on the roster. However, no one is expecting a quick turnaround in L.A., Doughty included, so he will have to find a way to stay focused and positive for a while longer.
  • One major positive for Kings would be good luck at this year’s NHL Draft Lottery. L.A. dropped from No. 2 to No. 5 last season with the maximum three teams winning the lottery, and they hope for a different result as they currently sit with the second-worst record again this year. The Kings are undoubtedly hoping to move up to the top spot for the chance to take generational winger Alexis Lafreniere. So, when will we know the draft order for June? The Athletic’s Corey Pronman reports that the expectation is that the 2020 NHL Draft Lottery to be held on Thursday, April 9th. This would be the second night of the NHL postseason, which could see the lottery drawing again held in phases throughout a night of playoff action. More will be known soon on the details of this year’s lottery.

Atlantic Notes: Protective Gear, Tatar, Sandin

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It was an outstanding start to his North American career for Ilya Mikheyev, who scored 23 points in his first 39 games in the NHL for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Just a few days after Christmas however, Mikheyev’s season was ruined when Jesper Bratt’s skate blade cut his wrist so bad that surgery was required to repair arteries and tendons in his right arm. The 25-year old forward has resumed practicing recently and could make a return before the playoffs, but his and other injuries like it have made the league take a closer look at protective equipment.

In fact, Darren Dreger of TSN reports that the league is delivering equipment to every team around the league and that the Maple Leafs will force their young players to wear wrist protection. It hasn’t just been Mikheyev injured in this way recently, as speeds continue to increase in the NHL so does the damage that skate blades can inflict in the wrong situation. Hopefully the new changes keep players on the ice and out of the surgical unit.

  • Speaking of injury, the Montreal Canadiens’ season took another bad turn tonight when Tomas Tatar left their game with an upper-body injury. The team scoring leader will not return, though they are doing just fine without him at the time of this writing.
  • Rasmus Sandin is expected to be a healthy scratch for the Maple Leafs tonight after some recent struggles, which brings up some interesting questions about his contract status. Sandin has played in enough games to make his entry-level contract kick in, but with just 15 games remaining (after tonight) in the season for the Maple Leafs he may not get to the 40-game threshold that would get him a year closer to unrestricted free agency. The 19-year old defenseman has played in 26 so far, but both Morgan Rielly and Cody Ceci are expected back soon, meaning another handful of scratches could keep that number down for the Maple Leafs.

Snapshots: Three Stars, EBUG, Pittsburgh

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The NHL has released their Three Stars for last week and a great story of redemption comes in at the top. Kevin Fiala, who was made a healthy scratch earlier in the year, had four multi-point games in one week and now sits at a career-high 49 points on the season. The 23-year old forward has always oozed talent, but would disappear for stretches during his time with the Nashville Predators. In eight games with new head coach Dean Evason, Fiala has six goals and 11 points.

Second place goes to a former teammate of Fiala in Ryan Ellis, whose return to the Predators lineup was a strong one after missing time with a concussion. The defenseman recorded seven points last week and now has 36 on the year. If you hadn’t realized just how well Pavel Francouz was playing for the Colorado Avalanche, how about a 3-0 week with a .946 save percentage to let the world know. The goaltender took home the third star after receiving the top honors last week.

  • It is the first day of the GM meetings in Florida, and one of the topics of conversation was the emergency backup goaltender situation. Though there were some who have voiced concerns, Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic reports that there will be no changes to the protocol. Fans of Scott Foster and David Ayres will be relieved.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins are in a terrible slump, but might be getting some reinforcements back soon. Brian Dumoulin, John Marino and Nick Bjugstad were all participating in full at practice today, though it is not clear exactly when they will return to action. With that news, the team has returned Zach Trotman to the minor leagues.

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