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Blackhawks Interview Jeff Blashill For Head Coaching Vacancy

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As Chicago has searched for its next bench boss, they’ve been linked to very few candidates.  Aside from potentially retaining interim head coach Anders Sorensen, the only external candidate they were known to speak with was David Carle who instead is remaining at the University of Denver.

However, another coach has popped up in the search.  Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports (video link) that the Blackhawks have interviewed Jeff Blashill for their head coaching position.

Blashill has only been the bench boss once at the NHL level but it was a fairly lengthy stint as he spent seven years at the helm of Detroit, running from 2015-16 to 2021-22.  While the Red Wings made the playoffs in his first year with the team, they failed to do so in the other six (and haven’t since he was let go, either).  Under the 51-year-old’s tutelage, Detroit played to a 204-261-70 record, good for a points percentage of just .480.

Blashill has spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach with the Lightning and has been a speculative candidate for other roles before now.  It appears that Chicago isn’t the only team potentially interested in him as Seravalli added that Seattle is believed to be considering him as well.  At this point, it certainly feels like Blashill is going to get another opportunity to run an NHL bench but whether Chicago, a team that’s looking to emerge from its rebuild and become much more competitive in a hurry, is the right fit for his services remains to be seen.

Chicago brought in Luke Richardson as their head coach in 2022 with an eye on more of a development-focused approach.  However, the team struggled mightily with him at the helm, winning just 57 of 190 games, resulting in Sorensen being brought up from AHL Rockford back in early December to take over the rest of the way but the Blackhawks only won 17 of 56 games following the change, resulting in a coaching search that is nearing the one-month mark.

Lightning Sign Broadcast Deal With Scripps Sports

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  • The Tampa Bay Lightning are leaving the FanDuel Sports Network after only one season. In an article from Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times, he explains that the Lightning have signed a new broadcast agreement with E. W. Scripps Company through Scripps Sports. The broadcast firm allows Lightning games to be broadcast directly to any consumer with an antenna, with other viewing options available via the Scripps app.

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Lightning Sign Jonas Johansson To Two-Year Extension

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed depth goaltender Jonas Johansson to a two-year, $2.5MM contract extension. Johansson was set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer. Instead, he’ll re-up with the team after spending the full season on the NHL roster.

This season marked Johansson’s second consecutive season serving as Tampa Bay’s full-time backup. He seemed to find a bit more comfort in the role this year, recording a 9-6-3 record and .895 save percentage through 19 games – slightly better than his 12-7-5 record and .890 Sv% in 26 games last year. The boost in ice time last season came largely as a result of superstar starter Andrei Vasilevskiy missing nearly two full months to start the season due to injury. Vasilevskiy returned with vigor this year, recording a .923 Sv% through 63 games on the season. Those numbers are certainly strong enough to keep his feet planted in the high-usage role, while Johansson should gain clear control of the backup role now on an NHL salary. Johansson has totaled a 21-13-8 record and .892 Sv% in 45 career games with Tampa Bay.

Prior to his time in Tampa Bay, Johansson went through stretches with in the Buffalo Sabres, Colorado Avalanche, and Florida Panthers organizations. He struggled to earn NHL minutes at every stop, and often found himself rotating between the major and minor lineups, serving as a fill-in for injuries or absences. Johansson did have a hardy stretch as an ECHL and AHL starter from 2016 to 2020, and even posted a career-year in 2019-20 with a 14-4-3 record and .921 Sv% in 22 games with the AHL’s Rochester Americans. Through his career, he’s totaled 32 wins and a .890 Sv% in 80 NHL games; and 39 wins and a .911 Sv% in 69 AHL games.

Lightning Sign Charle-Edouard D’Astous To Two-Way Deal

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The Lightning have signed free agent defenseman Charle-Edouard D’Astous to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2025-26 season, the team announced today. Financial terms were not disclosed.

It’s the first NHL contract for the 27-year-old Canadian. D’Astous has spent the last three seasons overseas in the Finnish Liiga and the Swedish Hockey League, establishing himself as a top two-way threat in the upper echelon of European hockey. The 6’2″, 187-lb lefty spent last season with Brynäs IF, who finished first in the SHL immediately after being promoted from the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan but recently fell to Luleå HF in six games in the playoff final. He led their blue line and finished second on the team in scoring with 39 points (12 G, 27 A) in 49 games and ranked second on the team behind SHL Defenseman of the Year Victor Söderström with a +26 rating.

While D’Astous didn’t get the year-end hardware Söderström did, he achieved some hefty accomplishments during his two-year stint in Finland. The Rimouski, Quebec, native scored 17 goals and 29 assists for 46 points in 54 games with KooKoo in 2023-24, leading the league in goals by defensemen and taking home Finland’s Defenseman of the Year award in the process. He also averaged more minutes per game than any other Liiga skater.

The move to KooKoo in 2022 came after D’Astous failed to make meaningful progress up the North American professional ladder. That’s despite some standout ECHL play, including his 2021-22 campaign with the Utah Grizzlies when he led the league in goals by defensemen (26) and was named the league’s Defenseman of the Year. He also won DOY honors back in juniors with the Rimouski Océanic back in 2018-29, so D’Astous arrives in Tampa with three DOY awards in three different leagues under his belt.

After a long road to get here, D’Astous will now try to crack the Lightning’s opening night roster in the fall as a depth puck-moving option. He’ll compete with names like Maxwell Crozier for depth spots and recall hierarchy. Since this is D’Astous’ first NHL contract, he’ll be waiver exempt throughout the 2025-26 campaign, so he can be assigned to AHL Syracuse without risk of losing him to another NHL club.

The Bolts now have 32 of the maximum 50 standard contracts signed for 2025-26.

Jack Eichel, Anže Kopitar, Brayden Point Named Lady Byng Trophy Finalists

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Now that award season is approaching, the NHL has announced the three finalists for the Lady Byng Trophy: Jack Eichel of the Vegas Golden Knights, Anže Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings, and Brayden Point of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

As one of the more underappreciated honors, the Lady Byng Trophy is awarded to the player voted best to combine sportsmanship, gentlemanly conduct, and ability as voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association. Kopitar is the only one of the trio to have won the award previously.

In arguably the best season of his career from an individual perspective, Eichel led the Pacific Division champion Golden Knights in scoring with 28 goals and 94 points in 77 games. Not only did Eichel have a career year himself, but he also set a new standard for Vegas players by besting William Karlsson’s 78-point 2017-18 season, which stood as the franchise’s single-season record until now. This was largely due to his availability, missing only five games all season and only accruing eight PIMs.

As mentioned earlier, Kopitar is the only member of the trio who has previously won the Lady Byng Trophy, receiving the award in the 2015-16 and 2022-23 seasons. He outperformed his Pacific Division rival, Eichel, by only taking two minor penalties compared to Eichel’s four. Surpassing Dustin Brown as the longest-serving captain in Kings history this season, Kopitar helped Los Angeles reach the postseason for the fourth consecutive year.

Point became a finalist for the second time in three years, and for good reason. Point bested a point-per-game average for a third consecutive season and centered one of the most efficient top lines in the game. Beating Kopitar and Eichel, Point only had one minor penalty this year (and finished with seven PIMs).

Photo courtesy of Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images.

Lightning Notes: Bjorkstrand, Hagel, Hedman, Other Injuries, Howard, Cooper

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The Lightning played their short-lived 2025 playoff schedule against the Panthers with an extremely banged-up roster (more on that later). One player who wasn’t available at all during the series was trade deadline acquisition Oliver Bjorkstrand. Speaking today during his end-of-season media availability, general manager Julien BriseBois said Bjorkstrand developed compartment syndrome following a game against the Red Wings on April 11 and had emergency surgery early the following morning (via the team’s Benjamin Pierce).

That’s obviously a much more serious ailment than what the Bolts initially let on. He was declared week-to-week with a lower-body injury ahead of their final three regular-season games, but no information was dispensed following that. Acute compartment syndrome occurs due to increased pressure in and around muscles following an injury and can be life-threatening if not treated quickly, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Bjorkstrand is thankfully expected to be ready for training camp in the fall, BriseBois said. He finished the year with 5-4–9 in 18 games after Tampa acquired him from the Kraken, and he has one year left on his deal at a $5.4MM cap hit.

More on the Lightning:

  • Brandon Hagel confirmed he sustained a concussion on the hit from Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad in Game 4 that ended his series, Jay Recher relays. Ekblad was suspended two games for the hit and will miss Game 1 of the second round against Toronto as a result. Hagel, who was limited to a minus-four rating in three games of the series due to his injury and a previous suspension, added that Ekblad didn’t approach him beforehand to discuss a retaliatory fight for Hagel’s suspension-causing hit on Florida captain Aleksander Barkov, nor has Ekblad reached out to Hagel following his concussion. “I would have answered the bell if someone would have said, ’Let’s fight,'” Hagel said. “I don’t care if I would have got my ass kicked. I have to respond to a situation. I understood it was the case” (via Loux).
  • Captain Victor Hedman played the last two games of the series on a broken foot, BriseBois said (via Diandra Loux of The Hockey News). He’ll be ready for camp in the fall after recording three assists and a minus-six rating in the series.
  • Other Bolts playing through injuries were Anthony Cirelli (Grade 2 MCL sprain), Luke Glendening (right shoulder AC joint separation), Nikita Kucherov (left hand extensor), Nick Paul (left wrist tear), and Yanni Gourde (broken finger), Brisebois told reporters. Like Bjorkstrand and Hedman, they’re all expected to be ready for training camp in the fall, although Glendening and Gourde are pending unrestricted free agents and may not be back with the team.
  • BriseBois confirmed a report last month from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet that they’re unlikely to sign 2022 first-round pick Isaac Howard to an entry-level contract (via Recher). They’ll focus on trading his signing rights over the next year while he returns to Michigan State for his senior season. If they can’t sign or trade the Hobey Baker winner’s rights by Aug. 15, 2026, and he becomes an unrestricted free agent, the Lightning will receive a compensatory 2027 second-round pick (No. 65 overall) for failing to sign a first-round draft choice.
  • Head coach Jon Cooper will serve out the final season of his contract in Tampa despite recent speculation otherwise, BriseBois said (via Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times). “When this contract ends, my expectation is he’s going sign another one and he’s going to be here…So Coop will be back next year, and I expect beyond,” BriseBois said.

Aleksander Barkov, Anthony Cirelli, Sam Reinhart Named Selke Trophy Finalists

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Panthers center Aleksander Barkov, Lightning center Anthony Cirelli, and Panthers winger Sam Reinhart have been named Selke Trophy finalists for the 2024-25 season, the NHL announced.

According to the league, the award is given “to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game.” It’s voted on at the end of the regular season by media members, like most other major NHL honors, and has been in circulation since the 1977-78 campaign, with former Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron holding the record with six wins.

Despite the verbiage, the Selke is almost never given out to a pure shutdown forward, at least not anymore. More of a “best two-way forward” than “best defensive forward” honor in reality, Barkov headlines the list as he looks to take home the hardware in back-to-back years and for the third time in his career.

Now a four-time finalist, Barkov’s boxcar stats actually point toward a down year for the Stanley Cup champion Finn. His 1.06 points per game and plus-one rating were both post-COVID lows for the 29-year-old, but he still added 54 blocks, 87 hits, and a 56.5% win rate in the faceoff dot. A look at his possession numbers makes it easy to see why he’s continuously regarded as the game’s best two-way center, though. His 60.8% Corsi share at even strength this year was a career-high and led the team.

Stepping into the finalist’s circle for the first time is Barkov’s cross-state counterpart in Cirelli. The 27-year-old finished fourth in Selke voting in 2019-20 and fifth in 2021-22 but never cracked the top three. That changes this year on the heels of a season full of career-highs for Cirelli, who scored 27 goals, 32 assists, 59 points, and logged a +30 rating in 80 appearances. His 18:41 of ice time per game was also a career-high. While he doesn’t receive Barkov’s 5-on-5 deployment, Cirelli is Tampa’s top penalty-killing forward and finished seventh among forwards in plus-minus this season.

Reinhart is the unlikeliest candidate to win, although it’s not really in his control. A winger hasn’t won the award in over 20 years – the Stars’ Jere Lehtinen was the last to do it in 2003. The 29-year-old finished just outside of being a finalist last year during his career-defining 57-goal campaign, and his nomination means the Panthers are the first team with two Selke finalists in a season since the Red Wings’ Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg in 2007-08. He finished 2024-25 with a 39-42–81 scoring line, a plus-six rating, 103 hits, and a 59.2 CF% in 79 games.

Lightning Assign Two To AHL

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Following their elimination at the hands of the Panthers on Wednesday, the Lightning have extended the seasons for two of their younger players for at least one more day.  The team announced that defenseman Maxwell Crozier and center Conor Geekie have been assigned to AHL Syracuse.

Crozier’s stint with the big club was short-lived as he was only recalled yesterday to serve as extra depth for the final game of the series.  He only played in five regular season games with Tampa Bay this year after suiting up 13 times (plus three playoff contests) last season for them.  The 25-year-old had 34 points in 52 games with the Crunch this season and will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights this summer.

As for Geekie, the 20-year-old was a key part of the return for Mikhail Sergachev in the trade with Utah back at the draft.  The 11th overall pick in 2022, Geekie spent most of the year with Tampa Bay but in a fairly limited role as he logged just over 12 minutes a night of ice time while chipping in with eight goals and six assists.  That earned him a midseason assignment to the Crunch where he was much more impactful offensively, tallying 11 goals and nine helpers in 24 games.  Geekie was brought back up late in the year and got into four postseason contests where he had one assist in nearly identical ice time compared to the regular season.

Both players are in uniform tonight for the Crunch against Rochester.  It’s a must-win game for Syracuse as they’re down two games to none in their best-of-five second-round series.

Leon Draisaitl, Connor Hellebuyck, Nikita Kucherov Named Hart Trophy Finalists

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Oilers center Leon Draisaitl, Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, and Lightning right-winger Nikita Kucherov have been named the Hart Trophy finalists as the NHL’s most valuable player for the 2024-25 season, the league announced today (via X).

Like most other major awards, the Hart is voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association. It’s one of the longest-running annual honors in the league, first presented in 1924. Each voter submits a five-player ballot with a 10-7-5-3-1 points system. Compared with the Ted Lindsay Award, voted on by the players for best player, Kucherov is the only carryover member in this year’s nominations.

Draisaitl and Kucherov are in the running to win the Hart for the second time in their careers, while Hellebuyck is a first-time finalist after finishing top 10 in voting in 2019-20 and 2023-24. He’s the first goalie to finish as a finalist for the award since the Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin in 2021-22, and he’s aiming to be the first to win it since the Canadiens’ Carey Price in 2014-15.

Draisaitl, 29, has never been nominated for the Hart without winning it. He didn’t receive any votes last year after four straight years in the top 10, but rebounded with a vengeance in 2024-25 with a league-leading 52 goals despite missing 11 games due to injuries. It was the German superstar’s first time leading the league in goals, and his 11 game-winners led the league for the third time.

Hellebuyck wins a nomination in what will likely be an extremely tight vote when results are released following the announcement of the winner. The 31-year-old has continued his dominant run as the league’s best regular-season netminder over the past half-decade, posting a .925 SV% along with a league-leading 2.00 GAA, eight shutouts, 47 wins, and 41.6 goals saved above average – all career-highs, too – in 63 appearances.

As for Kucherov, he secures his second straight Hart nomination, along with the Art Ross Trophy as the league’s leading point-getter, for the second straight season. While his campaign ended in defeat at the hands of the Panthers in last night’s Game 5, he posted 84 assists and 121 points in 78 games in the regular season en route to the 31-year-old’s third career Hart nomination. With a win, the future Hall-of-Famer would join Alex Ovechkin as the only Russian in league history with multiple MVP awards.

Is Jon Cooper Leaving For Utah After Next Season?

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Over the last few years, several NHL teams have seen head coaches come and go, and that won’t change this summer. However, the Tampa Bay Lightning haven’t made a head coaching change since the 2012-13 season, when they promoted Jon Cooper from their AHL affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see Cooper depart from the Lightning organization in a few years. He’s won two Stanley Cups (while coaching in four) and has become the franchise’s all-time winningest coach. Additionally, after their last Final appearance in 2022, the Lightning have been eliminated in back-to-back opening-round series, and they’re in danger of doing so for a third consecutive season, meaning Cooper’s message may be becoming stale in the locker room.

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