NEWSLETTER
The Tampa Bay Lightning handled their business on home ice last night, drawing even with the Rangers in the Eastern Conference Final as the series heads back to Madison Square Garden for Thursday night’s Game Five. There is no hockey tonight, because the Avalanche swept the Oilers; they’ll now sit and wait for what could be more than a week waiting for an opponent to be decided.
• Our old buddy Brandon Hagel dropped his gloves with Frank Vatrano last night in Tampa. And then he gave his new home crowd a familiar gesture. (wipes tear) That’s our Brandon.
• Yesterday we considered four trades made by Stan Bowman that could still help the Blackhawks in the future. I didn’t personally request a highlight from forward prospect Jalen Luypen in his playoff game last night after mentioning him in the piece, but he provided the gorgeous apple anyway.
The former Thunderbird, Simon Kubicek, doubles the @EdmOilKings lead in the third period!
📺 TSN 1/3
💻 https://t.co/E0Cl58T8ou#RoadtoMemorialCup pic.twitter.com/d13BciDTG7— Canadian Hockey League (@CHLHockey) June 8, 2022
• The folks at The Athletic published the results of their annual fan poll ranking the local television broadcast crews. After ranking fifth in the NHL after the abbreviated 2021 season, the Blackhawks plummeted to 23rd this year. We’ll take this with a grain of salt this year, acknowledging fans feelings about Pat Foley. The Chicago institution’s final season included tryouts for some potential heirs to the mic, with Chris Vosters winning the job.
• Charlie Roumeliotis at NBC Sports Chicago dug in on the Hawks being a team with some trade buzz. He specifically mentioned the Buffalo Sabres, New Jersey Devils and Ottawa Senators as three teams of interest when considering teams the Blackhawks could work with to move into the first round of this year’s draft.
#Blackhawks are listening to trade offers on just about everybody, and rightfully so: https://t.co/fwwT82Y5J0
— Charlie Roumeliotis (@CRoumeliotis) June 7, 2022
• My take: the Devils are going to be a team you head a lot about this summer, especially when talking about a potential Alex DeBrincat trade. New Jersey has a highly-regarded collection of forward prospects and picks — including No. 2 overall this year — that could be packaged to make a phone call with Kyle Davidson fascinating.
• Also keep an eye on the Islanders with regard to Patrick Kane. Lou Lamoriello loves him some Patrick Kane; he has for years. I brought that up in early May and my buddy Dave Pagnotta at The Fourth Period agreed. James Nichols at The Fourth Period included Kane in his possible trade targets for the Islanders.
Yup. I would not be shocked if the Isles check in on Kane's availability this off-season. https://t.co/vmuYtKoh2p
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) May 9, 2022
• The Blackhawks may have some competition in the elite forward trade market this summer. In his column for The Athletic in the wake of Bruce Cassidy being let go by the Bruins, Fluto Shinzawa wrote that a “tear down” may be imminent in Boston. If David Pastrnak does hit the market, things will get spicy in a hurry this summer.
“A coaching change, surgeries to critical contributors and a pending rebuild will not encourage David Pastrnak to sign an extension with one year left on his deal. In fact, the right wing may be general manager Don Sweeney’s best trade piece to trigger a teardown.”
'Players being afraid to make mistakes': Management believed Bruce Cassidy's demanding approach with young players demanded his dismissal. https://t.co/M487dgOdR6
— Fluto Shinzawa (@FlutoShinzawa) June 7, 2022
• Devils defenseman PK Subban was named the winner of the King Clancy Memorial Trophy last night. The King Clancy is annually awarded to the “player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and who has made a significant humanitarian contribution to his community.”
Your 2021-22 King Clancy Memorial Trophy winner, @PKSubban1! He becomes the first @NJDevils player to ever win the award. 🏆 #NHLAwards pic.twitter.com/VL8JzBJSZl
— NHL (@NHL) June 7, 2022
• Keeping with a growing Blackhawks trend of former teammates, one of Christopher Morel’s former ‘mates caught his home run ball last night in Baltimore. Yes, we’re serious.
Unbelievable: That Christopher Morel Homer Was Snagged By One of His Teammates from Last Year – https://t.co/sACQTpotKn pic.twitter.com/5AWgIyRkcF
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) June 8, 2022
