The Tampa Bay Lightning are the Stanley Cup Champions, Rick Bowness came up just short in his pursuit and against all odds, the National Hockey League pulled it off.
Last night, with the calendar closing in on October in a mostly empty arena in Edmonton, the Stanley Cup was presented. There were times in the early days of the league’s return to play discussions, where a moment like that felt almost impossible.
But they made it happen. And without any real hiccups along the way.
You’ll hear it a lot today but the NHL and its players deserve a ton of credit for the way they handled an impossible situation. There were plenty of skeptics when the plan was announced but the league stuck to it and the players committed to what had to a difficult concept. In the end, it made for a much-needed distraction during a difficult time.
Now the real fun begins.
In just one week, the NHL will gather virtually for the annual Entry Draft. It will be about four months late and without the usual production that comes with such an important day, but just like these playoffs, the league will find a way.
With the post-season officially wrapping up last night, you can expect the rumour mill to kick into high gear.
In fact, it’s already started.
There seems to be increasing chatter that the New York Rangers, owners of the first overall selection, may be considering various scenarios where they would do the unthinkable and move the pick.
Multiple contacts have now confirmed to me that the Rangers spoke to Ottawa about a deal at some point but those discussions didn’t gain any traction. And based on Dorion’s interviews last week, it sounds like he’s more than content to pick 3rd and 5th.
What it does show us though is that the New York Rangers are very much open to the idea. And when you consider their depth at left wing and the lack of potential at centre ice, it’s not surprising that they might want to explore moving down from the number one spot.
Think we’ll hear a lot more of that talk in the coming days.
From Ottawa’s perspective, they too are expected to be at the centre of the rumour mill. Not only because they own the 3rd and 5th overall picks in the draft but also because they are loaded with an unprecedented combination of cap space and draft capital.
9 players signed.
$22 million in cap space.
3rd, 5th, 28th, 33rd, 52nd, 59th, 61st, 64th, 71st, 95th, 155th, 158th, 181st.
Buckle up.
-Sounds like another Sens prospect is headed to Europe. As indicated first on his Instagram and then later confirmed by the team, Filip Chlapik has been loaned to Sparta Praha of the Czech League. Chlapik is a restricted free agent this off-season. And while there hasn’t been an announcement, it sounds like there is a good chance Erik Brannstrom will be joining a team in the Swiss League in the near future.
