We are still six months away from the Seattle Kraken’s inaugural season, but that time is going to fly by. Those of you who are lucky enough to have season tickets will soon need to start planning your calendars for the 2021-22 NHL season.
To help you plan, I look how a typical NHL schedule would shake out for the Seattle Kraken.
NHL schedule basics
Let us start off with some basic information about a traditional (non-COVID impacted) NHL schedule. A typical schedule will have six preseason and 82 regular-season games that are split evenly with home and away games. The preseason starts in mid-September, regular season kicks off about a week into October, and the regular season ends in the second week of April. That gives us a typical home schedule of three preseason games and 41 regular-season games that runs from mid-September to early April.
NHL schedule by month
If you spread the schedule out by month, NHL teams have about 6 home games a month. Here is a look at that seasonality.
NHL schedule by weekday
As we slowly return to normal, you are likely to start re-committing to beer league hockey, book club, date nights, pick-up hockey, trivia night, hockey tournaments, etc. You might want to avoid conflicts in your schedule by looking at the most common NHL nights of the week.
You might want to avoid scheduling activities on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
NHL schedule wild cards
This data is based on the NHL schedules over the last four fully completed seasons (2015-16 through 2018-19). This does not mean it will stay consistent over the next season. There are few things that could factor into the schedule format next year.
Media partners
ESPN might have plans that could alter the schedule a bit. The ESPN deal has 25 regular-season games on the ESPN TV network (75 on ESPN+). All you mathematicians out there probably estimated that 25 games work out to be about one game a week. It is a best practice to establish a cadence for the games so people do not have to check their local listings every week to determine when hockey will be on ESPN. An example of this is how NBCSN branded Wednesday night as “Rivalry Night” on their network to create some buzz and awareness about their NHL nationally televised games. This has an interesting impact on the rest of the schedule where the league tries to clear out certain days to turn the focus onto the nationally televised game.
Back to backs
The league has made it perfectly clear that they will be returning to our normally scheduled divisions once we get through this 2020-21 temporary alignment. One thing that may stick around is the two-game series scenario. For those unfamiliar with this 2020-21 phenomenon, the NHL strategically scheduled several teams with back-to-back games in the same city to limit travel and potential COVID-19 exposure. Based on some reports, this back-to-back scenario might have some legs for sticking around and could impact the distribution of games in a week. For example, instead of a Thursday in one city, and Saturday in another, teams might play Thursday and Friday in the same city.
I hope this gives you some insight into a typical NHL schedule and what we might expect for the 2021-22 season. There has been no announcement on when that 2021-22 NHL schedule will be released, but we at SOH anticipate its release sometime in August.
From the hottest of scoops to the coldest of beers, Sound Of Hockey has all the latest news from the Seattle Kraken and beyond in this edition of Weekly One-Timers.
It’s been another week of somewhat significant stories around the hockey world, so sit back, relax, crack open a cold one if you can (it is Friday after all), and let’s get you caught up on what’s happening on and off the ice.
Seattle Kraken final NHL payment update
Sound Of Hockey has confirmed via email from a team representative that the Seattle Kraken have not yet made their final payment to the NHL.
In 2017, the Vegas Golden Knights signed their first free agent, Reid Duke, on March 6. This means that they would have submitted their final payment on or before that date. Astute readers would notice that we are now past that date, so the Kraken are behind the Vegas timeline.
Seattle can make no such signings until that final payment is made. This is notable because college and some European league seasons are ending. When the NCAA season concludes, there is always a clamoring by NHL teams to sign the best players that slipped through undrafted, so unless the Kraken complete that last transaction soon, there is a chance they could miss out on some of those prospects.
The team also cannot vote on issues brought to the league’s Board of Governors, such as whether or not to move the NHL Entry Draft, which has been discussed at length recently.
The payment will of course get made in due time, and it really is nothing to worry about for Kraken fans. As the team confirmed this is on schedule, though exactly where final payment falls on that schedule was not disclosed.
That last payment is the final milestone for the team to hit before real hockey transactions can begin.
Silver Bullets in Seattle
In my college days, I drank a lot of light beers. Miller Light, Bud Light, Busch Light, Michelob Golden Light, Milwaukee’s Best Light, Natural Light, something called Beer 30 Light… You know, good stuff!
For whatever reason, though, I was just never a huge fan of Coors Light.
My beer palate has become quite refined as I’ve aged, but my general dissatisfaction after a Coors Light—regardless of the blueness of the can’s mountains—remains in tact. So, you can imagine my dismay when the Seattle Kraken announced that they had come to an agreement with Molson Coors to make Coors Light the official domestic beer partner for both the team and Climate Pledge Arena.
Thankfully for hopheads like myself, there will be other options available at Kraken games, as Hop Valley Brewing—also a Molson Coors entity—will provide craftier options. Phew!
Read all about the deal and what it means for the gameday experience here.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I shall take a break to enjoy a refreshing and completely flavorless Natural Light, or as I like to call it, a naughty water.
Mainstream Kraken
Ok, now that I’ve been refreshed with an ice-cold naughty water, I’m ready to watch Steven A. Smith talk about the Kraken.
Aaawwwwwww Sugar Crackers! Your Boy’s about to get into Hockey. Yes! HOCKEY!!! Check me out! pic.twitter.com/8Sr4ERzTjS
In a peculiar way, this man shouting at us is why the NHL going back to ESPN is so important for the league. ESPN still has the ears and eyes of the sports fan, and the network has been doing its damnedest to make hockey disappear from the sports lexicon since the league took its talents to something called the Outdoor Life Network in 2005.
But ESPN, ABC, and the NHL announced a new seven-year deal this week. The agreement will bring 25 regular-season games back to those networks starting just in time for the Kraken’s inaugural puck drop, plus playoff games and NHL All-Star Games. Additionally, the out-of-market content we now stream from NHL.tv will be moved to ESPN+.
In all, the deal is reportedly worth $2.8 billion.
It still is not all that easy to find anything about the NHL on ESPN.com, though, so here’s hoping that changes as the self-proclaimed “worldwide leader in sports” re-embraces the game we love so dearly.
Now, give me Gary Thorne calling hockey, or give me death.
NWHL to award Isobel Cup after all
The NWHL’s Lake Placid bubble burst at the beginning of February, abruptly curbing the momentum that was building for the league. When that happened, most in the hockey world assumed that was the last we would see of the league and its players this season.
It was a good try, and the tournament gave the NWHL a nice moment in the sun, but the pandemic had won. It was time to head home and just wait it out until this COVID thing subsides, and then we can start fresh next season.
Wrong!
The league announced this week that it will still award the Isobel Cup to a champion, after four qualifying teams—the Toronto Six, Boston Pride, Minnesota Whitecaps, and Connecticut Whale—battle it out March 26 and 27 at Warrior Ice Arena in Brighton, Mass.
One of the most disappointing aspects of the bubble (or “Whubble” as it became more commonly called) bursting was that the NWHL was on the verge of having games nationally televised for the first time ever when it was forced to shut down.
These newly announced games will be carried on NBC Sports, though, giving the league and women’s hockey another opportunity to shine on a national stage. It’s fantastic news all around.
You Don’t See That Every Day
Former Tri-City Americans defenseman, Dylan Coghlan, entered Wednesday night’s game for the Golden Knights with zero career NHL goals. He left with three.
Artemi Panarin returned to the New York Rangers after a leave of absence that began on Feb. 22. The superstar forward stepped away from the team after he was accused of assaulting a young woman in 2011 during his time playing in the KHL. The unsubstantiated allegations came on the heels of Panarin expressing support for Alexei Navalny, the leader of the opposition to Vladimir Putin in Russia.
Justin Bieber wrote a “love letter” to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Please don’t tell any of my colleagues here at Sound Of Hockey, but I kind of love it.
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at Sound Of Hockey and the host, producer, and editor of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is an inconsistent beer league goalie who believes that five players have to make a mistake before the puck gets to him. Follow him on Twitter @DarrenFunBrown or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
I was warned by my Sound Of Hockey colleagues that doing this Mock Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft exercise would be challenging. Of course, I wondered how hard it really could be, but in the end, their warnings should have been heeded.
As we were going through the process of profiling all 30 teams participating in the Expansion Draft, it was relatively easy to look at most rosters and say, Here are the two or three guys I’d want the Kraken to consider.
The problem with that is when you draft the full roster, you have to build the team with players that actually fit. You must consider age and salary and more importantly position. For example, the rough draft of my roster had too many forwards and not enough defensemen, so I had some late swaps. It is not as simple as looking at which players will be available and simply picking based on how good you think they are.
All of that is meant as a way to manage your expectations of the roster that I’ve built here so that you aren’t excessively hard on me in the comments.
Like Josh Horton, I too have included a numeric confidence level (CL) with each pick in my explanations below.
Rules of the Sound Of Hockey Mock Expansion Draft
Protection lists are based on latest projections on Sound Of Hockey (Central, East, West, North).
You are allowed one UFA draft-and-sign selection. This selection should pass the sniff test of being a legitimate option (i.e. expecting to draft and sign Alex Ovechkin does not feel legitimate).
No side deals. Although we are aware that this will be a major part of the actual Expansion Draft, we don’t have enough insider knowledge about what could be done here or what the Kraken would actually try to pull off. So for the purposes of this Mock Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft, we’re keeping this off the table.
The Expansion Draft picks
Anaheim: Josh Manson (Defense) – Defense is the best option out of Anaheim. I used to think Josh Mahura was the pick here, but he hasn’t stuck in the NHL yet. If Kevin Shattenkirk ends up available, I’d consider it, but for now, I’m going with the known quantity in Manson. His minutes have been limited this season, but he missed significant time with an oblique injury and played a huge role last season. Confidence Level (CL): 5 out of 10
Arizona: Adin Hill (Goalie) – I wanted to go against the grain here, but all desert roads lead to hills, or in this case, Adin Hill. Darcy Kuemper is injured again, so Hill should get some starts for the Coyotes in the coming weeks. CL: 9
Boston: Jeremy Lauzon (Defense) – There’s a lot to like about Lauzon’s game, and I’ve seen his name occasionally written as Jérémy with not one, but two accent marks. That’s incredible! Just 23 years old, he has been playing big minutes on the blue line for a good Boston team. Nick Ritchie is the other option here, but I love the upside and multiple accent marks of Lauzon. He currently is out with a broken hand but will return this season. CL: 7
Buffalo: Tage Thompson (Center) – I’m still intrigued by the idea of signing pending UFA Taylor Hall, but he’s having a bad season, so we’ll use the UFA draft-and-sign elsewhere. Yes, I know that Thompson has fallen out of favor in Buffalo (as has the entire team), and I know it hasn’t been a good season for him. But he’s 23, he’s huge, and he was once a highly touted prospect, so it’s a low-risk gamble from a roster filled with relatively poor options. CL: 3
Calgary: Sam Bennett (Center) – Bennett has never lived up to expectations, but there is undeniable grit and talent here. Considering the alternatives in Calgary, Bennett would be worth a selection. CL: 6
Carolina: Jake Bean (Defense) – I had selected Morgan Geekie here initially, but this was one of my “too many forwards” last-minute replacements. Bean is a fine choice, though, and will instantly find a significant role in Seattle’s defense corps. Carolina has a few good options, so Ron Francis really cannot go wrong. CL: 8
Chicago: Brandon Hagel (Left Wing) – With Brent Seabrook hanging it up, Stan Bowman no longer needs a protection slot for him, so Nikita Zadorov is now most likely covered. Hagel has been very good, though, and is likely to actually be protected. The more probable options are Calvin de Haan or Lucas Carlsson, but based on the rules of this exercise, Hagel is available so I’m taking him. CL: 2
Colorado: Devon Toews (Defense) – Colorado is another roster where Francis and company cannot go wrong. Toews would be a top-pairing defenseman for the Kraken. If he ends up protected, it opens other very intriguing doors. CL: 7
Columbus: Eric Robinson (Left Wing) – The last forward protection slot in Columbus likely comes down to Robinson or Gustav Nyquist. Robinson is exposed on our list, so I’ll take him. This will be a depth selection, but Robinson plays every game for the Blue Jackets and earns regular minutes from Torts. CL: 6
Dallas: Jason Dickinson (Center) – We once thought Joe Pavelski or Anton Khudobin would be the choice out of Dallas, but Pavelski has been one of the league’s best players and will be protected, while Khudobin has come back down to earth. Dickinson can play a regular shift and chip in at least a little offensively. Perhaps he could flourish in an expanded role. CL: 4
Detroit: Givani Smith (Left Wing) – Smith was the SOH favorite to be picked from Detroit this past offseason, but alarm bells were sounded when he was sent to the AHL early on. It appears Steve Yzerman is committed to having his young players develop in the minors, though, so this shouldn’t dissuade the Kraken from picking Smith. The veteran option would be Troy Stecher, but I like Smith’s upside enough to give him a try. CL: 5
Edmonton: Caleb Jones (Defense) – I don’t love the options in Edmonton. Jones hasn’t been a big contributor at the NHL level but had good numbers in the AHL. He is also still just 23, so perhaps there’s some upside left. CL: 3
Florida: Chris Driedger (Goalie) – This is my one UFA draft-and-sign pick. Driedger has had a breakout season with the Panthers, who are contenders in the Central largely because of him. The UFA status makes me question the likelihood of Driedger landing with the Kraken, but I would love to see it. CL: 2
Los Angeles: Sean Walker (Defense) – Andreas Athanasiou was my initial pick here, as I’ve really liked his game in my viewings of the Kings this season. Alas, my roster was unbalanced, so some forwards had to go. Instead, I’ll take Walker, who plays a decent-sized role on LA’s blue line. I hope he doesn’t look like this anymore when he arrives in Seattle. CL: 6
Minnesota: Matt Dumba (Defense) – Ironically, it was Dumba who hit Walker in the face with a slap shot, creating the aftermath above. I still don’t buy that Dumba will be available in the end, but we have him exposed based on the current roster, so he’s the obvious pick. If the Wild don’t trade Dumba, my guess is that Bill Guerin will figure out a way to get Zach Parise to waive his NMC so he doesn’t have to expose Jordan Greenway or Joel Eriksson Ek. For now, I gladly select Dumba. CL: 4
Montreal: Jake Allen (Goalie) – Like how all desert roads lead to Hill, all French-Canadian rues lead to Jake Allen. I still think he needs to be in a platoon to be successful, but Allen should have some good goalie talent to share Seattle’s crease with him. I like Victor Mete as well, but Allen just makes too much sense. CL: 9
Nashville: Ryan Johansen (Center) – The Predators have two $8 million cap hits to deal with in Johansen and Matt Duchene, neither of whom is contributing enough to warrant such a high salary. But somebody will have to center Seattle’s top line, and Johansen can do that. Perhaps a change of scenery will help him bounce back to the Johansen of yore, and perhaps Francis can even get David Poile to throw in a sweetener to take this massive contract off Nashville’s books. I take Johansen over Duchene because Johansen is two years younger, and his contract expires one year earlier than Duchene’s. CL: 3
New Jersey: Yegor Sharangovich (Left Wing) – There are a few equally intriguing young players to choose from in New Jersey, but I’m going with Sharangovich. The 22-year-old Belarussian is developing nicely and seeing some top-line minutes with Jack Hughes. CL: 7
New York Islanders: Nick Leddy (Defense) – Leddy would slide right into Seattle’s top four and only has one year left on his contract after next season. A smooth skater and very reliable blueliner, Leddy feels like a perfect fit as a one of those guys that contributes for a couple years to help launch an expansion franchise, then moves along. CL: 6
New York Rangers: Brett Howden (Center) – Do I love this pick? No. Do I think there are better alternatives for the Kraken on Broadway? Also no. Howden has not been impactful this season, but he’s still just 22 and has shown promise the last couple years. CL: 8
Ottawa: Chris Tierney (Center) – Again, not the best options available in Ottawa. Tierney has gotten some top-line minutes on a bad Senators team and is a proven NHLer, though, so at the very least can help fill out the bottom six for the Kraken. CL: 5
Philadelphia: James van Riemsdyk (Left Wing) – JvR is Philadelphia’s leading scorer, so it’s hard to say if he’ll actually be made available. If he is out there, I take him because Seattle will be desperate for guys who can put the puck in the net. CL: 6
Pittsburgh: Teddy Blueger (Center) – It’s a toss-up between Blueger and Jared McCann, but Blueger could probably center Seattle’s second line, so he’s the pick. CL: 7
San Jose: Dylan Gambrell (Center) – He’s from Bonney Lake. CL: 8
St. Louis: Oskar Sundqvist (Center) – I’ve always liked Sundqvist’s game. He’s big and physical and chips in offensively. Lots to like there. CL: 6
Tampa Bay: Ondrej Palat (Right Wing) – The Lightning are another one of those where Seattle can’t go wrong when selecting from their roster. Palat is the best available player, so I’ll go with that, but if I’m Francis, I’m definitely swinging for a side deal here. CL: 8
Toronto: Justin Holl (Defense) – We used to think Travis Dermott was the pick from the Maple Leafs, but he isn’t getting as much time as I would have expected. I’ll go with the more reliable and more proven Holl. CL: 7
Vancouver: Kole Lind (Right Wing) – Gone are the days when we assumed Braden Holtby would land in the Kraken goal crease. Here are the days that we think an AHLer is the best choice from the Canucks. To be fair to Lind, though, he’s having a great season in the AHL and has oodles of upside. CL: 8
Washington: Vitek Vanecek (Goalie) – I wanted TJ Oshie, but his term and age scared me off. Vanecek is a stud. If Washington protects him over Ilya Samsonov, then Samsonov would also be a good pick. CL: 9
Winnipeg: Mason Appleton (Right Wing) – Appleton is having a bit of a break-out this year for the Jets, scoring seven goals and six assists so far. He grinds it out on the third line but plays behind some elite talent, so one has to wonder what he could bring in an expanded role. He scored a beautiful goal on Tuesday. CL: 7
I’m exhausted, and I apparently love centers. I’m too tired to try this again, though, so I’m going to hope some of my centers can play wing.
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at Sound Of Hockey and the host, producer, and editor of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is an inconsistent beer league goalie who believes that five players have to make a mistake before the puck gets to him. Follow him on Twitter @DarrenFunBrown or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
It has been another relatively quiet week on the Seattle Kraken front, and around the Seattle sports scene in general there has been practically no news or semblance of significant controversy [slams door just in time to fend off barrage of rotten vegetables, daggers, and pitchforks].
There have been some major bombshells heard from around the rest of the hockey world, though, so those will be the focus of this edition of Weekly One-Timers. For the Kraken-minded reader, here are a couple items to at least whet your appetite because again, we know there hasn’t been much to talk about for Seattle sports fans.
What an odd ride the last six months have been for Claude Julien. In August, he was hospitalized with chest pains which led to him missing the entire NHL playoff bubble. In October, general manager Marc Bergevin made several huge splashes to improve the Canadiens. With newly acquired Tyler Toffoli, Josh Anderson, and Jake Allen under his watch, Julien returned to training camp in January with elevated expectations. Fast forward a month and change, and Julien is out the door, despite the Habs getting off to a hot start and despite them still sitting in a playoff spot.
What happened?
Well, in 2019-2020, the Habs nosedived into a few pits from which they never could fully emerge, highlighted by two separate eight-game losing streaks. In 2021, after they came out looking like world-beaters in the early going, Bergevin saw the Canadiens heading into another one of those holes. After the team lost six of eight including its last three in a row under Julien, Bergevin decided to take a proactive approach to stopping the bleeding. Assistant coach Kirk Muller was also issued a pink slip.
Julien is replaced in an interim basis by Dominique Ducharme, 47, who has been at Julien’s side since 2018. He is viewed as a progressive coach that will bring a new philosophy to Montreal’s bench.
Julien to the Seattle Kraken?
So will Julien be the first head coach in Seattle Kraken history? Maybe. Maybe not. That’s the extent of our conjecturing at this point.
But seriously, he will likely at least get considered for the job. Julien has 18 years of NHL head coaching experience that consists of two stints with the Canadiens, a brief stop in New Jersey, and 10 years behind Boston’s bench. His Bruins also hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2010-2011, and he boasts a career record of 667-445-152.
We at SOH do believe Seattle will select somebody with NHL head coaching experience as its first benchboss, and the team has made no bones about being patient until the right candidate becomes available. Is Julien that guy?
Artemi Panarin allegations are questionable
The other whopper of a story this week was New York Rangers superstar Artemi Panarin taking a leave of absence after being accused of assaulting a young woman in Riga, Latvia, in 2011. The claim comes from Panarin’s former KHL coach, Andrei Nazarov.
While most reports of this manner result in society quickly piling on athletes and celebrities and finding them guilty in the court of public perception, the opposite has happened here. Instead, countless journalists and former teammates and even the Rangers themselves have rushed to support Panarin, calling the accusations fabricated.
Well, Panarin has spoken out against Russian President Vladimir Putin in the past. On Jan. 21, Panarin posted on his Instagram in support of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who survived an attempted poisoning while traveling abroad. Navalny eventually returned to Russia and was promptly jailed by Putin’s regime upon arrival. His arrest led to mass protests throughout Russia.
This is pretty significant: New York Rangers superstar forward Artemi Panarin showing support for jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny ahead of planned Saturday protests all over Russia. Hashtags this Instagram post “Freedom for Navalny” https://t.co/9rwcP87oKKpic.twitter.com/8zZyjEjOeO
And wouldn’t you know? Coach Nazarov happens to be a staunch Putin supporter. VICE News had a fantastic write-up on the fascinating and generally bizarre story.
NHL Outdoors was a disaster… But then it wasn’t!
The ice melted. Hand up, I’ll admit it. I did not see that coming.
Through the first period of the Avalanche versus Golden Knights on Saturday, ruts in the ice were horrible, guys were falling all over the place, and play was generally slow and choppy.
So, the league made the very tough call to postpone until 9PM Pacific that night, and also to push back the start of Sunday’s game between Boston and Philadelphia until the evening.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced that the remainder of today's #NHLOutdoors game at Lake Tahoe will resume tonight at 9pm PTpic.twitter.com/cOGVvVzyFz
In the end, it still was a great event, even with what some would perceive as an embarrassing eight-hour delay in the middle of the first game. The visuals were still stunning, the off-ice coverage was fun to consume, and the Flyers-Bruins game was the most-watched regular-season game ever to air on NBCSN.
Stealing the show was undoubtedly Gritty, who took in the sights of Lake Tahoe, shredded some gnar, and even crashed a wedding.
We can’t help feeling bad for Blades the Bruin, who played second fiddle to his Philadelphian counterpart all weekend, earning just a small fraction of Gritty’s recognition. Blades did have the last laugh when the Bruins beat the Flyers 7-3 on Sunday, though.
WHL schedule released
The WHL announced the full schedule for its US Division’s abbreviated season. The Seattle Thunderbirds will open on March 19 at home against the Spokane Chiefs. The Everett Silvertips will open the following night also at home and also against Spokane. The season will last until early May, and there will not be any playoffs.
Fans will not be allowed to attend games in person, but the WHL did announce a new streaming service through CHL TV that will allow viewing access to all scheduled WHL games. WHL Live, as it’s called, is $59.99 for the full season or $6.99 for a 24-hour pass. If you are a WHL fiend, remember, the Central Division starts play on Friday, so you’ll immediately have something to watch.
Seth Jarvis is good at hockey, Dustin Wolf bounces back
Typically, 19-year-old CHL players are ineligible to play in the AHL until their CHL season ends. But with the ongoing pandemic leaving major junior hockey in limbo for so long, the leagues made an unprecedented agreement to allow those that had signed entry-level pro contracts to temporarily level up until their respective CHL teams return.
Portland’s Seth Jarvis was selected in the first round of this year’s NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes. While he waits for his Winterhawks to return to play, he has been allowed to compete for the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, where he has been very impressive. Despite playing his first professional hockey, Jarvis already has six goals and three assists in just seven games.
Everett’s Dustin Wolf—selected in 2019 by the Calgary Flames—has been suiting up for the Stockton Heat. Wolf made his debut on Sunday and got shellacked by the Toronto Marlies, allowing five goals on just 11 shots. We’re happy to share that the friend of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast recovered beautifully in his next appearance, stopping 36 of 38 shots to earn his first professional win and first-star honors.
Wolf and Jarvis will return to the WHL when their teams start back up in March.
The King is back
Oh, you thought you had seen the last of Henrik Lundqvist’s dashing good looks after he said he wouldn’t play this season because of a heart condition? Well, look who’s back on the ice after open-heart surgery!
Could you imagine looking this good while running? I certainly can’t.
Today is a good day. The checkup with the doctor this morning reaffirmed what I’ve been feeling last few weeks, everything looking great. It energized me so much I had to go out for a run (FYI, I’m not a runner) Today is a good day! 😃👍🏻#Stepbysteppic.twitter.com/AXrZzMDbts
The Sioux Falls Stampede of the USHL will officially change its name (temporarily) to the Sioux Falls Fighting Wiener Dogs on Saturday. It’s the second time the team has performed this stunt, which comes in conjunction with the Sioux Nation Pet Clinic Wiener Dog Races. Get your Wiener Dog gear here!
Bruce Boudreau bought his second USPHL team over the summer, this one in Hershey, PA, his full-time home. The team has cleverly named itself the Hershey Cubs, and the logo is a thing of beauty.
The Cubs logo takes after the old Minnesota Fighting Saints of the WHA, for whom Boudreau played in the 1975-1976 season.
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at Sound Of Hockey and the host, producer, and editor of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is an inconsistent beer league goalie who believes that five players have to make a mistake before the puck gets to him. Follow him on Twitter @DarrenFunBrown or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
Lots to talk about on this week’s Sound Of Hockey Podcast, as John, Andy, and Darren break down NHL Outdoors and all the good/bad times that were associated with the picturesque event. The star of the show was predictably Gritty, who gets plenty of airtime devoted to him on this episode.
There were also a couple major scandals that erupted this week in the NHL. Artemi Panarin is taking a leave of absence from the Rangers after a big accusation out of Russia. Meanwhile, the Arizona Coyotes apparently have a lot of bad stuff happening behind the scenes, as was expertly reported by Katie Strang. The Sound Of Hockey guys fill you in on the details.
The guys give their Three Stars (all players this week!).
They then move from bits to segments, with segments including Let’s Get Quizzical, Weekly One-Timers, and Tweets of the Week.
Ever since Seattle Kraken assistant general manager Jason Botterill appeared on the Sound Of Hockey Podcast, his stock has skyrocketed faster than GameStop during a short squeeze. Very topical, I know.
As we mentioned in last week’s Weekly One-Timers post, Jim Rutherford abruptly retired as general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins, and Botterill’s name was being considered as a replacement for the long-time executive. It made sense, since Botterill was part of that franchise’s front office when it won its three Sidney Crosby-era Stanley Cups.
But Botterill is under contract with Seattle, and when a contract is in place, permission is required to speak to a candidate.
Bobby Margarita updated us via Twitter on Thursday that Pittsburgh did not receive permission from Seattle to talk to him, at least not quickly enough from the Penguins’ point of view.
Quick follow up/clarification on what I reported last night regarding PIT GM search: PIT did ask for permission from SEA to talk to Jason Botterill but did NOT receive permission to do so, at least not in a timeframe that worked for PIT. So Botterill is not a candidate in PIT.
So, although this story has flip-flopped a couple times now, the latest seems to be that Botterill is staying with the Kraken.
Botterill was hired as Seattle’s AGM just one month ago. Here’s hoping he stays at least through the inaugural season.
Other Kraken-related stuff
As you likely heard, Andy Jassy is set to take over as CEO of Amazon in Q3 of this year. We have no idea if this has any impact on the Kraken, but Jassy—currently the CEO of Amazon Web Services—is a minority owner of the team and had a big role in the branding of the franchise. There’s also speculation that Jeff Bezos moving out of the CEO role could somehow lead to the Sonics coming back to Seattle, but it remains unclear who is spreading these rumors.
Jassy is one of the minority owners of the Kraken and will probably be the majority owner someday. I imagine a lot of Sonics fans are assuming Bezos stepping down is related to him making a push for buying an NBA team. a little premature but not totally unwarranted.
Ok, but seriously it has no real evidence behind it at this time, other than Bezos is really rich, is based in Seattle, and Seattleites want the Sonics back.
Climate Pledge Arena also announced its first concert this week.
After the NHL successfully closed out its 2019-2020 postseason bubble with zero positive tests throughout, we at Sound Of Hockey were optimistic about 2020-2021. We thought it could be more successful than other leagues like the NFL and Major League Baseball at safely carrying out a season outside of a central bubble, because clearly the NHL just gets it and wouldn’t allow COVID to be an issue. Right?
Our optimism was perhaps a bit misguided.
As of Friday, 26 NHL games have been postponed this season.
Of course, there was always flexibility built into the schedule to allow for such postponements, but it does beg the question of what else can be done to make it more safe. And if this trend continues, does the league carry on, just accepting that more players and staff will get COVID?
There are currently four teams trying to contain outbreaks in Buffalo, Minnesota, Colorado, and New Jersey—the Devils have had as many as 17 players on the COVID protocol list. This does not include teams like Vegas, Dallas, and Carolina, who have already had their seasons shut down due to positive tests but have since returned to play.
Buffalo head coach Ralph Krueger also tested positive this week. He’s 61 years old, so that’s a bit scary.
With Colorado the latest team to shut down—the Avs just played three games against Minnesota, making us wonder if there may have been some cross-mojonation between the clubs—the league did get creative with its scheduling. It replaced a Blues/Avalanche series with a previously postponed Blues/Coyotes series on Saturday and Monday. It’s a quick pivot in plans for those teams but a clever decision by the NHL to try to keep things somewhat on track.
New protocols
The NHL released a statement on Thursday with new steps that must be taken immediately to hopefully curtail the spread of the virus. The most notable new protocols are removal of partitions behind benches to improve airflow and limiting arrival at the arena to no more than one hour and 45 minutes before game time.
The NHL isn’t the only league that has had its plans altered after COVID infiltrated its ranks. The same is certainly true for the NWHL, which very sadly was forced to suspend its previously exhilarating tournament in Lake Placid.
The NWHL and the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) have agreed, due to new positive COVID-19 tests and the resulting safety concerns for the players, their respective staff & the community that the remainder of the 2021 NWHL Season in Lake Placid have been suspended.
The Metropolitan Riveters and Connecticut Whale had both exited the so-called Whubble after receiving positive tests, and the rest of the six-team league followed suit on Wednesday.
The timing was especially painful, as the NWHL was preparing for its first-ever nationally televised games. The semi-finals and final were set to be played on NBCSN with the Seattle Kraken’s new play-by-play man, John Forslund, on the call along with AJ Mleczko.
It’s a devastating blow for a league that seemed to finally be finding some traction and national attention with this very protracted season.
WHL update from our WHL correspondent
On the other side of the coin, Sound Of Hockey’s own Andy Eide broke the news this week that Washington Governor Jay Inslee has given the green light to the WHL teams within the state to return to play.
I have learned that Gov. Inslee has approved the WHL’s request to play hockey for its Washington based teams. No word from the league or teams about the next steps as of yet but one major hurdle has been overcome.
We don’t have a start date yet, and we also don’t know if the Portland Winterhawks will be given the same go-ahead by the state of Oregon.
The WHL teams located in Alberta did have a start date set last week and are expected to begin play on Feb. 26.
Victor Hedman is cooler than ever
Victor Hedman has done a lot in his NHL career, including winning a Stanley Cup, a Norris Trophy, and a Conn Smythe Trophy and being named to four All-Star Games. Plus, he just comes across as a cool dude. But we don’t think he’s ever looked cooler than he does now that he has this Swedish banger as his goal song.
Victor Hedman har – utan någon som helst konkurrens – NHL:s bästa mållåt 2020/21. pic.twitter.com/4uZOVM76KH
The Lightning do have a standard song they play for most players, but a few get special treatment with personalized tunes after they tickle the twine.
Here is the full song with lyrics for your enjoyment.
Tony DeAngelo is gone, Rangers rejoice
The Rangers—who waived Tony DeAngelo after he got in a reported scuffle with goaltender Alexandar Georgiev on Saturday—came away with a 4-2 victory on Thursday over the Capitals.
As the Rangers were leaving the ice, they celebrated with what appeared to be a feigned altercation between other goaltender Igor Shesterkin and star forward Artemi Panarin.
Darren Brown is the Chief Content Officer at Sound Of Hockey and the host, producer, and editor of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. He is an inconsistent beer league goalie who believes that five players have to make a mistake before the puck gets to him. Follow him on Twitter @DarrenFunBrown or email darren@soundofhockey.com.
