The sun is out and the birds are chirping in the Emerald City. More than 50% of King County residents have received their first vaccine dose, and Seattle Kraken general manager Ron Francis talked to the media this week. In more ways than one, hope springs eternal. With each blooming flower, each passing day, and each little tidbit of Seattle Kraken news, we inch closer to the Expansion Draft and the arrival of the NHL’s 32nd franchise, a moment that will live on for all eternity in the hearts and souls of Seattle hockey fans.
Hope. Springs. Eternal.
If you’re wondering what is wrong with me, well, I’m just in a good mood. It’s nice as f*** out. Let’s get this Weekly One-Timer thing over with so I can go outside and promptly remove my shirt.
Seattle Kraken news
It has been a slightly more eventful week than most for the Kraken.
As I mentioned while I was waxing poetic, Ron Francis was made available to the media on Tuesday, and Sound Of Hockey partook. Check out our recap of the availability here or watch the full presser below.
On Wednesday, the team announced the hiring of four new leaders for its youth hockey and figure skating programs, which will be housed at the new Kraken Training Center. Martin Hlinka will serve as youth hockey director, while David Kyu-Ho Min and Katelyn Parker were hired as player development coaches. Chad Goodwin will be the figure skating director. Read all about the new hires here.
That same day, the team tweeted out the below photos, showing not only the concrete being poured for the ice sheets at the new three-sheet practice facility, but also the wall painted beautifully in the Kraken color scheme.
Have you ever seen such a beautiful wall inside a local hockey arena? No, you have not.
Finally, the High Tide Waitlist went live this week. The annual $250 membership guarantees the opportunity to purchase four single-game tickets and comes with some special access, contests, and content. There are 10,000 total spots on the waitlist. See the details of the program here.
We at SOH hold no opinions about the High Tide Waitlist, but would love to get your thoughts on it in the comment section.
Significant injuries
Jack Eichel suffered a neck injury on March 7 in a game against the Islanders. On March 29, Buffalo’s interim coach, Don Granato, told media he didn’t think the injury would be season-ending. Granato was apparently wrong on this topic, as Eichel has officially been ruled out for the remainder with a herniated disk.
And so, it is confirmed that playing for the Sabres really is a pain in the neck.
Also on the injury front this week, the Dallas Stars announced that neither Ben Bishop nor Alex Radulov will return this season. Bishop has not played since March 2020 due to a knee injury. He was expected to return at some point, but the Stars have now decided against pushing their starting netminder back into action. Radulov needs surgery on a core muscle.
It has been a difficult season in Dallas, where the runners-up from last year remain five points outside of the playoff picture.
Injury… swap?
Making a trade prior to Monday’s NHL Trade Deadline was apparently not the only way for the Tampa Bay Lightning to swap out players.
The Bolts have been on the brink of exceeding the salary cap all season. The only reason they were able to remain compliant is that Nikita Kucherov was placed on long-term injured reserve at the beginning of the campaign, removing his $9.5 million cap hit.
Now, Steven Stamkos, who has scored at close to a point-per-game clip this season, has been placed on LTIR with a lower body injury retroactive to April 9. That means the earliest he can return is May 3. Stamkos carries a $8.5 million cap hit.
But wait! There’s a twist! Who could have guessed this? Kucherov now appears ready to return! What a fascinating coincidence!
Nikita Kucherov is on the ice for practice. Wearing a gray practice uni. #Bolts
The Canucks have been dealing with a very serious Covid outbreak for the last couple of weeks that has resulted in as many as 25 players and staff being placed on the NHL’s Covid protocol list.
The team hasn’t played since March 24, but the league had planned to have the team return to action this week. Vancouver forward J.T. Miller spoke up, however, calling it “dangerous to a lot of players” to rush the team back.
The NHL responded by postponing Friday’s game between the Canucks and the Oilers and totally revamping the team’s schedule for the remainder of the season. The Canucks will now play until May 19 and will have 19 games in 32 days.
The CHL has officially canceled the Memorial Cup for the second consecutive season due to Covid concerns. The cancellation of the championship tournament does not come as much of a surprise. The QMJHL has had several starts and stops with teams playing varying numbers of games, the WHL is playing just 24 games with no playoffs to name a winner, and the OHL has not played at all. So determining which teams should participate, plus quarantine requirements and border closures, would have made safely pulling this off nearly impossible.
Former Seattle Thunderbird Patrick Marleau, 41, is expected to tie Gordie Howe’s career games played record on Saturday and break the record on Monday. When his Sharks take on the Wild on Saturday, it will be career game number 1,767 for Marleau, a number set by Mr. Hockey that many thought would be untouchable. What’s most impressive about Howe’s mark is that it doesn’t include the 467 games he played in the WHA from 1973 to 1979. He also returned to the NHL as a Hartford Whaler at age 52 and appeared in 80 games (those games are included in his NHL record). Still, what Marleau is about to do is truly an incredible feat.
Team USA’s roster for the Men’s Under-18 World Championship was announced this week. Everett Silvertips netminder Braden Holt made the team. The tournament will be played April 26-May 6 in Texas and is the last chance for the world’s top prospects to showcase themselves on a big stage before this summer’s NHL Entry Draft.
FYI, the Jack Hughes listed is a different Jack Hughes than the one that plays on the New Jersey Devils, which is confusing.
You don’t see that every day
One of the more fun plays in hockey is when an equipment manager gets an unofficial assist. Sidney Crosby gave his stick to a defenseman who had been rendered stickless in Pittsburgh’s zone on Thursday. With the play going the other way, Sid flew by the bench and grabbed a new stick from Penguins equipment manager Jon Taglianetti. He then raced into Philadelphia’s zone and immediately knocked home a rebound.
Please sign my petition to make equipment manager assists an official NHL stat.
Goalie Gear Corner
Tired
I’ve never been a huge fan of masks that feature nothing more than a team’s logo. Mikko Koskinen rolled out his new Oilers mask this week, which does just that. I do like the color scheme and matte finish, but it’s just a bit impersonal for my taste.
New mask for Koskinen. Same lines as yesterday. Mike Smith in starter’s net. No RNH with main group today. pic.twitter.com/ZcX0fvehyP
I might have just put my foot in my mouth a bit, because Blasty the Horse—featured prominently on Louie Domingue’s new mask—somehow gets a pass from me, even though Blasty is technically just the logo for Calgary’s third jerseys.
But Blasty hits different. Blasty has personality. Blasty is blowing fire out of his nostrils for some reason and should probably be taken to a veterinarian to get that checked out.
Logan Thompson of the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights means serious business with his all-silver getup. I’m trying to figure out exactly why I like this look so much, and I think it’s the gold lettering that does it for me. The pads are somehow both flashy and subtle simultaneously.
Still, I can’t help wondering, Who wore it better?
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.
On Tuesday, the Seattle Kraken were kind enough to make general manager Ron Francis available to the media.
Francis kept things relatively diplomatic and unsurprisingly avoided any earth-shattering revelations. However, we did get some interesting nuggets out of the presser surrounding the Kraken’s plans for the NHL Draft, their goaltenders, their first head coach, and their AHL affiliate for the upcoming inaugural season.
Here is what we at Sound Of Hockey asked Francis and his answers to our questions.
Sound Of Hockey’s questions for Seattle Kraken GM Ron Francis
Andy Eide:I had a question about the amateur draft. I’m curious about what your day-to-day involvement in that process of scouting is, and do you have a sense of the overall depth and talent of this year’s class?
Francis:Yeah, so I’ve been fairly involved. It’s tough to go to games; you can’t go to Canada because you gotta quarantine for two weeks and a lot of those leagues weren’t playing…
We’ve done a lot of homework basically via video and stuff. It’s going to be an extremely challenging draft for sure. There’s going to be players especially from the Ontario League that may have not played a game since last February or March, and you’re watching them on video; certainly challenging. Everybody is in sort of that same boat.
[Other teams] probably have a little bit more data on the players than we do. We certainly have some scouts with experience that have more data on players, but we don’t have the database that some of those other teams have, just on the fact that they’ve been in operation for two or three years.
John Barr:Obviously, you couldn’t make trades [prior to Monday’s NHL Trade Deadline], but there were trades made. There were a couple contract extensions and waiver claims. As a whole, how do you think Seattle did [Monday], and were there any surprises?
Francis:No, I mean, before the waiver claims we said there are two guys that would probably get claimed. It may not have been 100 percent on the actual team [that selected each player], but it goes by worst to best on who gets first choice on those waiver claims.
And then a lot of the guys that moved were guys for the most part that were UFA status… I think overall it wasn’t any huge surprises for us, per se, and we have already taken a look at where we think we have been affected sort of positively or negatively. And we will continue to look at that and evaluate as we move forward here and regroup as a whole and start preparing from here to July.
This is what we said all along. We can do a mock draft 12 months ago or six months ago, but until we get closer to that day and until we get to see that final list, it’s hard to project with 100 percent accuracy what we’re going to be picking from. But we’ll look at all the scenarios that we think might present themselves and be the best prepared as we possibly can be.
Darren Brown: Is there any chance whatsoever that the coach that you hire as the first coach is somebody who has not actually been a head coach in the NHL before?
Francis: I think I’m on record as saying I’d like a head coach that has been in that role before. I think it’s a tough challenge to bring everybody together in such a quick fashion and having a little bit of experience certainly would help in that regard.
Having said that, if there is somebody that hasn’t been a head coach in the NHL that auditions and interviews extremely well we’re not opposed to going that direction, but I think it is our preference to get somebody with head coaching experience if possible.
Brown: I’m wondering if you can just talk about your plans a little bit for your goaltenders; if you’re going to be using two veterans for example, or one veteran goaltender and one younger goaltender or a platoon situation. Any thoughts you might have on that?
Francis: The goaltending front is going to be interesting. You know, as we get into the last month here of the season, into the playoffs, we’re going to get a better read on some of the guys that might be available and who we think is the best fit for us. But you also have to factor in all the different options you’re going to have on different teams, and just because this [team] might have a goaltender doesn’t mean you will take that goaltender.
So ideally you get a guy that’s lights out as your starter and a great number two. Maybe you go with two ‘1-B’s,’ maybe you go with one veteran and a younger guy. I think that remains to be seen. I think we’re open to evaluating all those different scenarios and certainly our goalie scouts have been working hard in addition to our pro staff to indicate which guys we should be interested in and our analytics team is working hard behind the scenes to see if they can figure it out as well.
Doing a lot of things and hopefully we get the right two guys to stop pucks when we get to that point.
Eide: I had a question about your American Hockey League situation. How much progress has been made or is there a timeframe for identifying an affiliate for your players to play on next fall and do you prefer them to be on one team or to be spread across more than one team?
Francis: Yeah, so we’ve had a lot of conversations with different teams. Ideally we have it with one team, and we are in talks with a specific team currently; we’ll hopefully get that wrapped up sooner rather than later. And if we can do that, we put everybody in one spot ideally.
If not, then we’re probably looking at spreading some players out here and there and different things, but not having your own minor league team next year, we’re probably looking somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 players. Ideally if you can put that in one spot, it makes it a lot easier.
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.
When we last left off on our oral history of the Seattle Thunderbirds 2017 WHL Championship season, Seattle had swept the Everett Silvertips in the second round and were set to play a series with the Kelowna Rockets in the conference finals for the second time in two years.
The Thunderbirds went up early against the Rockets but would suffer an injury in Game 4 that seemed like it might sink the ship. Defenseman Ethan Bear was hit with a puck that would break a bone in his hand and force him to miss the remainder of the series.
As they had all year, the Thunderbirds managed to overcome and advance in six games.
Ethan Bear: They had a five-on-three and I think it was Reid Gardiner who came back as a 20. He was a powerhouse; he had a hard shot. Sure enough, I went down to block it and broke my finger. For me, that was pretty frightening.
Keegan Kolesar: It was a tough one because I know how he felt. No one wants to miss out, especially in the playoffs. When a player like that goes down you think about it for a second and it’s next man up. He was a huge portion of our defense.
Austin Strand: When he went down and blocked that shot, we lost a key guy. It was pretty tough there.
Donovan Neuls: That one really set us back. He was just a big part of our team and a bigger part of our power play with his shot from the point. With him in the lineup we were all really confident.
Bear: I remember going out in the warmups (in the next game) to try and get them to think I’m ready to go. I think everyone was too smart for that. They knew I was faking it. I knew I couldn’t go. I was just trying to be a decoy and get in their heads and act like I was going.
Scott Eansor: Through all these injuries Steve (Konowalchuk) did an excellent job making everyone feel they were a part of the team. Guys stepped up, all the D. They really stepped up in those key moments.
Bear: One thing I’ll always remember is the practice before Game 1 of the finals to determine if I was going to play. Barzy was saying, ‘You’re good to go, you’re good to go.’ There was one neutral zone pass where I sauced it to Gropper and all the boys were tapping their sticks saying, ‘You’re in!’
Ethan Bear recovered from a broken hand to play in the WHL Championship Series (Brian Liesse)
Kolesar: I remember the practice because their coaching staff was watching from the balcony. We knew they were watching so we mixed up everything. All our jerseys were different, different lines just so we could throw them off.
Turner Ottenbreit: He had surgery and it was up in the air. Just before the Regina series he came out in practice and somehow looked normal. I don’t know how he did it.
Strand: He was playing with a broken hand the rest of the way. Big ups for him being such a beast. I think he was even taking one-timers and they were still bombs.
Bear returns as the Thunderbirds open the Championship Series in Regina
Game 1 of the WHL Championship series was eventful. Bear played and opened the scoring when he blasted a point shot to put the Thunderbirds up 1-0.
Bear: One of my favorite goals I’ve ever scored. I didn’t know that I could take slapshots. They were giving me all the time and space and I just took it. It made them tighten up.
Matt O’Dette: It was a goosebump moment when he came back against Regina. We were wondering how much he could shoot, and he rips one bar down from the point. We knew at that point that Bearsy was back. That was a turning point, we needed Bearsy and Bearsy was back.
Eansor: Bear is like everyone’s best friend on the team, he was one of my best buddies. It was so fun having him out there and battle through that. It wasn’t easy on him, that was tough. He’s an ox and he’s still shooting one-timers with a broken bone.
Ottenbreit: Game one and ripped one top corner and it shut up everyone.
Game 1 took a turn early when Ottenbreit caught Regina star Adam Brooks with an open ice hit. Brooks left the game and would not return until Game 6.
Bear: That kind of showed Otto’s game, his dominance, his presence. He doesn’t back down from anybody and it gave us confidence. We’re a physical team and we might have 50 hits a game. It was why we win, we talked to guys we played, and they hated it.
Eansor: That’s a series-changing hit right there. You never want to see a guy hurt but Otto was massive in that series and he was a big, big part of our team.
Strand: I think that definitely worried those guys. Just losing your best players is tough and then everyone is thinking twice. It built on our confidence.
Ottenbreit: You only play those guys once a year and I don’t know if they knew what to expect. We were a big physical team and that’s part of the reason we were successful. You don’t like to see anyone get hurt.
Kolesar: I’m really tight with Brooks, we grew up together. That was a tough one to watch, but at the end of the day I wanted to win a championship and after the game I called him to see if we was ok. He was good with it; he was pissed because it was his last year. Part of me always wonders how the series would have gone because he was such a good player.
Game 1 would go into overtime and Bear once again would show his toughness. He took another big shot from the point that hit the crossbar. Neuls was there to get the rebound and Seattle took a 1-0 series lead.
Neuls: He hit the crossbar and it was just laying there. I just remember the puck sitting there and I don’t think I had two hands on my stick, I shot it like a pool stick. I remember after the game, my mom told me she couldn’t even watch the overtime.
Thunderbirds return home to a packed ShoWare Center
Seattle lost Game 2 in Regina. Tied at 1-1, the series shifted back to Seattle and the ShoWare Center. Regina won Game 3 but the Thunderbirds stormed back with two dominant wins to take control of the Championship series. Game 5 was memorable, as it was the largest crowd in ShoWare Center history and the last for the Thunderbirds core group who were now just one win away from winning the WHL Championship series.
Neuls: It was crazy. Game 5 was insane and was the loudest crowd I’ve played in. It gave me chills and they are the best fans I’ve played in front of.
Bear: Honestly, like nothing I’d ever played in. The crowd in Seattle, in Kent, is unbelievable. It was insane how loud that rink is and how loud it got. It’s some of the best memories I have. To play those final three games and win is a good memory for everybody. It was definitely hard to say goodbye.
Eansor: I just remember thinking, knowing it was my last game at the Showare, just feeling in the back of your head you’re just so thankful being able to play there. I wanted to leave a mark in my last game and that was a big thing for all of us. We loved being there and playing for Seattle. That last game and atmosphere I don’t think any of us will forget.
Kolesar: The last game, it was emotional. That was a tough one, we fell behind and battled back and finally ran away with it. During the whole game I thought, ‘This is it, the last time playing in the Showare.’ It’s hard to think about after so many games.
Ottenbreit: We always have the best fans in the league and they’re next to none. I can’t say enough good things about the fans in Seattle.
The Thunderbirds return to Regina with a chance to wrap up Championship Series
Up 3-2 in the series, the Thunderbirds headed back to Regina on the doorstep of winning a championship. The pressure was on to win the series in Game 6 and avoid an anything-goes Game 7.
Neuls: We knew we didn’t want a Game 7, we wanted to close it out.
Kolesar: Hell yeah, if you ask anyone on the team, we were pretty tapped out. With injuries, it put a lot on us, and everyone was dealing with something. We said, ‘We have to get it done, tonight.’
Eansor: We would reset after every game. That was our mindset the whole way through. Every game was just as important as the first and we wanted to win that game. No one wants to play a Game 7 with the championship on the line.
Ottenbreit: You never want to leave anything up to chance, if you have the chance you want to do it. We didn’t want them to have fresh air.
Strand: At that point, you’re exhausted and we were all exhausted. We just wanted to win it that night, just end it. There’s no point in going on.
The game was tight, and Regina scored in the third period to take a 3-1 lead late in the game. Seattle would score twice to tie and send the game to overtime.
Kolesar: It was remarkable. We went down two goals, and we were still thinking we had it. There was no panic on our bench. We were a confident group and felt like a team that could rise to any occasion.
Bear: To get the first one from Gropper who goes absolutely top cheese, we had them on their toes and when that happens, they start holding back. Sure enough, they get a penalty, and we took a timeout. This is it, let’s go, we’re not backing down. Kolesar takes that one-timer, and it magically goes in and I thought, ‘We’re not going to lose.’
Kolesar: I thought it went off Barzy and I was going to hug him. Lucky it hit someone’s skate and went in.
Eansor: We were really pumped and took one or two minutes to be satisfied, and as soon as that was over we reset. We had to win the game, nothing else mattered. Inch by inch, shift by shift, guys stepped up.
Strand: Once we got it to overtime, we knew the momentum was on our side.
Bear: In the room we were dialed in. No one was putting their head down, we were going. We didn’t have a lot of gas left; we played a lot of hockey. But it was time to empty the tanks.
Alexander True scores in overtime to vault the Thunderbirds to their first WHL Championship series win
It’s one of the biggest goals in Seattle hockey history and came in overtime. The play started with a set breakout behind the Thunderbirds net. Austin Strand had the puck and three passes later it was in the net and the Thunderbirds had won.
Strand: It’s a set play. It’s funny because we worked on that at the beginning of every practice. It was one of a couple different breakouts.
O’Dette: With any game, and playoffs especially, you never know which play might be the deciding play. Things you practice throughout the year can pay off. All those tedious, first play warmups, breakouts can pay off.
Strand: A couple weeks earlier I was talking to Oddie about the timing of it. True would come to the bottom circle near our net and get his speed going. I would get it to my D partner [Aaron] Hyman who got it to Keegs and by that time True would be at full speed.
O’Dette: If they take away your center you go D-to-D and hope your center can out-race the coverage and that’s what True did.
Kolesar: My line changed, and I was on the far side and had to stay on until it got in deep. If I changed, I didn’t know what would happen. I saw True coming, so I handed it off. When I saw him have a two-on-one I thought I could be the high guy.
Neuls: I was in the middle of the bench. I had a good angle, and I think even before he put it in the net, I had a foot over the boards.
Bear: I got off the ice just before that and my legs were cramping up, everyone was playing over 30 minutes. Everyone was starting to cramp up. I remember barely being able to jump the bench and it was one of the craziest moments of my life.
Eansor: I just remember gasping for air and then seeing we had a break and seeing he had all the time in the world to put it in and it was so slow. Just pure happiness after that, the coaches too, realizing what they did for us it was a special feeling.
O’Dette: I looked up and saw the bomb play happening and started getting excited when True had a step. I think I blacked out from there. It was mob scene.
Kolesar: I couldn’t have been more pumped. I had to take off my helmet first, I just wanted it to be off and not get choked. I ended up head butting True with his helmet on, and it hurt.
The Thunderbirds line up to await the Cup. (Photo Keith Hershmiller/Regina Pats)
Strand: I was on the ice. It was the end of my shift and I was going for a change and thought I’d go in. I just threw my gloves and ran in there; it was just hugs and screaming.
Ottenbreit: I was fully out of my gear and sitting in the training room for an hour and a half (after being kicked out of the game for a hit). When we won, I dressed as fast as I could. Last week when I watched the game it was the first time I saw the third period. I was underground when it all happened.
Strand: I was almost in tears when the Cup came out.
Eansor: To be honest I didn’t know what to do with the Cup. I didn’t know where to skate. I was bickering with Barzy during the ceremony thinking we should both lift it. He said, ‘You got it.’ It was kind of funny, it just shows he’s a great guy and good leader and he respected me. In my personal opinion it would have been great to share it with him.
Bear: I’ll never forget it. That’s something nobody will take away from you.
O’Dette: I came close as a player but lost in the finals twice in the American League. Being able to be part of a championship team as a coach it’s a different feeling but just as rewarding.
Kolesar: Those guys are my brothers, always will be. I tell everyone there won’t be a tighter group. Everything we went through that season.
Thunderbirds co-captain Scott Eansor was first to celebrate. (Keith Hershmiller/Regina Pats)
It’s yet another fun episode of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. This one focuses on the NHL Trade Deadline and everything that surrounded that big moment in the NHL season and also features Mick McHugh, legendary Seattle restaurateur who will operate the new Kraken Bar & Grill.
To cover every trade of the last week (or at least mention each one), John, Andy, and Darren play a massive game of Interesting or Carry On. Top-notch analysis in this bit.
Other bits this week include HYPEotheticals and Three Stars.
Then, Andy and Darren welcome Mick McHugh, who was recently hired by the Seattle Kraken to operate their new bar and grill, onto the show for a brief-but-fun interview. This chat will get you excited about the idea of having a college soda at the Kraken Training Center, whilst watching an event on TV or even a live Kraken practice.
Segments are light this week, with just a couple of Weekly One-Timers and Tweets of the Week.
It’s yet another fun episode of the Sound Of Hockey Podcast. This one focuses on the NHL Trade Deadline and everything that surrounded that big moment in the NHL season.
To cover every trade of the last week (or at least mention each one), John, Andy, and Darren play a massive game of Interesting or Carry On. Top-notch analysis in this bit.
Other bits this week include HYPEotheticals and Three Stars.
Then, Andy and Darren welcome Mick McHugh, who was recently hired by the Seattle Kraken to operate their new restaurant and bar, onto the show for a brief-but-fun interview. This chat will get you excited about the idea of having a college soda at the Kraken Training Center, whilst watching an event on TV or even a live Kraken practice.
Segments are light this week, with just a couple of Weekly One-Timers and Tweets of the Week.
Funny enough, the Seattle Kraken had their tentacles all over the come-and-gone NHL Trade Deadline.
Sure, there were the lets-go-win-a-Cup type trades, like Taylor Hall to Boston and Nick Foligno to Toronto, but there were also plenty of deals with a sprinkle — or in some cases a downpour — of Expansion Draft considerations.
Here’s how all the wheeling and dealing in the preceding days and on the day of Monday’s noon PT deadline may have impacted the Seattle Kraken in the Expansion Draft.
Anaheim Ducks
Players in: D Haydn Fleury; F Alexander Volkov
Players out: D Ben Hutton; D Jani Hakanpaa
The Ducks, despite sitting at the bottom of the standings, added some intriguing pieces rather than fully selling.
Fleury is a player many circled as a candidate for Seattle from Carolina, and his move to Anaheim might land him on the Ducks’ protected list. He may knock off someone like Kevin Shattenkirk, who may not be as intriguing as young defensemen Josh Mahura or Brendan Guhle.
Volkov, who was almost certainly going to be protected by Tampa Bay, might wiggle his way onto the Ducks’ Expansion list, too.
Overall, the Ducks’ pair of moves limited some of the options for Seattle — at least on the surface.
Boston Bruins
Players in: F Taylor Hall; F Curtis Lazar; D Mike Reilly
Players out: F Anders Bjork
Despite taking a big swing at acquiring Hall, the pending unrestricted free agent likely won’t be protected — unless the Bruins sign him to a contract extension, which seems unlikely.
Buffalo Sabres
Players in: F Anders Bjork
Players out: F Taylor Hall; F Curtis Lazar; D Brandon Montour; F Eric Staal
Losing Hall and Staal won’t impact the Sabres too much, considering both were set to be unrestricted free agents this summer and didn’t figure much into expansion. Montour was a player we identified as being an intriguing option in the Expansion Draft, but he’s no longer an option.
Bjork likely takes Lazar’s spot on our Sabres’ protected list.
The Flames’ fractured relationship with Bennett meant he wasn’t going to ever be protected, so the Kraken lose that “take-a-gamble-on-a-first-round-pedigree” option — Bennett still should be available, only on a team with more exciting choices in Florida.
Maybe Mark Giordano is destined to don a Seattle jersey after all?
Chicago Blackhawks
Players in: F Josh Dickinson; F Adam Gaudette; F Brett Connolly; F Henrik Borgstrom; D Riley Stillman; F Vinnie Hinostroza
Players out: D Madison Bowey; F Mattias Janmark; F Carl Soderberg; F Matthew Highmore; D Lucas Carlsson; F Lucas Wallmark; F Brad Morrison
The Blackhawks made a flurry of deals along the perimeters of their roster, where there are a few interesting developments.
Carlsson is someone we identified as being a young option for Seattle, so he probably isn’t in the mix anymore. But Stillman, who we had on our watch list for Florida, fills that void quite nicely.
Wallmark was projected for protection by Sound Of Hockey. It’s likely Gaudette, who has seen his struggles in Vancouver but still harbors plenty of upside, Borgstrom, or Connolly replaces him.
Chicago’s flurry of moves is a win for Seattle because there are now far more intriguing (and young) options than there were before.
Colorado Avalanche
Players in: F Carl Soderberg; G Devan Dubnyk; F Patrik Nemeth;
Players out: D Greg Pateryn
The Avalanche’s acquisitions of a veteran forward in Soderberg and a backup goalie in Dubnyk won’t shake the Expansion Draft tree.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Players in:
Players out: F Nick Foligno; D David Savard; F Riley Nash
The Blue Jackets made some huge organizational moves, acquiring a load of draft picks for their team captain and a top-four defenseman. But both Foligno and Savard were pending free agents and weren’t going to factor into the Expansion Draft, anyway.
Detroit Red Wings
Players in: F Jakub Vrana; F Richard Panik; F Hayden Verbeek
Players out: F Patrik Nemeth; F Anthony Mantha; D Jon Merrill
The Red Wings executed one of the most impressive pieces of business at the deadline in flipping Mantha for Vrana, Panik, and picks. Vrana will undoubtedly take Mantha’s spot on the Red Wings’ protected list, while Panik will probably be available for selection, though the 30-year-old winger hasn’t been all that productive this year, anyway.
Florida Panthers
Players in: F Sam Bennett; D Brandon Montour; D Lucas Carlsson; F Lucas Wallmark
Players out: F Emil Heineman; F Brett Connolly; F Henrik Borgstrom; D Riley Stillman; F Vinnie Hinostroza
The Panthers were plenty busy at the deadline, acquiring some depth pieces to complement a dangerous core, but it will be hard for any of the quartet to move someone off Florida’s projected protected list. All four, who were potential Expansion Draft targets on their previous teams, remain so with Florida; the only issue is that Seattle only has one selection via Florida.
It’s possible Bennett replaces Connolly on Florida’s protected list, but at the moment, players like Alexander Wennberg, Carter Verhaeghe, or Mason Marchment hold the inside track until we see Bennett’s fit with the Panthers.
Los Angeles Kings
Players in: D Christian Wolanin; F Brendan Lemieux
Players out: F Jeff Carter; F Michael Amadio
Brendan Lemieux is the player to note here. The 25-year-old was one of our targeted options for the Rangers and he’s very much in the mix for protection for the Kings. Someone like Austin Wagner, Blake Lizotte, or Carl Grundstrom may be bumped off if Lemieux jells with the Kings.
Although Carter is a big name, he carries little-to-no Expansion Draft significance at this point.
Wolanin was on Ottawa’s watch list, but it’s hard to know how he stacks up with the Kings’ list of potential targets right now.
Also of note, the Kings signed Alex Iafallo to a contract extension on Monday, all but ensuring his protection in the Expansion Draft.
Montreal Canadiens
Players in: F Eric Staal; D Jon Merrill; D Erik Gustafsson;
Players out: F Hayden Verbeek
Staal, Merrill, and Gustafsson are all nice pieces, but likely won’t figure into the Canadiens’ Expansion Draft picture.
Anyway, it’s Jake Allen or bust in Montreal — hop on the train before it’s too late!
Nashville Predators
Players in: D Erik Gudbranson
Players out: D Brandon Fortunato
Nashville’s trade deadlines actions aren’t as much highlighted by what it did do, but rather what it didn’t do.
Gudbranson is an intriguing pickup for Nashville, but he likely won’t affect the Predators’ protected list because Nashville already boasts a strong and deep defensive corp.
Mattias Ekholm was a popular name as the deadline approached, but he wasn’t dealt. Nor were Erik Haula or Mikael Granlund, who are also UFAs after this season.
In fact, Predators’ general manager David Poile may have tipped his hand at the Predators’ approach to the Seattle Expansion Draft.
I asked Predators GM David Poile about how keeping Mattias Ekholm past the trade deadline could affect his approach to the expansion draft: pic.twitter.com/d6HeIJTUY9
With Ryan Ellis, Roman Josi, and Dante Fabbro all worthy of expansion protection, it would be shocking if the Predators didn’t go with a 4-4-1 approach.
New Jersey Devils
Players in: D Jonas Siegenthaler; F A.J. Greer; F Mason Jobst
Players out: D Dmirty Kulikov; F Kyle Palmieri; F Travis Zajac
Trading Palmieri answered one question about New Jersey, because we wondered if the Devils would re-sign the pending unrestricted free agent to a contract extension and protect him. One of Janne Kuokkanen, Miles Wood, or Yegor Sharangovich likely takes his spot.
Siegenthaler is an interesting pickup. PK Subban and his lofty contract always made him a candidate for exposure, and Siegenthaler, 23, could take his spot — as could Will Butcher, who has returned to regular action after starting the season mostly as a healthy scratch.
The Devils’ defensive corp is something to keep an eye on moving forward.
New York Islanders
Players in: F Kyle Palmieri; F Travis Zajac; D Braydon Coburn
Players out: F A.J. Greer; F Mason Jobst
With plenty of forwards worthy of protection and not a lot of cap space, it’s hard to see Palmieri on the Islanders’ protection list. Veterans Zajac and Coburn won’t figure into protection, either.
Players out: D Mike Reilly; D Christian Wolanin; D Erik Gudbranson; D Braydon Coburn
Reilly was likely going to be protected by Ottawa, and Wolanin’s departure means that someone like Josh Brown likely fills his spot on the protection list.
It’s slim pickings in Ottawa, folks.
Philadelphia Flyers
Players in:
Players out: F Michael Raffl; D Erik Gustafsson
Raffl and Gustafsson don’t carry much Expansion Draft significance, but the Flyers signed forward Scott Laughton to a contract extension on Monday, meaning he could knock someone like Nicholas Aube-Kubel off their protected list.
San Jose Sharks
Players in: D Greg Pateryn; F Alexander Barabanov
Players out: G Devan Dubnyk; F Stefan Noesen; F Antti Suomela; D Fredrik Claesson
San Jose was the third team brokering many deadline deals and didn’t make any very impactful additions or subtractions, other than trading a goalie away and acquiring a young forward in Barabanov that’s not eligible for selection in the Expansion Draft.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Players in: D David Savard; D Fredrik Claesson
Players out: F Alexander Volkov
As discussed above in the Anaheim section, Volkov is no longer an option in Tampa Bay’s pool of potential targets — which is already very strong.
While Savard is a nice addition to Tampa’s defensive group, the UFA won’t figure into their protected list.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Players in: D Ben Hutton; G David Rittich; F Nick Foligno; F Stefan Noesen; F Riley Nash; F Antti Suomela
Players out: F Alexander Barabanov
Toronto was keen on adding a load of depth for what it hopes to be a long playoff run, but none of the players they nabbed at the deadline will figure into the Expansion Draft.
Vancouver Canucks
Players in: D Madison Bowey; F Matthew Highmore
Players out: F Adam Gaudette; D Jordie Benn
After Vancouver inked Tanner Pearson to a three-year deal on April 8, it appeared Gaudette’s spot on the Canucks’ protected list could be numbered. Vancouver confirmed that by trading him to Chicago.
Also of note, the Canucks’ addition of Bowey provided the defenseman for exposure that’s required under the Expansion Draft rules — prior to Bowey’s arrival, the Canucks only possessed three that fit that criteria and needed at least four.
Washington Capitals
Players in: F Anthony Mantha; F Michael Raffl
Players out: F Jakub Vrana; F Richard Panik; D Jonas Siegenthaler
The Capitals’ will fill in Vrana’s spot on their protected list with Mantha, but we had Panik listed as protected as well. Now that he’s gone, it’s possible the Capitals will keep Ovechkin protected — we outlined a wink-wink type of deal that would behoove both parties a few months back — or add TJ Oshie, whose big contract is an underlying issue for the cap-strapped Caps.
We also had Siegenthaler listed for protection. He’s likely replaced by Brendan Dillon, who signed a rather large contract extension with Washington in the offseason.
The Capitals still seem ripe for a side deal.
*The Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, St. Louis Blues, and Arizona Coyotes didn’t make any trades near the deadline.
*The Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Winnipeg Jets made trades that carried no significance to the Seattle Expansion Draft.
*The Vegas Golden Knights are exempt from the Seattle Expansion Draft.
Sound Of Hockey will have additional versions of the Mock Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft in the coming weeks, so be sure to check back regularly!
Josh Horton is a freelance writer, former newspaper journalist, and former Western Hockey League writer for the Everett Herald and The Spokesman-Review (Spokane). He is NOT a juggler, nor is he a former professional baseball player. Follow him on Twitter @byjoshhorton.
The NHL trade deadline is always a fun time for NHL fans. If our team is in the thick of the playoff picture, we hope it makes huge trades and pushes all our collective chips into the center of the table with hopes of playing for the Stanley Cup.
But is this the right approach? Do we want to mortgage the future in hopes of acquiring the top player from the TSN trade bait board? Does it even work?
Against my better judgement, I went back and reviewed the last five trade deadlines of the Stanley Cup Finalists in hopes of clarifying if going “all in” is the right approach to the trade deadline.
2016 trade deadline acquisitions
Stanley Cup champion
Justin Schultz was the primary acquisition at the trade deadline by the eventual 2016 Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins.
The only notable move the Pittsburgh Penguins completed around the trade deadline was the acquisition of Justin Schultz from the Edmonton Oilers for a third-round pick.
At the time, the move was not thought to be very significant, and Pittsburgh did not give up much to get him. Schultz drew into 15 of the 24 playoff games for the Penguins and averaged just 13 minutes of ice time in those games, the lowest time on ice across all Penguins defensemen.
While Schultz did not play a significant role in the Penguins 2016 playoff run, he played four more seasons with the Penguins and contributed significantly to their 2017 Stanley Cup Championship.
Stanley Cup runner-up
The San Jose Sharks did not make any significant moves at the trade deadline in 2016. The team swapped back-up goalies with the Toronto Maple Leafs (Alex Stalock for James Reimer).
In a separate trade with the Leafs, the Sharks acquired Roman Polak and Nick Spaling for a pair of second-round draft picks. Polak played in all 24 of the Sharks’ playoff games but did not register a point. One of those draft picks turned into Maxime Comtois, who is having himself a pretty good season currently.
Other notable trades from the 2016 NHL trade deadline
The New York Rangers swung for the fences and acquired Eric Staal from the Carolina Hurricanes for two second-round draft picks and the signing rights to Aleksi Saarela. The Rangers lost in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and although it is still early to assess the prospects that Carolina acquired in the trade, they have only played a collective nine NHL games since being traded to the Hurricanes organization.
2017 trade deadline acquisitions
Stanley Cup champion
The Pittsburgh Penguins added Ron Hainsey at the trade deadline for a second-round draft pick. Hainsey logged the second-most minutes on the Penguins during the Stanley Cup Playoffs and pitched in with eight points across the 25 Penguins playoff games.
Stanley Cup runner-up
The Nashville Predators did not add any players of significance at the trade deadline.
Other notable trades from the 2017 NHL trade deadline
Kevin Shattenkirk was a trade deadline acquisition by the Washington Capitals in 2017.
Kevin Shattenkirk was traded to the Washington Capitals with goaltender prospect Pheonix Copley for two prospects and two draft picks, a 2017 first-round and 2019 second-round pick. The St. Louis Blues defenseman was considered one of the prized targets of the trade deadline in 2017. Shattenkirk played fine for the Capitals in the playoffs, but Washington was eliminated by the Penguins in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Shattenkirk signed with the Rangers in the ensuing offseason.
The Minnesota Wild sent a prospect and three draft picks (first, second, and fourth-round picks) to Arizona for Martin Hanzal, Ryan White, and a fourth-round pick back to the WIld. Minnesota was eliminated in the first round and Hanzal posted one point in the five playoff games. White played three of the playoff games and has been bouncing around the AHL ever since.
2018 trade deadline acquisitions
Stanley Cup champion
Perhaps learning their lesson from the big swing they took on Shattenkirk a year earlier, the Washington Capitals only added Michal Kempny at the trade deadline from Chicago for a third-round pick.
Kempny played in all 24 Capitals playoff games and averaged about 17 minutes of ice time per game. He did not show up on the score sheet that often, but he was an important depth piece for the Caps championship run.
Stanley Cup runner-up
Tomas Tatar was a trade deadline acquisition by the Golden Knights in 2018 but would appear in less than 50% of the Golden Knights playoff games.
Flush with draft picks from the 2017 Expansion Draft, the Vegas Golden Knights took a big swing at the 2017 trade deadline on Tomas Tatar. The Detroit Red Wings received three draft picks: a first, second, and third-round pick from Vegas.
In retrospect, the Tatar trade was a disaster. Tatar was a healthy scratch through most of the playoffs, appearing in just eight of the Golden Knights’ 20 playoff games. He was packaged up with Nick Suzuki and another draft pick in the offseason in a trade with Montreal for Max Pacioretty.
Vegas also added Ryan Reaves in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Although popular with the fans, Reaves only got into 10 playoff games and averaged only eight minutes.
Other notable trades from the 2018 NHL trade deadline
The Tampa Bay Lightning pulled off a big trade with the New York Rangers, acquiring Ryan McDonagh and JT Miller for Vladislav Namestnikov, Brett Howden, and Libor Hajek plus two draft picks (first and second-round picks).
Tampa advanced to a game seven in the Conference Finals against the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Washington Capitals. McDonagh and Miller both played a significant role in the Lightning’s playoff success that year. McDonagh logged the second-most minutes behind Victor Hedman while Miller chipped in eight points over the Lightning’s 17 playoff games.
The San Jose Sharks traded a prospect and two draft picks (a first and a fourth) for Evander Kane. The Sharks were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs and Kane had five points in the nine games he played. The Sharks re-signed Kane in the offseason and currently leads the team in goals scored since he joined the Sharks organization.
Winnipeg acquired Paul Stastny from the St. Louis Blues for a prospect and two draft picks (first and fourth-round). The Jets were eliminated by the Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Conference Finals. Stastny played very well for the Jets in the playoffs with 15 points in 17 games. He became a free agent in the offseason and signed with Vegas.
Rick Nash was traded to the Boston Bruins by the Rangers for Matt Beleskey, Ryan Spooner, signing rights to Ryan Lindgren, a first-round, and a seventh-round draft pick. The Bruins lost in the second round of the playoffs where Nash posted five points in 12 games, his final season in the NHL.
2019 trade deadline acquisitions
Stanley Cup champion
St. Louis Blues essentially did nothing at the trade deadline. They acquired Michael Del Zotto for a sixth-round draft pick. Del Zotto appeared in just seven regular-season games for the Blues and did not crack the lineup during their Stanley Cup Playoff run.
Stanley Cup runner-up
Boston Bruins added two significant pieces to their roster in Charlie Coyle and Marcus Johnsson. Coyle was acquired from the Minnesota Wild for prospect (at the time) Ryan Donato and a fourth-round draft pick. Johansson was acquired from the New Jersey Devils for a second and fourth-round draft pick.
Coyle and Johansson had 16 and 11 points respectively in the Bruins playoff run. At the time Coyle had one additional year on his contract and signed a six-year extension with Boston that started with the 2020-21 season. Johansson became an unrestricted free agent after the 2019 playoff run and signed with Buffalo.
Other notable trades from the 2019 NHL trade deadline
The Vegas Golden Knights acquired Mark Stone from the Ottawa Senators for Oscar Lindberg, Erik Brannstrom, and a second-round pick. Stone signed an eight-year extension with the Golden Knights shortly after joining the team during the 2018-19 regular season. Vegas eventually lost to the San Jose Sharks in the opening round of the playoffs and Stone accumulated 12 points in seven games. Stone also leads Vegas in points since being acquired in 2019.
Winnipeg acquired Kevin Hayes for Brendan Lemieux plus a first and fourth-round draft pick. Winnipeg was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs where Hayes had three points over six games. Hayes entered free agency in the offseason and signed with the Philadelphia Flyers.
2020 trade deadline acquisitions
Stanley Cup champion
The Tampa Bay Lightning acquired Barclay Goodrow and a third-round pick from the San Jose Sharks for Tampa Bay’s first-round pick of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft and prospect Anthony Greco. The Lightning also acquired Blake Coleman from the New Jersey Devils for prospect Nolan Foote and a first-round pick in 2020.
Both Coleman and Goodrow were considered modest trades when they happened but have been widely acknowledged as a significant reason why the Lightning won the Stanley Cup in 2020. Both of them logged about 18 minutes per game and were a major part of the team’s penalty kill in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Goodrow logged the most penalty kill time on the ice (70+ minutes) amongst forwards for Tampa during the playoffs while Coleman was third in penalty kill ice time (~60 minutes) amongst forwards.
Stanley Cup runner-up
The Dallas Stars made no material moves around the 2020 trade deadline.
Other notable trades from the 2020 NHL trade deadline
New York Islanders acquired Jean-Gabriel Pageau for a first-round and second-round pick from the Ottawa Senators. Pageau signed a six-year extension with the Islanders shortly after being traded and had eight goals in 22 games in the Islanders’ playoff run to the Conference Finals.
The Hurricanes did not have one big trade, but they made a series of moderate trades in acquiring Vincent Trocheck, Brady Skjei, and Sami Vatanen in three unique deals.
Trocheck was acquired from Florida for Erik Haula, Lucas Wallmark, and two prospects.
Skjei was acquired from the New York Rangers for a first-round draft pick.
Vatanen was acquired from New Jersey for two prospects and a third-round draft pick. One of those prospects was Janne Kuokkanen who is having a pretty good year in his first full NHL season with 20 points in 34 games.
None of them had much success in the playoffs but at the time of the trade, both Skjei and Trocheck had term remaining on their contracts and remain with the team this season. Trocheck is having one of the better seasons of his career.
Finally, the Golden Knights acquired their eventual playoff starting goalie, Robert Lehner, and also added a top-pairing defenseman in Alec Martinez with trades with the Chicago Blackhawks (with a little help from the Toronto Maple Leafs) and the Los Angeles Kings, respectively.
Lehner costed the Golden Knights Malcolm Subban, two draft picks, and a prospect.
Martinez was obtained with two second-round picks to LA.
Both Lehner and Martinez played well in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the Golden Knights before being eliminated in the Conference Final against the Western Conference champion Dallas Stars.
Is it worth it?
It is hard to reach a definitive conclusion on the right approach teams should take to the trade deadline based on our research of the prior five trade deadlines, but it is hard to find a team that went all in where it paid off. It can be debated that of the last five trade deadlines, the only team that went big during the NHL trade deadline that reached the Stanley Cup Final was the 2019 Boston Bruins.
Conversely, the 2016 New York Rangers, 2017 Washington Capitals, 2018 Tampa Bay Lightning, and 2019 Vegas Golden Knights went big at the trade deadline without material success in the subsequent Stanley Cup Playoffs.
What are your thoughts? Do you recall a time where a team took a big swing at the trade deadline that paid off in the Stanley Cup Playoffs?
In this week’s Data Dump Saturday, I dig into the playoff races in the Central and West Divisions by looking beyond the points in the standings to get an idea of who might claim the fourth playoff spot in each division.
Earlier this week we did a round of Buy, Sell, or Hold on the Sound Of Hockey podcast where we discussed if Nashville or the San Jose Sharks were playoff bound teams. We talked about ‘games at hand’, ‘goal differential,’ and who is ‘hot’ right now as justification for our picks in qualifying for the playoffs.
Let us take a current and data-focused look at these two divisions with interesting playoff races.
For the more casual fans:
GP is games played.
PTS is the points earned (teams are awarded two points for a win, one point for an overtime or shootout loss, zero for a regulation loss).
P% is percentage of points earned versus what is possible.
GF is goals for goals for.
GA is goals against.
I am focusing on Arizona, St. Louis, and San Jose in the West and Nashville, Chicago, and Dallas in the Central. In my opinion, these are the only teams vying for the fourth and final playoff spots in their respective divisions.
Points percentage
Both San Jose and Nashville have made recent surges in the standings which have launched them into contention over the last few weeks. I want to see how these teams are trending by looking at their five-game moving average of point percentage.
In the chart below, you can see that Nashville has been outperforming Dallas and Chicago lately. Additionally, Chicago has been underperforming with a point percentage lower than 50 percent over the last 10 games.
In the West, you can see St. Louis underperforming has provided Arizona and San Jose the opportunity to be in contention in the playoff race.
It should be noted that we cannot assume that these trends will continue. There could be underlying conditions that are driving performance such as injuries, hot goalies, or coaching/strategy changes, but that is beyond the scope of this post.
Goal differential
Another stat to look at is goal differential which is the sum of goals scored minus the sum of goals scored against.
Nashville appears to be reaching another level in goal differential, scoring 18 more goals than it has allowed over the last 10 games. If you look at the goals for and goals against numbers you can see Nashville is doing it with a combination of higher-than-normal goal scoring and being stingy with the goals allowed.
Shot differential
One of the first things I look at when trying to understand how well a team is playing is shot differential. It does not account for everything, but in general, if a team is producing more shots than the opposing team, then they are getting more opportunities to score. From a statistical perspective, it is a way to broaden the sample size instead of simply looking at the number of goals in a game.
It is a little surprising to see Nashville with a negative 18 shot differential because in goal differential they were (coincidentally) a plus 18. This would imply a heavy reliance on goaltending. A quick look at Juuse Saros’ stats and it shows that he is averaging less than 1.25 goals against average and a save percentage of .965 over his last 10 starts.
Chicago’s shot differential has correlated with their points percentage obtained over the last 10 games.
As we stated earlier, Arizona and San Jose have been playing better over the last 10 games that has created the opportunity to get back in this playoff race, but the shot differential of -31 and -27 respectively is a bit surprising. This would imply that they have been more effective with their shots (i.e. scoring at a higher rate) or that they are relying on their goaltending as well.
I focused on the last 10 games for these teams, but again, there is no guarantee that their trends will continue over the remaining ~16 games of the season. The next 10 games facing these teams will be critical considering several of them will play each other and the stakes will be that much more significant as they jockey for position in the playoff hunt.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments or how you would evaluate a team’s performance in the playoff race.
Seattle Kraken news has not been particularly groundbreaking of late, as we patiently await the next big story like a coach hiring or the team’s final payment to the league which could lead to the signing of the team’s first player. None of those items have come yet, but there were at least a couple tidbits this week, which we are of course happy to discuss here in Sound Of Hockey’s Weekly One-Timers.
Kraken Bar & Grill
Sure, a coach hiring or something of the like would be neat, but who doesn’t like bar/restaurant news?
It’s been no secret that there will be a restaurant and watering hole at the Seattle Kraken Training Center at Northgate, but more details were made public about those plans on Thursday.
The Kraken Bar & Grill will have a capacity of 300, will overlook rinks 1 and 2 at the facility, and will have a whopping 17 TVs plus a view of the 375-square-foot LED screen in rink 1. I don’t have a ton of relativity on that, but that sounds like a pretty big screen.
One can only imagine how rocking this place is going to be during Kraken games, especially road playoff games.
Mick McHugh — a famed restaurateur in Seattle best known for FX McRory’s — will head up the new Kraken-themed establishment.
“I count myself first as a loyal Seattle sports fan from the early days of the Sonics, through the Mariners, Seahawks and Sounders,” said McHugh via a press release. “It’s only right that now I can help welcome the Kraken to the city.”
“Rather than waiting for the next home game, Kraken fans can come to Kraken Bar & Grill and engage with their team every day of the week,” added McHugh. “From watching practices to just being in the home of the Kraken, this is going to be a great place for everyone to gather and share their love for the city and its teams.”
MONORAIL! MONORAIL! MONORAIL!
“I’ve sold monorails to Brockway, Ogdenville, and North Haverbrook and by gum it put them on the map!” – Lyle Lanley, The Simpsons, 1993
Transit to and from Climate Pledge Arena on game days has always been a concern. Traffic around that area is a nightmare in non-Covid times, and that is true without layering in hockey games attended by 17,000+ Kraken fans, many of whom will certainly prefer to drive to the venue.
But the Kraken have been creative in finding ways to combat this issue, like granting free public transit for ticket holders on gamedays. That transit access will include rides on the Seattle Monorail which began a $6.6 million renovation project this week.
The improvements are a part of Climate Pledge Arena & the @SeattleKraken’s investment in Seattle Center Monorail. All fans traveling to Seattle Kraken games will have free transit access, including use of the Monorail.
— Climate Pledge Arena (@ClimateArena) April 5, 2021
Will this work in cutting down traffic around the Pledge? You’ll have to buy a ticket to find out.
Whoa, boy! Thursday was a fun day of college hockey!
I know I’ve been laying it on a little thick around these parts with the college hockey talk of late, but I’m frankly glad that I have, because this NCAA Tournament has not disappointed. With the NHL still in the midst of its season but in a bit of a news lull, the NCAA somehow found the perfect weekend for its Frozen Four.
Huskies knock off Mavericks in topsy-turvy affair
Will Hammer rifled home (I was going to say “hammered home,” but it felt too obvious) St. Cloud State’s third goal at 2:40 of the second period, giving the Huskies a two-goal lead over Minnesota State. At that moment, it felt like SCSU was about to bury Minnesota State and skate to an easy victory.
To the credit of the Mavericks, they battled back and made Thursday’s earlier semifinal an incredibly fun back-and-forth contest that ultimately did end with St. Cloud getting the win, but not without some awe-inspiring fireworks.
Mankato scored the next three goals, forcing St. Cloud to come back and tie it, which the Huskies did with 10 minutes remaining in the third.
Later, with the game appearing destined for overtime, Nolan Walker created some magic in front of the Mankato net with a perfectly angled stick blade and some top-notch hand-eye coordination.
It wouldn’t be a Minnesota Duluth game if it didn’t go to overtime. After the Bulldogs won the longest game in NCAA Tournament history last week, they came up short against UMass in the late game.
UMD had the better of the play throughout regulation, but somehow the Minutemen found just enough juice to tie the game at 2-2 at 8:25 of the third period.
The extra frame looked like a completely different game, though. After being outshot 36-15 in regulation, UMass dominated every second of the overtime period with a 13-2 advantage in shots. Garrett Wait ultimately found the winner at 14:30 of overtime when Bobby Trevigno’s wraparound attempt slid right through the blue paint and onto his stick on the backdoor.
Wait had a pretty beautiful quote in his post-game interview with ESPN’s Quint Kessenich. “We just ate some food in the locker room between periods, got our legs back, and we just focused on playing our game, getting pucks low and forechecking.”
They just ate some food. College kids, am I right?
A new champion will be crowned
The Huskies and the Minutemen will now meet in the NCAA Championship on Saturday at 4 p.m. Pacific on ESPN. Neither of these teams has ever won a national title before, so we will have a new king of college hockey crowned that day.
Trade market heating up
The NHL trade deadline is on Monday, so the associated wheeling and dealing is well underway around the league. In the past few days, we’ve seen Brett Connolly, Kyle Palmieri, Travis Zajac, Vinnie Hinostroza, and multiple guys named Lucas (Carlsson and Wallmark) get moved. TSN has a good tracker here.
Perhaps the biggest news on this front so far is that Palmieri was forced to shave his beard now that he plays for an organization led by Lou Lamoriello. Lou does not accept facial hair on his players. After all, this is hockey, and we can’t have these toothless animals looking like toothless animals out there.
— Ashlee Casper Palmieri (@AshleePalmieri) April 8, 2021
Around the boards
The Vancouver Canucks continue to deal with a Covid outbreak that has resulted in as many as 25 positive tests within the organization. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly expressed hope to ESPN’s Emily Kaplan that the team will be able to resume by the end of next week, but with the Canucks falling quickly out of playoff contention, there has been plenty of wondering whether their 56-game season will actually be completed.
Jack Campbell set a Toronto Maple Leafs record for most consecutive wins to start a season, bringing him to 10-0-0 on the year. He gave a pretty great interview after his latest victory as well.
Campbell has been outstanding in his opportunities, posting a 1.57 goals against average and .944 save percentage.
The Chicago Blackhawks’ affiliation with the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs was set to expire in 2022. But the partnership was fully solidified this week when the Blackhawks purchased the IceHogs from the City of Rockford for $11.8 million. The Blackhawks become the 21st NHL team to own its AHL affiliate.
Tanner Pearson re-signed with Vancouver for three years. We were trying to figure out if this means he will be protected from the Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft, and we think it probably means that.
Nikita Gusev was placed on unconditional waivers with the New Jersey Devils planning to terminate his contract. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet says Gusev hopes to sign with another team. Before moving over from the KHL, Gusev, 28, was once considered the best non-NHL player in the world.
Things obviously haven’t worked out as well as he had hoped in the NHL, but perhaps a new situation will do him some good.
Palate cleanser
So as some of you know, we're not allowed to show highlights of games on ESPN. So with the UMD-UMass game only in the second intermission, I had to improvise with the "highlights": pic.twitter.com/BnXnNwaAU9
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.
When we last discussed the Seattle Thunderbirds 2017 Championship run, the team was finding a way to win during the second half of the season and get into the playoffs. They had overcome injuries and reeled in the Everett Silvertips, who had previously built up a lead in the U.S. Division race.
The two clubs would take turns on top of the standings down the stretch.
With a couple of short weeks before the playoffs, Seattle faced another blow. It was a Friday night game at the ShoWare Center against Everett, and just as the national anthem was starting, Mathew Barzal skated off the ice and did not return. He would miss the next month of the season.
Donovan Neuls: I remember that clear as day, against Everett. Everybody was cautious because the mumps were going around. He just skated off. Everyone was a really worried.
Keegan Kolesar: I remember someone told me Barzy isn’t going. My immediate reaction was ‘Are you kidding me? Good joke, the guy doesn’t miss a game, there’s no way he’s missing this one.’ He missed the last while there and the first round of playoffs. We were happy he was ok but in the moment that really sucked.
Ethan Bear: We didn’t know how long he’d be out for. We thought he had the mumps, and we would have other guys going out later on. With Barzy, he stayed away from everybody, but we knew he was doing what he could to get back. Whenever you see a top guy go down like that it’s scary.
Austin Strand: That was very strange. It was a big game, and it was weird because he warmed up and all of a sudden, he’s being waved off the ice. We were all looking around wondering.
Turner Ottenbreit: That was crazy. I think I was on the ice for the anthem and skating around. He didn’t make it to the anthem.
Scott Eansor: You need the big guys and you need them to be healthy and whenever one of those guys is not healthy it’s a concern.
Keegan Kolesar led the WHL in scoring during the 2017 WHL Playoffs (Brian Liesse photo)
The Thunderbirds would come up just short of the U.S. Division Title
With Barzal out with what would later be learned was mononucleosis and not the mumps, the Thunderbirds continued to fight with Everett for the U.S. Division lead. The Silvertips would edge out Seattle for the title by one point, despite the Thunderbirds winning two more games. It meant that the Thunderbirds would not be the top seed in the playoffs.
Kolesar: We wanted the division title for sure. We were a confident team and felt that there was not a team that could beat us. It’s unfortunate we couldn’t get it but at the end of the day we got the whole thing.
Bear: We knew we were the better team. Everett played that shutdown style and we knew that if we met in the playoffs, we were confident that we could beat them. I think them winning the division gave us extra motivation.
Strand: We all kind of knew what a special team we had. We weren’t too worried about the banner at that point.
Neuls: Looking back on it now, it doesn’t mean much being that we got the big one. To be honest I didn’t care about the division so maybe it was good they beat us out by a point.
Up first in the playoffs for the Seattle Thunderbirds were the Tri-City Americans
Not only did Seattle lose the Division title but a week before the playoffs, the Thunderbirds lost their goalie as well. Rylan Toth had come over from Red Deer in the offseason and won 36 games during the regular season. He got hurt, and Seattle turned to 16-year-old goalie Carl Stankowski to take over. The rookie had barely played during the regular season and now was the number one goalie heading into a first-round series with the Tri-City Americans.
Matt O’Dette: We were mindful he was a young guy. It doesn’t change a whole lot, but you want to dig in even more. That was probably the biggest adversity we faced, having your starter go down for the playoffs.
Bear: That was definitely another scare for us. As a player we knew how good a player Stankowski was. We let him be, he made the saves. He bailed us out more times than we helped him. It was definitely phenomenal what he did. Tother was there supporting him too.
Neuls: Going into the first game I think everyone was a little nervous. It didn’t take long to gain our confidence, he stopped like four or five breakaways and he didn’t let one in. For him to come in and play like he did was remarkable.
O’Dette: I think everybody in the building and on the bench, when we saw those breakaways there was a sigh of relief and feeling that Carl was up to the challenge. It gives me nightmares, those breakaways but that was a turning point.
Eansor: Everyone loved Carl, you couldn’t not. He was so innocent and nice and worked his ass off. It was really easy to stand behind him.
Strand: I was consistently shocked because he made massive saves. I thought he looked tiny back there, but he started making all the saves and we were confident.
With the rookie goalie standing tall, the Thunderbirds would sweep Tri-City in the opening round of the playoffs. Barzal and Ryan Gropp missed the series but Seattle didn’t miss a beat and dominated the Americans, including a blowout win in Kennewick.
Ottenbreit: They had some good players, so we weren’t too sure of what to expect. I think Donny [Donovan Neuls], Keegs [Keegan Kolesar], and [Alexander True] piled up points in that series.
Bear: That just shows you how deep our team was. I remember that last game we had three guys get five-point nights to seal the deal. A lot of us were joking [with Gropp and Barzal] we don’t want you guys to come back.
Neuls: I think everybody had a pretty good night that night. It was fun, happy we won.
Strand: I had never been on a playoff team that just swept right through a series. We got that longer rest to hang out and bond. We went to a Mariners game and then went into that Everett series.
The Thunderbirds had to rely on rookie goalie Carl Stankowski in 2017 (Brian Liesse)
After a first-round sweep, the Thunderbirds headed to Everett
The second round of the playoffs for the Thunderbirds would feature an anticipated matchup with the Everett Silvertips. Everett was the higher seed and opened at home. Seattle would get Barzal and Gropp back for Game 1 and set the tone when Barzal helped set up a late game-winning goal from Neuls.
Neuls: That was probably the biggest goal I had scored up until then.
Kolesar: We were pumped up, that’s the rivalry. I-9? I-5? I didn’t even know the highways when I was there. I was pumped, we took them out the year before, so we knew they were coming. I was really hyped.
Bear: We knew we were going to have to earn every inch in that rink. We dug down and gave everything we had in that series. They don’t give you much room in the D-Zone and it was challenging, plus they had Carter Hart.
Eansor: We always battled with Everett. It was always a hard, hard series. Despite the sweep it’s the hardest team to play in all of hockey that I’ve ever played. It takes a lot out of you to play them.
Ottenbreit: It’s always fun playing those guys. We hated them and I’m sure they hated us. Everett and Seattle are never going to like each other.
Kolesar: They were a tough team, and they weren’t going away at any point in that series. It was annoying, we would get a lead and they’d come back, and it was ‘Come on, just give up.’ It just makes it more fun when it’s a rivalry.
Bear: The way it all turned out it was one of the most fun series I’ve played.
Neuls: I think any time you can beat Everett, any time, you’re pretty excited.
In Part 3 of the Oral History of the Seattle Thunderbirds 2017 Championship, we’ll look at the Western Conference finals, another huge set back, the Regina Pats, and the big trophy.
