NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – August 5, 2026
Check out the latest on Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews, Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond, Flames goalie Dustin Wolf, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
TSN: Travis Jost believes the conditions are right for Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews to get back on track in the scoring race.
Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews (NHL Images).
Matthews tallied 368 goals during his first eight NHL seasons, including a career-high 69 goals in 2023-24. That prompted some observers to suggest that he could one day challenge Alex Ovechkin’s goal-scoring record. However, injuries over the last two seasons and the departure of play-making winger Mitch Marner have hindered his production.
Jost believes Matthews could regain his high-scoring form if he’s returned to full health this season. He’ll also have credible options on his wing such as Matthew Knies, William Nylander, or promising rookie Gavin McKenna.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Matthews’ performance this season will play the most crucial role in the Maple Leafs’ bounce-back plans. Assuming he’s healthy, he will also be motivated to silence his critics this season by leading the Leafs back to playoff contention.
DETROIT HOCKEY NOW: Max Smith noted that Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond’s development as a scoring winger has garnered attention around the league. The 24-year-old Raymond was among the youngest players on NHL Network’s recent ranking of the top-20 wingers in the league.
Raymond’s steady improvement has Smith believing the winger has the opportunity to rise further up that ranking this season. He’s tallied 25-plus goals in each of the last three seasons, with two of those seasons having a rookie as a linemate on the opposite wing. Patrick Kane’s departure could see Alex DeBrincat moved up to the top line alongside Raymond.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Given the Red Wings’ current upheavals, it’ll be interesting to see how Raymond adjusts to potential roster changes. His production could be affected by the potential departure of Dylan Larkin if the Red Wings honor the latter’s trade request.
NHL.COM/CALGARY SUN: Flames goaltender Dustin Wolf faces a critical season. After a promising rookie performance in 2024-25, he struggled during his sophomore campaign.
Derek Van Diest wondered if Wolf can have a strong 2026-27 season, noting he’s entering the first season of a seven-year contract worth an average annual value of $7.5 million. Meanwhile, Kent Wilson mused about whether Wolf, who recently turned 25, might be too far ahead of his younger teammates on the rebuilding Flames.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Given his long-term contract, the Flames are fully invested in Wolf as their starter. He’s become a critical piece of their rebuilding program.
The emergence of Devin Cooley last season as Wolf’s backup should lighten the latter’s workload, taking some pressure off his shoulders. Nevertheless, they’ll need Wolf to be at his best if they’re to make significant strides this season.
AWFUL ANNOUNCING: The Columbus Blue Jackets’ elimination of their radio broadcast and the departure of Jackets Insider Jeff Svoboda has raised concerns among some fans about the club’s future.
The recent changes came on the heels of a season of turmoil, including a mid-season coaching change and missing the playoffs for the sixth straight year. That was followed by trade rumors involving Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski and scoring winger Kirill Marchenko.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Blue Jackets’ woes also had some observers wondering if relocation might be in the offing, with some comparing the club’s current plight to that of the woeful Arizona Coyotes, who were sold and relocated to Utah two years ago. However, there is no indication that ownership is looking to sell or move the franchise.
Nevertheless, the Blue Jackets are plagued by some troubling issues. They’ve only reached the playoffs six times in their 25-season history, advancing to the second round of the postseason only once. They’ve had difficulty retaining their best players, and while their attendance has remained steady since 2016-17 (averaging 16, 589), they’ve remained below Nationwide Arena’s capacity of 18,500.
If these issues persist, the prospect of relocation could become a legitimate concern.
THE MERCURY NEWS: Former San Jose Sharks superstar Joe Thornton will be inducted into the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame. Thornton spent 14 of his 24-season NHL career with the Sharks, winning the Hart Memorial Trophy in 2005-06.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Thornton was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2025.
I can t help but think that Columbus would not be in this situation if not for the untimely death of Johnny Gaudreau. He had a way of drawing players in with his personality along with his unquestionable talent. Detroit on the other hand just doesn t seem to have the right personnel or leadership to be a playoff contender.
the Detroit “situation” is a tough one, Yzerman’s reputation as a builder was strong, after the Bolts had won a Cup under his run. For some reason the magic just didn’t continue on his trip back to Detroit. Yet Brisebois has maintained that championship petigree in Tampa.
Detroit ownership really messed up the situation by waiting so long to dump Yzerman as GM, should have done that before the draft, to give them enough time to hire a GM to run the draft and free agency. But the Larkin trade demand seemed to have been the final straw that convinced them to get rid of Stevie Y
could be that Yzerman was just “lucky” to have Kucherov-Hedman-Vasilievsky to lead the team, in their prime, during Steve Y’s time in TB, more so than anything else. He didn’t come close to having anyone of that caliber while running the Wings.
So Yzerman was lucky to have those 3 players even though they drafted 2 of the 3 while he was GM? Odd take.
So lucky to have Point and Cirelli too, who he also drafted?
How about the trades for McDonagh or Sergachev, both of which worked out very well for Tampa?
If you won’t give him credit for the players drafted in TB, and the team that he did as much to build than anyone else, how can you criticize him for the players he has drafted in Detroit?
Seems contradictory.
Looking at the sequence of key management events in both locations, there are stark contrasts when you compare Yzerman’s tenures with Tampa and Detroit.
While with the former he stepped into a situation where they had already acquired 1st overall pick Stamkos and 2nd overall Hedman. Then, whether doing so on the basis of his scout department’s recommendations or his own hunches, he struck gold when selecting Palat 208th overall in Rd 7 in 2011, Vasilevsky 19th overall in Rd 1 in 2012, and Kucherov 58th overall in Rd 2 in 2013. As well, he demonstrated his willingness to not let sentiment rule his approach when he bought out long-time favourite Vincent Lecavalier … at a hefty, long-term cost.
In all his time in Detroit he never had a draft pick among the top 3, but again – whether purely on the say-so of his scouts or his own hunches, he took Seider 6th overall in 2019, Raymond 4th overall in 2020 and Edvinson 6th overall in 2012 (Larkin had been chosen 15th overall in 2014 under Holland’s watch and the best of a weak, depleted lot along with Mantha, Athanasiou and Tyler Bertuzzi).
That bit of prescience, however was, despite a steadily rising playoff absence, overshadowed by a some times puzzling – and some say deliberately stubborn – refusal to pay what the market was dictating for top-quality UFAs, and instead settle on some less-than-dazzling signings like Andrew Copp, J.T. Compher and Ben Chiarot.
@Ray Bark … perhaps Mikep did not mean it this way, but I took him to mean that while the draft is all about intentions, there is a degree of luck too. Who is available each year, who gets taken before you pick … in other words, the Habs may have intended to draft Hutson but they were lucky he was available.
I hear ya George, he didn’t go big in the UFA market. He doesn’t seem to be that guy, or he didn’t think the Wings were ready and wanted to develop his own guys first. Which I sort of agree with. They weren’t IMO.
Some of the Wings picks have worked out, some haven’t, at least not yet. But when you look at those draft years, there isn’t much for quality guys who got picked after Detroit made their choices either.
There are some obviously like a Wyatt Johnson, but not many. So difficult to point fingers at amateur scouting.
And guys like Danielson, and some others could still develop into quality NHL players. But they won’t be elite, and if you’re rebuilding you need some elite players to become an elite team.
I know I am repeating myself, and I make it sound simpler than it is, but history is pretty darn clear. You need to suck, and you need to pick in the top 3 more than once. At very minimum top 3 once and some top 5’s to go with it.
Detroit can become a playoff team pretty soon, maybe even next season, but looking at their roster, I don’t see a championship in their near future.
If I was them I hold out with Larkin until you find a team he agrees to where you can get a couple higher end prospects and a first.
Buffalo comes to mind, if they even want Larkin.
Trade DeBrincat for same, build around the D core and Raymond. Tough pill for fans, but if the goal is to win a championship….
Maybe Shaun, and we agree 100% on luck playing a big role in the draft, especially the NHL when your picking guys who are only 18.
Just look at the Oil, super lucky to get McDavid. Won the lotto from 2 hole, plus picking 1st when there is a generational talent available is huge. Compare that to the year when Yakupov was the “consensus #1. Ryan Murry was ranked and selected next. Injuries plagued him, but point is it wasn’t a good draft year. Bad luck.
SJ getting Celibrini changed that franchise, picking first when he was there is lucky.
Heck, need luck to win a cup even when your a very good team. Colorado had major injury to Makar, see ya. Carolina stayed healthy and hoisted the cup. Rod B said it was the biggest difference last year.
Gotta give yourself the longest window you can I suppose.
Tampa never won a cup under Yzerman
True, but he certainly playing a significant role in building the foundation of their championship teams.
que up the QUEBEC Blue Jackets rumors in 3…2…1…
Not gonna happen, mikep. I’d like to see the NHL return to Quebec but it’s all about US broadcast coverage and revenues.
The NHL has 25 teams in the US.
The NBA has 29.
The NFL has 32.
MLB has 29.
As there are currently 32 NHL teams and each conference will be equal in # of teams, expect 2 more US based expansions in the near future. In the long term there could be an additional 2, and they will all be US based. The growth in revenue is strong enough to counter any point about the strength of revenue an additional Canadian franchise would bring.
And with respect HF30, there is not now nor will there be enough NHL calibre talent available to prevent a diluted product. Were that so, we would not see the drop off in talent that each draft year consistently and irrefutably happens.
Equality, based on the talent that is available, is not the same thing as quality.
If anyone disagrees, go back and check out the past 10 draft years and see the for yourself.
Agree LJ. In fact, despite having a modern NHL-ready arena, probably THE biggest, single roadblock to Quebec City ever getting another franchise is … and likely always will be ,,, the complete lack of any major corporate base that would ensure meeting the NHL’s priority of ensuring long-term revenue streams such as lucrative LOCAL sponsorships, high-end corporate suites, and providing a major TV market.
That alone precludes a franchise transfer. And, of course, on top of that there has never been a committed billionaire identified as possibly willing to fork over close to a $2 billion USD expansion fee.
And as if the obstacles aren’t high enough, George, let us also remember the exchange rate.
Columbus is a great hockey town. But at some point you gotta give the fans some kind of winning. Second to the pens the jackets are my team and I hope for success for them and their fans.
You’re probably right Chrisms, but maybe a bit of the chicken and egg thing going on?
Is it harder to attract & keep players due to the smaller market that is contributing to them to continue struggling? I do know that both Bob and Panarin wouldn’t extend there when they were a playoff team, and the GM went for it anyway and I think beat TBay in RD 1.
They left anyway, CLB got nothing in return. The reasons they left? Not sure, but didn’t want to stay on a pretty good team in what I hear is a nice city. So I dunno.
As far as the team staying, CLB had an EBITA of $22M last year on revenue of $164M. Not great by NHL standards, but still a solid business, and better than some other organizations.
But the big kicker for ownership is they paid $80M franchise fee and are now worth $1.4B. That is a return on investment of 17.5 times in under 30 years if they didn’t pay for the arena they play in. Not many investments pay like owning a sports franchise these days and is double what investing in the fortune 500 index would have paid.
Point is the team makes money and is fine in Columbus even though they haven’t had much success.
All fair points, Ray. And yes, if you were an NHL franchise holder what, 10 years ago, you’re clicking your heels. As you know, the owners don’t have to sell any part of their franchise to leverage money, they can do it on the basis of its estimated value. They thus can profit from team and league generated revenue, the collateral from the franchise, and the franchise itself.
As long as the fan base in Columbus doesn’t crater there is no pressure to move the franchise.
As a Montrealer and Quebecer I loved the Nordiques and hated when they left.
But honestly, there is no way that the Canadiens let anyone else cut into a slice of their pie!!
Quebec belongs to the Habs and just like the leafs would never allow a team in the Hammer, the Habs would block new competiton here in QC.
Just my opinion.
Yeah, except whereas Quebec City is 262km (162 miles) – about a 6-hour drive – from Montreal, Hamilton is just 68km (56 miles) from Toronto about a 50-minute drive.
I’m assuming you mean round trip regarding Montreal from Quebec City, George. One way, it’s less than three hours, and that’s if you stick to the speed limit…😉
Phritz, the Canadiens have the highest attendance in the league, year upon year, including during the Nords/Habs rivalry. The attendance during the Good Friday bru ha ha at the Forum was 18,000, capacity. Aside from that disgrace, the rivalry created separate but loyal and committed fan base for both teams and made for consistently strong attendance.
Indeed, here we are in 2026 and you still pine for the Nordiques!
Faster drive from Montreal to Quebec, and much slower back during the Nordiques’ time, Lyle. Or so it seemed 😉
Heh. Ya Lyle. The “objection” to teams in such “close” proximity being partially based upon potential fan attendance/attention, would think most who would make the trip have no intention of adding hotel costs to the package. At least not often, unless they’re Daddy Warbucks.
But of course the biggest objection is likely based on having to share TV coverage profits, although that didn’t stop both Calgary and Edmonton getting franchises, as well as Ottawa joining Toronto (again).
On strictly economics I think another team in Ontario makes perfect sense.
Both Alberta teams do well. In fact Edmonton had the highest revenue in the NHL and made the most profit.
Flames do just fine for a team that hasn’t been very good for a quite a while, even when they made the playoffs they weren’t a “contender”. But they’re getting a new rink, and the full rebuild seems to be underway. They will move up the rankings. Lots of corporate $$ in Calgary and Edmonton.
If 2 Alberta teams can be successful franchises, with a population of 5M people, Ontario can support 3 with a population of over 16M. Majority of whom are hockey fans. Plenty of corporate $ in the GTA as well.
But agree the owner of the Leafs, Mr. Rogers, carries a big stick since he also owns the communication company that owns the broadcast rights for the NHL in Canada. He paid $11B for that. Kind of a big deal I would think, and not sure he would like another team in the GTA.
Austin Matthews has been one of those players who – whether you cheer for his team or not – often lifts you out of your seat through his seemingly sudden but usually perfect positioning and often unorthodox – but accurate – shots that catch goalies off-guard.
Unfortunately, although only turning 29 just before this season begins, he has also been plagued by various injuries over his now 10-year career, as this web summation shows:
“Austin Matthews’ injury history features various upper and lower body ailments, highlighted by a season-ending grade 3 MCL tear and a bruised quad in March 2026 caused by a knee-on-knee hit from Radko Gudas. Prior to this, he dealt with recurring upper-body and wrist issues.
• Shoulder (2017-18): Missed 10 games from February to March with a separated right shoulder suffered against the NY Islanders, and missed time earlier in the year with a concussion and upper-body/back issues.
• Wrist / Hand (2020-21): Dealt with a nagging hand/wrist injury throughout the season, which eventually required surgery in August 2021. He missed the first three games of the following season as a result.
• Upper Body (2023-24): Missed 15 games over the course of the season due to two separate undisclosed upper-body issues.
• Upper Body (2024-25): Dealt with a lingering upper-body injury that persisted from training camp. It forced him to miss nine games in November (which included a trip to Germany for medical evaluations) and another six games between late December and early January.
• Knee (2025-26): Suffered a season-ending grade 3 MCL tear and a bruised quadriceps muscle in his left leg on March 12, 2026, following a knee-on-knee hit from Anaheim Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas. He underwent knee surgery and missed the final 16 regular-season games.
Matthews has historically played a physical brand of hockey, which has often subjected him to wear and tear during intense stretches and playoff runs.”
The Leafs may be arch-rivals of the Senators but, over much of the past decade, and like Ovechkin, McDavid, MacKinnon, Crosby, Kucherov and Makar, when on his game and healthy, he’s one of those you gladly pay to watch. Here’s hoping he returns to top form after that vicious, dirty knee-on-knee by Gudas.
The McConnell family were patient through the years after expansion when the Jackets were consistently among the league’s worst teams. They won’t sell. Even if they do, as part of the deal to transfer ownership of Nationwide Arena, the Nationwide company acquired a third of the team. So if the McConnell family does decide to sell, it’s reasonable to think that Nationwide would step up and buy the other 2/3 of the team. After all, if Nationwide hadn’t built Nationwide Arena, Columbus wouldn’t have been awarded an expansion team.
Oh! I almost forgot, the team’s lease for Nationwide Arena extends into the mid-2030’s.
While Ottawa is a government city, there is a fair sized corporate infrastructure and an owner footing the bill for a new arena.
Quebec City, has no owner to speak of that’s willing to put in money, the gov’t built the new arena and Peladeau bought the naming rights. There’s a rabid fan base but as we have discussed frequently the cost of attending has become exorbitant and a large slice of corporate season ticket sales are needed.
Habs would welcome a team in Quebec City, the natural rivalry just hypes interest, attendance, merch sales.
Habfan30, that rivalry was nothing short of
fierce and produced some of the most entertaining games I ever watched!
It was sort of like a throwback to the old QSHL – later just the QHL – which, combined, lasted from 1933 to 1959. The the Montreal Royals played their home games at the Forum (guys like Jacques Plante and Dickie Moore got their starts there and they apparently drew quite decent crowds), but when Beliveau graduated from the Quebec Citadels to the Quebec Aces, you apparently couldn’t get a ticket in either arena.
I was a fan back in those younger days of the Ottawa Senators of those leagues (late 40s into the early 1950s0 and the old Auditorium downtown was standing room only when either the Aces or Royals came to town. I had uncles who were rabid hockey fans and was lucky enough to see Beliveau twice at the old Forum. The atmosphere was unbelievable.