NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 28, 2020

by | Apr 28, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 28, 2020

Reaction to the Blackhawks firing president John McDonough, more on the league’s attempts to resume the season, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines

BLACKHAWKS FIRE MCDONOUGH

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES: The Chicago Blackhawks made a surprising move yesterday by firing John McDonough after 13 seasons as team president and CEO. Team chairman Rocky Wirtz issued a statement saying the move was based on the requirement for a “new mindset to successfully transition the organization to win both on and off the ice.”

Chicago Blackhawks fired team president John McDonough (Photo via NHL.com).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Blackhawks have declined since winning their last Stanley Cup in 2015, prompting speculation suggesting Wirtz could shake up the front office and coaching staff. He gave McDonough, general manager Stand Bowman, and head coach Jeremy Colliton a vote of confidence earlier this season, but it’s apparent he’s had time to reconsider during the ongoing pause to this NHL season.

It’ll be interesting to see if more changes are coming to the Blackhawks organization. This unexpected move sparked some to suggest Wirtz’s popularity among Chicago fans could change, while others wondered about the effect upon the futures of Bowman and Colliton.

LATEST ON THE NHL’S PLANS TO RESUME THE SCHEDULE

SPORTSNET: Chris Johnston reports NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league is still determining if it’ll wait until it’s safe and permissible for all 31 teams to reopen practice facilities or if it’ll do so in waves. Sources indicate several teams are aiming to reopen their facilities for small-group practices by May 15, but that might not be possible in every jurisdiction.

Johnston also revealed possible timelines for what the schedule could look like in the coming months. May 15 to 31 would see informal, small-group skates, followed by training camps and exhibitions games in June. The remainder of the regular-season schedule and the playoffs would run from July 1 to Sept. 30. A compressed off-season calendar would run from Oct. 1 to mid-November, followed by training camps opening for 2020-21, with next season beginning in mid- to late-December.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: That timeline isn’t carved in stone. The course of this pandemic will determine how that potential schedule plays out. League officials insist they’ll resume action only when it’s safe to do so.

ESPN.COM: Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon believes this season should be completed this summer assuming there’s sufficient testing for COVID-10. He also feels the 2020-21 season should start when fans are allowed to return to the arenas. The Hurricanes are among several clubs examining the economic impact of capping attendance at a lower capacity for next season.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Ken Campbell reports one of Canada’s leading experts on infectious diseases believes the NHL’s plan to resume play this summer could have legs if it works in concert with public health officials. Dr. Isaac Bogoch, an associate professor in the faculty of medicine at the University of Toronto, believes the plan could work provided there’s a sustained decline in COVID-19 cases.

“It’s going to be a value judgment on behalf of many different groups,” said Bogoch. “This is truly shared decision-making. You can look at all the data and what the proposal is and at the end of the day those groups together will have to decide together, is it worth it, yes or no?”

THE DENVER POST: Mike Chambers reports player agents Kurt Overhardt and KO Sports associate Brian Schoelzel proposed a voluntary player exemption rule that would allow NHL teams to prevent their highest-paid player from counting towards the salary cap.

Overhardt believes this would leave more money for the player’s teammates, as well as allow clubs to sign more players to make their rosters more competitive. Clubs that don’t wish to use that exemption would receive luxury-tax funds paid by teams that do participate. Overhardt’s plan would have to be part of the next collective bargaining agreement once the current one expires in 2022.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Whether that exemption is part of the next CBA remains to be seen. It could gain support among NHL teams if the COVID-19 pandemic creates an adverse, long-term effect upon hockey-related revenue.

OTTAWA SUN: Bruce Garrioch reports deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league intends to decide on when they’ll stage the 2020 Draft “relatively soon.” There’s talk the draft could be held in June before the regular season resumes in July.

Garrioch also reports the American Hockey League could announce the cancelation of the remainder of its season by May 8.

IN OTHER NEWS…

MLIVE.COM: The Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Blackhawks, and Philadelphia Flyers are assisting General Motors’ efforts to increase mask production for frontline works battling the coronavirus pandemic.

TRIBLIVE.COM: Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin made a sizable, unspecified donation to the Ronald McDonald House of Pittsburgh on Monday.

NBC SPORTS: The San Jose Sharks unveiled a plan to provide grants to 1,800 part-time workers at the team’s arena and practice facility who are unable to work because of the pandemic.

TSN: Former NHL forward Joel Ward announced his retirement after 11 NHL seasons with the Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, Washington Capitals and San Jose Sharks. In 726 games, Ward tallied 133 goals and 304 points.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Ward was an undrafted player from the Canadian college ranks who played his way into the big league. Best wishes to the former UPEI Panther in his future endeavors.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 27, 2020

by | Apr 27, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 27, 2020

The latest on the league’s plans to reopen the season, an update on Zdeno Chara, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

OTTAWA SUN: Bruce Garrioch reports the NHL’s attempt to complete the 2019-20 season would satisfy some of its sponsorship agreements, recouping roughly half of the $1.1 billion it could lose by canceling the season. Pushing back the start of next season to mid-November could also work in the league’s favor. Physical distancing measures could be reduced or lifted in some NHL cities by that time, allowing teams to sell tickets again.

TORONTO STAR: Damien Cox reports canceling the season could see the NHL’s television contracts with Rogers Sportsnet and NBC Sports carry over for another year. The deal with NBC expires at the end of the 2020-21 playoffs, meaning the league would have to wait another year to negotiate a more lucrative contract.

Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara isn’t thinking about retirement (Photo via NHL Images)

EDMONTON JOURNAL: Despite social distancing measures, Terry Jones believes the city of Edmonton would support being a divisional neutral-site host even if fans would be prohibited from attending games at Rogers Place arena. “I already know of people making preliminary plans to set up big-screen TVs and LED boards in parking lots to watch the games in their cars, drive-in-movie style,” writes Jones.

STLTODAY.COM: Jim Thomas reports Blues president and CEO Chris Zimmerman would love for the league to choose St. Louis as a divisional host city.

THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER: Elliott Teaford reports Rutgers University professor Dr. Mitchel Rosen is skeptical of the NHL’s plans to resume action this summer. Citing the potential spread of the coronavirus by personnel in close quarters, the Rangers’ season ticket holder recommends shutting down the season. “We should wait to have more tests available with rapid results, as well as proven, effective treatments,” said Rosen.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Dr. Rosen’s approach is the sensible one. Like all businesses affected by this pandemic, however, the NHL is trying to find the best option to resume operations at the earliest date while ensuring the safety and health of its employees.

THE SCORE: The current pause in the schedule doesn’t have Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara pondering retirement. The 43-year-old defenseman said he still loves playing the game and his current focus is playing some sort of hockey this season. The only active player from the 1996 draft class, Chara will become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: I anticipate Chara will sign another one-year, bonus-laden deal with the Bruins for next season. As long as he remains an effective member of their defense corps, the Bruins will keep him in the lineup.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Sam McCaig listed the all-time goals and points leaders for all 31 NHL franchises.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Some of the players on these lists might surprise you.

 










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 26, 2020

by | Apr 26, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 26, 2020

More details on the plan to resume the schedule, plus the latest on Sidney Crosby, Steven Stamkos, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

NEW YORK POST: Larry Brooks reports the NHL and NHL Players Association have established a Return to Play Committee engaged in discussions to draft plans to reopen the season when it’s safe to do so. The league has to determine whether it can safely resume amid a pandemic and whether the players will agree to it.

“Gary Bettman, Bill Daly, and senior VPs Colin Campbell and Steve Hatze Petros represent the NHL, while the NHLPA is represented by Don Fehr, Mathieu Schneider, general counsel Don Zavelo, divisional rep Steve Webb, and active players John Tavares, Connor McDavid, James van Riemsdyk, and Ron Hainsey. Medical advisers from both the league and union are added to the calls when appropriate.”

Decisions to resume will ultimately be made by local governments and public health agencies. League deputy commissioner Bill Daly was asked to clarify comments to TSN on Friday in which he suggested one or more positive COVID-19 tests among the participants wouldn’t necessarily shut the whole thing down. Daly said he wouldn’t get into hypotheticals. “I’m fully comfortable with our level of knowledge and the experts we have retained to make the right decisions,” he said. 

Brooks indicates Toronto and Columbus are among the leading candidates to be part of the four regional division hosts. A Canadian host city would mean lower costs to stage part of the schedule because of the lower Canadian dollar.

All teams would hold training camps of up to three weeks at their assigned locations. Depending on how far a team advances in the playoffs, those players could face being isolated from their families for up to four months. 

Player health will be an issue, especially for those with medical conditions like Montreal’s Max Domi, the New York Rangers’ Kaapo Kaako, and Minnesota’s Luke Kunin, who are Type 1 diabetics and more susceptible to contracting the coronavirus. Testing, travel restrictions, and family matters will be other issues facing the committee.

Boston Bruins president Cam Neely

SPECTOR’S NOTE: This report provides an interesting glimpse into the myriad of challenges facing the league and the PA in their attempt to complete the season and crown a Stanley Cup champion. Both sides appear busy behind the scenes trying to address those issues. It appears they want the players to return to their clubs by May 15, open training camps in those four host cities by June 1, and resume play by late-June.

NBC SPORTS BOSTON: Bruins president Cam Neely said the league and the players are on board to do whatever possible to complete the season. “If that means playing into the summer then we’re all willing to do that. The feeling is there’s an opportunity to be able to push next season back and still get an 82-game schedule in next year. Everything is on the table to try and get the (2019-20) season completed.”

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Every option is being considered, but the preference certainly seems to be a full completion of the current schedule and staging a full playoff format.

That could mean awarding the Stanley Cup by early September, holding a brief offseason period from mid-September into mid-October to stage the draft, open the free-agent period, and allow for salary-arbitration hearings. That could be followed by a two-three week training camp, with the 2020-21 season starting up in mid-November and the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs ending in late June or early July.

THE SCORE: Should the NHL schedule resume in empty arenas, Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper feels the players will quickly adjust to the absence of fans. He believes the players won’t notice a thing once the competitive juices and physical play begins.

SPORTSNET: Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby sent a message of love and support to his fellow Nova Scotians as the province grieves the senseless deaths of 22 people during a shooting rampage by a lone gunman last weekend. “I’m in Pittsburgh, but being from Nova Scotia, my heart and mind is home with all of you,” said the Cole Harbour native. 

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Like everyone, I was shocked and horrified by what happened last weekend. I was raised in Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia. Many of my family still live there. I regularly drive through the area where many of those murders took place on route to visit my folks. My heart goes out to the victims’ families and friends.

TAMPA BAY TIMES: Lightning captain Steven Stamkos has resumed skating as he rehabs from his March 2 core muscle surgery. He’s expected to be fully recovered when the season resumes.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 25, 2020

by | Apr 25, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 25, 2020

Some possible regional neutral-site locations to reopen the schedule, Brendan Gallagher and Jonathan Quick weigh in on a possible resumption, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

THE BOSTON GLOBE: Kevin Paul Dupont reports a league source confirms Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs, chairman of the NHL’s board of governors, is interested in having TD Garden become one of the four regional neutral-site locations if the season resumes in July.

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL: David Schoen reports Las Vegas could be a fit as one of those neutral-site locations. Nevada isn’t a COVID-19 hotspot compared to other NHL cities like New York or the San Francisco Bay area, plus the city has suitable facilities to host and accommodate NHL players. However, it could lack sufficient rinks for training camps.

THE ATHLETIC (subscription required): Sean Shapiro believes Dallas will be high on the list of possible neutral-site locations. The area has suitable accommodations, training facilities, and a major international airport. Climate, however, could make it difficult to sustain acceptable ice conditions.

THE NEWS & OBSERVER: The league could consider Raleigh, North Carolina as a neutral-site city, but Luke Decock believes a lack of practice facilities would be a major obstacle.

THE ATHLETIC (subscription required): Columbus, Edmonton, Minnesota, and Toronto could be among the leading neutral-site candidates.

Could Las Vegas become one of the NHL’s regional neutral-site locations?

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Most of the aforementioned cities have low COVID-19 numbers and less stringent social-distancing restrictions. Boston, however, is not among them. Jacobs is a very powerful league owner, but I doubt he’ll have enough influence to overcome the local health curtailments.

Meanwhile, Edmonton’s chief medical officer recently announced a recommendation to ban events of 15 or more people until the end of the summer. If approved, kiss that city goodbye as a neutral-site location.

TSN: NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly indicated a single positive or multiple positive tests involving players or personnel wouldn’t put an immediate halt to on-ice activity. “Everything depends on the facts and the entire set of circumstances,” said Daly.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: With all due respect to Daly, local health officials will make that decision, not the league. If they feel one or multiple positive tests among NHL players or staff creates a risk of spreading the coronavirus to the local population, that city will shut down games in their location. If that happens, the league’s plan to resume the schedule could be derailed.

Former NHL player John Scott took to Twitter yesterday claiming NHL training camps will begin on June 1. He anticipates European players will be returning to their NHL clubs soon. However, SPORTSNET’s Eric Engels recently reported Montreal Canadiens winger and NHLPA alternate player rep Brendan Gallagher said on Wednesday that a resumption of the schedule in July has not yet been put before the PA membership for approval.

LOS ANGELES TIMES: Kings’ goaltender Jonathan Quick believes netminders will need time to get back into form if the league resumes this summer. He recalled his own long recovery from a groin injury just one game into the 2016-17 season.

STLTODAY.COM: Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington teamed up with local businessman David Corbett delivered 2,000 N95 masks to Mercy’s Virtual Care Center in Chesterfield.

SPORTSNET: Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment is using Scotiabank Arena as a giant kitchen to prepare 10,000 meals a day for Toronto’s front-line health-care workers, their families, and the city’s community agencies and shelters.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 24, 2020

by | Apr 24, 2020

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 24, 2020

More details on a possible resumption of the schedule in July, the potential plans for the 2020 Draft, the Blue Jackets re-sign goaltender Elvis Merzlikins, and more in today’s NHL morning coffee headlines.

LATEST ON THE POSSIBLE RESUMPTION OF 2019-20 NHL SEASON

TSN: Bob McKenzie reports the NHL is looking at a series of phases toward re-starting the 2019-20 season. It’s currently been in Phase 1 (lockdown, quarantine, self-isolation) since mid-March. The league is optimistic about moving into Phase 2, which would see players from around the world returning to their NHL clubs and getting into a two-week quarantine period of small-group training.

Following that could see Phase 3, which could see a plan of four divisional cities hosting multiple teams staging two-week training camps. After that would be Phase 4, the resumption of games.

Darren Dreger suggests the Phase 2 period would ideally be around May 15. He said the league and the NHL Players’ Association are discussing restart strategies, but some teams aren’t optimistic about whether it’s safe enough to return anytime soon.

Pierre LeBrun reports the league is vetting 12 NHL cities for those four divisional hosts. He cites colleague Frank Seravalli indicating Toronto, Edmonton, Dallas, and Pittsburgh were under consideration. LeBrun also mentioned Minnesota (Minneapolis-St. Paul), and Columbus.

NEW YORK POST: Larry Brooks reports at least one NHL team told its players to be prepared to report on May 15 to begin informal workouts before a training camp of up to three weeks. Not every NHL club, however, is acting in a similar matter. He added Columbus is the favorite to host Metropolitan Division games.

Brooks also said there has yet to be in-depth conversations between the league and the NHLPA regarding health protocols to protect the players from COVID-19. It’s unknown if players returning from Europe would need to be quarantined for two weeks before rejoining their clubs.

WINNIPEG SUN: Paul Friesen reports Winnipeg has been removed from that list of potential locations, citing various infrastructure issues such as suitable hotel accommodation to house all those players.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: A growing sense of cautious optimism has been evident this week among NHL officials over a possible resumption of the season. However, they’ve also repeatedly stressed it would depend upon ensuring the health and safety of its players and those involved in staging those games. They’re hopeful, but they’re also not going to rush things. Like provinces and states that are starting to ease back restrictions, the league will do this step by cautious step.

2020 NHL DRAFT UPDATE

TSN: Bob McKenzie reports the NHL head office is keen to stage the 2020 NHL Draft in early June, well before the proposed resumption of the schedule. Pierre LeBrun said there’s been considerable pushback from NHL general managers. They’re concerned about determining the draft order, as well as the ability to make normal trades.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Deputy commissioner Bill Daly told the Ottawa Sun that a June draft would likely use a points percentage system to determine the draft selection order. Based on the reports from McKenzie and LeBrun, however, most of the general managers are against the notion of staging the draft before the start of the season. Several teams also made deals during this season involving conditional picks to be determined by playoff performance or a player re-signing with his new club. Sorting that out could create more headaches for the league.

IN OTHER NEWS…

THE SCORE: The Columbus Blue Jackets re-signed Elvis Merzlikins to a two-year, $8-million contract extension. The 26-year-old goaltender was a restricted free agent with arbitration rights.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Merzlikins’ new deal came within a week of the Jackets re-signing Joonas Korpisalo to a two-year, $5.6-million deal. They now have over $75 million invested in 19 players for 2020-21, with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Josh Anderson still to re-sign.

Some are wondering why general manager Jarmo Kekalainen is re-signing players when next season’s salary cap has yet to be determined. Same goes for St. Louis Blues GM Doug Armstrong. It’s been suggested their recent moves indicate the salary cap will remain at $81.5 million for next season.

THE WASHINGTON POST: Alex Ovechkin and Wayne Gretzky played to a tie in their NHL 20 matchup, raising over $41K for coronavirus relief.

STAR-TRIBUNE.COM: Former NHL player and 1980 Team USA alum Mark Pavelich is no longer resisting mental health treatment. He’s making progress toward a newly scheduled hearing to determine his fitness to stand trial for assaulting a neighbor last year.










A Resumption of 2020 NHL Season Is Highly Presumptuous

by | Apr 24, 2020

A Resumption of 2020 NHL Season Is Highly Presumptuous