NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – June 6, 2023

by | Jun 6, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – June 6, 2023

The Golden Knights take a 2-0 series lead in the Stanley Cup Final, the Canadiens sign Cole Caufield to a long-term contract, the Ducks hire a new head coach, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

GOLDEN KNIGHTS TAKE 2-0 LEAD IN THE STANLEY CUP FINAL

NHL.COM: The Vegas Golden Knights thumped the Florida Panthers 7-2 to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Stanley Cup Final. Jonathan Marchessault scored twice and added an assist, Brett Howden tallied two goals, Jack Eichel had two assists and Adin Hill made 29 saves for the win.

Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky got the hook early in the second period after giving up four goals on 13 shots as the Golden Knights jumped to a 4-0 lead. Anton Lundell and Matthew Tkachuk replied for the Panthers.

Tkachuk leveled Eichel with a hard, clean open-ice hit late in the second period. Eichel briefly left the game but returned to action in the third period. Tkachuk received a 10-minute misconduct and a two-minute roughing penalty in a scrum following the hit.

The Panthers winger would receive another misconduct late in the third period. He has a combined 36 penalty minutes in this series thus far, setting an NHL record for the most through the first two games of a Stanley Cup Final.

Panthers defenseman Radko Gudas left the game early in the first period following a hit by Golden Knights forward Ivan Barbashev. Panthers forward Eetu Luostarinen remained sidelined for the second straight game due to a lower-body injury suffered in the final game of the Eastern Conference Final.

Vegas Golden Knights winger Jonathan Marchessault (NHL Images).

The series shifts to Florida for the next two games. Game 3 will be Thursday at 8 pm ET.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Golden Knights dominated Game 2 from the opening faceoff, taking advantage of Florida’s porous defense and undisciplined play. Bobrovsky had a rough outing but Panthers coach Paul Maurice believed his club should’ve played better in front of their goalie. Their sloppy performance has prompted some to suggest that their 10-day layoff between series has done them more harm than good.

Tkachuk’s thunderous bodycheck on Eichel was done in part to try to light a spark under his floundering teammates. Following the game, the Golden Knights center said it was a clean hit. “Got to be aware of it,” Eichel said. “Got to keep your head up. I’ll be fine.” He shrugged off concerns about an injury, claiming that he left the game because he’d had the wind knocked out of him. He would set up Marchessault’s second goal in the third period.

Speaking of Marchessault, he is likely moving into consideration for the Conn Smythe Trophy. After managing just two assists in Vegas’ first seven games of this postseason, he’s since tallied 12 goals and 19 points, including three goals and four points against the Panthers. The Golden Knights’ Twitter handle trolled Florida during Game 2, pointing out that they chose Marchessault when the Panthers left him unprotected in the 2017 expansion draft.

HEADLINES

MONTREAL HOCKEY NOW: The Canadiens signed Cole Caufield to an eight-year, $62.8 million contract worth an average annual value of $7.85 million. That makes the 22-year-old winger the second-highest-paid skater on the team next season, earning just $25,000 less than linemate and team captain Nick Suzuki.

MONTREAL GAZETTE: Caufield’s contract is front-loaded as he’ll earn $9.975 million in each of the first two seasons as well as a $5 million signing bonus for each of those seasons.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Caufield emerged as a gifted young sniper since joining the Canadiens late in the 2020-21 season, helping the Habs reach the 2021 Stanley Cup Final.

The young winger struggled through the first half of 2021-22 until Martin St. Louis took over as head coach. Under St. Louis, Caufield has tallied 48 goals in 83 games, including 26 goals in 46 games before suffering a season-ending shoulder surgery in January.

Caufield has the potential to become a consistent 40-goal scorer. If he regularly reaches that plateau, his contract will be a bargain for the Canadiens over the next eight years.

THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER: The Anaheim Ducks announced yesterday that they’ve hired Greg Cronin as their new head coach. Cronin spent the past five seasons coaching the AHL’s Colorado Eagles.

“Being a young team, I felt we need a teacher of the finer points of the game, and someone who has worked extensively over time with talented young players, helping them develop into successful NHL players,” said Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek. “Greg has done all that and more, and we are excited to name him head coach of the Anaheim Ducks.”

NEW YORK POST: Despite rumors linking Patrick Roy to the New York Rangers, the club does not consider him a coaching candidate and will not interview him for the position. Former Nashville Predators coach John Hynes and former Washington Capitals bench boss Peter Laviolette are considered the front-runners for the job.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Roy guided his Quebec Remparts to the QMJHL championship and the Memorial Cup this season. He was also the head coach of the Colorado Avalanche from 2013-14 to 2015-16. There’s speculation one of the prospective owners of the Ottawa Senators could be interested in hiring Roy if their efforts to purchase the club are successful.

THE ATHLETIC: Chris Chelios will not have his contract as an in-studio hockey analyst with ESPN renewed at the end of this season. The move is part of a series of budget cuts by the network.

TSN: Michael Thompson, the general manager of infrastructure services for the city of Calgary, said the $1.2 billion deal to replace the aging Saddledome comes with a 35-year lease that includes a commitment from the Flames to remain in the city.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The deal is drawing increasing criticism from those concerned with the high cost of the project and how it will be funded. One critic said the agreement would ultimately generate no operating revenue for the city.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – June 3, 2023

by | Jun 3, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – June 3, 2023

The latest on the Golden Knights and Panthers ahead of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, the Blues won’t buy out contracts, more changes to the front offices of the Flyers and Penguins, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

TSN: Jack Eichel is making the most of his first-ever NHL postseason as his Vegas Golden Knights prepare for the upcoming Stanley Cup Final.

Vegas Golden Knights center Jack Eichel (NHL Images).

“It’s where you want to be as a player and (it’s) been taking a few years for me to get here,” said Eichel. “It’s been a great experience. It’s been a lot of fun sharing with the guys in the room, the emotions, winning and moving on.”

Eichel, 26, is tied for fourth in this postseason with 18 points.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill has been enjoying the ride to the Stanley Cup Final. Hill took over as their starter midway through their second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers, backstopping them to victory in that series and in the Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars.

In 11 postseasons appearance, Hill leads all goalies with two shutouts and a sparkling .937 save percentage.

FLORIDA HOCKEY NOW: Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky has found his underdog team’s march to the Stanley Cup Final to be “an unbelievable experience.” He’s applied the lessons learned from the disappointments of the past to his performance in the 2023 playoffs. Bobrovsky’s won 11 of his 12 playoff games, including six in overtime.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Bobrovsky’s performance has made him a front-runner for the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. Hill should also be considered a Smythe candidate.

NHL.COM: The Panthers long layoff has benefitted forward Eetu Luostarinen. Sidelined during Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final, he has returned to his usual spot with linemates Anton Lundell and Sam Reinhart.

STLTODAY.COM: Don’t expect the Blues to go the buyout route to free up some salary-cap space this summer. “I don’t see us buying out players, no,” said general manager Doug Armstrong. “I’m not sure this is the summer for substantial changes for us. We talked about that at the end of the year. We want to see internal growth from some of the guys.”

Armstrong also said he was flattered to learn that his name was mentioned by Toronto sports media as a potential candidate to become the GM of the Maple Leafs. He said he was glad he was in Europe when those rumors came out. “My intentions, I’m a St. Louis Blue,” he said.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Those rumors appear to be based on pundits thinking out loud and spitballing potential candidates for the job. It turns out the Maple Leafs never reached out to the Blues to speak with Armstrong, who’s under contract through 2025-26.

PITTSBURGH HOCKEY NOW: The shakeups continue in the Penguins’ front office. Their latest departures include director of pro scouting Kerry Huffman, senior vice president of integrated performance Teena Murray and director of hockey operations Alec Schall. No replacements have been named yet.

NBC SPORTS PHILADELPHIA: The Flyers have parted ways with senior advisor to the general manager and player development Mike O’Connell and player development coaches John Riley and Kjell Samuelsson.

They named Alyn McCauley as assistant GM, Riley Armstrong as director of player development and Nick Schultz as assistant director of player development.

THE SCORE: Player agent Kurt Overhardt doesn’t anticipate any problems reaching an agreement with the Minnesota Wild on a new contract for client Filip Gustavsson. “I don’t think it’s a matter of getting something done. It’s just a matter of when it’s done. It’s only June 2. So there’s still a lot of time.”

Gustavsson is completing a two-year contract with an average annual value of $787, 500. He’s a restricted free agent this summer with arbitration rights. The 24-year-old Swedish goaltender appeared in 39 games with the Wild, starting 37 of them. He ranked second in save percentage (.931) among goalies with at least eight games played this season.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Gustavsson has taken over the starter’s job from the aging Marc-Andre Fleury, who has one season remaining on his contract.

OTTAWA SUN: Bruce Garrioch reports Toronto billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos is considered the front-runner in the bidding to purchase the Senators. He had the highest bid ($1 billion USD) and is thought to be in the driver’s seat because he has what’s considered to be the “cleanest” bid.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: In other words, Apostolopoulos hasn’t had to get outside investors involved to come up with the money to purchase the team. Garrioch indicated that his partners are his two brothers and his bid isn’t heavily leveraged with debt.

TSN: The Montreal Canadiens have signed checking-line forward Michael Pezzetta to a two-year, $1.625 million contract. The average annual value is $812,500.

NHL.COM: The Carolina Hurricanes are mourning the loss of Bob Brind’Amour, father of head coach Rod Brind’Amour. Bob passed away on Thursday in Campbell River, BC, surrounded by family and friends.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: My condolences to the Brind’Amour family.

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL: Bark-Andre Furry, the beloved Jack Russell terrier who became the furry friend of the Vegas Golden Knights, passed away on Friday at age 14. Bark was named after former Golden Knights star Marc-Andre Fleury in 2018 and frequently appeared at their home games.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Condolences to the Golden Knights and to Bark’s owners.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 13, 2023

by | May 13, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – May 13, 2023

The Panthers advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, the Golden Knights push the Oilers to the brink of elimination and the Hart Trophy finalists are announced. Get the details in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

NHL.COM: The Florida Panthers have advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 1996 with a 3-2 overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 5 of their best-of-seven second-round series. Nick Cousins tallied the game-winner after the Leafs overcame a 2-0 deficit on goals by Morgan Rielly and William Nylander. Aaron Ekblad and Carter Verhaeghe also scored for the Panthers.

Florida Panthers forward Nick Cousins (NHL Images)

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Panthers will face the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals. The date has yet to be announced for Game 1 but it will likely be Wednesday at the earliest.

After upsetting the Boston Bruins in the first round, the Panthers suffered no letdown in this series. They outworked and out-hustled Toronto during the first three games while their best players were consistently at their best. While the Leafs improved in the final two games, the Panthers made the most of their opportunities. They also took home-ice advantage away from their opponent, winning three of their four games in Toronto.

Down 2-1 late in the second period, Rielly appeared to have tied the game for the Leafs but the NHL situation room claimed the referee deemed the play to be dead before the puck crossed the line. Nylander would tie the game in the third period but it might have been the game-winner had Rielly’s goal counted.

Despite winning their first playoff round in 19 years during this postseason, there’s a feeling of disappointment and heartbreak in Leafs Nation amid speculation that big changes are coming in this offseason. I’ll have more about that in today’s Rumors update.

The Vegas Golden Knights are on the verge of advancing to the Western Conference Finals following a 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 5 of their second-round series. They overcame 1-0 and 2-1 deficits and held off the Oilers’ third-period push after Connor McDavid cut their lead by one goal. Jack Eichel and Jonathan Marchessault each had three points while Adin Hill stopped 32 shots. McDavid scored twice for the Oilers.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Eichel is thriving in his first-ever NHL playoffs. He leads the Golden Knights with 13 points and is tied for the club leads in goals (six) with Chandler Stephenson.

All of the Oilers’ goals in this game came on the power play but they also gave up two on the penalty kill. Their difficulties in scoring at even strength are becoming an issue for them in this series. There’s also concern about their goaltending as Stuart Skinner got pulled again after giving up four goals on 22 shots.

Both clubs were without their best defensemen for this contest as Vegas’ Alex Pietrangelo and Edmonton’s Darnell Nurse were both serving one-game suspensions.

Speaking of Connor McDavid, he joins Boston Bruins winger David Pastrnak and Florida Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk as finalists for the Hart Memorial Trophy as this season’s most valuable player on his team.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 17, 2023

by | Apr 17, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – April 17, 2023

The opening round of the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs begins tonight. Check out the latest on the Bruins’ Patrice Bergeron, the Golden Knights’ Jack Eichel, the Jets’ Nikolaj Ehlers and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

POSTSEASON HEADLINES

NHL.COM: The opening round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs kicks off tonight with the Florida Panthers facing off against the Bruins in Boston, the New York Islanders traveling to Carolina to meet the Hurricanes, the Minnesota Wild squaring off against the Stars in Dallas, and the Los Angeles Kings journeying to Edmonton to face the Oilers.

BOSTON HOCKEY NOW: Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery acknowledged it’s possible captain Patrice Bergeron could miss Game 1 against the Panthers tonight. Bergeron suffered an upper-body injury during the last game of the regular season and has missed practices for precautionary reasons.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Best for the Bruins not to rush Bergeron into the lineup and worsen his condition. They’ve got sufficient depth to skate without him until he’s ready to return later in this series.

VEGAS HOCKEY NOW: Golden Knights center Jack Eichel is looking forward to playing in his first playoff series in his eight-year NHL career. He spent six seasons with the rebuilding Buffalo Sabres before being traded to the Golden Knights last season.

Vegas Golden Knights center Jack Eichel (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Eichel was in a difficult situation during his tenure with the Sabres given the haphazard way the club was managed and coached during those years. He miss over half of last season recovering from neck surgery before debuting with a struggling Golden Knights club and ended up playing through a wrist injury that hampered his performance.

TSN: A day after declaring himself good to go, Nikolaj Ehlers (upper-body injury) missed Sunday’s practice with his Winnipeg Jets teammates. He skated prior to practice but he’s listed as day-to-day.

CBS SPORTS: Minnesota Wild defenseman John Klingberg’s availability for tonight’s game against the Stars is unclear due to a lower-body injury. He skipped practice yesterday after suffering the injury during practice on Saturday.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Klingberg played most of his NHL career with the Stars before departing for the Anaheim Ducks last summer as a free agent. He was acquired by the Wild at the trade deadline.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: New York Islanders defenseman Alexander Romanov will miss Game 1 tonight against the Hurricanes with an upper-body injury. He’s listed as day-to-day and will be replaced tonight by Samuel Bolduc.

COLORADO HOCKEY NOW: Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland anticipates sidelined defensemen Cale Makar and Josh Manson will return for their upcoming series with the Seattle Kraken. Manson took part in the optional skate on Sunday.

IN OTHER NEWS…

WGR 550: Buffalo Sabres captain Kyle Okposo hasn’t made any plans yet regarding his future after 16 NHL seasons. The 35-year-old forward is an unrestricted free agent on July 1. He indicated if he does continue his career he would like to do so with the Sabres.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Okposo had 11 goals and 17 assists in 75 games this season as a bottom-six forward. He’s coming off a seven-year, $42 million contract and won’t get anything like that again if he intends to continue playing in the NHL.

With over $19 million in cap space and 20 roster regulars under contract for 2023-24, the Sabres have the cap space to bring him back if they wish on an affordable short-term deal.

DAILY FACEOFF: San Jose Sharks defenseman Markus Nutivaara was sidelined for the entire season by a potentially career-ending hip injury. He suffered the injury prior to the 2021-22 season while with the Florida Panthers. He underwent surgery and has been recovering ever since.

Nutivaara, 28, signed with the Sharks last summer as a UFA and played some preseason games but the injury still nagged him and he was unable to fully heal, remaining on long-term injury reserve for the season. He’s played 275 games over six seasons with the Panthers and Columbus Blue Jackets.

THE HOCKEY NEWS: Washington Capitals winger Carl Hagelin still hopes to resume his NHL career following an eye injury and four hip procedures in 12 months that sidelined him for the entire 2022-23 season. The 34-year-old winger is an unrestricted free agent in July.

DAILY FACEOFF: The Nashville Predators signed forward Michael McCarron to a one-year, $775K contract extension.

DETROIT HOCKEY NOW: The Detroit Red Wings have shaken up the coaching staff of their AHL affiliate in Grand Rapids after the club missed the Calder Cup playoffs for the second straight year. Head coach Ben Simon, assistants Matt MacDonald and Todd Krygier and goalie development coach Brian Mahoney-Wilson will not have their contracts renewed for next season.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 31, 2023

by | Mar 31, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 31, 2023

The Bruins clinch the Presidents’ Trophy, the Golden Knights clinch a playoff berth, the Oilers’ Connor McDavid scores his 300th career goal, the Panthers’ Matthew Tkachuk reaches 100 points, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

GAME RECAPS

NHL.COM: The Boston Bruins won their fourth Presidents’ Trophy in franchise history by downing the Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 on an overtime goal by David Pastrnak. Tyler Bertuzzi also scored for the league-leading Bruins (121 points) as they set a franchise record for wins with 58. Jack Roslovic scored for the 23-43-8 Blue Jackets, who played without Adam Boqvist due to an illness.

The Vegas Golden Knights dropped a 4-3 overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks but gained a point to become the first Western Conference club to clinch a playoff berth. Logan Couture tallied the game-winning goal for the 21-39-15 Sharks. The Golden Knights (46-22-7) sit atop the West with 99 points.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Vegas center Jack Eichel became the eighth player in NHL history to make his playoff debut after scoring 400-plus regular-season points.

Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (NHL Images).

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid scored his 300th career goal while Stuart Skinner kicked out 43 shots to shut out the Los Angeles Kings 2-0. Evander Kane also scored as the Oilers improved to 44-23-9 and moved one point ahead of the Kings into second place in the Pacific Division with 97 points. Joonas Korpisalo stopped 35 shots for the 43-22-10 Kings, who were without winger Kevin Fiala due to a lower-body injury.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: McDavid set an NHL record by becoming the first player to record five 10-game points streaks in a single season. He’s also the fifth-fastest player to score 300 goals and 500 assists before his 600th career game.

Florida Panthers winger Matthew Tkachuk became the fourth player to reach 100 points this season in a 5-2 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. Tkachuk (101 points) tallied a hat trick while Anton Lundell scored twice for the 38-31-7 Panthers (83 points) as they remain one point behind the Pittsburgh Penguins for the final Eastern Conference wild-card berth. Canadiens defenseman David Savard missed this game with a lower-body injury while forward Kirby Dach is sidelined for at least a week with an upper-body injury.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Tkachuk became the fourth player in NHL history to record 100-plus points in consecutive seasons with two different teams.

Speaking of the Penguins, they maintained their lead over the Panthers by blanking the Nashville Predators 2-0. Tristan Jarry turned in a 28-save shutout while Jason Zucker and Jake Guentzel scored for the 37-28-10 Penguins. Juuse Saros stopped 43 shots for the 37-29-8 Predators (82 points) as they remain three points out of the final Western Conference wild-card spot.

The Ottawa Senators blew a 4-1 lead but recovered to defeat the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4 on an overtime goal by Alex DeBrincat. Tim Stutzle had a goal and an assist while Shane Pinto tallied his 20th goal of the season for the Senators (37-33-5) as they remain five points back of the Penguins with 79 points. Cam York had a goal and an assist and Owen Tippett netted his 23rd of the season for the 29-32-13 Flyers.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: The Penguins and Senators each have seven games remaining. Unless the Pens collapse, the Sens aren’t going to catch them.

First-period goals by Erik Haula and Timo Meier enable the New Jersey Devils to hold off the New York Rangers by a score of 2-1. Chris Kreider replied for the Rangers. The Devils improved to 47-20-8 and widened their lead over the Rangers by four points (102) for second place in the Metropolitan Division.

A goal by Jake Walman with four seconds remaining in the third period gave the Detroit Red Wings a 4-3 upset win over the Carolina Hurricanes. Alex Nedeljkovic made 31 saves for the win as the Red Wings improved to 33-32-9 on the season. Jaccob Slavin had a goal and an assist for the 47-18-9 Hurricanes as they sit one point ahead of the Devils in first place in the Metropolitan Division with 103 points. Hurricanes winger Teuvo Teravainen missed this game due to illness.

Tampa Bay Lightning forward Pat Maroon tallied twice in a 5-1 victory over the Washington Capitals. Steven Stamkos and Alex Killorn each had a goal and an assist for the 44-26-6 Lightning as they hold third place in the Atlantic Division with 94 points. Craig Smith replied for the Capitals (34-33-9) as they fall seven points behind the Penguins with 77 points.

The Seattle Kraken strengthened their hold on the first Western Conference wild-card spot by dropping the Anaheim Ducks 4-1. Matty Beniers and Jaden Schwartz each had a goal and an assist for the 41-25-8 Kraken as they hold a five-point lead over the Winnipeg Jets with 90 points. Brock McGinn replied for the 23-42-10 Ducks.

St. Louis Blues winger Brandon Saad had a goal and an assist in a 5-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. The Blues (35-34-9) have won six of the last eight games. Tyler Johnson had a goal and an assist for the 24-45-6 Blackhawks, who’ve now dropped seven straight games.

HEADLINES

DAILY FACEOFF: Marty Walsh, the new executive director of the NHL Players’ Association, spoke with the media yesterday for the first time since taking over from former director Donald Fehr.

Walsh said he recently met with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, joking that they’ll have a wonderful relationship as long as Bettman agrees with everything he says. Turning serious, he expressed the hope of working together with Bettman but stressed that he works for the players.

He also addressed his relationship with the Jacobs family, who own the Bruins and donated to his political campaigns. “Supporting my campaign is one thing,” said Walsh. “Using that as a way to leverage me is never going to happen.”

Walsh said he likes the idea of increasing next season’s salary cap by more than $1 million but indicated the players are not interested in increasing their escrow payments to do so. He also said he’ll need some time to consider the next round of collective bargaining that is two and a half years away.

The new PA director is interested in working with the league toward staging a World Cup of Hockey in 2025. He also said that he’s supportive of the LGBTQ-plus community and wants NHL dressing rooms to be inclusive spaces but also supports a player’s individual right to decide whether they’ll wear a Pride warmup jersey. He pointed out that “a super majority” of players have worn the jersey.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Walsh addressed other topics but these were the main points of interest. It’s noteworthy that he is willing to discuss raising the cap for next season by more than the agreed-upon rate of $1 million but quickly dismissed the idea of increasing escrow payments, which is what Bettman has said must happen for the rate to rise beyond $1 million.

The players seem fine with playing one more season under a flattened cap. They’re secure in the knowledge that there will be significant cap increases over the remaining two seasons of the current CBA that won’t require increases in escrow.

It’s the team owners and general managers who prefer raising the cap for 2023-24. It’ll be up to them to pressure Bettman into finding another way to raise it that’ll meet with the PA’s approval.

DAILY FACEOFF: The NCAA announced that University of Michigan forward Adam Fantilli and University of Minnesota forwards Logan Cooley and Matthew Knies are the 2023 finalists for the Hobey Baker Award as the most outstanding player in NCAA hockey.

Fantilli is eligible for the 2023 NHL draft. Cooley was chosen third overall by the Arizona Coyotes in the 2022 draft while Knies was taken 57th overall in the 2021 draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The winner will be announced on April 7.










NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 20, 2023

by | Mar 20, 2023

NHL Morning Coffee Headlines – March 20, 2023

Hat tricks for the Golden Knights’ Jack Eichel, the Devils’ Jesper Bratt and the Wild’s Matt Boldy plus a franchise record performance by the Rangers’ K’Andre Miller in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.

NHL.COM: Vegas Golden Knights center Jack Eichel tallied a hat trick in a 7-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Alex Pietrangelo collected four assists and Jiri Patera stopped 35 shots for the Golden Knights (43-21-6) as they sit on top of the Western Conference with 92 points. Patrik Laine and Kirill Marchenko each had two points for the 21-41-7 Blue Jackets.

Vegas Golden Knights center Jack Eichel (NHL Images).

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen missed this game as he’s temporarily taken some time away from the team due to a death in the family. My condolences to Larsen and his family during this difficult time.

The New Jersey Devils overcame a 2-0 deficit to down the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-2. Jesper Bratt scored his first career hat trick and his 100th career goal for the Devils (97 points), who improved to 45-18-7 and sit one point behind the first-place Carolina Hurricanes in the Metropolitan Division. Nikita Kucherov scored to reach 100 points for the third time in his career as the Lightning (42-23-6) sit third in the Atlantic Division with 90 points.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Devils forward Curtis Lazar missed this game with an undisclosed injury suffered during Saturday’s game against the Florida Panthers.

Speaking of hat tricks, Matt Boldy netted the second one of his young career in a 5-3 win over the Washington Capitals. Marc-Andre Fleury turned aside 33 shots for the 40-22-8 Wild as they regained second place in the Central Division with 88 points. Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin scored two goals and collected an assist but his club sank to 33-31-7. With 73 points, they’re five points out of the final Eastern Conference wild-card berth.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Washington center Evgeny Kuznetsov left this game with an apparent shoulder injury following a high hit from Wild defenseman Matt Dumba. There was no penalty on the play. The Capitals were also playing without starting goaltender Darcy Kuemper as he’s day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin returned to action after missing 12 games with a lower-body injury.

The New York Rangers’ K’Andre Miller set a franchise record for most points by a defenseman in one period (four) with two goals and two assists as his club scored six first-period goals to thump the Nashville Predators 7-0. Artemi Panarin had three points and Jaroslav Halak made 22 saves for his first shutout of the season for the 41-19-10 Rangers, who sit third in the Metropolitan Division with 92 points. The Predators fell to 34-26-8 and remain five points out of the final Western Conference wild-card spot with 76 points.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Those six first-period goals were also a Rangers record for most goals in one period. Meanwhile, the Predators played without captain Roman Josi as he’s day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman kicked out 26 shots for his second straight shutout in a 7-0 romp over the Buffalo Sabres. Jake DeBrusk had a goal and three assists, Patrice Bergeron had three points and David Pastrnak netted his 48th goal of the season for the league-leading Bruins as they improved to 53-11-5 and 111 points. The Sabres fell to 33-30-6 and sit six points away from the final Eastern wild-card berth with 72 points.

SPECTOR’S NOTE: Pastrnak is just two goals away from becoming the first Bruin to reach 50 in a season since Cam Neely in 1993-94. As for the Sabres, WGR 550’s Paul Hamilton indicates that they have the league’s second-worst record over their last 11 games, sitting 28th in goal scoring during that stretch while allowing a league-high 53 goals.

St. Louis Blues rookie goalie Joel Hofer made 33 saves to shut out the Winnipeg Jets 3-0. Kasperi Kapanen, Nathan Walker and Jakub Vrana scored for the 31-33-5 Blues. The Jets fell to 39-29-3 and cling to the final Western Conference wild-card berth with 81 points.

The Anaheim Ducks were officially eliminated from playoff contention as they fell 2-1 to the Vancouver Canucks. J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson scored for the 31-33-5 Canucks while Ryan Strome replied for the 23-37-10 Ducks.