NHL Morning Coffee Headlines & Rumors – September 8, 2024
NHL Morning Coffee Headlines & Rumors – September 8, 2024
Canucks captain Quinn Hughes on his goals for the upcoming season, the Wild attempted to acquire Patrik Laine, an update on Ryan Johansen, and more in today’s NHL Morning Coffee Headlines.
HEADLINES
SPORTSNET: Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes is proud of winning the Norris Trophy in 2023-24 but is putting that behind him to focus on his club’s goals and his personal ones for the upcoming season.
Hughes, 24, finished last season with a career-high 17 goals and 75 assists for 92 points. He believes he can reach 20 goals and doesn’t rule out 100 points this season, explaining that he felt he missed a lot of scoring opportunities last season.
The Canucks captain also believes his club will be better in 2024-25, pointing to the addition of forwards Jake DeBrusk, Danton Heinen, Kiefer Sherwood and Daniel Sprong and defenseman Derek Forbort.
Hughes doesn’t see his club enduring the inconsistency of the previous years before last season’s improvement, noting that they’re no longer an up-and-coming club as they were back then. He indicated core players like himself, Elias Pettersson, Thatcher Demko, J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser are older and more experienced.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hughes and his teammates will face significant pressure to build on their 109-point performance last season, the third-best record in franchise history. How they handle the heightened expectations could determine the outcome of this season.
SI.COM: Nick Horwat cited Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman claiming the Minnesota Wild attempted to acquire Patrik Laine from the Columbus Blue Jackets before the 26-year-old winger was traded to the Montreal Canadiens last month.
Friedman believes the Wild were “very interested” in Laine. However, Horwat pointed out the cap-strapped Wild would’ve had to ship out some salary to absorb the winger’s $8.7 million cap hit through 2025-26.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: It was rumored last month the Wild could look into acquiring Laine. There was also talk that they were on his 10-team “no-trade” list.
THE ATHLETIC: Kevin Kurz reports the Philadelphia Flyers hope to receive further clarification regarding their efforts to void Ryan Johansen’s contract.
According to Kurz, whether Johansen was healthy enough to report to the Flyers’ AHL affiliate following his acquisition from the Colorado Avalanche is at the heart of the disagreement. The Flyers originally thought they’d receive clarification before the start of the season but a team source suggests it’s “going to be a few weeks”.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Johansen has a year remaining on his contract. The average annual value is $8 million, of which $4 million was retained by the Nashville Predators when they traded him last summer to the Avalanche. The Flyers took on that portion of his AAV when they acquired him earlier this year.
THE HOCKEY NEWS: Steve Warne wonders if veteran winger Mike Hoffman has played his final NHL game. A 70-point producer in 2018-19 with the Florida Panthers, the 34-year-old winger has been unable to land a contract.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Hoffman’s production has tumbled since then, partly due to two COVID-shortened seasons but also because of three injury-shortened campaigns with rebuilding clubs in Montreal and San Jose.
The knock on Hoffman is he’s a one-dimensional offensive player whose defensive play leaves something to be desired. Age could also be catching up with him.
DAILY FACEOFF: Edmonton Oilers winger Corey Perry helped WWE wrestler Kevin Owens in his triple-threat match against Austin Theory during WWE Smackdown in Edmonton on Friday night.
Perry got involved when Owens and Theory battled outside the ring, grabbing Theory and holding back his arms, allowing Owens to deliver a chop across Theory’s chest. Owens high-fived Perry afterward.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Nice little bit of cross-promotion there.
SPORTSNET: Pearl Jam lead singer Eddie Vedder paid tribute to the Gaudreau brothers during a concert in Philadelphia on Saturday.
Vedder noted he and bassist Jeff Ament lost people close to them in tragic accidents. He cited his friend, Hall of Famer Chris Chelios, saying what good men the brothers were. Hearing the Gaudreaus came from Philadelphia and grew up watching games in that city, the band dedicated the song “Given To Fly” to the brothers, their families, loved ones and teammates.
RUMORS
NEW JERSEY HOCKEY NOW: James Nichols cites Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman saying he expects a bridge deal between the Devils and Dawson Mercer. The 22-year-old winger completed his entry-level contract last season.
Friedman doesn’t see how a long-term deal is possible given the Devils’ limited cap space. They have just over $4.9 million for 2024-25.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: It’ll probably be a two or three-year contract with an AAV between $3.5 million and $4 million.
Nichols also tweeted on Friday that former New York Islanders forward Cal Clutterbuck remains focused on signing an NHL contract. He indicated a handful of teams have inquired about professional tryout offers.
EDMONTON JOURNAL: Kurt Leavins believes a reunion between the Oilers and Justin Schultz is possible, saying the two sides have talked. He also noted the rumors linking the club to Kevin Shattenkirk but feels it’s more likely they sign a more affordable defense option like Travis Dermott.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Schultz, 34, began his NHL career with the Oilers, playing 3 1/2 seasons before getting traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Feb. 27, 2016.