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In Canada few things encapsulate the holiday season like family, friends, a good meal, and the World Juniors. Arguably the preeminent annual hockey tournament; fans tune in to get a look at the NHL’s stars of tomorrow and of course project and hyperbolize every little thing they do in hopes their team has drafted the next big thing. It’s been dominated by the typical powers, Canada and Russia boast the most tournament wins, with the US, Sweden & Finland consistently in the mix. While this should be no surprise, and the highly contested nature of the tournament has made it must watch TV, it’s theRead More →

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The North division is a dream that many Canadian hockey fans have been wanting for years. Well now they get it: all Canadian, all the time. With the Christmas holidays wrapping up and a brand new NHL season approaching faster than Santa’s sleigh, let’s review what the teams of the ‘North’ division had asked for from St. Nick, hoping something good under their hockey stick tree. Calgary Flames  On the Christmas List: Quality goaltending The C of Red were very productive during this off-season. Geoff Ward has been appointed full-time head coach after filling in amidst the Bill Peters scandal last season. Two big acquisitionsRead More →

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After the tragic passing of Dale Hawerchuk, I went down a rabbit hole regarding the NHL’s all-time point leaders. In-particular it was with respect to guys like Hawerchuk, Peter Stastny Kent Nilsson, & Marcel Dionne (garnering a new appreciation for their incredible accomplishment) who are amongst the all-time greats, but perhaps because they never won (and played predominantly in the 80’s/early 90’s), don’t seem to be held in as high a regard, or perhaps more accurately, come to mind as readily, to many casual or younger hockey fans. This inevitably got me to thinking about Eric Lindros and where his reputation stands amongst the legendsRead More →

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With the NHL season nearing its end, the draft and free agency are fast approaching. What’s generally a whirlwind to begin with will be imbued with the frenetic energy of a Doc Emrick goal call. It’ll be made all the more intriguing given the difficulty many teams will have adhering to the salary cap. More than any season since 2005-06 they’ll have to get creative moving forward. Some big names may be in new places before the puck drops on 2020-21. Embed from Getty Images   With that in mind, one team to watch is the Colorado Avalanche. A formidable group with a solid mixRead More →

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2020 has been unpredictable and challenging for all of us, so it’s nice to know that the Leafs, after ending yet another season with a collapse, are attempting to provide us with a sense of normalcy in these trying times. After a five game loss in the play in round, GM Kyle Dubas once again has a plenty of decisions to make, and questions to answer. So where does he go from here? And who’s left standing when all’s said and done? The Big Four The Leafs’ roster starts and ends with the big four up front. Their core forwards are among the best (andRead More →

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With the Dallas Stars looking to make their first trip back to the Stanley Cup Finals since losing to New Jersey in 2000, here’s a look at the front runners for the Conn Smythe Trophy should they claim Lord Stanley’s Cup. Embed from Getty Images Front runner: Miro Heiskanen: There really has to be one consensus pick at this point for Dallas. The young stalwart has shown why the Stars were reticent to move in him in a potential deal for Erik Karlsson and his play has many believing he’ll likely join him as a Norris Trophy winner before long. Already in the conversation withRead More →

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The Florida Panthers made huge waves last off season landing one of the most prominent UFA’s in goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky. The general perception was, despite the high cap hit and lengthy term that, at least for the foreseeable future, the former two time Vezina winner would be a significant upgrade. Like so many things in 2020, they didn’t see this coming… Embed from Getty Images What We Thought: After establishing himself as one of the best in the game with Columbus, and coming off an impressive first round upset over the heavily favoured Lightning, Bobrovsky was a coveted free agent and the Panthers seemed anRead More →

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Goal Greats With Alex Ovechkin hitting the 700 goal mark, passing another legend on seemingly a nightly basis, the only question left seems to be if/when he’ll catch the Great One? Whether or not he breaks Wayne Gretzky’s record of 894 goals, many consider Ovi the greatest goal scorer ever, and there’s a solid argument to be made. Goaltending and defensive systems have come a long way since Bobby Hull, Gordie Howe and ‘Rocket’ Richard were blasting pucks past netminders. Ovi moved ahead of names like Lemieux, Yzerman and Messier of late, but let’s take a look at some of the other less talked aboutRead More →

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The world of sports lends itself to all manner of water cooler debate: Which player would you rather have? Who’s the greatest of all time? How exactly are the Patriots cheating this week? And if you could change one rule, what would it be? Generally speaking the NHL’s done a decent job with theirs. You may get the odd fan grumbling about a puck over the glass resulting in a delay of game infraction or the infamous instigator rule, but by and large, it’s not a book fans want totally rewritten. However, if there’s one rule the NHL has right now that’s so incredibly irritatingRead More →

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Dustin, is he Byfuglien-or-out? Can the Jets soar above a competitive Central Division, or will they find themselves grounded. With more aircraft puns wrapped in a season preview, let’s see what we can expect from Winnipeg: Notable Players In: Nathan Beaulieu, Mark Letestu, Anthony Bitetto, Embed from Getty Images Notable Players Out: Jacob Trouba, Tyler Myers, Dustin Byfuglien (?) Brandon Tanev, Ben Chiarot, Joseph Morrow, Marko Dano,  First Key Game: Oct. 3rd @ NYR – The Jets will face former teammate Jacob Trouba right out of the gate as they begin the season on a 4 game Eastern swing. Odds to win the division 5:1Read More →