By:
On:
In: NHL
With: 0 Comments

Connor McDavid needs defending? Yeah. If you haven’t read Mike Filce’s team-building article yet, go read it, otherwise the rest of this won’t make any sense. I’ll wait. Mike’s excellent article discusses which NHL-ers are the best to build an expansion team around, and of course while this is a well-structured and researched opinion piece, there is an omission that I need to challenge my friend and colleague on: the idea that you can’t build a team around the Edmonton Oilers’ captain Connor McDavid. Firstly it should be made clear that McDavid wasn’t forgotten about. Mike explained his reasons why he didn’t include the 2015Read More →

By:
On:
In: Atlantic Division, NHL, Review
With: 2 Comments

At the beginning of the season I said that predicting the Buffalo Sabres would be challenging. Other than some roster improvement, I would say this statement has been true. Few imagined that there would be a 10-game winning streak in the first 43 games and hold a playoff spot (wildcard). Most fans might be placated by being in the playoff bubble as it is still better than being in last place. Now fans have the luxury (I use this term loosely) of worrying if the Sabres will stay in a wildcard spot. If the last 7 years were not so terrible, I feel people wouldRead More →

By:
On:
In: NHL
With: 1 Comment

From the Quiet Ice . . . by Mike Filce In the spirit of welcoming in the NHL’s 32nd team in Seattle, I want to open the question of which current NHL-ers would be worthy of building an entire team around. There is endless debate over which NHL players are the most impactful, the best leaders, the best “team guys,” and the takes go on and on. It boils down to one question: how many guys are there that you would choose to build around? This short list isn’t what you would get from most pundits or “hockey insiders”; in fact, some on this list —Read More →

By:
On:
In: NHL
With: 0 Comments

from the Quiet Ice . . . I can’t decide if the offer sheet provision has been treated in recent years more like a healthy scratch or if it’s been handed an indefinite suspension. In either case, it seems destined not to sit quietly by in the press box, dressed respectably in shirt and tie. The offer sheet debate has picked up steam in recent months, perhaps due to players such as Auston Matthews approaching RFA status and teams like the Maple Leafs evolving into such dominant rosters that fans around the league are beginning to get frustrated as the haves and have-nots push furtherRead More →

By:
On:
In: NHL
With: 0 Comments

‘Tis the holiday season! Time to celebrate with friends and family, spreading the gift of Christmas cheer!  So with that in mind, lets settle back with a festive beverage and take a look at what Santa Gritty has left under the tree for each NHL franchise in the Western Conference. See what Santa might bring the Eastern Conference teams here. Anaheim Ducks Julie ‘The Cat’ Gafney: Since reboots are all the rage in Hollywood, even in the land of Disney, why stop now? Ryan Miller’s banged up. John Gibson is playing a ton of minutes, why not add another reliable option at backup? Arizona CoyotesRead More →

By:
On:
In: NHL
With: 4 Comments

‘Tis the holiday season! Time to celebrate with friends and family, spreading the gift of Christmas cheer!  So with that in mind, lets settle back with a festive beverage and take a look at what Santa Gritty has left under the tree for each NHL franchise. Boston Bruins Operation: A traditional game for one of the Original Six. This would be a fun and interactive way for teammates to understand the litany of injuries they’ve endured this season. At least until Brad Marchand keeps intentionally touch the sides and ruins everything… Buffalo Sabres A Trailer: With so many people jumping on the Sabres bandwagon theyRead More →

By:
On:
In: NHL
With: 0 Comments

With the NHL’s Global Series drawn to a close for another year, commissioner Gary Bettman has announced plans to bring it back in 2019. Germany and Switzerland have been touted for some potential pre-season games, while Prague and Stockholm could get a season opener and back to back series respectively. Of course this is all tentative at the moment, although the NHL is in the planning stages. I feel there’s another European market that’s open to exploitation, but is being ignored. The mighty UK. The NFL hauls a couple of its teams over each season to ruin the Wembley turf and the games pretty muchRead More →

By:
On:
In: Atlantic Division, NHL
With: 0 Comments

When Andrei Vasilevskiy went down with an injury early in the season Tampa Bay Lightning fans and pundits around the league were left to wonder what would happen to the Eastern Conference contender and preseason Stanley Cup favorite in his absence. The answer is as of December 11th is nothing short of Doming-ate. . . That is due in large part to the man who filled the large hole left in net by Vasilevskiy, Louis Domingue. Embed from Getty Images Domingue  was brought to Tampa in November of 2017 in exchange for Tye McGinn and goaltender Michael Leighton. With two other goalies on the rosterRead More →

By:
On:
In: NHL
With: 1 Comment

From the Quiet Ice . . . by Mike Filce In-game Entertainment You can’t help noticing with all of the pundits, talking heads, bloggers, podcasters and assorted Twitter-drunk commentators, some ideas come up again and again, and some of them receive respectful consideration — when they should be squashed like the stink bugs they are. Let’s look at a few. Late in a recent “31 Thoughts” podcast episode, Jeff Marek broached the topic of “pump[ing] up the home team” with in-game music. We’re talking about the practice of silencing the music as the puck drops so fans can hear the sounds of the game. ElliotteRead More →

By:
On:
In: Atlantic Division, General, NHL
With: 0 Comments

Back in September when we all found out that Erik Karlsson was being traded to the San Jose Sharks, every Ottawa Senators fan lost a little piece of themselves. Just like Daniel Alfredsson’s return to Ottawa, Erik Karlsson will be making his first appearance against his former club on December 1st. Embed from Getty Images How the trade has panned out so far When looking at the trade from a fan’s point of view, the Senators fans felt like they could have received so much more in return. Fast forward to present day, that trade is looking better and better by the day. Erik KarlssonRead More →