NHL And The Olympics/Schedule/Divisions

Friday was a big day for the NHL, with the announcement of the new Olympic agreement (finally!) and the schedule/division names soon after.

NHL and IIHF in Olympic Harmony

Now that the NHL finally agreed to allow it's players to attend the Olympics, it's down to business. Today, Canada and Russia announced their Olympic camp invitees, with other countries soon to follow suit.

Our official Olympic preview will, of course, be in February when rosters are set and they are about to play. For now, here is an initial reaction to how the group stage might work out:

Place	Group A	Group B	Group C
1	United States*	Canada*	Sweden*
2	Russia	Finland*	Switzerland
3	Slovakia	Norway	Czech Republic
4	Slovenia	Austria	Latvia

* Top 4 teams get a bye to the Quarter Finals.

I see the US taking Group A, Canada winning group B, and Sweden ending up in first in Group C. The 4th team will probably be Finland, as Russia might have trouble with Slovakia (again) and Switzerland and Czech will be a tossup for second in their group.

One final point on the Olympics: this might be the last one for the NHL. I think since this one in is in Russia, there is a lot of pressure for the NHL to get an agreement in place and basically play nice with the Russia's Hockey Federation and the KHL. For Pyeongchang, unless their is an influx of South Koreans in the next couple years, I can see the NHL trying every-which-way to avoid it. Hopefully I'm wrong and the NHL keeps participating in the Olympics.

NHL Schedule

Since the Olympics are a-go, the NHL announced their schedule shortly after, and I must say, starting in October is a nice concept and I hope the NHL does this every season. The season starts on October 1 with the Habs-Leafs (always good), Chicago raising their Cup banner against Washington, and Edmonton and Winnipeg in a loser gets coldest winter match (just kidding). Other notable dates (outside of the ridiculous 6 outdoor games) include:

November 8, 2013 - Hall of Fame Game
November 29, 2013 - NHL's US day-after Thanksgiving (highlighted by a Rangers-Bruins matinee)
January 18, 2014 - Hockey Day in Canada
January 19, 2014 - Blackhawks and Bruins first match since the Cup Final
February 9-25, 2014 - Olympic break
April 13, 2014 - Last day of the regular season

NHL Divisions

Along with the schedule, the NHL finally introduced the names of the new divisions. lets take a closer look.


Name: Pacific
Teams: Anaheim Ducks, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Los Angeles Kings, Phoenix Coyotes, San Jose Sharks Vancouver Canucks
Thoughts: No problems here. You could nitpick that Calgary, Edmonton, and Phoenix aren't on the Pacific so why call it that, then realized that Dallas was in the same division and compromise that it ain't too bad.
What It Should Have Been Called: Canaforna? (really stretched for something).

Name: Central
Teams: Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues, Winnipeg Jets
Thoughts: Central is basically the only division with a perfect name.
What It Should Have Been Called: Central, Midwest, can't go wrong here.

Name: Atlantic
Teams: Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs
Thoughts: Wait, no New York/Pennsylvania teams? What the hell kind of Atlantic division is this?
What It Should Have Been Called: Flortheast, and nothing else.

Name: Metropolitan
Teams: Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals
Thoughts: Ok, whose the effing genius that cooked up this name for a division?
What It Should Have Been Called: ANYTHING! The NBC-will-only-televise-these-teams division, the Bettman-is-the-best-commish division*. Anything other than the Metropolitan!

Conclusion: Should have gone back to the old Smythe/Norris/Patrick/Adams divisions.

*Maybe not anything, but you get the point. Metropolitan is for the Seattle team, not a division.

Summer Trading

Tomorrow is the official start of free agency (thanks lockout!) and while there has already been activity on that front, there are also trades that have been made. Here's what has been going on for the past month on the trade front (minus pick-for-pick trades).

To Dallas: Sergei Gonchar
To Ottawa: 6th round pick (Chris Leblanc)
Trade Analysis: At least Ottawa got something for Gonchar instead of losing him for nothing. Even though he is up their in age and can't put up the same numbers anymore, Gonchar should provide the defense in Dallas the same way he helped guys like Letang and Karlsson become the defensemen they are.

To Philadelphia: Mark Streit
To New York I: Shane Harper, 4th round pick (2014)
Trade Analysis: Just like the last trade, the Islanders didn't want to lose Streit for nothing. As for Philly they get a guy to shore up the defense.

To Florida: Billy Butler
To Nashville: T.J. Brennan
Trade Analysis: The Butler did it. Minor league trade, not much to this.

To Calgary: Corbin Knight
To Nashville: 4th round pick (Michael Downing)
Trade Analysis: Great trade for the Flames. Ok, namesake bias aside, the Flames really got a minor depth piece for the center position.

To Toronto: Jonathan Bernier
To Los Angeles: Matt Frattin, Ben Scrivens, 2nd round pick (2014 or 2015)
Trade Analysis: So....Reimer must be excited to have a dagger in the back. While a platoon would be the ideal scenario, I can't see either Reimer or Bernier accepting that solution. As for LA, they do get a lesser backup but a good 3rd line guy in Frattin.

To Pittsburgh: Harry Zolnierczyk
To Anaheim: Alex Grant
Trade Analysis: I'm guessing the Pens only want Zolnierczyk to get more info on the Flyers.

To Colorado: Alex Tanguay, Cory Sarich
To Calgary: David Jones, Shane O'Brien
Trade Analysis: Colorado is turning back the clock to 2001. Sakic, Roy, and now Tanguay (and Hedjuk is still on the team). As for O'Brien, he's closer to the Roxy, but I've heard Ranchmen's is pretty good too.

To New York R: Justin Falk
To Minnesota: Benn Ferriero, 6th round pick (2014)
Trade Analysis: Depth move for both.

To San Jose: Tyler Kennedy
To Pittsburgh: 2nd round pick (Tristan Jarry)
Trade Analysis: The best Penguin is now a Shark. And since Pittsburgh used the pick on a goalie, start the Fleury-is-gone rumors.

To Minnesota: Nino Niederreiter
To New York I: Cal Clutterbuck, 3rd round pick (Eamon McAdam)
Trade Analysis: Nino was a guy who needed a change of place, and should be given the time to play with the Wild that he never got with the Islanders.

To New Jersey Devils: Cory Schneider
To Vancouver: 1st round pick (Bo Horvat)
Trade Analysis: At least Schneider doesn't backup a 1-time Canadian Olympic gold medalist...he backs up a 2-time Canadian Olympic gold medalist. Schneider should fill in admirably during the transition from Brodeur to Brodeur (you know it's going to happen). As for the Canucks, they get a guy who will top out as a 2nd line center. 

To Carolina: Andrej Sekera
To Buffalo: Jamie McBain, 2nd round pick (J.T. Compher)
Trade Analysis: With that, Carolina has giving up with their Simpsons collection. Sounded like McBain needed a change of scene, so the D-for-D swap makes sense for both teams.

To Toronto: Dave Bolland
To Chicago: 2nd round pick (Carl Dahlstrom), 4th round pick (Robin Norell), 4th round pick (2014)
Trade Analysis: That's it, plan the parade, Leafs get a winner. Joking aside, good pickup by the Leafs, but does seem like they overpaid. As for Chicago, it's rinse and repeat after winning the Cup.

To Winnipeg: Michael Frolik
To Chicago: 3rd round pick (John Hayden), 5th round pick (Luke Johnson)
Trade Analysis: Again, sell-off by Chicago. For Winnipeg, they hope Frolik can go back to producing like he did in Florida.

To Philadelphia: Kris Newbury
To New York R: Danny Syvret 
Trade Analysis: Exactly what Philly needs: more toughness.

To Calgary: T.J. Galiardi
To San Jose: 4th round (2015)
Trade Analysis: Well, if you can't market wins, a hometown guy might work.

To Tampa Bay: Drew Olsen
To Columbus: Future Considerations
Trade Analysis: I always feel bad for Future Considerations, he makes Mike Sillinger look stable.

To New York R: Danny Kristo
To Montreal: Christian Thomas
Trade Analysis: Habs trading with the Rangers just after the draft never hurt them. Right?

To Dallas: Tyler Seguin, Rich Peverley, Ryan Button 
To Boston: Loui Eriksson, Joe Morrow, Reilly Smith, Matt Fraser 
Trade Analysis: Eriksson is involved, so the trade is automatically underrated. With Dallas, Seguin will have plenty of time to be messy unprofessional the top player he was projected to be. Peverley adds depth at center for the Stars while Button will probably be in the minors. For Boston, Eriksson adds more offense along the wing. Morrow, Smith, and Fraser are minor pieces in this deal.

Draft Review

After the long weekend we're back (well I am, still trying to get MDK to help out). the draft was held last Saturday in New Jersey, and while the one-day draft was a ridiculous idea, it turned out to be pretty good. Here is our (re: my) take on the draft.

Round 1

1. Colorado Avalanche - Nathan MacKinnon

First off: YEAH! HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS PLAYER DRAFTED #1! For the most part I think Colorado should have picked Jones mostly on need, and they really didn't need another forward. That being said, hard to go wrong with MacKinnon. Watching him this year, it was automatic that he stood out amongst the rest in the Q.

2. Florida Panthers - Aleksander Barkov

Barkov was considered the 4th-best prospect heading into the draft and end up going second. He has been considered the most complete player in the draft. Playing in the SM-liiga definitely helps his chances of making it in the NHL this year.

3. Tampa Bay Lightning - Jonathan Drouin

Again: YEAH! ANOTHER HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS PLAYER DRAFTED IN THE TOP 3! He looked a lot like Pavel Datsyuk. The hands on him are fricken amazing. Him and Stamkos should be a great 1-2 punch when St. Louis retires.

4. Nashville Predators - Seth Jones

Lose Ryan Suter, get Seth Jones. Not a bad trade off. Going to the defense factory like Nashville will definitely help Jones' game round into top form.

5. Carolina Hurricanes - Elias Lindholm

6. Calgary Flames - Sean Monahan

Two things: 1. How does Feaster make a good pick? and 2. Finally, the center Iginla may need (too soon?)

7. Edmonton Oilers - Darnel Nurse

Hellooooooooooooo Nurse! Edmonton gets rid of Tambellini and they draft a guy who they could build their defense around. Once he develops and makes the roster, Edmonton should be a solid contender.

8. Buffalo Sabres - Rasmus Ristolainen

Like Barkov, played in the SM-liiga. As a defenseman, this does give Ristolainen a leg-up on development over the other 2 D-men that went before him. He should be NHL-ready for next season.

9. Vancouver Canucks - Bo Horvat

Trade analysis post tomorrow. For now, they got a guy top help at the center position. Hopefully, they don't give him the Hodgson treatment.

10. Dallas Stars - Valeri Nichushkin

Russian Factor dropped him down this far. It does sound like he does want to play in the NHL. If so, great pick by the Stars.

11. Philadelphia Flyers - Samuel Morin

Philly drafting size over skill? Colour me unsurprised.

12. Phoenix Coyotes - Max Domi

Another Domi plays for the (original) Jets Franchise.

13. Winnipeg Jets - Josh Morrissey

14. Columbus Blue Jackets - Alexander Wennberg

15. New York Islanders - Ryan Pulock

16. Buffalo Sabres - Nikita Zadorov

17. Ottawa Senators - Curtis Lazar

18. San Jose Sharks - Mirco Mueller

San Jose: Conquer of Central-ish Europe (Hertl [CZE] last year, Mueller [SWI] this year)

19. Columbus Blue Jackets - Kerby Rychel

Another former NHLers kid gets drafted in the first round.

20. Detroit Red Wings - Anthony Mantha

21. Toronto Maple Leafs - Frederik Gauthier

The Leafs draft a French guy? That's unpossible!

22. Calgary Flames - Emile Poirier

There's the Feaster we all know and love (minus Flames fans). A guy ranked to go in the mid-second round gets to go in the first.

23. Washington Capitals - Andre Burakovsky

24. Vancouver Canucks - Hunter Shinkaruk

One of Vancouver's troll picks. Takes the Calgary guy to burn the Flames (no pun intended).

25. Montreal Canadiens - Michael McCarron

Top nominee for the Hugh Jessiman Award.

26. Anaheim Ducks - Shea Theodore

27. Columbus Blue Jackets - Marko Dano

28. Calgary Flames - Morgan Klimchuk

Feaster goes 2/3 in sensible picks. Ain't bad.

29. Dallas Stars - Jason Dickenson

30. Chicago Blackhawks - Ryan Hartman

I didn't think Hartman would escape the first round and he didn't. Kind of surprised though that he went this late in the round.

Other notable picks

36. Montreal Canadiens - Zach Fucale

ANOTHER HALIFAX MOOSEHEAD! Fucale was the first goalie to go in the draft. Down the road, he should be a great heir to the goalie throne for the Habs after Price is off.

58. Detroit Red Wings - Tyler Bertuzzi

He gets the chance to play with his uncle Todd in Detroit.

71. Montreal Canadiens - Connor Crisp

Nice to see the Habs adding depth in goal in this draft.

83. Edmonton Oilers - Bogdan Yakimov

Yakimov was a teammate of Yakupov's in Nizhnekamsk, this will be entertaining.

86. Montreal Canadiens - Sven Andrighetto

Nothing notable, I just like him.

91. Winnipeg Jets - J.C. Lipon

Leave it to the Jets to draft him.

115. Vancouver Canucks - Jordan Subban

Picked him right before the Habs next pick. F*** you Vancouver.

163. Phoenix Coyotes - Brendan Burke

Goalie coach Sean Burke's son. Still not the best Father-Son combo of this draft (FORESHADOWING ALERT).

206. Florida Panthers - Mackenzie Weegar

One last time: ANOTHER HALIFAX MOOSEHEADS PLAYER DRAFTED!

208. New Jersey Devils - Anthony Brodeur

With Marty announcing the pick: Best. Draft Moment. Ever.