NHL Stat Corner: Bruins, Rangers, Stars, Lightning, Panthers, Avalanche

After losing in the first round to the Carolina Hurricanes, it’s clear that the Boston Bruins need to make some changes to their roster. When looking at potential trading partners around the league, the San Jose Sharks stand out significantly. In my opinion, there are three players on their current roster who the Bruins should consider targeting. Let’s now dive into why this is the case.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are in a tough spot this offseason as general manager (GM) Ron Hextall has his work cut out for him with a number of big-name free agents set to hit the open market. Defenseman Kris Letang may be the biggest piece of them all as the Penguins’ legend still has a ton of game left and desires to play for four or five more seasons. Hockey insider Elliotte Friedman recently shared he believes the Penguins offered an in-season extension of a four-year deal at just under $7 million per season, but no agreement was reached.

The Boston Bruins 2021-22 Stanley Cup playoffs run came to an end on May 14 with a 3-2 loss in Game 7 against the Carolina Hurricanes. As the Bruins embark on an offseason that has a lot of “what if’s” surrounding them, it’s time to fire up one more Bruins Mailbag for The Hockey Writers and answer some of your questions.

The Philadelphia Flyers got started early in their offseason by bringing back depth defenceman Nick Seeler. He was signed to a two-year, one-way/two-way contract at $775,000 AAV (average annual value), meaning in 2022-23, he has a one-way, but the following year, it becomes a two-way contract. Seeler, 28, can play...

When all is said and done, only one team can win the Stanley Cup, and 31 other teams are left in various levels of disappointment at the way their season ended. Oftentimes, even if a team misses the playoffs, there are reasons to be hopeful, and the team and fans can acknowledge the steps forward that were taken in that season.

The St. Louis Blues lost Game 3 on home ice 5-2 to the Colorado Avalanche. The Avalanche will now carry a 2-1 series lead heading into Game 4 as the Blues had some major issues hurt them in this battle. Overall, the Blues played a solid game if you look...

After a strong season where the Los Angeles Kings took a big step forward in their rebuild, making the playoffs and taking the Edmonton Oilers to Game 7, fans and the organization are optimistic about the next season. They’re also looking for ways to improve the team and take a further step forward. One name that comes up in this pursuit of improvement is Nashville Predators forward Filip Forsberg. There’s a possibility that he re-signs with the Predators, making this moot, but we’ll assume he hits free agency for this article. In the eyes of many fans, he should be the team’s number one target this summer, but I would argue that the team should not pursue him, and here’s why.

In this edition of the Vancouver Canucks‘ News & Rumors, president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford discussed the team’s offseason plans. Additionally, Rutherford discussed the ongoing negotiations with pending restricted free agent (RFA) Brock Boeser, while there are more rumors on J.T. Miller’s future in Vancouver. Rutherford...

Toronto Maple Leafs general manager (GM) Kyle Dubas has some work to do this summer and most of it will be centered around goaltender Jack Campbell. “Soup” as he’s known around the dressing room and to Leafs Nation, is a pending unrestricted free agent who can hit the open market on July 13. There’s going to be a ton of interest in him, so the Leafs’ GM will need to get his business in order before early July if he wants the best shot to keep his all-star netminder in town. If the two sides cannot work out a contract extension, the Maple Leafs are going to have limited options to replace him. Let’s examine a few different avenues they could venture down if that happens.

The NHL recently announced its three finalists for the 2021-22 Jack Adams Award, an annual honour bestowed upon the coach thought to have been most responsible for his team’s success. Unsurprisingly, the three nominees hailed from several of this season’s most successful clubs. Andrew Brunette (Florida Panthers), Darryl Sutter (Calgary Flames), and Gerard Gallant (New York Rangers) all garnered nominations, having led their respective charges to top seven records in the NHL this season. While there’s often little to quibble about regarding the nominations, the absence of Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar was particularly glaring. Let’s dig into why his omission was a mistake, and why he deserved a nomination (at minimum) for his work behind the bench this season.

If there is one thing that we have learned about Steve Yzerman in his first three drafts as executive vice-president and general manager of the Detroit Red Wings is that mock drafts are fairly meaningless in predicting who he will select. Fans just have to go back to 2019 when he surprised everyone by selecting Moritz Seider with the sixth-overall selection. Nobody had him nearly that high in their rankings and fans who watched that draft even remember Seider’s surprised reaction as he wasn’t expecting to go that high. That selection seems to have worked out well for Detroit as he emerged in 2021-22 as a candidate for the Calder Trophy.

The Edmonton Oilers battled their way to a 5-3 come-from-behind win in Game 2 against the Calgary Flames on May 20. The series is tied 1-1 heading back to Edmonton, but lately, there’s been chatter about one of the Black Aces, Dylan Holloway, getting into the lineup. Oilers’ colour...

To say Mike Smith’s three years with the Edmonton Oilers have been turbulent would be a major understatement. At times, the 40-year-old has games that make it seem as though the game has passed him, while at other times, he is capable of stretches that make him appear to be the goaltender he was during his prime with the Arizona Coyotes.

2021-22 Team: Sakhalinskiye Akuly (MHL) Daniil Orlov is a Russian defender with above-average defensive instincts who uses his size well to shut down opposing players. His shot is nothing to write home about, but his skating is quite impressive, especially for a player of his size. He is excellent at...

Though the Stanley Cup Playoffs continue to delight and surprise fans worldwide, the Anaheim Ducks’ season has been over for almost an entire month now. Right now is the calm before the storm, the lull, if you will, before the thunderclap of events that will begin with announcing the Calder Memorial Trophy winner in June and continue with the NHL Entry Draft in July.

The best forward picks for their value for daily fantasy. As the second round has gotten going and there are often only two games a night, the middle-six players are often the ones who push you closer to victory and are the difference makers. So here are a few picks for tonight’s action.

2021-22 Team: Saginaw Spirit (#10) NHL Central Scouting: 6th (among NA skaters) From under-16 to under-18 in Russia, Pavel Mintyukov was a member of the Dynamo Moskva organization and never really found his offensive game. Even in 2019-20, he made the jump to the MHL joining MHK Dynamo Moskva for 33 games in the regular season and he tallied a goal and three points.

Since joining the Edmonton Oilers as a free agent during the 2018 offseason, Mikko Koskinen has drawn criticism from many due to his inconsistent play. At times, he appears to have all the makings of a very good NHL goaltender, but he can never seem to string together a series of great games. Perhaps even more frustrating to both fans and media alike is that while he is capable of making highlight-reel saves, he also gives up his fair share of very soft goals.

While certain factors went right and allowed the Dallas Stars to push Calgary to seven games, there were also a lot of things that went wrong. Unfortunately, just one of these trending upwards would have likely propelled the Stars into the second round, but that is simply not how it went down.

In an Edmonton Oilers news and rumors update, there are reports surfacing that defenseman Darnell Nurse is dealing with a serious injury. How bad is it and will he play the entire series against Calgary? A few other players were either missing from this morning’s skate because of injuries or illness, but what lineup will head coach Jay Woodcroft go with after a 9-6 loss in Game 1?