Dan’s Daily: MacKinnon Will be PAID, Kadri Odds, Penguins Structure

Published

2 years ago

August 10, 2022

Pittsburgh Penguins, NHL news, Nathan MacKinnon

Nathan MacKinnon watched the money splashed around on free agents such as Matthew Tkachuk and Jonathan Huberdeau, and he wants his cut of the pie. Expectations are that the reigning Stanley Cup winner will get PAID on his next contract. Emphasis on paid. What are the betting odds on Nazem Kadri to the New York Islanders? What are the real odds Phil Kessel goes to Edmonton? And we hit up the Pittsburgh Penguins with a unique comparison and praise for the structural rebuild.

I decided to stay an extra day on the lake. In my extra time, I accomplished…nothing. I fed some ducks. Oh, and had a quite productive meeting about expanding the Sports Now brand to other cities. Because I know many colleagues and writers check in here from time to time–we’re looking for experienced professionals who are underemployed, talented bloggers with a following who want to make the leap, and other talented sports writers who might want to break out of restrictive structures (and cutbacks). I’m not hard to find…

Oh, and good podcasters, too.

Pittsburgh Penguins / Sports Now Group PGH

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Let’s compare Evgeni Malkin and Patrice Bergeron and their new contracts, shall we? And what about Ron Hextall’s stealthy depth preference before making a Penguins trade? Pittsburgh Penguins analysis.

From Dave Molinari, who made an astute observation with some well-turned phrases and pithy wordsmithing — Teams can only spend $82.5 million on players, but they’re not capped on how they find those players. Good teams do good things. Dave examines the Penguins organization.

Pittsburgh Baseball Now: Red-hot prospect Endy Rodriguez is up to Altoona. Pirates prospects.

Steelers Now, SN+: Believe it or not, Mitch Trubisky is starting to show things. Some high-end potential? Pittsburgh Steelers camp.

There’s a betting story in the NHL section today. First, you can get the 20-1 DraftKings Promo.

NHL News & National Hockey Now

Colorado Hockey Now: Nathan MacKinnon, one of the best players in the game. Nova Scotia boy. Tim Horton’s drive-thru operator. Part-time Zamboni driver. For those jobs and chasing Stanley Cups, MacKinnon expects to break the bank. Be the highest-paid player in the NHL. Here’s the scoop from Adrian Dater, who broke the story. Nathan MacKinnon payday.

Canes Country: Uh oh. After getting Max Pacioretty for free on the Vegas giveaway program, the Carolina Hurricanes will be without the top-six forward for six months after Achillies tendon surgery.

Montreal: Kirby Dach was a surprise name on the NHL trade ledger near the NHL draft. Young. Talented. Montreal Hockey Now spoke with an NHL source which significantly downplayed Dach’s next contract. $1.7 million?! Montreal Canadiens story.

Sportsnet: Perhaps we should start with one problem off the NHL’s plate. Remember the sexual complaint against Oilers owner Daryl Katz last month? Withdrawn. There’s still an awkward factor as the plaintiff was 18, but she claimed to be 17 to file the complaint. Her lawyers publicly set the record straight.

Edmonton Journal: How about P.K. Subban in the blue and orange Oilers sweater? What about…Phil Kessel?

Boston Hockey Now: The public thought David Krejci bolted Boston partly because of differences with head coach Bruce Cassidy. However, as Krejci returned from his year-long “sabbatical” in Czech hockey, he tried debunking those Boston Bruins rumors.

Washington Hockey Now: It’s not really Capitals related, but Sammi Silber keeps her ears on the NHL. Remember the draft night drama when Shane Wright fell to fourth overall? He was mic’d up. Yep–you get to hear his utterances and mutterances as three teams passed on him. NHL news.

Detroit Hockey Now: An NHL Draft consultant wasn’t too kind to the Red Wings draft. Usually, Steve Yzerman gets exemplary marks. Not this time. He got roughed up just a bit. Detroit Red Wings criticism.

Vegas Hockey Now: Here’s a real winner from Owen Krepps. The Golden Knights are lacking in scoring talent after a summer purge. There is one cheap option — Sonny Milano. Vegas Golden Knights free agency.

Owen is also seeing some things as a new resident in Vegas. He’s seeing some things…