The school backpacks are coming out of the closet, kids are trying on last year’s skates to see if they still fit and in roughly one month’s time, NHL training camps will be in full swing.
Sorry friends; summer is wrapping up.
Of course, the upside of transitioning to fall is the aforementioned return of NHL hockey. And while we’re really not that far off from filling up the water bottles, most teams still have an issue — big or small — lingering around the building.
With that in mind, we’re raising one item for every team that figures to be a talking point between now and the start of camps. To streamline things a little it, we’ll tackle this issue one division at a time. We’ve already delved into the Metro and Atlantic, so let’s switch our attention to the Pacific, where one of the best young players in the game is still without a contract and a Canadian team could still make monster trade or two.
Trevor Zegras is skilled, confident and currently without an NHL contract. The 2022 Calder Trophy runner-up is coming off his entry-level deal and has not yet hammered out a new pact with Anaheim. As if that’s not enough, GM Pat Verbeek also has to come to terms with young, stud defenceman Jamie Drysdale.
Verbeek may be new to the negotiating ranks, but you can bet he’s not going to get pushed around. We’re not in the 11th hour yet, but surely both sides would like to have things squared away before Zegras or Drysdale — who played just eight games last year — are forced to miss even a day or two of camp.
Where do we set the over/under on major trades made by Calgary before camp starts? Does 0.5 sound right?
The Flames, who already dealt Tyler Toffoli at the draft ahead of the final year of his deal, are still looking at all kinds of players who could leave the team for nothing come next July.
Most notably, though, the world expects defenceman Noah Hanifin to be dealt at some point. There seems to be less certainty about Elias Lindholm leaving Calgary, but it would by no means be a shock to see the two-way centre dealt before summer ends.
With Evan Bouchard stroking the pen on a new two-year deal, GM Ken Holland took care of his final bit of big business. The question now might be, is this the last off-season that Holland will be calling the shots in Edmonton? The longtime GM is entering the final year of his contract and, back in May, said he wasn’t sure what the future would hold for him beyond that.
Earlier this month, the Oilers named Jeff Jackson — former agent of Connor McDavid — CEO of hockey operations. Holland heartily endorsed the move, but it’s easy to wonder if things will look a bit different in the Edmonton front office next summer.
Any chance they still sniff another goalie? If Rob Blake does make a move in the crease, in all likelihood it will come in-season if the tandem of Pheonix Copley and Cam Talbot isn’t up to snuff. Still, read that last sentence again and tell me there isn’t at least a 50 percent chance the Kings are looking around for a goalie come December.
We don’t know if Connor Hellebuyck — with one year remaining on his deal before hitting free agency — will be moved by the Winnipeg Jets. And, obviously, upgrading in goal would require some cap gymnastics by Blake.
It’s just hard to believe the Kings boss has had his last conversation of the year about improving the make-or-break position.
Are any of the new acquisitions getting flipped? This summer, San Jose picked up Mike Hoffman, Mikael Granlund, Jan Rutta and Anthony Duclair; Granlund and Ruuta have two years remaining on their contracts, while Duclair and Hoffman have just one. You could see Duclair — who turns 28 on Saturday — being part of a long-term solution in San Jose. The other guys, though, are over 30 and don’t really figure into the big picture in Northern California.
The issue, of course, is none of them have much value just now, so they likely have to play some games and demonstrate something positive before San Jose could hope to fetch even a small return for them.
Will the reigning rookie of the year get an extension? Matty Beniers is entering the final season of his entry-level deal and will need a new contract sometime between now and the start of the 2024-25 campaign.
Is the celebration dying down? We always hear about the Stanley Cup hangover and, goodness knows, the party is never louder than when it’s in Vegas.
Speaking of the championship, Conn Smythe winner and original Golden Misfit Jonathan Marchessault is entering the final year of his contract. Is there an extension coming before camp for the playoff MVP?
It’s not that you were banking on Elias Pettersson inking a contract extension before camp if you’re a Canucks fan, but it obviously would have been welcomed news. Based on what we’ve seen recently, don’t bank an announcement coming imminently.
Could the temperature change once Pettersson returns to North America?
Also, the Brock Boeser trade rumours are just about old enough to start Kindergarten soon. Any chance the winger finally gets moved in the next four weeks?