{"id":540766,"date":"2026-03-14T22:21:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T22:21:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/540766\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T22:21:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T22:21:07","slug":"blackhawks-mammoth-oilers-blackhawks-mackinnon-cba-pro-hockey-rumors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/540766\/","title":{"rendered":"Blackhawks, Mammoth, Oilers, Blackhawks, MacKinnon, CBA \u2013 Pro Hockey Rumors"},"content":{"rendered":"

Topics in this edition of the PHR Mailbag include thoughts on what Utah did and didn\u2019t do at the trade deadline, the rescinding of Nathan MacKinnon<\/a>\u2019s major penalty, and more.\u00a0 If your question doesn\u2019t appear here, watch for it in our next two mailbag columns.<\/p>\n

SpeakOfTheDevils: I know what he said in his after-deadline presser but what are the odds that Tom Fitzgerald is fired as the GM of the NJ Devils this offseason? Second part, who would be the top three choices to replace him???<\/p>\n

General managers typically get a longer leash than coaches but he\u2019s had the role since January 2020 when he took over in an interim capacity, getting the tag lifted soon after.\u00a0 He\u2019s had five full seasons in charge and the Devils have won just one playoff round in that span.\u00a0 Barring a miracle comeback over the final month, they won\u2019t get a chance to add to that number this spring.\u00a0 Yes, they\u2019ve had some injuries, but they can\u2019t use that as a crutch again.\u00a0 Based on that, you might be inclined to think the odds are rather high that he\u2019d be fired.<\/p>\n

But he\u2019s also the team president, a role he has only held since January 2024.\u00a0 His contract terms weren\u2019t disclosed but there are probably a couple of years left on it.\u00a0 And if ownership still believes in his vision, maybe he stays.<\/p>\n

Maybe there\u2019s an in-between option, one we\u2019ve seen more frequently in recent years.\u00a0 What if Fitzgerald is moved to just president duties and cedes the GM role?\u00a0 Is that viewed as a possible compromise?\u00a0 I could see that happening, so maybe the odds of him not being GM could be in the 50-60% range and the odds of him leaving the organization outright more in the 30-40% territory.<\/p>\n

As for part two, if Fitzgerald is out as GM, a lot depends on if he\u2019s out altogether or just as GM.\u00a0 If they remove the GM title but keep him as president, Dan MacKinnon, their assistant GM, would be the logical choice to move up and take on a bigger role.\u00a0 If he\u2019s gone altogether, I think Marc Bergevin would get consideration.\u00a0 He has been up for a couple of jobs lately and it feels like a matter of when, not if, he gets another crack.\u00a0 Brendan Shanahan is believed to be looking to get back into things.\u00a0 That one might be more of a president role but I think he\u2019d be on the list.\u00a0 I also expect Ryan Martin to land one of the GM jobs soon.\u00a0 A veteran of 20 years in various front offices, he\u2019s second in command with the Rangers at the moment and a chance to steal someone from a key rival might be appealing.<\/p>\n

bottlesup: With the addition of Weegar, could you see the Mammoth possibly upsetting whoever the Pacific Division champ is in the 1st round? Assuming Utah continues to hold a firm grip on the WC1.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll preface this by saying that I like the MacKenzie Weegar<\/a> pickup for Utah.\u00a0 Yes, he\u2019s having a down year but the track record is solid and if he\u2019s in more of a second-pairing role for the Mammoth which he\u2019s better suited to, I think he\u2019ll bounce back a bit.\u00a0 So far, the early returns have been decent.\u00a0 But is he a big needle-mover?\u00a0 I\u2019m not sure he materially affects their odds of winning a series.\u00a0 He helps get them there, but I don\u2019t think his addition necessarily gives them a big leg up against a Pacific team.<\/p>\n

Having said that, I think Utah has a legitimate chance to pull off an upset, simply because the Pacific Division just isn\u2019t that great.\u00a0 Anaheim is playing well but like Utah, they\u2019re very inexperienced in the playoffs so that could be a toss-up.\u00a0 Vegas isn\u2019t turning things around like many expected them to.\u00a0 However, they have a good enough track record in the playoffs that they\u2019d probably be the favorite in a hypothetical series.\u00a0 The same can be said about Edmonton.\u00a0 The Kings and Sharks aren\u2019t entirely out of it but probably aren\u2019t getting into first place so I won\u2019t cover them here.\u00a0 Utah has a shot at making it through the first round if they can hold onto that top Wild Card spot.<\/p>\n

Gbear: Feels to me that Utah missed a chance at the deadline to add a top-six winger (the whole Thomas thing from the Blues was a non-starter) and really give themselves a chance to win a round or two. Keller deserved that chance. Thoughts?<\/p>\n

After they picked up Weegar without moving any of their top assets, I thought Utah GM Bill Armstrong was well-positioned to make a splash up front but it obviously didn\u2019t happen.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know how much of a chance was missed, though.\u00a0 Which top-six wingers actually moved?\u00a0 Bobby Brink<\/a> has been one before, Conor Garland<\/a> (who the team is familiar with from their days in Arizona), and, well, that\u2019s about it.\u00a0 Centers and defensemen were the currency and that\u2019s something Utah didn\u2019t need to dabble in, especially knowing they were nearing an extension with Nick Schmaltz<\/a> that has since been finalized and that they had already acquired Weegar.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not a bad thing either that they didn\u2019t push in a bunch of chips.\u00a0 There\u2019s something to be said for getting some playoff experience and then using that to shape their next aggressive swing over the summer.\u00a0 And, as noted above, they\u2019re in a spot where they could very well get through the first round if they wind up in the Pacific bracket.\u00a0 I expect there will be more opportunities to add a top-six winger over the offseason than there were at the trade deadline so in the end, they might wind up being better off for having waited, assuming they get something across the finish line a few months from now.<\/p>\n

sovietcanuckistanian: I don\u2019t know about you, but did Edmonton miss the boat by not significantly upgrading either\/both of its defense corps and goalie at the trade deadline? With Florida almost assuredly not making the playoffs (injury bug), it seems like a missed opportunity \u2013 especially since McDavid is on that only two-year extension.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m going to flip the order of these so I can pick up on the theme from the last question about how realistic a move for a goalie upgrade there was.\u00a0 There wasn\u2019t a single NHL goaltender moved at or leading up to the deadline.\u00a0 I know there was speculation about Sergei Bobrovsky<\/a> but I don\u2019t think trade talks got far considering Florida is trying to re-sign him.\u00a0 Jordan Binnington<\/a>\u2019s name was out there but the Oilers can\u2019t afford to take on the contract and I don\u2019t think St. Louis would have retained salary.\u00a0 Was anyone else out there really an upgrade?\u00a0 There were rumblings about a Toronto goalie but that feels more like an offseason decision.\u00a0 Samuel Montembeault<\/a>\u2019s name was thought to be in play but is he an improvement given how his season has gone?\u00a0 It\u2019s hard to be too critical in that sense since there wasn\u2019t much out there that they could do.<\/p>\n

Granted, some of that is self-inflicted.\u00a0 GM Stan Bowman traded for Tristan Jarry<\/a>\u2019s contract in full, cutting into their financial flexibility.\u00a0 He also signed Andrew Mangiapane<\/a> to a contract that they wound up having to pay a high price to get out of, also cutting into that flexibility.\u00a0 That Jarry trade was risky at the time it was made and hasn\u2019t aged well since then.<\/p>\n

That financial situation also limited what they could do defensively, although I think they did well enough with what they had to work with.\u00a0 Connor Murphy<\/a> isn\u2019t a top-four player anymore but he should stabilize things defensively and help on the penalty kill.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t have the cap space to do much more than a depth deal, nor did they have the prospect or draft assets to get into the bidding on some of the more prominent blueliners to move.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a missed opportunity in the sense that Florida isn\u2019t in the playoffs and the division is up for grabs.\u00a0 Edmonton could very well have bolstered their chances to take the division and give them a chance to make the Conference Final once again.\u00a0 But in terms of their limitations (asset and cap-wise), I don\u2019t think they did terribly.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t an \u2018A\u2019 deadline but a \u2018B-\u2018 or \u2018C+\u2019 one.<\/p>\n

tucsontoro: The Hawks lead the league in blown leads. It\u2019s great that they have Boisvert and Frondell on the verge of joining the big club. But if they don\u2019t find a way to keep the puck out of their own net, they won\u2019t be going anywhere for a long time. Where does the defense come from?<\/p>\n

In a nutshell, time and external acquisitions.\u00a0 Unfortunately for rebuilding teams, there is no fast-forward button when it comes to defensive development.\u00a0 While young forwards can sometimes make a big impact right away, it doesn\u2019t generally happen as often with defensemen.\u00a0 Generally, the thought is a blueliner needs at least 200 to 250 NHL games before they\u2019re truly ready and might not hit their prime for a little while after that.\u00a0 Chicago only has two players in that range and one of them (Matt Grzelcyk<\/a>) is on an expiring deal; Alex Vlasic<\/a> is the other at 243.<\/p>\n

Sam Rinzel<\/a> will get there.\u00a0 So will Artyom Levshunov<\/a>.\u00a0 But they\u2019re a couple more years away at least from getting to a baseline level of reliability defensively and likely longer before they\u2019re consistently counted on as shutdown players.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, GM Kyle Davidson will need to look outside the organization to bring in some help.\u00a0 They have a boatload of draft assets and prospects to deal from, particularly down the middle; with centers being in high demand, they can take advantage of it.\u00a0 An external add or two like that over the next few seasons will help in those late-game situations but it\u2019s going to take some time before Chicago is much more reliable when it comes to holding the lead.\u00a0 It\u2019s something that a lot of young teams go through and the process can rarely be sped up.<\/p>\n

M34: MacKinnon\u2019s major penalty was rescinded by the league. I understand the significance related to the potential suspension if another incident were to occur within however many games, and I understand that Colorado didn\u2019t lose the game as a direct result of the call, but isn\u2019t it a bad look for the league?<\/p>\n

This is something that happens more frequently than it gets out.\u00a0 It was a judgement call from two officials to uphold the major penalty (with a game misconduct) but judgment calls can be wrong.\u00a0 Colorado quietly appealed to the league to have this rescinded and after the Department of Player Safety reviewed it, they concurred by using their own judgment call.\u00a0 That\u2019s not really a bad look for the league, it\u2019s just someone higher up having a different opinion.<\/p>\n

For those who don\u2019t follow the NBA, the league reviews in full detail the last two minutes of each game with a score within three within the final two minutes and issues L2M Reports<\/a> that will, at times, clearly indicate where incorrect calls were made, including some that dramatically affected the outcome of the game.\u00a0 If they can do that without any major reputational effects, the NHL can do this without it being too much of a bad look.<\/p>\n

Jolly Roger: How much are NHL players paid for playing in the Olympics and WC\u2019s?<\/p>\n

Players weren\u2019t paid anything extra for their participation at the Olympics.\u00a0 However, they were still compensated from the standpoint of receiving their regular salaries (NHL or otherwise if players were in different leagues); they just received them for playing for another team.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a little different for the World Championship.\u00a0 The regular seasons are over in all leagues so players aren\u2019t receiving their base salaries anymore.\u00a0 There is a team purse based on where each country finishes in that tournament.\u00a0 That pool is typically split between the players and the federation but we\u2019re not talking big money by any stretch.\u00a0 Player expenses are also covered by the federation so they\u2019re not paying their own way but they aren\u2019t making much either.<\/p>\n

Jolly Roger: Can you describe how NHL players\u2019 insurance against injury works using specific examples of long-term and short-term injuries, and whatever cap implications are involved?<\/p>\n

Crosby and Fiala got injured at the Olympics. Are their teams receiving any compensation?<\/p>\n

On the insurance standpoint, there are few specifics available as that information isn\u2019t publicly disclosed.\u00a0 Either way, the players receive their full salaries, either directly from the team or in combination with the insurance payment.\u00a0 Teams have the ability to control the level of insurance they put on a contract beyond mandatory minimums which is typically on the longer-term side.\u00a0 If a player has a lengthy injury history, the insurance cost is higher and teams have balked at paying that price and accepting the risk.<\/p>\n

For a short-term injury, the only relief teams might get is if they have a short-term disability policy on that player that gives them some financial savings by offloading some of the salary costs onto the plan.\u00a0 There aren\u2019t any cap benefits for those situations, however.<\/p>\n

For long-term injuries, there is some variance in terms of the percentage of insurance.\u00a0 Assuming there is long-term disability coverage (some are uninsured as I noted), it could be something like 60% or 80%.\u00a0 Carey Price<\/a>\u2019s contract is one where the insurance is known so I can give you an example there.\u00a0 It has 80% coverage so while the Sharks owe him $1MM in salary this season to sit on LTIR, they\u2019re only responsible for paying $200K for it which is why they accepted the fifth-round pick to take the contract from Montreal, effectively buying the draft pick for $200K.<\/p>\n

If a player misses 10 games or 24 days, they become eligible for LTIR which provides some potential salary cap relief if a team needs it.\u00a0 The relief is limited to the lower of the players\u2019 AAV or last year\u2019s average salary, $3.82MM.\u00a0 To unlock anything higher if the player makes more, he has to be certified as out for the season.\u00a0 That\u2019s the cap implication.<\/p>\n

You mentioned Sidney Crosby<\/a> and Kevin Fiala<\/a>.\u00a0 Crosby\u2019s injury really isn\u2019t a long-term one so he\u2019s falling under short-term status which is iffier on coverage.\u00a0 Fiala is certainly a long-term injury so if there is long-term disability insurance on his contract, the Kings would receive some salary relief.\u00a0 But that\u2019s as close to compensation as they\u2019d get.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Topics in this edition of the PHR Mailbag include thoughts on what Utah did and didn\u2019t do at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":540767,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[556],"tags":[64,63,575,11476,11477,85],"class_list":["post-540766","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nhl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-nhl","tag-phr-mailbag","tag-pro-hockey-rumors-originals","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/540766","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=540766"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/540766\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/540767"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=540766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=540766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=540766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}