Jordan Staal may not get another shot to lift the Stanley Cup, and the former Pittsburgh Penguins center, who wanted his own team rather than live in the shadow of Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, is indeed lifting that team with some extraordinary play. The Carolina Hurricanes won an extraordinary Game 4. Elsewhere in the Daily, the wildfire NHL trade rumors surrounding Detroit Red Wings goalie Sebastian Cossa are sort of true, but wildly exaggerated. Left side defensemen fill the other trade chatter. And we looked at potential Pittsburgh Penguins draft potentials using “wisdom of the crowd.”
This Stanley Cup Final is absolutely remarkable. I thought P. K. Subban was doing a bit of shilling when he said it could be the best ever, but four games in, he’s on the money. Even when the teams try to settle down and button up the game, someone will make a play–not a mistake–and the horses are running again.
It has been great to watch with some people that I have had little chance to see since last fall. That’s what hockey is supposed to be. I hope you’re enjoying it, too.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Hockey Now: So, here’s how it worked. We took eight draft rankings from sources and outlets that I trust, threw them in a blender and averaged out the players who ranked 18th to 25th with a couple of honorable mentions. Call it a “wisdom of the crowd” draft rankings, and there was one name that now seems out of reach, but a handful of other names that I don’t think are getting much connection as Penguins draft potentials.
TSN: Of course, as I release the averaged targets, TSN’s Craig Button dropped a new draft rankings. I must say, the potentials he has in the Penguins range are much better than the ones who were averaged there. In the Penguins’ range on Button’s list are Wyatt Cullen, Adam Novotny, and J.P. Hurlbert.
Only Hurlbert made our list because the rest were too highly ranked.
NHL Trade Talk, News, & National Hockey Now
Carolina Hockey Now: Just hockey goodness in Game 4. Brandon Bussi started in goal for Carolina, and he made some saves. He had to. Oh, and Jordan Staal was spectacular, becoming just the third player in history–joining Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux–as the only players to ever score five goals in the first four games of the Stanley Cup Final. The Hurricanes win Game 4.
Sportsnet: I just cannot believe that a group of players want to subject themselves to Mike Babcock. People like that always tell you they’ve changed. But there’s more drama than jus the hiring. The NHLPA is stepping in and forcing the NHL to complete an investigation into Babcock’s firing in Columbus before he can be hired in Edmonton.
Mark Spector usually pulls no punches, and he asked the primary question: Is Babcock really the right person to lead the team?
Detroit Hockey Now: Elliotte Friedman used a podcast to clarify the rampant rumors that exploded on social media Monday night. I’d never heard of the journalist, but he seemed to be a working professional who reported that a deal was close between Edmonton and Detroit for 6-foot-6 prospect goalie Sebastian Cossa. Friedman dished a clarification, but Kevin Weekes also chimed in with another interested team, and there’s more to the story. Our boys have the latest Red Wings trade chatter.
TVA: The Vancouver Canucks are kicking the trade tires of Brendan Gallagher.
Chicago Sun Times: Ben Pope reports that the Chicago Blackhawks have grabbed a cart with a squeaky wheel and are perusing the aisles of the trade market looking for a left-handed defenseman, preferably a veteran LHD.
Boston Hockey Now: So many surprise playoff teams in the East. They all had some commonalities, but young players claimed roles and filled gaps as Jack Studley delivers a report card for the Boston Bruins’ future.
Philly Hockey Now: Credit to Will James, who is on a family vacation across the pond. He’s still writing some good stories, and he, too, had a solid report card: The Top Pair; A Workhorse & A Good Decision.
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