The Hockey Writers Daily - August 16, 2023
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Welcome to The Hockey Writers Daily
In today’s edition, we have players under pressure in Pittsburgh, bold predictions in Winnipeg, history looming for Hurricanes’ Frederik Andersen, under-the-radar Maple Leafs prospects, and much more.
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Here’s the good stuff:.
6 Penguins With a Ton of Pressure On Them This Season
August 15, 2023 by Sylvie McCarthy
The Pittsburgh Penguins have had a summer of change. After missing the playoffs last year for the first time in 16 seasons, they chose to part ways with general manager Ron Hextall and president of hockey operations Brian Burke. On June 1, Fenway Sports Group hired Kyle Dubas as the Penguins’ new president of hockey operations. Since then, he has been hard at work strengthening the team’s roster as they look to climb back into the playoffs this season. Pittsburgh has a lot to prove this year, however, there are some members of the team with more to prove than others.
Winnipeg Jets: 3 Bold Predictions for 2023-24
August 15, 2023 by Declan Schroeder
The Winnipeg Jets will begin their 2023-24 season with a tilt against the Calgary Flames on Oct. 13, the first contest in a six-month, 82-game marathon for a squad looking to stay competitive amidst a retool.
Here are three bold predictions for the Jets for 2023-24.
Projecting the Flyers’ Future Defense Corps
August 15, 2023 by Justin Giampietro
As it stands, the Philadelphia Flyers have a few notable prospects on their back end that could shape the future of the team. Before the real payoff for their rebuild commences, let’s take a look at what they have already.
Hurricanes’ Andersen Can Clinch History This Season
August 15, 2023 by Mack Gordon
As the start of the NHL season quickly approaches, there’s one particularly intriguing storyline to follow for Carolina Hurricanes’ goaltender Frederik Andersen. Hockey Reference shared in a tweet that Andersen can break the record for the most wins by a goalie in their first 500 career games played if he can rattle off at least 12 wins in his next 21 games. The record is currently held by Braden Holtby who had 293 wins in his first 500 games played.
Andersen currently sits at 282 wins in 479 games, including 52 wins in 86 games for the Hurricanes. While he’s battled a few injuries during his first two years in Raleigh, he’s given the Hurricanes Vezina Trophy-level goaltending when healthy. The tandem of him and Antti Raanta has proven to be a dynamic force in the net for head coach Rod Brind’Amour over the past two seasons. The duo brought home the Jennings Trophy, awarded annually to the goaltenders having played at least 25 games for the team allowing the fewest goals in the NHL, in the 2021-22 season.
3 Maple Leafs Under-the-Radar Prospects for 2023-24 Season
August 15, 2023 by Peter Baracchini
We all know what to expect from the Toronto Maple Leafs top prospects as they’re the ones that could be important pieces and go-to players for the future. From Fraser Minten to even recently drafted Easton Cowan, many fans are going to be watching them closely as they look to dominate this season as they continue with their development.
While the top names in the system are getting majority of the attention, there are still plenty of players that are flying under the radar and are looking to take big strides in their respective leagues, especially when it comes to the forwards. While these players are late round selections, they’re going to prove that they shouldn’t be underrated in the 2023-24 season.
Flames Future Will be the Judge of Conroy’s Patience
August 15, 2023 by Ben Hockley
Hindsight is always 20/20 and unfortunately, that level of clarity is often not available before a decision is made. Calgary Flames’ newly-hired general manager Craig Conroy likely wishes that weren’t true as he is faced with a seemingly infinite number of questions heading into the ever-important 2023-24 season. It’s no secret that the Flames have decisions to make with a large number of pending unrestricted free agents (UFAs) currently on their roster.
Now we sit about a month and a half after the start of free agency and the new boss has been patient, only making a single trade involving a pending UFA after plenty of rumours swirled about the possibility of significant names such as Elias Lindholm or Noah Hanifin being dealt, despite the importance that the resolution of these contract situations has on the franchise. Well, it seems he is taking a patient approach to the situation in hopes of not making an unnecessary move that hurts the organization.
More stuff from THW and around the NHL:
San Jose Sharks - Sharks Already Preparing for 2024 Trade Deadline
St. Louis Blues - 3 Blues Regression Candidates in 2023-24
NHL News & Rumors - Oilers, Bruins, Jets, Flames, Maple Leafs
From TSN - Canadiens trade D Petry to Red Wings
From Sportsnet - Carolina Hurricanes sign 20-year lease extension at PNC Arena
From the NHL - Baun dies at 86, scored overtime goal with broken ankle in 1964 Final
We hope you enjoyed today’s THW Daily, and we hope to expand our daily offerings as we develop and experiment with this new platform. Cheers!
Enough about the Maple Leafs…..it seems like 5 out of 7 days there’s an article
How about the Canucks or Flames or anyone but the Leafs.
Is this commentary coming from the Center of the Universe, the Hockey Mecca one would believe if you were from Toronto?