The Hockey Writers Daily - September 11, 2023
The Hockey Writers Daily - September 11, 2023
A daily Substack newsletter with all the best content from The Hockey Writers
Welcome to The Hockey Writers Daily
In today’s edition, we have bold predictions for the Washington Capitals, why the Canucks will make the playoffs this season, the NHL’s 10 worst contracts for the 2023-24 season, and much more.
It would be great if you’d share the THW Daily with your friends and family so that they can subscribe and enjoy every day.
Also, don’t forget to check out all of our FREE team Substacks, and sign up for your favorite…or all of them if you want.
Here’s the good stuff…
The New Jersey Devils Are Headed to the Promised Land
September 10, 2023 by Josh Reinitz
In New Jersey’s lore, few symbols are more iconic than Bruce Springsteen and the New Jersey Devils. Add in that both forged legendary success in the swamps of New Jersey’s Meadowlands and the bond is evident. Springsteen’s catalog is as diverse as New Jersey’s hockey team, spanning genres, cultures, and generations.
As the players start to assemble in Newark from all over the world to begin working on their dream to return to the promised land and be the last men standing, here is a Springsteen lyric for each player likely to make the opening night roster.
Washington Capitals: 3 Bold Predictions for 2023-24
September 10, 2023 by Raphael Caron
With the regular season starting in about a month, the Washington Capitals are hoping to see better results in comparison to last season, where they missed the postseason for only the second time in the past 16 seasons. The changes made to the team make for some interesting storylines, and the results could be much more different this season. In this article, I came up with three bold predictions for the Capitals in the 2023-24 season, each bolder than the other.
3 Reasons the Canucks Will Make the Playoffs in 2023-24
September 10, 2023 by Matthew Zator
With another clean slate, the Vancouver Canucks will look to make the long road to the playoffs for the first time since the bubble in 2020. While that wasn’t that long ago, Rogers Arena and the city of Vancouver haven’t seen the white towels and car flags since Bo Horvat’s rookie season in 2014-15. That was eight seasons ago, and the wide-eyed 19-year-old is now a grizzled veteran of 651 games, and with his recent trade to the New York Islanders, not one player remains from that playoff team that got eliminated by the Calgary Flames in six games.
The changes general manager Patrik Allvin made to the roster in the offseason were not moves of a rebuilding team looking to tank and get the best chances at Vancouver native Macklin Celebrini. He rebuilt the defence and bottom-six with veterans Carson Soucy, Ian Cole, Matt Irwin, Teddy Blueger and Pius Suter all in the hopes of capturing that elusive playoff spot. With that said, here are three reasons the Canucks will make the playoffs in 2023-24.
Maple Leafs’ Conor Timmins: Odd Man Out
September 10, 2023 by The Old Prof
At one point in time, Conor Timmins seemed a shoo-in to become an NHL-regular defenceman. Drafted just outside the first round of the 2017 Entry Draft, 32nd overall by the Colorado Avalanche, Timmins showed his offensive playmaking skills in his last two years of junior hockey playing for the Soo Greyhounds. He scored one point shy of a point a game pace in those two seasons, with 102 points in 103 games.
The NHL’s 10 Worst Contracts of the 2023-24 Season
September 10, 2023 by Marko Zlomislic
The nature of business in a salary cap league such as the NHL is that the organizations that are most successful are often the ones that most efficiently operate under the constraints placed upon them by the rules. Prudent general managers can find value by identifying underappreciated gems in the annual free agent market, or by inking a player to a long-term deal before they break out and see a significant rise in value.
The opposite is also true, and many a front office executive have been fooled by surface-level intangibles, unsustainable runs of shooting luck, or memorable performances in high-pressure situations, such as the Stanley Cup Playoffs. In the most dire of cases, it’s often a combination of all three factors that sinks a contract into infamy.
3 Reasons Connor McDavid May Be Extra Motivated This Season
September 10, 2023 by Sean Panganiban
Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid is setting the tone for the upcoming season, having asked his teammates to gather in Edmonton early last week for the informal captain’s skates at Rogers Place, two weeks ahead of training camp.
It’s still early days, but there’s a noticeable shift about this Oilers team, with a sentiment that anything short of winning a Stanley Cup this season is viewed as a significant disappointment. That said, the Oilers’ captain is poised to elevate his game, and below we dive into three reasons why we anticipate an even more motivated McDavid this season.
More stuff from THW and around the NHL:
New York Islanders - Islanders’ Line Options for Oliver Wahlstrom
Philadelphia Flyers - Flyers Hold Their Breath as Tensions Rise Between KHL, IIHF
NHL News & Rumors - Senators, Maple Leafs, Oilers, Red Wings
From TSN - Former Jets captain Ladd announces retirement
From Sportsnet - Quick Shifts: Maple Leafs dress three goalies with plenty to prove
From the NHL - Chelios to have No. 7 retired by Blackhawks on Feb. 25, surprised by Pearl Jam
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!