THW’s Best of the Week: Two Big Trades, All-Star Game, Crosby's Brilliance & More
A Sunday Edition of The Hockey Writers Substack
Welcome to The Hockey Writers Sunday Edition…
Our in-season Sunday Edition features the BEST OF THE WEEK throughout the NHL.
In today’s edition, we have a look at two major trades between four Canadian teams, the All-Star game, a look at the brilliance of Sidney Crosby, and much more.
Check Out Some THW Premium Substack Content:
New Jersey Devils: 5(ish) Questions With Devils Forward, "The Cobra" Chris Tierney by Josh Reinitz
Columbus Blue Jackets: Blue Jackets' Writer Mark Scheig Discusses David Jiricek by William Espy
Hockey History: Winnipeg Jets 1.0 Rookie Rewind: Teemu Selanne by Matthew Zator
Minnesota Wild: Wild Player of the Month: Joel Eriksson Ek by Tyson McKay
Prospects & Draft: AJHL Exodus Mirrors the Formation of the WHL by Dayton Reimer
Anaheim Ducks: Ducks Player of the Month: Troy Terry by Jordan Reinhardt
Detroit Red Wings: Red Wings Prospect Check-In: Defensemen Lead the Way & Kasper Catches Fire by Jordan Orth
News & Rumours: First Look: How the Lindholm Deal Happened, The Delay, and Tanev Part of Trade Talk by Jim Parsons
Buffalo Sabres: Sabres' Prospect Update: Feb. 1 by JP Gambatese
Arizona Coyotes: Kachina Corner Weekly Audio Report: A Rough Trip Down South by Chase Beardsley
Check Out THW’s Professional Women’s Hockey League Coverage
Let’s dive into the Best of the Week…
Two Big Trades Involving Four Canadian Teams
Although the trade deadline is still over a month away (March 8), two contending Canadian teams have stepped up to the plate and made major deals.
The Vancouver Canucks sent forward Andrei Kuzmenko, defensemen prospects Hunter Brzustewicz/Joni Jurmo, a 2024 first-round pick, and a 2024 conditional fourth-round pick to the Calgary Flames for All-Star forward Elias Lindholm. Lindholm is a free agent this summer and has 32 points in 49 games.
The other big trade was the Winnipeg Jets sending a 2024 first-round pick and a conditional third-round pick in 2027 to the Montreal Canadiens for forward Sean Monahan. This is terrific asset management by the Canadiens and a nice addition for the Jets. Monahan has 35 points in 49 games this season.
2024 All-Star Game Sees Team Matthews Defeat Team McDavid in Final Game
The 2024 All-Star game is in the books as the team of Auston Matthews and celebrity captain Justin Bieber took down the team of Connor McDavid and celebrity captain Will Arnett. It was certainly an interesting weekend for the NHL with Matthews winning the All-Star MVP.
Sidney Crosby Tallies Unbelievable Assist on Jake Guentzel Goal
This is classic Sidney Crosby stuff. At age 36, Crosby has 50 points in 46 games and 27 goals already. He’s shown no signs of slowing down. The Pittsburgh Penguins would be smart to keep and extend Jake Guentzel to keep him on Crosby’s wing. They are great together.
NHL Announces International Best-On-Best and Its Return to the Winter Olympics
The news many have been waiting for - the NHL is returning to the Olympics. On top of that, they are also going to hold an International best-on-best Tournament in 2025 instead of the All-Star weekend. The four nations taking place in this tournament will be the United States, Canada, Finland, and Sweden. It will consist of seven games in nine days from Feb. 12-20, 2025. This snippet from NHL.com reveals more…
The Commissioner also announced the NHL will return to Olympic participation, starting in 2026 in Milan, Italy, and again in 2030, with the host for the 2030 Olympics expected to be chosen later this year by the International Olympic Committee.
The League previously shut down for about two weeks to allow players to compete in the Olympics in 1998 (Nagano, Japan), 2002 (Salt Lake City), 2006 (Turin, Italy), 2010 (Vancouver) and 2014 (Sochi, Russia). NHL players did not participate in the 2018 or 2022 Olympics.
"Our intention in terms of an international calendar is to go to the Olympics in 2026, two years later play the World Cup, and two years after that go to the Olympics in 2030, and two years after that play a World Cup," Bettman said. "That's the cycle we want to get on."
This will be great for the NHL and the sport in general. This will put more eyes on the league and shine a light on how great the talent has become.
Post All-Star Break NHL Games Return on Monday, February 5th
The NHL will be back up and running for the second half with a couple of quality matchups between the Colorado Avalanche and New York Rangers, as well as the New York Islanders and Toronto Maple Leafs.
We hope you enjoyed today’s THW Substack, and we hope you enjoy our “Best of the Week” Sunday Edition. Stay tuned for THW Daily as it continues tomorrow and beyond. Cheers!