THW Daily - Rumored Trade Destinations for Canadiens’ Jake Allen & Devils’ Confidence in Rookies Paying Off
Also, the latest news and rumors from Toronto, Kucherov's standing in Lightning franchise history & more
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In today’s edition, we have rumored trade destinations for Canadiens netminder Jake Allen, how the Devils’ confidence in rookies is paying off, the latest news and rumors from Toronto, and much more.
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Toronto Maple Leafs: Should the Maple Leafs Go After Fleury? Where Does Robertson Best Fit? by Jim Parsons
Florida Panthers: Is Spencer Knight Becoming a Bust? by Joey Ganzi
Philadelphia Flyers: Flyers Flash: A Quick Turnaround by Justin Giampietro
Tampa Bay Lightning: What the Numbers Tell Us After 35 Games by Jordan Orth
Colorado Avalanche: Avalanche Prospect Update: Ritchie, Behrens, Hanzel & More by Stefano Rubino
New York Rangers: Rangers Prospect Report: Roobroeck, Othmann & More by Jesse Courville-Lynch
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Snuggerud, Brindley Shine in USA’s Blowout Victory over Switzerland
[Premium] 2024 WJC: Biggest Storylines at the Halfway Point by Logan Horn
Yesterday’s NHL Scores…
Maple Leafs News & Rumors: Knies, Jones, Jarnkrok & Domi
December 28, 2023 by The Old Prof
The Toronto Maple Leafs squandered a chance to gain on the Boston Bruins on Wednesday night. They also, once again, failed to hold a two-goal lead. As a result, they lost to a team they should have beaten by a score of 4-2. Despite holding a two-goal lead in the first period, the Ottawa Senators mounted a comeback, scoring four consecutive goals. The team initially gave goalie Martin Jones some early support. However, the Senators managed to claw their way back, helped by a few defensive lapses by the Blue & White.
In this edition of Maple Leafs News & Rumors, I’ll take a look at some of the individual players on the team and their contributions to the game. For readers who wish to read a take-away piece, see my THW colleague Michael DeRosa’s post above.
Rumoured Trade Destinations for Canadiens Goalie Jake Allen
December 28, 2023 by Rob Couch
The Montreal Canadiens have far from figured out their goalie situation. What we can assume from Sam Montembeault’s recent contract extension is that he is the most likely of the three goaltenders on the roster to be staying put. The other two are Jake Allen and Cayden Primeau.
With Montembeault signed, the team not yet giving Primeau the best look, and the Canadiens still being in a rebuilding phase, Allen is a veteran that will garner some attention and could realistically be traded. He has one more year on his deal after this one at a cap hit of $3.85 million AAV (average annual value). Unless a team will be without their starter and have money available, the Canadiens will be retaining some of that if they move him. There have been a number of teams around the league linked to the Canadiens in regards to an Allen trade this season, so let’s take a look at every single one of them.
Robin Salo Has a Complicated Future with the Islanders
December 28, 2023 by Mike Fink
One of the few bright spots for the Bridgeport Islanders this season has been defenseman Robin Salo. He’s a reliable defenseman, and with four goals and six assists, he’s one of the best playmakers on the team from the point. He scored the overtime-winning goal on Dec. 16 against the Charlotte Checkers, and his goal in the third period put the Islanders within striking distance in the Dec. 27, 5-4 loss to the Providence Bruins.
Salo has been one of the best skaters on the American Hockey League (AHL) team, but at 25 years old, he’s no longer a promising young prospect. He’s in the prime of his career, and the New York Islanders must decide on his future. He’s capable of starting at the NHL level, yet he hasn’t been called up this season. The question is why the Islanders, who gave him the nod last season for 11 games, have passed on him this season? Moreover, what happens next for Salo?
Kucherov at 300 Goals: Ranking Him Among Lightning Greats
December 28, 2023 by Harrison Smajovits
The Tampa Bay Lightning fell to the Florida Panthers 3-2 on Wednesday night, but there was still a moment of celebration. When Nikita Kucherov got the Bolts on the board early in the third period, he scored the 300th goal of his career.
The 30-year-old forward has impressed for some time now, so this milestone is no surprise. However, it’s still impressive to look back at what he’s already accomplished and what he’s on pace to achieve among the all-time Lightning greats.
Devils’ Confidence in Rookies, Nemec, and Hughes Paying Off
December 28, 2023 by Josh Reinitz
Earlier in the summer, after the New Jersey Devils chose to allow Damon Severson and Ryan Graves to leave and take their more than 900 games of combined NHL play with them to the Columbus Blue Jackets and Pittsburgh Penguins, many speculated that the Devils would find a way to play two rookies among their back six – Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec. Reports from the NHL Awards and Draft were that head coach Lindy Ruff was not enamored with the idea of playing two rookies on defense to begin the season. The Devils signaled their reticence by acquiring Colin Miller to fill the slot vacated by Severson.
The team chose to begin the season with only Hughes on the NHL roster, and Nemec was ultimately sent down to the American Hockey League (AHL) despite excelling in the preseason. This was exacerbated by the team beginning the season with only six defensemen as Miller would head to injured reserve.
Flyers’ 2023 Recap: Focus Shifts to the Future
December 28, 2023 by Andrew McGuinness
The calendar year of 2023 is almost over, and wow, was it a busy one for the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers may not have had the most successful year of any team in the NHL (although it certainly wasn’t the worst, either). However, few teams can match the sheer chaos and headlines generated by the Flyers over the last 12 months.
Since January 2023, the Flyers *deep breath* fired their general manager, made seven trades, drafted in the first round twice (including once in the top 10), changed their jerseys, completed one forgettable season and started a promising one, and that’s just scratching the surface. So, with New Year’s Day looming, we’ll revisit all of the bad, the ugly and the occasionally good things that happened to the Flyers in 2023. Given all that happened, we will break this up into two parts, starting with the year’s first half.
More stuff from THW and around the NHL:
Arizona Coyotes - Coyotes’ Success Driven By Feistiness & Playoff Hunger
Anaheim Ducks - Season-to-Date Comparison Between Carlsson and Fantilli
Philadelphia Flyers - Flyers Farm Report: Tuomaala, Marody, Petersen & More
NHL News & Rumors - Canadiens, Sabres, Senators
From TSN - Capitals sign defenseman Bear to a two-year contract
From Sportsnet - Oilers Mailbag: Has Edmonton dug itself too deep in a hole?
From ESPN - Sabres put Tage Thompson (personal reasons) on non-roster list
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