THW Daily - Week 6 NHL Power Rankings & Why Sharks Could Make Big Move With Oilers
Also, high praise from a teammate for Connor Bedard, Bruins exceeding expectations & more
Welcome to The Hockey Writers Daily
In today’s edition, we have power rankings for Week 6 in the NHL, why the Sharks and Oilers could strike a deal, some high praise for Connor Bedard from a veteran teammate, and much more.
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Here’s the good stuff…
Yesterday’s NHL Scores…
Blackhawks’ Bedard Receives High Praise From Nick Foligno
November 13, 2023 by Michael DeRosa
While the Chicago Blackhawks fell to the Florida Panthers by a 4-3 final score on Nov. 12, they showed great determination as they came back from three one-goal leads by the Panthers. Blackhawks star rookie Connor Bedard was a significant reason behind it, as he had two beautiful goals in the contest. Clearly, he grabbed the attention of fellow Blackhawk Nick Foligno in the process.
NHL 2023-24 Power Rankings: Week 6
November 13, 2023 by Eugene Helfrick
With the 2023-24 NHL Season kicking off roughly one month ago, most teams across the league have played between 12-15 games, which should be a large enough sample size to start identifying the contenders. While the 2024 Trade Deadline is still months away, and a slow start won’t always doom your postseason aspirations, the foundation laid in the first month often decides who will buy for a postseason push or sell to build a new future.
However, that’s part of what makes the start of this season so strange, as I really don’t know if I can believe what I’ve seen so far. Are the Edmonton Oilers really the worst team in the league? Are the Vancouver Canucks really one of the best? Are there this many mediocre teams who are struggling through a league-wide cap crunch?
5 Bruins Exceeding Expectations in 2023-24
November 13, 2023 by Scott Roche
Through the first 14 games of the 2023-24 season, the Boston Bruins are 11-1-2 and have one of the best records in the NHL. After an offseason that saw a roster overhaul and the addition of young players into the lineup, it’s safe to say that the Black and Gold are exceeding expectations in the first month.
For a team like Boston to exceed expectations, they need some players to exceed expectations and that is the case for second-year head coach Jim Montgomery. Here are three players that are exceeding expectations early in the season.
Insider Hints Flames Like Maple Leafs Prospect in Potential Deal
November 13, 2023 by Jim Parsons
The NHL trade winds are blowing, and the Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs seem to be in the midst of exploring potential player swaps. The focal point of recent discussions has been the Flames’ defenseman, Nikita Zadorov, who might be on the radar of the Maple Leafs. But, he’s not necessarily the only player the Maple Leafs would be interested in.
The question floating around now is who the Leafs might send back in any potential deal. It would have to be a money-in, money-out kind of swap, but the Flames would also need a player — likely a “can’t miss prospect” — they see growing with the franchise long-term.
Sharks Could Make a Big Move to Help the Edmonton Oilers
November 13, 2023 by Andrew Stille
The San Jose Sharks have finally won a few games in the 2023-24 season. While it took them an unreasonable amount of time to rack up a win, they are not as close to the bottom of the standings as many would expect. In fact, they are two points away from tying the next closest team.
However, while many would expect that the Sharks would be just behind a team projected to be struggling this year, this is far from the case. In fact, they are two points behind a team that was highly regarded as a potential Stanley Cup contender this season: the Edmonton Oilers.
5 Oilers Who Will Be Positively Impacted by Coaching Change
November 13, 2023 by Rob Couch
After just 13 games played by the Edmonton Oilers in the 2023-24 season, the team has fired Jay Woodcroft and hired Kris Knoblauch. This comes after the team started 3-9-1, but the decision seemed to be made before the Oilers’ last win against the Seattle Kraken on Nov. 11.
Whether it was the right or wrong decision to fire Woodcroft at this time, Knoblauch is the new head coach and the Oilers have a job to do. As they played hard for their last head coach, they will have to play just as hard for their new one. A new voice brings new hope for some players as they may have a better opportunity to earn playing time and succeed (from “Edmonton Oilers gambling on rookie coach being an instant fix”, Edmonton Journal, Nov. 13, 2023). This might not have been available to them with a coach that has been around for a while and is more set in his ways.
More stuff from THW and around the NHL:
Vancouver Canucks - Canucks’ Elias Pettersson Leading Early Team Success
Winnipeg Jets - Jets’ Cole Perfetti Excelling in Contract Year
Toronto Maple Leafs - Maple Leafs Player Told Flames’ Zadorov He’s What Team Needs
NHL News & Rumors - Oilers, Flames, Maple Leafs, Penguins
From TSN - Canucks place F Studnicka on waivers
From Sportsnet - NHLPA's Walsh on Coyotes: 'These are NHL players. They deserve an NHL rink.'
From ESPN - White House honors Stanley Cup champs Vegas Golden Knights
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