Author: Christopher Lynch

The San Jose Sharks have signed defenseman Brent Burns to an eight-year contract worth $8 million per season until the 2024 season. Burns, who was drafted by Minnesota is currently an assistant captain for San Jose.  He has evolved into a large part of their defensive core. Lastly year, he had his best season up to date, scoring 27 goals and having 75 points. Currently on the first D-pair with Paul Martin, he can do it all, offensive having had 60 points or more in the last two seasons. He’s also scored 20 goals in a season twice in his career. Though Burns isn’t the best defenseman in a defensive stand-point he can be very physical and a shut-down defenseman when he needs to. Burns is on pace for another great season and most likely will be a candidate for James Norris Memorial Trophy, awarded for the best defenseman in all three sides of the ice. Last season, he was a candidate for it but lost as Drew Doughty won the award. He played for Canada in the World Cup of Hockey, who won the competition. After signing the largest contract in Sharks history, in a press conference he said he was thankful stating,

“This is a great group and we had a special year [in 2015-16] and it’s exciting to build on that,” Burns told the Sharks website. “This is a great place to come and play, and when you’re having fun it’s easier to work. I don’t even think of it as coming to work; the people here are great and they love their Sharks. We had a taste of last year (reaching the Stanley Cup Final) and now you just want to win, so it’s exciting.”

Burns is also known for his beard, one of the longest in the NHL.

These matchups will be updated with scores and the need to know stats in season.

Opening night is Oct 4th!

Toronto-

Winnipeg-

St. Louis-

Pittsburgh-

Calgary-

Edmonton

Philadelphia-

San Jose-

Many fans were expecting Connor McDavid to become captain of the Edmonton Oilers at some point during his career but not this quickly. Last season, Edmonton had four alternate captains instead of the traditional one captain and three alternate captains which included Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle and Andrew Ference. This offseason, Hall got traded to the Devils for Adam Larsoon and Ference retired. Some of the factors for retiring was the likely chance of the Oilers buying him out and the fact that he’d already won a Stanley Cup in Boston in 2011. Last season, the Oilers had added to their young forward group by selecting McDavid with the first overall pick of the 2015 NHL draft. The young, speedy, offensive skilled center had 48 points in 45 games with an outstanding points per game average despite losing the Calder Trophy to Artemi Panarin, left wing of the Blackhawks. Shane Gostisbehere, defenseman of the Flyers was also a candidate for the trophy. McDavid mainly played on the second line last season. As long as he can stay healthy (why he only played in 45 games), he should be a threat to other teams defense’s and develop into this leadership role.

The Dallas Stars have locked up franchise left wing and captain Jamie Benn. Benn, who got drafted in 2009, won the Art Ross Trophy last season, scoring eighty seven points. This season, he ranked second in points despite having eighty nine points, two more than the previous season. Patrick Kane had 106 points to be the first American born player to win the Art Ross Trophy. For the second year in a row, he has played all 82 games. He has built great chemistry with center Tyler Seguin who plays on the first line with him. Benn, who got awarded captain in 2013, recently had successful surgery to repair a core muscle injury. His status for the World Cup is uncertain but we do know his estimated time to recover is about six weeks. Despite being a fifth round draft pick, Benn has 192 goals and 448 points in 508 games.

On the first day of the NHL free agency period, the Tampa Bay Lightning signed back-up goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy to a three year extension worth $3.5 million dollars per year. Vasilevskiy was a reliable back-up for Ben Bishop. In the regular season, he went 11-10-0 with one shutout. He also had a .910 SV% and a 2.76 GAA. He also replaced Bishop as the starter in the conference finals against the Penguins when Bishop fell weirdly in game

one. At next year’s expansion draft, the Lightning have to get rid of one of the two goaltenders. Vasilevskiy, 22 is the younger of the two though Bishop is only 29. Bishop has moved into the starter role, after being traded from the Senators. He’s been one of Tampa’s best players over the last few seasons. He has been consistent and reliable and was runner up to Braden Holtby for the Vezina Trophy last season. This could be a sign that Bishop is heading to Vegas. Of course, nobody can be sure this will happen but with the signing of Vasilevskiy who has been improving and the need to sign more key players over the next few seasons, this could factor into this decision. Vasilevskiy could move into the starter role.

On the first day of free agency, the Boston Bruins signed former Blues captain David Backes to a 5 year, $30 million contract worth $6 million dollars per year. Last season, Backes had 45 points, 21 goals and 24 assists and helped the Blues get into the conference final. Backes can play center or right wing which is helpful with the departure of Loui Erikkson and Lee Stempniak. (both right wingers) Also, the Bruins already have two good centerman in Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. Backes is protudctive on offense dispite struggling for part of the year, last season. Backes doesn’t only bring offense. He is a two way player who always hussles to get back. He works hard every game. This should improve Boston’s penalty kill. He is also a phsical player. Over the few seasons, the Bruins have lacked the toughness they had in previous years. They have Adam Mquaid who will stand up for a teamate and drop the gloves if he has to. Rather than that and maybe Zdeno Chara, Bruins captain, there’s no phsical player who you know will bring the physically on a nightly basics. Backes should bring a more physical brand of hockey to Boston. Former captain of the Blues, he should also bring some leadership and experience in the playoffs. (if the Bruins qualify for the playoffs)

The media had given Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin a tough time with trade rumors surrounding P.K. Subban. Bergevin says he wasn’t trying to shop Subban but was listening to other team’s offers. When Montreal fans saw this deal, they were stunned. Fan favorite P.K. Subban had been traded to the Nashville Predators for Shea Weber. Many fans are disappointed he wasn’t awarded the captain as the team. Max Pacioretty got awarded the captaincy instead. He donated lots of money for local hospitals and was a likable guy who always wanted to have a good time. He was an assistant captain of Montreal. Over the season Bergevin had some bad moments that made him dislikable from the fans and almost fired by the management. This takes it to a new level. Subban is the younger of the two and is starting to get into his prime years. Weber, on the hand is older and is starting to get worse. It hasn’t been a huge downfall so far like Zdeno Chara, Bruins captain but he doesn’t have the puck moving ability or the offensive aligity like he used to. He is still an elite defenseman but wasn’t as consistent in the 2015-2016 season. The Predators are

getting a defenseman who should help them advance farther in the playoffs next season. In a press conference after the trade, Bergevin said that he thought Weber made the Habs a better team. Sorry, would add video of the press conference but it’s not possible to add a video in this or in any blog post. The Canadiens might have had a disappointing season but nobody expected them to trade their franchise defenseman.

It was announced that the New Jersey Devils had traded defenseman Adam Larsson to the Edmonton Oilers for forward Taylor Hall. Both teams got what they wanted in this trade. The Oilers needed a right-handed defenseman. They got that with the addition of Larsson. He was a top four defenseman with New Jersey and put up 18 points last season while maintaining a +15 plus/minus rating. Larsson is young and has the potential to get better. Oilers fans should expect Larsson to be a big part of their struggling defensive core. As for the Devils, this is a trade that will get fans excited. New Jersey’s biggest problem over the last few years has been the offense especially highlighting speed and a consistent scorer. New Jersey has got a star who should be the backbone of the franchise for many years to come. Hall brings the whole package to the table. He’s speedy, young and should be a good leader as shown in Edmonton even with the young core. Hall had 26 goals and 65 points last season. Even though both teams got what they wanted from this trade, Edmonton fans are disappointed in the departure of their elite left wing.

Recently, the NHL schedule for the 2016-2017 season came out. Here is some information about the four outdoor games next season. You might want to mark these dates on your calendar as these games get fans eager to watch.

Outdoor Games:

Winter Classic-

The 2017 Winter Classic which is on January 2nd at Busch Stadium features two rivals who have faced each other in the first round three straight times: The St. Louis Blues and the Chicago Blackhawks. The Blackhawks have won two out of the three of those series. This season, the Blues lead the season series 3-2. All of St. Louis’ wins were in overtime or in a shootout. Last year, the Blackhawks lost 6-1 against the Wild in an outdoor game. Match ups to watch: Robby Fabbri and Artemi Panarin- two young, speddy young left wingers, Alex Pietrangelo and Duncan Keith- two elite defenseman who are a big help on both sides on the ice (offense and defenseman) and are leaders for their team.

Heritage Classic-

The 2016 Heritage Classic will be held in Winnipeg at Investors Group Field. The Winnipeg Jets will face the Edmonton Oilers, both being Canadian teams. In 2013, the NHL promised an outdoor game soon. One matchup to watch is Patrick Lane (Jets second overall pick in 2016.) against Connor McDavid (Oilers first overall pick in 2015) and possibly Jesse Puljujarvi (Oilers 4th overall pick in 2016) who was projected to go third overall by Columbus but they decided to pick Pierre- Luc Dubois instead.

Centennial Classic-

The 2017 Centennial Classic will be played at BMO Field in Toronto. This matchup will be a rematch of the 2014 Winter Classic between the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Detroit Red Wings. Toronto won that game 3-2 in a shootout. Match ups to watch: Dylan Larkin and William Nylander- two young speedy wingers, who have big potential, Frederick Anderson and Petr Mrazek- two young goaltenders who have minimal experience outdoors, James van Riemsdyk and Henrik Zetterberg- two wingers who’ve been elite players and leaders for their teams, Morgan Reilly and Niklas Kronwall- best defenseman on each team.

The Maple Wings won the game 3-2 as it went into a shootout.

Conditions for fans were tough as it was only 13 degrees while in a snowstorm.

The 2017 Coors Light Stadium Series will be held at Heinz Field, home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, from the NFL. This matchup will feature two teams from Pennsylvania in the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins. These two teams have been fierce rivals since the beginning of the NHL. In every matchup between these teams expect lots of physically. Those players aren’t afraid to throw some punches. The projected goalies for this matchup are Marc- Andre Fluery against Steve Mason. Keep the word projected in mind. Back-ups for both teams will most likely make a good case to start in this great event. While Steve Mason was injured, Micheal Neuvirth had been playing amazing and would sometimes have to steal games for Philadelphia. He’s a major reason the Flyers made it into the playoffs. Matt Murray had carried Pittsburgh to the Stanley Cup. Once in a while he’d let in a soft goal but he was consistent and Pittsburgh felt comfortable with him. He was also one of the main options/choices for the Conn Smythe Trophy awarded to the most valuable player in the playoffs for the Stanley Cup winning team.

Hopefully the Outdoor Games will add even more entertainment to NHL games. More Mayor Date Articles are in the making. Thank you for your patience!