![]() General Manager Mike Grier worked diligently to grant Karlsson’s request while Erik never spoke negatively about the organization – his understanding of the cap hit, and term left on his contract, would not make it an easy transaction and patience was needed. Give the San Jose Sharks and Erik Karlsson credit, throughout the ordeal of the Norris Trophy winner’s request of a trade to a Stanley Cup contender – San Jose is the arguably the furthest of the 32 teams from a championship – things never got ugly. Will the Leafs be the first team to have four players with an eight-figure salary cap hit? If he’s not signed in-season, a repeat of last season’s numbers will guarantee an eight-figure salary. Nylander’s first 40-goal season and a career high 87 points backed with 10 points in 11 playoff games has pushed his ask into the $10 million per year range, a number that makes it difficult for new GM Brad Treliving to navigate in the 2024-25 season with both Mitchell Marner and John Tavares cap hits north of $10M. The Matthews camp would have preferred to sign after an extension for high-scoring winger William Nylander was done, but with negotiations going nowhere on that front, Matthews followed through on his wish to stay in Toronto. ![]() The Toronto Maple Leafs got Job 1 done and eliminated a potential huge in-season distraction in the process by getting the Auston Matthews deal done in August, resetting the bar for the highest AAV in the NHL ($13.25 million). As for their chances for a repeat, with the salary cap not increasing significantly, a mediocre free agency frenzy and a soft trade market, none of the top contenders made big enough moves to deter George McPhee and Kelly McCrimmon from thinking that if they can stay healthy, they can raise the Cup again. The only significant change to the roster was Original Golden Misfit Reilly Smith’s departure via trade in favor of Ivan Barbashev, who provided the expected impact when he was acquired at the trade deadline from St. They are running it back with essentially the same team that went 16-6 on the way to the title. Vegas will attempt to be the third team in the last eight seasons to win back-to-back Stanley Cups (Pittsburgh 2016/17, Tampa Bay 2020/21). With the new season on the horizon, I’ve picked 10 intriguing storylines as we sit one month from Opening Night on October 10: 1. Doubling down in The Desert? The 2022-23 season concluded with a week-long stay in Nashville for the NHL Awards and Draft – and some may still be recovering from it – after which some players retreated to the off-season to heal (and some are still healing), others to contemplate the next move in their career via free agency, and still more deciding to commence their life after professional hockey. The six-game triumph by Vegas in the Western Conference Final was deceiving as the Golden Knights sprinted out to the 3-0 series lead eliminated any doubt as to who would be repping the West. The Panthers were too banged up to offer resistance against the eventual champions after dispatching the Carolina Hurricanes in a surprising four-game sweep. Mark Stone raised that silver chalice to the roars of the faithful at T-Mobile Arena after the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Florida Panthers, solidifying owner Bill Foley’s premonition that a championship would be celebrated on the Las Vegas Strip within six years.įifteen teams have appeared in the Stanley Cup Final over the past ten seasons, and with nearly half of a 32-team league playing for a championship a sign of parity, the Conference Finals and Final lacked the drama normally associated with the final four qualifiers. LOS ANGELES, CA – When we last left the National Hockey League, the Stanley Cup was being hoisted in a city many said NHL hockey would never succeed.
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