Two Man Forecheck

Two Man ForeCheck: Top RFAs, Cap Mismanagement, Hlinka Gretzky, John Gibson's new deal, Twitter Poll, Bottom Six Value and more

This week; What does William Karlsson's deal mean? Which California team has the best chane of winning a up in the next five years? Why were the resignings of Sean Kuraly and Matt Grzelyck important to the Boston Bruins? The new Dead Wings era is here, and Dylan Larkin's contract is the tip of the iceberg. The top RFA's left unsigned, and of course Canada "wins" the Hlinka Gretzky tournement at home, over Lucas Raymond and team Sweden, over the time clock and Team USA.

 

This week with Chris out of reach, I stumble through the show all by my lonely, please forgive.

Want to take part in this week's Twitter poll? Click here or visit @PuckSage

Two Man ForeCheck Episode 0079 Bruins Summer Moves, Jeff Skinner

With Chris on a much earned vacation Boston Herald rising star and WATD cornerstone Brendan Connelly cozies up to the mic to discuss Jeff Skinner, John Tavares, Rick Middleton's number retirement, and the rest of the Boston Bruins off season moves. You can find Brendan on Twitter @BConn63

Episode 0078: Iginla Retires, Trouba Signs, Skjei and Vesey Avoid Arbitration, Wilson Signs with Caps, Crawford Still Out, Linden Leaves Canucks, Hughes Back to Michigan, D-Men Top 12 and More!!

Another fun filled week in the summer of 2018!  The NHL is still moving along, albeit at a snail’s pace at times.  The Forecheckers have another episode ready to go.

We start with some less than exciting news that Jarome Iginla is calling it a career.  1300 points in 1500 games is nothing to snicker at, and he should be in the hall of fame by both our accounts.  What do you think?

On to arbitration…Jacob Trouba has signed his 1 year 5.5-million-dollar settlement, and it would appear that his days in Winnipeg might be numbered.  The contract is ready to trade, and he may be dealt at the deadline.

Other players who have signed include:  Tom Wilson – 6 years, 31 million; Brady Skjei – 6 years, 31.5 million and Jimmy Vesey – 2 years, 4.5 million.

Corey Crawford is a Stanley Cup winning goaltender, but he hasn’t been seen on the ice since February. He is still suffering from a mysterious head injury and there is no timetable on his return.  What does this mean for the Blackhawks?

Trevor Linden has left the Vancouver Canucks.  There wasn’t much fanfare about this move and finding the story was a bit of luck.  Jim Benning will be assuming his duties for now, but what does this mean for a franchise that has been in a bit of disarray for a few years now?

Quinn Hughes, the Vancouver first round pick this past draft, has announced that he will be returning to Michigan for his second year at the University.  The story is that he was not guaranteed a spot on the starting roster, but is this the whole story?

The Two Man Forecheck Twitter Poll results were 50/50 as to whether Duncan Keith is a top 12 defenseman in the NHL.  Based on our lists, he isn’t, which leads to our last discussion…

Both Mike and Chris have identified their top 12 defensemen for the past 3 seasons, and the overlap was not surprising.  11 out of 12 spots were the same, with the difference being two Nashville d-men, one former and one current.

Give the podcast a listen and let us know what your list would look like.  Do you agree with the Forecheckers?  Should we have included someone else?  Let us know and enjoy the show!

Episode 0077: Matt Dumba Contract, Arbitration Hearings Start, Vegas Trademark Resolved, Henrique Extension with Ducks, Panarin to Boston, Wings Prospect Outlook and Much More!

Truly a quiet week in the NHL, this week’s show reflects as much.  The topics range from arbitration to trades to the future location of Lord Stanley’s cup. 

We start this trip in Minnesota with the signing of Matt Dumba.  Avoiding arbitration, he has inked a 5 year 30-million-dollar contract. We agree that this is good for both parties going forward.

We move to Winnipeg, where the first arbitration hearing has been held for defenseman Jacob Trouba. The feeling here is that he will get slightly below what Dumba will pull in, but will Matt’s deal in any way affect what Trouba gets as a result?

Speaking of arbitration, we discuss the hearing schedule and the way it appears to be back loaded with stars.  The feeling here is that the teams hope to avoid hearings for these players by giving them some time to work out details.  Players such as William Karlsson and Ryan Spooner will have to wait to have their respective arguments heard.  Coming up tomorrow the biggest name would probably be Brandon Montour, yet another defenseman that may have his numbers affected by the Dumba deal.

There is one goaltender on the arbitration list, David Rittich, from Calgary.  With not much of an NHL résumé, he will not be commanding huge dollars, but will he in any way affect players such as Malcolm Subban, who is in the last year of his current deal.  We don’t believe this to be the case, but do you?

Speaking of the Golden Knights, if you have been following the Forecheck during the season, you are aware of the ongoing trademark battle with the U.S. Army.  Well, we are here to report that the battle is over.  Vegas can use the trademark and will be available for use in 60 days, just in time for the new season.

The Ducks have displayed on social media their throwback jersey for the upcoming 25^thanniversary season, and it is something to behold.  Bringing back memories from the inaugural season, the duck is back! Give it a look!

While in Anaheim, we talk about Adam Henrique signing his extension, 5 years, 29 million dollars. This again is a team friendly deal that should be good for both parties going forward.

In Boston, one of the foremost hockey writers, Kevin Paul Dupont, writes about Artemi Panarin coming to Boston and how good a fit it would be for the team.  The issue here is what the Bruins would have to give up to get him and how that affects the line he would be on.  What is your opinion?

From Boston we land in Detroit and discuss the prospects that could potentially see ice time in Little Caesars Arena this fall.  The belief here is that the two defensive prospects, Filip Hronek and Dennis Cholowski should be starting at the top level but Zadina and Rasmussen will probably start in Grand Rapids.

There was a trade in the NHL, but no one will fault you for missing it.  The Coyotes have acquired Jacob Graves and a sixth-round pick for Ryan MacInnis.  Nothing too exciting here, but the Coyotes have filled their 50 contract spots.

We mention the twitter poll regarding Artemi Panarin and finish up with our version of where in the world…needless to say, Lord Stanley is in Canada.

Give us a listen and tell us what you think!  Enjoy the show!

Episode 0076: Top 25 Players Of The Last 3 Years, Where Should Karlsson Go, 44 Arbitration Eligible Players, Blackhawks/Coyotes Salary Trade and Bjorkstrand Extends With Columbus!

With only one mention-worthy transaction this past week, we are truly in the dog days of the NHL off-season.  We at the Two Man Forecheck, however, are still attacking each week with playoff vigor. 

We start this week with our Top 25 players of the past 3 seasons.  With no guidelines as to selection, the lists are truly unique. There is only 48% crossover. Players such as Patrice Bergeron, Drew Doughty, Victor Hedman and Alex Ovechkin obviously made both lists, but the differences stand out.  Players such as Oliver Ekman-Larsson, John Gibson and Mark Scheifele appear on Chris’ list, but not Mike’s.  And in reverse, Blake Wheeler, Roberto Luongo, and Steven Stamkos appear on Mike’s list but are not choices for Chris.  Who would you have on your list?  Are there players that you would leave off either of these lists?  Let us know!

After all this discussion of the best players, the Forecheckers change tracks and look at the 44 players who filed for Arbitration this off-season, identifying the 6 or 7 players that top the list.

A little Erik Karlsson talk never hurt anyone, and we discuss where he might land.

We finish the show talking about the salary dump that Chicago took part in, trading Marian Hossa’s contract and two other players to the Coyotes for 3 players and a pick. This trade could end up hurting the Blackhawks, however, as they didn’t get much younger, and didn’t improve the defense.

Oh yeah…Oliver Bjorkstrand signed a 3-year extension with the Blue Jackets…Congrats!

Leave us some feedback on the show, or the lists, or anything that is on your mind (hopefully hockey related) and enjoy the show!

Episode 0075: 13 Troublesome Free Agent Contracts, Nail Yakupov To The KHL, Listener Question, Overused Goaltenders Rinne and Lundqvist, Kucherov Extension and More!

We are now into the dry portion of the year…no hockey until September!  So, we at the Two Man Forecheck are going to forge on and talk about everything available.

We start with a list of 13 contracts that are “iffy”.  This list is published by David Staples on the Edmonton Journal.  Both Mike and Chris have issues with most of the contracts listed with the exception of two.

Moving on, we discuss the move of Nail Yakupov to the KHL and whether he was ruined by the Oilers or was it something of his own doing?  The Forecheckers agree that there is a combination of factors here.

A listener, @holyrooder72 wanted to know how Jack Studnicka did at Bruins Development Camp.

There are two goaltenders in their mid 30’s with teams that are in different places.  Pekka Rinne and Henrik Lundqvist have both put in a lot of work with their respective teams, but which one should we worry more about. On this topic we disagree, give a listen and let us know on which side you fall.

Kucherov has signed an 8-year extension with the Lightning.  Average annual value of 9.5 million dollars.  Is this a good deal?  Again, we disagree, how do you feel?

Finally, Emmanuel Perry released a list on Twitter regarding the adjusted points per game for the top 50 skaters drafted this year.  It’s an interesting list to be sure, but is it just another tool or is it the old adage that you can make stats say anything you want?

We present to you another show for your listening pleasure.  Let us know what you think and where your opinions lie.  Until next week…enjoy!

Episode 0074: NHL Free Agency 2018! The Silly Season Has Begun, Tavares and the Leafs, O'Reilly and the Blues, David Perron, Bruins Development Camp and So Much More!

The Free Agent silly season has begun.  John Tavares has gone home, Paul Stastny has gone to Vegas, and quality, top line defensemen are hard to come by.

We start with the big signing…Tavares to Toronto.  But was this the best move or the move that Toronto should have made?  The Forecheckers have an opinion on this, and Maple Leaf fans might not agree with us. 

We talk about the signings for the Boston Bruins…John Moore and Jaroslav Halak.  Halak can be good, really good, but can also be really bad.  If he wraps his head around the backup role, then this may be a good fit.  John Moore becomes the 8^thdefenseman on the squad…who is the odd man out?

We throw in a little 1996 draft talk as both Chara and Matt Cullen are the only remaining members from that draft to still be playing in the league.

St. Louis has defined insanity by bringing back David Perron for a third go-round, and may possibly have paid a huge price for Ryan O’Reilly but is this all going to work out for them?

Finally, we delve into Bruins Development Camp and highlight a few players that stood out to us.  Who were your favorites?

As always, please tell us how you feel about what is happening during the silly season and we will be sure to talk about it!

Until next time…keep listening and enjoy!

Episode 0073: NHL Awards and Draft, Ilya Kovalchuk, Darryl Sutter, Marc Bergevin Trades, Craig Button Speaks, Flames/'Canes Trade, and Much More!

Welcome everyone!  The Awards and the NHL Draft have taken place and we at the Two Man Forecheck are ready to give you an opinion.  We will start the show with a 35-year-old heading back to the NHL, that’s right, Kovi’s back!  Ilya Kovalchuk has signed with the L.A. Kings for 3 years, 6.25 million per year. Is he a good fit there?  We believe it is.

The NHL Awards were fairly predictable, and if Mike is to be believed, not at all exciting to watch. The Norris Trophy was somewhat exciting as Victor Hedman won the award, but the variety of the vote getters was vast.

Darryl Sutter has stated that he is retired and is happy with going back to his farm, but the Forecheckers don’t necessarily agree.  We feel that he will be back sometime in the next 2 to 3 years.

Marc Bergevin, much maligned GM for the Montreal Canadiens has made some splashes, appearing to be willing to trade some top players such as Max Pacioretty and Carey Price.  Is he just making a splash or will one of these players be on the move?

Wayne Simmonds is another player who could have a new address in the NHL.  Where should he land?  Boston may be a nice fit, but what do you think?

Craig Button has made some comments regarding the Russian named at the start of the show, stating that he is “average”.  Is there a Russian dislike here, or some other bias against a player that appears to still have the ability to put the puck in the net?  Along with this, will Rick Nash return to Boston or is he ready to hang up his skates?  At 34 he has had his share of concussions throughout his career and may not want to return.

The big trade on draft day took place between the Flames and Hurricanes, but who won the deal?  We posit a theory that the Flames may come out on top.

Finally, we close with all things draft related.  What trends emerged?  Who had a good and/or bad draft.  What players were surprise picks?  Let us know your feelings on the NHL draft.

As always, let us know what you think.  We will return late Sunday, as it is the first day of free agency and we will surely have an opinion on how everything shakes out.  Keep listening and let us know how you feel!

Episode 0072: Domi/Galchenyuk, Mike Hoffman Trades, Grzelcyk Signs, O.E.L. Verbally Signs, Trotz Resigns, We Talk Draft Prospects, Ovi and the Kids, Panarin and Power Rankings

This week in hockey brings us the awards and the NHL draft.  We delve into the latter later in the show, but we open with the Max Domi for Alex Galchenyuk trade.  For Chris, the trade doesn’t make much sense, but Mike takes a more open approach to the deal. 

Mike Hoffman and his fiancée made a splash this week, Mike with two trades in a matter of hours and his fiancée with her pending cyber bullying allegations.  But could this be a win for the Panthers, the final stop on the Hoffman ride…we think so.

Matt Grzelcyk signed a two-year deal with the Bruins.  Both Mike and Chris believe that the deal is good for both parties, but how do you feel?

Oliver Ekman Larsson has a verbal agreement in place with the Coyotes for 8 years and 64 million dollars. This sets the bar for players like Drew Doughty and Erik Karlsson.

Barry Trotz has won the Stanley Cup, what is he going to do now?  No, not Disney World, but he has resigned his position.  Where will he end up?  Are the Islanders a possibility.  The Two Man Forecheck have an opinion.

Finally, we reach the prospects.  Mike and Chris have picked some possible mid round picks that could surface.

Alex Ovechkin and Ted Leonsis visited the oldest minority youth hockey program at Fort Dupont.  He truly looks like he is enjoying himself and the kids appear to have had quite the fun-filled day!

Artemi Panarin has stated that he will not consider signing an extension with the Blue Jackets this season, his last with the organization on his current contract.  Hildymac at St. Louis Game Time on SB Nation thinks this is an opportunity for Panarin to play with his good buddy, Vladimir Tarasenko, but how would that work out.  Who could the Blues possibly part with to acquire the breadman’s talents.  We discuss.

Last up are some way too early power rankings for next season.  Tampa Bay comes in at number one, but should they?   Who do you think is the number one team in the NHL?

Lots to talk about, so let us know what you think.  We’d enjoy your comments and questions so give us a listen and join in!

Episode 0071: Pie McKenzie Passed Away, Maple Leafs Cap Issues, E.C. Teams In Need of Improvement, Barry Trotz, Islanders Moves, Habs Center Issues and More!

Before we get started with the show, the Two Man Forecheck want to send our prayers and heart-felt condolences to the family and friends of Johnny “Pie” McKenzie.  He passed away last night (June 8^th, 2018) after being confined to his bed for some time.  Johnny was a much liked and respected member of the Big, Bad Bruins teams of the 1970’s.

We tackle the upcoming cap issues for the Toronto Maple Leafs and some possible player moves that could take place there.  Will Connor Carrick accept a lower contract as part of a “bridge” deal?  Could Leo Komarov be on the chopping block and is that a good Idea for the Leafs?

Which Eastern Conference team of this year’s playoffs needs the most improvement?  Philly is the consensus pick, but Chris posits another theory.

Which GM is likely to be entertaining his last draft with his current team?  Again, there are numerous picks, but Mike has some interesting opinions here.

Barry Trotz has just won the Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals, but he is a free agent.  Will he be staying with the current team or could he be on the move?  The Forecheckers have a heated discussion, managing to avoid, ever so slightly, going to blows over his possible move to the New York Islanders.  Where do you think he will end up?

The Islanders have also replaced their GM and head coach, moving on from Garth Snow and Doug Weight. Will Lou Lamoriello have better success on the island?  Will John Tavares stay?

The Canadiens have many picks in this upcoming draft.  Could one of them be a center to help out Max Pacioretty?  Jesperi Kotkaniemi is a 6’2” 190 lb.  center who hopes that, if the Habs go in that direction, that he is the pick. We discuss at length a prospect that could make his NHL home in the Bell Centre.

Alexander Khokhlachev was drafted by the Bruins in the 2^ndround of the 2011 draft.  His offensive skills are apparent, but maturity may have been an issue.  He has been in the KHL since the 2015-16 season, but it’s possible he could be returning to the NHL.  He is still under contract with the Boston Bruins, could they use his skills as part of the depth scoring they need to get further in the playoffs?

Finally, Nikita Bespalov, Koko’s teammate in Russia, is a goaltender with good numbers for his past seven seasons.  At 30 years old, could he still get a look from some NHL teams?

We present a lot of questions and possible solutions this week, but we look for your opinions as well, so let us know what you think…and enjoy the show!