The Athletic's Corey Pronman, Scott Wheeler, and Max Bultman released their latest 2026 NHL Mock Draft. The Buffalo Sabres were among the teams featured on it, as they still have their first-round pick for this year's draft.
In the mock draft, Wheeler predicted that the Sabres would select defenseman Xavier Villeneuve in the first round.
If the Sabres selected Villeneuve at this year's draft, they would be bringing in a skilled offensive defenseman who has plenty of potential. The 5-foot-11 defenseman had a strong season in the QMJHL with the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada, where he posted six goals and 38 points in 37 games. This is after he had 12 goals and 62 points in 61 games for the QMJHL club during the 2024-25 season.
With Villeneuve being a skilled blueliner, it would makes sense if the Sabres took a chance on him in the first round. The potential for him to become an impactful top-four defenseman and power-play specialist in the NHL later down the road is there.
It will now be interesting to see if the Sabres end up selecting Villeneuve with their first round pick this year from here.
The Vegas Golden Knights punched their ticket to the 2026 Stanley Cup Final on Tuesday night.
The Knights swept away the Colorado Avalanche, who have former New York Islanders Brock Nelson and Devon Toews.
The Avalanche's elimination confirmed the Islanders traded the 29th overall pick to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for Brayden Schenn, as part of the bigger trade itself.
With Vegas advancing to the final, it's time to look back at how the Islanders fared against the Western Conference Champions.
The Islanders played Vegas twice, per the usual NHL schedule of facing every team from the west twice.
The Islanders went 2-0-0 against the Knights, with one overtime win and one shootout victory.
The first meeting of the season came back on November 13, 2025. That night, the Islanders came into Vegas looking to a win a third-straight game to kick off a season-long seven-game road trip.
The first period went exceedingly well, with Emil Heineman and Matthew Schaefer scoring to give the Islanders a 2-0 lead after one period. Vegas scored the next three goals over the next two periods, putting the Islanders backs to the wall.
Mathew Barzal tied the game with under three minutes to go with Ilya Sorokin pulled, a thundering one-timer.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau then won it in overtime with a shorthanded goal, a massive win for the Islanders at the time:
The second meeting came just under a month later, on December 9 in UBS Arena.
The opposite of the first game occurred, with the Islanders falling behind 2-0 to start the game.
The Islanders fought back and scored three straight goals, with Bo Horvat, Marc Gatcomb, and Simon Holmstrom all tallying.
Vegas fought back, and tied the game at 3 early in the third period.
Then with under 10 minutes to play, Horvat scored his second of the game, giving the Islanders a late lead.
Ultimately, Pavel Dorofeyev tied the game at 4 with 12 seconds left in regulation.
Emil Heineman ultimately won the thrilling game in a shootout.
The 2025-26 season came to an end for the Anaheim Ducks less than two weeks ago, on May 14, and the opponent who ousted them, the Vegas Golden Knights, are off to the Stanley Cup final for the third time in the nine-year history of their franchise.
The Ducks were a surprise team to make the playoffs and an even bigger surprise as they advanced to the second round, defeating the back-to-back Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers in six games.
The Knights and Ducks split the first four games of their second-round series, and one wouldn’t have been blamed for thinking Anaheim was the better team through the early stages of the series.
Vegas went on to win Game 5 in overtime and handily closed out the series in Game 6, at Honda Center on May 14. On Tuesday, they closed out their four-game sweep of the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche in dominant fashion, earning themselves the Campbell Trophy.
The Ducks’ first trip to the Stanley Cup playoffs in eight seasons included the first appearances for their entire young core. While their playoff run naturally offered a wide array of lessons and experiences for the Ducks, from the players on the ice to the organization as a whole, there are several aspects of their second-round opponent and now Western Conference champion Golden Knights that they could study, adopt, and implement into their own group as they continue to build toward becoming a perennial contender.
The quick, zoomed-out, potentially snarky responses will be to “get better players” or “defend better,” but there are more granular concepts to pull from.
Roster Construction
A glance at Vegas’ depth chart will reveal two key facets to how general manager Kelly McCrimmon has constructed his roster: star two-way forwards and long, sturdy, mobile defensemen.
Vegas has contributors up and down their entire lineup. However, the core pieces of their forward group that truly dictate how they operate on the ice can be identified as franchise center Jack Eichel, captain Mark Stone, offseason acquisition Mitch Marner, and William Karlsson, one of the best 200-foot centers of his generation.
Those four forwards are not only staples on the penalty kill, but are also academic, influential, and disruptive on the defensive side of the puck, in every situation and in every zone. They’re not only able to manufacture mistakes and turnovers from their opponents, but can turn those sequences into dangerous opportunities the other way.
The Ducks’ present and future core forwards can be identified as Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier, and Beckett Sennecke, with the potential of including one, two, or all three of Troy Terry, Mason McTavish, and Roger McQueen to that mix, depending on circumstance.
Carlsson (21), Gauthier (22), and Sennecke (20) each have the physical tools and tenacity to evolve into quality defensive players as their young careers progress. They each possess the necessary foot speed, length, and motor, having displayed flashes of disruptive, hounding tendencies.
If Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek were to lean into adding more defensively impactful players to surround his young core via trade or free agency this summer, the Ducks could instill that standard within their young core and replicate some of that key element to Vegas’ current success.
Seize Opportunities to Add
Another close examination of the Golden Knights’ depth chart will reveal a unique way to build a consistent Cup contender. They simply target every impact name that hits a given trade market or free agency class.
Aside from Shea Theodore, Brayden McNabb, and William Karlsson, who were acquired within the context of the 2017 expansion draft, the vast majority of the Knights’ core and/or impact players were cleverly acquired via trade or free agency.
Mark Stone, Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner, Tomas Hertl, Ivan Barbashev, Noah Hanifin, Rasmus Andersson, and Carter Hart were all added externally, and the majority of the acquisitions could now be seen as “steals,” as the acquisition cost was likely less than full value due to various circumstances (no-trade clauses, depreciated assets, etc.). The lone impact player to have been drafted and developed by Vegas is late-blooming breakout forward Pavel Dorofeyev (79th overall in 2019).
The Ducks are coming off the heels of a long, traditional rebuild, where they acquired and/or developed most of their core and most talented players via the NHL Entry Draft. However, now that the core is in place and Anaheim has established itself as a potential destination for star players on the move, as soon as the salary cap landscape of the roster becomes clearer, it may benefit Verbeek to become more aggressive in his pursuit of complementary star players as they hit the NHL’s various markets.
Though they parted with their 2026 first round pick to acquire John Carlson at this past trade deadline, Anaheim still has a treasure trove of draft picks in the next four drafts, including 12 picks in the first three rounds, and one of the best prospect pipelines in the NHL with varying degrees of NHL readiness.
Headlined by prospects like Roger McQueen, Tristan Luneau, and Damian Clara, along with young, talented players who’ve yet to establish themselves in the NHL like Mason McTavish, Pavel Mintyukov, and Olen Zellweger, the Ducks have the pieces to construct some of the most enticing trade packages should a star player become available.
It shouldn’t go without saying that not all Vegas’ “go for it” moves were successful. They parted with now-Montreal Canadien’s captain Nick Suzuki in a package to acquire forward Max Pacioretty (who had a good run with Vegas, but never lifted the cup). Part of the package Vegas sent to Montreal for Pacioretty included forward Tomas Tatar, whom they acquired just six months and 20 games prior in exchange for a first, second, and third-round pick.
Though some of their dealings have been considered “ruthless,” Vegas continues to aggressively make the moves they feel will help them win Stanley Cups immediately. It’s unorthodox and risky, but Verbeek has the stockpile to deploy a similar strategy in Anaheim.
On-Ice Tactics
Though ample credit has been given to Vegas head coach John Tortorella and the on-ice play of goaltender Carter Hart for the Knights’ playoff success to this point, and much of it is deserved, Vegas’ systems and on-ice play style instituted by former bench boss Bruce Cassidy and reinforced by the 18 skaters in front of the crease remains one of the most influential aspects of their run.
Vegas’ contained zone defensive structure has thwarted two young, fast, “run-and-gun” clubs in the Utah Mammoth and Anaheim Ducks, and an aggressive, flowing, talented Colorado Avalanche team. The Knights prioritize protecting the inner slot, allowing perimeter possession until a mistake is forced, on which they can capitalize. They have been the NHL’s best team when it comes to boxing out the net front, clearing rebounds, and eliminating high-danger lanes. Their five-man defensive structure makes Hart’s job significantly easier.
Offensively, they aren’t the fleetest, and they don’t boast the NHL’s best forecheck, but with their IQ and length, they are one of the league’s top cycle teams. They wear opponents down, identify breakdowns, and win wall battles at an impressive clip, leading to accomplishing their offensive goals.
The Ducks were one of the NHL’s top rush teams, relying on their speed and youth to drive their output. However, when they ran up against a polished defensive team like Vegas, who values puck management and plays a contained system, Anaheim’s flaws were exposed.
Anaheim’s rush chances were minimized against the Knights, leaving them to attempt to manufacture offense off the cycle and forecheck. Vegas’ defensemen were able to absorb the Ducks’ forecheck with ease, and Anaheim’s physical and mental youth couldn’t penetrate the Knights’ interior zone, leaving them forced to settle for low-to-high passes and perimeter shots with minimal traffic.
Much of their wrinkles will likely be ironed out with time and experience, but focusing on becoming a reliable team in front of the crease in the defensive zone and rounding out their offensive diversity will be necessary to achieve the Ducks’ ultimate goal.
Vegas will head to the Stanley Cup final as the likely favorite to defeat whoever comes out of the Eastern Conference between the Montreal Canadiens and Carolina Hurricanes. The Ducks still have some distance to make up to get to where Vegas is in their organization, but adopting some of the aspects that have made the Knights such a successful young franchise will be needed in the years to come for Anaheim.
LAS VEGAS — The tempting comparison, given the Golden Knights’ unexpected run to the Stanley Cup Final, would be to the team that shocked the NHL in 2018 by playing for the championship as a first-year franchise.
But the more apt comparison might be to three years ago when Vegas — in not nearly as much of a surprise — won the Stanley Cup.
Carolina or Montreal, who are playing in the Eastern Conference Final, will have a lot to say whether the Golden Knights complete the task and win another Cup.
But Vegas is back for the third time in its nine seasons to cement itself as potentially the greatest expansion franchise in North American sports history. The Golden Knights got there by beating Colorado 2-1 for a stunning sweep of the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Avalanche.
This team, like the one in 2023, has won with depth scoring, bruising defense and a hot goalie.
“I think we’ve always built our teams with good depth at the forward position, defensive position and goaltending position,” captain Mark Stone said. “I guess the similarities are that’s just the way we build our teams.”
On the 2023 team, 18 players scored goals in the playoffs and 12 had at least 10 points over 22 games. So far through 16 games this postseason, 15 players have scored goals and six have produced 10 or more points.
The depth showed itself in the clincher against the Avalanche when both goals came from the third and fourth lines, with Cole Smith scoring the decisive goal with 5:45 left.
“The third and fourth lines, the five- and six-D, that’s how you continue to move in the playoffs,” coach John Tortorella said. “Those are very important pieces as you go through these series. I’m happy for Smitty. I was going to kill him; he’s taking so many penalties.
“But I’m happy for him and (Dylan Coghlan and Kaedan Korczak). I mean, how well did they play. Playing against that team with the amount of speed that they bring, they weren’t intimidated by a thing.”
Coghlan and Korczak form the third pairing on the Golden Knights’ defense, which shut down an Avalanche offense that averaged a league-high 3.63 goals per game during the regular season and in the first two rounds upped that to 4.11. It was 1.75 against Vegas.
Colorado went the final 14:23 of the second period in Game 4 without a shot on goal and more than 25 minutes with just one shot.
The Golden Knights spent the series blocking one Avalanche shot after another, and for the postseason, four of the top nine players in blocked shots play for Vegas, topped by Shea Theodore’s 46. Four of the top five in 2023 were Golden Knights, including leader Alec Martinez with 57.
And then there’s the goalie play.
Adin Hill shined in 2023, coming off the bench in the second round and then going 11-4 with a .932 save percentage and 2.17 goals-against average. Hill remains on the team, but has been watching from the bench as Carter Hart has taken hold of the position. Hart is 12-4 with a .924 percentage and 2.22 GAA during the postseason.
“Hartsy’s been amazing this whole series, whole playoffs really,” Mitch Marner said. “Made some massive saves throughout all these games and again tonight. Made some massive ones for us to keep the game where it was. Hell of a game by Hartsy again.”
The Vegas Golden Knights have officially become the first team to advance to the 2026 Stanley Cup Final.
After taking down both the Utah Mammoth and the Anaheim Ducks in six games, Vegas swept the President’s Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Final to bring themselves four wins away from lifting the Stanley Cup for the second time in franchise history.
For two former members of the Vancouver Canucks organization, Vegas’ playoff run this season is not the first time they have advanced to the Stanley Cup Final.
Ex-Canuck and now-Golden Knight Ben Hutton won the Stanley Cup with Vegas back in 2023, with this being the team’s first time winning the championship and second time advancing to the Finals. The defenceman missed the first bit of the Golden Knights’ current playoff run, but skated in all six games of the team’s series against the Ducks. He played in one game against Colorado and tallied one assist.
Former Canucks head coach John Tortorella has made it to the Stanley Cup Finals once in his coaching career — when he won the championship with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2004. Prior to this year, since that cup run in 2004, Tortorella had only made it as far as the Conference Finals. The ex-Canucks bench boss infamously joined Vegas at the end of March, taking the place of former Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy.
May 26, 2026; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Nicolas Roy (10) and center Brock Nelson (11) congratulate Vegas Golden Knights center William Karlsson (71) and center Nic Dowd (26) after the loss in game four of the Western Conference Final of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
Unlike his fellow former Canucks on Vegas, Nic Dowd will be taking part in his first Stanley Cup Final with the Golden Knights’ series win. Prior to this year, his entire post-season career was spent with the Washington Capitals, with his longest playoff run being last year’s 10-game run against the Montréal Canadiens and the Carolina Hurricanes. This year, he has put up four points in 16 playoff games, including two against the Avalanche.
Vegas will face the winner of the Eastern Conference Final — one of Montréal or Carolina — for the Stanley Cup. As it stands, the Hurricanes currently lead the series 2–1.
Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.
LAS VEGAS — Colorado Avalanche coach Jared Bednar’s decision to replace goaltender Scott Wedgewood with Mackenzie Blackwood for Game 4 of the Western Conference Final wasn’t a bad idea, if only the backup netminder had gotten goal support.
The Vegas Golden Knights completed a 4-0 series sweep of the top-seeded Avalanche with a 2-1 win and will return to the Stanley Cup Final for the third time in their nine years in the league.
The Avalanche now prepare for a long offseason. They had a dominant regular season, tying for the sixth-highest points by a Presidents’ Trophy winner with 121, going 8-1 in the first two rounds of the postseason while averaging 4.1 goals per game, and then falling flat in the conference final by averaging just 1.75 goals per game.
Though Blackwood dropped to 0-5-1 in six career appearances against the Golden Knights, he said he thought his performance was “good enough to probably get the win” after stopping 24 shots and holding the Knights to just one goal until the third period.
“Obviously, (expletive) sucks no matter how you do it,” said Blackwood, when asked if it is harder to accept being swept. “I think losing like that stings a little more. Yeah, that’s going to be pretty frustrating. We are going to have a tough pill to swallow.”
The Avalanche, who were held to one goal for just the third time during the postseason and second time in this series, didn’t get a shot on goal for more than 25 minutes over the second and third periods, as the Golden Knights were deliberate with their checking.
Offensive star and assistant captain Nathan MacKinnon, who led the team with 15 points in the playoffs, finished the series without scoring one goal after netting at least one in six previous playoff games.
Martin Necas, who was second on the team with 12 points during the postseason, just had two assists against Vegas and only one goal during the entire postseason.
Gabriel Landeskog scored for Colorado, cutting Vegas’ lead in half with 2:03 left in the game.
The Avalanche managed just one shot on goal after that, from MacKinnon, but Vegas goaltender Carter Hart continued his brilliant postseason by making his 20th save of the night.
“We run into a buzz saw in Vegas ... it’s a really good hockey team, and they won,” Bednar said. “They deserve the credit, you know. It’s not a knock on our guys. I just think we played hard and didn’t find enough solutions to what they were doing in order to win the series.
“Humility is certainly a word you use for it. I think that’s sports in general. I think you’re going to run into that a lot on any given day on any given year, and especially in the playoffs, right? So, yeah, losing sucks and losing four straight is worse.”
If you've been watching the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, you know that they are absolutely littered with former
Columbus Blue Jackets players. From Vegas and Colorado to Carolina and Montreal, there is no shortage of former CBJ to watch.
But, with last night's sweep of the Colorado Avalanche, the Vegas Golden Knights will be sending a trio of former players to the Cup final. Oh, and the head coach, John Tortorella.
Brandon Saad - Traded to Columbus in June of 2015. He then played two seasons, totaling 106 points, before being traded back to the Chicago Blackhawks in June of 2017 for Artemi Panarin. He has 2 points in 5 playoff games for Vegas.
William Karlsson - Contrary to popular belief, Karlsson was not drafted by the CBJ. He was traded to Columbus in March of 2015. He played two full seasons and totaled 45 points for Columbus. The CBJ left him unprotected in the 2017 Vegas expansion draft and was snatched up by the VGK. The Vegas original has now played nine seasons for the Golden Knights and totaled 403 points, highlighted by his wacky first season in the desert, where he scored 43 goals and 78 points. He hasn't come anywhere close to the 43 goals and 78 points since that 2018 season. He has 76 points in 116 playoff games for Vegas.
Keegan Kolesar - Ok, I admit, this one is a bit of a stretch since he never actually played for Columbus, but he was chosen 69th overall in the 2015 NHL Draft. He was traded to the VGK on June 24, 2017, in exchange for a pick that would become Alex Texier. The Vegas original has 120 points in 439 games for Vegas. He has 4 goals in 72 playoff games.
John Tortorella - Vegas shocked the NHL world when they fired Bruce Cassidy before the season's end. Since then, he's led the Knights to a division title and has just swept the heavy cup favorite Colorado Avalanche. In Columbus, he led his teams to a 227-166-54 record with four playoff appearances. Included in that is the historic sweep of the 2019 Tampa Bay Lightning team, which highly resembled the Avs team he just swept.
The Vegas Golden Knights await the winner of the Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens series, which features a couple more former Blue Jackets.
Next Up For Columbus: The NHL Draft is on June 26 and 27 in Buffalo, where the CBJ will own pick #14.
Stay updated with the most interesting Blue Jackets stories, analysis, breaking news, and more!
Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News and never miss a story.
Let us know what you think below.
For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.
One of the biggest storylines surrounding the Florida Panthers heading into the summer is their goaltending.
Or perhaps, it’s their lack thereof.
As of now, the Panthers do not have any NHL goaltenders under contract for next season.
Longtime starter Sergei Bobrovsky will be an unrestricted free agent on July 1 following the expiration of the seven-year, $70 million deal he signed with Florida back in 2019.
Bobrovsky, who will be 38 years old on Opening Night later this year, is reportedly still looking for a reasonably-sized payday and a deal that will have some term attached to it.
Considering his age,v those could be fairly big asks, but he’s also been arguably the best playoff goaltender over the past several seasons and has a pair of Stanley Cup wins under his belt to go along with the well-earned reputation.
Ideally, Bobrovsky and the Panthers will negotiate their way to something that both sides can live with, but the vibe over the past several weeks is that the two sides are not close.
“He wants to stay in Florida, I think that’s the preference,” Pagnotta said. “He wants to stay there but he also wants term, by every indication.”
Pagnotta mentioned the six-year, $31.5 million deal Florida signed a then-37-year-old Brad Marchand to last summer as something Bobrovsky may be looking at the Panthers to offer, with more money spread out over a longer-term deal.
The two sides have been discussing a contract extension for several months, Pagnotta said, which is why Borbovsky’s name came up around the Trade Deadline.
That outside interest in Bobrovsky remains there, but how far those potential discussions go will depend on how things shake out with the Panthers.
“It wouldn’t surprise me if he goes to July 1, to at least understand what the proper appetite is out there for his services,” Pagnotta said. “But again, his priority would be to stay in Florida. I think the Panthers certainly would like to keep him, but at the same time, they’re going to do their due diligence as well, and look to see what other options might be available if Bob leaves.”
Those options could include a pair of veteran goaltenders that could be available via trade this summer in Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets and Jordan Binnington of the St. Louis Blues.
“One guy, I think, on (Florida’s) radar is St. Louis’s Jordan Binnington, who is going to be entering the final year of his contract,” Pagnotta said. “Again, the priority is to keep Bob, but Florida is going to look at their options if that’s not the case.”
Binnington has one year remaining on his current deal with an average annual value (AAV) of $6 million while Hellebuyck has five years left on his contract that carries an AAV of $8.5 million.
Florida is estimated to have around $15.2 million in cap space to work with this summer, according to PuckPedia.
We still have about a month until the NHL Draft, which takes place on June 26 and 27 in Buffalo and will be followed by the start of free agency on July 1.
It should be a fun and interesting time between now and then as we keep track of all the chatter regarding potential player signings and movement while simultaneously enjoying the end of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Photo caption: Apr 4, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky (72) looks on against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the first period at PPG Paints Arena. (Mark Alberti-Imagn Images)
One of the best stories of the spring has been John Tortorella. Seemingly from out of nowhere he was summoned to fix the falling apart Vegas Golden Knights.
Torts proved that he still has the Golden Touch.
Poof! Just like that the Knights rolled through, one, two rounds and then the real test arrived and Vegas celebrated three out of three wins going into last night's epic encounter with Colorado.
The result was – shall I say – redundant; a 2-1 and an un-real four-game sweep of the series.
What matters now is up for conjecture but the much is certain. Torts has emerged as the hottest personality in The Game – AND HIS VEGAS CONTRACT ENDS THIS SPRING.
Granted, the likelihood is that he'll wind up with a cushy multi-year deal – BUT.
The Pacific Division spent most of the season getting treated like the NHL’s weak link.
Too many flawed teams, with too little consistency, and not enough eventful hockey night-to-night. It was a division where nobody really grabbed control, and 95 points was enough to finish first.
So naturally, the Vegas Golden Knights are heading back to the Stanley Cup Final.
That's a slap in the face for everyone who spent the year clowning the Pacific—most NHL reporters included—because while the division absolutely deserved criticism at times, Vegas has once again shown that regular-season perception doesn’t always mean much once playoff hockey starts.
And honestly, they haven’t even looked dominant doing it.
This isn’t the same Golden Knights team that rolled through the league a few years ago. They looked weak for long stretches this season. Older in some areas, less dynamic offensively, and plenty of nights where they just looked slow. Nights where they absolutely looked beatable.
But they also looked organized, experienced, and completely comfortable playing ugly hockey.
Meanwhile, the supposedly terrifying Colorado Avalanche suddenly don’t look so terrifying anymore. Injuries have piled up, and the depth scoring hasn’t consistently shown up. And when the series tightened, Vegas dragged Colorado into the low-event, grinding hockey the Avalanche clearly didn’t want to play.
The Golden Knights don’t really care how a game looks as long as they control the pace of it. They’re fine winning 2-1. Fine sitting on leads. Fine cycling pucks low and waiting for mistakes. There’s nothing flashy about it, which is probably why people keep underrating them until they’re suddenly four wins from the cup again.
Still, it’s hard not to look at the bigger picture here and laugh a little at how the Western Conference broke this year.
The Pacific was called a "pillow fight" because, frankly, it often looked like one. The Edmonton Oilers couldn’t defend consistently enough. The Los Angeles Kings felt stuck in the middle. The Vancouver Canucks hit rock bottom (literally). There wasn’t a true powerhouse sitting at the top, intimidating everybody else.
Vegas won the division mostly because somebody had to.
And now that same team is rolling through a Colorado team that many thought was the best in hockey.
That doesn’t suddenly make the Pacific a powerhouse of enviable contenders. If anything, it says more about playoff hockey than the division itself. Once the postseason starts, systems tighten up, whistles disappear, and games become less about talent accumulation and more about execution.
They don’t beat themselves very often. Their defense stays compact. Their forwards stay above pucks. Their goaltending has held up. And unlike some teams built heavily around offence, the Golden Knights don’t seem bothered when games slow down.
Colorado, on the other hand, looked increasingly frustrated the longer the series went on. The speed and skill were still there occasionally, but the room to use it disappeared quickly. Vegas turned games into trench warfare, and the Avalanche never fully adjusted.
And maybe that’s the most annoying thing about Vegas if you’re the rest of the conference. They rarely feel overwhelming, but they almost always feel composed. Even when they’re not playing especially well, they stay within themselves long enough for the other team to make mistakes first.
That’s not exciting hockey. It’s effective hockey.
So yes, the Pacific may still deserve the “pillow fight” label based on the regular season. The standings were messy. The consistency wasn’t there. Nobody looked particularly dominant for six straight months.
Don't look now, but John Tortorella is becoming a legitimate option for the Edmonton Oilers as the team's next head coach in 2026-27.
Hired with just eight games remaining on the Golden Knights' regular season schedule, Tortorella has come into Vegas and done nothing short of hitting a home run with a team that was already headed to the playoffs, but wasn't really seen as a legitimate Cup contender. That "non-contender" just swept the Presidents' Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche in four games to punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Final.
What's so interesting about that? Well, Torts doesn't have a job commitment for next season and his contract expires on June 30th. Even more fascinating is that the Golden Knights, despite their succes with Tortorella behind the bench, might go a different route next season.
Elliotte Friedman noted on the latest 32 Thoughts podcast that he’s still of the belief that Vegas had no intentions of keeping Tortorella beyond this playoff run. Ryan Craig, who is the head coach for the Henderson Silver Knights of the American Hockey League, was pegged as the favorite to take over behind the bench.
Perhaps this run will change the way Vegas sees things playing out, but if they choose not to pivot their thinking and Tortorella is a one-and-done, expect the Edmonton Oilers to seek a chance to talk to Torts about the coaching position.
Could John Tortorella become available at the end of the season?
Just a few weeks ago, most would have called any theory linking Tortorella to the Edmonton unlikely. Since then, Bruce Cassidy has been unavailable for an interview and he may not ever be given permission. Torts has strung together and impressive run with Vegas, making sure everyone is reminded that he's got the magic touch, as polarizing as he can be.
Friedman said, “What do you do here? Tortorella’s contract is up on June 30th. If Vegas isn’t extending him, we know Edmonton is waiting.” He added, “Maybe it’s not the Oilers, but somebody’s going to be looking at this and saying ‘Hey, if Vegas doesn’t want him, we’ll gladly take him.”
The NHL insider has a point. Torts is not everyone's cup of tea, but you can't deny his effectiveness in short bursts. For Edmonton, that's what this team needs. It's not about the long game for the Oilers. They want to win and they need to do it now. Their window is closing and the person they hire to coach a team that has elite stars like Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl -- but also a group that doesn't have the greatest depth -- must find another gear. Tortorella can potentially get that out of this group.
And, Vegas, unless they re-sign him, can't do anything to stop it after June 30th.
Kyle Bukauskas added, “I wonder if it’s more so teams in a similar situation to Vegas and definitely in win now mode as opposed to one that’s in a different stage of their cycle because it’s pretty clear right now at this stage of Tortorella’s career, coaching teams in that mode seems to line up with his style and philosophies.”
If Tortorella isn't offered the keys to the car in Vegas after this run, you can bet a team will jump on the chance to hire him while he's hot. Why not Edmonton?
The Montreal Canadiens have lost the last two games, a first in these playoffs. If they were to lose a third consecutive game against the Carolina Hurricanes, they would find themselves in too deep a hole to climb out of. On Tuesday, Martin St-Louis understandably decided to keep his men off the ice. At this stage, they’ve seen more than enough action. It was time to look back on the last two games, reflect, and react.
Flushing away the defeat when there’s nothing you can learn from them makes sense, but after the last two games, there was plenty to learn from. There’s no doubt the coach and his assistants have been busy in the video room, dissecting the Hurricanes' play and passing that knowledge on to the players. Still, ultimately, it’s up to the players to execute and follow the instructions.
Historically, the team that leads 2-1 in a best-of-seven series has won it 69% of the time (402-180), so the odds aren’t favorable to Montreal right now, but those are just odds. Carolina has an 11-10 (.524) record in Game 4 while playing on the road, while the Canadiens have a 19-29 (.396) record in Game 4 playing at home. Down 2-1 in a series, Montreal hasn’t fared well historically; they are 8-21 (.276) overall and 6-11 (.353) when they started the series on the road.
If the Canadiens are to come out on top in Game 4, they’ll have to find a way to overcome the Hurricanes' forecheck and be able to execute good zone exits. In Game 3, they struggled to even get to the red line, which cannot happen tonight. The Habs have got to make their reads faster and make the right decisions in a split second. Entering the zone in possession has been a challenge, so it’s time to put the puck in deep, in the right area and come in at speed to retrieve it. In Game 3, Josh Anderson surprised Frederik Andersen while playing the puck behind the net and dispossessed him. That’s what Montreal needs to do more often, not just on the goalie but on their defensemen as well.
On Wednesday, goaltender Jakub Dobes is turning 25; the best gift his teammates could give him is some offensive support. The Czech netminder has been great in this series and has multiplied the important saves, but it’s not up to him to score the goals. He did get an assist on the game-tying goal on Monday, but that’s as far as it can go for him.
Whichever way you look at it, the Sainte-Flanelle’s forwards have got to step up. None of them found the back of the net on Monday, and that’s rarely a recipe for success. It’s not like they’ve never been able to produce against the Canes. Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky and Ivan Demidov all had five points in three games in the regular season against Carolina, and they all got on the scoresheet in Game 1.
It might be time for St-Louis to mix up his lines to spread his attack around. Putting Slafkovsky on the second line with Alex Newhook and Demidov could be an interesting combination. Putting another big body on the first line to fill the power forward’s spot would make sense. Zach Bolduc could be an interesting candidate. He brings speed, and he’s not afraid to throw his body around; he could be good in puck retrieval to feed Suzuki and Caufield.
At this stage, much is about having confidence and the right attitude. Montreal must come out strong and show Carolina that they won’t let them rule the game on Wednesday night. They must push back right away and show that they are still alive and kicking.
It will be interesting to see who the Canadiens use as a torchbearer tonight. So far, Yvan Cournoyer, Serge Savard, Chris Nilan, Kirk Muller, Guy Carbonneau, Larry Robinson and Claude Lemieux have fired up the crowd ahead of the game.
Just like Monday, the duel is set for 8:00 PM, and you can catch it on CBC, TVAS, SN, TNT, truTV, and HBO MAX. Chris Rooney and Graham Skilliter will be officiating, while Ryan Daisy and Devin Berg will be the linemen. Now that the Vegas Golden Knights have swept the Colorado Avalanche, John Tortorella’s team will no doubt be paying attention to proceedings as they prepare for the Stanley Cup Final.
Just like the Habs, the referees will have to be better tonight. They weren’t responsible for the Canadiens’ loss in Game 3, but their performance left a lot to be desired with missed calls on both sides. A blatant trip on Lane Hutson went uncalled in overtime, and minutes later, Montreal should have been called for too-many-men, but they let that go as well. Two wrongs do not make a right, and it would be refreshing if the referees' work could go unnoticed tonight, as it should.
MONTREAL, CANADA- MAY 25: Taylor Hall #71 of the Carolina Hurricanes scores a goal during the first period of Game Three of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Montreal Canadiens and the Carolina Hurricanes at the Bell Centre on May 25, 2026 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Matt Garies/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
The Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens will square off for the fourth time in the Eastern Conference Final at Bell Centre on Wednesday night, as they Canes will look to push the Habs to the brink while Montreal will try to even the series heading back to Raleigh for Game 5.
The Hurricanes have successfully shaken off a humiliatingly bad performance in Game 1 that left us all to wonder if the issues plaguing them in the third round were more intrinsic than a result of playing historically strong Florida Panther teams perfectly built to beat them.
Nikolaj Ehlers’ overtime heroics in Game 2 followed by those of Andrei Svechnikov in Game 3 have made this unquestionably the most successful season the franchise has had since 2006, and a sixth-straight road playoff win on Wednesday would have them one win away from a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
These wins have not come easily, even as the territorial dominance that delivered them has. The Canadiens have mustered just 25 shots total across the past eight periods of play, and there is no reason to believe a reversal in the flow of the game and puck possession is coming on Wednesday.
That means Frederik Andersen, who will certainly have the crease again, will have to be sharp and ready for the few high-danger chances Montreal will inevitably generate, as they remain lethal on the counter-attack and have the high-end talent to win a game on the power play if given enough man advantages.
Carolina will have to play another disciplined game and continue to lean on Montreal by playing physically and tilting the ice. If goaltender Jakub Dobes slips even a little bit, the Hurricanes could ride an early 2-0 edge to a blowout win that would likely break the Canadiens’ spirit.
But through six meetings between the teams this year, Carolina has proven unable to muster such a result. We still have not seen the Hurricanes deliver a true A-plus performance this postseason, especially offensively.
Is one coming tonight, or will Montreal be able to dig deep and do enough to get the series back even? The Vegas Golden Knights are through in the Western Conference and awaiting a Stanley Cup Final opponent. How long will they be waiting?
PITTSBURGH, PA - APRIL 04: Egor Chinakhov #59 of the Pittsburgh Penguins in action during the game against the Florida Panthers at PPG PAINTS Arena on April 4, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
Kyle Dubas has a busy offseason ahead for the Pittsburgh Penguins, and when it comes to potential returning players Egor Chinakhov is probably going to be near the top of the list. Now that Evgeni Malkin is officially re-signed, Chinakhov probably jumps to the top of the list.
Chinakhov was a mid-season addition from the Columbus Blue Jackets, arriving in Pittsburgh with enormous talent but inconsistent results. Things simply did not work out for him in Columbus, and the Penguins were there to roll the dice on him, sending two draft picks and Danton Heinen the other way.
It turned out to be one of the best, most impactful moves that Dubas made in what was already a fantastic year for him.
Immediately upon his arrival in Pittsburgh, Chinakhov started to play like the top-line winger the Blue Jackets had hoped he would be.
He scored 18 goals with 18 assists (36 total points) in 43 games with the Penguins, bringing his full-season total to 21 goals, 21 assists and 42 total points across both teams.
It was his performance with the Penguins that opened the most eyes and put him on the map.
While he struggled to generate offense in the playoffs, his play in the second half of the regular season at least made him a must-keep player for the upcoming season. Especially given how good he showed himself to be away from the puck and as a playmaker. He was not just a one-trick pony ripping wrist shots and feasting on a high shooting percentage. He made the people around him better and made plays all over the ice.
Now the Penguins have to figure out a new contract for him given that he is set to be a restricted free agent. The Penguins have more salary cap space than any other team in the NHL this offseason, so money is not going to be an issue. It is just a matter of how much money it is going to take and what that contract is eventually going to look like.
I have some ideas.
I went back over the past 10 years and tried to pick out some comparable players and situations to get a sense of what those deals have looked like.
I was not only trying to find players at a similar age and production level to what Chinakhov has done, but also players that were facing a similar contract situation. What I mean by that is, players that are restricted free agents, but have already signed at least one bridge deal as an RFA. In other words: Not players coming off an entry-level contract.
Here are some of the players that I found:
Player
Games Played At Signing
Career Goals At Signing
Goals/Game
Career Points At Signing
Points/Game
RFA Year Goals
RFA Year Points
Contract
Percentage Of Salary Cap
Jared McCann
427
93
.218
205
.480
27
50
5 years $25 million ($5.0)
6.06
Casey Mittelstadt
357
66
.185
196
.549
18
57
3 years $17.25 million ($5.75)
6.53
Joel Eriksson Ek
266
43
.162
96
.361
19
30
8 years $42 million ($5.25)
6.44
Artturi Lehkonen
412
80
.194
158
.383
19
38
5 years $22.5 million ($4.5)
5.45
Pavel Buchnevich
301
79
.262
195
.648
20
48
4 years $28 million ($5.8)
7.12
Egor Chinakhov
247
55
.223
113
.457
21
42
?
?
In terms of production and age, I am not sure these numbers are that far off. Maybe you want to argue that Chinakhov’s upside is a little higher than some of these guys, but how much is that worth in a contract negotiation? Do the Penguins want to gamble and go longer-term? Does Chinakhov want to gamble on himself and take a shorter-term deal in the hopes he can prove his second half wasn’t a fluke and try to cash in on the open market in a year or two?
But in terms of dollars and cap space, these guys signed contracts that were all between 5.4 and 7.1 percent of the salary cap.
In terms of this year’s cap, you are looking at a range of $5.6 million on the low end and $7.4 million on the high end.
Given that Chinakhov is coming off a bridge contract that paid him $2.1 million, and given the season he had, and given the rise in the salary cap, none of that seems totally unreasonable.
Three years, $20 million?
Four years $26-$28 million?
Does something like that interest you?
In some ways it is a tough situation. You want to keep him. You want to believe in what you saw in the second half, and there is good reason to do so. But there is still a mystery on what his upside and consistent level of production is going to be.
Either way somebody here is going to be taking a gamble. Either the Penguins on signing a player that is still a bit of an unknown, or Chinakhov betting (or not betting) on himself.
Back in 2020, during their rebuild, the Ottawa Senators famously held three picks in the first round of the NHL Draft. But it wasn’t the first time Ottawa had three first-round selections, nor was it their first rebuild.
This year’s NHL Draft marks the 15th anniversary of the 2011 Draft, when the Senators also owned three first-round picks. Before we look back at how those selections turned out, let’s dig into the The Hockey News archives and revisit how people viewed the Senators at the time, leading into that draft.
The team was being run by general manager Bryan Murray, who had just hired Paul MacLean as the club’s new head coach.
From The Hockey News Archive, June 2011
SWINGING SENATORS
A TEAM THAT CAME within three wins of the Stanley Cup four years ago has completely bottomed out. Now the Ottawa Senators must set about reclaiming their perch as one of the most consistent performers in hockey by developing the young players in their system and making good on the bundle of draft picks they’ve collected.
SHORT-TERM NEEDS: Firm direction and a truckload of patience, two essential elements in pulling off a rebuild. Goaltending had been a black hole for the Sens before pending UFA Craig Anderson brought some hope to the cause via a mid-February trade, but the real optimism rests with 19-year-old Swedish protégé Robin Lehner.
LONG-TERM NEEDS: Daniel Alfredsson is the all-time face of the franchise, but he’ll turn 39 halfway through next season. Jason Spezza is a big, wonderfully talented center, but he has yet to assume the mantle of go-to guy. This team desperately needs high-quality forwards and it will get a chance to draft some with 12 total picks in 2011, including five in the first two rounds.
CAP SITUATION: The great purge of 2010-11 has left the team with almost $17 million in cap space for next season, which can be put to some good use adding scoring depth to a team that finished 29th in offense.
IN THE SYSTEM 2011-12: A cluster of forwards, Zack Smith, Bobby Butler, Erik Condra, Colin Greening, Jim O’Brien, got NHL playing time with all the bodies cleared out of Ottawa. They’ll get a shot to prove they’re legit big-leaguers next fall, as will towering blueliner Jared Cowen. 2012-13: Top prospect David Rundblad already plays against men in Sweden and fellow D-man Patrick Wiercioch will be close after another year in the AHL.
DRAFT TENDENCIES: Until this season, trading picks away. The Sens had just four total selections last year, the same paltry total they had in 2007. As demonstrated by the void of tantalizing forwards, Ottawa’s recent hits tend to be with D-men and goalies. - R.D.
Also from the Draft Preview in The Hockey News from 2011, let's take a look at how the THN rankings shaped up with the Senators’ actual first round draft class at 6, 21, and 24.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (THN Rank: 1) — Edmonton Oilers
Gabriel Landeskog (THN Rank: 3) — Colorado Avalanche
Jonathan Huberdeau (THN Rank: 5) — Florida Panthers
Adam Larsson (THN Rank: 2) — New Jersey Devils
Ryan Strome (THN Rank: 6) — New York Islanders
Mika Zibanejad (THN Rank: 11) — Ottawa Senators
Mark Scheifele (THN Rank: 41) — Winnipeg Jets
Sean Couturier (THN Rank: 4) — Philadelphia Flyers
Nathan Beaulieu (THN Rank: 18) — Montreal Canadiens
Mark McNeill (THN Rank: 16) — Chicago Blackhawks
Oscar Klefbom (THN Rank: 37) — Edmonton Oilers
Connor Murphy (THN Rank: 55) — Phoenix Coyotes
Stefan Noesen (THN Rank: 39) — Ottawa Senators
Tyler Biggs (THN Rank: 20) — Toronto Maple Leafs
Joe Morrow (THN Rank: 34) — Pittsburgh Penguins
Matt Puempel (THN Rank: 21) — Ottawa Senators
Stuart Percy (THN Rank: 70) — Toronto Maple Leafs
Phillip Danault (THN Rank: 31) — Chicago Blackhawks
Vladislav Namestnikov ((THN Rank: 36) — Tampa Bay Lightning
Zack Phillips (THN Rank: 9) — Minnesota Wild
Nicklas Jensen (THN Rank: 19) — Vancouver Canucks
Rickard Rakell (THN Rank: 25) — Anaheim Ducks
In 2020, the Senators held the third, fifth, and 28th overall selections and came away with Tim Stützle, Jake Sanderson, and Ridly Greig.
It didn’t go quite as well in 2011, partly because the picks weren’t nearly as high. Ottawa selected sixth, 21st, and 24th overall.
The Senators did fairly well with their first pick, selecting Swedish center Mika Zibanejad sixth overall.
Five years after his draft day, and 281 games with the Senators, Ottawa traded Zibanejad to the New York Rangers, where he eventually blossomed into a star on Broadway.
In hindsight, Mark Scheifele, taken one pick later by the Winnipeg Jets, would probably have been the slightly better choice, but not by a ton. The pick was fine. The lack of patience with the player was not. Zibanejad has gone on to better things as a core piece of the Rangers over the past decade, hitting 1000 games this season.
Things began to thin out once the first round reached the half way point and can you can see based on pre-draft rankings, how unpredictable it became.
At 21st overall, the Senators selected Stefan Noesen, which was considered a bit of a reach according to The Hockey News, which had him ranked 39th. Noesen didn’t last long in Ottawa, and never played here, as he was later included in the 2013 trade that brought Bobby Ryan over from the Anaheim Ducks.
Noesen took a long time to establish himself as an NHL player, but over the past four seasons he has become a dependable forward. This season, however, was largely a write off. Injuries limited the New Jersey Devils winger to just seven points in 38 games. The year before, he had reached career highs hitting the 20 goal, 40 point mark for the first time.
Finally, at 24th overall, the Senators selected Matt Puempel, whom The Hockey News had ranked 21st. After being drafted, Puempel spent two more seasons in the OHL and nearly two more years with the Binghamton Senators before beginning to get NHL opportunities.
Over parts of three seasons with Ottawa, Puempel played 52 games, but never came close to recapturing his junior scoring touch. In November 2016, the Senators placed him on waivers and he was claimed by the Rangers.
One month later, he enjoyed probably the highlight of his NHL career, recording a hat trick in a Rangers win over Arizona. But that proved to be the peak of his time in the league.
After several seasons overseas in Sweden and Germany, Puempel announced his retirement from pro hockey last month. He has since become the head coach and general manager of the Essex 73's in the PCJHL near his hometown of Windsor, Ontario.
Matt Puempel (@mpuempel) has announced his retirement from professional hockey.
After two stellar seasons with the Peterborough Petes, including OHL and CHL Rookie of the Year honours in 2010, Matt was selected by the Ottawa @Senators in the first round of the 2011 @NHL Entry… pic.twitter.com/owoWeCE7hP
