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Award-winning TV writer and Boston Bruins fan Dave Flebotte passed away July 8 at age 65. The Boston native’s professional writing career saw him write and produce for popular shows including The Sopranos, Will & Grace, Boardwalk Empire and The Bernie Mac Show. 

But for this writer, Flebotte was a close friend and a passionate hockey fan. Flebotte was forever a supporter of his beloved Bruins, and he counted himself fortunate to see the B’s win three Stanley Cups. 

Flebotte was particularly proud that he got to write for The Hockey News.

In this exclusive column from The Hockey News’ special-edition 2009 book, Puck Funnies: Hockey Humor, Hilarity & Hi-Jinx, Flebotte’s talent at writing hilarious pieces was on full display. He was thrilled to write for THN, and THN was just as thrilled to have him as a contributor. He was also a lifelong subscriber, putting his money where his mouth was. He’s going to be missed.

On behalf of The Hockey News, our sincere condolences go out to Flebotte’s wife, Sandra, and his children, Zach and Emma.

#RIP Dave Flebotte, 65. The admired TV writer (‘Ellen,’ ‘Sherri,’ ‘Desperate Housewives,’ ‘Boardwalk Empire,’ ‘The PJs,’ ‘Tulsa King’) died in Montana after a long battle with cystic fibrosis, his wife tells @THR. Had a double lung transplant 28 years ago. https://t.co/KtkSwQ2otv

— Mike Barnes (@MikeBarnes4) July 9, 2025

Please enjoy Flebotte’s column, which was deservedly Chapter 1 in the Puck Funnies book.

Dinner Is Bruin-ed

By Dave Flebotte

I love the Boston Bruins.

Since May 10, 1970, I’ve been an avid fan. It was Mother’s Day that day, and being Sicilian, my family’s gift to my mom was to let her prepare an enormous Italian meal and then let her clean up afterwards. I was in fifth grade and remember a jar of Ponds Cold Cream the size of her head being offered as a way of saying, “Thanks, Mom, for another great year of cooking, cleaning and quiet desperation.”

Aside from the stuffed artichokes, the thing that stands out about that day was the Bruins winning their first Stanley Cup in 29 years.

I watched it on a little black-and-white we kept in the kitchen to keep dinner conversation to a minimum. An uncle was watching it alone. Overtime had just started. Then an Orr-to-Sanderson, back-to-Orr later, it was over. All that was left was for the late Ray Lussier to capture Orr in mid-flight and my Uncle Charlie to scream the F-word at the top of his lungs. (In my house, the F-word was used as an expression of exultation, disdain and at times, affection.)

From that moment on, I was hooked. I bought my first copy of The Hockey News in ’72. Dale Tallon was on the cover and rumored to be coming to Boston. I never knew the publication existed. I borrowed fifty cents from my brother and ran back to the convenience store, where the clerk held it for me because even though there were three of them, I was sure they would fly off the shelf as soon as someone discovered, as I had, their existence. I took it back home, went up to my room and swallowed it whole.

It was a great time to be a Bruins fan. Two Cups in the first three years of my coming aboard. From Orr, Esposito, Cheevers, O’Reilly, to later, Bourque, Neely, Oates, Lemelin; all the way up to now with Savard, Chara, Lucic and Thomas. Only alcohol has been as good a friend to me as the Boston Bruins.

So when my pal, Adam Proteau, asked me if I’d be interested in writing an article for The Hockey News, it wasn’t a matter of if, but what part of Bruins history I’d write about.

My first draft, the words “The Canadiens suck,” written until I reached 1,000 words, was rejected. Though it did point to one of the greatest rivalries in professional sports, Adam found it a little too one-dimensional. So I started to think about who were some of my favorite players and what moments really stood out in the 39 years I’ve been following the team.

What I realized was, it wasn’t just the stars who came to mind, but mostly it was the scrubs. The Bobby Schmautzes, Bruce Shoebottoms, and Greg Hawgoods that made up some of my favorite memories. 

So I decided on this: “Five Bruins I Love, But Who You Might Not Give A Rat’s Ass About.” You never asked for it, but here it is:

5. Bill Bennett. Who? In 1979, Bill Bennett played only seven games for the Boston Bruins. He had a goal and four assists, and that was that. Gone.

Why is he a Bruin I love? Because Bill wore No. 7 after ‘Espo’ was traded. I love that he had the balls to put it on, and I’m thankful that he wasn’t good enough to stick with the club and keep it. Had he found his way onto a fourth line and hung around, Ray Bourque may not have gotten the number.

Then, when the Bruins retired Esposito’s number, we’d have lost one of the greatest moments in Bruins history: Ray peeling off the No. 7 jersey and handing it to Phil while wearing his new number, 77, underneath.

How anticlimactic would that have been to watch Bill Bennett pull off his jersey to reveal the now-revered double-seven?  An angry Phil would’ve probably had Ken Hodge rip the jersey off Bennett’s back before he had a chance to give it to him.

4. P.J. Stock. When I’m feeling down or a wee bit blue – maybe my script just got thrown out, or my son asked me for an A-Rod T-shirt – nothing picks me up like going on YouTube and watching P.J. Stock go toe-to-toe with Stephen Peat of the Washington Capitals. 

Having won only one fight out of fifteen myself (that’s right Jeffrey Morgan, I’m talking about you, b----), I find something cathartic in watching five-foot-nothin’ P.J. Stock throw haymakers to the heads of behemoths without the use of a foot stool. Half Rock-em sock-em robot, half energizer bunny, he’d finish every fight with a little wave to the Garden faithful that said, “This ass-kicking’s for you.”

3. Normand Leveille. No. 19’s career was cut short due to a cerebral hemorrhage in ’83, just 75 games into his tenure as a Boston Bruin.

His arrival was just after Don Cherry’s Lunch Pail Gang had ruled the roost in Boston from the mid-to-late seventies. Hard-nosed, gritty players were their calling card. No real superstars, just good old plain folk who skated their wing, punched you in the face and out-hustled everyone else,

Leveille was something new to Boston when he came aboard in ’81. Something we’d only seen in a Canadiens jersey. Our very own “Flying Frenchman!” He would zip into corners of the old Garden with someone in hot pursuit, then suddenly stop short, throwing his shoulder backwards into their chest and them onto their asses.

Add to that he had a real knack for the net, like a physical Yvan Cournoyer. His loss was definitely the greatest tragedy to hit the B’s ever (apologies to superstar Bruins goaltending prospect Ian Young and the eye injury that ended his career before his first pro game). Way too short a time in a B's sweater, but really sweet.

2. Wayne Cashman. ‘Captain Cash’ patrolled the left wing with Phil Esposito and Ken Hodge from the late 1960s until their departure in ’75. His sweater doesn’t hang from the Garden rafters, and he’s never been brought up as a Hall of Fame possibility, but still is one of the all-time great Bruins.

Cashman exemplified what it meant to be a Big Bad Bruin in the ’70s: fearless, a ton of heart and the ability to put the puck in the net. He wasn’t one of those dimestore Flyers who would amass 300-plus minutes but couldn’t hit the side of Kate Smith. He owned  the corners. He was a lot like O’Reilly (too obvious a choice), but where Terry skated with all the elegance of a drunk driver taking out a row of mailboxes, Cash was smooth.

My favorite Cashman moment: during a nationally televised afternoon game against the Flyers at the Spectrum, he goes out of his way on his first shift to fly across the ice and nail Dave Schultz, then just glares at him. Message sent.

1. Ron Grahame. Grahame was a goalie for the Bruins in the ’77-78 season. That was the year the Bruins used three goalies full-time. (Gilles Gilbert and Cheevers were the other two.)

The previous off-season, Grahame was signed as a free-agent defector from the Houston Aeros of the World Hockey Association. His first and only year with the Bruins was solid – but that’s not why he’s No. 1 on my list.

He earned it because that summer Harry Sinden sent him to the L.A. Kings – where acting GM George Maguire was accepting the Baz Bastien Trophy as Worst GM Of All-Time – for the right to draft Ray Bourque.

The rest is Bruins history. Ray played 20-1/2 seasons for the B's before finally bringing the Cup home to Boston. Albeit, in a Colorado Avalanche jersey.

Still, it’s hard to stay mad at Harry after that one.

The Buffalo Sabres ended speculation -- at least, for now -- of star defenseman Bowen Byram's future, signing him Monday to a two-year contract with an average annual value of $6.25-million. But while Byram's status with the Sabres has to be a welcome relief for some Sabres fans who wanted himto stay in Western New York, we have to ask once again -- are the moves we've seen from Buffalo this off-season really all there's going to be in terms of changes to the Sabres' lineup?

Yes, the Sabres acquired young winger Josh Doan and defenseman Michael Kesselring from the Utah Mammoth in exchange for talented winger J.J. Peterka, and depth winger Justin Danforth and goalie Alex Lyon were signed in free agency. But is that going to move the needle enough in the highly-competitive Atlantic Division? We have serious doubts about that.

It's true Buffalo's defense corps is now deeper than it was last season, even after trading rugged blueliner Connor Clifton to the Pittsburgh Penguins late last month. But are the Sabres going to defend their way to enough victories to lock up a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference? That may be how Buffalo GM Kevyn Adams sees it, but we're not nearly so sure that's a realistic expectation.

In fairness, the Sabres had the 10th-best offense in the NHL this past season, averaging 3.23 goals-for per-game. But that was with Peterka putting up 27 goals and 68 points. Even if Doan plays well, we don't see the Sabres easily replacing the offense Peterka produced. The Sabres also had the ninth-worst power play in the league last year, and that was with Peterka contributing 18 points with the extra man.

Meanwhile, the Sabres avoided being hamstrung by the injury bug last season. Indeed, out of their top-11 point-producers, all 11 played at least 73 games. What if that changes this coming year? Are Sabres fans supposed to believe there's enough depth in the system to deal with a severe injury or two to key Buffalo players? Again, we have our doubts.

THN Exclusive: Sabres 2025 Future Watch BreakdownThe Buffalo Sabres are a team that's still a ways off from being a true Stanley Cup playoff frontrunner. However, in The Hockey News' 2025 Future Watch edition, writer Bill Hoppe broke down the talent that's in the Sabres' system. Below, you'll find our ranking of Buffalo's top-10 young prospects:

Finally, even after Byram's new contract, the Sabres have approximately $7.39-million in salary cap space. Some of that will have to go to RFA defenseman Conor Timmins and RFA goalie Devon Levi, but if any team needed to spend to the cap ceiling, it's Buffalo. Whether it's adding a veteran at or near the league-minimum salary, or spending another couple million on a more accomplished forward, you can easily make the case that Adams shouldn't be done making roster moves.

All-in-all, the Sabres' current situation has this writer feeling like Buffalo isn't going to be a playoff team once again this coming year. Stranger things have happened than the Sabres surprising fans and media and knocking a legitimate playoff contender out of the post-season picture. But again, you have to ask yourself -- which Atlantic team is going to be on the outside of the playoff picture in order for Buffalo to get into the post-season? The back-to-back defending Cup-champion Florida Panthers aren't going to be that team. Neither are the Toronto Maple Leafs or Tampa Bay Lightning. And the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Canadiens are two young teams still on the rise.

And that's not counting a team like the Detroit Red Wings, which also is desperate for a post-season appearance. So, with that in mind, you can see why we're not at all optimistic about the Sabres' playoff chances in 2025-26.

Sabres Potential Trade Partner: Anaheim DucksWe're getting into the deep part of summer, but there is unfinished business in many NHL markets. And one of those markets is Buffalo, where the Sabres continue being unable to move forward on defenseman Bowen Byram, and their roster doesn't inspire confidence they can be in the mix for a playoff spot.

Buffalo could've been one of the biggest movers-and-shakers in the league this summer. Instead, they've more-or-less recommitted to the same core of players, and they're expecting different results this coming year. Imagine the fury that will come from Sabres fans if the same pattern persists next year.

Time will tell whether relatively standing pat was the right move by Adams, whose job security is surely on the line this season. But right now, there are many questions about this Sabres team -- and the answers to those questions may leave Buffalo fans severely disappointed for a fifteenth-straight season.

The NHL’s off-season continues to unfold, and by mid-July, most teams made their key roster moves. That brings us to the question of what teams are best at each position – forward, defense and goal. 

We began the process by breaking down the five best teams on defense. Now, we’re switching focus to analyze the five best teams at forward. The criteria for this list include top-level primary scoring, impressive secondary scoring, a dose of defense-minded and role forwards, and overall cohesion.

With that said, here are our choices with new roster additions in italics.

1. Florida Panthers

Forwards: Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart, Evan Rodrigues, Anton Lundell, Brad Marchand, Eetu Luostarinen, A.J. Greer, Tomas Nosek, Jonah Gadjovich

When you’re back-to-back Stanley Cup champions, and you manage to retain all your important forwards, you deserve to be at the top of this list. The Panthers did exactly that, re-signing veteran center Sam Bennett and left winger Brad Marchand to team-friendly deals this summer.

The Panthers have elite two-way skill in the form of Barkov and Reinhart, grit and clutch play from Tkachuk, Bennett and Marchand, and speed and tenacity with the rest of their group of forwards. Florida has repeatedly demonstrated that, when the games matter most, their forwards will be hard on the forecheck, determined in front of their opponent’s net and successful at undermining the other team’s defense. Nine of their forwards had at least 15 points in the 23 games it took them to win the Cup. For reference, the Oilers had three with at least 15 and seven with at least 10 in 22 games.

They’ve won two straight Cups for good reason, and they’re the cream of the crop when it comes to the league’s best collection of forwards.

2. Tampa Bay Lightning

Forwards: Brayden Point, Jake Guentzel, Nikita Kucherov, Brandon Hagel, Anthony Cirelli, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Yanni Gourde, Nick Paul, Zemgus Girgensons, Cage Goncalves, Pontus Holmberg, Conor Geekie

The Lightning were dumped by the Panthers in the first round of last year’s playoffs, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have an embarrassment of riches up front. To the contrary, they led the NHL in scoring, scored the most goals by a forward, had the sixth-best penalty-kill percentage, had four forwards average at least a point per game and have Kucherov as a bona fide superstar.

The Bolts had depth issues last season before they brought back (and re-signed) Gourde and acquired Bjorkstrand from the Seattle Kraken at the trade deadline. Those additions really put Tampa Bay over the top. 

It’s easy to see why Lightning GM Julien BriseBois doubled down on his forwards, and Tampa Bay will once again be dominant in their opponent’s zone because they have so much skill and balance up front.

3. Colorado Avalanche

Forwards: Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, Artturi Lehkonen, Valeri Nichushkin, Brock Nelson, Martin Necas, Ross Colton, Jack Drury, Parker Kelly, Ivan Ivan, T.J. Tynan, Nikita Prishchepov

Like the Lightning, the Avalanche have a legitimate top-five player in the world in MacKinnon, a top-six group of forwards that’s as skilled and proven as any team in the NHL and a swift and resolute bottom six. It’s a measure of their depth that Colorado lost veterans Jonathan Drouin and Charlie Coyle, and they’re still tremendously talented up front.

Getting Nelson to sign a contract extension was huge for the Avs, as it firmed up their second-line center position. Like Tampa Bay, Colorado lost in the opening round last year, but if we had to choose between the Avalanche’s forwards and Dallas’ forwards, we’d pick the Avs in a narrow decision. Colorado GM Chris MacFarland has constructed an elite group, and the Avs are going to excel once again next year.

4. Dallas Stars

Forwards: Roope Hintz, Jason Robertson, Mikko Rantanen, Matt Duchene, Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, Wyatt Johnston, Mavrik Bourque, Oskar Back, Radek Faksa, Sam Steel, Colin Blackwell

The Stars have consistently been a terrific team, in no small part due to their incredible depth on offense. Despite Dallas losing in the Western Conference final for the third straight season, Stars GM Jim Nill brought just about everyone back, and he re-acquired longtime Stars center Faksa for a second tour of duty with the organization. Losing Mikael Granlund hurts a bit, but it won’t be devastating.

With fantastic two-way forwards Hintz and Rantanen setting the tone for the rest of the group, the Stars have demonstrated they can be successful at both ends of the ice. And although the future of Robertson, who is entering the final year of his contract, is somewhat in doubt, what isn’t in doubt is that Dallas’ balance of youth (Robertson, Bourque, Johnston) and experience (Benn, Seguin, Duchene) gives them an elite collection of forwards. 

The Stars can run-and-gun with the best of them or play a hard-nosed defensive game. That’s why they had the most points by a forward, the third-most goals-for, the sixth-fewest goals against and the fourth-best penalty-kill rate this past season. More often than not, they’re going to be on the winning side of the ledger in large part due to their forward depth.

5. Vegas Golden Knights

Forwards: Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner, Mark Stone, Ivan Barbashev, William Karlsson, Tomas Hertl, Pavel Dorofeyev, Reilly Smith, Brett Howden, Brandon Saad, Colton Sissons, Keegan Kolesar

Adding former Toronto Maple Leafs superstar winger Marner made an already-dynamic Golden Knights group of forwards all the more impressive. Trading for former Nashville Predators center Sissons firmed up Vegas’ fourth line. Golden Knights GM Kelly McCrimmon has been ruthless in pursuit of the franchise’s second Cup, and once again, he’s done his utmost to create a lineup that can create offense with the best of them, while giving up little in their own zone.

Marner’s impact in terms of offense creation as well as strong defensive play gives Vegas a balance that compares well to any NHL team, and proven veterans including Stone, Eichel, Karlsson and Hertl give the Golden Knights the kind of depth any team would kill for. Vegas is well out of cap space, but does anyone really believe McCrimmon is done improving his team? We sure don’t. As the season unfolds, we fully expect the Golden Knights to continue getting better, and by the time the next post-season rolls around, Vegas could be even higher on this list.

Honorable Mentions: Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets

The Maple Leafs, Oilers and Jets all have high-level forward groups, even if they’re not in the top five.

The Leafs have Grade-A top-six forwards in Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares and Matthew Knies. The departure of Marner has a trickle-down effect that ultimately hurts Toronto’s case. 

Similarly, the Oilers have two world-class superstars in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, as well as elite forwards in Zach Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. They are a massive part of why the Oilers got to two straight Stanley Cup finals, and in the playoffs, they got some nice secondary scoring at times. However, trading away Evander Kane and Viktor Arvidsson while losing Connor Brown and Corey Perry put a dent in Edmonton’s forward group. It’s up to Andrew Mangiapane, Isaac Howard and Matt Savoie to make the Oilers better than they were.

Finally, the Jets still have top talents in center Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor and Cole Perfetti, as well as above-average forwards in Gabriel Vilardi and newcomer Jonathan Toews. But the loss of winger Nikolaj Ehlers affects their bottom line, and their fourth line isn’t as solid now that last season’s trade acquisition Brandon Tanev has moved on to the Utah Mammoth. If Toews excels this upcoming season, it would be worth re-evaluating their spot on this list.

The Oilers, Jets and Leafs still have lots to like. They could prove to have a top-five forward group during the season, but at the moment, they just missed the cut.

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Kieffer Bellows has signed a one-year contract with Brynas IF of the SHL, the team announced Sunday.

The 27-year-old recorded 15 goals and 31 points in 44 games with the Milwaukee Admirals and four points in 19 games with the Nashville Predators last season before adding nine points in 10 Calder Cup Playoff games. 

A native of Edina, Minn., Bellows has 79 goals and 140 points in 233 career AHL games and 16 goals and 32 points in 114 career NHL games split between the Predators, New York Islanders, and Philadelphia Flyers.  

Varmt välkommen till Gävle och Brynäs IF, Kieffer Bellows! ✍️✅

Den 27-årige forwarden som senast kommer från spel i Nashville Predators organisation har skrivit på ettårskontrakt som sträcker sig över den kommande säsongen, 25/26.

🗞️ Läs mer på https://t.co/MR7GswpDsOpic.twitter.com/eiHYT0a2OL

— Brynäs IF (@Brynas) July 13, 2025

A first round pick of the Islanders in 2016, Bellows has been a stellar AHL player over parts of the past three seasons but was not able to translate his offensive production to the NHL.

Now qualifying as an AHL veteran after appearing in over 260 career professional games Bellows  joins a long line of recent AHL alumni who have signed in Europe after reaching the veteran threshold. 

Check out our AHL Free Agency signing tracker here.       

Photo Credit: © Ryan Sun-Imagn Images

On Tuesday afternoon, the Chicago Blackhawks announced that they have officially signed forward Anton Frondell to a three-year entry-level contract with an average annual value of $975,000. 

Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) on Xa Swede signing‼️✍️ 📰 ➡︎ https://t.co/RcGvmeK8J4

Chicago selected Frondell with the 3rd overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft out of Sweden. His club in the SHL is Djurgårdens, where he had 25 points in 29 regular-season games last year.

Frondell also helped the club to an HockeyAllsvenskan Championship and an SHL promotion. He had seven points in 16 qualification games, which played a key role in the team’s success. 

Frondell is ready to begin his true journey to Chicago. Now that he’s signed, he's eligible to play in the NHL or the AHL. However, he could also be loaned back to Djurgårdens. That seems more likely, given a report from the Swedish media outlet Expressen last week.

Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) on Xthat's our no. 3 overall pick👏🥹

This three-year deal won't kick on for Frondell until he plays in the NHL. If he does go back to Sweden for 2025-26, he will still have three years left on his ELC going into the following year. 

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