Category: NHL

Participant in the CHL Top Prospects Game, NHL All-Star, and a Stanley Cup Winner with the Los Angeles Kings in 2014. These are just some of the career accolades for current Vancouver Canucks forward Tyler Toffoli. Excitement was in abundance when Jim Benning, General Manager of the Vancouver Canucks, pulled off the trade that brought Toffoli to the west coach back on February 17. Benning and his management team knew they were getting not only a great player on the ice but an even better person off it. For a Canucks team that was right in the thick of the Western Conference playoff race when the NHL hit the “pause” button due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Canucks fans quickly recognized that Toffoli was going to be a very important piece of the puzzle.

The Vancouver Canucks have made some big strides this season. Almost an afterthought to be in the playoff picture this late, Van-city finds themselves smack-dab in the race for third place in the Pacific Division. Leading the charge is, last line of defense, 2020 all-star goaltender, Jacob Markstrom.

Every once in a while, the hockey world is blessed with a player who possesses an incredible skill set, flare for the dramatic, and sheer, raw talent. That player, and the focus of this article, is none other than the native from Tver, Russia, Ilya Kovalchuk.

The Toronto Maple Leafs brought in 28-year-old rearguard Tyson Barrie just this past off-season to bolster their group of defensemen. Barrie who had spent his entire career in Colorado up to that point built up a very good resume after eight seasons in the league.

We are now a few months into 2020 and with the new decade, we here at The Scorecrow are putting together our All-Decade teams for the 2010s. So who made the All-Decade team for the Colorado Avalanche? Let’s take a look.

Typically, when a goaltender posts multiple 30+ win seasons with a sub-2.50 goals against-average (GAA), one would think they’d receive a little more recognition on a league-wide basis. However, when your teammate for the better part of 9 years is “The Great 8”, Alexander Ovechkin, one of the greatest goalscorers in the history of the sport, this would seldom be true. Such is the case for Capitals goaltender, Braden Holtby, who often prefers his life quiet and “under the radar”. Two years removed from a Stanley Cup triumph with the Caps, Holtby will be in need of a new contract at the end of the 2019-20 campaign. What could the soft-spoken, laser-focused goaltender garner entering unusual territory, as he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st?

Next up on the UFA Player Profile list takes us to the Queen City, Buffalo, New York. Let’s dive in and further examine the potential “ask” from newly acquired Sabres forward Wayne Simmonds, a pending unrestricted free agent at season’s end.

It has been an interesting journey for the former 2010 first overall draft pick. At the height of his tenure with the New Jersey Devils was an MVP season in 2017/2018 where he registered career highs in goals(39), assists(54), and points(93). This was of course followed by the Devils trading the dynamic winger for middling prospects and conditional draft picks to the Arizona Coyotes just two-and-a-half seasons later. All of this taking place after starting his career with the Edmonton Oilers for six seasons starting in 2010. Hall fell out of favor in Edmonton and in Jersey and didn’t hold back his displeasure with each organization on more than one occasion. With a Hart Trophy and two all-star game selections in his back pocket Hall is set to hit the free-agent market this summer. Let’s take a closer at the 28-year-old native from Calgary Alberta.

It’s been just under 2 weeks since the National Hockey League suspended play indefinitely due to the COVID-19 outbreak.  The players miss playing, the coaches miss coaching, and the fans, without question, miss cheering on their favorite team. However, with a halt in the action, it’s an appropriate time to look at some significant pieces league-wide who are scheduled to become unrestricted free agents (UFAs) at season’s end.