(02-23-2020 02:19 PM)GoodOwl Wrote: Vegas back up leading the Pacific.
I wonder if how well Vegas has done will impact the expansion draft and other aspects of Seattle entering the NHL next year.
Their ownership is paying $600 million to get a team (Vegas paid 500, Columbus and Minnesota paid 50 when they entered in 2000), you don't buy a team for that much and get a team of scrubs that'll make the playoffs once in their first decade. Expansion rules will probably be favorable for the Kraken or whatever they'll be called, and while some teams might be hesitant to make deals like they did after Vegas they'll face some big losses in the draft if they refuse. Stanley Cup Finals in season one isn't likely, but playoffs isn't an awful bet.
The NHL has already announced the draft rules and they will be the same as they were for Vegas.
But I don't think that automatically means the Seattle franchise will have the same success. Vegas made some very crafty trades to put together that squad, and after seeing Seattle GM Ron Francis running the Hurricanes, I'm not sure they'll be wheeling and dealing in the same way.
First the stadium series game announcement, then the Ayres game on Hockey Night in Canada has brought a lot of press, now getting high praise for the trade deadline moves.
But the team has a lot of work to do to clinch a playoff spot, and the Metro is very tough this year.
Quote:It appears that the NHL will be holding the upcoming draft lottery on April 9, the second scheduled day of the playoffs.
One fanbase that will be marking the date on their calendars are the Ottawa Senators. With their own and the San Jose Shark’s unprotected first-round selection, there is a real possibility to have two top-three picks in the upcoming draft.
If the lottery balls go their way, the entire outlook of the franchise could alter given the skillful prospects leading this year’s class.
Be it destined top pick Alexis Lafreniere, NHL-ready Quinton Byfield, or some of the European prospects such as Tim Stutzle and Lucas Raymond, there is certainly a world of potential for any of the teams winning one of the top selections.
To the extent that NHL play is "colder" than other sports, this one makes more sense, as the coronabug seems more prevalent in colder and less-humid scenarios. However, this still seems an overreaction to something that might only necessitiate some players taking time off when/if they get the flu symptoms and then get back on the ice. For fans, same as should be normal, but isn't: practice good hygeine and wash hands when leaving bathrooms instead of pasing by the sinks without a thought. I would think even less of the truly susceptible populations would visit an NHL game in person: sick people, babies and 80-somethings would be less likely to go out to a cold arena in the first place. Others are just not at risk from this bug. That's probably too much to ask in today's society where people expect pills and i-phone to perfornm miracles and usurp their personal responsibility. Kinda sadly amazing to witness the overreaction, but it appears the 24 hour news needs something to talk about since times have been so good the past 3 years.
Quote:The potential plan — that has not yet been officially proposed to the league’s executives — would see teams return for a short training camp in early July. After all 31 teams have warmed up, they would all play the equal amount of games later that month, before starting the usual eight-week long postseason.
After the Stanley Cup has been awarded at the end of September, a three-to-four week offseason, that would include the NHL Entry Draft and the start of free agency, would be held in October.
Due to the remaining season stretching into the fall, a condensed schedule would have to take place for the 2020-21 regular season.
It will be interesting to have baseball and the NHL competing for viewers at the same time during the summer. Fans of those two sports often cross over with eachother at times more than the other sports.
(This post was last modified: 03-18-2020 04:49 PM by GoodOwl.)
Quote:The Qualifying Round and Seeding Round Robin will be held at two hub cities to be identified -- one for the 12 participating Eastern Conference teams and one for the 12 Western Conference teams - and begin at a date to be determined. Candidates for the hub cities include Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Edmonton, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Pittsburgh, Toronto and Vancouver.
In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Bruins (44-14-12, .714 points percentage), Tampa Bay Lightning (43-21-6, .657), Washington Capitals (41-20-8, .652) and Philadelphia Flyers (41-21-7, .645) will each have a bye and play each other once to determine the order of the top four seeds for the first round of the playoffs.
The Eastern Conference Qualifying Round will have four best-of-5 series: the Pittsburgh Penguins (40-23-6, .623) vs. the Montreal Canadiens (31-31-9, .500); the Carolina Hurricanes (38-25-5, .596) vs. the New York Rangers (37-28-5, .564); the New York Islanders (35-23-10, .588) vs. the Florida Panthers (35-26-8, .565); and the Toronto Maple Leafs (36-25-9, .579) vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets (33-22-15, .579).
In the Western Conference, the St. Louis Blues (42-19-10, .662), Colorado Avalanche (42-20-8, .657), Vegas Golden Knights (39-24-8, .606) and Dallas Stars (37-24-8, .594) will each have a bye and play round-robin to determine their seeding order.
The Western Conference best-of-5 qualifying round series are: the Edmonton Oilers (37-25-9, .585) vs. the Chicago Blackhawks (32-30-8, .514); the Nashville Predators (35-26-8, .565) vs. the Arizona Coyotes (33-29-8, .529); the Vancouver Canucks (36-27-6, .565) vs. the Minnesota Wild (35-27-7, .558); and the Calgary Flames (36-27-7, .564) vs. the Winnipeg Jets (37-28-6, .563).
![[Image: cut.png]](https://nhl.bamcontent.com/images/photos/309925694/512x56/cut.png)
![[Image: 45365863094_55666f6943_h.jpg]](https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4812/45365863094_55666f6943_h.jpg)
![[Image: 17934c0048b80138f054005056a9545d]](https://assets.amuniversal.com/17934c0048b80138f054005056a9545d)
