Here’s a rundown of the original content here at PHR over the past seven days.
The Oilers are on the clock in our 2007 redraft series with the 21st selection, their third of the first round. Their first two (Sam Gagner and Alex Plante) didn’t exactly work out as well as they hoped for while Riley Nash, their initial pick here, was traded away before he turned pro. They’ve done a lot better in our redraft and you can make their final first-round selection for them here.
The NCAA season is now underway. Zach took a look at some of the notable names to watch for among the top drafted prospects and those that are likely to hear their name called early in June. He also examined some of the players that are slated to hit the UFA market in March or April depending on when their respective seasons come to an end.
With the puck dropping on the 2019-20 season, it’s prediction time. Who will come out as the winners in the Atlantic, Metropolitan, Central, and Pacific divisions? The current leaders are the Lightning, Capitals, Blues, and Golden Knights. Click the respective links to make your predictions.
The Maple Leafs are the final team to be featured in our Salary Cap Deep Dive series. They’re using plenty of LTIR to stay in compliance and with so much money tied up in their core four up front, it will be interesting to see who they’re able to retain between the pipes and on the back end over the next few seasons as the deals for several key players expire.
California recently passed a bill allowing NCAA student-athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness. College hockey isn’t exactly prominent there but Zach provided an overview of how this could wind up eventually affecting players in states that do have a significant college hockey presence as similar bills have been discussed elsewhere. This doesn’t come into effect until January 2023 so there will undoubtedly be some legal challenges between now and then but it certainly could affect collegiate sports, including hockey, over the next few years.