Welcome back hockey fans! Welcome to Week 2 of our news from around the world of hockey and around the league. We have lots to get to, so let’s jump right in.
- The PWHL has announced the six team names and logos for all the new franchises after its inaugural season. We will now have the Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost, Montréal Victoire, New York Sirens, Ottawa Charge and Toronto Sceptres with really cool logos (check online) that will take the ice next season and Minnesota tries to repeat. We are excited to see how the season unfolds and will be watching some of the players closely. Keep in tune to hear the latest updates.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed left winger Nick Robertson to a one-year, $875,000 contract. This comes after the player had requested a trade from the team. Robertson, 23, played 56 games last season and put up 14 goals with 13 assists as well as played for their farm team, the Toronto Marlies, where he put up 5 goals and 6 assists. There are still rumblings that he may be traded as some teams are interested so we will be watching closely to see how this plays out, but right now he has a great opportunity ahead of him for this season being able to play on the left side with some elite talent.
- Professional Try Out continue to happen across the league as players are starting up training camp and it sounds like the Toronto Maple Leafs have also brought Max Paciorety, to a Professional Tryout deal, while the Edmonton Oilers have signed defenceman Travis Dermott to PTO to come out to the captain stakes and the Utah HC have brought Kailer Yamamoto to a PTO.
- Speaking of the Kraken, Ron Francis resigned Adam Larrson to a 4-year, $22 million dollar contract (with an AAV of $5.25 million). Larrson, 31, played 81 games last season and had 4 goals and 14 assists and is a top 4 defenceman for the team, who can make a big impact on the ice with an average 26 minutes of Time on the Ice.
- Also, in other contract news it sounds like Dawson Mercer and New Jersey negotiations are progressing slowly and that there isn’t anything imminent (which of course can change at any point). This goes the same for the RFA’s Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider with the Detroit Red Wings. We will see how this plays outs as the season gets closer.
- Jordie Benn has announced his retirement from the NHL after an excellent 12-season career. Benn, 37, played for the Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks, Winnipeg Jets, Minnesota Wild and Toronto Maple Leafs. During that time, he recorded 137 points (26 goals and 111 assists) in 607 games and even got to play with his brother Jamie Benn (of the Dallas Stars). We wish him all the best and hopefully see him involved in the game soon.
- There is a lot more news so make sure to tune in tonight for Season 6, Episode 2 of Two Guys & Hockey Talk!
Thoughts? Questions? Suggestions? Then remember to tune in each week to get all the latest news in the world of hockey. For more hockey news, different takes or if you want to chat about anything hockey give me a follow @hockey_two on TWITTER and give us a follow on YouTube, or at https://twoguysandhockeytalk.com/.
- Pawel ‘The Cat’
