Edmonton had their chance to take a game at home against the Dallas Stars on Monday night, but they blew it. Off to a 2-0 lead and dominating play, the Oilers let their foot off the gas, and the Stars did what they’ve done all NHL playoffs long – they played smart, disciplined hockey and choked Edmonton to death the rest of the night. Avalanche fans have seen that, unfortunately.
When Tampa Bay acquired Tanner Jeannot for a ton of draft capital at the NHL Trade Deadline in 2023, it raised some serious eyebrows because he really wasn’t worth what they gave up. It’s no surprise that a little over a year later, the Lightning might be looking to move out that contract to recoup some picks and save some cap space.
Speaking of trade rumors, there’s been some smoke around Ottawa Captain Brady Tkachuk, but their GM emphatically squashed those rumors on Monday.
All that and more in this Tuesday edition of Evan’s Daily…
Colorado Hockey Now
Nichushkin and Landeskog are massive question marks heading into the next NHL season. Two other wingers will be coming off major surgeries. So why do some want to trade Mikko Rantanen?
Jeannot On The Block?
Back at the 2023 NHL Trade Deadline, the Tampa Bay Lightning inexplicably gave up a first, a second, a third, a fourth, and a fifth round pick to get Tanner Jeannot from the Nashville Predators. One of the more baffling trades in recent history. Jeannot scored 27 goals the year before, but did so thanks to a ridiculous 20% shooting percentage. At the time of the trade, he had just five goals, and scored just one more in Tampa the rest of the year.
This past season didn’t go any better, as he scored just seven goals in 55 games. It’s not really a surprise that, according to Elliotte Friedman, the Lightning might be looking to move him out to create some cap space.
“I got a couple of calls from people saying that’s going to be one to watch,” Freidman said. “His salary, which is about $2.6 (million), Tampa could use the space, and it really hasn’t worked out as well as everyone has hoped there between him and the Lightning, but there are a lot of teams out there that see something, and they think he is more the player in Nashville then he was the player in Tampa Bay.”
I have my doubts it would work out on a new team, and Tampa isn’t going to get back close to what they gave up to get him. Just a brutal trade all around, and one that still has me scratching my head.
Tkachuk Rumors Squashed
If Brady Tkachuk really was on the block, teams would be lining up around the block to acquire his services. Three straight 30 goal season before the age of 25 and a pain in the butt to play against? Yeah, they’d probably get a haul.
Turns out he’s not on the block at all.
Ottawa’s GM, Steve Staios, shut the rumors down on Monday, telling Pierre Lebrun the rumors are “complete B.S.” Granted, GM’s lie to the media all the time to cover themselves, but I’d still be surprised if the Senators dealt their Captain. That being said, Ottawa has to do something. They have talent, but nothing is coming together for them. The hiring of Travis Green was uninspiring, at least in my opinion, and their goaltending is sub-par. As much as I love guys like Tim Stutzle, I wouldn’t pick them to make the playoffs the way things are going right now.
Stars Take The Lead
If you have the Stars on the ropes, you’ve got to bury them. The Avalanche never had that opportunity because they couldn’t get a lead, but the Oilers had that chance on Monday night. They blew it.
Down 2-0, the Stars came back to beat the Oilers in Game Three by a score of 5-3 to take the lead in the series. They’ve only lost one game on the road this postseason, which Avalanche fans know a little too much about. They’re just a well coached team who sticks to their system, even if it’s not exactly the most entertaining brand of hockey.
Dallas got Roope Hintz back in the lineup, which is a big deal and might turn the tides in their favor the rest of the series. I picked them to win in five games, and still feeling pretty good about that. Also, Stuart Skinner…yuck. No wonder no one every truly believes in the Oilers.
JASON ROBERTSON HAS A HAT TRICK 🎩
WHAT A PERFORMANCE TO GIVE THE STARS THE LEAD 😱 pic.twitter.com/K4Kdb2gy9R
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 28, 2024
National Hockey Now
Paul Maurice had plenty of jokes after Jacob Trouba was handed just a fine from his elbow the other night.
San Jose is headed towards round two of interviews for a new head coach. That new coach will actually have some young talent to work with.
It looks like Dan Bylsma will be back in the NHL, this time with the Kraken.
