The Tampa Bay Lightning injected a little news into the NHL world yesterday when they announced that they had signed Brandon Hagel to an 8-year extension.
It was met with general approval by the social media literati:
Fans of other teams had their own opinions about the signing, and as you can guess, weren’t quite as positive about it. There is no need to post their Tweets here, if you want to read them just click on the links above and read the replies (Life Tip from Uncle Justin – don’t read the replies – ever).
There is a legitimate argument to be made that it is a long and expensive deal for a player that has thrived off of being paired with really good teammates and hasn’t really shown an ability (yet) to drive the offense on his own. However, the good news for Lightning fans is that he should still be playing with really good teammates for the bulk of that contract, and who really cares about four years down the road when the window to win another Stanley Cup is the next two years?
In short, congratulations to Hagel for earning the deal and congratulations to the Lightning for getting it done and not having to worry about it during the season. Now, how about that Steven Stamkos extension?
Lightning / NHL News
Lightning sign Hagel to 8-year extension [Raw Charge]
Our initial reaction to the news.
Lightning extend Hagel [Tampa Bay Times]
The newspaper of record includes some quotes from Hagel.
What the deal means for the Lightning [The Athletic]
Shayna and Dom break the deal down over at The Athletic.
Prospect Breakdown: Tampa Bay Lightning [Daily Face Off]
The biggest strength – bottom-six forwards. Biggest weakness – top-six players. Yup, sounds about right. Ethan Gauthier makes the top of their list.
As we mentioned the other day, Victor Hedman was ranked 4th on the NHL Network’s list of top defensemen in the league. Here is their reasoning for the ranking (and some nice highlights for the Big Swede).
Hagel wasn’t the only forward who inked a new deal yesterday. Veleno, a restricted free agent, signed a one-year, $825,000 deal with the Detroit Red Wings. It has the feel of a “prove it” contract on a team that should be on it’s way up in the standings.
Andre Tourigny, Coyotes agree to extension per reports [Arizona Sports]
Heading into the third and final year of his current contract, it would be understandable if Arizona Coyotes head coach Andre Tourigny might be a little nervous about his future. Even for a team that is rebuilding, a 53-90-21 record is enough to get a coach sacked. Instead, it looks like he’ll be sticking around as the organization reportedly extended his contract. Good for him.
Remembering hockey Twitter with the best hockey Tweets of all time [Russian Machine Never Breaks]
Twitter isn’t dead yet, but the vultures are starting to circle. The folks over at RMNB put together a list of the best hockey-related Tweets of all time. Yes, Mark Donk and Overtime Hockey both made the cut. In case you were wondering, yes we have staked out a spot on both Bluesky (@rawcharge.bsky.social) and Threads (raw.charge.hockey) for when the inevitable happens and Twitter becomes a 100% pay-to-play platform.
Logan Mailloux reportedly cleared to play in the NHL/AHL [Eyes on the Prize]
The 31st pick of the 2021 NHL draft has reportedly been cleared to play in the NHL (or AHL, since the two leagues generally respect each other’s decisions on suspensions and eligibility). As a 17 year-old playing in Sweden, Mailloux was fined for taking and sharing photos of a woman while engaged in a sexual act with her without her consent.
It’s officially PTO season. Veteran players are accepting invitations to training camps around the league without the promise of an actual contract. Peter Holland is trying a comeback in Colorado, Nathan Beaulieu goes to Carolina to try and restart his career, Alex Chiasson is trying in Boston, Nate Schnarr is going to try and latch on in Columbus, and Brandon Sutter is in Edmonton after dealing with the effects of Long Covid. While the majority of players end up getting released from their PTOs, a handful will turn them into contracts. Just last year, Calvin de Haan turned a PTO into a one-year deal with Hurricanes.
Just like old times:
