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Quick Strikes: A deeper look into the Jake Dotchin situation

What’s happened so far and what are some of the options for both Dotchin and the team moving forward?

The Bolts

On Friday, the Tampa Bay Lightning placed defenseman Jake Dotchin on unconditional waivers. It is customary to make the player who’s contract is about to be terminated available to the league, in case anyone would like to pick him up. On Saturday, Dotchin cleared waivers and it is believed the Lightning are going to begin the process of terminating his contract. It is expected that Dotchin’s camp will fight this. [Raw Charge]

The sixth-round pick from 2012 for the Tampa Bay Lightning has been in the team’s doghouse for a while now. Dotchin was taken off all of the preseason rosters last year when he broke an “unspecified team rule” when he showed up to camp. The 24-year-old showed promise in some stretches last year, but ultimately fell out of favor with the team, playing in only nine of the last 32 games of the season and zero games after mid-March.

It is a lot easier for other teams to grab Dotchin at a much lower price and without a fair bit of the drama that would come with cutting this current situation short. It doesn’t sound like Dotchin’s group is hell-bent on anything drastic legally, but it does sound like the NHLPA will get involved should they find anything funny in the reasons for termination.

In other words, it probably has to be something more than just coming into camp unfit. For all we know, the PA will fight this regardless and possibly purely for smoothing Dotchin’s reputation.

Youtuber Michael Wax gives his impressions on Dotchin-Gate. A must-watch!

JustinG. is back for another look at some Tampa Bay Lightning themed Upper Deck hockey cards. [Raw Charge]

This season, we will take a look at the various hockey card products as they are released and how they may appeal to Lightning fans. In the past we’ve focused on Upper Deck’s flagship product, but this year we will add a few more (budget pending) so that fans who might not be familiar with the industry can see what else is out there.

You tell ‘em, Tampa Bay Lightening!!!

In Syracuse Crunch news, the team hosted their own Canine Carnival! sharing only for that cute and responsible doggo.

Training Camp

Jon Cooper considers the fights for lineup spots a meritocracy earned in camp. Could we see some surprising selections at the end of camp ala Brayden Point? Adam Erne, Mathieu Joseph, and Andy Andreoff are all options that Caley Chelios and Brian Engblom spoke about. On defense, ERIK CERNAK ALERT!!!

And now for some practice video!

HORIZONTAL VIDEO, JOE! HOR-IZ-ON-TAL !!!!!

I MUST KNOW WHOSE STRETCH PASS THAT WAS.

I’m calling it now (and have been since August): Erik Cernak is making the team.

And we close up Saturday with some interviews.

The Game

We could see almost-Bolt Erik Karlsson sign a eight-year contract with the San Jose Sharks as early as when this article goes out. Can’t wait for this to be out-dated! [NHL dot com]

The Sharks have a track record of signing players acquired from elsewhere to long-term contracts, including defenseman Brent Burns, forward Joe Thornton and goalie Martin Jones. Forward Evander Kane, who was acquired in a trade last season, signed a seven-year contract to stay before he could have become a free agent.

Breaking down the Karlsson trade: The Sharks’ time is now

Ryan Straschnitzki was paralyzed when his Humboldt Broncos team bus crashed last spring.  It is a story every hockey fan knows. However, in the following months, Ryan has found a way to keep playing hockey. And in a way that would make local Tampa Bay hero Declan Farmer proud! [Squamish Chief]

“It brought back a lot of memories of when I was five years old and laced up the skates. It was one of the happiest times of my life and I was back out there again and just enjoying the moment.”

Gregory found himself down memory lane yesterday. He has some great video of the old Tampa Bay Lightning.

A lot of fans don’t like this new Winnipeg Jets third jersey. What do you think?

Former Lightning and Crunch netminder anders Lindback is heading to Switzerland to play for Davos.

Some of the brightest minds in the hockey world are in Ottawa tonight (ironic, eh) for the annual Ottawa Hockey Analytics Conference. Follow the hashtag for more info!

Michael Neuvirth has a flashy new mask!

I don’t know if Sean will ever recover from this.

#IsItOctoberYet

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