The Bolts
Dom Luszczyszyn of The Hockey News did a poll of all hockey fans, asking them to rate how well each NHL management group has done. The six categories were “roster building, cap management, drafting and developing, trading, free agency and their overall vision.” The Tampa Bay Lightning (and by extension GM Steve Yzerman) were ranked very high by fans. How high? Well I’ll tell you that the Bolts and the Toronto Maple Leafs were the only Atlantic Division teams in the top half. You’ll have to read the article to find out exactly where. 😉 [The Hockey News]
Also, the Colorado Avalanche found themselves in a lower position in this ranking than in the standings last season. Quite a feat.
The results of the second annual NHL Front Office Confidence survey are in. Find out where every team ranks here: https://t.co/CpfSskm9g6 pic.twitter.com/P80XPfzDMQ
— 🌊 dom ☀️ (@domluszczyszyn) July 28, 2017
Newly signed forward Chris Kunitz sat down with Bolts TV to talk about why he chose the Lightning, what he can do for the team, as well as the teams ability and drive to win it all next June:
“This was somewhere we wanted to be and an organization we wanted to be a part of.”
1-on-1 with Chris Kunitz: pic.twitter.com/Gnz72WGbDa
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) July 28, 2017
JustinG. takes us on a ride for another installment of “A not so good day in Tampa Bay Lightning history.” This edition features Washington Capitals forward Peter Bondra’s 5 goal game. “His blend of speed and goal scoring prowess were too much for the Lightning during the days they were employing a less-than-stellar defensive corps.” I can’t believe Justin went through every goal, this must be torture for Lightning fans who remember that game. [Raw Charge]
Tampa Bay Lightning legend Vincent Lecavalier sent out this tweet (his first in a year) and the Lightning faithful couldn’t help but have some fun with it.
Brad richards
— Vincent Lecavalier (@VLecavalier4) July 28, 2017
Ruslan fedotenko
— You can call me Alan (@loserpoints) July 28, 2017
Cory stillman
— BoltsGuy04 (@BoltsGuy04) July 28, 2017
Nikolai khabibulin
— captain ben sparrow (@forgotten_night) July 28, 2017
Dimitri afanasenkov
— Matt Esteves (@iActium) July 28, 2017
Dave andreychuk
— Saima (@Saima_1226) July 28, 2017
John grahame
— Jared Kight (@Jarebear81787) July 28, 2017
Nolan pratt #vinnymeme
— Achariya (@tanyarezak) July 28, 2017
What a tweet!! 🙈🙈🙈🙈🙈🙈 https://t.co/oVdPDnkAiU
— Brad Richards (@BRichards_1991) July 28, 2017
You can find a sneak peak at Andrei Vasilevskiy’s new mask here. Thank you, Reddit.
The Prospects
A+ edgework from Lightning prospect Alexey Lipanov! The shot still needs some work.
Working👍 pic.twitter.com/GeaZmjfG5s
— Alexey Lipanov (@lipanov10) July 28, 2017
Top 25 Under 25
THE TOP 3 IS HERE!!!!!
#3: Brayden Point is going to play in the NHL next year. The current raging debate is whether the 79th overall pick in 2014 will be slotted at center or the right wing. “Point would represent a much larger upside as the second line right winger over being the third line center with Gourde on the second line. If he is on the second line and paired up with capable offensive partners, expecting 50 to 60 points is a very reasonable projection.” [Raw Charge]
#4: Alan’s work didn’t stop there. the man we call LoserPoints wrote about Vladislav Namestnikov and how, despite the points, Vladdy is a very impressive play driver for a variety of reasons. Here’s a quote if you’re not already convinced: “Primary scoring rate is a key indicator for forwards and Namestnikov struggles in that area. He scored at the pace of a low-end third-liner this season. If we stopped our analysis at scoring, we would write off Namestnikov as a middle-six forward and move on to more pressing concerns. But the rest of the metrics in this chart tell a different story.” [Raw Charge]
#5: Mikahil Sergachev is more than just the prospect that was traded for Jonathan Drouin. He’s a blue chip 19-year-old defenseman that can very easily slot into the NHL this season. “Sergachev is an offensive threat who can move the puck smoothly, similar to Victor Hedman… Mikhail plays with a tremendous amount of poise and adds a booming shot to go along with his skating ability.” [Raw Charge]
The Game
Ryan Johansen and the Nashville Predators inked a huge deal on friday, agreeing to an eight-year deal worth $64 million. The deal has no signing or performance bonuses, Johansen will simply make $8 million in base salary for the duration of the contract. “Putting up 73 assists in his first 124 games with Nashville—2nd on the team in that category over the last two years—Johansen is undoubtedly the best playmaking center that the Preds have ever had. While he has only scored 22 goals in that time, he’s still scored .77 points per game, which is 15 points higher than his previous average with Columbus.” [On The Forecheck]
The Canadian government released a guideline to “help anyone that interacts with athletes, ranging from coaches to health care professionals” reduce concussions in sport. “Seven areas are addressed in the guideline including: pre-season education, head injury recognition, on site medical assessment, medical assessment, concussion management, multidisciplinary concussion care and return to sport.” Two players that were acknowledged in this announcement were Eric Lindros, who championed for a national standard in treatment, and Ken Dryden who “called on sports executives to catch up with the science that shows a relationship with head trauma and long-term brain injuries.” This is a good step forward. [Sportsnet]
