With his season now done, Logan Couture went to the dentist.
The San Jose Sharks forward was struck in the face with a puck late in the regular season, and took some time Monday to start fixing things up after being eliminated from the playoffs by the Edmonton Oilers.
"They’re all damaged," Couture said of his teeth back on April 4. "A lot of these teeth are going to be taken out at some point once the season is over. They’ll have to remove a lot of them from my mouth."
Couture, who likely won't be grilling up any steaks early on this summer, was able to appear in all six playoff games, recording two goals and an assist.
Forbort, Martinez, and Toffoli are expected to be ready for training camp, while new GM Rob Blake announced Monday during new head coach John Stevens' presser that Gaborik won't be ready to open camp, and that the oft-injured forward will not have his contract bought out.
The Kings cleaned house earlier this month, firing general manager Dean Lombardi and head coach Darryl Sutter, with Blake and Stevens taking over.
Gaborik, 35, is signed through 2020-21, and that he's hurt again has to be extremely disappointing for the Kings. It appears they're going down with this ship.
Forbort and Martinez are big contributors on defense, where the Kings excel, finishing third and fifth on the team in ice time per game, with each playing more than 20 minutes.
Toffoli followed his breakout 31-goal and 58-point 2015-16 season with a dud, scoring only 16 goals in 63 games. On a team that couldn't score, however, his goals ranked third and his 36 points tied for sixth.
A second-round pick of the Kings in 2010, Toffoli turned 25 on Monday and is a restricted free agent ahead of July 1. He's going to be a top priority for the Kings in what has already been a busy offseason.
Braden Holtby is the betting favorite to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs MVP - which means Vegas believes the Washington Capitals are going to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins for only the second time in 10 playoff series.
Bodog issued its Conn Smythe odds Tuesday, and the Caps' star goalie is slightly favored over those Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid guys.
On the heels of a wildly successful season wherein the Maple Leafs not only advanced to the playoffs, but gave the first-place Washington Capitals all they could handle in an eventual first-round loss, head coach Mike Babcock acknowledged a roster that finished 30th just last season still needs work.
Babcock says the Leafs had an "unbelievable" year but are still "not good enough" and have lots of areas for improvement.
"We have to improve our hockey club. We understand that and that's what we will go about doing," Babcock added at Tuesday's press conference. "... In order to be consistent as a team you have to build something that has enough depth that you can do it time in and time out."
As for 2017-18, Babcock warned that repeating this year's success is no guarantee in today's NHL.
Babcock: "We want to make the playoffs (next year) … To just think we’re at the level where it’s automatic. It’s not for us."
He maintained the team won't deviate from the plan laid out by president Brendan Shanahan and implemented by general manager Lou Lamoriello, saying all three will work together to improve the team over the summer.
In the immediate future, Babcock will head to France and Germany to take in the World Championship, with an eye on players the team might look to add in free agency or via trade.
The Anaheim Ducks and Edmonton Oilers are set to duke it out for Central Division bragging rights in a second-round playoff series.
Here are three players who could make a huge impact and give their team the edge.
Rickard Rakell
In case you missed it, someone other than Corey Perry led the Ducks in goals this season for the first time in five years, and by a wide margin. That would be Rakell, who broke out to the tune of 33 goals in 71 games, with Jakob Silfverberg coming in a distant second with 23.
Rakell has remained productive in the postseason, recording two goals and three assists in Anaheim's four-game sweep of the Calgary Flames.
A big factor in the Swede's surge has been the shift from center to the wing, where he's found success playing alongside Ryan Getzlaf, who drew the primary assists on both of Rakell's goals against the Flames. It's not his natural position, but he's taking advantage.
"Playing more on the wing this year gives me different looks and more opportunities to score," Rakell said in late March, per Jared Clinton of The Hockey News. "It gives me more of a chance to find rebounds and have the puck closer to the net. It’s obviously easier to score from there."
Credit goes to head coach Randy Carlyle for making the adjustment and helping Rakell find his wings.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
It might sound odd to pump the tires of a player who failed to record a single point in the opening round, but here we are.
In truth, Nugent-Hopkins was one of the most important contributors in the Oilers' series win over the defending Western Conference champion San Jose Sharks.
Flanked by Milan Lucic and Jordan Eberle, Nugent-Hopkins led Edmonton with 17 shots over the six games, and created several other chances that just didn't click. But for head coach Todd McLellan, the center's contributions at the other end of the ice have been equally important.
"He has the tools to be a tremendous two-way player. When you’re chosen at that spot in the draft (first overall in 2011), you often come in as a one-dimensional, offensive-type player," McLellan said, per Reid Wilkins of CHED 630.
"In his situation here, he was thrust into that role, and he produced, and that’s the way he was going to go. He had some good years, but the team didn’t win a lot. It’s always about the team. He’s been able to adjust and learn a few things."
While paying in that two-way role and being counted on to shut down the opposition, Nugent-Hopkins was a positive possession player against the Sharks, meaning he was on the ice for more shot attempts for than against.
If his line can start finishing its scoring chances, and if Nugent-Hopkins starts putting up points - thereby relieving some pressure from Connor McDavid - these Oilers could be a force.
John Gibson
When the Ducks traded Frederik Andersen to the Toronto Maple Leafs last summer, it was with the intention to give Gibson - who's long been thought to be the heir apparent in Anaheim - the starting job.
In his first full season in that starting role, Gibson impressed with a record of 25-16-9 and a .924 save percentage, but was slowed through March with a lower-body injury. Backup Jonathan Bernier, who was indirectly acquired in the Andersen move, filled in admirably, but Gibson was always tabbed as the main man in net when healthy, and largely proved himself worthy against the Flames.
In three of the four games, Gibson stopped 101-of-106 shots against, good for a save percentage of .953. His series numbers were brought down by a poorer showing in Game 3, in which he was yanked after allowing four goals on 16 shots.
Provided that one start was a blip, Gibson appears ready to backstop the Ducks to new heights, fully justifying the decision to anoint him as the team's goalie of the present and future.
Betting Line
Team
Moneyline
EDM
+110
ANA
-140
Prediction
The Ducks have flown under the radar in Carlyle's second tour of duty behind the bench, but there are reasons why Anaheim rose to the top of a competitive Pacific Division and earned home-ice advantage in this series.
For one, and as mentioned above, this isn't just Getzlaf and Perry's team, as the Ducks boast the kind of veteran savvy and youthful exuberance that takes teams deep into the playoffs.
On the blue line, for example, the likes of Shea Theodore and Brandon Montour have stepped up and in for the injured Cam Fowler and Sami Vatanen. The latter two could return any day, giving the Ducks seemingly impenetrable depth on the back end.
And up front, the scoring of Rakell and Silfverberg is balanced out by the shut-down ability of Ryan Kesler, who recently earned a nod as a Selke Trophy finalist, as well as Antoine Vermette, who remains a force in the faceoff circle. And Patrick Eaves, by the way, is looking like the best trade deadline pickup of them all at this point.
Make no mistake, the Oilers are an up-and-coming force, but these Ducks are skilled, tough, and hungry, and their experience will thwart Edmonton's surge - for the time being at least.
The Toronto Maple Leafs center and likely winner of the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie decided against representing Team USA at the World Championship, saying he's "exhausted" from the grind of a long season, according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet.
Here's what his year has looked like:
Matthews skipping World Championships. Since Sep 8th he's played 98 games. (Incl WCH, Exhib, Reg+Post), about 30 more games than 15-16
The Minnesota Wild will be standing relatively pat following an early exit from the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
That was the message delivered by general manager Chuck Fletcher on Tuesday, with the caveat that the hockey world is headed for an interesting offseason with the addition of the Vegas Golden Knights and a salary cap that isn't expected to rise all that much.
Fletcher: "Wholesale changes? Absolutely not. [However] there's going to be changes with the salary cap and expansion." #mnwild
The Wild were eliminated in five games by the St. Louis Blues, but Fletcher appears to at least somewhat agree with head coach Bruce Boudreau's assessment that the better team lost.
"(We've got) a good group and a good team," Fletcher added, per Chad Graff of The Pioneer Press. "We've just got to keep pushing.
"People don’t want to hear about the regular season, but it’s still an 82-game, six-month picture," he continued. "We were a remarkably consistent team. We took a lot of steps this year."
The Wild finished fifth overall in the regular-season standings with a team-record 106 points.
Zaitsev appeared in four of six playoff games against the Washington Capitals, including the final three games, in which he averaged well over 20 minutes of ice time.
He failed to record a point and was a minus-four in the series following a strong showing in the regular season as a rookie.
It was a rare moment of honesty in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Following a series win over the Boston Bruins, Erik Karlsson admitted to having been playing with two hairline fractures in his left heel.
As the Ottawa Senators now prepare to face off against the New York Rangers in the second round, head coach Guy Boucher was asked if he was concerned about what Karlsson had disclosed, fearing the opposition may target the sore spot.
"It's over," Boucher countered Tuesday, per Ian Mendes of TSN. "That's why he said it. He's perfectly healthy now."
Perhaps a higher power has been at work since Karlsson suffered the injury back in late March:
Boucher says "we were all praying" when Karlsson was injured at end of year. #Sens
The former NHL center has served as head coach of the AHL's Utica Comets since 2013, and although Vancouver's farm team finished outside of the playoff picture this season, Green led the club to success in the past, including a Calder Cup Final appearance in 2015.
Green also coached the WHL's Portland Winterhawks to a league championship in 2013.
As a player, he logged 970 games over 16 seasons, recording 193 goals and 262 assists.
A formal announcement is expected within the next couple of days, per McKenzie.
