It took a couple of weeks of trade talk, according to general managers Rob Blake and Kyle Dubas, but on Monday, the Los Angeles Kings and Toronto Maple Leafs finally agreed on the first big trade of 2019.
Impact defenseman Jake Muzzin is off to Toronto in exchange for AHL forward Carl Grundstrom, the rights to prospect Sean Durzi, and the Leafs' first-round pick in the 2019 draft.
"When he joined Los Angeles coming out of junior, they were at the same stage that we’re at now," Dubas said of Muzzin and the Leafs during a conference call. "He had that experience of seeing a team mature from being a team that wanted to contend, to contending, and then ultimately winning."
Sitting at opposite ends of the standings, Dubas and Blake made a straightforward deal that - as anti-climactic as it sounds - could be a win-win for both franchises.
What this means for the Leafs
The Leafs' top pairing of Morgan Rielly and Ron Hainsey, locked in all season long, appears to be toast.
Dubas wouldn't confirm it, saying head coach Mike Babcock would need to speak with the affected players first. However, it's safe to assume the left-handed Muzzin, who'll turn 30 on Feb. 22, will slide into Hainsey's spot on Rielly's right side Friday when the Leafs come off their bye week for a road game against the Detroit Red Wings.
Muzzin, an all-around defender who won the 2014 Stanley Cup alongside Drew Doughty, is a gigantic upgrade on the 37-year-old Hainsey, whose rapid decline in 2018-19 frustrated Leafs fans to no end.
Here's an educated guess at Toronto's revamped defense pairings, assuming everybody is healthy - Jake Gardiner is out with back spasms at the moment. Hainsey would slide down the depth chart but not out of the lineup:
LD (shoots)
RD (shoots)
Morgan Rielly (L)
Jake Muzzin (L)
Jake Gardiner (L)
Nikita Zaitsev (R)
Travis Dermott (L)
Ron Hainsey (L)
Martin Marincin (L)
Igor Ozhiganov (R)
A penalty killer, minute muncher, and puck mover with strong possession numbers, Muzzin is exactly the type of defenseman the Leafs - who own the league's fourth-best offense, but can sometimes leak scoring chances - needed.
Goalie Frederik Andersen may be the greatest beneficiary of this trade, given Muzzin's defensive ability. On second thought, perhaps this is Rielly's big break. It's amazing, really, that he's having a Norris Trophy-caliber season and is about to start skating with a legitimate running mate.
"I think he's an elite defenseman," Blake said of Muzzin moving to the Eastern Conference. "He's going to bring the physical aspect, but he has poise and patience to make plays. I think the adjustment will come naturally for him because he's a top defenseman."
Rene Johnston / Getty Images
The cost for Muzzin isn't negligible, so Dubas doesn't look like a thief by any means. Still, considering his track record and contract - Muzzin's signed through next season at $4 million per year - and the fact that the draft pick will most likely be in the mid-to-late 20s, it's a smart, cap-friendly bet.
Muzzin, a 2007 fifth-round pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins, has 51 goals and 162 assists for 213 points in 496 career games, all in a Kings uniform. He was born two hours west of Toronto in Woodstock, Ontario.
What this means for the Kings
Speaking of term, Blake wouldn't budge when a reporter asked if the Kings are shopping or taking calls on players under contract past this year.
Los Angeles' record through 50 games (20-26-4, rivaling only the woeful Ottawa Senators), and Blake's willingness to ship out useful players months ago, suggests most - if not all - the names on the roster may be on the table.
But neither of the players acquired from the Leafs will join the NHL club immediately. "We’re at the bottom of the league," Blake said. "We made this deal for the future of the organization."
Graig Abel / Getty Images Sport / Getty
In Grundstrom, the Kings are receiving a first-year Marlies winger with top-nine NHL potential. "His compete, his effort, and work have been mainstays," Blake said of the 21-year-old Swede. "His sense and his poise is above average and (he’s) a strong skater."
Meanwhile, Durzi is an unsigned late bloomer still playing in the OHL for the Guelph Storm. The 6-foot, 196-pound defenseman was drafted in the second round by the Leafs in 2018, his second year of eligibility. Blake likes the 20-year-old's hockey IQ and skating ability.
The Kings, who won two titles in three years to start the decade, have fallen on tough times after failing to adapt to a faster style of play. Blake has been able to get his team nine selections in the 2019 draft - one pick per round, plus the Leafs' first and a fifth-rounder from the Arizona Coyotes.
The main takeaway
By pulling the trigger on a deal of this magnitude four weeks away from the trade deadline, Dubas made life difficult for rival GMs looking to bolster their blue lines in the leadup to Feb. 25.
All of a sudden, Dougie Hamilton, the other prized defenseman said to be available, is a white-hot commodity. Some would argue the Carolina Hurricanes should command a hefty return regardless. But now, with Muzzin off the market, the price for Hamilton will be steeper.
In the same breath, the pressure is completely off Dubas and the Leafs. Barring a major injury or a last-minute desire to go all-in on the 2018-19 season, the Muzzin trade may be the only significant move necessary. Expect improvements around the edges of the roster, not more fireworks.
On Monday, Dubas alluded to the organization's multi-year contention plan, reiterating what he's noted in the past about the type of players his club desires. "Our preference was to acquire players who did have some term on their deals," he said.
Muzzin certainly accomplishes that. And, based on Blake's tone during his conference with the media, the rebuilding Kings will miss his play and presence - and potentially other key pieces of their Cup-winning core as they move to restock the cupboard.
"Terrific player, terrific person," Blake said. "(Muzzin) took a huge step in leadership over the last few years here. Very difficult day here for us to move players that have brought so much to this organization."
John Matisz is theScore's National Hockey Writer. You can find him on Twitter @matiszjohn.
SAN JOSE - At its core, the NHL's All-Star weekend is designed to remind.
It reminds us that hockey is a sport worth celebrating and that there's nobody better to celebrate with than thousands of young fans. It reminds us that the players in attendance - oftentimes cliche-spouting robots - are actually human. In vacation mode at the midseason showcase, their guards are down. The result: tales of cheetah bites, videos of former teammates riding scooters, and revelations of totally-unrelatable-slash-awesome bets.
Brian Babineau / Getty Images
And this year, although not by design, per se, the weekend also reminded us of the brilliance of Sidney Crosby, Henrik Lundqvist, Pekka Rinne, Blake Wheeler, and Brent Burns. The old dudes - which in the modern NHL includes anybody 30-plus - might count as the minority group nowadays, having already handed over the keys to millennials and Generation Z'ers. But they're still kicking.
Especially Crosby, whose eight points in two three-on-three games earned him MVP honors in the main event. He reminded us that, hey, this 31-year-old three-time Stanley Cup winner, currently overshadowed by Connor McDavid's generational talent, is building a case for yet another piece of hardware. There's no defending during All-Star weekend, yet Crosby's mere presence brought the Selke Trophy debate to the forefront.
Adding a Selke to his robust award collection - two Harts, two Rocket Richards, two Conn Smythes, two Art Rosses, three Lester B. Pearsons/Ted Lindsays - is not beyond the realm of possibility for Crosby. The #Sid4Selke campaign is officially underway.
"I'd like to be in the conversation, for sure," Crosby said of the annual honor for the league's top defensive forward. "I mean, I think your play has to earn that. Anyone can say that, but I think I definitely want to be known as a player who's responsible defensively. I want to be good offensively, but do it the right way. And I think for the most part this year that's been the case."
A lengthy breakdown of Selke candidates is a task for another day (spoiler: the list would include usual suspects Aleksander Barkov and Patrice Bergeron). In the meantime, here's a quick snapshot of Crosby's 2018-19 season through 48 games:
In his 700-plus minutes at 5-on-5, the Penguins have owned 70 percent of the goals, 58 percent of the scoring chances, and 56 percent of the shot attempts, according to NaturalStatTrick.com. In all situations, he's won 52 percent of his faceoffs and is a plus-four in penalty differential. All this while producing 57 points in 20:42 of ice time a night.
In passing, that sounds Selke-worthy.
Tension following Oilers everywhere
On one hand, the All-Star break couldn't have come at a better time for Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Less than a week after polarizing general manager Peter Chiarelli received his pink slip, the Oilers' best players escaped the Edmonton bubble for a few days with the team now on its bye week.
On the other hand, the timing of Chiarelli's dismissal wasn't ideal for Edmonton's stars, given all the media responsibilities and public appearances associated with the All-Star festivities. Though questions tended to focus on levity, there was no avoiding the debacle back home.
"It is what it is," Draisaitl told theScore following the Pacific Division's elimination from Saturday's three-on-three tournament. "We're responsible for what's going on there, no one else. We've got to find ways to win hockey games. That's all we have to do."
Dave Sandford / Getty Images
McDavid - who rarely cracks a smile when the cameras are on, regardless of circumstance or his team's performance - squirmed in his seat during media day. "Oh. My God," he said Thursday as Edmonton-related questions eased into lighter topics. "I was gonna get off the seat, it was so hot. I love the three-on-three."
The Oilers are off until Feb. 2, when they visit Philadelphia to face the Flyers and begin a stretch of five games in eight days. Based on the jammed-up Western Conference standings, the season could quickly get away from Edmonton if it stumbles in the early going of the post-break schedule. But nothing's been decided yet.
"We're three points out of a playoff spot," McDavid noted a day before winning the Fastest Skater competition. "I think that gets lost. I think that really is lost. We're going through a lot of different changes, but we're three points out and have a chance to make the playoffs."
Players not caught up in tracking buzz
It turns out the league's new toy, the player and puck tracking system unveiled over the weekend, isn't at the forefront of players' thoughts.
Asked about the pros and cons of the investment in microchip technology, with a full rollout scheduled for the 2019-20 season, many All-Stars shrugged. Others admitted they were simply uneducated on the topic of tracking in general. The players' reactions are slightly surprising, considering it's their on-ice data being collected and shared with the world.
"To be completely honest, I haven't done much homework on the whole concept," Tampa Bay Lightning forward Steven Stamkos said. "I was around when ESPN or FOX used to do the puck tracker (in the 1990s), back when we had standard-definition TV and no one could see the puck. I think we've come a long way from that."
Len Redkoles / Getty Images
Like most of his peers, Stamkos sees the benefits of tracking from a fan engagement perspective and as a tool for broadcasters and media. But he added, "We don't know exactly how that information is going to be used yet." (The NHL and NHLPA have agreed that tracking data will be exempt from the contract negotiation process, including arbitration hearings, according to deputy commissioner Bill Daly.)
Florida Panthers defenseman Keith Yandle admitted not knowing a single thing about the matter. Even some of the game's most studious competitors, like Mark Scheifele of the Winnipeg Jets and the St. Louis Blues' Ryan O'Reilly, aren't jumping for joy. Despite the buzz, tracking seems very blah for players.
"I'm not a big fan of it," O'Reilly said. "As a player, there's so much feel involved in the game … there's certain reads you have that I don't think a device can assess. That's one of the things I love about the sport."
NBC incorporated tracking data into its broadcast for the three-on-three tournament. From the bench, Scheifele thought it looked too busy and drew attention away from the on-ice action.
"If I'm going to watch a game I like it to all be gone," he said of the name tags, zone time, skating speed, and other advanced stats. "Just because I'd rather see everything that's going on in (the game itself). When you start showing a bunch of random stats it might trick the eyes a little bit."
To close the book on the weekend, here are 10 bests:
1. Best quote - Kendall Coyne Schofield on making history in the Fastest Skater event
"I would say, especially to young girls and to women, follow your dreams and believe in yourselves and there is nothing you can't accomplish. I think tonight was an example of that."
2. Best mess - Prize allocation following passing challenge
After challenging Draisaitl for the best time in the Premier Passer skills event, Brianna Decker ended up getting her prize - $25,000 from CCM and another $25K from the NHL earmarked for charity. But the process by which she received it (#PayDecker) was a little awkward. Social media took the NHL to task for a few hours there.
Chase Agnello-Dean / Getty Images
3. Best impression - King Henrik, of course
Lundqvist charms 'em all. As Yandle noted during a Saturday Q&A with fans at the All-Star fan festival, the Rangers netminder is seemingly perfect. An excellent puck-stopper, a musician, handsome as hell, and super nice. "When you look at him you think maybe he's a jerk," Yandle joked. Yet he's not.
4. Best projectile - Something fishy from the upper deck
Predators fans travel well. Case in point, the catfish that thumped onto the ice after Nashville captain Roman Josi netted a three-on-three goal.
Someone just threw a catfish on the ice at #NHLAllStar when Josi scored. #preds
5. Best throwback - Vancouver trip an eye-opener for Californian hockey
Striking up a conversation over morning coffee, a middle-aged Sharks fan from Sacramento, Calif., said he remembers going to Vancouver for a minor hockey tournament as a kid and being blown away by one particular thing. After he and his teammates showed up for their game and were unable to find their dressing room, someone told them they were in the wrong rink. They all stared at each other with puzzled looks and thought, 'There's another rink in Vancouver?!' Oh, how the times have changed for hockey in California, now home to three NHL teams, a handful of NHL players, and dozens of local arenas.
6. Best superstition - O'Reilly on the craziest ritual he's witnessed
"I remember a guy I played with at the international level ... every door he walked through he had to touch the left, the top and the right side of it. I remember watching and thinking that's got to be exhausting. Every door."
7. Best jersey - No. 36, Atlanta Thrashers
Spotted outside the SAP Center on Saturday afternoon among a sea of McDavids, Karlssons, and Crosbys: An Eric Boulton jersey. How incredibly random.
Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images
8. Best stamina - Gritty never stops
The orange muppet of your nightmares is the meme that keeps on giving. Gritty was omnipresent in Silicon Valley; the wobbling bundle of energy was the subject of countless selfies and a star in the mascot hockey game.
9. Best imitation - NFL influences NHL
Upon entry to Thursday's main media availability, fans received a headset so they could listen to players' answers at their respective podiums. An idea borrowed from Super Bowl media day, it seemed to be a hit.
10. Best memory - Sharks fans don't forget
Among those booed mercilessly by the hometown crowd: John Tavares, for not signing with the Sharks as a free agent; divisional rivals John Gibson and Drew Doughty; and Crosby, whose Penguins won the 2016 Stanley Cup in San Jose.
John Matisz is theScore's National Hockey Writer. You can find him on Twitter @matiszjohn.
SAN JOSE - Gary Bettman turned to face a gigantic TV screen inside a trendy restaurant on the Friday afternoon of All-Star weekend, and stared. Alone on stage, he watched the future and the past collide.
Playing was a presentation of the NHL's player and puck tracking system, the league's much-anticipated dive into the microchip technology realm. Tracking, which is being promoted heavily this month as the league's next big endeavor, will debut next season. Welcome to the future.
To demonstrate how far the NHL has come on the tech file, a clip of the famous Fox Sports glow puck ran as part of the video's intro. As if that nostalgic kick wasn't enough, a young Bettman flashed on the screen for a soundbite about the late-1990s broadcast experiment. A blast from the past.
In his 40s then, Bettman had the look of a pro sports executive who had the world in front of him. Contemporary Bettman's lost some hair, played a starring role in the second and third lockouts of his quarter-century tenure, and endured endless booing from fans everywhere. The pros far outweigh the cons, mind you. Now 66, he has a resume as diverse as it is long and, despite the eyebrow-raising timing, is a well-deserving Hockey Hall of Fame inductee.
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images
With the game in tremendous shape and his birth certificate hinting it might be time to consider the idea of retiring sooner than later, the question was asked: Will you be slowing down in the near future, Mr. Commissioner?
“I haven’t given it any thought,” Bettman said at the tail end of a Q&A with reporters following the tracking presentation, joined on stage by his longtime right-hand man Bill Daly, the deputy commissioner.
"Anybody who knows me knows I don’t operate on timeframes like that. I love what I do. I feel energized every day. The owners seem to be pleased with the way the organization functions, and I suppose if any of that changes I might have to re-evaluate. But you’re going to have to put up with me for a bunch more.”
Whether he ends up working two, five, 10, or 15 more years, Bettman’s most certainly in the legacy-building phase of his career. He may at times be self-deprecating (Exhibit A: His Hall of Fame speech) and generally tries to avoid the spotlight whenever possible, yet there's unfinished business to attend to.
Specifically, there's one task that would elevate his legacy to bulletproof status among most hockey fans, media, and colleagues. The task: Avoiding another lockout.
Oddly enough, given the history of testy labor relations between the NHL's contingent of franchise owners and the NHL Players’ Association, it’s entirely plausible. If the vibe in Silicon Valley this weekend is any indication, it’s looking more likely than not that, for the first time in the Bettman era, we'll have labor peace.
Bruce Bennett / Getty Images
While the current agreement doesn't expire until after the 2021-22 season, it can be terminated by either side this September, putting deadline pressure on the relationship. Usually, that means lockout - or, at this stage in the process, the icky feeling of a looming lockout. Not this time, apparently.
“We’re not looking for a fight,” is how Bettman framed the "cordial" ongoing collective bargaining. A few weeks earlier, during a visit to Seattle, he said something similar. “We’re exploring the possibility of whether we can bridge gaps early," Daly said, piggybacking on Bettman's message. "Earlier the better."
The NHLPA hasn’t exactly barked back with anything to discredit the league's message. "We’re able to have these discussions now without that tension," said Mathieu Schneider, special assistant to NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr, "without any walls being build up." That doesn't mean walls won't be erected in the coming months, of course. However, it's an encouraging sign and a pleasant development for the hockey world.
The long and short of CBA talks moving forward: the ball appears to be in the players' court because the status quo is working just fine for the owners, who are turning record profits. Therefore, the union's plan of attack will set the tone. It's up to Fehr and the membership to determine if hot-button issues like escrow, hockey-related revenue, and Olympic participation are hills to die on (to steal a Daly phrase from the last lockout), medium-sized bones of contention, or mere annoyances.
Christopher Morris / Getty Images
Bettman, who assumed his position in 1993 after 12 years helping run the NBA, loves to brag about how the sport of hockey, and by extension the NHL, has never been better, more entertaining, more profitable. To be fair, he's not wrong. Skill is probably at an all-time high, goal-scoring is on the uptick, the sport is growing exponentially at the grassroots level in markets deemed "non-traditional" a decade or two ago, and franchise fees are skyrocketing.
When Bettman came on board, the 24-team league was worth roughly $400 million. Twenty-five years and eight teams (including Seattle) later, it's a $5-billion business. And though, as Schneider notes, "there's no question that the players have given back billions of dollars over the course of the past two negotiations," they still get a nice slice of the pie. Salaries are up, too.
The NHL also has a seemingly endless list of grow-the-game projects on the go, including: preseason and regular season games overseas, in both Europe and Asia; an environmental sustainability initiative called NHL Green, which is highlighted this week by the eco-friendly All-Star jerseys; a dedicated esports push, headlined by the NHL Gaming World Championship; a sports betting partnership with MGM Resorts; and real-time data collection and analysis a la the aforementioned player and puck tracking system.
To varying degrees, all of those areas of exploration will be attached to Bettman's legacy when he loses his fire for the gig and decides to step aside. He may not be the lead on every project, but the buck stops at the commissioner. It's the same dynamic for issues that have haunted the NHL. Bettman's the face of several franchise relocations, the withdrawal of NHL talent from the 2018 Olympics, the denial of CTE's link to hockey in the wake of a concussion settlement with former players, the lockouts of 1994-95, 2004-05, and 2012-13, and more.
Brian Babineau / National Hockey League / Getty
Bettman's not terribly old by industry standards, with old boss David Stern, the former NBA commissioner, retiring at 71, and ex-MLB commissioner Bud Selig calling it quits at 80. But he won't be a spring chicken come 2022. If all goes according to script between now and September, and Bettman stays on long term, the union will be sitting across from a 69-year-old commissioner to negotiate a new CBA. Based on track record, there's no telling what the dynamic between the two sides might be then.
“We wouldn’t be where we are today if we didn’t have a system that corrected some of the ills in the past," Bettman said of previous lockouts. "We have stability, we have competitive balance and the game is able to grow. That’s good for everyone involved with the game.”
That's why this next stretch of talks could be Bettman's CBA swan song, the icing on the cake of a highly controversial yet highly successful run as the most powerful suit in hockey. He'll get booed no matter what - it's a time-tested tradition, after all - but the respect level might be raised and the narrative might change.
It could be a legacy sealer like no other, a way to go out on a high note, even if the retirement papers aren't filed immediately.
John Matisz is theScore's National Hockey Writer. You can find him on Twitter @matiszjohn.
In this episode, John's joined by Brock McGillis, the first pro hockey player to come out as gay, and Rachel Doerrie, a former analyst for the New Jersey Devils, to discuss a variety of topics, namely:
Homophobia in hockey and Brock's coming-out story
Diversity in hockey and Rachel's experience of climbing the ranks
In this episode, John's joined by Brock McGillis, the first pro hockey player to come out as gay, and Rachel Doerrie, a former analyst for the New Jersey Devils, to discuss a variety of topics, namely:
Homophobia in hockey and Brock's coming-out story
Diversity in hockey and Rachel's experience of climbing the ranks
Earlier this season, after a handful of fruitless one-on-one battles versus Seth Jones, a lightbulb went off in Pierre-Luc Dubois' head.
Man, this guy's impossible to defend. He's strong, mobile, and assertive.
"He'll have a guy on his back and, with one hand on his stick, he'll push the guy away. He'll keep skating," Dubois said, shaking his head at the commanding nature of his Columbus Blue Jackets teammate. "We laugh about that. I started to pay attention to it and I see it pretty much every game."
This is one of Jones' signatures. The Metropolitan Division All-Star tends to carry the puck with self-assuredness, deploying his 6-foot-4, 209-pound frame as a shield against all puck-hungry opponents.
The sequence below, from a game in November versus the New York Rangers, shows the understated skill. Watch the puck-carrier on the far side of the ice:
Courtesy: FOX Sports Ohio
Jones transports the puck from the red line to the offensive zone with three Rangers in his vicinity. Initiating from opposite sides, two of them try to steal the puck. They fail miserably, while the third glides deeper into the defensive end. Moments later, Jones wires a shot from the point. Goal.
If you look close enough, these skills - let's call them signatures - can be identified in every NHL game. Two obvious examples: Auston Matthews' knack for releasing the puck from unique angles and Connor McDavid's habit of going full-tilt before stopping on a dime. Other signatures, on the other hand, go largely undetected by the naked eye.
Frankly, some NHL players are much better than their peers at certain things.
"To be at this level, you have to do something really well," Vegas Golden Knights winger Alex Tuch said of the signature theory. "You can't just be OK at everything and be a difference-maker. No, you have to do at least one thing really well to stick out."
So, who is exceptional at the covert? Who is so proficient at a specific skill that teammates and opponents can only shake their heads in disbelief from the bench? In short, who has a signature worth highlighting?
Ahead of this week's All-Star festivities, theScore surveyed 15 NHLers to ask those exact questions. Here are the 10 best responses:
The stick magician
Aleksander Barkov is so often labeled underrated that he may actually be overrated at this point.
Mind you, there's a reason why the Florida Panthers captain's stock is hard to peg. The guy's incredible at a number of subtleties, including the art of using his stick to his advantage as a defender, and more importantly, doing so legally.
"We just played Florida a couple of games ago and I remember Barkov was so good at his hand-eye coordination," Tampa Bay Lightning forward Tyler Johnson said in December. "You couldn't get a puck around him because, no matter what, he was catching it with his stick. It was really impressing all of us."
There's no doubt that members of the Senators felt similarly on Nov. 11, when Barkov lifted Christian Jaros' stick at the Ottawa blue line en route to a pretty half-breakaway goal:
Courtesy: FOX Sports Florida
Typical kosher stick work from Barkov, who has an astounding plus-27 penalty differential right now. Twenty-eight penalties drawn, one penalty taken through 1,043 minutes.
It's not as though the rangy Finnish center is disengaged without the puck, wandering around aimlessly. He's a perennial Selke Trophy candidate in large part due to his attention to detail, timing, and hand-eye coordination on the defensive side of the puck.
"You try to chip it past him, it doesn't work," Johnson said. "You might try to throw a sauce pass through the seam and he always seems to knock it down and put it right back on his stick."
The breakout bandit
Ask a group of hockey observers - fans, media, players, coaches, whomever - to name the NHL's top puck-handling goalie and Mike Smith's name will undoubtedly dominate the replies. After all, it's the Calgary Flames netminder's calling card.
What about Central Division All-Star Pekka Rinne? At least one conference rival finds the Nashville Predator's passing capabilities incredibly annoying.
"Mostly what I hate about goalies is when they handle the puck really well. Like Pekka Rinne," San Jose Sharks winger Tomas Hertl said. "You will hammer the puck around the boards and he will jump on it. Every time you forecheck on him, he just waits. After you move, he plays it."
John Russell / Getty Images
Rinne, the reigning Vezina Trophy winner, is "like a sixth player on the ice," Hertl said.
"He fakes you out or waits you out," he added. "Because you have to go on him, and if you go on him, he just makes the easy play up the ice or off the boards. You're done and they go the other way. It's pretty hard."
The no-look artist
For Martin Frk, the Czech-born Detroit Red Wings forward with a booming shot, Swedish playmaker Nicklas Backstrom is on the short list of greatest passers of his era.
That's not exactly a unique take, given nobody has pocketed more assists than Backstrom since the Washington Capitals center entered the league in 2007. Instead, it's the manner in which Backstrom generates scoring opportunities for his teammates on the power play that keeps Frk enthralled from the opposing bench:
Courtesy: NBC Sports Washington
While the above clip is from an even-strength shift and involves a quick snipe by T.J. Oshie, Frk's point still resonates.
"When you watch him, he's got the touch," he said of No. 19's trademark no-lookers, laughing to himself.
"He sometimes does this no-look pass," Frk added. "He sees the ice very well, so he can do that. Especially on the power play, when you need to score, he can make those passes and it's usually an easy tap-in for the guys there."
The constant threat
On a Vegas roster filled with useful players, it's William Carrier who comes to mind for Tuch, because the fourth-liner is the cream of the crop in one specific area.
"Honestly, dude, it's insane," Tuch said. "He finishes every single check. So, every time the defenseman goes to retrieve a puck, he's there. By the third period, they're looking over both shoulders going, 'What the hell is going to happen to me now?' If they don't, they're going to get smoked by Will Carrier."
Talk about a ringing endorsement for a player who sees fewer than 10 minutes of ice time per night.
Norm Hall / Getty Images
Although gaudy hit totals are not for everyone (you're usually in a position to make a hit when your team doesn't have the puck, so is it really a net-positive?), Tuch is most definitely barking up the right tree.
Carrier, a 6-foot-2, 212-pound winger acquired by Vegas from the Buffalo Sabres in the 2017 expansion draft, leads the league in hits with 219 in 44 games this season, while racking up just 20 penalty minutes. Sounds pretty effective.
While not blazing fast, Jake Gardiner is certainly in the conversation for the best skating defenseman. The Toronto Maple Leafs blue-liner, who has taken a beating lately from a segment of the fan base, has this unique way of gliding at a high speed, during which it appears he's almost hovering slightly above the ice.
"He has that bounce to him, that evasive, deceptive speed," Leafs goalie Garret Sparks said. "He's an effortless skater. It's stuff like that that you can't teach."
Courtesy: CBC
Gardiner transitions from skating forward to skating backward - and vice versa - in immaculate fashion. Sometimes, like in the above clip, it looks as though the puck is his dance partner.
There's no awkward tangling of the feet thanks to some elite edgework, and he does it all seemingly without breaking a sweat.
"His skating's just an extension of his mind," Sparks said of the 28-year-old pending unrestricted free agent. "He doesn't have to work for it."
The drag master
Damon Severson doesn't know if Bo Horvat has the best toe drag in the league, but he can attest to the effectiveness of the two-way center's "patented" move.
"One of my first couple of years in the NHL he came down on me, and I knew it was coming," said Severson. "But I tried to poke the puck away and I just missed it and he went by me.
"He comes down with speed and just kinda pulls it out, back, and then he's way out here (Severson mimics an exaggerated toe dragging motion) and goes around you. He's really good at that move."
Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images
Not every Horvat toe drag leads to a celebration for the Vancouver Canucks. Many of his attempts over the years have been derailed by flailing stick checks, point-blank saves, or poorly-aimed shots.
The 'Bo' drag is a risky maneuver belied by a highlight-reel payoff. In Severson's case, he had the last laugh. Well, sort of.
"Thank goodness he didn't score or else that would be really bad," Severson said. "I had my girlfriend's dad text me after the game. He was telling me to get my jock out of the rafters."
The lane maker
Like clockwork, Brent Burns is again challenging for the league lead in shots on goal among defensemen. A top-five finisher every year since 2013-14, the Sharks blue-liner sits four back of Roman Josi's 176 shots.
In the offensive zone, just about every puck that enters Burns' orbit eventually finds the opposing cage. The Pacific Division All-Star has an innate feel for aiming for the target and, more crucially, avoiding shot-blocking forwards.
"For guys who have the ability to get shots through from the point, I think Brent Burns is a name," Boston Bruins winger Danton Heinen said. "He's the best in the league at that, in my opinion."
Courtesy: NBCSN
Sounds basic, right? Find a hole and put the puck through it. Really, though, it's complicated. Lanes disappear in an instant and there's a legitimate risk a blocked shot can send an odd-man rush the other way.
According to Heinen, Burns is effective because he's fearless, can skate his way into openings, and is not afraid to get creative. This deadly combination allows Burns, who was drafted by the Minnesota Wild in 2003 as a forward, to manufacture a prime scoring chance out of a broken play.
"If the puck is going back to the point, a lot of times you can get in the lane and be fine," Heinen said. "But he's good at changing the angle and getting it through, getting it by you. He somehow creates those shots. You think you're in the lane and then he either pulls it, or pushes it, or just lets it go so quickly. All of a sudden, it's through you."
The point guard
When Artemi Panarin receives the puck on his stick, the game almost always seems to slow down. The patient playmaker isn't a poor skater, he just seems to prefer a certain pace when playing keep-away with the other team.
For the Russian center with 179 assists in 289 NHL games, hockey is not unlike basketball. Bring on the double-teams, he'll find a seam. And it doesn't matter if he's on his backhand or forehand, he'll figure it out.
"A guy with his skill set has the capability to hold onto the puck a lot longer," Blue Jackets teammate Josh Anderson said. "Anytime he does have the puck there's going to be guys double-teaming him, which leaves an open man. And he'll find that guy pretty easily."
Icon Sportswire / Getty Images
There are only a handful of NHL players who fall into the point guard category. Mathew Barzal of the New York Islanders is another. What separates Panarin from the pack, though, is his elusive style and willingness to engage with any and all defenders.
"I think it's his shiftiness," Anderson added. "He's got a lot of head fakes. Defense, half the time, don't even know what to do."
The outrageous hitter
Radko Gudas is playing in the wrong era, plain and simple.
The hulking Philadelphia Flyers defenseman is a perfectly useful player, but his bread and butter is his physical force. And the modern NHL doesn't see eye to eye with body checking, especially those of the thunderous variety.
Back in 2009-10, when Gudas was 19 and patrolling the blue line for the Everett Silvertips in the Western Hockey League, Blue Jackets defenseman Ryan Murray had a front-row seat to the best hip-checker he's come across.
"It was the most outrageous thing I've ever seen," said Murray, Gudas' defense partner in Everett. "One-on-one, last man back. The player would cut to the middle and he'd just clip them ... it was just an art."
The old Gudas reappears on occasion. You could say he's an artist:
Courtesy: NBC Sports Philadelphia
Back in the day, Gudas' willingness to attempt a bone-crushing hit worked to Murray's advantage. A former second overall pick in the 2012 draft, he would pounce on a loose puck produced by a Gudas hit in the neutral zone and bolt north.
"It's kinda that moment where you're like, 'Am I going to fight this guy? Is there going to be a penalty?' Everybody would hesitate," Murray recalled. "The puck would squirt free and there were a few times when I would zip it up and score a goal."
From afar, Murray has noticed a steep decline in Gudas hip checks over the years, though it's more so a commentary on the sport's changing priorities than the 5-foot-11, 205-pound Czech's abilities.
"I think it's a little harder in this league," Murray said. "Guys were just more unaware (in junior). They would be going through the neutral zone and you could see it coming. He would line them up. It was wild, and the fans would be going crazy. Everyone would be screaming. Full front flips on numerous occasions."
The one-handed thief
"Like a spider."
That's how Maple Leafs forward Zach Hyman describes teammate Connor Brown when the latter is deploying his one-handed puck-stripping technique, usually on the penalty kill.
Icon Sportswire / Getty Images
"He'll try to grab a guy from behind and he'll turn his blade upside down and then pull the puck back," said Hyman.
Like a spider, or a craps dealer at a casino.
"We always joke about it. I've played against him for however long in scrimmages and we always try to get each other with that."
Next time Columbus and Toronto face off, keep one eye on Brown, the sneaky stealer, and the other on Jones, the assertive puck-rusher, and you might see two signature skills collide in real time.
John Matisz is theScore's National Hockey Writer. You can find him on Twitter @matiszjohn.
The Minnesota Wild and Carolina Hurricanes completed a one-for-one trade on Thursday, with Nino Niederreiter heading to Raleigh, and Victor Rask off to St. Paul. The deal reeks of foreshadowing for both franchises, and it's perhaps a precursor to higher-impact moves in the near future.
Carolina, a club that's missed the playoffs nine straight years, is seven points out of the second wild-card position in the Eastern Conference. About five weeks from the trade deadline, general manager Don Waddell’s team is straddling the seller-buyer line.
Minnesota, meanwhile, is hanging on for dear life. Heading into Thursday’s slate of games, GM Paul Fenton’s squad occupied the final Western Conference playoff spot, barely ahead of five clubs. Fans in Minnesota, the state of hockey, haven't watched their team make it past the second round since 2003.
What this means for the Wild
On a micro level, the trade is puzzling for Minnesota.
Rask, 25, isn’t a hot commodity. He's struggled mightily over 26 games in 2018-19, recording only six points after recovering from a season-opening hand injury. The Swede ranked last in even-strength shot attempt differential among Carolina's everyday players - which is particularly notable because the Canes are a puck-possession powerhouse.
“I think (Rask) needed a change of scenery,” Fenton said on a conference call, “and I’m hoping he gets back his scoring and his distribution so he can be very productive for us.”
The first-year GM's rationale continued: Rask is versatile as a left-handed center fully capable of slotting in on the wing; he's six months younger than Niederreiter; and the exchange of contracts (neither club retains salary) leaves the Wild on the hook for $4 million instead of $5.25 annually.
Gregg Forwerck / Getty Images
Rask, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 200 pounds, is in the third year of a six-year, $4-million-per-season deal. The 2011 second-round pick’s finest offensive years, the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons, featured 48 and 45 points, respectively, so there's a history of production to latch onto.
On a macro level, Fenton is starting to assert himself on the trade market.
Following eight months of relative inactivity, the Niederreiter-Rask swap is Fenton’s second trade in as many days. The Wild acquired winger Pontus Aberg on Wednesday for minor leaguer Justin Kloos.
Fenton made it clear the organization isn't pleased with the dips in performance (including a 3-8 stretch in December) that have led to a 20-23-2 record a week from the All-Star break.
“One day I’m thinking that we have the opportunity to try to go forward ... and one day I’m thinking it’s not that great of a team,” he said of the Wild. “I’m letting the players convince us where they are.”
What this means for the Canes
Niederreiter is simply the more useful player. He's been on the right side of the puck more often, and generated more offense, all despite being deployed frequently in a defensive role:
CATEGORY
NIEDERREITER
RASK
GP
498
339
G
112
63
PTS
231
163
PTS/60
1.3
1.0
CF%
52.3
51.0
OZS%
50.8
58.8
PTS/60 = 5-on-5 points per 60 minutes; CF% = 5-on-5 shot attempts for percentage; OZS% = offensive zone start percentage
Carolina ranks 27th while averaging 2.7 goals per game. While Niederreiter is no world-beater as a scorer, he has a wicked shot and has recorded three 20-goal seasons. He brings decent upside and is potentially a nice fit on the third line and second-unit power play.
The fifth overall pick in 2010 - who's now on his third team - is shooting 11.1 percent this season, almost 2 percent below his career average. Percentages don't always even out, but there's no denying Niederreiter is due to start scoring more (in fairness, so is Rask).
Niederreiter, who has banked just nine goals and 14 assists in 46 games in 2018-19, is in the second season of a five-year contract paying him $26.25 million. Forward Jordan Staal is the only other Canes forward on a long-term deal.
That will change once star center and restricted free agent Sebastian Aho re-signs, but the team's lack of commitment at the forward position is glaring. Carolina, a franchise known for shedding salary, is taking on additional dollars here, which is something to monitor in the coming weeks.
The main takeaway
There's only a small chance that Waddell and Fenton are done. Neither appears eager to sit on his hands as the trade deadline approaches.
The 22-19-5 Hurricanes always seem to be attached to trade rumors. Head coach Rod Brind'Amour is thirsting for finishers, and the club didn't help itself by shipping pending unrestricted free agent Jeff Skinner to Buffalo this past summer.
Who's next out of the door? If you believe in "where there's smoke, there's fire," either winger Micheal Ferland or defenseman Dougie Hamilton. Or both.
The Wild are a little less predictable, though Charlie Coyle's name has been thrown around as a potential trade chip. The 26-year-old center is signed for $3.2 million per year through next season, and he could very well be in Niederreiter territory after wearing out his welcome in Minnesota.
The common thread: The Wild and Hurricanes are a) middling, and b) hungry for change as the Feb. 25 deadline creeps closer. Buckle up.
John Matisz is theScore's National Hockey Writer. You can find him on Twitter @matiszjohn.
