Now that the Predators lifted the GVFHL Stanley Cup for the first time, we are slowly approaching unrestricted free agency. While still some weeks to go, there are quite a few interesting names available that could change the landscape of the league. With Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, two of the biggest fishes in league are about to enter the unavoidable rebuild stage after years of chasing the cup as both team will have to release the largest number of high end players (76+OV) to unrestricted free agency. The Penguins have made their decision already and will keep Ryan O’Reilly around with their loyalty extension which means likely saying goodbye to not only Patrice Bergeron but also two defensemen in Pietrangelo and Weber, who would be #1s on most of the teams. Flyers GM Adrian still has the tough loyalty decision ahead of hit but it wont be an easy one considering the likes of Bobrovsky, Doughty, Letang, McDonagh, Kessel and Zuccarello are about to test the market.

So while the East is heading for a heavy power shift, it is looking a little less busy in the Western Conference but never the less, the most impacted team will be the Ducks in Anaheim as a core piece from each position is looking for a big payday. Not only is veteran goalie Pekka Rinne looking for is last big deal at the age of 37, electrifying defenseman P.K.Subban is looking for another deal paying him at least the $9m he got on his last contract. Up front two thirds of the first line are without a contract as Matt Duchesne and Blake Wheeler may play else where next season. GM Mourice can only re-sign one of the 4 before the others hit the open market, it will be interesting to see where his priorities are.

Best of class

Goalies
1. Robin Lehner, 28y, 83ov
2. Pekka Rinne, 37y, 80ov
3. Mark-Andre Fleury, 35y, 79ov
4. Jaroslav Halakm 34y, 79ov
5. Devon Dubnyk, 33y, 79ov

Defensemen
1. Kris Letang (PHI), 32y, 85ov
2. Mark Giordano (CGY), 36y, 84ov
3. Erik Karlsson (OTT), 29y, 80ov
4. Roman Josi (WPG), 29y, 80ov
5. Shea Weber (PIT), 34y, 79ov

Center
1. Sidney Crosby (CGY), 32y, 84ov
2. Patrice Bergeron (PIT), 34y, 84ov
3. Matt Duchene (ANA), 28y, 77ov
4. Nicklas Backstrom (ANA), 32y, 77ov
5. Ryan Getzlaf (OTT), 34y, 77ov

Winger
1. Alex Ovechkin (STL), 34y, 87ov
2. Vladimir Tarasenko (STL), 28y, 81ov
3. Patrick Kane (LA), 31y, 80ov
4. Taylor Hall (WPG), 28y, 79ov
5. Blake Wheeler (ANA), 33y, 78ov

Nashville Predators – 2019 GVFHL Stanley Cup Champion

Congrats to Steve – Well done!

COLORADO AVALANCHE FINISH 1ST IN THE WESTERN CONFERENCE REGULAR SEASON

That’s 3 of 4 GVFHL seasons Colorado has gone on to finish 1st in the West during the regular season.

Milestones for the Avalanche this year include:

(113) HIGHEST REGULAR SEASON POINT TOTAL

Josh Bailey: (88) Points (Highest point total in a season for the Avalanche)

Josh Bailey (65) Assists (Highest assist total in a season for the Avalanche)

Eric Staal: (45) Goals (Highest single season avalanche goal total)

Brent Burns (69) Points (Highest point total for an Avs defensemen in a single season)

Brent Burns (+57) Plus/Minus ( Highest Plus Minus for an Avs player in a single season)

Bring on the playoffs Baby!!!

The New York Islanders took a steady approach to building their roster as they missed the playoffs for 3 straight seasons to start the GVFHL, but now season four is looking to be the start of a bright future for New York as they look to embark on their first playoff appearance.   The real catalyst for the franchise was trading Vladamir Tarasenko for Connor McDavid before McDavid even stepped into the NHL.  Adding the franchise centerman, who plays in all game situations for New York, was the biggest move this team has made.  They took a bit of a step back last year, adding players around McDavid like Corey Perry and Matthieu Perreault before the team was really ready to compete, which cost them some youth.  This year though, they are ready to take on the contenders.

In goal, Carter Hutton has been outstanding.  Top 5 in goals against average, he has been a big reason why this team is where they are.  On defense, the core has remained the same, but adding Polak and Forbort brought a strong defensive and physical presence along with Jones, Yandle, Girardi, and Schultz, to give the Islanders a solid group to help Hutton out and move the puck up the ice.

Connor McDavid has a slim lead on the Art Ross Trophy and has been stellar all season.  On the second line, Matt Barzal has been impressive and is close to locking up the Calder Trophy with 70 points in 59 games.  In a recent trade, the Isles acquired Jason Zucker and Jesper Fast which added more speed, offense, and defensive play to the lineup.  A very deep team, the Islanders boast skilled players on all 4 lines.

Despite being 4th in the Conference, the Islanders look like a Stanley Cup favourite.  They have the top scorer in the league, the top rookie scorer, a goalie among the top 5 in goals against average, and the second best power play and penalty kill in the league.   This team make make some noise come playoff time.

We’re just past the halfway point of the GVFHL season, so I’m going to be projecting this seasons award winners.

Hart Trophy Winner: Connor McDavid  

Other potential candidates: Josh Bailey, Brad Marchand

McDavid has killed it this season for the Islanders. He both leads the league in scoring (68), and has a 10 point lead over the second highest scorer on his team (Barzal). After Barzal, the Islanders scoring dips drastically, going from 58 points for Barzal to 38 for Hertl. McDavid is the straw that stirs the Islanders drink, and is the main reason they’re in a playoff spot.

Art Ross Trophy Winner: Connor McDavid

Other potential candidates: Anze Kopitar, Nikita Kucherov

McDavid is currently in the lead for the Art Ross, and I can’t see him giving it up. With the ratings he has, and the season he’s been having I wouldn’t be surprised to see him break the GVFHL scoring record as well. There is a whole host of names behind him that could potentially catch him, like the ones mentioned above, or anyone else on that top 10 scoring list, but I highly doubt anyone catches McDavid.

Norris Trophy Winner: Alex Pietrangelo

Other potential candidates: Victor Hedman, Brent Burns

Pietrangelo is currently the leagues defence scoring leader, along with having the leagues overall best +-. The Norris is hard to project for sim leagues due to the lack of advanced stats or anything like that, but based on what we have, Pietrangelo seems to be the front runner.

Calder Trophy Winner: Matt Barzal

Other potential winners: Brock Boeser, Clayton Keller

Barzal currently leads the rookie scoring race by 6 points, and is the second leading scorer on the Islanders. Keller isn’t far behind, but the fact that the Islanders are a playoff team while the Canucks aren’t kind of hurts his chances. Boeser is “there” but has to significantly heat up to even be considered.

Vezina Trophy Winner: Jonathan Quick

Other potential candidates: Frederik Andersen, Curtis McElhinney

Jonathan Quick has a .920 SV% along with a 27-17-2-3 record, 3 shutouts, and a 2.32 GAA. McElhinney beats him in SV%, but doesn’t currently have enough starts to realistically dethrone him. Andersen has him beat in GAA, shutouts, and a better record, but hasn’t been consistent enough to be able to take Quick’s spot either, with Andersen having a very erratic SV% throughout the season.

Presidents Trophy Winner: Pittsburgh Penguins

Other potential candidates: Colorado, Florida, Philadelphia, Calgary

I’m probably jinxing myself with this prediction but whatever. The Penguins currently have a slim 2 point lead on the Colorado Avalanche for the league lead, while only being 4 points up on Florida/Calgary, and 5 points on Philadelphia. The Penguins also have the best points% to date. The sim is weird though, and could easily turn the Penguins cold, or let another one of these teams catch fire.

Not going to look at GM awards.

It’s been a year of change for the Boston Bruins since new management came in. The mandate was clear from the beginning to get younger and cheaper, and build for the future. The inherited roster contained a few aging stars, limited players in their prime, and no depth and no goaltending. The only remaining member on the Bruins’ Pro roster from the team a season ago is forward Brett Connolly.

Most of the focus has gone to strengthening the defense and goaltending. Cam Talbot will hold the fort for the next two seasons, while promising goaltenders Linus Ullmark and Alexandar Georgiev battle to be next in line (with 9 prospect goalies waiting in the wings). Overall, it represents a stark upgrade from a year ago when Boston only had minor leaguer Kristofers Gudlevskis under contract.

The defense is composed of a collection of young and still-developing veterans highlighted by Michael Matheson, Adam Pelech, Erik Gudbranson, and Alex Petrovic, as well as incoming prospects Ethan Bear and Christian Djoos. Danny DeKeyser provides some added depth and experience.

The forward group saw the departure of franchise forward Claude Giroux, and the trade return of Ryan Johansen and Alex Debrincat will be part of a future top-6 group. The current F group has more depth than last year’s version but lacks offensive punch and several players are playing larger roles than they’re used to.

The Bruins focus during free agency was to add overall depth to the system and targetted players who could fill bigger roles in future seasons. The only FA adds to the current Pro roster are #2C Mikko Koivu, #3C Martin Hanzal, and versatile winger Matt Calvert.

The other major event of the off-season was the Entry Draft, which gave the Bruins a chance to add to their future as the team stockpiled 28 picks and gave a lot of added depth to the system. The major addition from the draft was the trade of the #3 overall pick for 18-year old C Filip Chytil and D Matheson.

The 2018/19 GVFHL season will likely represent a transition year for the Bruins as they hope for continued improvement from younger players. Likely the team will improve a few spots from their 4th from the bottom finish of a year ago but still be far off from the playoff picture.

Pasadena, CA –

Just over a month after the departure of longtime Los Angeles General Manager Mika Laakso, Unrestricted Free Agency has come to a close and rosters, for the most part, are being finalized by their respective front offices. Laakso was known for favoring his countrymen, and when he tendered his resignation, GMs around the league expressed speculation about the continuation of a Finnish dynasty. The days following the appointment of his successor, Holden Kenne, indicated that there would be no change to the modus operandi. The following Finns have been added under Kenne’s tenure thus far:

Niko Mikkola

Saku Maenalanen

Lauri Pajuniemi

Julius Vahatalo

Miro Aaltonen

Antti Suomela

Antti Raanta

Markus Nutivaara

Kale Kossila

Janne Kuokkanen

Eetu Luostarainen

Artturi Lehkonen

In addition to these players, Los Angeles has these existing Finns:

Sebastian Aho

Sami Niku

Eeli Tolvanen

Markus Granlund

Otto Koivula

Olli Juolevi

Joni Ikonen

Jyrki Jokkipakka

Rasmus Kupari

Jonne Tammela

Ville Meskanen

Robin Salo

Otto Kivenmaki

Toni Utunen

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Oskari Laaksonen

Sebastian Repo

Patrik Virta

Juho Lammikko

The New York Islanders have built up a strong core of young players over the past 3 seasons, but have never made the playoffs.  After a promising start last season, the team fizzled out and finished 12th in a strong Eastern Conference.  This year the team has made some steps in the right direction and are poised to start knocking on the door for their first playoff birth.

Leading the way is franchise centre Connor McDavid.  Despite putting up a point per game thus far into his GVFHL career, the Islanders haven’t been strong enough around him to get the team to the next level.  This season, enter super rookie Matt Barzal.  He will centre the second line and give a great 1-2 punch that will surely rack up the points.  Down the middle is very deep for New York as Henrik Sedin and Alex Wennberg round out the four.  The wingers aren’t as high profile, but will still be able to score on all four lines. Corey Perry, Brendan Gallagher, Thomas Vanek, Tomas Hertl, Elias Lindholm, Mathieu Perreault, Alex Kerfoot, and Andre Burakovsky provide excellent depth up front to score whenever on the ice.

The blueline is strong in talent as well, with Seth Jones and Keith Yandle leading the way.  Dan Girardi, Justin Schultz, Roman Polak, and Derek Forbort round out a strong but not spectacular defensive core.  They just need to excel at what they do, which is keeping the puck away from their own net and the Islanders will have a great chance to win every night.

In goal, the team has King Henrik Lundqvist, one of the league’s best goaltenders over the past dozen or so years.  Due to his pending free agency, the Isles added Darcy Kuemper to provide a steady long term backup option, while also trading for goalie of the future Juuse Saros.  All 3 are pretty evenly rated, so whoever has the hot hand will play.

The East is a tough Conference to crack, but the Islanders patience may be finally paying off.

As we all know, the Penguins and their GM aren’t shy to make big, franchise altering deals. This was further proven in the past couple of days, as the Penguins made three such deals to bring in some pretty big names.

The first deal was to bring in John Klingberg from Dallas. Going the other way was the 10th overall pick, and top young defenceman Mikhail Sergachev. While some regard it as an overpay, many agree that the team needs to win now, and Klingberg brings a top pairing and top PP quarterback dynamic.

GM Richards had this to say about the trade: “While it hurts to move out a guy like Mikhail, who has a bright future ahead of him, we needed to cash in on his potential to get a guy who is a star today. Klingberg is a great young defenceman and isn’t a rental. Not to mention his relatively cheap contract when compared to his production. We’re excited to have him”.

The second deal, and the smallest of the three, saw solid two way center Jordan Staal, along with Anaheim’s second round pick headed to the Penguins, in exchange for Matt Niskanen and Vlad Namestnikov. Staal is the replacement for Mikko Koivu, who will be walking to UFA this off-season. Staal boasts great size, a solid all around offensive game, but his greatest asset is his amazing defensive game.

GM Richards on the deal: “This is a pretty standard deal. We had a surplus on defence, and a need at center. Staal is a big body, and plays a shutdown game. We believe he’ll compliment our top six beautifully. We wish Niskanen and Namestnikov the best in Anaheim”.

The third deal, and the deal with the most parts being exchanged, saw Dougie Hamilton, Ryan O’Reilly (half salary retained), and Jakob Silfverberg (along with two later picks) get sent to the Penguins. In order to acquire such a haul, the Penguins had to pay. They sent Matt Dumba, Jeff Skinner, prospect Phillip Nyberg, and Anaheim’s 2nd to San Jose. The deal was the newly appointed San Jose GM’s first trade in the league, and left most people impressed with both sides return.

GM Richards: “This deal took quite a bit of negotiating to solve. We went from having a similar package in place, to just a deal based around the defenceman, and then back to this which we ultimately agreed on. While it hurts to send out two great guys in Dumba and Skinner, we’re very excited with the return. Hamilton is a towering offensive defenceman with a booming shot. He should see significant minutes this season both at even strength and power play. We’re excited to have him, for this season and the future. O’Reilly brings an amazing two way game, and has the size to be a force on and off the puck. He is a premier two way forward in this league, and we’re proud to say he’s a Penguin. Silfverberg is quite the solid player as well. He brings nice speed, a good defensive game, and offensive capabilities that allow him to play top six if needed”.

On the plans for the rest of the off-season: “We have a decent amount of cap space, which should go up a bit with the cap ceiling increasing. We also don’t have very many needs, just a third line player, a defenceman, and a few depth options. We should be able to solve this in free agency, and we hope to bring in a few guys on multi season deals”.