All posts by John Matisz

Finally, the Coyotes are headed in the right direction

BUFFALO - Bill Armstrong settled into a chair in KeyBank Center's empty and dark press box last week, his iPhone and a large Starbucks cup resting on the ledge in front of him. Hours from hosting a Coyotes-Sabres game, the arena was silent save for the sounds of skates, sticks, and pucks on the ice below.

Armstrong, the Coyotes' general manager since fall 2020, watched his team's morning skate through black-rimmed glasses. Or, more broadly, he kept a close eye on Phase 2 of his plan to revive a long-languishing franchise.

Phase 1 saw Armstrong tear down most of what the previous regime built. His initial phase focused on building blocks - revamping the Coyotes' hockey operations department, accumulating as much draft capital as possible, and developing some of those picks into everyday NHL players.

Norm Hall / Getty Images

The second phase, which began this past offseason, revolves around being competitive - every night, no matter the opposition. It's about progress, even in defeat. After a thrilling comeback victory over the Senators on Tuesday, the Coyotes occupy the Western Conference's second wild-card spot thanks to a 16-13-2 record.

"Phase 3 is making the playoffs," Armstrong said between sips of coffee. "The other part of Phase 3 is consistency. Can you be consistent year after year?"

Off the ice, the consistency question is existential. The Coyotes, currently the secondary tenant in a 4,600-seat arena on Arizona State University's campus, desperately need a permanent home. Tempe residents shot down an arena and entertainment district proposal in May, leading ownership to pivot to a plot of land in Phoenix. According to reports, no arena deal is imminent.

With the team playing well, the off-ice drama and subsequent relocation chatter can be put aside for a moment. Here's why the Coyotes - a laughingstock for years - are finally headed in the right direction under Armstrong and head coach Andre Tourigny.

'Sit there and evaluate'

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The Coyotes hired Armstrong a month after getting eliminated in 2020's expanded playoff tournament, the team's first and only postseason berth since 2012. The rookie GM picked the brains of his peers around this time, and the best advice came from his old boss, Blues GM Doug Armstrong (no relation).

"Sit there and evaluate," Doug Armstrong told Bill, a Blues amateur scout, scouting director, and assistant GM for 16 years. "The greatest thing you can do is evaluate for a full year to get a good understanding of where you are."

Armstrong mostly followed that plan. He finalized just one notable trade in his first nine months on the job - Derek Stepan to Ottawa for a second-round pick - before he flipped the switch. He rattled off nine trades around the 2021 draft and free-agency period. Fast-forward to the present, and Armstrong's Coyotes have made 35 trades and used 36 draft picks over a three-year, three-month span.

That's a ton of activity considering the NHL forced Arizona to forfeit a 2020 second-round pick and a 2021 first-rounder for violating combine testing protocol under former GM John Chayka. (The club also wasted a 2020 fourth on Mitchell Miller, renouncing his draft rights after public backlash to a bullying incident.)

Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images

These trades and picks go hand in hand because the roster was never going to be a quick fix. Armstrong knew his best, and perhaps only, chance at building a sustainable winner was to draft in high volume. In Phase 1, he retained salary three times in trades and acquired several retirement-bound players, including Shea Weber and Jakub Voracek ahead of the 2023 trade deadline, not only for the picks but also for financial reasons. Other teams needed to move money to fit under the salary cap ceiling, while the Coyotes needed to reach the cap floor.

Over the past three drafts, Arizona selected double the amount of players in both opening two rounds - six in the first and six in the second. Over the next three drafts, the team has three firsts and a whopping 10 seconds.

"Did I think we could generate that many picks? No. No. No, no, no, I didn't," Armstrong said. "But I'm a big fan of the second-rounders. Back in St. Louis, we had drafted (impact NHLers) Jordan Kyrou and Vince Dunn in the second, so I knew if you had a good staff, you could do some damage in that area."

Being in Phase 2 now, Armstrong signaled this past offseason that there's a finish line to the aggressive pick accumulation when he used a second to acquire promising defenseman Sean Durzi from the Kings. Can Armstrong definitively say the Coyotes are done absorbing other teams' bad business?

"Oh, it's over," Armstrong said with a laugh. "Yeah, it's done."

Brick-by-brick core

Norm Hall / Getty Images

Over the past decade, under Chayka and Armstrong, the Coyotes have, to put it mildly, lowered the bar. They've rarely been competitive, at times icing lineups more worthy of the AHL than the NHL. It's been depressing to watch from afar.

Nevertheless, the seemingly endless rebuild has produced a robust core, led by the four originals - forwards Clayton Keller (acquired in the 2016 draft), Lawson Crouse (acquired in a 2016 trade), Nick Schmaltz (2018 trade), and Barrett Hayton (2018 draft). Forward Matias Maccelli (2019 draft) and defenseman J.J. Moser (2021 draft) joined them during the 2021-22 season.

All six skaters are 27 or younger and under team control for multiple years.

The core's third layer consists of four newcomers - forward Michael Carcone (2021 free agent), forward Logan Cooley (2022 draft), goalie Connor Ingram (2022 waiver claim), and Durzi (2023 trade). The rookie Cooley has flashed superstar potential. Ingram, picked up in October 2022, may be the long-term answer between the pipes. Durzi, an excellent puck-mover, has flourished in an elevated role. Carcone, the AHL's top scorer last year, has broken out this season.

Norm Hall / Getty Images

It's been a grind. But those 10 players represent the present and future.

"Each year, you bring more people into that core," said Crouse, the second-longest-tenured Coyote and an alternate captain. "We've done a great job with having a great locker room. We have a bunch of guys who want to be here and perform well and play their best. In the long run, that's a recipe for success."

As defenseman Travis Dermott explained, an NHL player must check two boxes to become a core piece for a franchise. One, the player must be wanted, and two, the player must be invested. He can't have one foot in and one foot out.

"There's no little cliques among the team," said Dermott, who also played in Vancouver and Toronto. "The superstar guys aren't just hanging out with the superstar guys - they're hanging out with everyone. The Euros are mixing in with the group - it's not their own little group. And that's pretty rare to see."

Tourigny impact

Christian Petersen / Getty Images

In talking with a handful of people around the league about Arizona's trajectory, one theme emerged: Tourigny, the third-year bench boss, has been arguably the biggest single driver of on-ice success. He's a core member, too.

"He's a very good teacher of the game. He's very good at communicating," Crouse said of Tourigny, who's tasked with coaching the NHL's fifth-youngest roster. "Nothing's given and everything's earned with him."

Added Dermott: "He's got the respect of everybody on our team. He's hard on you. If you take a shift off, a practice off, you're going to hear about it. But that's what keeps guys honest. On the other side of the coin, he's the one cracking the most jokes, and he's the one making sure guys have smiles on their faces. You don't see that too often from a head coach. He's personable."

Tourigny said he wants the Coyotes - who sit 19th in the league in goals for per game and 11th in goals against per game - to play "in-your-face type of hockey." He's taught his skaters to apply pressure in the neutral zone so the opponent can't get organized and attack in numbers or with speed.

Christian Petersen / Getty Images

Of course, Arizona's 2.87 goals-against rate is also a byproduct of Vezina Trophy-caliber goaltending. Ingram boasts a .919 save percentage in 20 games, and his 0.58 goals saved above expected per 60 minutes is seventh among 35 goalies with at least 800 minutes played.

Meanwhile, the Coyotes' offensive identity consists of three pillars. They want to play with pace. They want to control the flow of play in the offensive zone. And they want to funnel pucks to the net from high-leverage spots in the zone.

"We're not a team who will shoot from anywhere," Tourigny said. "We're more a team who will hold onto the puck to create a better opportunity."

While there's progress to be made, the underlying data is starting to align with the pillars. On a per-game basis, the Coyotes rank 22nd in rush chances (up from 30th last season), third in offensive-zone possession time (22nd), second in slot passes (28th), and 29th in slot shots (30th), according to Sportlogiq.

Competent special teams are another marker of a club on the rise, and Arizona owns the 12th-ranked power play and 16th-ranked penalty kill. A strong indicator of a team still very much getting its act together: a poor five-on-five expected-goals share (the Coyotes rank 24th at 47.9%).

Jonathan Kozub / Getty Images

Tourigny's contract expires after the 2026-27 season, and Armstrong's after 2028-29, according to reports. Clearly, ownership is invested in the duo.

They were given plenty of runway for Phase 1. The intensity and pressure will ratchet up through Phases 2 and 3. Phase 4, which involves winning playoff series and challenging for the Stanley Cup, is merely a dream at this point.

The Coyotes aren't one or two pieces away from being a complete team, and not all of their high picks will blossom into everyday NHLers. There are 31 other clubs attempting to maintain or build a sustainable winner at all times.

In other words, nothing's guaranteed.

But, for the first time in forever, there's hope in the desert - on the ice, anyway.

"What I said in my opening press conference is true to this day," Armstrong said from his perch inside KeyBank. "They said, 'How do you change this organization?' I go, 'Just get one good player at a time and stack them on top of each other.' It's really about the players on the ice. It changes everything."

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Kane and Wings on unique path, Carlsson’s load management, and 4 other NHL items

Amid Detroit's chaotic 6-5 overtime loss to San Jose on Thursday, Patrick Kane reminded the hockey world why he earned the nickname "Showtime."

Kane, who inked a one-year deal with the Red Wings last week, recorded eight shot attempts in his debut. He failed to register a point but rang the post on a partial breakaway in the third period. He skated well, winning races to loose pucks on multiple occasions. The 35-year-old was his usual crafty and measured self in a playmaking role, too; his chemistry with former linemate Alex DeBrincat was apparent from their opening shift together. He logged nearly 17 minutes of even-strength and power-play action.

Kane's return to the NHL was extremely encouraging. It was also a reminder of the unique path Detroit is on.

Nic Antaya / Getty Images

Unlike the Atlantic Division's other upstart clubs - Ottawa, Buffalo, and Montreal - the Wings haven't picked in the top three of the draft during their rebuild despite bottoming out in similar fashion. While Dylan Larkin, DeBrincat, Lucas Raymond, Moritz Seider, and Kane (if he continues to play well) are all top-of-the-lineup players, the Wings lack a bona fide superstar.

They don't have a Tim Stutzle equivalent up front nor a Rasmus Dahlin-Owen Power combo on the back end. (Yeah, we'll leave Juraj Slafkovsky out of this.)

Instead, Detroit - comfortably ahead of Ottawa, Buffalo, and Montreal in the standings - has filled key lineup spots with trusty vets in or past their primes.

"When you sign with us, you're signing up for trying to build something," Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde said earlier this week about integrating so many moving parts. "You can see a decent young core. They can envision themselves being part of it. They want to be here. Even Patty (Kane). He wanted to be here. DeBrincat and (Jeff) Petry in the offseason through some trades. It speaks volumes about what we're trying to build and do."

Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images

This strategy of finding outside help shifted into high gear this past offseason. On top of DeBrincat and Petry, general manager Steve Yzerman brought in J.T. Compher, Klim Kostin, Christian Fischer, Daniel Sprong, Shayne Gostisbehere, Justin Holl, Alex Lyon, and James Reimer. The average age of the entire haul, including Kane: 29.5. Talk about a lot of mileage - and depth.

Top scorers Larkin and DeBrincat are tied for 29th and 37th, respectively, in league-wide points. Yet, the Wings as a team rank second in goals per game.

"We have a lot of top-end skill in a lot of different places," Raymond told theScore. "Our biggest advantage is our depth - the way we have four really good lines who can play (consistently). We have seven really good D-men as well."

The influx of vets puts Detroit in a fascinating position for 2023-24: It appears to be a club with a relatively high floor (almost guaranteed to finish in or just outside of the playoffs) and relatively low ceiling (one playoff series win?).

That isn't bad. It's just different compared to what's happening elsewhere.

Carlsson's slow burn with Ducks

Debora Robinson / Getty Images

The tricky part about analyzing Leo Carlsson's much-discussed load-management plan with the Ducks is that alternative realities don't exist. It's impossible to know if a regular schedule of games, versus the lightened load Carlsson's currently taking on, would have been better or worse for the rookie.

The comparison simply can't be made.

Disclaimer out of the way, the plan - in which Carlsson appears in roughly two games per week until the midpoint of the season while focusing on building strength and speed through off-ice training - has been hugely successful.

Carlsson has contributed eight goals, including three against the Flyers on Nov. 10, plus five assists while appearing in 18 of Anaheim's 26 games. He's attacking and playmaking with confidence while skating for 18:20 a night. Impressively, the second pick in the 2023 draft is third among rookies in points per game (0.72), trailing Connor Bedard (0.84) and Connor Zary (0.75).

Harrison Barden / Getty Images

"He's going to be elite," Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar, whose club has faced off against Carlsson three times already, told reporters this week. "Big, long guy that's only going to get stronger. He's a great skater, and he's got silky hands. He's an intelligent player with a skill set that's off the charts."

Couldn't agree more. Carlsson, who's listed at 6-foot-3, 194 pounds, reminds me of Aleksander Barkov. If that seems like heady praise for a kid barely acclimated to the NHL and turning 19 later this month, well, it is.

Truthfully, my initial reaction to the news of the Ducks' load-management plan was cynical. I thought general manager Pat Verbeek might be babying a young player suiting up for a rebuilding team. By limiting his games, it could look like he was trying to suppress Carlsson's future earning potential and trying to lose more often to increase draft lottery odds. I was clearly wrong.

Carlsson and his agent have been open about how they're generally on board with the plan - which, by the way, isn't for every team or high-end prospect. In Carlsson's case, though, maybe a slower burn is in fact the perfect pace.

Anderson battling prolonged cooler

Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images

Josh Anderson has always been a player who catches the eye. He's 6-foot-3, 224 pounds, can skate like the wind, and can really wire the puck. He delivers body checks and fights here and there. His physical gifts are notable.

Those gifts haven't completely disappeared this season. But his scoring touch has. Anderson, who's potted between 17 and 27 goals in each of his seven full NHL seasons, is on pace for just three. Through 26 games, the Canadiens' winger has one lonely goal into a vacant net.

On that one scoring play, Anderson slung the puck from below the hashmarks in Montreal's zone and into Seattle's open cage. It brought a smile to Anderson's face, but it comes with an asterisk. The last time he scored on a netminder was March 13 - 31 games ago.

What a baffling stretch for a guy with a career shooting percentage of 11.1%.

Anderson's generated a total of 91 shot attempts, 51 of which have been marked as a shot on goal. That shots-on-goal rate (7.1 per 60 minutes) is indeed lower than his career average; however, to Anderson's credit, he's racked up a respectable 7.47 expected goals, according to Natural Stat Trick.

So, there's a decent amount of plain ol' bad puck luck baked into Anderson's prolonged cooler. He's hit several posts and been robbed a few times, most notably by Jacob Markstrom during a mid-November game against Calgary.

Still, this isn't a bad week or month. One-third of the season is over. Anderson scored on just 1.6% of his shots for Columbus in 2019-20 - an anomaly for his career - but he was battling injury. Right now? He's apparently fully healthy.

Parting shots

Sid the (old) Kid: The Penguins' trainwreck of a power play (seven goals on 71 man-advantage opportunities) is rightfully attracting everybody's attention. So much so that it's overshadowing captain Sidney Crosby's stellar age-36 season. The 23rd-oldest player in the league sits third in five-on-five points, with 20 in 25 games (he trails buddy Nathan MacKinnon and teammate Jake Guentzel). Crosby, who's in the "wow, he can still do that" stage of his career, is winning faceoffs and recording takeaways at career-high rates. The Pens are outscoring the opposition 29-18 with him on the ice at five-on-five.

"I've always believed that Sid's defensive game flies under the radar, probably because his offensive game is so dynamic," Pittsburgh head coach Mike Sullivan said prior to a recent game in Buffalo. "No one ever really speaks about his commitment to playing defense. But he's a detailed guy. He's a student of the game. And I think he understands that it's essential to winning."

Happy Claim Day: Next Tuesday marks one year since the Kraken claimed Eeli Tolvanen off waivers. Shortly after the claim, former Predators executive David Poile wondered aloud if losing Tolvanen would come back to haunt Nashville (the club foolishly thought he'd pass through waivers). Spoiler alert: Poile's instincts were spot-on. Tolvanen, 24, has excelled in Seattle, producing 52 points in 89 regular-season and playoff games. He's currently tied for third on the team with 17 points. The 30th overall pick in 2017 boasts a wicked shot. He's a valued member of the power play. His defensive metrics are solid. And he's relatively inexpensive at a $1.45-million cap hit. Good on the Kraken and good for Tolvanen, who didn't get a fair shake in Nashville.

Smart Cats: The 15-8-2 Panthers once again look like a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. But what's jumped off the page when watching them this season is that they evaluate NHL players as good as any team in the league. I intentionally included the word "NHL" above because although Florida's draft-and-develop record is fine, they've acquired established (and sometimes undervalued) NHLers at an exceptionally high rate. Aleksander Barkov is the lone homegrown forward in the top six. Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, and Sam Bennett all arrived via trade, and Carter Verhaeghe and Evan Rodrigues were signed as free agents. The blue line was built out similarly: one homegrown talent (Aaron Ekblad) among the four top performers. Brandon Montour - acquired via trade. Gustav Forsling - waivers. Oliver Ekman-Larsson - free agency. All credit to GM Bill Zito and his pro scouting and analytics groups. The Panthers are doing a bang-up job identifying talent.

Takes, Thoughts, and Trends is theScore's biweekly hockey grab bag.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Examining the Penguins’ struggling power play, and other unexpected NHL trends

The NHL passed the quarter mark of the 2023-24 season earlier this week.

As expected, goal-scoring continues to rule. The per-game average (6.3) is tied with 2022-23 and 2005-06 as the highest of the 21st century.

As expected, comeback wins are prominent. There were 62 third-period comebacks through Monday, tied for third-most at this stage of a season.

Expected is cool. Unexpected is better.

Let's check in on four unexpected trends at the team and player levels.

Pens' power play a mess

Kirk Irwin / Getty Images

The Penguins last scored on the power play three weeks ago Saturday.

Over nine games, Pittsburgh's heavily used top unit, led by future Hall of Famers Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Erik Karlsson, has failed to convert on 21 man-advantage opportunities while allowing a goal against.

Overall, the Penguins have bagged only seven goals in 59 opportunities. Their 11.9% success rate - down 10 percentage points from last year - ranks 27th in the NHL.

It's perplexing given the personnel. The top unit also features Jake Guentzel, perhaps the most underrated offensive player of his generation, and one of Bryan Rust, Reilly Smith, or Rickard Rakell.

So, what gives? Just about everything.

For instance, in five opportunities against the Rangers on Nov. 22, Pittsburgh had trouble completing basic tape-to-tape passes and struggled to enter the offensive zone with control of the puck. When the Pens did manage to set up, New York predicted every move, leading to blocked shots and easy clears.

The zone-entry problem lingered against Toronto three days later. The Pens tried dumping the puck in, but penalty killers beat them on the retrieval. They tried to force seam passes high in the offensive zone - no dice.

Justin Berl / Getty Images

One major theme throughout the 0-for-21 drought: the net-front guy is barely a factor. He often fails to take away the goalie's sightlines, and not enough pucks are getting to the net overall. The action's too much on the perimeter, making life easy on the penalty kill. There are no rebounds.

All that said, I don't think Pittsburgh's power play is hopeless.

The personnel's too talented to be this bad for a full season, and the 11-10-1 Pens are actually generating a decent amount of power-play offense. Pittsburgh ranks fourth in PP shot attempts per 60 minutes, fifth in PP shots on goal per 60, and second in PP expected goals per 60. Further: Pittsburgh ranks 30th in the league in total PP time. Drawing an extra penalty or two every game would relieve the pressure on each opportunity and, in a perfect world, help build momentum.

Each member of the top unit looks frustrated. They're probably overthinking it. If I were coach Mike Sullivan, I'd either sub in Kris Letang for Karlsson or have the star blue-liners co-run the top unit. Shuffling the deck is worth a try.

Reinhart pushing for Rocket

Sam Reinhart and Nikita Kucherov are currently tied for second in the NHL with 15 goals. Interestingly, Reinhart tops Kucherov and 17-goal man Brock Boeser in a different category: percentage of team goals scored.

Reinhart's scored 21.7% of all Panthers goals - a remarkably high rate 23 games into the season. (He has 13 assists, too.) The only player challenging for the Rocket Richard Trophy with a higher percentage than Reinhart is Frank Vatrano, whose 14 tallies account for 22.2% of Ducks goals.

Icon Sportswire / Getty Images

Reinhart, a career 14.6% shooter, is hitting on an absurd 25.9% of his shots; he's skating a career-high 20:41 a game; and seven of his goals have been scored on the power play.

So, yes, Reinhart's 82-game pace - 53 goals, or 20 more than his previous best - is deceiving. He's riding the percentages a bit.

Still, the 6-2, 193-pound forward generally comes by his production honestly. He's a true master of the fundamentals.

Coaches at all levels instruct forwards to stop at the net at the end of a rush - Reinhart does this every single time. He's strong on his skates, takes very efficient routes in all three zones, and cycles the puck extraordinarily well.

He has what coaches call a "good stick," especially on special teams. He extends his stick into passing and shooting lanes on the penalty kill and, as shown in the clip below, subtly presents it to teammates on the power play:

Also of note: Reinhart's name consistently shows up on leaderboards for individual expected goal and inner-slot shot generation, suggesting the 28-year-old often attacks from the offensive zone's most dangerous areas.

He does benefit from playing on a line with Aleksander Barkov, but that's true for anyone who skates with the Finnish center. Regardless, there's no denying Reinhart has asserted himself in the final year of a three-year deal carrying a $6.5-million average annual value. Time for a hefty raise.

Bruins dominating again

Richard T Gagnon / Getty Images

Projecting the 2023-24 Bruins wasn't an overly controversial process.

Impact forwards Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, Taylor Hall, and Tyler Bertuzzi all departed, and the magic of last year's record-breaking regular season vanished, so Boston logically appeared ready to take a major step back. Making the playoffs in an improved Atlantic Division was certainly possible but not preordained.

Oh, how wrong - horribly wrong! - most of us were.

Boston's 15-4-3 with a plus-19 goal differential through 22 games. This year's team isn't quite as dominant as last year's, and has lost four of its past seven, but the Bruins mostly look like a Stanley Cup contender and currently hold the Atlantic's No. 1 seed.

As for where the consensus projection whiffed, let's start with the core.

Bergeron, arguably the greatest defensive forward of all time, was a massive loss. But two forwards (David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand), two defensemen (Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm), and two goalies (Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman) are all either smack in the middle of their primes or near the end. We probably didn't give that enviable top of the lineup enough credit.

The coach is also still around, and Boston's been one of - if not the best - puck-support team in the NHL under Jim Montgomery. They worked in numbers on offense and defense all of last year and continue do this season.

We definitely underrated the quality of Boston's goalies and top-six centers. Having Ullmark or Swayman in net every game means the opposition never gets a break - an elite netminder for all 82 is a massive trump card in this shared workloads era. Meanwhile, Pavel Zacha (Pastrnak and Marchand's main center) and Charlie Coyle have filled in admirably for Bergeron and Krejci.

Lastly, the rookie class is notable. Five first-year players have appeared in 10 or more games and each is pitching in, led by forward Matthew Poitras. Teams of Boston's ilk don't usually receive a shot in the arm like that.

Talbot-Copley is all Kings need

The Kings opened the season with the least amount of money devoted to goaltending, with Cam Talbot and Pheonix Copley making a combined $2.5 million, or 3% of total cap dollars. I called it the Adin Hill Won the Cup Effect.

Talbot's cap hit this year ($1 million) is lower than Copley's ($1.5 million), though Talbot already secured a $1-million bonus by appearing in 10 games. L.A. will happily deal with that bonus charge on next year's cap sheet considering the value Talbot, 36, is offering right now.

Ronald Martinez / Getty Images

Analytics company Sportlogiq awards a "quality start" whenever a goalie posts a positive value in its goals saved above expected metric. So far, Talbot has 10 quality starts in 14 tries. His .928 all-situations save percentage ranks second among 27 NHL goalies who've logged 700 or more minutes.

Including Copley's minutes, the Kings have the league's sixth-best team save percentage through 20 games. The .913 rate is a huge upgrade on last year's debacle between the pipes: an .889 rate that tied for 26th out of 32 teams and that was spread across four goalies, including two who made around $5 million.

What should be most encouraging is the play in front of Talbot and Copley. Coach Todd McLellan's skaters are on average surrendering very few shots, and the ones they do surrender tend to be from medium or long range. The skaters are insulating the goalies.

That lockdown style is conducive to winning in both the regular season and playoffs - as reigning Cup champion Vegas and Hill showed.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

4 takeaways from Patrick Kane’s decision to sign with the Red Wings

And the winner of the Patrick Kane sweepstakes is: Detroit.

Kane, 35, reportedly agreed to a one-year, $2.75-million deal with the 11-6-3 Red Wings on Tuesday, after many others - including the Maple Leafs, Sabres, Stars, and Bruins - expressed interest in acquiring the unrestricted free agent. Kane appears ready to return to NHL action after spending six months recovering from hip surgery.

Here are four takeaways from the Wings' big splash.

Flexibility and familiarity wins

Bruce Bennett / Getty Images

With at least a handful of teams lining up to speak with Kane, the forward essentially had his pick of the scenario he felt most comfortable with.

Most money? Most years? Best usage/deployment? Best chance to win?

Above all else, Detroit offered flexibility and familiarity.

Prior to the signing, the Wings had an open spot on their 23-man roster and roughly $5 million in cap space. This flexibility allowed general manager Steve Yzerman to add a player of Kane's caliber without subtracting from the group.

Now coach Derek Lalonde can insert a top-six winger into a lineup that's produced the third-most points in the Atlantic Division. Kane, meanwhile, joins a group hungry to snap a seven-year playoff drought.

The familiarity component is twofold: First, Kane knows the Michigan area well after suiting up for the U.S. National Team Development Program for two seasons in the mid-2000s. Second, Kane is reuniting with old linemate and buddy Alex DeBrincat. The pair skated on the same line for a large chunk of DeBrincat's five-year run in Chicago and were highly productive as a tandem. Kane assisted on 72 of 160 goals DeBrincat scored with the Blackhawks.

Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images

DeBrincat was traded to Detroit from Ottawa in July and immediately signed a four-year, $31.5-million extension. The sharpshooting winger leads the Wings with 12 goals in 20 games. He's played the majority of his five-on-five shifts with center Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond (though he did spend Sunday's 4-1 win over Minnesota alongside center J.T. Compher and Michael Rasmussen).

Lalonde will presumably prefer that Kane isn't matched up against the opposition's best defenders to start his tenure, so if DeBrincat and Kane indeed play together, Compher should be their center. He's capable of acting as the second line's defensive conscience, allowing Larkin to drive Detroit's attack on the top line with Raymond.

Bounce-back year not guaranteed

This is a low-risk move for the Wings because it's for one year, the cap hit is fine, and it didn't necessitate another transaction, as noted above.

On the other hand, there's some mystery here: This signing could end up a dud because Kane is coming off hip resurfacing surgery. None of the NHLers who previously underwent the same procedure - Nicklas Backstrom, Ryan Kesler, Ed Jovanovski - looked the same upon returning. Financially, there's little downside because Kane's deal can be transferred to long-term injury reserve if it doesn't work out.

Both things - low-risk move, dud possibility - can be true at the same time.

Jaylynn Nash / Getty Images

Kane, a three-time Stanley Cup champion, is one of the most decorated players in NHL history. He's a future first-ballot Hockey Hall of Famer with plenty of individual hardware, notably Conn Smythe and Hart Trophies. He's accumulated an incredible 1,237 points in 1,180 games.

He also turned 35 earlier in November and is coming off the least productive season of his career - 57 points in 73 games split between the Blackhawks and Rangers. Will Kane, fixed hip and all, return to his 2021-22 form of 92 points in 78 games? Or have his skills truly diminished over time?

Kane's always been an elite stickhandler and passer, and his vision is off the charts, but he's never been a particularly reliable defensive player. If he isn't putting up points, whether at even strength or on the power play, he isn't useful. Again, while the risk is low, this isn't a guaranteed home run.

Tantalizing best-case scenario

Kane's career earnings are north of $115 million. Money's always a factor, but it's not the only one this late in his career. Winning was clearly a priority.

I don't see the Wings as a Cup contender, but they certainly look like a playoff-caliber team through the season's first quarter. Maybe that's enough for Kane, who's seen a handful of lower seeds go on deep runs during his career. Or maybe he believes Detroit's being slept on as a contender - and that he can be Lalonde's missing piece.

Bruce Bennett / Getty Images

The signing's best-case scenario is, in a word, tantalizing.

If Kane experiences no hip issues, if he hits it off with DeBrincat again, if the Wings keep progressing ... the fit could be tremendous.

Detroit may rank fourth in the NHL in goals per game right now, but the roster needed an upgrade at top-six wing, and Kane's playmaking style fills a specific void.

While the Wings rank ninth in the league on the power play, there's room for Kane on a top unit currently featuring Larkin, Compher, Raymond, David Perron, and Shayne Gostisbehere. Kane's all-world vision, passing ability, and years of experience should find a home on the right flank.

The Wings have an 8-13 record in overtime/shootout games over the past two seasons. Kane can help with that: He's masterful in OT and has the second-most shootout goals in the league since debuting in 2007-08.

Bonus: He's always been clutch in the playoffs.

Perhaps most crucially given his age, Kane can hide a little bit. Detroit's top three centers - Larkin, Compher, and Andrew Copp - are all capable of shouldering a heavier defensive load when Kane's on the wing. That means he can go out and create.

Another stage of the 'Yzerplan'

Dave Reginek / Getty Images

Yzerman, a Wings franchise icon and the GM since April 2019, took a slow and steady approach to the first few years of his tenure. He refused to rush any part of the rebuilding process.

Then, in the 2022 offseason, Yzerman added veterans, including Perron, Copp, and goalie Ville Husso. He took his foot off the gas ahead of the 2023 trade deadline - opting to sell instead of buy - before adding another group of vets this past offseason: DeBrincat, Compher, Gostisbehere, and others.

Pursuing and ultimately landing Kane was a natural next step. If you're a Wings fan, the best part is Yzerman still has a few million dollars left for midseason deals, assuming Detroit doesn't tumble down the standings over the next couple of months.

The first person I thought about when I heard Kane was off to Detroit was Larkin; the captain and Michigan native must be thrilled. The only time Larkin, a 2014 first-rounder, has appeared in the playoffs was 2015-16 - his rookie season and the final leg of Detroit's 25-year postseason streak.

There've been many lean years since, but now the Wings are off to a terrific start, and the short-term future projects to be much brighter if Kane's effective.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter/X (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Nylander’s next contract, the Vasilevskiy fear factor, and 4 other NHL items

The NHL's Global Series, which saw four teams fly to Stockholm last week to compete in two games each over a four-day period, almost immediately transformed into The William Nylander Experience. The dude was everywhere.

Nylander was the main attraction on the ice, racking up five points (including an overtime goal) in the Maple Leafs' two victories. Off the ice, the Calgary-born Swede was in full rock-star mode, appearing on local TV talk shows, answering questions about IKEA, and signing countless autographs.

Mark Blinch / Getty Images

The trip was an exclamation point to a mammoth start to the season for Nylander, who enters Friday's Toronto-Chicago matinee with at least one point in all 17 Leafs games. He's top 10 in goals (12) and points (27).

The Leafs say they want to re-sign Nylander, a pending unrestricted free agent, and Nylander says he wants to re-up. The winger's agent and Toronto's front office continue to negotiate, according to reports. So there's a deal to be made between now and July 1, when Nylander becomes a UFA.

Let's assume that Nylander, who turns 28 in May, cools off from his 130-point pace and finishes the season with 90-100 points.

Considering his age, position, and production history - and external factors like a rising salary cap - what's a fair projection for his next deal?

"On a seven- or eight-year term, he's around $11 million a year," said Kyle Stich of AFP Analytics, a consulting firm specializing in NHL player valuation.

Mark Blinch / Getty Images

Stich's ballpark projection is significant for two reasons.

One, it's a sizeable jump from AFP's preseason projection for Nylander's extension, which came in at $9.3 million per season over seven years, for around $65 million total. Two, $11 million a year slots Nylander just ahead of Jonathan Huberdeau and just behind David Pastrnak - both high-profile wingers who signed eight-year extensions in the past 15 months.

Pastrnak's making $11.25 million a season in Boston, and his average annual value accounted for 13.6% of the total cap at the time he signed, according to CapFriendly. Pastrnak was 27 when his current deal kicked in.

Huberdeau's making $10.5 million in Calgary. His AAV accounted for 12.7% of the total cap at signing time, and he was 30 when his deal began.

Stich's $11 million Nylander AAV projection would account for 13.2% of this year's $83.5-million cap and 12.5% of next year's estimate of $87.7 million.

What does all of this mean? Nylander's earned himself a double-digit AAV, and the Leafs may want to wait a minute before committing to any specific contract details. Nylander's value (and leverage) is at an all-time high, which is fantastic for him but not great for managing the cap sheet.

Vasilevskiy fear factor

Kevin Sousa / Getty Images

Coming out of the offseason, the "Who's the best goalie in the world right now?" debate had juice to it. Ilya Sorokin, Igor Shesterkin, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Connor Hellebuyck, Juuse Saros, and Linus Ullmark all qualified as fair picks.

Yet when Associated Press hockey writer Stephen Whyno and I posed that question to a dozen NHL skaters at a preseason media event in Las Vegas in early September, one name was uttered repeatedly.

"Gotta go with Vasilevskiy," Canucks captain Quinn Hughes said.

"Probably Vasilevskiy," Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau said.

"I think it's still Vasilevskiy," Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin said.

Vasilevskiy, a two-time Stanley Cup champion and winner of the Vezina and Conn Smythe trophies, wasn't the unanimous pick in our (admittedly small) survey. But he received the majority of full votes and a few partial ones.

The level of respect was notable given the various options for top goalie, and the facts: Vasilevskiy's 29, entering his 10th season, and had a down year by his standards (.915 save percentage and an early playoff exit).

Mike Carlson / Getty Images

"You look at him and you see no net," Canadiens sniper Cole Caufield said about the 6-4 and freakishly athletic goalie. "That's what makes him so special - that he's still able to move and be quick in that way. It's frustrating as a shooter, but you've got to beat him off the pass almost every time."

Two weeks after the Vegas media event, the Lightning announced Vasilevskiy had back surgery and would miss "approximately the first two months" of the regular season. The team didn't expect any long-term issues, assuring its fan base Vasilevskiy would return to the crease his old self.

Tampa Bay head coach Jon Cooper told reporters Wednesday "there's a really good chance" Vasilevskiy debuts sometime over the next week.

The Lightning are 9-6-5 with the unheralded goaltending duo of Jonas Johansson and Matt Tomkins combining for an .888 save percentage, which ranks tied for seventh worst in the NHL. They survived, but are ready to welcome back the big Russian.

Shooters, on the other hand: not so much.

"You start to second-guess where to shoot because of how big he is and how good he is," Devils superstar Jack Hughes said.

"Pucks hit him when he can't see it," Larkin added. "You get him looking at the puck, squared up at you, and it's hard to score on him."

Kraken 'comfortable' with Wright's path

Christopher Mast / Getty Images

Juraj Slafkovsky. Pavel Mintyukov. David Jiricek. Logan Cooley. Matthew Poitras. Kevin Korchinski.

All six of those 2022 draftees have appeared in more NHL games than Shane Wright, the presumptive first pick heading into draft night in Montreal, who dramatically slid to the Kraken at No. 4. The right-handed center turned pro last season but so far has logged only 97 minutes over 11 NHL games.

"We're comfortable with where he is, and I think he's got a bright future with our organization," Kraken general manager Ron Francis said last week.

Wright's 2022-23 was a tornado of healthy scratches, demotions, promotions, and fleeting highs. When it was over, he'd competed in eight regular-season games for Seattle; 32 regular-season and playoff AHL games for Coachella Valley; 24 games for OHL Windsor; and seven world-junior games for Canada en route to a gold medal.

Icon Sportswire / Getty Images

A strong skater with a bullet of a shot, Wright collected 64 points in those 71 games - a solid yet unremarkable year-end tally given the varying competition.

This season, Wright's split his time between the NHL (three games, no points) and AHL (11 games, nine points). He remains a work in progress, and is still eligible for the world juniors, though he's unlikely to be loaned to Canada.

A recent area of emphasis with Wright: his play with the puck. Specifically, puck management in the neutral zone and decision-making in the offensive zone.

"We're trying to get him to have that (shoot-first) mentality," Francis said. Wright's off to a promising start as an AHL sophomore with six goals. He's averaging 2.9 shots on goal per game, up from 2.2 in 2022-23.

Squint hard and you start to see the "bright future" Francis envisions.

Parting shots

Dual threat: Artemi Panarin's a changed man - and, no, I'm not talking about the 32-year-old's newly shaved head. Panarin's unexpectedly evolved into a dual threat for the 13-3-1 Rangers, resulting in 26 points (10 goals, 16 assists) through 17 games. A hardcore pass-first winger his entire career, Panarin's shot rate has skyrocketed to 24.7 attempts per 60 minutes under new coach Peter Laviolette. (He finished between 13.5-17.3 per 60 in his previous eight seasons.) Maintaining puck possession for long stretches is still Panarin's bread and butter, but he's starting to incorporate more one-touch passes and shots to keep defenders guessing. In turn, Panarin's per-60 giveaway rate has fallen from 3.8 last year to 2.0.

International hockey: We don't know everything about the proposed international tournament being staged by the NHL in February 2025, but I'm psyched based on what we do know. Finally we'll see Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, and Co. compete for their countries. Personally, I wish more than four teams were involved so it could be a true best-on-best showcase, and I wish the tournament was longer than a week, but beggars can't be choosers. The big-picture takeaway: the NHL gives a damn about international hockey again. Hopefully this 2025 event will be followed by the 2026 Olympics, 2028 World Cup, 2030 Olympics, etc. Momentum is key.

Goalie shopping: The Oilers are already well into the "desperate times call for desperate measures" stage of their disastrous season. They need a new goalie. Ideally, the front office would try to land a bona fide starter like Saros, John Gibson, or Jordan Binnington. Problem is, each makes $5 million or more, which is way too much for cap-strapped Edmonton. In Gibson's and Binnington's cases, their teams are playing fairly well.

A few more realistic targets include Semyon Varlamov (Islanders), Jake Allen (Canadiens), and Karel Vejmelka (Coyotes). Vejmelka, 27 and making $2.725 million this season and next, is the most intriguing of the trio. While Arizona's trending up and may see Vejmelka as its goalie of the future, if the Oilers offer a package that accounts for their desperate state, Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong would be foolish to not pull the trigger. He'll thank himself later.

Reader PSA: While I've got a Google Doc filled with content ideas for this biweekly notebook and continue to brainstorm new ones throughout the season, I'm ultimately here to serve you, our readers. So, what do you want to read about? Is there a question you'd like me to ask an NHL player or coach? Is there a league- or team-related trend you want me to dig into? Send me a note through email (john.matisz@thescore.com) or X/Twitter (@MatiszJohn).

John Matisz is theScore's senior hockey writer.

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

What to make of the Canucks’ scorching start to the season

The Vancouver Canucks are the breakout team of the NHL season - and it isn't close. Projected by credible observers to either miss the playoffs or barely squeak in, they've blown away expectations.

The 12-4-1 Canucks woke up Saturday with the league's best goal differential (plus-31), third-most points (25), and fifth-highest points percentage (.735). They're on pace for 121 points, or four more than the stacked 2010-11 Canucks team that lost a seven-game Stanley Cup Final.

Surely, Vancouver can't keep this up. Or can it?

Let's put the Canucks through a stress test.

First of all, why and how is this team winning so much?

Star power.

Three players sit atop the NHL scoring leaderboard with 27 points and all three are Canucks: centers Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller, and defenseman Quinn Hughes. One goalie has a save percentage higher than .930 through 500 minutes: Vancouver's Thatcher Demko.

Derek Cain / Getty Images

Hughes, the most dominant, is flat-out controlling the pace, flow, and score of games, which is why he's an early front-runner for the Norris and Hart trophies. Pettersson and Miller are driving play at superstar levels, as well, while Demko would probably win the Vezina if the season ended today.

Those are stretches half the league would kill to have from one player.

Right, and four of them simultaneously have put the Canucks in elite company: first in goals for (4.2 per game) and fourth in goals against (2.4).

The roster's second tier, headlined by active blue-liner Filip Hronek (plus-10 at five-on-five) and sniping winger Brock Boeser (tied for the NHL lead with 13 goals), also deserves credit. The same goes for Rick Tocchet and his coaching staff. Vancouver is organized, disciplined, and decisive with the puck.

Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images

But this wasn't supposed to happen? What gives?

The Canucks own the highest team shooting percentage and second-highest team save percentage, suggesting they're benefiting from good puck luck.

The eye test bears that out, and so does a deeper dive into the numbers. The gap between Vancouver's shooting percentage (14.4) and No. 2 Ottawa's (12) is roughly the same as the jump from Ottawa to No. 23 St. Louis (9.5).

The Canucks also lead the league in goals scored above expected and rank second in goals saved above expected, according to Sportlogiq. Translation: the results (number of goals scored and allowed, wins and losses) aren't aligned with the process (quality and quantity of scoring chances generated and allowed).

Yikes. Sounds … unsustainable. Is that the appropriate word?

Confirmed: "Unsustainable" is the word being used to describe the Canucks' play so far. And it's hard to argue with that characterization, given the extreme percentages. Further, only two clubs have enjoyed easier schedules, according to Hockey Reference's strength of schedule metric.

Chris Tanouye / Getty Images

Here are some more granular data points:

  • The 2022-23 Canucks scored on 14.7% of scoring chances they generated off the rush, per Sportlogiq. Pretty good. This year? They've scored on 23.9% of rush chances, an unsustainably good rate, considering NHL teams this season are at about 11%.

  • Demko's save percentage on shots from the inner slot (the most dangerous area of the ice) is .920. That's outstanding, especially considering Boston's Jeremy Swayman ranks second at .905. What isn't outstanding: The Canucks are allowing the fifth-most inner-slot shots per game. Demko, as good as he is, can't hold down the fort forever.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Are you saying the Canucks suck?

Nope. The opposite, actually.

All those red flags are balanced by reasons for optimism.

Vancouver's rarely stumbled into a victory this season. On average, the Canucks have been leading for roughly 35 minutes, tied for 15 minutes, and trailing for 10.

They've outscored the opposition by three goals or more in seven of their 12 wins, and the abundance of blowouts suggests they aren't relying solely on one clutch moment. Andrei Kuzmenko, Ilya Mikheyev, Conor Garland, and Carson Soucy are among many effective depth pieces raising Vancouver's floor. (Soucy is currently sidelined with a lower-body injury.)

The power play is humming at 33.3%, which is tied for the second-best rate in the NHL. It'll likely cool off soon, but Vancouver has the personnel to stay in the top 10 all season.

The five-on-five shot maps look drastically different in Tocchet's first full season behind the bench. On offense, Vancouver is firing shots far more frequently from in tight, especially in and around the left faceoff dot. On defense, as noted above, the opposition is also firing more often from in tight - specifically the inner slot. You can take the bad with the good for now.

Hockeyviz.com

That's fair. There's still plenty of time to tighten up defensively.

Yep, and there's continued work to do: the club ranks 22nd in penalty kill percentage (75.9) and 25th in shorthanded goals against per 60 minutes (9.6). Those rates are mediocre, in general, but to the Canucks, they're actually a step in the right direction. Last season's team finished 32nd in PK% (71.6) and 31st in shorthanded GA/60 (10.5).

Overall, the Canucks' success has a foundation. They're highly competitive. They play with connectivity and swagger that matches their record. And they rank first in generating scoring chances off the forecheck and second in limiting forecheck chances against - a recipe for success come playoff time.

What are the markers of a Cup contender? Do the Canucks have them?

Go through the rosters of the salary-cap era Cup champions and finalists and nearly all of them have at least one star forward, at least one star defenseman, (usually) a star goalie, and a top-tier coach. Pettersson, Hughes, Demko, and Tocchet check those key boxes.

Cup contenders also tend to have strong underlying numbers. At the moment, Vancouver's underlying numbers lean closer to the concerning end of the spectrum than the hopeful end. The regular season's one-fifth over, so there's ample runway for those trends to get significantly better (or worse).

Depth is another contender staple. The Canucks boast a capable second tier, but the bottom of the lineup - specifically on the back end - simply isn't good enough. Perhaps if the wins keep piling up, the front office will reward the team with a defensive upgrade before the new year.

Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images

So, what's the verdict: are the Canucks legit or not?

Before answering that question, some quick playoff-related intel.

Hockey analytics websites HockeyViz and MoneyPuck are giving Vancouver 79.9% and 74.1% chances of making the playoffs, respectively. Those are promising odds 17 games into the season, and the Canucks can elevate them over the next two weeks. The club's next six games are against Seattle (twice), San Jose (twice), Colorado, and Anaheim.

As for the verdict: Vancouver's definitely a playoff-caliber team, and one that can potentially win a series in a top-heavy Western Conference. The Canucks' star power is real, and their year-over-year improvement isn't a complete fluke. However, to crown them a Cup contender at this point would be foolish - I won't do it, and you can't make me. The sample size is strong but too small, and the warning signs strongly hint at regression and a return to Earth.

The question is: how hard will they fall?

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Want to be a good NHL teammate? Follow these unwritten rules

The ice conditions were poor at the end of a rehab skate last season when Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson unleashed a shot from the hash marks. The puck climbed and climbed before meeting the worst possible target: a goalie's mask.

"Hit him right between the eyes," Wilson, an 11-year NHL veteran, recalled.

Wilson immediately knew he'd unintentionally broken one of hockey's unwritten rules: Never hit your own goalie in the head with a puck.

Scott Taetsch / Getty Images

Luckily, the victim, Capitals third-stringer Hunter Shepard, wasn't injured. The minor-league goalie accepted Wilson's apology and peace offering - a bottle of wine. "He's a beauty," Wilson said of Shepard, a hint of relief in his voice.

Calgary Flames forward Dillon Dube has been in Wilson's skates. The puck comes off your stick in a funky way every once in a while. Stuff happens; you apologize and move on.

But do not, under any circumstances, make a habit of it.

"Unwritten rule: Don't hit the goalie in the head," Dube said.

                     
Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images

NHL teammates aren't typical co-workers. They spend an inordinate amount of time together in groups big and small. They inhabit the same ice surfaces, dressing rooms, buses, and planes. Together, they get dressed and undressed, work out, study film, tell stories, and obsess over fantasy football.

These interactions are governed by a set of rules, but they're not emailed to every player ahead of training camp or posted in a hallway at the team facility. They're unwritten and unofficial, and team culture defines how strictly they're enforced, but they're vital to fostering a respectful team environment. Often, they boil down to older players teaching younger players how to be good teammates.

"Don't be late," Columbus Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau said of the most basic unwritten rule. Another no-brainer shared by many players interviewed for this story: Never, ever sleep with a teammate's partner. "No cliques in the dressing room," retired defenseman Shane O'Brien said of a third obvious rule.

John Russell / Getty Images

Other rules are very specific to the NHL's subculture and life on the road, as Jack Hughes can attest.

Early in his rookie season, Hughes would hustle off the New Jersey Devils' team bus and be relaxing in his hotel room within minutes. Hughes said he didn't think twice about his pace - after all, rookies sit at the front of the bus - until a wiser teammate noticed and "gave it to me."

"It's an unwritten rule to - if it's late on a road trip - let the vets go up the elevator first," San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro confirmed. Late, in this context, might mean 2 or 3 a.m., and 40 people might be waiting by the elevator bank, all of them bleary-eyed after a long day and a cross-country flight.

"The big dogs go first," former goalie Devan Dubnyk said matter of factly.

Dubnyk, who retired in 2022 after 12 NHL seasons split between six teams, was one of the oldest players on the 2020-21 Colorado Avalanche, but he wasn't the starter, which created an interesting dynamic. Teammates were naturally deferential to Dubnyk. However, he would always insist that the top vets - Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Gabriel Landeskog - skip the elevator line instead. "There's a pecking order. They're the stars. They need their sleep," Dubnyk said.

Ben Jackson / Getty Images

Troy Terry recalls being told to act like a veteran on the ice and a rookie off it as he made the jump from the University of Denver to the Anaheim Ducks in 2018. What that meant practically: Unless you're injured, stay off the trainer's table. "If you're a young player, you can't be in there every day going, 'Can I get some work done?'" Terry said. "It's almost reserved for the older guys."

"It's nothing crazy," Seattle Kraken forward Matty Beniers said. "It's just knowing, OK, I'm 20 and this guy's 32. He probably needs the table a bit more than I do."

This respect-your-elders vibe can extend to the team meal room on the road. "Same type of deal," Dubnyk, 37, said. "Sit your ass down if you're young. You wait until everyone's got their food, then go get your own food. Simple."

The courtesy is reciprocated on nights out. Rookies sometimes eat for free as veterans split the bill, or, in O'Brien's experience, "Whoever makes the most money pays the tab." The "Missin' Curfew" podcast co-host distinctly remembers Teemu Selanne, Vincent Lecavalier, Brad Richards, and Martin St. Louis whipping out their credit cards to cover steak dinners for entire groups.

"It's the circle of the league," said Hughes, who's in the second year of an eight-year, $64-million deal. "Older guys pay for younger guys' meals. Then, when those guys become the older guys, they pay for the younger guys."

Scott Audette / Getty Images

The same logic applies to jersey numbers. It's common for a player to change his number to accommodate a more established teammate. Florida Panthers forward Frank Vatrano gave up No. 72 in 2019 so splashy free-agent signee Sergei Bobrovsky could sport his favorite digits. For his troubles, Vatrano received a Rolex watch, a bottle of wine, and (seemingly in jest) a McDonald's hamburger.

"If a young guy gives you his jersey number, you buy him a gift," former forward Ryan Callahan said. "Maybe you send him and his girl on vacation. I've seen a watch gifted. Golf clubs. There's a bunch of ways to do it."

As Dubnyk points out, the hierarchy of young and old teammates has relaxed over the past decade or two. The average age of an NHL roster has never been lower, and first- and second-year players are filling major on-ice roles. "You can't alienate them and treat them like pigeons," Dubnyk said. "These guys are on your top power play. You want to integrate them quickly."

Many unwritten rules have absolutely nothing to do with age or seniority.

"You, as the players, take care of the trainers," former goalie Jamie McLennan said. In the hockey world, the term "trainer" covers both athletic trainers and equipment managers. "They're the ones who are really grinding. Late nights, early mornings," McLennan added. "So there's trainer tips at Christmas, at the end of the season. They rely on the perks of the position to make a living."

Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images

Quinn Hughes believes a key rule is to "always protect your teammates."

If a teammate's having a bad week, the Vancouver Canucks captain explains, don't pile on. Be there for him. Because the only people who can truly relate are the 20 or so guys in the same jersey. "It's hard," he said. "You're playing really good teams and players every night. The media's on you. All you have is the people in the locker room. So, you have to protect your teammates."

Connor Clifton, the Buffalo Sabres' hard-hitting defenseman, knows he must be careful during practices and morning skates. He doesn't want to "blow guys up" with a body check, nor does he want to avoid physicality altogether. "You're just trying to get everyone ready, and yourself ready," Clifton said. "But you don't want to be injuring your teammates. There's definitely a line."

Messing with a teammate's pregame mojo is also a big no-no.

All NHLers are regimented to an extent, McLennan notes, but those who follow a strict, minute-by-minute schedule every gameday are a different breed. The last thing you want to do is interrupt the rhythm of a superstitious teammate while he's deep in focus amid a half-hour routine.

"That also relates to what happens on the ice," said McLennan, who played for six teams from 1993-2007. "Certain guys like to be the last guy in line, the third guy in line, or maybe the first guy off the ice, the last guy off the ice."

Dave Sandford / Getty Images

Another round of rituals starts during on-ice warmup. Some goalies want to be challenged with legitimate shots. Others sneer at teammates looking to score warmup goals. Sabres forward Jordan Greenway mentioned former Minnesota Wild teammate Marc-Andre Fleury as a netminder who loved to compete in warmup.

Greenway declined to name anyone from the other group. "No, I don't have a guy to tell you," he laughed, being a loyal teammate.

From afar, an NHL warmup might look unstructured - a leisurely way for 20 players to get their juices flowing. In reality, 20 personalized routines are being performed simultaneously. "If you take a certain route after a certain drill, stick to that," Tampa Bay Lightning forward Anthony Cirelli said. "Like, don't all of a sudden be on the left side of the faceoff dot when you're usually on the right side."

Cirelli added, "If we do our warmup 82 times in a season, everyone should be in the same spot at every moment of the warmup 82 times. It helps guys avoid running into each other." Breaking a rule can result in a monetary fine.

Picture Alliance / Getty Images

The team plane features even tighter quarters, with coaches and other staff members sharing the cabin. Seats are assigned, and the most closely guarded spots tend to be at the card-playing tables. "You're not sitting at Ovi's card table," Wilson said of Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals' long-standing card crew. Outsiders are summoned if, and only if, a card player is sick or injured.

"You don't necessarily want to be that guy," Wilson said. "Then it's like, shark on blood. It's like fresh meat coming in." Through a wide grin, he added, "They always look at me, and I'm like, 'I'm good … '"

Terry says Ducks rookies are tasked with lugging around a Settlers of Catan board game set from city to city. "There's been times when it's been forgotten," the forward said, "and that's not good."

The No. 1 rule in the air applies to all passengers: For the sanity of everybody on board, no No. 2 on the team plane.

"Going to the bathroom - No. 2 is ... not allowed," Ferraro said with a laugh. "You can't do it on the plane. You don't want it to smell up the plane."

"You don't poop in the bathroom," New York Rangers captain Jacob Trouba confirmed.

"I had a conversation with somebody about that the other day," Callahan said. "This person was talking about doing that on a commercial flight. I'm like, 'Yeah, you can't do that on the team plane, either!' Yep, that's a fine."

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Vegas a juggernaut again, Kreider keeps tipping, and 4 other NHL items

The Golden Knights owned a 13-2-0 record and plus-23 goal differential a year ago Saturday. Fifteen games into the new season, Vegas, now the reigning Stanley Cup champion, is 12-2-1 with a differential of plus-26.

So much for a Cup hangover.

With no games this weekend, the next major item on the team's calendar is an event tying the seasons together - Monday's official visit to the White House. "Let's go look at it, meet some important people, and enjoy the moment," coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters of his message to the group.

Michael Reaves / Getty Images

Forward Rielly Smith was the club's only notable offseason departure, so Cassidy's lineup card has gone largely unchanged. In theory, this continuity, mixed with a short summer, could have bred complacency in training camp and resulted in a tumultuous start. Instead, it's had the exact opposite effect.

"Sometimes, you benefit from not taking much time off," defenseman Shea Theodore told theScore. "When you play that late into the year, and you only get about a month and a little bit off before you get going again, the systems and the feeling of winning are still fresh in your mind. We've used that, and the little turnover with the roster, to our advantage. We just keep rolling with it."

The Golden Knights aren't leading the NHL in standings points because they have amazing underlying numbers, potent special teams units, or all-world goaltending. No, they've won as much as they have, and convincingly, because of unparalleled skater depth and a bulletproof playing style.

While the players deserve a ton of credit, Cassidy should be in the early-season conversation for the Jack Adams Award. He's managed to drill into his players that the first month of the new season isn't any less important than, say, the Cup final they battled through in June. Repeating as Cup champs is extremely difficult, and Cassidy's squad has banked plenty of points so far.

David Becker / Getty Images

"We don't want to be one of those teams that's one-and-done, that falls off, and that never finds a way to hit that Cup level of play again," Theodore said. "We've wanted to try and continue to build on our game and prove that last year wasn't a fluke and that we have the team to get the job done again."

With eight goals and 10 assists, William Karlsson is the only Vegas player in the top 20 in league scoring. But what the Golden Knights can stake claim to is having an NHL-high 19 goal-scorers, six of them defensemen - another NHL-high.

"Our system allows us to be a little bit more free with our decision-making," Theodore said of activity from the back end. "Bruce wants us to get up and into the rush and be the fourth man. He wants us to keep pucks alive along the walls in the offensive zone when teams are trying to break out. It's not so structured in that sense. It's fun. He wants your hockey IQ to come out."

Most impressively, Vegas has accomplished all of this amid injuries. Alex Pietrangelo, Alec Martinez, and Nic Hague have missed five games each, while Zach Whitecloud didn't make his debut until Friday - a 5-0 blowout over the Sharks and just another day at the office for the defending champs.

Hagel's unexpected 5-year climb

Marissa Baecker / Getty Images

Brandon Hagel made a promise to himself before the 2018-19 WHL season - if he didn't make meaningful progress toward signing an NHL contract by Christmas, he'd enroll in post-secondary school to chase another career.

He was a 20-year-old free agent playing his overage season with Red Deer. The Sabres had drafted Hagel in the sixth round in 2016 but didn't sign him, and other teams had shown limited interest. Discouraged, the wiry kid from little Morinville, Alberta, was trying to be realistic about his pro prospects.

Fast forward a dozen games - not even halfway to Christmas - and Hagel was racking up points, no longer pondering school. "There's going to be a bunch of teams who are going to offer you a contract, but we want to be the first," Stan Bowman, then GM of the Blackhawks, told Hagel after an October game.

"Stan sent over the contract like a day later," Hagel said recently inside the visitor's dressing room in, of all places, Buffalo. "It's crazy how quickly things change," he added, shaking his head at the sequence of events.

Chase Agnello-Dean / Getty Images

Hagel turned pro a few months later, then played 175 games for the Blackhawks and their AHL affiliate over parts of four seasons. A sharpshooter with a tireless motor, his stock was at an all-time high ahead of the 2022 trade deadline. The rebuilding Blackhawks sent him to the two-time Cup champion Lightning in a blockbuster that brought Chicago two first-round picks.

It took a couple of months for Hagel to settle into a lesser role on the contending Lightning, who eventually lost to the Avalanche in the Cup final. He's now a valued member of Tampa Bay's core and has the contract to prove it - an eight-year, $52-million extension that kicks in next season.

"To commit eight years to something, you have to be happy," Hagel said. "I love my teammates. The coaches. I love the city. The atmosphere. Everything."

"He makes plays. He can score goals," Lightning forward Anthony Cirelli said of Hagel, who's followed up last year's 30-goal output with seven in 14 games. "He's good on the forecheck, backcheck. He does it all for us, really."

Michael Chisholm / Getty Images

The star-studded Lightning have been forced to cut loose important supporting players thanks to the flat salary cap. Cup winners Alex Killorn, Ondrej Palat, Ross Colton, Blake Coleman, and Barclay Goodrow are all rivals now. Nick Paul and Hagel are two forwards whom general manager Julien BriseBois chose to retain.

With captain Steven Stamkos on an expiring contract, Hagel's currently the third-highest-paid forward on Tampa's books for next season, behind linemates Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point.

As happy and secure as Hagel feels, he still walks and skates around with a chip on his shoulder. In fact, he may never lose that underdog disposition - it's just who he is - and boy does it suit his quick and relentless playing style.

"What makes me effective is my work ethic," Hagel said. "Hounding pucks, getting pucks back, and getting pucks in my teammates' hands."

"You love to have him on your team," Cirelli said.

Kreider remains Mr. Net-Front

Icon Sportswire / Getty Images

The puck-tipping machine is at it again.

In 13 games, Chris Kreider has scored a team-high nine goals for the Rangers. The 32-year-old leads the NHL in both power-play goals (six) and tipped goals (five). The only player to rack up more shots on net via tip in the early season is the Bruins' James van Riemsdyk, who's executed 11 tips to Kreider's 10.

A master of the craft, Kreider has enviable hand-eye coordination and timing. He has this unique feel for when he should make contact with the puck, screen the goalie, or box out the defender. He controls the net-front area.

Eight of his nine goals have been scored from high-danger areas. The map below illustrates Kreider's obsession - 19 shots in front of the goalie's face.

NHL Edge

Overall, Kreider has converted 25.7% of his shots on goal. That's an unsustainable rate over 82 games - though the 6-foot-3, 233-pound winger did bag a career-high 52 goals in 2021-22 off a 20.2 shooting percentage.

A major factor in whether he can maintain anything close to this conversion rate will be the potency of New York's star-studded power play. So far, the Rangers are second in the NHL in both power-play percentage (35.7%) and goals for per 60 power-play minutes (13.65), according to Evolving Hockey.

Since his 2012-13 debut, Kreider ranks first league-wide in tipped goals (80) and tipped shots. Clearly, he identified his biggest strength early on and goes back to the well every game.

Parting shots

Bravo, Backstrom: Forever overshadowed by boisterous sniper Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom never got his due as an NHL star. The Capitals franchise icon, who was placed on LTIR last week and turns 36 on Nov. 23, is at a fork in the road. One path leads to retirement. If this is it, bravo. He's a borderline Hall of Famer, with 1,033 points in 1,105 games. Despite his production tailing off the past few years, he ranks third in assists since breaking into the league in 2007-08. Backstrom's combination of elite vision and passing ability is a massive reason why Ovechkin's chasing the goals record. It'll be a shame if the Swedish center has made his last pass to Ovi.

Bonus updates: Time to check in on the state of a few performance bonuses. First: Connor Brown. The Oilers forward's salary rises from $775,000 (base) to $4 million the next time he logs an NHL shift, according to CapFriendly. (Like all performance bonuses, Brown's $3.225-million bump would roll over to the next season's cap sheet.) Brown, who's failed to record a point for the 2-9-1 Oilers and is currently injured, may end up in the AHL and never collect that hefty bonus. Second: Cam Talbot. The Kings goalie doubled his $1-million base salary Wednesday after appearing in his 10th game of the year. Third: Joe Pavelski. The Stars winger earned $1 million at 10 games played and will be due an additional $1 million at 20 games for a grand total of $5.5 million in 2023-24. The second-oldest player in the league has 12 points in 12 contests.

Sad Sharks: The 2-11-1 Sharks aren't an ordinary last-place team. They're unwatchable, yet their games have become must-watch TV. Their minus-46 goal differential is embarrassing and their 39.2% five-on-five expected goals share is pitiful. They're the least-talented team in the league by a wide margin. Every loss inches them closer to premium draft lottery odds, which is huge for an organization in dire need of difference-makers. At the same time, losing this often, and in such demoralizing fashion (eight losses by three goals or more), has to be a nightmare. What kind of scarring will this season leave?

Takes, Thoughts, and Trends is theScore's biweekly hockey grab bag.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

How the Hughes brothers are taking over the NHL

Last Friday, Jack Hughes whipped the puck to Luke Hughes, his brother and New Jersey Devils teammate. Luke, running point on the power play, quickly returned it to the right flank. Jack moved to open ice, fired a shot, and scored.

The goal helped New Jersey defeat the Buffalo Sabres. Through Wednesday, the Devils own a respectable 5-2-1 record, Jack's positioned himself as an early Hart Trophy favorite, and Luke's in the Calder discussion.

About an hour after the give-and-go sequence, Quinn Hughes - the eldest of the three brothers - called for the puck in his game against St. Louis. His defense partner, Filip Hronek, faked a shot before making a cross-ice pass. Quinn, the Vancouver Canucks' captain, took two strides toward the net, loaded a shot, and beat the goalie through traffic.

The goal opened the scoring in Vancouver's victory. Through Wednesday, the Canucks are 6-2-1, and Quinn's a strong Norris contender.

The Hughes brothers are taking over the NHL in the early going of 2023-24. Quinn, the seventh overall pick in 2018, is an elite No. 1 defenseman at 24 years old. Jack, the first pick in 2019, is arguably a top-five forward on the planet at 22. Luke, selected fourth in 2021, is showing signs of future stardom at 20.

It's extremely rare for three brothers to carve out NHL careers. Two in the top 10 at their position and a third trending toward joining them? Unprecedented.

Let's take a look at how the Hughes brothers dominate - first by focusing on their shared hockey DNA, then by identifying the brothers' different strengths.

The Hughes hockey DNA

The NHL is filled with players who excel at a particular pillar of skating. One player might be an outstanding north-south skater. Another might be phenomenal laterally, zigging and zagging. A third might be awesome at speed management, slowing down and accelerating at the perfect times.

Each Hughes brother excels at all of the above; all three are exceptional north-south skaters, exceptional east-west skaters, and exceptional speed-differential skaters. It often looks like rockets are strapped to their skates. Their crossover and edge work is otherworldly. And stamina is never an issue.

"Skating is the trait that connects all three," said an NHL amateur scout who scouted each brother extensively during their draft years and beyond.

The brothers were taught how to skate by their mom, Ellen Weinberg-Hughes, a former college and U.S. women's national team player. Their dad, Jim Hughes, has also been an invaluable resource as a former college player and NHL/AHL coach. Now the director of player development for CAA Sports - the agency that represents all three brothers - Jim is regarded as one of the top skills coaches in North America.

Countless hours on outdoor hockey rinks, where unstructured games rule, helped build a formidable base for their skating. On-ice and video work with dad, consultation with mom, and world-class coaching elevated and polished it. All three spent two years at the U.S. National Team Development Program, while Quinn and Luke both spent another two at the University of Michigan.

Andy Marlin / Getty Images

Another defining characteristic of the Hugheses is vision. All three can read the play at an incredibly high level, which really shows in how frequently they find open ice. Jack is the Devils' offensive catalyst, with the flow of play running through him every time he's on the ice. Quinn assumes a similar role with the Canucks, albeit from the back end. Luke has the skill set of a future catalyst.

The skating and IQ are married by what the scout calls a "go-for-it mentality." There's minimal hesitation and maximal swagger in the brothers' games.

"Whenever they have the puck, they feel like they can be the guy who makes a difference," the scout summarized. "They don't back down from anybody."

The differentiating skills

Jack, the Devils' top center, has exploded out of the gates with five goals and 13 assists for 18 points in eight games while skating for 21:48 a night. He leads the league in assists and points, and his underlying data is equally notable.

Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images

Jack's second in the NHL in both zone exits per game and zone entries per game, according to Sportlogiq. A transition king who consistently keeps his head up while handling the puck, Jack rarely wastes a trip down the ice. On a per-game basis, the 5-foot-11, 175-pounder ranks first in both scoring chances generated off the rush and offensive-zone puck possession.

The scout says Jack's the smartest player among the super-smart Hughes brothers. His skating attracts the eye, but it's his brain that inflicts most of the damage. For example, Jack loves to operate between the top of the circle and blue line in the offensive zone. Multiple times a game, he'll retrieve a loose puck along the side boards and regroup up top, scanning for scoring options.

"No one uses the high ice in the offensive zone more than Jack," the scout said. "He's really pioneering it. Other guys use the high ice sometimes, but he's living there right now." Here's an example of Jack pursuing the "high ice":

There's a natural difference between Jack and his brothers since he's a forward and they're defensemen. What separates Quinn from his siblings is his constant motion. That's not to say Jack or Luke are in any way inactive, it's just that Quinn might be the most active among the NHL's 700-plus skaters.

Quinn's never static or flat-footed, making him hard to account for in all three zones. His mobility also allows him to manipulate defenders in a unique way.

For instance, if the Canucks are in the offensive zone for 30 seconds, Quinn may man the point for 15 seconds, hang out in the upper slot area for five, creep below the goal line for five, and cruise around the hash marks for five. He's a calculated risk-taker who manages to remain responsible defensively. He'll probe over and over again, but it's rarely, if ever, done recklessly.

No NHLer has had the puck on his stick more often this season than Quinn - 3:22 per game. The eldest Hughes also ranks second in the league in loose-puck recoveries - 29.1 per contest.

That last data point is especially impressive because it suggests Quinn - who's listed at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds - often escapes dangerous areas unscathed. He'll happily engage in a board battle to win a 50-50 puck, yet through smarts and skating, he evades bruising body checks and thus injury.

Luke joined the Devils at the tail end of the 2022-23 regular season, then appeared in three playoff games. In 13 career games, he's racked up 10 points while skating for 19-plus minutes a night, typically on the third pair.

The scout believes Luke will blossom into a true No. 1 defenseman - and boy, wouldn't the Devils, who are loaded at forward, love that. The main difference for Luke is that he's already 6-foot-2 and 184 pounds. He has the power and length to impact the game at a basic physical level - he can be more forceful.

"Maybe a Rasmus Dahlin arc," the scout said of Luke's five-year trajectory.

Icon Sportswire / Getty Images

One thing to remember is that the Hughes brothers don't bulk up for the sake of bulking up. Jack and Quinn are both stronger than they were as rookies but remain lean. They haven't lost any agility. Luke will likely chase the same physique. After all, despite being tall, his calling card is straight-line speed.

In fact, straight-line speed is Luke's chief differentiating skill, according to the scout. It's crazy to think that's the case given Jack's and Quinn's speed-infused highlight reels, but it's true. Luke has in his arsenal what the scout labels "running back plays." He'll weave through a defense by combining his elite skating, elite vision, and "go-for-it mentality" with his physical gifts.

"Luke's a little bit more of a downhill guy," the scout summarized.

Jack and Quinn have set the bar sky-high. But Luke's capable of joining them in whichever tier you'd like to place them at the moment - stars? Superstars?

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Ted Nolan’s memoir details ‘life in two worlds’ as Indigenous NHL coach

Ted Nolan opened the front door to his house and "felt a stab of anxiety."

A delivery man handed him a box, and the coach knew what was in it: the Jack Adams Award, presented annually to the NHL's top bench boss. A range of emotions rushed through Nolan's body, then "pure anger."

Nolan's recently released memoir begins with this dramatic scene from 1998.

"I lifted my foot and, with all the strength I had, kicked the box, sending it hurtling down the basement stairs," Nolan writes in "Life In Two Worlds: A Coach's Journey from the Reserve to the NHL and Back."

"I heard it land with a loud metallic crash," he continues. "Then I turned and went upstairs, determined to forget everything about it."

Bruce Bennett / Getty Images

Nolan, who coached 471 career games in the NHL, couldn't bear to enjoy his accomplishment that day, months removed from when he first posed with the trophy on the big stage. In the intervening period, he felt betrayed by the hockey world, especially the Buffalo Sabres, and found himself in a dark place.

"I was so angry. At that time, every tough situation in my life - in hockey, outside of hockey - I had sucked in. I hadn't dealt with any of it," Nolan recalled in a recent phone interview with theScore.

Nolan's faced many tough situations throughout his life.

Racism at every turn

Nolan is a member of the Ojibway tribe. The third youngest of 12 kids, he grew up in the Garden River First Nation east of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The family lived in a relatively small house, and didn't have access to electricity or running water for the first few years of Nolan's life, in the late 1950s and early '60s.

Nolan details in his memoir the racism he faced at seemingly every turn of his playing and coaching careers as an outsider in a predominantly white sport.

His welcome to Junior A in Kenora, Ontario, included a teammate asking, "What are you doing here, ya stinkin' Indian?" Fans hurled slurs associated with Indigenous stereotypes - that he was poor or drunk. He was targeted physically on and off the ice, always having to protect himself.

"I was up there by myself and I learned to fight through. Thankfully, I did," Nolan said of deciding to ride out the season in Kenora, despite family insisting he return to Garden River, where everybody accepted him.

Jeff Vinnick / Getty Images

The pros weren't much better for Nolan, a winger who dressed for 78 NHL games split between the Detroit Red Wings - who drafted him in the fifth round in 1978 - and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Nolan had tears in his eyes when he stepped onto NHL ice for the first time. He thought about his community, particularly countless Indigenous kids who never realized their dreams. "This is for all of you," he said quietly to himself.

Nolan's father, who died when Nolan was 16, told his children to "always be proud of who you are," and Nolan's kept those words in mind.

But the lack of respect continued.

"Some of the guys on the other pro teams would call me names on the ice," Nolan said. "I'd look back at them, and I could see in their eyes that they felt sheepish about what they said. They probably didn't really know what they were saying. They just heard it from someone else. It was pure ignorance."

After retiring in 1986, Nolan began climbing the coaching ranks, first landing a job in the OHL as an assistant coach, then becoming an OHL head coach, NHL assistant, and finally an NHL head coach. Racism followed him around the continent. Vitriol from rival fans got so bad during a stint with the QMJHL's Moncton Wildcats in 2005 that he needed a police escort to exit the arena.

Fighting negative labels

Nolan coached in Hartford (Whalers assistant) and New York (Islanders head coach), but he's best known for two stints in Buffalo: 1995-97 and 2013-15.

He won the 1996-97 Jack Adams Award the same year Sabres center Michael Peca took home the Selke Trophy and goalie Dominik Hasek won the Vezina, Hart, and Pearson. The Sabres, a blue-collar squad with arguably the best goalie of all time in the prime of his career, lost in Round 2 of the playoffs.

Denis Brodeur / Getty Images

Nolan and the club's general manager, John Muckler, didn't see eye to eye from Day 1 of Nolan's first stint. Nolan felt the GM wanted too much control of the lineup. Nolan also believed the GM felt his coach was too cozy with captain Pat LaFontaine and some members of ownership.

Local media made behind-the-scenes drama public, and when Hasek told a radio station he wanted Nolan gone, there was no turning back.

First, Muckler was fired, which led to Nolan being called a "GM killer" by commentator Don Cherry. Incoming GM Darcy Regier offered Nolan a one-year contract extension. The lack of commitment was an "insult," so he turned down the deal, hoping to negotiate something better. Next thing Nolan knew, Regier was at his house, firing him face to face.

Nolan wouldn't run another NHL bench for six years, only returning when a retired LaFontaine gained hiring power in Buffalo's front office. The reunion, amid shameless tanking for Connor McDavid, lasted just 17 months.

Nolan wonders now if rejecting Regier's offer was shortsighted, and if another label - that Nolan's his "own worst enemy" - is at least partially true.

"Maybe I should have swallowed my pride and accepted the contract," Nolan writes. "At least I could have continued doing the work I loved, and had another chance to show I belonged in the league. Maybe, if I'd spent another year in Buffalo, I would have repaired any damage done to my reputation with the NHL power brokers and gone on to entertain big offers."

"But," he continues, "as difficult as the following years would be, I never for a moment looked back and thought accepting that one-year contract was a real possibility. The insult of it, along with the rumour of my drinking and irresponsibility, had revived such dark memories."

The lighter side

Andre Ringuette / Getty Images

Nolan's book is mostly serious in tone, as he discusses some of the lowest points of his life, and Canada's history of mistreating Indigenous people.

Still, there are a few lighter anecdotes sprinkled in.

On playing with Wayne Gretzky, 5-8, baby-faced, and 16 years old on the Junior A Soo Greyhounds:

He probably weighed only about 155 or 160 pounds. A real string bean of a guy. Oh boy, I thought, he's going to get killed. And then he stepped out on the ice.

On the time he grabbed postgame drinks with legendary coach Mike Keenan:

'Always be ready to be fired, Ted,' he said. 'And always get fired when you have a year left on your contract, so that when you start somewhere else you're getting two paycheques.' He was already on his fourth NHL franchise as a coach (he'd get to eight during two decades in the league), and I guess his method meant a number of years with great income.

On former Islanders owner Charles Wang urging him to make a pick in the 2006 draft, and choosing Andrew MacDonald, a defenseman he previously coached:

As soon as I mentioned his name to Charles, the scouts began to flip through the scouting lists. 'He's not on here,' one of them said. 'I know,' I replied. 'But that doesn't mean we can't draft him.' ... Only three of our choices that year landed in the NHL for more than a couple of trial games, and only one, Kyle Okposo, our number one pick, had a longer NHL career.

Fire still burns

Bruce Bennett / Getty Images

Nolan has hope.

For one, his sons Brandon and Jordan, now 40 and 34, didn't encounter the kind of overt racism he did when they played hockey at the minor, junior, and pro levels. For another, he recently watched little kids show empathy towards his baseball-playing grandson after he misjudged a ball and got hit in the head. "A lot of them ran over and asked him if he's OK," Nolan said.

He adds that recent hiring trends across the NHL, which have seen more women and people of color join front offices and coaching staffs, are a "step in the right direction." And he's immensely proud of the 3Nolans organization, founded by him and his sons, for its impact on Indigenous hockey players.

Nolan, who turned 65 this year, also has hope these days because he's feeling markedly better after being diagnosed with a form of blood cancer in March.

"My new heroes are people who go through this terrible disease. It's tough," he said. "Especially the chemo. It was really, really tough times. I went through it, and it wasn't fun. I had a stem cell replacement operation not too long ago. So I'm slowly getting my strength back. Knock on wood, we put this in remission for a little while and I'll be able to get back on the ice."

Nolan's last official coaching job was with Poland's national team five years ago. He said in the past he'd still be coaching at a high level if his skin was white. Does he believe that in 2023? Yes, "I still believe that," Nolan said.

"I really believe in relationships and growing up in the same environment," he said of feeling overlooked. "If you know someone, you're going to want to work with them. If you don't know them, it's hard. You make judgments."

Asked what his response would be if an NHL head coach called him today about joining the staff, Nolan didn't hesitate.

"I'd say: 'When can we start?'"

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

Copyright © 2023 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.