Sidney Crosby led more than just the NHL's goals race this season. He's the league's No. 1 jersey seller, too.
The NHL announced its top sellers Wednesday, and to no surprise, No. 87 is at the top, followed by Blackhawks teammates Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews.
The rest of the list, full of the usual suspects, is as follows:
With an 82-game schedule now in the books, the fun begins Wednesday night, with a full slate of five first-round games.
As you prepare to spend the next eight weeks glued to your television, take a look at the top storylines in the race for the Stanley Cup.
1. Canada's back
Following a disappointing no-show last season, five Canadian teams qualified for the playoffs this time around, each with something to prove.
Edmonton ended an 11-year drought, while Toronto defied all odds to qualify with a rookie-laden roster. Montreal has a revenge date with the Rangers, while Ottawa and Calgary quietly had terrific seasons.
This should be fun.
2. The kids vs. the favorites
The Maple Leafs put together a stellar month of March to secure their first playoff berth in an 82-game season since 2004. Their reward? Facing the best team in hockey.
The Capitals' season is just beginning; anything short of a Stanley Cup will be considered a failure for the Presidents' Trophy winners, and an early matchup with the up-and-coming Leafs makes for arguably the most compelling opening round series.
3. McDavid & Co.
He put a ribbon on the Art Ross in reaching 100 points, he's the odds-on favorite to win MVP, and now he gets to taste the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time. Sit back, relax, and let's see how far captain Connor can carry the Oilers.
4. New faces, new places
Remarkably, seven of the 16 head coaches in the tournament are in their first year on the job with their respective clubs.
Claude Julien (Montreal)
Bruce Cassidy (Boston)
Guy Boucher (Ottawa)
Bruce Boudreau (Minnesota)
Mike Yeo (St. Louis)
Glen Gulutzan (Calgary)
Randy Carlyle (Anaheim)
There's plenty of intrigue among these bench bosses, as Julien, Cassidy, and Yeo took over mid-season - the same thing Mike Sullivan did before leading the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Stanley Cup last June.
What's more, Yeo is facing his former team in Minnesota, as is Todd McLellan, who spent seven years with the Sharks before joining Edmonton in 2015-16.
5. Quest to repeat
The Penguins' mission to defend their Stanley Cup championship comes with a first-round matchup against the Columbus Blue Jackets - who won't be intimidated.
By no means will it be an easy path for the Pens, as no team has repeated since the Red Wings in 1997-98. Pittsburgh's depleted blue line will surely be tested, and a potential path back to the final will likely require Crosby vs. Ovechkin Vol. III.
The club announced recently Lindy Ruff wouldn't return next season after a disappointing campaign, and general manager Jim Nill has apparently acted quickly upon searching for an experienced replacement.
Hitchcock was let go by the St. Louis Blues in February after five-plus seasons behind the bench, and previously stated he'd retire at the conclusion of the 2016-17 schedule.
The 65-year-old ranks fourth on the all-time coaching wins list (781) - just one victory behind the legendary Al Arbour. He spent seven seasons with the Stars to begin his NHL coaching career, winning the Stanley Cup with the club in 1999.
After winning the Central Division in 2015-16, the Stars followed up with a turbulent 79-point season, and Hitchcock will be tasked with transforming the talented, defensively deficient team back into a contender.
The Toronto Maple Leafs fell flat in their opportunity to climb up the standings Sunday night, falling to the Columbus Blue Jackets by a final score of 3-2 in regulation - ultimately setting up a first-round meeting with the Washington Captials next week.
Toronto needed just one point to jump into the third seed in the Atlantic Division, and looked to be in the driver's seat early, jumping out to a 2-0 lead on two goals from James van Riemsdyk. However, the Blue Jackets roared back with three goals in the second period, the dagger coming on a shorthanded tally from Cam Atkinson.
Both Toronto and Boston finished the regular season with 95 points, but by virtue of regulation and overtime wins (ROW), the Bruins' 42 outweigh the Leafs' 39.
Toronto posted a record of 1-1-1 versus the Presidents' Trophy winning Capitals during the regular season.
The loss continued a recent trend in which Montreal's top guns have lacked their usual offensive spark. Over the past nine games, the Canadiens' first line has produced just two goals, both coming from Max Pacioretty in a 4-1 win over Edmonton on March 12.
Those struggles led head coach Claude Julien to split up his usual top-line trio of Alexander Radulov, Alex Galchenyuk, and Pacioretty late in the game against Detroit.
Ostensibly, putting the more skilled player in Galchenyuk between Montreal's top two wingers makes sense for a No. 1 line, but Radulov and Pacioretty have been much more productive while flanking Danault this season.
Combination
Time on ice (minutes)
Goals
Assists
Points
Radulov-Galchenyuk-Pacioretty
135
0-1-3
3-2-2
3-3-5
Radulov-Danault-Pacioretty
337
3-3-8
6-5-5
9-8-13
(All stats listed at five-on-five, courtesy corsica.hockey)
It should be noted that Danault's sample size on the top line is much larger than Galchenyuk's, who missed a significant portion of Montreal's schedule with a knee injury.
Whether Julien opts to run his new variations on Thursday versus Carolina remains to be seen, but either way, the Canadiens will certainly need their top players to start producing in order to fend off the lurking Ottawa Senators for the Atlantic Division title.
Each day this week, we'll publish mock expansion keeper lists by division, and last but not least is the Central. On Friday, we'll publish our mock expansion Las Vegas Golden Knights roster.
*NMC = No-movement clause *All first- and second-year professionals, along with unsigned draft choices, will be exempt from selection (and will not be counted toward their club's applicable protection limits). *Notable protected 2017 unrestricted free agents are kept based on the assumption they will re-sign with their respective teams before Las Vegas' window to negotiate with UFAs opens.
Chicago Blackhawks
F
D
G
Jonathan Toews (NMC)
Brent Seabrook (NMC)
Corey Crawfrord (NMC)
Patrick Kane (NMC)
Duncan Keith (NMC)
Marian Hossa (NMC)
Niklas Hjalmarsson (NMC)
Artem Anisimov (NMC)
Dennis Rasmussen
Ryan Hartman
Richard Panik
Thanks to numerous no-movement clauses, the Blackhawks protection list is practically automatic. Artemi Panarin and Nick Schmaltz being exempt certainly helps, too.
With such a wide range of contract situations here, center Marcus Kruger - an important role player during two Stanley Cup runs - is likely to be exposed.
Colorado Avalanche
F
D
G
Nathan MacKinnon
Erik Johnson (NMC)
Calvin Pickard
Matt Duchene
Francois Beauchemin (NMC)
Gabriel Landeskog
Tyson Barrie
Mikhail Grigorenko
Nikita Zadorov
Colorado's disastrous roster could look very different by next season, but leaving trade chips exposed for nothing simply isn't an option.
There are plenty of ugly contracts on the roster - particularly Carl Soderberg, whose possible departure for Vegas would be a blessing for Colorado's brass.
A No. 1 option in goal for the NHL's newest team could be Semyon Varlamov, though he does have two more years and $5.9 million remaining on his current deal.
Dallas Stars
F
D
G
Jason Spezza (NMC)
John Klingberg
Antti Niemi
Jamie Benn (NMC)
Esa Lindell
Tyler Seguin
Stephen Johns
Antoine Roussel
Cody Eakin
Valeri Nichushkin
Radek Faksa
The Stars might wish for a world in which they could expose both Niemi and Kari Lehtonen based on their appalling seasons in goal, but Niemi ultimately gets the nod due to a smaller cap hit.
The rationale behind choosing to protect Mattias Ekholm over Ryan Ellis comes down to term, as Ekholm is under contract until 2022 at a reasonable cap hit, while Ellis is due for substantial raise in 2019.
St. Louis Blues
F
D
G
Vladimir Tarasenko
Alex Pietrangelo
Jake Allen
Paul Stastny
Jay Bouwmeester
Alex Steen
Joel Edmundson
Jaden Schwartz
Jori Lehtera
David Perron
Patrik Berglund
With zero no-movement clauses to deal with, keeping the Blues' core intact seems relatively simple.
Winnipeg Jets
F
D
G
Mark Scheifele
Dustin Byfuglien (NMC)
Connor Hellebuyck
Blake Wheeler
Toby Enstrom (NMC)
Bryan Little
Jacob Trouba
Mathieu Perreault
Tyler Myers
Going with the four forwards, four defensemen, one goaltender strategy could lose the Jets one of Adam Lowry, Marko Dano, Joel Armia, or Andrew Copp, but securing both Myers and Trouba on the back end should be a priority with several strong forward prospects still in the system.
The charismatic blue-liner, playing in the Bell Centre for the first time in Nashville Predators colors, was the story all night long, and was put front and center prior to Thursday's puck drop with a touching video tribute.
In the months since the Montreal Canadiens shipped him of town, speculation's swirled as to why Subban, clearly a fan favorite, didn't fit in the their future plans. Still, despite his shocking exit, Subban was moved by his so-called homecoming.
"It's a first-class organization, so I'd expect nothing less," Subban told reporters postgame.
He was visibly overcome with emotion after the tribute, shedding tears while saluting his former home crowd.
"All those memories come back, whether it's stuff to do with the hospital or kids, family, teammates, whatever it is," Subban said. "I felt that I shared that with all the fans and the community here, I guess that's how it all came out."
Subban managed an assist on the Predators' lone goal in the 2-1 loss.
Before head coach Bruce Cassidy took over for Claude Julien on Feb. 7, the Bruins were unfathomably snakebitten in terms of scoring goals, and adding Stafford provides some depth to the roster.
Stafford will likely serve as a rental, as he becomes an unrestricted free agent July 1.
The 32-year-old has missed time with injuries this season, and is experiencing a down year in terms of production, only recording four goals and nine assists in 40 games.
Still, Stafford has reached the 20-goal mark four times in his career, with a personal best of 31 coming in 2010-11 as a Buffalo Sabre.
The Predators will be Parenteau's third team this season, after signing with the Islanders in the summer, before surprisingly being waived and consequently claimed by the Devils.
Parenteau can slot in the wing in Nashville's top or bottom six, as well as on the power play.
In 59 games with the Devils this season, Parenteau, 33, has recorded 13 goals and added 14 assists.
The Vegas Golden Knights can now officially wheel and deal with their NHL counterparts.
While 30 franchises were occupied by Wednesday's trade deadline, the NHL's 31st team submitted its final league payment, and as a result, can start making deals, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie.
"On behalf of the Board of Governors, I am delighted to officially welcome the Vegas Golden Knights to the NHL," Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "Congratulations to Bill Foley, the Foley family, the Maloof family, the city of Las Vegas and the Golden Knights’ fans as the team embarks on its exciting journey."
Of course, the Golden Knights can't trade for any roster players, given they'll have nowhere to play, but Vegas can begin to make pre-expansion trades for prospects, as well as sign college free agents.
