SPORT-SCAN DAILY BRIEF NHL 11/16/2020 1196001 Inside the NHL: Division realignment will be bad news for the Sabres 1196002 Sabres offer more hints ahead of reverse retro jersey reveal 1196003 Sabres set to reveal reverse retro jersey for 2020-21 season 1196004 Craig MacTavish gives Ryan McLeod high marks after coaching against him 1196005 Oil Spills: Dominik Kahun enters Oilers' lineup 1196006 Lowetide: Let’s make a final call on the Oilers’ 2015 draft class 1196007 College hockey: The other Caufield scores for Wisconsin Senators 1196008 Senators owner Eugene Melnyk excited about season, says league has all options on table 1196010 Canucks prospects tracker: Hoglander at the ready, 'Truss' the process Websites 1196011 With COVID-19 cases surging, Flames GM Treliving sees major challenges in scouting NHL prospects 1196009 YOU BE THE BOSS: Jets fans say don’t trade Laine, do trade Roslovic and make things happen this season, or els

SPORT-SCAN, INC. 941-284-4129 1196001 Buffalo Sabres Jose, Los Angeles and Anaheim in getting an extra amount of work awarded to teams who did not play in the summer bubbles.

A much tougher division and nine or 10 months off without a game don't Inside the NHL: Division realignment will be bad news for the Sabres strike me as a recipe for snapping a playoff drought.

As for the schedule, it seems like something from 56-65 games is the Mike Harrington Nov 15, 2020 Updated 15 hrs ago most talked-about range. One help would be for teams to play a baseball-like series against an opponent, whereby they travel to a city and play two or three games against the same team over a period of four or five days. We're at mid-November now and the NHL remains in limbo. The party line is Jan. 1 is the target for a start date, although that gets more The NHL tried it in a few spots coming out of the 2005 lockout but the dubious in this view by the day, both in mere execution and dealing with idea never really took hold for a variety of reasons. It would certainly protocols related to the pandemic. seem to make perfect sense now, cutting back on flights and bus trips.

The devil might be in all the details, whenever they're announced, but No 82-game run again for Krueger one thing that seems quite clear is temporary realignment is coming this season and it's going to feature a Canadian division. The certainty of a shortened season means Sabres coach Ralph Krueger is assured of going 0 for 3 when it comes to leading a team through a full If you're thinking about the Sabres breaking their ghastly playoff drought, 82-game schedule. this is unquestionably bad news. Krueger's lone year in Edmonton was the 2013 lockout season when the From an entertainment standpoint with teams not expected to cross the schedule was just 48 games. The Sabres played 69 last season before border, we'll certainly miss games against Montreal and as well the schedule was cut short in March and it doesn't appear likely they'll as the two Jack Eichel/Connor McDavid showdowns and the pair of approach that number this season. Rasmus Dahlin/Elias Pettersson matchups when Buffalo meets Edmonton and Vancouver, respectively. So it will be interesting to see how Krueger, and all coaches, approach this season. You have to stem the tide when things aren't going well in a From a television standpoint when it comes to the league's megadeal more forceful manner to get your club turned around. with , the competition could be fierce. Losing streaks are going to be magnified with a shorter schedule and "If that is the case, an all-Canadian division, I think it would be pretty Krueger has listed the team's pair of six-game skids last season as key unique," Montreal winger Brendan Gallagher told the Canadian Press. reasons the playoff drive got derailed. In a short schedule, coaches will "Pretty neat you get to see those other teams a little bit more and have have to do more to shake their teams out of skids rather than letting their an appreciation for what they do. And at the same time, there’s a little bit teams play their way out of trouble. of pride involved when you’re playing for your Canadian division. I’m sure everyone would have a little bit of motivation." Free agents remain

Taking the Leafs, Canadiens and out of the Atlantic It feels like August in a normal hockey calendar. Free agency has come Division as well as Winnipeg from the Central and the Western and gone and things are exceptionally quiet as teams take stock of their teams out of the Pacific sparks complete shuffling of all four groups. cap figures and likely ponder what their revenues will be. Especially if they're not going to have fans. Obviously, the Canadian Division will consist of Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Winnipeg, , Edmonton and Vancouver. A likely Things are quite a bit different this year, however, with the flat cap and configuration for a Pacific Division would thus be Vegas, Arizona, the pandemic-induced revenue shortfall leaving plenty of quality free Anaheim, San Jose, Los Angeles, Colorado and two other teams from agents on the market. the Central (I would say Dallas and St. Louis). The list is led by Florida winger Mike Hoffman, who had 29 goals last The Sabres are thus going to be left as part of some sort of composite of year and 36 the year before. Forwards in general were pushed out of the the teams left in the Atlantic and the eight teams from the Metropolitan market by a run on goaltending and Hoffman is often looked at as a one- Division. And that's not good. dimensional player with little success, only having won a playoff series over his seven seasons in 2017 during Ottawa's run to the Eastern Buffalo might get a respite this year from being in the same division as Conference final. champion Tampa Bay – a team to which they've lost 20 of the last 24 meetings, including seven straight – but could suddenly be It would appear Hoffman's best bet might be to go all Taylor Hall with a thrust against much tougher competition otherwise. one-year deal and a bet on himself for another run at free agency next summer. I still say here, Columbus or Boston, which will likely start the Instead of multiple games against Florida, Ottawa and Detroit, don't be season without Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak, would be good bets. surprised to see the Sabres stay with Boston and then get grouped with Washington, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and the three New York City-area Others looking for deals include Nashville forward Mikael Granlund, teams that include the rugged Islanders and on-the-rise Rangers. Florida center Erik Haula, Washington winger Ilya Kovalchuk, Arizona center Carl Soderberg, Ottawa winger Anthony Duclair, Dallas winger The Metro is coming off a season in which seven teams had 79 points or Corey Perry, Edmonton winger Andreas Athanasiou, Calgary better and competed in the Return to Play, with only New Jersey not defenseman Travis Hamonic, former Sabres winger of getting there. The Atlantic had just three 79-plus teams (Boston, Tampa Pittsburgh and Islanders winger Matt Martin. Bay and Toronto). (Haula or Soderberg would have been on my list for the Sabres ahead of If you're pitting the Sabres against the current Metro Division, which team Cody Eakin but when you give Zemgus Girgensons $2.2 million a are they finishing ahead of? Even with Taylor Hall and Eric Staal. Lindy season, that's going to cut into your budget for outside help.) Ruff-led New Jersey perhaps. Any others? It's bleak to ponder them climbing past teams like the Capitals, Flyers, Penguins or Islanders. Former Sabres goalie Ryan Miller, Boston captain Zdeno Chara and longtime Ottawa goalie Craig Anderson have to decide about playing or "The Sabres made some nice moves but that's going to kill them," said retiring. It seems inconceivable Chara would not be back with the Bruins, one longtime Atlantic Division observer. "They were ready to make a especially after Torey Krug signed with St. Louis. move in this division. But against that kind of competition? Good luck to them." A lot of one-year deals in the offing. Some of these guys might have to take training camp tryouts. Not what they envisioned when free agency It was not unrealistic to think the Sabres would be climbing the ladder in opened last month. the Atlantic. But now they have to deal with realignment and don't underestimate their inactivity. Sharks bite back on construction

The Sabres have not been on the ice since March. Whenever training Odd news that popped out of San Jose on Thursday as the Sharks drew camp starts, they are expected to join Ottawa, Detroit, New Jersey, San a line in the sand and said they might be forced to look elsewhere if massive development by Google and other companies cause Buffalo News LOADED: 11.16.2020 infrastructure problems in and around SAP Center.

“We definitely do not want to leave,” Jonathan Becher, president of Sharks Sports & Entertainment, told the San Jose Mercury News. “This is our home. This is where we want to be. Leaving is the last resort. But it could come to that if the arena becomes unviable.”

According to the paper, Google plans a massive transit-oriented development of office buildings, homes, shops, restaurants, entertainment hubs, cultural centers and parks near the arena and its adjoining train station. The team is concerned the multiyear construction will make for huge traffic headaches and eliminate much of its parking.

The Sharks sent a letter to fans, urging them to contact city officials to voice support for the team. The team said its concerns have not been heard over a period of several years. The Sharks have filed multiple lawsuits over the case and one has already been thrown out of a federal court.

"Unfortunately, those discussions have yielded limited results and the planners of these projects appear intent on moving forward in a manner that could force the Sharks out of San Jose," the team's letter said.

SAP Center dates to 1992 and, although it has one of the best atmospheres in the league, it is one of the NHL's most deficient buildings. It has a tiny footprint, especially on its service level, and will become the NHL's second-oldest building when the Islanders and Calgary move into new digs in upcoming seasons. The oldest is Madison Square Garden in New York, which dates to 1968 but just underwent a $1 billion renovation project to create a mostly new arena in the last few years.

Golly, Meeker will be missed

A big loss for the game last week was the death of 97-year-old former Leafs star . The game's oldest living alumni, Meeker became best known in his later years as a "" analyst in the '70s and '80s.

Meeker was using a to diagram players much earlier than most broadcasters. "Stop it right there" and "Roll it back, guys" were common commands Meeker would give to his director when showing slow-motion replays.

Meeker also had a vocabulary all his own. Phrases like "Jumpin Jehosophat", "Jiminy Crickets", "Golly gee willikers" and "counting the house" were some of his trademarks. If you were a child of the '70s in Buffalo watching games on CBC, he was one of your favorites.

Around the boards

• Early whispers about the potential for games in hub cities to start the season have quickly died, with teams making it clear they want to be in home arenas and players equally as adamant they're not that interested in bubbling for a couple of weeks at a time. Something else to consider: There are revenue losses if you don't play at home from simple things like the rights fee for the name on your arena and ads on the boards and ice in your building that won't be seen. If eight teams are told to gather for 10 days in, say, Boston, the Bruins and league are going to be deriving the bulk of that kind of revenue and the other teams will be out of luck with theirs.

• Still hard to see how the AHL can play this year without fans. Just like minor-league baseball, the minors in hockey are completely dependent upon having fans in the building to draw their revenues. And the border will be an issue as well.

The three Canadian teams with U.S. affiliates (Edmonton-Bakersfield, Vancouver-Utica and Calgary-Stockton) are going to have to relocate their AHL clubs temporarily in Canada because they're not going to be able to shuffle players back and forth as needed to the AHL over the border.

• Last week marked the one-year anniversary of Don Cherry's dismissal from Sportsnet for his infamous "you people" rant, where he complained that Canadian immigrants should be wearing poppies on Remembrance Day in honor of the country's troops. Not a bad point. Certainly not the way to make it. His time had long passed. Just like , who should get a similar exit from NBC after being sent home early from the playoff bubbles after a foolishly sexist comment during a game. It was Milbury, remember, who clearly had a dinner reservation going to waste when he was complaining on air about the length of the five-overtime Tampa Bay-Columbus classic. 1196002 Buffalo Sabres

Sabres offer more hints ahead of reverse retro jersey reveal

Nov 15, 2020 Updated 7 hrs ago STAFF

On the eve of Monday's reveal of the NHL's "reverse retro" jerseys, the Buffalo Sabres offered another hint on social media Sunday.

The post included the tagline, "Details from the past. Remixed for the future."

In an initial hint last week, the Sabres' included the number "00," a potential indication the jersey could include one of two logos worn by the team in 2000: the goat head or crossing sabre swords, the latter of which was a red, black and white alternate that season, or it could include both.

The goat head on the shoulder revealed Sunday could reinforce the initial hint, which included royal striping on the shoulders and waist.

The Sabres revealed a permanent switch back to royal and gold in August.

Buffalo News LOADED: 11.16.2020 1196003 Buffalo Sabres

Sabres set to reveal reverse retro jersey for 2020-21 season

Lance Lysowski Nov 10, 2020 Updated 14 hrs ago

The Sabres announced in August the franchise will permanently switch back to royal blue and gold.

The Buffalo Sabres are getting another new look for the 2020-21 season.

Many Sabres’ fans have clamored for the return of royal blue and gold since the team switched to a red and black color scheme in 1996.

After revealing the permanent switch back to royal and gold in August, the Sabres tweeted out a video Tuesday that revealed basic elements of a white "reverse retro" jersey, which included royal striping on the shoulders and waist. The final product will be revealed Nov. 16.

Each of the NHL's 31 teams will wear a "reverse retro" jersey as an alternate look in the coming season. It's unclear which logo will be featured on the front of each uniform, but Adidas reportedly provided a hint on the video tweeted out by each team Tuesday.

The Sabres' included the number "00," a potential hint that the jersey could include one of two logos worn by the team in 2000: the goat head or crossing sabre swords, the latter of which was a red, black and white alternate that season.

Buffalo News LOADED: 11.16.2020 1196004 Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid’s game-worn Oilers jersey from the night he got his first NHL on Oct. 13 2015 against Dallas, didn’t sell at a recent Goldin Auctions. The minimum bid was $100,000 and it didn’t come for the private collector, even though the aucton people thought it might fetch Craig MacTavish gives Ryan McLeod high marks after coaching against $300,000. him “It is very rare that an item in our auction doesn’t sell, but occasionally on ultra-high end items, we agree to a starting point with the seller that we both feel should be able to be met. However, sometimes, the item does Jim Matheson • Publishing date:Nov 15, 2020 • not garner the bids we all had anticipated,” said Dave Amerman, auction director.

Craig MacTavish has had a close-up look at Ryan McLeod over in This ’n that: MacTavish had a scare in Munich when he fell off his road Switzerland and gave him a two-thumbs up after MacTavish’s Lausanne bike as he tried to get off the road and onto a bridge to avoid traffic team played McLeod’s Zug side recently. behind him and the tire caught in a crevice. His face hit steel and he was left bloodied … ’s Oilers photo was up in the window at the “I talked to Ryan after the game and he told me he was really enjoying it to celebrate the inductees, between those pictures and his family was over there,” said MacTavish. “He’s getting a really of Jarome Iginla and Doug Wilson. No ceremony Monday because of good experience; it’s a strong team and he’s on their second power play. COVID. It’s postponed until the fall of 2021 … With the Ivy League His coach Dan Tangnes is giving Ryan a really good opportunity. schools (Yale, Harvard, Brown, Cornell, Princeton and Dartmouth) cancelling hockey this season, Oilers defence prospect Phil Kemp (Yale) “Good coach. I’ve met him before. He’s a friend of and Jay is done for college hockey as a senior … If the Oilers get around to a Woodcroft and I met him on a couple of scouting trips in the past when Ring of Honour for guys who won’t get their numbers retired, here’s three he was coaching in Sweden.” more possible names: goalie Curtis Joseph, former captain Shawn MacTavish thinks McLeod, who has six points in 10 Zug games, will be Horcoff and Taylor Hall. an NHL player. Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 11.16.2020 “He’s just got to figure out what he has to do to put all of it together and he will. It’s maybe a belief thing for him, he’s got all the tools,” he said.

Scouts aren’t allowed into buildings in Europe to watch pro teams because of COVID, but Keith Gretzky, in charge of finding places for Oilers prospects to play along with head Euro scout Keith Sullivan is constantly on the phone asking for reports on players like Evan Bouchard, who has 14 points in 18 games in Sodertalje, Tyler Benson, McLeod and Raphael Lavoie.

Lavoie has eight goals in his 14 games in Vasby in Sweden, a town outside Stockholm.

“I talk to the GMs all the time … just talked to Bouchard’s GM Mikael Samuelsson in Sodertalje. He played in the NHL as we all know, and I know his team is very happy with his play. Mikael knows players obviously,” said Gretzky.

“Evan’s playing 23-24 minutes a game … Lavoie has been great. He gets to play 19 minutes a game, because it’s not a good team and is on their power-play unit. They’re thrilled to have him (10 points). He’s making big strides, he’s having to play quicker.

“All these kids are growing up, being over there. Unfortunately, Tyler’s team (GCK Lions in second-tier Swiss Hockey League) got COVID and he hasn’t played much, just five games.”

COLLEGE WARM-UP FOR HOLLOWAY

Dylan Holloway, the Oilers first pick in the draft, had a goal in each game for the University of Wisconsin on the weekend as they swept Notre Dame — a kick-start for the forward who flew to Calgary and made his way to Red Deer Sunday for the start of the month-long Canadian world junior team camp Monday.

Holloway’s coach Tony Granato, who had said they would like Holloway to play a few more college games (they play U of Michigan Thursday and Friday) before heading to the junior try-out, had the 19-year-old playing centre. He won two-thirds of his draws but Granato has told the Oilers he’ll also get work at left-wing, which is where he may end up as an NHL player. Holloway will likely line up on the wing at the junior team camp.

NEW START, NEW NUMBER?

Jesse Puljujarvi wanted No. 98 here because it’s the year he was born in Finland, but when he returns for camp, with a new lease on life, maybe he would consider changing his number. Wearing 98 really isn’t a good look, especially in Edmonton, where Wayne Gretzky is king.

Only three NHLers have ever worn 98 — current NHL Network commentator/former agent/former GM Brian Lawton (Minnesota North Stars in 1985), defenceman Mikhail Sergachev (Tampa, born that year) and Puljujarvi.

NO TAKERS FOR NO. 97 1196005 Edmonton Oilers

Oil Spills: Dominik Kahun enters Oilers' lineup

Craig Ellingson

Publishing date:Nov 15, 2020

Dominik Kahun in action for the against the host Ottawa Senators on Oct. 4, 2018.

Dominik Kahun is the latest free agent to join the Edmonton Oilers, signing a one-year deal.

The price was right: He’s fitting in under the salary cap with a $975,000 contract.

Kahun’s signing also answers the question of what moves the Oilers could do to try to address their forward depth. And with which centre would he be best suited to play alongside — Draisaitl or Connor McDavid?

Edmonton Sun: LOADED: 11.16.2020 1196006 Edmonton Oilers He recovered from a devastating injury with a mind-numbing rehabilitation program before last season and then scored 97 points in 64 games.

Lowetide: Let’s make a final call on the Oilers’ 2015 draft class Perhaps the most impressive accomplishment for McDavid over his first five seasons has been wearing the weight of a losing team as captain and not allowing the burden to impact his performance. Thankfully, there is some help on the horizon. , the Hart Trophy winner last By Allan Mitchell Nov 15, 2020 season, emerged as a centre who can push the river on his own, and the Oilers are a hot goalie and good health from a long playoff run.

On April 18, 2015, the Edmonton Oilers won the draft lottery, securing Caleb Jones the rights to Connor McDavid, the best teenage hockey player in a Jones took most of the five years after he was drafted to emerge as an decade. Six days later, the Oilers hired Peter Chiarelli as their general NHL player, but his 43-game audition last season was borderline manager. spectacular. He’s an excellent passer, has great wheels and has grown Previous GM Craig MacTavish had been adding picks for what was going defensively since draft day. Credit should be given to his coaches along to be a watershed draft that summer, dealing for the No. 16 the way, including Jay Woodcroft and Dave Manson of the Bakersfield pick, Jeff Petry for No. 57 and Ales Hemsky for No. 79, among others. Condors, but most of that is Jones’ natural ability and his willingness to adapt quickly. On the day Chiarelli took over, the Oilers owned the Nos. 1, 16, 33, 57, 79, 86, 117, 124, 154 and 184 picks in the 2015 draft. Combined with the It’s a good bet he will begin next season playing on the left side of the fact it was an extremely deep draft, those 10 picks could have formed the second pair. Puck IQ suggested he is the best option available to replace foundation of a championship team. Oscar Klefbom while he recovers from injury.

That’s the kind of draft cluster that helped the build a Jones’ cap hit ($850,000 for next season and 2021-22) is likely to be a champion from 2003-06 and the Chicago Blackhawks do something good value, giving general manager Ken Holland more freedom to add to similar from 2002-07. A general manager can’t expect his scouting staff the roster. to turn every pick into a quality NHL player, but six picks in the top 90 One item that remains a mystery: Who in the organization was most should lead to at least three quality players. responsible for drafting Jones? He was ranked No. 115 by Central Urgency Scouting but didn’t generate significant draft buzz. Nick Boka played for the USA U-18 team that year, was ranked No. 117 by Central Scouting There must have been something close to panic in the organization when (two spots behind Jones) and went No. 171 to the . Chiarelli took over. The Oilers had just completed their ninth consecutive year out of the playoffs, and with Rogers Place just over one year away My suspicion has always been Chiarelli was the reason Jones was from opening (to higher ticket prices), owner Darryl Katz needed some chosen. Before Jones, the last USHL defenceman drafted by Edmonton good news in a hurry. was Jeff Petry in 2006, and the last player from the U.S. Development Program picked by the Oilers was Geoff Paukovich in 2004. After Chiarelli walked to the podium to select McDavid with the first pick and Chiarelli arrived, the Oilers more routinely chose players from the proceeded to ignore a year’s worth of scouting by trading a first-round program (Jones, Graham McPhee, Skyler Brind’Amour and Philip Kemp). pick and several second- and third-rounders over the course of the weekend. Ethan Bear

The acquisitions over those 48 hours ranged from quality (Cam Talbot Bear was ranked No. 97 on Central Scouting’s North American list and was an excellent goaltender) to curio (a bizarre NHL rule, now deleted, TSN’s had him at No. 77, four spots ahead of Jones. His forced the Oilers to send the No. 86 selection to the for scouting report on Bear: “There is a lot of ability in his game to impact the hiring head coach Todd McLellan). game in a positive way. He gets where he needs to be, he never gets himself in trouble. He’s a body-on-body, one-on-one competitor. If you The nadir of draft weekend was the trade for Griffin Reinhart in exchange want to play against him in the defensive zone, you’ll have to earn for Nos. 16 and 33. The only way that deal made any sense was if everything you get. He can get the puck out of the zone well. He knows Reinhart was a plug-and-play NHL defenceman at the start of the what his options are (and) doesn’t get himself into trouble. Smart player.” season. He is still matriculating five years later. We see that in Bear’s game and it helps explain why he was able to take Since that draft, there have been many reports about what happened that on such a difficult role as a rookie. He played more than 460 minutes weekend. Fans have spent five years mourning after missing out on against elites, according to Puck IQ, and Edmonton outscored opponents Mathew Barzal with that first-round pick, but credible intel suggests Joel 25-19 while he was on the ice in those situations. If coach Dave Tippett Eriksson-Ek was the target and Brandon Carlo was the favourite to go at plays Adam Larsson and Tyson Barrie against elites more heavily this No. 33 if Edmonton kept those picks. season, Bear could show his considerable offensive ability. He is an exceptional outlet passer who has great awareness, according to Button. Tale of the tape Bear’s selection has become even more impressive because it happened With seven rounds in 2015, the six picks left Edmonton a little short. so late. The last Oilers player drafted in the fifth round to have the same Additionally, two of Edmonton’s picks (No. 208 and 209) were among the kind of impact as a rookie was Miro Satan, who was drafted in 1993 and final four in the draft, and 115 picks were made between the drafting of scored 18 goals in 1995-96. McDavid and Caleb Jones at No. 117. John Marino Ninety-six players who were drafted in 2015 have played at least one NHL game. That’s an average of three per team. Edmonton has four Marino played for the South Shore Kings in Foxborough, Mass. The picks (McDavid, Jones, Ethan Bear and John Marino) who have made coach and general manager at the time was Scott Harlow, who was also the grade. a part-time scout for the Oilers (he accepted a full-time role in 2016) so we’re probably safe giving him partial credit for finding Marino. Players drafted in 2015 have appeared in an average of 111 games; Edmonton’s four picks have averaged 139 games. That total has been Marino, a fine two-way prospect with impressive offensive flair, played boosted by McDavid, but all four are now NHL regulars. one quality USHL season and then attended Harvard for three years. He was a splendid defender but his offensive potential was obscured by Let’s see how Edmonton fared with the benefit of five seasons of brilliant offensive defender Adam Fox. evaluation. The Oilers were unable to sign him, so Marino was dealt to the Pittsburgh Connor McDavid Penguins in July 2019. He settled in and played a fine rookie season. He It’s difficult to identify the most impressive accomplishment by McDavid played effectively on the top four against elite competition and looks over his first five seasons. He led a flawed team into the playoffs in 2017 poised for a long and successful career. and last season and won the Hart Trophy in 2017, the Lindsay Memorial What does it all mean? Award in 2017 and 2018 and the Art Ross in 2017 and 2018. The final two players in the class, Miroslav Svoboda and Ziyat Paigin, showed some promise after draft day but are not expected to make it to the NHL. We have reached the five-year point after the 2015 draft and can safely make the call.

McDavid has delivered — and then some — on his enormous potential in his first five years. We are watching a historic hockey player. His ability to shock and delight with speed and skill remains breathtaking. The only downbeat is the team success, and it’s folly to blame the captain for not being able to lead the Oilers, who have so many holes, to the promised land.

Jones, Bear and Marino are just getting started on their NHL careers, with each having a rookie season that was encouraging. It’s safe to say a team that procured the three of them would consider it a success.

The Oilers’ scouts hit several home runs despite watching their draft picks disappear.

Chiarelli failed with the 2015 draft. It’s uncertain if the moves were made due to pressure from ownership or if the plan he put in place on arrival was his vision. Either way, the only thing we can criticize five years later is the reckless pick-trading. Many of the struggles since then could have been solved by simply making the picks. The scouts were ready.

The Athletic LOADED: 11.16.2020 1196007 Montreal Canadiens

College hockey: The other Caufield scores for Wisconsin

Pat Hickey • Publishing date:Nov 15, 2020

The other Caufield scored a goal as the Wisconsin Badgers had a successful start to their college hockey season when they travelled to Notre Dame and swept the Fighting Irish 2-0 and 5-3.

Cole Caufield, the Canadiens’ first-round draft choice in 2019, had an assist in each game while his older brother Brock had a goal to open the scoring in Saturday’s 5-3 win at South Bend.

In other news, Sean Farrell had two goals and an assist, but it was not enough as the Chicago Steel dropped a 10-8 decision to the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the opening game of the USHL season opener Saturday.

Farrell, who was the Canadiens’ fourth-round pick this year, has committed to and was playing in the USHL to get some ice time before the college season began. Those plans have changed because the Ivy League announced that it was cancelling all winter sports and Farrell will remain with the Steel.

The Ivy League decision creates a serious problem for the ECAC hockey league because six of its 12 member schools are Ivies.

Montreal Gazette LOADED: 11.16.2020 1196008 Ottawa Senators “We’re going to be playing a lot of Montreal, Toronto and Winnipeg plus the other Canadian teams and that’s fine. It’s just from a hockey point of view, it’s a tough, tough, tough division. We don’t get to play the weaker teams. They’re all good. It’s good for Canada and maybe this is the year Senators owner Eugene Melnyk excited about season, says league has a Canadian team gets there and wins.” all options on table The Senators have made a lot of changes and he wants to see his team take the ice.

Bruce Garrioch “Gary and everybody are so focused on getting (a deal) done (to start the season),” Melnyk added. “You need everybody to step up and there’s Publishing date:Nov 16, 2020 stakeholders out there who aren’t being as co-operative as they need to be. I don’t know exactly who they are and he’s dealing with them.”

Eugene Melnyk is excited about this edition of the Ottawa Senators and With a commitment from Melnyk to help this team improve, general remains hopeful they’ll take the ice for 2020-21 campaign. manager , chief scout Trent Mann, head coach D.J. Smith and other members of the hockey operations department have spent the Speaking on The Bob McCown Podcast on Sunday with the legendary off-season putting the pieces in place to help the Senators compete. host and respected broadcaster John Shannon, the Senators’ owner indicated NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill “This coming year we’ll be competitive. We’re still trying to grow. We’ve Daly are doing everything in their power to get this season under way. got a lot of young players and there’s no sense rushing them,” Melnyk said. “You guys can tell me examples of teams that have rushed players Melnyk also indicated he’s confident the Senators are going to be and the next thing you know they never fully develop. improved this season, and they want to compete for a playoff spot, but he believes competing in an all-Canadian division will be difficult. “We’re in that mode of still developing yet the mandate is we want to be a competitive playoff team. D.J. Smith knows what he has to try to get “I’m very optimistic about hockey and the fact we’ll go back and play. It’s done and Pierre certainly knows. Everybody’s on the same page to try to very real,” Melnyk told the podcast that was posted Sunday night. be competitive. Our fans would really enjoy to see us in the playoffs this “There’s no question if you listen to the comments of Gary Bettman year. We always say once you get the playoffs anything can happen and publicly we’re full steam ahead to get it done. I think our big years are coming in the next three years.”

“However, there’s a lot of stuff that has to get done financially because Ottawa Sun LOADED: 11.16.2020 everybody’s taking a big hit. On one hand, there’s no guarantee that this is going to happen. The NHL’s working very hard to try to make it happen.”

Melnyk said there were a lot of options discussed amongst the board of governors Thursday. He added the issue for some teams playing out of their home rinks is the high rental costs because they don’t own the rink. Naturally, that’s not a concern for Melnyk, because he owns the .

“You’ve got 31 different interests. Many are aligned and many aren’t aligned. You throw the government and medicines in on top of that, you almost need an algorithm to figure out what actually will work here,” said Melnyk. “If (some teams) open the door up there’s a big cheque that has to be written to whoever owns the stadium.

“It’s almost to them and others who sit there and say: ‘Hey, I’m better off not playing. I’m better off financially not playing.’ Guys like me, we own the stadium and the team, and we don’t have the obstacles some others do. There’s so many moving parts. It’s very complex … Everybody wants the same thing, everybody wants to play. They wish they could turn the clock back to January and get on with it.”

Melnyk confirmed a Postmedia report the league has sent out a questionnaire asking about local conditions and they want that information by next week.

“We were asked to make submissions on every local issue we have,” Melnyk said. “I think by Friday of next week we’re going to have some answers on that.”

The border remains an issue, but Melnyk half-jokingly said he’s not a fan of an all-Canadian division.

“No,” he said with laugh. “It’s only for a hockey reason. This is not our year. We’ll be competitive but this is the year the Canadian teams are all better. Every one of them — including mine. I’m still at the beginning of my rise up. Everybody else was good and they’re getting better.

“We’ve got to work on a strategy, and we have, on how we’re going to deal with it, because we’ve got a bunch of young guys and they’re still growing and they’re good but they’re getting better. We want to be competitive and we want to be a playoff team.”

Melnyk understands you can’t move seven Canadian teams to the United States.

“The fact is I may not like it but that’s concession we have to do,” Melnyk said. “Nobody wins here. There’s no winner out of this pandemic. It’s one of the things we’d have to give up. You’re going to have to give up attendance, to at least the early games … From a hockey point of view, it’s exciting. 1196009 Winnipeg Jets signing of defenceman Dylan DeMelo (93.2%) and the signing of centre Nate Thompson (64.7%).

However, only 15% of the people believe the Jets will be a Stanley Cup YOU BE THE BOSS: Jets fans say don’t trade Laine, do trade Roslovic contender in 2020-21. On the bright side, 71.9% said they believe the and make things happen this season, or else Jets have done enough to make the playoffs next season.

It’s looking more and more likely that the Jets will play in an all-Canadian division, meaning many games against the likes of the Toronto Maple Ted Wyman Leafs, Montreal Canadiens and Edmonton Oilers.

Publishing date:Nov 12, 2020 Asked how they think the Jets will fare in such as division, 36.1% said they’d finish in third place, 27.1% said fourth place, and 15.4% said

second place. Clearly, the majority believe the Jets will be a playoff team Fans don’t want the Winnipeg Jets to trade Patrik Laine, they do want in such a division, with only 15.4% predicting them to out of the post- them to trade Jack Roslovic and they believe management deserves season. another season to get things right before all bets are off. Just how a 2020-21 season will look remains up in the air. The league Those are the basic findings of the Sun’s annual You Be The Boss has said Jan. 1 is the target date to start, but the COVID-19 pandemic is survey, conducted over the last week at Winnipegsun.com. getting worse across the continent and that could make things difficult.

Almost 80% of those who took part in the survey said the Jets should not The Jets would have a tough time even starting training camp in trade star winger Patrik Laine, who has scored 138 goals in his first four Winnipeg under current health restrictions, let alone holding games at NHL seasons. Bell MTS Place.

Laine is rumoured to be on the trading block because he’s heading into We asked fans if they would attend games in the New Year at the the last year of his bridge deal and may be difficult to get under contract downtown arena, if the NHL and health authorities give the OK. long-term, even if the Jets are willing to throw the bank at him. Slightly more than 38% said yes, 25% said no and the 36.5% said they’d The 22-year-old Finn is a special talent when it comes to goal-scoring only attend if there is a COVID-19 vaccine available. and Jets fans clearly don’t want to see him shipped out of town, as While there’s hope on that front, no one knows for sure when it will be beloved Finnish sniper Teemu Selanne was back in 1996. available to all , so it seems highly unlikely that there will be Almost 75% of respondents said they’d like to see the Jets sign Laine to fans in the stands any time in the near future. a long-term contract, although many suggested they wouldn’t want to Regardless, it seems NHL hockey is not that far from returning and fans overspend just to keep him. seem hopeful about the Jets chances. Meanwhile, almost 60% of participants said the Jets should trade 2015 At least there’s that to hang onto in these difficult times. first-round draft pick Roslovic, who is currently a restricted free agent. Roslovic has put up 26 goals and 67 points in 180 games while playing Winnipeg Sun LOADED 11.16.2020 mostly bottom-six forward minutes during his first three seasons.

The Jets have been reportedly shopping Roslovic and defenceman Sami Niku in recent weeks, in an attempt to land a top-four defenceman who can improve their left side.

Slightly more than 50% of respondents said they’d like to see the Jets trade Niku, who recently signed an economical two-year contract but may have a tough time cracking the Winnipeg lineup.

As far as management and coaching is concerned, fans seem somewhat less enthralled with the work of general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff and head coach Paul Maurice than in the past.

The majority of people (71.5% for Cheveldayoff and 60% for Maurice) said the two should be given a season to prove they can make the Jets better before a decision is made. The implication there is fans believe the Jets need to be going forward this season after two years of regression, or changes should be in order.

The Jets made it to the Western Conference final in 2018, lost in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs in 2019 and then lost in the qualifying round of the NHL’s summer tournament this year.

Among assistant coaches, respondents showed the most satisfaction with goaltending coach Wade Flaherty, with 33.1% saying he deserves a raise and another 53% saying they’d like to see how the 2020-21 season plays out.

That’s what happens when your goalie (Connor Hellebuyck) wins the Vezina Trophy.

By comparison, long-time assistant Charlie Huddy, who handles the much-maligned defence, garnered much less confidence, with 28.8% saying he should be fired now and another 58.1% saying they’d like to see what happens this season and then make a decision.

Fans generally like the moves Cheveldayoff made this off-season — particularly picking centre Cole Perfetti 10th overall in the NHL Draft — although they’d still like to see the Jets acquire a defenceman who can play big minutes on the left side.

Respondents gave approval to the acquisition of centre Paul Stastny (92.3%), the signing of defenceman Derek Forbort (85.1%), the re- 1196010 Vancouver Canucks Podkolzin was able to parlay his strong national team play to the KHL, scoring a goal and assisting on another in a decisive 8-1 win at Vityaz on Thursday.

Canucks prospects tracker: Hoglander at the ready, 'Truss' the process The Canucks’ 2019 first-rounder’s assist came on SKA’s fourth goal. The goal came after a pretty passing play, which Podkolzin started by using his strong skating stride to create space in the offensive zone.

Mike Raptis His goal was indicative of his hard-nosed mentality, with the 6-foot-1, 192-pound winger using his frame to protect the puck behind the net Publishing date:Nov 16, 2020 before swooping in front for the wraparound score.

Looky looky what a little deployment and confidence can do. It’s the latest edition of the weekly tracker, where we tally up the efforts of Podkolzin, 19, also had his defensive game on display, at one point the Vancouver Canucks’ highest-profile prospects: stealing the puck in the neutral zone, making a move past a defender Nils Hoglander before flipping a nice saucer pass to a linemate.

Ready, willing and able. He was also denied another point when he found Marchenko alone in front of the net, but the prospect couldn’t bury it. The past week was something of a pronouncement from the blue-chip prospect, whose standout play in Sweden is sending strong signals Podkolzin finished the game with a plus-2 rating in 12:55 of ice time. across the Atlantic. After the game, Podkolzin told KHL.ru he was pleased with his Hoglander was electric for Rogle BK in Thursday’s 4-1 win against deployment. Brynas. The dynamic 2019 second-rounder scored a goal, had a “It is always nice to play (on) the first line. We found mutual wonderful assist and nabbed first-star honours in a game in which he understanding, protected puck possession and created chances to looked primed to ply his trade at Canucks camp in a month or so. score,” he said. “It was a good match for us. However, we didn’t play very His assist screamed big-league talent. With Rogle up 1-0 early in the well during the first period. Nevertheless, we subsequently improved and second period, the left-shot winger entered the zone with speed, deked showed the which we need to display throughout the entire to the inside past a defender, cut across the zone with some nimble campaign.” footwork before reversing a slick pass into the slot for a wide-open one- Podkolzin was again given first-line duties in Saturday’s 2-0 win at timer and a goal. Severstal, but did not register a point. Hoglander was more workmanlike on his goal, with the 19-year-old going He had his dangerous moments with the puck, at one point in the first hard to the net and kicking a rebound to his stick before scoring. period bursting into the zone and getting a heavy shot off. And there was more. Hoglander was sprung on a breakaway soon after, He was also engaged physically, notching three hits and two blocked but the 5-foot-9, 192-pounder was foiled by an alert Brynas goalie on a shots. Podkolzin finished the game with an even rating in 13:15. pretty backhand-to-forehand move. He has two goals, four assists and a plus-1 rating in 21 KHL games this Hoglander had three shots on net, one hit and a plus-2 rating in 14:39 of season. ice time in the win. Podkolzin is expected to sign with the Canucks and join the team when He had a more pedestrian outing in Saturday’s 6-5 overtime loss at the KHL season ends in April, 2021. Orebro, only registering one shot on net and taking a bit of a pounding with the puck on his stick. Defenders appeared to key in on him in Nikita Tryamkin dangerous areas of the ice. A big goal for the big guy this past week. Höglander continues to get knocked to the ice in the slot. After an uneventful 2-1 win on Thursday, Tryamkin hit his stride for He finished the game a minus-1 in 12:58 of ice time playing on the third Avtomobilist in a 3-2 overtime win on Saturday at Dinamo Riga, leading a line. 2-on-1 short-handed before burying a hard wrist shot past the goalie’s glove side in the first period. It won’t be long before Hoglander — who is on loan — is recalled by the Canucks. NHL teams have already started the process, with the Anaheim It was one of a season-high seven shots on net for the 6-foot-8, 254- Ducks recalling prospect Isac Lundestrom (23rd overall, 2018) and the pound defenceman. He finished the game with a plus-2 rating in 25:24 of recalling Jesper Boqvist (36th overall, 2017) from ice time. Timra of the second-tier Allsvenskan league on Saturday. Tryamkin, 26, continues to pile up the minutes on the Avtomobilist blue- Should the NHL season on January 1, Canucks training camp would line. The 2014 third-rounder is now eighth in the KHL in average ice time open mid-December. (22:57). He’s also 21st in hits (37) and leads the league in blocked shots (56). Whether Hoglander makes the team is another story. Canucks GM Jim Benning believes he could stick with the group, and with top-six forward The acting Avtomobilist captain has two goals, seven assists and a plus- Tyler Toffoli not re-signing with the club, there appears to be an opening 3 rating in 24 games this season and is increasingly looking like he could for a player with Hoglander’s skill set. help the Canucks should he sign with them when the KHL season expires. It’ll be up to the feisty Swede to prove to Canucks brass he’s ready to withstand the rigours of NHL hockey. Dmitri Zlodeyev

Hoglander has two goals, seven assists and a plus-5 rating in 13 SHL Two more assists this past week for Zlodeyev, who employed his games this season. versatile two-way game in the junior-level MHL.

Vasili Podkolzin Playing second-line centre for Dynamo , the 2020 sixth-rounder helped get his team on the board in a 4-1 win on Thursday against Loko, The band is back together — well, sort of. winning an early faceoff straight to a teammate, who promptly buried it. Fresh off of captaining a young Russian squad to Karjala Cup gold, His other assist came on a cycle play, with the goal coming off a rebound Podkolzin was placed on SKA’s first line this past week and was reunited in front of the net. with ‘Kid Line’ winger Kirill Marchenko. The only member missing was centre Ivan Morozov, who was replaced by Coach Willie disciple Linden Zlodeyev, a 5-foot-11, 183-pound centre, has 12 points in 15 MHL games Vey — apparently serving as the Ringo Starr of the group. to go along with 4 goals in 8 VHL contests. The 18-year-old has opened some eyes over the last couple months, with some scouts calling him a steal of a late-round pick. Zlodeyev was a surprise selection for ’s Karjala Cup team, getting the nod over several higher-drafted prospects. He’s also likely to suit up for the national team at the upcoming world junior tournament in Edmonton.

Zlodeyev has some high-end offensive ability and plays a dogged defensive game, though he’ll need to continue to get physically stronger to play that way at a higher level.

Jacob Truscott

‘Truss’ the process.

Truscott, the Canucks’ 2020 fifth-rounder, finally laced up the skates for his first NCAA game with the 12th-ranked University of Michigan on Saturday. The 6-foot-1, 179-pound left-shot D-man went a team-high plus-3 in an 8-1 win over 15th-ranked Arizona State.

In Sunday’s 3-0 win against Arizona State, Truscott went even in the plus-minus department and didn’t register any points.

The 18-year-old Michigan native went on the “I only touch greatness” podcast this past week with Ryan Haze and Big Mike and delved deeper into his draft day thoughts, telling the hosts how he was rooting for the Canucks to pick him — even though the team didn’t interview him before the draft.

“They’ve been my favourite team the last couple of years,” Truscott said. “It was definitely a special moment.”

The guy they call ‘Truss’ spent the last two seasons with the U.S. National Team Development Program, collecting 21 points in 47 games with the USA U18’s last season.

He is a strong skating two-way defender who likes to jump into the rush. He is also said to be a quality passer and is positionally sound.

With the Canucks recently drafting mobile D-men Joni Jurmo (3rd round) and Viktor Persson (7th round) — adding to the stable of promising defensive prospects (Olli Juolevi, Jack Rathbone, Jett Woo and Brogan Rafferty) — the competition will be crowded for the future of the Vancouver blue-line.

Vancouver Province: LOADED: 11.16.2020 1196011 Websites The Canadian Hockey League announced March 12 it was cancelling the remaining games in the 2020 regular season due to COVID-19. A few weeks later the , scheduled for Kelowna, B.C., was cancelled. With COVID-19 cases surging, Flames GM Treliving sees major challenges in scouting NHL prospects While anxious to get back playing, some junior players like Colton Dach believe the long layoff will actually improve their draft potential.

"We've had six or seven months of training and to make ourselves better CBC November 16, 2020 to get drafted," said Dach a 17-year-old winger with the Saskatoon Blades who is projected to be chosen anywhere from the fourth to sixth

round. With COVID-19 cases surging, Flames GM Treliving sees major "For me personally, I've already noticed myself being faster and challenges in scouting NHL prospectsWith COVID-19 cases surging, stronger." Flames GM Treliving sees major challenges in scouting NHL prospects The extra time has also helped Zack Ostapchuk — a 17-year-old forward In a normal season some members of the ' scouting with the Vancouver Giants — rehab from a serious knee injury that department attend well over 200 Western Hockey League games. shortened his season last year. This year, with COVID-19 playing havoc with how the junior leagues "I'm eight months into my recovery, so it helps for sure," said Ostapchuk. operate, Calgary general manager Brad Treliving has no idea how many games Flames' scouts will watch in person. That will impact the decisions Treliving agreed a long summer of training and recuperation will benefit made by the Flames, and other teams, come the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. many of the draft-eligible players.

"There's going to be less games played," said Treliving. "If there's less "They've had that time to physically develop," he said. "It's offset by ... games, there's going to be less viewings. It's going to make it more you're not playing as many games to be seen. But in the long run, it could difficult." be a very good thing for some of these kids that they've had this extra training time." The three major junior leagues in Canada are currently "all over the map" when it comes to schedules and who might be allowed into buildings to YAHOO.COM LOADED: 11.16.2020 watch games.

"It's made it more challenging, but you've got to find a way to get the job done as best you possibly can," Treliving said.

"If COVID has taught us anything, it's that you have to be flexible and you have to be prepared to pivot, weekly, daily, hourly as things change."

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League began play Oct. 2, but saw some teams forced off the ice due to positive COVID tests. The league still plans on playing a 60-game schedule.

The WHL has set a Jan. 8 start date. The schedule hasn't been decided but up to 52 games is possible.

The Hockey League is looking at starting a 40-game season beginning Feb. 4.

WHL commissioner Ron Robison said the league plans "to do everything we can to accommodate" NHL scouts.

"The reality will be there's less games," he said.

Rewind the tape

Scouts hope to attend as many games as possible, but teams will have to rely heavily on video.

Treliving said video "is of great use and you get great mileage out of it," especially for players teams already have their eye on.

"It's more advantageous to Watch video when you know the player a little bit," he said. "When you turn on a game, and you're trying to identify who the players are, it's your first viewing, it's more challenging."

Using video probably won't affect projected first-round picks like winger Dylan Guenther of the Edmonton Oil Kings or defenceman Brandt Clarke of the Barrie Colts. But scouts not being able to watch games live could result in some other players falling further back in the draft.

"It usually comes down to viewings," said Treliving. "Those guys, later round picks, you get a real good sense of them based upon the number of times you see them."

Playing less games also reduces a player's chances of impressing scouts.

"There may be guys that aren't going to play as much," he said. "If you aren't going to be playing, you're not going to be seen."

Video has "come a long way," said Treliving, but scouts "are still a little bit of a slave to the quality.

"You could be the greatest talent evaluator as a scout, but if the quality is not very good, it's difficult to really dig into."

Silver lining