News Clips September 19, 2019

Columbus Blue Jackets PAGE 02 The Athletic: Blue Jackets counting on The Maestro, , to orchestrate a breakout season PAGE 06 The Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets prospect Liam Foudy injured, will miss 4-6 weeks PAGE 08 NHL.com: Blue Jackets season preview: Replacing free agent departures key

Cleveland Monsters/Prospects

NHL/Websites PAGE 12 The Columbus Dispatch: Michael Arace | NHL keeps labor peace; fans finally win out PAGE 13 The Athletic: Pronman: Ranking NHL teams by their 23 and under core, 2019-20 edition

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The Athletic: Blue Jackets counting on The Maestro, Oliver Bjorkstrand, to orchestrate a breakout season By Aaron Portzline – September 18, 2019

COLUMBUS, Ohio — While the rest of the amateur scouting world was sticking in Breclav, Czech Republic, to watch Canada and Russia play in the quarterfinals of the 2012 IIHF World U-18s, veteran scouts Bob Strumm and Don Boyd rented a car and headed east.

For Strumm and Boyd, it was a chance to get caught up. They’d both been fired one year earlier when the Blue Jackets overhauled the hockey operations department, and they’d caught on with two junior clubs doing what they do — Strumm scouting for the of the and Boyd scouting for the of the .

“We drove about an hour away to (Znojmo) for a relegation game, Denmark vs. Latvia,” Strumm said. “I didn’t tell Boydy this, but I had an ulterior motive. There was this kid playing for Denmark … ”

There were 202 people in the building on April 19, 2012, according to the official IIHF box score. “Forty of ’em were players,” Strumm jokes, “and four of ’em were scouts.”

But there was one player in particular. A string bean forward named Oliver Bjorkstrand was all over the ice that day, assisting on three goals in the third period and that aided Demark’s come-from- behind win.

“The hardest part of that trip was keeping my mouth shut on the way back to our hotel in Vienna,” Strumm said. “Boydy saw him, too. But I didn’t want him to know how much I liked this kid.”

Maybe it’s because Strumm was staying during the tournament in Vienna — home of the great classical composers — but he settled on a nickname for Bjorkstrand during that game. He began his postgame scouting report that night with the following: The maestro showed up tonight.

Oliver Bjorkstrand with scout Bob Strumm. (Aaron Portzline / The Athletic)

“Bjorky was so dangerous with the puck that when he had it on his stick everybody else fell in line,” Strumm said. “I’ve only seen a few players do that at any level. He was in charge of what was going on all over the ice. Everybody was looking at him, on both sides.”

Two months after that relegation game, Portland made Bjorkstrand the eighth player taken in the WHL import draft. One year later, in general manager Jarmo Kekalainen’s first draft with the Blue Jackets (2013), he drafted Bjorkstrand in the third round, with the No. 89 overall pick.

It’s not so easy being a maestro in the NHL, of course. But six years later, after a few stumbles and setbacks, the Blue Jackets believe Bjorkstrand is ready to be not just a lineup regular, but also a difference-maker.

Where it all began

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Todd Bjorkstrand grew up playing hockey in Minneapolis, then played at the University of Maine. Example No. 2,897 that hockey is a small world: John Tortorella was in his final year with the Black Bears (1980-81) when Bjorkstrand arrived as a freshman.

After playing four seasons in the U.S. minor league, Todd Bjorkstrand signed to play in Denmark, where he ultimately put down roots. He was married (Janne), raised a family and transitioned in coaching after a 14-year playing career.

Patrick Bjorkstrand, who plays in Finland, was born in 1992. Oliver came along three years later, forming a hockey-mad family of four in Herning, Denmark, a town of 50,000 people.

Todd Bjorkstrand coached Herning’s club in Denmark’s top league throughout Patrick and Oliver’s childhood, so getting ice time was easy … and yet there was never enough of it.

Hockey-obsessed kids have been known to trash garage doors and clothes dryers with their incessant shooting of pucks, but Todd Bjorkstrand was no dummy.

In the small backyard of their home on Kløvermarken Street, Bjorkstrand sank two poles into the ground about 8 feet apart and strung a rubbery tarp between them. On the tarp was the outline of a , with four targets: a goalie’s chest, five-hole and the high corner on each side.

“They would spend hours out there,” Todd Bjorkstrand said of his two sons. “I had this rule that they had to shoot 200 pucks a day, but that was really never an issue. They wouldn’t have been out there if they didn’t want to be.”

Oliver said they could fit 40 or 50 pucks into a bucket, and he always wanted to shoot at least 200 pucks a day.

“But most days, I’d lose count,” he said.

When Oliver and Patrick needed to hurry to get their 200 pucks in. Todd would head out back with them, drop to his knees and slide pucks across the mat to speed up the process.

These are the type of stories that make Kekalainen smile.

“I hear people say it all the time, that you’re born with a shot like that,” Kekalainen said. “And I always call bullshit.

“You only get a shot like that from working on it over and over and over again, from repetition and practice.”

Bjorkstrand’s wrist shot is considered one of the most lethal in the NHL due to his many different release points, his accuracy and the quickness with which it’s unleashed.

Early in camp, Bjorkstrand “welcomed” goaltender Elvis Merzlikins to a training camp scrimmage with his signature shot.

“It’s like he flicks the puck, but it’s an absolute laser,” Blue Jackets right winger Cam Atkinson said. “With his accuracy, it’s pretty dangerous. He has that one shot where he gets it off and it’s by the goalie’s ear before he knows it. Not one goalie can save that shot.”

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Goaltender Joonas Korpisalo has played with Bjorkstrand for several seasons now, going back to their time with AHL Cleveland on the winner in 2016.

He’s fought off more Bjorkstrand shots in practice than he cares to remember.

“He’s one of those rare guys whose release is something that goalies can’t read,” Korpisalo said. “It’s really hard because he can shoot in any position he wants to.

“A lot of guys load it a little bit, so you know it’s coming. But Bjorky will be stickhandling and … I don’t know how he does it.”

Bjorkstrand would have likely found his way to the NHL even if Strumm hadn’t helped pave his path to the Canadian junior ranks. His shot and his offensive instincts would have garnered attention eventually.

But the Blue Jackets are hoping Bjorkstrand is ready to put it all together this season, that the maestro is tapping the music stand and ready to conduct a breakout campaign.

A bigger role

The plan, as of now, is to play Bjorkstrand on the second line with left winger Gustav Nyquist and center Alexander Wennberg — “the Scandinavian line,” he called it — along with a significant role on the power play.

But forward lines in today’s NHL are as fickle as the weather. Suffice it to say, wherever he slots, Bjorkstrand is one of the players who will be expected to help fill the offensive void created by the free- agent losses of Artemi Panarin (), Matt Duchene (Nashville) and others.

“It’s a big year,” Blue Jackets coach John Tortorella said. “He knows what he meant to us in that second half, or the last quarter of the year and into the playoffs. He saw what was happening as far as his ice time, and how we were counting on him. He wants more of that.”

Bjorkstrand finished with 23-13-36 in 77 games, but those numbers demand closer inspection.

On Dec. 22, Bjorkstrand had 3-5-8 and was minus-5 in 30 games. He was in and out of the lineup as a healthy scratch, he was benched in games for long stretches, and he had several games when his ice time was less than 10 minutes. He couldn’t stick in the top six, didn’t fit in the bottom six, and was the odd man out for Anthony Duclair and, at times, Markus Hannikainen.

That’s all hard to imagine when you look at what Bjorkstrand did the rest of the season.

From Dec. 23 until the end of the season (46 games), Bjorkstrand was one of the most offensively dangerous players in the NHL. His 20 goals were tops on the Blue Jackets and tied for 19th in the NHL with some marquee players — Tampa Bay’s Brayden , Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau, Florida’s Aleksander Barkov, etc.

“It’s not his gifts, and it’s not his goal-scoring,” Tortorella said, explaining what impressed him about Bjorkstrand’s second-half play. “It’s just how hard he worked around the puck, how hard he worked at his positioning, his wall play … everything about his determination within the game, I thought, had a tremendous improvement in the second half.

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“He has to find his determination right away (this season), without somebody prodding him … meaning me. I think it’s part of maturity, part of the process for a young player. We all know what he is as far as the skill and how he can shoot the puck, the different angles it comes off his stick. We all know that.

“I think he found a little bit of a recipe, and he’s going to take care of (the slow starts) by himself.”

Remarkably, Bjorkstrand averaged only 12:45 in ice time during those final 46 games of the season. His 12:20 ice time average across the season is the least ice time by any NHL player who scored 20 goals last season.

Tortorella has to find more ice time for Bjorkstrand, but Bjorkstrand has to give Tortorella a reason to keep sending him over the boards.

Bjorkstrand spent most of his summer training in Minnesota, and he’s spent considerable time and energy thinking about how he can avoid a slow start in 2019-20. It’s entirely mental, he said.

“I’ve come to camp in good shape the last three years, but I need that extra little thing to start a game the right way, start the season the right way,” Bjorkstrand said.

Bjorkstrand said he watched a lot of video clips from last season, sequences during the stretch of games in which he was playing his best hockey. It was his energy all over the ice — being engaged and disruptive defensively, carrying the puck into high-traffic areas, etc. — that led to his awakening.

When the playoffs arrived last spring, Bjorkstrand was one of Tortorella’s most trusted players. His goals in Game 3 and Game 4 of the first-round sweep of Tampa Bay were both game- winners.

“I do trust him, there’s no question,” Tortorella said. “When a player goes through the evolution of struggling, being out of the lineup, and then finds himself …

“We had conversations last year when things were going well, and we talked about why I thought it was going well. I think he’s found himself.

“He’s a great kid. We want everything right now with young players. It takes some time. Each player is different in understanding what they need to do. But he’s certainly on the right road.”

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The Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets prospect Liam Foudy injured, will miss 4-6 weeks

By Brian Hedger – September 19, 2019

Liam Foudy’s training camp is over before it started.

Foudy, a 19-year old forward whom the Blue Jackets selected 18th overall in 2018, has returned to London, Ontario, to rehab an upper-body injury suffered earlier this month at the NHL prospects tournament in Traverse City, Michigan. He will be out four to six weeks and will return to Columbus for medical clearance before returning to the London Knights for his fourth season in the Ontario Hockey League.

“Injuries are always disappointing, and (especially) with the timing of it,” Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said. “When it happens to a young kid like this in the middle of a training camp and you’re going to miss all the exhibition games, it’s unfortunate. But that’s life, and that’s why most of the kids go back two years in junior” after the draft.

Foudy is one of the Jackets’ top prospects, along with forwards Alexandre Texier and Emil Bemstrom. His biggest asset is speed, which he flashed a year ago at Traverse City and in his first NHL training camp. His speed didn’t stand out as much in this year’s prospect tournament, and Foudy didn’t get a chance to show it in camp.

Although Foudy’s return to the OHL is disappointing, Kekalainen doesn’t view it as a setback. Foudy is still too young to play a full season in the , so it was either the NHL or London anyway.

“We sent Alex Pietrangelo down twice (with the St. Louis Blues), and he’s OK,” Kekalainen said, referring to the champion Blues’ captain. “The only way that (Foudy) could stay here is to play in the NHL, and that’s not going to happen now.”

Foudy had a breakout season for London in 2018-19, finishing with 36 goals and 32 assists. He also had six goals and six assists in 11 playoff games and added two more goals in the American Hockey League’s Calder Cup Playoffs while on a tryout contract with the .

Foudy’s next stage of progress, according to Kekalainen, is to continue to add strength to his 6-foot, 174- pound frame.

“Junior players, when they’re light and not at their full strength against men, they’re usually easier to separate from the puck,” Kekalainen said. “He’s good with the puck and an offensive threat, and he has to hold onto the puck and make plays against NHL defensemen who are strong. ... He’s got to be stronger to stay up there.”

Double duty The Blue Jackets released their roster for the second game of the preseason Thursday in Pittsburgh. Six players who skated in a 4-1 victory over the on Tuesday will play again.

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Forwards Kevin Stenlund, Brandon Dubinsky, Sonny Milano, Zac Dalpe and Bemstrom and defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov will play in a second straight game, with Bemstrom, Gavrikov and Milano the most notable names on that list.

Bemstrom, who missed the prospect tournament, had a goal and an assist Tuesday. Milano also scored, and Gavrikov is getting a close look because of his extensive international experience and the Jackets’ depth along the blue line.

Gavrikov played in two games in the Jackets’ playoff series against Boston, making a good impression, but he does not have to clear waivers to be assigned to Cleveland. That’s significant because others on the blue-line bubble — including Scott Harrington, Dean Kukan and Adam Clendening — would need to clear waivers, which would expose them to the rest of the league.

One-timers The OHL begins play Thursday, so the Blue Jackets returned center Tyler Angle to the Windsor Spitfires and defenseman Eric Hjorth to the Sarnia Sting. Neither of the 2019 draft picks got into the first exhibition game, but each had impressive moments in the prospect tournament. ... Free agent Egor Sokolov stuck around after notching an assist on Dalpe’s empty-netter against Buffalo. After co-leading the prospect team with four goals in Traverse City, the 19-year old power forward has continued to draw attention in camp. He is still draft-eligible, but the Blue Jackets could sign him to an entry-level contract if they want. If so, they probably would send him back to Cape Breton for his third season in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.

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NHL.com: Blue Jackets season preview: Replacing free agent departures key

By Craig Merz – September 19, 2019

Coach: John Tortorella (fifth season)

Last season: 47-31-4; fifth place Metropolitan Division, lost to Boston Bruins in Eastern Conference Second Round

5 KEYS

1. Replacing Bobrovsky

Joonas Korpisalo will get his first opportunity to be the No. 1 goalie after two-time Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky signed with the on July 1.

More than one-third of Korpisalo's NHL games (31 of 90) came as a rookie in 2015-16 when Bobrovsky missed time because of injuries. Korpisalo was 16-11-4 with a 2.60 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage that season; he's 41-31-9 with a 2.89 GAA, and .907 save percentage in his NHL career.

Elvis Merzlikins will challenge Korpisalo but must adjust to the smaller NHL rink after playing in Europe his entire career. He spent the past four seasons with HC Lugano in the National League, Switzerland's top professional league, where he was named the top goalie in 2016 and 2018.

2. Where will offense come from?

In addition to replacing Bobrovsky, Columbus must fill the void left by the free agent departures of left wing Artemi Panarin, who set a Blue Jackets record with 87 points (28 goals, 59 assists) last season, and center Matt Duchene.

Gustav Nyquist, signed as a free agent, should help. The forward had an NHL career-high 60 points (22 goals, 38 assists) with the and last season and has averaged 48.8 points in his past six seasons.

3. Improvement from Wennberg

Alexander Wennberg has 60 points (10 goals, 50 assists) in 141 games (0.43 points per game) over the past two seasons after scoring 59 points (13 goals, 46 assists) in 80 games (0.74 points per game) in 2016-17.

The center was a healthy scratch in six of 10 Stanley Cup Playoff games last season and must improve offensively. Columbus could try to boost Wennberg's confidence by playing him with Nyquist, a fellow Swede.

4. Presence of veteran leaders Although their offseason losses could be significant, the leadership group of forwards Cam Atkinson, Brandon Dubinsky, Nick Foligno, Boone Jenner and defenseman Seth Jones remains intact.

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Columbus is one seven NHL teams to make the playoffs in each of the past three seasons and its 142 regular-season wins since the start of the 2016-17 season are fourth behind the (158), (152) and Bruins (143).

The Blue Jackets are one of three teams who have won at least 45 games each of the past three seasons, joining the Capitals (five) and the San Jose Sharks (four).

5. Depth at defenseman

Columbus will rely on its defensemen with Jones and Zach Werenski. A healthy Ryan Murray, dependable David Savard and underrated Markus Nutivaara are formidable, and Dean Kukan, Scott Harrington and Vladislav Gavrikov round out what the Blue Jackets feel is a group that can go eight players deep.

ROSTER RUNDOWN

Making the cut Forwards Alexandre Texier, who made his NHL debut last season, and Emil Bemstrom could make the roster out of training camp.

Sonny Milano, who scored 14 goals as rookie in 2017-18 but spent most of last season in the American Hockey League, will get a look after playing eight games with the Blue Jackets last season.

Forward Marko Dano, who was selected by Columbus in the first round (No. 27) of the 2013 NHL Draft and played outside the organization for four seasons, re-signed with the Blue Jackets on Aug. 8. He and rookies Eric Robinson, Kole Sherwood and Trey Fix-Wolansky will compete for a spot.

Kukan, Harrington and Gavrikov are the three players in contention for the sixth spot at defenseman.

Most intriguing addition Merzlikins finally will get his chance after spending six seasons in Switzerland. He was 22-18-0 with a 2.44 GAA, .921 save percentage and five shutouts in 43 games with HC Lugano last season.

Biggest potential surprise

Bemstrom, who turned 20 on June 1, led the in goals (23) as a teenager last season. He tied Tomas Sandstrom (1982-83), Peter Forsberg (1992-93) and Patric Hornqvist (2006-07) for the third-highest goal total by a teenager in league history, behind Kent Nilsson (28 in 1975-76) and Elias Pettersson (24 in 2017-18).

The Blue Jackets are hoping Bemstrom can make the opening-night roster and replicate that success in the NHL.

Ready to break through Texier made a splash after completing his season in Finland and then scoring his first NHL goal in his second game last season. He played in eight playoff games and scored twice in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference First Round when the Blue Jackets swept the Lightning and could start the season on the top line.

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Fantasy sleeper Merzlikins (average draft position: 176.4) is worth taking in one of the final rounds of a standard draft with a chance to emerge as the starter over Korpisalo by season's end. -- Pete Jensen

PROJECTED LINEUP Alexandre Texier -- Pierre-Luc Dubois -- Cam Atkinson

Gustav Nyquist -- Alexander Wennberg -- Oliver Bjorkstrand

Nick Foligno -- Boone Jenner -- Josh Anderson

Brandon Dubinsky -- Riley Nash -- Markus Hannikainen

Zach Werenski -- Seth Jones

Ryan Murray -- David Savard

Dean Kukan -- Markus Nutivaara

Joonas Korpisalo

Elvis Merzlikins

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The Columbus Dispatch: Michael Arace | NHL keeps labor peace; fans finally win out

By Michael Arace – September 19, 2019

There are three teams on the scoreboard of sports labor negotiations: the billionaire owners, the millionaire players and the poor-slob fans.

The owners always make out. The players are in an era in which they get their fair share, or something close to it. The fans foot the bill and get suckered.

Maybe this next round of NHL collective bargaining will not be so morally bereft. Indications of potential labor peace surfaced before Sept. 1, when commissioner Gary Bettman announced that the owners will not opt out of the current collective bargaining agreement. Another harmonious note sounded even louder Monday when NHL Players’ Association chief Donald Fehr announced that the players won’t opt out, either.

An opt-out on either side would have meant that the CBA would have to be renegotiated after this season, which would have opened the path to another work stoppage next year. As it is, the present CBA will run its course until it expires in September 2022. There is even talk that it will be extended through 2024-25. Peace in our time!

This is extraordinary news. Remember who we’re talking about here. Bettman has orchestrated three lockouts, including the one in 2004-05 that scuttled an entire season. Folks in Columbus might recall how a young, struggling Jackets franchise was kicked in its knees, and how a generation of fans was compromised.

Fehr, the union executive director, was on the other side of the table during the most recent hockey lockout, in 2012-13, when a half-season was lost. Previously, during his tenure as director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, Fehr was part of two strikes — including the 1994-95 strike that wiped out a World Series.

There will come a time when Bettman will be remembered for how he expanded the league and greatly expanded its revenues, and Fehr will be hailed as the greatest labor leader in sports history. But let us not forget whose crotches they stepped on to reach such a lofty status; fans have taken more for the team than anyone in a suit or a uniform.

Bettman worked for two decades to get a salary cap, and at this point, he should be more amenable to players’ needs. Fehr is in a position where the players’ current issues, while legitimate, are not big enough to threaten what is a fairly equitable status quo.

The owners and players split “hockey-related revenues” down the middle. The players have some quibbles about what constitutes hockey-related revenues. They have a fair complaint about the escrow payments they make, ostensibly to balance the league’s books. They want to talk about more inclusion in international events, better health benefits and an increase in the league’s contribution to the players’ pension plan. Among other things.

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Bettman is 67, Fehr 71, and they’ve been throwing steel filing cabinets around for a long time. This CBA could be their last bit of historical paperwork, left on top of a pile. Maybe they’re thinking about legacy ... nah. They’re thinking about the next U.S. media-rights deal, to be negotiated prior to the 2021-22 season; it will dwarf the current 10-year, $2 billion deal with NBC. (Ten years, $15 billion has a certain ring to it.)

“Hockey-related revenues” are on the verge of a major growth spurt. It behooves both management and labor to introduce an era of labor peace when the TV bidding gets underway. NBC, ESPN+ and whoever else throws in, they’re not going to pay a premium for a lockout. That’d be bad television and terrible streaming, and it’d cause a crash in the fantasy market.

Peace in our time — given the involved parties, it’s almost impossible for fans to imagine. But here it is.

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The Athletic: Pronman: Ranking NHL teams by their 23 and under core, 2019-20 edition

By Corey Pronman – September 19, 2019

At the end of each individual team piece in the farm rankings, I posted a top 10 ranking of the team’s players age 23 and under (with Sept. 15, 2019 as the cutoff) that incorporated both prospects and NHL players. The farm rankings were not based on that type of evaluation, this list is.

Every year when defining who a prospect is one or two teams tend to get unfairly penalized by the process. For example, Calgary, No. 31 in this year’s farm rankings, didn’t have two of its top young players qualify by a matter of an NHL game or so.

The biggest difference between this and the farm rankings is we’re dealing with a lot of established NHL players, many of whom are important players for their teams, and that changes the analysis significantly. Being able to make the jump from top prospect to top NHLer is a massive one and a leap a significant number of prospects are unable to make, so that risk is accounted for relative to their more proven counterparts.

1. Previous U23 ranking: No. 1

Farm Ranking: No. 9

Core: Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, , , Jesse Puljujarvi, Dmitri Samorukov, Tyler Benson, Raphael Lavoie, , Caleb Jones

Key additions: Philip Broberg, Raphael Lavoie

Key subtractions/graduations: Darnell Nurse

I would tell Oilers fans the future is bright, but I don’t think they’d believe me, and I wouldn’t blame them. Regardless, they have the clear best young core of players, headed by the best player in the game in McDavid, with Draisaitl being among the very best as well. Beyond that, they have a top 10 farm system, including two top-end defense prospects in Bouchard and Broberg.

2. Buffalo Sabres Previous U23 ranking: No. 2

Farm Ranking: No. 18

Core: Jack Eichel, Rasmus Dahlin, Sam Reinhart, Dylan Cozens, Casey Mittelstadt, , Oskari Laaksonen, Ryan Johnson, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Tage Thompson

Key additions: Dylan Cozens, Henri Jokiharju, Ryan Johnson

Key subtractions/graduations: Rasmus Ristolainen, Alexander Nylander

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The Sabres have made a lot of lottery picks in recent years, including No. 1 overall Dahlin, two No. 2 overalls in Eichel and Reinhart, and getting Cozens and Mittelstadt in the top 10. The hope for Sabres fans is that they can turn that group of highly talented players into a good NHL team. There is enough upside within this group to help the Sabres materialize into a contender. They will need Cozens, Mittelstadt and Jokiharju, among others, to pan out, which isn’t a given but the potential is there.

3. Previous U23 ranking: No. 4

Farm Ranking: No. 21

Core: Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, Kasperi Kapanen, Rasmus Sandin, Travis Dermott, Nicholas Robertson, Jeremy Bracco, Joseph Woll, Timothy Liljegren

Key additions: Nicholas Robertson

Key subtractions/graduations: Carl Grundstrom

The Leafs are one of the best teams in the NHL and a lot of their top players are still rather young in Matthews, Marner and Nylander. Seeing the progress of players like Kapanen, Sandin and Bracco last season only helps stretch out the depth of the team and makes sure they have options as they try to make runs the next few seasons.

4. Vancouver Canucks Previous U23 ranking: No. 8

Farm Ranking: No. 5

Core: Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, Quinn Hughes, Vasili Podkolzin, Thatcher Demko, Olli Juolevi, Tyler Madden, Jake Virtanen, Nils Hoglander, Nikolay Goldobin

Key additions: Vasili Podkolzin, Nils Hoglander

Key subtractions/graduations: Bo Horvat

The Canucks fanbase has some reason for optimism now after the season Pettersson had, while maintaining an elite farm system at the same time. Pettersson, Boeser and Hughes are massive pieces for their future. There’s very reasonable criticism to make of the team for its decisions on the trade and free agency front, and it has by no means been perfect at the draft, but it has good young players to work with.

5. Colorado Avalanche Previous U23 ranking: No. 7

Farm Ranking: No. 2

Core: Mikko Rantanen, , Bowen Byram, Samuel Girard, Alex Newhook, Tyson Jost, Martin Kaut, Vladislav Kamenev, Shane Bowers, Alex Beaucage

Key additions: Bowen Byram, Alex Newhook

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Key subtractions/graduations: Nathan MacKinnon, J.T. Compher

It says a lot about the team Colorado is building that MacKinnon no longer qualifies for this list but the Avs are still right near the top. This is a team with the pieces to become a contender soon. Maybe it’s not this season, as players like Makar and Byram probably can’t be relied on to be impact guys next season, but the Avs are close.

6. Winnipeg Jets Previous U23 ranking: No. 6

Farm Ranking: No. 27

Core: Patrik Laine, Kyle Connor, , Kristian Vesalainen, Jack Roslovic, Dylan Samberg, Ville Heinola, Logan Stanley, Mason Appleton, Sami Niku

Key additions: Ville Heinola

Key subtractions/graduations: Josh Morrissey, Nic Petan

Dom Luszczyszyn recently discussed the Jets roster, pointing out the lack of depth on defense as an issue for them not being projected to make the playoffs. I don’t think their window has closed yet although the Dustin Byfuglien news isn’t helping matters. I’m still a big believer in Laine despite his tough season, and both Connor and Ehlers are excellent young talents. They have some good, albeit not top-end, defense prospects on the way to fill out that depth chart too.

7. Previous U23 ranking: No. 15

Farm Ranking: No. 7

Core: , Travis Konecny, Nolan Patrick, Carter Hart, Joel Farabee, Morgan Frost, Travis Sanheim, Cam York, Oskar Lindblom, Philippe Myers

Key additions: Cam York

Key subtractions/graduations:

The Flyers’ young group will be fascinating to follow. They have many talented players in the league and in the farm, but they don’t have that true young superstar in this group. I think this should still be more than enough to build a consistently strong team for the next five-plus years, but it would be a twist on the conventional rebuilding model if they found a way to turn this group into a true elite team.

8. Previous U23 ranking: No. 13

Farm Ranking: No. 8

Core: Sebastian Aho, Andrei Svechnikov, Martin Necas, Ryan Suzuki, Jake Bean, Patrik Puistola, Warren Foegele, Janne Kuokkanen, Gustav Forsling, Julien Gauthier

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Key additions: Ryan Suzuki, Patrik Puistola, Gustav Forsling

Key subtractions/graduations: Brett Pesce, Adam Fox, Nicolas Roy, Lucas Wallmark

The Hurricanes group is led by a true star player in Aho, a future star in Svechnikov, and the pieces of a top 10 farm system behind them. The Hurricanes are a deep organization at the NHL and prospect level, and they have talent coming to supplement the roster when certain players need to be replaced.

9. Detroit Red Wings Previous U23 ranking: No. 12

Farm Ranking: No. 13

Core: Dylan Larkin, Filip Zadina, Moritz Seider, Filip Hronek, Michael Rasmussen, Dennis Cholowski, Joe Veleno, Jonatan Berggren, Robert Mastrosimone, Jared McIsaac

Key additions: Moritz Seider, Robert Mastrosimone

Key subtractions/graduations: Anthony Mantha, Tyler Bertuzzi

Detroit fans still have some more pain left in this rebuild, but the Wings are moving in the right direction. They found the hardest piece to get: a true No. 1 center in Larkin. Zadina and Seider are major future pieces, and the season Hronek had was very promising. They likely need a little more in terms of true star talent, but they could come out of this rebuild in a few years with a good team.

10. Boston Bruins Previous U23 ranking: No. 10

Farm Ranking: No. 29

Core: David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy, Jake DeBrusk, Brandon Carlo, Jack Studnicka, Urho Vaakanainen, John Beecher, Kyle Keyser, Anders Bjork, Trent Frederic

Key additions: John Beecher

Key subtractions/graduations: Danton Heinen,

The Bruins’ farm system was ranked near the bottom of the league, but a reason they’ve been able to be so good for so long is their ability to find significant talent later in the draft. Pastrnak is a star, McAvoy isn’t too far behind, and both DeBrusk and Carlo are important parts of a great team. Those players along with some solid depth pieces on the way should help stretch out their contending window.

11. Previous U23 ranking: No. 24

Farm Ranking: No. 12

Core: Thomas Chabot, Brady Tkachuk, Drake Batherson, Colin White, Erik Brannstrom, Alex Formenton, Logan Brown, , Rudolfs Balcers, Lassi Thomson

Key additions: Erik Brannstrom, Lassi Thomson

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Key subtractions/graduations: Christian Wolanin

Ottawa fans have been through a lot of pain in recent years, for a variety of reasons. There is some reason for optimism with this group of young players, even if the fourth overall pick at the 2019 Draft would have made a big difference. Chabot and Tkachuk look like impact NHLers, and they have a strong, albeit not elite, farm behind them. There is still some more rebuilding left, and by most reasonable projections they should be able to add a top young talent this summer. Ideally they add a first-line center of the future to this group.

12. Previous U23 ranking: No. 18

Farm Ranking: No. 3

Core: Jack Hughes, , Ty Smith, Jesper Bratt, Pavel Zacha, Jesper Boqvist, , Joey Anderson, Michael McLeod, Daniil Misyul

Key additions: Jack Hughes, Daniil Misyul

Key subtractions/graduations: Will Butcher, Miles Wood, Steve Santini

The Devils have had two first-overall picks in the past few years, giving them their centers of the future in Hischier and Hughes. The rebuild process has been steady, but the Bratt pick, along with high-end talent on the way in Hughes and Smith, and a strong offseason should give Devils fans some reason for optimism. I don’t know if there’s enough depth there to be a contender, but I like the way this organization is trending.

13. Previous U23 ranking: No. 21

Farm Ranking: No. 10

Core: Alex DeBrincat, Kirby Dach, , Adam Boqvist, Alexander Nylander, Ian Mitchell, , Evan Barratt, Alex Vlasic, Nicolas Beaudin

Key additions: Kirby Dach, Dylan Strome, Alexander Nylander, Brendan Perlini, Alex Vlasic

Key subtractions/graduations: , Dylan Sikura, Henri Jokiharju, Gustav Forsling

Chicago has an above-average group of young players, led by 40-goal scorer Alex DeBrincat and third- overall picks Dach and Strome. This isn’t a traditional rebuild, as the Blackhawks attempted to stretch out the contending windows with Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews. I don’t know if they have quite enough to get back to where they were earlier in this decade, but they could certainly build a solid team from this group.

14. Tampa Bay Lightning Previous U23 ranking: No. 20

Farm Ranking: No. 23

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Core: Brayden Point, Mikhail Sergachev, Anthony Cirelli, Erik Cernak, Alex Barre-Boulet, Cal Foote, Mathieu Joseph, Taylor Raddysh, Sammy Walker, Nolan Foote

Key additions: Nolan Foote

Tampa benefited greatly from third-round pick Brayden Point emerging into a legit star forward in the league. Its young group isn’t all that amazing after Point, but given where the team has been picking the past few years, it has several quality young NHL players in the lineup and players who project to be the same. The Lightning have the necessary ingredients to stay a good team for the next little while.

15. Previous U23 ranking: No. 27

Farm Ranking: No. 24

Core: Miro Heiskanen, Roope Hintz, Thomas Harley, Jason Robertson, Ty Dellandrea, Denis Gurianov, Jake Oettinger, Julius Honka, Ben Gleason, Oskar Back

Key additions: Thomas Harley

Key subtractions/graduations: Valeri Nichushkin

Heiskanen emerged last season as one of the premier young defensemen in the NHL and looks like a true building block for the Stars’ future. Hintz also had a promising rookie season. Behind them is a decent, albeit not incredibly deep, farm. While this ranking doesn’t come down purely to how good Heiskanen is, he’s a massive part of it.

16. Previous U23 ranking: No. 11

Farm Ranking: No. 17

Core: Clayton Keller, , Nick Schmaltz, Jakob Chychrun, Christian Dvorak, Victor Soderstrom, Kevin Bahl, Kyle Capobianco, Conor Garland, Lawson Crouse

Key additions: Nick Schmaltz, Victor Soderstrom

Key subtractions/graduations: Dylan Strome, Brendan Perlini, Pierre-Olivier Joseph

Arizona has a decent young group, led by highly talented forwards Keller, Hayton and Schmaltz. As Luszczyszyn pointed out in his season preview, there’s good players here but a lack of star power. I could see Keller or Hayton become a star, but they’re not there yet.

17. New York Rangers Previous U23 ranking: No. 22

Farm Ranking: No. 1

Core: Kaapo Kakko, Vitaly Kravtsov, Filip Chytil, Adam Fox, Anthony DeAngelo, Brett Howden, Igor Shesterkin, K’Andre Miller, Lias Andersson, Brendan Lemieux

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Key additions: Kaapo Kakko, Adam Fox

Key subtractions/graduations: Neal Pionk, Pavel Buchnevich

The Rangers’ rebuild has been unique. They’ve been bad for a few years and, after getting a second-, seventh- and ninth-overall pick the past three seasons, signaled their intention to win more games by acquiring Jacob Trouba and Artemi Panarin. The Rangers were my No. 1 ranked farm system and certainly have a lot of talent on the way, but they don’t have much in terms of proven high-end young players on the roster, even if I like the potential for players such as Chytil, DeAngelo and Howden.

18. Montreal Canadiens Previous U23 ranking: No. 17

Farm Ranking: No. 6

Core: Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki, Ryan Poehling, Josh Brook, Cayden Primeau, Victor Mete, Alexander Romanov, Noah Juulsen, Jesse Ylonen

Key additions: Cole Caufield

Key subtractions/graduations: Jonathan Drouin,

The Habs have a very strong farm system, but outside of Kotkaniemi, who has the potential to be an impact NHLer, there isn’t a lot at the NHL level in terms of significant young talent. This is a team that could have a strong young group of NHL players in a few years, but there’s still some growing to do for this organization.

19. Columbus Blue Jackets Previous U23 ranking: No. 3

Farm Ranking: No. 25

Core: Zach Werenski, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Emil Bemstrom, Alexandre Texier, Kirill Marchenko, Daniil Tarasov. Liam Foudy, Sonny Milano, Dmitry Voronkov, Trey Fix-Wolansky

Key additions: Dmitry Voronkov

Key subtractions/graduations: Seth Jones, Alexander Wennberg, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Vitaly Abramov

Columbus is in a tough spot as an organization. They have a fine roster, with some really good players, but it’s not a contending roster. They have good prospects ready to contribute, but overall lack a true top farm system in terms of depth and quality. Their young NHLers in Werenski and Dubois are great players and help maintain some optimism for the future.

20. Florida Panthers Previous U23 ranking: No. 5

Farm Ranking: No. 15

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Core: Aaron Ekblad, Grigory Denisenko, Henrik Borgstrom, Owen Tippett, Spencer Knight, Aleksi Heponiemi, Denis Malgin, Serron Noel, Logan Hutsko, Brady Keeper

Key additions: Spencer Knight, Brady Keeper

Key subtractions/graduations: Aleksander Barkov, Jared McCann

Florid a few years ago was considered a highly talented but young team. Its young core pieces of Ekblad, Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Nick Bjugstad (who was traded) and Mike Matheson were going to be keys to getting out of mediocrity. Today those players have grown up into prime-aged players and the team’s results have still not been great. Florida has some good players on the way, added over the summer, and could be a playoff contender for the foreseeable future, but it still needs a bit more talent to be a Cup contender.

21. Previous U23 ranking: No. 29

Farm Ranking: No. 14

Core: Trevor Zegras, Ondrej Kase, Troy Terry, Sam Steel, Nick Ritchie, Maxime Comtois, Daniel Sprong, Isac Lundestrom, Max Jones, Brendan Guhle

Key additions: Trevor Zegras, Daniel Sprong, Brendan Guhle

Key subtractions/graduations:

The Ducks got the ninth-overall pick in 2019 when they missed the playoffs after six straight appearances. The Ducks have done a good job finding quality talent outside the top of the draft, such as Kase, Terry and Comtois. Their organization has young talent coming at forward particularly, but a lot of it is relatively unproven talent at the NHL level. The team has shown progress building its young talent base and this could continue to go in the right direction, but there’s a lot more work left to do before the Ducks are a top team again.

22. New York Islanders Previous U23 ranking: No. 14

Farm Ranking: No. 16

Core: Mathew Barzal, Noah Dobson, Anthony Beauvillier, Oliver Wahlstrom, Otto Koivula, Josh Ho-Sang, Kieffer Bellows, Bode Wilde, Michael Dal Colle, Ruslan Iskhakov

Key additions:

Key subtractions/graduations: Ryan Pulock, Ilya Sorokin

There was a lot of movement going on in this Islanders ranking even if the group looks mostly the same. Prospects like Wahlstrom and Bellows took a step back, while Koivula took a big step forward. In the NHL, Barzal, who I still think is an elite young player, saw his production dip a bit. The Islanders also get uniquely penalized in these rankings for having a prospect age out in KHL goalie Ilya Sorokin.

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23. Previous U23 ranking: No. 9

Farm Ranking: No. 31

Core: Matthew Tkachuk, Noah Hanifin, Sam Bennett, Juuso Valimaki, Rasmus Andersson, Dillon Dube, Mathias Emilio Pettersen, Oliver Kylington, Andrew Mangiapane, Jakob Pelletier

Key additions: Jakob Pelletier

Key subtractions/graduations: Sean Monahan, Elias Lindholm

Calgary has a great roster and look like a team that should be a contender for the near future. Its roster isn’t that old with players like Tkachuk and Hanifin. But with that said, while it has a few good young players on the way in Valimaki and Dube, there isn’t a whole lot left in the farm to reach to for playoff runs.

24. Previous U23 ranking: No. 23

Farm Ranking: No. 4

Core: Alex Turcotte, Arthur Kaliyev, Rasmus Kupari, Adrian Kempe, Tobias Bjornfot, Kale Clague, Samuel Fagemo, Akil Thomas, Jaret Anderson-Dolan, Mikey Anderson

Key additions: Alex Turcotte, Arthur Kaliyev, Tobias Bjornfot, Samuel Fagemo

Key subtractions/graduations: Michael Amadio, Dominik Kubalik

The Kings have an elite farm system, but their rebuild still has a long way to go, as the bulk of their top young talent is still very young and outside the NHL. Part of the reason their ranking didn’t budge much was the uncertainty surrounding Gabriel Vilardi, who I was very high at on this time last year.

25. San Jose Sharks Previous U23 ranking: No. 25

Farm Ranking: No. 20

Core: Timo Meier, Kevin Labanc, Ryan Merkley, Ivan Chekhovich, Alexander Chmelevski, Dylan Gambrell, Mario Ferraro, Joachim Blichfeld, Alexander True, Dillon Hamaliuk

Key additions: Dillon Hamaliuk

Key subtractions/graduations:

The Sharks have been able to win for a long time by replenishing their team even without high picks, although Meier, who is a great player, is an exception. Kevin Labanc becoming what he is now is an example of that. After those players is a solid farm system with several guys who could push for a job, although none project as truly top players in the league.

26. St. Louis Blues

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Previous U23 ranking: No. 16

Farm Ranking: No. 19

Core: Robert Thomas, Jordan Kyrou, Vince Dunn, , , Robby Fabbri, Ivan Barbashev, Sammy Blais, Scott Perunovich, Alexei Toropchenko

Key additions:

Although the group is nearly identical to last year’s, the Blues tumble a bit. That’s partly due to not adding much of significance. I probably got ahead of myself with the ratings of Thomas and Bokk this time last season, even if I still like both players a lot, particularly Thomas. Fabbri’s development also hasn’t been the best. This group could develop into something decent, but Blues fans probably likely are enjoying their Cup hangover and not reading this article, so I’m not worried about much backlash.

27. Previous U23 ranking: No. 31

Farm Ranking: No. 22

Core: Matthew Boldy, Kevin Fiala, Ryan Donato, Kirill Kaprizov, Luke Kunin, Jordan Greenway, Joel Eriksson Ek, Alexander Khovanov, Sam Hentges, Mason Shaw

Key additions: Matthew Boldy, Ryan Donato, Kevin Fiala

Key subtractions/graduations: Gustav Olofsson

After being the 31st ranked team in this group last season, the Wild added several significant young pieces in Boldy, Donato and Fiala. That doesn’t vault them up a massive amount, but it changes the direction of the team and adds some much needed young talent. The Wild still need more, but the team is likely too good to get lottery level talent but not good enough to compete.

28. Previous U23 ranking: No. 19

Farm Ranking: No. 11

Core: Cody Glass, Alex Tuch, Nicolas Hague, Peyton Krebs, Lucas Elvenes, Nicolas Roy, Jack Dugan, Pavel Dorofeyev, Dylan Coghlan, Ivan Morozov

Key additions: Peyton Krebs, Nicolas Roy, Pavel Dorofeyev

Key subtractions/graduations: Shea Theodore, Erik Brannstrom

Given Vegas has only been through a couple of drafts and only has one significant young player on the roster in Tuch, the low ranking shouldn’t be a huge surprise. I like their farm system a lot but building up a top group of young players takes time, especially when they traded two first-round picks in Brannstrom and Nick Suzuki.

29. Washington Capitals

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Previous U23 ranking: No. 28

Farm Ranking: No. 30

Core: Jakub Vrana, Ilya Samsonov, Alexander Alexeyev, Brett Leason, Connor McMichael, Jonas Siegenthaler, Martin Fehervary, Lucas Johansen, Riley Sutter, Aliaksei Protas

Key additions: Connor McMichael

Key subtractions/graduations: Andre Burakovsky, Madison Bowey

The Capitals’ young group is led by the highly skilled Vrana, who developed into a solid NHL player. They have some talent on the way. I don’t know if any of their prospects are guys I’d bet on becoming above- average regulars (although McMichael has looked promising this camp), but there’s a lot of guys that I think will become NHLers.

30. Previous U23 ranking: No. 30

Farm Ranking: No. 28

Core: Jared McCann, , Calen Addison, Nathan Legare, Samuel Poulin, Filip Hallander, Jordy Bellerive, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Justin Almeida, Emil Larmi

Key additions: Jared McCann, Marcus Pettersson, Nathan Legare, Samuel Poulin, Pierre-Olivier Joseph

Key subtractions/graduations: Jake Guentzel, Daniel Sprong, Tristan Jarry

The Penguins have tried recently to acquire some more significant young talent by trade and draft picks. But their farm system was so thin that it’s still going to take a lot more effort to build up that pipeline, even if I do like what they’ve done with the limited draft picks they’ve had.

31. Previous U23 ranking: No. 26

Farm Ranking: No. 26

Core: , Eeli Tolvanen, Yegor Afanasyev, , Jachym Kondelik, Rem Pitlick, Jeremy Davies, Semyon Chistyakov, Tomas Vomacka, Connor Ingram

Key additions: Philip Tomasino, Yegor Afanaseyev, Jeremy Davies

Key subtractions/graduations: Kevin Fiala, Juuse Saros,

The youngest returning player from last season for the Predators is Saros, who turned 24 in April. Fabbro and Tolvanen should push for NHL games this season, though, and they are very good prospects. It’s hard to place anywhere but the bottom on this type of list when you have zero NHL regulars in the age range and a farm system that isn’t above-average.

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