Here at NHL Rumors, we shift to the Eastern Conference this weekend. Here are some of the moves that we liked and some we are less enamored on. Again, these are fast impressions and never ever shoot that messenger guy. Today figures to be a little bit different.
Anyway, let’s continue with the Atlantic Division
NHL Like And No Like – Atlantic Division
Let’s start off with some fireworks, shall we?
Boston Bruins
So, the Boston Bruins had quite the summer. They sacked their coach Bruce Cassidy. Don Sweeney and Cam Neely brought in Jim Montgomery and apparently, the Bruins and their players seemed to be more receptive. How that will translate into results will be interesting.
While any other moves are nice, Boston believes they brought in a coach that can keep the players motivated and heading in the right direction. Boston, with their injuries, could be a team to watch during the second half. They should be healthy then.
What they do at the deadline and can they extend David Pastrnak are their two pressing concerns but the Montgomery move may prove to be quite a smart one.
Buffalo Sabres
Again, Buffalo did not do all that much this summer. Maybe, that is not too bad of a thing. Victor Olofsson getting a two year deal likely was the prudent move to make. Goal scorers are hard to find and Olofsson scored 20 goals again despite playing just over 15 minutes a night.
The Sabres had been trying to make deals but make a sneaky move to sign Eric Comrie to help their goaltending. If he can increase his workload and maintain his numbers, this could boost Buffalo a bit in the standings.
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a bit of a strange team. They have over $8 million in cap space with a full 23-man roster. Steve Yzerman is slowly building his team in his image.
However, what will be interesting is the contract signed by veteran David Perron. The former St. Louis Blues player was expected to stay there. However, Detroit made Perron an offer that was too enticing. The former Blues’ forward had 57 points in 67 games. The winger figures to complement Dylan Larkin And Tyler Bertuzzi.
If he can, this becomes a great contract for Detroit. The Red Wings added some depth defensemen to try and solidify their penalty kill and defense. The real move was for Perron. They need a veteran leader with some offensive punch.
Florida Panthers
Florida made one of the biggest splashes of the summer as they acquired Matthew Tkachuk after he signed an eight-year deal ($9.5 million AAV) in Calgary. The Panthers, in that trade, shipped off Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar.
Despite all their moves, Florida is going to be measured on the Tkachuk move. Though maybe it is a move that had to be made, how much did it truly cost the Panthers? That remains an unknown. However, if Aaron Ekblad gets hurt again, the defense is in trouble.
It does seem that the goaltending with Spencer Knight and Sergei Bobrovsky were alright in the playoffs. Florida needs their special teams not to go through a 1 for 30 stretch. The hope is that Tkachuk and his physical, net-front presence keeps those droughts minimalized. For now, the move is likable but could blow up.
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens, Kent Hughes, and Martin St. Louis know they are in for a very long rebuild. With the Carey Price news, the Canadiens are just attempting to field a competitive team.
It is a gamble but acquiring Sean Monahan for a conditional first round pick could be a nice acquisition. If Monahan is truly healthy, he can contribute on the power play which ranked 31st in the league. The league-worst defense may not improve much but Montreal should score a few more goals this season.
Ottawa Senators
Simply, the Ottawa Senators’ offseason rested on the move that was not made. There was a deal to move Matt Murray(eventually wound up in Toronto).
An original deal had Ottawa retaining more than 25%. That Pierre Dorion deal which got nixed led to the Senators acquiring Alex DeBrincat. Yes, DeBrincat is a gamble but for two 2022 picks and a later 2024 draft pick, that is a risk worth taking. Forty goal scorers do not become available often.
Ottawa may have work to do defensively but offensively, they are an up and coming team especially with Claude Girouxto complement DeBrincat.
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning did not have much to do in the offseason. They did let Ondrej Palat and Ryan McDonagh move on. Palat signed with New Jersey and McDonagh was traded to Nashville.
Extending Mikhail Sergachev and Erik Cernak were priorities. However, the underrated move may just be the Anthony Cirelli extension. If the center keeps improving defensively as well as offensively, this turns out to be a move that pays off for the entire contract. It is still hard to believe that Cirelli is just 25.
Toronto Maple Leafs
The reality is that Toronto probably did not have much to fix honestly. They were inches from beating the Tampa Bay Lightning in a seven-game series. That is not easy to do. Even the Colorado Avalanche had a rather difficult time in disposing of the former two-time Stanley Cup Champions.
However, a few heads were scratched when Jack Campbell was allowed to walk so Matt Murray could be brought in. Murray combines with Ilya Samsonov who was brought in on a short deal. Neither move seems to solve much of anything as the song remains the same in Toronto.
The Metropolitan Division is the finale…
