From all reports as of late Monday night, the Vancouver Canucks were leaning in the direction of Evan Gold as their new general manager. Now new insider information on Tuesday afternoon is that there's "momentum" behind the Canucks leaning towards their current assistant GM Ryan Johnson—for a "head of hockey operations" role. We will see where this goes over the next day or so, but hearing momentum is moving in Ryan Johnson’s direction for Vancouver’s head of hockey operations. Nothing is done...
Dan Vladar still sees the exact moment that ended the Philadelphia Flyers season. The starting netminder that has risen from being just some no-name backup to being one of the better goalies in the NHL, still watches that puck float past his head and across the goal line to hand the Carolina Hurricanes the series.
It was an extremely tough watch and still is to this day. Despite the Flyers beating out the preseason odds, making the playoffs, and beating the archrival Pittsburgh Penguins i...
After Tuesday’s practice, Toronto Marlies head coach John Gruden discussed goaltender Artur Akhtyamov’s strong playoff campaign, his comfort in rotating goalies, William Villeneuve’s productive postseason, and Ben Danford’s readiness to jump into the AHL playoffs. Sometimes, it can be tricky to rotate goalies in the playoffs. So far, it’s working out well. Why do you […]
The post John Gruden on Artur Akhtyamov’s rising profile in the Leafs organization: “I’ve said this since day one — he rem...
Welcome to a new Morning Skate, folks! We’ll try to have some new threads up for you a few times a week as the playoffs play out, just as a place to discuss those games and anything else that may be on your mind. Playoffs roll on As we watch other teams have fun from […]
It’s been a back-and-forth battle between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Anaheim Ducks in the second round of the 2026 NHL playoffs. The Ducks have taken the hockey world by surprise this playoffs, eliminating the Edmonton Oilers in a six-game series. Now, they are going toe-to-toe with the Pacific Division champions, and the series…
Mitch Marner has played in the Vegas Golden Knights system for only a short while after his trade from the Toronto Maple Leafs. After being traded for depth forward Nic Roy, he signed an eight-year, $12 million average annual value deal with the Golden Knights. Coming off a 102-point season in 2024-25, there were questions of whether or not he could replicate his production in Vegas under Bruce Cassidy's system. Now the former Maple Leafs forward, and Selke-Trophy candidate,...
Brad Treliving almost traded Matthew Knies from the Toronto Maple Leafs shortly after signing him to a six-year contract extension. Now, Treliving is out of a job, and all signs are pointing to Knies staying long term in Toronto. There were multiple reports in March leading up to the trade deadline that Treliving was involved in trade discussions with the Montreal Canadiens, Chicago Blackhawks, and Utah Mammoth on Knies, but the talks fizzled out last minute. Meanwhile, John Chayka has now tak...
Colton Parayko didn't want to join the Buffalo Sabres, what about the Ottawa Senators. Reports have surfaced that both teams have been in contact to discuss the parameters of a Parayko trade, but as we know, his no-trade protection could be a big hurdle. Parayko, 32, is signed through the 2030 season at $6.5 million AAV, and holds a no-trade clause that doesn't go down to just 15 teams for two more summers. Bruce Garrioch: The Citizen reported that the Senators kicked tires on Colton Parayko; ...
The shake up in the Toronto Maple Leafs front office continues. After John Chayka and Mats Sundin were brought in to man the ship, there's been several Leafs executives who have fled, and on Monday, the team announced that they've parted ways with Shane Doan. Shane Doan and the Leafs have parted ways. His deal was expiring June 30. Sounds like a mutual decision. Doan was brought in by former Leafs GM Brad Treliving. Doan recently interviewed in Vancouver. We’ll see where Doan ends up but he’s ...
Keep an eye on the San Jose Sharks and Toronto Maple Leafs. The two teams have been linked to a few offseason trade proposals, and one mega-deal could see the Sharks offering their number two overall pick at next month's draft in a package for Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews. Matthews and the Maple Leafs are not on the same page at the moment, and he's slated to sit down with new general manager John Chayka next week to go over the team's new direction. Matthews has hinted that if ...
After Monday’s practice, Toronto Marlies head coach John Gruden discussed Ben Danford joining the Marlies’ playoff run, Danford’s acclimation process to pro playoff hockey, Easton Cowan’s second-round performance, and the challenge against the Cleveland Monsters in the third round. Ben Danford has joined the team. What is the plan for him? Gruden: We know what […]
The post John Gruden on the challenge for Ben Danford acclimating to pro playoff hockey with the Marlies: “Good players like that...
As stated back on April 20 , HBIC will be using the summer to visit various cities and towns in Manitoba to document all the interesting, weird, and fun statues found in these communities while seeking out some local hockey stories as well. With me needing to head south down Highway 75 towards the Canada-US border, I thought I'd make a little detour and begin this fun project with a quick stop in Dominion City, Manitoba where we'll discover our first roadside attraction!
Dominion City site...
Here are your links for today: Devils Links A couple names to keep an eye on for front office positions: Hockey Links The Hurricanes are having a dominant playoff run: Playoff scoring leaders as of Saturday: Hart Trophy finalists: “Auston Matthews remains uncertain about his future with the Toronto Maple Leafs despite the team’s recent […]
“We showed a lot of resiliency, and it was just a full team effort all the way down. We’re ecstatic.” – Vinni Lettieiri “All the credit goes to the players and Artie for making some big saves when he needed to. We didn’t stray away from the process, and that’s a great road win against […]
The post Toronto Marlies upset Laval, advance to division final with come-from-behind Game 5 victory appeared first on Maple Leafs Hotstove .
Toronto Marlies head coach John Gruden discusses his team’s series-clinching 3-2 victory over the Laval Rocket in Game 5. On his team coming from behind twice in the game: I could sense, with the way the game felt and the way it was going, there were some moments when we were taking it over. Even […]
The post John Gruden on the Marlies advancing to the third round after a third-period comeback in Laval: “I knew we were going to get the next one and the one after that” appeared first on Maple...
With the NHL Draft Lottery coming and going with some boons to the Toronto Maple Leafs and San Jose Sharks, attention among Devils fans turned to what the team should do with their first-round pick. Thankfully, the Devils did not drop in position as a result of the Lottery since both the Leafs and Sharks […]
The Toronto Maple Leafs have won the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery, securing the right to draft first overall in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft. In one moment, all the vibes around a franchise in turmoil changed on Tuesday night as the Maple Leafs struck gold with just an 8.5% probability. For a franchise that was […]
The post How the first-overall pick changes the Toronto Maple Leafs’ big picture appeared first on Maple Leafs Hotstove .
The Leafs could make some news and do Gavin McKenna a favour by taking the spotlight off of him.
Expect to see some goaltenders changing teams this summer. The NHL's trade market is expected to be as active as ever, as the salary cap has gone up almost $9 million, and several teams have some big decisions to make when it comes to their crease. There's also several free-agent netminders, who won't be welcomed back to their current clubs, so expect to see some teams let their goaltender walk for nothing. Here's three goaltenders who are changing teams this summer: Stuart Skinner The Pittsbu...
The Toronto Maple Leafs have the first overall pick at next month's draft, and defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is going to do whatever he can to make an impression on teammate Ivar Stenberg at the World Championships coming up in Switzerland. Stenberg is battling it out with Gavin McKenna for the top prospect spot heading into the draft, and many insiders around the league have split down the middle on who they'd draft. Many feel Stenberg is more mature on and off the ice and more of a complet...
The Edmonton Oilers’ goaltending question is still running rampant, and the limited free agent class does not help their situation. Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin identified over a dozen goaltenders who could become available this off-season. He broke the netminders down into four tiers based on their appeal for teams like the Oilers who are seeking…
After the Maple Leafs’ 2025-26 season concluded, Auston Matthews made the following statement about the highly disappointing campaign: This was a tough year and a frustrating year. We didn’t meet the goals or expectations we set out at the start. Ultimately, that is on me. That is on us as players. We’re the ones who […]
The post With Chayka hired and the first-overall pick secured, all the attention turns to Matthews and Berube’s futures appeared first on Maple Leafs Hotstove .
John Chayka hasn't been on the top for a week yet and already there's been plenty of speculation on what's going on behind the curtains of the Toronto Maple Leafs' front office. From a cringe-worthy press conference thanks to Keith Pelley and Steve Simmons, to winning the NHL Draft Lottery and adding Gavin McKenna to your group, the Leafs narrative has changed 50 different times this week, and that doesn't even include Auston Matthews potentially demanding a trade. As far as their defence goes...
The Toronto Maple Leafs need to figure out if Auston Matthews does want to return. There's been a lot of conflicting reports coming out of Toronto lately, and thanks to TSN's Chris Johnston, Leafs Nation is spinning wondering if Johnston's report is actually accurate, when he stated that Matthews was pondering his future in Toronto. Besides Johnston's report, there's been no other indication that Matthews doesn't want to be the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs. John Chayka was brought on the...
The Toronto Maple Leafs shocked the hockey world Tuesday night by winning the 2026 NHL Draft Lottery despite entering with the fifth-best odds, and the conversation that followed immediately turned to one question: would they trade the first overall pick?
Elliotte Friedman offered an answer by way of a history lesson on the latest episode of 32 Thoughts .
The most instructive example, he said, came from the 2013 draft, when the Calgary Flames made what amounted to a franchise-altering offe...