Unleash the Kraken! A Seattle/32-team NHL Story...

[BKarchitect]

Important Note: All Seattle Kraken logos and artwork are by the user Sparky Chewbarky at Sportslogos.net (CCSL). He's created a ton of truly fantastic and unique hockey concept art and although it appears Photobucket's new rules have render some of his older posts "visually impaired" on that forum...all you have to do is google "Spark Chewbarky hockey concepts" and viola...magic!

Important Note II: I intend to make this database downloadable. It's actually going to be my "up-to-date" database with all real world transactions - with the slight variation that Seattle is added as a playable 32nd NHL team. If you've used my Vegas database, you'll know I have a slightly different approach to my rosters than say the TBL team. Not nearly as comprehensive and with extra emphasis on pumped-up young star prospects and on the NCAA and NCAA feeder leagues/prospects. With Seattle added I feel a bit more comfortable continuing to make content available for download as it provides something a bit different. But before I make the database available, I'm awaiting permission from Sparky to use distribute files that use his logos.

With that said...

UNLEASH THE KRAKEN! A Seattle NHL Career Story...

June 26, 2016 - At the 2016 NHL Awards Ceremony, Gary Bettman made it official. The NHL would be expanding from 30 to 32 teams for the 2017-18 season. Joining the NHL would be two Western clubs, Las Vegas and Seattle. Adding a pair of teams made sense as it would keep the number of clubs in the league even and also allow there to be 16 teams in both the Eastern and Western conferences. Seattle's 14th ranked media market, ideal location with natural West Coast and Northwest rivalries, fanatic sports fans (see the Seahawks and Sounders) and ideal demographics made the Emerald City a no-brainer for an NHL team. It would also help heal the long-festering wound of losing the Supersonics in the NBA. The only question was whether the city could get its arena act in gear. After numerous proposals, many involving new arenas on new sites - the city settled on a plan to completely gut and renovate aging KeyArena. Two major factors were timing (being ready in time for the 2017-18 season) and location - while aging, KeyArena has an excellent location in downtown Seattle. With the arena plan coming together, Seattle was welcomed back into the top-level hockey fraternity for this first time since the Metropolitans competed for (and won - the first American team to do so) the Stanley Cup as a member of the PCHA a full 100 years ago.

July 14, 2016 - Concept and renderings released for the KeyArena redevelopment by city officials. By the time construction is complete, KeyArena will have been revamped into a state-of-the-art ice palace for 18,500 spectators with loads of suites, the "Key Club", the "Space Needle Bar" and other featured arena amenities. Much like CenturyLink Field, New KeyArena's unique roofline will help amplify the raucous crowd-noise that Seattle is now famous for.





November 22, 2016 - After receiving a ton of fan input, Seattle's new franchise has a name. Finalists included resurrecting the old "Metropolitans" moniker, bringing back another long-lost name, the "Totems" and a host of other suggestions. But the team was officially unveiled as the Seattle Krakens at a much anticipated fan event. The design was done by the talented graphic designer Sparky Chewbarky and features both elements relating to the mythical sea creature and the old Metropolitans identity. A very unique color palette takes hints from the old Metropolitans identity (dark green, rustic red and cream) and adds a bit of Rave Green (from the Sounders and Seahawks).

Logo by Sparky Chewbarky at CCSL

Uniform Concepts by Sparky Chewbarky at CCSL

[BKarchitect]

Seattle Expansion in Doubt

March 1, 2017 - With the two expansion teams due to begin formal franchise operations today, it has been learned that the Seattle ownership group has defaulted on their final expansion payments, putting their entire bid to enter the NHL later this season in doubt. Vegas completed all their payments and paperwork on time and the Golden Knights are free to sign players. Seattle's operations are indefinitely suspended until payment is resolved.

[BKarchitect]

Seattle To Miss Expansion and Entry Drafts

June 16, 2017 - The Seattle Kraken remain in limbo and it has been learned that they will miss this week's upcoming NHL Expansion and Entry Drafts. With that, there is now real jeopardy of Seattle not only not playing this season but the entire franchise being folded before even playing a game. This after selling out of season tickets for the entire upcoming season. Local investors are working feverishly to put together final payments and to prove long-term solvency.

[BKarchitect]

Seattle Green-Lighted for 2017-18 Season!

August 1, 2017 - Finally some good news as the Seattle ownership group has finished all expansion fee payments. With the arena nearing completion, tickets sold out and merchandise flying off the racks, the only question is - can a franchise really get off the ground with no players signed and just two months until the start of the season? Having already missed both the Expansion and Entry drafts and with most free agents already signed with the other 31 clubs - the Kraken will have to work fast and furious and scrape the bottom of the barrel to put together a real team in time for training camp and the season start in October!

[BKarchitect]

Kraken Roster Takes Shape

As training camp approaches, Seattle GM Peter Forsberg has been tremendously busy signing players left on a depleted free agent market to put together the inaugural Seattle Kraken team. Here's a look at how the club is shaping up:

[BKarchitect]

Blue Jackets Trade for Duchene

Columbus and Colorado pulled off a big off-season trade as the Blue Jackets acquired speedy star center Matt Duchene from Colorado for defenseman Ryan Murray, wing prospect Vitali Abramov and a 2018 1st round draft pick.

The Blue Jackets have won plaudits for going all-in this season with the acquisition. Duchene and Wennberg will now anchor the top two lines in Columbus with prospect Gabriel Carlsson likely filling the third pairing LHD void left by Murray. For the Avs, Murray should slot into a top 4 role on defense - helping to solidify a real weak spot. Abramov is a super-slick, though small, winger who will likely spend the season in the AHL with San Antonio while a 1st round pick in the deep 2018 draft, even if a late one, will be a useful asset to continue the Colorado re-build.

[BKarchitect]

Finland U-20's Win 2017 Czech Four Nations Tournament

Finland edge Sweden as well as Russia and the Czech Republic to take the 2017 Czech Four Nations U-20 Tournament. 2018 draft-eligible center Rasmus Kupari (Karpat) scored 3 goals in 3 games to lead the way for the Finns who also got strong showings from Winnipeg 2017 draftee Kristian Vesalainen (HPK - in camp with Winnipeg), Jerry Turkulainen (JYP), Joona Ikonen (Ilves) and 2018-eligible Jesperi Kotkaniemi (Assat).

Swedish star forward Elias Pettersson (Vaxjo Lakers - in camp with Vancouver), the #5 overall pick in 2017 by the Canucks, led the tournament in scoring with 5 points in 3 games. Russia got a fantastic debut from 16 year-old defender Artemi Knyazev (Irbis Kazan) who looks like a future dynamo on the blueline. The Czechs were quite poor but stellar young goalie Jakub Skarek (Sparta) did his 2018 draft stock no harm in the process.

[BKarchitect]

Seattle Kraken 2017-18 Season Preview

Here is how the organizational depth chart shapes up on October 1st as the Kraken prepare for their debut game in San Jose on October 3rd:



Obviously everybody on the roster is new. Lacking the chance to participate in either the Expansion Draft or Entry Draft and not able to sign players until August - the Kraken have put together the best roster they could with such extreme limitations, signing generally unwanted free agents and scouring the waiver wire.

GOALIES
- One area the Kraken were able to improve significantly from their original August signing period was the goalie situation. In August, it appeared that the goalie tandem heading into the season would be Mantas Armalis-Leland Irving but the waiver wire provided a much needed boost. The Kraken were able to pick up an able veteran starter in Jaroslav Halak, who was unhappy in New York and was waived by the Islanders as well as a proven backup in Reto Berra who was waived by Florida. A couple of younger guys in Daniel Altshuller and Mackenzie Skapski provide depth...Altshuller was assigned to the AHL's Bakersfield Condors, whom the Kraken currently share an AHL affiliation with Edmonton while Skapski was sent to the ECHL's Utah Grizzlies - again a shared affiliation agreement, this one with Anaheim. Both Armalis and Irving were waived and released.

DEFENSE
- The Kraken hope they have a real impact player on defense in former KHL star Chris Lee. Lee is already 36 but appears to be peaking late in his career. He's a fantastic passer and skater from the blueline and made the Team Canada roster for the 2017 World Championships earlier in the year. Cody Franson's limitations are well known but the guy has a cannon and can deliver a hit so his mental mistakes will be more forgiven on this team. J.M. Liles will add some veteran composure and puck-moving while Roman Polak will hope to add a more defensive-minded veteran presence. Jyrki Jokipakka and Jakub Kindl will look to resurrect once promising careers. Mark Alt was a waiver pickup from Philadelphia where he simply got crowded out of a deep young blueline. The Kraken hope he has a bit of upside. Will Butcher will start in Bakersfield and was seen as somewhat of a coup for the Kraken as he was highly-sought after winning the Hobey Baker award in the NCAA last year. Cody Goloubef is an NHL/AHL tweener type while Nikolas Brouillard and Aaron Irving are younger guys that are probably long-shots.

LEFT WING
- The Kraken were able to secure a couple of proven top-6 scoring line veterans in their signing window with Thomas Vanek and Jiri Hudler and they will be heavily relied upon to provide offense. Daniel Winnik is still a very effective checking-line player and Lauri Korpikoski provides speed and defensive acumen. Chris Vande Velde will be a swiss-army type extra while Troy Bourke is a former Avalanche prospect.

CENTER
- The Kraken are in bad shape in terms of scoring line centers. Their one hope to provide a bit of offensive punch and playmaking was former KHL star and Ottawa prospect Stephane Da Costa but he partially tore his MCL in a preseason game and will be out for 3 months. To supplement, the Kraken picked up Peter Holland from Montreal on the waiver wire in the hopes that the former 1st round pick can show a bit of offensive upside. John Mitchell can also provide spurts of offense but is in way over his head getting top 6 minutes. Andrew Desjardins is a solid defensive-minded vet while Joseph Cramarossa is pure energy. Organization depth is provided by former Avs prospect Samuel Henley and former Coyotes prospect Henrik Samuelsson.

RIGHT WING
- Like with Lee on defense and Da Costa at center, the Kraken have gone to the KHL to look for a veteran performer to shore up right wing...Danis Zaripov is one of the all-time KHL stars and since he is banned for 2 years from the KHL for a failed drug test, coming over to North America, even at age 36, made a lot of sense. Joining Zaripov in a scoring role will be another oldie in Brian Gionta who will also provide a great deal of leadership in the clubhouse. Alex Chiasson was once a very promising winger but is a bit of a reclamation project at this point. Ryan White is a what-you-see-is-what-you-get lower line grinder who nonetheless should be a regular on this team. Scott Kosmachuk is a former Winnipeg prospect while Austin Ortega was a highly skilled playmaker out of Nebraska-Omaha n the NCHC. Finally the Kraken added young prospect Nathan Bastian from New Jersey - the Devils released him for an unknown reason and he'll play his overage year in the OHL.

[BKarchitect]

THN Player Rankings for 2017-18 Season

THN has released their player rankings by position for the up-coming season. Keep in mind these are projected rankings for the year-to-come, not based on what a player's career has been. Not surprisingly, there are no Kraken players anywhere close to these lists...you could probably do a Top 100 for each position and not get to a Seattle player. Yup, it's gonna be a long season but still - folks in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest are just excited to have a team!

GOALIES
1. Carey Price (MTL)
2. Braden Holtby (WAS)
3. Sergei Bobrovsky (CBJ)
4. Devan Dubnyk (MIN)
5. Matt Murray (PIT)
6. Cory Schneider (NJD)
7. Henrik Lundqvist (NYR)
8. John Gibson (ANA)
9. Jonathan Quick (LAK)
10. Corey Crawford (CHI)

DEFENSEMEN
1. Erik Karlsson (OTT)
2. Victor Hedman (TBL)
3. Drew Doughty (LAK)
4. Shea Weber (MTL)
5. Duncan Keith (CHI)
6. Brent Burns (SJS)
7. Seth Jones (CBJ)
8. P.K. Subban (NAS)
9. Alex Pietrangelo (STL)
10. Oliver Ekman-Larsson (ARI)

LEFT WINGERS
1. Jamie Benn (DAL)
2. Alexander Ovechkin (WAS)
3. Brad Marchand (BOS)
4. Artemy Panarin (CBJ)
5. Johnny Gaudreau (CGY)
6. Filip Forsberg (NAS)
7. Jeff Skinner (CAR)
8. Henrik Zetterberg (DET)
9. Taylor Hall (NJD)
10. Nikolaj Ehlers (WPG)

CENTERS
1. Sidney Crosby (PIT)
2. Connor McDavid (EDM)
3. Evgeni Malkin (PIT)
4. Tyler Seguin (DAL)
5. Jack Eichel (BUF)
6. Jonathan Toews (CHI)
7. Auston Matthews (TOR)
8. John Tavares (NYI)
9. Steven Stamkos (TBL)
10. Mark Scheifele (WPG)

RIGHT WINGERS
1. Patrick Kane (CHI)
2. Nikita Kucherov (TBL)
3. Patrik Laine (WPG)
4. Vladimir Tarasenko (STL)
5. Blake Wheeler (WPG)
6. Jakub Voracek (PHI)
7. Phil Kessel (PIT)
8. Joe Pavelski (SJS)
9. Alexander Radulov (DAL)
10. Jonathan Drouin (MTL)

TOP PROSPECTS
1. Clayton Keller, RW (ARI)
2. Juuse Saros, G (NAS)
3. Thomas Chabot, D (OTT)
4. Charles McAvoy, D (BOS)
5. Jake Guentzel, LW (PIT)
6. Mat Barzal, C (NYI)
7. Jesse Puljujarvi, RW (EDM)
8. Nolan Patrick, C (PHI)
9. Travis Sanheim, D (PHI)
10. Kyle Connor, LW (WPG)

[BKarchitect]

Seattle Drop Inaugural Game to Sharks, 2-0

The Kraken's first game is in the books and it is a respectable, if ultimately fruitless, 2-0 loss to the Sharks in San Jose. Seattle played hard and were competitive but couldn't put one past Sharks goalie Martin Jones and were undone by their PK units as they allowed 2 power play goals to the Sharks. Jaroslav Halak was excellent in goal, turning away 29 of 31 shots. The fact that Martin had a '10' rating and was named player of the game tells you just how hard the Kraken played - although there really weren't any standout performances aside from Halak.

[BKarchitect]

Kindl Scores First Goal in Franchise History

In the Kraken's second game of the year (and ever), they visited Winnipeg. A mere 28 seconds into the first period, a Jakub Kindl PP goal from the point gave the Kraken their very first goal and very first lead in franchise history. Although they would ultimately fall 4-2, it was another spirited showing. Alex Chiasson also tallied for Seattle.

[BKarchitect]

Seattle Falls Flat in Home Opener

In front of a stellar, over-capacity crowd of 19,000 in New KeyArena, the Seattle Kraken took on the mighty Anaheim Ducks and were thoroughly outplayed. Anaheim was cruising late in the 3rd with a 3-0 lead before two late, late goals for the Kraken, courtesy of Ryan White and Danis Zaripov made things interesting for a brief moment but the final ended up 4-2 and it wasn't that close as Anaheim outshot Seattle 46-21.

[BKarchitect]

2018 NHL Draft - Preliminary Rankings

Let's take a break from hearing about the poor Kraken losing to look at who they might be selecting in next spring's NHL Entry Draft. It's setting up to be one of the best drafts in a while and features two legit superstar prospects at the top with Barrie forward Andrei Svechnikov edging out Frolunda defender Rasmus Dahlin for the top spot in the initial rankings. Saint John center Joe Veleno, Halifax winger Filip Zadina and Michigan defender Quinn Hughes round out the top 5.

[BKarchitect]

October 2017 Report

The Seattle Kraken have endured an expected historically bad start to the franchise this month. In 13 games this far, the Kraken have 11 regulation losses and 2 shootout losses - with their lone points collected against the Capitals and Avalanche. Jiri Hudler leads the team with 8 points while John Mitchell and Thomas Vanek have 4 goals each. Danis Zaripov has been a huge dud, with 2 goals, 2 points and a -14. Likewise, fellow 36 year-old KHL star Chris Lee has not adapted too well to the NHL - 3 points and a -6...and Lee and Zaripov are the two team leaders in PP ice time thus far which makes them extra disappointing.



AROUND THE LEAGUE:

- The big Duchene trade this off-season appears to have paid off for both the Blue Jackets and the surprising Avalanche who are on top of each of their conferences respectively. Matt Duchene leads Columbus in scoring while Ryan Murray has been a big stabilizer on the Avs defense.

- The dynamic duo of Claudie Giroux and Jakub Voracek has been wreaking havoc for Philadelphia after a poor season (by their standards) in 16-17. They sit 1-2 in the entire league in points and goals.

- That other expansion team, Vegas - with the benefit of an actual expansion draft - has been performing pretty well for a brand new club. They sit 13th in the Western Conference and their offensive core has blended nicely together.

- Henrik Lundqvist may be getting long in the tooth but the King is continuing to shine as the league's best netminder to start the season while the resurgence of Semyon Varlamov as one of the league's top goalies thus far has been key to the Avalanche turnaround.

- Rookie leaders though October include Nico Hischier (12 points in 12 games for the Devils), Clayton Keller (10 points in 12 games for Arizona) and Charles McAvoy (5 points in 11 games and ATOI of over 23 minutes per game for Boston). Strong showings also by the likes of Matt Barzal (NYI), Pierre-Luc Dubois (CLB), Christian Fischer (ARI) and Filip Hronek (DET).

[BKarchitect]

Mitchell Scores First Kraken Hat-Trick

Johnny "Malkin" Mitchell scored a hat-trick to kick November off in an exciting but frustrating 5-4 loss at home to Florida. Seattle got off to a 2-0 lead and were ahead 2-1 when Andrew Desjardins took a 5 minute major penalty and then made things worse by getting a 10 minute game misconduct. By the time all the Kraken players were out of the penalty box, Florida had jumped ahead 3-2. Mitchell's two 3rd period tallies gave Seattle a chance but they couldn't find the tying goal.

[BKarchitect]

Sweden U-20's Win 2017 Finnish Four Nations Tournament

Sweden edged Finland as well as the Czech Republic and Russia to take the 2017 Finnish Four Nations U-20 Tournament. Canucks first rounder Elias Pettersson (Vaxjo Lakers) was once again dominating with 6 points in 3 games and an 8.67 rating while 2018 draft wunderkid Rasmus Dahlin (Frolunda) was also brilliant with 6 points from the blueline while Jesper Boqvist (Brynas), a 2017 draftee of New Jersey had 5 points and goalie Filip Gustavsson (Lulea), a Penguins prospect, won all 3 games in net.

Finnish standouts included undrafted winger Jerry Turkulainen (JYP) again while the Czechs got strong performances from 2000-borns Jan Jenk (Liberec), a winger and defender Libor Zabransky (Brno) who had 6 and 5 points respectively. Russia went winless in this leg with their top performer probably 2017 Leafs draft pick Vladislav Kara.

[BKarchitect]

Rookie Highlight: Nico Hischier

Dynamic Swiss center Nico Hischier was the top pick in the past summer's 2017 NHL Entry Draft. Our scouts take a closer look at the Calder candidate, who has 14 points in his first 17 games, is anchoring the Devils second line and centering their first PP unit:



Looks like the Devils have a great one on their hands, a potential franchise player in the making!

[BKarchitect]

KRAKEN WIN! KRAKEN WIN! KRAKEN WIN!

November 23, 2017 - a date which will live in Kraken history as their first win in the National Hockey League! After playing their first 23 games ever with not a single victory, a packed house was on hand at New KeyArena in downtown Seattle this Thursday night - not expecting a win but really more to see the show with the Edmonton "Fightin' McDavids". But LO! This night the Kraken finally awoke from it's deep sleep and took down mighty McDavid and his band of northernmen to a watery grave!



The Kraken got off to a great start, leading 2-0 after the first period with goals from Jiri Hudler and Joseph Cramarossa. The Kraken made it 3-0 after a Brian Gionta goal in the second period but of course no Seattle lead has been safe this year and when Ryan Strome cut the Oilers' arrears to 3-1 just 30 seconds from the end of period two - things got tense. But Jaroslav Halak held firm in net, saving 34 of 35 shots and Danis Zaripov iced a famous victory with an empty netter!

[BKarchitect]

November 2017 Report

Are the Seattle Kraken starting to come together as a team? After going all of October and most of November without a win, the Kraken ended the last 4 games of November with 2 wins and a shootout loss. Besides the win over Edmonton, Seattle ended the month with another home victory, in a shootout, over Tampa Bay. The night before they lost in a shootout to Anaheim. The line of Jiri Hudler-John Mitchell-Brian Gionta is really producing - Hudler leads the team with 20 points, Gionta leads the team with 10 goals and Mitchell has 9 goals and 17 points. Additionally, seems like Danis Zaripov is starting to adapt a bit, with 8 points in his second month (versus 2 in October). On a sour note, Thomas Vanek had 0 goals this month and sits at a mere 4 goals and 11 points while Jakub Kindl is a whopping -21 only 27 games into the season.



AROUND THE LEAGUE:

- Columbus continues to be a force in the East - they really look like the class of the conference and the team to beat. The Hurricanes, Devils and Wings have been surprisingly good while rooted at the bottom are three shocking clubs...the defending champion Penguins are in last, the team they beat in the EC finals last year, Ottawa, are second to last and Montreal are third to last. Out West the Avs have hit reality while the McDavid-led Oilers look like the favorites - which makes their loss to Seattle all the more shocking. Former glory clubs Los Angeles and Chicago look like they have fallen into rebuild territory as they rank ahead of only the two expansion clubs in the standings.

- Claudie Giroux and Jakub Voracek continue to set the pace in the points column but coming up fast is the the Hurricanes troika of Jeff Skinner, Justin Williams and Sebastian Aho - they own 3 of the top 5 spots in league goal scoring.

- Nico Hischier (20 points in 25 games for the Devils) continues to set the rookie scoring pace with a red-hot Matthew Barzal (18 points in 27 games) close behind for the Islanders. Clayton Keller (17 points in 24 games) also continues to shine while Charles McAvoy (11 points in 26 games) is now averaging 24 minutes a night on the top pairing in Boston while Mikhail Sergachyov in Tampa and Travis Sanheim in Philly are also averaging big minutes, around 20 per game.

[BKarchitect]

Kraken Defeat Golden Knights in Inaugural Expansion Bowl

In their first on ice meeting ever, the expansion Seattle Kraken defeated the expansion Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 in a shootout at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Jonathan Marchessault scored twice for Vegas with Tomas Nosek adding the third; Danis Zaripov got Seattle on the board before a double from Daniel Winnik in the second period evened things up. A Jiri Hudler goal in the shootout proved the difference maker as the Kraken improved to 4-5-1 in their last 10 games with Vegas at 0-9-1 headed in the opposite direction.

[BKarchitect]

Sweden U-20's Win 2017 Russian Four Nations Tournament

Sweden edged the Czech Republic as well as Finland and Russia to take the 2017 Russian Four Nations U-20 Tournament. The young Swedes have now won 2 of the 3 tournaments between the U-20 teams of the four countries and they host the final leg in 2018. Jesper Boqvist (Brynas/NJD) and Rasmus Dahlin (2018 Eligible) once again turned in outstanding performances and were equaled this time around by teammate Marcus Davidsson (Djugarden), the Sabres' second round pick in 2017 who had a great tournament himself with 5 points.

The undeniable star of the tournament however was Czech sensation Filip Zadina, the 2018-eligible center who plies his trade for Halifax in the QMJHL. Zadina was on fire, scoring 7 goals in 3 games and quietly raising some eyebrows and perhaps opening some minds to the concept that he could challenge Dahlin and Svechnikov for a top spot in the 2018 draft. Recent #3 overall pick for Dallas, Miro Heiskinen (HIFK) put in a great tournament leading the Finns blueline along with 2019-eligible Mikko Kokkonen (Jukurit). Russia once again disappointed, finishing last in their home tournament; Svechnikov was solid and tallied a couples goals but was outshone by Dahlin and Zadina.

The stakes get raised later this month when the real WJC U20's begin...

[BKarchitect]

December 2017 Report

Seattle totaled 2 points in October, 5 points in November and in December they earned 9 points...while this places the Kraken still by miles in last place with 16 points at the halfway mark and on pace to shatter all kinds of records for futility, it does definitely show upward progress and development as a team. Jiri Hudler continues to pace the club with 26 points in 40 games while Brian Gionta has turned back father time, for now at least, with a total of 15 goals in 40 games...a 30 goal pace. Jaroslav Halak has 4 wins in 31 starts while backup Reto Berra has 2 wins in 9 starts and better stats so look for Berra to start getting more time in goal in the second half of the season. Also, playmaker Stephane Da Costa made his return on December 30 and should be a valuable offensive catalyst moving forward.



AROUND THE LEAGUE:

- Not much change at the top of the East where Columbus continues to lead the way. But Ottawa has been blazing up the standings from the rear and Pittsburgh is starting to make a run as well - don't count either team out yet. The Habs on the other hand look hopeless. Among other disappointments are the Rangers who thus far are wasting a golden year from King Henrik in net. Out west it has become a two-horse race between Edmonton and defending WC champs Nashville with the Wild and Stars lurking. Winnipeg looks much improved as well but the Kings and Blackhawks continue to struggle.

- Claudie Giroux's lead in the scoring race has shrunk to 1 point over Florida center Aleksander Barkov and 2 over Canes winger Jeff Skinner. Barkov in particular is starting to get Hart talk - he's now become an absolute force offensively to go along with a great defensive game. Matt Duchene continues to be worth every penny for Columbus as he sits 4th in points and 7 in goals in the league. And red-hot Taylor Hall now leads the league in goals by a wide margin with 28 - he's on pace for 56 goals for the surprising Devils. Young American hotshots Jack Eichel and Auston Matthews have equaled each other with 41 points at the halfway mark.

- As mentioned, Henrik Lundqvist continues to have another amazing season and while the goalie leaders feature the usual suspects, it may be time to start mentioning young Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy as one of the top netminders in the league while Scott Darling has been everything Carolina had hoped for when the traded for him and made them their undisputed starter,

- Nico Hischier (32 points in 40 games) continues to be the Calder favorite but there are some new faces among the top rookies at the halfway point. Older rookie winger Henrik Haapala, Florida's high-scoring import from Finland's Liiga is now second in rookie scoring with 23 points while Clayton Keller (20 points) has taken a backseat in Arizona (for the moment anyways) to fellow rookies Dylan Strome (22 points) and Christian Fischer (20 points). Also with an impressive rookie trio are the Islanders - Josh Ho-Sang (19 points), Matt Barzal (18 points) and offensive-minded blueliner Ryan Pulock (18 points). Pulock trails only Dallas' Julius Honka (20 points) in rookie defensive scoring with Swedish star forward Oskar Linblom (20 points) from Philly the final rookie at or above 20 points at the halfway mark.

[BKarchitect]

2018 NHL Draft - Mid-Season Rankings

Rasmus Dahlin has overtaken Andrei Svechnikov for the top spot in the 2018 Entry Draft rankings at mid-season while Filip Zadina and Joe Veleno have also flipped with Zadina now ranked #3. Top movers in the top 50 included Joel Farabee (USNTDP; 22 to 15), Jake Wise (USNTDP; 35 to 30) and Luka Burzan (Moose Jaw; 42 to 35). Big movers overall included defender Rasmus Sandin (Rogle; 124 to 69), goalie Jordan Kooy (London; 135 to 73) and center Riley Stotts (Swift Current; 133 to 74).

[BKarchitect]

Canada Captures 2018 WJC Title!

Canada overpowered the USA in this year's WJC Playoff Final to bring home the Gold. Here is a breakdown of how the tournament unfolded:

Group Stage: Canada won Group A over Sweden, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Latvia was sent to the Relegation Playoff. The USA won Group B over Russia, Finland and Switzerland. Norway was sent to the Relegation Playoff.

Relegation Playoff: Norway defeated Latvia to preserve their top tier status another season.

Playoff Quarterfinals: Canada demolished Switzerland 9-2 behind 2 goals each from Taylor Raddysh (TBL), Jordan Kyrou (STL) and Anderson MacDonald (2018 draft). Young phenom Alexis Lafreniere (2020 draft) had 3 points. Russia beat Slovakia 4-1 with a good team effort. Highly rated 2018 prospects Alexander Khovanov and Andrei Svechnikov each tallied. The USA downed the Czechs 4-2 after falling into a 2-0 hole after the first period. Joel Farabee (2018 draft), Casey Mittelstadt (BUF) and Alex Turcotte (2019 draft) turned in staring roles. Finally, Finland crushed rivals Sweden 4-0 with Otto Koivula (NYI) and Joni Ikonen (MTL) scoring 3 points each and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (BUF) posting the shutout.

Playoff Semifinals: Canada continued to look a class above, dominating rivals Russia in a comprehensive 6-1 victory. Another brilliant performance from Alexis Lafreniere who had 2 goals and 4 points. Sam Steel (ANA) chipped in 2 goals and 3 points while 2018 prospect Ty Smith was a rock on defense and had 2 helpers. And the USA setup the all North American final by defeating Finland 4-2. After jumping out to a 1-0 lead, the USA fell behind 2-1 but scored 3 unanswered goals in the third period. Joey Anderson (NJD) and Jack Hughes (2019 draft) had a goal and assist each while Jack's older brother Quinn Hughes led the defense and had 2 assists.

Bronze Medal Game: Finland made the podium after a thrilling back-and-forth 4-3 win over Russia. Eeli Tolvanen (NAS) sealed the win in the third period while strong performances were turned in by the highly rated prospects Jesperi Kotkaniemi (2018 draft) and Kaapo Kakko (2019 draft). Artyom Manukyan (Undrafted) and Andreu Altybarmakyan (CHI) turned in strong performances for Russia.

Final: Canada was expected to get a real challenge from the Americans and fell behind in the first period after Ryan Poehling (MTL) struck on a goal assisted by Patrick Harper (NAS) and Max Jones (ANA). But Carter Hart (PHI) remained composed in net for Canada while the Canadian offense blitzed Jake Oettinger (DAL) and the USA defense for 3 goals in the second period. Taylor Raddysh scored twice, the first an even-strength goal assisted by Peyton Krebs (2019 draft) and Samuel Girard (NAS) and the second a PP marker from Joe Veleno (2018 draft) and Dante Fabbro (NAS). Aleix Lafreniere continued his coming-out party by adding the third goal of the period, assisted by Sam Steel and Jordan Kyrou. Canada continued to dominate in the third and went up 4-1 on a goal from Krebs, assisted by Cody Glass (VGK) and Girard. The USA tried to get back into the game on a goal from Riley Tufte (DAL), assisted by Alex Turcotte but Tyler Benson (EDM) put the final nail in the coffin for Team Canada with a PP strike assisted by Anderson MacDonald and Ryan Merkley (2018 draft).

For the big names in the 2018 draft, it was quite a disappointing tournament. Rasmus Dahlin's Sweden crashed out in the quarterfinals and he managed only a solitary goal in 5 games. Andrei Svechnikov's tournament was limited to 2 games due to a nagging injury concern. He did score in both games he played in. Filip Zadina fared a bit better with 4 points in 3 games for the Czechs while Joe Veleno had 3 goals and 6 points for Canada - but the Canadians were so powerful that his total was only tied for 6th on his own team. Still a nice showing though. There's no question that Rimouski phenom Alexis Lafreniere was the tournament's big star and MVP with 7 goals and 19 points in 7 games. The 16 year-old isn't even draft eligible until 2020 and is easily the biggest sensation from the QMJHL since Sidney Crosby. This tournament just proved he's not only ultra-talented but has big game ability. Cale Makar (COL) won Best Defender for the tournament, leading all defensemen in scoring with 9 points and averaging over 21 minutes per game for Canada' defense while Carter Hart edged Jake Oettinger for Best Goalie.

[BKarchitect]

Red Wings Trade for Muzzin

In a somewhat surprising move, the Detroit Red Wings have traded for Los Angeles Kings' stalwart defenseman Jake Muzzin, giving up young winger Evgeni Svechnikov, 2017 2nd round pick Gustav Lindstrom and 2017 4th round pick Malte Setkov.

The Wings were expected to be rebuilding this year with an aging roster, cap issues and with young star Andreas Athanasiou bolting (temporarily at least) to the KHL after being unable to agree to new contract terms with Detroit. But behind scoring resurgences from the likes of Tomas Tatar, Dylan Larkin and Gustav Nyquist and solid goaltending with Jimmy Howard and Petr Mrazek - the Wings currently sit in 6th in the Eastern Conference. But it is a precarious position as they are a mere 1 point from falling out of the playoffs entirely.

Adding, Muzzin, 28 and signed though 2020 will certainly give them a boost. Muzzin had 9 points in 48 games for the Kings and should give Detroit a solid first pairing with Mike Green - allowing Danny DeKeyser to slide down to a more appropriate second pairing role. But the cost was very high and many in the Wings fanbase are unhappy, claiming GM Ken Holland is "living in the past" and seriously handicapping the future of the franchise.

LA fans couldn't be more pleased. The Kings are clearly out of playoff contention this year and need, at minimum, a reboot if not full rebuild. Although Muzzin has been an anchor on that blueline, his performances had slipped the last couple years. Svechnikov came into the season as the Wings' clear #1 prospect and although his 10 points in 44 games as a rookie aren't lighting the world on fire, he's a big boy with legit top 6 upside. Lindstrom was just picked in the past draft's 2nd round and looks like a solid, if long-term prospect on defense while Setkov was a 4th rounder in the same draft and is a towering Danish defender also plying his trade in Sweden at the moment.

If the Wings can make a run in the playoffs, Muzzin could be a big part of it but with a playoff position far from certain even after this trade - this seems like a really, really risky deal for Detroit to have made.