NHL and the players' union have discussed going to an 84-game season in CBA talks, AP source says
Moving to an 84-game regular season from 82 is one of the topics that has been discussed in collective bargaining talks between the NHL and the NHL Players' Association, according to a person familiar with negotiations.
The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the subjects involved in CBA discussions are not being revealed publicly by either side.
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New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Canadiens expectations, Logan Mailloux as a trade chip, Stanley Cup checklist: Mailbag
We had Part 1 of the Montreal Canadiens mailbag earlier this week, and here is Part 2, featuring some of the questions we didn't get to. Of course, there were 226 comments on the question submission form, so we are not getting to the vast majority of them. But this is a democratic process, and we take the questions that got the most likes on the form. This is the best of the rest. Fans' expectations for the team are much higher for this season than for last season. The goal last season was to be 'in the mix' last year and make the playoffs this year. Now since they made the playoffs, certain fans seem to be expecting the team to compete to win rounds this year. Have HuGo changed their goals for the Habs, or are they still just looking at making the playoffs this year as the goal? Do you expect them to start to put messaging out there to reduce expectations for fans for this season? I think missing the playoffs would be a normal part of the rebuild but that fans might react as if it's a disaster. – Nick L. Missing the playoffs would not necessarily be a normal part of the rebuild, Nick. Most rebuilding teams, once they reach the playoffs, tend to grow on that achievement. But in the Canadiens' case, it could easily be argued they reached the playoffs a bit sooner than expected by management, so within that context, missing them next season would not – or at least should not – be seen as a setback. Advertisement The Canadiens will be consistently competitive when – and only when – their young core has reached its peak. And right now, that young core is nowhere near its peak. Nick Suzuki is definitely approaching it, and it will be interesting to see if he can build on his 89-point season, if that is the new normal, or if it turns out to be an outlier. I could see Suzuki building on it, but I think it's most likely to be the new normal for him. We have not yet seen Cole Caufield and Juraj Slafkovský play to their ceiling, and there is no way we have seen the best out of Lane Hutson, Ivan Demidov and David Reinbacher, the latter two still awaiting their NHL rookie seasons. Jacob Fowler is years away from being a factor in Montreal. Same for Michael Hage. There are so many complementary pieces in the Canadiens prospect pool that will emerge to fill important roles on the big club, from Logan Mailloux to Oliver Kapanen to Owen Beck and others. In other words, the Canadiens remain relatively far from their peak potential, the time when the young core is mature enough to truly drive the bus. In the interim, the Canadiens undoubtedly want to remain competitive. But the real window they are managing is the one where Demidov is, say, 23 and Suzuki is 29, with all those other core elements falling in between that age range. That is still three or four years away. This is not to say the Canadiens will miss the playoffs next season. But it is to say that Canadiens management's eyes remain transfixed on that contention window that remains an abstract point on the horizon right now. They have set a good path to get there, but they are not yet close to arriving. How high (or low) is the front office on Logan Mailloux? In the past few weeks, a lot of people include him in potential trades and therefore seem to be ready to let him go. While I understand that he could be the asset that ultimately gets us a significant player like a 2C/RHD, he still is a great RHD prospect who's only 22 and is going through normal growing pains (decision making at the pro level) if you can even call it that. I get that HuGo didn't draft him, so maybe they would be less hesitant to trade him, but I still wonder about how much they value him (or what return value would be enough for them to trade him). I know that they can't keep everyone forever and that his value is really high right now with the actual market, but I also think we shouldn't trade this kind of asset just because he hasn't made the team yet. Big, mobile RHD with a cannon like his don't really grow on trees. – Olivier G. What are your thoughts on one of David Reinbacher or Logan Mailloux breaking camp with the Habs? I noticed you had a RHD as your ideal UFA target, so was wondering if that meant you thought neither were quite ready for the show? – Chris N. No, they don't grow on trees. But that's exactly why Mailloux would have value on the trade market. The trade late Wednesday night — the Buffalo Sabres sent JJ Peterka to the Utah Mammoth for right-shot defenceman Michael Kesselring and forward Josh Doan — is one example of how much value a good right-shot defenceman can have. Kesselring was a total find for Utah, acquired from the Edmonton Oilers in a deadline deal for Nick Bjugstad and Cam Dineen, and they've now converted him into a legitimate top-six forward with upside. Advertisement The difference between Kesselring and Mailloux, however, is NHL experience. Kesselring wasn't given time to accrue it in Edmonton, but once he did with Arizona/Utah, he became an extremely valuable trade chip. Teams love big, mobile right-shot defencemen with a cannon, but they want to know they can actually play in the NHL before giving up difference-making assets for them. So, the long play here would be for the Canadiens to allow Mailloux to accrue some of that NHL experience before monetizing that heightened trade value. Until that happens, they might wind up being the Oilers in this Kesselring scenario, as opposed to the Mammoth, who now have a legitimate top-six forward signed through his prime thanks to demonstrating how valuable Kesselring can be at the NHL level. This, however, goes back to that expectation of making the playoffs next season, because to allow Mailloux to get that NHL experience and to allow Reinbacher to take the necessary steps to reach his potential, the Canadiens would need to have both of them on the NHL roster next season. And I'm not sure how willing they would be to do that. How well do you think the Canadiens have managed to fill out the 'Cup checklist' (by Dom Luszczyszyn) considering where the current core and blue-chip prospects could find themselves a few years down the line? Suzuki / Demidov / Hutson should provide the elite production with Cole, Slaf, Guhle and Reinbacher spearheading an exciting support group. – Veeti L. For reference of Dom's Stanley Cup checklist, here is the latest version, and it is an interesting exercise to go through for the Canadiens. It demonstrates just how much remains unknown on the ultimate journey. The checklist elements we are looking to identify for the Canadiens are a franchise forward, a star forward, franchise offensive and defensive defencemen, shutdown offensive and defensive forwards, a star goalie, a support core and a depth core. There's a lot of projection here, but here's how I would project the eventual Cup checklist for Montreal. (Orange denotes support core. Blue denotes depth core.) There are a lot of Canadiens prospects not mentioned here, and there are a lot of slashes. That means a lot of question marks remain for filling this out. But what's important for the Canadiens is they have legitimate candidates to fill out each of these roles, and if a certain candidate doesn't quite fit the specific role needed, he becomes a trade chip to try and better fill that role. Advertisement Some eyebrows might be raised at how Suzuki is slotted here, but to me, finding a shutdown forward who can provide offence is rarer than finding a star forward, and Suzuki has the potential to be among the best in this category. Do you think a Mike Matheson for Rasmus Andersson trade could work conceptually (perhaps with some sweeteners from Montreal)? Similar contract status (with Andersson seeming unlikely to stay in Calgary beyond this year). Montreal has an overload of LHD and Calgary has the opposite problem. Andersson would also fit the profile of the type of defenceman Montreal is looking for. – Jordan S. Conceptually, this could work. It would highly depend on how the Calgary Flames view Matheson and what else is available on the market for them, with Andersson being one of the most prized trade targets in the league. But it honestly could make a lot of sense from both sides of it. There would need to be some sweeteners from Montreal, but they have tons of sweeteners to offer, so that wouldn't be an issue. (Photo of Logan Mailloux: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Ranking the top-32 hockey prospects ahead of the 2025 NHL Draft
The next wave of young NHL talent is here. At the 2025 NHL Draft on Friday, hockey fans will witness the first steps of the newest crop of talent to enter the league. With the Stanley Cup awarded, all eyes in the hockey world are now on the NHL Draft and the upcoming start of free agency on July 1. The beginning of summer has always been a busy time in hockey and it seems as if 2025 is no exception with a busy draft period upcoming. To kick things off this summer is the first round of the NHL Draft set for Friday night. While the top of the 2025 draft class doesn't have the generational star power we've had in years past, there are still numerous high-quality players who will become key parts of NHL rosters for seasons to come. And if the draft options aren't the most interesting for teams, we very well could see a major trade or two come down the pipe to shake things up. With that being said, you might be wondering who the top prospects are ahead of the 2025 NHL Draft. If your favorite team has a high draft pick this season, you might be curious as to which players are on their radar. If so, you're in luck! Ahead of the 2025 NHL Draft, let's take a look at the top-32 prospects to keep an eye on. 1. D Matthew Schaefer Position: DefenseTeam: Erie Otters (OHL) As the projected No. 1 overall pick in the draft, Schaefer will likely become a cornerstone defenseman at the NHL level. Schaefer has the tools to be a top-tier defenseman in the league with his dynamic play, elite defensive tools and overall high hockey IQ. While Schaefer sustained an injury at the World Juniors that caused him to play just 26 games this past season, the pros far outweigh the cons in his case as he projects to be a true No. 1 defenseman for years to come. 2. F Michael Misa Position: Center/left wingTeam: Saginaw Spirit (OHL) Billed as the best forward of the 2025 NHL Draft class, Misa was given exceptional status in the OHL in 2022 for his play as an elite offensive talent. Last season, Misa posted 62 goals and 134 points in 65 OHL games and is considered to be a NHL-ready center talent with incredibly high offensive upside to his game. 3. F Porter Martone Position: Right wingTeam: Brampton Steelheads (OHL) After Schaefer and Misa, the rest of the second-tier prospects are a bit of a tossup in terms of projected talent and NHL readiness. Martone is a NHL GM's dream player, as he plays hard and can beat players with pure skill. A combination like that is rare to find, indeed, and while Martone isn't the fastest skater of the bunch, he's going to draw attention with his attractive skillset. 4. F Anton Frondell Position: Center/right wingTeam: Djurgårdens IF (HockeyAllsvenskan) Frondell is a utility knife of a hockey player, as his flexibility and two-way play have been cited as his best attributes coming into the 2025 NHL Draft. That's not to say that Frondell doesn't have offensive upside to him, he does, but he's not going to shoot the lights out compared to others on this list. Still, Frondell's style of play will translate extremely well to the NHL as an offensive facilitator and a cerebral hockey player. 5. F James Hagens Position: CenterTeam: Boston College (NCAA) Hagens has fallen a bit in the eyes of the hockey world, but not through fault of his own. Not that long ago, Hagens and his high-end play-driving skills looked to be in contention for the No. 1 overall pick, but the emergence of Schaefer and Misa made the Boston College center fall down the draft boards. While his smaller size might worry some NHL general managers, Hagens has offensive stud potential and could be a steal of the draft depending on how far he falls. 6. F Caleb Desnoyers Position: CenterTeam: Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL) There's a lot to like about Desnoyers' game. Billed as a second-line center with first-line potential, Desnoyers has a high hockey IQ and a physical style of play that NHL general managers and coaches love. When all is said and done, Desnoyers could be the best two-way player in this draft, so don't be surprised if he gets taken higher on Friday. 7. F Jake O'Brien Position: CenterTeam: Brantford Bulldogs (OHL) O'Brien is a textbook playmaking center with first line upside. It's hard to say where he ends up in this murky second tier of players, but NHL scouts have him pegged as a hardworking playmaker who is a bit undersized and needs to fill out his frame more in order to be a true elite talent at the highest level. 8. F Roger McQueen Position: CenterTeam: Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL) It feels like McQueen is going to be the biggest boom or bust prospect in this draft class. At 6-foot-5, you wouldn't expect McQueen to move as well has he does, but he's an incredibly big player with high speed and mobility. The only downside and the reason why he's not higher on draft boards? A back injury sidelined McQueen for a good portion of the season and NHL scouts are skeptical that he'll be able to return to form. Talk about a high-risk, high-reward pick. 9. F Brady Martin Position: CenterTeam: Soo Greyhounds (OHL) Martin might not have the flashy talent others in this draft class have, but he's billed as an incredibly hardworking player with a middle-six projection. NHL scouts love his play across all three zones and his physicality as a power forward makes him stand out against his peers. There's offense in Martin's game for sure, but his hard-nosed style of play is certainly the attention grabber here. 10. F Victor Eklund Position: Left wingTeam: Djurgårdens IF (HockeyAllsvenskan) While Eklund might take a few years to get to the NHL, when he does he's likely going to be a force to deal with. Even though he isn't very big physically, Eklund is a player with a high drive and motor and he could still fill out as time passes. NHL scouts also say he's got a solid shot and his overall skill should win out versus his size. 11. D Jackson Smith Position: DefenseTeam: Tri-City Americans (WHL) 12. D Radim Mrtka Position: DefenseTeam: Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) 13. F Carter Bear Position: Center/left wingTeam: Everett Silvertips (WHL) 14. D Kashawn Aitcheson Position: DefenseTeam: Barrie Colts (OHL) 15. D Logan Hensler Position: DefenseTeam: Wisconsin (NCAA) 16. F Justin Carbonneau Position: Right wingTeam: Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (QMJHL) 17. F Braeden Cootes Position: CenterTeam: Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) 18. F Lynden Lakovic Position: Left wingTeam: Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL) 19. D Cameron Reid Position: DefenseTeam: Kitchener Rangers (OHL) 20. F Cole Reschny Position: CenterTeam: Victoria Royals (WHL) 21. F Jack Nesbitt Position: CenterTeam: Windsor Spitfires (OHL) 22. F Malcolm Spence Position: Left wingTeam: Erie Otters (OHL) 23. D Sascha Boumedienne Position: DefenseTeam: Boston University (NCAA) 24. F Cullen Potter Position: Left wingTeam: Arizona State (NCAA) 25. G Joshua Ravensbergen Position: GoaltenderTeam: Prince George Cougars (WHL) 26. F Benjamin Kindel Position: Right wingTeam: Calgary Hitmen (WHL) 27. D Blake Fiddler Position: DefenseTeam: Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL) 28. F Bill Zonnon Position: Left wingTeam: Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (QMJHL) 29. F Milton Gästrin Position: Center/left wingTeam: MoDo Hockey J20 (J20 Nationell) 30. F Jack Murtagh Position: Center/left wingTeam: United States National Team Development Program 31. D Henry Brzustewicz Position: DefenseTeam: London Knights (OHL) 32. F Ryker Lee Position: Right wingTeam: Madison Capitols (USHL)
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Matthew Schaefer as Superman? Top NHL Draft prospects get DC superhero treatment in new card set
With the 2025 NHL Draft orbiting near the theatrical release of DC Studios' new universal beginnings under director and co-studio head James Gunn and his new 'Superman' film in July, Upper Deck saw a chance to combine two of its biggest partners (the NHL and DC) into one of its popular and nostalgic trading card formats. Advertisement Starting today, alongside tonight's NHL Draft, Upper Deck is releasing a new set of Fanimation cards, made famous in the early '90s with a basketball set that included Michael Jordan's Agent 23. The new Fanimations feature five of this year's top NHL prospects and are being released on the company's e-Pack platform. Each prospect has been turned into a superhero inspired by some of DC's classic characters, with illustrations by artist Carlo Barberi. Matthew Schaefer (Superman), Michael Misa (Batman), James Hagens (The Flash), Porter Martone (Green Lantern), and Caleb Desnoyers (Nightwing) were all drawn wearing hockey uniforms influenced by some of DC's heaviest hitters. Last week, Upper Deck announced an exclusive trading card and memorabilia deal with Schaefer, who is projected to be selected No. 1 overall by the New York Islanders. Upper Deck has similar deals in place with Misa and Hagens, as well as trading card exclusivity with Martone, Desnoyers, Roger McQueen, Kashawn Aitcheson, and Carter Bear. A design team at Upper Deck assigned the superhero influences for each prospect without collaboration with the players so that the debut of the cards would be a surprise for each new Upper Deck signee as they enter the beginnings of their NHL careers. 'They're not the (actual DC) characters, but we wanted to blend the world and present the prospects inspired by those characters, so the people who know those characters will really be able to see how their cards are inspired by those various (DC) characters,' said Upper Deck president Jason Masherah. Upper Deck began a new partnership with DC earlier this year, as Marvel moved to Topps. Upper Deck's first set under the new agreement was DC Annual, and it says there are more DC projects currently in development. Masherah sees this new set as a chance for the company to go back to its comic book roots with the Fanimation brand, with a sense of irony attached. The original Fanimation cards were illustrated by one of the biggest artists in the history of the comic book industry, Jim Lee, who happens to now be the chief creative officer and publisher of DC. 'We've been doing Fanimation as an easter egg in our Upper Deck hockey releases for the last few years. We kind of changed the art style year in and year out to kind of keep it fresh,' Masherah said. 'This is really the first time we've taken it back to where its origin story comes from, which is the early '90s with some of the biggest comic book artists in the world when there was kind of this crossover of blending athletes and comic book characters.' Advertisement The new set of super hockey prospects being available through e-Pack is a part of Upper Deck's effort to have a reach to its fandom regardless of where they are. Upper Deck's e-Pack website allows fans to buy packs online, store their cards digitally and have purchases shipped as a physical card on demand. 'The reality is that not everybody lives near a card or comic book store and especially when you get outside of the country, there aren't a lot of card stores around the world and there's a lot of people who want to buy cards, especially cards that have what we call hobby content or the more rich product,' Masherah said. 'So this is our way to essentially give anyone with an internet connection the ability to buy packs globally.' Turning top hockey prospects into superheroes is just the beginning of Upper Deck's plans for merging sports with DC in its products. In coordination with DC's 'Summer of Superman' — a multi-platform initiative including comics, trading cards and other products aligned with the release of the new 'Superman' movie — Masherah says there will be four different crossover sets featuring Superman and the NHL, including the Fanimation release. Another will include Upper Deck's two hockey spokesmen, Wayne Gretzky and Connor McDavid, in a set influenced by two of the first images of the 'Superman' movie that were released by Gunn. That set will be released in July alongside the film. Gunn's first Superman image was one of the hero, played by actor David Corenswet, putting on his red boots while Metropolis is being attacked by an alien outside the view of the window. Another image Gunn released was of Superman on the moon looking at Earth with his super-dog, Krypto. A famous image of Gretzky putting on his skates and McDavid's known love for his dog will be used as influence for those cards. Two other NHL/DC sets will be released in the fall to coincide with the 'Superman' film's streaming and home video release. There will also be an Upper Deck/Superman collaboration with NASCAR, Tyler Reddick and Jordan's 23XI racing team. A set of two cards related to that is available now on e-Pack with more available on June 28. Reddick's No. 45 Toyota Camry XSE will feature Superman and Upper Deck logos when it races in the NASCAR Cup Series at Echo Park Speedway on June 28. Advertisement 'We've had a relationship with Warner Bros. for several years,' Masherah said. 'In a couple weeks we'll have a product called Superman Brilliance coming out, which we're very excited about. What we've seen in the trading card industry in general is prices have escalated dramatically and Superman Brilliance is built to be very accessible, especially around the movie coming out. … And we have our Metal Universe Batman that will come out towards the end of the summer/early fall, as well. We've got kind of a full slate. The timing couldn't have been better … the ability to tie this to the NHL Draft. It's in LA. It's in Hollywood. It's where DC is headquartered here. Everything kind of came together at one time.' The Athletic maintains full editorial independence in all our coverage. When you click or make purchases through our links, we may earn a commission.
