5 days ago
The modern NHLer's offseason routine. Plus: Why do hockey games have three periods? ͏
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Good morning, hockey fans. It's mid-August, but to me that's as good a time as any to talk about some puck, no? If only to remind us how close we are to September and training camps.
We put out the call for your top hockey questions a few weeks ago, and there were a lot of great, thoughtful queries in there.
One of them asked about this very point of the offseason and how it works for NHL players. Are they mostly sitting beside a lake somewhere, waiting for camp? Or on the ice every day, grinding away?
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Here's Jordan K.'s question: 'I'm interested in what an NHLer's training schedule is like during the offseason. When in the summer do they resume skating? Do they come into camp 100 percent in shape or does the camp itself get them into shape?'
I can speak from experience after watching them for more than 15 years that NHL camps are very high-intensity right from the first day. The coaches want to implement their game plan, superstars are ready to go and the up-and-coming kids and minor leaguers are anxious to win jobs. It's fast and physical – and really fun to watch.
To get more specifics for Jordan's questions, however, I reached out to a former NHLer to explain how the summer works. Here's Frankie Corrado — former Canucks/Leafs/Penguins defenseman and a frequent contributor to our hockey podcasts at The Athletic — on the general timeline involved:
'Guys are basically ready to go around Labor Day to start camp,' Corrado says. 'They should be 100 percent (well beforehand) unless they had an injury.'
One more reader question here, from Pat S.: 'Do you expect a major run on eight-year contracts between now and the new CBA taking effect next summer? What other impacts to GM behavior do you expect with the ratification of that CBA?'
I checked in with some teams on this and one thing they said to keep in mind is that barring a negotiated change, the newly-agreed-to CBA actually doesn't take effect until September 2026, meaning there is still plenty of time for teams to sign players to eight-year deals.
So that goes for Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Kirill Kaprizov — the whole class of elite talent that's in the final year of their deals this season. If they want eight-year deals, they'll get them.
What's been more notable of late is some lower-tier players have also been getting eight-year deals. Trent Frederic landed the max term from the Oilers to play in their bottom six. The Hurricanes gave all three of K'Andre Miller, Logan Stankoven and Jackson Blake eight-year RFA deals, in a bid to find some value by going long.
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With the cap rising rapidly, it makes sense to stretch things out. The players get the security of the term, but the teams get the lower AAV and could hit serious home runs if we're talking about the cap going beyond $120 million and those three becoming core contributors.
As for other impacts, I think we'll see star players starting to get a bigger chunk of the pie. There are so many teams that have money and want top talent right now that there's going to be a lot of upward pressure on salaries for the league's best players. Being a top-two center or top-pair D is about to be even more lucrative for players willing to go to July 1.
The new CBA decreasing term limits and diminishing frontloading and bonuses will put even more pressure on teams to simply pony up to keep their best players. Without creative contracts, all that's left is the bottom line.
You can read more questions and answers here in my latest NHL mailbag, the first in a series over the offseason.
MirTrivia, Offseason Edition: With other sports typically split into quarters and halves, why the heck do hockey games have three periods? And did they always?
Even in the offseason, our army of hockey writers is cranking out the hits. Here are some of our top items from the past seven days you may have missed.
Fluto Shinzawa has the story of an NHL mom's quest to make 'the best neck guard.' I'm all for any innovation that improves these things from the ol' scratchy sweatsock design.
The Senators are one step closer to getting their much-needed downtown arena built, with the $30 million purchase of some nice real estate near the War Museum. I, for one, will not miss taking the long bus ride to Kanata in 25-below to watch from the nosebleeds as Mika Noronen lets in seven goals.
Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon is spearheading a massive deal to buy the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers. As with the Canes, the intention is to keep the team in the market.
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'The Athletic Hockey Show's' How To Fix… series with the two Seans and our beat writers wrapped up this week after four deep dives into how to turn around the Sabres, Penguins, Red Wings and Flyers.
One fellow who never takes a recovery phase is our newsletter teammate DGB, whose latest piece digs into building the worst possible roster of NHL contracts that's still somehow cap compliant. And, no, it was not co-authored by the terrible GM your favorite team finally got rid of.
For the hardcore Red Light Racicots who made it this far in a mid-August file, I wanted to get your help for a section of this newsletter next week.
Here's a survey where you can offer your hot takes on which NHL teams will be the most improved and which ones will take a step back next season.
Will be interesting to see who you pick.
Early hockey games had — like basketball, football and soccer today — two halves with a break in between. But starting in 1910-11, they decided to go to three periods for a few reasons.
One: to improve ice conditions in the pre-Zamboni days. Two: to keep players fresher and the pace of play higher. Three: more fans would visit the concessions and spend money.
It's fascinating that 115 years later, all three reasons seem to still apply and make sense. NHL ice is pretty beat up after 20 minutes of play, requiring a flood, and players are able to exert themselves more with two intermission breaks instead of one. Plus, fans definitely need more than one in-game beer break.
Pro hockey's first three-period game was played in December 1910, in the old NHA, the precursor league to the NHL. Earboy Sport has more on that game and some of the legends who played in it.
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(Top photo of Devon Toews: Raymond Carlin III / Imagn Images)
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