Blake’s Takes: Two Weeks ‘Til Hockey

Hockey is right around the corner! The NHL will officially be back on August 1st. With that being said, the league has a lot of work to do before that. Just this week they announced most of their award finalists and have continued to test players for COVID-19. There was also some interesting news surrounding the league including a stupid lawsuit and an international signing.

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Blake’s Takes: We Have a New CBA

The NHL continues to dominate sports in a world infested with COVID-19. The NHL and NHLPA agreed to extend the CBA last week. The new CBA confirmed quite a few details regarding the future of the NHL. That includes firm dates for the league’s Phase 3 and Phase 4 Return to Play Plan, an approved international calendar, and many other awesome things. I’ll break it all down with my takes for this week.

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Blake’s Takes: We Have Hub Cities!

Our hub cities have finally been leaked. The NHL season will continue in two cities in Canada: Edmonton and Toronto. There was also big news reported on a possible return to the Olympics for NHL players. Overall, last week offered a lot of positive in the hockey world. Which is something we all need badly right now.

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Blake’s Takes: And the First Pick Goes to…

There was a lot of big news in the NHL last week. Most notably, the NHL lottery was hosted and we still don’t know who has the first pick. We do know the newest six members of the Hockey Hall of Fame and the name of the arena the Seattle franchise will call home. Keep reading if want a recap of one of the most interesting weeks of the NHL season.

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Blake’s Takes: Botterill Out in Buffalo

Last week was a busy one in the NHL. The Sabres fired their GM, the AHL made a major announcement, and the NHL took another step forward with social justice. I’ll dive into all of those topics in addition to a few other  tidbits. Let me know what you think in the comments.

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Blake’s Takes: The Move to Phase 3

This week, I’ll share my thoughts on the founding of The Hockey Diversity Alliance. Hopefully, this group can much-needed change in regard to diversity in the hockey community. In other news, the league also announced a date to move into Phase 3 which will allow teams to host training camp.

Stay safe out there everyone!

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Blake’s Takes: Black Lives Matter

The United States is still reeling from the death of George Floyd and the increased exposure of police brutality towards black people and people of color. In this edition of Blake’s Takes, I’ll highlight some very important steps the NHL and its players are taking to combat racism both internally and externally. I’ll also share my perspective on the league’s decision to move into Phase 2 of its Return to Play plan. #BlackLivesMatter
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Blake’s Takes: Racism in Hockey

The most important thing I can share are my thoughts on the radical racial injustices occurring in this country. These injustices are abhorrent and I needed to speak out. My comments will tie into hockey, of course. But, hockey is only a vehicle to illustrate how we need to improve. I hope this makes some of you outraged and encourages you to speak out. I also hope it makes some of you uncomfortable and more willing to listen to your fellow humans that just happen to look different than you. This is a time for all of us to get involved and improve as people. We need to stop the horrific injustice towards black people and other minorities in the US and Canada.

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Blake’s Takes: We Have News!

Sometimes when I wait until Monday to write this it pays off. The NHL released some big news on Monday which gives me something worthwhile to write about out. I’m noticing a trend where the big news is released on Mondays.

That news was that the league announced the logistics for their next phase in their plan to return to hockey. Not only that, but the NHLPA also opted to move forward with the proposed 24-team playoff. It looks like hockey might be coming back. Keep reading to see my thoughts with a few other takes sprinkled in.

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Blake’s Takes: My Thoughts on the NHL’s Proposed Plan of Return

There seems to be a plan in the works for the NHL to return! It’s going to be weird and a lot of people aren’t going to like it, but hockey could be back soon. I’ll give my thoughts on the proposed plan as well as a few other notable hockey announcements from the past week. I’ll also deliver some takes that are strictly derived from being bored on Twitter. Let me know what you think!

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