Hockey cards, collectibles and culture
How many synonyms can I use for the word extension? You will have to keep reading to find out because this edition of Blake’s Takes is all about extensions. Mitch Marner finally signed an extension. Many of the other big-name RFAs followed suit, making last week one of the most memorable weeks of the summer in the hockey world.
Continue reading “Blake’s Takes: The Marner Bomb Drop and Other Extensions”
NHL GMs were busy this week dishing out a ton of money in extensions. I’ll look into four of the most impactful deals and why one of them could open the floodgates for the many unsigned RFAs.
The offseason has been slow, but with so many RFAs unsigned, that should change soon. For now, there were a few interesting things to happen in hockey this week, most notably the NHL’s decision to not opt-out of the current collective bargaining agreement. Also, potentially-huge extension and another big jersey announcement.
I love one day contracts, AND HERE’S WHY!
Continue reading “Counter-Point: Why 1-Day NHL Contracts Are Great!”
Yesterday, the Carolina Hurricanes announced that they signed goaltender Cam Ward to a one-day contract so that he can retire as a member of the Hurricanes. I’ve always been irritated when teams do this; it’s trite and stinks of an NHL club wanting a photo op — and maybe to smooth things out a bit with jilted fans. It is time for the NHL to put an end to the one-day contracts.
The NHL needs to take a page out of the NBA’s playbook and create some buzz during the offseason. There is no one talking about the NHL. Other than a few small signings, roster movement is dead. Thankfully, there were a few headlines that people were talking about this week. You can look forward to a personal story, a new alternate jersey, and a surprisingly long take about a player’s need for a dictionary. Enjoy!
This week, I had to scratch and claw to find five things worth writing about, but I did it. I could never disappointment my fans. This week, the Hurricanes dominated the news cycle after they re-signed GM Don Waddell, and after Waddell announced that captain, Justin Williams, is still mulling retirement. There were a few other diamonds in the rough like a big jersey retirement and a trophy malfunction.
The past week in the NHL was relatively quiet, but there were a few stories that provided a bit of excitement. This week, I’ll examine one of the biggest extensions in league history for a goalie and multiple low risk, high reward signings that could impact the playoff race. I’ll also preview two more teams for the upcoming season.
With free agency having settled, hockey news has slowed down over recent weeks. So, I decided this week would be the perfect time to start my season previews. Each week, I’ll choose a few teams to feature and assess what we can expect from them this year. This week features the Sabres, Penguins, and Kings. I also take a look at one of the more-surprising extensions signed last week.
Continue reading “Blake’s Takes: A Look Ahead to Next Season”
There were so many moves made this offseason that I had to comment on some of the signings from the beginning of July. I also look into the new contracts of Jordan Binnington of Kevin LeBanc, and the big trade between Colorado and Toronto.