The NHL postseason is upon us unless you’re the New Jersey Devils or Chicago Blackhawks. What went wrong with this pair?
With less than two weeks remaining in the NHL regular season and with the postseason just around the corner, most of the Stanley Cup playoff spots have been clinched. The race in the Eastern Conference has pretty much been over since the All-Star break, while the final spots in the Western Conference may come down to the last few games.
With most of the teams that are mathematically eliminated playing out the string, it is a good time to see exactly why they ended up on the outside looking in. We will start one club that is still assembling the pieces to be a contender and a former championship organization likely heading for a rebuild.
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Ep 59: Stanley Cup Final Preview; Game 1 Thoughts
by Full Press Coverage on June 4, 2023 at 1:43 am
Jim and Chris give their thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between Vegas […]
New Jersey Devils
What went wrong?
After signing Corey Crawford to be a tandem partner for MacKenzie Blackwood and the Cup-winning goalie retiring just prior to the season two years ago, Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald brought in veteran Jonathan Bernier to share the workload, but injuries have killed New Jersey between the pipes. Bernier played only 10 games before undergoing season-ending hip surgery, Blackwood missed half the season with a heel injury, and the Devils have used the most goaltender (7) of any club this year, which was a big factor in their being in the bottom five in goals allowed.
Injuries also had an impact on New Jersey‘s core group, as Jack Hughes missed a month with a dislocated shoulder, free agent signing Dougie Hamilton missed nearly two months with a broken jaw, and Miles Wood missed all but three games with a hip injury.
What went right?
Any doubt of whether Hughes is a #1 center was pretty much erased, as the 20-year-old scored 26 goals and averaged over a point-per-game in 56 games. Coupled with the developing Nico Hischier, the Devils appear to have a strong one-two punch up the middle. Dawson Mercer jumped right from the QMJHL to the NHL as a 19-year-old, and wingers Jesper Bratt, Yegor Sharangovich, and blueliner Damon Severson had career offensive years.
What will they do?
Fitzgerald has some difficult choices over the summer. With Bratt looking for a significant pay raise after leading the team in scoring, the Devils may not be able to afford re-signing former first-rounder Pavel Zacha. The decision that will most impact New Jersey is whether Blackwood is their present and future in goal. The Devils have to decide if the 25-year-old can bounce back, or they will be in the market for a starting goalie. The future of head coach Lindy Ruff may also be in question after a second straight sub-.500 campaign.
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Chicago Blackhawks
What went wrong?
Off the ice, the fallout from the Kyle Beach scandal resulted in the dismissal of Hawks general manager Stan Bowman and put a much-deserved pall over an organization that won three Stanley Cups over the last dozen years.
On the ice, Chicago’s attempt to quickly reload around veterans Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane was a dismal failure, as the additions of Seth Jones, Marc-Andre Fleury, Tyler Johnson, and Jake McCabe failed to provide a significant upgrade and return the Hawks to playoff contention.
What went right?
The recognition by new GM Kyle Davidson that the Hawks have to pursue a rebuild began before the trade deadline, as they moved young forward Brandon Hagel to Tampa Bay for young forwards Taylor Raddysh, Boris Katchouk, and a pair of first-round picks, and Fleury to Minnesota for a conditional second-rounder.
Kane at 33 years old continues to be one of the league’s best forwards and Alex Debrincat reached the 40-goal plateau for the second time.
What will they do?
It would seem that any serious rebuild would begin with moving out Kane and Toews with a year left on their contracts, but both of them have some control over the situation with their possessing no-movement clauses. If Davidson chooses to strip it down to the bare wood a la Arizona, it is possible that the Hawks shop DeBrincat with a year left on his deal. Chicago does not have an NHL goalie under contract for next season and there has even been chatter that they might explore moving Jones before his eight-year, $76 million extension kicks in.
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Ep 59: Stanley Cup Final Preview; Game 1 Thoughts
by Full Press Coverage on June 4, 2023 at 1:43 am
Jim and Chris give their thoughts on the Stanley Cup Final between Vegas […]
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Ep 58: Stanley Cup Finals Set, Changes In Toronto, And More
by Full Press Coverage on May 31, 2023 at 11:12 pm
Jim and Chris give their early thoughts of the Stanley Cup Finals between […]
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2023 Stanley Cup Final Talk - Vegas Golden Knights with Willie G. Ramirez
by Full Press Coverage on June 5, 2023 at 12:39 am
Jim Biringer speaks with Willie G. Ramirez of ESPN Las Vegas, The Sporting […]
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Florida Panthers Stanley Cup Final Talk With Bill Lindsay
by Full Press Coverage on June 3, 2023 at 2:34 am
Jim Biringer is back once again as he is joined by former NHLer, current […]
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Ep 83: Stanley Cup Playoffs Are Here; Can Bruins Keep Up Pace?
by Full Press Coverage on April 17, 2023 at 4:06 pm
Ian and Chris are back to give their thoughts on the Stanley Cup Playoffs, […]
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Ep 82: Bruins Set Wins Record, Pasta Hits 60, Playoffs Around The Corner
by Full Press Coverage on April 10, 2023 at 2:27 pm
Ian and Chris react to the Bruins 63rd win of the season, David Pastrnak's […]
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The Hockey World Revolves Around Toronto
by Jim Biringer on May 23, 2023 at 12:00 pm
Jim is back for a fourth season of the Final Word on Hockey as he is […]
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S4Ep28 - Stanley Cup Playoffs - Conference Final Preview
by Jim Biringer on May 16, 2023 at 7:28 pm
Jim is back for the fourth season of the Final Word on Hockey previewing […]
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Panthers at Golden Knights
by Broken Controller Media on June 3, 2023 at 4:00 pm
Stack the Pucks gives a breakdown of every NHL Game on the card. For more […]
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Golden Knights at Stars
by Broken Controller Media on May 29, 2023 at 4:20 pm
Stack the Pucks gives a breakdown of every NHL Game on the card. For more […]
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Stars at Golden Knights
by Broken Controller Media on May 27, 2023 at 4:05 pm
Stack the Pucks gives a breakdown of every NHL Game on the card. For more […]
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Golden Knights at Stars
by Broken Controller Media on May 25, 2023 at 12:35 pm
Stack the Pucks gives a breakdown of every NHL Game on the card. For more […]
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Episode #141: Tend The Goal
by Full Press Coverage on May 25, 2023 at 2:24 pm
The 2023 AHL Calder Cup Playoffs have reached its final four teams, and […]
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Episode #140: Stone Cold's 4th Line
by Full Press Coverage on May 23, 2023 at 1:41 pm
And then, there were four. The 2023 AHL Division Finals have concluded, […]
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Kraken extend their GM, Captains and AHL update Learn more about your ad […]
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Renegades Of Puck Ep 769
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Ep 769 The Renegades Of Puck Recap Game 5 Preview Game 6 Milwaukee […]
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Renegades Of Puck Ep 768
by Charlie Saunier on June 2, 2023 at 9:19 am
Ep 768 The Renegades Of Puck Recap Game 4 Preview Game 5 Milwaukee […]
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Full Press Kraken - Thursday, June 1st
by Full Press Coverage on June 1, 2023 at 2:00 pm
Kraken have offseason work to do, AHL Playoff update. Learn more about […]
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Full Press Blackhawks - Thursday, June 1st
by Full Press Coverage on June 1, 2023 at 12:15 pm
What could the Blackhawks do to trade up in the 2023 NHL Draft? Who on the […]
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Full Press Blackhawks - Tuesday, May 30th
by Full Press Coverage on May 30, 2023 at 2:30 pm
Does picking Connor Bedard speed up the Blackhawks’ rebuild and few […]
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6/5 - Heat Take Game 2; Golden Knights; Aaron Rodgers/Jordan Love
by Full Press Coverage on June 5, 2023 at 2:28 pm
Ian and John discuss the Heat's win over the Nuggets, the Golden Knights […]
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6/2 - Nuggets Take Game 1, Barry Bonds, Stanley Cup Chat w/ Jim Biringer
by Full Press Coverage on June 2, 2023 at 2:03 pm
Ian and John discuss the Nuggets Game 1 win over the Heat, the upcoming […]
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6/1 - NBA Finals Preview, Aaron Rodgers, and More
by Full Press Coverage on June 1, 2023 at 1:53 pm
Ian and John discuss Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Nuggets and Heat […]
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5/30 - Heat Dominate Celtics; Vegas Advances; Jimmy G
by Full Press Coverage on May 30, 2023 at 3:35 pm
Ian and John discuss the Celtics disappointing Game 7 performance against […]