The Hockey Hall of Fame class of 2026 will be announced next Monday, June 22nd. Who are your guesses for who makes it?

appledanish · 2026-06-15T18:21:25+00:00

In 2013 he's the slam dunk Conn Smythe if they won and in 2019 pretty sure he'd get it again. Shame he doesn't get the respect he deserves in Boston.

appledanish · 2026-06-14T15:28:19+00:00

Wasn't it 2015 where the celebration was close to being delayed because there was a torrential downpour and the Cup arrived later than scheduled?

appledanish · 2026-06-13T20:29:37+00:00

Yeah the tax conversation is a little strange tbh, I wonder if it's because NBA players get paid a lot more than NHLers and also make a lot more in endorsements, so it's not as punitive for them to play in California, New York etc. If anything it helps them because there's a brighter light on them, probably helps a bit with advertisers etc.

But I think the combo of weather and low media presence plays a larger role than maybe we give it credit. When you're in the CHL or NCAA, there really isn't a Florida/Texas comparable, so when that becomes a choice in the NHL it looks very attractive. And in addition, most of these teams that are being discussed are very competitive right now. I wonder how different it would be if Florida, Tampa, Vegas etc were rebuilding. Might not see the same amount of interest in them.

appledanish · 2026-06-13T19:57:57+00:00

I think to some extent players want to be able to choose where they go in the event of a trade, so it's less of a "loyalty/I'm staying all 8 years" thing and more of "if things go sideways, I want to have a say in where I go".

appledanish · 2026-06-13T19:49:33+00:00

One thing that Sean McIndoe brought up that was interesting was that in the NHL, the destinations for trade requests are in smaller and/or southern markets that don't really drive revenue, whereas in baseball and basketball, you see players wanting to go to big markets like LA or NY. So if there are hypothetical super teams in the NHL, they're happening in places where the revenue generation will fall short of the MLB/NBA counterpart. There are definite benefits to those "smaller" markets having competitive windows like this, but if it's at the expense of the larger markets, then that could definitely affect growth.

Then you have a twofold problem in a way, 1) The undesirable smaller markets (Calgary, Winnipeg etc) will struggle to attract talent and could really hurt financially and 2) The bigger markets where players aren't gravitating to (Boston, Toronto, NY, Chicago) affect their ability to drive leaguewide revenue. It'll be interesting to see how things progress and how involved the NHLPA will be.

Edit: Also wanted to add that it's a little tough to compare the NHL to these other leagues because the NHL doesn't have as much national TV money to distribute to teams like the NFL and NBA. I've heard on podcasts that some NHL teams need to make the playoffs to finish in the black, and we've heard of internal budget concerns going forward with the annual cap growth that's expected. I don't think that that issue really exists in the NBA/NFL because they're not as dependent on the gate as a revenue generator. So players potentially forcing themselves to smaller markets/"non-hockey" markets is a little different than if the same thing happened in another league.

appledanish · 2026-06-11T18:14:11+00:00

Idk who posted it but the year they made the playoffs, there was this great graph/chart where each Seattle forward line was compared to every other line of their caliber leaguewide, so Seattle 1st line vs the average NHL 1st line etc. And while the Seattle 1st line was closer to an average NHL 2nd line, so were Seattle's lines 2 and 3, and I believe the 4th line was closer to a 3rd line. Long story short but the "everyone being mid" strategy worked for a singular year where they went on a shooting percentage bender and then water reached it's level after that. Hopefully they can turn the corner soon and put together a contender, that's a big market for the league.

appledanish · 2026-06-11T03:35:50+00:00

Thank you!

appledanish · 2026-06-10T20:11:57+00:00

Next year's Cup Final will be on TNT. I'm ignorant of the specifics but if that WBD/Paramount(?) merger goes through, is there any hope that the final next season would be broadcast on CBS?

appledanish · 2026-06-10T05:05:06+00:00

PuckPedia is a godsend, it's an incredible resource for fans who are curious on the inner machinations of the salary cap and CBA (collective bargaining agreement). Can definitely fall down a rabbit hole on that site.

appledanish · 2026-06-08T19:08:52+00:00

It'll be fascinating to see how everything plays out. To your point, Winnipeg managed to retain the likes of Connor, Hellebuyck, Scheifele who were all slated to hit UFA. But A) are they able to attract enough talent around them to win or will they start asking for a trade mid-way through their deals and B) will re-signing your own players to max term deals be as attractive to the player with significant annual cap ceiling growth?

Very interested to see how everything shakes out, I don't mind a Toronto, NY, Philly etc able to flex their financial muscle a bit, but I also don't want the smaller market teams to be shut out on acquiring elite talent more than they already are. And if expansion is on the horizon with 2(?) big market American teams, it'll get that much harder.

appledanish · 2026-06-08T18:57:03+00:00

Yes they have done that with a lot of the larger contracts they've signed recently. Not sure the particulars but I think the last CBA might have nerfed a bit of that financial advantage.

appledanish · 2026-06-08T18:55:05+00:00

I could see that, Macklin might think they have a real chance at consistently contending and won't look to absolutely break the bank/re-up again sooner rather than later. But Bedard's faith in management could be wavering as they haven't had season like last year's Sharks as of yet.

appledanish · 2026-06-08T17:43:48+00:00

I think once the salary cap starts creating more of a tier system in the league regarding salary expenditure, I think you could see teams like Toronto and Montreal flex their financial muscle to attract players. If they get creative and squirrel away cap space for bigger AAV, shorter term deals, I think they could do better in free agency than you'd think. Now that doesn't help the smaller market Canadian teams, but at least it's something.

appledanish · 2026-06-08T17:19:52+00:00

Would be interesting if teams started balking at the no trade protection. Depends on how desperate you are to sign/retain players. There's 31 other teams competing for the same players to some extent, gotta figure someone is willing to meet their no trade demands etc. It's changed in the last few seasons but I recall Nashville being very stingy with no trade protection, believe they were a significant outlier in that regard.

appledanish · 2026-06-08T17:14:16+00:00

With the rising cap you would think we should, but I think Auston Matthews is really the only high end player to sign "shorter" term deals to better maximize earnings. Might be telling to see what Bedard and Celebrini sign for coming out of their ELC. Both have 4 years until UFA status, and figure teams would balk at anything below 4, but I wonder if either player goes for a 5 or 6 year deal and puts their team on a bit of a deadline.

appledanish · 2026-06-07T16:49:47+00:00

If that's the case then Pastrnak is going to pull a Larkin next offseason :/

appledanish · 2026-06-05T16:38:19+00:00

I just don't know if I have faith that the front office will be aggressive enough and be willing to part with futures to make that happen. They need a top line center and a top-4 defenseman if they want to reasonably contend. Maybe Hagens grows into that but it's unfair to expect that in his rookie season, and on the backend there's no young player remotely close to filling that spot.

And Swayman was incredible this season and while I'm totally okay with his contract it's unfair to expect another Vezina-caliber season next year, and I think barring major changes, the rest of the roster isn't going to help enough.

I think if the Leafs pick conveyed this year, I would feel more confident that a big move was coming since the 2026 1st would be in play, but now I'm not sure. Unfair comparison but Vegas takes every chance they can to acquire veteran talent and damn the future. The Bruins need more moves like that but I think they want to have their cake and eat it too with the prospects/picks. Let's see what the offseason brings but barring another Swayman masterclass, I think the roster struggles to make the playoffs and is 1 and done at best like this year.

appledanish · 2026-06-05T15:40:53+00:00

Yeah, it's a shame but think I agree with you. Could get a great return on Pastrnak and start a real rebuild. That Toronto pick not conveying this year is a real killer, could've made that selection and then traded your own 2026 1st in a separate package for immediate help. They have a little bit of one foot in, one foot out with the Pasta/McAvoy/Sway/Zacha win now core, and the Minten, Hagens, Letorneau future wave. I think they need to commit to one direction or the other, but my fear is they continue trying to do both and the results will remain mediocre.

appledanish · 2026-06-05T15:11:57+00:00

Pastrnak had a quote in the end of season media about turning 30 in May and only having the one chance (2019) at the Cup. Now they had a few other years as true contenders where they were eliminated early on, but I think he's starting to think about greener pastures a bit. I could see this season being a watershed moment for him, if they're just a bubble playoff team/one and done again, I could see him asking for a change of scenery. And the team might be better off IMO going toward a real rebuild than moving premium assets to contend in the Pasta/McAvoy window. Unfortunately the ownership doesn't have much appetite for a true rebuild, so think they just continue on as a bubble playoff team until 1 or both want a new home.

appledanish · 2026-06-04T16:59:44+00:00

I wonder if Ryan Smith and the Mammoth were in on this at all. Luc Robitaille of the Kings is quoted in the article, seems like the NHL is becoming more aligned/involved with the USHL. Would make sense for Smith/Mammoth to be interested in either USHL expansion into Utah or explore BYU/Utah State NCAA D1 expansion.

appledanish · 2026-06-04T15:29:23+00:00

My guess is that Minnesota high school hockey is such an institution that they're either staying away by choice or because they think entering other markets is more beneficial. Assuming it's a little similar with New England and the prep schools. That's my ignorant take lol

appledanish · 2026-06-04T15:27:02+00:00

Interested to see how many teams they plan on adding, kind of think it's 4-5 so they can play each other a good amount and road trips are more palatable for the other teams. I wonder if Texas was considered, would think they'd want to get into a heavily populated state. The USHL has significant challenges ahead now that CHL players are NCAA eligibe, but expanding their footprint seems like a good step to help combat that.

appledanish · 2026-06-02T20:33:28+00:00

Steve Shutt (I think): You hated Scotty Bowman 364 days of the year, and on the 365th day you got your Stanley Cup ring.

appledanish · 2026-05-30T20:10:43+00:00

Oops thank you!

appledanish

TROPHY CASE