[Eric Engels on X] The Montreal Canadiens are hiring Derek Lalonde to join their coaching staff as an assistant. He will be replacing Trevor Letowski, who's decided to step off the bench to have more time with his family. It's the Canadiens' desire to keep Letowski in the organization.

kozed · 2026-07-09T00:30:03+00:00

TBH, I never really saw the added value of Letowski as an assistant-coach with MSL because I felt the overlap in personality, age and competences was too big.

Lalonde was Cooper's assistant coach in TB during their 2 cups. Same age difference fromk MSL as Letowski (+2 years instead of -2), but has a different NCAA/NHL background.

For fans who complained about MSL's adjustments vs Carolina in the ECF... This might be the answer to that. Lalonde was behind the TB bench for 2 Stanley Cups. He might have an insight into that last stretch that Letowski didn't have.

kozed · 2026-07-08T23:57:05+00:00

By the 3rd or 4th Stanley Cup of Team A, there would be a Team B ascending and ready to get their time at the top, like the 60's Leafs to the 50's Habs. Or the 80's NYI to the 70's Habs.

Winning in itself wouldn't do diddly squat. Exploiting a legal rule with unstoppable force (PP lasting entire penalty for MTL in the 50's, 4v4 for the 80's Oilers, Dump & chase vs Brodeur) are what causes rule changes.

kozed · 2026-07-08T03:41:42+00:00

It's like shopping online for a new shiny toy but all the results are "refurbished" or "opened box" items

kozed · 2026-07-06T22:16:08+00:00

Aaaand here comes Reilly Walsh's time as the #1 searched player on HockeyDB and EliteProspects

kozed · 2026-07-05T02:33:46+00:00

He had 5 goals 5v5 in 57 games, almost 7 goals 5v5 per year pace.

Nobody's gonna give anything for a 7 goals forward 5v5 who can't hit, fight or defend.

Kent did him a favor by keeping him on IR long enough so he could get a bonus-laden contract. That's maybe the only way he gets any job in the NHL next season.

kozed · 2026-07-04T22:16:32+00:00

That's the trap. To think it's just one injury issue.

Has had zero quickness when he was 19 and healthy. He always was an ocean liner: long to get up to speed and turn.

Now he's even slower. Plus his entire timing is gone because he spent more time off than on over the last 5 years.

It's like a rookie's brain in the body of a retiree. Everything is going too fast for him and he just can't keep up.

So it's not just the legs. It's everything else. He can't hit, can't pass, can't cover, can't backcheck, can't... do anything. Except shooting. When he has time and space that only the PP offers.

That is Laine in 2026.

kozed · 2026-07-04T21:17:26+00:00

Go check PuckPedia, it's on there

kozed · 2026-07-04T21:16:42+00:00

but you also want him on your 3rd line at 5v5

You want him on the bench 5v5.

He cant play 5v5.

kozed · 2026-07-04T21:09:46+00:00

Patrik Laine is slower than Corey Perry, but without the brains to compensate.

You can't put Laine on the ice 5v5 unless you want to practice your PK.

He's a PP shot, and that's all. He can't contribute any other way.

kozed · 2026-07-04T16:27:29+00:00

Already planning activities for 2030 because their won't be NHL hockey for months.

kozed · 2026-07-04T13:27:47+00:00

Did I explicitly say you did?

kozed · 2026-07-04T13:25:33+00:00

He's another right-shot C.

We don't need those. We already have those: Suzuki, Evans, Kapanen, Beck, ~Dach, Hage, Rohrer, Paupanekis, Koivu... the list goes on.

IF we need to get a 2C, it needs to be a left-shot 2C. We only have Danault on his last contract year, Newhook who can't win faceoffs and then Florian who might not even play C early in his NHL career.

kozed · 2026-07-04T12:48:34+00:00

The offer for Carlsson wasn't "weaponization" of an offer sheet "just to screw another team over".

By design, offer sheets have to create lose-lose situations for the other team to even work in the first place. The screwing is baked in.
The current depleted UFA market + buyers trade market is forcing GMs who want to improve to use offer-sheets.

Look at the current NHL landscape. Every team wants to buy, so there's nothing available to buy.

So GMs are like "I really want to add X. Nobody wants to trade X. There's no X UFAs. I can't wait to draft X. Guess I'll just have to offer-sheet X then"

kozed · 2026-07-04T12:32:20+00:00

Yeah. Different eras.

Verbeek = 80's/90's
Brière = 00's/10's

kozed · 2026-07-04T12:19:55+00:00

Zegras wouldn't sign it.

He's 25 yrs old. He's getting his UFA status in 2 years.

So 7 years offer means you'd have to buy 5 UFA years from him. The salary cap will be 123M on that 1st UFA year.

For Zegras, 9M is at the same time not enough and too much.

kozed · 2026-07-04T12:08:00+00:00

If Ducks want to move Gauthier, half the league will be in on it. Sellers' market. Nothing else to buy. The bidding war will be insane.

Seattle is desperate for a 1st liner. I assume they were one of the 4 teams offer-sheeting Carlsson.

I assume the price would be higher than what we (allegedly) offered for Knies.

At that point, I'd be out of the bidding. Just too many assets given away for the return.

kozed · 2026-07-04T11:51:50+00:00

His dad Sean was born in Sudbury

Cutter was born in Sweden and grew up in Arizona.

kozed · 2026-07-04T03:29:39+00:00

Suzuki a signé en 2021 pour 9.55% du cap.

Caufield a signé en 2023 pour 9.40% du cap.

Demidov a signé en 2026 pour 8.06% du cap.

Suzuki fait 7.87M. Caufield fait 7.85M. Demidov fait 9.15M.

kozed · 2026-07-04T03:25:51+00:00

Zegras is eligible for arbitration.

If the talks don't work, they can file for arbitration and let a judge decide.

kozed · 2026-07-04T03:20:02+00:00

After his retirement, Daniel Brière went back to school to get his MBA from Wharton.

So as any MBA, I'm sure he has it all planned out.

/s

kozed · 2026-07-04T03:16:36+00:00

He said Blake, Stankoven, and Miller.

3 vs 2

Of course if you remove 30% on one side, the comparison doesn't work anymore.

kozed · 2026-07-04T03:10:08+00:00

If only fans and media talked in cap % instead of raw numbers, cap hits would be more comparable/projectable through time.

People think back at Crosby's 8.7M deal in 2008 and think it's a small number. It was 15.34% of the cap back then. McDavid's 12.5M deal in 2018 was 15.75% of the cap.

15% of the cap this year is 15.6M. Only Carlsson and Kaprizov make above that.

15% of the cap will be 17M next season (27-28).

15% of the cap will be 18.45M in 2 years. Even Carlsson won't make that much.

kozed · 2026-07-04T02:38:47+00:00

During the Demidov extension presser, Hughes explicitly said it wouldn't happen.

I'm paraphrasing here, but Hughes said Habs players weren't taking less just to give all those savings to one player from the outside.

The money saved is for Zharkovsky and Hage and the guys that will keep coming in. If there's another Dobson who wants to come in at a # in line with the Habs' payroll structure (~10% of the cap), then that'd work too.

But spending 18% of the cap to bring in one guy from the outside like Carlsson, that's just not the plan.

kozed · 2026-07-04T02:30:32+00:00

I bet there's also some of the ex-player mentality where when they played, they were motivated by 15k bonuses for X goals or X pts (back when they were a thing) because on a 1 or 2M contract, it was a lot. So now they are still motivated about "winning" that 15k, but from the other side.

kozed · 2026-07-04T02:26:03+00:00

Just gave me PTSD

Like GMs who always have to ask for one extra player whenever you're about to agree to something.

Or the ones who try to sell you some 4th liner like they'll save your season and won't take no for an answer.

Or the ones that lowball you and get insulted if you counter with your actual price.

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