It's almost here! That one day of the year when you get a brand-new top-round prospect to make the centre of a whole new set of stories. If the Leafs don't trade the pick, that is.
Brad Treliving says it’s “more than likely” the Maple Leafs keep and make their first round pick.
— Joshua Kloke (@joshuakloke) June 26, 2024
Today is an extremely busy day. Usually a lot of trades are finalized on the day before the draft because all the GMs are in the same place. They have a lot of other business to do as well.
The buyout window is open, so to buy out a player who does not have an NMC, teams have to put them on waivers. Waivers are at noon in the offseason, so watch out for that.
The NHL Awards are on tonight, and I will confess (again) that I'm just not into these things. If you are, you can find the show on ESPN, ESPN+ and Sportsnet.
There will be people there. Hosts. Music acts. Presenters. You name it! I used to have to write these stories, now I just link to them:


It's likely good I don't know who those people are, but did this Loud Luxury band discover Conspicuous Consumption was already taken?
In other news, the NHL made the Board of Governors meet in New York yesterday while all the GMs got to be having fun in Vegas. The BoG made some new rules:

Rule 38.2 (Situations Subject to Coach’s Challenge)
A coach’s challenge now will be permitted to take down a penalty for puck out of play. This only will apply to delay of game penalties when the puck is determined to have deflected off a player, stick, glass or boards, and not on a judgment call on how the puck left the defensive zone (e.g., batted pucks or if the puck was shot out from the defensive zone). In the event of a failed challenge, another two-minute minor penalty will be assessed (in addition to the existing delay of game penalty).
Rule 63.8 (Line Change Following Dislodged Net)
There will be an adjustment to Rule 63.8 so that the defensive team cannot make a line change in the event its goaltender accidentally dislodges the net (old language applied just to skater).
Rule 76.4 (Face-Off Procedure – Centers)
Following an icing, the offensive center also now will receive one warning (same as the defensive player) for a face-off violation.
Rule 75.3 (Unsportsmanlike Conduct – Player Sitting on Boards)
The referee now will provide the offending team (coach and players) with one warning regarding players sitting on the boards (and will so advise the other team). After one warning in a game, the team precipitating the warning will be issued a bench minor penalty for future violations.
PWHL free agency continues, and this post has the continually updated list:
Some draft and UFA news:
Brad Treliving on how he manages all of the Mitch Marner rumours: "I'd caution us to not pay too much attention to some of the noise. We can't react to all of the noise. ... Mitch knows how I feel about him as a player."
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) June 26, 2024
🔥 The stage is set for the #Flames at the 2024 NHL Draft!@NHLAdamK joined @Fan960Steinberg and @AAVickers on Flames Talk to dive into all things draft related!
— Sportsnet 960 (@Sportsnet960) June 26, 2024
LISTEN: https://t.co/Awqu21oiOE pic.twitter.com/kHO4WydlnX
Wow, really!
Top NHL free agent forwards: Guentzel, Stamkos likely available:https://t.co/u2utrsZLxz
— David Satriano (@davidsatriano) June 26, 2024
Barring a significant last minute offer from Carolina, Teuvo Teravainen is heading to market July 1.
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) June 26, 2024
From the #TSNHockey Insiders in Las Vegas - The latest on Leon Draisaitl, Mitch Marner and Steven Stamkos as the NHL’s off-season kicks into high gear ahead of the #NHLDraft: https://t.co/E4vg8xhju4 pic.twitter.com/HBbwaqSckG
— TSN Hockey (@TSNHockey) June 26, 2024
News on Draisaitl: We'll see how things progress through the summer.
News on Marner: There's ongoing dialogue between Marner and the Leafs. Brad Treliving is focused on defence ... no that's not really news.
News on Stamkos: Status quo is the official update. (LeBrun does say that Nashville and some other teams have serious interest. And CJ does repeat the story that Detroit freed up money for a big move, so maybe it's Stamkos.)
News on Carolina: Lots of teams would like Martin Necas, and someone with a first-round pick might be the front-runner. LeBrun speculates it might be Buffalo, and Tulsky told LeBrun he is still trying to sign Jake Guentzel.
There's some conversation between the NHL and the NHLPA on how to handle the QOs of the players charged with sexual assault. Final answer will come soon.
Ilya Mikheyev hasn’t formally agreed to waive his no-trade clause yet to go to #Blackhawks, but provided he does, teams have agreement in place on a trade:
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) June 27, 2024
To #Blackhawks: Ilya Mikheyev, 2nd Rd Pick, pending UFA Sam Lafferty
To #Canucks: 4th Rd Pick@DailyFaceoff
Nobody comes to Chicago to get a tan. Ilya Mikheyev is #Blackhawks bound. #WeAreGoldStar!
— Dan Milstein (@HockeyAgent1) June 27, 2024
In other news, if you missed it last evening, Sergei Berezin has died:
We are incredibly saddened to learn of the sudden passing of Sergei Berezin.
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) June 26, 2024
Sergei was drafted by Toronto in 1994 and spent five seasons with the Leafs. He ranks 32nd all-time in playoff scoring.
Our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/al0y6S6VXm
I know there's men his age reading here and this can be hard to read about. We don't know his cause of death, only that it's a tragedy for his family. If you need help navigating what can be a very difficult time for men, reach out. I promise you there are people who understand.
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