I think this is the first time I've ever seen a double fine. And fair enough on the attack on Matthew Tkachuk. A.J. Greer just went after a guy trying to get away from him so that's different. Not better, you understand, just different.

Walman fined $10,000 for actions in Stanley Cup Final Game 3 | NHL.com
Oilers defenseman penalized for roughing Panthers forward Tkachuk, unsportsmanlike conduct
NHL logoNHL Public Relations

And I'm agreeing with this choice too.

Hutson joins elite group as Calder Trophy winner with Canadiens | NHL.com
Defenseman becomes 7th in franchise history to be named NHL’s top rookie; 3 are in Hall of Fame
NHL logoDave Stubbs

Much as it pains me to say it. Hutson played a full season, regular rostered position and made a legitimate impact on a team where he sure wasn't carried by anyone.

Also, this is really good, and will tell you which teams brought out the blooper reels for the prospects to break down.

Overheard at the NHL draft combine: Draft wild cards, surprises ... and the X factor team
The first round is shaping up to be quite unpredictable. Here’s the latest buzz from NHL execs.
ESPNKristen Shilton

More draft reading:

And trade speculation will not wait for the playoffs to end:

Countdown to Free Agent Frenzy: Max Pacioretty eyeing return to Toronto Maple Leafs? | TSN
Larry Brooks of the New York Post writes that it “seems inevitable” that the New York Rangers will trade restricted free agent K’Andre Miller this month.
TSNTSN.ca Staff

(TSN now does reports of other people's reports.)

Yahoo just uses AI, which as we know is totally reliable:

Speaking of the shallow Montréal defence corps...

NHL Rumour Roundup: Canadiens looking for forward to pair with Demidov
The Montreal Canadiens made positive strides this past season after reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2021 but now the team is looking for ways to improve.
Sportsnet.caSportsnet Staff

Look, let's just all accept this. Nazem Kadri is not waiving his NMC to come to Toronto. He's not coming back.

J.G. Pageau is an interesting idea for a 3C, that you put with Scott Laughton as the other depth centre and make an even more Lego block bottom six with. Pull some pressure off line two. Asset-poor Toronto is not taking a big swing to add a centre. Not unless a really cheap pair of wingers lands in their laps.

Viewership for Cup Final rematch remains low in U.S.
Viewership for the Panthers-Oilers Stanley Cup Final rematch continues to rank on the low side in the United States.
Sports Media WatchJon Lewis

Actual summary: Relative to TNT games in the past, it's fine except for the brawl game no one watched. Shockingly, there were lower ratings than on cable TV last year. Who could have ever foreseen this?

The NHL has a problem with cable TV. NBC wants to broadcast Olympics in prime time like it's 1985 and there's no internet, so the Winter Games makes NBC actually airing an NHL season difficult every four years. That's one way ABC/TNT/HULU/XYZ/Disney+ outbid them. The other way is that regional rights are a whole pile of extra deals, some of which are very lucrative while others are just the team streaming games for free, so the national rights holder doesn't actually have to fork over for every Rangers game, for example or lose money putting the Kraken on TV ever. The price for not-NBC is every-other-year playoffs on TNT.

Broadcast television in Canada is just different. Which is why the Rogers package with shared rights to CBC/Prime/TSN/JKL/Sportsnet+/+/- and whoever else works so well. It's very easy to sell regional and national rights to one consortium with the sharing all sorted out off the drop. And I know everyone hates paying for TV, but you can subscribe the SN and TSN on Prime and get it all in one place. For a lot of money! Yes! Wouldn't it be nice if you lived in Seattle and the games were all free?

Have a great day, everyone. Fantasy trade for unreasonably high-end players with Max Domi and a second.

From The Branches