Tag: NHL

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro: Robinson traded to Buffalo from Columbus; Toronto’s Klingberg hip surgery out for season; plus more NHL news

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Eric Robinson forward was traded from the Columbus Blue Jackets to the Buffalo Sabres for a 2025 seventh round draft pick Wed Dec 6, 2023. Here is Robinson skating against the Ottawa Senators on Sun Apr 2, 2023. (AP News photo)

On the NHL podcast with Len:

#1 Forward Eric Robinson was acquired by the Buffalo Sabres from the Columbus Blue Jackets Wednesday. The Blue Jackets in turn received a seventh round 2025 draft pick from the Sabres in the exchange. Robinson has one goal, three assists and seven points this season. Robinson played in 72 games last season for the Blue Jackets.

#2 Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman John Klingberg will be out for the rest of the season due to hip surgery. Klingberg went on long term injured reserve on Nov 23 and will have hip surgery with an expected five to six months recovery time. Klingberg last played on Nov 11th in the Leafs 5-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks.

#3 Former New York Rangers and current Detroit Red Wing Patrick Kane will see action against the San Jose Sharks at 4:00pm PT tonight at Little Caesar’s Pizza Arena in Detroit. Kane had been out since Jun 1 after having resurfacing surgery. This will be Kane’s first game as a Red Wing his last game was with the Rangers in game 7 of the 2023 Eastern Conference first round on May 1st.

#4 The NHL has announced that they will be the first sports league to hold an event at the Sphere in Las Vegas. The 2024 NHL Draft will be held at the Sphere on Jun 28 and 29. The Sphere holds 18,600 in the globe changing like arena. It’s know for it’s LED displays and state of the art video displays on it’s globe like surface.

#5 The NHL announced this week that it will be growing it’s salary cap from $83.5 million to $87.7 million an increase of $4.2 million. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman who is expected to address the media on the subject will give a fuller picture of the projections. One of the key reasons for the raise is the league has gained profit revenue to the tune of $3.3 billion.

Join Len Shapiro for the NHL podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Win 6-5 in OT Barnburner Against Red Wings

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MacKenzie Blackwood (29) is replaced in the second period by Kaapo Kahkonen (36) against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Cesars Pizza Arena in Detroit on Thu Dec 7, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated Detroit Red Wings 6-5 in overtime Thursday. Sharks got goals from Fabian Zetterlund and Mikael Granlund, and Nico Sturm and Tomas Hertl each scored twice. Mackenzie Blackwood made 16 saves on 20 shots before being replaced by Kaapo Kahkonen, who made 10 saves for the win. Detroit got goals from Klim Kostin, Lucas Raymond, and Dylan Larkin, and Michael Rasmussen scored twice. Ville Husso made 30 save in the loss.

“When we got our first goal, we knew we were going to come back. That’s a great feeling to have. We just played hockey, we played a really good game today,” said Fabian Zetterlund after the game. Sharks Head Coach David Quinn described the ups and downs of the game:

“I didn’t feel like we were playing like we should be down four-nothing. But, you know, a couple goals, quick hitters from the point by them. It was real disappointing, Then, obviously just to turn it on, to score two huge short-handed goals and really a third, when you think about it, the one when Vlasic comes out of the box and makes a hell of a pass.”

At the end of the first period, the game was scoreless but the shots were 14-7 Sharks. But it was Detroit that scored first, midway through the second period. Chasing down the puck as it drifted towards the net right off the face-off, Klim Kostin fought through Mario Ferraro to tap the puck under Mackenzie Blackwood’s pad. That was Detroit’s 11th shot of the game.

A few minutes later, Michael Rasmussen went on a tear. First, he tipped one in off a blue line shot from Daniel Sprong. Seconds later, he tipped one in from a similar shot from Ben Chiarot. Andrew Copp got a secondary assist on that one.

Lucas Raymond scored another for Detroit with a wrist shot, making it three goals in 49 seconds of playing time. Assists went to Ben Chiarot and Robby Fabbri.

The Sharks pulled Blackwood after that and put Kaapo Kahkonen in goal.

Tomas Hertl stopped the bleeding for the Sharks with a short handed goal at 14:08. He carried the puck through the neutral zone and in, then faked a pass and shot the puck under the goaltender. Assists went to William Eklund and Jan Rutta. That was the first short-handed goal of the season for the Sharks.

Fabian Zetterlund decided to try one of those too, and made it 4-2 with a second short-handed goal during the same penalty kill. It was Zetterlund’s first career short-handed goal. Assists went to Jan Rutta and Mikael Granlund.

Marc-Edouard Vlasic exited the penalty box where he had watched his team score twice. Soon enough, he assisted on Nico Sturm’s goal to make it 4-3. Kyle Burroughs got a secondary assist.

Sturm finished the comeback with a second goal, tying the game at 19:37. Assists went to Justin Bailey and Kevin Labanc.

At the end of the second, the shot count was 23-22 Detroit.

Dylan Larkin broke the tie at 13:20 of the third period. The Red Wings outnumbered the Sharks skating into the zone and after a few passes to mix things up, Larkin snapped the puck past Kahkonen. Assists went to Raymond and Fabbri.

With almost three minutes left in regulation, the Sharks pulled Kahkonen for an extra skater. It paid off, despite some close calls with Detroit circling the empty net. Finally, with 1:29 left, Tomas Hertl scored in a scramble at the side of the Detroit net. Granlund shot the puck into the backboards and it rebounded perfectly to Hertl for the shot. Assists went to Granlund and Alexander Barabanov.

Mikael Granlund scored the game winner 35 seconds into overtime. Zetterlund broke away after Larkin fell in the neutral zone, then made the pass to Granlund for a snap shot.

Neither team scored a power play goal, but each team had two opportunities. The final shot count was 36-31 Sharks. In the face-off circle, the Sharks won just 39.1% of the draws.

The Sharks next play on Sunday in Las Vegas against the Golden Knights at 7:00 PM PT.

Headline Sports podcast with Jessica Kwong: Three brothers play same game; Flames Markstrom is week to week; plus more NHL news

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Vancouver Canucks Dakota Joshua (81) gets the knock down by the New Jersey Devils Luke Hughes (43) during the second period at the Rogers Centre in Vancouver on Tue Dec 5, 2023 (AP News photo)

On Headline Sports podcast with Jessica:

#1 It wasn’t the movie Slap Shot as the combination of three brothers played in the same game on Tuesday night in Vancouver. The New Jersey Devils Jack Hughes had a goal and two assists and Jack’s younger brother Luke Hughes scored a power play goal against the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks Quinn Hughes had two assists in the third period. The Devils wound up edging the Canucks 6-5 at Rogers Centre.

#2 Calgary Flames goaltender Jacob Markstrom is listed week to week after sustaining a fractured finger during practice on Monday. The Flames called up goaltender Dustin Wolf from their AHL affiliate. Markstrom 33, is 6-8-2 with 2.94 goals against.

#3 Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar did not play against the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night. Makar is listed out with a lower body injury. Makar skated in practice on Tuesday. Makar did not play against the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday in the 4-1 loss.

#4 The Ottawa Senators Brady Tkachuk and Vladmir Tarasenko each had a goal against the first place New York Rangers (10-2-1) on Tuesday night. Anton Forsberg stopped 33 shots for the Sens and Claude Giroux and Drake Batherson scored for Senators (10-10-0).

#5 Jessica, in a game you covered the San Jose Sharks came back and defeated the New York Islanders on William Eklund’s overtime goal with five seconds left to defeat the Isles 5-4 on Tuesday night.

Jessica Kwong does Headline Sports Wednesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks bounce back from three goal deficit defeat Isles in OT 5-4; SJ’s Eklund delivers winning goal

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San Jose Sharks center William Eklund (center) scores the winning goal in overtime against the New York Islanders goalie IIya Soronkin at the UBS Arena in Elmont NY on Tue Dec 5, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jessica Kwong

ELMONT, N.Y. — The San Jose Sharks got their biggest victory of the season with a 5-4 win in overtime against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on Tuesday night.

San Jose trailed 4-1 at 8:27 in the final period, but rallied and overcame a three-goal deficit for the third time in franchise history.

William Eklund, who won it for the Sharks in overtime, said it was probably the most fun win he’s had in his NHL career.

“So fun, so fun,” said Eklund. “Just winning this way is really fun.”

In the first period, Julien Gauthier made a wrist shot at 9:28 to put the Islanders up 1-0. Tomas Hertl answered back with a wrist shot at 12:19 to tie the game at 1-1. In the second period, Brock Nelson scored a wrist shot at 5:27 to boost the Islanders up 2-1.

Mike Reilly in the third period made a slap shot at 5:17 to put the Islanders up 3-1. Then Ryan Pulock made a slap shot of his own at 8:27 to expand the Islanders’ lead to 4-1.

But the Sharks refused to give up, and Kevin Labanc made an unassisted tip-in at 11:55 to cut the Islanders’ lead to 4-2. Then Hertl made an unassisted wrist shot at 16:49 and the Sharks trailed by only one. That was not all Hertl had up his sleeve – Hertl got a hat trick with a wrist shot at 18:30 and tied the game at 4-4.

“For sure, I feel like I would lie if I don’t like to score a hat trick, you know, everybody loves to score especially when you can help the team and I’m really happy I could finish it,” said Hertl. “Two big points for us and I think we worked really hard this whole trip and a big win for us but we still have two more games but it feels right now great in our group.”

In overtime, Mikael Granlund passed the puck to Eklund who made a wrist shot at 4:55 to win it for the Sharks 5-4.

Eklund said he was “trying to get some speed there and Granlud made an unbelievable play to me to rip it into the net and it went in.”

San Jose scored 16 goals in the last three road games, which included a 6-3 win over the New Jersey Devils on Friday and a 6-5 loss to the New York Rangers on Sunday.

Sharks head coach David Quinn said the recent winning “certainly brings us to another level” after a tough first 11 games in the season.

“Fun? I don’t know if I’d call that fun,” Quinn said of the game against the Islanders. “But for the last three-and- a-half minutes, certainly, make you feel really good. You know that second goal really gave us a ray of hope, really good job by the Sturm-Labanc-Bailey line… It was a hell of a play on that fourth goal to tie it.”

The Sharks (7-17-2) continue their road trip on Thursday against the Detroit Red Wings (13-7-3) at Little Caesars Arena. The puck drops at 4pm PST.

Rangers two goal third period edges Sharks 6-5 at MSG; Panarin scores hat trick for New York

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An excited New York Rangers forward Artemi Panarin (10) celebrates his first period goal with teammate Alex Lafeniere (13) as the San Jose Sharks goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood (29) is laid out in front of the net at Madison Square Garden in New York on Sun Dec 4, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jessica Kwong

NEW YORK, N.Y. — The San Jose Sharks failed to tie the game late at Madison Square Garden on Sunday night and fell 6-5 to the New York Rangers, who earned their 3,000th win in franchise history.

Coming off their first road victory this season, against the New Jersey Devils on Friday, the Sharks had a chance at a two-game winning streak. But after the pregame skate, the Sharks had Ty Emberson and Nico Sturm as late scratches due to lower-body injuries.

Sharks head coach David Quinn, who returned to face the team he used to coach, said it was “an adverse day with the news we got this morning”.

“Listen we’re playing much better hockey, we’ve had a lot of adversity, I’ve said this a lot, no one’s had more than us,” said Quinn. “But give our guys a ton of credit, they came ready to play tonight and had a chance to tie it late.”

In the first period, Anthony Duclair made a wrist shot at 3:50 to put the Sharks up 1-0. Artemi Panarin made a deflected shot at 8:44 to tie the game at 1-1. Then Ryan Carpenter, who spent last season with the Rangers and got a welcome back shoutout on the jumbotron, made a revenge wrist shot at 12:21 that brought the Sharks back up 2-1.

But 30 seconds later, Panarin hit back with a wrist shot to tie the game again at 2-2. Mika Zibanejad made a snap shot at 16:42 and the period ended with the Rangers leading 3-2.

In the second period, Jacob MacDonald made a wrist shot at 9:16 to tie the game at 3-3. Will Cuylle made a wrist shot at 16:03 and New York lead 4-3.

MacDonald said that ‘fight is a big part’ that the Sharks have now that was missing in the first part of the season.

“Having that tonight was a very good sign,” said MacDonald. “I thought we sprung a couple of goals quickly, definitely treading in the right direction, so I like where we’re at, just have to keep pushing to lock things down.”

In the third period, Panarin netted a hat trick with a backhand shot at 4:41 to extend the Rangers’ lead to 5-3. K’Andre Miller hit a wrist shot at 13:04 and boosted the Rangers up 6-4. But the Sharks responded with a wrist shot by Fabian Zetterlund at 14:38 to cut the Rangers’ lead to 6-4.

“You want to create something every shift and when you’re down three goals it’s not over until a single or whatever you call it,” said Zetterlund. “We give it a good push and almost…”

Alexander Barabanov made a tip-in shot from Calen Addison at 15:50 to trail the Rangers by only one, but the Sharks failed to net another.

The Rangers (18-4-1) became the fifth NHL team to reach the 3,000-game victory milestone, before a sold-out crowd of 18,006.

San Jose (6-17-2) continue their road trip facing the New York Islanders (10-7-6) at UBS Arena on Tuesday. The puck drops at 4:30 p.m. PST.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Titus Wilkinson: Sharks hoping to take a bite out of the Big Apple Sunday against Rangers at MSG

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The San Jose Sharks Anthony Duclair (10) chases down the puck against the New Jersey Devils in first period action. Duclair scored two goals against the Devils on Fri Dec 1, 2023 at the Prudential Center in Newark NJ (AP News photo)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Titus Wilkinson:

Titus Wilkinson on the SJ Sharks podcast:

#1 The San Jose Sharks Jacob MacDonald and Anthony Duclair each had two goals apiece as the Sharks turned up their offense a notch against the New Jersey Devils in New Jersey on Friday night.

#2 San Jose Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen stopped 44 shots and allowed three goals in the 6-3 San Jose win.

#3 Mikael Granlund scored a goal and had two assists and William Eklund scored for San Jose to help San Jose pick up their first road win of the season now with a 1-10-0 road record.

#4 San Jose Sharks head coach David Quinn said “I’m happy for our guys. It’s been a tough year, especially on the road,″ Quinn said. ”To find a way to win is a tribute to our team.”

#5 San Jose will face the New York Rangers on Sunday afternoon at 3:00pm PT. The Rangers are first place in the Metropolitan Division with a 16-4-1 record. The Rangers have won eight of their last ten games and are in Nashville tonight before returning to New York on Sunday against the Sharks.

Titus Wilkinson filled in for Mary Lisa for part one on the San Jose Sharks podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa: Sharks get first road win of season against New Jersey; SJ face Rangers at MSG Sunday

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The San Jose Sharks William Eklund (left) and the New Jersey Devils Jonas Siegenthaler (right) battle for the puck in first period action at the Prudential Center in Newark NJ on Fri Dec 1, 2023 (AP News photo)

Mary Lisa on the SJ Sharks podcast:

#1 The San Jose Sharks Jacob MacDonald and Anthony Duclair each had two goals apiece as the Sharks turned up their offense a notch against the New Jersey Devils in New Jersey on Friday night.

#2 San Jose Sharks goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen stopped 44 shots and allowed three goals in the 6-3 San Jose win.

#3 Mikael Granlund scored a goal and had two assists and William Eklund scored for San Jose to help San Jose pick up their first road win of the season now with a 1-10-0 road record.

#4 San Jose Sharks head coach David Quinn said “I’m happy for our guys. It’s been a tough year, especially on the road,″ Quinn said. ”To find a way to win is a tribute to our team.”

#5 San Jose will face the New York Rangers on Sunday afternoon at 3:00pm PT. The Rangers are first place in the Metropolitan Division with a 16-4-1 record. The Rangers have won eight of their last ten games and are in Nashville tonight before returning to New York on Sunday against the Sharks.

Join Mary Lisa for the Sharks podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks score three times in third period to defeat Devils 6-3; SJ earns first road victory of season

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The San Jose Sharks Mario Ferarro (left) and Jacob MacDonald (right) celebrate scoring a goal in the first period on the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center in Newark on Fri Dec 1, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Jessica Kwong

NEWARK, N.J. — The San Jose Sharks finally earned their first road game win this season with a 6-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Friday night.

It was a much welcomed win as the Sharks went into the game 0-10-0 on the road, scoring just six goals in ten games. Their goals on Friday tied their entire road goal total up to that point. Sharks head coach David Quinn said the team had “some nice plays on our goals”.

“It was a hard team play and we gave up 24 shots in the third period, you don’t want, but I thought our six-on-five was really good. I thought we weathered some storms,” said Quinn. “Just happy for our guys, it’s been tough (getting goals) year especially on the road. And to find a way to win like we did is a tribute to our team.”

Jacob MacDonald hit a wrist shot 2:10 into the first period to put the Sharks up 1-0. At 13:21, Dawson Mercer hit a snap shot that tied the game at 1-1.

MacDonald was the star again in the second period, making a tip-in at 2:51 to bring the Sharks up 2-1. It also marked the first time that the Sharks scored more than one goal in a road game, and both were by McDonald. It was his first multi-goal game in his professional career.

Then Anthony Duclair made a slap shot at 9:47 to boost the Sharks to 3-1.

In the final period, Jack Hughes scored an unassisted goal at 2:56 to cut the Sharks’ lead to 3-2. But Duclair had another big moment with a wrist shot from Mikael Granlund at 5:07 to extend the Sharks’ lead to 4-2. Duclair said Granlund’s saucer pass was a top-three pass of his career.

“I just cut the puck and was ready to shoot it and I was like maybe not. Just saw him out there and I mean that was a really good shot by him,” said Granlund. “And just one of those things, that maybe my strength is to try to make good passes and that was a good shot by Anthony.”

At 12:58, Ondrej Palat hit a snap shot and the Devils trailed 4-3. But the Sharks refused to give up, and Granlund made an unassisted snap shot at 13:38 to put the Sharks up 5-3. San Jose put the final touch with 18 seconds left in the period when William Eklund hit a wrist shot from Ryan Carpenter.

MacDonald said the victory felt “really good”.

“Just helps build some confidence especially on the second half of a back-to-back, right, so our condition is in a good place and coming on back-to-back travel and six goals is a good sign for us and helps us build confidence,” he said.

The Sharks started their six-game road trip with a 3-0 loss to the Boston Bruins on Thursday. They had won two in a row prior to that. They crushed the Devils’ hopes of gaining what would have been their season-best four-game winning streak.

San Jose (6-16-2) continues their road trip facing the New York Rangers (16-4-1) at Madison Square Garden on Sun Dec 3 afternoon. The puck drops at 3 p.m. PST.

Sharks Shut Out 3-0 by Bruins; Brief SJ two game win streak comes to an end

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The Boston Bruins center Pavel Zacha gets a top shelf third period goal past San Jose Sharks goaltender MacKenzie Blackwood (29) and defenseman Kyle Burroughs (4) at TD Garden in Boston on Thu Nov 30, 2023 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 3-0 to the Bruins at TD Garden Thursday. Danton Heinen, Jake DeBrusk and Pavel Zacha scored for Boston. Jeremy Swayman made 28 saves for the shutout win. MacKenzie Blackwood made 32 saves in the loss. It was the fourth time the Sharks have been shutout this season, and all of those have been on the road.

Sharks Head Coach David Quinn summarized the game as follows:

“I thought we had a good first period, played a pretty good tempo, I thought our puck play was good, you know, played smart hockey, played with the right intentions. And I thought it really got loose in the second period. I thought our turnovers really hurt us and really ignited their game. I though they brought it to another level once that period got going and we weren’t able to control it really.”

Probably the most disappointing moment in the game was when the Sharks failed to score with a two man advantage. That power play ended the second period and started the third. After the game, Tomas Hertl talked about that power play:

“We just, like, nobody wants to take the shot, everybody tried passing and we have zero shots, five entries and that’s a tough situation. We have to be quick, put something on the net you know because we have two extra guys so we should get a rebound and stuff, but we couldn’t even get a shot.”

The Sharks went into the second period in a decent position. Each team had a power play in the first, neither scored. The shots were relatively even at 10-9 Boston. The second period would not be so balanced.

Danton Heinen broke the 0-0 tie just 1:39 into the second period. Matthew Poitras took advantage of an offensive zone turnover by the Sharks, who looked tired after being trapped in their own zone for too long. Poitras found Heinen in the faceoff circle for a quick shot that sent the puck between Blackwood and the post.

Jake DeBrusk made it 2-0 at 8:10 of the period. While Pavel Zacha carried the puck over the blue line, DeBrusk entered the zone across the ice and around the Sharks defense. Zacha passed the puck to him and he was able to carry it to the net for a backhand shot. Zacha and David Pastrnak got the assists.

The Sharks finished the second period with a shot deficit of 18-6 as well as the goals surrendered. They did get a two-man advantage at the end of the period after a series of skirmishes. The power play carried over to start the third but did not change the score.

Instead, the Sharks took a penalty early in the third and gave up a power play goal from Zacha. Pastrnak carried the puck in and found Zacha skating right up the slot for a close-in shot. Assists went to Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy.

The Sharks did make a push, out-shooting Boston slightly, 11-8 in the third. But the score did not change. The final shot count was 37-26 Bruins. In the faceoff circle, the Sharks won 47.3% of the draws.

After the game, Tomas Hertl explained that his absence from the previous game was due to a kidney stone. He said that he had surgery for that last Monday.

The Sharks next play on Friday in Newark, New Jersey against the Devils at 4:00 PM PT.

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro: Canadiens overcome deficit defeat CBJ’s 4-2; Rangers two goal third period defeats Wings 3-2; plus more news

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The Montreal Canadiens forward Joel Armia (right) scores on the Columbus Blue Jackets Elvis goaltender Merzlikins (left) and defenseman Erik Gudbranson in third period in Columbus on Wed Nov 29, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the NHL podcast with Len:

#1 Len, the Montreal Canadiens got the hot hand and scored twice in the third period against the Columbus Blue Jackets in a 4-2 win in Columbus. The Habs Joel Armia got the go ahead goal at 17:03 to make it 3-2 for what would be later the game winning goal.

#2 The New York Rangers erased a 2-1 lead against the Detroit Red Wings scoring two goals in the third period to catch the Rangers and get the win 3-2. The Rangers Jimmy Vesey got a rebound and shot a backhanded goal at 4:15 against the Red Wings goaltender Ville Husso for the winner.

#3 The Los Angeles Kings five game win streak came to an end on Wednesday night against the Washington Capitals losing it 2-1 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The Capitals got goals from Connor McMichael and Anthony Mantha and Caps goaltender Charlie Lindgren stopped 37 shots.

#4 The Vancouver Canucks dealt Anthony Beauvillier to the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday. Beauvillier had eight points on the season for the Canucks. Beauvillier was dealt to Chciago for a fifth round draft pick going to Vancouver.

#5 The Minnesota Wild acquired defenseman Zach Bogosian from the Tampa Bay Lightning for a seventh round draft pick, the Lightning traded Calen Anderson to the San Jose Sharks for Adam Raska and a 2026 fifth round draft pick.

Len Shapiro does the NHL podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com