It's been a busy past few weeks here at Defending Big D. After a relatively quiet start to the offseason (when I was honestly struggling a bit to find Dallas Stars-related news to write about), the hiring of Joe Nieuwendyk and the Dave Tippett/Marc Crawford changeout have suddenly made for plenty for us to write and talk about. And while we could spend even more time analyzing the controversial coaching change, the truth is that things are about to become busier than ever. The NHL awards are right around the corner, free agency starts on July 1st and the NHL Draft is less than two weeks away.

Which brings me to the big news:

Defending Big D and SB Nation are headed to the NHL Draft.

Nine of the SBN hockey writers have been granted press credentials from the NHL to the 2009 Draft in Montreal, including our fearless leader James Mirtle of From The Rink, Robert of Habs Eyes On The Prize, Matt of Bird Watchers Anonymous, Travis of Broad Street Hockey, David of Die By The Blade, Julian of Pension Plan Puppets, Jim of Blueshirt Banter, Frank from Pensburgh, and myself.

I will be in Montreal for the draft, blogging and reporting live from the draft floor and giving as much inside information I can muster. We've been granted full press access for the draft, giving us the opportunity to chat with players, coaches, executives and league officials. This is the opportunity for Defending Big D and the other hockey blogs to get exclusive interviews and be the first to report on breaking news. This is the chance of a lifetime for myself and the others and I look forward to representing not only Defending Big D, but all Dallas Stars fans in front of both the team and the league.

This would not be remotely possible without the hard work of the guys behind the scenes at SB Nation, particularly Tyler  Bleszinski, Kyle Ragsdale, Chris Haines and especially SB Nation's CEO Jim Bankoff. These guys like to stay out of the spotlight, but they deserve every single bit of the credit for making SBN into the powerhouse it has become. This is a dream come true for any hockey blogger and it wouldn't have happened without the hard work of not only the bosses, but all of the excellent writers we have here at SBN.

If you have any  tips, suggestions or requests for how we should cover this event, or if there is a player any of you wish for a specific interview from, let me know and I'll do my best to accomodate.

In other draft news, SB Nation's hockey blogs will be holding a mock draft of the first round. In addition to our live coverage of the draft the hockey writers across the network have put together a mock draft. It starts tomorrow, with the Stars making their pick in the 8th spot on Thursday, the 18th. The mock draft will be tracked in a central location at James Mirtle's From The Rink. When DBD makes their pick for the Stars I'll have a full analysis of the selection here, that way you guys can tear me apart for whatever choice I made.