You know Jamie Benn is a beast. I know Jamie Benn is a beast. And tonight at the 2015 NHL Awards, we all get to watch him collect the Art Ross Trophy and potentially win the Ted Linsday Award.
ESPN caught up with the captain, who offered his take on being nominated.
Sportsnet also put together a primer about tonight’s ceremony, which will be broadcast on NBCSN at 7 p.m. EST.
Anyway, on to the most important part: the Ted Lindsay breakdown.
Formerly the Lester B. Pearson Award, the Ted Lindsay’s nominees frequently mirror those of the Hart. What we’ve learned, then: Writers prefer Tavares and players prefer Benn. No matter. This is Price’s hardware to lose. Consider all of the voters who failed to solve Price this season. Ovechkin has already captured this trophy thrice. Book Price as the first goalie since Dominik Hasek (1998) to be voted best amongst his peers. Note: In 45 years, only once (Bobby Orr, 1975) has a defenceman won this thing.
And sure, some other outlets have agreed with Sportsnet, but I’ll just leave this here. You know, so you guys can make up your own minds on who should win. [Sportsnet]
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To recap yesterday’s biggest news: John Klingberg has braids.
Important non-hair updates included the announcement of the salary cap and the news that GMs have recommended going to 3-on-3 overtime. [NHL]
We also got this interesting tidbit from the Chicago Tribune’s Chris Kuc.
Hearing Stars, Penguins and Panthers are teams most interested in #Blackhawks‘ Patrick Sharp. Asking price still too high.
— Chris Kuc (@ChrisKuc) June 24, 2015
What’s been the Stars’ worst draft pick? Sports Illustrated says that dubious honor goes to Vojtech Polak. The team selected Polak 36th overall in 2003, after trading their first round pick to Anaheim for two seconds. The Ducks used Dallas’ original No. 28 selection to draft Corey Perry because horrors never cease. [SI]
Players, including Carey Price and Jonathan Toews, chimed in with their opinions on the possibility of Las Vegas getting a hockey team. [USA Today]
From the folks over at Blueshirt Banter, a team apparently offered two second round picks for Cam Talbot, but the deal didn’t go through. [Blueshirt Banter]
#Coyotes update: At least six teams have inquired about trading for team’s 3rd overall pick; two aggressively looking into it, Maloney said.
— Sarah McLellan (@azc_mclellan) June 23, 2015
Meanwhile, Arizona is reportedly interested in Chicago’s Bryan Bickell. [Second City Hockey]
Here’s another reminder of how badly things could go wrong on Friday. [TheScore]
Also on The Score, a look at draft prospect Zach Werenski. [TheScore]
The mock drafts just keep rolling in. Craig Button, TSN’s Direct of Scouting, has the Stars taking Timo Meier in the No. 12 spot. (And so does Sportsnet’s Sam Cosentino.) [TSN]
The Capitals unveiled a new red alternate jersey.
Caps new red alt jersey will replace the white alt worn in recent years. More info here: http://t.co/uE2Wj5W0jM pic.twitter.com/G71E6hsc1H
— Paul Lukas (@UniWatch) June 23, 2015
Also out of D.C., Joel Ward will reportedly explore free agency in the hopes of finding a four-year deal. [Washington Post]
Y’all know the drill: Those who don’t learn from their mistakes are doomed to repeat them. Here’s what last year’s offseason taught us. [Grantland]
In the newest edition of Tyler Seguin’s Having More Fun Than You, I offer up this picture of Segs and Alex Ovechkin.
Apparently, Tampa Bay goalie Ben Bishop is also good at baseball—he hit four home runs at batting practice with the Tampa Bay Rays. Some people get all the talent. [Fox Sports]
And finally, Puck Daddy remands us of a few of the painfully awkward skits that have come out of past NHL Awards shows.
Thank goodness the word “satire” is in the video title. Otherwise, I’d be waiting on tenterhooks for that Nikolai Khabibouillabaisse to arrive in stores. [Puck Daddy]