Tristin McKinstry Articles - Page 42

Veteran defenseman Matt Grzelcyk can trace a lot of career moments to the city of Pittsburgh. The Boston Bruins drafted him in 2012 when the NHL Draft took place in the city. He debuted at PPG Paints Arena in 2016 before scoring his first career goal in that same building in 2017. Now, he will […]

The New Jersey Devils were among the favorites to contend for the Stanley Cup at the beginning of the 2023-24 season. Unfortunately, they didn’t come close to living up to those expectations. They struggled for large stretches of the season and ultimately missed the playoffs entirely. After 2024 NHL Free Agency, though, there is hope […]

The New York Rangers came close to the Stanley Cup Final once again in 2024. New York hoped to go on a deep playoff run when they hired Peter Laviolette as head coach last summer. Now, they are looking to finally get over the hump and actually make the Stanley Cup Final in 2025. They […]

This time last year, Oliver Ekman-Larsson was at a crossroads of sorts. The veteran rearguard had just been bought out by the Vancouver Canucks. And he joined the Florida Panthers in NHL Free Agency hoping to do something to revitalize his career. Now, he is a Stanley Cup champion and recently signed a four-year contract […]

The Detroit Red Wings have made some big moves in NHL Free Agency. They kept veteran forward Patrick Kane on a one-year contract and signed two-time Stanley Cup champion Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract. They are likely done shopping the open market, but they have some items left to take care of. One of […]

Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers fell short of the Stanley Cup in 2024. They made a miraculous comeback in the Stanley Cup Final before falling in Game 7. McDavid won the Conn Smythe Trophy after turning in one of the greatest postseason performances in NHL history. But he and the franchise want to win […]

The Columbus Blue Jackets are looking to turn the corner sooner rather than later. They finished among the worst teams in the NHL this past season. And with a group of young prospects knocking on the door, now is the time for them to strike. In fact, they made one major move in NHL Free […]

The Vancouver Canucks ran into horrible injury luck in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Starting goalie Thatcher Demko was injured in Game 1 of their first round series against the Nashville Predators. Before Game 4, backup Casey DeSmith also picked up an injury. That led to the team turning to 23-year-old Arturs Silvos, who played well […]

The Calgary Flames were active on the trade front during the 2023-24. In a way, they had to be active given their situation. Multiple players were on the brink of NHL Free Agency. And with the team heading backwards, it appeared unlikely that they would retain most of them. Since last summer, the Flames have […]

Veteran NHL forward Joe Pavelski has considered retirement all offseason. He just completed his fifth season with the Dallas Stars and his 18th in the NHL. After falling short of the Stanley Cup Final, Pavelski is stepping away from the game of hockey for now. However, he almost made a return to California with the […]

The Dallas Stars were extremely close to the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. In fact, they took a 2-1 series lead over the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Finals. Unfortunately, they fell just short again. They lost to the Oilers in six games, leaving them searching for answers ahead of NHL Free Agency a few […]

The Chicago Blackhawks did not have a great 2023-24 NHL season. In fact, they finished as one of the worst teams in the league. This landed them the second overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, which they used on Artyom Levshunov. However, to add immediate support for Connor Bedard, they needed to be aggressive […]

The Vancouver Canucks won the Pacific Division in 2023-24 in rather surprising fashion. In the Stanley Cup Playoffs, they proved their division win was not a fluke. They defeated the Nashville Predators in the first round as they came within a game of the 2023 Western Conference Finals. They certainly had a lot to feel […]

The Detroit Red Wings seemed ready to make some noise during NHL Free Agency. They cleared cap space by trading Jake Walman to the San Jose Sharks. And while they kept Patrick Kane on a one-year deal, they still had some holes to fill with cap space to spare. Despite this, Detroit was rather quiet […]

The Anaheim Ducks have not made a ton of moves through NHL Free Agency to this point. In fact, most of their notable moves have come through trades, such as trading for forward Robby Fabbri. However, they have done well to sign internal free agents. And they did it again on Monday with defenseman Jackson […]

The Ottawa Senators had some hype around them entering the 2023-24 NHL season. Unfortunately, the season didn’t go quite to plan. Ottawa never came close to contending for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. This season also saw them hire a new general manager and a new full-time head coach to lead the team. In […]

The New Jersey Devils missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a promising 2022-23 campaign. Many expected New Jersey to put in a real challenge for the Stanley Cup this past season. However, injuries and underperformance led to a down year. Now led behind the bench by Sheldon Keefe, the Devils hope to right the ship […]

The Detroit Tigers signed Kenta Maeda to a two-year contract in MLB Free Agency this past winter. They hoped the veteran pitcher would help stabilize their rotation and potentially help them push for the American League Central. However, the signing has not panned out as either side envisioned. Maeda has struggled to the point that […]

The San Jose Sharks have had themselves an interesting offseason. They selected Macklin Celebrini first overall in the 2024 NHL Draft a few weeks back. During NHL Free Agency, the team made some major moves to improve the roster. The Sharks signed winger Tyler Toffoli to a four-year contract and center Alex Wennberg to a […]

The Pittsburgh Penguins hoped to contend this past season after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2023. And they made a lot of moves to put themselves in a position to win games. They went after multiple veteran players in NHL Free Agency, including defenseman Ryan Graves and forward Lars Eller. They also made a […]

The Florida Panthers lost a lot of key pieces in NHL Free Agency after winning the Stanley Cup last month. Florida knew it couldn’t keep the entire band together, though, and have made some low-cost moves to fill the holes left behind. One move reunited a former Winnipeg Jets defenseman with head coach Paul Maurice […]

Trade rumors leading into the NHL Draft certainly aren’t uncommon. In fact, we only hear a small portion of the discussions that take place before all 32 general managers convene on the draft floor. However, every so often we get an interesting rumor that comes as a surprise. The reports indicating a potential trade involving […]

The Nashville Predators made a massive statement in NHL Free Agency on July 1. After losing to the Vancouver Canucks in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Nashville wanted to show they were committed to getting better. They did just that as they signed veteran forward Steven Stamkos to a four-year deal. Additionally, Jonathan Marchessault signed a […]

Veteran forward Sean Monahan turned in one of the best feel-good stories of the 2023-24 NHL season. After struggling with injuries over the last few years, Monahan finally remained healthy. And he put in a very solid performance that saw him get rewarded in NHL Free Agency. He signed a five-year, $27.5 million contract with […]

The Seattle Kraken had themselves a pretty significant NHL Free Agency this year. After focusing on depth last year, they clearly wanted to make a statement this summer. And they certainly showed a commitment to bouncing back from a disappointing 2023-24 campaign. One of the more notable moves saw the Kraken sign Chandler Stephenson to […]

The Florida Panthers are your Stanley Cup champions for the first time. And while celebrations were certainly in order, winning championships comes at a cost. Florida found this out in short order as they lost a number of key players to NHL Free Agency. However, they were able to keep one big name from hitting […]

The Boston Bruins failed to win the Stanley Cup this past season. But they still believe they have a chance to win it all with their current group of players. To that end, they handed out two significant contracts in NHL Free Agency. One of those contracts went to Nikita Zadorov, who signed a six-year […]

The Carolina Hurricanes kept head coach Rod Brind’Amour around after their disappointing second-round playoff exit. However, the roster he will coach in 2024-25 will look a lot different. Carolina lost a number of key players to NHL Free Agency. Defenseman Brett Pesce signed in New Jersey with the Devils while Teuvo Teravainen returned to the […]

The New Jersey Devils made an intriguing move in NHL Free Agency last week. New Jersey signed veteran forward Tomas Tatar to a one-year, $1.8 million contract a day after the market opened. 2023-24 was a rough season for the veteran forward. He began the year with the Colorado Avalanche before being traded to the […]

The Boston Bruins loaded up on the first day of NHL Free Agency. Though they lost Jake DeBrusk to the Vancouver Canucks, they were able to sign Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov, both former Canucks. Lindholm gives Boston some much-needed depth down the middle of the ice. Meanwhile, Zadorov gives them some grit and sandpaper […]

The Edmonton Oilers are hoping to contend for a Stanley Cup once again next season. To that end, they made a rather interesting trade with the Buffalo Sabres that could help them in the short and long-term. Edmonton traded for former top-10 pick Matt Savoie in a deal that sent third-line center Ryan McLeod to […]

The Detroit Red Wings are gearing up to contend for a playoff spot in 2025. They have missed the playoffs for a franchise record eight consecutive seasons. Given their storied history, Detroit would prefer to end the playoff drought sooner rather than later. To that end, they signed two-time Stanley Cup champion Vladimir Tarasenko to […]

The Detroit Red Wings had a rather mundane NHL Free Agency until last Wednesday. After re-signing Patrick Kane, Detroit reunited him with one of his former New York Rangers teammates. The Winged Wheel signed Vladimir Tarasenko to a two-year contract fresh off a Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers. On Monday, both Kane and Tarasenko […]

The Philadelphia Flyers have made some intriguing moves this offseason. On Sunday, though, they focused on one of their own internal free agents. The Flyers have signed 24-year-old defenseman Egor Zamula to a two-year contract, the team announced. Zamula will make $1.7 million each season through the life of this new deal. Zamula represents the […]

The San Jose Sharks made Macklin Celebrini the first overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft in late June. This was one of the worst-kept secrets in the league-leading into the event. What was not known was whether the Boston University star would decide to go pro after the draft. On Saturday, we got the […]

The Tampa Bay Lightning made a bold move in NHL Free Agency. They decided to let Steven Stamkos hit the open market and watched as he signed a four-year contract with the Nashville Predators. To replace his production, they swung a trade with the Carolina Hurricanes for the signing rights to Jake Guentzel. They then […]

The Nashville Predators came away as big winners in NHL Free Agency this year. They signed three of the top free agents on the market as they look to contend for a Stanley Cup in 2025. One of those free agents is veteran forward Steven Stamkos. Stamkos left the Tampa Bay Lightning to sign a […]

The Utah Hockey Club have made some major moves ahead of their debut NHL season. Their biggest move came on the final day of the 2024 NHL Draft. Utah Hockey Club traded for Mikhail Sergachev in a blockbuster deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Lightning received Conor Geekie, JJ Moser, and two draft picks […]

The Chicago Blackhawks made a few moves to get better in NHL Free Agency. They reunited with Teuvo Teravainen this summer after trading him to the Carolina Hurricanes in 2015. Chicago also added another veteran forward who certainly could make life easier for Connor Bedard. The Blackhawks signed forward Tyler Bertuzzi after talks with the […]