Dan’s Daily: Lightning End Rangers, NHL Trade Chatter Begins

The Stanley Cup Final is set. A year ahead of schedule, the New York Rangers, a head-hunting Cinderella out of nowhere, turned into a pumpkin once the Tampa Bay Lightning got their legs back. Tampa Bay vs. the Colorado Avalanche, and interestingly both teams followed the Pittsburgh Penguins’ lead by touching the Conference Final trophy. How will those Penguins replace Kris Letang if he leaves via free agency? And it appears Barry Trotz is nearing a decision that will begin the dominoes of the NHL coaching carousel.

Also, our Marco D’Amico is a draftnik. He’s been pouring his free time into prospect coverage and draft rankings. It’s pretty cool to have such folks on staff. We’ll be diving into 2022 NHL Draft coverage soon.

I won’t lie. I’m happy to see this Stanley Cup Final. The Colorado Avalanche are favorites, and if Nathan MacKinnon is going to win a Stanley Cup, he deserves to face the defending champs. And Tampa Bay won’t fling themselves at his head, either. It was Alexis Lafreniere’s turn for a headshot on Saturday night. The NHL’s inaction is bewildering. And the Rangers surely need to keep Ryan Reaves on the roster. Otherwise, a few teams may feed them lumber next season.

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: If Kris Letang leaves, how will the Penguins replace him? The NHL trade market is the most likely option. Besides Jeff Petry, who else is there? Tyson Barrie. The Pittsburgh Penguins trade talk.

NHL Trade Rumors, News & National Hockey Now:

Colorado Hockey Now: It’s set. The Stanley Cup Final. The Tampa Bay Lightning vs. the Colorado Avalanche.

NHL.com: Could Tampa Bay three-peat? They slew the New York headhunters in Game 6.

It was a helluva run for New York. A few more tweaks, and that’s going to be a Stanely Cup champion. That doesn’t mean I accept how Jacob Trouba or the NHL DoPS conducted themselves in the playoff run.

Sportsnet: The coaching dominoes are about to fall. Elliotte Friedman thinks Barry Trotz is about to make a decision. He hinted the Detroit Red Wings could be in play. Bruce Cassidy’s availability caused a few teams to rethink their process. NHL coaching carousel.

Philly Hockey Now: Sam Carchidi writes–it’s time. It’s time for the Flyers to say goodbye and put Travis Konecny or Ivan Provorov on the NHL trade market. Philadelphia Flyers trade talk.

Montreal Hockey Now: Teams are calling about Josh Anderson. The gritty power forward signed a healthy contract to play with the Canadiens, but Montreal is rebuilding. Could they cash in on their valuable banger? Montreal Canadiens chatter.

San Jose Hockey Now: Brent Burns could be on the move this summer. He knows it. Could the Pittsburgh Penguins be a fit for the 37-year-old high-scoring right-side defenseman? What about a handful of other teams looking? Sheng Peng examines the Brent Burns market for the San Jose Sharks.

Detroit Hockey Now: The Red Wings finished 32 points behind the fourth-place Boston Bruins. But this summer, it seems Detroit is closing the gap. Boston is still the playoff benchmark of the Atlantic Division–can the Detroit Red Wings catch them?