In today’s NHL rumors rundown, the Colorado Avalanche and Boston Bruins were eliminated from the playoffs on Friday night. What happens with these two teams in the offseason? Meanwhile, the Toronto Maple Leafs hired a new coach in Craig Berube and the Edmonton Oilers are making a goalie change in Game 6. Is Martin Necas saying he wants to be traded out of Carolina?
Oilers Going With Stuart Skinner in Game 6
The Oilers confirmed that goaltender Stuart Skinner will get the start in Game 6 for the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. Calvin Pickard was the starter for the past two games and played extremely well. Pickard has earned the right to start, but the Oilers need a boost after a poor offensive output and they’ve bounced back with Skinner in goal before. Skinner has also bounced back from poor performances.
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There may be other roster changes as the status of Corey Perry is unknown. If Henrique can’t go — Rishaug is reporting that head coach Kris Knoblauch has ruled him out — Sam Carrick might be in and the Oilers will look for him to provide a bit more physicality to the lineup. Knoblauch also wouldn’t confirm that Perry is out of the lineup.
Edmonton faces elimination on Saturday night. At least one Oiler won’t be playing due to illness and it has been reported that a bug has gone through the Oilers locker room of late.
Bruins and Avalanche Eliminated… What Next?
ESPN.com‘s Kristen Shilton and Ryan S. Clark looked at what the offseason might hold for the Colorado Avalanche and Boston Bruins following their respective eliminations from the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. For both teams, they’ll need to add to their core group.
The Avalanche will look to re-sign restricted free-agent center Casey Mittelstadt. They’ll also likely want to re-sign or replace pending unrestricted free agents Jonathan Drouin, Jack Johnson, Sean Walker, and Andrew Cogliano. Veteran winger Zach Parise is set to retire.
When it comes to the Bruins, they note that several Bruins are approaching free agency, including DeBrusk, Danton Heinen, Derek Forbort, and Jeremy Swayman. Swayman is the biggest name in the group. He is an RFA with arbitration rights (again). His negotiations from last year could be telling to how his next negotiations go. Swayman signed a one-year deal and has earned a sizeable raise and a long-term deal. Will the Bruins give it to him?
Necas Wants a Trade Out of Carolina?
As cited by popular X.com account Andy and Rono, during an interview for Denik Sport, Martin Necas’ dad said that Necas wants to play for a team where he’ll get first-line and first-power time. It’s not likely he gets that in Carolina and he’s aware of it. “Martin wants to be traded.” was a quote from the interview.
There should be teams that show interest in the forward. He’s coming off of two strong seasons. This season he posted 53 points in 77 games. During the 2022-23 season, he posted 71 points in 82 games. That was his breakout campaign.
Maple Leafs Hire Craig Berube
The Toronto Maple Leafs made the official announcement on Friday that they signed Craig Berube to be their 32nd head coach. The deal is said to be a four-year contract and reports were that Toronto spoke with both Todd McLellan and Gerard Gallant before going with Berube.
Berube is expected to bring a gruff, no-nonsense approach to the team, which is very much unlike what most of the stars on the roster have known over the past several seasons. Finding the right balance in pushing the players will be a key challenge for Berube. He’s had his issues with young stars, specifically Jordan Kyrou, so it will be intriguing to see how Berube navigates coaching players like Auston Matthews and William Nylander.
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