NHL Vibe Check: New Year's Grievances, Parlays and Midseason Stanley Cup Picks
Folks, welcome to the first Vibe Check of 2024.
I hope your year is off to a great start and your New Year's resolutions are still intact. If nothing else, you're probably off to a better start to 2024 than the Los Angeles Kings, who have started the new year on a puzzling, demoralizing seven-game losing streak, filled with one-goal losses that make the vibes even more excruciating.
Anyways, positive thoughts. The Seattle Kraken, behind an outstanding performance from goaltender Joey Daccord, have been on an eight-game winning streak including the 3-0 Winter Classic shutout at home.
The Panthers never left, but now they've got a surging Matthew Tkachuk as they challenge the Bruins and Rangers for the No. 1 spot in the East.
What else is going on in the hockey world as we're about halfway through the season? Have Cup favorites emerged? Dare we mention a dark horse?
Let's get into it, and thank you for all the questions.
The Start of a New Era in Women's Hockey
1 of 11
The Professional Women's Hockey League kicked off its inaugural season this month. The league, made up of teams in Boston, Minnesota, New York, Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa, is only a few games deep with Minnesota leading the pack at 3-0-0. Now's the perfect time to jump in and take it in, completely free on YouTube.
I've been loving so much surrounding the league already: the fun social media presence, the accessible games with high-quality video, the pregame fits and the overall sense of legitimacy.
My favorite by far, though, is watching Minnesota's No. 1 overall pick and rising star Taylor Heise transition seamlessly from the NCAA with the Golden Gophers to the professional game. The homegrown Minnesotan scored the first goal of Minnesota's inaugural season and has three goals and four points in three games at the start of her professional career.
It's pretty awesome watching the Heise era begin as she plays alongside and against established legends in the women's game. It's thrilling to watch the next superstar come up as the new league is emerging with such enthusiasm and hope.
New Year Misery
2 of 11
This question feels tougher than ever halfway through this season.
The Sharks are disqualified—they had a plan, they stuck to it, you can't blame them, and they're having as much fun as the worst team in the league could possibly have.
The Blue Jackets were expected to be better than they are, sure, but no one had them winning a Cup this year and most wouldn't have pegged them as a playoff team. The Mike Babcock hiring started and ended before the actual season, so at least the fanbase could get over that relatively quickly.
It's been sad to see Alex Ovechkin take a step back, but Capitals fans saw the team decline coming, and they've won a Cup pretty recently. They'll be fine.
What a matchup that leaves us with between Sabres fans and Senators fans. Both fanbases had reasons for optimism heading into this season, whether that was rookie goaltender Devon Levi for Buffalo, Jakob Chychrun, a new goalie situation or new ownership for the Senators.
When it comes down to it, the Sabres hold the longest playoff drought in the league, and I think deep down you all knew you couldn't expect Levi to jump in the net and turn everything around for the team immediately. After nearly a decade and a half of missing the playoffs, you tend to stay grounded even when hope returns. Plus, you've got the Bills who could very well become AFC champions soon.
The Senators came into 2023-24 with tons of hope and expectation, and they've crushed those hopes and expectations in so many different ways as they sit at the bottom of the Atlantic. Ottawa fans genuinely thought the team would at least be on the playoff bubble this season, and for that, they are now experiencing max pain.
Will the Hurricanes Make Moves at the NHL Trade Deadline?
3 of 11
Death, taxes, and wondering if the Carolina Hurricanes should do anything at the deadline.
Let's see if Pyotr Kochetkov is significantly hurt first because the rookie-ish goaltender has been on an amazing tear as the Hurricanes climb back up the Metro rankings.
My biggest concerns early on in the season were 1. goaltending (which has been somewhat answered by the choice to roll with Kochetkov), 2. Sebastian Aho pacing the team for better or for worse (he has broken his own and some franchise records with points streaks ever since, and look at that, the Hurricanes became magically good again as he was doing it), and 3. Lack of Andrei Svechnikov (Svech is back, and killing it).
The defensive situation is a little bizarre, with about 700 options who seem to be underperforming at different times. Maybe that's an issue with too many cheap cooks in the kitchen. In that case, I'd say maybe try to ship a few out in return for one beacon of stability.
Look, the Hurricanes are what they are at this point. They are a team that plays the right way, deserves to win and has the potential to win. They are also never going to be the most skilled, star-studded or overpaid team in the NHL. It all goes back to a favorite Rod Brind'Amour quote: "Your best players have to be your best players."
.png?w=256 "NHL Mock Draft")
.jpg?w=256 "Kucherov Landing Spots")
.png?w=256)
Get in on This Hockey Parlay from Sara
4 of 11
OK folks, full disclosure: Don't do this bet—you're probably going to lose money. I've been dabbling with the ins and outs of sports gambling lately to get a feel for something that is clearly becoming a huge part of the industry.
I've been enjoying putting $1-$5 down for the journey every so often with no expectations of winning, and that's how I hope you approach any of my parlay proposals.
Tonight we've got Stars vs. Predators, and I've been having success with the Stars moneyline and under parlay recently (not the under last game, but that was an anomaly).
If you want to get frisky, Tyler Seguin is on a four-game goal streak and has five goals in his last five games. I wouldn't risk it, but he's as good an option as any for anytime goal scorer. Matt Duchene has been crushing it this season and the Predators are his former team, so instead of a Seguin goal I might opt for Duchene getting X amount of shots or points.
*Odds, lines and betting splits refresh periodically and are subject to change. 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). AZ, CO, CT, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA (select parishes), MA, MD, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, TN, VA, WV, WY, CA-ONT only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See terms at draftkings.com/sportsbook. DraftKings operates pursuant to an Operating Agreement with iGaming Ontario. Please play responsibly. Gambling problem? Crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537).
Midseason Picks for the Stanley Cup Final
5 of 11
I kind of feel like we need 2011 again to watch the world (literally) burn. Vancouver's lucrative offense vs. Boston's goalie tandem would be extremely fun and intense hockey. Canucks fans are passionate, and it's always good for the game of hockey when one of those passionate Canadian fanbases makes the Cup Final—we've been in a bit of a drought in that regard.
That said, the Rangers have been electric all season despite their three-game skid, and Peter Laviolette teams tend to be fun on long Cup runs. Then you've got the feel-good story (if it pans out) that is the Winnipeg Jets. You've also got Matthew Tkachuk heating up as the Panthers sit only one point behind the Bruins for the Atlantic Division lead.
The Stars are particularly scary this year because they haven't had extreme ups or downs. They've been the embodiment of consistency up and down the lineup, and I wouldn't be surprised to see the calmness and overall strength translate to a Cup run. And we can't leave out Nathan MacKinnon's Hart campaign and the Avalanche climbing to contention—especially with Gabriel Landeskog skating again and potentially available come playoffs.
It just feels a little too wide open to make certain Stanley Cup Final picks. Once we get past the trade deadline, the picture will become clearer.
Playoff Prognostications
6 of 11
"Definitely" is a strong word, Wendel Clark Kent, but I have a hard time thinking that the Predators are just going to squeak into and maintain the second wild-card spot in the West. Per usual, they're kind of just floating around and happen to be good enough to find themselves in a playoff spot.
2024 is all about being intentional, and I appreciate the Kraken's effort and intention even when they fail. It finally seems to be clicking for the team, on an eight-game win streak led by goalie Joey Daccord's incredible goaltending run.
We've watched enough hockey together at this point to know a goalie getting hot at the right time is often the difference between making the playoffs or not, and teams that experience the hot goalie often have good playoff fortune. This, combined with the Kraken's scoring drought ending, bodes well to kick the Nashville Midders out of the playoffs.
Is There Any Hope in Ottawa?
7 of 11
This is such a fascinating situation that is challenging for me (and the rest of the world, apparently) to get a grip on. I was one of the many believers that the Ottawa Senators had enough health, enough young star power and a strong defensive backbone that would bring them back to at least the playoff bubble.
I don't love the idea of anyone who is not actively tanking selling just to sell at the deadline. If, for example, a player and management are having behind-the-scenes conversations where it's expressed that the player wants to move on or would be a better fit elsewhere, it could be time to pull that trigger. If there's a specific player—a goaltender, perhaps, the Senators have their eye on, it would be cool to clear up cap space with a trade, as well.
But they just got Jakob Chychrun, and the young players are still young. I still believe there's a solid group of players in Ottawa, but they need a really good goalie and a few of those clutch goalscorers who just always seem to "get it done."
I don't see the point in throwing away good pieces right now—there's a reason everyone thought the team would be good.
Is There Any Hope in Buffalo?
8 of 11
No. Don't do this to yourself. Turn off the hockey for the season and go all-in on the Bills.
Be-Deviled by Injuries
9 of 11
The list and context of the Devils' current injuries is brutal. Jack Hughes, Dougie Hamilton, Ondrej Palat and Timo Meier are among the many on a rotating list that seems to add a new name every week.
Of course it has not helped the struggling Devils that their top defenseman, their top center, and several of their top forwards have missed and will miss significant time. But truly great teams are often galvanized by these moments.
The real problem isn't the injuries—it's the goaltending is no longer masked by outscoring the opponent. Vitek Vanecek owns the league's worst Goals Saved Above Expected ranking with minus-13.4, and Akira Schmid is also in the negatives with minus-3.8.
If you combine the injuries with the struggling goalies, the results speak for themselves. It's going to be a tough fight to get into the playoffs with everything seemingly going against the Devils.
Willy Styling a New Contract
10 of 11
The Toronto Leafs are never not going to "overpay," and that's fine. With the core four especially, it would be a bad vibe to have an odd man out, and there was a certain precedent set years ago.
William Nylander is a 27-year-old on pace for a career year and projected to score more than 100 points, has been a consistently great player his whole career, and the cap is set to rise significantly for the first time since 2019-20.
Nylander's eight-year, $92 million contract will help us get used to what comparable contracts will look like in a higher-cap era. The transitional era is going to take some adjustment.
Is this sustainable for the Leafs? No, someone, perhaps Mitch Marner, is going to have to be the odd man out eventually. But no core lasts forever, and when you have someone like Nylander firing on all cylinders, you pay him and keep him when you're in a Cup window.
The New Rookie of the Year Favorite?
11 of 11
I've been thinking about this a lot, considering I often have the honor to vote on these awards and take it very seriously.
How will Connor Bedard's jaw fracture, leaving him out six to eight weeks, affect his Calder Trophy campaign? The most true, most simple answer is the non-answer: We'll have to wait and see.
But if you're paying attention, this stacked rookie class gave voters more than Bedard to think about since before the injury. As it stands, Bedard is currently No. 1 in the 2023-24 rookie class by nine points, with 33 points in 39 games. The first-line center was averaging the highest TOI of the forwards, and sixth-highest among all rookie skaters with 19:04 minutes per game.
Wild defenseman Brock Faber immediately stands out. He's leading the rookie class in TOI by far, averaging 24:41. He's tied with Bedard for the lead in assists with 18, and he's got two goals and 20 points with a plus-six rating in 40 games with the Wild. As Minnesota slides down the rankings, Faber is doing everything he can to climb back up.
We'll see how these next, crucial weeks play out for him and the Wild. You've also got Marco Rossi from the Wild racking up the points with 12 goals and 12 assists in 40 games, and Columbus' Adam Fantilli heating up, feeling more comfortable and logging more minutes as the season has gone on.
The goaltending race adds a whole other element, with Joseph Woll, Lukas Dostal and Pyotr Kochetkov to name a few to consider.
Look, the thing about the Calder race is it is always fickle and dependent on some context often out of a player's control. If no one comes close to doing what Bedard has been doing, there's a good chance he'll still come back from injury and win it. But there are about 15 other rookies in the conversation right now, so let's make a point to watch them closely over the next few weeks.
.png?w=480 "NHL Mock Draft")
.jpg?w=480 "Kucherov Landing Spots")
.png?w=480)
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
