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Good morning to everyone except Sunny Mehta and Kevin Chevaldayoff, who could have made the Connor Hellebuyck trade any time in the last few months but chose the exact second we were about to hit “send” on Friday’s newsletter. Guys, come on. You had all summer to think of it.
New trade board
Just three games last night, and the theme was “pump the brakes.” The Rangers continued to fade, dropping their third straight in regulation to the Kings in James Reimer’s (brief) debut. The red-hot Maple Leafs were consumed by the Flames. And the West’s top team, the Oilers, couldn’t handle the Red Wings on home ice.
You know what would fix all of those teams? A trade …
It seems like only a week ago we were devouring Chris Johnston’s first trade board of the season, mainly because it was only a week ago. But that was before the Hellebuyck blockbuster shook up the league, sending CJ back to the drawing board for an even bigger Trade Board 2.0.
It won’t shock you to see Detroit’s duo of Dylan Larkin and Simon Edvinsson featured prominently, though it might shock the Red Wings and their nothing-to-see-here front office. Quinn Hughes will show up on these lists until he finally signs an extension in Minnesota. But some of the other names are more surprising. Erik Karlsson? Jordan Binnington? Elias Pettersson?
The rumor mill could be in for a busy year.
💡 Trivia Time!
Hellebuyck was the rare (though not quite unheard-of) midseason goalie trade in a league where conventional wisdom says those deals are easier to make in the summer. OK then: Can you name all of the goalies who were traded over the 2026 offseason and have played at least one game in the NHL for their new teams?
A few hints: The list is longer than I would have thought, including a few guys who are nominal starters or at least 1As for their new teams. None of them has won the Vezina Trophy, though one guy was a runner-up once. Bonus points if you can name the NHL goalie who was traded twice in separate deals.
Coast to Coast
🤮 The Canucks are bad. But Thomas Drance is wondering whether they might be historically bad.
🧐 NHL Central Scouting released its preliminary players-to-watch list for the 2027 NHL Draft. In the first official overview of this year’s draft class, 27 prospects received an “A” rating. Corey Pronman and Scott Wheeler have thoughts.
🔥 Pierre LeBrun caught up with Calgary Flames GM Craig Conroy for an update on his rebuild timeline and the $1.2 billion Scotia Place arena project.
🚨 Shayna Goldman has a look under the hood at some big names who aren’t scoring … at least not yet.
📉 In my weekend rankings, I looked at the Hellebuyck fallout and then ranked your team too low.
🎙️ Goalie expert Jesse Granger weighs in on Hellebuyck’s fit with the Devils and offers an interesting stat to back it up. Listen/watch on “The Athletic Hockey Show.”
📖 ‘The Hockey 100’ hits shelves
Today’s a big day around The Athletic’s hockey headquarters. Our new book, “The Hockey 100,” is officially out and available to buy at all your favorite stores.
“The Hockey 100” is an updated version of our NHL99 project from a few years ago. We used that list as a starting point, then updated it based on what the top stars of today had added to their resumes. We updated several player profiles. We took a hard look at that original list and wondered if we’d made any mistakes. Then we yelled at each other. So much yelling. Most of us don’t speak anymore.
But the finished product is worth it. And it’s a true team effort, with work from close to a dozen of your favorite writers from The Athletic’s hockey coverage, and also Sean Gentille. The end result is our list of the 100 best players in modern NHL history, and 100 cool stories to go along with them (here’s a taste). And yes, unlike some lists we could mention, ours is ranked.
That ranking is where the arguments come in. And of course, that’s most of the fun …
🤬 Let’s get ready to argue
How do you narrow a list of the modern era’s greatest starts down to 100 worthy names? And once you’ve done that, how to decide who slots in where? I think I already mentioned the yelling, but those of us who wanted to pound the table for certain players also tried flattery, side deals, guilt trips and occasional bribery.
In the end, I think we got it mostly right. Mostly. But because I’m the one writing this newsletter, I can use the space to point out a few spots where I think there’s still room for debate.
Ray Bourque vs. Nicklas Lidström: After Bobby Orr, who’s the second-greatest defenseman of all time? I think it’s fair to say that Lidström has become the consensus pick over the years. It’s also fair to say that’s wrong, and it should be Bourque. I make that case in the book. Did I persuade enough of my fellow writers to get Bourque ahead of Lidström on the final list? You’ll find out.
Connor McDavid vs. the past: I don’t think there’s any question McDavid will rank near the very top of the list by the time he’s done. But what about right now, when he still hasn’t turned 30? After 11 full seasons, three MVPs, six scoring titles, one Conn Smythe Trophy (but no Stanley Cup), how high can you rank him? Is he already ahead of Jaromír Jágr? Phil Esposito? Steve Yzerman? Alex Ovechkin? Our answer: Yes to some of those, but not all. But it’s not easy to hit a moving target.
Mark Messier vs. the numbers: He played forever and racked up big career totals because of it, but on a year-to-year basis, he trails more stars than you might think. But how do you factor in his reputation as perhaps the greatest leader in pro sports? Do six rings negate zero scoring titles? I’m not sure they do. Some of my colleagues disagreed. Were they wrong? Let’s just say I won’t guarantee it.
Martin Brodeur vs. Patrick Roy vs. Dominik Hašek: They’re the holy trinity of modern goaltending, and you might assume they’d be our top three at the position. But in what order? How big are the gaps in between? And are we sure that somebody like Ken Dryden or Tony Esposito doesn’t have a case to break up our trio?
Mix in the bigger debates that surround this sort of project — position versus position, era versus era, peak versus longevity — and you can imagine the degree of difficulty. And now it’s out of our hands. And hopefully into yours.
What to Watch
It’s a busy one tonight, with 11 games. Here are my three favorites:
📺 Bruins @ Hurricanes
8 p.m. ET on ESPN / SN360
The East’s two division leaders face off for the first time. The Bruins come in having won seven of eight, but the hockey world still seems undecided on whether they belong in the elite. Beating the defending champs on home ice would spice up that debate significantly.
📺 Devils @ Stars
8 p.m. ET on ESPN+
This one will be more fun down the road when it will be Jake Oettinger versus Connor Hellebuyck. For now, it’s two seven-win teams that are both coming in hot — the Devils have won three straight, while the Stars have won five.
📺 Wild @ Mammoth
9 p.m. ET on ESPN+
The two top teams in the Central go head-to-head for the first time. In fact, this will be the Mammoth’s first game against a division opponent since opening night, when they beat the hapless Blackhawks 6-0. This one should be a tougher test. Winner gets first place in the Central. Loser has to put an “s” on the end of its name like a proper sports team.
Full NHL schedule here. Try streaming games like these for free on Fubo.
Jacob Markström. (Carmen Mandato / Getty Images)
Trivia Answer
By my count, eight current NHL goalies were traded during the offseason, though your list might be a bit shorter if you don’t consider training camp to be the offseason.
The list starts with Joseph Woll (1) going from the Maple Leafs to the Flyers. Toronto got Samuel Ersson (2) in that deal, then flipped him to Ottawa a few days later. Utah added Sebastian Cossa (3), Vegas got Akira Schmid (4) and the Oilers got Devon Levi (5). We saw two buzzer-beaters right before the season started, with Tampa Bay getting Dennis Hildeby (6) and Ottawa getting Jonas Johansson (7).
And the big name (and the Vezina runner-up we were looking for) was Jacob Markström (8) going from New Jersey to Florida. Gosh, I sure hope the Devils can find someone to replace him someday.
Thank you, as always, for reading. We’ll see you again on Friday. To submit feedback or corrections, email us at redlight@theathletic.com.
Most-clicked in Friday’s newsletter: the 1979 Sasson Jeans ad. Which, you know what … fair. If you haven’t seen it, you really owe it to yourself. Ooh la la.
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