Hockeywiztalks Hockey Blog

The Vancouver Canucks are a borderline contending team right now and are unlikely to make the playoffs if they don't make any significant changes. This is what the Vancouver Canucks should do to improve the team. Vancouver Canucks make a few trades: Vancouver Canucks trade Tyler Myers and Tanner Pearson to the Buffalo Sabres for Casey Mittelstadt, Jacob Bryson, 2023 2nd round pick. This trade helps both teams address their needs but most importantly, Vancouver adds a young center with top 6 potential. JT Miller is traded to the New York Rangers for Nils Lundkvist, Vitali Kravtsov, 2023 1st round pick.  The Rangers get JT Miller to bolster their top 6, while the Canucks get two top prospects and a 1st round pick for a pending UFA. Vancouver Canucks sign the Following Free Agents: Tyler Motte-3yrs/1.8M per This is how the lineup looks like this season 2022-23 Vancouver Canucks N.Hoglander-E.Pettersson-B.Boeser C.Garland-B.Horvat-A.Kuzmenko I.Mikheyev-C.Mittelstadt-V.Podkolzin T.Motte...

The San Jose Sharks aren't quite good enough to be contenders, yet they aren't bad enough to be a lottery team yet, so they must make some moves to improve the team if they are to be a contender this season. Here is what I would to improve the San Jose Sharks. Before the season a few trades are made San Jose Sharks trade Timo Meier to the New Jersey Devils for Damon Severson, Jesper Boqvist, Fabian Zetterlund, 1st round pick '24. The Sharks get a pretty good haul for Timo Meier, who is a good player, but he might not fit into the Sharks' long-term plan. On the flip side of the trade, Meier will make the Devils' top 6 a lot more lethal. The Sharks also trade Radim Simek,  '23 2nd, '25 3rd to the Chicago Blackhawks for 3rd round pick '23. The Sharks use a 2nd-round pick and 3rd-round pick to unload Radim Simek's contract. James Reimer is traded to the Buffalo Sabres for 2nd round pick '23, 6th round pick '24. The Sabres need a starting goalie a...

 The Pittsburgh Penguins currently hold the 1st wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference with a 19-8-5 record and 43 points through 32 games played. With the current team the Penguins have, they won't be able to make a deep run but if they make a few moves at the deadline, they could have one last Stanley Cup run with their current core. In this blog, I write about what the Pittsburgh Penguins need to improve on and what needs to be done to improve their Cup Chances. Issues w/ Pittsburgh Penguins: 1. Lack of Secondary Scoring 2. Goaltending  3. Lack of Offensive + Defensive Depth The Biggest issue that the Pittsburgh Penguins will have in the Playoffs if they do not add any players is that they lack secondary scoring. Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jake Guentzel, Jeff Carter, Bryan Rust are seasoned veteran players with Stanley Cup pedigree, but the rest of the forwards have yet to prove themselves a scoring threat in the playoffs. If the Penguins are to make a deep playoff run ...

The New York Rangers have a great young core, but they don't have enough NHL experience yet. If they make the right trades, they could be a legit contender as soon as next year. This is how the New York Rangers can become a legit contender next year. Before the season, a huge blockbuster trade is made: New York Rangers acquire Jack Eichel from the Buffalo Sabres for Mika Zibanejad, Braden Schneider, 2023 1st round pick. This is a fair trade for both sides because the Rangers get a legit superstar in Jack Eichel; while the Sabres get Mika Zibanejad, who is a UFA next season, Braden Schneider, and a 1st round pick.   The New York Rangers barely squeak into the playoffs in the 2020-21 season and get eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Before the 2022 draft, two trades are made: New York Rangers trade Ryan Strome, Vitaly Kravtsov to the San Jose Sharks for Timo Meier. This is a great trade for both teams because the Sharks get two great players in Ryan Strome and Vitaly...

 New Jersey Devils' GM, Tom Fitzgerald has said that the Devils want to take that next step this season, and possibly vie for a playoff spot. In this blog, I  explore how the Devils can turn their team into a playoff-caliber team this season. Here is a quick look at the roster right now, and the prospects they have that could potentially crack the lineup. The current lineup looks like this: J.Kuokkanen-J.Hughes-Y.Sharangovich P.Zacha-N.Hischier-J.Bratt M.Wood-M.McLeod-A.Johnsson N.Foote-J.Boqvist-M.Studenic R.Graves-D.Hamilton T.Smith-D.Severson J.Siegenthaler-PK.Subban M.Blackwood J.Bernier Prospects who could potentially crack the lineup are Alexander Holtz, Dawson Mercer, Tyce Thompson, Kevin Bahl The Biggest weakness of the Devils at the current moment is goal scoring; if Holtz and Mercer aren't NHL ready yet, then they need to go out and trade for one. The Devils have been one of the teams that have been linked to Vladimir Tarasenko; Tarasenko is exactly what this team ne...

 The Montreal Canadiens are a borderline playoff team right now, but if they were to add a star player, they would immediately become a legit threat in the North Division. This is what the Montreal Canadiens need to do to become a legit contender. The Montreal Canadiens Make two major trades: Montreal Canadiens trade Phillip Danault, Joel Armia, Victor Mete, and a 2021 2nd round pick to the San Jose Sharks for Tomas Hertl, Marcus Sorensen. The Canadiens get Tomas Hertl, a great second-line center, and Marcus Sorensen, while the Sharks add Phillip Danault, a great two-way center, Joel Armia, and Victor Mete, two good depth players and a 2nd round pick. The Canadiens also trade Paul Byron, Artturi Lehkonen to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Emil Benstrom, Eric Robinson, and a 2021 3rd round pick. The Blue Jackets get Paul Byron and Artturi Lehkonen, two top 9 forwards, while the Canadiens get Emil Benstrom and Eric Robinson, two solid young players, and a 3rd round pick. The Montreal C...

 Even though the Vancouver Canucks should be a contending team this year, they can still improve their team to become a Stanley cup favorite. With that in mind, let's take a look at some of the moves the Vancouver Canucks could make to win a Stanley Cup. The Vancouver Canucks trade Michael Ferland, Brogan Rafferty, Sven Baertschi to the Detroit Red Wings for 3rd rd pick '21, 4th rd pick '21. The main purpose of this trade from Vancouver's perspective is to get rid of Michael Ferland and Sven Baertschi; from Detroit's point of view, this is low-risk trade, where they add some nice players for some draft picks. After creating more than 5 million in cap space, the Vancouver Canucks add some players in Free Agency: Derrick Brassard-1yr/2 million Corey Perry-1yr/1 million Madison Bowey-1yr/800k  The Vancouver Canucks finish the 2020-21 season as the second-best team in All-Canadian Division and the 4th best team in the Western Conference; the Canucks make it to the Weste...

The Winnipeg Jets have a solid team, but if they want to make the playoffs in the newly formed All-Canadian Division, they need to improve their roster. The Jets should focus on improving their defense, their offensive depth, and prospect pool. The Winnipeg Jets start by making two huge blockbuster trades: Winnipeg Jets trade Patrik Laine to the Montreal Canadiens for Jonathan Drouin, Philip Danault, Victor Mete, Artturi Lekhonen, 1st round pick 2021.  This trade is beneficial for both sides because the Habs get Patrik Laine, a stud goal scorer, while the Jets get Jonathan Drouin, Philip Danault, two Mete, and Lehkonen, solid role players, and a 1st round pick. Winnipeg also trades Adam Lowry, Nathan Beaulieu, and a 2021 2nd round pick to the Buffalo Sabres for Brandon Montour. This is a good trade for both teams because the Jets get Brandon Montour, a stable two-way defenseman, while the Sabres get Adam Lowry, a valuable role player, Nathan Beaulieu, and a 2nd round pick. At the t...

 The Columbus Blue Jackets are a borderline playoff team, however, if they make improvements to their team, they could be even better. Making some improvements to the roster should guarantee that Columbus becomes a contending team. Columbus Blue Jackets trade David Savard to the Ottawa Senators for Logan Brown, Vitaly Abramov, a 2nd round pick '21. The Blue Jackets acquire two great young prospects in Brown and Abramov, as well as a 2nd round pick for David Savard. Nick Foligno, Mikhail Grigorenko is traded to the Edmonton Oilers for Adam Larsson, Zack Kassian, 2nd round pick 2022. Columbus gets Adam Larsson, a top 4 defenseman, and Zack Kassian, a top 9 forward for Nick Foligno and Mikhail Grigorenko. Columbus Blue Jackets re-sign Pierre Luc Dubois to an 8 yr deal worth 6 million per season. The Columbus Blue Jackets miss the playoffs in the 2020-21 season; they end up with the 14th pick in the draft. Before the 2021 Draft, Columbus trades Gustav Nyquist, Max Domi to the Victor Ra...