Buyouts, Trades, and Stanley Cup Celebrations Gone Wrong

Good morning to fans of the NHL team that made only the second most controversial announcement this week! Things are starting to pick up a little bit as we get ready for the expansion draft and the normal draft.

• As I’m sure you know already, the Sens recent brought controversial hockey broadcaster Pierre McGuire into a front office role. He stopped by Tim & Friends on Sportsnet to talk about why he took the job.
• Also, Pierre Dorion was on the Future Sickos podcast soon after the announcement. You can listen to the episode wherever you usually listen to your podcasts, or click on the video below:/

Future Sickos Episode 8 - Interview with Pierre Dorion https://t.co/pQikqM2Btj

— Future Sickos Podcast (@FutureSickos) July 13, 2021

• Over in Montreal, former Sens’ coach Luke Richardson has signed a 3-year extension.
• It looks like the plan for the 2021-22 NHL season is to go right back to normal. The NHL recently confirmed that they’re hoping to hold an 82-game season beginning in October and ending in April, with all players having been fully vaccinated. We’re also going to go back to the previous schedule, with the same divisions (except that the Coyotes are moving over to the Central and being replaced by the Kraken in the Pacific). RIP North Division, we will miss you. The schedule is supposed to be released before the July 23rd NHL Draft - and by then we will know whether or not players will be allowed to go to the Olympics.
• In more serious news, we have another update on the allegations of abuse in the Chicago Blackhawks organization. Former player Brent Sopel says that almost everyone in the organization was aware of what was happening, and encourages his teammates to speak out more.
• An all-time great is retiring from the game. Now-former Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne penned an emotional piece over at the Players Tribune, reflecting on his career and announcing his retirement from hockey. The piece is well worth reading, and I wish him all the best in future endeavors!
• So... the Tampa Bay Lightning broke the Stanley Cup. Dented it, really. It’s going, ironically, to Montreal for repairs, and then the Bolts will be able to keep on enjoying it. The Cup has definitely been through worse, but this is still extremely funny. What I want to know is whether they damaged the side of the bowl that has all those old Sens championships.
• Speaking of Tampa Bay and their Cup celebration, here’s a wonderful video of Nikita Kucherov celebrating his big win. I hope he’s having a great day.
• You also may have noticed that teams are starting ever so slowly to make moves ahead of the expansion draft. The Oilers recently acquired Duncan Keith from Chicago, and a day later the Wild bought out both Suter and Parise.
• And finally, NWHL player and racial justice advocate Saroya Tinker recently announced that she’s starting her own podcast, called “Shut Up And Play.” The website describes it as “a thought-provoking new podcast that explores real stories of elite athletes who are brave enough to raise their voices as activists.” I’d highly recommend checking out the first episode!/