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Jaccob Slavin of Hurricanes wins Lady Byng Trophy for gentlemanly conduct

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RALEIGH, NC – Jaccob Slavin of the Carolina Hurricanes won the Lady Byng Trophy on Thursday. The award is presented annually to the NHL player voted to best combine sportsmanship, gentlemanly conduct and ability.

“I think, first and foremost for myself, I want to give all the glory to God,” Slavin said on ESPN’s “The Point” on Thursday. “He’s given me the abilities to play this game and have the opportunity to do everything that I do. So, it’s a tremendous honor to win this award. I think for myself it means a lot.

“It is strange being a gentleman and trying to play really hard defense. But I greatly appreciate it. I think, for myself, just playing the game simple, playing the game hard, but obviously not taking any penalties. And then doing in it in a way where I respect everybody on the ice — officials, coaches, whatever it is — but making sure I’m doing my job out there and being hard to play against.”

Don’t Underestimate The Value Of A Pierre-Edouard Bellemare

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SEATTLE, WA – This sentence is a melancholy one to write, because it’s likely the last time “Pierre-Edouard Bellemare” and “Seattle Kraken” will appear together without the word “former.”

Not because the Kraken can’t find a better on-ice player than the 39-year-old pending free agent. They can, and they need to, just as every roster spot needs to be evaluated every year.

But under the category “intangibles,” whatever club employs Bellemare automatically earns a check mark.

Jacob Trouba named the 2023-24 recipient of the Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award

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NEW YORK, NY – New York Rangers captain Jacob Trouba was named the 2023-24 recipient of the Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award, which is presented “to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey.” Trouba is the first Rangers player to earn the annual Mark Messier Leadership Award since it was first presented on a season-by-season basis in the spring of 2007.

Since joining the organization ahead of the 2019-20 season, the 30-year-old defenseman has helped lead the Blueshirts to success on the ice and has taken pride in representing the club in the community. This past summer, he participated in the Rangers Youth Hockey Camp, signing autographs for and spending time with kids taking part in the camp. Now in his second year as team captain after being named to the position on Aug. 9, 2022, Trouba frequently hosts meet and greets following home games with kids from the Garden of Dreams Foundation, spending time with kids and occasionally taking them on a tour of the locker room.

How ageless Ian Cole has played prominent playoff role

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VANCOUVER, BC – Ask Ian Cole what makes a fellow blueliner tick and you get more than just a short critique.

After all, he played with Nikita Zadorov in Colorado and Carson Soucy in Minnesota. He can fill your recorder with the past and present value of current teammates. You might need fresh batteries.

Joel Farabee Highlights Impact Of Healthy Offseason, Praises Flyers Young Core

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – At just 24 years old, Joel Farabee has established himself as an up-and-coming leader within the Philadelphia Flyers, having been with the organization since getting drafted in 2018.

From taking young incoming players under his wing (and giving them a place to stay if they need it) to fiercely defending his teammates to being able to reflect honestly on his performance this season, Farabee has emerged as a prominent figure in this famous Flyers locker room.

Kraken forward Pierre-Edouard Bellemare not planning to stop after hitting 700 games

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SEATTLE, WA – Kraken forward Pierre-Edouard Bellemare claims he doesn’t think he’d make a great hockey coach.

Not that Bellemare, who appeared in his 697th NHL game Friday night at age 39, is ready to move on from his playing career just yet. It’s just that folks tend to note that he isn’t getting any younger and feel his insights and motivational techniques might make for a great role behind a bench in the not-so-distant future.

To which he laughs.

“I don’t think I’d be too good at it,” he said after Friday’s morning skate at Honda Center before the Kraken played the Anaheim Ducks. “I get frustrated when players complain too much about ice time and stuff. You think the coach is doing it to make himself feel good? He’s doing what’s best to try to motivate you and get the best out of you.

Canucks: Ian Cole set to join unique playoff club

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VANCOUVER, BC – The NHL record for the most teams a player has made the playoffs with is eight.

Only one player has ever hit this mark: former Vancouver Canucks centre Mike Sillinger.

Sillinger joined the Canucks in a trade from the Anaheim Mighty Ducks at the trade deadline in 1996 and ended up playing six games for the Canucks in the playoffs that year, making Vancouver the second team he played in the post-season with. He went onto eight Stanley Cup playoffs with eight different teams.

And now Ian Cole is about to match that record. When he makes his 2024 Stanley Cup playoff debut, presumably in game one of the coming first round, Cole will have made the post-season with his eighth NHL franchise.

It’s a remarkable record. Without a doubt, Cole knows first hand how hard teams that make the playoffs have to work.

Ottawa Senators sign forward Stephen Halliday to entry-level contract

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OTTAWA, ONT- Ottawa Senators president of hockey operations and general manager Steve Staios announced today that the team has signed forward Stephen Halliday to a two-year, entry-level contract which will commence with the 2024-25 season. For the duration of 2023-24, Halliday has signed an amateur tryout agreement and will report to the American Hockey League’s Belleville Senators.

A native of Ajax, Ont., Halliday, 21, recently completed his second season of college eligibility with the Ohio State University (Big-10) Buckeyes, where he led the team in both assists (26) and points (36) while ranking second in goals (10). He also registered 30 penalty minutes while skating in each of Ohio State’s 38 games.

Wright on track maturing game with Firebirds

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COACHELLA VALLEY, CA – It only seems that Coachella Valley Firebirds forward Shane Wright is older than his birth certificate indicates.

Wright, after all, has been a household hockey name for years. Nothing has been normal or routine for him.

He was barely a teenager when he was already attracting attention as an emerging star in the ultra-competitive world of minor hockey in the Greater Toronto Area. His teammates with the Don Mills Flyers included the likes of eventual NHL first-rounders Brandt Clarke and Brennan Othmann. It was that kind of environment that Wright dominated.

Then came 2019 and Hockey Canada granting Wright exceptional-player status, a decision that allowed him to join Kingston of the Ontario Hockey League as a 15-year-old. He delivered on the hype, providing 39 goals and 66 points to win top rookie honors in both the OHL and the Canadian Hockey League.

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