Daily Nuggets: Golden Knights Making History; ‘God Awful’ Drama

Good morning, folks. It’s official: the Vegas Golden Knights are going to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They lost to the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday, but because of some out-of-town help from the Utah Hockey Club, they clinched a playoff berth. Enough of the present– let’s look to the future! Earlier on Tuesday, the Golden Knights signed Trevor Connelly, the top prospect in their system, to an entry-level contract. 

Elsewhere in the Daily Nuggets, Alex Ovechkin continues his quest for greatness, and an all-time race for the Calder Trophy ramps up. The NHL’s favorite soap opera, the Vancouver Canucks & the Restless, has been renewed for another season, and a new hot bombshell enters the villa. On Long Island, players turned on each other, and head coach Patrick Roy threw one of his players under the bus– metaphorically, of course; let’s leave all bus-related activities to the New York Rangers.

Let’s get into it.

Golden Knights News

Let’s start with the big news: on Tuesday night, the Golden Knights became the fourth team to punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season. It’s the seventh time they’ve clinched a playoff berth in their first eight seasons. 

Read that again.

The ability of this franchise to establish and maintain this level of success is something to behold. For the Golden Knights, the season doesn’t even start until April. This isn’t normal; it’s not unprecedented, but it is unparalleled.

The game that the Golden Knights played on Tuesday is lost in all the playoff excitement. They lost to the Edmonton Oilers 3-2, snapping their six-game win streak. 

Okay, enough about the present. Let’s look to the future— earlier on Tuesday, the Golden Knights signed Trevor Connelly, their first-round draft pick in 2024, to a three-year, entry-level contract. This is a big deal; they’ve arguably never had a prospect as talented as Connelly.

Of course, there’s a reason why Connelly became the top Golden Knights prospect the minute Kelly McCrimmon called his name at the draft. This damn-near unprecedented success doesn’t come free, and it doesn’t come easy. To win now, they sacrificed their futures.

NHL News, Rumors, & National Hockey Now

Sportsnet: It’s been too long since there’s been drama in Vancouver. Reigning Jack Adams Trophy winner Rick Tocchet, reigning Jack Adams Trophy winner, has been the talk of the town lately. His contract status hangs in the balance, as does his future with the Canucks. And he’s not exactly shutting the rumors down.

Sportsnet: He’s downright automatic, folks– Alex Ovechkin scored his 891st career goal on Tuesday. He’s now just four away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s goal record. 

Sportsnet: Thank you, Utah– since the Golden Knights lost to the Edmonton Oilers in regulation on Tuesday, an out-of-town score secured their playoff berth. The Utah Hockey Club downed the Calgary Flames in regulation; unfortunately for the Flames, this was a huge blow to their playoff chances.

New York Islanders Hockey Now: In recent years, the Islanders have become known for being a very neutral organization. They’re not contenders, but they’re just good enough to avoid a high draft pick. They’re never under any scrutiny and certainly don’t broadcast their drama for the world to hear. All of that changed with Patrick Roy’s comments on Tuesday. 

Philly Hockey Now: This season’s Calder race is the most exciting one I can remember in a long time. Celebrini or Hutson? Hutson or Celebrini? And, hey, what about Dustin Wolf? Well, Will James implores the league not to forget about Flyers rookie phenom Matvei Michkov, who is on a post-Tortorella run that suggests he could’ve been the favorite all along under another coach.

San Jose Hockey Now: The Sharks lost 6-1 to the New York Rangers on Sunday night. In a rebuilding year, results like these are to be expected. However, the events that took place after the game were not expected—the Rangers team bus hit Macklin Celebrini’s car.

NHL History: On April 2nd, 1986, Paul Coffey scored his 46th and 47th goal of the season to tie and break Bobby Orr’s record for goals by a defenseman in a single season.