The Hockey News Mar. 23, 2020 - Future Watch

IMMEDIACY IS KING NOWADAYS. We want things right away. We hate to wait. So we don’t. Well, welcome to the age of the accelerated rebuild in the NHL. Gone are the days of the protracted rebuild, when teams like Ottawa of the 1990s, Pittsburgh of the early 2000s and Edmonton of the 2010s needed five, six, even seven years of high draft picks to build a team worthy of becoming a contender. That won’t cut it anymore. Today’s rebuild is more accurately called a retool. It was just two years ago the New York Rangers issued a press release announcing plans to “reshape” the roster, trading off familiar faces for young talent and premium picks. The transformation by GM Jeff Gorton has been remarkable to the point they were in the…

Dear readers, Future Watch is one of our most popular and anticipated issues. It has become a must-read for fans, NHL executives and media members wanting to get the comprehensive, big-picture analysis on the next wave of NHL players. While I’m very fond of this edition, I tend to focus on a different kind of future watch. My eyes are fixed on The Hockey News’ audience numbers and how they’re trending. I made that a priority when I acquired The Hockey News in January 2018. I thought it was critical, as publisher, to set a path for growth at a time when most publications were heading in the opposite direction. The backbone of the plan was the team, which I was fortunate to inherit. I was supremely confident we had the right people…

I like the young core of the Canucks. Hughes will be a premier defenseman, Pettersson an elite forward and Markstrom is getting better with age. Add a pure goal-scorer in Boeser and an excellent two-way center in Horvat. Plus, GM Benning has been adding the right depth players. – Michael Metros Colorado Avalanche. GM Joe Sakic has built a young, competitive core and has also done a great job of filling out the Avs’ prospect pool. The team is set to compete for years to come. – @joelthesakic It pains me to say as a Pens fan, but watch out for the Flyers. They finally got a franchise goalie in Hart and are loaded with young talent that is either with the Flyers now or will be soon: guys like Frost, Farabee, Sanheim, Morin,…

AT ONE POINT during Henri Richard’s rookie season of 1955-56, a reporter asked Montreal Canadiens coach Toe Blake whether the young Richard spoke any English. “I don’t think he can even speak French,” was the reply. “I’ve never heard him talk.” Richard, who passed away in early March at the age of 84, was so quiet that when his older brother, Maurice, marched him up to GM Frank Selke’s office to sign his first contract, Henri left without even knowing his salary. For the record, it was $7,000 in the first year and $8,000 in the second year. “Mr. Selke asked Maurice, ‘Is Henri ready?’ and Maurice said, ‘Yes, he’s ready,’ and he turned around and walked out of the room,” said Henri in 2008. “I couldn’t speak English, and they put this…

JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING the Seattle expansion franchise does leading up to and including its first season will be judged by the bar set by the Vegas Golden Knights. If staff members aren’t tired of hearing that already, they probably will be. But it’s not as though GM Ron Francis is going to go to former Vegas GM George McPhee looking for tips. “I’m not sure how much help they’re going to give me,” Francis said. “We’re in the same division.” However, there’s a lot that can be gained from the template established by McPhee and the Golden Knights, who had no idea when they were assembling their scouting staff that they would have three first-round picks, all in the top half of the round, in their first draft. Seattle has already hit…

THE NIGHT BRINSON Pasichnuk became the first player in the history of Arizona State’s Div. I program to reach 100 career points, he scored on a blast from the blueline. He was reticent to take too much of the credit, but unlike a lot of hockey players, he did not defer to his teammates. “I’ll just thank God, give Him all the credit,” Pasichnuk said, “because I was definitely not aiming five-hole on that shot.” The 22-year-old undrafted defenseman was only half-kidding, or maybe not at all. Pasichnuk found religion a little more than two years ago, when he transformed from a hard-partying college jock who had lost his way amid a battle with severe depression to an honors student, team captain and one of the most coveted U.S. college free…