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- Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun: Guessing the Maple Leafs wish list for their next head coach: 1. Mike Babcock; 2. Todd McLellan; 3. Bruce Boudreau; 4. Dave Tippett; 5. Ken Hitchcock; 6. Peter DeBoer; 7. Paul MacLean.
Stars GM Jim Nill wanted to sign Vincent Lecavalier before Vinny signed with the Flyers. If that had happened, he would have never traded for Tyler Seguin.Shouldn’t be surprised if Steve Spott is back coaching the Toronto Marlies next season.
Sounding like if the Coyotes select third, and with Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel going 1-2, they could be leaning towards Dylan Strome over Noah Hanifin. The Leafs are interested in Strome and Mitch Marner, but it may be hard to pass up Hanifin if he’s there at No. 4.
- Jim Mathson of the Edmonton Journal: Matheson wonders if the Oilers would consider trading the 2nd overall pick for two or three pieces, which would include a veteran defenseman. The Oilers already have Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Leon Draisaitl down the middle. Scenarios for the No. 2 pick could be:
The Predators offering Seth Jones and goalie Juuse Saros?
The Maple Leafs offering Morgan Rielly?
The Blue Jackets offering the 5th or 6th overall pick and Ryan Murray for the No. 2? That is probably a non-starter, but Murray has some health concerns. The Blue Jackets could offer up three players or a flip of draft picks.
“For sure, any team picking second has to listen to offers,” said former NHL GM Craig Button, also TSN’s draft guru. “There’s really not much difference between McDavid and Eichel. It’s slim. Eichel’s a helluva player. It’s just one of those years in which you get two players as good as this in the same draft. Doesn’t happen very often.
“There are really all sorts of scenarios. Like what if Buffalo doesn’t win the lottery and falls back to No. 2? They want McDavid, so you have to take a look at the Sabres’ prospect pool, and they’ve got good ones for trade. What if the team picking first could get Sam Reinhart and a young defenceman like (Rasmus) Ristolainen or (Nikita) Zadorov to move back to No. 2, and you’d still get to pick Eichel?” said Button.
The Oilers could draft Eichel at No. 2 and put Draisaitl in play.
Maybe they could trade back, to say the Maple Leafs, and draft Strome.
If the Coyotes are drafting second, they are taking Eichel.
