-- Up top, what would the Oilers get Connor McDavid for Christmas? “A personality maybe,” says Jordan Eberle. Ouch.
-- Here’s Red Wings GM Ken Holland on the current state of his team: “We’re not the only team in this position in the league. There are no quick fixes. ‘Let’s make a trade and that’s going to cure whatever ails you.’ That’s not the league we’re in. We’re not the only team in the boat that we’re talking about.” The Wings are on track to miss the playoffs for the first time since 1990. It’s been a great run, but barring a fairly dramatic turnaround, it’s going to end in 2017. (Detroit Free Press)
-- In stark contrast, here’s Flyers GM Ron Hextall on the current state of his team: “We’ve reset the bar a little bit for ourselves in terms of expectations — that we can beat anybody, we can go on a run and be competitive every night. So we just need to continue on.” The Flyers had their 10-game winning streak come to an end Saturday in Dallas, but with an 8-point playoff cushion, they don’t have to win them all. (CSN Philly)
-- Randy Carlyle is back in Toronto as the head coach of the Anaheim Ducks. You’ll recall his firing by the Maple Leafs in January of 2015 was one of the first major steps in Toronto’s tear-down. “After the 2014-15 season mercifully came to an end, Shanahan fired the remaining members of the coaching staff as well as general manager Dave Nonis and a number of scouts. Shanahan then pledged to follow a patient rebuilding of the organization, one that would see the club bottom out in the 2015-16 season and land the No. 1 overall pick at the 2016 draft.” (Canadian Press)
-- The Blackhawks got an encouraging performance from their bottom-six forwards this past weekend. “It’s obviously been great when you can get four lines to score,” said rookie Vinnie Hinostroza, who scored once versus the Blues and once more against the Sharks in back-to-back victories. “We’ll always have those two lines that will provide offense so it’s nice when the third and fourth lines chip in a little bit.” The ‘Hawks are banking on their rookies to keep improving. If they can roll into the playoffs with all four lines contributing, they’ll be all the more dangerous. (CSN Chicago)
-- It’s one thing to lose and still have cap space to improve. But the New York Islanders don’t have a single expiring contract among their forwards, and that’s a problem, writes Newsday’s Arthur Staple. “Amazingly, the Isles already have $65.8 million in cap space tied up for next year among 19 players — all 14 of the forwards that count against the current year’s cap (including Mikhail Grabovski), four defensemen and goaltender Jaroslav Halak. For a team that seems to be in need of an overhaul, that’s an ugly place to be heading into next season.” (Newsday)
Enjoy the games!