Welcome to the PHT Morning Skate, a collection of links from around the hockey world. Have a link you want to submit? Email us at phtblog@nbcsports.com.
• The Edmonton Oilers signed Matt Benning to a two-year, $3.8 million contract extension on Tuesday evening. (NHL.com/Oilers)
• TSN hockey analyst Craig Button put together his final mock draft ahead of Friday’s NHL Entry Draft in Dallas. Rasmus Dahlin is locked in as the top pick, but there’s a lot of intrigue after that. (TSN.ca)
• This will be the 50th edition of the NHL Entry Draft, so TSN.ca ranked all 49 first overall picks made throughout history. It’s not exactly shocking to see Mario Lemieux at the top of the list. (TSN.ca)
• Drafting first overall on Friday night will be huge for the Buffalo Sabres organization. GM Jason Botterill is looking at this opportunity as a celebration for the player they pick (cough, cough Dahlin) and the team. (Buffalo News)
• Brady Tkachuk has the unenviable task of following in his father and his brother’s footsteps, but he’s planning on making it work. (AZ Central)
• Mike Hoffman, Max Domi and Alex Galchenyuk have all been on the move recently and there could be more trades coming. Sportsnet takes a deeper look at 24 players that could be dealt this summer. (Sportsnet)
• Speaking of Domi, check out the interview his father, Tie, did on Montreal radio on Tuesday afternoon. The older Domi referred to the city of Montreal as “hockey’s shrine”. That’s significant praise from a former Maple Leaf. (TSN 690 Radio)
• Now that the Senators have unloaded Hoffman, where do they go from here? Can they get Erik Karlsson signed? Can they hit the jackpot in the draft? We’re about to find about. (Silver Seven Sens)
• Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo doesn’t think Hoffman will have a hard time fitting in with the Panthers. (Sun-Sentinel)
• Predators defenseman P.K. Subban wants to see Alex Ovechkin continue celebrating his Stanley Cup title. “Listen to me. He deserves it. I’m very happy for him. I don’t think there’s going to be anyone who says he didn’t deserve to win the Cup. He’s played a long time and at a very, very high level. It wasn’t his fault that he didn’t have a (Stanley Cup) ring before.” (NHL.com)
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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.