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.
• After several years, Capitals star Alexander Ovechkin finally won his Stanley Cup. So, will Joe Thornton finally get his? (Toronto Sun)
• The Pittsburgh Penguins won back-to-back Stanley Cups because of their depth. That depth was tested last year, and the Pens ended up getting bounced in the second round. Will they be good enough to raise the cup this season? (Pensburgh)
• The Columbus Blue Jackets have a difficult dilemma with Sergei Bobrovsky and Artemi Panarin. What are their options? (Featurd)
• Nathan MacKinnon is one of the more underpaid players in the NHL, but he isn’t too concerned about that right now. (Denver Post)
• TSN’s Frank Seravalli looks at what we can expect from Ilya Kovalchuk after his five-year hiatus from the NHL. (TSN.ca)
• The fathers of Trevor Lewis and Daniel Brickley are longtime friends that will be able to watch their sons play together in an NHL game for the last time. Brickley’s dad, Matt, has been diagnosed with stage four colon cancer. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Jesperi Kotkaniemi wasn’t expected to crack the Canadiens’ opening-night roster, but he’s played so well this preseason that he might just stick around once the regular season begins. (Sportsnet)
• Zach Bogosian had a tough year in 2017-18. He’s confident that he’ll be able to bounce back on a Sabres team that should be a lot better this year. (Buffalo Hockey Beat)
• Islanders rookie Mathew Barzal has already become the one of the offensive possession kings in the NHL. (The Point Hockey)
• The Ottawa Senators got six assets for Erik Karlsson, but how good are those pieces? The Sporting News breaks it down for you. (Sporting News)
• Puck Junk’s Blake Isaacs explains why having a Seattle franchise would be awesome for the league. (Puck Junk)
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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.