Happy Wednesday, gossip fans. Spring has sprung…and things have been relatively quiet on the hockey gossip front. Weird, eh? As we approach the trade deadline, all’s quiet – is it maybe the calm before the storm?
Let’s see what we can dig up from the past week, shall we?
Leafs Land
The goalie carousel continues to spin for the Leafs, as Frederik Andersen is still on injured reserved, and Jack Campbell was a bit too sore for Monday’s game against the Oilers, so Michael Hutchinson took the net. While Jack is 6-0 in games he starts this season, Hutch isn’t fairing so well. Never fear, though, because it looks like the stick taps are back tonight:
Sheldon Keefe confirms Jack Campbell will start tonight.
Frederik Andersen has a follow-up appointment tomorrow that they hope will provide some insight on his next steps.
— Kristen Shilton (@kristen_shilton) March 31, 2021
Rumours continue to swirl about what, if any, moves Kyle Dubas makes ahead of the trade deadline, and all these roster transactions fuel the fire:
Forward Adam Brooks, defenceman Timothy Liljegren and forward Scott Sabourin have been reassigned to the @MapleLeafs taxi squad.
Forward Nick Robertson and defenceman Calle Rosén have been reassigned to the @TorontoMarlies.
— Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) March 30, 2021
And the Leafs have been impacted by COVID scheduling changes, despite not (yet) losing any games to COVID:
The @NHL has announced updates to the 2020-21 regular-season schedule.
Full details: https://t.co/HwK5vRkWM5 pic.twitter.com/0aQw1DIvDK
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) March 28, 2021
#Leafs schedule changes as announced by the NHL:
1. TOR at WPG, scheduled for April 21 at 8 p.m. ET, will start at 7 p.m. ET
2. MTL at TOR, scheduled for May 7, is now scheduled for May 6 at 7 p.m. ET
3. TOR at OTT, scheduled for May 5, is now scheduled for May 10 at 8 p.m. ET— Terry Koshan (@koshtorontosun) March 28, 2021
This season is just a bit weird, eh?
The Windy City
Some news from Chicago:
Congrats to Dylan Strome and Tayler on the birth of their baby girl Weslie Margaret Strome, coming in at 7lb, 7 oz!
As such, Strome will not play in tonight’s game against Nashville.#BlackhawksBabies | #Blackhawks
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 28, 2021
Dylan Strome is a dad! Which is weird because in my mind, he’s a child. But nonetheless, big congrats to Dylan and Tayler on the arrival of Weslie!
Not to be outdone:
Expect Team USA to name #Blackhawks Stan Bowman as GM of the 2022 Olympic team, to be assisted by #mnwild Bill Guerin among others, in a press conference on Wednesday.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) March 29, 2021
Speaking of Bowman, he had this to say about absent captain Jonathan Toews and a timeline for return the other day:
“I don’t know, Mark. Of course, there’s hope. And there’s a chance, yes. But to try to put a number on it, I can’t do that. He hasn’t been ruled out, I guess, is what I would say. But there’s really no change from the last time we discussed this. I don’t have an update other than what we said before, which is: He’s not ready to play, he’s not in a situation where he can join the team. And if that changes, as soon as that is the case, we would certainly welcome him back. But until that happens, we’re just moving forward with the guys that are here.”
Whatever is going on, we wish Toews the best and hope he gets well soon.
Quick Hits
The Leafs beat the Sens (like, barely), and Pierre is BIG MAD about it:
Pierre Dorian is BIG mad
— Tim and Friends (@timandfriends) March 26, 2021
Goalie trouble in PITT?
Breaking News: #LetsGoPens Casey DeSmith has replaced starting G Tristan Jarry. Jarry is not on the bench. Something to keep an eye on.
pic.twitter.com/DTcOjpghKf
— Hockey Hound (@HockeyHoundShow) March 30, 2021
McJesus in hot water:
Edmonton’s Connor McDavid has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for Elbowing Montreal’s Jesperi Kotkaniemi.
— NHL Player Safety (@NHLPlayerSafety) March 31, 2021
And more from out west:
Erik Karlsson has zero fucks left to give and I am here for it pic.twitter.com/8Tk3S3QfAh
— ERIK KARLSSON IS MY NEW DAD (@ABoyAndHisTeam) March 30, 2021
That’s all for now, hockey friends. Catch ya next Wednesday for more gossip, drama, and fun!
