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Sunny is here:
“Sunny Mehta has a few tasks at hand as the New Jersey Devils’ new general manager. Among those tasks are clarifying Nico Hischier’s situation and deciding on Sheldon Keefe’s future, but that’s not all. Devils on the Rush is a reader-supported publication. Navigating ways around all the no-trade and no-move protection he inherited from former general manager Tom Fitzgerald will be key to a successful offseason. It’s specifically a problem on defense, where nearly the entire blue line has some type of no-trade/no-move protection. And it could hamper what Mehta wants to do to retool the roster this offseason.” [Devils on the Rush]
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“Sunny Mehta took the Stanley Cup to his home state of New Jersey each of the past two years after winning it as assistant general manager of the Florida Panthers. Now, he’s hoping to do the same with his childhood team after being hired by the New Jersey Devils as GM on April 16.” [NHL.com]
“Mehta’s hockey brain made him a candidate for multiple vacancies around the NHL. The 48-year-old could have probably gotten more money from the Toronto Maple Leafs, who were also looking for an analytical GM. He chose the Devils and, underneath a screen showing him hoisting the Cup, called it without exaggeration his dream job. He called being from New Jersey a part of his identity and, for good measure, even dropped a Taylor Ham reference to show which half of the state he came from. ‘This is where I’ve always wanted to be,’ Mehta said. ‘This is where I want to be.’” [Associated Press]
Could Jacob Markstrom be bought out this offseason? “Despite the deal kicking in when Markstrom is age 36, his extension only has signing bonuses in Year 1 and the total compensation does not vary year-to-year, meaning it is not considered a ‘35+’ deal. The complication is that Markstrom cannot be bought out during the first buy-out window because his extension has not started until July 1, meaning he can only be bought out in the second window.” [Puckpedia]
Hockey Links
“The NHL is officially moving past the billion-dollar mark as commissioner Gary Bettman signals a massive surge in franchise valuations and future expansion fees.” [The Hockey News]
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On the effort to get NHL hockey established in Seattle as winning has been a struggle and the NBA comes to town: [The Athletic ($)]
Still no Victor Hedman for the Lightning:
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