This week’s show will again have three one-hour segments so just select the hour you’d like to listen to and enjoy! Regular hosts Dave and Greg Isaac are joined by William Grigsby of lastwordonhockeycom. We also have Ed Cole from KDUS 1060am joining us as he is becoming more of a hockey fan and what better place to discuss it than on Real Hockey Talk? We go over the NHL draft and comment of the team’s choices.
Real Hockey Talk Podcast #4 – NHL Draft, and More
In our first hour we go over the 2019 NHL Draft, and of course do our weekly “what have I learned” feature.
Dave discusses the NHL Awards Ceremony and all the winners.
We also cover the Arizona Coyotes NHL draft with them selecting Victor Soderstrom, a Swedish defenceman at the 11th selection. General manager John Chayka liked this kid so much he traded up from his original 14th spot with the Philadelphia Flyers to grab him. It cost him his 14th and 45th picks so he must have liked him a lot.
Was this a good choice for the Coyotes, who have such deficiencies on offense landing 28th in scoring last season? I think not, but then again I’m not the general manager. Chayka even boosted he wasn’t leaving without Soderstrom. He may need to wait a couple years to see what his first round choice can do. Chayka seemed set on the idea that he was the best player available at that point.
We’ll see.
Draft Analysis
Greg goes through the NHL draft and analyzes the selections from the first round. Obviously, the New Jersey Devils cleaned up with the first pick of the outstanding forward Jack Hughes. His impact will be felt instantly and the Devils were in the news also when they made a blockbuster trade to acquire defenceman P.K. Subban from the Nashville Predators. We discuss the possibility of a New Jersey Devils vs Colorado Avalanche Stanley Cup Final in about a year. The Avalanche were able to grab Bowen Byram with the fourth overall pick.
The Avalanche then proceeded to take a good forward in Alex Newhook at the #16 spot. They have really improved their team and with the addition of Byram who many thought was the best defencemen in the group. Let’s review… they already have Tyson Barrie, Cale Makar, Samuel Girard, Nikita Zadorov, Erik Johnson, and potential regulars Conor Timmons and Ryan Graves.
That’s why we are saying the Avalanche will be very competitive next season. And, they’re not done yet as they have a whopping $42.6 million in cap space to go shopping for free agents. They will need to sign some of their players on their roster. They will have a bundle of cash to offer to say Artemi Pararin or Matt Duchene. It looks like Duchene is headed to Nashville now that they rid themselves of Subban and his huge contract. Can you imagine how scary this team will look with a top-fleet defensive group and adding a Panarin or Duchene to the group?
Hour Two
In this segment Conrad West, the general manager of Mod Pizza where the show was broadcast from pipes in. He joins us to discuss his favorite team, the Buffalo Sabres. Conrad was a bit disappointed in his team’s demise after it appeared they were turning the corner towards the playoffs.
There’s always next season, Conrad.
We then talk about teams with cap issues like the Vegas Golden Knights who are already over the cap limit and need to make some room. Will they be forced to trade… say Colin Miller? Something’s got to give.
Hour Three
We continue the draft results as the later rounds are examined. It seems like Chayka likes the Swedish players as he chose more! We also get into the new Coyotes ownership and what it may mean for building a new arena in the east valley. Will he keep the team in Arizona? Will he be around for a while? All questions that we don’t have answers for at this point.
Hour 1 Link: CLICK HERE
Hour 2 Link: CLICK HERE
Hour 3 Link: CLICK HERE
