Deen’s Daily: 5 Former Hockey Canada Players Acquitted; NHL Trade Market; Jackson Blake’s Extension

The verdict for the Hockey Canada Trial was read on Thursday. Also, the Hurricanes gave a young forward a massive contract extension. And, is the NHL trade market going to loosen up?

All that and more on this edition of Deen’s Daily — July 25.

Hockey Canada Trial

The judge in the Hockey Canada trial read the final verdict of five former Team Canada players on Thursday, and acquitted each of them of any legal wrongdoing.

Callan Foote, Michael McLeod, Alex Formenton, Carter Hart, and Dillon Dube were all found not guilty of sexual assault.

I believe in steering readers toward the investigative journalists who are better suited at writing about an emotional and touchy topic like this. If you have a subscription to the Athletic, Dan Robson and Katie Strang did an excellent job of breaking down everything they covered in the court room over the past handful of months.

Read More at The Athetic: The Hockey Canada trial could have been a reckoning. It was something else

I also did want to share statement’s from the NHL and NHLPA following the verdict.

NHL (Thursday evening) — “The allegations made in this case, even if not determined to have been criminal, were very disturbing and the behaviour at issue was unacceptable. We will be reviewing and considering the judge’s findings. While we conduct that analysis and determine next steps, the players charged in this case are ineligible to play in the league.”

NHLPA (Friday afternon) — “Dillon Dube, Cal Foote, Alex Formenton, Carter Hart, and Michael McLeod were acquitted of all charges by Justice Carroccia of the Ontario Superior Court. After missing more than a full season of their respective NHL careers, they should now have the opportunity to return to work. The NHL’s declaration that the Players are “ineligible” to play pending its further analysis of the Court’s findings is inconsistent with the discipline procedures set forth in the CBA. We are addressing this dispute with the League and will have no further comment at this time.”

CHN Editor’s Note: While we continue to navigate the fallout from Thursday’s verdict and the league and ‘PA statements, I will kindly ask that any comments on this webpage as it pertains to this case remain respectful.

Colorado Hockey Now

I released my latest Offseason Musings on Thursday, and it touches on all sorts of subjects, both Avs related and around the league.

Is the trade market frozen? How are the Avalanche going to use their remaining cap space? Why were they targeting Nikolaj Ehlers and what, if anyting, does it say about Martin Necas’ future in Colorado?

Those are just some of the things I touched on. Click below to read.

READ MORE: Offseason Musings: Frozen NHL Trade Market — Are There Too Many Hopeful Teams?

Around The NHL

Jackson Blake Lands Whopper Deal: I sure hope, for Carolina’s sake, that the front office made the right bet with this one.

The Hurricanes anounced late Thursday that Jackson Blake signed a max term eight-year, $45 million extension, which begins following this upcoming season. Blake still has a year remaining on his ELC. He burned the first year by playing one game in 2023-24 following his college season before playing 80 games this past season. He had 17 goals and 17 assists.

The 21-year-old’s cap hit will be roughly $5.1 million, slightly less than the $5.625 it should be, because of salary deferral. Both deferred salary and eight-year deals are going away in 12 months as per the new CBA. So the Canes clearly wanted to get ahead to save some cap dollars before then.

I just hope they didn’t overcommit too soon. Sometimes these contracts pan out, and other times you’re stuck with a player like Jesperi Kotkaniemi, who, at the time of his deal, was paid like a second-line center but hasn’t really lived up to that.

Blake had an excellent college career and could really take off in a top-six role this year. But what if he doesn’t?

I remember back in 2022 after the Avs’ Cup run, I did a mailbag at my former employer, and someone asked me if the Avs should sign Alex Newhook to an eight-year conract a year before his ELC expired. This was after Nazem Kadri signed in Calgary, and the expectation was that Newhook would slot in as the 2C and likely become a 60+ point guy pretty quickly.

The idea was to get him for a bargain deal before he takes off and demands more.

Could you imagine if the Avs gave Newhook this type of contract? It’s not an apples to apples comparison by any means, but I do wonder about 34 points in 80 games — without any real breakout — resulting in a deal like this. It’s a high reward gamble, but it’s also got some pretty considerable risk against your salary cap.

Blake had three goals and three assists in 15 playoff games. So it’s not like something sparked during the postseason that led to this.

Philly Hockey Now: Here’s a quick write up on the Hockey Canada trial, and the acquittal of Hart, the former Flyers netminder.

New jersey Hockey Now: Same thing, but for the Devils and their former skaters, McLeod and Foote. McLeod was playing for the Devils when the charges were brought forward.

Detroit Hockey Now: The Red Wings daily covers a tidbit about Erik Karlsson, and how three Atlantic Division teams are reportedly interested in acquiring him. Also, a former Red Wings forward is still hoping to land an NHL contract.

Florida Hockey Now: Stanley Cup champion Seth Jones had his day with the Cup. And he brought it back to where his hockey journey all began. In a Dallas area ice rink.

Jones fell in love with hockey in 1999 when the Stars won the Stanley Cup. He later moved to Denver when his dad, Popeye Jones, played for the Nuggets. While in Colorado, the younger Jones had glass seats to the Cup clinching Game 7 between the Avs and Devils.