from Matt Porter of the Boston Globe,
Porter using some golfing lingo to put teams in group rankings at this point in time...
IN THE ROUGH
Chicago — Still figuring out what to do as Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane reach the crest of the age-30 hill. First-round picks Adam Boqvist and Nicolas Beaudin won’t replace Duncan Keith (soon-to-be 35) and Brent Seabrook (33) on the back line any time soon.
Los Angeles — The oldest group of forwards in the league did not get faster or younger. If Ilya Kovalchuk scores 25 a year the next three, his $6.25 million hit is manageable. If not, they’ll get no cap relief, since he’s 35. They’ll hand Doughty $11 million a year through 2027.
Pittsburgh — Maybe coach Mike Sullivan can get something out of Jack Johnson, but five years for a sometimes-benched defenseman doesn’t seem like good business.
Minnesota — An uninspiring offseason for a club that lacks sizzle, even after the anticipated re-signing of RFAs Matt Dumba and Jason Zucker (which should eat up the rest of the budget). Must get Zach Parise and Ryan Suter back from injury to compete (and another elite season from Eric Staal wouldn’t hurt).
Detroit — Re-upping Mike Green and bringing back Thomas Vanek won’t push the pedal on the Wings’ rebuild.
more rankings and other hockey topics too...
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