from Lyle Richardson of Spector's Hockey,

The dog days of the NHL offseason are now into late-August and training camp is less than a month away. Here’s a look back at some takeaways from some of the notable offseason news.

The behaviour of some NHL stars gave the league a black eye. There’s an enduring belief among hockey fans that NHL players are wholesome, clean-cut young men who don’t have run-ins in the law compared to athletes in other pro sports. For the most part, that’s true, but that myth suffered serious blows this summer due to off-ice incidents involving several NHL players.

Former LA Kings center Jarret Stoll was busted for drug possession in Las Vegas. Buffalo Sabres center Ryan O’Reilly was charged with DUI. The Los Angeles Kings terminated center Mike Richards contract after he was involved in an incident at the Canada-US border. And the worst of all, the ongoing rape investigation involving Chicago Blackhawks right wing Patrick Kane.

Of course, we shouldn’t tar all NHL players for the actions of a handful. Still, these incidents are a black eye for a league which likes to promote its players as upstanding, law-abiding citizens.

Threats of an offer sheet can scare a GM into trading a promising free agent.

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