Latest news with #BarryTrotz
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Ottawa Senators Provide Behind The Scenes Look At Draft Day Deals
The Ottawa Senators' decision to trade down during the first round of the 2025 NHL Draft was, as everyone likes to say now, a nice piece of business. GM Steve Staios traded the Senators' 21st overall pick to the Nashville Predators' for Nashville's 23rd and 67th picks. Basically, he got an early third-round draft pick for almost nothing. The only cost was waiting two more picks to get the player he was going to take anyway. Then, Staios flipped that third-round pick he got for almost nothing, along with a sixth-rounder, for Los Angeles Kings defenseman Jordan Spence. Advertisement With the pressure of the clock ticking down and top players quickly disappearing off the board, it's amazing that deals can get done at all. It would be intriguing to see all the inner workings and how a deal comes together in those circumstances. The Senators announced on Monday that they'll be providing a behind-the-scenes look at the draft trade discussions that were going down in their NHL Draft Day war room 10 days ago in the premiere of season six of Breakaway. In the trailer they posted to social media today, you can hear a portion of the actual trade call between Staios and Nashville GM Barry Trotz, at least Staios' end of it. Dissecting The Senators' Intriguing New Right-Shot Defensive Depth Chart Five Former Sens First-Rounders All Found New NHL Homes This Week Claude Giroux Reveals Why He Signed Back In Ottawa Advertisement Presumably, there will be a lot more of that. This year's draft was a unique one, sort of a throwback to COVID when big social gatherings were frowned upon. In what appeared to be a league-wide cost-cutting attempt, all teams drafted remotely from home. The Senators hockey operations team set up shop in the team dressing room, surrounded by the jerseys of many of their past first-round draft picks and made their selections remotely. If you enjoyed the movie Draft Day with Kevin Costner, where much of the film takes place in the draft day war room of the Cleveland Browns, as Costner grinds out trades over the phone with rival GMs, you'll probably get a kick out of this episode. Mind you, no one in Ottawa gave up three years' worth of first-round draft picks like Costner did in the movie, which was a worse decision than plowing under his corn field. It will be interesting to see how far inside the episode takes us, or whether they include the botched video conference call between the Sens brass and first-rounder Logan Hensler. When the audio didn't work and Sportsnet pulled the plug, owner Michael Andlauer looked disappointed on the video stream and probably had some things to say afterward. Advertisement The episode airs on Wednesday on the Sens YouTube channel. By Steve Warne The Hockey News/Ottawa Image Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images More Sens Headlines Senators Bid Farewell To Six UFAs: Where Did They End Up? Senators Sign Lars Eller, Offseason NHL Additions Are Now 'Most Likely' Complete Senators Clarify Their Goaltending Picture for Next Season Senators Acquire Defenseman Jordan Spence From Los Angeles
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Grading all 7 picks of Nashville Predators' 2025 draft class from Brady Martin to Daniel Nieminen
According to general manager Barry Trotz, the Nashville Predators accomplished exactly what they wanted with their 2025 draft class. "We did a good job of getting people that had skill, character, and really strong upside," Trotz told reporters June 28 at Bridgestone Arena. "We added a lot to our mix." Advertisement While their top pick, No. 5 overall selection forward Brady Martin, will define the quality of the class, the Predators added six other players: one forward, four defensemen and one goaltender. Here are our grades for all seven players drafted by the Predators at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on June 27-28. Brady Martin, center (No. 5 overall): B- At face value, Martin is a good pick. But for better or worse, his career will be forever tied to Boston Bruins forward James Hagens and Philadelphia Flyers winger Porter Martone. Trotz electing to pick Martin, an "in your face" physical center, over the offensive upside of Hagens and Martone, was a surprise. It may end up working out, especially if Martin ends up developing into a Sam Bennett type, but it's a risk at No. 5 overall. Advertisement Not for nothing, Martin should have a quick path to Nashville, which could jump-start the team in the short run. MARTIN: Why Nashville Predators' top pick Brady Martin did not attend 2025 NHL Draft Cameron Reid, defenseman (No. 21): B+ On skating ability alone, Cameron Reid is a great pick. The Predators have been stocking up on fleet-of-foot defensemen like Tanner Molendyk, Spencer Stastney and Ryan Ufko, and Reid fits right in that mold. If he continues to develop his puck-handling and offensive vision, we could be looking at a steal of a pick with Reid. The only knock is not opting for a right-handed defenseman, when many good ones were on the board. Hopefully Reid makes that a moot point with a solid NHL career. Ryker Lee, forward (No. 26): B- The Predators don't often place futures bets on offensive forwards. They typically like high-floor, low-ceiling forwards, especially late in the first round. So taking Ryker Lee, who scored 31 goals in the rough-and-tumble USHL, is a gamble on his future as a top-six scorer. It's a breath of fresh air and perhaps a sign of a new draft strategy for Nashville. Advertisement Still, Lee isn't a plug-and-play skater. He'll take time to develop and could end up doing nothing at all in the NHL. His upcoming first season with Michigan State will tell us a lot. Jacob Rombach, defenseman (No. 35): D Rombach isn't a sexy pick and is overvalued at No. 35. The 6-foot-6, 200-pound, left-handed defenseman projects as a shutdown player on the back end with very little offensive upside. Defense-first defensemen are a dying breed, but Rombach will try to survive the species. With other more well-rounded — not to mention right-handed — defensemen like Blake Fiddler and Max Psenicka still on the board, this pick is hard to figure. Jack Ivankovic, goaltender (No. 58): A Even before learning that Jack Ivankovic was a fan of Predators goaltending legend Pekka Rinne, you have to like this pick. Ivankovic has the blend of edgework, tracking ability, confidence and vision that you love to see in a modern NHL goalie. Under the tutelage of his role model Rinne, goalie coach Ben Vanderklok and director of goaltending Mitch Korn, Ivankovic has a chance to prove himself a steal in the second round. Advertisement Ivankovic will play for the Michigan Wolverines next season and show what he's capable of. BRANTFORD, CANADA - JANUARY 15: Jack Ivankovic of the Brampton Steelheads makes a save against Michael Misa of the Saginaw Spirit during the game between the OHL East and OHL West conferences during the Connor McDavid OHL Top Prospects Game at Brantford & District Civic Centre on January 15, 2025 in Brantford, Canada. (Photo by) Alex Huang, defenseman (No. 122): A The Predators make up for the Rombach pick with swift-skating Alex Huang of the Chicoutimi Saguenéens in the QMJHL. He's a highly effective puck-moving defenseman, adept at getting the puck up the ice on his own or with passing. While probably a long-term project, he has the potential to be a second-unit power-play quarterback type. Also, finally, a right-handed defenseman to add to their pool. Daniel Nieminen, defenseman (No. 163): C Another good skater, Daniel Nieminen is an overage player as a 19-year-old. He had limited production for the Lahti Pelicans in the Finnish Elite League last season — only four goals and seven assists in 39 games — but he was playing against adults as an 18-year-old. With some work, he could develop into a fringe NHL player. Advertisement ESTES: The Nashville Predators do have a type, and draft pick Brady Martin was it Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at jdaugherty@ Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Grading all 7 selections of Nashville Predators' 2025 draft class
New York Times
27-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Nashville Predators NHL Draft guide: Picks, best fits and analysis
The Nashville Predators have nine picks in the 2025 NHL Draft: Nos. 5, 23, 26, 35, 55, 67, 131, 163, 182. Here's what to expect. Nashville is at a rather bleak period as an organization. The Predators had a tough season, and there aren't a ton of high-end pieces on the way to get excited about in the pipeline. They need talent, plain and simple, and they need it at every position. In recent mock drafts, Corey Pronman has projected the following picks: 5. Caleb Desnoyers, C 23. Blake Fiddler, D 26. Joshua Ravensbergen, G 35. Cole McKinney, C 55. Theo Stockselius, C 67. Drew Schock, D 99. Kadon McCann, C 131. Jimmy Lombardi, C 163. Viggo Nordlund, LW 182. Jacob Cloutier, RW (Photo of Predators GM Barry Trotz: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
Washington Post
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Nashville Predators hire former Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson as assistant
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Nashville Predators filled out their coaching staff by hiring former Chicago Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson as an assistant on Tuesday. Richardson joins Derek MacKenzie, Darby Hendrickson and goaltending coach Ben Vanderklok on coach Andrew Brunette's staff . General manager Barry Trotz said Richardson brings a wealth of NHL experience as both player and coach.
Associated Press
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Nashville Predators hire former Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson as assistant
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Nashville Predators filled out their coaching staff by hiring former Chicago Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson as an assistant on Tuesday. Richardson joins Derek MacKenzie, Darby Hendrickson and goaltending coach Ben Vanderklok on coach Andrew Brunette's staff. General manager Barry Trotz said Richardson brings a wealth of NHL experience as both player and coach. 'We believe he will be a valuable new voice and set of eyes — not just for our defensemen, but for our coaching staff,' Trotz said. 'His strong character, leadership, perspective as a former NHL head coach and ability to connect with both young and veteran players will elevate our team on and off the ice.' Richardson replaces Todd Richards who joined Nashville in October 2020. Richardson coached the Blackhawks before being fired Dec. 5, 2024, early in his third season. He coached Connor Bedard and defensemen Kevin Korchinski and Alex Vlasic. He also has been an assistant coach with Montreal, the New York Islanders and Ottawa. Richardson played 1,417 games as a defenseman in 21 NHL seasons. Nashville's assistant coaches all have played in the NHL over a combined 3,656 regular season games. ___ AP NHL:
