Season Preview

ECHL: Jacksonville Icemen 2023-24 Season Preview

In just eight more days, the Jacksonville Icemen will once again take to the ice for regular season action. The October 21st puck drop will start the Icemen’s seventh season in the ECHL and the start of a new chapter of hockey history in the River City. In July, the team announced a new NHL […]

Winnipeg Jets 2023-24 Season Preview

The Winnipeg Jets are ready for takeoff. The marathon 82-game season has begun. Questions surround the Jets and the future of their team. Head Coach Rick Bowness is hunting for a different outcome in the 2023-24 season. It all begins on the road when the Jets travel to Calgary to face the Flames in their […]

Mackenzie Blackwood Season Preview

Can Mackenzie Blackwood turn back the clock? Pre-pandemic, Blackwood was seen as the goalie of the future for the New Jersey Devils. After several injury-plagued and, at times, bad seasons for the Devils, they were ready to turn the page. The San Jose Sharks acquired Blackwood’s signing rights days before the NHL draft for a […]

Marc-Edouard Vlasic Season Preview

And then there was one. Marc-Edouard Vlasic is the last piece of the San Jose Sharks high-priced defense. With Brent Burns and Erik Karlsson being traded since General Manager Mike Grier took over in July of 2022, Vlasic is now the Sharks’ highest-paid defenseman on the blue line. While his recent on-ice performance has not […]

ECHL: Reading Royals’ Season Preview

With the Reading Royals’ season just shy of a month away, it seems only fitting to see what the Lions have cooking this upcoming season. Like the rest of the ECHL, the Royals are getting ready for the 2023-24 season with a roster full of returning players and fan favorites, with some new faces joining […]

Jacob MacDonald Season Preview

Jacob MacDonald is the last man standing after a trade that sent Matt Nieto and Ryan Merkley to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for MacDonald and Martin Kaut. The other three players are either not in the NHL anymore or on a different team. Ryan Merkley plays in the KHL, and Martin Kaut is in […]

Mario Ferraro Season Preview

When the San Jose Sharks downturn started in the 2019-2020 season, one player encapsulated hope for the franchise: Mario Ferraro. He was a plucky rookie defenseman who gave it all his every shift. Fans gravitated to Ferraro’s style of play, and looked like a player who could help get the franchise on track the next […]

Kyle Burroughs Season Preview

Mike Grier found a solid defenseman last offseason when he signed Matt Benning; this offseason, he looked to go two-for-two with the addition of Kyle Burroughs. The former seventh-round pick by the New York Islanders spent the last two seasons playing with the Vancouver Canucks. Last season, Burroughs played 48 games for the Canucks where […]

Matt Benning Season Preview

Matt Benning was one of Mike Grier’s first signings last season, and he looks to be a very underrated signing by Grier. Benning signed a four-year deal worth $5 million ($1.25m AAV) on the first day of free agency in 2021. In his first season with the San Jose Sharks, Benning had a career-high in […]

Kevin Labanc Season Preview

Kevin Labanc is the San Jose Sharks version of The Rorschach test. The analytics say he is good, but there is a reason that David Quinn is the third straight coach to have Labanc in his proverbial doghouse. As Kevin Labanc starts his eighth season in the NHL, what has he established himself as? Early […]