Two Man Forecheck

Mikko Rantanen, Kyle Connor and Patrik Laine have signed with their respective teams, leaving only Julius Honka as the only RFA still unsigned.  Can Dallas afford him or find a way to sign him?  Does Honka even want to play in Dallas?  We discuss.  The Bruins have a few roster spot battles still to contend with.  Auston Matthews has been charged with disorderly conduct in Arizona.  How does this affect his standing with the Maple Leafs?  Should he be captain?  Mike and Chris pick 3 dark horse teams to make the playoffs, and there is only one crossover between the two lists.  What do you think?  Finally, we bring in our Over/Under segment.  As always, tell us what's on your mind, send us your feedback, vote on our Twitter Poll and...Enjoy the Show!

Twitter Poll Link:  https://twitter.com/pucksage/status/1178369075019468800

Brandon Carlo has signed with the Bruins, finishing off their list of RFA signings this year.  The Penguins have 50 contracts signed, but they are over the cap.  How will this affect the team?  Jack Hughes scored twice in the pre-season opener for the Devils, what do we expect of him, and how will having another rookie, Jesper Bodqvist affect his play and expectations this season?  We break down are last two Twitter Polls and discuss which team will have a better season this year.  As we did last week, we now give our playoff teams and a bubble team from the Atlantic and Central divisions, with not much difference in our lists.  Let us know who your picks are.  We discuss a list of possible Vezina winners which include John Gibson, Devan Dubnyk and Andrei Vasilevskiy.  Our new segment, Over/Under has Mike telling us his feelings on the top two draft picks among other choices.  Finally, we talk about Saveli Kononov, a goaltender in the Russian second league (the league below the KHL).  He was named player of the game and was awarded an AK-47!  Now here in the NHL the trend recently has been for the game MVP to get a hat or jacket, but an AK?  What are they saying about Russian Gun Control?  

Here is the link to the current Twitter Poll...

https://twitter.com/pucksage/status/1175817589307707392

Don't forget to vote and Enjoy the Show!

RFAs are starting to sign with their teams...will we see more over the next two weeks?  Marner gets less than Matthews.  Morrissey is not an RFA situation, but signs an extension.  Jets still need to sign Connor and Laine however.  Dustin Byfuglien has taken a leave from the Jets but no reason given by the team.  The Blackhawks have signed Brian Campbell and Chris Kunitz as player advisors.  Smart move for the team when you consider the playoff experience and number of Cups these two former players have won between them.  Ryan Spooner has taken his game to Lugano in Switzerland.  Mike and Chris have picked their playoff teams from the Metropolitan and Pacific divisions, with one bubble team each.  There was some crossover but a few differences.  The new twitter poll is out, here is the link...

https://twitter.com/pucksage/status/1173273854808076288

Give the show a listen, let us know who your playoff teams are, vote in this week's poll, and Enjoy the Show!

Chris is back from his sabbatical/scouting trip to England!  Niklas Kronwall has called it a career, while Justin Williams has not been very clear on his plans, but is stepping away from hockey.  The U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame has named it's class for 2019 and it includes honorees such as Neal Henderson, Tim Thomas and Gary Bettman.  The Hurricanes have signed Jake Gardiner to a 4 year contract, adding to its already solid defense corps.  Jack Campbell signed with Los Angeles, giving the Kings another good problem to have in the crease.  Clayton Keller signed an extension with the Coyotes, giving both him and the team the stability they are looking for.  The Pens still have a closing window on their playoff hopes, but what is the window on their GM, Jim Rutherford?  We discuss.  Joe Thornton signs a 1 year contract with the Sharks and what is with all the RFAs that are still not signed.  All that and a Twitter Poll to boot.  Here's the link...

https://twitter.com/pucksage/status/1170733789951270912

So give us your vote and enjoy the show!!

As always we can be reached at [email protected] This week's show is about RFA's including Brandon Carlo, Mitch Marner, Brock Boeser, Charlie McAvoy, how back the Canucks have managed their cap, Markov's possible return to the #NHL and more.

The Kuznetzov cocaine drama, Auston Matthew's in another jersey, the value of Patrick Maroon's signing, and other topics on this weeks Two Man Forecheck.

The fastest way to our mailbox is always an message to [email protected]

Follow us @TheOffWing and @Pucksage

Cale Makar, Patrice Bergeron, Sidney Crosby, Arizona Coyotes, NHL Seattle, Jacob Trouba, Taylor Hall, Tyler Seguin, Eddie Lack, Seth Jones, Roman Josi, and dozens of other words spoken in 46 minutes of hockey chatter.

Chris is on vacation so Mike is running with scissors.

Which teams could (if they wanted to) offer Marner an offer sheet, Why Toronto hasn't signed him and was a deal blocked by president Brendan Shanahan?  If so, who is pulling the strings for the Maple Leafs?  Given four RFA's:  Point, Rantanen, Tkachuk or Werenski, which player should Anaheim, Boston and Detroit target first?  We discuss.  Calgary and the Flames have got themselves a ratified stadium deal that is a win for the team and the City of Calgary.  While it should be available for the 24-25 season, this deal will bring revenue to the city from ticket taxes and a share of the naming revenues.  The Bruins may have a whole of average where the team is concerned.  Will there be more opportunity for competition at various roster spots, and is that a good thing at this stage?  Finally, Arizona got themselves a new majority owner in the man of Alex Meruelo.  The first latino owner in the NHL, he owns 95 percent of the team.  Here's hoping he keeps Chayka around to finish the job he started.  All this and more so, sit back, listen, send us your feedback and Enjoy the Show!

Due to the fact that there is no hockey on television, we at Two Man Forecheck offer a wide variety of subject matter this week that spans Toronto once again messing up their salary cap issues, the New Jersey Devils throwing a party for P.K. Subban and the Summer Showcase.  Toronto has still not signed its best player yet they appear to be taking on salary, something which may adversely affect the team's ability to sign Mitch Marner.  The New Jersey Devils welcomed Subban to the team with a blowout celebration disguised as a press conference where one of the gifts was a Ric Flair styled robe with feathers galore.  We talk about his affect on the team and should he be captain.  We delve into the World Junior Summer Showcase and the variety appearing on the rosters of the countries involved.  We discuss Trent Frederic and whether he is a forgone conclusion to make the Bruins and finally we talk about the players that have gone through arbitration and those that have signed or are still waiting their turn.  As always, please tell us what you think and...Enjoy the Show!