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Morning Skate - Tuesday, October 11

Morning Skate - Tuesday, October 11

Morning Skate - The 2022-23 NHL Season Starts Today!

October 11, 2022

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Last Night's News 📰

HAGUE'S GOLDEN TICKET: On Monday, the Vegas Golden Knights announced they signed defenseman Nic Hague to a three-year, $2.294 million contract extension. After missing all of training camp due to the contract holdout, the 23-year-old is looking to build off his 14 points in 52 games last season.

JOHNNY T GOOD TO GO?: After initially being ruled out for three weeks due to an oblique injury, Toronto Maple Leafs captain John Tavares is trending towards being ready for Wednesday night's season opener against the Montreal Canadiens. If Tavares is in the lineup, his return comes just two weeks after the initial prognosis.

RE-ELECTION TO THE SENATE: Yesterday, the Ottawa Senators agreed to a one-year, $750,000 deal with 35-year-old Derick Brassard. Brassard, now in his second stint with the Senators, notched a goal and two assists in four preseason games while on a professional tryout with Ottawa.

OPENING NIGHT ROSTERS: Juraj Slafkovský is the latest first-overall pick to make his club's opening night roster in his draft year. As of this writing, only 21 NHL teams have released their full rosters for the 2022-23 season.

Tuesday Trivia

How Well Do You Know Jason Arnott?

Jason Arnott, St. Louis Blues (TSN Photography)

1) How many times was Jason Arnott traded to the New Jersey Devils?

Four
One
Two
Three

2) Which NHL franchise drafted Arnott seventh overall in 1993?

Dallas Stars
New Jersey Devils
Washington Capitals
Edmonton Oilers

3) During an appearance on the "Cam & Strick Podcast," which former teammate did Arnott criticize?

Patrik Eliáš
Ryan Suter
Kevin Shattenkirk
Shea Weber

Answers can be found at the bottom of the email.

Last Minute Shopping

Generally, the trade deadline and opening of free agency are regarded as the peak busy periods for any NHL front office. However, this past week has revealed that the lead-in to the regular season and finalizing the opening night roster is pretty darn busy, too. As predicted, making cuts has been the order of the day while difficult waiver wire decisions took place across the league. And yet, savvy teams found creative ways to fill out their rosters through the addition of talent.

These last-minute additions don't tend to yield stars but can reap valuable depth—often at a low cost. Before the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season, the Florida Panthers claimed Swedish defenseman Gustav Forsling off waivers from the Carolina Hurricanes, and he just came off a campaign in which he averaged more than 21 minutes on the top pair of the Presidents' Trophy winners. Many teams made late moves hoping to add the next Forsling—here's how:

Waiver Wire

One team's trash is another team's treasure, and clubs with the luxury of cap flexibility had some intriguing options for waiver claims while making roster adjustments. By our count, 10 players changed teams, with the Arizona Coyotes leading the charge by snapping up Connor Ingram from the Nashville Predators, Juuso Välimäki from the Calgary Flames, and Jonas Johansson from the Colorado Avalanche.

Connor Ingram, formerly of the Nashville Predators (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Trades

Trades? Yep, trades—in early October, no less! The Vancouver Canucks shipped Jason Dickinson and a 2024 second-round pick to the Chicago Blackhawks for Riley Stillman, while the Edmonton Oilers acquired Klim Kostin from the St. Louis Blues for Dmitri Samorukov. Although these are hardly of the blockbuster variety, they highlight how a GM's job of wheeling and dealing to better their organization is always happening.

PTO Signings

Tryout time is over, and a handful of NHLers earned themselves roster spots thanks to solid training camps. Many notable names, like Sonny Milano, Eric Staal, and Jake Virtanen, failed to make the most of their PTOs. Meanwhile, Zach Aston-Reese (TOR), Jimmy Vesey (NYR), and Derick Brassard (OTT) were among the seven players that catapulted themselves onto opening night rosters.

Oh, Baby!

There were a lot of NHL babies born in the offseason, and we figured we would update you on all your favorite players who welcomed little ones to their home team with a fun twist!

Pepper Manson - NHL Draft Eligible: 2041

Colorado Avalanche defenseman Josh Manson and his wife Julie

welcomed their second daughter

, Pepper June Manson, on Sept. 22. She joins big sister Gemma. What an offseason for the Manson family celebrating the Stanley Cup and a new baby.

Michael Kämpf - NHL Draft Eligible: 2041

David Kämpf and his wife Eliška

welcomed their first child

, son Michael on Sept. 26. The Toronto Maple Leafs may have found their future bottom-six center!

Naomie Mantha - NHL Draft Eligible: 2041

Washington Capitals' forward Anthony Mantha and his fiance Caitlyn

welcomed their first daughter

, Naomie Mae Mantha, on Oct. 4. Little Naomi arrived just in time for hockey season!

Owen Miller - NHL Draft Eligible: 2040

J.T. Miller and his wife Natalie

welcomed their third child

, son Owen Edward Miller on Sept. 1. He joins his two big sisters, Scotlyn and Scarlett. Five days after Owen's arrival, Miller signed a seven-year, $56 million extension with the Vancouver Canucks. We would say the Miller house was full of smiles that week!

Demi Gourde - NHL Draft Eligible: 2040

The Seattle Kraken added a new baby squid to their squad when Yanni Gourde and his wife Marie-Andrée