The Daily: Summer Contender/Pretender Talk; Trade Rumors

Sure, it’s only August and there’s still camps, preseason, and even a Thanksgiving holiday watermark to get to before contenders and pretenders can be talked about, right? Oh, and don’t forget about all of the trade rumors, too.

With the acquisition of Erik Karlsson, does it make the Pittsburgh Penguins contenders? Don’t forget, it was your Chicago Blackhawks who sent the hockey universe into a Butterfly Effect like reaction–knocking Pittsburgh out, enabling Florida to sneak in, and landing in a spot that would eventually get them Connor Bedard.

But does Karlsson really put them over the top? Pittsburgh Hockey Now’s Dan Kingerski writes that Kyle Dubas figures adding Karlsson gives Pittsburgh a lot more likelihood of having the puck. Those teams that hold onto it more–so goes conventional thinking–end up going further.

In theory.

Meanwhile, what about the New York Islanders? They didn’t land Alex DeBrincat and stayed quiet for the most part. Better or worse heading into it all? New York Hockey Now has them missing out on the big dance–which can only mean changes will be afoot. In Philly, the Flyers still need to do a few things before they can entertain contender status.

But trade rumors go beyond Karlsson and now it’s Jeff Petry, included in that deal to Montreal, who finds himself being the subject of being shipped off.

So much for a quiet August, right?

Blackhawks In Case You Missed It

• The ninth best ranked prospect in the system is injury free and on the rise
• Rockford brings back a familiar face on a one-year deal
• The NHL Network ranked the top 20 centers in the league. A look at them, and how the Blackhawks pipeline emulates some of the thought going into it

Hockey Now Network

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Colorado: Adam Foote in a Columbus Blue Jackets jersey absolutely looks weird. Here are the five Colorado Avalanche players who looked absolutely wrong in another jersey

Detroit: An Indy Car racer accuses new Detroit Red Wings forward Daniel Sprong of assault

Florida: One near and dear to my heart: Should Florida Panthers forward Matthew Tkachuk be on the cover of NHL 24? It would be a fun little custom celly to just leave the ice after a playoff game winner…

San Jose: What can the San Jose Sharks learn from the Flyers rebuild?

Vegas: Who could be the Vegas Golden Knights award winners in 2023-24?