THE REMATCH IS TONIGHT! The Blackhawks don’t play for another couple days but the hockey world — hopefully most of the sports world — will be tuned into the championship game of the 4 Nations Face-Off tonight in Boston as we get another helping of the USA vs. Canada.
Big time however… I know there’s been a lot of buzz about Quinn Hughes potentially joining the USA roster. We learned on Wednesday that he has not been medically cleared and will not fly across the continent to make an attempt to play. But there are still some banged up guys and an illness in the room for the Americans, so Tage Thompson and Brett Pesce have been invited to be available on Thursday just in case. Again: they can’t play unless the US doesn’t have enough skaters to fill a lineup. But they’re going to be in some kinda EBUG situation until the final lineup is turned in.
Quick story on USA ?? inviting #sabrehood Tage Thompson and #njdevils Brett Pesce to Boston ahead of the championship against Canada ??And the rules / landscape surrounding their potential participation: t.co/J3Sz78vN1l
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) February 19, 2025 Good stuff here from Mark Lazerus about the Blackhawks who are hoping to be in position to represent their countries in future events. Could Connor Bedard or Alex Vlasic play their way into consideration for the 2026 Winter Olympics?Connor Bedard in a Team Canada sweater? Alex Vlasic donning the red, white and blue? They sure hope so. The 4-Nations drama has whetted the Blackhawks' appetite for the 2026 Olympics and beyond. Story: t.co/pqgM0OKTiu
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) February 19, 2025 Some positive news from the Blackhawks’ practice on Wednesday. Assistant coach Kevin Dean was on the bench, but his voice was still clearly heard by those on the ice. He missed the last couple games before the break because he had surgery for prostate cancer. Dean can’t quite get back on the ice yet but he’s in good spirits and is back around the team. We’re all obviously hoping for a speedy, full, healthy recovery for him. On Wednesday, interim head coach Anders Sorensen said defenseman Louis Crevier has passed all of his concussion tests and he’s ready to go. He was a full participant in practice. We’ll wait to see what the lineup looks like for Saturday and Sunday, but it’s interesting the Blackhawks have eight defensemen on the active roster right now and only 12 forwards… What was interesting to me at practice yesterday was the lineup they were able to skate. I mentioned only having 12 active forwards on the NHL roster. Teuvo Teräväinen wasn’t at practice; he’s still out after playing at the 4 Nations Face-Off (it’s fine — he’s healthy) but at least one forward had to double-shift throughout practice because they only had 11 forwards available. Colton Dach is still out for the IceHogs (right hip flexor strain) and hasn’t returned to game action yet; he was out 7-10 days as of Feb. 13. With the Blackhawks playing 10 games in 16 days after the break, and many of them being on the road, will they bring a forward up before heading to Columbus this weekend? If the Blackhawks do bring up a forward, I would look at either Cole Guttman or Joey Anderson to get the call. Anderson’s a known commodity who could slide into a third-line role until Jason Dickinson returns and has been a 13th forward in the NHL before. Guttman would give the Blackhawks another option at center and he’s been very good in Rockford this season. In case you missed it yesterday afternoon, Ben Pope at the Chicago Sun-Times reported Seth Jones is discussing potential trade options with the Blackhawks.Report: Seth Jones, #Blackhawks Discussing Trade Options t.co/TcdXTxvl0k
— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) February 19, 2025 This is a really good perspective on how Carolina could/should negotiate a deal with Mikko Rantanen this coming summer. He suggests the Canes offer 8 x $12.5M with a ceiling of a $13M AAV before the trade deadline. If Rantanen wants to go over that number, “I would be hammering the phones to see what the return might be to trade Rantanen (and his $4.625M cap hit) at the deadline.” I’ve said this before: if Rantanen (and/or Mitch Marner) hit the open market and don’t limit their options to immediate Cup contenders, their numbers could be $14.5-16M per. And, with where the cap ceiling is headed, I’m okay with that.?NewFormer #RaiseUp Capologist Aaron Schwartz walks through a Rantanen contract:?Surveying the market?What comparables he'd use?What his offer to Rantanen would be?His contract expectationRead insight from someone who was just in the chair! t.co/qryycu0uMk
— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) February 19, 2025 Finally, incredibly sad news from Pittsburgh last night. Mike Lange, the iconic voice of the Penguins, passed away at 76. He’s one of the voices, like Pat Foley in Chicago, that multiple generations of fans will forever associate with their favorite players’ highlights — and some of the great moments in the history of the franchise. RIP.All 5 of Mike Lange’s Stanley Cup Champion calls with the Pittsburgh Penguins ? A play-by-play legend and icon of the broadcasting business ?️ pic.twitter.com/IKMpyqKv1T
— Austin Bechtold (@AustinRBechtold) February 20, 2025MORE FROM BLEACHER NATION: Check Out BN Fantasy | Subscribe to The BN Newsletter
What’s the latest on the Cubs hosting the MLB All-Star Game? Lonzo Ball talked about signing his extension with the Bulls. Caleb Williams and The Punky QB got together for a fabulous video for Topps. Read More Details
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