Five Minute Major

*Photo from NHL.com*     Another bench boss has been chosen this offseason. The Anaheim Ducks have hired Greg Cronin to be the team's next head coach, according to an announcement by the team on Monday.    The Ducks fired Dallas Eakins after the season ended and now have his replacement in hand. Cronin spent the last 5 seasons as the head coach of the AHL Colorado Eagles and has 12 seasons as an NHL assistant under his belt. This will be his first time as a head coach at the NHL level.    Cronin said of getting the job that "I'm excited and honored to be named head coach of the Anaheim Ducks. This team has a fantastic future ahead, and I'm very grateful to the Samueli family and Pat Verbeek for entrusting me with this amazing opportunity."    Last season, the Ducks ended the regular season with 13 straight losses, going 0-11-2 to set a team record. They didn't win a game in regulation until November 23 against the New York Rangers a...

*Photo from first Ohio Battery*     We have our first noteworthy trade of the offseason. The Columbus Blue Jackets have acquired D Ivan Provorov from the Philadelphia Flyers as part of a 3 team trade with the Los Angeles Kings, according to ESPN's Kevin Weekes. The 3 teams have confirmed.    The Blue Jackets only receive Provorov in this trade. The Flyers receive a first round pick from Columbus in 2023, a conditional second round pick in 2024 from Columbus, a 2024 second round pick from the Kings, goalie Cal Petersen, defenseman Sean Walker, and defenseman Helge Grans. The Kings are retaining 30 percent of Provorov's contract and receive defenseman Kevin Connauton and forward Hayden Hodgson.    Provorov has two seasons left on a 6 year, $40.5 million contract he signed with the Flyers prior to the 2019-2020 season. The left shot defenseman has a $6.75 million AAV for the next two seasons to go with a $3 million signing bonus for 2023-2024 and a $2 million ...

*Photo from Arizona Sports* Vegas leads series 2-0     Through two games, we have two commanding wins. Jonathan Marchessault had two goals and an assist, Brett Howden scored twice, and the Vegas Golden Knights beat the Florida Panthers 7-2 on Monday night in Vegas.    Vegas has now outscored the Panthers by 8 goals through two games, winning by 3 in game one and 5 on Monday night. They now sit just two games away from Hockey immortality, and in just their 6th season. Marchessault and Howden combined to score 4 of the 7 Vegas goals.    Marchessault said of the early offense in game two that "You know what? They wanted to set the tone with being undisciplined like Game 1, and we set the tone back with scoring that first goal there. But we’re still pretty far from our goal here."    It was Marchessault who started the scoring, giving Vegas a 1-0 lead on a power play goal, his 11th goal of the playoffs with Jack Eichel and Chandler Stephenso...

*Photo from The Columbian* Vegas leads series 1-0     Game one goes to one of the newest NHL teams. Shea Theodore had a goal and an assist, Zach Whitecloud scored, and the Vegas Golden Knights defeated the Florida Panthers with a 5-2 victory on Saturday night in Vegas.    Returning to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2017-2018, their inagural season, the Golden Knights made the most of their first game, pulling away in the 3rd period to take a 1-0 lead in the series. However, the goal is to avoid losing game two, as they took a 1-0 lead in 2017-2018 only to lose the next 4 games.    On the scoresheet, Theodore and Jack Eichel drove the production for Vegas, with Eichel also chipping in two assists. It was Whitecloud who scored the eventual game winning goal as Vegas got off on the right food.    Vegas goalie Adin Hill said of the series opening win that "It feels awesome. We're three away. Our job is not finished. You know Flori...

*Photo from the New York Times*     This is an interesting news drop during the playoffs. Pending free agent RW Patrick Kane has undergone hip resurfacing surgery ahead of hitting the open market, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.    Kane's agent Pat Brisson confirmed the procedure took place. The recovery timeline is 4 to 6 months, which could keep Kane out to start the 2023-2024 season. The earliest Kane could come back is October, which is right around the start of the regular season. Kane is a pending UFA for the first time in his NHL career.    Brisson said of the surgery that "Patrick did this because he wants to continue playing. Surgery went extremely well and we're very confident that he will be able to play next year and hopefully for many more years to come."    During the season, Kane was dealt from the Chicago Blackhawks, the only team he ever played for, to the New York Rangers at the trade deadline. He had one goal an...

*Photo from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette*     There's a new head man in Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh Penguins have hired Kyle Dubas as their next president of hockey operations, according to a Thursday announcement by the Penguins.    Brian Burke was fired as president of hockey operations following the 2022-2023 season, the first time the Penguins missed the playoffs since the 2005-2006 season. The Penguins also fired GM Ron Hextall, with Dubas currently handling the duties of president of hockey operations and GM.    Fenway Sports group owner John Henry and chairman Tom Werner said in a statement that "Throughout his career, Kyle has proven himself as a forward-thinking hockey mind and embodies all of the qualities, integrity, intelligence, and an unwavering commitment to building a winning culture, that we value in a leader at the Penguins. We have done exhaustive work narrowing down candidates throughout this process, but it did not take lon...

*Photo from TSN*     We have a coaching announcement on our hands here. The Washington Capitals have named Spencer Carbery will be their next head coach, according to Emily Kaplan of ESPN. The team has officially confirmed the news.    Carbery gets a 4 year contract with the Capitals, replacing Peter Laviolette after the Capitals and Laviolette parted ways at the end of the season. Carbery has previous experience in the Capitals organization, led the Capitals AHL affiliate Hershey Bears to the AHL's best regular season record in 2021, earning him coach of the year honors.    Washington GM Brian McClellan said that "We are extremely pleased to name Spencer as our new head coach. Spencer is one of the best young coaches in the game who's had success at every level at which he has coached. We feel his leadership, communication skills, ability to develop players and familiarity with our organization will be a tremendous asset as he makes this next step in ...