The NHL's opening game rosters for this season are officially in and six players from the 2015 NHL Entry Draft have been included. They are Edmonton's Connor McDavid (1st overall), Buffalo's Jack Eichel (2nd), Carolina's Noah Hanifin (5th), Colorado's Mikko Rantanen (10th), Pittsburgh's Daniel Sprong (46th), and the Sabres' Brendan Guhle (51st).
Guhle is a bit of a different case though as he's dealing with an upper-body injury and is currently on the injured reserve. He might get a nine-game trial once he's healthy, but Buffalo hasn't committed to that. If he doesn't, then it will technically be Sprong who was the last player picked to make his team's 2015-16 roster. The Penguins might have gotten a steal with him as he was viewed as a potential first round talent at one point.
While the jury is still out on that, Penguins GM Jim Rutherford was certainly happy with his performance during the preseason.
“He’s strong on his skates, he sees the ice well, he’s got a very good shot,” said Rutherford, per Sportsnet. “He certainly doesn’t play at the level his age is. … We kept watching [in pre-season] to see if something was going to change.
“Right from his first game he was creating scoring chances for himself and for his linemates, and really playing like a guy that’s been around.”
Although Sprong made the final cut, sixth overall pick Pavel Zacha fell just shy in his quest to make the 2015-16 New Jersey Devils. Zacha was limited to just 37 games with OHL Sarnia last season, so it might do him some good to spend another campaign at the junior level working on his game.
Moving away from the rookies, the Buffalo Sabres already have a full sickbay even if you don't include Guhle. Captain Brian Gionta is the latest casualty with a day-to-day lower-body injury, but they're also opened the campaign with more players than any other on the injured reserve list, including Zach Bogosian, Josh Gorges, and Cody McCormick.
While many outside of the Sabres' locker room wrote off the 2014-15 team before that season even started, the expectation is that they'll take a significant step forward in the first season of the Eichel-era. It won't be devastating to the franchise if injuries keep them near the NHL basement for another season, but the last thing the Sabres want is the perception that they're having troubles lifting off following a massive rebuilding effort.
The St. Louis Blues are relatively healthy by comparison, but they are of course entering the campaign with one significant missing piece in Patrik Berglund. The 27-year-old forward underwent back surgery in August and isn't expected to return until January. Of course, we already knew that, but it's worth raising again today because the Blues have placed him on the long-term injured reserve list and used part of the cap savings to sign Scott Gomez to a one-year, two-way contract.
Gomez, 35, was attending the Blues' training camp on a tryout basis, making this the second straight season that he secured a contract after auditioning on a PTO first. The main difference being that when he went the same route with the New Jersey Devils last year, they didn't sign him until December.
He's not a star forward anymore, but his resurgence with the Devils last season (58-7-27-34) suggests that he can still be a valuable secondary scorer. He will also provide the Blues with another veteran leader.
This move comes after the Blues decided to ink fellow tryout veteran Scottie Upshall to a one-year deal as well. They're both relatively low-risk moves that took advantage of last summer's buyer-friendly UFA market.
Meanwhile, Curtis Glencross received the unfortunate distinction of being released from a second tryout in the same year. He's still just 32 years old, but his future has become murky.
"I don’t know what’s going to happen,” Glencross told the Calgary Sun.
“I’m trusting that God’s plan for me and my family is bigger than what I can understand at this point. It’s definitely a setback and heartbreak for me knowing that this could be the end."
He's not sure yet if he'll decide to head to Europe or hold out in the hopes that a team will approach him during the season. The latter certainly can't be ruled out as there will obviously be injuries teams need to adjust to as the campaign drags on.
Dan Cleary, 36, has a contract, but his future is similarly vague. After being limited to 17 games last season, he's been placed on waivers. If he clears, he'll be sent to the minors in what could signal that he's played in his last NHL game.
His $950,000 cap hit for the 2015-16 campaign makes it probable that he will go unclaimed, although you never know. Perhaps, despite his recent struggles, Leafs coach Mike Babcock will be interested in a reunion.
Before we know the outcome of that though, the NHL season will officially get underway. The new-look Toronto Maple Leafs will take on the Montreal Canadiens at 7:00 p.m. ET; the Chicago Blackhawks will begin its defense of the Stanley Cup against the New York Rangers at 8:00 p.m.; the Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks will battle in a rematch of their second round series at 10:00 p.m.; finally, the rival Los Angeles Kings and San Jose Sharks will round out the opening night festivities with a game starting at 10:30 p.m.