Good morning, PPP!

Last night, the Capitals traded a fifth-round pick to the Wild in exchange for some dude named Tyler Graovac. The trade itself isn’t that interesting, but if we’re lucky, it is the pebble that begins the rock slide of offseason action. I want trades! I want excitement! The season is over, the Penguins’ Cup parade was yesterday, so NHL GMs should do their jobs and give me foolishness. By the end of the day, I expect Marc Bergevin to trade Alex Galchenyuk to Tampa for a second-round pick and a mannequin with a Jonathan Drouin jersey on it. It’s the offseason, let’s have some fun. [Note: that “fun” should not include the Leafs signing Dan Girardi. That would be unfun].

Also important: the reviews from Mitch Marner’s teammates are in on his pitch at the Blue Jays game. Like good teammates, they’re big into constructive criticism.

Some links for you to read, or not, however the spirit moves you:

ICYMI

Women’s Hockey Wednesday: 2017 CWHL Draft pool filling up nicely - Pension Plan Puppets
Not much! We’ve also got the latest NWHL signings, Sweden’s Olympic prep and more about KRS and the Chinese WNT.

Everyone is the worst: World Junior Championship organizers - Pension Plan Puppets
Welcome back to my whenever I feel like it series on things that are the worst

SBN Mock NHL Draft Day 2: Dallas passes on defense - Pension Plan Puppets
Three more picks were made, how did Dallas, Colorado, and Vancouver do?

2017 NHL Draft Rankings (#11-20) - Pension Plan Puppets
Who Should The Maple Leafs Hope To Land At #17?

Stuff We Didn’t Write

Official: New York Rangers to buy out Dan Girardi - Blueshirt Banter
It’s finally happened.

NHL trade rumor: Jonathan Drouin and Alex Galchenyuk rumblings growing - Raw Charge
There have been rumors of a Drouin trade for a while, and it’s picking up.

Mirtle: NHL’s salary cap likely to be set at $75-million for 2017-18 – The Athletic
The NHL's salary cap will not be flat. It's going up for 2017-08.

Griffins win Calder Cup, celebrate with $400 worth of McDonald’s - Winging It In Motown
A bunch of hockey dorks celebrate winning a championship with chicken nuggets because of course.

From The Branches