The Flames cut three more on Friday, among them was Michael Ferland, who had been making a solid push for a roster spot.

Johnny Gaudreau, Sam Bennett and Josh Jooris remain among forward hopefuls. Gaudreau should make the team outright, even if it leads to a demotion later in the season. Bennett probably gets nine games before heading back to junior.

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The Hockey Writers think that Jakub Voracek will have a big year. It's hard to argue with them. While I think that the Flyers will struggle this season, they should have an awesome power play and their top line will excel at the very least.

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The Coyotes are debating if Sam Gagner fits better as a winger or a centerman. The answer is neither. He's a tweener who will only fit on a line where two players can uplift his deficiencies and allow his skills to shine. He never could find that fit in Edmonton. I'm so happy that he's some other team's problem.

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Elliotte Friedman explains the Vladimir Tkachev situation and more in his latest 30 Thoughts.

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Check out the final two parts of Sean McIndoe's season preview for Grantland: the contenders and the no-clue division.

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TSN breaks down the analytics of why the Avalanche should regress this season. I am all over this bandwagon. The only reason that I could see them bucking the regression monster is internal improvement. This team has so much young talent that they could become a "legitimately" strong team and I wouldn't bat an eye. If they keep getting outshot like crazy though? The I'll refuse to believe in them.

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Justine Bourne on how the Blackhawks power play should be so much better than it is, the latest in his unique team traits series.

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Anyone who missed my ramblings on Thursday needs to check them out. They are the juiciest. I dished on a bunch of different players, rankings and draft strategies as I broke down the Dobber Hockey Experts Draft, which took place earlier this week. You can also see the full draft results here. There's a poll up where you can vote to decide which of the writers had the best draft!

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Elias Lindholm with the hat-trick last night:

I'm high on Lindholm this season. Not because of the hat-trick. I don't even know how many points Lindholm had this preseason. I don't care. Those stats are irrelevant to me. What I do know is that he's a skilled player with a tremendous opportunity to play on the Hurricanes' top power play unit. I think that 55 points is a realistic total for him.

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You can follow me @SteveLaidlaw.