Whatever the NHL paid Canadian pop star Justin Bieber to appear at the draft Friday night, the league should demand a refund. Bieber had one line to say — and he messed it up. Gavin McKenna will now go down as the first pick in the live history of the NHL draft whose entrance into the league was never properly enunciated.
It was Bieber's job to stand beside commissioner Gary Bettman and announce: "With the first pick in the 2026 NHL draft, the Toronto Maple Leafs are proud to select from Penn State University, Gavin McKenna." Instead, Bieber stood awkwardly and said: "Mr. McKenna, we'd like to draft you to the Toronto Maple Leafs." The moment came off as amateur night in the NHL, the first of many missteps that Friday night.
A Night of Mistakes
The great Thurman Thomas compounded the errors by calling it the "NFL draft" during his selection in the town that made him famous. The television panel discussed "Jarmo" several times before identifying Jarmo Kekalainen. The Sportsnet set was badly placed at the Buffalo arena, with E.J. Hradek of NHL Network visible in the middle of their shot, despite not being part of their broadcast.
The NHL draft was once a quaint, slightly overdone event when held in person years ago, with announcers thanking the city of Buffalo, congratulating the Stanley Cup champion, and acknowledging watch parties back home. However, GMs voted to end the in-person draft. Last year's attempt was just bad television; this year's was mistake-filled. The league has turned an event that should run with precision into a night of missteps, dropped passes, and high-priced celebrities tripping over themselves.
Leafs Trade Talks and Rielly's Status
The Toronto Maple Leafs had hoped to trade defenceman Morgan Rielly in a Brandon Carlo-style deal but couldn't find a suitor. They saved more than $4 million by moving Carlo, similar to the savings they sought by dealing Rielly. They likely would have had to eat $2 million of Rielly's $7.5 million annual deal, representing a $5.5 million salary savings instead of the $4.1 million on Carlo. According to an Eastern Conference GM, interest in Rielly is low because "his mobility is gone and his decision-making is in decline."
No Canadian team has won the Stanley Cup since Montreal in 1993. Since then, nine different Canadian teams have picked first in the NHL draft, with only Edmonton and Ottawa reaching the Cup final. Ten years ago, Steve Simmons walked to the KeyBank Center in Buffalo for the first round of the draft beside Goran Stubb, the dean of European hockey executives. When asked who he would pick first, Stubb said Jesse Puljujarvi over Auston Matthews, who went first to Toronto. Simmons won the bet on who would have the better career but never collected.
Babcock, Kessel, and Matthews
When Mike Babcock was hired to coach the Leafs in 2015, he told Simmons he never goes off the record. When asked about coaching Phil Kessel, Babcock paused and asked, "Can we go off the record for a minute?" Five weeks later, Kessel was traded to Pittsburgh. The difference between hockey in Toronto and Winnipeg: The Leafs missed the playoffs, fired their GM, coach, and media relations chief, and began dismantling the roster. The Jets missed the playoffs but kept everyone and the roster intact, with no drama.
Did you notice that the promotional 'Welcome to the Leafs' video done by absentee captain Auston Matthews did not mention McKenna's name? Clearly, Matthews made the video before the team shared who their first pick would be.
Blue Jays Struggles and Guerrero's Impact
The Blue Jays' struggles this season are not unexpected. Of the past 25 teams to lose the World Series, only three made it back the following season — a 12% chance. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is key: in the 22 games where he had two hits or more, the Jays went 19-3. In games with one or no hit, they are 20-40. Guerrero and Bo Bichette, once linked as prospects 1 and 1a, are now apart. Bichette, with the last-place New York Mets, has 10 home runs and 45 RBIs at the halfway point. Guerrero has four home runs and 34 RBIs, with an OPS of .714, the lowest of his career. Bichette's OPS is .688, second-lowest of his career. Guerrero had 11 homers at this point last season.
The likely three Blue Jays all-stars — Ernie Clement, Louis Varland, and Kazuma Okamoto — were not on anyone's pre-season bingo card. Okamoto is trending toward striking out 200 times, which would break the club record of 170 set by Matt Chapman and Jose Bautista. As George Springer struggles, manager John Schneider may have to start Yohendrick Pinango at designated hitter. Springer turns 37 in September, and his OPS dropped from .959 last year to .673 this season, from second in the American League to 60th.
GM of the Year Snub and Other Notes
In the past 11 months, Vegas Golden Knights GM Kelly McCrimmon acquired Mitch Marner and Rasmus Andersson, signed free-agent goalie Carter Hart, and replaced Bruce Cassidy with John Tortorella. He received zero votes for NHL GM of the year. Twelve different GMs received votes, but not McCrimmon. Brian Burke is headed to the Hockey Hall of Fame as a builder, but Simmons argues he should go in after Bill Daly, Don Cherry, and many others. The worst thing Burke did: suspending Claude Lemieux only two games for his hit from behind on Kris Draper in 1996, which should have been a minimum 10 games.
One game to win, who do you want in goal: Pekka Rinne or Curtis Joseph? One is entering the Hall of Fame; maybe both should. The Washington Capitals picked up Jordan Kyrou from St. Louis and Alex Tuch from Buffalo, both of whom have scored more than 30 goals in three of the past four seasons. Those acquisitions suggest Alex Ovechkin won't be back next season. Team Canada played nervously without Alphonso Davies, Ismael Kone, and Moise Bombito in World Cup games. If Simmons were Cassidy, he'd make the Golden Knights pay every dollar on his contract before looking for another job.
Raptors, Argos, and WNBA
Kawhi Leonard left Toronto seven seasons ago and hasn't won a playoff round in five years. If he wants to return to the Raptors, a deal moving Brandon Ingram should be considered, but a 35-year-old Leonard raises concerns. Ricky Ray threw for 1,199 yards in the first three games of the 2017 Argos season, the most to start a season in history. Chad Kelly has managed 1,190 yards in the first three games this year. The Argos won the 2017 Grey Cup. Justin Rankin of the 3-0 Edmonton Elks is the CFL player to watch; Edmonton was last 3-0 in 2017.
Marina Mabrey scored 53 points for the Toronto Tempo, tying the WNBA single-game record. In the Raptors' first season, the most points in a game was 40 by Tracy Murray and Acie Earl. The NBA record remains 100 by Wilt Chamberlain. Former Raptors assistant Micah Nori agreed to a one-year contract to coach the Portland Trail Blazers, a rarity in modern times. In South Florida sports, the Heat picked up Giannis Antetokounmpo, and the Panthers added Brady Tkachuk. Throat punches are allowed if Earl Hebner is refereeing, but not in WNBA games where Caitlin Clark is being assaulted. Happy birthday to John Elway (66), Yordan Alvarez (29), and others. And hey, whatever became of Frederik Gauthier?
