It's official. The chase is on.
Again.
Now that the Tampa Bay Lightning have flexed their postseason muscles and maintained their status as the class of the NHL, the remaining 30 teams—plus newcomers the Seattle Kraken—are back in catch-up mode.
They have got 95 days until the scheduled puck-drop on the 2021-22 season and myriad issues to address and questions to answer before they can advance toward the Lightning's parade-planning level.
Transactions. Hires. Protected lists. Buyouts. That is the language of the summertime.
Naturally, such a scenario piques the interest of the B/R hockey team and prompted the writing types to take a look at the biggest decision on the agenda in each NHL city as the offseason commences.