LAB #66: Casey Mittelstadt contract extension

The 66th episode of the Mile High Hockey Lab is available on the podcast platform of your choice! The Stanley Cup The playoffs are over and we've crowned a new champion: the Florida Panthers, who defeated the Edmonton Oilers in seven games. In this episode we discuss Casey Mittelstadt's new deal, talk about the NHL Awards, and make draft predictions!

The Stanley Cup Final goes seven games

Our contributors first talked about the swinging series, namely the Stanley Cup Final. Jackie Kay let us know that she likes elimination games, but she reminded us that she likes it when teams are eliminated. Most of the panel felt like the series dragged on and wasn't all that compelling outside of the three-game swings. The games individually weren't that entertaining outside of game seven.

Jackie also boldly predicted that Connor McDavid would win the Conn Smythe on the losing side before the series started. She gets her thing later in the episode, but what a prediction! We can all agree that McDavid setting the assist record and his performance during the playoffs does indeed get him some votes, but the fact that he got every top spot outside of Ryan S. Clarks is a bit ridiculous. It's pretty clear that the voters had already decided this before the sixth and seventh games, as McDavid was held scoreless in the two biggest games of the entire series.

Casey Mittelstadt's deal yields less than $6 million

We quickly moved on to the more pressing Colorado Avalanche news. Mittelstadt is avoiding arbitration and has reached a deal with his new club for $5.75 million for the next three seasons. Evan Liu accurately described this as a bridge deal and expressed a bit of disappointment that he didn’t lock him in for the long term. I reminded Evan that Casey is still a bit of a stretch coming off a career-high 18 goals. Of course, Casey’s game leans more toward racking up assists, but this contract feels fitting given the production we’ve seen so far. The Avalanche are insulated in case he doesn’t show up with the boys in burgundy, and Casey can earn an even bigger contract by meeting and exceeding expectations. Getting Mittelstadt under $6 million AAV was the goal, and Chris MacFarland and company accomplished that.

Now Jonathan Drouin needs to be re-signed. Will he come in at a team-friendly price or hit the open market? We will see.

Trust in MacKinnon for Hart

I told the world that if Nathan MacKinnon didn't win the Hart Trophy, I would shave my head live on an episode of the Mile High Hockey Lab. This leads me to gauge my fellow contributors' confidence in MacKinnon's ability to do this. I asked them how confident they each were on a scale of 1-10. Here are the results:

Jackie: 9

Eva: 10

Ezra: 9

Adrian: 10

I said that since the NHL and its voters seem to be voting in the best interests of public relations and superstar development, it must be time for Nate Doggs. As Jackie put it: He kissed the babies. He represented the NHL on national television with incredible performances and got in on all the All-Star shenanigans. We can all agree that if he doesn't win this season, he probably never will.

Our picks for the Avalanche and their 24th overall pick

If you haven't already, check out our 2024 Mock Draft. Our four-person panel made all 32 first-round selections, including Colorado's 24th overall. We heard names like Emil Hemming, Cole BeaudoinAnd Andreas Basha. In the end, it was Evan who had our official pick, and he went with Jett Luchanko, the speedy two-way player from the OHL.

What is your opinion on this selection? Who would you choose if you were given the responsibility?

Latest Episodes of Bold Predictions (RECORDING LIVE 5-6-24):

JACKIE KAY McDavid will win the Conn Smyth on the losing side.

ADRIAN HERNANDEZ Someone other than McDavid or Draisitle will lead the Oilers in goals.

EVAN LUI Bobrovsky would sweep the Conn Smythe and Panthers in six.

EZRA PARTER We'll see Calvin Pickard in a Stanley Cup Final game.

This episode's bold predictions (RECORDING LIVE 6/25/24):

JACKIE KAY The Avalanche will NOT be eligible to receive a new RFA before the June 30 deadline.

ADRIAN HERNANDEZ The Avalanche will re-sign Drouin for more than four years.

EVAN LUI The Avalanche will trade some second-day picks for second- or third-round picks.

EZRA PARTER Two signings this week. BONUS: It won't be Drouin, but maybe Duhaime and Jack Johnson.

Make sure to share your #BoldPredictions on X and in the comments here! We'll discuss them on our show and give you all the things you could deserve!

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Go Avs!