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Welcome to Michael’s Musings. Michael Lindenbaum of TXHT Hockey writes a weekly column on current topics around both the NHL and PWHL.
Musings on Connor Hellebuyck
Tell me if you’ve heard this one, but Connor Hellebuyck is in the news once again. Over the weekend, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet broke the news that Hellebuyck informed the Winnipeg Jets before the start of the season that he planned to end his absence and report to the team.
The Jets had some power under the CBA since Hellebuyck did not have permission to be away from the team. Specifically, Article 15.13, subsection (c)(v), states: “If a Player who has not received permission to be absent from Training Camp returns to the Club, he shall be subject to a disciplinary suspension of reasonable length.”
As Friedman would later report on Saturday Headlines during Saturday Night Hockey, and again on the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Hellebuyck’s team-imposed suspension will end on Friday, October 23.
While a trade by Friday is not guaranteed, we know the same three teams remain in the mix: Buffalo, Carolina, and Utah. Friedman also reported that the Los Angeles Kings have kicked the tires on a possible Hellebuyck deal. However, as the only winless team in the NHL, they may not be a team Hellebuyck would consider joining.
One thing is certain, though. If Hellebuyck isn’t traded before Friday, I could definitely see the Jets telling him to stay home while continuing to pay him.
One has to wonder how much longer this saga will go on.
The Flyers are Finding Their Groove
This past Saturday, the Philadelphia Flyers finally found themselves in the win column for the first time during the 2026-27 season. The Flyers, who were wearing their road whites at home, defeated the Ottawa Senators 3-1, with both Matvei Michkov and Porter Martone recording a goal and an assist. Then, on Monday night, Michkov would score twice, while Trevor Zegras would record three assists to help the Flyers defeat the Colorado Avalanche.
For the Flyers, this was a major boost for a club that went winless through its first nine games of the season. Also promising was the youth leading the way, as Michkov recorded three goals and an assist, Zegras had a goal and three assists, and Martone contributed a goal and an assist across the two games.
The Flyers have an interesting road ahead to close out October, with road games against Buffalo and Washington and home games against Anaheim and Columbus. Columbus is struggling, Washington is finding its stride, Anaheim is trying to find its rhythm, and Buffalo is looking for consistency.
It will be interesting to see how the Flyers fare over their next four games.
Also, stick taps to the Flyers for wearing their road whites at home! They will wear the road whites at home three more times this season, and honestly, I like the idea of teams permanently returning to wearing white at home.
Some Content Creation Talk
So, this is something I wasn’t planning to ever talk about, but since the comments have started rolling in on my Reels, TikToks, and Shorts, I just want to address this here.
As a content creator, I create content in many forms. Whether it’s blog posts like this, podcasts like The Morphinominal Hockey Show, social media graphics for Jersey Tracking, Washington Capitals Gameday and Projected Lineups, or videos from the Capitals games I attend, I always look forward to the engagement on my posts.
However, I need to pull back the curtain on how these videos are posted because, honestly, last season became very exhausting, and I’d rather address this now than let it linger.
My videos of the Capitals walking out onto the ice for pregame warmups and Logan Thompson performing his pregame ritual are always filmed within minutes of each other. The pregame walkout video is then posted on social media shortly afterward.
With that said, the Thompson videos are always posted during the first intermission. This is done intentionally because of timing. Everything posted on the TXHT Hockey social media accounts is scheduled that way so each post has time to breathe and generate engagement. If we posted everything at once, the posts would lose their impact.
The same goes for the videos from Capitals games. I want the pregame walkout videos to have time to gain the engagement they deserve before posting the Thompson video so that it can have its moment, too.
So, before you comment, “But that’s not the first intermission, that’s warmups,” please know that **yes, I know that, and the videos are posted during the first intermission on purpose.**
At the end of the day, what matters most to me is that everyone continues to enjoy the content I create and looks forward to seeing more of it. I appreciate everyone who watches, engages with, and supports what I do, and I hope this clears things up!
You can read Michael’s Musings every Wednesday over at HockeyHotStove.com before it comes over to TXHTHockey.com on Fridays.
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