It's been widely believed for quite some time now that Seth Jones will be the first name called during the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. The defenseman has been extremely impressive in his young career, scoring 56 points in 61 games for the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL during the 2012-13 season. At 18, Jones already plays an intelligent game which far exceeds his years. 

Will the Colorado Avalanche select Jones with their first overall pick? No, according to a report from the Denver Post. Instead, Joe Sakic (Colorado's executive VP of hockey operations) revealed that the team is planning to draft a forward with their top selection. 

Each team, under the new CBA that goes into effect next week, is allowed two amnesty buyouts of big salaries. Why not punish teams for past sins? Cap compliance, of course. The Flyers have two very large contracts that don't look very practical: those of goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov and forward Danny Briere. Briere has been informed that he will be the first of the two buyouts, according to CSN Philly. The buyout will go into effect two days after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals.

Pavel Datsyuk has signed a three-year extension which will keep him with the Detroit Red Wings through 2016-17, as reported by the Detroit News. This news officially ends any speculation that Datsyuk may shift over to the KHL to finish out his career after the 2013-14 campaign. Datsuk will earn $23 million during his three-year extension and will carry an average cap hit of just over $7.6 million a year. 

Jonathan Bernier asked for a trade from the Los Angeles Kings back in the summer of 2012. You might recall a story we wrote on why Bernier deserves a new opportunity and a chance to prove himself in the NHL. Trapped behind Jonathan Quick, Bernier has never had more than a part-time role in the NHL. 

Bernier may finally get his opportunity almost exactly one year later. It's reported that the Kings have spoken with 10 teams about Bernier. More recently, Bernier fired his agent. These two stories combined with the fact Bernier is set to be a restricted free agent should signal a new opportunity is on the horizon.  

It's no surprise that the Calgary Flames want to shake up their roster. This point was made clear prior to the 2013 trade deadline when the Flames dealt Jarome Iginla to the Pittsburgh Penguins and Jay Bouwmeester to the St. Louis Blues. Add in speculation that Miikka Kiprusoff is preparing to retire and you have a franchise ready to take on a new identity. 

The Flames are finally rebuilding after missing the playoffs in four consecutive seasons. It appears the club is even willing to go to drastic measures to get the rebuild rolling. A report from CBC's Elliotte Friedman indicates that the club is/was willing to deal all three of their first-round picks in exchange for Colorado's top overall pick.

Every player probably feels like their team's goaltender had a shot at the Vezina this year, and many could offer up a solid argument as to why. The San Jose Sharks' goaltender, Antti Niemi, had an outstanding season. He finished with a .924 save percentage and a 2.16 goals against average and helped the Sharks through some genuinely tough patches this past season.

Sergei Bobrovsky wound up winning the trophy this year and Logan Couture has a problem with that. 

During CBC's player intros leading up to Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals, players were asked to name their favorite skater from when they were growing up. David Krejci said that his favorite player growing up was current teammate Jaromir . Following Krejci was Jagr himself. Who did he say was his favorite player?

Jaromir Jagr, of course. Yet another great moment from one of the best players in NHL history. 

(H/T The Nosebleeds)

Alain Vigneault is the new head coach of the New York Rangers, as reported by several outlets on Saturday afternoon. Vigneault, the former head coach of the Vancouver Canucks, will take over the position recently vacated by John Tortorella. 

There was some belief that Vigneault might stand behind the bench in Dallas, but reports surfaced that he had turned down the position. As soon as this news broke, it was clear Vigneault was headed for New York.

File this under "too good to be true." The New York Rangers have interviewed Mark Messier for their head coaching position. No, seriously. They have interviewed someone with no coaching experience to lead their team deeper into the playoffs than John Tortorella did. 

We all know Winnipeg forward Evander Kane has a lot of growing up to do. For example, who could forget being photographed with his “money phone” during the lockout while players were claiming poverty and more recently his whining about the NHL playoffs?

Well, on Thursday night he may have crossed too far over the line on Twitter and the backlash has been palpable.