After we passed the eve of the GM meeting this offseason it looked like Kings GM John Kenny was all settled in and ready to draft the future of the team with a top 3 pick as well as the 6 pick they got back in a deal with Riverview. It seems though Saint John was not quite ready to just draft and be quiet on the day. Instead they flipped the 6 pick as well as the 12 pick and their own second rounder next year for former top 5 pick David Legwand, 19 year old defenceman Sylvan Cote and the number 9 pick. With the third pick in the draft the Kings drafted young stud d-man Chris Chelios and then proceeded to pick left wing Brian Rolston with the 9 and then wrapped things up in the draft picking tough guy centre Mike Peca with the 14th pick to add a little grit in Norton.
After all the excitement of Saint John drafting 3 players in one draft for the first time in many seasons, it was time to explore free agency. This was where Kenny was quiet only retaining 21 year old restricted free agent Dylan Guenther while relinquishing the rights to 60 point scorer Grigori Denisenko to BAthurst in exchange for second and third round draft picks.
This offseason also came with some of its own little changes and surprises with some players. With what some would call disappointment defenceman Rasmus Sandin came into camp seeming a little less intense or powerful but with a little more pep in his step which still has trainers questioning Sandins decision to train on his own during the off season. Many of the others though stayed true to the Kings training staff giving updates and really showing some strides in their intensity to strength train and focus on defensive skill sets. The biggest shock to the staff though was the arrival of Joel Blomqvist who spent eh summer in homeland of Finland and came back as a player who has fought his way onto the big club from playing backup on the farm the season before. If we see strides anything like this again, Curtis Joseph award winner Logan Thompson will have to start looking behind him. There have been quite a few changes, a slight shift in philosophy and a bright future for thie Saint John Kings team., the fans around the Loyalist City are buzzing, hoping all these improvements on paper translate to another cup win!
Irwin P Freeley
Telegraph Journal
6/5/2025 - 419 words
