Links, News, and Notes: Going over DeBrinc

The draft is over, free agency has slowed to a trickle, and, finally, an Alex DeBrincat trade has happened. Wait, what? It happened?

Here's your semi-weekly LNN.

• If you somehow missed it, Alex DeBrincat was traded to Detroit for forward Dominik Kubalik, prospect (and Ottawa native) Donovan Sebrango, a 1st-round pick, and a 4th-round pick
• The Athletic has some immediate reaction grades, and yeah, it's about how you'd expect it
• Ian Mendes also has some more in-depth thoughts in the aftermath of the end of the DeBrincat era and is astute as always: no one has to be the bad guy here.
• The Detroit Free Press argue this was a steal for the Wings. This is about how Sens fans were feeling almost exactly a year ago today.
• The Hockey News was a little less harsh, saying Dorion made the best of a bad situation
• The Detroit News is excited to see the first potential 40-goal scorer in Detroit since Marian Hossa (remember when he played there?) in 2008-09
• Meanwhile, for the Citizen, Bruce Garrioch curiously says that Dominik Kubalik could be a top-line player for the Sens; umm, yeah, about that!
• Before the trade, Ian Mendes argued why trading DeBrincat to Detroit, i.e., within the division, shouldn't be such a big deal
• The Sens could be signing Vladimir Tarasenko, with the biggest potential problem being that he has had exactly one mostly healthy season since the Blues won the Cup in 2019
• Caps fans were momentarily hopeful that there was a reason Dylan Strome suddenly changed his profile picture to him and Alex DeBrincat with the Memorial Cup, but, sadly for them, it meant nothing
• The Athletic is doing their offseason analysis, first with an author from each team grading each team's offseason thus far
• They also dig into each team's biggest persisting unaddressed need. The article was written prior to the DeBrincat trade, but it should not be a surprise to anyone to learn that the Sens' biggest need remains forward depth.
• The Hockey News's Adam Proteau argues the Sens next season are playoffs or bust. That's a common sentiment in the Ottawa market, as well.
• Shane Ross (not an alias of mine) writes about Josh Currie's excitement to be returning to playing in the North America after signing a 2-way deal with the Sens, following a couple years in Russia
• Oilers Nation takes a short look at Matt Dumba, one of a handful of intriguing remaining UFA names.
• Should the Penguins still be trying to acquire Erik Karlsson? Yes. No. Who knows?
• Kings captain Anze Kopitar has reupped for two years, $7M per year. All these years later, and yes, he's still quite good.