In today';s News & Notes, the New Jersey Devils have signed their 2018
first-round pick Ty Smith to a three-year entry-level contract, the Montreal
Canadiens and Calgary Flames made a trade and the New York Rangers have signed
Dustin Tokarski to a one-year contract and the NHL Network has released their
top-20 NHL winger list (which has already created a debate).Devils Sign Smith

The Devils have come to terms with Smith, their first-round pick in 2018, to a
three-year entry-level contract, the team announced Monday.

Smith was excellent in his second season with the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL in
2017-18, setting career-highs in just about every category with an impressive
14 goals, 59 assists, 73 points and 30 penalty minutes. While plus/minus is an
increasingly useless statistic, his plus-44 rating in 69 games was also a
career-high.Ty Smith (Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports)

Not only did Smith set career-highs in his draft season but his assist and
point totals were also the second-highest among defenders int he WHL last
season.

Smith also has experience internationally as he won a silver medal with Canada
at the U17 WHC in 2017 as well as a gold medal as an alternate captain for
Canada at the 2018 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament. He was also the captain of
Team Canada';s IIHF U18 World Championship Team.Related: NHL News & Notes:
Ellis, Werenski, Santini

The Devils proved in 2017-18 that they were a far better team than their record
 suggested just a season prior and will aim to get better in the near future.
The addition of Smith will only help that cause, even if his NHL debut is still
 likely a few seasons away.Canadiens and Flames Swap Rychel and Shinkaruk

The Canadiens have traded Kerby Rychel to the Flames in exchange for Hunter
Shinkaruk.Hunter Shinkaruk and Ethan Bear (Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports)

Both Rychel and Shinkaruk were selected in the first round in the 2013 NHL
Entry Draft but have both failed to make an impact at the NHL roster as of yet.
 For Rychel, the Flames will be his fourth team since the Columbus Blue Jackets
 took him 19th overall and for Shinkaruk, the Canadiens will be his third team,
 all in Canada, since the Vancouver Canucks took him 24th overall.

Neither player projects to be a top-six impact player the way they were coming
out of the WHL but both still have an opportunity to become a serviceable NHL
player one day if they put the work in. A change of scenery is always good for
players who can';t seem to break out. Still, the Canadiens only gave Rychel 16
AHL games (eight goals, 12 points) and four NHL games (one goal, two points) to
 prove himself.

While he did admirably in his brief time, the Canadiens have ultimately opted
to take their chances on Shinkaruk instead. The Canadiens would agree to terms
on a one-year, two-way contract with Shinkaruk shortly after the trade was
completed.NHL Network Releases Top-20 Wingers List

Closing out their list of best skaters, the NHL Network has released a list of
their top-20 wingers in the league. This list came after the highly-discussed
and highly-debated top-20 centers and top-20 defenders lists.

Here are the players that the NHL Network selected for their list:

Nikita KucherovAlex OvechkinTaylor HallPatrick KaneBrad MarchandPatrik
LaineClaude GirouxJamie BennBlake WheelerArtemi PanarinVladimir TarasenkoJohnny
 GaudreauPhil KesselDavid PastrnakFilip ForsbergJakub VoracekMikko
RantanenRickard RakellBrock BoeserViktor Arvidsson

As was the case with the other two lists released by the NHL Network, there has
 been a debate about the order of the players on the list and in some cases,
even arguments about the players included on the list. Regardless of who the
NHL Network placed on their list, however, it';s important to remember that any
 such grouping of players is widely subjective and while every player included
deserves to be there, there can be a case made for many others to also crack
the list as well.Rangers Sign Tokarski

The Rangers made a minor move Monday when they signed Tokarski to a one-year
contract. The deal will pay Tokarski $650,000 at the NHL level and $250,000 in
the AHL, though he';s guaranteed $275,000 regardless of whether or not he plays
 the full season at the AHL level, CapFriendly announced on Twitter. At the
conclusion of this deal, Tokarski will be an unrestricted free agent.

OFFICIAL: #NYR have agreed to terms with free agent goaltender Dustin Tokarski
on a one-year contract. pic.twitter.com/fbzOb5AZQz

- New York Rangers (@NYRangers) August 20, 2018

The soon-to-be 29-year-old netminder has played in a total of 34 games at the
NHL level since being drafted in the fifth round in 2008, spending time with
the Tampa Bay Lightning, Montreal Canadiens and Anaheim Ducks. He';s compiled a
 10-12-5 record in that time with a 2.84 goals against average and a .904 save
percentage at the NHL level.

In 2017-18, Tokarski played in 39 games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, the
Philadelphia Flyers'; AHL affiliate, recording a 20-8-2 record with a 2.65
goals against average and a .915 save percentage. He also played in three
postseason games, going 1-1 with a less-than-stellar 4.17 goals against average
 and a .859 save percentage.

The post NHL News & Notes: Ty Smith, Shinkaruk Trade & More appeared first on
The Hockey Writers.

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