Stanley Cup final full of Saskatchewan connections

There’s a good chance the Stanley Cup will pay a visit to Saskatchewan this summer.

The Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning are to open the best-of-seven Stanley Cup final Wednesday in Denver, with both teams featuring plenty of Saskatchewan connections.

The Lightning is aiming to become the fourth team in NHL history to claim three consecutive Stanley Cups. The Avalanche is making its first appearance in the final since 2001.

Here are some of the players and coaches with Saskatchewan connections you’ll see during the series:

COLORADO AVALANCHE

Head coach Jared Bednar — born in Yorkton.

Bednar played five seasons in the WHL with four different teams before a 13-year career in the minor hockey ranks.

He turned to coaching after retiring as a player in 2002 and won a championship in his second season with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays.

On Aug. 25, 2016, Bednar was named head coach of the Avalanche.

Goaltender Darcy Kuemper — born in Saskatoon.

Kuemper grew up playing minor hockey in Saskatoon alongside fellow NHL players Luke and Brayden Schenn.

Kuemper spent his junior hockey career with the Spokane Chiefs and Red Deer Rebels of the WHL, catching the eye of NHL scouts.

He was drafted by the Minnesota Wild in 2009 and spent five seasons there before moving on to the Los Angeles Kings and Arizona Coyotes.

Kuemper was traded to the Avs before the 2021-22 season, and he helped produce the team’s 37-win season to cement a return to the Stanley Cup final.

Defenceman Ryan Murray — born in Regina.

Murray was a highly touted prospect coming out of the WHL, where he suited with the Everett Silvertips for five seasons.

The Columbus Blue Jackets made Murray the second overall pick in the 2012 NHL draft. He started his NHL career with Columbus before being traded to the New Jersey Devils during the 2020 off-season.

Colorado signed the blueliner heading into the 2021-22 season and he appeared in 37 regular-season games.

Defenceman Josh Manson — born Hinsdale, Ill, lived in Prince Albert.

Manson is the son of former NHL player Dave Manson. Although Josh was born in the U.S., he moved to Prince Albert as a teenager after his dad retired as a player in 2002.

Manson was selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the sixth round (160th overall) of the 2011 NHL draft. He spent his first eight NHL seasons in California before being traded to the Avalanche in March.

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING

Forward Brandon Hagel — born in Saskatoon.

Hagel was born in the Bridge City, but he was raised in Morinville, Alta.

During his WHL rookie season, he helped propel Red Deer to the 2016 Memorial Cup final, where the Rebels lost to the London Knights.

After being selected 156th overall in the 2016 NHL draft, Hagel broke into the league with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2019.

Chicago traded Hagel to Tampa Bay in March at the NHL’s trade deadline.

Forward Braydon Point — born in Calgary, played in the WHL with Moose Jaw.

Point’s Saskatchewan roots date back to 2011, when he cracked the Moose Jaw Warriors’ roster as a 15-year-old.

He played five seasons in Moose Jaw, where he racked up the third-highest point total in franchise history.

Tampa Bay selected him in the third round (79th overall) of the 2014 draft.

Point made the NHL roster in the 2016 season, and was part of the Lighting’s Stanley Cup championships in 2020 and 2021.