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Auston Matthews continues to shine at the world hockey championships, whetting the appetites of NHL fans ahead of next month’s draft.

USA teammate Nick Foligno, while describing what he’s observed of Matthews’ game in Russia, offered this parallel:

“Sounds a lot like a Jonathan Toews , if you ask me,” Foligno said. “It’s a tough comparison. I don’t want to put that on him, but when you watch him play — I’ve gotten to play against Jonathan for a long time now — and you kind of draw those comparisons.

“He doesn’t really blow you away sometimes with his flashiness but he’s always on the score sheet. He’s always making a difference in the game. You can kind of see that in Auston. So it’s pretty exciting for whoever gets him in the draft.”

Source: Carol Schram/ NHL.com

Matthews inspires comparison to Toews

[email protected]_Matthews34 wins it for @usahockey! #IIHFWorlds pic.twitter.com/LGLXpuo1bH — NHL on NBC (@NHLonNBCSports) May 19, 2016

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Really interesting read here on how a coaching philosophy shift in Finland may have greatly helped the country’s development program.

The results have been noticeable.

“Finland has always had a strong team concept — good structure, good defense and good goaltending — but now we are seeing a lot more skill with these young players, and it has allowed the team to play with more confidence in the offensive zone and not just hope for the best,” Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said. “The attitude now is that we know we can win any tournament we participate in. We used to just think that we could, but now we know that we can.”

Source: Julie Robenhymer/ New York Times

Credit New Coaching Approach as Finland Hockey Seeks Triple Gold

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The Arizona Coyotes made waves by hiring 26-year-old John Chayka to be the general manager, and some criticism of the move has been more pointed than others.

“If you look historically at hiring practices over the last 30 years, whenever teams have gone way outside the box and done things that are completely unorthodox, it hasn’t worked,” said former New York Rangers general manager Neil Smith.

“You can’t walk into any job without any experience and be successful,” Smith said. “It’s OK if you want to hire this young man and make him executive director of player personnel. But you give him the title of GM? You really think he should have the same title as Sam Pollock or Bill Torrey or Cliff Fletcher?”

Source: Tal Pinchevsky/ ESPN

Coyotes’ GM John Chayka isn’t worried about skeptics who think he’s too young to run a team

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One steady presence for the Coyotes has been Shane Doan, the team’s long time captain.

“When I played with the Phoenix Coyotes, I always felt as if Shane Doan was the perfect model for captain,” wrote Paul Bissonnette in his latest offering for USA Today.

“The Coyotes endured bankruptcy, ownership change and threats of relocation. We were trying to win while surrounded by instability.

“Doan told us we needed to take this personally. He told us we needed to embrace an us-against-the-world mentality. He told us we needed to do all that we could to help ourselves and the team.

“When Doan spoke everyone listened because we believed in him. He also would go around the room and ask if anyone else had something to offer. Doan was inclusive, and that was another reason I admired him.”

Source: Paul Bissonnette/ USA Today

Why NHL captains have greatest impact

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This one is worth a few minutes of your time…

Bernie Nicholls: Concussion suit against the NHL is 'for the guys beside me' https://t.co/33geRuRHcq — ESPN NHL coverage (@ESPN_NHL) May 19, 2016

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General manager Brian MacLellan on restricted free agent Tom Wilson:

“You know, we miss Ward. Joel Ward — he’s the kind of guy we needed in the playoffs,” MacLellan said. “You know, you make changes, and he’s a guy that we wanted back and we didn’t get back. We missed that skill-set. I think it’s on us to turn Tom Wilson into Joel Ward. It’s on Tom and on us to turn him into that kind of guy that has a net-front presence, that finds loose pucks, finds rebounds, plays good along the wall.

“I think Tom is our answer to that.”

Source: Isabelle Khurshudyan

Capitals want Tom Wilson, an RFA this summer, to become Joel Ward

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Nichols’ Notes runs weekdays, linking you to stories of interest from around the NHL.