One had a deadline, one not so much, but their signings arrived together: The Islanders announced Friday that Tanner Fritz and Arnaud Durandeau are both signed, Fritz to a two-year deal, Durandeau to his three-year ELC. Durandeau had to be signed by Saturday night or he’d go back into the draft. Fritz was set to be an unrestricted free agent in a month. Now they could wind up on the same line here at some point.
There has not been the same kind of hue and cry for Petter Hansson, seventh-round draft pick in 2015. His rights expire at 5 p.m. Saturday.
Meanwhile, it’s June. I understand the procession of time and such, but still not sure how that happened. Saturday, though, begins the Calder Cup Final, pitting Charlotte against Chicago, with 6 p.m. starts on both Saturday and Sunday in North Carolina.
There’ll be a new coach in Cleveland, as the Monsters and John Madden parted ways:
| TEAM | Old | New |
| HFD | Keith McCambridge (4/16) | — |
| CLE | John Madden (5/29) | — |
Sheldon Keefe, meanwhile, is going nowhere.
Newfoundland is one win away from bringing a championship to St. John’s, with a chance to end the ECHL final Saturday night. What they’ll win… well, I guess we’ll see. (Uh-huh.)
And RIP, Leon Redbone, Bill Buckner and Marc Okkonen.