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NHL draft week buzz: Why the No. 3 pick is a pivot point, next phase of the Tkachuk effect, debating ‘top-line talent’

NHL draft week buzz: Why the No. 3 pick is a pivot point, next phase of the Tkachuk effect, debating 'top-line talent'

It’s a big week for the NHL. Tonight, the annual awards show will anoint the winners of the Hart, Vezina, Calder and Norris trophies. Wednesday is Round 1 of the draft (7 p.m. ET, ESPN and ESPN+), while free agency begins on Saturday at noon ET.

To help make sense of it all, our reporters reached out to sources in front offices around the league for their takes on the draft, trades and the free agent class.

So ahead of this week’s flurry of action, Ryan S. Clark, Kristen Shilton and Greg Wyshynski deliver the latest buzz around the NHL: