This is why you wait.
When teams had to submit a list of 16 names in March for the World Cup of Hockey, American forward Phil Kessel was on the trading block, North American winger Jonathan Drouin was sitting at home and Finland’s Patrik Laine was an 18-year-old whose international experience was mostly limited to winning gold at the world juniors.
Today, all of them are considered locks for the final seven spots that each of the eight teams will announce in due time. It could be as early as May 27 but depends on when the conference-final series end.