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Archives for July 2016

Hurricanes Sign Lee Stempniak

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Veteran winger Lee Stempniak has agreed to terms on a two-year, $5MM deal with the Carolina Hurricanes, the team confirmed. Stempniak is joining his tenth team of his NHL career, and the fifth in just the last two years.

After trading long-time captain Eric Staal last season, the team needed some veteran consistency and leadership, both things that Stempniak can provide. Now 33 years old, the former fifth-round pick has proven he can be a legitimate scoring presence in any role, putting up double-digit goal totals in every year of his career save the lockout-shortened 2012-13 (in which he scored nine).

Last season saw a return to a level he hadn’t seen in years though, with Stempniak putting up 51 points for New Jersey and Boston. The Hurricanes will look to slot those points in alongside their young group up front that includes newly acquired Teuvo Teravainen.  Stempniak has the skill and speed to play anywhere in the top-9 in today’s NHL, and has been a solid contributor on the penalty kill in the past.

New York Rangers Sign Michael Grabner, Nathan Gerbe

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According to the team, the New York Rangers have agreed to terms with free agent forward Michael Grabner.  Elliotte Friedman reports that the deal is worth $1.65MM per season for the former Islander and Maple Leaf.

The team has also announced that they’ve signed Nathan Gerbe, after playing last season in Carolina. Darren Dreger gives us the breakdown: it’s a one-year deal worth $600K.

Grabner, 28, played last season with Toronto after coming over in a trade last summer. Often suiting up on the top-line alongside Nazem Kadri, the former 30-goal man continued to prove that his offensive days are behind him. Only scoring nine goals and 18 points, his biggest contribution was on the penalty kill, where his speed and agility still offer big upside.

In New York, he won’t be asked for much more than that, slotting into the bottom six behind a crop of young forwards. Mats Zuccarello, and Jesper Fast project to skate on the right side of the top two lines, but Grabner will provide at least some depth at the position if J.T. Miller continues to be deployed down the middle.

Gerbe, one of the smallest players to ever play in the NHL at 5’5″, returns to the state he made his debut in. After being drafted by the Sabres in 2005, Gerbe put up 16 goals and 31 points in his first full season with the club. While he didn’t have a very productive 2015-16, he still adds a lot of energy and speed to the bottom six.

Dan Hamhuis Signs With Dallas

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After Dallas Stars’ defensemen Jason Demers and Kris Russell both decided to test out free agency, the Stars have replaced their outgoing performance by inking Dan Hamhuis to a two-year, $7.5MM contract, as reported by Bob McKenzie.

Hamhuis has spent the last six seasons in Vancouver where he has slowly seen his role and offensive performance decline as he heads into his mid-thirties. The former Predator and Norris trophy nominee will now join a blueline that has been torn apart over the last few weeks.  In addition to Demers and Russell both heading to free agency, Dallas traded Alex Goligoski to the Coyotes just weeks before he also would have become an unrestricted free agent.

Now Hamhuis will join Johnny Oduya as the veterans in a group headlined by John Klingberg, the last bastion of the Stars’ young group from last season. For a team who is looking to contend this season, before many of their talented forwards reach free agency (including superstar captain Jamie Benn and sniper Patrick Sharp) Hamhuis is just the first step in rebuilding their back end.

Merrill, Smith-Pelly Re-Sign In New Jersey

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1:04pm: The Devils have announced the re-signing of Beau Bennett to a one-year, $725K contract, completing the trifecta of not-tendered restricted free agent signings.

12:52pm: The New Jersey Devils have brought back defenseman John Merrill  and winger Devante Smith-Pelly on two-year deals after neither restricted free agent was tendered by the team. Merrill’s deal is for a total of $2.275MM, as reported by Frank Servalli, while Smith-Pelly’s deal totals $2.6MM. Beau Bennett, recently acquired from Pittsburgh, is the third of the group of New Jersey RFA’s that were not tendered, but expected to re-sign.

Canadiens Sign Alexander Radulov

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12:48pm: The Canadiens have confirmed the signing for one year.  Pierre LeBrun reports it’s for $5.75MM.

9:46am: Montreal will reportedly sign Russian superstar Alexander Radulov, as first reported by TSN’s Travis Yost. The signing has not been confirmed by the team, and the terms of the deal have not been disclosed thus far.

Radulov has spent the majority of his career overseas, playing in his native Russia, home to the KHL. However, he was drafted into the NHL, going 15th overall to the Nashville Predators in 2004. In his first two years in the NHL, Radulov totaled 95 points in 145 games over the course of the ’06-’07 and ’07-’08 seasons. Despite having success at a young age in the NHL, the talented winger returned home to Russia following his second season. Radulov made a brief return to Nashville towards the tail end of the ’11-’12 season, scoring seven points in nine regular season games and six more points in eight playoff games, as the fourth-seeded Predators beat the Detroit Red Wings, but fell to the Phoenix Coyotes in the second round. Despite intrigue from around the league, Radulov again returned to KHL following the 2012 playoffs.

Often considered the best player not in the NHL, Radulov now makes his return to the world’s premiere hockey league and, for the first time, not as a member of the Nashville Predators. Despite early reports that NHL teams were balking at Redulov’s contract demands, the exit of Steven Stamkos from the free agent pool may have changed the perception. Early indications were that the Detroit Red Wings were considered the front-runners for Radulov’s talents, but Yost now reports that it is the Montreal Canadiens who have swooped in and signed the 29-year-old power forward . Radulov offers a high ceiling and a low floor, but his offensive talents are greatly needed in Montreal, making the signing worth the risk. Radulov will also join former Nashville teammate Shea Weber, who was just recently dealt to the Habs in exchange for P.K. Subban.

 

Canadiens Sign Goalie Al Montoya

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After Carey Price struggled with injuries last year, which was a major part of Montreal’s collapse, the Canadiens have added some insurance in net, signing veteran journeyman goalie Al Montoya to a one-year, $950k contract, as reported by TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie.

The 30-year-old played well in 25 appearances for the Florida Panthers last year, posting a 12-7-3 record with a 2.18 GAA and a .919 SV% playing behind Roberto Luongo.

The signing creates a bit of a logjam between the pipes for the Habs, as they are returning both goalies from last season in Price and Mike Condon.  At this stage, it would appear that Montoya has the inside track at the backup spot for Price.

Montoya has played in parts of seven NHL seasons with the Coyotes, Islanders, Jets, and Panthers.  In 136 games, he has posted a 55-40-18 record with a 2.59 GAA, a .909 SV%, and five shutouts.

Shawn Matthias Signs With Winnipeg

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According to James Mirtle of TSN, the Winnipeg Jets have signed free agent forward Shawn Matthias to a two-year contract.  Elliot Friedman reports that the deal will pay Matthias $2.125MM per season. The former Maple Leaf was traded to the Colorado Avalanche mid-season, and put up 12 goals and 28 points on the year.

Matthias, 28, has always been regarded as somewhat of a scoring winger that could play anywhere in your top nine, despite ever only scoring more than 15 goals once in his career. His $4.25MM deal comes in as the biggest of his career, despite actually taking a salary cut from $2.3MM.

He’ll join a Jets team still reeling from last season’s poor performance, and still struggling to reach a contract with RFA Jacob Trouba.  Rumors of offer sheets have swirled around the young defenseman in recent days, and he’ll be their next priority after the first day of free agency cools off.

Victor Hedman Signs Eight-Year Extension With Tampa Bay

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The turning of the calendar into July also means that players under contract for just one more season can officially negotiate contract extensions.  We already saw it with Jake Allen earlier today, and now the top 2017 UFA defenseman is off the board.

Victor Hedman has re-signed with Tampa Bay for eight seasons, according to Chris Johnston of Sportsnet. The 25-year old will earn $7.875MM annually, starting in 2017-18.

For the Lightning, this is the second huge contract extension of the last few days, following the Steven Stamkos deal on Wednesday afternoon. They have now guaranteed that their two best players will be playing with each other until 2023. With both players under contract for less than $17MM combined, GM Steve Yzerman has set up his club for long term success.

In Hedman, the Lightning are re-signing one of the best defensmen in the league.  Since going second overall in the 2009 draft, Hedman has been a mainstay on the blueline, logging over 20 minutes a night since he was 19. The last few years have seen an increase in offensive production as well, with his point totals climbing to 55, 38, 47 in the past three seasons.

Generally regarded as an elite possession defenseman, Hedman is still only 25 and is probably going to continue to improve. There may be Norris trophies in the future for this Swede, as he follows in countryman Nicklas Lidstrom’s footsteps as a positionally sound, physical-when-he-needs-to-be shutdown defenseman.

Flyers Ink Weise To Four-Year Deal

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TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that the Philadelphia Flyers have signed Dale Weise to a four-year, $9.4MM deal. The Broad Street Bullies bring in one of the league’s best grinders who is coming off his best offensive season.

Weise, 27, was traded last season from Montreal to Chicago, where he found himself struggle on the talented Blackhawks squad and only see about nine minutes of ice time a night. Scoring 14 goals and 27 points in Montreal, the winger added only a single regular season point in 15 games for the Hawks.

He’ll head to a Flyers team looking for some grit in their bottom six, as the team already has a ton of offensive skill up front. With Wiese, they’ll get a solid defensive player who will chip in offensively every now and again and can move up to the second line in a pinch.

Sharks Sign David Schlemko

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The San Jose Sharks have signed defenseman David Schlemko to a four-year deal worth $2.1MM per year, as first reported by Pierre LeBrun. It’s an affordable deal for a player coming off a breakout year in New Jersey.

Schlemko, 29, found himself almost out of the NHL in 2014-15 as he bounced through three teams. Last season he turned a $625K contract with the Devils into an excellent season, and has been rewarded with his $8.4MM deal today.

Schlemko put up 19 points while logging over 18 minutes a night on a bad Devils team, but will move to the Stanley Cup finalist Sharks and slot into the bottom pairing on a deep (but unheralded) defense corps.  His $2.1MM cap hit actually is the lowest of the group, coming in over a million less than Brenden Dillon’s $3.27MM.

 

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