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Snapshots: Orlov, Kuznetsov, Schultz, Patrick

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While Washington GM Brian MacLellan’s suggestion that he’d consider trading Alex Ovechkin if the right ‘hockey deal’ came up down the road dominated the headlines yesterday, there were several other topics that came up during his session with the media.

Among those was a note regarding pending restricted free agents Dmitry Orlov and Evgeni Kuznetsov.  There have already been reports that CSKA Moscow has expressed an interest in Orlov while KHL teams in general are making a concerted effort to bring Russian players back home and are hoping that the non-Olympic participation could work in their favor.  Despite that, MacLellan noted to reporters, including Tarik El-Bashir of CSN Mid-Atlantic, that he’s hopeful of getting deals done with both players within the next month and that they’re open to signing both to long-term contracts.

The cap could potentially stand in the way of both getting longer deals though.  The Capitals already have $50MM committed in payroll for next season to only 11 players with several prominent unrestricted free agents (including T.J. Oshie and Karl Alzner among others) on top of Orlov and Kuznetsov which means MacLellan will have a lot of tough decisions to make in the weeks ahead.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Penguins GM Jim Rutherford told Ken Campbell of The Hockey News that a new contract for Justin Schultz is his “top priority” when the playoffs end. Schultz took a $2.5MM pay cut last summer, banking on himself to have a bigger year with a full season in Pittsburgh.  That’s exactly what happened as he had a career high 51 points.  Pittsburgh’s cap situation could come into play though as Rutherford acknowledged that an arbitration award for Schultz – who sits one year from unrestricted free agency – could come in higher than they can afford.  Accordingly, it’s likely that Pittsburgh will hope that Schultz will forego going after top dollar to stick with a system that seems to fit him perfectly.
  • Top draft prospect Nolan Patrick has been medically cleared to participate in the draft combine that is set to occur this Friday and Saturday, notes NHL.com’s Adam Kimelman. He was dealing with a lower body injury sustained just before the WHL postseason.  Patrick is ranked first overall for the upcoming draft by NHL Central Scouting and has already met with representatives from the Devils who hold the first overall pick.

West Notes: Eberle, Russell, Seguin

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Although the expectation is that the Oilers will have to move out one of their bigger contracts to accommodate the second contracts for Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid (as of 2018-19), GM Peter Chiarelli told TSN’s Pierre LeBrun that he doesn’t anticipate having to necessarily make that cap-clearing move this offseason:

“The way we are going to have to spend our money in the future will probably mean us moving a player.  When that future is, I don’t know. Basically, we’ve got a year to play with, in my mind.”

Jordan Eberle’s name has come up in frequent trade speculation after a tough postseason performance where he collected just two assists in 13 playoff games although he did reach the 20 goal and 50 point plateaus during the regular season.  He has two years at $6MM remaining on his deal which makes him a candidate to move if they decide to try to clear up space this summer.  As things stand, Edmonton has just shy of $54MM in payroll committed for next season to 18 players per CapFriendly with Draisaitl the only real core player that needs to be re-signed.

Elsewhere out West:

  • Still with the Oilers, Chiarelli told LeBrun that they would like to re-sign pending unrestricted free agent Kris Russell for next season. He noted that the new deal for Draisaitl and McDavid’s extension are the top priorities to deal with and that their contracts may shape what type of contract that they could offer the 30 year old defenseman.  Earlier this month, Russell indicated that he would like to sign a new deal with Edmonton.
  • Stars center Tyler Seguin’s recovery from labrum surgery has gone well so far and he is expected to be ready for training camp, GM Jim Nill told NHL.com’s Mike Morreale. Nill expects the forward – who is now out of his sling – to be able to start offseason training by the end of June.  Seguin played through the injury for a big chunk of the season and went under the knife on April 25th.

Offseason Keys: Calgary Flames

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While the expansion draft is set to headline a busy NHL offseason, there are still several other storylines for each team in the months ahead. Here is a closer look at what lies ahead for the Calgary Flames.

After the team took some steps back in 2015-16, the Flames rebounded this season and got themselves back into the playoff picture.  That was the good news.  The bad news is that they were ousted about as quickly as they got there as Calgary was swept in the first round at the hand of the Ducks.  As a result, it’s likely that GM Brad Treliving will be looking to make some tweaks to the team this summer.  Here are a few things he’ll be trying to address.

New Goaltending

After a deal fell through with the Lightning for Ben Bishop last summer, the Flames turned to their next goalie on the list, acquiring Brian Elliott from St. Louis.  Elliott had played five strong seasons with the Blues but that success didn’t translate to Calgary as inconsistency and soft goals were problematic.  As a result, he lost the starting job at one point during the season and then did not play well against Anaheim in the playoffs.  As a pending unrestricted free agent, it’s not looking too likely that he’ll be back.

Chad Johnson had a statistically similar season to Elliott which, for someone who was signed to be the backup, wasn’t that bad.  However, he didn’t show that he’s capable of handling the number one role for more than a few games so he’s not the long-term solution either.  Like Elliott, Johnson is also heading for unrestricted free agency but if he’s open to a similar contract to the one he played under this season ($1.7MM), he could be back in a number two role once again.

Between free agency and the trade market which is likely to be buoyed by the expansion draft next month, the Flames should have plenty of options to choose from to give them help in the short-term to bridge the gap to some of their intriguing prospects including Jon Gillies and Tyler Parsons.  Supply should outweigh demand which should work in Treliving’s favor as well.  They had a new goalie tandem in 2016-17 and that could very well be the case again next year.

Bridge Or Long-Term Deal For Bennett?

Sam Bennett is only three years removed from being the fourth overall pick in the draft but he has yet to consistently perform as a top six forward after being selected as a potential top line center of the future.  After a 36 point season in 2015-16, his production actually took a dip to 26 points this past season while he started to drop down the lineup as well.

Apr 17, 2017; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames center Sam Bennett (93) skates with the puck against the Anaheim Ducks during the second period in game three of the first round of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY SportsBennett’s entry-level contract is up and he is eligible for restricted free agency this summer.  In recent years, teams have largely shied away from giving bridge contracts to their high draft picks but this could certainly be a situation where this goes against the grain.  The short-term deals off entry-level pacts are often viewed as ‘show me’ contracts and after taking a step back this season, it’s likely that the Flames will be challenging Bennett to show them that he can still be a top liner down the road.

Figuring out a long-term deal now would be tricky.  Bennett hasn’t shown enough to command the greater than $6MM contracts that both Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan inked last summer.  However, if the team went much lower than that, it wouldn’t make a lot of sense for Bennett to sign as if he believed in his ability to bounce back, he’d be better off taking the bridge deal with the expectation that a much bigger pay day would soon await.  Given that narrow scope to work with, a short-term deal is by far the likeliest outcome.

Retool The Blueline

Last year, the Flames spent over $30MM on their back end (including Ladislav Smid’s $3.5MM on LTIR).  It’s likely that they’ll want to allocate some of that towards their goaltending while trying to add some help up front.

Calgary has a trio of defensemen set to hit unrestricted free agency in Deryk Engelland, Michael Stone, and Dennis Wideman.  Combined, the trio carried a cap hit of over $10MM last season (after factoring in the 50% retention on Stone’s contract by Arizona) so Treliving will have some money at his disposal as he looks to reshape Calgary’s back end.

Wideman isn’t expected to return while Engelland would likely have to take a pay cut from from the $2.9MM cap hit he carried.  Stone is coming off a down year but the soon-to-be 27 year old will still garner plenty of interest around the league this summer and it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Flames in the mix.

As things stand, Calgary has more than $17MM tied up in their top three defenders in Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton, and T.J. Brodie.  That leaves room for one more notable signing (Stone or someone similar) but it wouldn’t be surprising to see the bottom spots filled by depth players such as Matt Bartkowski or prospects like Rasmus Andersson and Brett Kulak.

With the number of players and money off the books this summer, if there was ever a time for Treliving to give the defense corps a new look, this is it.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Updated List Of Expiring Draft Rights

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According to Aaron Portzline of the Columbus Dispatch, the Blue Jackets will not sign either of Sam Ruopp or Markus Soberg, their two remaining draft picks whose rights will expire tomorrow. In early April, we examined the list of players closing in on the expiry date thanks to the help of CapFriendly’s list. Here that list is, with the updated contract situations.

Buffalo Sabres

Devante Stephens (5th round, 2015) — Signed, three years, $743K
Giorgio Estephan (6th round, 2015)
Gustav Possler (5th round, 2013)

Calgary Flames

Riley Bruce (7th round, 2015)

Carolina Hurricanes

Steven Lorentz (7th round, 2015) — Signed, three years, $728K

Read more

Cal Petersen To Turn Pro, Forego Senior Season At Notre Dame

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Just minutes after the Buffalo Sabres announced the signing of goaltending prospect Jonas Johansson, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish announced that fellow Sabres prospect Cal Petersen will not be returning for his senior season. Instead, Petersen will either sign a professional contract with the Sabres, or wait to become a free agent later this summer. Since four years have passed since Petersen was selected in 2013, the Sabres will have just 30 days to sign him before he becomes a free agent.

Interestingly, the announcement from Notre Dame comes without any inkling that the Sabres are close to a deal with the goaltender. Though Tim Murray was clear before he was fired he had made an offer to Petersen to join the club, it’s not clear where new GM Jason Botterill stands with him. While Petersen was with Team USA at the World Championships earlier this month, he had said the idea of competing in the Olympics would factor into his decision on whether or not to turn pro. Apparently, that didn’t have enough of an effect to keep him in school.

Petersen is a top goaltending prospect after posting three outstanding seasons at Notre Dame and developing into an excellent all-around goaltender. Though he doesn’t have the size of many NHL netminders—Petersen stands just six-foot-one—he has excellent positional play and was even the first goaltender in Notre Dame history to serve as captain. He started 90 consecutive games for the school, and set several school records including his .924 career save percentage.

Botterill won’t be alone in wooing Petersen to Buffalo, as earlier today John Vogl of the Buffalo News reported that Sabres superstar Jack Eichel had given him a pitch before the US World Championship team had split up.

I obviously told him that we’d love to have him. I just kind of gave him a bit of an earful about what Buffalo is like, how passionate the people were here and how great an organization it is.

As he’s done with everything so far, Petersen will likely take his time to weigh all of his options now that he’s made this decision. The longer it stretches into June the more Buffalo fans will cross their fingers, but the Sabres are still clearly the favorite to land him after spending a fifth-round pick on him and being in constant contact.

Buffalo Sabres Sign Jonas Johansson To Three-Year Deal

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The Buffalo Sabres have added to their goaltending depth, signing prospect Jonas Johansson to a three-year entry-level contract. No financial details were released. The Sabres had one year remaining of exclusive negotiating rights with the Swedish netminder, but will get him into their system right away.

Johansson signed an ATO and played seven games for the Rochester Americans this spring, and has apparently done enough to warrant an entry-level deal. In those seven contests, he registered a 3-3-1 record and an .892 save percentage. The big, 6’4″ goaltender was selected in the third round (61st-overall) of the 2014 entry draft, and has been developing in the Swedish Allsvenskan over the past few seasons. Still raw but supremely talented, he’s one of the goaltenders the Sabres hope can develop into a real NHL talent in the future.

Johansson’s role in the organization is likely in Rochester, though with Cal Petersen still a possibility this summer there may not be enough starts for both on the AHL squad. Petersen is undecided about whether he will turn pro or return to Notre Dame for his senior year. While Linus Ullmark is likely heading for the NHL to be Robin Lehner’s backup—unless of course the team re-signs Anders Nilsson—Petersen would likely garner the lion’s share of the starts for the Amerks next year. If he does turn pro, Johansson may see some time in the ECHL just to get work in next year and continue his development.

Snapshots: Miller, Weal, Vegas

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According to Jason Botchford of the Vancouver Sun, the Canucks are expecting to re-sign Ryan Miller at some point before next season. GM Jim Benning hinted at such an extension recently when he explained that having solid goaltending is a big part of developing young players. Allowing them to know that they have a chance each night is beneficial even if the team doesn’t have intentions on competing for the Stanley Cup.

If Vancouver is so certain that they can re-sign Miller, they would likely wait until after the expansion draft and take their chances with any pitch Vegas may have for him. While the Golden Knights will have three days to try and convince any free agents to sign with them, inking Miller to an extension and then leaving him unprotected would be even more risky for the Canucks.

  • Pierre LeBrun has been sitting down with GMs all week at the Draft Combine, and the venerable insider has a few more notes to pass along. First, he reports that Jordan Weal’s agent met with Philadelphia GM Ron Hextall today. Despite being just 25, Weal will hit the open market on July 1st as a Group VI free agent if they don’t find common ground. The third-round pick has a ton of scoring ability and has dominated the AHL level since entering professional hockey. In 23 games with the Flyers this year, he registered 12 points and showed he may be ready for the next level.
  • In his chats, LeBrun also has heard that Vegas may be able to get a first-round pick in exchange for taking on a bad contract from a team in the league. Earlier today there was a report that the Golden Knights would be allowed to select Trevor van Riemsdyk from the Blackhawks in return for taking Marcus Kruger off their hands, and this is no different. The Golden Knights will likely have plenty of side deals for some bad contracts as they look to collect as many assets as possible in their first few years.

Columbus Will Give Pick #55 To Vancouver For John Tortorella

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The Columbus Blue Jackets had a choice on whether to give the Vancouver Canucks a second-round pick in this year’s draft or next for compensation after hiring John Tortorella while he was still under contract, and they’ve decided on the former. The team will send the 55th-overall selection to the Canucks this season.

Tortorella of course was fired in 2014 after a particularly explosive season with the Canucks, only to be hired by the Blue Jackets to replace Todd Richards after a brutal start to the 2015-16 season. He saw improvement that season and then led the Blue Jackets to an impressive 50-24-8 record this year and a playoff berth for the first time in several seasons. He is even up for the Jack Adams award for Coach of the Year, an award he won in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Though the compensation rules no longer exist, since the hiring was done before the change the Blue Jackets still owed a selection. The pick will be Vancouver’s third in the first two rounds, to go along with #5 and #33.

It’s a hefty price to pay for a coach, but one the Blue Jackets will gladly pay after the season they had. Tortorella led the team to an impressive 32-point improvement over 2015-16 and seems to still have the ear of his players (something that he’s had trouble with in the past). The Canucks will happily take the pick as they start their rebuild, especially since #55 has turned into some good players in the past. Dmitry Orlov, Adam McQuaid, Marco Scandella, Jason Pominville and Antoine Vermette were all selected 55th overall, and the Canucks have a good chance at finding a real prospect.

Matthew Sekeres of TSN was first to break the news on Twitter.

Blackhawks, Golden Knights Discussing Possible Trade

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According to Frank Seravalli of TSN, the Chicago Blackhawks and Vegas Golden Knights are discussing a deal that would allow Vegas to select Trevor van Riemsdyk in the expansion draft on the condition that they also take Marcus Kruger in trade afterwards. Obviously, Chicago has less leverage in the talks as they will lose a player regardless, but assuring that van Riemsdyk will be available could be a strong move for the Golden Knights as they try to secure young assets. Trevor van Riemsdyk

The Blackhawks are in trouble with the salary cap once again, and desperately have to find a way to move out money this summer in order to remain viable. Kruger has always been the most likely candidate for a trade, though many fans had hoped that it would be a lesser asset going to Vegas to make him the expansion selection. Instead, it looks like van Riemsdyk will be the latest cap casualty in Chicago after last season saw the exit of Teuvo Teravainen in order to get rid of Bryan Bickell’s contract.

25-year old van Riemsdyk is under contract for this season at just an $825K cap-hit, a relative bargain after two solid seasons. The defenseman put up 16 points in just 58 games this year and has turned from an undrafted free agent into a solid 18+ minute player for the Hawks. That bargain would likely end at the end of next season, as van Riemsdyk would hit restricted free agency as a 26-year old and require a contract that bought out solely UFA years. While Vegas can afford to give him a substantial raise, Chicago cannot.

In Kruger, the Blackhawks have a player who effective but expensive. Though he is a solid checking center capable of contributing on the penalty kill Kruger has two years remaining at $3.1MM and just isn’t worth it to the team. While he could help the Golden Knights as a 27-year old third-line center, his cap-hit has to leave the Hawks this summer if they’re to fit everything in. They currently project over the salary cap, and moving out Kruger (and perhaps another, even bigger contract) would go a long way to solving that problem.

Kruger actually has a limited no-trade clause kicking in this summer, meaning the Blackhawks need to get rid of him before he can list Vegas as one of his blocked teams. It can’t happen until after the draft though, as he currently projects as one of the team’s two forwards—along with Jordin Tootoo—that meet the 70/40 exposure requirements. If the Blackhawks do in fact leave van Riemsdyk exposed and don’t move him to another team before the draft, expect a Kruger trade in the few days following.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On Buffalo Sabres’ Coaching Search

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The Buffalo Sabres brought in San Jose Sharks assistant coach Bob Boughner for an interview yesterday according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN. The Sabres continue to search for their next head coach after firing Dan Bylsma earlier this spring. Boughner has been with the Sharks for two seasons, and had two lengthy runs as head coach of the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL.

Before entering coaching, Boughner played 630 games in the NHL including three seasons for the Sabres. The tough defenseman put up just 72 points in his NHL career, but is considered an up-and-coming head coach that will eventually land a job somewhere around the league.

Earlier updates…

  • Former Edmonton Oilers head coach Ralph Krueger had been linked to the job, though he has no intention of returning to the NHL just yet. Now chairman of a soccer team in the EPL, Krueger apparently has already turned down two different offers this year to return and is quite happy with his current situation.
  • Todd Reirden has been mentioned in connection with the job, but his close ties to the outgoing Bylmsa may pose an issue. While obviously the two don’t coach exactly the same, they have worked together at several stops and would likely bring many of the same messages. As Buffalo tries to rebuild its identity, bringing someone in from the same coaching bubble may not be the ideal move.
  • Clark Donatelli, the man Botterill hired to replace Mike Sullivan when he was promoted in Pittsburgh has also been linked to Buffalo. Donatelli could also be in the running for the AHL job after the Sabres fired Dan Lambert the incumbent head coach.
  • Finally, Phil Housley has been connected to the vacancies in both Florida and Buffalo but teams are waiting for him to finish his Stanley Cup run with the Nashville Predators. Housley was drafted and made his debut with the Buffalo Sabres, playing eight seasons with the club at the beginning of his career. For what it’s worth (which isn’t very much), he even uses a photo of himself playing for the Sabres in his Twitter profile. It would be a solid marketing move to bring back one of the greatest defensemen ever to play for the franchise as its next head coach, but Florida will likely give ample competition for his services.

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