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Karri Ramo Signs With Jokerit Of KHL

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After spending most of this year rehabbing his injured knee, former NHL goaltender Karri Ramo has decided to take his talents to the KHL. Today he signed a one-year deal with Jokerit Helsinki with an option for the 2018-19 season.

Ramo injured his knee in February of 2016, and needed a full repair of his ACL and meniscus. As he was recovering, the Toronto Maple Leafs gave him a home, including him in practices and allowing him to use their facilities. When he was well enough, he took the ice for the Toronto Marlies before signing short-term with the Lahti Pelicans to finish the season in the Finnish Liiga.

The 30-year old played 37 games for the Calgary Flames in 2015-16, recording a .909 save percentage. Including that one, his most recent few seasons do show an ability to play at the NHL level, but he’ll be off the market as a backup this summer. Teams looking for a cheap option will have to look elsewhere.

Nashville Notes: Hockey Hotbed, Preds’ Speed

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USA Today’s Kevin Allen is one of many writing about hockey mad Nashville as the Predators continue their quest to hoist the Stanley Cup. Qualifying for its first conference final in franchise history, the organization that once sweated out season tickets find itself one of the hottest draws in town. From Allen:

Ten years ago, people were holding rallies to save the franchise, and now the Predators are the hottest ticket in town. On eBay on Thursday, someone was selling two tickets for Game 4, 15 rows from the Plexiglass, for $10,000.

“When they started winning, everyone went crazy,” said fan Dan Harrell, a retiree and a Nashville-area resident since 1967.

Allen adds that the Predators dominate talk radio, and have brought a unique angle to the sport, showing that the game can truly catch on in a non-traditional hockey market. Additionally, the National Anthem has become its own spectacle, with different stars taking their turns singing while the opportunity to smash a car with the colors of opposing playoff teams have become a favorite.

The Tennessean’s Jason Gonzalez caught up with the fan who heaved a skinned duck onto the ice after Nashville notched the game winning goal Tuesday evening. Sure he would be thrown out, the duck landed on the ice without a security guard batting an eye.

  • ESPN’s Andrew Knoll writes that the Predators speed certainly has the Ducks on their heels. And according to former star Bernie Nicholls, he doesn’t think the Ducks can handle it. Knoll reports that as the series continues on, it favors Nashville and Nicholls believes that the Predators have the speed and tenacity that propelled the Pittsburgh Penguins to a Stanley Cup. Knoll warns, however, that the Ducks have the propensity to storm back after being down in a series. Anaheim Left Wing Jakob Silfverberg believes that success will follow if the Ducks show “more confidence” in their game.

 

Atlantic Notes: Blashill, Accurate Ottawa Attendance Figures

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With the United States being bounced from the World Championships following a 2-0 loss to Finland, head coach Jeff Blashill was “bitterly disappointed.” Blashill and the United States had won six consecutive games before bowing out of the quarterfinals. Finland played a tight defensive game, bottling up the American attack and sending the US team home in jarring fashion.

To Detroit Red Wings fans, it may not seem like the most shocking of results. Red Wings blog Winging It In Motown released their season grade for Blashill and it wasn’t exactly glowing.  Blashill received failing grades in game management and player deployment which lowered his marks to an overall of an F, but more interesting is the caveat at the end, indicating that Blashill’s coaching at the Worlds shows a coach capable of “handling young teams,” which seems to put some of the onus back on general manager Ken Holland’s team building. Regardless, the heat has to be on Blashill as he enters year three in Detroit.

  • The Ottawa Citizen’s Don Brennan believes that the lack of support at Senators’ games are a myth. Citing attendance figures, Brennan points to only the first game of its second round series against New York where fans didn’t fill the arena. The other six playoff games saw capacity crowds, and Brennan writes that it’s the listing of 19,209, which used to be the sellout figure for Canadian Tire Center, prior to renovations. While he admits that the figure for the aforementioned game was 16,744, the average attendance has been 18,522, which is just 50 seats short of the new sellout figure of 18,572. Several players Brennan spoke with spoke of how loud the building has been, calling it the “loudest” they’ve heard it.

Tampa Bay Lightning Open To Bringing Peter Budaj Back

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Lightning GM Steve Yzerman was on Tampa Bay radio today, and according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times indicated his interest in bringing Peter Budaj back as the team’s backup goaltender next season. While obviously no decision has been made, Smith relays that Budaj also seemed open to the idea at the end of the season.

Budaj was acquired at the trade deadline as part of a package in exchange for Ben Bishop, as the Lightning needed to move out enough salary so that Brayden Point and other’s performance bonuses wouldn’t affect their 2017-18 cap structure. He had played himself back into NHL consideration after injuries to both Jonathan Quick and Jeff Zatkoff to start the year in Los Angeles, and was part of the reason the Kings were even in contention as long as they were.

After the deal, Budaj had a bit of trouble in his four starts with the Lightning registering just a .898 save percentage but apparently doing enough to put himself in the conversation for next season. The 34-year old netminder earned just $600K this season and would likely only cost between $800K and $1.1MM for next year. The Lightning, who need all the cap space they can get as they try to re-sign Jonathan Drouin, Ondrej Palat and Tyler Johnson, will be in need of a goaltender who makes as little as possible.

With Andrei Vasilevskiy starting his three-year extension that pays him just $3.5MM per season, the duo would be one of the cheapest in the league. With the savings they have in net, perhaps they can indeed keep the band together for a couple more seasons—before Nikita Kucherov’s deal is up and he gets another raise—and try for the Stanley Cup with this group.

John Nyberg Signs Three-Year Deal With Dallas Stars

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The Swedish pipeline continues, as this time the Dallas Stars have signed a defender out of the SHL. John Nyberg has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the team today. Nyberg was selected in the sixth round of the 2014 entry draft.

Nyberg made his full-time SHL debut this year for Frolunda, skating in 49 games in the professional league. It was the first time he didn’t spend any time in the Allsvenskan, and he rewarded the team with 15 points. The smooth-skater can contribute at both ends of the rink, and it’s actually the play in his own end that has impressed.

Sean Shapiro of NHL.com linked his scouting report on the 20-year old defenseman:

He does have some of the raw tools to develop into a true offensive defenseman. He makes smart passes out of his own zone, while he has a heavy shot from the point.

Those offensive skills make his upside something to consider, but it’s the stability he’s given Frolunda in the defensive zone that could be interesting right away to Dallas. The left-handed defenseman played mostly on the right side this year, and has a real shot at making the NHL one day.

Decision On NHL Future Coming Soon From Jan Rutta

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Now that the Czech Republic has been eliminated from the World Championships, Jan Rutta is expected to make his decision soon on which NHL team to sign with. This coming from Rutta’s agent Allen Walsh, who previously called Rutta “one of the top Czech offensive defensemen”.

Rutta was named the Czech’s player of the game in their final loss today at the hands of Russia, skating almost 19 minutes and recording six shots to lead his team. Indeed, Rutta is an excellent offensive player; he recorded 32 points in 46 games in the Czech league this year, and has always been a contributor on the powerplay.

The 26-year old defenseman shoots right, something that is hard to find around the league. His teammate David Kampf signed with the Chicago Blackhawks, but representatives from every team would have seen him at the World Championships this year. Should he find an agreement with an NHL team, he will be expected to step right into the league at least in a sheltered offensive role.

Darren Dreger of TSN has heard that both the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames have interest in Rutta, though can’t confirm if either has made an offer at this point. He adds that Vancouver, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal are all not in on the Czech defender, though hasn’t updated on any US-based teams yet.

Arizona Coyotes Promote Steve Sullivan To Assistant General Manager

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After several seasons as the Arizona Coyotes Director of Player Development, Steve Sullivan has been promoted to assistant General Manager. Sullivan will also take over as GM of the Tucson Roadrunners, the Coyotes’ AHL affiliate. There is still no indication whether or not the team will promote an internal candidate to take over his former position. The team will retain Chris O’Hearn, who is currently serving as AGM and will work in tandem with Sullivan.

Sullivan had a lengthy NHL career that saw him play over 1000 games and suit up for six different franchises. His most success came with the Chicago Blackhawks, where he scored a career-high 75 points in 2000-01. He retired in 2013 after  short stint with the New Jersey Devils, the team that had drafted him in the ninth round nearly 20 years prior. One of the best “small players” in history, Sullivan stood just 5’9″ but recorded 747 points over a long career.

As more and more former players move into GM roles around the league, he will be joining a group led by 27-year old John Chayka, fifteen years Sullivan’s junior. As the team continues to build its player base with a nod to the analytical side, Sullivan provides a different perspective from his days as an NHL center.

Snapshots: Blackhawks, Richardson, Wong

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Chris Hine of the Chicago Tribune took a look at possible trading partners for the Blackhawks as they look to reload for another Cup run next season. Out of all the possible options Hine mentions the Toronto Maple Leafs in particular, with James van Riemsdyk’s name popping up again.

The left winger has just one year remaining on his current contract, and younger brother Trevor currently plays in Chicago. That doesn’t necessarily mean he’s an option for the Blackhawks though as the team would have to clear a fair bit of cap space to fit van Riemsdyk’s $4.25MM salary into their current structure. With almost all of the expensive players on Chicago holding full no-movement clauses, making any deal will be difficult this summer.

  • As expected, the New York Islanders have indeed hired Luke Richardson as an assistant coach for Doug Weight. The former NHL defender was the head coach of the Binghamton Senators between 2012-16, and will “have his hands on every aspect of the team, including our systems, skill development and team culture.” Bob Corkum will not return as assistant next season.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights have already added a player for their minor league team, as the Chicago Wolves signed WHL free agent Tyler Wong to an AHL contract today. Wong scored 51 goals and 109 points as an over-ager for Lethbridge this year, after playing three games for the Toronto Marlies on an amateur tryout last spring. The 5’9″ forward is a dynamic offensive player, who will try to carry over that scoring touch to the professional ranks.

Dallas Stars Have Had Discussions On Moving Third-Overall Pick

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According to Sean Shapiro of NHL.com, Dallas Stars GM Jim Nill was speaking on NHL Network radio this morning about the possibility of moving the third-overall pick. Nill admitted to having discussions about it, mostly because of the wide variety of players who could be of interest to teams at #3. While Nolan Patrick and Nico Hischier are widely expected to go 1-2 in some order, there are “about 10 players” who could be selected next.

Gabe Vilardi, Miro Heiskanen, Cale Makar, Cody Glass, Casey Mittelstadt and several others have been rumored to possibly go in that spot, not even counting Timothy Liljegren who has fallen far from his one time #2 ranking in the draft. Teams may need to move up to make sure they get the player they want, and #3 might be the chance to do it.

Dallas could use more NHL talent immediately, and without a consensus could still add a player they really like further down the draft. Should someone offer a player who can help them right away, plus a pick somewhere still in the top-10 they may be swayed to move down.

Nill also spoke about the expansion draft and how the Stars will need to expose a few players they’d rather not. He’s had talks with other teams about those players, hoping to get something for them instead of watching them walk over to the Vegas dressing room. As we discussed yesterday, the Stars have a huge number of young bodies on defense for next season, and won’t be able to protect all of them.

Even if the fan base wouldn’t be heartbroken by a selected Jamie Oleksiak, losing a former first round pick for nothing doesn’t make any sense for the team. With potentially only three protection slots—should the team go with the 7-3-1 method—the Stars won’t be able to keep all of their 25-and-under defensemen. Perhaps making a deal with Vegas, as Nill suggests, is the best way to make sure they pick the one you’d have the easiest time replacing.

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