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Free Agent Notes: Cullen, Burmistrov, Doan, Witkowski, Mazanec

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While the Wild aren’t expected to be too active in free agency, they have expressed an interest in signing center Matt Cullen, reports Michael Russo of the Star-Tribune.  The 40 year old is from the area and has played there before, suiting up for Minnesota from 2010-11 through 2012-13.

However, Cullen has yet to make a decision on his playing future, although Russo notes that he is intrigued by the idea of going back to Minnesota.  That said, the thought is that he has been leaning towards retiring as a Stanley Cup champion.

If he does decide to play another season, Cullen should still be able to provide a team with quality bottom six production.  He picked up 13 goals and 18 assists in 72 games with the Penguins this past season while surpassing the 50% mark at the faceoff dot for the seventh straight season.

Other news and notes from the free agent market which officially gets going on Saturday:

  • The Canucks are showing interest in center Alexander Burmistrov, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link). The 25 year old is on the open market after Arizona failed to tender him a qualifying offer earlier this week.  Burmistrov started this past season with Winnipeg but struggled mightily, recording just two assists in 23 games before the Jets placed him on waivers.  The Coyotes picked him up and he fared quite a bit better, scoring five goals while adding nine assists in 23 games while seeing his ice time jump to over 15 minutes per night.  He could represent a buy low candidate that’s capable of playing a third line offensive role in the right situation.
  • Four teams have expressed an interest in signing unrestricted free agent winger Shane Doan, notes Craig Morgan of Arizona Sports (Twitter link). His agent, Terry Bross, said that a decision won’t come quickly.  The 40 year old has spent the entirety of his 21 year NHL career with the Coyotes (and original Winnipeg Jets) organization but the team announced earlier this month that they would not be offering him a new contract.  Doan is coming off his lowest full-season output since 1998-99 after collecting just six goals along with 21 helpers in 74 games.
  • The Red Wings are interested in blueliner Luke Witkowski, reports MLive’s Ansar Khan. The 27 year old split the season between Tampa Bay and their AHL affiliate in Syracuse.  In 39 NHL games, he had four assists and 39 penalty minutes while logging 9:52 per night.  He added five assists and 59 PIMS in 19 minor league contests.  Detroit is believed to be looking for some grit on their back end and head coach Jeff Blashill is familiar with the Michigan native who coached Witkowski back at Western Michigan in 2010-11.
  • Although he received a qualifying offer on Monday, goaltender Marek Mazanec will not return to the Predators next season, GM David Poile told reporters, including Adam Vingan of the Tennessean (Twitter link). The netminder spent most of the season at the minor league level despite beginning the season as the backup to Pekka Rinne.  In 47 games with AHL Milwaukee, he had a 27-17-1 record with a 2.67 GAA and a .912 SV%.  However, he struggled in his four games with the Preds, posting a 4.72 GAA with a .839 SV%.

Panthers To Re-Sign Alex Petrovic To A One Year Deal

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The Panthers have agreed to terms on a one year deal with defenseman Alex Petrovic that is believed to be worth around $1.8MM, reports TSN’s Bob McKenzie (Twitter link).  Florida tendered him a $1.2MM qualifying offer to retain his rights earlier this week.

Petrovic battled injury troubles this past season, missing 33 games due to a lower body issue.  As a result, he saw action in just 49 games, scoring once while adding 13 assists and 79 penalty minutes.  He also logged a career best 18:09 of ice time per game, ranking fifth among Florida blueliners.

The 25 year old has spent his entire career with the Panthers, who made him a second round pick (36th overall) back in 2010.  He has played in 161 games with Florida over parts of five seasons, picking up 35 points (3-32-35).  He will once again be a restricted free agent next offseason.

When the signing is made official, the Panthers will have a little more than $21MM committed to five blueliners with Mark Pysyk still to re-sign as well as someone to fill the seventh defender role.  For comparison, the team spent a little over $16MM (before bonuses) at that spot in 2016-17.  The biggest reason for the jump is Aaron Ekblad moving off his $925K entry-level contract to a new $7.5MM cap hit for the next eight seasons.

Panthers Expected To Sign Evgeni Dadonov

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The Florida Panthers are expected to sign winger Evgeni Dadonov when the signing period opens up on Saturday, reports Harvey Fialkov of the Sun-Sentinel (Twitter link).  TSN’s Bob McKenzie adds via Twitter that it will be a three year contract worth $12MM.

The 28 year old Dadonov has seen his offensive production take off in recent years at the KHL level.  This past season, he picked up 30 goals and 36 assists in 53 games with SKA St. Petersburg, setting career highs in both categories.  He followed that up with an impressive 19 points (9-10-19) in 18 postseason contests.

Dadonov also saw plenty of international action this past season.  He suited up for Team Russia at the World Cup of Hockey, collecting an assist in four games.  Back in May, he was fifth in scoring for the Russians at the World Championships, tallying three goals and five assists in ten contests.

This won’t be Dadonov’s first NHL stint, nor his first time with the Panthers.  He was originally drafted by Florida back in the third round (71st overall) back in 2007 and played in 55 games with the team over parts of three seasons, scoring ten goals and ten assists.

The Panthers will still have plenty of work to do to rebuild their forward unit.  They’ve already lost Reilly Smith and Jonathan Marchessault to Vegas, Jussi Jokinen was among today’s buyouts, while Thomas Vanek and Jaromir Jagr will become unrestricted free agents on Saturday.  As a result, Florida is going to be a team to watch for in the coming days.

Free Agency Notes: Miller, Liles, Witkowski

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Beyond the top few names of the free agent period—Kevin Shattenkirk, Alexander Radulov and others—there are many depth players who will switch teams and provide quite a bit of value for their new squads. One such player is likely Ryan Miller, who even at 36 is one of the best goaltenders on the market. Though it had been previously reported that the Canucks would try to sign Miller to an incentive-laden deal, it now looks like the two sides will part ways.

Anders Nilsson is rumored to be heading to Vancouver, while another writer—this time Eric Stephens of the Orange County Register—has linked Miller to the Anaheim Ducks and their vacant backup position. As we wrote in our Top 50 Free Agent list, where Miller ranked 29th, heading to the Southern California are where he, along with wife and actress Noreen DeWulf, live in the offseason is an obvious fit. The fact that the Ducks are a competitive team with a clear role for Miller behind young goaltender John Gibson just adds to the likelihood of him ending up there by the end of the weekend.

New York Rangers In Discussions With Ondrej Pavelec

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When the New York Rangers traded Antti Raanta to the Arizona Coyotes, it was clear they’d have to enter the goaltending market in free agency. Though Magnus Hellberg played well in his very short sample with the team this year, he never seemed like a legitimate backup option for a team with an aging goaltender and eyes on a deep playoff run. He since signed in the KHL after becoming a Group VI free agent. Instead, they were likely to get a more veteran name who could step in and play a few games should Henrik Lundqvist miss any time.

Darren Dreger of TSN is now reporting that the team is in ongoing discussions with Ondrej Pavelec, the former Winnipeg Jets goaltender who spent most of the 2016-17 season in the minor leagues after clearing waivers. Pavelec does fill the experience portion of the backup requirement, but it’s been over a year now since he showed he was a capable netminder in the NHL. Perhaps at 29 the Rangers believe he can have a bounce-back season, or they think he’ll come at a relatively cheap price and invest the savings at a different position.

In eight NHL contests last year, Pavelec recorded an .888 save percentage. Beyond that his 2015-16 numbers weren’t much better, registering a .904 in 33 contests. Even in the AHL last year, where NHL backups usually perform quite well he was just average, posting a .917 save percentage and going just 8-7-2. It’s not certain that he’d struggle in the NHL again, especially behind a 100-point team like the Rangers but he’s far from the safest option on the open market.

Pavelec didn’t make it into our Top 50 Free Agents, a list that included six goaltenders at the time. From that group, Mike Condon has already re-signed with Ottawa, and both Brian Elliott and Anders Nilsson look to have already agreed to new homes. Even Keith Kinkaid, who just missed out on the list and may have placed ahead of Pavelec was retained by the New Jersey Devils to back up Cory Schneider.

Calgary Flames Re-Sign Michael Stone

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The Calgary Flames have found a way to fit Michael Stone into their salary structure, agreeing to terms with the pending UFA for three years and $10.5MM. Despite already acquiring Travis Hamonic to play in their top-4, Stone will return to help the Flames fill out their bottom pair and give them some of the best defensive depth in the league. He was ranked #15 on our list of the Top 50 Free Agents, projecting a two-year deal worth $7.2MM. Michael Stone

Amazingly, Stone was able to lock down a third year and a little more money to keep him from hitting free agency, and will now slot in as the fifth-highest paid defender in Calgary. That number, $3.5MM per season, is a nice reward for a player who has had trouble staying healthy and producing at a consistent rate. After breaking out with 36 points in 2015-16, Stone struggled at times this year and recorded just 15 points splitting his time between Arizona and Calgary.

That potential upside is a nice acquisition for Calgary, as there’s no saying he can’t get back to the 30+ point defender given the right opportunity. Though he will likely not get much powerplay time behind other options in Calgary, he could still play a big role on what looks like a very good team. Calgary are the early winners of the offseason, improving their defense group and goaltending immensely in a short period.

Calgary will need to be careful with the rest of their cap space, as they now have less than $10MM to work with and three restricted free agents left to sign. Curtis Lazar, Sam Bennett and Micheal Ferland all need new contracts, and though it will be possible to sign them all it won’t leave much room for any in-season acquisitions or free agent signings. Perhaps Calgary has something else up their sleeve to move some salary out, but as of now they look like a pretty complete team.

For Stone, clearly staying in Calgary was a good option for him if they were going to offer him the term and money he received. Though he may not play the same role he would have somewhere else, his chances of winning are as good as anywhere and the salary is probably equal or better to what he could have found on the open market. Even with a lack of available defensemen, it’s hard to believe teams would offer him any more than $3.5MM or a guaranteed role in their top four.

It’s also a return to where he played junior hockey, a familiar stop for Stone. In four years for the Calgary Hitmen, the Winnipeg native showed off his offensive upside, won a WHL championship and even spent one season as captain. Fans of his junior performances will be able to see him for a few more years, and hopefully see him raise a different trophy.

Interestingly, a condition on the trade that originally brought Stone to Calgary was that if he re-signed before July 1st the Flames would send an additional fifth-round pick to Arizona. The Flames are now missing their second, third and fifth round picks next year, though they have an extra fourth (depending on some conditions in the Hamonic deal) and seventh.

The deal was originally broken by Bob McKenzie of TSN.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Stone, Nilsson, Marleau

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Even though the Calgary Flames acquired Travis Hamonic to round out their top four, Pierre LeBrun of TSN reports that they’re still trying hard to get Michael Stone under contract before he hits the open market tomorrow. Stone was acquired at the deadline and fit in rather well down the stretch, but was expected to be let go after the Hamonic move.

We ranked Stone #15 on our (rapidly diminishing) Top 50 Free Agent list, projecting a two-year deal worth $7.2MM for him should he hit free agency. Even with their buyouts of Lance Bouma and Ryan Murphy earlier today, it might be tough to fit Stone in at that price given they still owe contracts to Curtis Lazar, Sam Bennett and Micheal Ferland. The Flames have around $13.4MM in cap room, making it definitely possible, but it would mean going into the season with very little wiggle room.

  • Andy Strickland of Fox Sports is pumping out the deal information, reporting that Steven Oleksy will likely sign a two-year deal with the Anaheim Ducks, while Anders Nilsson will sign with the Vancouver Canucks. Nilsson was among those hinted at by Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet yesterday, linking him to the Vancouver Canucks. If Nilsson does sign with Vancouver, it would mean that Ryan Miller is on the market again with a likely Southern California landing spot. With Anaheim looking for another veteran backup to help shepherd John Gibson along, Miller seems like an obvious candidate.
  • Patrick Marleau has a two-year contract offer in hand from the San Jose Sharks according to Darren Dreger of TSN. Whatever Marleau decides to do will likely impact Joe Thornton, as the two remain close. That doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll head to another team together, but that Marleau re-upping in San Jose could persuade Thornton to do the same. The pair of veteran forwards are some of the biggest names on the market tomorrow, and could legitimately have the biggest impact on their new (or old) teams.

Brian Elliott To Sign With Philadelphia Flyers

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Even before the free agent frenzy begins tomorrow, we have news of a potential signing. Andy Strickland of Fox Sports is reporting that a deal is all but done between the Philadelphia Flyers and Brian Elliott which will pay him an average of $2.75MM for the next two seasons. We had Elliott ranked #17 on our Top 50 Free Agent list and though we predicted a two-year deal, believed he would pull in $7.5MM over the two seasons. Brian Elliott

Obviously this contract can’t become official until tomorrow morning, but it’s being confirmed from multiple sources and even hinted at by Elliotte Friedman yesterday. Elliott will join Michal Neuvirth in Philadelphia where he will try to re-establish himself as a starting goaltender in the NHL. In an up and down season for the Calgary Flames, Elliott struggled mightily at times but also caught fire leading the team into the playoffs. He’d have his troubles in a first round matchup with Anaheim though, even being pulled after just as single goal in the deciding game four.

In Philadelphia, where they’ve struggled to find consistent goaltending for quite some time, Elliott is a short term placeholder. At 32, he’ll be keeping the seat warm for one of the Flyers’ young goaltending prospects like Carter Hart, Alex Lyon or even Anthony Stolarz should he fully return from injury. There’s no guarantee any of those three will turn into a legitimate starting option, but for now the team will cross their fingers and ride Elliott and Neuvirth for the next two years.

For the goalie market, this takes another name off the potential shopping list for the Winnipeg Jets (where we had Elliott projected) and others who are looking for an upgrade. While Steven Mason, Jonathan Bernier, Ryan Miller and others remain on the market, it’s not clear if a single long-term starting option remains. It will be interesting to see if that brings Washington Capitals backup Philipp Grubauer back into the market, especially given the cap troubles his team will face after signing Dmitry Orlov to a big deal. The Capitals may not have room to sign Grubauer to a new contract, and have Pheonix Copley waiting in the wings to replace him behind Braden Holtby.

With Washington unlikely to deal with division rival Philadelphia, perhaps this was the only option they had to improve in net. That improvement will be questioned though, as they let the younger and similarly skilled Steve Mason go to free agency. Perhaps he was asking to much, or just wanted out of Philadelphia but only time will tell whether they’ve really moved forward from the net out.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Columbus, Nashville Make Trade Offers For Matt Duchene

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As the trade market heats up before free agency begins tomorrow, Darren Dreger of TSN reports that both the Columbus Blue Jackets and Nashville Predators have made offers for Matt Duchene, but Avalanche GM Joe Sakic has still not been convinced. We’ve heard of the Predators’ interest before, but this is the first real concrete connection that the Blue Jackets have made a play for the young forward.

Duchene has been on the market since partway through the 2016-17 season, but Sakic has been firm with his asking price and apparently it hasn’t been met just yet. With such a thin free agent market especially in terms of impact scoring, Duchene could be the prize of the next few weeks. Even in a down year he still scored 18 goals and 41 points, and can be reasonably expected to bounce back to his earlier level of play. At 26 he’s still young enough to help pretty much anyone, but with just two years left on his current deal it’s more likely that a contender adds him as one of the last pieces to their puzzle.

It was reported this week that the Islanders had made a play for Duchene before dealing Travis Hamonic to the Calgary Flames, and it’s doubtful that the interest has waned at all since then. The package of picks that New York received could easily be flipped in a potential deal with Colorado. That said, both Nashville and Columbus have the young defensive depth to perhaps pull it off and could each use a bit of a scoring punch. Nashville would like to replace James Neal after he was snatched in the expansion draft, and Columbus continues to try and add to their top-six even after acquiring Artemi Panarin from the Chicago Blackhawks.

Whether Duchene ends up in one of those three cities is still far from assured. There is interest from many places around the league, and could end up coming down after a few free agent dominoes fall in the first few days. If Sakic is to get the prospect, first-round pick and young defender he was rumored to be asking for at the trade deadline, it will have to include multiple teams bidding against each other.

Several Buyouts Before Deadline

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The deadline to buy out players is today, and several teams have taken advantage of the option before free agency starts. The following players have been placed on waivers for the purposes of a buyout: Mike Cammalleri (NJD), Devante Smith-Pelly (NJD), Mark Stuart (WIN), Lance Bouma (CGY), Ryan Murphy (CGY), Jimmy Hayes (BOS), Jussi Jokinen (FLA). The new cap hits of each player will be as follows:

Cammalleri:

2017-18: $1.67MM
2018-19: $1.67MM
2019-20: $1.67MM
2020-21: $1.67MM

Smith-Pelly:

2017-18: $175K
2018-19: $225K

Stuart:

2017-18: $1.46MM
2018-19: $583K

Bouma:

2017-18: $667K
2018-19: $767K

Murphy:

2017-18: $100K
2018-19: $138K

Hayes:

2017-18: $567K
2018-19: $867K

Jokinen:

2017-18: $1.33MM
2018-19: $1.33MM

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