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Archives for June 2017

Snapshots: Kovalchuk, Quenneville, Thornton

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Despite rumors out of Russia that Ilya Kovalchuk was now considering staying in the KHL next season, Devils GM Ray Shero told Mike Morreale of NHL.com that the sniper is still pursing NHL opportunities. Shero spoke with Kovalchuk’s agent yesterday, and is waiting on his camp to make a decision.

I can’t go out calling teams because that’s a waste of my time. He’s going to tell [us] where he wants to play and in the end, if that does work out and it’s not the Devils, then I’ve got to see if that makes sense for us to do that.

Kovalchuk would be an interesting addition to many teams around the league, but can’t officially sign a new contract or be traded until July 1st. A sign-and-trade this summer is the most likely scenario, though he could wait another year to become an unrestricted free agent and able to sign with any team in the league. That said, a contract next summer would come at the age of 35, and with it the restrictions 35+ contracts contain.

  • The New York Islanders have extended a “bona fide offer” to draft pick David Quenneville, in order to retain his rights for another year. This information almost never comes out officially, but in order to keep his exclusive negotiating rights until next June the offer needed to be submitted today. Quenneville, the brother of New Jersey forward John Quenneville and second cousin to Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville, was drafted in the seventh round last summer and enjoyed a successful season for the Medicine Hat Tigers.
  • The Florida Panthers have officially welcomed former player Shawn Thornton into their front office as Vice President, Business Operations. It had previously been reported that Thornton was headed for the business side of the game after retirement, and he’ll now work with President Matthew Caldwell. The veteran of 705 NHL games is known for his charitable work in the community with programs like the Shawn Thornton Foundation and the Pucks and Punches for Parkinson’s golf tournament.
  • Vegas has a new ECHL affiliate, announcing a partnership with the Quad City Mallards today. The Mallards had previously been affiliated with the Minnesota Wild who, according to Michael Russo of the Star Tribune, will have a new ECHL team announced next week. The Golden Knights had previously announced their AHL affiliate as the Chicago Wolves, and now will have two minor league teams to fill as they look to build a pipeline of young talent.

Minnesota Wild Announce Multiple Front Office Changes

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The Minnesota Wild today announced sweeping changes to their front office, including the promotion of former Assistant General Manager Brent Flahr to Senior Vice President of Hockey Operations. Andrew Brunette and Shep Harder have both also been promoted to Assistant General Manager.

Matt Majka has been promoted to President and Alternate Governor, though he still will leave day-to-day operations to GM Chuck Fletcher and his team.  Interestingly, Flahr remains GM of the Iowa Wild, a position usually held by AGMs around the league.

Brunette, a veteran of 1110 NHL games and one of the better all-time Wild players, will continue to work in the front office after a short stint as an assistant coach in 2014-15. He is the latest example of a former player moving into hockey operations, and is taking a big step on the path to becoming a GM should he want to.

The Wild had the most successful regular season in their history this year, but were eliminated early from the playoffs once again. After getting to the Conference Finals in just their third year, the Wild haven’t since gotten past the second round of the playoffs. Their current front office staff have built a solid team through both the draft and trade market, and will continue to look to improve this summer to get over the playoff hump.

Winnipeg Jets Sign Michael Spacek To Three-Year Deal

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Continuing to lock up their young talent, the Winnipeg Jets have agreed to terms with Michael Spacek on a three-year entry-level contract. The deal will see him earn $833K per season. Spacek had previously been playing for the Manitoba Moose under an amateur tryout.

Spacek was drafted in the fourth-round two summers ago, but had been expected to go much higher. He headed into the draft ranked #5 among international skaters by the NHL’s Central Scouting, and has shown why in the past couple of seasons. Coming over from the Czech Republic after being drafted, Spacek has suited up for the Red Deer Rebels the past two seasons and is coming off an 85-point performance this year to easily lead the club. Participating in his third straight World Juniors, he once again impressed with his excellent two-way game.

Though at 5’11” he’s not tall, his balance and strength on the puck is very good and he can compete with players much bigger than him. In seven playoff games with the Rebels he registered 12 points, before jumping the Moose to play four games down the stretch. He’ll head to Manitoba again next season and look to continue to perform offensively while honing his already solid defensive game. It’s that responsible defensive presence that will help him make a name for himself in the professional ranks, as he projects to have an NHL future at some point albeit likely not in a top-line role.

Interestingly, Spacek isn’t one of the two remaining players the Jets have to sign before the end of business today as he was drafted out of the European leagues. Despite coming over immediately to play on loan in the CHL, the Jets would have held his rights for four seasons. Now they’ll insert the right-handed shot—who has experience at center and the wing—into their AHL system and see if he can take the next step.

Florida Panthers Sign Henrik Haapala, Maxim Mamin To Two-Year Deals

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The Florida Panthers have signed Henrik Haapala to a two-year entry-level contract. The deal is worth $925K, and also includes $425K in possible Schedule A performance bonuses. The team has also signed Maxim Mamin to a two-year entry-level contract, worth $758K each season. Both players will be restricted free agents following the 2018-19 season.

Haapala was the top scorer in Finland this season, finishing with 60 points in 51 games. The 23-year old is tiny—sometimes listed at just 5’8″ 156-lbs—but the Panthers should know what they’re getting. Aleksander Barkov played with Haapala when they were young, though the former second-overall pick had much earlier success. Haapala nevertheless has developed into the most dangerous scoring threat in the country, using his incredible edge work and elusiveness to create offense. Like other small players, Haapala will be challenged to find room in the quicker North American game. His talent is readily apparent though, and Florida was likely not the only team after him.

Mamin on the other hand was drafted by the Panthers in the sixth-round last season, only to suit up for his hometown CSKA Moscow once again this year. In an increased role Mamin performed well scoring 25 points in 42 games, good for fourth on the club. The 22-year old had been passed over in several previous drafts, but is apparently ready to come to North America and will be under contract for the next two seasons. He’s grown quite a bit since he was first eligible to be drafted, and now stands at 6’2″ 200-lbs.

Finnish newspaper Aamulehti was first to report that Haapala had signed, while CapFriendly provided the financial details on the two deals. 

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