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Archives for July 2017

Winnipeg Jets Sign Steve Mason

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The Winnipeg Jets’ hunt for stability in net has brought in former Calder Trophy-winner Steve Mason. Mason, the former Philadelphia Flyers’ starter, was thought to be in line for a backup job after a down season. However, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that Mason’s contract is for two years and $8.2MM; a $4.1MM AAV. Mason will thus be looked upon to take over the starter role and hold off young Connor Hellebuyck.

Mason, at 29, was coming off a disappointing season for the Flyers, finishing this year with a 2.66 GAA and a .908 save percentage. His career has been somewhat of a roller coaster, however, starting with his rookie season in 2008-09 when he came out of nowhere, posting a 2.29 GAA in 61 games and leading the Columbus Blue Jackets to their first-ever playoff series and winning the Calder Trophy. He then followed his impressive rookie campaign, tallying a 3.05 GAA in 58 games and a .901 save percentage and was never able keep his goals against under three until the Blue Jackets traded him to the Flyers in 2013. Mason regained his form, but never to the point of that initial season.

Mason’s new contract is exactly the same contract he has had over the past three years when he inked a 3-year, $12.3MM contract back in 2014 with the Flyers. However, in Winnipeg, he has a chance to take control of the starting gig there as Hellebuyck struggled as a full-time starter. The team still hopes the 24-year-old can become their everyday starter, but the general belief is they need a veteran to hold down the pipes for a couple of years until the youngster is ready.

San Jose Sharks Sign Vlasic, Jones To Long-Term Extensions

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In the middle of free agent frenzy, the San Jose Sharks have locked up two key players to long-term deals according to Pierre LeBrun of TSN. Marc-Edouard Vlasic has signed an eight-year, $56MM extension, while Martin Jones inks a six-year, $34.5MM deal. Both contracts will kick in for the 2018-19 season.

It’s been reported for months that the pair would ink extensions to keep them in San Jose long-term, but both of these deals do come with quite the price tag. For Vlasic, who made it clear he wanted to stay in San Jose for the rest of his career, this contract will take him past his 39th birthday, paying him a whopping $7MM per season. While he’s currently an excellent defender, capable of playing one of the best two-way games in the league, you have to think his decline will begin in the next few years, making the end of that contract look awful.

Even if you get five more seasons of peak Vlasic, that’s still only covering half the extension. In time, the pair of contracts handed out to Vlasic and Brent Burns—who starts an eight-year, $64MM extension this season at age 32—may destroy the salary structure of the Sharks.

Jones’ contract, while expensive in its own right, is much more palatable when looking long-term. The 27-year old goaltender may still face some doubters after just two seasons as a full-time starter, but already will come in behind nine other goaltenders in terms of cap hit for the 2018-19 season (with several others likely signing bigger deals before then).

Dallas Stars Sign Martin Hanzal To Three-Year Deal

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The Dallas Stars have inked one of the top centers on the market, signing Martin Hanzal to a three-year, $14.25MM deal according to Bob McKenzie of TSN. Hanzal was ranked #4 on our free agent list, where we predicted he would get a fourth year, but agree to a slightly smaller salary.

Instead, the 30-year old Hanzal will go down to Dallas to join Ken Hitchcock and the rest of their group, trying to get the Stars back to the playoffs after an extremely disappointing season. The Stars, losing Cody Eakin to the Vegas Golden Knights needed some help at center behind Tyler Seguin and Jason Spezza, and bringing Hanzal in makes them very deep down the middle.

He can now play that third-line center role and contribute on both the powerplay and penalty kill. Though he saw more than 18 minutes a night in Arizona last year, his role in Dallas is more likely to be closer to the 15:31 he averaged for Minnesota. While $4.75MM might seem like a lot to pay that spot, Dallas had the room to do it and needed to land at least one of the bigger free agent forwards this year. Though linked to Justin Williams, he ended up signing in Carolina with his old team.

Chicago Blackhawks Sign J-F Berube, Jordan Oesterle, Lance Bouma

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The Chicago Blackhawks brought Patrick Sharp back into the fold earlier, and also have announced three other signings. Jean-Francois Berube, Jordan Oesterle and Lance Bouma will join the club, adding a backup goaltender, bottom six forward and depth defenseman to the team as they look to work around their current cap problems. Both Berube and Oesterle will be on two-year deals, with Berube earning $1.5MM per season while Oesterle gets the minimum of $650K. Bouma, recently bought out by the Calgary Flames will be on a one-year deal, though his salary has yet to be announced.

Berube was a Group VI free agent this summer after being selected in the expansion draft by the Vegas Golden Knights. The 25-year old will join Corey Crawford and Anton Forsberg in the Chicago net, attempting to at least get some more playing time than he’s seen so far in his career. In 21 career games, he’s recorded a .900 save percentage and gone 6-4-3.

Oesterle, another Group VI free agent from the Edmonton Oilers, got into just two games last season at the NHL level. A strong performer in the minor leagues, the defenseman could battle for a spot in Chicago next season. He finished with seven goals and 25 assists in 44 AHL games for the Bakersfield Condors last year.

Bouma may be the most interesting of the three, after being bought out by the Calgary Flames this week. A third-round selection in 2008, Bouma actually put up a 34-point season in 2014-15 before settling into a much reduced role the last couple of years. If the Blackhawks can unlock any of that scoring potential once again, they could have an extremely cheap but effective option for their bottom six next year.

Sabres Sign Goalie Chad Johnson

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The Buffalo Sabres have invited an old friend back into the crease, as the team announced that they have signed goaltender Chad Johnson to a one-year, $2.5MM contract. Johnson enjoyed the best season of his career with Buffalo back in 2015-16, posting .920 save percentage and 2.36 GAA in a career-high 45 appearances. However, he left last off-season to chase a larger role with the Calgary Flames that never really came to fruition. He’ll head back to Buffalo now and his substantial salary indicates that the Sabres are prepared to give him a significant role alongside Robin Lehner.

Lehner made 58 starts in 2016-17, significantly more than when he shared the net with Johnson the year before and made just 21 starts. However, even in a reduced role, Johnson has still proven he can be a valuable asset. Johnson posted career bests in save percentage (.925) and goals against average (2.10) as the backup to Tuukka Rask with the Boston Bruins in 2013-14. No matter what role he plays, Johnson could be a shrewd acquisition for new Buffalo GM Jason Botterill in his second stint with the Sabres.

Canucks Sign Sam Gagner, Michael Del Zotto, Anders Nilsson

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GM Jim Benning and the Vancouver Canucks are off to a hot start to free agency, signing a major name from all three positions: forward Sam Gagner, defenseman Michael Del Zotto, and goalie Anders Nilsson. 

Gagner, a play-making center who enjoyed a bounce back season with the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2016-17, has signed on for three years at $3.15MM per year, via TSN’s Pierre LeBrun. After making just $650K on a one-year “show me” deal with the Jackets, this is a nice reward for Gagner who returned to form with a career-high 50 points after a disastrous 16-point campaign with the Flyers the year before. Yet, other than 2015-16 in Philadelphia, Gagner has been a consistent 40-50 point man and is still only 27 despite having a decade of NHL experience under his belt. Gagner will be happy to make nearly five times his 2016-17 salary, but this still comes off as quite a bargain for the rebuilding Canucks.

Del Zotto, a capable puck-mover who struggled to carve out a role with the Philadelphia Flyers, will get a new opportunity in Vancouver on a two-year, $6MM contract, according to TSN’s Frank Servalli. Not since his third year in the league with the New York Rangers in 2011-12 has Del Zotto truly been relied upon as a starter. In stints in New York and Philadelphia, Del Zotto has shown ample offensive ability, but little defensive reliability. A career -26 player, Del Zotto may never develop into a true all-around NHL defenseman, but at $3MM per year, the Canucks will expect him to strive to be such a player.

As for Nilsson, the former Buffalo Sabres backup has earned himself a nice raise, as LeBrun reports that he has signed a two-year deal worth $2.5MM annually to play 1B to Jacob Markstrom’s 1A in the Vancouver net. Nilsson was a savior of sorts for the Sabres in 2016-17, posting a career high .923 save percentage and 2.67 GAA in relief of Buffalo starter Robin Lehner. Nilsson outplayed Lehner, but Buffalo still informed Nilsson that they would move forward with Lehner as the starter and rather than play second-fiddle again in the same situation (like Chad Johnson is now doing), Nilsson has moved on to another situation where he may be able to outplay the incumbent and steal starts.

Carolina Signs Justin Williams To Two-Year Deal

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Justin Williams is headed back to the Carolina Hurricanes on a two-year deal. TSN’s Aaron Ward tweets that the Hurricanes are bringing back Mr. Game 7, who spent five seasons with the ’Canes before being dealt to the LA Kings during the 2008-09 season. From there Williams won two Cups with the Kings and then signed with the Washington Capitals in 2015. He won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2014. The Hurricanes announced that the deal is worth $9MM, with Williams being paid $5MM in 2017-18 and then $4MM in 2018-19.

The 35-year-old winger seems to get better with age, putting up 24 goals this past year with the Capitals, albeit on a great offensive squad. Those 24 goals are his highest totals since the 2006-07 season when he was with the Hurricanes. He has become known as a clutch performer, especially in the playoffs. His consistency as both a goal-scorer and a passer remain the top reasons that a team would offer that type of money at his age.

On top of that, his playoff experience stands out, having won three Stanley Cup titles, including the 2014 playoffs when he scored 25 points in 26 games. Williams brings veteran leadership to a young Canes team looking to make some noise this season in the East. With a slew of signings and trades that saw them add Scott Darling in net, Carolina is positioning themselves to take a step forward.

PHR ranked Williams as the seventh best free agent, and had him receiving a two-year deal at $6.5MM.

 

 

 

Mike Cammalleri Signs One-Year Deal With Los Angeles Kings

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According to Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet, the Los Angeles Kings are about to bring Mike Cammalleri home on a one-year contract. Cammalleri was of course drafted by the Kings back in 2001 and played several outstanding seasons for them before spending the last decade elsewhere. Cammalleri will have a base salary of $1MM, but the contract includes some performance bonuses.

Cammalleri was bought out by the New Jersey Devils just yesterday, but still represents a dangerous scoring threat for the Kings. Even in a season limited by injury, the 35-year old put up 31 points in 61 games. In his long career, Cammalleri has put up 613 points in 840 games.

The Kings, desperate to get more scoring punch up front missed out on Joe Thornton, and will instead have to settle for a reclamation project of sorts in Cammalleri. Though he’s not the elite speedster they need, he does make their offensive group more dynamic and has the ability to improve their group both at even strength and on the powerplay.

Jonathan Bernier Signs One-Year Deal With Colorado Avalanche

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As first reported by Adrian Dater of BSN last night, Jonathan Bernier has signed a one-year contract with the Colorado Avlanche. The deal is worth $2.75MM, and puts Bernier into a backup role behind Semyon Varlamov.

Bernier was one of the more interesting options on the market this summer, after a solid stint replacing John Gibson in Anaheim after he went down to injury. Bernier has always had the talent to start in the NHL, but never could find the consistency required to put up solid numbers when given the job. In Toronto his value plummeted to the point where he was traded to Anaheim for essentially nothing, and now will keep re-building in Colorado. That doesn’t seem like a very good place to do it, since the Avalanche were miserable in their own end last year, but at least he’ll have the security of Varlamov (and almost three million dollars) to work with.

For Colorado, not only does Bernier replace Calvin Pickard as a more than capable backup, but also provides them with another trade chip for next season. If given a chance to play even in limited minutes, Bernier will be sought-after at the deadline by any team not happy with their goaltending. Though the Avalanche aren’t expected to compete, they can definitely use all the assets they can get.

Chicago Blackhawks Bring Back Patrick Sharp

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As indicated by reports this morning, the Chicago Blackhawks have indeed signed Patrick Sharp. After a two-year hiatus with the Dallas Stars, the three-time Stanley Cup winner is back home in Chicago to the tune of just $1MM. TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that the deal is for one year and carries an $800K base salary with $200K in bonuses for games played.

This could be quite the steal for the Blackhawks, given that Sharp scored 78 points in his last fully healthy season in Chicago. While Sharp struggled with injuries and inconsistency last season in Dallas, he posted 55 points in his first season with the team the year before and another 43 in just 68 games in his final season in Chicago. Armed with a top-end shot, Sharp was always the beneficiary of great offensive linemates on the Blackhawks and there is no reason to think he won’t excel again, even if he has lost a step.

Sharp becomes the second player this week to re-join the Blackhawks after the team re-acquired Brandon Saad from the Columbus Blue Jackets in a deal that saw Artemi Panarin shipped out of town. While neither Sharp nor Saad could single-handedly make up for the loss of offense from Panarin’s departure, together the two may be able to get the job done if they can re-ignite the old chemistry they had with the likes of Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. 

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