Archives for September 2017

More Tryouts Signed In Chicago, Ottawa

September 11, 2017 at 11:14 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Some more training camp rosters came out today, with several other professional tryouts included in Chicago and Ottawa. The Blackhawks will welcome Mark Stuart, Drew Miller and John Mitchell to camp, while according to Ken Warren of the Ottawa Citizen, the Senators have invited Chris VandeVelde to compete for a spot.

Stuart has spent the last six seasons with the Winnipeg Jets, but with the emergence of Josh Morrissey last season and the signing of Dmitri Kulikov, there was never going to be a match between the two for this season. Instead, he’ll try and prove, along with Cody Franson who is also in camp on a PTO, that he can still compete at the NHL level and add something to the Blackhawks’ defense group. The 33-year old has played 673 games in the NHL.

Miller, also 33, is coming off eight seasons with the Detroit Red Wings organization, where he admirably filled a fourth-line or thirteenth forward role. Never much of an offensive threat, Miller has nonetheless carved out a successful career for himself, playing 571 games and winning the Stanley Cup with Anaheim before ever suiting up for a regular season game.

The last of the three new tryouts, Mitchell saw his play fall off a cliff last season with the Colorado Avalanche, scoring just seven points all season. The 32-year old had previously been a fairly reliable bottom-six center, who registered a career-high of 32 points in 2013-14. As part of the Colorado collapse last year, Mitchell saw fewer and fewer minutes and couldn’t get anything going offensively. It may be close to the end for the former Maple Leafs draft pick.

For the Senators, they’ll bring in VandeVelde after he suited up in 81 of the Philadelphia Flyers’ games last season. The 30-year old tied his career-high with 15 points last season, but was a regular on the penalty kill nearly all season. He’ll try to earn a contract with the same work ethic that took him from a middling minor leaguer to a lineup stalwart in Philly.

Noah Juulsen “Very Close” To Being NHL Ready

September 11, 2017 at 10:16 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Bob McKenzie of TSN released his series of one-on-one interviews with Canadian NHL GMs today, and in speaking to the Montreal Canadiens’ Mark Bergevin, McKenzie asked about Noah Juulsen, a top prospect who is now eligible to play in the American Hockey League. Bergevin confirmed that Juulsen is “very close” to being ready for the NHL, and that the team would be taking a hard look at him in training camp.

It’s hard to see Juulsen cracking the roster right out of camp, as Montreal currently has eight NHL-level defensemen signed plus Jakub Jerabek, the wild card from the Czech Republic. It will be a dog fight for the last few spots even without Juulsen’s competition, but the young defenseman will try to force the team to keep him. Last year in the WHL the 20-year old showed that he’s ready for professional hockey with 34 points in just 45 games while being one of the best open-ice hitters in junior hockey. His skating is already above-average for the NHL, and he would likely become a fan favorite in little time in Montreal.

As Bergevin explains, even though the Canadiens look to have too many defensemen already, training camp hasn’t even started. It’s rare that a team gets through the preseason without injury, meaning a chance for Juulsen is still a real possibility. The 6’3″ defender that was drafted 26th-overall in 2015 will likely make his debut at some point this season, even if it comes after the majority of the season is spent with the Laval Rocket of the AHL. Either way, Montreal fans should be excited knowing that there is some more high-level defensive help on its way.

Henrik, Daniel Sedin Will “Not Play Anywhere Else”

September 11, 2017 at 8:17 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

The Vancouver Canucks will have a decision on their hands after this season, when legendary forwards Henrik and Daniel Sedin are up for a new contract. Their effect has been dwindling the last few years, and the Canucks are headed in a new direction, but the twins have something to tell the fan base who has cheered them for so long. They’re not going anywhere else. In a wonderful piece in the Players’ Tribune, Daniel states just that.

When the time is right, we will sit down with management and discuss it. People say our window for winning a Cup has closed, but we have said it before, and we will say it again. We won’t play anywhere else. If we are going to win a Stanley Cup, if we are going to achieve our dream, we’d only want it to be in Vancouver. If we did it anywhere else, I don’t think it would feel the same.

As we discussed in our recent Canucks Season Primer, the team will be looking to the future this year with players like Bo Horvat and Brock Boeser. They made their case for a rebuild last trade deadline when they moved Jannik Hansen and Alex Burrows for two prospects, and have brought in a number of free agents this summer who could be flipped at the deadline. While it’s certainly possible that a rejuvenated Sedin duo and upstart young group could make an improbably playoff run a reality, it’s more likely that the Canucks will hope to see their name at the top of the draft lottery next spring.

What that means for the Sedin’s future is unclear. They could retire after the season, riding off into the sunset after Daniel joins Henrik in the 1000-point club, likely to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame together someday, or they could sign new short-term deals with the Canucks to be part of the rebuild. Right now, their $7MM cap hits are limiting Vancouver’s ability to do certain things like acquire bad contracts along with assets, but one year incentive-based deals could find a nice middle ground for the two sides.

Whatever happens, it won’t be anywhere but Vancouver. The pair, that were drafted second and third overall after some draft floor work by Brian Burke back in 1999 have played a combined 2,473 regular season games for the Canucks, scoring 2,007 points.

Damon Severson Signs With New Jersey Devils

September 11, 2017 at 8:12 am CDT | by Gavin Lee Leave a Comment

Another important—but perhaps underappreciated—restricted free agent is off the board, as Damon Severson has signed a new contract with the New Jersey Devils. The contract is for six years and $25MM, and does not include any trade protection. The salary breakdown is as follows:

2017-18: $2.5MM
2018-19: $3.0MM
2019-20: $4.675MM
2020-21: $4.675MM
2021-22: $5.05MM
2022-23: $5.1MM

While many saw last season as a breakout for Severson, after Adam Larsson’s departure put more of the spotlight on him in New Jersey, he’s been playing at an extremely high level since he entered the league in 2014. Now 23, Severson has recorded 69 points in 203 games while logging 20 minutes a night nearly every game for the Devils. He is the leader on their blueline, and will now be rewarded with a long term contract.

The Devils of course moved Larsson to the Edmonton Oilers last summer in exchange for Taylor Hall, leaving Severson as the top right-handed option and powerplay quarterback on the team. His point total raised to 31 this season on the back of a big performance with the man advantage, but his defensive play is also up to snuff. Severson can at times look shaky in his own end, but generally drives possession with quick decisions. He doesn’t just clear the puck blindly, but moves it out with his feet or a quick first pass.

Speaking of Larsson, the new contract is exactly the same as the six-year $25MM deal they gave him in 2015, though that had some trade protection and was actually buying out three years of free agency. Severson will give up just two UFA seasons, and could hit the market at 28.

New Jersey, who’ve struggled the past five years to even ice a competitive team, have just a inked a shining star long-term that they can build around. The Devils are clearly still trying to compete for a playoff spot, but eventually they may need to do a slight tear-down and rebuild the team around young Nico Hischier, Mike McLeod, Pavel Zacha and others. Severson is now locked in as a top option on the blueline for some time.

The $4.167MM cap hit is plenty affordable for the Devils, and carries incredible value. As Larsson demonstrated, puck-moving right-handed defensemen signed for less than $5MM are very rare to find. It’s very plausible that Severson even takes another step forward this season and starts to compete with players like Tyson Barrie and Torey Krug in that next tier of offensive production. If he can do that without sacrificing anything in his own end, the Devils will be quite pleased with his cap hit for years to come.

Bob McKenzie of TSN reported the length and financial details.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Bruins, Flyers, Clutterbuck

September 10, 2017 at 8:58 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy is just six playoff games into what will assuredly be a lengthy NHL career but his presence is already making an impact off the ice. Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe suggests that part of the concern about meeting winger David Pastrnak’s asking price is the expectation that they will have to hand McAvoy an expensive second deal in the near future as well.

The 19-year-old is eligible to sign a contract extension as soon as July 1st although his next deal won’t start until 2019-20. Assuming he plays heavy minutes and is productive as he was in the playoffs, Shinzawa suggests that McAvoy’s second contract could be comparable to the likes of Dougie Hamilton, Seth Jones, and Colton Parayko, who are all earning at least $5MM on those deals. While the Bruins are well under the cap now, their new contract for Pastrnak as well as all of their long-term, big money pacts to their veterans will still be on the books when McAvoy is up for renewal so GM Don Sweeney may be planning ahead to try to avoid a cap crunch down the road.

Elsewhere around the NHL:

The Flyers don’t have any PTO offers in place for defensemen yet, GM Ron Hextall told reporters, including Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). However, Hextall is still looking around so that may not be the case for long. Philadelphia projects to have at least a couple of young blueliners start with the team so it wouldn’t be surprising to see the team look to add a little bit of veteran competition for training camp.
Islanders winger Cal Clutterbuck dealt with recurring groin troubles last season. He told Newsday’s Arthur Staple that the issue stemmed from changing his skates of all things. He has switched back to his previous ones and isn’t experiencing any soreness now. Clutterbuck is coming off of a below-average season that saw him score just five goals and the continued groin issues undoubtedly contributed to those struggles.

2017-18 Primer: Tampa Bay Lightning

September 10, 2017 at 7:56 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

With the NHL season now just a month away, it’s time to look at what each team has done this summer and what to watch for in the year to come. Today, we focus on the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Last Season: 42-30-10 record (94 points), fifth in Atlantic Division (missed the playoffs)

Remaining Cap Space: $3.25MM per CapFriendly

Key Newcomers: D Dan Girardi (free agency, NY Rangers)m F Chris Kunitz (free agency, Pittsburgh), D Mikhail Sergachev (trade with Montreal)

Key Departures: F Jonathan Drouin (trade with Montreal), D Jason Garrison (expansion), F Joel Vermin (free agency, Lausanne, Swiss NLA), D Luke Witkowski (free agency, Detroit)

Player To Watch: G Andrei Vasilevskiy – For the past few years, Vasilevskiy had been referred to as Tampa’s goalie of the future. With Ben Bishop now out of the picture, he’s now their goalie of the present. Can he step up and take over that number one role?

With Bishop missing a good chunk of time last season due to an injury as well as the eventual trade to the Kings, the Lightning got a good look at what the 23-year-old could do and the results were mixed. Vasilevskiy struggled considerably in his first stint as the starter in December and January with Bishop injured but once the trade occurred, he fared much better down the stretch and the team is undoubtedly hoping that finish is a sign of things to come.

The pressure is certainly going to be on and Tampa’s depth at that position isn’t what it was. Peter Budaj is coming off of a nice resurgent season but he’s best suited as a backup while journeyman veteran Michael Leighton was brought in to replace Kristers Gudlevskis. That’s not a great safety net to have behind a relatively unproven starter.

Key Storyline: Tampa Bay’s defense corps last season was led by Victor Hedman and Anton Stralman but the supporting cast had a lot of question marks. Although the team moved out a couple of big salaries in Drouin (who signed for $5.5MM with Montreal after the trade) and Garrison, those were more to free up cap space over bringing in more proven players on the back end (with the exception of Girardi who is coming off a tough season himself). Sergachev could push for a roster spot but even if he makes it, it’s unlikely he’d play a key role right away.

Is that group going to be good enough, especially with one of the younger starting goaltenders in the league playing behind them? There’s no denying that the Bolts should have plenty of firepower, particularly with Steven Stamkos returning (and a healthy Ryan Callahan won’t hurt either) but aside from Hedman and Stralman, their talent level beyond their top-two isn’t great. If they struggle early on, it wouldn’t be surprising if GM Steve Yzerman looks to bring in another proven veteran at some point.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

West Notes: Nugent-Hopkins, Sedins, Varlamov

September 10, 2017 at 6:54 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

While it has long been assumed that the Oilers would have to trade center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins following the long-term, big money contracts handed out to Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl earlier this summer, GM Peter Chiarelli told TSN’s Bob McKenzie (video link) that this is far from a guarantee.

“I know that’s the speculation following signing Connor and Leon. At the end of the day, you can’t put all of that money into three lines, into three centers. You can’t. It won’t work. But having said that, we’ve had success with Leon on the wing. And if you look at models – and we’ve looked at them – for two lines, you can have that money on two lines.”

McDavid and Draisaitl will count for $21MM on Edmonton’s salary cap beginning in 2018-19 (McDavid remains on his entry-level contract this season). Nugent-Hopkins enters 2017-18 with four years remaining on his deal at $6MM per and while the Oilers have plenty of cap room to fit him in this season, there’s bound to be a big squeeze next year, particularly with winger Milan Lucic signed through 2022-23 at $6MM as well. Whether it’s Nugent-Hopkins or someone else, someone notable will have to be on the way out before the puck drops on 2018-19.

Five Key Stories: 9/3/17 – 9/9/17

September 10, 2017 at 5:52 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

The wait is almost over as training camps are set to kick off this week. Before looking ahead to those camps getting underway, let’s take a look back at some of the notable stories over the past week.

Ellis Out Long-Term: Nashville’s decision to acquire Alexei Emelin from Vegas raised a few eyebrows with the Predators already having a high-end defense corps. As it turns out, they will be without one of their ‘big four’ for a while as Ryan Ellis is expected to be out four-to-six months after undergoing knee surgery earlier this summer. That places him out until early January at the earliest which is a big blow to their back end. Ellis is coming off of a career year offensively with 38 points while he also logged just shy of 24 minutes a night, more than three minutes per game higher than his previous career best.

Van Riemsdyk Seeking Sizable Raise: While Toronto will undoubtedly be prepared to pay big money to keep their young trio of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander around over the next couple of years, they also have some notable veterans that are close to free agency. One of those is winger James van Riemsdyk, who is reportedly seeking around $6MM per season on a long-term deal. The 28-year-old is earning $5MM (with a $4.25MM cap hit) as he enters the final year of his contract. Assuming he stays healthy this season and produces close to the 62 points he got last season, he should have a good chance of landing that money, whether it’s from the Maple Leafs or elsewhere.

Horvat Gets Six Years: While there had been some speculation that he could wind up with a short-term bridge deal, the Canucks and center Bo Horvat were able to agree on a six-year, $33MM contract. With the Sedin twins nearing retirement, the 22-year-old is quickly entrenching himself as their next core forward to build around. He already has taken on a big part of the offensive workload as he led Vancouver in scoring with 52 points while he was the only Canuck to reach the 20-goal mark in 2016-17.

Bridge Deals: While Horvat and Vancouver avoided a bridge contract, there were a couple handed out over the past week. Arizona and winger Anthony Duclair agreed to a one-year, $1.2MM deal after a season where he struggled considerably at the offensive end with only five goals in 58 NHL games (and just one in 16 AHL contests). Meanwhile, the Flames and center Sam Bennett put pen to paper on a two-year contract with a cap hit of $1.95MM. The former fourth overall pick saw his production drop in his sophomore campaign but he still figures to be part of their plans for the long haul.

Tougher Offside Challenge Penalties: After an influx of questionable offside challenges that delayed quite a few games last season, the league took a step towards trying to curtail that. Instead of just losing their timeout if their challenge fails, that team will also now be assessed a minor penalty for delay of game. It will be interesting to see if the rule change works as intended and that coaches will be more hesitant before initiating some of the more frivolous challenges that were used at times last year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Nashville Predators

September 10, 2017 at 4:50 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

Navigating the Salary Cap is probably one of the more important tasks for any general manager to have. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2017-18 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Nashville Predators

Current Cap Hit: $68,913,333 (under the $75MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Kevin Fiala (Two years remaining, $863K)
G Juuse Saros (One year remaining, $693K)

Potential Bonuses

Fiala: $500K
Saros: $183K

Total: $683K

A team that is designed for a Stanley Cup run probably shouldn’t have too many players on entry level contracts and the Predators have just the two. Fiala is the team’s top young potential star as the former 2014 first-rounder found himself getting called up to the Predators and logged 54 games last year, scoring 11 goals. He even managed to cement himself in the starting lineup and played in five playoff games, scoring two goals, but then broke his femur and his playoffs were cut short. Nevertheless, the team is expecting a big year from the young wing and some even have him penciled in on the team’s second line. As for Saros, the 22-year-old goalie had a pretty good showing last year, playing in 21 contests (19 starts) and putting up a 2.35 GAA and a .923 save percentage. He should be able to shoulder the load as the backup and right now looks to be Nashville’s goaltender of the future.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

D Alexei Emelin ($3MM, UFA)
F Scott Hartnell ($1MM, UFA)
F Cody McLeod ($800K, UFA)
D Yannick Weber ($650K, UFA)
D Matt Irwin ($650K, UFA)
D Anthony Bitetto ($613, UFA)
F Miikka Salomaki ($613K, RFA)

The team, already immersed in quality defenders, picked up another veteran defender in Emelin this offseason in a trade with the Vegas Golden Knights, who picked him from the Montreal Canadiens in the expansion draft. A solid veteran, Emelin, should fill in for the injured Ellis until he returns in December and then provide some veteran depth throughout the rest of the season, which should keep Nashville’s defensive corps as strong as it had always been and he will likely be allowed to move on when his contract expires next year.

Hartnell returns to Nashville after 10 years. Originally drafted in the first round by Nashville in 2000, the 35-year-old forward played six years for the Predators before being traded to Philadelphia. He has scored 314 goals, but only managed 13 in his last year in Columbus. The team hopes his presence will spark the team for another Stanley Cup run. The rest, including Weber, Irwin and McLeod

Two Years Remaining

G Pekka Rinne ($7MM, UFA)
D Ryan Ellis ($2.5MM, UFA)
F Pontus Aberg ($650K, RFA)
F Colton Sissons ($625K, RFA)

Two years from now, Rinne’s who has been with the franchise since 2005, will be 36 years old and while he’s still playing well, he’s also beginning to slow down. Do they have an heir apparent ready to take over in Saros? It’s too early to tell, but unless he’s playing out of his mind still in two years, the team will most likely have to find a replacement in net. However, the team hopes he can keep it together for another couple of years for another chance at a Stanley Cup run.

Ellis went down with a knee injury during the playoffs, but continued to play. However, after offseason knee surgery, the 26-year-old defender will be out until January. Regardless, the defenseman is an outstanding defender and was listed by NHL.com as one of the top 20 defenseman in the league last year. His offensive numbers continue to improve as well as he had career highs with 16 goals and 38 points. Even with the injury, his $2.5MM deal for two more years is a bargain.

Aberg and Sissons are both restricted, so re-signing them shouldn’t be too big of a problem. Both are depth players with potential as Aberg has had little NHL experience, but scored 31 goals last year for the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals. He then got into 15 games for the Predators, scoring two points, but took off in the playoffs, putting up two goals and five points in 16 games. Sissons had just eight goals in 58 games last year, but then put up 12 points, including six goals in the playoffs, so the 23-year-old could be a player who could have an improved year.

Three Years Remaining

F Craig Smith ($4.25MM, UFA)
D Roman Josi ($4MM, UFA)
F Austin Watson ($1.1MM, UFA)
F Frederick Gaudreau ($667K, UFA)

The 28-year-old Smith has been with Nashville from they day he was drafted in 2009 and he developed into a solid 20-goal scorer. In 2015, after scoring 47 goals in two years, he was rewarded with a five-year, $21.3MM deal. After a 12-goal season last year, his deal looks like one of the team’s worst deals. The team hopes he bounces back and returns to form. Josi, on the other hand has been one of the top defensemen in the league and is a bargain at $4MM per year. At 27 years old, Josi puts up big numbers and while last year’s numbers of 12 goals and 37 assists were below his usual standards, he made up for it with strong defense. Watson still has much to prove, but is likely to hold onto a fourth-line position this year. He only had 17 points in 77 games, but was a scorer with the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals and at age 25 has time to develop his skills.

Four Or More Years Remaining

D P.K. Subban ($9MM through 2021-22)
F Ryan Johansen ($8MM through 2024-25)
F Filip Forsberg ($6MM through 2021-22)
F Viktor Arvidsson ($4.25MM through 2023-24)
F Nick Bonino ($4.1MM through 2020-21)
D Mattias Ekholm ($3.75 through 2021-22)
F Calle Jarnkrok ($2MM through 2021-22)

Like a high-end general manager David Poile has locked up all his talent long-term with the idea of making long playoff runs the norm in Nashville. While Subban is already half-way through the eight-year, $72MM deal he signed in Montreal in 2014, he is the physical presence the team’s defense needs. He had 10 goals and 40 points, but was always there to shut down the other team’s top offensive player. Johansen just received his eight-year, $64MM deal in July and he did that with 14 goals and 47 assists last year. The team’s number one center added another three goals and 10 assists in the playoffs until he had to undergo emergency thigh surgery.

Forsberg has also been a key scorer for the team as the 23-year-old scored 31 goals last year and 90 goals in the past three seasons. A first-round pick in 2012, he is an integral piece to the team’s top scoring line along with Arvidsson, who is also locked up long-term. The 24-year-old had a breakout season last year, putting up 31 goals and 30 assists. He only had 16 points in 58 games a year ago.

The team went out and stole Bonino away from the Stanley Cup winning Pittsburgh Penguins. The 29-year-old gritty center had 18 goals and 19 assists for the Penguins a year ago, but $4.1MM a year for a 18-goal scorer seems exorbitant, assuming he even can be a second-line center. Ekholm is another quality defender on the team, who will have to pick up the slack with Ellis out, but the defensive defender is a key piece to the team. Jarnkrok’s long-term, short-money deal seems nice for a 25-year-old who has scored 31 goals combined in the last two seasons. If he can take it up one more notch, they will have themselves a steal.

Buyouts

F Viktor Stalberg ($1.17MM in 2017-18 and 2018-19)
F Eric Nystrom ($1MM in 2017-18)
D Barret Jackman ($667K in 2017-18)

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Still To Sign

None

Best Value: Josi
Worst Value: Bonino

Looking Ahead

Poile has done an excellent job of putting together a team that can make a long run at a Stanley Cup. They have the defense and the firepower to do that, as well as the fact that almost everyone is locked up for three years or more. They do have a limited time with Rinne in goal, but besides that the team should prove to be a perennial contender for the next few years.

Vegas Not Worried About Having Too Much Defense

September 10, 2017 at 3:34 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 2 Comments

To some observers, the Vegas Golden Knights have some problems. The team has 13 defensemen on their roster, 11 with NHL experience. Yet, general manager George McPhee is not worried about the glut of defenders on his roster. While the coaches get a say, it will be McPhee who will make the final decision on who plays.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal’s David Schoen writes that the team will likely keep eight defenders on their 23-man roster, so that should give defenseman a bit of comfort room. He also writes that it looks like nine players will compete for those eight spots. Three veterans will undoubtedly make the roster in Jason Garrison, Deryk Engelland and Luca Sbisa. Expect Brayden McNabb, the physical defender from the Los Angeles Kings to get a spot on the defensive roster as well as Nate Schmidt, who just signed a new two-year deal for $4.45MM. That’s five. Colin Miller, who led the Boston Bruins in Corsi For and Goals For percentage last season, should also be in the top six.

That leaves a still a number of defensemen who will be fighting for those last two spots.

“Our defensemen can count. They know there are a lot of D here right now,” McPhee said. “We’ll just have to see how camp goes and how we proceed. To be fair, you’d like to say it’s going to be the best six guys, but we’ll see. Sometimes you have to think short term and long term in this job and do what’s best for the organization from that standpoint.”

That quote might suggest that former Anaheim Ducks’ Shea Theodore, who the team picked up in an expansion deal, might be forced to start the season for the AHL Chicago Wolves as he still has waiver options remaining. Theodore, who had a major impact for the Ducks’ defense in the playoffs last year is still just 22 years old and only has 53 games of NHL experience so far, not including the playoffs. He put up just nine points in 34 games last year, but put up eight points in 14 playoff games in an expanded role. Others who will have to fight for spot include Jon Merrill, Clayton Stoner, Griffin Reinhart and Brad Hunt.

Schoen speculates that Merrill is likely to stay with the team, which could leave Stoner out. The team picked up Stoner with Theodore in part of an expansion trade deal. The Anaheim Ducks wanted to rid themselves of Stoner’s $3.25MM contract, but the 32-year-old injury plagued defender has not played since early last season and played in just 14 games last year.

Of course, none of this speculation makes any difference if the team can make a deal. The Golden Knights, who have already traded off several defensemen since the expansion draft, could be waiting for training camps to start. They may be hoping that an injury or a lack of depth could prompt a team to trade for one of their glut of defensemen. However, for now, McPhee continues to state that he is happy to have so much depth on their blueline.

“The neat thing about this process, and I’ve tried to explain this to a number of people, it’s still a blank canvas,” McPhee said. “We’re completely open minded about what might develop. I’m open for some unknown surprises. It’s wide open, and it should be.”

« Previous Page

Load More Posts

Headlines