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Offseason Keys: Dallas Stars

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While the playoffs are ongoing, many teams have already started their offseason planning.  What storylines lie ahead around the league?  Our Offseason Keys series continues with a look at the Dallas Stars.

Things were looking up in Dallas heading into this past season.  They looked to have some stability between the pipes with Ben Bishop as their new starter while they added a top line winger via free agency in Alexander Radulov plus a top-four defender in Marc Methot, among other acquisitions.  Those moves, along with Ken Hitchcock replacing Lindy Ruff behind the bench, didn’t result in a playoff spot and GM Jim Nill has already brought in a new head coach in Jim Montgomery who takes over following Hitchcock’s retirement.  With that big off-ice move done, here are their key on-ice tasks this summer.

Find A New Backup

The era of having the most expensive goaltending tandem has come to an end as Kari Lehtonen’s contract, one that carried a cap hit of $5.9MM, officially comes off the books in July.  Given how he performed when pressed into action late in the year when Bishop went down, it seems likely that they will opt to go in a different direction this summer instead of looking to bring him back.

There are several other backups to choose from so if that’s the route they choose to go, Nill will have quite a few options to choose from.  However, is that the best way for them to look to fill the position?

Dallas doesn’t have anyone at the minor league level that is pushing for NHL time.  (Jake Oettinger, a first-round pick last June, is still in college and is several years away from being ready.)  That means they’ll be forced to turn to the free agent market a few times (or hand out a long-term contract this summer) to find Bishop’s backup.

With that in mind, they may be better off pursuing a younger understudy, one that may be blocked in their current organization or is deemed expendable with another player pushing for NHL time.  While the risk factor is higher here, there’s also the potential for a greater reward which might outweigh the benefits of signing a run-of-the-mill veteran in free agency.

Add Defensive Help

The Stars have struggled in their own end for a little while now despite their efforts to bring in capable veterans to steady the ship.  Methot battled injury issues all season long while Dan Hamhuis, their veteran addition back in 2016, is eligible for unrestricted free agency this summer.  Even if they bring him back, another impact defenseman would be a huge help.

John Klingberg has established himself as a legitimate top pairing player but the supporting cast is a work in progress.  Esa Lindell took some big strides forward in his development but he’s better served in a secondary role.  Miro Heiskanen, the third-overall pick in 2017, is expected to become a core part of their back end down the road but even if he makes the jump to the NHL in 2018-19 as expected, he will need some time to develop before he ascends to that top spot.

Unfortunately for Dallas, the UFA market isn’t ripe with top defenders and the one that is a top pairing player, Washington’s John Carlson, plays the same side as Klingberg.  As a result, Nill may be forced to resort to more patchwork by trying to shore up the depth but with Hamhuis and Greg Pateryn both unrestricted, adding a couple of defenders this summer would be a wise move.

Decision On Spezza

Saying that center Jason Spezza struggled in 2017-18 would be a pretty big understatement.  He went from being a quality top-six forward to someone who struggled considerably and wound up seeing his ice time cut to just 13 minutes a night, his lowest since his rookie year back in 2002-03.  Needless to say, he didn’t provide good value for his $7.5MM cap hit.

Things didn’t go well with Hitchcock behind the bench but will Montgomery’s new system give him a chance to rebound or do they believe Spezza’s days as a top-six forward are numbered?  If it’s the latter, then they will need to pursue a trade or examine a buyout, a move that would free up $5MM in cap room for 2018-19 (but would add $2.5MM on the books for 2019-20 when Tyler Seguin is in need of a new deal).  It’s believed that the team intends to make this call by the end of the month.  Spezza can help control his own future as well as he has a ten-team no-trade list plus a no-move clause in his contract.

What will make this a more difficult call to make is Martin Hanzal’s situation.  He battled multiple injuries in his first year with the Stars and underwent back surgery that has his availability for the start of the season in jeopardy.  Dallas was hoping Hanzal could be their second line center (and even tried moving Spezza to the wing to accommodate that) but if it appears that his recovery will be towards the longer end of the six-to-nine-month timeframe, that could force their hand towards keeping him.

Given his sizable contract, this isn’t going to be an easy decision, especially since his trade value will be a lot lower now than it would have been a year ago and they would likely have to take on a pricey contract as part of a return.  With that in mind, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them decide to keep Spezza around in the hopes that a new system will help him rebound for 2018-19.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Paul Stastny Open To Re-Signing With Winnpeg

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Paul Stastny being dealt to the Jets was one of the bigger surprises of the trade deadline back in February.  St. Louis was expected to add instead of selling while Winnipeg has typically shied away from making the big deadline day moves.  They made the move and it’s hard to say that it didn’t work out as Stastny was quite productive, posting 13 points in 19 regular season contests and added 15 more in 17 playoff games.  He’s slated to become an unrestricted free agent in July and told reporters, including Postmedia’s Ken Wiebe, that he is open to re-signing:

“Every door is open. I never look that far down the road, because in the past I’ve done that. You think something is going to happen. It doesn’t.

“There is always a possibility. I have no regrets. Probably the best decision I ever made was this one. It made the game that much more fun again.”

The decision that Stastny is referencing was his choice to waive his no-trade clause to accept a move to Winnipeg.  It certainly was a wise one from his perspective as he certainly has bolstered his case in free agency as it has been a while since he produced at the level he did.  Between that and the fact that so many teams are in need of centers this summer, he has set himself up for a big payday.

If he wants to maximize his contract though, that may make it difficult for him to remain in Winnipeg.  The team has a trio of prominent restricted free agents to re-sign in defenseman Josh Morrissey and Jacob Trouba plus goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (among several others).  With that in mind, he may have to leave some money on the table if he wants to stay put.  However, he realizes that he’s not going to be the top priority for GM Kevin Cheveldayoff when it comes to discussing extensions and he’s open to waiting for his turn:

“We all know there are a lot of players who need to be signed here. There’s not just one person.  When you have success like this, a lot of guys need to get rewarded. And you’ve got to take care of those young guys first. Those guys really earned it. We’ll talk with (Cheveldayoff) down the road.”

If the Jets and Stastny can find common ground on a new deal, that would solidify their center position for years to come.  Mark Scheifele has emerged as a legitimate top pivot while Jack Roslovic, one of their top prospects, made some strides this season while Bryan Little is a proven top-six player as well.  That type of depth is hard to come by so even if they have to cut money a year from now when wingers Patrik Laine and Kyle Connor are owed new deals, they’d at least be dealing from a position of considerable strength.  As a result, it’s reasonable that talks on a new deal between Stastny and Winnipeg will be starting in the not-too-distant future.

Ducks Sign AHL Coach Dallas Eakins To A Multi-Year Extension

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After failing to land any of the vacant NHL coaching jobs, Dallas Eakins has decided to stick around with Anaheim.  The Ducks announced (Twitter link) that they have signed their AHL bench boss to a multi-year contract extension.  Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Eakins has spent the past three seasons with the San Diego Gulls.  The team finished second in the Pacific Division in each of his first two years there but struggled a bit more this past season, posting a 36-28-3-1 record; their 76 points were tied for fourth but the Gulls missed the postseason on a tiebreaker.  Overall, the team has posted a 118-71-10-5 record under his leadership.

The 51-year-old has also spent time as the head coach for the AHLs Toronto Marlies as well as the Edmonton Oilers.

While Eakins will be remaining with the Gulls, one of his assistants won’t be.  In a separate tweet, the Ducks announced that assistant coach Marty Wilford has been promoted to the big club after spending the past three years with San Diego.  This will be his first foray into coaching in the NHL after also spending time as an assistant with Syracuse and Norfolk of the AHL.

Meanwhile, the team also revealed via Twitter that goaltender Ryan Miller underwent surgery on Friday to remove a bone fragment in his wrist.  The expected timeline for recovery is six weeks so he should be ready in time for training camp in September.

Charlie Coyle Undergoes Surgery On Both Wrists

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Wild forward Charlie Coyle has undergone successful surgery to repair tendons in both of his wrists, reports Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription required).  The issues first surfaced back in January although he played through those for the rest of the regular season plus their first-round postseason loss at the hands of Winnipeg.  The injury also caused him to decline an invitation to participate at the World Championships for Team USA.

Of course, that wasn’t the only injury Coyle dealt with this past season.  The 26-year-old broke his fibula early in the season which cost him six weeks of action which could very well have played a role in his decision to play through the pain.

Despite that, it was still a decent season for Coyle, who posted 37 points in 66 games, his second-highest point-per-game mark of his career.  All in all, those numbers aren’t too bad when you factor in the perspective that he experienced pain every time he went to shoot the puck from the midpoint of the season onward.  He was also held off the scoresheet in five postseason contests.

Fortunately for Coyle and the Wild, the recovery period for this injury is just two-to-four weeks so it shouldn’t have a significant impact on his offseason workouts and he is expected to be fully recovered in time for training camp.

Paul Fenton Hired As New GM Of Minnesota Wild

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As had been reported in recent days, the Minnesota Wild have decided who will be their next General Manager. That’s Paul Fenton, who was officially announced as GM and Alternate Governor today with a press release from owner Craig Leipold:

It is my distinct pleasure to welcome Paul Fenton as the General Manager of the Minnesota Wild. Paul is uniquely suited for this job having played 10 years of professional hockey and holding 25 years of management experience in the NHL. His gift of evaluating talent is obvious in Nashville’s roster and recent success. My relationship with Paul goes back to my early days in Nashville and I know that Wild hockey fans are going to love Paul’s infectious passion for the game and unsurpassed work ethic. He’s the right person to deliver a Stanley Cup to the State of Hockey.

It was just one month ago that the Wild relieved Chuck Fletcher of his duties as GM, after the team’s sixth consecutive early exit from the playoffs. Minnesota was knocked out in the first round by the Winnipeg Jets, and are expected to make significant changes to the organization before next season. That starts with Fenton, who will be joining the team after two decades in Nashville where he first worked under Leipold, who owned the Predators from 1998-2008.

Fenton is regarded as an exceptional judge of talent and has been integral in the development and building of the Predators’ Presidents Trophy-winning club. He has been considered for various front office roles around the league seemingly every year, but will now take over an NHL team for the first time. It’s not clear yet who will replace him in Nashville as AGM and GM of the Milwaukee Admirals.

Minnesota has struggled for years with a level of mediocrity that has frustrated Leipold, and the owner even made comments last summer about regretting a certain trade deadline transaction. Obviously not content with just making the playoffs, the Wild will entrust Fenton to take them to the next level and really contend for the Stanley Cup.

How he’s going to do that is far from public knowledge, but in his first offseason he’ll have plenty of opportunity to effect change in the team’s roster construction. Several key players including Jason Zucker and Mathew Dumba are restricted free agents, and could demand big raises and long-term deals coming off career seasons. There are only one or two years remaining on key veteran contracts like Mikko Koivu, Mikael Granlund, Eric Staal, Charlie Coyle and Jared Spurgeon. Many of those players might not be back in the coming years, as the team tries to rebuild itself around some different stars.

Unfortunately, Fenton also inherits a team with two albatross contracts on the books. Though Zach Parise and Ryan Suter are still effective players, their contracts—identical 13-year $98MM deals signed in 2012—form a salary base that’s tough to work around. Both players are currently 33 years old, and have seven years remaining at a cap hit of $7.54MM. The deals also include full no-movement clauses, and would cause potential cap recapture penalties if either were to retire early.

If there is a silver lining the deals, front-loaded as they are, were (along with others like them) part of the reason for the last NHL work stoppage. With a salary of just $1MM in the final two seasons, there could be a way that Fenton and the Wild front office get out from under them while providing some help to teams struggling to reach the cap floor. We’re still a long way away from either one needing to be shipped out of town, but the new GM has to know what he’s getting into.

The Wild are a good team already, and they’ve now hired one of the best GM candidates around the league. If Fenton will try to turn them into a contender right away, this summer should be a very interesting on for Minnesota fans.

Lou Lamoriello Will Be Hired By New York Islanders

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Though the rumors have been floating around for some time, Arthur Staple of The Athletic (subscription required) now confirms that Lou Lamoriello will be hired by the New York Islanders to run their hockey operations. Lamoriello was recently removed from the Toronto Maple Leafs’ GM position when his contract expired, and immediately linked to the Islanders as a potential destination. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, Lamoriello has also already spoken with John Tavares as a representative of the Islanders.

It’s still not clear how the front office will be structured for the Islanders, as current GM Garth Snow still has several years on a contract that is unlikely to be bought out. Instead of firing their long time executive, Snow may take on a different role while Lamoriello is given the keys to the franchise. Chris Lamoriello, Lou’s son, is already in the front office as an assistant GM.

The Islanders have one of the biggest summer’s in franchise history coming up, with Tavares likely determining the direction the team takes over the next several years. If he were to re-sign, the team would be dedicated to competing for the Stanley Cup over the next few years as he remains at his top performance. If he instead spurns the only team he’s ever played for and hits the free agent market, the team could instead look to rebuild around rookie sensation Mathew Barzal and open a large window of contention a few years down the road. Barzal is an exceptional talent in his own right, but without Tavares the team doesn’t look good enough to really contend as currently constructed.

There’s also the fact that the team is expecting their new arena to be ready for the 2021-22 season, a year that the franchise will want to make as successful as possible as they try to reinvigorate their fan base. The Belmont Park location has other hurdles in its way (including a potential NHL work stoppage), but having Tavares in the fold would certainly make the team feel more comfortable as they head into their next era.

Lamoriello is technically under contract as a senior advisor for the Maple Leafs, but there was little doubt that President Brendan Shanahan would let him move on if he found another opportunity. In a similar situation to his exit from New Jersey a few years ago, it didn’t take long for another organization to come calling.

Patrik Rybar Signs Entry-Level Contract With Detroit Red Wings

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The Detroit Red Wings have added some international talent to their prospect pool, signing Slovakian goaltender Patrik Rybar to a one-year entry-level contract. Rybar has spent the last two seasons playing in the Czech Republic, and recently represented Solovakia at the Olympics and IIHF World Championship.

Rybar, 24, was never drafted by an NHL team but has turned in nothing but outstanding appearances in his time as a professional. At the highest level in the Czech Republic, Rybar has posted .922 and .932 save percentages in the last two years, and held his own in the recent international tournament. He didn’t get into the crease at the Olympics, but even the experience of being there was probably beneficial to his long-term development.

Detroit doesn’t have a succession plan in place for their goaltending situation, as Petr Mrazek never took the net from Jimmy Howard and was eventually traded off this season. Howard, now 34, will be an unrestricted free agent next summer, the same designation Jared Coreau will receive this year. No one is expecting Rybar to step in and become the future for Detroit right away, but he is an extremely low-risk addition that could strengthen the position for them down the road. There is more work to do for the Red Wings, but adding a top international goaltender on a short-term deal is never a bad option.

Detroit Red Wings Losing Value With Every Vegas Win

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The Vegas Golden Knights are a miraculous story. In their first year they’ve not only been competitive, but have already advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals, knocking off several top Western Conference teams in the process. The upstart expansion club has become many fans’ “second favorite team,” with people hoping to see something spectacular and historic in 2018. Those bandwagon fans don’t include many from Detroit, as the team is losing value every time the Golden Knights advance. They could do so again if Vegas finds a way to win the Stanley Cup.

At the trade deadline, the Golden Knights decided to scrap their original plan of selling off expiring assets and instead dropped a big package of draft picks to acquire Tomas Tatar from the Detroit Red Wings. That deal included a 2018 first-round pick, which at the time could have landed anywhere in the bottom third of the draft order. The Golden Knights were good, but many still believed they’d experience a late-season swoon and possible first-round exit.

Instead, Vegas rolled through the latter part of the season and finished in first place in the Pacific Division. That guaranteed the Red Wings would not be able to use the pick any earlier than 25th, and even that would have required several first-round upsets of the other division leaders. What has transpired though, as the Golden Knights continue to win series after series, is a pick that will now be either 30th or 31st. The Chicago Blackhawks will select 27th thanks to their acquisition of the Nashville Predators’ pick, while 28 and 29 are destined for whoever loses the Tampa Bay-Washington series and the recently eliminated Winnipeg Jets—though of those three, only Washington actually owns their own pick; Tampa Bay’s belongs to the New York Rangers, while Winnipeg sent theirs to St. Louis.

Though the difference in a few picks at the back of the first round isn’t as much as it would be at the top, it still carries substantial value. Every time Vegas advances, the Red Wings—who desperately needed to squeeze as much value as possible out of Tatar—will have to wait another few minutes on June 22nd. For a club that is relying on a good 2018 draft to inject more talent into a somewhat lifeless prospect pipeline, there likely has only been frustration at watching the Golden Knights knock off their competitors one by one.

In a few days, Detroit fans will have to bite the bullet and become Tampa Bay or Washington fans. Otherwise their decision to trade Tatar will pay off as little as it could have—just another way Vegas has disappointed other front offices around the league.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Snapshots: Quinn, Korpikoski, Draft Rankings

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All signs continue to point towards David Quinn becoming the next head coach of the New York Rangers, though the team still has not officially announced the hiring. Mike McMahon of College Hockey News is the latest to report on a timeline that had Quinn turning down the Rangers four-year offer last week, only to eventually sign for five years and $12MM. While we likely won’t get confirmation from the team on those numbers for some time, that contract gives Quinn enough security to leave Boston University where he was considered one of the top college coaches in the country.

McMahon also suggests that Joe Sacco, currently an assistant coach with the Boston Bruins, is a candidate to replace Quinn at BU in the coming weeks. Sacco played for BU in the late 80’s before embarking on an NHL career that spanned more than a decade, five organizations and 738 games.

  • Lauri Korpikoski has signed a six-year contract in Finland, after spending last year in the Swiss NLA. The journeyman played more than 600 games in the NHL, suiting up for four organizations over his last three seasons. A first-round pick by the New York Rangers in 2004, he never did perform up to expectations, only once breaking the 40-point mark during his career. Now 31, a six-year deal essentially guarantees he won’t be playing in the NHL again, unless something happens to break the contract at some point.
  • Corey Pronman of The Athletic (subscription required) has released his final 2018 draft rankings, and though he formats it differently than most there will still be plenty of surprises. Brady Tkachuk, considered to be a contender for second overall by some pundits, finds himself way down Pronman’s ranking at #9, while Evan Bouchard is even lower at #18. The vast differences in rankings heading into this year’s event are shaping up to create some drama on the draft floor, with no one quite sure how things will fall after the Buffalo Sabres select Rasmus Dahlin with the first pick.

New Jersey Devils Sign Egor Yakovlev

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Just as GM Ray Shero predicted, the New Jersey Devils were able to finalize their contract with free agent defenseman Egor Yakovlev today. The KHL import has signed a one-year entry-level contract.

Yakovlev, 26, has played the last three seasons on the powerhouse SKA St. Petersburg squad, and recently competed in both the Olympic Games and World Championship for Russia. Scoring just nine points in 35 games this season, he was another defenseman—like Igor Ozhiganov of Toronto—who saw his time on ice drop dramatically the last few seasons. While it’s not clear if that was because of his intention to leave for North America, the overall strengthening of the SKA blue line, or a combination of factors including time away from the team for the Olympics, his stats this year aren’t necessarily an indication of his upside in the future.

Still, by signing him at this age the Devils are likely to give him a chance to succeed at the NHL level quickly. Whether he makes the team out of camp will be a big indicator of his future in New Jersey, as few international players agree to play in the minor leagues at this point in their careers. With a relatively full blue line already under contract for next season, we’ll have to wait and see how the summer plays out before knowing exactly where Yakovlev fits in.

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