Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Archives for June 2018

Chicago Prospect Ivan Nalimov Asks For Trade

at CDT | by 6 Comments

It’s not often that a player not under contract requests a trade, but Ivan Nalimov is going for it. The Chicago Blackhawks’ 2014 sixth-round pick has asked for his rights to be dealt to another NHL team, reports The Athletic’s Scott Powers. As one of the KHL’s best young goaltenders, Nalimov feels that he has earned a shot at the NHL next season, but agent Shumi Babaev feels that the opportunity won’t come in Chicago. Nalimov has already terminated his KHL contract for next season and is solely focused on the NHL, but doesn’t want to waste the prime of his career buried in the minors behind the Blackhawks’ many goalies. As a result, the young netminder would like to be moved to a team where he might have a greater chance at play time.

Nalimov, 23, is coming off of a season that was impressive for many reasons. Right away, it is easy to tell that this was a career campaign for the homegrown Russian goaltender and former KHL first-round pick. The big keeper finally put it all together in 2017-18 and posted a .938 SV% and 2.13 GAA in 23 appearances. His save percentage was among the best in the league, fourth among all goalies with 20+ appearances, and his goals against average was in the top 15 of that same group. However, a closer inspection makes those numbers even more impressive, as Nalimov was traded mid-season. Serving behind Igor Bobkov with Admiral Vladisvostok, Nalimov proved himself to be the best backup in the KHL this season with a .942 SV% and 1.98 GAA in 17 games. With his value escalating, he was moved to Salavat Yulaev Ufa to back up Ben Scrivens and hardly missed a beat in six more games there. His numbers fell off slightly, but his performance trumped the team’s existing backup and helped Ufa in their playoff pursuit, earning Nalimov some postseason appearances of his own. Nalimov not only performed at a high level this year, but did so with two teams and was unshaken by the adjustment. It’s understandable why he feels now would be the perfect time to make the ultimate adjustment and try his hand at the NHL.

Yet, Chicago is an unlikely location for that to happen. As Powers writes, the Blackhawks have three NHL-caliber goalies already under contract for next season in starter Corey Crawford and backups Anton Forsberg and J-F Berube, not to mention another pair of prospects signed to pro deals who already seem permanently relegated to the minors next season. In speaking with both Nalimov’s agent and Chicago GM Stan Bowman, Powers states that the ’Hawks really like Nalimov, but perhaps didn’t anticipate that he would develop this quickly or wish to come overseas this soon. They also might have underestimated his ceiling, as Chicago did spend a third-round pick on German standout Wouter Peeters just two years ago. Regardless, the Blackhawks do not have to listen to Nalimov’s request and they can retain his rights perpetually, but this could sour the young goalie on coming to North America altogether. If the decision is between potentially losing Nalimov forever due to a broken relationship or trading him away for at least some type of return, Bowman and company are likely to shop the prospect this summer.

Minor Notes: DiDomenico, Redmond, Crunch

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

After fighting his way back to the NHL for 27 contests over the last two seasons, Chris DiDomenico has decided to return to Switzerland. The Rockford IceHogs announced today that DiDomenico had officially signed with the SCL Tigers of the NLA, leaving the minor league club after an outstanding playoff run. DiDomenico had made it back to the NHL with the Ottawa Senators before being traded to Chicago earlier this year. He never saw any time with the Blackhawks down the stretch, but did record 41 points in 35 games for the IceHogs including both regular season and playoff games.

It’s clear that DiDomenico would rather play in Europe than the minor leagues, as he already left back in 2012. Playing in Italy and Switzerland, DiDomenico dominated the lower leagues before recording 76 points in 94 games in the NLA. Once a sixth-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs, one would have to think this is close to the end of the NHL dream for the 29-year old forward.

  • On the other hand, the Rochester Americans have signed defenseman Zach Redmond to a two-year AHL contract. That’s a big deal for a Buffalo Sabres franchise that is trying to improve the success of their minor league system without hamstringing the NHL club. Redmond is a veteran NHL player with 133 games under his belt, but won’t even take a contract spot away from the Sabres while he’s playing on this deal. The 29-year old must have either liked how the organization treated him after coming over from Montreal, or not believed that he could get a two-way contract anywhere else—or perhaps, both. Redmond recorded 47 points in 66 games for the Americans last season, and could easily be included in their leadership group this year.
  • The Syracuse Crunch have also locked up a pair of players on AHL contracts, signing forwards Troy Bourke and Brady Brassart to one-year deals. Bourke was actually a third-round pick of the Colorado Avalanche in 2012, but hasn’t been able to find his footing in the minor leagues and spent most of last season in the ECHL. He dominated that league though, and along with Brassart will try to make the jump to the AHL on a more full-time basis in 2018-19.

Washington Capitals Will Explore Trading Philipp Grubauer

at CDT | by 8 Comments

The Washington Capitals won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history on the back of star goaltender Braden Holtby, but it was actually Philipp Grubauer who started the playoff run for the team after an outstanding regular season. Grubauer has now posted three consecutive excellent seasons as Holtby’s backup, and heads into this offseason as a restricted free agent. To that end, GM Brian MacLellan admitted to reporters today including Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post, that the team will explore trade options to try and give Grubauer his shot at being a starting goaltender elsewhere.

That’s big news for teams who are looking to upgrade their goaltending situation this summer. The Carolina Hurricanes, New York Islanders, Philadelphia Flyers all could use an immediate upgrade in net, while the Buffalo Sabres, Ottawa Senators, Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Blackhawks and many others could decide that Grubauer could be the answer on a more long-term basis than their current options. MacLellan will have no shortage of calls on his backup goaltender, but faces a tough negotiation with whoever is on the other end of the line.

Though his comments seem as though MacLellan is doing it out of the goodness of his heart, the Capitals are in a tough cap situation and may not have the resources required to re-sign Grubauer themselves. The restricted free agent will obviously be looking for a healthy raise on his one-year $1.5MM deal signed last summer, and with John Carlson and other to sign this summer the Capitals may not have the salary. Don’t think other teams are ignorant of that fact, or of the recent example of Scott Darling who went from star backup to failed starter in the matter of a few months. Darling had posted almost identical numbers as Grubauer through his three years as the main backup to Corey Crawford, only to struggle immensely after being traded and signing a four-year $16MM contract with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Any team acquiring Grubauer has to take into account the fact that he has only started 79 games in his career, and never more than 28 in a single season. The workload of a starter is a much different assignment, and though he clearly has solid talent and is still just 26, there’s no guarantee that he’ll find success in his next stop. Darling cost the Hurricanes just a third-round pick because he was a pending unrestricted free agent, but Cam Talbot cost the Edmonton Oilers a second and third when he was acquired in 2015 with a single year left on his deal. Grubauer would become an unrestricted free agent after just one more year under contract, meaning he may be in a more similar situation to Talbot this summer.

Still, this presents an opportunity for a team to take a big swing at what could be a huge upgrade in goal. If everything works out for Grubauer and he turns into a perennial .920+ goaltender, a second and third round pick is a small price to pay. If he signs a long-term contract and struggles the way Darling—or even Talbot this season—has, we could be talking about him as another cautionary tale in a year’s time.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Washington Capitals Will Try To Bring Back Barry Trotz

at CDT | by 6 Comments

Heading into the playoffs, there was a lot of talk of how Washington Capitals head coach Barry Trotz could be one of the biggest names on the free agent market this summer. Trotz is in the final year of his career with the Capitals, and has notoriously failed in the postseason despite excellent regular season records. Well, Trotz and the Capitals are failures no more in the playoffs after securing their first Stanley Cup in franchise history, and GM Brian MacLellan today told media including Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press that the team will try to get an extension done with their head coach. Tom Gulitti of NHL.com adds that Trotz wants to come back and has already begun talking about a new contract.

Trotz, 55, already sits fifth on the all-time wins list among NHL coaches, but had a history of coming up short in the playoffs. While he still has a 55-58 record in the postseason, the Stanley Cup victory ensures that he’ll go down as one of the greatest coaches in the history of the sport when he decides to retire. Should he come back with the Capitals—or anyone else for that matter—next season, he’ll likely pass Al Arbour for fourth on the wins list and would pull close to Ken Hitchcock with another 50-win season. That expertise though would make him highly sought after on the open market, to the point where other teams may fire the incumbent to get him behind the bench.

The most interesting destination of course would be the New York Islanders, who recently fired head coach Doug Weight after just a single season on the job. While the New York Rangers, Dallas Stars, Calgary Flames and Carolina Hurricanes have already hired their replacements, several other coaches will enter the year on the hot seat. Trotz could be a potential replacement for any one of them, but only if the Capitals let him become a free agent this summer. While it sounds like they’ll try their best to extend him, you never know how negotiations will go. Should Trotz demand a contract similar to the ones given to Mike Babcock in Toronto or Joel Quenneville in Chicago, perhaps the Capitals decide that money could be better spent elsewhere.

After all, it wasn’t so long ago that the team was considering moving on from Trotz. Many believed that had he failed to accomplish the feat of winning a Stanley Cup this season—even if that meant losing game seven of the finals—he would not be returning to the team next year. Perhaps that will still happen, or Trotz will welcome a new challenge in a new city.

Boston Bruins Sign Urho Vaakanainen To Entry-Level Contract

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Boston Bruins have inked one of their top prospects, signing 2017 first-round pick Urho Vaakanainen to a three-year entry-level contract. The deal will carry a $925K NHL cap hit, plus any performance bonuses that he might achieve.

Vaakanainen, 19, was the 18th-overall selection a year ago and spent the season playing in Finland’s highest league. An extremely talented skater, he uses that ability to easily attack oncoming opponents and shut down rushes well before they even get started. While his offensive game is still raw, he does show a good first pass and can be an effective zone-exit option with the puck on his stick. He registered 11 points in 43 games this season, but there is some potential for even more production there if given a bigger opportunity.

Should Vaakanainen come to North America this season, he’ll likely be ticketed for the Providence Bruins at first where he could adapt to the AHL game before eventually making the jump to the NHL. While that jump to Boston isn’t guaranteed at this point, his first year of development since being drafted went well and there certainly looks like there could be a future for him beside star rookie Charlie McAvoy. Even if Vaakanainen doesn’t turn into a top-pairing option, the Bruins will have several other openings on the blue line over the next three years as they move on to the next wave of defensemen.

Kings Acquire Peter Budaj From Lightning In Exchange For Andy Andreoff

at CDT | by 3 Comments

The Kings are bringing back a familiar face between the pipes as they have acquired goaltender Peter Budaj from the Lightning in exchange for winger Andy Andreoff.

Budaj spent two seasons in Los Angeles before being dealt to the Lightning near the 2017 trade deadline as part of the Ben Bishop trade.  He was expected to serve as the backup to Andrei Vasilevskiy this past season but struggled considerably, posting a 3.76 GAA and a .876 SV% in eight appearances which forced Tampa to go and acquire Louis Domingue in a midseason swap to take his place.

As for Andreoff, he has been in and out of the lineup for the Kings as a depth forward for the past four seasons.  In 2017-18, he played in 45 games, collecting nine points (3-6-9) along with 50 PIMS while averaging 9:23 of ice time.  He will likely battle for a similar role with the Lightning next season.  Andreoff has one year remaining on his contract with a $678K cap hit.

After the Kings dealt Darcy Kuemper to Arizona last season, Jack Campbell took over as the understudy for Jonathan Quick and it appears nothing will change there.  Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Los Angeles intends to use Budaj with their AHL affiliate in Ontario as a mentor for youngster Cal Petersen.   The 35-year-old has one year remaining on his contract with a $1.025MM cap hit, an amount that can be buried in the minors full with no cap charge hitting the Kings’ books.

Jay Beagle Hopes To Return To Washington Capitals

at CDT | by 1 Comment

The Washington Capitals are fresh off the first Stanley Cup victory in franchise history, but before long they’ll need to start dealing with pressing offseason issues. Though John Carlson is at the top of that chart, there are several other key players headed for unrestricted free agency. One of those players is Jay Beagle, who while not an offensive force was a huge faceoff man and defensive presence for the Capitals throughout the playoffs. Beagle made his intentions clear today to media including Tarik El-Bashir of NBC Sports, saying that he wanted to return and calling Washington “home.”

Beagle, 32, registered 22 points in 79 games this season but won a career-high 58.5% of his faceoffs and logged more than two and a half minutes of short-handed ice time on a nightly basis. Those numbers easily led all Capitals forwards, and he improved to better than 60% on the draw in his 23 playoff contests. With the firepower that the team has up front in players like Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Kuznetsov, they could afford to have a defensive specialist like Beagle further down in the lineup.

Whether they can afford him going forward though is another question. Beagle is coming off the final season of a three-year deal that paid him $1.75MM annually, and with the Capitals trying to squeeze every last dollar out of the roster in order to retain John Carlson this summer, Beagle may have to take a pay cut to stay with the club. Paying a fourth-line center more than $2MM seems out of the question for the Capitals going forward, a total he could likely secure on the open market after his successful playoff run.

Washington heads into the offseason with somewhere around $16MM in cap space depending on where the upper-limit lands, but with new contracts needed for Tom Wilson, Philipp Grubauer, Devante Smith-Pelly and other restricted free agents, as well as a likely $7-8MM price tag on Carlson there isn’t much left in the vault. Even if Grubauer is moved to another team as GM Brian MacLellan hinted at today, the team still has a cap crunch coming and hard decisions to make. Beagle may want to stick around, but there might not be enough money to go around.

Mike Green Has Two Offers From Detroit Red Wings

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

Free agency is now less than three weeks away, and all eyes are focused on John Tavares and John Carlson as the top prizes. Behind them though is another tier of quality players, including Detroit Red Wings defenseman Mike Green. Green, a former 30-goal, 70-point player from his days in Washington, is still an effective puck-moving option even as he heads into his mid-thirties. According to Craig Custance of The Athletic (subscription required) Green has been given two offers by the Red Wings to re-sign, of both the one- and two-year variety. That might not be enough to keep him around though, as there will be plenty of interest in the free agent when the negotiation period opens a few days after the draft.

Green is coming off of a little bit of a quieter season by his standards but still a productive one as he recorded 33 points in 66 games.  However, he wasn’t fully healthy heading into the trade deadline which scared off potential suitors.  While he wound up returning briefly after the deadline, he was eventually shut down for the season and underwent cervical spine surgery back in April, one that carried a recovery time of two months.

Those health issues may scare off some teams in free agency, as will his reputation in the defensive zone. While Green has made considerable strides since he was a young player, to get the most out of him still requires some sheltering. Teams that are looking to plug in a top-four defenseman that can do a little bit of everything might be a bit disappointed, though anyone in need of some offense from the blue line should be lining up to bring him aboard.

The Red Wings need both of those things, but aren’t willing to commit to Green long-term as they enter a rebuild. It just doesn’t make much sense to sign an aging defender to a multi-year contract when the team is likely going to—if not outright aiming for a—finish near the bottom of the league and a reset on their salary structure and core players. If Green wants the security of a few seasons, he’ll have to find it elsewhere.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Nashville Predators Will Not Trade P.K. Subban

at CDT | by 3 Comments

Somehow P.K. Subban is always the subject of trade rumors. Despite another good season for the Nashville Predators that has him as a finalist for the Norris Trophy, there has still been speculation about whether the team would move on from their superstar defenseman, mostly to ensure enough cap room to lock up Ryan Ellis before he becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2019. GM David Poile spoke with The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun (subscription required), and explained how silly any Subban rumors are:

You see tweets from different places, but, that’s not happening. 

Nobody has even called me about him. P.K. played terrific this year. He played really well. He’s a really good player. He’s one of the three candidates for the Norris Trophy. I really don’t know where this comes from.

If you’re feeling like you’ve heard this before, that’s because Montreal Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin made similar comments before shipping Subban out to Nashville in exchange for Shea Weber in the summer of 2016. Even with that history though it doesn’t seem like the 29-year old defenseman is on the way out. Subban is a huge part of the Predators success, logging big minutes and providing a huge offensive boost from the blue line. Even with Ellis needing a new contract and Roman Josi up for an extension after that, there’s little doubt Subban will begin the 2018-19 season in Nashville.

In fact, it seems likely that Subban will play out the rest of his contract with the Predators. Signed for just four more years, the Norris-caliber defenseman will be just 32 when his current mega-deal expires and should still be an effective player. Unless his performance takes a sharp downward turn, or some off-ice incident prompts a move, his $9MM cap hit doesn’t seem impossible for Nashville to hold on to. Poile has done an excellent job locking up his homegrown talent to reasonable contracts, with players like Viktor Arvidsson and Mattias Ekholm still set to earn way less than market value for the next several years. The team will have close to $13MM in cap space this summer depending on where the upper limit lands, and plenty of room to extend Ellis and Josi when the time comes.

Offseason Keys: Boston Bruins

at CDT | by 5 Comments

With the Stanley Cup now awarded, the offseason is now in full swing.  What storylines lie ahead around the league in the weeks to come?  Our Offseason Keys series continues with a look at the Boston Bruins.

Last summer, the Bruins were fairly quiet as they opted to improve from within and give their youngsters some opportunities to make their mark.  They were rewarded for their patience as they nearly won the Atlantic Division while making it to the second round of the postseason before being ousted by Tampa Bay.  Now, GM Don Sweeney will be tasked with adding some pieces to help them take that next step forward.  Here are the keys to their offseason.

Re-Sign Or Replace Nash

In an effort to bolster their attack in advance of the postseason, the Bruins paid a hefty price to acquire winger Rick Nash.  The 33-year-old didn’t play poorly but he didn’t exactly move the needle either while he also battled a concussion.  Boston must now decide whether or not to re-sign him or try to fill that vacancy through other means.  At the very least, he is going to be taking a significant pay cut from the $7.8MM AAV he has had for the past eight years after failing to hit the 40-point plateau for the past three seasons.

Boston could opt to follow what worked for them this past season and earmark that spot for a youngster like Anders Bjork, Zach Senyshyn, or Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson.  However, with Jake DeBrusk and Danton Heinen already locked in as regular wingers and Ryan Donato appearing likely to have a regular spot as well, doing so could run the risk of having too many young players in important roles.  If it worked out, they’d be in great shape but if not, they may be forced to pay the price again next trade deadline.  Accordingly, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them go after another winger if they can’t get Nash locked up.

Then there’s the other Nash.  Center Riley Nash emerged as a legitimate two-way threat for the first time in his career, posting 41 points in 76 games.  (For perspective, his previous career high was 25 points.)  With a weak market down the middle, the 29-year-old has positioned himself for a big raise from the $900K he made in 2017-18.  With big money tied up already in Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, and David Backes (who has played center plenty in the past), can they afford to have another pivot making above average dollars?  On the flip side, given how important he was to them, can they afford to let him go?  While Rick Nash gets most of the attention given his history, Riley is an important player they need to decide on as well.

Find A Backup Goalie

History has shown that starting goaltender Tuukka Rask has struggled when he is leaned on to play too many games.  In 2017-18, he showed that with more rest, he can still be one of the better starters in the league.  The strong play of Anton Khudobin allowed Rask to have a few more games off but the backup netminder is set to hit free agency as one of the better players available in a fairly weak goalie market.

The 32-year-old is coming off of the third-largest workload of his career after making 29 starts while posting a respectable 2.56 GAA with a .913 SV%.  Those numbers may not stand out but overall, they’re pretty good for a career backup.  As teams around the league look to take more pressure off their number ones, a player like Khudobin who has shown he can handle a larger workload than a typical backup is going to garner a fair amount of interest.

If they aren’t able to bring Khudobin back, it’s likely that they will look elsewhere in free agency as they don’t really have anyone ready to step up and take over in their system.  Zane McIntyre, once viewed as a potential number two of the future, has seen his development largely stall at AHL Providence and their other minor pro options are just starting out.  Given how important rest is to Rask, expect the Bruins to follow the recent trend of paying a bit of a premium for an above-average backup whether it’s Khudobin or someone else.

Add A Top-Four Left Shot Defenseman

In the short-term, a one-two punch of Zdeno Chara and Torey Krug on the left side isn’t too bad.  However, there are some risks if they do start next season with those two in their familiar roles.  While Chara is still defying Father Time, he can’t be asked to log well over 20 minutes per night for much longer.  Eventually, he needs to drop down the depth chart.  Meanwhile, Krug’s offensive skills are a huge plus but his play in his own end is suspect at times which rules him out from really ascending to that top pairing.  Matt Grzelcyk has shown some promise but he’s not ready for that type of role yet either.

While they didn’t get him at the deadline, they did have interest in Ryan McDonagh and a player with his skill set would go a long way to really strengthening their back end.  Unfortunately for Boston, McDonagh is unlikely to be available this summer and there isn’t anyone like him in free agency so the trade route will be the way to go here.  With the surplus of quality youngsters up front, Sweeney will at least have some trade chips at his disposal.

On the right side, Boston is in great shape long-term with Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo leading the way.  Both players have five years of team control remaining so the team can afford to shift their focus to shoring up their left side and giving a quality back end a real boost.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top