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Archives for July 2018

Morning Notes: Miller, van Riemsdyk, Virtanen

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K’Andre Miller will miss out on his next opportunity to impress the New York Rangers staff as he’s been forced off the USA Hockey World Junior Summer Showcase roster due to illness. Miller, selected 22nd-overall in June’s draft, will give up his spot to Max Gildon, a third-round pick of the Florida Panthers who attended the Showcase last summer as well.

Miller will play this season at the University of Wisconsin, and continue to develop as a defenseman after switching positions from forward just two years ago. Though he’ll need time to develop his defensive instincts further, there are already signs that Miller could grade out as a top-end option for the Rangers down the line. His length and skating ability should allow him to thrive in the NCAA right away, though the World Juniors may have to wait until next year.

  • James van Riemsdyk knew that he wouldn’t be back with the Toronto Maple Leafs this season long before he signed with the Philadelphia Flyers, as his former team was up front with him heading into free agency. van Riemsdyk told media including Adam Kimelman of NHL.com that the Maple Leafs informed him they would be going in a different direction a few weeks before July 1st, and that he was grateful to them for being so honest. Interestingly, if we’re to believe that John Tavares made up his mind to go to the Maple Leafs just the night before signing, the team was prepared to let van Riemsdyk walk regardless and would have had an immense amount of cap space to go after other free agents. Signing a five-year $35MM contract with the Flyers, van Riemsdyk was arguably the second-best free agent option on the market behind Tavares.
  • Jake Virtanen has a lot of pressure on him to perform up to his high draft status this season, and he’s enlisted the help of a somewhat non-traditional source. Pavel Barber, the YouTube stickhandling sensation, has been working with Virtanen this summer according to Mike Johnston of Sportsnet. Barber runs coaching camps across North America and is known for his off-ice stickhandling routines, and Virtanen apparently can already feel an improvement in his game. After struggling to carve out a top-six role for himself despite a sixth-overall draft selection, any help is appreciated by Virtanen and the Vancouver Canucks. The 21-year old forward signed a two-year contract yesterday, and has a lot of pressure on him to perform in the next couple of seasons.

David Rittich Re-Signs With Calgary Flames

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The Calgary Flames have avoided arbitration with another restricted free agent, this time signing David Rittich to a one-year $800K contract. Rittich was scheduled for an arbitration hearing on July 28th, but has settled on a one-way contract with the Flames that could potentially take him to Group VI unrestricted free agent status next summer. The 25-year old goaltender is heading into his third professional season in North America, and would need to play in at least 13 games (for 30 minutes or more) to become ineligible for Group VI status.

There’s no guarantee Rittich gets that many games, as he’ll be battling Jon Gillies for the right to backup starter Mike Smith. Still, he should have an inside track in that fight given Gillies’ waiver-exempt status and two-way contract. If Rittich does get the NHL backup role, he’ll be trying to improve on the .904 save percentage he posted last season and show that he belongs in this league for the next chunk of his career. The undrafted goaltender signed with the Flames out of the Czech Republic in 2016, but hasn’t found much consistency at the NHL or AHL levels.

The Flames still have three restricted free agents to sign, but are down to just Garnet Hathaway as an arbitration-eligible player. His hearing is scheduled for Monday July 30th, after which the team can focus on extending Noah Hanifin. Getting Rittich, Hathaway, Brett Kulak and Mark Jankowski out of the way has taken a good chunk of the offseason, but the team still has plenty of time to find common ground on a long-term deal with Hanifin.

East Notes: Simmonds, Wilde, Noel

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The Flyers are hopeful that they can sign Wayne Simmonds but GM Ron Hextall indicated at a press conference today that they have no issue with talks for the winger leaking over into next season (quote via the Flyers’ team website):

“If we get something done before training camp or going into the year, I don’t have the answer for that… Simmer’s got the character that something like that is not going to affect him. It’s not going to affect our team. I can certainly live with it. I’m sure he can too.”

Simmonds is entering the final year of what has become a very team-friendly deal with a cap hit of $3.975MM.  The 29-year-old has scored at least 24 goals in each of the last five years and is one of the better pure power forwards in the league.  As a result, he’ll undoubtedly garner plenty of interest from elsewhere if the Flyers can’t lock him up on a new deal.

Elsewhere out East:

  • Islanders prospect Bode Wilde expects to play in the OHL next season, he noted to Brian Compton of NHL.com. The 2018 second-rounder (41st overall) spent last season with the US National Team Development Program which allowed him to maintain his college eligibility but the prospect of a longer schedule has pushed the defenseman to the major junior ranks instead of Michigan where he was originally expected to go.  Saginaw holds his junior rights but Wilde mentions that he’s not sure where he will actually play next season but expects to know where he’ll suit up soon.
  • Panthers prospect Serron Noel has been added to Canada’s entry for the upcoming World Junior Summer Showcase, Hockey Canada announced. The winger was Florida’s second-round pick (34th overall) last month and will be taking the place of Penguins fifth-round center Justin Almeida, who is unable to play due to injury.

Contract Talks Between Flyers And Robert Hagg Are Progressing

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Contract talks with restricted free agent defenseman Robert Hagg are progressing, GM Ron Hextall told reporters, including Sam Donnellon of the Philadelphia News.  The team is targeting a two-year bridge contract for the Swedish blueliner.

The 23-year-old completed his first full season at the NHL level in 2017-18 and acquitted himself fairly well.  While his offensive numbers weren’t anything special (3-6-9 in 70 games), he was a strong physical presence on their back end, recording 238 hits which ranked as the seventh-most in the NHL.  He also logged more than 18 minutes a night in the regular season.

It’s likely that Hagg will slot in on the third pairing once again next season, especially following the departure of Brandon Manning to Chicago in free agency.  That will allow him to ease his way into a larger workload while still providing Philadelphia with plenty of salary cap flexibility heading into next summer when wingers Wayne Simmonds, Travis Konecny, and defenseman Ivan Provorov are all in need of new contracts.

Hextall was also asked if the Flyers plan to pursue any other free agents or trades this summer but he indicated that the team is probably done shopping and that they are comfortable with internal options for their remaining vacancies, such as third line center.  That means that once Hagg (their last remaining RFA) is signed, we probably won’t be hearing much from then until training camp opens up in mid-September.

Trevor Linden Resigns As Canucks President Of Hockey Operations

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Trevor Linden, Vancouver’s President of Hockey Operations, is stepping down from his post, the team announced.  Team owner and managing partner Francesco Aquilini released the following statement:

“There aren’t many individuals in sport more connected to a team and a community than Trevor is in Vancouver.  The Canucks are entering an exciting new era thanks in large part to Trevor’s leadership and hard work. I thank Trevor for all of his accomplishments and I am confident that Jim Benning and his staff will continue that momentum in the months ahead.”

Linden joined the Canucks’ front office back in April of 2014 and hired Jim Benning as Vancouver’s general manager shortly thereafter. It was his first front office job and raised some eyebrows as first-time executives are seldom installed in that role.

The 48-year-old was a mainstay with Vancouver as a player as well, playing in 1,140 games over parts of 16 seasons with the Canucks and collected 733 points in that span.  Even though Linden later released a statement of his own on Vancouver’s team site, it is not known exactly why he stepped down although the press release indicated that he intends to pursue other endeavours and that the split was amicable.

West Notes: Eriksson, Hanzal, Zucker

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With the Canucks having paid a $6MM signing bonus to winger Loui Eriksson this month, Postmedia’s Jason Botchford suggests that his contract could soon become a movable one.  The front-loaded nature of his six-year, $36MM deal means that he is owed just $14MM now with still four seasons left to play on the deal.  That’s a much more reasonable cost for someone like Eriksson who has struggled in Vancouver.

However, before that could realistically happen, the 33-year-old will need to get off to a strong start next season.  Eriksson has put up just 21 goals in 115 games with the Canucks and other teams will undoubtedly want to see him get at least somewhat closer to his form with Boston before really showing interest.  Botchford adds that so far only the Canadiens (who are coached by Claude Julien who had him with the Bruins) have shown interest in him.  Eriksson does have the ability to block a trade should Vancouver find a taker as he has a full no-trade clause for the next two seasons before it converts to a 15-team no-trade clause for the final two seasons.

More from the West:

  • Back in April, Stars center Martin Hanzal underwent back surgery but was hopeful to be ready for the start of next season. That’s not going to happen, however, as GM Jim Nill told Sean Shapiro of The Athletic (Twitter link) that while Hanzal has started skating, the earliest he could return to the lineup is in late November.  Last season was the 31-year-old’s first in Dallas and it was one to forget as a litany of injuries limited him to just 38 games where he collected only ten points, a career-low.  Unfortunately for Hanzal and the Stars, 2018-19 is going to start off on a similar note.
  • Jason Zucker’s new contract with the Wild carries a ten-team no-trade clause in the final four years of the contract, reports Michael Russo of The Athletic (subscription required). The winger wasn’t eligible for one this coming season as he’s only 26 and not of UFA age just yet.

Snapshots: Iginla, Kirk, Greco

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The Calgary Flames announced today that Jarome Iginla will officially retire from professional hockey on Monday, though he hasn’t been an active player for a full season. Iginla, 41, did attend some AHL practices this past season and was a potential candidate for the Canadian Olympic team, but failed to actually play in any games. Monday will mark the end of a more than two decade long playing career that is sure to put him into the Hall of Fame without much delay.

Iginla ended up with 1,554 career regular season games in which he scored exactly 1,300 points. He never did raise the Stanley Cup—though Flames fans will still tell you how they deserved to win in 2004—but will still go down as one of the game’s all-time power forwards. With 625 career goals he ranks 15th on the career leaderboard, tied with Olympic teammate Joe Sakic. Iginla did win two gold medals at that tournament, and was the player who sent an incredible pass to Sidney Crosby for the “Golden Goal” in Vancouver in 2010. We’ll have more on Iginla’s retirement when it becomes official on Monday.

  • Liam Kirk, the first English born and trained player to ever be drafted into the NHL, has signed on to play with the Peterborough Petes of the OHL this season. Kirk was selected 189th overall by the Arizona Coyotes in June, and will have to compete at a brand new level next season. Playing for the Sheffield Steelers last season in the EIHL, Kirk recorded just 16 points in 52 games. He’ll be asked to do more than that this season for the Petes, but will have the luxury of playing against players his own age.
  • The New York Islanders have struggled for quite some time to find above-average starting goaltending, and they’ll try a different approach this season. The team has hired Piero Greco to replace Fred Brathwaite as their goaltending coach, taking him from the Toronto Maple Leafs organization where he has worked with their minor league affiliate for the past few seasons. Greco is credited for developing Maple Leafs goaltender Garret Sparks from a seventh-round afterthought into the AHL Goaltender of the Year, and will now try to turn around the careers of Robin Lehner and Thomas Greiss. Both goaltenders have shown high-level ability in the NHL, but will find some consistency if the Islanders are to compete in the Metropolitan Division this season.

Florida Panthers Avoid Arbitration With MacKenzie Weegar

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Another arbitration hearing can be cancelled, after the Florida Panthers announced they’ve come to terms with MacKenzie Weegar on a one-year contract. Weegar was scheduled for a hearing on July 30th, but will instead re-sign on a one-way contract worth $900K.

Weegar, 24, ended up with basically a full-time role with the Panthers in 2017-18 after the team traded away Jason Demers last September. In 60 games, the young defenseman recorded eight points and actually ranked second among Florida defenders in hits. That’s despite playing just over 14 minutes a night, which included virtually no time on the powerplay or penalty kill. If the team can avoid injury this year it’s not guaranteed that Weegar plays that many games again, though he certainly provides them with a strong depth option should they decide to insert him into the lineup.

With good skating skills and a habit of making quick, low-risk plays Weegar ended up with solid possession statistics and one of the best +/- ratings on the team at +5. Only Aaron Ekblad and Keith Yandle had better ratings among Florida defenders, while some of his direct competition for playing time struggled to post their previous solid play. There is a group of defensemen in Florida that will all be fighting for playing time this season, and there’s no doubt that Weegar will be right in the mix. If he doesn’t get at least 17 games he would qualify as a Group VI unrestricted free agent next season, and be allowed to sign wherever he wants.

Weegar was the final RFA left to sign for the Panthers, meaning their $2MM in cap space is free to spend on another player if they so choose. That number also includes several forwards who are unlikely to make the team out of camp, giving the team plenty of cap room to make a move in-season if they so choose. Florida will be trying to compete in a tough Atlantic Division where the Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs are early favorites for the playoffs. Still, there are many things to be excited about when looking at a Panthers team that has just two regular skaters over the age of 30.

Jason Zucker Agrees To Terms On Five-Year Contract With Minnesota Wild

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The Minnesota Wild and Jason Zucker have finally found some common ground, agreeing to terms on a five-year contract worth $27.5MM. Zucker was scheduled for arbitration on July 28th, but instead will be locked up at a $5.5MM cap hit for the next five seasons. The year-by-year breakdown is as follows:

  • 2018-19: $5.0MM
  • 2019-20: $6.25MM
  • 2020-21: $4.8MM
  • 2021-22: $6.25MM
  • 2022-23: $5.2MM

Zucker, 26, experienced a breakout season at exactly the right time in his career to maximize his earning potential. After three strong but not outstanding campaigns, Zucker exploded for 33 goals and 64 points in 2017-18 while playing in all 82 games for the Minnesota Wild. Though some of that had to do with the success he found on the powerplay, Zucker still scored 25 goals at even-strength which tied him for 14th in the entire league alongside players like Tyler Seguin, Taylor Hall and Claude Giroux. With just one year remaining as a restricted free agent, the Wild needed to pay up to keep Zucker around or face a one-year arbitration decision and potentially losing him next summer to unrestricted free agency.

What they’ve accomplished by keeping Zucker’s cap hit to $5.5MM is potentially quite a bargain for the Wild, who could have one of the better even-strength producers in the league for a discounted price should he continue to play as well as he did last year. The five years at $5.5MM per season compares well with contracts like the ones given to Mika Zibanejad, J.T. Miller and even teammate Nino Niederreiter, none of whom have cracked 30 goals or 60 points in any season of their careers. While obviously each brings other talents to the table, Zucker should be able to easily produce enough to make the contract palatable as long as he doesn’t take a huge step backwards in the next few seasons.

That’s unlikely to really happen at any point in the contract given that the Wild have mostly locked up his late-twenties instead of early-thirties, giving them a chance to get out of the contract when a decline should be expected to start. Though they have other examples right in front of them like the continued brilliance of Eric Staal, the Wild haven’t taken on a ton of risk in this contract for Zucker, other than the fact they’re handing it out after a career season.

Still, there are some who might struggle to accept the offseason as a whole for Minnesota. After bringing in a new front office and GM with Paul Fenton, the team was expected to make some big changes to the core in order to try and go further in the playoffs and finally really compete for the Stanley Cup. Instead, they’ve handed out long-term contracts to Zucker and Mathew Dumba while failing to sign any real impact free agents outside of Greg Pateryn. With two big, long contracts still on the books with Ryan Suter and Zach Parise, the Wild will need some exceptional performances from some of their younger players while relying on repeat performances from Zucker and others.

Yegor Sharangovich, Eric Tangradi Sign With New Jersey Devils

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The New Jersey Devils have convinced Yegor Sharangovich to sign his three-year entry-level contract, and according to team beat reporter Amanda Stein, expect him to come to North America this season. Sharangovich played last season in the KHL with Dinamo Minsk, and suited up for Belarus at the World Juniors this past winter. The team has also announced a one-year, two-way contract for veteran minor league forward Eric Tangradi.

Sharangovich, 20, was a fifth-round selection by the Devils in June in his third year of eligibility. It was a worthwhile gamble by the Devils after watching the young forward participate in the last two World Championships against NHL players, and now play a regular shift in the KHL. Though he recorded just 12 points in 47 games there, it bodes well for his professional future that he wasn’t completely overmatched at such a young age. It’s unlikely that he’ll make an NHL impact right away, but for the small price of a late-round pick, the Devils will try to develop his big talented frame into a legitimate two-way center prospect.

Tangradi on the other hand comes with plenty of NHL and AHL experience. The 29-year old forward has spent the last two seasons exclusively in the minor leagues playing for the Grand Rapids Griffins, where he won a Calder Cup in the spring of 2017. In this most recent season he led the club with 31 goals and finished eighth in the entire league in points with 64. He should give the Binghamton Devils a huge offensive boost and even be depth for the NHL club if injuries arise. Tangradi has played in 144 NHL games, though hasn’t been able to find much success at the higher level.

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