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Michael McCarron Re-Signs With Montreal Canadiens

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The Montreal Canadiens were busy last night finalizing a huge trade package, but have done some more work this morning by signing restricted free agent Michael McCarron to a one-year, two-way contract worth just over $874K at the NHL level.

McCarron, 23, is likely nearing the end of his rope in Montreal after once being a top prospect selected in the first round of the 2013 draft. Since then, the 6’6″ center’s production has steadily declined to a point in which he isn’t even much of an offensive threat in the minor leagues. In 69 NHL contests over the last few seasons, McCarron has recorded eight points including just a single assist in his 18-game 2017-18 stint. There could be a defensive role for him on a roster, but as the NHL moves more and more towards skill and speed, the big bruising center may be falling a little out of touch.

Still, there should be a real opportunity for him to show his improvement this season. Young enough to take a substantial step forward, Montreal will be evaluating many of their young players this season in the wake of Max Pacioretty and Alex Galchenyuk trades. There is a new wave coming to lead the Canadiens into their next competitive window, and management would surely like nothing better than for McCarron to show he can be part of it.

McCarron will be a restricted free agent again next summer, but will have arbitration rights making the decision to give him a qualifying offer much more difficult for Montreal. If he can’t catch on this season or at least be a minor league contributor, he may need a fresh chance somewhere else.

Montreal Canadiens Trade Max Pacioretty

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Early this morning the Montreal Canadiens have finally found a package they can live with, and have traded captain Max Pacioretty to the Vegas Golden Knights. Montreal will receive forward Tomas Tatar, prospect Nick Suzuki and a 2019 second-round pick in exchange for the veteran winger. The Canadiens will retain 10% of Pacioretty’s remaining contract, while Vegas will be retaining 9.434% of Tatar’s—equaling exactly $500K for the former Golden Knights winger.

Pacioretty, rumored to be available for months, is expected to sign a long-term extension with the Golden Knights at some point given that Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin told reporters including Eric Engels of Sportsnet that the deal was contingent on a contract being signed with the new team. The Montreal GM also confirmed that there was a trade request from Pacioretty last season, something that had been debated in the media over the last few weeks. The now former captain will be heading west where he’ll try to bounce back from a disappointing 2017-18 campaign that saw him score just 17 goals.

The Golden Knights have been looking for added scoring since the loss of James Neal and David Perron in free agency, and many expected Tatar to step into an increased role. Vegas had traded a first, second and third round pick to the Detroit Red Wings at the deadline last season in order to acquire the 27-year old Tatar, but he didn’t find an immediate fit in the expansion roster and ended up sitting as a healthy scratch at times in the playoffs. The investment clearly didn’t pay off, given that Tatar has been shipped out of town after just 28 games as a Golden Knight.

Along with the former Red Wings forward, Montreal gets one of the best prospects in hockey in Suzuki. Selected 13th overall in 2017, Suzuki returned to the OHL and recorded 100 points in 64 games for the Owen Sound Attack. Though he’s likely not headed for the NHL this season, he could very well lead the OHL in scoring and then make the jump in 2019-20. A versatile forward, Suzuki is praised for both his natural goal scoring ability and offensive instincts and should help to replace the talent heading west in Pacioretty. Though there are some who doubt his future lies at center, the Canadiens have at least added another potential option down the middle going forward.

After the public battle between Pacioretty’s representation and the team, a package of this quality will be a refreshing conclusion for many Montreal fans. It did not seem like there was much of a future in Montreal for the 29-year old winger, while Tatar at least will be in town for the remaining three seasons on his contract. That is if the Canadiens don’t decide to flip him again, given that package that he brought to Detroit just a few months ago.

Five Key Stories: 9/3/18 – 9/9/18

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With preseason hockey set to kick off shortly, activity has started to pick up around the league.  Here’s an overview of the top stories of the past week.

Pacioretty Sets Extension Deadline: Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty has been at the forefront of the rumor mill in recent months with his eventual departure seeming like a foregone conclusion at this point.  While an extension with Montreal appears to be out of the question, Pacioretty indicated that he won’t negotiate a new deal with any team once the regular season gets underway on October 3rd.  It will certainly be worth watching to see if that deadline helps spur trade talks involving the winger.

Latest On Seattle: While representatives from Seattle’s ownership group (which was just bolstered by new minority investors) will be meeting with the NHL in October, their potential expansion franchise won’t be voted on at that time by the Board of Governors.  It’s not a given that it will be on the agenda for their December meeting either.  Shortly after that came out, it was noted that construction on the prospective arena won’t begin until a franchise is officially granted.  While this isn’t likely to ultimately quash things, it could certainly delay when the team enters the league.  Instead of 2020-21, the most realistic option now appears to be that they will start in 2021-22 at the earliest.

Jets Lock Up Wheeler: Winnipeg entered the summer with several core players entering the final year of their respective contracts and it was only a matter of time before they started to address that.  They got the ball rolling by signing winger Blake Wheeler to a five-year, $41.25MM extension ($8.25MM AAV).  That represents a significant raise on his current deal which carries a $5.6MM cap charge.  While the deal locks up Wheeler through his age-37 season which is a little risky, the captain has very quietly been one of the more productive players in the league in recent years; only four players have more points than Wheeler does over the past three seasons.

Kelly Retires, Rejoins Senators: Long-time checking center Chris Kelly split last season between the AHL, the NHL, and Canada’s Olympic team, has called it a career at the age of 37.  The veteran played in 845 career NHL games over parts of 14 seasons, collecting 291 points along the way.  His post-playing days have already started as he has signed on with Ottawa as a player development coach.  The bulk of Kelly’s playing career game with the Senators after being drafted by the team back in 1999.

Seguin Extension Talks: After previously declaring his disappointment with the fact he has yet to sign a contract extension, talks have picked up in recent days between center Tyler Seguin and the Stars.  GM Jim Nill expressed that he’s hopeful a deal can be reached in time for the start of the season.  If they can’t come to terms, Seguin projects to be the top unrestricted free agent forward in July and could follow a process quite similar to the one that John Tavares went through this summer.  It will be interesting to see if Jamie Benn’s $9.5MM AAV represents an internal cap on an offer to Seguin or if they’re willing to pass that mark to get the 26-year-old locked up.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Snapshots: Laine, Rangers, Tyszka

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Heading into the offseason, many expected that the top picks from 2016 in Toronto’s Auston Matthews and Winnipeg’s Patrik Laine would get early extensions done with their respective teams.  It has already been established that it’s doubtful that Matthews will get a deal done and Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff  indicated to Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre that there’s no particular rush to get Laine locked up either:

We’re open to everything. Again, Laine is a huge part of our organization and will be for many, many years to come. If (a contract) happens tomorrow, that’s great. If it happens a year from tomorrow, great.

Laine has quickly established himself as one of the top scoring threats in the league and with that in mind, it stands to reason that they might be able to sign him for less now than it would cost if he has another highly-productive season.  However, if Laine believes he can be among the top scorers again, he may prefer to wait.  At either rate, it doesn’t seem like the Jets are worried that their young star hasn’t signed just yet.

Elsewhere around the league:

  • The Rangers aren’t expected to bring in any veterans on training camp tryouts, reports Larry Brooks of the New York Post. New York is in the midst of a youth movement and is expected to have several key prospects contend for a roster spot so it appears they don’t want to clutter things up by having a tryout or two pushing to play as well.  Among the youngsters pushing for spots are 2017 first round centers Lias Andersson and Filip Chytil.  Even though there is fairly strong depth down the middle already, GM Jeff Gorton told Brooks that they don’t envision shifting them to the wing which could affect their push to make the team.
  • Canadiens defensive prospect Jarret Tyszka has been diagnosed with a concussion following a hit that resulted in him being stretchered off the ice this afternoon in a rookie tournament game against Toronto, notes Sportsnet’s Eric Engels. It’s the second straight game that a Montreal prospect was concussed and stretchered off the ice as Jake Evans suffered the same fate on Friday.  Tyszka, a fifth-round pick of the Canadiens back in 2017, is expected to return to Seattle of the WHL for the upcoming season.

PHR Originals: 9/3/18 – 9/9/18

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Here’s a rundown of some of the original content here at PHR over the past seven days.

Our look into the salary cap situations of the Atlantic Division came to an end as I reviewed the Red Wings and Maple Leafs.  Meanwhile, Holger kicked off the Central Division with an assessment of the Blackhawks and Avalanche.

Quite a few first-round picks from June have already signed while others are either waiting to sign or aren’t eligible to (or else they’d lose their college eligibility).  Gavin provided a breakdown of who has and hasn’t put pen to paper on their entry-level deals and where each of those top picks is expected to play this coming season.

We’re close to wrapping up the top ten in our 2006 redraft.  Kyle Okposo was voted as the eighth overall selection to the Coyotes, one spot lower than he was actually picked.  The current poll is for the ninth pick and the Minnesota Wild and there’s still time to make your choice.

Gavin held his weekly live chat.  Topics included the strange Max Pacioretty situation in Montreal, the top candidates to land a PTO deal in the coming days, a look at the Coyotes, potential contenders for the Calder Trophy, and what, if anything, Vegas should do on the back end thanks to Nate Schmidt’s suspension and the fact that Shea Theodore remains unsigned.

Speaking of that defensive corps for the Golden Knights, Zach suggests that UFA blueliner Kevin Bieksa could be a natural fit.  He intends to keep his family in California and wants to play this upcoming season.  As a veteran that can fill a third pairing spot in a pinch, the match certainly makes some sense.

With the season now less than a month away, our 2018-19 primer series continues.  I previewed the Capitals, Golden Knights, Canucks, and Maple Leafs while Holger looked at the Lightning and Blues.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Colorado Avalanche

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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 2018-19 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.

Colorado Avalanche

Current Cap Hit: $67,318,095 (under the $79.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Alexander Kerfoot (one year, $925K)
F Dominic Toninato (one year, $925K)
F J.T. Compher (one year, $925K)
F Mikko Rantanen (one year, $894K)
F Tyson Jost (two years, $886K)
F Vladislav Kamenev (one year, $833K)
F A.J. Greer (one year, $741K)
D Samuel Girard (two years, $728K)
D Anton Lindholm (one year, $718K)

Potential Bonuses:

Rantanen: $850K
Jost: $850K
Kerfoot: $213K
Girard: $183K
Lindholm: $183K
Compher: $100K
Greer: $75K

Total: $2.47MM

For a successful team that made it into the playoffs and gave the Nashville Predators a run for their money, it’s a bit surprising that the team got quite a bit of contributions from entry-level players, with Rantanen probably at the top of the list of contributors. After a 20-goal season in his first full season on the team, the 21-year-old took that next step and benefitted from playing with Nathan MacKinnon on the first line, breaking out with a 29-goal, 84-point season. With the top line expected to return this season, don’t be surprised if the winger puts up another big season right before he becomes a restricted free agent and could get rewarded with a long-term contract.

The team expects similar success from Kerfoot, who arrived in Colorado as a four-year college free agent from Harvard University. The 24-year-old posted a 19-goal, 43-point rookie campaign last year as a member of the team’s third line and now is expected to move up a notch and battle Jost for the second-line center position, with the loser moving to right wing on the same line. Jost, scored 12 goals last season in his rookie season, but the 2016 first-rounder is expected to break out if he can earn a spot on that second line as well. Both are likely to have promising seasons.

The 23-year-old Compher is another young talent who will be given every chance to fight for a spot as the left wing on the second line. In his first full season, Compher posted 13 goals and could be in line for a bigger season next year. The team also has high expectations for Girard on the defense. One of the key pieces of the Matt Duchene trade, the then 19-year-old defenseman was able to stay in the NHL, averaging 17:39 ATOI once he was traded from Nashville and posted 20 points in his rookie season and should be able to improve on that as he will likely assume a top-four role already next season.

One interesting prospect is Kamenev, who also came over with Girard in the Duchene deal, but the 22-year-old center was injured one game into his Colorado career, and he missed most of the season. Now healthy, Kamenev has a good chance to earn a role on the team’s third line in hopes of putting up good numbers next year. Toninato may also be an interesting addition as he has a chance to pick up the fourth-line center spot after signing last season out of the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

G Semyon Varlamov ($5.9MM, UFA)
F Colin Wilson ($3.94MM, UFA)
D Patrik Nemeth ($2.5MM, UFA)
D Nikita Zadorov ($2.15MM, RFA)
F Sven Andrighetto ($1.4MM, RFA)
F Gabriel Bourque ($950K, UFA)

With cap room at a premium, general manager Joe Sakic had the opportunity to use that to his advantage as he was able to acquire the bloated contract of Brooks Orpik from Washington to acquire their future goaltender in Grubauer, who has posted two straight seasons of .923 save percentages or higher. The Capitals’ backup goalie looks ready for a chance to take a starting role and while he might split time with Varlamov early on, the team’s hopes is that Grubauer steals the job away from him. Varlamov and his $5.9MM contract is set to expire next year, meaning the Avalanche are likely going to allow him to walk.

The team has a pair of defensive players in Zadorov and Nemeth, who will be fighting for contract extensions next season. Zadorov has been a key defensive player for the team, posting 278 hits as well as blocking 106 shots. He even posted a career high in both goals (7) and points (20). Nemeth came over to Colorado from Dallas and immediately jumped into the rotation and led the team with a plus-27 rating and was crucial to the team’s penalty kill and likely will take a third-pairing role once again.

Wilson could be pushed down to the team’s third line or provide a veteran presence on the second line depending if one of the youngsters fails to impress in camp. However, the 28-year-old is coming off of one of his worst-ever seasons as he posted just six goals and 18 points last season. Andrighetto will be another youngster who should get some time in the team’s bottom-six.

Two Years Remaining

D Tyson Barrie ($5.5MM, UFA)
F Carl Soderberg ($4.75MM, UFA)
F Matthew Nieto ($1.98MM, UFA)
D Mark Barberio ($1.45MM, UFA)
D Mark Alt ($725K, UFA)

The 27-year-old took that next step for the Avalanche, putting up career numbers in both goals and points as he posted 14 goals and 57 points last season as he’s proven to be a No. 1 defenseman that the franchise really needs. The team must find a way to lock him up to an extension in July next year.

Soderberg doesn’t post big offensive numbers, but is viewed as a critical shutdown defender, who the Avalanche put up against other teams’ top players. The 32-year-old did put up 16 goals and 37 points last year, but his main responsibility is to center the team’s third line. Nieto will likely end up there with him, who also produced at a career-high as he posted a 15-goal season last year.

Three Years Remaining

F Gabriel Landeskog ($5.57MM, UFA)
D Ian Cole ($4.25MM, UFA)
G Philipp Grubauer ($3.33MM, UFA)
F Matt Calvert ($2.85MM, UFA)

Landeskog has become an integral part of the Avalance’s top line as he posted numbers that are comparable to his best seasons of his career as he posted 25 goals and 62 points. The 25-year-old has added excellent balance to that top line since the team moved on from Duchene. The second-overall pick in 2011 might be able to start meeting the high expectations of his draft status if the chemistry between Rantanen and MacKinnon continue.

Cole, Grubauer and Calvert were all recent additions this offseason with Grubauer having already been discussed. However, the team hopes to get some solid value out of both Cole and Calvert at their respective positions. Cole should provide veteran depth to developing defense and if he plays well enough could beat out Girard or Zadorov for a top-four spot, but is more likely to settle into a third-line pairing. Calvert should be able to provide third or fourth-line depth since his lack of offensive skills would likely prevent him from earning a second-line role.

Four Or More Years Remaining

F Nathan MacKinnon ($6.3MM through 2022-23)
D Erik Johnson ($6MM through 2022-23)

The amazing thing is that Colorado only has two players locked up long-term and considering that MacKinnon was one of the top vote-getters for the Hart Trophy last season after the 23-year-old posted 39 goals and 97 points, the team has a steal of a deal with him. With the rising salaries of star players, the fact that Colorado has MacKinnon locked up for five more years at just $6.3MM only makes their situation better and should allow the team to add even more talent over the next couple of years.

The team also has five more years of Johnson at $6MM, which isn’t as good. While Johnson is a solid defensive defenseman, the 30-year-old is injury-prone and hasn’t been able to play 80 games just once in his 10 NHL seasons. He managed nine goals and 25 points in 62 games last season and still remains the team’s second-best defenseman.

Buyouts

D Brooks Orpik ($2.5MM in 2018-19; $1.5MM in 2019-20)

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Still To Sign

None

Best Value: MacKinnon
Worst Value: Johnson

(Excluding entry-level contracts)

Looking Ahead

The Avalanche is a young team that just a year ago many considered to be one of the worst in the NHL. Thanks to the superb play of many of their young players, the team should be in good hands. Colorado has plenty of cap space to handle long-term deals that will need to be given to their many youngsters with Rantanen the most likely to be handed a long-term extension and the team may even have the ability to go after a big-name free agent in a year or two if they continue to improve and show they are the most intriguing team in the Central Division.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Metropolitan Notes: Murray, Couturier, Lundqvist, Merzlikins

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have a lot invested in their goaltender of the present and future in Matt Murray. You would think replacing Marc-Andre Fleury might be a challenging procedure, but Murray’s .923 save percentage in 49 games proved that the youngster was ready for the full-time role, one of the reasons why it wasn’t as hard to let Fleury go. However, last year’s struggles already has several fans worried about Murray’s long-term success.

Murray struggled with both injuries as well as the death of his father during the 2017-18 season in which he still played in 49 games, but didn’t fare as well, posting a .907 save percentage as well as a 2.92 GAA. However, Murray as well as the team’s other backups, Casey DeSmith and Tristan Jarry, have worked hard with goaltending coach Mike Buckley, who challenged each one of them, according to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Buckley feels that Murray has put too much pressure on himself to replace Fleury and needs to accept that he’s the “guy” now.

“The next step for him is to take it all in and enjoy it. ‘Hey, I’m the guy now. I can accept that. I don’t have to be Marc-Andre Fleury, but I can be tighter with my teammates and really open up to them.’” Buckley said.

Buckley added that Murray has worked hard on his conditioning and hopefully should be able to avoid injury, although some injuries like concussions are just unavoidable.

“In terms of how he takes care of his body, he’s meticulous,” Buckley said. “The problem is the things that you can’t control. A concussion, for example. Someone coming down and landing on you the wrong way. There’s really very little you can do about that.”

  • Sam Carchidi of philly.com writes that Philadelphia Flyers general manager Ron Hextall says that No. 1 center Sean Couturier will be “absolutely” 100 percent at the start of the season in October and is already ready to resume skating. Couturier, who was expected to miss four weeks on Aug. 22 with a lower-body injury, is coming off a career-best season in which he scored 31 goals and 76 points and was a key part to the Flyers’ late-season success on a line with Claude Giroux and Travis Konecny.
  • Shayna Goldman of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that this will be a challenging season for New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who is coming off two poor seasons and now finds himself in the middle of a rebuilding project. Lundqvist has endured a very physical workload over the course of his career and didn’t get significant rest last season from then-head coach Alain Vigneault. One thing is imperative. The 36-year-old needs rest, which will be a key for new head coach David Quinn. The problem is that the team lacks an adequate backup as the no longer have either Cam Talbot or Antti Raanta serving behind him. The team now has a number of prospects, including Alexandar Georgiev, Dustin Tokarski and Marek Mazanec. However, unless one of them can step up, none seem likely to provide Lundqvist the kind of rest that he needs.
  • With the possibility that the team could lose star goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky to another team when he hits free agency next season, the Columbus Blue Jackets are placing more emphasis on the future suddenly, according to Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (subscription required). While the team has their immediate goaltender of the future in their backup Joonas Korpisalo, the team is focusing their long-term hopes on Elvis Merzlikins, their third-round pick in 2014, who has been a dominant prospect for Lugano of the Swiss League. The 24-year-old has been one of the top goaltenders in the league, posting a .924 save percentage last year and is ready to come to North America next season.

2018-19 Season Primer: St. Louis Blues

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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 St. Louis Blues.

Last Season: 44-32-6 record (94 points), fifth in the Central Division (failed to reach the playoffs)

Remaining Cap Space: $284,845 per CapFriendly

Key Additions: F Ryan O’Reilly (trade, Buffalo Sabres); F Tyler Bozak (free agent, Toronto Maple Leafs); F David Perron (free agent, Vegas Golden Knights); F Patrick Maroon (free agent, New Jersey Devils); G Chad Johnson (free agent, Buffalo Sabres); F Brian Flynn (free agent, Dallas Stars); D Tyler Wotherspoon (free agent, Calgary Flames); F Jordan Nolan (free agent, Buffalo Sabres)

Key Departures: F Kyle Brodziak (free agent, Edmonton Oilers); G Carter Hutton (free agent, Buffalo Sabres); F Patrik Berglund (trade, Buffalo Sabres); F Vladimir Sobotka (trade, Buffalo Sabres); F Tage Thompson (trade, Buffalo Sabres); F Wade Megan (free agent, Detroit Red Wings); F Beau Bennett (free agent, Dinamo Minsk (KHL)); Petteri Lindbohm (free agent, Laussane (Swiss League))

[Related: Blues Depth Chart From Roster Resource]

Player To Watch: G Jake Allen — The team has upgraded its offense, already had a solid defense and has several of their top prospects banging on its door, hoping to get into their rotation this year. What they didn’t do much with is their goaltending. Allen, once considered the franchise goalie, has now struggled for more than a full season, but with three years at $4.35MM per season still on the books, he’s not going anywhere this year.

The 28-year-old netminder struggled down the stretch during the 2016-17 season, but his consistency got even worse last year when he posted a .906 save percentage and a 2.75 GAA in 59 games. The team was forced to use Hutton on many occasions to replace the struggling goaltender. In hopes of redeeming his job, Allen has said that he has changed some of his training methods this summer and hopes to come into camp and prove that he is the starting goaltender.

The team had better hope that he can, because the team lost Hutton to the Buffalo Sabres in the offseason and replaced him with Johnson, who struggled in a one-year stint in Buffalo, albeit behind an atrocious defense. The team does have prospect Ville Husso waiting in the AHL, but many believe he still needs at least one year of seasoning there before he can challenge Allen for his job.

Key Storyline: The offense has been thoroughly upgraded in the last few months and it will be up to the team to find a way to gel and make it work. One key story will be whether they can get the breakout performance that everyone in the NHL has been waiting for from Vladimir Tarasenko. The winger posted three impressive seasons coming into last year, including a 37, 40, 39-goal seasons. However, while the 26-year-old still had a solid season last year, his 33 goals was a disappointment for a player who many felt was closer to a 40-goal scorer than a 30-point scorer.

One possibility to Tarasenko’s season could come down to the addition of O’Reilly. Adding a top-line center will be critical and if the two can co-exist, then you might see the development of a superstar as Tarasenko and Paul Stastny had limited chemistry together. There is also a likelihood that Maroon, who played together with Connor McDavid in Edmonton for a while, could add his physicality to that first line and give Tarasenko an even better chance to have a big season.

Overall Outlook: Looking at the massive changes to the team, especially at the forward position means the team expects to win now. The franchise has put a lot of expectations on head coach Mike Yeo and the team as they are expected to not just make the playoffs, but compete for the Central Division title. That’s a tough chore for any Central Division team if you assume that the Nashville Predators and Winnipeg Jets will likely assume the first two spots in the division. That leaves just two playoffs spots for the rest of the division that includes the Minnesota Wild, who have been to the playoffs for six straight years, an improving Dallas Stars team, a young impressive Colorado Avalanche franchise and the Chicago Blackhawks who are trying to prove that their run isn’t over just yet. If the team fails to impress early on, that could put Yeo on the hot seat.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Atlantic Notes: Chara, Nylander, Senyshyn

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Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara enters his 13th season with the Boston Bruins and his 21st in the NHL. At age 41, many thought that the defenseman could be close to the end, especially after he signed just a one-year extension ($5MM AAV plus $1.75MM in incentives) back in March for this upcoming season. However, Chara has admitted that he’s motivated to play longer than that, according to The Athletic’s Joe McDonald (subscription required).

Chara, known to be a workout warrior, said that he is as motivated as he always is when it comes to working out.

“Even when I had five-, seven-year deals I always tried to prove myself every year, so it doesn’t make a difference for me,” Chara said. “I always try to be at my best, bring my best and play at a high level and always try to improve. It’s doesn’t matter if it’s one-year contract or seven-year deal.”

McDonald writes that with the addition of the left-handed John Moore from New Jersey will allow Chara some more flexibility and the blueliner could either return alongside Charlie McAvoy or even be paired with former partner Brandon Carlo.

  • John Vogl of The Athletic (subscription required) writes that Buffalo Sabres prospect Alexander Nylander looks like a changed man as he joined his brother William Nylander this summer in workouts. The eighth overall pick in the 2016 draft struggled last year in the AHL, posting just eight goals in 51 games with the Rochester Americans and hasn’t been mentioned as a potential candidate to make the Sabres’ lineup this season. Vogl writes that the 20-year-old looks obviously both taller and more muscular after those summer workouts and looks more determined to make the team. “I just really like how big and strong he’s gotten,” Prospects Challenge coach Chris Taylor said, “and his maturity level.” That could be a key for a successful season no matter where he ends up as he has been known in the past to lack enough maturity to take his game seriously.
  • Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald writes that Boston Bruins forward Zach Senyshyn is now playing in his fourth rookie tournament. The 15th-overall pick from the 2015 draft shouldn’t be confused with players like Mathew Barzal, Kyle Connor, Brock Boeser or Travis Konecny, who the team all passed over to take Senyshyn. However, the Bruins continue to slowly develop the speedy 21-year-old to work on his game after posting pedestrian numbers in his first full season in the AHL, including 12 goals and 26 points. The team especially hopes to develop his special teams skills, including penalty killing and teaching him to become more physical that he might eventually work himself into the Bruins bottom-six.

 

Hurricanes To Bring In KHL’s Michal Cajkovsky On PTO

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The Carolina Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell said the team will be bringing in KHL defenseman Michal Cajkovsky to training camp, tweets Chip Alexander of the News & Observer.

The 6-foot-4, 236-pound Cajkovsky spent the past two years in the KHL for Yekaterinburg Automobilist, where he posted seven goals and 19 points for the team in 43 games last season. The left-shot defenseman also spent time playing for the Slovakian national team in both the Olympics and in the World Championships. Cajkovsky did spend some time in North America as part of the Washington Capitals organization as he played two years in the ECHL for both the Reading Royals and the South Carolina Stingrays between 2013 and 2015 and was promoted for a 13-game stretch with the AHL’s Hershey Bears in 2015.

What Cajkovsky’s chances are to make the Hurricanes is another question. The team is already loaded on the left side of their defense as they already carry Calvin de Haan and Jaccob Slavin for their top-four as well as Trevor van Riemsdyk and Haydn Fleury as two players battling for the final spot on the left side. The team is already deep on the right-side with Dougie Hamilton, Justin Faulk and Brett Pesce.

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