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Archives for June 2019

Five Key Stories: 6/24/19 – 6/30/19

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With free agency now just hours away, the activity around the league is about to pick up considerably.  This past week has encompassed the UFA interview period although the big news has come from the trade and retirement fronts.  Note that while some signings have already been rumored, those aren’t considered here as they’re not official yet.

Luongo Retires: While Roberto Luongo had three years left on his contract, his salary took a big dip in those seasons as part of an effort to lower the AAV down.  Accordingly, there was speculation as to whether or not he’d play again.  He put an end to those talks with the announcement of his retirement.  He leaves in third place on the all-time wins list with 489 and is a safe bet to be inducted into the Hall of Fame down the road.  He also leaves a bit of a legacy with Florida and Vancouver on the salary cap as both teams are subject to recapture penalties due to the back-diving nature of his contract.  The Panthers will carry a $1.094MM penalty for three seasons while the Canucks will be charged $3.033MM per year over that same span.

Colorado Swaps: Shortly after being eliminated from the postseason, Avalanche GM Joe Sakic said he planned to be aggressive this offseason.  He certainly has made good on that promise on the trade front after completing a pair of deals (plus a small AHL swap as well).  First, the Avs moved center Carl Soderberg to Arizona for blueliner Kevin Connauton and a 2020 third-round pick.  They then flipped that pick plus a second-rounder to Washington for Andre Burakovsky.  Burakovsky was qualified at $3.25MM so that will be the minimum that Colorado will pay him for the upcoming season; as a result, they didn’t really add or save payroll space with these moves.  No team has less in cap commitments for next season than the Avalanche so expect them to continue to be active in the coming days.

Kessel To Arizona: After weeks, months, and even a couple of years of trade speculation, the Penguins pulled the trigger on a Phil Kessel trade, flipping the winger to Arizona along with defenseman Dane Birks in exchange for forward Alex Galchenyuk and 2017 first-rounder Pierre-Olivier Joseph.  The trade reunites Kessel with former Pittsburgh assistant Rick Tocchet who he enjoyed playing for while giving the Coyotes a legitimate top-line forward that can produce on a fairly consistent basis.  Meanwhile, Galchenyuk has shown flashes of offensive upside over the years but has yet to put it all together while Joseph boosts their prospect depth on the back end.  Galchenyuk has one year left on his contract at a $4.9MM cap hit and will be UFA-eligible after the season.  That frees up a bit of short and long-term flexibility with Kessel costing $6.8MM for three more years.

Chicago Additions: A couple of months ago, the Blackhawks looked like they’d be big players in free agency.  That may not be the case anymore as they’ve instead focused on the trade route.  After bringing in Olli Maatta earlier this month, they added another piece to their back end, acquiring Calvin de Haan and prospect Aleksi Saarela from Carolina in exchange for defenseman Gustav Forsling and goalie Anton Forsberg.  All of a sudden, their defensive depth is quite strong.  After that, they brought back winger Andrew Shaw (and a 2021 seventh-round pick) from Montreal in exchange for a trio of draft picks.  Shaw is coming off of a career year and will give them a physical dimension that they’ve been lacking since they dealt him away three years ago.  The three acquisitions have added more than $12.5MM on their cap and with Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome each being a year away from restricted free agency, they’ll want to make sure they don’t take on many more multi-year commitments.

Vegas Cap Cuts: With all of the long-term contracts that Vegas handed out last season, some cuts were going to be required in order to get back into salary cap compliance.  Those moves were made with center Erik Haula being sent to Carolina in exchange for center prospect Nicolas Roy and a fifth-round pick.  Meanwhile, Colin Miller was dealt to Buffalo for a 2021 second-round pick and a 2022 fifth-round selection.  The swaps save the Golden Knights a little over $6.6MM in cap room but they will still be in tough to stay under the Upper Limit, especially with Deryk Engelland closing in on a new deal as well.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Columbus Makes Late-Night Push To Re-Sign Artemi Panarin

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11:30pm: Midnight has come and gone in the eastern time zone without an announced contract for Panarin. The Blue Jackets can now only offer him a seven-year contract like any other team. Adrian Dater of Colorado Hockey Now reports that the Avalanche also offered a six-year, $70MM ($11.67MM AAV) deal to Panarin, though Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet was told an even higher amount.

9:39pm: For most of the last year, all signs pointed to Artemi Panarin leaving the Columbus Blue Jackets for another team on July 1 as the top free agent available. The Florida Panthers had been rumored for months to be interested in acquiring his services, and then earlier today a report surfaced that he might be heading to the New York Islanders instead. Now in a late-night push the Blue Jackets have put their best offer on the table, one that Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (subscription required) reports is believed to be for eight years at an average annual value of $12MM. The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun has heard the same, though Portzline suggests it could be even higher than that.

Panarin was the consensus top choice in our Top 50 UFAs this season, and is a superstar talent that can create offense all on his own. The most interesting part of the offer is that the Blue Jackets can only technically offer an eighth year until midnight (EST), after which they would be in the same position as any other team only able to offer seven seasons. With reports surfacing that the Blue Jackets’ other top free agents, Matt Duchene and Sergei Bobrovsky will be leaving town, it is obvious that GM Jarmo Kekalainen wanted to take one more crack at keeping one of his stars.

Currently the highest paid player in the league is Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid who signed an eight-year, $100MM deal quickly after becoming eligible for an extension. Panarin though would easily become the highest paid winger in the league with a deal like this, and shatter the market set by players like Mark Stone and Nikita Kucherov in recent years. Patrick Kane, who signed his current deal back in 2014, currently carries a $10.5MM cap hit while Alex Ovechkin is more than a decade into his 13-year contract which carries a cap hit of $9.54MM.

UFA Notes: Donskoi, Benn, Varlamov

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Free agent frenzy came early this year, with details leaking out on many of the top names a day early. Teams are not supposed to actually discuss specific financials, but cap hits and terms have poured out all evening. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet tried to summarize all of the day’s leaks and also reported some new information on a few names. One of those is Joonas Donskoi, who is still expected to sign with the Colorado Avalanche for an average annual value between $3-4MM. Friedman doesn’t give a suggestion on the term of the deal.

Donskoi ranked 21st on our list of the Top 50 UFAs after a quietly effective campaign, where we projected him to sign a three-year, $9.6MM deal with the Avalanche. The former San Jose Sharks forward may be able to outperform even that if given a bigger role in Colorado alongside some of their other talented forwards. Some other notes on pending free agents:

  • Tyler Myers and Jordie Benn are both expected to sign with the Vancouver Canucks according to Friedman, though obviously nothing is finalized until tomorrow afternoon. Myers has been linked to the Canucks for some time and may very well challenge for the biggest contract given out to a defenseman tomorrow. Benn meanwhile is also coming off a career season and has set himself up for a nice payday, though it shouldn’t come close to the money handed out to Myers. Vancouver allowed Derrick Pouliot and Ben Hutton to hit the market by not issuing them qualifying offers, and apparently have already found some veteran replacements.
  • The league-wide game of goalie musical chairs continues, with Friedman suggesting that Semyon Varlamov could be heading to the New York Islanders. The Islanders have been unable to come to terms with pending free agent netminder Robin Lehner despite his outstanding season, and since it looks like they missed out on Sergei Bobrovsky as well they needed an established goaltender to come in and help Thomas Greiss next season. No details on what Varlamov will be signing have emerged yet, but we projected just a two-year, $6.5MM deal for him in our ranking.

Dallas Stars Sign Corey Perry

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It appears as if Joe Pavelski won’t be the only veteran heading to Dallas.  TSN’s Frank Seravalli reports (Twitter link) that winger Corey Perry will sign a one-year deal with the Stars.  The deal will carry a $1.5MM base salary and will also contain up to $1.75MM in potential performance bonuses.

The 34-year-old is coming off the toughest season of his lengthy NHL career.  A knee injury cost him 51 games and when he was in Anaheim’s lineup, he struggled considerably.  He wound up with just six goals and four assists in 31 games with the Ducks and was having difficulties keeping up at times.  As a result, they decided to buy out the final two years of his contract earlier this month.

The one bright side to the injuries is that it enabled Dallas to put incentives in his contract.  Normally, that’s restricted until a player turns 35 but because Perry spent at least 100 days on IR and has more than 400 career games under his belt, that made him eligible as long as he signed a one-year deal.

While Perry is coming off of a tough season, it’s certainly a reasonable gamble for the Stars to make.  Secondary scoring was an issue for them in 2018-19 and at a $1.5MM base salary, they don’t need him to be a huge producer to justify that price tag.  If he can settle in and play somewhere in their middle six, he should be able to provide decent value on this contract as long as he can stay healthy.

Offseason Keys: St. Louis Blues

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With the postseason and draft now finished, the activity is really about to pick up with free agency now just hours away from officially opening.  What storylines lie ahead around the league in what is shaping up to be a busy NHL offseason?  Next up in our Offseason Keys series is a look at the St. Louis Blues.

What a strange season it was for St. Louis.  They were a team that was believed to be on the way up following the offseason acquisition of Ryan O’Reilly.  Instead, they were in the basement around the halfway point of the year.  A relative unknown was brought up as their backup goalie at this time and the team took off.  They worked their way up to second in the division and then got it done in the postseason as they won the Western Conference crown before defeating Boston in the Stanley Cup Final.  As a result, their offseason to-do list isn’t as big as some other teams.  Here’s what will be on the horizon for them.

Schenn Extension Talks

While Brayden Schenn took a step back offensively after a career year in 2018-19 (O’Reilly’s addition was a big factor), the center was still a big part of their attack.  He eventually settled in on their second line and the potential is there for that to be a nice one-two punch down the middle for a while.

However, the 27-year-old is entering the final year of his contract and is slated to hit the open market next summer.  We’ve seen the going rate for second-tier centers go up considerably in recent years and as someone who at the very least is a capable second liner, Schenn is going to be in that mix.  Accordingly, he should be looking at a minimum of a $2MM increase on his current $5.125MM AAV.

Will he be seeking more than O’Reilly’s $7.5MM?  Will GM Doug Armstrong be using that as sort of a hard cap for as high as he’s willing to go?  (It’s worth noting that Vladimir Tarasenko also sits at $7.5MM.)  As is always the case at this time of year, it’s not a pressing need but for certainty moving forward, expect the Blues to at least get a sense of what the parameters of a new deal for Schenn will be.

New Contract For Binnington

Jordan Binnington’s rise from being a goalie that got loaned to Boston’s farm team in 2017-18 after he blocked an ECHL demotion to anchoring their second-half turnaround and helping lead them to the Stanley Cup was certainly fascinating.  From a contract standpoint, what’s to come could be just as interesting to follow.

What is the going rate for a Cup-winning goalie that has a grand total of 33 career regular season games under his belt (all but one of which came in the same season)?  Simply put, there isn’t one.  There isn’t anything close to one so this is uncharted territory here.  He’s also arbitration-eligible which just adds another wrinkle to the equation.

At the very least, given how he took over for Jake Allen down the stretch and in the playoffs, Binnington’s camp will likely be seeking a price tag that’s equal to or greater than the $4.35MM AAV that Allen carries.  But how much higher is justifiable?  He has basically had one good season so he’s not going to be able to command top dollar or even the type of money that a proven multi-year starter could fetch.

The other question the two sides will have to work through is the term.  There’s risk here for both sides.  If the Blues commit long-term and he falters, it will be a tough contract to get out from under it.  On the other hand, if Binnington fares well, he could wind up leaving a lot of money on the table by locking in now.  A short-term deal could be safer for the Blues but riskier on Binnington’s end.  There’s a lot to work through here.  They’ll get a contract done but the process of how they get there is going to be worth following.

Add Defense Prospects

While the Blues have some short-term work to do to get their bottom-six forward group re-signed, they have a longer-term concern that they may be looking to address.  Their NHL defense corps is basically set once RFA Joel Edmundson re-signs.  However, there isn’t much depth behind that group in the minors which is something they’ll likely look to address on the open market with some two-way contracts and get a player or two that can be recalled in a pinch when injuries hit.

Beyond that, their prospect pipeline is fairly thin at that position beyond 2018 draft pick Scott Perunovich.  Depending on what they’re able to do in free agency, a forward or two could eventually be squeezed out and if that’s the case, expect Armstrong to try to target defense prospects in any trades they try to make over the coming months.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

UFA Notes: Pickard, Agostino, Leier, Speculation

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There’s a goalie competition coming to Detroit. TSN’s Frank Seravalli reports that free agent goalie Calvin Pickard is poised to sign a two-year deal with the Red Wings when the market opens tomorrow. As Seravalli notes, that will pit him against Jonathan Bernier for the backup role behind Jimmy Howard. With Howard, 35, signed through just next year but both Bernier and soon Pickard signed for two more years, the time share in net next season in Detroit could be fascinating. Not only could the two veteran goalies battle to be Howard’s understudy next season, but they could be in line to replace him a season later. Neither keeper found much success in 2018-19. Bernier, who some expected to beat out Howard for the starting job, instead posted the worst numbers of his career – a .904 save percentage and 3.16 GAA – in 35 appearances. Pickard fared even worse, allowing an .875 save percentage and 3.86 GAA in a season split between the Philadelphia Flyers and Arizona Coyotes. Pickard’s advantage in the battle though will be his price point, expected to be low after a down year, compared to Bernier’s $3MM mark.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs are lacking the cap space to do much of anything other than adding affordable depth pieces. Adrian Dater of Colorado Hockey Now reports that one such deal is already done. Former AHL MVP Kenny Agostino is expected to sign a two-year, one-way contract with the Leafs, though Dater does not provide any salary details. Agostino, 27, finally got a full-time look in the NHL last season, playing in 63 games with the Montreal Canadiens and New Jersey Devils. Agostino recorded 24 points on the year, a mark that Toronto would be very happy with if the winger comes in at a low cost.
  • It was a year of change for Taylor Leier, who experienced both his first trade, moving from the Philadelphia Flyers to the Buffalo Sabres, and his first season spent exclusively in the AHL. Despite qualifying for Group 6 unrestricted free agency, it seems the 25-year-old forward has place emphasis on familiarity instead of opportunity. The Rochester Americans, affiliate of the Sabres, have announced a one-year AHL contract with Leier. The signing comes as a bit of a surprise, considering Leier spent the entire 2017-18 season in the NHL and has been a very productive AHL player. Young and capable, Leier seemingly would have been a good fit for a two-way deal somewhere, but apparently would rather stay put in Rochester, perhaps in hopes of convincing Buffalo that he is worthy of an NHL contract.
  • Spoiler alert! Although he acknowledges that they are just educated guesses and provides few details, TSN’s respected insider Bob McKenzie has offered some insight where some of the biggest UFA names may end up tomorrow. McKenzie believes that Columbus teammates Artemi Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky may not end up as a package deal after all. He thinks that Panarin, and possibly Semyon Varlamov, could land with the New York Islanders, while Bobrovsky goes alone to the Florida Panthers. Those moves would then leave the Carolina Hurricanes and Columbus Blue Jackets as the likely to suitors for Robin Lehner. McKenzie also states that a long-term deal for Mats Zuccarello with the Minnesota Wild appears to be close to done.

Anaheim Ducks Acquire Nicolas Deslauriers

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In their second trade of the day, the Montreal Canadiens have dealt two-way forward Nicolas Deslauriers to the Anaheim Ducks, the team announced. In return, the Habs have acquired Anaheim’s 2020 fourth-round pick. This is yet another salary dump for Montreal, as they free up cap space ahead of the opening of free agency on Monday.

In Deslauriers, the Ducks land an affordable and effective bottom-six option. The 28-year-old Deslauriers has shown modest offense at times, albeit inconsistently, but his real value comes in his physicality and ability to create turnovers and win puck battles. Although Anaheim has great depth up front in regards to a number of pro-ready prospects, Deslauriers is the type of experienced, gritty forward who can help to protect the young offensive talent. At $950K, he hardly makes a dent in the salary cap to provide an underappreciated but critical service.

It is somewhat of a surprise that the Canadiens moved the Quebec native, but Montreal is clearly gearing up to spend money on a major addition this off-season. On top of that, they continue to stockpile 2020 draft picks for a draft that they are hosting. The Ducks’ fourth-rounder makes it 12 selections for Montreal next year, eight of which come in the first four rounds. This is thus another deal that plays into a bigger plan for the Habs.

Chicago Blackhawks Acquire Andrew Shaw From Montreal

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The Chicago Blackhawks announced they have re-acquired forward Andrew Shaw from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for three draft picks. Chicago will send a 2020 second-round pick, a 2020 seventh-round pick and a 2021 third-round pick to Montreal in exchange for Shaw and a 2021 seventh-round pick.

Shaw spent the first five years of his career in Chicago after the Blackhawks drafted him in the fifth round in 2011. The physical forward scored 20 goals in the 2013-14 season and followed that up with 15 and then 14-goal campaigns after that. However, with salary cap troubles on them in 2016, the Blackhawks were forced to trade Shaw to Montreal in a draft-day deal for two second-round picks. One of those picks turned into Alex DeBrincat.

Shaw signed a six-year $23.4MM deal a few days later with the Canadiens. He has provided the Canadiens with solid middle-six depth in the three years he’s been with Montreal, picking up 19 goals and a career-high 47 points last year where he spent most of his time on the second line. Shaw still has three years remaining on his deal at $3.9MM AAV. With Chicago, he should immediately slot in on either the second or third line and provide the team with both scoring and a physical presence.

For Montreal, who many feel could be major players in free agency on Monday, the team now has $12.6MM in cap space with rumors that the team is right in on players like Matt Duchene and Anders Lee. Unloading Shaw and his $3.9MM could go well into helping the team add a more veteran scorer to the lineup, while adding three future picks, including a future second and third-rounder should only help the Canadiens down the road.

Eastern Notes: Francis, Payne, Johansson, Reimer, Lehner, Mastrosimone

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One name that hasn’t gotten quite a bit of attention the last year has been that of former Carolina Hurricanes general manager Ron Francis. The former GM has spent the last few months on a management team that put together the roster for Canada at the recent World Championships. Sportsnet’s John Shannon points out that today is the last day that he is under contract with Carolina and could be free to sign with an other NHL team. According to Shannon, His work with Hockey Canada has increased his desire to return to the NHL.

Fox Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland adds that Francis name has come up for a while as a strong candidate for the general manager position in Seattle. Francis help build the Hurricanes roster that eventually eliminated the former Stanley Cup Champion Washington Capitals last year and reached the conference finals.

  • Ottawa Senators new head coach D.J. Smith will add another key assistant to his staff. After bringing in Jack Capuano to be his associate head coach, the Senators announced today that they have also added former St. Louis Blues head coach Davis Payne as an assistant coach for the 2019-20 season. The 48-year-old Payne spent the past two years in Ottawa’s division as the associate coach for the Buffalo Sabres and Phil Housley. Before that he spent five years as an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Kings and helped lead the team to the 2014 Stanley Cup Championship. As head coach in St. Louis, he spent parts of three seasons there between 2009 and 2011, finishing with a 67-55-15 record.
  • TSN’s Darren Dreger writes that unrestricted free agent forward Marcus Johansson is talking to a number of teams today, but he is no longer talking to the Boston Bruins. The 28-year-old was acquired by Boston at the trade deadline for their playoff run, but reports indicate that his price tag is more than Boston wants to pay. Dreger adds that Boston is totally out of the picture now.
  • News & Observer’s Luke DeCock reports that while the Carolina Hurricanes acquired goaltender James Reimer earlier today, his stay in Carolina could be short. The scribe writes that Carolina isn’t necessarily planning on keeping the goaltender as the team continues to look to make more deals ahead of the opening of free agency on Monday. If they can find a taker, the team may try to flip him to another team.
  • The Athletic’s Arthur Staple adds that the Reimer trade suggests that the Florida Panthers are the leading candidates to sign Sergei Bobrovsky, which means the Islanders could find themselves without a top goalie. He points out there is plenty of time to re-connect with Robin Lehner. The two sides weren’t close in negotiations, but the Islanders may have no choice to change their stance in discussions.
  • The Detroit Red Wings got some bad news Saturday when they learned that recent draft prospect Robert Mastrosimone, the team’s second-round pick this year, suffered broken right ankle during development camp last week, according to the Detroit Free Press’ Helene St. James. The injury will require four to six weeks of rehab. Mastrosimone scored 31 goals for the USHL Chicago Steel last season.

Mike Smith Signs With Edmonton Oilers

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The Edmonton Oilers have signed veteran goaltender Mike Smith on the first day of free agency. Smith will earn $2MM on a one-year contract

With Mikko Koskinen under contract as their 1A, the Oilers have been looking for a 1B option in goal, but with little money to spend and quite a few holes to fill, the team didn’t have the option of signing one of the high-priced goalies on the market. While Smith has been a solid goaltender in previous years and was even an all-star in the 2017-18 season, the 37-year-old has declined more recently. He appeared in 42 games last season, but saw his save percentage drop below .900 for the first time since the 2010-11 season as he finished the year with at .898. However, the team hopes that Smith can rebound while sharing the net with Koskinen.

Smith would replace Cam Talbot, who was reported earlier today as likely to sign with Calgary, who served as the backup in Edmonton last year until the team traded him to Philadelphia. The Oilers picked up Anthony Stolarz in the deal, but didn’t show much interest in bringing him back. Smith should provide some stability next to Koskinen, who the team locked up to a three-year, $13.5MM deal earlier this year.

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