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Archives for July 2019

Five Key Stories: 7/22/19 – 7/28/19

July 28, 2019 at 9:00 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

With arbitration hearings on the horizon, many of the top stories from the past seven days have involved players settling for contracts before meeting with the arbitrator.

Calgary Settlements: The Flames handed out a pair of short-term contracts to avoid arbitration.  Forward Sam Bennett received a two-year, $5.1MM deal while goaltender David Rittich inked a two-year, $5.5MM pact.  Bennett, the number four pick in 2014, has yet to live up to his draft billing and has been more of a bottom-six forward at this point of his career.  This contract will give him a chance to take another step forward but if he continues to play at the same level, it’s possible that he’ll be a trade candidate before long.  Meanwhile, Rittich had a breakout campaign in 2018-19 and ultimately wound up basically splitting starts with Mike Smith last season.  However, that was only his first full NHL campaign so he didn’t have a lot of leverage in talks.  It’s worth noting that his deal will take him to UFA eligibility, something that isn’t the case for Bennett.

New Arena Deal For Flames: The contracts weren’t the only good news for the Flames as they also reached a tentative agreement with the city on a new arena to replace the Saddledome, one of the oldest arenas remaining in the NHL.  This has been something that had been pursued for several years but each time it looked as if some progress was being made, things had fallen through but that isn’t the case here.  The new facility is expected to cost roughly $550MM with the team and city sharing the cost evenly.

Seven For Sissons: Several years ago, Nashville surprised many by giving center Calle Jarnkrok a six-year, $12MM deal.  The contract was largely unprecedented for a role player and not many have signed a deal like that since then.  The Preds are certainly happy with how that deal turned out and they have gone that route again by signing winger Colton Sissons to a seven-year, $20MM contract.  The 25-year-old is coming off of a career season with 15 goals and 15 assists although it’s the only time in his career that he has reached the double-digit mark in scoring so there is certainly some risk committing to that long of a contract.  Nonetheless, Nashville believes he can be a useful middle-six player for years to come at a price tag that is under what a lot of third line players have been getting.

Clarkson To Toronto: Back in 2015, the Maple Leafs dealt David Clarkson to Columbus for Nathan Horton with the belief that adding the injured Horton would aid their cap flexibility.  Four years later, they’ve reacquired him with the belief that adding the injured Clarkson will aid their cap flexibility.  Toronto intends to be strategic with the order of their placements of players on LTIR in an effort to maximize their in-season cap space, something that could come in handy with RFA winger Mitch Marner’s situation.  Meanwhile, the Golden Knights added goaltender Garret Sparks in the swap (while surrendering a fourth-round pick to Toronto).  Sparks will battle Malcolm Subban for the number two role in Vegas while the trade also freed up the ability for them to re-sign defenseman Deryk Engelland to a one-year, bonus-laden deal with a base salary of $700K with an extra $800K in bonuses.

Bridge Deal For Buchnevich: The Rangers avoided salary arbitration with Pavel Buchnevich, signing the winger to a two-year, $6.5MM contract.  The 24-year-old scored a career-best 21 goals last season and will look to build on that next season but with the addition of Artemi Panarin plus the presence of top prospects Kaapo Kakko and Vitali Kravtsov, he may be hard-pressed to reach the 15 minutes per game mark like he has the last two seasons.  As Buchnevich was New York’s final arbitration filing, the team now has a 48-hour second buyout window that opens up on Monday.  They’re several million over the Upper Limit already so they may be taking advantage of that in the near future.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Uncategorized Week In Review

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PHR Originals: 7/22/19 – 7/28/19

July 28, 2019 at 7:20 pm CDT | by Brian La Rose Leave a Comment

Here’s a closer look at the original content here at PHR over the past week.

With free agency in full swing, there are quite a few veteran players that are still searching for new contracts.  While we wait for them to find new homes, we’ve started to take a closer look at where those players may fit.  I took a look at center Derick Brassard, defenseman Ben Lovejoy, and center Brian Boyle while Zach assessed center Oscar Lindberg’s situation.  With a few teams being tight to the salary cap and several others holding onto their remaining cap space until they can re-sign their key restricted free agents, the UFA market has been slow to develop beyond the July 1st flurry so far.

While teams that are in a cap crunch are garnering most of the attention, Zach examined the teams that are tight to the contract limit of 50.  Seven teams now sit with 48, just two below the maximum.  Of those, Tampa Bay appears to be in some trouble as they still have two restricted free agents to re-sign in winger Adam Erne and center Brayden Point.  They’ll undoubtedly want to get both signed by training camp and heading into the season with no flexibility in terms of contract slots would be risky.  Accordingly, a trade that sees someone under contract get moved for an unsigned prospect or a draft pick is something that is likely to happen in the coming weeks.

Already this summer we’ve seen several instances of players opting to waive their no-trade clause to facilitate a deal with some rumblings where players decided not to as well.  With that in mind, we asked our readers to pick who they would have on their no-trade lists.  With roughly 16,000 votes cast, the three teams with the most selections were ones that have struggled in recent years in Ottawa, Edmonton, and Buffalo.  At the other end of the spectrum with the fewest votes were Tampa Bay, Colorado, and Nashville.

While most players over the past week have settled on a new contract before making their pre-hearing arbitration filings, Sabres center Evan Rodrigues did go through the full process after a career 2018-19 season that saw him put up 29 points in 74 games.  Zach broke down both sides of the case but as is often the case when it goes to an arbitrator, the end result came in very close to the midpoint of the filings as Rodrigues was ultimately awarded $2MM (the midpoint was $2.075MM).

Uncategorized Pro Hockey Rumors Originals

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Snapshots: Jets, Kings, Badgers

July 28, 2019 at 6:00 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 2 Comments

A lot has been made about the rumored discourse in the Winnipeg Jets’ locker room. The team suffered another early exit from the postseason this year and some reactions from players, coaches, and media members alike indicated that chemistry concerns may have played a role. This off-season hasn’t helped the narrative either, with mainstays Tyler Myers, Ben Chiarot, and Brandon Tanev all electing to walk away as free agents, while Jacob Trouba was traded and Marko Dano and Joe Morrow were not qualified. Andrew Copp was re-signed, but only after a salary arbitration award, and Patrik Laine and Kyle Connor remain unsigned. It’s not good look for a group of players who some feel don’t get along.

Well, star player Mark Scheifele wants to put a stop to these whispers. Speaking with NHL.com’s Mike Zeisberger, the Jets’ No. 1 center said that he is confident in his team’s chemistry. “People can claim whatever, but I know we have a tight-knit team,” Scheifele said, “We have great guys in our room. And there’s no question in my mind about the character we have in our room, the unity that we have.” He summed up the ongoing drama by stating that “you know what’s going on in your room. Anything extra is a bunch of baloney.” Scheifele admitted that it was difficult to see the likes of Trouba, Myers, Chiarot, and Tanev leave and hopes that there are resolutions shortly with Laine and Connor, but did not hint that internal issues were the cause of any of their negotiations. Of course, Scheifele would never come out and say otherwise, but it should provide Winnipeg fans with a bit of comfort that he was willing to speak openly about the locker room and tried to shut down the rumors that personalities have or could continue to affect the team’s performance.

  • The World Junior Summer Showcase is underway and fans of the Los Angeles Kings should pay close attention. NHL.com’s Adam Kimelman writes that the Kings lead the way with seven prospects participating in the tournament, headlined by recent No. 5 overall pick Alex Turcotte of Team USA. In fact, each of L.A.’s top four selections in June are in attendance; Turcotte is joined by fellow first-round pick Tobias Bjornfot, fellow American forward Arthur Kaliyev, and forward Samuel Fagemo, who joins Bjornfot on Team Sweden. Fourth-round pick Kim Nousiainen will also suit up for Team Finland. 2018 picks Akil Thomas and Aidan Dudas will both line up at forward for Team Canada. It’s an impressive collection of young talent for the Kings and one that should inspire hope for the future for a team that finished last in the Western Conference this past season with just 71 points. This group likely won’t be making an impact in the NHL in 2019-20, but L.A. is grooming a talented young core to take over down the road.
  • As for next season, Turcotte definitely won’t be in L.A., as he’s committed to playing at the University of Wisconsin. The Badgers’ incoming recruiting class has been very highly regarded, as it features Turcotte and fellow U.S. National Team Development Program products Cole Caufield (MTL) and Owen Lindmark (FLA), as well as another 2019 draft selection in Ryder Donovan (VGK) and potential 2020 top-ten pick in Dylan Holloway. With so many talented freshmen incoming, the question has been how head coach Tony Granato would use his rejuvenated roster. That question has been partially answered for the arguably the team’s new two best forwards. Talking to The Athletic’s Corey Pronman at the Summer Showcase, Caufield stated that he and Turcotte will play on the same line for Wisconsin, at least to begin the year. The duo have some familiarity, although Caufield – the No. 15 pick this year – largely played on Jack Hughes’ wing last season. However, they both possess immense offensive talent, while Turcotte has the two-way intelligence to compensate for Caufield’s lack of size and defensive focus if need be. Having played on the international stage already, the adjustment to the college level should not be too difficult and Turcotte and Caufield could put up huge numbers in their first (and likely only) collegiate season.

Los Angeles Kings| Prospects| Snapshots| Team Canada| Team Finland| Team Sweden| Team USA| Winnipeg Jets Andrew Copp| Ben Chiarot| Brandon Tanev| Cole Caufield| Jack Hughes| Jacob Trouba| Joe Morrow| Kyle Connor| Mark Scheifele| Marko Dano| Patrik Laine| Team Canada

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Free Agent Profile: Oscar Lindberg

July 28, 2019 at 4:02 pm CDT | by Zach Leach Leave a Comment

It’s been nearly a month since NHL free agency opened and a number of notable players remain unsigned, including 13 of PHR’s Top 50 Free Agents. Given the slow-moving nature of the market and the limited cap space that many teams are dealing with, it’s no surprise that a role player like Oscar Lindberg, ranked No. 47 on our list, remains unsigned.

With that said, Lindberg could prove to be a surprise steal once he does find his next team. The 27-year-old forward has been a consistent bottom-six contributor in each of his four NHL seasons, but finally showed some top-six upside in a late-season stop with the Ottawa Senators. Lindberg earned career-high minutes in Ottawa and recorded five goals and eight points in 20 games, a 20-goal and 33-point full season pace. He also returned to playing center, his natural position from his start with the New York Rangers but a role he was not given while with the Vegas Golden Knights. A relatively young player to be available on the open market and who has the potential to keep improving beyond just a defensive forward role, a team interested in Lindberg could wind up with a middle-six center at a good value at this point in the off-season.

Potential Suitors

Much like in Ottawa, Lindberg’s ceiling will be highest in a situation where there is room for him to compete for a top-six or at least top-nine role. A team that still needs help up front is likely the most realistic scenario salary-cap wise as well. It’s possible that a contender could look at Lindberg for a bottom-six role if the price is right, but more likely a rebuilding club will be enticed by the reliable defensive play and offensive upside that he can bring to make a superior offer.

Among the teams that could look at Lindberg more closely as the off-season wears on are the New Jersey Devils, Los Angeles Kings, and Minnesota Wild. All three clubs could really use some more depth up front and have room for Lindberg to compete for a key role. On top of that, they all have the cap space to accommodate a potential contract.

Other interested teams who may look at Lindberg as more of bottom-six depth piece could include the New York Islanders and Columbus Blue Jackets.

Projected Contract

In our Top 50 projections, we expected that Lindberg would land a two-year deal with a $2.1MM AAV. At this point in the summer, a multi-year deal seems less likely. However, it’s hard to see the salary dropping off by much. Lindberg made $1.7MM on his last contract and set a career high in ice time this past season, as well as recording 20 points in 55 games. If anything, his previous salary should be the low mark on a possible deal with something closer to the $2.1MM projection still the more likely result. It’s a salary range that teams in Europe would be happy to match to add a player of Lindberg’s ability, so interested NHL teams may have a hard time trying to drive the price down. Unless Lindberg is dead set on staying in North America at all costs, he should be able to negotiate a fair deal before the start of next season.

Free Agency Oscar Lindberg

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Eastern Notes: McAvoy, Carlo, Kreider, Samsonov

July 28, 2019 at 1:55 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 5 Comments

There are quite a few restricted free agents that still haven’t been signed yet, but the Boston Bruins still have two of them in defensemen Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo and the Boston Globe’s Matt Porter suggests that fans may have to sit through not seeing them at training camp and potentially even having them sit out like William Nylander did last year with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Porter suggests that McAvoy could be looking for similar money to that of Jacob Trouba, who signed with the New York Rangers for seven years at $8MM AAV. However, a holdout might be necessary because Trouba had the benefit of an arbitration hearing deadline and had all the leverage on his side. That isn’t necessarily the case with McAvoy who doesn’t have arbitration rights and whose only leverage would be holding out. Carlo, an improving defenseman, could be looking for $4MM per season in a long-term deal.

Regardless, the Bruins already tight against the cap for the next few years, need to make sure they don’t overpay for the two defensemen, which might require the team to unload another player down the road.

  • In his Saturday’s Slapshots column, New York Post’s Larry Brooks mentions that the New York Rangers and Chris Kreider’s agent Matt Keator, haven’t had a conversation yet about what it would take to sign the 28-year-old to a long-term contract. While Brooks believes that is strange that both sides haven’t spoken yet, he believes that both sides are content to go into the season with Kreider in the last year of his current contract. The Rangers would be hard-pressed to sign Kreider to a long-term deal after handing out long-term deals to Artemi Panarin and Trouba and a number of talented young forwards who will eventually have to be paid down the road as well.
  • With a tumultuous offseason ahead for the Washington Capitals in the goaltending category with Braden Holtby expected to become an unrestricted free agent, The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir (subscription required) writes in a mailbag column that he wouldn’t be surprised if star goaltending prospect Ilya Samsonov could win the backup goaltending job in training camp. It would help the team determine whether the 22-year-old might be ready to take over as the team’s starting goaltender in 2020-21. Samsonov had an up-and-down first season in North America last season, putting up a .898 save percentage in 37 games with the Hershey Bears, but was much more impressive in the second half. However, there is no guarantee that he is ready for a back-up NHL role yet, so don’t count out Pheonix Copley.

Boston Bruins| New York Rangers| Washington Capitals Braden Holtby| Brandon Carlo| Charlie McAvoy| Chris Kreider| Ilya Samsonov| Pheonix Copley

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Pacific Notes: Rittich, Bennett, Puljujarvi, Archibald

July 28, 2019 at 12:30 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 2 Comments

After signing a two-year deal Saturday, Calgary Flames goaltender David Rittich is now ready to prove to Flames’ fans that he is ready to take over the full-time duties in net this year. While he more than doubled his appearances last season, the 26-year-old lost his job to Mike Smith in the playoffs as Rittich faded in the stretch run.

Rittich started the season strong last season. Before the all-star break, he had a 19-4 record in 30 games, posting a 2.47 GAA and a .918 save percentage, but saw those numbers fall off after the all-star break. Rittich instead appeared in just 15 games after the break as it looked as if he wore down, putting up a 2.85 GAA and a .898 save percentage. Rittich didn’t appear in any of the team’s playoff games after that.

The goaltender, however, has changed his workout regimen this summer with the intention of being able to endure the long season and starting even more games this season than the 45 he played in last season, according to Sportsnet’s Eric Francis. Rittich no longer has Smith to lean back on. Calgary instead brought in veteran Cam Talbot, who has struggled significantly over the past two years. The Flames need Rittich now more than ever.

“I would like to play more than last year, but it’s up to how I play,” said Rittich. “I’m working really hard so I think I can play more than 60 games.”

  • The Athletic’s Darren Haynes (subscription required) writes now that Calgary Flames forward Sam Bennett, who recently signed a two-year deal, could get an increase in minutes on the ice this year. The 23-year-old averaged just 13:17 of ATOI on the left wing, but with so many left wingers on the roster, someone may have to move over to the right side. Haynes writes that Bennett might be the perfect player who might even be able to crack the top-six this year and perhaps have the breakout season that everyone has been waiting for since Calgary selected Bennett with the fourth overall pick in 2014.
  • Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal writes that the chances that Edmonton Oilers winger Jesse Puljujarvi returning to Edmonton is starting to improve. Despite the restricted free agent’s request to be traded away from Edmonton in hopes of a fresh start, a deal hasn’t happened as it’s believed that Ken Holland hasn’t received a suitable offer for Puljujarvi and with training camps already underway in Europe, his chances of returning there is lessening by the day. He writes the only place Puljujarvi can go to get decent pay at this point is with the Oilers. Still just 21 years old, Puljujarvi must show more offense no matter where he plays after finishing with just four goals in 46 games.
  • Leavins also added that he wouldn’t be surprised if recent signee Josh Archibald should play a big role throughout the Oilers lineup as new head coach Dave Tippett is quite familiar with him. Tippett, a resident of Arizona, spent quite a bit of time watching Archibald last season when he was with the Coyotes and could be an instant favorite of the coach and could see playing time up and down the lineup next season. Archibald finished with 12 goals and 22 points in 68 games, but also finished with 161 hits.

Calgary Flames| Dave Tippett| Edmonton Oilers David Rittich| Jesse Puljujarvi| Josh Archibald| Sam Bennett

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Metropolitan Notes: Namestnikov, Brown, Werenski, Siegenthaler, Malkin

July 28, 2019 at 11:00 am CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg Leave a Comment

While a buyout of one of the New York Rangers defensemen seems like a popular option to fix the fact that the team is currently projected to be over the salary cap after New York paid out $19.65MM AAV for both Artemi Panarin and Jacob Trouba, there are still other options that might make even more sense.

With plenty of rumors that New York could choose to buyout Kevin Shattenkirk, Brendan Smith or Marc Staal when their buyout window opens on Monday, The Athletic’s Rick Carpiniello (subscription required) writes that the team might be better off saving their future cap room from carrying extra dead weight. One way to do that is move forward Vladislav Namestnikov, who carries a $4MM cap hit this year before becoming a unrestricted free agent. While teams might have shown little interest in the 26-year-old who scored just 11 goals last season, one better option would be to retain some of his salary, which could easily make him a more attractive trade option and wouldn’t cost the team future cap costs. Namestnikov is only one year removed from a 22-goal, 48-point season.

  • Sticking with the Rangers, the team announced the passing of former great Arnie Brown Saturday. The defenseman died at the age of 77, but played a total of 12 seasons for five different teams, but made his mark with New York after playing seven seasons (from 1964-1971) for the franchise and is listed among the top 100 players in Rangers history. Brown played 681 games over the course of his career, posting 44 goals and 185 points. Everyone at PHR wishes the best for the family and friends of Brown at this time.
  • The Columbus Dispatch’s Michael Arace writes that little progress has been made between the Columbus Blue Jackets and restricted free agent Zach Werenski. While the team hopes that it can lock up the 22-year-old to a long-term deal, there is always the possibility that Werenski could be a training camp holdout if the two sides can’t find an equitable arrangement. Blue Jackets fans have already seen that as several players, including Josh Anderson and Ryan Johansen have done that in past seasons. Werenski has proven to be a top pairing defenseman, having tallied 38 goals and 128 points over the course of three seasons. With key losses this offseason of Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky and Matt Duchene, the team could benefit if they can convince Werenski to sign long-term.
  • After signing defenseman Christian Djoos and forward Chandler Stephenson to one-year deals last week, the Washington Capitals once again find themselves over the salary cap by $1.3MM. While one option to reduce their cap hit would be to send Jonas Siegenthaler to the AHL like the team did last year, NBC Sports Washington’s J.J. Regan writes that won’t be possible. While Siegenthaler is still waiver exempt, the team only has seven NHL defensemen under contract and even if they felt that Tyler Lewington could be the team’s seventh defenseman, he wouldn’t save the team a significant amount of money to make the move worth it. Unfortunately for general manager Brian MacLellan, the team will have to make a different move this year to get under the cap.
  • The Athletic’s Scott Burnside (subscription required) looks at candidates who could bounce back from disappointing seasons and marks Pittsburgh Penguins center Evgeni Malkin as a player who should return to his 90-point ways. The 32-year-old went from a 42-goal season in 2017-18 to half that total last year (21 goals) and went from 98 points to 72. Burnside writes that the team will need more goal scoring after losing Phil Kessel and Malkin will be looked to even more to fill that gap.

Columbus Blue Jackets| New York Rangers| Pittsburgh Penguins| RIP| Washington Capitals Evgeni Malkin| Jonas Siegenthaler| Kevin Shattenkirk

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Central Notes: Hossa, Vesalainen, Johns, Bonino

July 28, 2019 at 9:33 am CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 2 Comments

The Chicago Blackhawks got eight amazing seasons from star forward Marian Hossa from 2009 to 2017 and that is expected to continue in the future. Granted the 40-year-old’s playing career is over, but in an interview with Chicago Blackhawks President John McDonough, The Athletic’s Scott Powers (subscription required) writes that McDonough feels that Hossa will definitely work with the Blackhawks.

Obviously, Hossa is still under contract as his rights are owned by the Arizona Coyotes for the next two seasons, but McDonough said that Hossa will have a role within the organization when Hossa’s contract is up.

“He will work for the Blackhawks. Rocky (Wirtz) and I feel very strongly about that,” McDonough said. “Marian Hossa’s contributions to the Blackhawks are immeasurable. Immeasurable. Not just his on-ice performance, which is Hall of Fame. The way he goes about himself personally and professionally and he’s kind and respectful and polite … But Marian Hossa will play a role here when he’s done, and we’ll have that conversation with him.”

Hossa scored 186 goals with the Blackhawks and helped the franchise win three Stanley Cups during that time.

  • Scott Billeck of NHL.com writes that the Winnipeg Jets have high hopes that 2017 first-round pick Kristian Vesalainen is ready to take on an NHL role this season. The 20-year-old played in three leagues last season, which included a return-trip to Jokerit of the KHL. He played five games for the Jets last season before choosing to return to the KHL where he scored six goals and 17 points in 31 games. With Jokerit’s season over, Vesalainen decided to return to North America and join the Manitoba Moose of the AHL where he posted four goals and 13 points in 22 games. However, Vesalainen has continued to work on his strength and conditioning, which he hopes might get him a chance at a bottom-six role next season. “Vesalainen is stronger and where he could do the drills last year because he’s a gifted man, it wasn’t easy for him to drive through drills and always push,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “And at the end of practice, he’s still coming out of the corner now hard. He’s just physically stronger. He can do an hour long of all those drills and he’s just a more mature player. How that relates to [training camp], we’ll see. But clearly, there’s been some good work done there.”
  • The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf (subscription required) writes that the Dallas Stars are getting good reports on defenseman Stephen Johns, who sat out the entire 2018-19 season with concussion-related symptoms. The scribe writes that there are still questions that linger with the 27-year-old, including the fact that he still needs to be cleared by team doctors, but the team hopes that the 6-foot-4, 225-pound blueliner can contribute to the blueline despite not having been on the ice for 18 months. Johns scored eight goals in 75 games for Dallas back in the 2017-18 season.
  • In his most recent mailbag, The Athletic’s John Glennon (subscription required) writes that while the Nashville Predators are likely done with offseason moves (minus signing restricted free agent Rocco Grimaldi), he wouldn’t be surprised if the Predators attempted to move center Nick Bonino during training camp or early in the season. Bonino is coming off a solid season (17 goals, 35 points) and has just two years remaining on his contract at $4.1MM AAV, which makes him an interesting trade candidate for teams in need of a veteran center. Colton Sissons, who just signed a seven-year, $20MM contract, could easily take over Bonino’s role as the center on the fourth line.

 

Chicago Blackhawks| Dallas Stars| Nashville Predators| Winnipeg Jets Colton Sissons| Marian Hossa| Nick Bonino| Stephen Johns

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Latest On Rangers’ Kevin Shattenkirk

July 27, 2019 at 8:54 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 12 Comments

When the New York Rangers inked restricted free-agent Pavel Buchnevich to a two-year deal Friday, the Rangers also opened up a 48-hour buyout window starting Monday in which the team could opt to buy out one of their defenseman, including Kevin Shattenkirk, Brendan Smith and Marc Staal. While the Rangers did not buy any players out earlier this summer, things have changed after the team paid out $19.65MM AAV combined for Artemi Panarin and Jacob Trouba in the last month.

And while there is no evidence as to what New York intends to do, the New York Post’s Larry Brooks believes wholeheartedly that Shattenkirk will be bought out and will not be a Ranger by Wednesday evening. Considering that the Rangers traded for two right-handed defensemen this offseason, it should make it obvious the team is ready to move on from the veteran, who the team signed to a four-year deal two summers ago at $6.65MM AAV.

After signing Buchnevich for two years at $3.25MM per season, New York is projected to be $4.16MM over the cap (assuming that the team buries Brendan Smith and Matt Beleskey and both restricted free agents Anthony DeAngelo and Brendan Lemieux sign for their qualifying offers) and will be forced to make a cost-cutting move. While it’s already been discussed that the team is under no obligation to buy out one of their defenseman as they have a couple of players they could trade including Chris Kreider and Vladislav Namestnikov to get back under the cap, the scribe believes that Shattenkirk’s contract makes the most sense to buyout.

2019-20: $1.48MM (savings of $5.17MM)
2020-21: $6.08MM (savings of $567K)
2021-22: $1.43MM
2022-23: $1.43MM

The buyout would give the Rangers a little over $1.1MM to work with after that and wouldn’t require the team to trade off Kreider just to save the team some money, one of the top wingers on the team who will be an unrestricted free agents next offseason. Trying to trade one of your best players when you are over the cap isn’t exactly the best bargaining position. Of course, the Rangers would have to assume 90 percent of Shattenkirk’s contract next season if the team does choose to buy him out, which really will make things challenging for New York next season.

The Rangers, however, can do nothing until Monday and there is no sign that they are currently committed to buying out Shattenkirk.

New York Rangers Chris Kreider| Kevin Shattenkirk

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Minnesota Wild Have Explored Trading Zach Parise

July 27, 2019 at 7:43 pm CDT | by Holger Stolzenberg 13 Comments

While the Minnesota Wild are hardly calling it a rebuilding project, it’s been quite obvious of late that they have been doing just that. Afterall, the team has traded away Charlie Coyle, Nino Niederreiter and Mikael Granlund in the second half of the season last year and continue to look like they are getting younger and younger.

In an in-depth piece about Wild forward Zach Parise, The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required) writes that The Athletic has learned that general manager Paul Fenton has discussed the possibility of trading Parise at the draft and in the weeks since then in hopes of finding a trade partner. That would be a tall challenge for the GM as the 34-year-old Parise still has six years remaining on his contract at $7.53MM AAV (he originally signed a 13-year, $98MM contract back in 2012). Regardless, the scribe believes the team is seriously considering it, although there would be some obstacles.

First on the list, is whether Parise, who has a full no-movement clause, would be willing to accept a trade. While from Minneapolis and stating quite clearly that he loves it in Minnesota, the veteran also revealed that he’s concerned about the fact that the Wild seem to be looking toward a rebuild, something a veteran of 15 years isn’t likely to want to go through.

“I think I want to win. I want to win here, and I do love everything away from the rink. We’ve got so many friends through the kids away from the rink, away from hockey. It’s so great. It is great, so that’s the hard part,” Parise said, when asked if he’d be willing to accept a trade. “But you get to that point where you want to win. That’s all you want to do. Trust me, we’d all love to win here. I think this place would be absolute insanity if we won here. So that’s the goal. I mean, I just don’t know. Let’s put it this way, they haven’t come to me asking if I want to get traded somewhere.”

The second problem is that no playoff teams are going to be willing to pay $7.53MM for six straight years at his age, which will mean that Minnesota almost assuredly would have to retain some of his salary, perhaps even half of it. And if the club does that, would they be able to get a quality return even then? Parise did post 28 goals last season and could prove to be a valuable asset to many teams, but would a team be willing to take on six more years of him and hand over a major asset or two as well? After all, he’ll be 35 when the season starts and will be still be paid that amount when he turns 40. That’s a tall order even if they only have to pay $3.77MM per season.

Obviously moving Parise would quicken the pace of a rebuild as Parise’s contract (along with Ryan Suter who signed the same contract alongside Parise back in 2012) are definitely holding the team back from a complete rebuild. Of course, Parise also was the team’s leading scorer last year on a team that struggled to put the puck into the net and the team could get quite a negative reaction from fans if the team sends him off, especially if the return is a meager one. However, this might be the best time to move on from Parise after his 28-goal season as he is only getting older and even fewer teams will have interest in trading for him in the future if he struggles next season.

 

Minnesota Wild| Paul Fenton Zach Parise

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