Atlantic Notes: Fabbri, Agostino, Cajkovic

While the Red Wings didn’t have much in the way of success this season, one player who was able to turn his career around after being traded there was Robby Fabbri.  After being a role player with St. Louis, he averaged more than 17 minutes a night with Detroit and picked up a respectable 31 points in 52 games along the way.  However, he told Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News that there hasn’t been any talk about a new contract yet although he’s hoping to stick around.  A restricted free agent, the 24-year-old will be owed a qualifying offer of $945K this offseason but he will also be eligible for salary arbitration.

Fabbri also indicated that he would like to change his position.  While he came up through the junior ranks as a center, he has spent the majority of his NHL time on the wing.  The Red Wings gave him a chance to spend a bit of time down the middle late in the year and it went over well; a long-term change back to that role would also certainly help his contract leverage down the road.

Elsewhere around the Atlantic Division:

• While Kenny Agostino didn’t spend any time with the Maple Leafs this season, he will be on Toronto’s expanded roster for the play-in round and postseason, notes Sportsnet’s Luke Fox. He signed a two-year deal with them last summer after playing in 63 NHL games between Montreal and New Jersey but wound up spending all of 2019-20 with the AHL Marlies where he had 49 points in 53 games.  While the exact allowable roster size is still to be negotiated as Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic noted (Twitter link) earlier today, the current proposal from the league would see teams being allowed to carry 28 skaters.
• As the QMJHL draft continues today, Lightning prospect Maxim Cajkovic finds himself on the move. The Val-d’Or Foreurs announced that they’ve acquired the 19-year-old in exchange for four draft picks.  Cajkovic was a third-round pick of Tampa Bay last June (89th overall) after his rookie junior season.  Injuries limited him to just 36 games this season but he was productive in those, collecting 18 goals and 24 assists while adding a pair of helpers for Slovakia at the World Juniors.  Cajkovic has until June 1 of next year to sign his entry-level deal or go back into the draft.