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The Other July 1st Spending Spree

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July 1st is typically a high-spending day around the NHL as a free agent signing frenzy means that hundreds of millions in contracts are committed in the span of a few hours.  As a result of this pandemic though, we won’t be seeing that big rush on contracts anytime soon.

However, there may still be a spending spree on the horizon for July 1st.  Veteran journalist John Shannon noted on Twitter last week that the NHL and NHLPA currently disagree on the state of signing bonuses that are due as part of contracts that date.  At first glance, that may not seem like a lot but as a result of the vast influx of deals structured with heavy up-front signing bonuses, more than $300MM is at stake.  The NHLPA believes those should be paid as scheduled while the league doesn’t see it the same way and believe those payments should be deferred until after the playoffs.

From the NHL’s perspective, July 1st typically marks the start of a new league year so it would make sense that they think payments should wait until the postseason concludes; it wouldn’t be surprising if they were arguing that it should be the start date of the 2020-21 calendar which may not be until sometime in October.  While a recent agreement was reached to extend expiring contracts, it was solely for the purpose of work visas for players whose deals were set to expire at the end of June.  With a significant dip in revenues in recent months, team owners are almost certainly hoping that they’re able to defer these payments until the start of the 2020-21 calendar.

As for the NHLPA, their argument is simple.  The contract states that the signing bonus is payable July 1st so that’s when it should be paid.  It’s a pretty easy argument to make.  On top of that, escrow for this season may be lower than what it will be for the 2020-21 campaign so players receiving the money next month could receive more net pay than if it’s paid out at the start of the next league year.  We’re likely not talking about a couple of tenths of a percent either and it’s on an amount greater than $300MM as a whole.  That’s a pretty significant amount of money overall.

The one team that’s really going to be keeping an eye on this is Toronto.  The majority of their salary payable for next season is in the form of signing bonuses:

Auston Matthews: $15.2MM
Mitch Marner: $14.3MM
John Tavares: $11.09MM
Jake Muzzin: $7.3MM
Frederik Andersen: $4MM
William Nylander: $3.5MM
Alexander Kerfoot: $1MM
Kasperi Kapanen: $1MM
Andreas Johnsson: $1MM
Justin Holl: $1MM

Total: $59.39MM

There are two things to note here.  First, this amount is actually lower than it was a year ago when it actually eclipsed $70MM.  Second, this doesn’t include players on entry-level contracts who receive a signing bonus of up to $92.5K such as defenseman Rasmus Sandin.  That’s a lot of money in play for just one team.

While we have seen some announcements recently about the NHL’s Return to Play plan, there is still many things that need to be negotiated between the two sides and this is one of them.  It’s understandable if their focus is on finalizing health and safety protocols as they proceed towards the final two phases of their plan but with this much money at stake, the fate of the July 1st signing bonuses is going to have to be decided on sooner than later.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

East Notes: Bernier, Montour, Lindblom, Lightning

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While the Red Wings didn’t have a lot of success on the ice this season, it was a decent year for goaltender Jonathan Bernier.  He took over the number one role from Jimmy Howard while his 2.95 GAA and .907 SV% were respectable marks for a team that struggled as much as Detroit did.  The 31-year-old still has one more year left on his contract with a $3MM cap hit but he is already thinking ahead, telling Dana Gauruder of the Detroit Free Press that he’s hoping to play until he’s around 38-40 years old and would love to finish his career with the team.  GM Steve Yzerman will likely have to look to free agency to find Bernier’s partner for next season and if he signs a proven number one, their willingness to keep a higher-end second option in the fold may be limited.  However, if they go with another Bernier-type netminder with a goal of having a platoon, then the potential for him sticking around would go up considerably.

Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference:

  • Sabres defenseman Brandon Montour could be a casualty of Buffalo’s recent front office changes, suggests Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News. He was brought in by now-former GM Jason Botterill but he didn’t seem to mesh with head coach Ralph Krueger who only played him 19:30 per night this year, his lowest full-season ATOI of his career.  The pending restricted free agent struggled this season offensively as well with just 18 points in 54 games and with the person who acquired him now gone, it’s certainly reasonable to think that he’ll be a trade candidate this offseason.
  • Flyers winger Oskar Lindblom skated with a handful of teammates on Tuesday for the first time since being diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma a little more than six months ago, notes Sam Carchidi of the Philadelphia Daily News and Inquirer. While he won’t play for them in this postseason, it’s still great news that he’s back on his skates and doing well in his recovery.
  • The Lightning have reopened their practice facilities, reports team reporter Bryan Burns (Twitter link). They closed down on Friday following three players and two staff members testing positive for COVID-19.  Players can now skate in groups of 12 as they work their way towards the third phase of the NHL’s return plan which is training camps that are slated to open July 10th.

Blue Jackets Winger Jakob Lilja Signs In KHL

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Blue Jackets winger Jakob Lilja’s stay in North America was a short one.  After one season in their system, he is heading back overseas as Barys Nur-Sultan of the KHL announced that they’ve signed him to a one-year contract.

The 26-year-old signed with Columbus last June after a strong season with Djurgarden of the SHL.  He actually made the NHL roster out of training camp and while he spent some time in the minors in November and December, he was basically up with the big club the rest of the way after they were hit with a rash of injuries.

Lilja wound up playing in 37 games with the Blue Jackets, picking up two goals and three assists while averaging 9:54 per night in ice time.  He was much more productive with AHL Cleveland, however, notching five goals and eight helpers in 22 games.

While he is eligible to be part of their extended roster for their upcoming play-in series against Toronto, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Lilja will not be on it.  Instead, he noted that the team gave him permission to seek a new deal overseas which suggests that it’s unlikely that he’ll be tendered a qualifying offer this offseason since he is only a year away from UFA eligibility anyway.

Rangers UFA Nick Ebert Signs In SHL

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Rangers UFA Nick Ebert returned to North America last summer in the hopes of getting an NHL opportunity.  That never materialized so he has decided to head back overseas as Orebro of the SHL announced that they’ve signed Ebert to a two-year contract.

Ebert spent the majority of the season with New York’s AHL affiliate in Hartford where he had five goals and 11 assists in 46 AHL contests this season.  He also played in one game with Ottawa’s affiliate as it was the Senators who initially brought him over but moved him early in the year to the Rangers as part of the Vladislav Namestnikov deal.

The 26-year-old previously played with Orebro in 2018-19 as well as a handful of games the year before.  It was his performance with them last season that helped get him back on the North American radar even though it didn’t amount to an NHL chance in the end.

Orebro’s press release states that Ebert’s actual arrival date is unknown which seemingly paves the way for him to be a part of New York’s postseason roster if they so desire.  Considering he wasn’t recalled during the season. it seems unlikely that they’ll do so in which case he’d be able to join them in August in advance of training camp.

Snapshots: Training Camp, Kravtsov, KHL, AHL Signings

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The return of hockey will soon seem like much more of a reality. The Athletic’s Michael Russo reports that NHL playoff teams can anticipate having their full rosters in town possibly by the end of the week. Russo writes that the European players for the Minnesota Wild are all expected to be back by Friday in order to meet the league’s mandated two-week quarantine period before Phase 3 training camps open on July 10. He adds that most European players are expected to do the same. While commercial flights from some European countries continue to be a struggle, players are also going the group charter route in order to get back to North America.

Among those making the trek from Europe is New York Rangers prospect Vitali Kravtsov, the team announced. The 20-year-old Kravtsov, a first-round pick in 2018, made the jump to North America for the first time to begin this season but was limited to the AHL and eventually returned to the KHL mid-season. In the team’s release, President John Davidson discusses Kravtsov’s early struggles and disappointment with not being used by the Rangers at the top level, but also raves about his ability and notes that the team could use talented depth for an uphill playoff run. The big, skilled Kravtsov will be given a chance to crack the postseason roster in training camp and just maybe will get the chance to play in the NHL that he had been seeking earlier this year.

  • Over in the KHL, COVID-19 continues to complicate plans for 2020-21. League president Alexei Morozov announced that Admiral Vladivostok will not compete next season due to budget restraints and the possibility of limited income due to restricted attendance. Admiral struggled through a grim 2019-20 campaign that ended when they missed the playoffs for the third straight year. They may find it even harder to put together a winning team if and when they return to action after all of their players depart this off-season. Meanwhile, the other 23 teams have submitted their financial records to the league for approval and plan to play next season. However, Kunlun Red Star, the KHL’s lone Chinese team, may need to look elsewhere to open up the season. The Beijing-based club faces strict travel and public event restrictions as of right now that would prove problematic if still in place when the season begins this fall. One of the proposed locations for the team to host home games early on? None other than Vladivostok.
  • There was some rare transaction movement in the AHL today, as the Manitoba Moose extended a pair of players. The Winnipeg Jets’ affiliate has re-signed forwards Brent Pederson and Cole Maier to one-year contracts for next season. Maier recorded 15 points in 59 games with the Moose, while Pederson – a former Carolina Hurricanes prospect – recorded nine points in 36 AHL games and spent some time in the ECHL as well. The San Jose Barracuda also made a move, as Steenn Pasichnuk follows his brother from Arizona State to the organization. The Sharks signed standout defenseman and Sun Devils captain Brinson Pasichnuk earlier this spring and have sweetened the pot by bringing his older brother along, a checking forward who will fight for bottom-six minutes with the Barracuda.

One Trade The Blue Jackets Would Like To Have Back

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June 23rd, 2011 is a day that fans of the Blue Jackets would like to forget.  They made a big splash at the draft that day, acquiring center Jeff Carter from Philadelphia.  He was supposed to be one of the centerpieces of their forward group but it didn’t work out like that at all.

Before even looking at what they gave up to get him, let’s look at Carter’s tenure with Columbus.  It lasted all of 39 games where he picked up 11 goals and 10 assists, numbers that were considerably down from his time with the Flyers.

Some may want to attribute that to the fact that he simply didn’t want to be there.  Philadelphia dealt Carter before his trade protection kicked in and he didn’t hide the fact that he wasn’t happy about it.

So, what did the Blue Jackets give up for those 39 unhappy games?  A young winger and two draft picks.  That doesn’t sound terrible until you look at who those players wound up being.

The young winger was Jakub Voracek who was coming off his entry-level deal and had already established himself as a capable top-six forward.  The seventh overall pick in 2007 took his game to another level in Philadelphia as expected and has spent a large portion of his time since then as a fixture on their front line.

One of the two draft picks was the eighth overall selection in 2011.  That was used on center Sean Couturier.  While it took some time for the offensive side of his game to blossom, he has been an effective defensive pivot throughout his career.  Heading into this season, he had back-to-back 76-point seasons and was on pace for another 70-point year before the pandemic hit.  Couple that with his defensive skill set and you have a legitimate number one center which is what Columbus was trying to get when they added Carter.  The other draft pick, a third-round selection, was used on Nick Cousins who has carved out a decent career thus far even though he has bounced around over the last few years.

(It wasn’t all good news for Philadelphia though.  This move, coupled with the swap of Mike Richards to Los Angeles, gave them enough cap savings to pave the way for them to sign Ilya Bryzgalov to a nine-year contract.  He was bought out two years later and the Flyers are now paying him through the 2026-27 season to not play for them.)

Needless to say, that initial trade didn’t work out very well for Columbus at all.  Unfortunately, this wound up being somewhat of a double whammy situation as the deal that saw him leave the Blue Jackets wasn’t much better.  Unfortunately, that’s what happens when you have a disgruntled and underachieving player who still had 10 years left on a now-illegal contract with a cap hit of over $5.27MM per season.

Carter wound up being moved to the Kings with Columbus receiving defenseman Jack Johnson and a first-round pick in return, a far cry from what they gave up to get him only eight months earlier.

While Johnson has taken a lot of heat for his current contract with Pittsburgh, he was a quality defender with the Blue Jackets, logging more than 23 minutes a night over parts of seven seasons with them.  However, while he was trending toward being a two-way threat in Los Angeles, that part of his game rarely resurfaced in Columbus as he was more of a physical, stay-at-home defender.  The upside was there but he didn’t live up to it.

The same can be said for who they selected with the 2013 first-round pick which turned out to be Marko Dano. He was holding down a regular spot in the KHL in his draft-eligible season which is no small feat but his offensive game never really materialized and instead, he has spent the bulk of his six full years in North America in the minors.  They salvaged a bit of value by including him as part of the Brandon Saad–Artemi Panarin swap but that’s still not a great return on a first-round selection.  As it turns out, Dano is now actually back with Columbus and could be among their recalls for their play-in series against Toronto after spending most of the year with AHL Cleveland.

Carter, meanwhile, went on to have a bit of a resurgence with the Kings, posting at least 50 points in each of his first four full seasons after the trade.  He has slowed down since then though as injuries have limited him to just 82 points combined in the last three years.  The 35-year-old still has two years left on his current contract.

In acquiring Carter, then-GM Scott Howson was hoping to pair a star center with their star winger in Rick Nash.  Instead, they wound up with a trade tree to forget.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Ducks Name Martin Madden Assistant GM

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The Ducks have made a front office move, announcing that they’ve promoted Martin Madden to assistant GM.  He has been with the team for the past 12 years as their Director of Amateur Scouting but his role will be expanding considerably.

Per their release, the 49-year-old will now oversee all scouting duties, including amateur and professional.  He will also now take a bigger role in the overall hockey operations of the team under GM Bob Murray.  It’s a natural role progression for Madden and will certainly boost his profile if he decides to pursue a GM position down the road.  In the meantime, his influence in terms of setting their draft rankings for the upcoming draft will be unchanged.

Prior to joining Anaheim in 2008, Madden spent seven years with the Rangers and three with the Hurricanes in a scouting capacity.  Scouting also runs in the family as his father, Martin Sr., has been a scout with Anaheim since 2012 and started his NHL career back with Philadelphia in 1969.

Canucks Expected To Recall Nine Players For Training Camp Next Month

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With training camps set to start on July 10th, teams are in the process of determining what recalls they will be making to get their expanded rosters intact.  As things stand, 30 skaters can attend training camp with 28 being allowed to be on the postseason roster while teams can carry an unlimited number of goaltenders.  Postmedia’s Ben Kuzma reports that the Canucks have figured out their recall list which is as follows:

F Sven Baertschi
F Justin Bailey
D Guillaume Brisebois
D Jalen Chatfield
F Tyler Graovac
D Olli Juolevi
G Michael DiPietro
D Brogan Rafferty
D Ashton Sautner

Up front, Baertschi is the most notable among the group.  He has plenty of NHL experience under his belt (and another year on his contract with an AAV of $3.36MM) but spent most of the year with AHL Utica where he averaged over a point per game.  With his prior NHL action though, he’s someone that they could comfortably put in the lineup if injuries arise.

Defensively, Juolevi stands out and not because he’s the only one who hasn’t been recalled to the NHL in the past.  The fifth-overall pick in 2016 battled some injury trouble again this season but is still viewed as one of their better prospects.  The odds of him getting into a game are unlikely but this will at least be an opportunity to practice in an NHL environment which should help his development.

Vancouver is also likely to welcome back winger Micheal Ferland to the fold.  While he has battled concussion troubles all season long, he has resumed skating and it appears that he should be in the mix for a spot in the lineup where he’d likely slot in on the fourth line after being off for so long.

The Canucks will take on Minnesota in the best-of-five play-in round which is tentatively slated to begin sometime in late July or early August assuming an agreement can be reached between the NHL and NHLPA on Return to Play protocols.

Canucks RFA Reid Boucher Signs In The KHL

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June 23: Boucher has officially signed with Avangard Omsk, the KHL team announced.  Dhaliwal reports (via Twitter) that the deal is worth $719K which is a little higher than the $700K minimum salary in the NHL if he was to stay in North America on a one-way contract.  The deal also contains $143K in bonuses if he finishes in the top three in league scoring.

June 18: Canucks winger Reid Boucher has been a prominent scorer in the AHL over the past few years but it hasn’t materialized into much time with Vancouver.  As a result, it appears he will be trying something different for next season as Rick Dhaliwal of TSN 1040 and The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Boucher is nearing a one-year deal with Avangard Omsk of the KHL.

This season, the 26-year-old was second in the AHL in goals (33) and points (67) in just 53 games; his 1.26 points per game average was tops among qualified players.  Despite that, he didn’t get a sniff of NHL action for the first time in his seven-year professional career so Boucher looking for a change of scenery is understandable.

GM Jim Benning confirmed to Postmedia’s Ben Kuzma (Twitter link) that Vancouver is willing to let Boucher out of his deal now.  That’s particularly notable as it suggests that it’s unlikely that he will be available to the Canucks for their play-in series against Minnesota and any potential postseason action after that.  The KHL is hoping to open up in September and if Boucher was to stay with Vancouver for the playoffs, he could potentially be arriving late.

Vancouver can tender Boucher a qualifying offer this offseason to retain his rights but considering he’s only a year away from being eligible for NHL unrestricted free agency anyway, they could simply opt to non-tender him instead.  With 133 NHL games and 323 AHL contests under his belt, it’s possible that Boucher could make a run at trying to catch on with another NHL team in the 2021 offseason as a free agent.

Lindy Ruff Under Consideration For Devils Head Coach

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Earlier this month, it had been reported that New Jersey’s coaching search had been narrowed to four candidates with former Nashville bench boss Peter Laviolette believed to be the frontrunner.  However, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (via Twitter) has added a fifth coach to the mix, reporting that Rangers assistant coach Lindy Ruff is also under consideration for the job.

Ruff has plenty of experience behind the bench, serving as Buffalo’s head coach from 1997 through 2013 while filling the same role in Dallas from 2013-17.  He has been an assistant coach with New York since then and also spent time as an assistant in Florida from 1993-97 before getting the Buffalo job.  His 736 career head coaching wins in the NHL sit sixth in league history.

Other coaches still in consideration for the position are Gerard Gallant, John Stevens, and current interim head coach Alain Nasreddine.

With New Jersey not among the 24 teams that will be returning to action this summer, there is plenty of time to make this decision as the official ‘offseason’ won’t likely begin until mid-October.  However, the decision maker isn’t also necessarily in place either.  Tom Fitzgerald is the interim GM and has been conducting the coaching search but ownership has also been in talks with prospective GM candidates.  Accordingly, a decision on Fitzgerald’s fate may need to happen before a head coaching hire can be finalized.

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