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Brandon Sutter Expected To Re-Sign In Vancouver

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Per TSN’s Bob McKenzie, Vancouver Canucks forward Brandon Sutter is expected to re-sign with the team when free agency opens. McKenzie expects a one-year deal for the veteran forward. The Athletic’s Thomas Drance reports that the deal is worth $1.125MM.

Sutter’s a seasoned veteran, but he’s seriously struggled to stay healthy. The last time Sutter played a full season was 2016-17 where he played in 81 contests. Since that season, Sutter’s topped 10 goals and 20 points just once in a single season. He had a bit of a goal-scoring rebound last season, potting nine markers in 43 games, but tallied only three assists for 12 points. He’s also seen his ice time steadily deteriorate over recent years, now largely serving in a third- or fourth-line role.

A veteran of 770 NHL games, Sutter will return to a Vancouver Canucks forward core that’s been rejuvenated this offseason. With some free agent turnover in depth spots, both Conor Garland and Jason Dickinson will be injected into the Canucks’ offense. And with Dickinson’s acquisition, Sutter will either serve as a right-winger for Dickinson on the third line or as the team’s fourth-line center. Sutter’s health could be a rather key piece for a Canucks roster that’s fighting to get back into the playoff picture.

Stars Nearing Contract With Ryan Suter

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It appears that Ryan Suter has found his next team as ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports (Twitter link) that the Stars are closing in on a multi-year contract with the veteran.  TSN’s Darren Dreger clarifies (via Twitter) that it will be a four-year deal with an AAV around the mid-$3MM range; Sportsnet’s Eric Engels pegs the specific price tag (Twitter link) at $3.625MM.

The 36-year-old was bought out of the final four years of his contract by Minnesota earlier this month and will be paid $833K over the next eight years not to play for them.  As a result of the buyout, he was free to openly negotiate with teams over the past few days although no agreement could be made official until the opening of the free agent period.  And with the structure of his original deal being heavily front-loaded, he will wind up making more money than he would have by sticking with the Wild which isn’t typically the case for players that get bought out.

In his prime, Suter was a legitimate number one defenseman but he has slowed down over the past couple of seasons.  His offensive output dipped from 48 points to just 19 last season while his average ice time dropped by nearly two and a half minutes per game to 22:11 per game.  Having said that, that type of production and ice time is still worthy of a top-four spot on the back end for many teams.  It’s an ideal landing spot for Suter in that sense as Miro Heiskanen is locked into the top-pairing spot on the left side which allows Suter to slot comfortably onto that second pairing alongside one of Esa Lindell or John Klingberg.

Dallas had less than $6MM in cap room heading into the day, per CapFriendly, with Joel Kiviranta needing a new deal as a restricted free agent.  Accordingly, unless they can free up some money in a trade, this may be their only big move of the day.

Ethan Bear Traded To Carolina Hurricanes

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The Edmonton Oilers are expected to re-sign Tyson Barrie and add another right-handed defenseman in Cody Ceci, so they needed to move out someone else. That player is Ethan Bear, who Darren Dreger of TSN reports is on his way to the Carolina Hurricanes. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the Hurricanes will send Warren Foegele back to Edmonton.

Bear, 24, looked like he would be a long-term pillar of the blueline for the Oilers in 2019-20, but last season took a significant step backward. He scored just two goals and eight points in 43 games while losing the trust of the coaching staff at times. In Carolina, he won’t be asked to do as much given the strong group ahead of him, but can help replace some of the minutes that they are losing in Dougie Hamilton. Bear actually could perhaps slide into the top-four alongside a player like Brady Skjei, but still likely won’t log anywhere near the minutes of Carolina’s top three options.

For the Oilers, adding another bottom-six winger that can score at a strong rate is a win, at least if considered independent from Bear’s potential upside. There’s real talent in the 25-year-old Foegele, who has 50 points in his last 121 games. Edmonton has struggled to find any consistent offense from the third and fourth line over the last number of years, but are starting to lengthen out their lineup behind Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. Even if Zach Hyman ends up playing on one of the top two lines, there appears to be the makings of a legitimate third line finally.

Still, the Oilers will need to sign Foegele as he currently sits as a restricted free agent. He’s coming off a one-year, $2.15MM contract with the Hurricanes, meaning that’s the price of his qualifying offer. That means he’s locked in as a player the Oilers will have to rely on, especially if arbitration results in another raise.

Canucks Expected To Sign Jaroslav Halak And Brad Hunt

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The Canucks appear to have found their replacement for Braden Holtby who will officially be bought out later today.  ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports (Twitter link) that Jaroslav Halak is expected to sign a one-year, $1.5MM deal with Vancouver; the contract will also contain $1.5MM in performance bonuses.  Meanwhile, CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal adds (via Twitter) that they will be signing defenseman Brad Hunt.

Halak had spent the past three seasons with Boston but had decided earlier this month that he’d be moving on.  The 36-year-old suited up in 19 games with the Bruins last season, posting a 2.52 GAA with a .905 SV% but had been relegated to third-string status with Jeremy Swayman impressing down the stretch.  He will be tasked with serving as a veteran mentor for Thatcher Demko but his track record is strong enough to push for playing time should Demko falter as well.  The inclusion of bonuses in the deal will give Vancouver a bit more short-term flexibility as they could use the bonus cushion and ultimately defer some of the costs to next season.

As for Hunt, he has been a role player with the Wild for the past three seasons.  He had an impressive campaign offensively in 2019-20 with eight goals and 11 assists in 59 games but he was limited to just a dozen appearances with Minnesota last season.  The 32-year-old will likely have a similar role as he did with the Wild, serving as a reserve defender that can step in when injuries arise or when the power play needs a boost.

Maple Leafs Expected To Sign Petr Mrazek

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With Frederik Andersen appearing to be headed to Carolina, it created an opening between the pipes for the Maple Leafs.  It appears that vacancy will be filled by the goalie that Andersen is replacing with the Hurricanes as ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports (Twitter link) that Petr Mrazek is expected to sign a three-year deal with Toronto.  TSN’s Darren Dreger adds (Twitter link) the deal will carry a $3.8MM AAV.

Mrazek, 29, has been a strong performer for the Hurricanes over the last three seasons, but certainly isn’t the model of consistency. His career is one of alternating good and bad years, and after posting a .923 in just 12 games, it’s not really clear what he’s bringing to Toronto. There’s no doubt he has the talent to play at a high level in the NHL, but his .910 career save percentage should be a bit concerning for a team that intends to contend in 2021-22.

That inconsistency is perhaps exactly why the Hurricanes are moving on from the netminder, but at least in Toronto he’ll have a capable partner to rely on. The Maple Leafs already have Jack Campbell in place for just $1.65MM, meaning they’ll be spending a combined 5.45MM on goaltending this season. That’s actually less than they have the last several seasons with Andersen and whoever was backing him up at the time and should figure to be a more reliable tandem than anything they had during that period.

Of course, that would be contingent on Campbell and Mrazek staying healthy, not something either has done recently. It’s been several years since Mrazek started more than 40 games in a season and Campbell has never even been a full-time starter, meaning if something goes wrong, the goaltending position could quickly become an issue once again for the Maple Leafs.

Sharks Expected To Sign Nick Bonino

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It appears that the Sharks will be landing one of the top centers on the open market as TSN’s Darren Dreger reports (Twitter link) that San Jose is set to sign veteran Nick Bonino. The terms of the expected agreement were not disclosed.

It’s a return to California for the Connecticut-born Bonino, who played the first several seasons of his career with the Anaheim Ducks. One of the best defensive centers in the league, Bonino scored 26 points in 55 games in his one season with the Minnesota Wild. While that’s not going to be the top of any leaderboards, the 33-year-old can still be a valuable two-way piece for the middle of the lineup. Not only does he come with a long consistent resume, but he also won two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins. One of those wins came over the Sharks, meaning the fans in San Jose will be very familiar with what Bonino can bring in the playoffs.

Make no mistake, that’s what the Sharks are trying to accomplish this season as they continue to pay a veteran core. They’ve switched out the struggling Martin Jones for a younger Adin Hill, but simply will live or die by the performance of their defense. Erik Karlsson, Brent Burns and Marc-Edouard Vlasic take up more than $26MM in cap space.

Still, adding Bonino certainly helps the team’s forward depth, which has been one of its weakest points over the last few seasons. Players like Rudolfs Balcers and Alexander Barkov have even sometimes jumped ahead of some of the more highly paid players that have been inconsistent. Bonino brings nothing but consistency to the ice, and hopefully will allow the team to build some stable lines moving forward.

Calgary Flames Acquire Nikita Zadorov

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The Flames have added to their back end, acquiring defenseman Nikita Zadorov from Chicago in exchange for Toronto’s third-round pick in 2022 (previously acquired at the trade deadline for David Rittich).

Zadorov was one of the tough qualifying offer decisions that needed to be made earlier this week with Chicago believed to be fearing what an arbitration award could look like.  They ultimately did tender the $3.2MM offer although they won’t be the one signing him to his next deal by the looks of it.

The 26-year-old was acquired from Colorado last offseason in the trade that saw Brandon Saad head to Colorado.  He was his usual physical self, notching 190 hits in 55 games but recorded just a goal and seven assists while logging 19:12 per game.  Zadorov, who stands 6’6, is someone whose size always intrigues teams but his playing style limits him to more of a depth role.  Each time he becomes arbitration-eligible, that price tag has only gone up and it appears it is at the point where it’s too expensive for them to afford, especially with the recent acquisitions of Marc-Andre Fleury and Tyler Johnson.

Meanwhile, Calgary has a big hole to fill on their back end with veteran Mark Giordano and his $6.75MM price tag gone to Seattle in expansion.  It’s possible that Zadorov will step into that vacated spot in the top four and will be able to do so at a lower price tag than Giordano so they will have some money to spend towards filling another need as well.  He’s one year away from UFA eligibility so Calgary will need to work fairly quickly to get a new deal done with arbitration hearings only a few weeks away.  As for the Blackhawks, they have been linked to Jake McCabe so it’s quite possible that Zadorov’s replacement will be signing within the next couple of hours.

Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston was the first to report that Zadorov was going to Calgary.  Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report the specific draft pick being included

Red Wings Re-Sign Sam Gagner And Calvin Pickard

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The Red Wings are bringing back a pair of veterans, announcing (Twitter links) that they’ve re-signed Sam Gagner and Calvin Pickard to one-year contracts.  PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that Gagner’s deal is for $850K.

The 31-year-old Gagner was acquired by Detroit back at the 2019 trade deadline for salary matching purposes in the trade that brought Andreas Athanasiou to Edmonton.  He did well enough in his brief stint with the Red Wings to earn a one-year deal last summer, albeit at a significant pay cut as he went from a $3.15MM AAV to just $850K in the process.  He played in 42 games with Detroit last season, notching seven goals and eight assists and should once again fill a depth role.

As for Pickard, he spent most of the year on Detroit’s taxi squad as their third-string option.  He wound up getting in just six games with the Red Wings, posting a 3.16 GAA with a .874 SV% while suiting up only three times with AHL Grand Rapids.  He’ll be expected to play much more with the Griffins next season with Alex Nedeljkovic and Thomas Greiss comprising Detroit’s goaltending tandem with the 29-year-old Pickard serving as veteran depth once again.

Hurricanes Expected To Sign Frederik Andersen

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After trading Alex Nedeljkovic to Detroit, the Hurricanes only had three pending unrestricted free agent goaltenders on their roster.  They haven’t been able to sign any of them so they’ll be turning to the open market to find their new tandem.  One of those is Frederik Andersen. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports Andersen is receiving a two-year deal at $4.5MM per season.

Last season was a tough one for the 31-year-old as injuries and general ineffectiveness limited him to just 24 appearances with Toronto while posting a 2.95 GAA along with a .895 SV%, career worsts in both categories.  However, before 2020-21, he had played in at least 52 games in four straight seasons, showing the ability to carry a number one workload.  That makes him an intriguing bounce-back candidate and the Hurricanes have certainly had some success with underperforming veterans in recent years with both Petr Mrazek and James Reimer improving after being acquired.

While the start of Andersen’s career came in Anaheim, he was actually drafted by Carolina back in 2010 in the seventh round.  However, he opted to re-enter the draft two years later and was selected 100 spots higher by the Ducks at 87th overall.  While it took more than a decade, it appears that Andersen will now sign with the Hurricanes after all.

Zach Hyman Has Agreement In Place With Edmonton Oilers

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July 28: Per PuckPedia, the breakdown of the deal is as follows:

2021-22: $1.55MM salary, $1MM signing bonus
2022-23: $5.1MM salary
2023-24: $7.65MM salary
2024-25: $7.7MM salary
2025-26: $5.425MM salary, $1MM signing bonus
2026-27: $2.175MM salary, $3MM signing bonus
2027-28: $2.65MM salary, $1.25MM signing bonus

The deal contains a full no-move clause in the first five seasons and a 21-team no-trade clause in the final two years.

July 24: The Oilers and Maple Leafs could not reach an agreement, according to Darren Dreger of TSN, so Hyman will wait to sign his contract when free agency opens on Wednesday. That limits the deal to seven years in length. Dreger also reports that the cap hit on a seven-year deal is $5.5MM.

July 23: After weeks of speculation, The Toronto Sun’s Terry Koshan reports that the Edmonton Oilers have a contract agreement in place with Toronto Maple Leafs forward Zach Hyman. Whether or not the deal is a sign-and-trade or just an acquisition of rights remains to be seen, but it’s extremely likely at this point that the Oilers will be acquiring Hyman via trade prior to free agency opening July 28th.

Recent rumors would suggest that when all is said and done, Hyman will be signing a seven- or eight-year deal in Edmonton. Bally Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland reported yesterday that the cap hits on both deals would come in at around $5MM. Hyman has displayed the ability over the past few seasons to be one of the best complementary players in the NHL, something that could work wonders for their secondary scoring. Potentially playing on Edmonton’s top line with Connor McDavid and Jesse Puljujarvi has to be an extremely exciting prospect for Hyman, who’s likely getting more term and money in Edmonton than Toronto was ever prepared to offer him.

Toronto’s search to find a new top-six-caliber left-winger begins now if it hasn’t already. They’ve been linked in past weeks to Detroit Red Wings forward Tyler Bertuzzi, who’d come much cheaper to the team than Hyman realistically ever would have. There’s also the long-shot big name in Gabriel Landeskog, who’s becoming estranged from the Colorado Avalanche in contract talks and could be looking for a new home. Regardless, the Maple Leafs have to look forward without Hyman, who’s been a core part of this team’s rise to regular-season success over the past half-decade.

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