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Rangers Showing Interest In Mark Giordano

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Defenseman Mark Giordano will soon officially be joining the Kraken but his stay there may not be very long. Mollie Walker of the New York Post reports that the Rangers appear to be zeroing in on trying to acquire the blueliner from Seattle.

The 37-year-old had been a part of Calgary’s organization for his entire career spanning parts of 15 NHL seasons before his reported selection today and was a mainstay on their top pairing for a large amount of that time. Back in 2018-19, he had a dominant season offensively which helped lead him to the Norris Trophy but his production has tapered off since then; this past season, he had just 26 points in 56 games which was his lowest output since the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign. However, he still logged nearly 23 minutes of ice time while being a steadying defensive presence for the Flames.

It’s that element that likely endears him to Rangers GM Chris Drury. While Jacob Trouba is a strong part of their back end, he’s about the only impact veteran they have with several of their blueliners being 23 or younger. Giordano is someone that would fit in quite well with either Trouba or Norris winner Adam Fox as the steadying veteran that allows his partner to jump into the attack.

The other element that is appealing is his contract; Giordano has one year left on his deal with a $6.75MM price tag and Walker suggests that Seattle would be willing to retain on it to facilitate a trade. With New York having several players up for new deals next summer (including Fox, Vitali Kravtsov, and Kaapo Kakko as RFAs plus Mika Zibanejad and Ryan Strome as UFAs), having someone on an expiring contract would certainly help in terms of keeping some spending flexibility.

As for what Seattle might want for their blueliner, Walker reports that Strome may very well be a target for the Kraken. Their reported roster doesn’t exactly feature much in the way of impact talent down the middle and Strome would be able to step in and play an impact role right away. He would certainly be able to bolster their attack while potentially setting himself up nicely for his first trip to the open market a year from now. After having a lot of success with Artemi Panarin with the Rangers, Strome showing that he can still produce away from Panarin would also bolster his case for a big contract in free agency.

If the two sides aren’t able to make a move right away, expect Giordano to garner considerable interest around the league as there are plenty of teams that could benefit from a veteran blueliner of his caliber for next season. Now that he’s heading for an expansion team, it’s likely there will be lots of trade speculation until he finds himself on the move again.

Zach Hyman Meeting With Edmonton Oilers

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The Toronto Maple Leafs gave pending free agent Zach Hyman permission to speak with other teams around the league, and today he is in Edmonton meeting with the Oilers, according to Jason Gregor of TSN. The Oilers have had rumored interest in the Maple Leafs forward for a while, and Chris Johnston of Sportsnet tweets that there is still a possibility of a sign-and-trade agreement between the two teams, which would open up the possibility of an eight-year contract for Hyman. Only the Seattle Kraken, who had a 48-hour window which is now closed, and the Maple Leafs were eligible to offer Hyman an eight-year deal this summer.

Now 29, Hyman has been a heart-and-soul player for the Maple Leafs the past six seasons. He reached a career-high of 21 goals and 41 points in the 2018-19 season, but easily would have eclipsed those totals in either of the past two years had the schedule had not been shortened or had he not suffered injuries. In 2019-20 he scored 21 goals and 37 points in 51 games, while this year he tallied 15 goals and 33 points in 43 games. He has received Selke Trophy votes in three of his five full seasons, including one fourth-place vote this year. A contributor at both ends, Hyman has experience on the powerplay and is one of the top penalty-killers in the NHL.

Still, there is plenty of risk to the pending free agent. Not only would a lengthy contract take him well into his thirties, but Hyman has dealt with knee injuries over the last few years, even undergoing major surgery in 2019. There is no one who doubts Hyman’s effort—the fifth-round pick has worked extremely hard for every opportunity he’s been given at the NHL level—but it’s hard to see how he’ll continue to produce at a high level several years from now. His playstyle relies heavily on his speed and forechecking ability, as well as his willingness to absorb contact to win back or protect a puck. If any of those attributes decline, his effectiveness could be drastically reduced.

Even with that apparent risk, there seems to be a clear market for Hyman’s services. The Oilers are not the only team that has been linked to the free agent forward; the St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames, and Seattle Kraken have been attributed interest at least, though it’s not clear how many of these or other clubs Hyman has actually met with. Any deal will have to wait until tomorrow when the NHL transaction freeze opens up, and even then it would only occur if a trade with the Maple Leafs was worked out. Otherwise, Hyman will have to wait until July 28 like the rest of this year’s free agent crop.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Boston Bruins, Taylor Hall Making Progress On New Contract

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Lost in some of the expansion draft shuffle this morning was a report from Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff, indicating that the Boston Bruins and Taylor Hall have made “meaningful progress” on a new contract. Seravalli expects Hall to sign with Boston once the transaction freeze is lifted tomorrow and suggests a four-year, $24MM deal is the “neighborhood.” Last night, Darren Dreger of TSN reported that there was optimism between the two sides that a deal would be completed.

Hall, 29, settled for a one-year, $8MM deal with the Buffalo Sabres last offseason after the flat-cap situation limited his marketplace. This time around, he may not even hit the open market after finding a home in Boston at the deadline. Following his two-goal effort in Buffalo, the 2018 Hart Trophy winner was flipped to the Bruins along with Curtis Lazar for Anders Bjork and a second-round pick. He proceeded to score eight goals and 14 points in just 16 games down the stretch, finally giving his new team the second-line left winger that they’d been coveting for so long. In just his third taste of the playoffs, Hall added another five points in 11 games.

It’s likely playoff experience and the overall strength of Boston’s program which excites Hall, who has maintained since the first day he arrived that he would like to stay. For a player that has scored 228 goals and 596 points over 11 years in the NHL, he’s managed just 25 postseason matches–20 of which came in the last two years. As he approaches his thirtieth birthday in November, a multi-year deal in Boston would certainly give him a chance to improve on those playoff numbers or even have an opportunity to truly compete for the Stanley Cup.

A $6MM cap hit, the number suggested by Seravalli, is exactly what Hall earned on his only other non-ELC deal; he signed a seven-year, $42MM contract with the Edmonton Oilers in 2012, just two seasons into his NHL career. If no contract is completed by July 28, he will be eligible to sign with any of the league’s 32 teams.

San Jose Still Looking For Veteran Goaltending

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The San Jose Sharks acquired young goaltender Adin Hill a few days ago, giving them a potential answer in net for the 2021-22 season. Hill has shown plenty of promise in his limited experience, including a .913 save percentage in 19 appearances this year. It’s hard to turn the keys over to a 25-year-old netminder with just 49 games under his belt though, so the Sharks are still looking for a veteran netminder for next season, according to Kevin Kurz of The Athletic.

What does that mean for Martin Jones, a veteran who is already under contract? It seems likely, as Kurz suggests, that Jones has played his last game for the Sharks. The 31-year-old goaltender is still signed for three more seasons and carries a $5.75MM cap hit, but has played so poorly that he is a prime candidate for a buyout. In 137 appearances since the start of the 2018-19 season, Jones has posted a .896 save percentage, still somehow going 68-53-11 in the process. The fact that he had a winning record last season even on the struggling Sharks team suggests that perhaps if they improve the goaltending situation there are better days ahead for this San Jose roster.

Still, a buyout would be expensive, costing the Sharks at least $1.67MM in cap space over each of the next six years. Add that to a veteran replacement and things might end up being pretty similar in terms of salary cap costs for the Sharks, meaning they’ll need to make sure whoever they bring in is a clear upgrade (though, at this point, that’s not difficult to accomplish). Hill of course is also not proven at the starting level, meaning someone that can take the reins in a pinch should be appealing to the Sharks.

There are plenty of veteran names on the market this year, including many that have been starters or tandem goaltenders in recent years. Frederik Andersen, Jaroslav Halak, James Reimer, Petr Mrazek, Jonathan Bernier, and others would all likely fit the role at various costs, but the Sharks could also pursue a trade if those free agent prices get out of hand. At any rate, it appears GM Doug Wilson’s work isn’t complete when it comes to goaltending.

Snapshots: Baptiste, Letowski, Kalamazoo

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Nicholas Baptiste found new life with the Texas Stars this season, getting his career back on track with 23 points in 34 AHL games. The 25-year-old forward will now head overseas to play for Ilves in Finland, where he could find even more offensive success. A third-round pick of the Buffalo Sabres in 2013, Baptiste played 47 games with the team between 2016-18, scoring ten points. He’s been stuck in the minor leagues ever since, suiting up for the Milwaukee Admirals, Toronto Marlies and Belleville Senators in addition to the Stars.

An unrestricted free agent that was playing under an AHL deal, Baptiste is still young enough to go to Europe, boost his value and potentially return on an NHL contract down the line. He’ll have to perform, obviously, but this may not be the last we’ve heard of Baptiste in North American pro hockey.

  • The Montreal Canadiens have hired Trevor Letowski as an assistant coach for the upcoming season, adding him to Dominique Ducharme’s staff. Letowski, who played more than 600 games in the NHL, was the head coach of the Windsor Spitfires for four seasons before this new appointment, though he didn’t get to serve during the canceled 2020-21 OHL season. Letowski joins a staff that already had assistants Alexandre Burrows and Luke Richardson, the latter of which signed a new three-year contract recently.
  • The Columbus Blue Jackets have reached an affiliation agreement with the Kalamazoo Wings of the ECHL, joining forces once again. The two were affiliates between 2014-16, but the Wings had other agreements with the Tampa Bay Lightning and Vancouver Canucks since then. For the 2021-22 season, after opting out of the ECHL season this year, they’ll be linked to the Blue Jackets, meaning they’ll receive some of their lower-end prospects. The ECHL is especially important for goaltending prospects, who need playing time above all else for their continued development.

Seattle Kraken To Select Mark Giordano

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The Seattle Kraken could have their first captain. The team is expected to select Mark Giordano from the Calgary Flames, according to Samil Nadim Valji of TSN and confirmed by Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic.

Giordano, who will turn 38 in October, is just two years removed from winning the Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman. In that 2018-19 season he recorded 74 points in 78 games, but that is certainly not the level of offense the Kraken should be expecting. In the two years since, he has totaled 57 points in 116 games and will likely continue to decline at that end of the rink. He also will carry a $6.75MM cap hit for just this season, before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2022.

Still, he’s a no-doubt top-four option for next season, and possesses the kind of leadership skills to potentially become the team’s captain right out of the gate. Though the Vegas Golden Knights did not name a captain in their inaugural season, they didn’t have a player like Giordano who has held that role for the last eight seasons.

If the other reports are true, the veteran defenseman is joining a blueline that has the potential to be quite impressive in 2021-22. Adam Larsson, Jamie Oleksiak, and Vince Dunn have already been linked to the team, giving them a top-four that some teams around the league would kill for. It does also mean that the Kraken could have a glut of options to choose from and some available in trade, just as the Golden Knights did four years ago. The team received and then flipped names like David Schlemko, Trevor van Riemsdyk, Marc Methot and Alexei Emelin for future draft picks, giving them a solid foundation for moves in the coming years. The Kraken could do the same, especially if the first year doesn’t result in a playoff push.

For Calgary, losing Giordano was obviously something they were prepared for, as they left him off the protected list. Noah Hanifin and Rasmus Andersson are the new core of the defense, with veteran Chris Tanev signed for three more years. Beyond that though, the team will have to make sure to round out their depth chart and replace the minutes (and leadership) that are heading out the door. Taking a $6.75MM cap hit off the books helps in that regard, but it also means they won’t be able to cash in on what was a valuable asset. Trading Giordano in any other summer would have been easy, but contending teams didn’t have the extra protection slot to be able to bring him in. Instead, they’ll watch their captain leave for nothing, suggesting real change is coming in Calgary under head coach Darryl Sutter.

Seattle Kraken Linked To Gourde, Tanev, Dunn, McCann

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The expansion lists have been submitted, the picks will be officially announced later tonight, but Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff has already heard several names that are expected to be announced. The insider tweets that the Seattle Kraken have focused on Yanni Gourde from the Tampa Bay Lightning, Brandon Tanev from the Pittsburgh Penguins, Jared McCann from the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Vince Dunn from the St. Louis Blues. The latter would mean the Kraken have passed on Vladimir Tarasenko, who was the subject of so much speculation over the past few weeks.

It won’t be official until the picks are actually made, but if these are indeed the selections from those four teams, it is quite a solid core the Kraken are starting with. Add in Adam Larsson and Jamie Oleksiak who are expected to sign as unrestricted free agents and the Kraken are going to be a difficult team to play against in year one.

For Gourde, back-to-back Stanley Cup championships was always going to break up the Tampa Bay roster. His $5.17MM cap hit is a reasonable price to pay for nearly any team in the league, even if the Kraken decide not to take him. In 56 games this season, he scored 17 goals and 36 points, bouncing back from a down 2019-20 when his role on the club was reduced. Back to the center ice position full-time, he was one of the most reliable two-way players on the Lightning, drove offense even with lesser skilled linemates, and contributed on both special teams. In Seattle, if selected, he would represent a potential top-six center and could experience even more offensive success.

Tanev meanwhile is a clear bottom-six player, but one of the most highly-regarded around the league. The 29-year-old provides an incredible amount of physicality, forechecking ability and seemingly endless energy. Signed to a six-year, $21MM contract in 2019, he still has four years remaining at a $3.5MM cap hit. That’s a lot, for a player who averages just over 14 minutes a night, but it also guarantees that the Kraken’s third or fourth line will have a reliable anchor. In his 100 games with Pittsburgh since signing the contract, Tanev has recorded 18 goals, 41 points and 383 hits.

McCann, who only arrived in Toronto a few days ago after a trade from Pittsburgh, will head to his fifth team since debuting in 2015. The 25-year-old forward started his career as a first-round pick with the Vancouver Canucks was sent to the Florida Panthers after just a single year in the NHL, and ended up in Pittsburgh before his 23rd birthday. Though it seems like an odd move for the Maple Leafs, if McCann is selected it essentially means that Toronto traded prospect Filip Hallander and a 2023 seventh-round pick to become exempt from expansion.

Dunn will be one of the biggest stories of the day if he is indeed the Kraken pick, as Tarasenko’s name was much more talked about in recent weeks. Tarasenko’s relationship with the Blues has deteriorated to the point where he is not expected back in St. Louis, meaning the team will have to work out their own trade now. The Kraken did, according to reports, consider selecting the Russian sniper in order to flip him somewhere else, but that always came with a hefty opportunity cost.

That cost is represented in Dunn, who could very well become a star in Seattle. The 24-year-old defenseman has amassed 102 points in 267 games, including 32 goals, and routinely posts outstanding possession numbers. There are real deficiencies to his defensive game, but if put in the right role and sheltered minutes, he could provide huge offense for the expansion club.

Seravalli also notes that the Kraken are likely to select three goaltenders, with Chris Driedger’s name already reported over the last few days. Vitek Vanecek from the Washington Capitals and Joey Daccord from the Ottawa Senators are the other two, though like the names listed above, nothing will become official until later tonight.

Seattle Kraken Will Not Select Carey Price

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The Seattle Kraken will not select Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price at tonight’s expansion draft, according to several reports including Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff tweets that the Canadiens are likely to lose young defenseman Cale Fleury.

Price, 33, waived his no-movement clause and was left unprotected by the Canadiens in order for the team to retain backup Jake Allen. He was an intriguing option, and many reports indicated that the Kraken did full due diligence on the veteran netminder before eventually deciding not to take him. With Price, there are just too many question marks and risks for an expansion franchise. Not only does he carry a $10.5MM cap hit through the 2025-26 season, but he’s owed an $11MM signing bonus for this season and could need major surgery in the coming weeks.

It’s not even just the cost an injury issues though, as Price has also been an inconsistent performer the last several seasons. With .909 and .901 save percentages the last two seasons, there’s no guarantee he can even help the Kraken to a playoff spot in their first year, an obvious target given some of the players that have already been linked to the team. Price has performed exceptionally well in the postseason once Montreal got there, but there is just too much risk involved in taking on that big of a contract when other goaltenders are available.

In Fleury, the Kraken would receive a 22-year-old defenseman who was once seen as a top prospect in the Montreal organization. He played 41 games with the team during the 2019-20 season, but hasn’t returned to the NHL since. In 22 games for the Laval Rocket, he recorded six points this season. That’s not to say his place as a future NHL defender is gone, but he’ll have to show improvements in Seattle to crack the lineup for 2021-22. No longer waiver-exempt, he’ll either have to make the roster or be available for the rest of the league at the end of training camp.

Hockey Canada Names WJC Coaching Staff, Development Camp Roster

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Hockey Canada has announced the coaching staff for this year’s National Junior Team, introducing Dave Cameron as the replacement for the outgoing Andre Tourigny. Tourigny of course recently took an NHL head coaching job with the Arizona Coyotes, meaning he would no longer be able to fulfil his duties to the national program. Cameron will be joined by assistants Michael Dyck, Louis Robitaille and Dennis Williams, along with goaltending consultant Olivier Michaud. Hockey Canada senior VP Scott Salmond released a statement on the new staff:

We are excited to welcome five experienced coaches to Canada’s National Junior Team for the 2021-22 season, all of whom bring a wealth of experience from the National Hockey League, Canadian Hockey League and internationally. We know these five men will represent our country with pride as they use their leadership and expertise to help Canada compete for a gold medal this December.

Cameron, who also replaced Tourigny as head coach of the Ottawa 67’s of the OHL, is returning to the WJC program for the first time since 2011. He led the team to a silver medal that year, coaching a group that included future NHL staples like Ryan Ellis, Tyson Barrie, Casey Cizikas, Sean Couturier, and Brayden Schenn. This time around he’ll have a new list of young stars to pick from, including top 2021 prospects like Brandt Clarke, Dylan Guenther and Mason McTavish.

The full list of players invited to development camp was also announced today:

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Seattle Kraken Expected To Sign Adam Larsson, Jamie Oleksiak

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The Seattle Kraken will not be selecting any of the players available in Edmonton or Dallas. Instead, they are expected to reach contracts with unrestricted free agent defensemen Adam Larsson and Jamie Oleksiak, according to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff. Chris Johnston of Sportsnet adds that the contract with Larsson is expected to be a four-year deal and carries an average annual value of $4MM.

When looking at what was available from the Oilers and Stars, targeting free agents made a lot of sense for the Kraken.

Unless the team was going to select an unknown commodity like Ben Bishop, there wasn’t much else available in Dallas. Oleksiak, 28, was going to be one of the most interesting UFA defensemen this summer, after really settling into a top-four role this year for the Stars. Logging over 20 minutes a night for the first time in his career, the 6’7″ behemoth added six goals and 14 points in 56 games. Oleksiak’s breakout really began during the 2020 playoff bubble, when he logged nearly 22 minutes a night for a Dallas team that went to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Losing Oleksiak hurts the Stars, but losing Larsson may be crippling to the Oilers. The team recently brought in Duncan Keith, expecting to put him on a second pair beside the shutdown defenseman as contract talks had progressed well through the early part of the summer. Ryan Rishaug of TSN reports that the team had multiple offers on the table for Larsson, even ones with comparable term and money to the one he will sign in Seattle. Instead, the 28-year-old defenseman has just decided on a change of scenery, a tough blow to the Oilers offseason that seemed to have him penciled into the lineup for next season.

The Oilers defensive depth is now extremely thin, with Darnell Nurse being only reliable name in the mix. While Keith likely still has enough to contribute positively in a limited role, the team will need to find him a partner if he’s to log top-four minutes on a consistent basis. Ethan Bear is now the team’s top right-handed defenseman, unless Evan Bouchard takes a big step forward.

For the Kraken, the two defensemen are a great start. The team should have plenty of options on the back end, but now at least have two reliable shutdown options to ice every night, potentially even as a pair. Seattle’s penalty-killing should be strong with these two in the mix, while a four-year commitment to Larsson is more than reasonable. It’s a heck of a start for GM Ron Francis as he looks to bring the league’s 32nd team into the spotlight.

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