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Minor Transactions: 08/03/21

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The free agent frenzy is over and now the slow grind of the offseason is upon us. Though the wait for next season will be shorter than normal, hockey fans will have to cling to any kind of news for the next month. Luckily, the minor leagues still have rosters to fill, meaning we’ll still have some notable AHL signings to cover. As always, we’ll keep track of those right here.

  • The Manitoba Moose have signed Jimmy Oligny and Trent Bourque to minor league contracts. Oligny has signed a two-year AHL contract, while Bourque will continue with the organization on a one-year deal. The 28-year-old Oligny served as an alternate captain this season in Manitoba, while scoring just three points in 21 games. Though not an imposing figure at 5’10”, the veteran defenseman is one of the more physical players in the league and has racked up 32 fighting majors in his minor league career.
  • Jake McLaughlin has signed an AHL contract with the Milwaukee Admirals, following his first professional season in 2020-21. The UMass alum played in 28 games for the Henderson Silver Knights, registering two goals and three points. Undrafted, McLaughlin spent four years with the Minutemen, playing 138 games at the college level and racking up 42 points.
  • After failing to receive a qualifying offer from the Edmonton Oilers, Theodor Lennstrom is heading back overseas. This time, he has signed a one-year contract with Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod of the KHL. Lennstrom, 26, played one season with the Bakersfield condors, scoring seven points in 19 games and was always just a lottery ticket for the Oilers coming out of the SHL.
  • At least the Bridgeport Islanders know how to announce contracts. The AHL team has signed Jeff Kubiak, Erik Brown, Felix Bibeau, Cole Coskey, Kyle MacLean and Chris Terry to AHL contracts for the 2021-22 season. The group includes relative newcomers to the professional scene and veteran minor leaguers like Terry, who has played more than 600 games in the AHL. The 32-year-old spent last season in the KHL, but attended the AHL All-Star game in both 2018-19 and 2019-20.

Dallas Stars Sign Joseph Cecconi

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The Dallas Stars have inked Joseph Cecconi to a one-year, two-way contract for the 2021-22 season. The young defenseman was eligible for arbitration this summer but decided not to file. PuckPedia reports that the deal will pay Cecconi $750K in the NHL and $85K in the AHL.

Cecconi, 24, was originally a fifth-round pick of the Stars in 2015, but quickly rose up the prospect charts with his performances at the World Juniors and the University of Michigan. He was part of the U.S. team that won gold in 2017, and developed a little bit of an offensive game to go along with his defensive acumen. The 6’4″ defenseman played 37 games with the Texas Stars last season, recording eight points, and is likely headed back to the minor leagues for 2021-22.

In fact, with other minor league signings like Alexander Petrovic and Andreas Borgman in the fold, the chances Cecconi plays meaningful minutes in the NHL this year seem low. With that in mind, he’s a lock to become a Group VI unrestricted free agent next summer, given he hasn’t played even a single game with Dallas to this point.

Pittsburgh Penguins Sign Radim Zohorna

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The Pittsburgh Penguins have finished some restricted free agent business, signing Radim Zohorna to a two-year contract. It will be a two-way contract in 2021-22 and a one-way contract in 2022-23, carrying an average annual value of $750K in the NHL. Penguins GM Ron Hextall released a short statement on the young forward.

Radim impressed us last season with his ability to transition to the smaller ice surface quickly and adapt his game. He is a power forward with a lot of potential and we are excited to watch him continue to grow as a player.

Zohorna, the 6’6″ behemoth that came up to play eight games with the Penguins this season, is an interesting player to follow as training camps open and rosters take shape. He scored three goals and 11 points in 12 minor league games and the 25-year-old seems to have legitimately turned a corner in his professional career. Undrafted, he also dominated the Czech league early in the season, one which had usually dominated him in the past. In 21 games for Mlada Boleslav BK, he scored 12 goals and 22 points, matching his career-high in points in fewer than half the games.

If Zohorna can continue that breakout offensively, he suddenly becomes a potential option for head coach Mike Sullivan in the bottom-six. The team essentially lost both Brandon Tanev and Jared McCann to the Seattle Kraken, but have added names like Danton Heinen and Brock McGinn through free agency. Even if he fails to make the team out of camp—and the fact that he is still waiver-exempt does not work in his favor—Zohorna will almost certainly get into some games for Pittsburgh this season as an injury replacement.

St. Louis Blues Sign Jordan Kyrou

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The St. Louis Blues have reached a contract with Jordan Kyrou, signing the young forward to a two-year deal. The contract carries an average annual value of $2.8MM, paying Kyrou a total of $5.6MM.

Kyrou, 23, broke out this season, finally showing off the high-end upside that made him the 35th overall pick in 2016. An outstanding skater, he posted 14 goals and 35 points in 55 games, almost all of which came at even-strength. With players like Jaden Schwartz, Mike Hoffman, and potentially Vladimir Tarasenko all leaving the Blues this offseason, there will be a real opportunity for Kyrou to take another step forward in 2021-22.

If he does, that $2.8MM cap hit will suddenly look like an extreme bargain, given he would have been eligible for salary arbitration next summer. Instead, he’ll lock in at a reasonable number and try to establish himself as one of the team’s most important forwards. Still, he won’t be handed a top-line role right away, as Pavel Buchnevich and Brandon Saad were also added on the wings this offseason. Both will be making quite a bit more than Kyrou, meaning he could still find himself playing third-line minutes and seeing rare powerplay time. That could be a way to keep his next contract down, but it’ll be hard to keep him bottled up if he continues to improve.

For the Blues, a $2.8MM contract leaves them with about $3.5MM left to spend this summer. With Zach Sanford and Robert Thomas still to sign as restricted free agents, that isn’t a lot of wiggle room. The big move will still be Tarasenko, which could clear as much as $7.5MM off the cap if the team makes a trade without any salary retention. Once Kyrou and the others are signed though, the team will know exactly how much it can retain in order to facilitate the best return.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Rochester Americans Hire Mike Peca

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The Rochester Americans are bringing in a face that’s familiar to many Buffalo Sabres fans, hiring Michael Peca as an assistant coach for the AHL club. Peca will replace Adam Mair, who has been named director of player development for the Sabres. Jason Karmanos, GM of the Americans, released a short statement on the hire:

Michael brings a wealth of experience as both a player and coach and will be a tremendous addition to our coaching staff in Rochester. He will play an integral role in the development of our prospects, and we look forward to him making an immediate impact for our organization.

Peca, 47, spent last season with the Washington Capitals as a development coach, but before that was part of the Buffalo Jr. Sabres program. A veteran of nearly 1,000 NHL games, he served as captain of the Sabres for four years, leading them to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1999. An Olympic gold medalist and two-time Selke Trophy winner, there’s plenty of knowledge and experience that Peca can impact on the young Sabres prospects.

That player development is key for a Sabres team that needs more than just the top picks to become NHL players. If they want to reach a level of contention, some of the team’s mid-round or even undrafted prospects will have to start providing value at the highest level. Peca’s job will now be to help guide those young players along the pipeline, showing them the path he took from the second round to the NHL.

Minor Transactions: 08/02/21

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After a number of busy days on the free agent market, NHL transactions are starting to show signs of cooling down. Those big-league deals will continue throughout the summer, but now the minor deals will increase in frequency as some NHL hopefuls settle for minor league deals or make the jump overseas. Follow along with those contracts here:

  • The San Jose Barracuda announced that they have signed veteran defenseman Mark Alt to a one-year AHL contract. Alt, 29, is entering his ninth NHL season, having previously spent time with the Philadelphia Flyers, Colorado Avalanche, and Los Angeles Kings, as well as their respective affiliates. Alt has logged over 400 AHL games and 20 NHL games. What he may lack in high-end ability, Alt makes up for in dependability as a big, defensively sound blue liner. The former Colorado Eagles captain and Ontario Reign alternate also brings leadership and experience to the AHL ranks, something that the San Jose Sharks will value as they groom their prospects.
  • Goaltender Evan Fitzpatrick has inked a two-year deal with the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers, the team announced. The St. Louis Blues opted not to extend a qualifying offer to the 23-year-old Fitzpatrick, a somewhat surprising move for a formerly well-regarded second-round prospect. It is equally strange to see him settle for a minor league deal. While Fitzpatrick had struggled in the pros leading up to this past season, he did nothing to damage his stock in a brief 2020-21 showing. In three appearances, Fitzpatrick recorded a 2-0-0 record with a 1.65 GAA and .930 save percentage. While a very small sample size, it also could have marked the beginning of Fitzpatrick meeting his potential. If so, the Checkers stand to gain for not one but two years, unless an NHL competitor swoops in. Charlotte also signed former Florida Panthers prospect Karch Bachman, who spent his first pro season in the ECHL after a standout career at Miami University.
  • Overage forward Simon Knak was drafted in his second go-round this year after another stellar year with the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks, picked up by the Nashville Predators in the sixth round. However, he won’t make his pro debut in North America any time soon. The 19-year-old Swiss winger signed a two-year deal back home with the NLA’s HC Davos, the team he spent 25 games with on loan this past season. Knak will be under contract through the 2022-23 season, after which time the Predators hope he will be ready to return.

Ryan Murray Signs With Colorado Avalanche

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One of the top remaining unrestricted free agents is now off the market. Defenseman Ryan Murray, ranked No. 22 in PHR’s Top 50 UFA’s and the fourth-highest ranked unsigned free agent has found a new home, at least for the time being. The Colorado Avalanche announced that they have signed Murray to a one-year, $2MM contract.

Murray, 27, could be quite the bargain for the Avs, coming off of a contract that paid him $4.6MM annually. The 2012 second overall pick may not be the two-way dynamo that many expected when he was drafted, but he has developed into a strong defensive player who can contribute modest offense as well. Murray is a solid positional defender who blocks shots and wins puck battles with regularity and can move the puck up the ice, making him an easy player to hand significant ice time. In 395 career games, Murray has recorded 124 points and 663 blocked shots in over 20 minutes per game.

The issue with Murray is health. The injury-prone blue liner has missed nearly 220 games in his career due to various ailments. However, at just $2MM Murray is well worth the gamble for the Avs. The team may have been looking for a veteran defenseman following the departure of Ryan Graves, but in reality Murray is a luxury for the team. With a top four of Cale Makar, Samuel Girard, Devon Toews, and Erik Johnson, budding youngster Bowen Byram, depth option Jacob MacDonald, and new addition Kurtis MacDermid, the Avalanche are more than capable of surviving a Murray injury absence.

West Notes: Zadorov, Kesler, Nurse, Khaira, Blackhawks Cap

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The fact that Flames defenseman Nikita Zadorov was among the 17 players to file for salary arbitration on Sunday raised some eyebrows considering he has been with Calgary for all of a few days.  However, his agent Dan Milstein of Gold Star released a statement via Twitter outlining that the short time since the move played a role in the filing:

We filed for arbitration on Nikita Zadorov’s behalf simply because the trade was recent and there wasn’t enough time to negotiate new contract with Calgary Flames. Discussions are ongoing and both sides are hopeful to have a contract in place soon.

The potential for an arbitration award that was too rich for Chicago’s liking played a role in Zadorov being traded and the Flames are certainly conscious of that.  However, we’re still another week and a half away from hearings beginning so there is still ample time to get a deal done.  Zadorov was qualified at $3.2MM and will get more than that on his next deal.

More from the Western Conference:

  • After seeing Chicago pick up Tyler Johnson and a draft pick for Brent Seabrook’s whose playing days have come to an end, the Ducks have told teams they’re open to doing a deal like that involving Ryan Kesler who is in the same situation, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in the latest 31 Thoughts podcast (audio link). Kesler is entering the final year of his contract that carries a $6.875MM AAV and could be acquired to add to a teams’ LTIR pool while sending out some sort of salary offset that ultimately frees up some cap space, allowing Anaheim to add something for someone that isn’t going to play for them.
  • In the same podcast, Friedman reports that the Oilers are now focused on a max-term extension for defenseman Darnell Nurse. Previously, the expectation was a medium-term deal but with Dougie Hamilton’s contract with New Jersey setting the market, a long-term pact in the $9MM range appears to be the target for the 26-year-old who is coming off his top season that saw him collect 16 goals and 20 assists in 56 games while logging over 25 minutes a night.
  • Blackhawks forward Jujhar Khaira told reporters, including John Dietz of the Daily Herald, that he had multiple teams show interest in him in free agency. Edmonton declined to tender a $1.3MM qualifying offer and the 26-year-old wasn’t able to get that on the open market, ultimately taking a two-year deal worth $975K.  With just 21 points over the last two seasons, Khaira’s limited production limits him to a fourth-line role so a pay cut was likely for him though he managed to secure a second year at least.
  • Still with Chicago, Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman spoke with the media today and told reporters, including Mark Lazerus of The Athletic (Twitter link) that they don’t have to make any salary-cap-related moves to open up some space. They still have to re-sign young forwards Brandon Hagel and Alex Nylander and are about $3MM below their LTIR ceiling, per CapFriendly, with goalies Malcolm Subban and Collin Delia presumed to be off the roster either by waivers or trade.  That would lock in short-term deals for Nylander and Hagel to keep cap compliant but otherwise, it could be a quiet rest of the summer for them.

Slow-Developing Market For Vladimir Tarasenko

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There has been an expectation over the past few months that the Blues and Vladimir Tarasenko would be parting ways.  First came the news that he was being shopped which was followed up by Tarasenko’s trade request going public.  The first opportunity came and went with expansion; although St. Louis left the winger unprotected, Seattle instead opted for RFA defenseman Vince Dunn.  Then came the draft and the opening of free agency and still the veteran remains with the Blues.

Accordingly, GM Doug Armstrong told reporters including Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he is changing his focus towards dealing with his restricted free agents and “as of now I don’t see anything changing for a while” when it comes to his roster which suggests there is no viable trade option on the horizon for Tarasenko.

There are a trio of restricted free agents to deal with in forwards Zach Sanford, Jordan Kyrou, and Robert Thomas.  The Blues have a little over $6MM in cap room, per CapFriendly, which means they should be able to get those three locked up but they won’t have anything left to spend after that.  That means that the delay in finding a Tarasenko trade is basically holding up the rest of their offseason planning.

Thomas notes that Tarasenko has expanded his list of teams he’s willing to go to and at this point, he’s willing to go pretty much anywhere to get the change of scenery he so desires.  In terms of potential suitors, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period suggested in a recent appearance on the NHL Network (video link) that the Islanders, Rangers, and Devils are in the mix but others that had interest such as the Flyers have since dropped out.  Of those three, New Jersey has the cleanest cap situation to make a move for Tarasenko without needing any sort of salary offset.

Tarasenko’s trade value is certainly at the lowest it has been in a while as the 29-year-old underachieved after coming back from yet another shoulder surgery (his third in two years), notching just four goals in 24 games last season and didn’t make much of an impact at the World Championships after joining Russia late in the tournament.  With a $7.5MM cap hit for two more years and a $9.5MM salary, it’s a hefty price tag to take on and considering how he performed after coming back, it’s understandable that there is some hesitance to give up a return of significance.

While there is no firm timeline to necessarily get something done, the more that teams spend either on the open market or re-signing their own players makes it harder to get a Tarasenko trade done as cap space dries up so from that standpoint, the sooner a move gets done, the better.  The old adage is that it only takes one phone call to get something going on the trade front.  Armstrong is certainly hoping that call is coming soon.

Flyers Elect Salary Arbitration For Travis Sanheim

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It’s rare that we see a team elect salary arbitration with a player but even rarer that it happens twice in the same year.  That is indeed the case, however, as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that the Flyers have elected arbitration with defenseman Travis Sanheim.  He joins Minnesota’s Kevin Fiala as those that were taken to arbitration today.

Sanheim is a particularly interesting case.  Two years ago, he was coming off a breakout season that saw him collect 35 points in 82 games but with his limited track record at the time, the two sides agreed on a two-year bridge contract that carried a $3.25MM AAV.  The expectation was that the deal would quickly become a bargain and that the now-25-year-old would be in line for a significant raise at its expiration.

However, that hasn’t exactly been the case.  Sanheim is coming off somewhat of a disappointing season, one that saw him notch just three goals with a dozen assists in 55 games despite averaging a career-high 21:53 per game.  When you factor in the 2019-20 campaign, he had 40 points in 124 games on his bridge deal.  Those numbers aren’t poor by any stretch but they’re also not numbers that should land a player the significant raise that it seemed like he’d be headed for two years ago.

While the filing will guarantee that Sanheim will be signed by the end of the month, it also permits him the opportunity to select the term of the contract should it get to a hearing.  Arbitration awards can only be one or two years so Sanheim could opt for the latter which would take him to UFA eligibility in the 2023 offseason.  A hearing will now be scheduled between August 11th and 26th but a deal can be agreed upon up until the beginning of the hearing; it used to be that a settlement could be reached at any time but that rule was changed in the last CBA.

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