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Los Angeles Kings Extend Blake Lizotte

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As the league continues its trade deadline frenzy, the Los Angeles Kings have decided to complete a little contract work. Blake Lizotte has signed a two-year contract extension with the Kings, one that will carry an average annual value of $1.675MM. Lizotte was a pending restricted free agent but is now under contract through 2023-24.

After once again proving that he can handle his own as a depth center, the undersized Lizotte is rewarded with a nice raise. Undrafted, the former USHL star exploded onto NHL radars while at St. Cloud State and immediately stepped into the highest level after signing with the Kings in 2019. He has played 58 games for the Kings this season, adding eight goals and 17 points while being a strong contributor on the penalty kill.

While he isn’t pummelled with defensive zone faceoffs like some depth centers–because of the presence of both Anze Kopitar and Phillip Danault–Lizotte still isn’t gifted easy minutes for the Kings and yet continues to find success in terms of possession statistics. That has made him a worthwhile extension candidate, especially as the team continues to improve.

A deal like this doesn’t offer a ton of upside, but it’s a nice reward for a hard-working player that was earning just $800K this season. Lizotte will still be a restricted free agent when it expires.

Colorado Avalanche Acquire Artturi Lehkonen

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The Colorado Avalanche have acquired forward Artturi Lehkonen from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2024 second-round pick and defense prospect Justin Barron, as originally reported by Kevin Weekes on ESPN’s Trade Deadline coverage and confirmed by TSN’s Pierre LeBrun.

Lehkonen is a gigantic addition to Colorado’s bottom six, especially as they deal with depth issues down the stretch caused by the injury to captain Gabriel Landeskog. In 58 games with Montreal this season, he’s scoring at a career-best pace, netting 13 goals and 16 assists for 29 points.

A veteran of almost 400 NHL games, the 26-year-old was the best defensive winger remaining on the trade market. He’s seeing a defensive zone start rate of higher than 50% for the first time since his rookie season, a sign of trust in his strong game. He adds to Colorado’s arsenal of defensively responsible wingers headlined by Valeri Nichushkin.

Lehkonen, who has a cap hit of $2.3MM, is a restricted free agent at the end of this season. Colorado acquired him at 50% salary retention and is only on the hook for $1.15MM.

For Montreal, though, this is a very respectable piece of work by new general manager Kent Hughes. Barron is a stellar prospect, drafted 25th overall in 2020. In his first full professional season, he played in his first two NHL games with Colorado this year and has 20 points in 43 games with the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. He’s a candidate to get some NHL looks post-Deadline in Montreal.

St. Louis Blues To Acquire Nick Leddy

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The St. Louis Blues have made their defensive addition, acquiring Nick Leddy from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Oskar Sundqvist and Jake Walman and a second-round pick in 2023. The Blues will also receive Luke Witkowski in the deal, giving them some more depth (at multiple positions, even). Lou Korac of NHL.com reports that the Red Wings will be retaining 50 percent of Leddy’s remaining contract.

Leddy, who turned 31 yesterday, is still one of the strongest skating defensemen in the league and can fit into a Blues team that has their eyes set on another Stanley Cup. After a career spent entirely in Chicago and New York, Leddy came to Detroit in an offseason trade that cost just Richard Panik–a contract the team didn’t want anyway–and a second-round pick.

After a few months with the Red Wings, he’ll bring back even more than that, as both Sundqvist and Walman project as potential NHL options for Detroit. There’s even potential for him to return to them anyway as a free agent, as Leddy is currently scheduled to hit the open market this summer. Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic tweets that there have not yet been any extension discussions between the Blues and Leddy, meaning this could just be a pure rental for the last part of the season.

Getting back players that can contribute right away is key for a Red Wings team that hopes to contend for a playoff spot next season. In Sundqvist, they’re getting a 27-year-old forward that carries a cap hit of $2.75MM through the 2022-23 season. While he still hasn’t turned into much of an offensive player, the 6’3″ forward is a physical force that can fit into a few different spots in the bottom of the lineup. In Detroit, the team can perhaps even squeeze more offense out of him, as the Blues did when he scored 14 goals and 31 points in 2018-19.

Walman too could get a much bigger chance in Detroit, who have now moved out a pair of defensemen following Troy Stecher’s deal yesterday. The 26-year-old has played just 57 games in his NHL career to this point and will be a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer if he fails to play in enough games down the stretch. He’ll likely enter the lineup on a regular basis to avoid that, at which point he’ll be an arbitration-eligible RFA in the offseason.

This has turned into a clear strategy for Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman, acquiring underutilized players for expiring assets. In fact, he might even end up flipping Sundqvist or Walman at some point as the team continues to build for the future.

But even though those players are tough to lose, the Blues are getting their big addition on defense ahead of a Stanley Cup push. Leddy can slot into the lineup and help take some of the pressure off of players like Marco Scandella who has struggled to maintain his previous level. The fact that he has over 120 games of playoff experience and won a Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013 only adds to his appeal.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Edmonton Oilers Acquire Brett Kulak

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The Edmonton Oilers have entered into the trade deadline fray. They have acquired defenseman Brett Kulak from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for William Lagesson, a conditional 2022 second-round pick, and a 2024 seventh-round pick. The Canadiens will retain 50 percent of Kulak’s remaining salary. If the Oilers reach the Stanley Cup Final this season, the conditional pick will become a 2023 second-round pick.

In Kulak, the Oilers get a defenseman who, like most of the Canadiens team, has come into his own with the departure of former GM Marc Bergevin and the arrival of new coach Martin St. Louis. He has been given a larger role in Montreal’s lineup compared to the more inconsistent roles he dealt with in the past and has responded with one of the best stretches of games of his career. He’s a good skater who can help in the transition game, although his offense isn’t anything to write home about. He has 13 points this season in 56 games and had eight points in 46 games last season. He can hold his own defensively enough to not be a liability but it would be a mistake for Oilers fans to expect a minute-munching penalty killer. He also isn’t an overwhelming physical presence but as the Canadiens have lost defensemen to injuries and trades, and relied more on a younger and more inexperienced defensive corps Kulak has been able to show a bit more snarl to his game. At an expiring $1.85MM cap number, Kulak is a reasonable add for an Oilers’ blueline that could use another solid contributor like Kulak. Though, with the cost being a second-rounder and Lagesson, one wonders if the price is a bit too steep. But with the prior trades of Jeremy Lauzon for a second-rounder and Ben Chiarot for a first-rounder, it is clear that defensemen are at a premium.

For the Canadiens, getting a second-rounder alone is a great return for Kulak, a pending unrestricted free agent. While the team is surging and Kulak has been a big part of that, building the team’s future is more important than the rest of this season. They add another high draft pick to an ever-increasing stable of picks, and unless Kulak gets an extension in Edmonton they still do have the option of approaching him in free agency this summer. The team also gets Lagesson in return. Lagesson, 26, is a Swedish defender who cleared waivers earlier this season. He has gotten into 30 games so far this year and has four points. He needs to play in eighteen more games for the Canadiens to be eligible to retain his rights as an unrestricted free agent. He’s a defense-first defender who should be able to help them down the stretch as they recover from the loss of Kulak and Chiarot. Overall, it’s a bit of a steep price to pay for the Oilers but not a totally unreasonable one, and for the Canadiens, they get a valuable draft pick for a player set to hit unrestricted free agency.

Boston Bruins Acquire Josh Brown

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Last April the Boston Bruins acquired a depth defenseman from the Ottawa Senators for a mid-round pick, and it turned out to be a pretty good move. Mike Reilly ended up signing a three-year contract extension and now is a regular on the Bruins blueline. They’ll try it again, this time acquiring Josh Brown and a conditional 2022 seventh-round draft pick from the Senators in exchange for Zach Senyshyn and a 2022 fifth-round pick. If Senyshyn plays five NHL games before the end of the 2021-22 season, the Bruins will receive a 2022 sixth-round pick instead.

Brown, 28, brings a much different package to the ice than Reilly. This time it’s a 6’5″ 220-lbs defenseman that is an absolute bulldozer on the ice, hitting anything that moves whenever he gets the chance. What kind of role he’ll play on Boston isn’t clear, though it will be certainly bigger than what Senyshyn has done to this point.

One of the infamous three consecutive first-round picks from 2015, the 24-year-old has played just 14 games to this point in his career. That’s fewer than every other player drafted in that round, something that certainly doesn’t bode well for his future even in a new organization. He’ll turn 25 later this month and likely get a chance to show what he can do with the Senators, but he might not be there very long.

Senyshyn is one of the players who will qualify for Group VI unrestricted free agency this summer, meaning the Senators would need to reach a contract with him in the next few months, or else he’d go to the open market.

Jachym Kondelik Signs With Nashville Predators

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The Nashville Predators have been active in the last 24 hours, and that continues right now. The team announced the signing of 2018 draft pick Jachym Kondelik to his two-year entry-level contract today, set to begin next season.

Kondelik, a Czech citizen born in Germany, was drafted 111th overall in the fourth round in 2018. He’s spent all four seasons post-draft at the University of Connecticut, where he was named captain for the 2021-22 season. Largely a playmaker, Kondelik notched his first season with double-digit goals this year, potting 12 goals and 21 assists for 33 points in 36 games. He’s been consistent throughout his college career, netting at least 20 points in each season.

He’ll undoubtedly head to the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals next year but will likely see some decent ice time and opportunity there considering Nashville’s somewhat thin prospect pool. He could absolutely emerge as a strong call-up candidate, though, and it’s not out of the question that he sees at least a game of NHL action in 2022-23.

Los Angeles Kings, Nashville Predators Complete Minor Trade

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Amid a flurry of moves containing NHL-caliber players, the Nashville Predators and Los Angeles Kings have finalized a swap of two players with one game of NHL experience between them. The Kings have acquired defenseman Frederic Allard from the Predators in exchange for forward Brayden Burke. This is a swap of AHL players right as both teams’ AHL affiliate squads look set to qualify for the AHL’s Calder Cup Playoffs. The Kings’ affiliate, the Ontario Reign, are second in the AHL’s Pacific Division. The Milwaukee Admirals, the Predators’ affiliate, are third in the AHL’s Central Division, so this trade was likely done with their seasons in mind.

The Kings, in getting Allard, get the player in the deal that has made it to the NHL before. Allard has played in one game, in 2020-2021, and was one of the Predators’ two 2016 third-round picks, along with Rem Pitlick. The 24-year-old defender has five points in 36 AHL games and spent time playing in Austria in 2020-2021. The Kings’ defense is currently ravaged by injuries, and a whole host of players including Drew Doughty, Sean Walker, Matt Roy, Tobias Bjornfot, and Mikey Anderson have been unavailable. They recently traded a seventh-rounder to Detroit for defenseman Troy Stecher, and now make this deal as another move to help shore up that beaten-up blueline. Allard is also a pending restricted free agent, which means that the Predators will have the opportunity to retain him should they deem him a good fit in their organization.

The Predators deal Allard for Burke, who has been an AHL player since 2018-19. He has been a decent scorer at that level, with his best season coming in 2019-20, when he had 52 points in 51 games. He now has 17 points in 31 games for the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners this season and figures to help as a secondary scorer for the Admirals. Given that he is a pending group-six unrestricted free agent, it is unlikely that the Predators have Burke in their long-term plans. But he should be able to reinforce Milwaukee for their playoff chase, and the Predators have historically been interested in having success at the AHL level, which is where Burke has been for the entirety of his professional career.

New York Rangers Acquire Justin Braun

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The New York Rangers have made an interesting defensive addition, acquiring Justin Braun from the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers will receive a 2023 third-round pick in exchange for the defenseman.

Braun, 35, is a pending unrestricted free agent like many of the other players moved today, but represents a nice fit for the Rangers who have decided to push at least a few chips to the middle during their surprising run in the Metropolitan Division. While the team is still on the way up, Igor Shesterkin and company have done enough in the first part of the season to deserve a bit of deadline help.

That help comes in the form of the 6’2″ Braun, who has a history of playing with more mobile, offensive partners. This year that’s been almost entirely with Ivan Provorov, who has also heard his name bandied about in trade rumors recently. Braun now goes to a team with several of those puck-movers, and could potentially help support a younger player like K’Andre Miller as the team takes the next step in their competitive window.

For the Flyers, selling Braun was almost a certainty after they decided to move out pending free agents. While a second-round pick surely was the target, they’ll have to settle for a third when it comes down to it. The fact that it’s in 2023 is interesting though as that draft has been targeted heavily in trade talks and the Flyers don’t seem committed to a true rebuild. They could potentially flip that pick at some point down the line for more immediate help.

The Rangers still have plenty of picks to deal from if they want to add more at the deadline, including two second-round picks this year. They also have plenty of cap space, meaning more moves could be coming in the next few hours.

Jeff Marek of Sportsnet was first to break the trade on Twitter. 

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Nashville Predators Acquire Alex Biega

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The Nashville Predators are adding a bit of defensive depth, as Darren Dreger of TSN reports that they have acquired Alex Biega from the Toronto Maple Leafs. Kevin Weekes of ESPN adds that the deal is for future considerations.

Biega, 33, has spent almost the entire season in the minor leagues, playing 31 games for the Toronto Marlies and just two for the Maple Leafs. A right-handed option with nearly 250 games of NHL experience, he shouldn’t be expected to hold a regular role in Nashville but does provide the kind of depth that many teams need during a playoff push.

Signed to a one-year, two-way contract with a cap hit of just $750K, the key here is that Biega has already cleared waivers and can be stashed in the minor leagues until needed.

For Toronto, the key is clearing out a contract slot ahead of today’s deadline. Before the deal they had already used 49 of 50 slots, meaning they would have been restricted if they wanted to make any more trades. Even with Rasmus Sandin dealing with an injury and Jake Muzzin still working his way back from a concussion, the Maple Leafs were very unlikely to use Biega at any point, making him completely expendable.

Snapshots: Bertuzzi, Larsson, Bergeron, White, Chara

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While Red Wings winger Tyler Bertuzzi has been in some trade speculation as of late, he told reporters including MLive’s Ansar Khan that his desire is to stay with Detroit, the team that drafted him back in the second round in 2013.  The 27-year-old has one year left on his deal with a $4.75MM AAV and will become an unrestricted free agent in the 2023 offseason.  He sits second on the team in scoring this season with 49 points in 51 games which means GM Steve Yzerman would be placing a very high price tag if a contender wants to take a run at adding Bertuzzi today.

Other news and notes around the league:

  • The Coyotes have made some progress on a trade involving center Johan Larsson, reports PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan (Twitter link). The 29-year-old has been out for nearly two months with a lower-body injury but is nearing a return. Larsson has 15 points in 29 games this season but has been a checker for most of his career which is the role contending teams would have in mind for him.  With a $1.4MM AAV, he’s someone several teams will be able to afford.
  • Boston is hoping that center Patrice Bergeron will be able to return from his arm injury for Thursday’s game against Tampa Bay, note Elaine Cavalieri and Eric Russo of the Bruins’ team site. The veteran will miss his third straight game tonight against Montreal and has 45 points in 56 games this season.
  • Senators center Colin White is someone that a couple of league executives believes in play, reports Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch. The 25-year-old recently returned to the lineup after missing the first 50 games of the year with a shoulder injury.  He has six points in a dozen contests but with three years remaining on his deal with a $4.75MM AAV, it would be surprising to see him moved unless Ottawa is willing to take a similar-sized deal in return.
  • The Oilers are among the teams to check in on Islanders defenseman Zdeno Chara, Chris Johnston reports in his latest Toronto Star column. The 45-year-old is still averaging more than 18 minutes a night and with a base cap hit of just the league minimum of $750K, he’s someone that they should be able to afford with their limited cap space.  Chara also has another $750K in undisclosed performance bonuses which an acquiring team may become responsible for absorbing although that can roll over to next year’s cap if necessary.

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