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Morning Notes: Draft Prospects, Pokka, Kravtsov

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More than 70 percent of PHR voters believe that Shane Wright is still the top choice for the Montreal Canadiens at the upcoming 2022 NHL Draft, and if you asked Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, he’d agree. Wheeler has Wright in the No. 1 spot on his updated top-100, though does note that he is no longer in a tier above the rest of the field.

Interestingly enough, Juraj Slafkovsky, who overtook Wright on Corey Pronman’s recent list, is much further down Wheeler’s. The big winger isn’t even the top-ranked player from Slovakia, as the prospect prognosticator continues to rank Simon Nemec higher than most of the other publicly available lists. As always, the entire list is worth a read, given how detailed Wheeler dives into some of the lower-ranked names.

  • Highly-ranked prospects don’t always work out though, something the Chicago Blackhawks found our first hand with Ville Pokka, the 34th overall pick in 2012 and a big part of the return for Nick Leddy two years later. Pokka, despite strong offensive numbers in the AHL, never could put together his defensive game well enough to earn an NHL opportunity, and the defenseman left for the KHL in 2018. After four years in Russia, he’s headed to Sweden, where he’ll join Farjestad next season.
  • Vitali Kravtsov, another prospect that hasn’t quite panned out just yet, has apparently turned down an offer from the KHL as he eyes a return to North America. The 22-year-old winger is a pending restricted free agent but will still be under control of the New York Rangers, should they issue him a qualifying offer. In his partial season with Traktor this year, Kravtsov proved he can play to a high level in the KHL, scoring 13 goals and 23 points in a combined 34 games.

Luke Cavallin Signs AHL Contract

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have obviously decided on a very specific development path for goaltenders. Like Keith Petruzzelli and Dryden McKay before him, Luke Cavallin has signed a two-year AHL contract with the organization, following his outstanding season for the Flint Firebirds.

Cavallin, 21, was an undrafted overage prospect playing in the OHL this season, where he posted a 36-14-4 record and a .910 save percentage. A few days ago, he was ousted from the third round of the playoffs in heartbreaking fashion, his team failing to score a goal in the deciding game seven after losing game six in overtime. In 19 playoff appearances, Cavallin registered a .929 save percentage.

If he is a late bloomer, he’ll now have the time and resources to continue his path through professional hockey with this two-year minor league contract. The young netminder will likely start in the ECHL given how many goaltenders are now in the Maple Leafs system, giving him the chance to play for the Newfoundland Growlers in 2022-23.

For Toronto, finding a long-term solution in net has been extremely difficult. Jack Campbell, the team’s starter this year, is a pending free agent and could be headed to the open market next month. Taking swings with these young netminders could potentially pay off, but there is still lots for Cavallin to improve on before he makes a mark in the NHL.

Montreal Canadiens Extend Chris Wideman

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The Montreal Canadiens have agreed to terms with veteran defenseman Chris Wideman on a two-year contract extension that will keep him in town through the 2023-24 season. Eric Engels of Sportsnet reports that the deal will pay Wideman $750K in 2022-23 and $775K in 2023-24.

For a player like Wideman, a two-year deal must seem like a long-term contract. The 32-year-old has played under one-year contracts for most of his career, including this season when he earned the minimum of $750K at the NHL level. Even that was a step up from his last few years playing in the AHL and KHL, where it appeared for a short time like Wideman’s NHL career was over.

Not so, after coming back with 27 points in 64 games for the Canadiens in 2021-22 and showing that he still has a place on an NHL roster. While he’ll never be the best option in his own end or against top opponents, Wideman is still a strong puck-mover that can take advantage of easier matchups and contribute to the powerplay. For a Montreal team that is heading into a rebuild, a two-year term gives them a reliable specialist to plug into the lineup on a regular basis, and one that desperately wanted to continue with the organization that gave him a second chance at the NHL.

The interesting part of a deal like this is what it might mean for some of the other veteran defensemen on Montreal’s roster. While Wideman isn’t exactly going to replace Jeff Petry, bringing him back does suggest that there might be other changes coming. With younger options like Jordan Harris, Alexander Romanov, Justin Barron, Kaiden Guhle, and Mattias Norlinder all expected to challenge for playing time, it’s hard to know how many spots will even be open.

Five Key Stories: 5/30/22 – 6/5/22

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With just four teams still playing, the majority of the biggest news of the week came away from the ice and is recapped in our key stories.

Prospects Released: June 1st is one of the dates to watch for when it comes to signing deadlines for certain prospects.  That came and went with teams parting ways with a total of 28 different youngsters who, depending on their age, will either re-enter the draft next month or become unrestricted free agents.  Dallas and Montreal both parted ways with players that were picked in the second round while Minnesota took the rare step of opting not to sign a first-rounder from that draft class in defenseman Filip Johansson, who went 24th overall in 2018.  As a result, the Wild will receive the 24th pick of the second round this year (56th overall) as compensation; unsigned players picked outside the first round do not yield compensatory picks.

Minnesota Surgeries: It was revealed that Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon underwent core muscle surgery after the playoffs while winger Mats Zuccarello will need the same procedure done.  The recovery time for the procedure is six to eight weeks.  Spurgeon played through the injury for more than half the season but still managed to put up 40 points in 65 games while averaging over 21 minutes a night.  Zuccarello, meanwhile, had a career year with 79 points in 70 contests and was also playing through a leg fracture.  However, that one is expected to heal with rest and he won’t need surgery for that injury.

Gardiner Cleared: Hurricanes defenseman Jake Gardiner missed all of the 2021-22 season with hip and back injuries and with how much time he has missed lately, some had wondered if his playing days were over.  That won’t be the case as GM Don Waddell indicated that the veteran has now been fully cleared to return next season.  Carolina went into LTIR this season with Gardiner and his $4.05MM AAV but they won’t have that avenue moving forward.  He has one year left on his deal and with him being cleared, he could become a buyout candidate when the window opens up after the Stanley Cup Final.  The team has roughly $19MM in cap room for next season, per CapFriendly, but they have several core players on expiring deals including blueliner Tony DeAngelo, center Vincent Trocheck, and winger Nino Niederreiter.

St. Louis Signs: Martin St. Louis was surprisingly named as Montreal’s interim head coach midseason when Dominique Ducharme was let go and while it didn’t result in any sort of big turnaround, the Canadiens were more competitive down the stretch.  He did well enough to convince management to remove the interim tag as St. Louis signed a three-year contract to officially become their head coach.  The team went 14-19-4 after he took over but it was the offensive improvement from several of their players – particularly Cole Caufield – that stood out.  With Montreal expected to be rebuilding for another couple of years at least, St. Louis is an understandable choice to continue on for now with an emphasis on player development.

Kadri Out, Kane Suspended: The Avalanche suffered a big blow when Nazem Kadri was injured in the third game of the Western Conference Final on a hit from behind on Evander Kane.  He has already been ruled out for the rest of the series and potentially longer according to head coach Jared Bednar.  The 31-year-old has had a strong postseason thus far with 14 points in 13 games, carrying on his strong play from the regular season.  As for Kane, he received a five-minute major penalty on the play and was issued a one-game suspension that will keep him out of a must-win contest on Monday as Edmonton looks to stay alive in the series.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Free Agent Focus: Washington Capitals

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Free agency is now less than six weeks away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in mid-July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  Next up is a look at the Capitals.

Key Restricted Free Agents

G Ilya Samsonov – After a disappointing sophomore year, the Capitals were hoping that the 25-year-old would have a bounce-back campaign and stake his claim to the starting spot.  It didn’t happen.  Instead, Samsonov’s performance dipped once again with a save percentage of just .896 while his GAA jumped to 3.02.  In other words, he performed like a backup goalie.  Samsonov is owed a $2MM qualifying offer but is now arbitration-eligible which will help drive the price tag a little higher but it would be hard to see Washington offer a long-term deal.  He still will be RFA-eligible next summer so a one-year contract that gives him one more chance makes the most sense for both sides.

G Vitek Vanecek – Washington opted to trade a second-round pick to Seattle to get Vanecek back a week after they lost him in expansion and it’s a move that worked out well for them.  The 26-year-old had a near-repeat performance of his rookie year, posting an identical save percentage of .908 and improving slightly on his GAA from 2.69 to 2.67.  The qualifying offer for under $800K but it’s irrelevant as he’ll get at least three times that on his next deal.  Unlike Samsonov, Vanecek is a year away from UFA eligibility so they might be inclined to work on a multi-year pact with him which could push the price tag closer to the $3.5MM range.

Other RFAs: D Tobias Geisser, D Lucas Johansen, F Brett Leason, F Beck Malenstyn

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

D Justin Schultz – Schultz was a surprise signing in 2020 considering Washington had little cap space at the time which made it seem unlikely that they’d use a lot of it on one player.  His first year with them was good and he was able to hold down a spot in their top four, averaging just over 19 minutes a game.  However, things didn’t go as well this season.  His production dipped to 23 points in 74 games (a bit on the low side for an offensive defenseman) while he dipped below 17 minutes in ATOI as he was more sheltered; in the playoffs, that dipped to just over 15 minutes.  The Schultz of 2020-21 was close to being worth his $4MM AAV but this year’s version wasn’t near that price point.  Still just 31, there will be a market for him – especially as a right-shot defender – but he will be hard-pressed to land a raise in free agency.  A small dip appears likely.

F Marcus Johansson – It took a little while for Johansson to sign last summer, eventually agreeing to a one-year, $1.5MM deal with Seattle before making his way to Washington at the trade deadline for the second go-round with the team.  His per-game numbers were quite similar to his 2020-21 performance so it stands to reason that he should be able to command a similar price tag this time around.  Johansson’s positional versatility will help his market but at this point of his career, he’s more of a depth scorer than a top-six player like he was just a few years ago.

F Johan Larsson – Larsson has shown flashes of offensive skill in the past but it hasn’t yielded much production.  He had a bigger role while he was with Arizona and there was a corresponding increase in production as he was just over a half a point per game before being moved to the Capitals at the trade deadline.  Generally speaking, teams will want to go low on their fourth liners and role players to save some cap space but Larsson has a chance to be an exception as a decent checking center that can chip in a bit from the fourth line.  He should have a chance to at least come close to the $1.4MM AAV he had in each of the last two years.

Other UFAs: G Pheonix Copley, F Shane Gersich, D Matt Irwin, D Michal Kempny, F Brian Pinho

Projected Cap Space

Washington enters this offseason with just under $9MM in cap space and two big question marks with the injuries to Nicklas Backstrom and Tom Wilson.  They could both be LTIR-bound to start the season but at least in Wilson’s case, he’ll be back after a couple of months.  With Backstrom, everything is on the table still with GM Brian MacLellan saying continuing to play through his injury would be unsustainable.  If they shut him down for a year with surgery, he could stay on LTIR throughout the year and the Capitals would have some flexibility.

Until they know one way or the other, they can’t plan for that to happen so for now, the bulk of that $9MM will need to go towards their two RFA goaltenders while they’ll also need to sign a defenseman or two with the leftover money.  Unless Backstrom is ruled out for the season, MacLellan won’t have much cap flexibility to work with this summer.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Offseason Checklist: New York Islanders

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The offseason has arrived for half of the league’s teams that weren’t playoff-bound plus those who were eliminated in the first two rounds.  It’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at the Islanders.

This past season was a tough one for New York.  They were forced to start with a 13-game road trip to ensure their new arena was ready to go and got hit hard with COVID-related absences soon after.  That put them in too much of a hole to climb out of.  Despite making the Eastern Conference Final the previous two years, GM Lou Lamoriello opted for a coaching change, dismissing Barry Trotz and elevating Lane Lambert to the top role.  However, that can’t be the only thing they do this summer if they want to get back into contention; Lamoriello has a few other items on his to-do list in the coming months.

Add Scoring Help

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first.  Scoring has been an issue for this team for a while as they haven’t averaged three goals per game since the 2017-18 season.  Part of that can be attributed to Trotz’s defense-first system but there isn’t a lot of firepower on this team.  Only Brock Nelson and Anders Lee cracked the 20-goal plateau this season and over the final two months of the year, Mathew Barzal was regularly playing with Zach Parise and Oliver Wahlstrom; with all due respect to those players, that’s probably not the optimal combination for their most skilled forward.

Back at the trade deadline when the Isles were very quiet, Lamoriello opted not to make any changes, stating that his focus was on ‘hockey trades’ to bring in pieces that better fit his roster.

With the team having barely $12MM in cap space and several roster spots to fill with that money, they don’t have the financial flexibility to be aggressive bidders on the free agent market.  Accordingly, this is one of those situations where Lamoriello will make a hockey trade and move out an underachiever for someone that’s a better fit.  Wingers Josh Bailey (two years, $5MM AAV) and Anthony Beauvillier (two years, $4.15MM) are candidates to move from their existing forward group while veteran goaltender Semyon Varlamov (one year, $5MM) could also make sense if they find a trade that’s acceptable to the 34-year-old who has a 16-team no-trade clause.  Either way, whether it’s one of them moving or someone else, New York will need more offensive production to get back into the playoff picture.

Re-Sign Dobson

A good chunk of their cap space is going to be heading towards defenseman Noah Dobson who is set to become a restricted free agent this summer.  After his first two NHL seasons were relatively quiet, 2021-22 was a breakout year that allowed the 22-year-old to finish third on the team in points with 51 including 13 goals.  For perspective, the rest of their blueliners combined for 19.  Not surprisingly, Dobson’s ATOI jumped up by more than five minutes a night from his sophomore campaign.  In other words, he had quite the platform year.

While the Islanders would undoubtedly like to lock Dobson up on a long-term deal, that would go against Lamoriello’s tendencies as he has continually opted for bridge contracts for his core RFAs including Barzal and defenseman Ryan Pulock in recent years.  A short-term pact would also allow them some extra cap flexibility to try to upgrade their roster.  That makes the bridge deal the likeliest scenario.

The extremes between Dobson’s first two seasons and this one will make it tricky to find the right number and without arbitration eligibility, the Islanders hold more of the leverage.  A two-year deal with an AAV around the $3MM range which is more than what Pulock and Adam Pelech received on their second contracts while a third season could push it closer to the $4MM range.  Anything longer than that would walk Dobson to unrestricted free agency so it’s likely that three years is the maximum term that New York will want to go.  It may take a while – Dobson’s only leverage is to delay signing in the hopes of getting a better offer later – but eventually, the two sides will come together on a short-term pact.

Rebuild The Defense

Over the past few years, the NHL has started to shift towards a more mobile back end.  The Islanders have been one of the exceptions but now as they work to retool things under a new head coach, this is the right time to try to kickstart that change.

Zdeno Chara and Andy Greene have been successful defensemen in the league for quite a while but mobility has been an issue for both of them while their offensive games are also quite limited.  Both are pending unrestricted free agents and should be replaced with younger, better fits.  Sebastian Aho is more of a mobile blueliner but has struggled in his own end in limited NHL action.  He’s also a pending UFA and will need to be retained or replaced.  That’s three roster spots that they’ll need to try to fill within their limited cap space and in terms of in-house options, only Robin Salo might be able to push for a spot at the end of the roster.

It’s also worth noting that Scott Mayfield is a year away from UFA eligibility as well and will be eyeing a sizable raise from the $1.45MM cap hit he’s on now.  Any multi-year commitments they make this summer will offset how much they can give to Mayfield a year from now so that’s something Lamoriello will have to weigh as he navigates the open market this summer.

With Pelech, Pulock, and Dobson, the Isles have a strong core back end that is either signed or under club control for at least the next four years.  That’s a strong foundation to work with.  Now, improvements will need to be made at the bottom end within a very tight cap situation to start moving towards a younger, more mobile defensive group.

Work On Barzal Extension

Three years ago, the Islanders and Barzal eventually worked out a three-year bridge deal, one that will be expiring next summer.  That means once the calendar flips to the start of the 2022-23 league year in mid-July, the two sides will be able to work on a contract extension.  After the season, Barzal stated that he wants to work out a long-term contract and is hopeful to remain with New York for his full career, a proclamation that is certainly encouraging from the team’s standpoint.

Barzal will be owed a qualifying offer of $8.4MM which is 120% of his current AAV; that’s the lower number between it and his salary for next season ($10MM).  He’ll also have arbitration eligibility at that time.  That qualifying number, therefore, serves as the absolute minimum starting point for negotiations as if the 25-year-old doesn’t like what the long-term offers look like, he can simply accept the qualifier in 2023 and become UFA-eligible a year later.

The potential challenge here is that Barzal hasn’t exactly produced at a level that’s worthy of offering considerably more than the qualifier.  While he averaged more than a point per game in his rookie season, the most he has gotten since then is 62 points.  He’s undoubtedly their most gifted offensive player but in a more defensive environment under Trotz, his numbers have suffered.  If Barzal thinks things will open up under Lambert, it may make more sense for him to play out next season and see what happens from there knowing the qualifying offer will still be on the table at that time.  But if Lamoriello comes in with a long-term offer in the $9MM range, it might be enough to give Barzal a chance to play for the Islanders for a long time to come.

They may not get a deal done this summer but both sides seem likely to give it a shot.  It isn’t as pressing as some of the other elements that will affect their plans for next season but as the offseason goes on and things slow down, that would be an optimal time to get to work on Barzal’s file.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Evander Kane Suspended One Game For Boarding

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The NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced that Edmonton Oilers forward Evander Kane has been suspended one game for his hit on Colorado Avalanche forward Nazem Kadri early in the first period on Saturday night. The hit happened as Kadri and Kane skated towards the end boards to battle for a loose puck, Kane giving Kadri a shove several feet before the boards, causing Kadri to lose his balance and hit the boards awkwardly. Kadri would stay down on the ice for several minutes before being helped off. The Avalanche forward did not return and according to Head Coach Jared Bednar, has been ruled out for the remainder of the series, and perhaps longer.

In rationalizing the suspension, the Department of Player Safety said the following:

“It is important to note that this is not a scenario in which Kadri puts himself in a vulnerable position immediately prior to the hit in a way that turns a legal check into an illegal one. While we acknowledge that Kadri positions himself in front of Kane in order to shield the puck, this action is not a sudden or sharp movement that changes the nature of Kane’s hit in a way that he cannot control.  And while we acknowledge Kane’s argument that Kadri loses his footing as he approaches the boards, we believe that this is a direct result of the shove and is not an unavoidable occurrence that causes an unfortunate accident. This shove is deliberate at a dangerous distance from the boards while the two players are traveling at speed and causes an injury.”

Kane has been suspended several times in the past, including two separate three games suspensions, once for elbowing and once for abuse of on-ice officials. Losing Kane, even for just one game, is a difficult blow for Edmonton, as the winger had one of the best seasons of his career to date in 2021-22 after being released by the San Jose Sharks and later signing with Edmonton in late January. Kane had 22 goals and 16 assists in 43 regular season games followed up by 17 points, including a playoff-leading 13 goals, in 15 postseason games for Edmonton thus far.

Snapshots: Bergeron, Sauve, Strome

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Boston Bruins Captain Patrice Bergeron spoke with the media Sunday following the announcement that he won his record-breaking fifth Selke Trophy. During his availability, Bergeron broke the news that he had surgery on his left elbow last week to repair a tendon (link). As NHL.com’s Amalie Benjamin writes, Bergeron’s recovery is expected to take 10-12 weeks from the date of the surgery last week, and he is still yet to make up his mind about his future. Interestingly, Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press asked Bergeron why, other than being unsigned, would he be considering retirement, considering the current state of his game. Bergeron responded that being unsigned is in fact the reason he is currently taking the time to consider his future.

The Selke-winner, who has only ever played for the Bruins at the NHL level, is an impending UFA coming off an eight-year, $55MM contract that held an AAV of $6.875MM. After reaching the Stanley Cup Final in 2019, falling to the St. Louis Blues, the Bruins have taken steps back in the past few seasons, and now face difficult questions regarding their salary cap, which could impact Bergeron’s next contract.

  • Turning to the PHF, as reported by Jeff Marek on the 32 Thoughts segment of Hockey Night in Canada last night, the Buffalo Beauts are expected to sign goaltender Kassidy Sauve for the upcoming season. A goaltender who can trace her family roots back to Georges Vezina, Sauve was a standout in the NCAA, spending three seasons with The Ohio State University before transferring to Clarkson University for her final season. Sauve, now 26, had her most impressive season while at Clarkson, posting an eye-popping 1.71 goals-against average and .937 save-percentage in 36 games, compiling a 27-2-7 record. Most recently Sauve splayed for HPK in the Finnish women’s league, where she again had incredible numbers, going 8-0 with a 0.88 goals-against average and .964 save-percentage.
  • New York Rangers forward Ryan Strome left today’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning with an apparent injury. Strome took a hit from Tampa’s Ondrej Palat in the second period and immediately appeared to be in distress, heading straight down the tunnel. The Rangers forward was absent for several minutes before returning to take one shift, but indicated to trainers that he could not continue, heading back to the locker room shortly thereafter. In Strome, the Rangers lose a key top-six forward and member of their powerplay; after a 54-point regular season, Strome has added another nine points in 16 playoff games heading into today’s action. Time will tell how significant Strome’s injury is, and though he is yet to be ruled out for the remainder of this game, his initial return only to quickly exit again is not a good sign for the Rangers.

Patrice Bergeron Wins 2022 Selke Trophy

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For a record-breaking fifth time in his NHL career, Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron has won the Frank J. Selke Trophy (link). The Selke goes to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game, as voted by the Professional Hockey Writers Association. A likely Hall of Famer when all is said and done, this is Bergeron’s first Selke since the 2016-17 season, however his reputation throughout his career as an elite two-way center has not wavered in the slightest in that time.

In addition to his five Selke Trophies, Bergeron has not finished outside the top three in Selke voting since 2010-11, when he finished fourth for the award. Bergeron’s 11 consecutive seasons as a finalist are the most of any player for any award, surpassing Wayne Gretzky’s 10 straight seasons as a Hart Trophy finalist. Perhaps his best skill, Bergeron was again spectacular in the faceoff circle this season, leading the league in faceoff percentage at 61.9% and in faceoffs won, with 991. His 1,600 faceoffs taken in 2021-22 was second in the NHL only to Leon Draisaitl. On the other side of the puck, Bergeron was again a key contributor for Boston, tallying 25 goals and 40 assists in 73 games this season to go with a plus-26 rating.

Following Bergeron in the voting were a host of familiar names, including Elias Lindholm, Aleksander Barkov, Ryan O’Reilly, and Anthony Cirelli, rounding out the top five. Barkov and O’Reilly are past winners of the award and like Bergeron are regarded as some of the best two-way players in the sport. Cirelli is yet to win the award, but is among the players considered most likely to win the award who have not yet. Lindholm’s second place finish is the best in the history of the Calgary Flames, and is his third season in the past four receiving Selke votes (link).

The award comes amid a time of speculation about Bergeron’s future in the NHL. While still an elite player, Bergeron is a pending UFA with the Boston Bruins, who do have to make some tough decisions when it comes to the salary cap. Soon to be 37, the Bruins’ captain has played 1,216 NHL regular seasons games and another 167 playoff games spanning 18 seasons, including a 2011 Stanley Cup. Still being capable, if not supremely talented, might indicate that Bergeron would want to continue to play and chase another Stanley Cup, however being on top of his game, evidenced by the record-breaking Selke Trophy could also give Bergeron incentive to retire if he so chooses, allowing him to go out on his own terms, at the top of his game.

Snapshots: Jets Offseason, Armia, Pokka

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After winning a playoff round last season, the Winnipeg Jets were among the league’s most disappointing teams this season, going 39-32-11, good for 89 points and sixth in the Central division. It was a season full of problems, but one problem the Jets didn’t have was a lack of scorers. Led by Kyle Connor’s 93 points, the Jets had four players hit the 60-point mark. One of those players, Pierre-Luc Dubois, hit the 60-point plateau for the second time in his career and has become the focal point of the Jets offseason. Dubois, 23, was part of the Patrik Laine trade and is now a restricted free agent with arbitration rights. The Jets have to decide if they want to commit to a long-term contract with Dubois as well as how much to pay him, and Dubois has to decide if Winnipeg is the place he wants to spend the bulk of his prime years. It looks to be a very interesting contract negotiation, but according to Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff (via Jeff Marek of Sportsnet) that negotiation process has not begun yet. There’s no major rush as we’re still in early June, but with a potential arbitration date looming, it’s likely that both parties would rather get this done before then.

Beyond that update on Dubois, Cheveldayoff also spoke to Marek about the priorities for this offseason, noting a “need to replenish their prospect pool.” The Jets do have two blue-chip center prospects in Cole Perfetti and Chaz Lucius, but that is seemingly not enough for Cheveldayoff and the Jets. The team’s prospect pool was ranked 11th in the NHL by the Athletic’s Scott Wheeler, (subscription link) and based on these comments it seems Cheveldayoff would like to raise his farm’s ranking into the top-10.

Now, for some other notes from across the NHL:

  • Like many Montreal Canadiens, Joel Armia had a season to forget this past year. Armia, who had scored at a 22-goal pace as recently as 2019-20, scored only six goals in 60 games last season and finished with 14 points. Armia’s contract has made him a potential candidate to be traded this offseason, as the Canadiens would clear $3.4MM off their books if they move him. That contract and Armia’s performance was generally believed to be working against Montreal if they chose to shop him, but one thing that could be working in their favor is Armia’s performance at the recent IIHF World Championships. Armia scored five goals and added three assists in ten games and captured the gold medal as a member of Finland’s team. Armia looked rejuvenated after taking a personal leave at the end of the NHL season, and a league source told Jimmy Murphy of Montreal Hockey Now that Armia’s performance at the World Championships has gotten him noticed. That’s far from an indication that a trade is near, but it does indicate that the Canadiens could have an easier time finding a trading partner than they would have had a few months ago.
  • Former top prospect Ville Pokka, who was the focal point of the Blackhawks’ return for trading Nick Leddy to the Islanders, never quite made it to the NHL despite being reasonably successful at the AHL level. Pokka played four seasons of North American hockey, scoring 138 points in 289 AHL games. The defenseman looked to be on the cusp of making the NHL in 2015-16, when he scored 45 points as an under-22 AHLer. But that success didn’t translate into an NHL job, and after being traded to the Senators organization Pokka left for the KHL. Now, it seems Pokka’s stint as a starting-caliber KHL defenseman is over. According to Swedish outlet SportExpressen, Pokka will spend next year playing for Farjestad of the SHL, the reigning champions. Pokka is still just 28 years old, so perhaps with success on one of the best teams in the SHL Pokka can earn another crack at making an NHL roster.

 

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