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Archives for September 2022

Five Key Stories: 9/5/22 – 9/12/22

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With training camps quickly approaching, there is a push from teams to get some contracts in place.  Several of those highlight the key stories of the week.

Canadiens Re-Sign Two: Montreal was one of only three teams to still have multiple restricted free agents heading into September but they dealt with both of those soon after.  First, Kirby Dach received a rare four-year bridge contract that carries an AAV of $3.3625MM; he will still be a restricted free agent at its conclusion with a $4MM qualifying offer.  Acquired at the draft from Chicago, the 2019 third-overall pick will get a chance for a fresh start with Montreal.  The following day, Cayden Primeau inked a three-year, one-way deal with a cap hit of $890K.  With the team approaching the offseason cap ceiling (10% over the salary cap), Carey Price was moved to LTIR to allow the team to stay in compliance.  At this point, the veteran isn’t expected to play this coming season.

Bernier Unlikely To Start Season: Devils goaltender Jonathan Bernier was hoping to be ready for training camp after missing the second half of last season due to hip surgery but that will not be the case.  The 34-year-old has made just 34 appearances over the last two years due to injuries and now won’t be starting the final year of his contract on a high note.  New Jersey was more prepared for this scenario this time as they added Vitek Vanecek from Washington earlier this summer.  He and Mackenzie Blackwood will serve as their goalie tandem until Bernier comes back (if he’s able to).

Eight For Stutzle: Through his first two NHL seasons, Senators forward Tim Stutzle has shown some offensive promise while also transitioning to playing center.  The team clearly believes there is much more to come as they handed the 20-year-old an eight-year extension that has a cap hit of $8.35MM.  The deal will begin in the 2023-24 campaign.  The third-overall pick in 2020, he had 58 points in 79 games last season and with Ottawa adding some impact forwards this summer in Claude Giroux and Alex DeBrincat, Stutzle should be primed for a big jump this coming season.  The Senators have done quite well getting their young core to bypass bridge deals in favor of signing long-term contracts as Stutzle joins Brady Tkachuk, Joshua Norris, Drake Batherson, and Thomas Chabot as key players that have done so.

Talking Extension: Earlier this offseason, the Blues signed Robert Thomas to an eight-year extension.  Now, they’ve apparently shifted their focus towards another key youngster entering the final year of his contract as the team has started extension discussions with winger Jordan Kyrou.  The 24-year-old is coming off a career year that saw him put up 75 points in 74 games to finish fourth on the team in scoring, making his $2.8MM cap hit for 2022-23 quite a bargain.  When Thomas signed his extension, it carried a cap hit of $8.125MM and it’s likely that Kyrou’s will come in fairly close to that number if it winds up being a max-term agreement as well.

Tryout Time: In recent years, there has been an influx of veteran players that need to settle for a training camp tryout with the hopes of landing a contract from there.  This is shaping up to be no exception as six veterans all agreed to training camp PTOs.  On the back end, Danny DeKeyser joined Vancouver, Calvin de Haan is with Carolina for a second stint, Scott Harrington will try to crack the lineup in San Jose, while Nathan Beaulieu tries to do the same in Anaheim.  Meanwhile, forward Zach Aston-Reese will look to land a spot on Toronto’s fourth line while Calgary brought in Cody Eakin.  Expect several more veteran players to go this route over the coming week.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Flames Sign Cody Eakin To Tryout Deal

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PTO season is in full force with training camps roughly a week and a half away and we’ve already seen several veterans ink tryout agreements.  The latest to get in on the fun is Calgary as the Flames announced (Twitter link) that they have inked center Cody Eakin to a tryout deal.

The 31-year-old spent the last two seasons in Buffalo while playing in their bottom six.  Last season, Eakin recorded four goals and eight assists in 69 games with the Sabres while averaging 13:35 per game.  He took a regular turn on the penalty kill and that’s likely the role that Calgary would be wanting him to play if he’s able to crack their roster.  Eakin also won 56% of his faceoffs last season which was a single-season career-high.

Eakin has 701 career NHL games under his belt across five different organizations with 110 goals and 146 assists to show for it.  While he isn’t the 40-point player he was with Vegas in 2018-19, he can still contribute on a fourth line and there’s a pretty good fit with the Flames; on the surface, it would appear as if there’s a decent chance that he could land a contract from this.  He’d be signing for the minimum of $750K or close to it and CapFriendly pegs Calgary as having a little over $2.1MM in cap room so they wouldn’t have to move anyone out to sign him.

It’s worth noting that the Flames are one of the teams that still have a restricted free agent to re-sign in middleman Adam Ruzicka.  Eakin’s addition to their camp roster will put him in direct competition with the spot that Ruzicka would be battling for.  This is the type of addition that might serve as a motivator for Rucizka’s camp to put pen to paper on an agreement to ensure that he won’t be playing catch-up when the preseason gets underway later this month.

CapFriendly was the first to report that Eakin was signing a PTO with the Flames.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Waiver Watching: Sizing Up The Goaltender Market

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With training camps on the horizon, there are still some goaltending situations around the NHL that are unsettled.  Accordingly, those teams may be planning on picking up a second goaltender on waivers during the preseason as Montreal did with Samuel Montembeault last season.  With that in mind, let’s examine who might be looking for a goalie and which teams have a netminder that could be of interest.

Potentially Looking

Arizona: The Coyotes have one of their two goalies locked up for three years in Karel Vejmelka but after that, there is nothing but question marks.  Farmhands Jon Gillies and Ivan Prosvetov have some NHL experience but Gillies struggled last season with New Jersey and Prosvetov hasn’t posted a .900 SV% in the last two seasons in the minors.  Cap space isn’t an issue for them so they can look at any of the options available on waivers or take on a bad contract for additional compensation.

Chicago: Right now, Alex Stalock is their backup goalie.  He has missed most of the last two seasons battling his way back from myocarditis and struggled considerably in the minors last year.  Granted, the Blackhawks certainly aren’t in win-now mode but in a perfect world, they’d like Arvid Soderblom to have an uninterrupted year with AHL Rockford.  Currently, he’s third on the depth chart but if there’s a chance to bring in a low-cost second-stringer and push Stalock into the spot of being the one to be recalled if an injury arises, they might want to take it.  The waiver wire could be the chance to add that.

Philadelphia: With Ivan Fedotov being blocked from going to North America this season due to a military commitment, the Flyers are going to have to turn to Plan B.  Felix Sandstrom is currently their second option but he has just five career NHL appearances under his belt.  They’re looking to be more competitive this season so this could be a spot for an upgrade.  Granted, Sandstrom would then need to be waived to be sent back to Lehigh Valley but that would have been the case if Fedotov had been able to play so it’s a risk they might be comfortable with.

Of course, an injury or two during the preseason could add to the list of suitors in the coming weeks as well.

Teams That Could Lose A Goalie

For the purpose of this exercise, the focus is going to be on either young goalies that could be appealing or veterans with some recent NHL experience that could fill a gap.

Buffalo: Malcolm Subban was brought back to be the veteran to partner with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen in AHL Rochester but he has 86 games of NHL experience under his belt and a deal that’s only $100K above the league minimum.  He has been a full-time backup going back to his time with Vegas which would also bolster his chances of potentially being claimed.

Dallas: Right now, Anton Khudobin appears to be the odd one out again with Jake Oettinger and Scott Wedgewood set to be the goalie duo for the Stars.  Khudobin is now in the final year of his deal that carries a $3.33MM AAV.  It wouldn’t be shocking if he cleared waivers but if Dallas wants to free up a bit of extra money for Jason Robertson’s contract, they’ll be calling Arizona to see what it would cost for them to take that contract on.

Los Angeles: Pheonix Copley has cleared waivers without any concerns the last couple of years but also was on a pricey contract for a third-string option.  Now, he’s on a much more palatable deal ($825K) and is coming off an impressive season in AHL Hershey.  The 30-year-old was the backup for the Capitals back in 2018-19.

Nashville: This is the most interesting one to keep an eye on.  Although Connor Ingram held his own in the playoffs for the Preds, they still went and brought in Kevin Lankinen on a one-year, $1.5MM deal.  That’s a lot to pay a third-string option so it could put Ingram in jeopardy.  However, if they try to sneak Ingram through, there’s a very good chance he’ll be claimed, especially with an AAV that’s below the minimum.  Carrying three goalies is a possibility but generally not ideal so something might have to give here.

New York (R): The Rangers went and brought in Louis Domingue on a two-year contract to be their insurance policy but he might appeal to some other teams as well.  He did alright in the playoffs for Pittsburgh and has 142 games of NHL experience over parts of two seasons.  Both years are one-way which was likely to try to deter other teams from claiming him but with an AAV of just $775K, he may attract some interest.

Seattle: With Martin Jones joining the Kraken as their backup, that’s going to push both Joey Daccord and Magnus Hellberg to the waiver wire.  Daccord was viewed as a possible NHL option not long ago and at 26, there could still be some upside after a strong season with AHL Charlotte.  Hellberg, meanwhile, has been dominant in the KHL the last few years which prompted Detroit to give him a brief look down the stretch last season.  Other teams might want to take a look as well depending on how things go over the next few weeks.

Winnipeg: Mikhail Berdin is the one goalie on this list that doesn’t have any NHL experience but at 24, he’s also the youngest in this group.  If a rebuilding team wants to take a look at a younger backup to see if there’s something there, this is the type of goalie they’d probably want to go for.

Of course, there will be other goalies that will hit the waiver wire in the coming weeks that could be of interest to teams as well depending on what transpires over the preseason.  There won’t be a ton of waiver activity between the pipes – there rarely is – but one or two of these players could be changing teams in the coming weeks.

Poll: Which Veteran Goalie Will Sign The Biggest Contract Next Offseason?

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The goalie market this offseason was a busy one, with many teams looking to address their needs, but seeming to find less options than there were spots to fill. Some teams who had the need for several years were able to finally address it, like the Edmonton Oilers signing of All Star Jack Campbell and the New Jersey Devils acquisition of Vitek Vanecek. Some who found out rather abruptly that they would be needing help in net, like the Toronto Maple Leafs, who lost Campbell, addressed it by signing Ilya Samsonov and acquiring Matt Murray. Others, who didn’t seem to be in urgent need of goalie help went out and found it anyways, like the Ottawa Senators with Cam Talbot and the Washington Capitals with Darcy Kuemper.

With all the shuffling, it seems many teams are now set in goal, or at least hope that they are. But, just as the demand maybe subsides, the supply on next year’s market will be rather rich. There appears to only be one star that will be available, that being Pittsburgh Penguins netminder Tristan Jarry, but after that, a bevy of veteran backstops, capable of being a quality starting goalies, will be on the market. Joining them are a large group of capable backups like Jonathan Bernier, Laurent Brossoit, Jaroslav Halak, and Antti Raanta, as well as a pair of intriguing, less experienced options like Adin Hill and Alex Nedeljkovic.

But, it’s this group of veterans who could pose an interesting shuffle, obtaining potentially very similar contracts based on their performance this season. Of course, the 2022-23 campaign will have a major impact on their value heading into the offseason, but for now, a compare and contrast of these five similar options could be an interesting exercise.

Jake Allen

Contract: Two years, $5.75MM ($2.875MM AAV)

2021-22 Stats: 35 GP, 9-20-4, 2 SHO, .905 SV%, 3.30 GAA

Career Stats: 353 GP, 168-126-35, 23 SHO, .911 SV%, 2.60 GAA

Once considered one of the most exciting goalie prospects of his generations, Allen never panned out as a superstar in net, however he has become a reliable starting and backup goalie, depending on the role he’s put in. Allen spent his first seven NHL seasons with the St. Louis Blues, earning the majority of playing time between 2015-2018, but a surprising breakout performance from Jordan Binnington in 2018-19 pushed Allen into a backup role. After the 2019-20 season, with one year at $4.35MM left on his contract, the Blues shipped Allen to the Montreal Canadiens for a pair of seventh round picks.

His numbers since heading north of the border haven’t been what they once were, but the real regression came when the team around him regressed in 2021-22. Allen’s next deal may very well resemble the one he signed in the 2021 offseason, but a strong rebound performance, considering the context of how the Canadiens perform around him, could increase not only increase his AAV, but also the term for the 32-year-old.

Frederik Andersen

Contract: Two years, $9MM ($4.5MM AAV)

2021-22 Stats: 52 GP, 35-14-3, 4 SHO, .922 SV%, 2.17 GAA

Career Stats: 445 GP, 261-114-51, 23 SHO, .916 SV%, 2.59 GAA

A four-time All Star and two-time Jennings Trophy winner, receiving one of each in 2021-22, the answer might seem obvious that Andersen would sign the biggest free agent deal of any goaltender in 2023, even better than Jarry. But, the former Maple Leafs star netminder doesn’t come without his concerns and that could hamper his open-market potential. After breaking out with the Anaheim Ducks from 2013-2016, Andersen was dealt to Toronto where he continued to develop into one of the league’s best, posting three straight seasons of at least 60 starts and no less than a .917 SV%.

The success, however, began to taper off and in 2019-20, Andersen regressing slightly to a .909 SV% and 2.85 GAA. The 2020-21 season would be no better, his numbers dropping to a .895 SV% and 2.96 GAA as the veteran dealt with injuries. Ultimately, Campbell took over the net for Toronto and that offseason, Andersen was left to hit free agency, signing his current deal with the Carolina Hurricanes. The goalie found tremendous rebound success in Carolina and was even receiving Vezina Trophy consideration before injuries ended his season on April 16th, just weeks before the playoffs were set to begin. If Andersen can continue his strong performance and show that injuries are a thing of the past, he may be the runaway favorite in this poll, but it’s been several years since the soon-to-be 33-year-old has compiled a fully-healthy season.

Jonathan Quick

Contract: Ten years, $58MM ($5.8MM AAV)

2021-22 Stats: 46 GP, 23-13-9, 2 SHO, .910 SV%, 2.59 GAA

Career Stats: 712 GP, 359-262-78, 56 SHO, .913 SV%, 2.42 GAA

An unlikely name on this list for several reasons, Quick re-emerged as an important piece in net for the Los Angeles Kings as the team itself awoke from a semi-lengthy rebuild in 2021-22. Quick still wasn’t the star he had been from 2009-2017, but after several seasons of poor play and injuries, it was a return to being the steady presence in net that the Kings had historically expected from the 36-year-old. Los Angeles had been hoping to transition the net from Quick to Calvin Petersen, especially after giving the younger netminder a three-year, $15MM contract set to begin this season, but Petersen’s struggles have given Quick new opportunity and thus new life.

Turning 37 in January, with recent history considered, even another strong showing is unlikely to propel Quick to a big payday, but if he can show that he’ll be among those goaltenders who age gracefully, his long resume as a reliable, two-time Cup winning goaltender will reward him in free agency.

Cam Talbot

Contract: Three years, $11MM ($3.667MM AAV)

2021-22 Stats: 49 GP, 32-12-4, 3 SHO, .911 SV%, 2.76 GAA

Career Staats: 396 GP, 201-142-34, 27 SHO, .915 SV%, 2.63 GAA

After several up-and-down seasons in a few cities after his trade from the New York Rangers, Cam Talbot appeared to finally settle in and take the next step with the Minnesota Wild in 2020-21, sharing the net with Kaapo Kahkonen. But, 2021-22 threw a wrinkle into the equation by no fault of Talbot, as the team dealt Kahkonen to the San Jose Sharks and brought in future Hall of Famer Marc-Andre Fleury. The Wild in turn gave the majority of the playing time to Fleury, leaving Talbot to back up. Talbot had hoped to remain in Minnesota and show he could take the net back, but after Minnesota chose to re-sign Fleury, Talbot was shipped to the Ottawa Senators, where he figures to see the bulk of playing time.

Turning 36 next July, Talbot may not see the term some of the other goalies on this list might be able to find, but much like Quick, proof he can age well in the role may ultimately work in his favor. The key for Talbot will be to show, besides his ability to age well, that his up and down career is no more, and that the solid performance in the State of Hockey was not merely an extended “up,” but is instead the new normal for the University of Alabama-Huntsville product.

Semyon Varlamov

Contract: Four years, $20MM ($5MM AAV)

2021-22 Stats: 31 GP, 10-17-2, 2 SHO, .911 SV%, 2.91 GAA

Career Stats: 560 GP, 261-211-62, 36 SHO, .916 SV%, 2.64 GAA

When the New York Islanders allowed Robin Lehner to walk after a breakout season where he was named a Vezina Trophy finalist in order to sign Varlamov, many around the hockey world raised their eyebrows. As good as Lehner has been, the decision to bring in Varlamov has paid dividends on Long Island, as the veteran teamed up with Thomas Greiss and later his fellow countryman Ilya Sorokin to create a formidable tandem in net. However over the life of the deal, Varlamov’s role has diminished, going from a starter to something closer to a backup. Part of that has been out of Varlamov’s control with the emergence of Sorokin as one of the league’s better goalies, but 2021-22 did Varlamov no favors either.

Though his numbers were not objectively bad, it was a step back from the player he had been the two years prior. A rebound from Varlamov, especially one that forces the Islanders’ hand to take time from Sorokin and give it to the veteran will certainly boost his value on the open market. Turning 35 in the spring and still capable of taking a significant slate of games in net for a team, Varlamov will have plenty of interest on the open market, but securing the largest deal out of these five will require a performance more similar to what we saw in 2019-20 and 2020-21.

Considering these options, who is most likely to find the biggest contract on the open market? All are legitimate NHL goaltenders likely capable of holding their own net in 2023-24 and beyond, though none are considered stars. Andersen may be the closest to a star, however his recent injury struggles could make teams wary. If it’s durability a team is looking for, Varlamov might be a safer bet, but recent performance is trending in the opposite direction, albeit not enough to scare an organization off. Either way, 2022-23 will go a long way to understanding what this market becomes, but entering the new season, who sits in the best position?

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Conor Timmins Healthy For Next Season

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When the Arizona Coyotes dealt future Stanley Cup Champion netminder Darcy Kuemper to the Colorado Avalanche before last season, many were impressed with the return: a first-round pick and defense prospect Conor Timmins. With Timmins playing just six games for the Coyotes in 2021-22 before suffering a season-ending knee injury, though, many have forgot about his place within the organization. As revealed by PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan, however, Timmins is healthy and ready to start next season, hopefully his first full one with the team.

After falling to the second round of the 2017 NHL Draft, the Avalanche finally selected Timmins with the 32nd overall pick (the first pick of the round at the time). Timmins was coming off a strong season with the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds in which he scored 61 points in 67 games, tying him for fourth in the league among defensemen with current Detroit Red Wings defender Filip Hronek.

His next season, 2017-18, saw Timmins’ stock rise above his draft position. Scoring over a point per game with the Soo, he was also named to Canada’s World Junior team that year, where he had five points and a +15 rating in seven games. Soon after returning from the World Junior tournament, though, Timmins suffered an ankle injury which limited him to just 36 regular-season games. He returned in time for the playoffs, scoring 18 points in 23 games on a half-healed ankle, before suffering a severe concussion in the next-to-last game of the OHL finals. That concussion and its effects caused Timmins to miss the entire 2018-19 season.

That’s two out of the past four seasons in which Timmins has missed all or nearly every game of the year, robbing him of valuable development time. He had a strong showing in his first AHL season in 2019-20, potting 27 points in 40 games, but was limited to a sixth/seventh defenseman role for Colorado in 2020-21, where he had seven assists in 31 games.

Still looking for his first NHL goal, Timmins will fight to get a consistent lineup spot on a wide-open right side in Arizona that also includes Dysin Mayo, Troy Stecher, Josh Brown, and Victor Söderström. Hopefully, for Timmins and the Coyotes, season-ending injuries become a thing of the past.

2008 NHL Draft Take Two: Ninth Overall Pick

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Hindsight is an amazing thing, and allows us to look back and wonder “what could have been.”  Though perfection is attempted, scouting and draft selection is far from an exact science, and sometimes, it doesn’t work out the way teams – or players – intended. For every Patrick Kane, there is a Patrik Stefan.

We’re looking back at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and asking how it would shake out knowing what we do now.  Will the first round remain the same, or will some late-round picks jump up to the top of the board?

The results of our redraft so far are as follows with their original draft position in parentheses:

1st Overall: Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning (1)

2nd Overall: Drew Doughty, Los Angeles Kings (2)

3rd Overall: Roman Josi, Atlanta Thrashers (38)

4th Overall: Alex Pietrangelo, St. Louis Blues (4)

5th Overall: Erik Karlsson, Toronto Maple Leafs (15)

6th Overall: John Carlson, Columbus Blue Jackets (27)

7th Overall: Jacob Markstrom, Nashville Predators (31)

8th Overall: Braden Holtby, Phoenix Coyotes (93)

The Coyotes’ original 2008 eighth-overall selection, Mikkel Boedker, had a long career in Phoenix, but squarely belongs in the “disappointing” category of top-ten picks. Not a bust by any means, having played over 700 NHL games, he had just 327 points in those 709 games. Those numbers aren’t great, but they are good enough for 15th in scoring among the class, which was weak for forwards overall. It also means that Boedker’s offense would have been an easily replaceable asset in free agency, so it’s reasonable to wonder if taking Holtby and his Stanley Cup-winning pedigree would’ve made a difference in the Coyotes’ fortunes.

While the organization never had elite scoring talent and failed to build consistent year-to-year performances, goaltending was usually the least of their worries. Immediately after the draft, Phoenix got the three best seasons of Ilya Bryzgalov’s career, including a Vezina Trophy nomination in 2009-10. After his departure in 2011, Mike Smith immediately broke out, guiding them to the Western Conference Final in 2012. Over 310 starts in the desert, Smith served the Coyotes well with a .916 save percentage. While you’ll hear little argument that Holtby was the better goaltender between those three, the upgrade is marginal enough that it likely wouldn’t have made much of a difference in the team’s fortunes.

The New York Islanders stepped up to the plate for the ninth-overall selection, trading four spots down on draft day in total from the fifth overall pick. It was a move that worked out extremely well for them in hindsight. Their selection at ninth overall was Josh Bailey, who remains third in scoring among forwards from the class on this day. When comparing Bailey’s career with that of the fifth overall selection (Luke Schenn) and seventh overall selection (Colin Wilson) that they dealt away that day, it was an even smarter move from then-general manager Garth Snow. Bailey, who’s remained a career Islander ever since draft day and is currently an alternate captain, has 555 career points and will play his 1,000th game as an Islander this season.

Bailey made his NHL debut in November of 2008, just five months after he was drafted, and played nearly a full NHL season as a 19-year-old. He had 25 points in 68 games during his rookie season, good enough for ninth in scoring on an atrocious Islanders team that finished with just 61 points. From that point forward, Bailey was a surefire threat for anywhere between 30 and 50 points in a full season. He set a career-high of 71 points in 76 games in 2017-18, 15 more points than his next-best season total.

Despite the impressive career as an Islander, there may have been better selections available yet on the board at ninth overall for New York. There’s Jordan Eberle, who did end up an Islander anyway after a few seasons in Edmonton, who’s the only forward that ranks ahead of Bailey in terms of career points from the class not named Steven Stamkos. There’s also current Minnesota Wild captain Jared Spurgeon, who perenially remains one of the most underrated defensemen in the NHL.

So we ask you, who should have the New York Islanders selected with the ninth overall pick in 2008? Make your voice heard in the poll below.

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Montreal Canadiens Announce Rookie Camp Roster

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After months of quiet on the ice, rookie camps usually give hockey fans the much-anticipated signal that the season is drawing close. This year, it also signifies a return to normalcy in the schedule and off-ice operations, with the regular season beginning on time and full media access restored in locker rooms. Today, the Montreal Canadiens announced their roster for rookie camp, which will begin September 14 at the Bell Centre.

As per the team announcement, the roster consists of 28 players (15 forwards, 10 defensemen, and three goaltenders). Six of those 28 players were members of Montreal’s 2022 draft class: first-overall pick Juraj Slafkovský, right wing Filip Mešár (26th overall), center Owen Beck (33rd overall), left wing Cedrick Guindon (127th overall), center Jared Davidson (130th overall), and defenseman Miguël Tourigny (216th overall).

Additionally, the team invited four players to rookie camp on a try-out basis: right wing Pierrick Dubé, right wing John Parker-Jones, and goalies Antoine Coulombe and Riley Mercer.

The main story of the camp will be Slafkovsky’s performance. The Slovak winger’s spectacular international play this season shot him all the way up to first overall on the draft board, but it would be quite a large jump for the 18-year-old to shift from a middle-six role in the Finnish Liiga to full-time NHL minutes. Slafkovsky will play for the Canadiens organization in North America this season in all likelihood, but his rookie camp performance will be important in leaving a good first impression. Whether or not he starts in the NHL or in the AHL with the Laval Rocket remains to be seen.

There’s also the matter of which young Canadiens defensemen will make the team out of camp. Four candidates jump out on their rookie camp roster as players who could show they deserve an NHL look right away: Justin Barron, Kaiden Guhle, Jordan Harris, and Mattias Norlinder. All four except Guhle made their NHL debuts already last season, while Guhle is coming off a WHL championship with the Edmonton Oil Kings and the playoff MVP award. With at least two NHL spots available for these rookies, it should be good competition all throughout rookie camp, training camp, and preseason.

This Day In Transactions History: Max Pacioretty Traded To Vegas Golden Knights

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Most teams could only hope to have a draft like the Montreal Canadiens did in 2007, selecting Ryan McDonagh, Max Pacioretty, and P.K. Subban with their first three picks. McDonagh would ultimately be dealt before he could ever dress for Montreal, sent as the centerpiece in the Scott Gomez trade, one which overwhelmingly favored the New York Rangers. Subban and Pacioretty, along with Carey Price, went on to form the core of some formidable Canadiens teams in the mid 2010’s. Following the 2015-16 season, needing to rebound from their first playoff miss in several years, Montreal dealt Subban in one of the biggest one-for-one deals in not only the league’s history, but sports history, sending him to the Nashville Predators for Shea Weber.

The Subban for Weber swap helped Montreal rebound to a playoff berth in 2016-17, but a dreadful 2017-18 forced the organization to re-think things and just before teams were set to hit the ice for training camp, they dealt their star forward and team captain in Pacioretty to the Vegas Golden Knights. Vegas, having burst onto the scene in their first season just a year prior, were looking to make a splash in order to hopefully get over the hump and win the Stanley Cup, falling just short in their first try. Acquiring the regular 30-goal-scorer wasn’t cheap though, Vegas paying handsomely in the amount of  Tomas Tatar, Nick Suzuki and a 2019 second-round pick. The return, put plainly, sounds large, but perhaps fair considering the practice of giving something to get something, Vegas giving up a solid veteran point producer, a then-unproven prospect, and a second-round pick out of their bevy of draft picks and receiving a guaranteed star who immediately signed an extension in return. But, with the benefit of time and context, the perception of the deal now has certainly changed.

To give some perspective on how dynamic this trade ended up being for the Golden Knights, the Canadiens acquired a 60-point forward, a prospect who would become one of the young faces of their franchise, and a second-round pick and there is seemingly less to say on their end. Moving Pacioretty, a star and captain, was surely not an easy move for the Montreal organization to make, but one they felt necessary, especially given the return. Tatar would go on to have 58 and 61 point seasons, the latter coming in just 68 games. His third and final season with the team, 2020-21, saw him dip to 30 points, albeit in 50 games in the COVID shortened campaign, but with just five playoff games amid a deep playoff run. Worth mentioning, the second-round pick was unceremoniously flipped to the Los Angeles Kings for a third and fifth-round pick.

The real prize in the trade, and one that perhaps keeps Vegas management and fans up at night is Suzuki. The 13th overall selection in 2017, Vegas’s second of that evening, Suzuki hadn’t yet debuted for Vegas before he was dealt to Montreal. After the move, the forward spent another season in the OHL, where he wasn’t immune to trade either, dealt midseason from the Owen Sound Attack to the Guelph Storm. Still, none of it phased Suzuki, who had another outstanding junior season. The young forward made his NHL debut for Montreal the following season, finding breakout success in the shortened 2020-21 season, playing a pivotal role in Montreal’s near miss of a Stanley Cup. Following that season (more specifically, October), The Canadiens inked Suzuki to an eight-year, $63MM extension beginning in 2022-23 with the expectation that he could lead the next great set of Montreal teams.

The Vegas side of this blockbuster is a lot murkier. They certainly gave up a lot to get Pacioretty, but that isn’t always the issue with a trade. In fact, the winger brought back as much if not more value than they were expecting. Point for point, Pacioretty had some of his best seasons in Vegas, highlighted by a 51 point performance in 48 games during the shortened 2020-21 season, the only time he hit the point-per-game mark in his career. The real issues for the Golden Knights would be two-fold: (1) money, and (2) when all was said and done, what went in and what went out.

Upon acquiring the Montreal captain, the Golden Knights immediately signed him to a four-year, $28MM extension that began in 2019-20. That deal was fine at the time, Vegas then still in the envious position of being competitive but also utilizing their cap to help other teams for the right price. But, as the contract went on, Vegas continued to spend liberally to reward their successful core and also bring in new assets to help them out. With that, their cap situation became tighter and tighter and Pacioretty’s $7MM cap hit grew more and more imposing. Finally, with the addition of Jack Eichel and his $10MM cap hit part-way through last season, the bubble was set to burst this offseason and Vegas needed to shed a big contract. That would end up being Pacioretty.

As talented as Pacioretty still is, his $7MM cap hit on top of his recent injury history, made taking him on a questionable decision for many teams. Vegas was able to find a suitor, and though they didn’t have to pay anything significant to offload his contract, they received merely future considerations for a player who had 194 points in 224 games for them over the previous four seasons (as well as Dylan Coghlan).

The other troubling aspect of this deal is a completely separate trade made several months prior. At the 2018 trade deadline, with assets in hand and a surprising playoff berth in sight, Vegas made a splash by acquiring Tatar from the Detroit Red Wings. Tatar, like Pacioretty here, didn’t come cheap, as Vegas sent a first, second, and third round pick to Detroit to make it happen. The Czech winger gave Vegas just eight points in 20 regular season games on top of another two points in eight playoff contests ahead of the instant trade. The reason the earlier Tatar trade is important is to consider the context: Vegas, in effect, traded Suzuki, a first, two seconds, and a third for 28 underwhelming games of Tatar and four seasons of Pacioretty, who they then traded away for almost nothing after he actually stepped his production up.

Another interesting wrinkle to all of this, but not one that absolves Vegas of their questionable trade tree, is that Pacioretty tore his Achilles after the trade to Carolina, forcing him to miss at least six months of the upcoming season. Of course, Vegas didn’t know this would happen when they made the deal, preserving the questions regarding their logic in the handling of the forward. Realistically, had this happened before the trade, Vegas could have utilized LTIR with Pacioretty, but had he been ready to return ahead of the playoffs, it would have left the team in a difficult position.

Hindsight is twenty-twenty, as the saying goes, and that applies to any transaction, but the Pacioretty-to-Vegas trade from four years ago today is a fascinating retrospective into roster, cap, and asset management. Vegas gave up plenty for Pacioretty, but it was most likely worthwhile as they got back arguably more than they bargained for. But after four seasons and just one more to go under their current commitment, the team essentially walked away from their player while Montreal continues to reap the reward with one of the league’s most exciting young stars. One question to ponder as we consider these last four years: how is this viewed, all else the same, had Vegas won a Stanley Cup with Pacioretty in the fold?

West Notes: Labanc, Jets, Weegar

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Sharks winger Kevin Labanc has fully recovered from the shoulder woes that plagued him last season and he will be ready for training camp later this month, notes Corey Masisak of The Athletic (Twitter link).  He originally suffered the injury back in December and while it looked like he might be able to return late in the year, that didn’t wind up happening.  The 26-year-old had just three goals and three assists in 21 games before the injury, leading to some speculation that he could have been a buyout candidate for San Jose this summer although they obviously didn’t go that route.  With two years left on his contract that carries a $4.725MM AAV, the Sharks will be counting on a bounce-back year from their second-highest-paid winger.

More from around the Western Conference:

  • With both Ville Heinola and Dylan Samberg potentially being ready for full-time NHL duty, Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun suggests that one of Dylan DeMelo or Brenden Dillon could be a possible trade candidate for Winnipeg over the coming weeks. The Jets are one of the few teams that still has ample cap space at their disposal – more than $5.5MM, per CapFriendly – providing them with an opportunity to still add to their forward group.  DeMelo and Dillon are on affordable contracts ($3MM and $3.9MM, respectively) so swapping one for a forward of note could create a spot for one of those youngsters and give them a boost up front, a win-win situation for them.
  • While the Flames and Jonathan Huberdeau quickly reached an agreement on an extension after their summer trade with Florida, the same hasn’t happened yet with the other Calgary newcomer in MacKenzie Weegar. However, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports in the latest 32 Thoughts podcast (audio link) that the two sides are indeed quietly talking about a new deal.  The 28-year-old is coming off a career year that saw him put up 44 points in 80 games while logging over 23 minutes per night, numbers that will give him a chance at doubling his current $3.25MM AAV on his next contract.

Kings Re-Sign Mikey Anderson

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The Kings had two remaining restricted free agents to deal with but that has been cut to one as they announced the re-signing of defenseman Mikey Anderson to a one-year contract.  The deal is worth $1MM.

The 23-year-old has quickly become an important part of the back end for Los Angeles over the last two seasons, logging over 20 minutes a night.  Last season, he played in 57 games (missing the rest of them due to an upper-body injury and a brief stint in COVID protocol), collecting eight points while taking only four minor penalties.  Anderson also took a regular turn on the penalty kill and led all Kings rearguards in hits.  All in all, he has quickly become an unheralded top-four defender for them.

Anderson is coming off his entry-level deal with a required qualifying offer of $874,125 and didn’t have salary arbitration rights this summer.  Between that, his limited offensive production, and their salary cap situation, that would have made a multi-year agreement hard to work out.  By going this route, Los Angeles gets Anderson at a bargain rate which will help from a cap-management perspective.  However, Anderson will qualify for salary arbitration next summer which will help pave the way for a bigger increase at that time.  He’ll be owed a $1MM qualifying offer at that time.

GM Rob Blake will now turn his focus to their other unsigned blueliner in Sean Durzi.  He’s in the same situation as Anderson was as he has completed his entry-level pact but didn’t qualify for arbitration eligibility this summer.  The team has a little over $1.37MM in cap space to work with to get that contract done, per CapFriendly.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report that Anderson was nearing a one-year agreement.

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