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Archives for February 2023

Los Angeles Kings Extend Pheonix Copley

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The Los Angeles Kings have signed goaltender Pheonix Copley to a one-year, $1.5MM contract extension.

The deal comes in the wake of Copley’s impressive 2022-23 season. Copley has gone 15-3-1 in 20 games played, seizing the Kings’ starting job from franchise legend Jonathan Quick. It’s been a whirlwind campaign for Copley, who signed with the Kings over the summer undoubtedly with the idea in mind that he’d be the Kings’ number-three netminder, spending the bulk of the year with their AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign.

That didn’t happen, though, as the immense struggles of $5MM AAV netminder Cal Petersen this year (.868 save percentage in 10 games) necessitated that Copley be brought to the NHL roster to back up Quick, in order to allow Petersen to rebuild his game as the AHL starter.

While Petersen has performed quite well at the AHL level (.918 save percentage in 19 games) the Kings have kept Copley in the NHL, as he simply keeps on winning. Copley went on a seven-game winning streak from December to January, and, after taking a loss against the juggernaut Boston Bruins, won his next three games as well.

Copley’s numbers outside of his record aren’t great (.897 save percentage) but he’s put the Kings in a position to win and has given them just enough in net in order to come away with two points on most nights. While it’s not the largest sample size, it’s easy to see why the Kings have made the choice to give him a $1.5MM deal for next season.

What isn’t easy to see, though, is where Copley factors into the Kings’ future. Quick is 37 and certainly struggled this season, and also is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year. In September, Quick stated that he planned on continuing his career beyond this season. While it’s possible that his lackluster performance this season has changed his outlook, it seems more likely that the ultra-competitive Quick will want to continue his career so he can end it on more productive footing.

But with Copley now on an NHL deal for next season, could Quick be forced to head elsewhere if he doesn’t want to retire? It’s always seemed as though Quick would have a place on the Kings for as long as he would want one, but perhaps the Kings’ dire situation in net this year has changed that.

What’s also possible is that the Kings may choose to buyout Petersen. Despite Petersen’s strong AHL performance, the Kings could opt to buy out Petersen in July. While the move wouldn’t save them any cap space for 2023-24, it would save them nearly $5MM the year after, at the cost of a $1.6MM cap hit for the following two years.

Minor Transactions: 02/10/23

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The NHL season is back in full swing after the All-Star break, and today features four games on the schedule. Two of the more aggressive contenders for the 2023 draft’s first overall pick, the Arizona Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks, are set to face off, while Vladimir Tarasenko makes his New York Rangers debut as they face the Seattle Kraken. As hockey fans everywhere soak in tonight’s action, teams in minor and foreign leagues are making tweaks to their rosters. We’ll track those moves here.

  • One of the DEL’s top scorers, 2018 St. Louis Blues first-round pick Dominik Bokk has signed a one-year extension with his club, the Frankfurt Lions. Bokk’s productivity has skyrocketed since he returned to European hockey. Last year, he scored just 10 points in 32 games for the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. He was loaned to Frankfurt for this season, and he has scored 49 points in 43 games, meaning his club must have been eager to put pen to paper on a contract extension.
  • After clearing waivers earlier today, former Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Linus Hogberg seems to have found his next team. Johan Svensson of SportExpressen reports that Hogberg has an agreement to join Skelleftea AIK, the SHL’s first-place team. In Skelleftea, Hogberg will join former NHLers Oscar Moller, Joakim Lindstrom, Par Lindholm, and Tom Kuhnhackl, as well as top 2023 draft prospect Axel Sandin-Pellikka.
  • A pair of minor league blueliners for San Jose Sharks affiliates have had their PTOs converted to standard player contracts, per the AHL’s official transactions page. The two 26-year olds, Darren Brady and William Riedell, have split this season between the AHL and ECHL, although they both have played exclusively at the AHL level since early December. Both players had two games of AHL experience before their call-up to San Jose, with Riedell getting his call at the conclusion of his NCAA career at Ohio State. Brady, on the other hand, had to test his mettle in both the SPHL and in a successful 32-point 47-game run in the ECHL before earning his AHL call-up.
  • The ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays have lost their top scorer. 24-year-old Carter Turnbull, a former Connecticut Husky, has signed with HKM Zvolen in Slovakia’s top professional league. Turnbull turned pro last season after a four-year NCAA career at the University of Connecticut, and was fine, scoring five points in 11 games for the Stingrays. This season, he’s become their top offensive player, and he has 42 points in 41 games. The Stingrays, who sit in the middle of the ECHL’s playoff mix, will now need to find a way to replace the hefty scoring burden Turnbull leaves behind.
  • Czech club BK Mlada Boleslav has signed two players to contract extensions. The first is 2017 Chicago Blackhawks fourth-round pick Tim Soderlund, and the second is former Providence Bruin Robert Lantosi. Soderlund, 25, moved from Djurgardens in Sweden to Boleslav just a month ago, and now commits to extending there after scoring six points in 13 games. Lantosi, 27, has scored 24 points in 40 games this season after coming over from HC Linkopings in the summer.
  • The SHL’s Vaxjo Lakers have signed a two-year extension with veteran forward Ludvig Nilsson. The 28-year-old transferred from Brynas to Vaxjo in 2019, and won an SHL title with the Lakers in 2020-21. Nilsson has scored eight points in 37 games this season playing bottom-six minutes on a talented Vaxjo team.
  • Austrian club Black Wings Linz, who play in the Central European ICEHL, have signed a two-year extension with young defenseman Niklas Bretschneider. The Vienna native already has 133 games of experience at Austria’s top level of hockey with Linz, and has played in 41 games this season as the Black Wings have fought for a playoff spot.
  •  The ECHL’s Worcester Railers have signed a contract with forward Paul Boutoussov, putting the 26-year-old in a position to make his professional debut. Boutoussov last played in 2021-22 with Babson College, a business school that competes in NCAA Division III athletics. Boutoussov’s signing is presumably to bring in some short-term help for the Railers, who are looking to stay afloat in the ECHL’s playoff race despite losing quality contributor Blake Christensen to HC Thurgau of the Swiss second division.

This page will be updated throughout the day. 

Trade Deadline Primer: Calgary Flames

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With the All-Star break now behind us, the trade deadline looms large and is less than a month away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Calgary Flames. 

After an offseason that saw the Flames’ roster undergo significant upheaval, Calgary has had an uneven, often frustrating 2022-23 season. The team remains in solid position standings-wise, — tied with the Minnesota Wild for the last Wild Card spot in the Western Conference — but fans could not be blamed for expecting more from head coach Darryl Sutter’s team.

Heading into the deadline, the Flames’ status is relatively unclear. GM Brad Treliving told NHL.com’s Aaron Vickers in an interview that his team still hasn’t told him what direction he should head in in terms of transactions. He said:

Listen, we’d like to add to our team, but the most critical part is where your team’s at, right? We’ve got some work to do to get ourselves into a better position than we currently are. We’ve been up and down. There’s been some inconsistency to our game. It’s hard to sit here and start making any proclamations about what you’re going to do at the deadline. We continue to watch our team.

It sounds as though the Flames want to add for a potential playoff run, but don’t want to overextend for a team that may not be capable of true Stanley Cup contention. It’s a difficult spot to be in, especially for a franchise that has invested significant dollars in older, more established players. This leaves the Flames as one of the more interesting teams to watch in advance of the March 3rd deadline.

Record

24-18-10, 5th in the Pacific

Deadline Status

Unclear

Deadline Cap Space

$2.95MM today, $4.44MM in deadline space, 0/3 retention slots used, 45/50 contracts used, per CapFriendly.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2023: CGY 1st, CGY 2nd, CGY 4th, CGY 6th, CGY 7th

2024: CGY 1st*, CGY 2nd, CGY 3rd, CGY 4th, CGY 6th

*If Calgary’s 2024 first-rounder is between the picks of 20 and 32, the Montreal Canadiens can choose to take that pick as their return from the Sean Monahan trade.

Trade Chips

Should the Calgary Flames choose to invest in this year’s roster and add established players, the overwhelming likelihood is that the team would either deal from their prospect pool or stable of draft picks in order to get a deal done. In terms of draft picks, the conditions on the team’s 2024 first-round pick make it so they won’t be able to trade it, as it could theoretically belong to the Montreal Canadiens over a year from now.

That leaves the Flames’ 2023 first-round pick as their top draft pick available to trade. Since the Flames’ fate this season remains unclear, it would be a surprise if Treliving chose to deal that pick without any protections attached. But should the Flames be interested in acquiring one of the bigger names on the market, their 2023 first-rounder may be the starting point for any trade offer.

In terms of prospects, the Flames have a few that could be of interest to other clubs. The Flames picked just three times at the 2022 draft, and their prospect pool ranks 20th in the NHL according to The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler. (subscription link) Prized prospects Matt Coronato and Dustin Wolf are presumably off the table in any deals, and it’s likely that since the Flames haven’t firmly placed themselves in the Stanley Cup mix, they’d be similarly unwilling to deal Connor Zary or Jakob Pelletier. 2020 third-round pick Jeremie Poirier, who is having a solid rookie season in the AHL, may be the top prospect the Flames are willing to make available for other teams.

Should the Flames struggle between now and the deadline, they do have a few players on offer that could be of interest to deadline buyers. A rebuild isn’t coming anytime soon, so it’s likely that Treliving would only want to deal players not in his team’s future plans.

One such player is depth forward Trevor Lewis, who has Stanley Cup experience and could interest teams looking for a cheap, reliable addition to their bottom-six.

Another pending unrestricted free agent is Michael Stone, who has played 42 games in a depth role in Calgary this season and could be a low-price option for a team looking for defensive reinforcements.

Team Needs

1) Another scoring forward

While the Flames have playoff hopes this season, they rank just 19th in the NHL in goals for per game. Perhaps even more distressingly, the team ranks 25th in the NHL with a 19% power play scoring rate. While part of the team’s offensive struggles can be attributed to the decline in scoring numbers of the Flames’ marquee offseason additions, Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri, the lack of scoring remains a team-wide issue. Adding a lethal power play threat and someone to help reinforce Sutter’s top-six would give the Flames a major boost.

2) A player who can provide a spark

The Flames’ most pressing need is to add a scoring forward for the reasons outlined above. But what is perhaps more important is for the Flames to add a “spark,” a player or some players capable of energizing a team that hasn’t looked like the juggernaut they once appeared to be last season. While capable of playing some brilliant games, the Flames have lacked consistency and have too often looked frustrated, and stale. If they can find the type of player who is not only a skilled player but also the type of on-ice force and off-ice leader to help rejuvenate the team’s struggling superstars (Huberdeau, Kadri, Jacob Markstrom) then a hot streak could be just around the corner. For as uneven as the Flames’ campaign has been, they remain one extended hot streak from attaining contender status. While Treliving should remain focused on adding some scoring help, finding the specific kind of player who can help ignite a team-wide turnaround should be a priority as well.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Washington Capitals Recall Aliaksei Protas

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The Washington Capitals have brought forward Aliaksei Protas back to their NHL roster, per a team announcement. His recall from the AHL’s Hershey Bears comes after the team sent him to the AHL to get a few games in during the Capitals’ break.

The Capitals play the Boston Bruins tomorrow, so this recall gives head coach Peter Laviolette an extra forward to work with as he prepares to take on the league leaders. Protas, 22, is a hulking six-foot-six forward who already has 75 games of NHL experience under his belt.

Protas has played most of this season in Washington, and has scored seven goals and ten points in 42 games. Last season, Protas split time between Washington and Hershey, scoring 24 points in 42 AHL games and nine points in 33 NHL games.

Protas has played in a depth role this season, and he averages just under eleven minutes of ice time per game, the least of all Capitals skaters with more than ten games played. He’s making $795k against the cap this season and will have a $789k cap hit next season before becoming eligible for restricted free agency.

Florida Panthers Extend Josh Mahura

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After struggling to make an impact at the NHL level for years, Josh Mahura seems to have found a home with the Florida Panthers. The team has rewarded his play with a one-year contract extension, locking him up for 2023-24. CapFriendly reports that the one-way deal is worth $925K. General manager Bill Zito released a short statement on the young defenseman:

Josh joined our club just prior the start of the season and we felt his positive impact on our defensive group immediately. He brings consistency and energy to our blueline.

A third-round pick of the Anaheim Ducks in 2016, it looked like Mahura would quickly climb what was (at the time) a loaded depth chart. His post-draft junior seasons went extremely well, and he showed well in the AHL immediately. But then, it just never clicked for him at the NHL. He would see seasons of 17, 11, 13, and 38 games, failing to ever really establish himself as an everyday NHL defenseman.

But this year, after the Panthers claimed him at the start of the season, he has settled in as a third-pairing regular. He has suited up 54 times, nearly matching his total from years with Anaheim, and is averaging just over 14 minutes a night. He’s not asked to do much, but he’s done his job well enough to earn the trust of the organization and some financial security with this new deal.

That’s not to say his spot is safe for this year. The Panthers could use an upgrade on the back end, which would ultimately push Mahura either further down or off the lineup card completely. Next season though, there should be minutes to go around. Radko Gudas and Marc Staal are both scheduled for unrestricted free agency, leaving room for someone like Mahura to take another step forward. At worst, he’ll serve in the same role he is this year, providing value as a low-minute defenseman that can do a little bit of everything.

Troy Terry Placed On Injured Reserve

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After playing just three shifts before exiting Monday’s game against the Dallas Stars, Troy Terry has been placed on injured reserve. The Anaheim Ducks forward is dealing with an upper-body injury and missed Tuesday’s match against the Chicago Blackhawks. In his roster spot, the Ducks have recalled goaltender Olle Eriksson Ek from the AHL.

With Anthony Stolarz listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury Eriksson Ek will likely serve as John Gibson’s backup tonight. The young netminder has never appeared in an NHL game and has an .851 save percentage in 13 games for the San Diego Gulls this season.

Terry, meanwhile, has been excellent once again, racking up 42 points through 51 games to earn a trip to the All-Star game. The 25-year-old now has 109 points in 126 games over his last two seasons, experiencing a true breakout after some middling performances early in his career.

For a contending team, removing that from the lineup would be devastating. For the Ducks, it might realistically be a good thing. Anaheim is 5-1-1 in their last seven games, the opposite of what they want to accomplish this season. They have pulled within three points of the San Jose Sharks in the Pacific Division race and are now well ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks and Columbus Blue Jackets in the race for the top draft lottery position.

It could be good for the Ducks on a different level, too. Terry is an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent at the end of the year, and with the excellent point totals he has recently put up, he will be looking for a huge raise on his current $1.45MM cap hit. Some time out of the lineup will help the Ducks in those negotiations, even if they want to be icing their young star as much as possible.

Libor Hajek, Linus Hogberg Clear Waivers

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Feb 10: Both players have cleared waivers. That means Hajek can be sent to the minor leagues, and Hogberg is free to pursue other opportunities overseas.

Feb 9: As we await the official announcement of Vladimir Tarasenko to the New York Rangers, the team has started clearing some space. Libor Hajek has been placed on waivers, according to Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets. The Philadelphia Flyers have also placed Linus Hogberg on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a contract termination.

Hajek, 25, came into the Rangers organization with high hopes as part of the return for Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller, but never lived up to expectations. The 2016 second-round pick has 110 games played over parts of five seasons (all with New York), and has produced just 12 points, averaging fewer than 15 minutes in his appearances.

While he was never supposed to be a big offensive threat, the 6’2″ defenseman hasn’t been effective in his own end, either, At this point, he was a potential candidate to go unqualified in the summer. That doesn’t guarantee he’ll pass through, though, as teams often give high draft picks (especially defensemen) extra chances to prove their worth at the NHL level. On a one-year, $800K contract, it might be worthwhile for a rebuilding club.

Hogberg, meanwhile, played just five games for the Flyers last season and had been buried in the organizational depth chart this year, sitting in the press box even at the AHL level. The 24-year-old will likely return to Sweden to continue his career overseas after the short stint in North America.

Snapshots: Tarasenko, Anderson, Puljujarvi

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Hitting the ice today as a member of the New York Rangers, Vladimir Tarasenko was skating beside Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad, as many expected. The former St. Louis Blues star spoke with the media, including Mollie Walker of the New York Post after practice, and confirmed what had been reported over the last few months:

There was no chance I was staying in St. Louis. No deal was offered, so I knew I was going to be moved. I talked with Artemi and they want me here. I want to be here, too…it’s a chance to win a Cup again. 

The good vibes were clear when Panarin explained how happy he was to have a long-time friend join the team. Tarasenko, of course, is only signed through the end of this season at the moment. A pending unrestricted free agent, it will be interesting to see if the Rangers will offer him the extension that never came in St. Louis.

  • The Montreal Canadiens are sort of flying under the radar as a potential seller at this year’s deadline, mostly because of their lack of expiring contracts. Arpon Basu of The Athletic argues that if Josh Anderson is drawing interest, though, the team has to investigate what they could get in return. The 28-year-old is signed through the 2026-27 season and carries a cap hit of $5.5MM. It hasn’t worked out exactly as planned, with Anderson’s offensive game never really materializing past his individual power and speed. He has 25 assists in 170 games with the team, but still is so intriguing because of his heavy, made-for-the-playoffs style.
  • With the Edmonton Oilers approaching something of a cap crunch, as Kailer Yamamoto gets healthy enough to return from LTIR, Chris Johnston openly wondered on TSN’s Insider Trading about whether Jesse Puljujarvi would end up on waivers. As Jason Gregor of TSN points out, if Yamamoto is coming back this weekend, today is probably the day Edmonton uses waivers.

Latest On Timo Meier

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The Timo Meier-to-New Jersey train has been gathering speed for the last few weeks. It seems like a perfect fit, and now with the New York Islanders and New York Rangers both loading up with Bo Horvat and Vladimir Tarasenko respectively, the Devils might have to keep pace.

Today, though, on the 32 Thoughts podcast, Elliotte Friedman suggested that two other teams could be involved in Meier trade talks. The first, which shouldn’t surprise many, is the Toronto Maple Leafs. Friedman noted that Kyle Dubas’ recent comments about not spending high picks and prospects were contingent on the term “rentals,” which, technically, Meier isn’t. The San Jose Sharks forward has a $10MM qualifying offer this offseason and has reportedly been open to potentially signing an extension wherever he lands, should it make sense.

One guy said to me that there are teams out there thinking that Toronto, at the very least have considered: ’do we go get Meier for this run, and then sort it out later.’ Basically punt the decision to the summer. 

Toronto isn’t the only one, though. Friedman notes there are a number of Eastern Conference teams after Meier and at least a few from the West. One of those is the Winnipeg Jets, apparently, who Friedman has also heard about in regard to Meier. With a new coaching staff the Jets look like a lock for the playoffs again and could even still compete for the Central Division crown with a good stretch run. With Blake Wheeler coming off the cap after the 2023-24 season, they’ll also have some flexibility in terms of a long-term extension if they were to land the star winger.

Almost everything surrounding Meier right now is speculative, though. The Sharks appear ready to wait out the market and make sure they get the biggest haul possible, and for a good reason. The 26-year-old Meier is a legitimate difference-maker, who already has 30 goals this season and can drive a line by himself. You don’t always have a chance to acquire in-their-prime assets at the deadline, especially not forwards that can play 20 minutes a night.

If Toronto and Winnipeg do get involved, it won’t be an easy bidding war. Things are set up to be quite beneficial for the Sharks, even if they are selling off a beloved homegrown star.

Montreal Canadiens Extend Jordan Harris

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The Montreal Canadiens may be out of the race, but they’re not on vacation. Today they announced a two-year extension for Jordan Harris, locking him up through the 2024-25 season. The contract carries an average annual value of $1.4MM.

Signed less than a year ago out of Northeastern University, it was always going to be a quick turnaround for Harris. His entry-level contract was limited to two seasons because of his age, and the first year was burned with his ten-game stretch run. Now, after spending the entire season with Montreal, he would have gone into the summer as a restricted free agent.

To avoid any complications there, the team has handed him a pretty hefty contract for a player with just 57 games under his belt. The hope is that his upward progression continues, and he quickly becomes a bargain for the Canadiens.

It’s easy to bet on Harris. The 22-year-old has averaged over 18 minutes this season and has 11 points, playing mostly in a defensive role despite his relatively small stature. He isn’t the big, bruising behemoth that most imagine when thinking of a shutdown defender, but Harris is effective in his own end, will throw his weight around, and is improving on the penalty kill.

If the Canadiens are going to say goodbye to Joel Edmundson at the deadline, a player like Harris will likely get even more opportunity to play in that shutdown role – even if there does appear to be a little more offensive upside yet untapped.

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