As May comes closer to an end, off-ice activity should start to pick up around the league in the coming days. While it was a relatively quiet week, there was still some news of note which is highlighted in our key stories.
Two For Benn: Facing elimination after losing the first three games of the Western Conference Final, the Stars found themselves without captain Jamie Benn as he received a two-game suspension from the Department of Player Safety. The ban came as a result of a cross-check on Vegas winger Mark Stone early in the third game of the series, earning him a five-minute major and a game misconduct at the time. Dallas was able to rebound without their captain, winning two elimination games to stay alive in the series. Benn will be eligible to return for another must-win game contest on Monday.
Conroy Promoted: Throughout Calgary’s search for a new general manager, long-time assistant Craig Conroy was viewed as the speculative favorite. In the end, the former Flame was promoted to the job, becoming the eighth GM in franchise history. Following a season that saw the team just come up short of a playoff spot, Conroy will be tasked with changing up the core while needing to free up cap space in the process. Additionally, he needs to find a new head coach following the dismissal of Darryl Sutter while Don Maloney was serving as interim GM. It’s quite possible that the hire will be an internal promotion as well with assistants Kirk Muller and Ryan Huska plus two-time AHL Coach of the Year winner Mitch Love all in the organization already.
Staying With The Sabres: Kyle Okposo took some time to determine his plan for his playing future and it involved staying with Buffalo as the captain signed a one-year extension, avoiding unrestricted free agency this summer. He’ll be taking a sizable pay cut to do so, going from a $6MM AAV on his last deal to a $2.5MM salary plus a potential $500K bonus if the Sabres win the Stanley Cup. The 35-year-old saw his production dip this season, going from 45 points to 28 while seeing his playing time shaved by more than two minutes a night as some of Buffalo’s younger players have grabbed a hold of a regular spot in the lineup. However, he can still fill a spot in their bottom six while players and management have lauded his off-ice contributions, ones that will continue now for another year.
Flyers Open To Changing Goalies: In an interview over the weekend, Flyers GM Daniel Briere indicated that while he believes Carter Hart is their goalie of the future, he isn’t in a position to turn down anything and would listen to offers for the 24-year-old. Hart made an immediate impact when he debuted in 2018-19 but hasn’t been able to duplicate his level of performance in his first two seasons in the following three campaigns. Hart is signed for one more season at a $3.979MM cap hit and is eligible to sign a contract extension as early as July 1st. He’s under team control through restricted free agency through the 2024-25 season.
Kravtsov Back To Russia: It wasn’t that long ago that winger Vitali Kravtsov was viewed as a piece of the future for the Rangers. After a tough showing with New York this season, he was moved to Vancouver as part of the series of moves needed to afford Patrick Kane. Things didn’t go much better there and rather than battle for a roster spot with the Canucks next season, the 23-year-old has decided to go home once again, inking a two-year deal with Traktor Chelyabinsk of the KHL. Kravtsov had just four goals and four assists in 48 games this season between the two teams, not the type of numbers expected from the 2018 ninth-overall selection. Kravtsov is under team control through 2027 so Vancouver is still likely to issue him a qualifying offer this summer to retain his NHL rights.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.