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East Notes: Muse, Housley, Sanderson

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The new head coach of the New York Rangers, Peter Laviolette, is working diligently on getting the rest of his bench filled out for the upcoming season. In the last 36 hours, one name has already been inked, as former player Michael Peca will be brought on to serve as an assistant coach.

Adding to that list, Mollie Walker of the New York Post reports that Dan Muse will also be brought on to serve as an assistant coach on the Rangers’ bench. This will not be Muse’s first shot in the NHL, as he served under Laviolette with the Nashville Predators from 2017-20.

Since then, Muse has been serving as head coach of the United States U18 team, coaching the team to a gold medal finish last April in Switzerland. Adding to his winning pedigree before his time in Nashville, Muse was also an assistant coach for Yale University from 2009-2015, helping his team win the 2013 Men’s Ice Hockey National Championship against Quinnipiac University.

Other notes:

  • Like Muse, there may be another former Nashville coach joining Laviolette in the Big Apple, as Lance Lysowski of the Buffalo News reports that Laviolette has interest in bringing in Phil Housley. After his time in Nashville came to end in 2017, Housley signed on with the Buffalo Sabres as head coach, only to be fired after his second year. Currently employed as an assistant coach for the Arizona Coyotes, Housley is most well known for his 21-year career in the NHL, scoring a total of 1,232 points in 1,495 career games.
  • Ottawa Senators defenseman, Jake Sanderson, has switched agents, now being represented by mega-agent Pat Brisson of CAA Hockey (Tweet Link). Although under contract already with the Senators, the change could mean a lot for Sanderson this summer. Entering the last season of his entry-level contract signed back in 2022, Sanderson could sign a long-term extension with Ottawa this offseason.

Hockey Hall Of Fame Announces 2023 Inductees

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Today is the day many hockey lifers have been waiting for, as a few esteemed individuals will get their call from the Hall today. The 2023 class will be as follows:

Ken Hitchcock – builder
Pierre Lacroix – builder (posthumously)
G Tom Barrasso – player
G Henrik Lundqvist – player
F Caroline Ouellette – player
F Pierre Turgeon – player
G Mike Vernon – player

Hitchcock’s induction as a builder comes as no surprise. He’s been a staple in the NHL coaching fraternity for decades, known for his tactical brilliance and ability to transform teams into contenders. With a career spanning over 1,500 games coached, Hitchcock boasts an impressive coaching resume that includes a Stanley Cup victory with the Dallas Stars in 1999 and a Jack Adams Award with the St. Louis Blues in 2012. Known for his meticulous attention to detail and emphasis on defensive play, he’s left an indelible mark on the sport. After stints with the Stars (twice), Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets, St. Louis Blues, and Edmonton Oilers, Hitchcock last coached in 2018-19.

Lacroix’s posthumous induction is obviously a bit of a bittersweet moment. As the former general manager of the Colorado Avalanche, Lacroix was instrumental in building one of the most dominant teams of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Under his guidance, the Avalanche won two Stanley Cups in 1996 and 2001. Best known for pulling off one of the most impactful trades in NHL history by acquiring netminder Patrick Roy from the Montreal Canadiens, Lacroix was Colorado’s general manager dating back to the team’s final season in Quebec, 1994-95, before transitioning to a president role in 2006. Lacroix passed in December 2020 at the age of 72.

To the surprise of many, this year’s class includes a trio of goalies – although a notable absence remains in Curtis Joseph, who sits seventh in league history in wins and games played. Barrasso was a name many had wondered about for a while in regards to his Hall of Fame likelihood, known for his fierce competitiveness and exceptional athleticism. He backstopped the Pittsburgh Penguins to consecutive Stanley Cup victories in 1991 and 1992, and although his career numbers of a .892 save percentage and 3.24 save percentage are far from impressive (even for his era), he was known as one of the more clutch goalies in the league over his 19-season career. The five-time Vezina nominee totaled 777 NHL games, mostly with the Penguins and Buffalo Sabres. 51 of those 777 games were spent in short stints with the Carolina Hurricanes, Ottawa Senators, St. Louis Blues, and Toronto Maple Leafs.

Now, for the only first-time eligible player on this list, Lundqvist (or “The King” to most in New York) captured many hearts during a long and admirable career with the Rangers. One of the best to ever play the position without winning a Stanley Cup, Lundqvist’s consistency allowed him to be the nucleus of Rangers teams that routinely made it deep into the playoffs throughout the 2010s. He was a perennial Vezina Trophy finalist and became the Rangers’ all-time leader in wins, clearing second-place Mike Richter by over 150. He technically retired as a member of the Washington Capitals, although a career-ending heart issue kept him out of the lineup during his only season there.

Vernon is the true wild card on this list, although he made a name for himself as the backbone of the Calgary Flames, leading them to their first and only Stanley Cup victory in 1989. His fiery demeanor and unwavering determination made him a fan favorite in the city, and he’s among the top 25 netminders in NHL history in terms of longevity. One Vezina nomination and play that wavered wildly throughout his career may have made his election to the Hall a surprise for some, but he is one of the more hallowed names in Flames history.

On the offensive side, Ouellette’s induction solidifies her as one of the most prolific scorers of the 21st century. A longtime member of the Canadian women’s national team, Ouellett has an unparalleled list of achievements in women’s hockey. She captured four Olympic gold medals while recording 1.3 points per game, six World Championship gold medals, and four CWHL championships. She was also appointed as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2019 and named to the IIHF Hall of Fame earlier this year.

Last but not least is Turgeon, whose offensive prowess and playmaking ability made him a natural choice for induction. Over his 19-year NHL career, Turgeon amassed over 1,300 points and showcased his scoring touch with five seasons of 40-plus goals. Known for his smooth skating and exceptional vision on the ice, Turgeon was a force to be reckoned with, leaving a lasting impression with the Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, and St. Louis Blues – also spending chunks of time with the Montreal Canadiens, Dallas Stars, and Colorado Avalanche.

It’ll have to wait another year for notably snubbed stars like Alexander Mogilny and Sergei Gonchar, both of whom should be statistical locks based on some comparable players who’ve already been inducted.

Tampa Bay Lightning Re-Sign Gabriel Fortier

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have re-signed prospect Gabriel Fortier to a one-year, two-way contract, as announced by the team. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Fortier was a bit of an outside candidate to make the team out of camp last season but ended up losing out on a more permanent roster spot to Cole Koepke. He did get into one game, an October 15 showdown against the Pittsburgh Penguins, bringing his NHL total to 11.

Tampa selected the 23-year-old with the 59th overall pick of the 2018 NHL Draft. His offense hasn’t come alive in the minors with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch as much as the organization would have liked, though, recording 64 points in 139 games there over the past two seasons.

The 5-foot-10 forward is now entering his fifth campaign with the Lightning organization, signing his entry-level deal in 2019 before heading back to juniors for two seasons with the QMJHL’s Baie-Comeau Drakkar and Moncton Wildcats. He does have one NHL goal under his belt, which came during a 10-game stint with the Lightning in 2021-22.

A Hlinka Gretzky Cup champion with Canada in 2017, Fortier likely finds himself back in Syracuse this season with players like Koepke and Alex Barre-Boulet ahead of him on the depth chart. He’ll be a restricted free agent again in 2024.

Arizona Coyotes Waive Patrik Nemeth, Zack Kassian For Purposes Of Buyout

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June 21: Kassian and Nemeth have both cleared conditional waivers, paving the way for the Coyotes to buy them out, CapFriendly reports.

June 20: The Arizona Coyotes have placed defenseman Patrik Nemeth and forward Zack Kassian on unconditional waivers for the purposes of a buyout today, NorthStar Bets’ Chris Johnston reports.

Nemeth, 31, carried a modified no-trade clause and was slated to be the Coyotes’ highest-paid active defenseman heading into 2023-24. Buying out the final season of Nemeth’s $2.5MM average annual value contract gives Arizona $2.33MM in savings next year (he’ll carry a cap hit of just $167,667), but he’ll cost the team $1.167MM against the cap in 2024-25, per CapFriendly’s buyout calculator.

Kassian had one season remaining on his deal at a $3.2MM cap hit but was only due $2.3MM in salary. The Coyotes will save an additional $1.533MM next season with the Kassian buyout, bringing his cap hit down to $1.67MM, but will incur a $766,667 cap hit in 2024-25. Altogether, the buyouts create $3.867MM in cap space for the Coyotes next year, but they’ll incur a combined $1.933MM buyout charge between Kassian and Nemeth in 2024-25.

Arizona was already one of six NHL teams below next season’s salary cap Lower Limit of $61.7MM – including over $21MM in dead cap allotted to Bryan Little, Jakub Voracek, and Shea Weber. The team has four restricted free agents to re-sign – Christian Fischer, Connor Ingram, Jack McBain, and Matias Maccelli – but they likely won’t make up the $10MM Arizona now needs to spend to hit the cap floor, per CapFriendly.

Acquiring unrestricted free agents will be a challenge given the team’s significant long-term uncertainty, although with Mullett Arena secured as their 2023-24 home, they may be able to attract a spattering of players on one-year deals. The team’s internal salary budget is almost certainly close to (if not lower than) that $61.7MM floor, so freeing up space to allot to younger players (internally or externally) does make some modicum of sense from a financial standpoint.

Both Nemeth and Kassian will be free to sign anywhere as unrestricted free agents on July 1. Nemeth recorded just five assists in 75 games last season in a bottom-pairing role, posting poor relative possession numbers for the second straight season. Kassian, now strictly an enforcer at this point in his career, could be headed for retirement after scoring just twice in 51 games, recording a career-worst -18 rating despite playing under 10 minutes per game.

Columbus Blue Jackets Extend Mathieu Olivier

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The Columbus Blue Jackets announced today they’ve secured the services of right wing Mathieu Olivier for the next two seasons. The team revealed that the deal is worth $2.2MM in total and will keep the 26-year-old in Columbus until the end of the 2024-25 season at a $1.1MM cap hit.

Olivier was a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights after completing a two-year, $1.5MM contract signed with the Nashville Predators in 2021. Columbus acquired him for a 2022 fourth-round pick nearly one year ago, and the gritty winger responded by recording career highs across the board with five goals and 15 points in 65 games. He’s got a bit more skill to his game than a typical enforcer, although he doesn’t have much upward mobility in the lineup.

It’s a fine deal for a player of his role, although with the team now carrying less than $5MM in projected cap space (CapFriendly) before July’s even started, seven figures per season may have been a bit of a reach. The team’s fourth line of Olivier, Eric Robinson, and Sean Kuraly was their most consistently used in 2022-23, amassing nearly 400 minutes of play together.

The 6-foot-2 product of Mississippi will be an unrestricted free agent in two years.

Free Agent Notes: Barbashev, Jost, Ekman-Larsson

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One of the top pending UFA forwards is, in fact, expected to go to market – a boon for a weak class that’s only getting weaker. There are currently no talks ongoing between the Vegas Golden Knights and forward Ivan Barbashev, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes says, and he is expected to hit the market on July 1.

The 27-year-old fit in seamlessly with Vegas after a trade deadline deal with the St. Louis Blues, scoring 34 points in 45 combined regular-season and playoff games en route to his second Stanley Cup in five years. The uptick in scoring came with a significant uptick in ice time, and he now enters the free agent market as a bonafide top-six winger in his prime. He could very well double his previous cap hit of $2.25MM on the open market on a long-term deal, something Vegas just doesn’t have the financial certainty at this point to accommodate. His performance this year came on the heels of a breakout 60-point campaign with the Blues in 2021-22.

More notes on this year’s pending free agent class:

  • When the Buffalo Sabres re-signed veteran forward Zemgus Girgensons, many wondered what it meant for pending RFA Tyson Jost’s future with the club, given the team’s depth crunch on offense. Today, general manager Kevyn Adams said he’s spoken with Jost’s agent and informed them he’d like to work out an extension, keeping him in the fold as a decent depth scoring option. The team is expected to trade Victor Olofsson this offseason, but Jost could still slip into the role of a healthy scratch if the team does make any notable free agent acquisition. The 25-year-old notched 25 points in 71 games this season.
  • It doesn’t appear defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson will be without a home for long. After getting bought out by the Vancouver Canucks last week, Ekman-Larsson’s agent, Kevin Epp, tell’s CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal that upwards of 10 teams have shown interest in bringing him on, including some contending teams. One team that immediately jumps out as a natural fit for a veteran defenseman on a cheap deal needing some reduced minutes to be successful is the Tampa Bay Lightning. He’d sit on the third pairing behind Victor Hedman and Mikhail Sergachev on their depth chart, and Ekman-Larsson’s situation isn’t all too dissimilar to that of Kevin Shattenkirk a few seasons ago.

Check Out Hoops Rumors For NBA Draft Coverage

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The 2023 NBA draft is tomorrow night at 7:00 pm CT, and Hoops Rumors has all the latest news and rumors! Last offseason saw the majority of the league’s 30 teams involved in trades for coveted draft picks, and the expectation is that Thursday could be even more action-packed. We’ve already seen two deals leading up to the draft, including a blockbuster involving a couple multi-time All-Stars, but that was just the tip of the iceberg, because the rumor mill is buzzing about several other possibilities.

There’s no mystery with the first overall pick, as the Spurs will take French big man Victor Wembanyama, who has been widely hailed as the top prospect since LeBron James was the No. 1 pick 20 years ago. However, there’s a significant amount of uncertainty for the remainder of the first round, including the other projected top-three picks — Charlotte is reportedly still weighing whether to select Alabama’s Brandon Miller or G League Ignite’s Scoot Henderson at No. 2.

The Hornets, Trail Blazers (No. 3), Rockets (No. 4) and Pistons (No. 5) are all reportedly open to moving their draft picks in the right deal, which is rare. All of the teams just below them — the Magic (Nos. 6 and 11), Pacers (Nos. 7, 26, 29), Wizards (No. 8), Jazz (Nos. 9, 16, 28) and Mavericks (No. 10) — have been linked to trade rumors as well. We’ll soon find out if any of those selections will be headed elsewhere.

Over at Hoops Rumors, we’ll be keeping tabs on all the latest NBA news and rumors ahead of the draft, in addition to tracking each of this year’s 58 draft picks. With the draft nearly upon us and free agency only nine days away, this is the most eventful time of year for the NBA rumor mill, so be sure to visit Hoops Rumors and follow @HoopsRumors on Twitter for all the latest updates!

Winnipeg Jets Considering Buying Out Blake Wheeler

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The winds of change are reaching hurricane force in Winnipeg. They’re undoubtedly moving on from a pair of core pieces in Connor Hellebuyck and Pierre-Luc Dubois via trade this summer, and now TSN’s Darren Dreger reports another potential trade chip could be headed straight for a buyout – former captain Blake Wheeler.

It’s been a sharp decline in play for the 36-year-old Minnesota product since recording back-to-back 90-point seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19. The 2004 fifth-overall pick ranks among the all-time leaders in many Thrashers/Jets franchise stats, suiting up for the franchise in 897 games over 13 seasons. Thinly veiled culture issues have been widely reported on in Winnipeg over the past few seasons, though, which culminated in the team stripping Wheeler of his captaincy last offseason.

Entering the final season of a five-year, $41.25MM contract, Wheeler has both a five-team ’yes’ trade list and a full no-movement clause attached to his deal. Trade discussions started as far back as a year ago, and while they continue to explore the market, their options of moving him for much (or any) value are limited. He did still manage 16 goals and 55 points in 72 games this season, although advanced metrics suggest much of his point production has become the product of his teammates.

He’ll be 37 years old next season, and he’s just no longer at the point of being a top-six forward on a contending team. While he once had a reputation as a capable defensive winger, that’s largely dried up, and he takes more penalties than one would expect, given his style of play. He still has value and skill as a pure passer, but he’s reaching the point where he should be relied upon for around 14 minutes a game instead of the 17 he averaged in Winnipeg last year.

Per CapFriendly, buying out the final season of his $8.25MM cap hit would reduce the cost to $2.75MM in each of the next two seasons, providing $5.5MM in savings in 2023-24.

St. Louis Blues Re-Sign Adam Gaudette

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The St. Louis Blues have re-signed one of their few restricted free agents, as The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Matthew DeFranks reports they’re bringing back forward Adam Gaudette on a one-year, two-way contract extension. Per DeFranks, the deal will pay Gaudette $775K in the NHL and $400K in the AHL but doesn’t carry a minimum salary guarantee if he spends the whole season in the minors.

St. Louis acquired the 26-year-old four months ago as a minor piece in the Ryan O’Reilly trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs. 2022-23 marked the first season Gaudette didn’t see any NHL action since turning pro in 2018, instead playing 65 AHL games split between the Toronto Marlies and Springfield Thunderbirds. He hasn’t been able to produce with any consistency since notching 33 points in 59 games with the Vancouver Canucks in 2019-20, and he’s now on his fifth NHL organization in the past three seasons.

Extended time in the minors may have renewed his offensive confidence, though. While not breaking any records, he did put up a very respectable 27 goals and 51 points in the AHL this year and added a goal in two playoff games for Springfield.

Gaudette did have arbitration rights but would’ve had no leverage to receive anything higher than his qualifying offer of $787.5K. While the NHL cap hit comes in below that, the deal continues a trend of players taking less NHL money than their qualifying offer would have granted them in exchange for more compensation at the minor-league level. He’s a reclamation project-type player, which the Blues seem to be keen on acquiring as of late, and he could push for a fourth-line role in 2023-24 without much eligible competition in the Blues’ AHL and prospect ranks.

Snapshots: Lyon, Love, Hockeyville

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Sergei Bobrovsky’s magical run for the Florida Panthers throughout most of the playoffs erased a lot of memories of the netminder who got them there in the first place. 30-year-old Alex Lyon, who started the season as the team’s third-string netminder, recorded a 6-2-1 record and .930 save percentage while playing in nine of the team’s final 12 games of the regular season, helping them snag a playoff spot after sitting on the outside looking in for much of the season.

Yesterday, Lyon’s agent, Pete Rutili of Wasserman Hockey, told Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic that his client’s preference is to stay in the Sunshine State, but there have been no talks between the Panthers and their pending unrestricted free agent. Florida expects youngster Spencer Knight back in the fold next season after taking time in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program, so Lyon wouldn’t have a likely NHL role if he returns. After seven seasons and more than 200 games of AHL action, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if Lyon went elsewhere to find an easier path to more NHL action in 2023-24.

More from the NHL news cycle today:

  • The head coach of the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers, Mitch Love, hasn’t completely cut ties with the Flames after being passed over for their head coaching vacancy in favor of his predecessor in the minors, Ryan Huska. TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that while Love is still looking elsewhere for jobs on an NHL bench, he’s had discussions with the Flames about joining Huska’s staff as an assistant. Love has won AHL Coach of the Year honors in both of his two campaigns behind the Wranglers (formerly Stockton Heat) bench and guided them to a Pacific Division Final loss against the Coachella Valley Firebirds, who are now just one win away from the Calder Cup.
  • Next year’s Canadian Kraft Hockeyville preseason matchups will honor both the 2022 and 2023 winners of the award, seeing the NHL head to West Lorne, Ontario, on September 27 and Sydney, Nova Scotia, on October 1. Atlantic Division teams will comprise both matchups, with the Buffalo Sabres and Toronto Maple Leafs facing off in West Lorne before the Florida Panthers and Ottawa Senators play in the Sydney showcase.

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