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Archives for August 2023

David Krejčí To Announce Retirement Soon

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According to Jimmy Murphy of Boston Hockey Now, David Krejčí will announce his retirement from the NHL and hockey in the very near future. Krejčí returned to the Boston Bruins this past season after taking a one-year hiatus to play overseas with Olomouc HC in the Czech League during the 2021-22 season. He had a good year for Boston but did wear down a bit towards the end of the year. In his return, Krejčí had 16 goals and 40 assists in 70 games while centering Boston’s second line.

Murphy mentions in his piece that rumors have been swirling that Krejčí may return to Czechia to play for Olomouc once again, but an NHL source of his has told him that won’t happen. There is, however, an outside chance he could play for the national team, which would leave the door open for Krejčí to dress for Czechia in the 2024 World Championships.

It has been quite a run for the former 2004 second-round pick. Through his NHL career Krejčí has posted 231 goals and 555 assists in 1032 regular season games to go along with a +166 plus-minus rating. He was also a clutch playoff performer with Boston, helping to lead the team to three Stanley Cup finals and one Stanley Cup title in 2011 in which he led the Bruins in scoring with 12 goals and 11 assists in 25 games.

Krejčí’s retirement will bring the Bruins closer to the end of an era as only Brad Marchand and Milan Lucic remain from the squad that won the Stanley Cup 2011. It will also close out the run of one of the best 1-2 center combinations we’ve seen in recent memory. Krejčí and Patrice Bergeron brought something unique to the center position that few other teams had, both men could create offense and play a solid two-way game. Bergeron was one of the best at it, but it always felt like Krejčí’s ability to play on both sides of the puck was overlooked because of who he played behind. Krejčí was a unique talent and will certainly be missed by the Bruins and their fans.

Free Agent Profile: Paul Stastny

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The height of free agency ended a little less than a month ago and once again veteran center Paul Stastny finds himself without an NHL contract heading into next season. Unlike, most younger players Stastny probably isn’t too concerned about financial security as he has made nearly $85MM during his career (CapFriendly). Stastny has also been here before, having waited until August 23rd to sign last summer with the Carolina Hurricanes. Stastny may find himself unsigned late in the offseason once again but given that he is just a year removed from a 45-point season, there is reason to believe he will find an NHL job next year.

Stastny began his career as a perennial 70-point player on a talented but inconsistent Colorado Avalanche team that could never seem to get over the hump. He remained an important top-six piece as his career progressed, but as injuries started to impact his body, he began to descend into a 50–60-point scorer. By the time he signed a four-year $28MM contract as a free agent with the St. Louis Blues in 2014, he had settled in as a 40–50-point contributor that could post solid faceoff results and contribute in other ways. Stastny put up 40 or more points in each of his three and a half seasons with the Blues and was dealt to the Winnipeg Jets at the trade deadline in 2018.

After a cup of coffee in Winnipeg, Stastny signed with the Vegas Golden Knights in the summer of 2018. He spent two years with the team and failed to meet the expectations that came with his three-year $19.5MM contract. Stastny put up 80 points in 121 games with Vegas, but his production didn’t live up to his $6.5MM cap hit and he was traded back to Winnipeg in the 2020 offseason.

Stastny remained a solid center option in his two seasons in Winnipeg and continued to be a consistent 40-point threat despite being in his mid-30’s. Last summer, Stastny was coming off the aforementioned 45-point season and seemed like a good bet to sign a decent one-year deal, but as the height of free agency came and went, Stastny was left without a dance partner and eventually signed a one-year deal with the Carolina Hurricanes for $1.5MM. The deal was good value, although probably a tad below expectations for Carolina as Stastny centered both the third and fourth line at different points during the season.

At the end of the season, the Hurricanes opted to let Stastny go and that’s where we find the 37-year-old today, unsigned and coming off a season in which he put up nine goals and 13 assists in 73 games while averaging a career-low 11:52 of ice-time per game.

Stastny has had a terrific career up to this point, but he is still chasing that elusive Stanley Cup. He seems to have a knack for leaving organizations just as they are on the cusp of winning Lord Stanley as evidenced by his former clubs Colorado, St. Louis, and Vegas all winning championships shortly after his departure.

Now, the Quebec City, Quebec native is in the twilight of his career and is likely looking to sign with a contender. He showed last year that he could be a solid contributor on the bottom two lines and probably has more to give. Teams aren’t going to be lining up like they once were for Stastny’s services, but with two months left until opening night, there is plenty of reason to be optimistic that he will find a landing spot before the first week in October.

Stats

2022-23: 73 GP, 9-13-22, +4 rating, 16 PIMS, 80 shots, 57.6% faceoffs, 60.9% CF, 11:52 ATOI
Career: 1145 GP, 293-529-822, +43 rating, 500 PIMS, 2326 shots, 54.2% faceoffs, 52.2% CF, 18:27 ATOI

Potential Suitors

It seems that teams are always looking for help at center, which makes Stastny’s status a bit surprising this late in the offseason. While he is hardly the only pivot that is unsigned, he is probably the best of the leftovers. For Stastny, if he does choose to continue his career, he will be looking for a situation where he is a good fit. He never quite found a groove in Carolina, and despite playing on an excellent team, he did seem frustrated at times. He also fell out of favor with the coaching staff for brief periods, evidenced by his benching when the team opted to use Derek Stepan in his spot.

Let’s start in the East. The Buffalo Sabres have several players that are over the age of 35 and while Stastny isn’t going to push the team into the next stratosphere, he could be a nice stopgap for the team as they wait for more of their young prospects to develop into everyday NHLers. The Sabres also need to navigate the injury to Jack Quinn, and while this version of Stastny is no replacement for the youngster, he could be a part of a solution until he returns. Stastny would add a lot of experience and leadership to the Sabres dressing room and could also provide the team with a center who can win most of the draws he takes and will generally help his team control the play when he is on the ice.

In the West, the Edmonton Oilers still need a solid fourth-line center. The club does currently have a few options that they can slot into the lineup in a pinch, but ideally, they would have a pivot that can bring similar skills to that of Stastny. The Oilers don’t need a player that will drive the offense, but they do need capable bottom six players who can play a responsible brand of hockey and dictate play when they are on the ice. Stastny fits the bill having won 57% of his faceoffs last season, and having terrific possession numbers as Carolina controlled the puck 60% of the time Stastny was on the ice. His offense dried up last season, but Edmonton doesn’t need an offensive juggernaut, they need smart bottom six players that can chip in on offense from time to time.

Projected Contract

Many of the remaining unrestricted free agents are likely going be forced to take contracts that are around the league minimum of $775K, however, I don’t believe that will be the fate for Stastny. As mentioned earlier, he waited until the end of August last year and still secured a seven-figure AAV on a one-year deal. This year is different for Stastny though as he is coming off his lowest offensive output in his 17-year career, so a contract approaching what he made last season might be off the table. I would venture a guess that Stastny will get a one-year deal in the range of $1MM to $1.25MM which could also include a small bonus. Several teams have utilized bonuses for players over 35 years of age signing one-year contracts and Stastny could be the next in line to receive it. Regardless of where he winds up, he will likely be able to give the team that acquires him good value on a short-term deal.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Availability Of Sean Couturier, Cam Atkinson, Ryan Ellis

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Philadelphia Flyers president of hockey operations Keith Jones addressed the health and availability of three of his organization’s bigger-name players to NHL.com’s Adam Kimelman today. He spoke on Flyers number-one center Sean Couturier, veteran goal scorer Cam Atkinson, and defenseman Ryan Ellis.

On Couturier and Atkinson, Jones said that both are expected to be healthy and on the ice for the start of Flyers training camp next month. That’s not only major news for each player but also the Flyers organization at large, as the team’s offensive attack has suffered tremendously in the absence of two of the team’s most experienced players.

Couturier, 30, is arguably the Flyers’ best player. Couturier hasn’t played an NHL game since December 2021 and has had two back surgeries since that point.

Kimelman notes that Couturier “Couturier was practicing before the end of last season and had been hoping to get into a game,” but the Flyers made the decision not to rush Couturier back into what was a lost season, preferring to afford him the more extended timeline of a full offseason of training leading up to his first game back.

When healthy, Couturier is a top-of-the-line two-way center who is capable of scoring at a near-point-per-game rate. (he has crossed the 75-point plateau twice in his career) The 2019-20 Selke Trophy winner could very well compete for more Selke trophies when healthy, especially now that Patrice Bergeron has retired.

With the Flyers intensely interested in developing their young talent and providing young players with prime opportunities to succeed in the NHL, having Couturier healthy is a huge asset. For young wingers such as Tyson Foerster or Bobby Brink, players the Flyers desperately want to succeed in the NHL, having the chance to play on a line centered by Couturier could do wonders in easing their adjustment to the NHL.

As for Atkinson, as a 34-year-old under contract only through the 2024-25 season he is unlikely to be with the Flyers by the time they enter their next competitive phase. That’s unlike Couturier, who is signed to a long-term, $7.75MM AAV contract through the end of the decade. Atkinson is a favorite of head coach John Tortorella but missed all of last season after undergoing neck surgery.

The fact that the Flyers’ next playoff run will likely happen outside of Atkinson’s contract doesn’t mean he can’t provide value to the Flyers for the rest of his deal. The former 41-goal scorer returning to full health could improve the developmental environment in Philadelphia, just as having a healthy Couturier would.

Atkinson is a widely respected veteran who can capably score 20 goals and 50 points in a full season. For a young center the Flyers wish to see continue to develop, such as Morgan Frost or Noah Cates, having an accomplished veteran winger to play with and help the line succeed offensively could be genuinely helpful.

The key to the right developmental environment for a rebuilding club is to provide the right mix of young players and established talent, rather than just stocking a roster with as many unproven youngsters as possible. The issue for the Flyers has been that so many of the team’s key veteran forwards have been injured (such as Couturier and Atkinson) or a poor fit with Tortorella. (Kevin Hayes)

Getting both Atkinson and Couturier back from their season-long injuries not only helps the Flyers win more games in the immediate term, but it should also yield real benefits for the development of the Flyers’ young talent.

As for Ellis, Jones told Kimelman that the defenseman is unlikely to “be able to continue his playing career because of a torn psoas muscle in his back.” Jones added that Ellis is “exhausting everything that he can in order to play” but that the injury is simply making his return to the ice impossible.

Ellis, 32, was a high-end defenseman for the Nashville Predators for 562 games before he was dealt to Philadelphia in the summer of 2021 in exchange for Philippe Myers and 2017 number-two pick Nolan Patrick.

Ellis only managed to play in four games for the Flyers, scoring five points, before injuries knocked him out of the lineup. As long as this injury keeps Ellis from being able to play he will likely remain on the Flyers’ long-term injured reserve list in order for the team to receive cap relief for Ellis’ $6.25MM AAV contract, a deal that runs through 2026-27.

While Ellis appears to have every desire to return to the ice and continue his career, based on Jones comments it appears that expecting Ellis to ever suit up for another NHL game would be a mistake. While the organization must be happy to have Atkinson and Couturier back for training camp, the seemingly permanent absence of Ellis is undoubtedly unfortunate for both the Flyers and Ellis himself.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. 

New York Rangers, Brandon Scanlin Reach Pre-Arbitration Settlement

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08/02/23: The Rangers have now officially announced the signing of Scanlin to a one-year contract extension.

08/01/23: According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the New York Rangers and defenseman Brandon Scanlin have reached a pre-arbitration settlement on a new contract.

Scanlin’s representatives and the Rangers have agreed on a one-year, $775k contract carrying a $100k AHL salary. Scanlin’s arbitration hearing was scheduled for August 4th, and will obviously now be taking not take place.

Scanlin is a 24-year-old undrafted right-shot blueliner who signed an entry-level contract at the conclusion of his NCAA career at the University of Nebraska Omaha. That deal carried a $925k NHL AAV and an $80k AHL salary, the latter being the more important number as Scanlin was always unlikely to see games for the Rangers so quickly after leaving college. Scanlin’s camp has secured a pay raise to $100k in the AHL for next season, though at the cost of cutting the NHL AAV down to the league minimum.

While this will hurt Scanlin’s earning potential in the NHL, that isn’t of major consequence looking at the Rangers’ defensive depth chart. The hulking six-foot-three, 223-pound defenseman isn’t going to threaten Ryan Lindgren or K’Andre Miller for either of the two top slots on the Rangers’ defensive depth chart.

While the left-side spot on the team’s third pairing next to Braden Schneider will likely be up for grabs in training camp and preseason, Scanlin faces a tall task to earn that role over holdover Rangers players such as Zachary Jones (who the Rangers would need to expose to waivers to send to AHL Hartford) and Ben Harpur, or veteran free agent signings such as Erik Gustafsson (42 points last season) and Connor Mackey.

As a result, he’s overwhelmingly likely to be ticketed for a role back in the AHL with the Hartford Wolf Pack, where he played his rookie professional season in 2022-23. Scanlin played in 61 games for Hartford in 2022-23, scoring four goals and 15 points while racking up 30 penalty minutes. Although Scanlin had to contend with more established players such as Jones, Libor Hájek, and Matthew Robertson soaking up regular minutes in Hartford he still managed to play in nearly 85% of the Wolf Pack’s games and the team’s full slate of nine playoff games.

That puts him in a decent position to maintain a regular role for the Wolf Pack next season, although the additions of Gustafsson and Mackey could make things more difficult. Assuming Gustafsson earns the third-pairing role next to Schneider and the Rangers opt to stash Jones in the press box as a seventh defenseman rather than expose him to waivers, Mackey, should he clear waivers, is in line to be the Wolf Pack’s number-one left-shot defenseman with Harpur and Robertson likely to be behind him.

That lineup picture could make it harder for Scanlin to see regular time in Hartford, especially as more accomplished AHLers such as Mac Hollowell and Nikolas Brouillard stand ahead of him on the right side.

Still, Scanlin appears to be one injury or waiver claim from resuming his regular role on head coach Kris Knoblauch’s defense, and should he manage to hold down a regular role he will be afforded a solid opportunity to continue his development and make a more concerted push for NHL call-up consideration.

Winnipeg Jets Sign Rasmus Kupari

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The Winnipeg Jets and forward Rasmus Kupari have agreed to a two-year deal worth $1MM per season, according to a team release today.

Winnipeg acquired Kupari’s signing rights from the Los Angeles Kings just over a month ago as part of the trade return for center Pierre-Luc Dubois. Kupari was due a $874,125 qualifying offer from Winnipeg after completing his entry-level contract, which the Jets issued him a few days after the trade.

Los Angeles selected the now-23-year-old with the 20th overall pick in 2018, but he hasn’t quite yet panned out into an everyday NHLer. He got awfully close this past season, though, skating in just 11 games with the AHL’s Ontario Reign while playing in 66 NHL games with the Kings. Kupari also played in all six playoff games for the Kings during their first-round playoff loss against the Edmonton Oilers.

After recording a career-high 15 points last year, though, it’s now obvious Winnipeg envisions him as an everyday player in their lineup after dishing out a seven-figure deal. A natural center, Kupari is likely penciled in for fourth-line duties behind Mark Scheifele, former Kings teammate Gabriel Vilardi, and Adam Lowry, so he may not see a significant uptick on the 10:05 of ice time he averaged per game last season. However, a potentially looming Scheifele trade could elevate Kupari in the lineup.

The Finnish youngster will be a restricted free agent in 2025 and eligible for arbitration.

Previewing The Top 2024 Unrestricted Free Agents

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This year’s free agent class was underwhelming. There’s no disrespect intended here to players like Alex Killorn, Dmitry Orlov and Vladimir Tarasenko. However, we’ve grown accustomed to at least one true star being available on the market every year – at least a top-ten player at their position. But a flurry of extensions took some potential game-breakers, such as Boston Bruins sniper David Pastrnak off the market, limiting the amount of star power available.

With the salary cap finally expected to jump significantly by about $4MM next offseason, some NHL general managers will undoubtedly look to spend that extra cash on a shiny new toy on the UFA market. As 2023 is mainly in the rearview mirror, let’s take a look at some of the best players slated to hit the open market next summer, whether or not they may extend, and offer some way-too-early contract projections in the process:

F Auston Matthews (Toronto Maple Leafs) – The unquestionable crown jewel of the 2024 free agent class might also be one of the least likely to hit the market. Matthews is more than just a superstar – he’s a season removed from back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies, he’s led the league in even-strength goals in four out of his seven NHL seasons, and he’s coming off a “down season” in which he still managed 40 goals despite a career-low 12.2 shooting percentage. Toronto is still plugging away at an extension with Matthews, a process that was surely elongated by a change at the GM position earlier this offseason. While multiple reports suggested it likely won’t be a long-term deal to keep Matthews in Toronto, seeing his name available for anyone to pursue next July would be shocking.

Extension Likelihood: Very Likely
Projected Contract: Five years, $62MM ($12.4MM AAV)

F William Nylander (Toronto Maple Leafs) – Another star in Canada’s largest city is also headed for the open market next season. Nylander is coming off a strong season with a career-high 40 goals and 87 points, but multiple reports indicate contract talks are currently at an impasse between the two sides. The Swedish winger reportedly wants an eight-figure cap hit on his next deal, one he’s increasingly unlikely to receive after sub-$10MM extensions for players like the Carolina Hurricanes’ Sebastian Aho. He will be in his prime at 28 years old next summer, though, and he currently holds the undisputed title of the best pure winger slated to hit the market. Given the slated cap increase, Nylander may be able to garner the money he desires elsewhere if Toronto isn’t willing to fork over another eight-figure deal.

Extension Likelihood: Somewhat Unlikely
Projected Contract: Seven years, $70MM ($10MM AAV)

F Steven Stamkos (Tampa Bay Lightning) – Including Stamkos on this list seems like more of a formality than anything else. The captain of back-to-back Stanley Cup championship teams in Tampa and likely to go down as the greatest player in franchise history when he retires, it’s nearly impossible to imagine him wearing another jersey. Barring an unforeseen breakdown in communication, Stamkos will be re-upping with the Bolts on what could potentially be the final contract of his NHL career as he enters his mid-30s. After yet another point-per-game season, Stamkos will undoubtedly be sticking around in Tampa as long as they’ll have him, likely at a slight discount to help them replenish their depth reserves.

Extension Likelihood: Very Likely
Projected Contract: Four years, $31.5MM ($7.875MM AAV)

F Jake Guentzel (Pittsburgh Penguins) – The Penguins have exhibited a strong tendency toward keeping the band together in recent seasons, but it’s a trend that may change under the front-office leadership of Kyle Dubas. Still, it’s hard to imagine the Penguins won’t field a competitive offer to keep Guentzel in the fold. He’s been one of the most successful and consistent linemates to Sidney Crosby in the entire illustrious career of the future Hall-of-Famer, he’s a two-time 40-goal scorer, and he’s an incredibly clutch playoff performer. While contract extension talks haven’t begun between the two parties yet, reporting indicates the Penguins’ core shares the public’s view of Guentzel and would like to keep him around.

Extension Likelihood: Likely
Projected Contract: Eight years, $75MM ($9.375MM AAV)

F Mark Scheifele (Winnipeg Jets) – The first of two Jets on this list hasn’t been in trade rumors quite as much as his netminding counterpart, but there’s still a very good chance Scheifele is sporting a different jersey by the 2024 trade deadline. Speculation has immediately run rampant about Scheifele as a stop-gap fix down the middle for the Boston Bruins, who are without their number-one center after captain Patrice Bergeron announced his retirement last week. There are plenty of question marks about how highly Scheifele is actually valued around the league, given his significant defensive lapses, but he’s consistently produced the offense you’d want out of a number-one center. Despite scoring a career-high 42 goals last season, 2022-23 was actually Scheifele’s first campaign falling short of a point per game since 2015-16, when he was just 22 years old.

Extension Likelihood: Unlikely
Projected Contract: Seven years, $66MM ($9.4MM AAV)

D Devon Toews (Colorado Avalanche) – Toews may be the most unheralded defenseman in the league thanks to his partner, Cale Makar. On almost any other team, Toews would be a legitimate number-one defender with very few holes in his game. Little has been made of his impending free agency, but he’ll be due a major raise on his current bargain-bin $4.1MM cap hit. Combined with the potential loss of captain Gabriel Landeskog’s LTIR relief should he return to play in 2024-25, it could be incredibly difficult for Colorado to retain him even with the cap going up. Not only does Toews consistently rank among having some of the best defensive impacts in the league, but he’s also coming off back-to-back 50-point campaigns and has finished top-15 in Norris voting during each of his three seasons in Colorado.

Extension Likelihood: 50/50
Projected Contract: Seven years, $61MM ($8.7MM AAV)

D Brandon Montour (Florida Panthers) – A pair of prominent Panthers defenders are up for UFA status next season in Montour and Gustav Forsling, but Montour’s the one we’ll cover more in-depth here after he led the Panthers’ defense in playoff scoring with eight goals and 13 points in 21 games despite playing through a shoulder injury which will cost him the beginning of the 2023-24 campaign. His stock has never been higher after exploding for 73 points in 80 regular season games, along with a career-high 107 penalty minutes. While he’s still a rather one-dimensional player and likely to be somewhat of a liability defensively, he’s finally shown legitimate top-pair ability at 29 years old. Committing any term to Montour as a UFA may be a case of buyer beware, however, as his track record is far from consistent.

Extension Likelihood: Somewhat Unlikely
Projected Contract: Four years, $26MM ($6.5MM AAV)

G Connor Hellebuyck (Winnipeg Jets) – It seemed very unlikely a few months ago that Hellebuyck would be on this list today. While there’s no chance he’ll be signing an extension with the Jets, a trade followed by an extension with a new team seemed rather likely this offseason. However, some outlandish financial demands from Hellebuyck’s camp dried up trade interest, and there hasn’t been a lot of movement on that front lately. While small, the possibility that Hellebuyck lands on the open market next season seems to be increasing without a trade or extension any closer to fruition.

Extension Likelihood: Very Unlikely
Projected Contract: Seven years, $61.25MM ($8.75MM AAV)

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Anaheim Ducks Sign Troy Terry To Seven-Year Deal

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The Anaheim Ducks have signed winger Troy Terry to a seven-year contract, per the team, avoiding an arbitration hearing with the young forward set for today. The Athletic’s Eric Stephens reports the contract carries a $7MM average annual value. With the news, all pending arbitration cases this offseason are now concluded.

Terry’s career in Anaheim began rather unceremoniously, selected 148th overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. Elite offensive production at the University of Denver, plus some memorable international appearances for the United States, quickly boosted his stock as a prospect, however. Although he didn’t make the Ducks full-time immediately after turning pro in 2018, it took just a year and a half of seasoning in the minors for Terry to transform into a legitimate NHL talent.

At 23 years old in 2020-21, Terry played in 48 out of 56 games during the COVID-shortened campaign but largely played bottom-six minutes on a Ducks team that finished with a .384 points percentage and failed to do much of anything well. Despite that, he managed to finish fifth on the team in scoring with 20 points, providing some very solid two-way play in the process. That performance set the basis for the following two seasons, which have seen Terry develop into a top-flight, All-Star caliber winger for the struggling Ducks.

Now 25, the Denver native exploded for 60 goals, 68 assists and 128 points in 145 games since 2021. He’s maintained his status as a possession monster, too, posting a career-high relative Corsi For percentage of 7.9 at even strength last season. His 23 goals in 70 games last year tied Trevor Zegras for the team lead, and his average ice time of 19:22 ranked first among Ducks forwards. Needless to say, Terry has transformed into a franchise pillar for Anaheim in the span of a few years, and he’s now been rewarded with the highest cap hit on the team. That’s a stat that could change in the coming days, however, as Zegras remains without a deal for next season.

While Anaheim has indeed struggled over the past few campaigns, that’s not an indication of Terry’s inability to lift the team around him. The team’s patchwork defense and subpar scoring depth have limited their ceiling, all the while, Terry has managed to continue developing undeterred. He’s become a prototypical first-line winger without many weaknesses in his game, possessing an accurate shot while building out his playmaking ability to a high-end level.

Now, Anaheim looks to Terry to keep it up over the rest of the decade as their next wave of prospects begins to hit the NHL. They already had a promising one-two punch at center led by Zegras and Mason McTavish but now also have Swedish phenom Leo Carlsson as the second overall pick in this year’s draft. The team has one of the better goalie prospects in the sport in Lukas Dostal, who’s set to make the jump to the NHL full-time this season in a backup role. Consider a very strong defense pool led by Jamie Drysdale, Olen Zellweger, Pavel Mintyukov, and Jackson LaCombe, and it doesn’t seem like Anaheim will be in the throes of a rebuild much longer.

Terry’s long-term extension accentuates an offseason in which the Ducks tried to fill out their developing core with seasoned depth, inking two-time Stanley Cup champion winger Alex Killorn and bruising right-shot defenseman Radko Gudas in free agency. His contract, which keeps him in a Ducks jersey through 2030, carries an even $7MM salary spread in each season and a ten-team no-trade list beginning in 2025-26, per PuckPedia.

Despite the strong list of names in the system, most of them aren’t ready to make the jump to full-time impactful NHLers next season. Expect a marginal amount of improvement from the Ducks under new head coach Greg Cronin next season, but the first season of Terry’s massive extension figures to be another forgettable one for the 2007 Stanley Cup champions.

CapFriendly projects the Ducks with upwards of $20MM in cap space for next season, a solid chunk of which will go to new deals still needed for Drysdale and Zegras.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Toronto Maple Leafs Had Interest In Milan Lucic, Radko Gudas

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The Toronto Maple Leafs were active this summer in trying to add some toughness to their roster in the form of enforcers and multi-dimensional players, eventually settling on Max Domi, Ryan Reaves and Tyler Bertuzzi. Those weren’t the only players they contacted of that ilk, however. Both forward Milan Lucic (YouTube link) and defenseman Radko Gudas (link to iSport.cz) revealed in separate interviews that Toronto general manager Brad Treliving had pursued them in unrestricted free agency.

Lucic hadn’t been previously connected to the Leafs throughout this summer’s rumor cycle, but it makes sense they’d have interest given their pursuit and acquisition of Reaves to play a similar role. He told Paul Bissonnette and Ryan Whitney of the Spittin’ Chiclets podcast yesterday, though, that he’d turned down interest from Treliving because of his previous stint with the rival Boston Bruins. The 35-year-old would end up returning to Boston after an eight-year absence, inking a one-year, $1MM contract with the Bruins on July 1.

In terms of offense, Lucic would’ve been a higher-upside (and potentially cheaper) addition to the Leafs’ roster than Reaves. In fact, the only advantage Reaves arguably has between the two players is fighting skill – something the Leafs would end up paying a premium for with a three-year, $4.05MM commitment. Of course, Toronto would end up getting some higher-octane offensive players with the gritty element they were looking for in Bertuzzi and Domi.

Gudas, on the other hand, is pretty much the antithesis of the right-shot defender Toronto did end up signing, John Klingberg. A hulking, physical defensive specialist, Gudas told an outlet in his home country that he’d turned down offers from three teams (Toronto, Calgary and Edmonton) to avoid playing in front of a Canadian media market. While he did sacrifice playing on a competitive team in his twilight years, Gudas did get compensated nicely by the rebuilding Anaheim Ducks with a three-year, $12MM deal carrying trade protection.

The 33-year-old Czech was a large reason why his former team, the Florida Panthers, advanced all the way to the Stanley Cup Final for just the second time in franchise history. He quickly immortalized himself in Leafs lore in the process, going semi-viral for an image that showed him screaming at Toronto goalie Joseph Woll after the Panthers knocked the Leafs out of the playoffs in the Second Round thanks to a Game 5 overtime win.

While Toronto ended up paying slightly more in terms of cap hit for Klingberg ($4.15MM compared to Gudas’ $4MM in Anaheim), they were able to get him at just a one-year commitment, absolving themselves of any long-term consequences should the signing not pan out.

Gudas has topped 100 penalty minutes three times throughout his career and has consistently posted standout advanced defensive metrics over the past number of seasons. He recorded 17 points in 72 games for the Panthers last season while averaging 17:22 of ice time per game.

Minor Transactions: 08/02/23

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The few notable NHL signings that remain are set to wrap up in the next few days with the conclusion of arbitration hearings. It may bring the North American major pro news cycle to a halt briefly, but junior, minor pro and European teams are still making waves daily as their seasons loom. Today’s notable minor transactions can be found here:

  • The OHL’s Oshawa Generals are bringing over Minnesota Wild center prospect Rasmus Kumpulainen for the 2023-24 campaign after selecting him 13th overall in this year’s CHL Import Draft, according to a release from his team in the Finnish Liiga, Pelicans. Minnesota selected Kumpulainen with the 53rd overall pick of the 2023 NHL Draft after he notched 11 goals, 23 assists and 34 points in 41 games with Pelicans’ junior team in the U20 SM-sarja. Kumpulainen had a strong finish to the 2022-23 campaign at the IIHF U-18 World Junior Championship, recording five points in five games for Finland. A prototypical two-way center, Kumpulainen will continue to build on his offense and fill out his 6-foot-3 frame during his time in Oshawa. Pelicans also mentioned they’d reached an agreement to retain Kumpulainen’s Liiga rights through 2026.
  • Former Arizona Coyotes and Boston Bruins defense prospect Mitchell Miller is continuing his hockey career, but as expected, it’s not in North America. His 2016 assault conviction of a Black classmate with developmental disabilities has now cost him two NHL roles – including Boston parting ways with him just two days after signing him in free agency back in November. Late last month, the New York Post’s Larry Brooks reported the contract between Miller and the Bruins had officially been terminated via settlement. He’s now signed a one-year deal with HK 32 Liptovský Mikuláš in the Slovak Extraliga, per NorthStar Bets’ Chris Johnston.
  • Long-time Buffalo Sabres organizational farmhand Sean Malone is heading overseas, signing a two-year deal with NL club SCL Tigers. Malone had spent five of his six pro seasons in the Sabres organization after graduating from Harvard but got into just one NHL game with Buffalo during that time. He’d been an important top-six fixture for the AHL’s Rochester Americans, though, helping along Buffalo’s young prospects as they developed through their system. The 28-year-old center now heads to Switzerland, where he joins an offense led by Florida Panthers prospect Aleksi Saarela and former New Jersey Devil Harri Pesonen.
  • Forward Daniel Walcott is returning to the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch on a one-year deal, according to NHL.com’s Patrick Williams. A 2014 draft pick of the New York Rangers, they dealt Walcott to the Tampa Bay Lightning just a year later after signing his entry-level contract. He’s spent eight seasons with the Crunch since then, amassing 111 points across 378 games. Walcott does have one NHL appearance to his name, coming with the Lightning in 2020-21. The physical winger, who’s also played defense at times during his career, mustered a personal record of 13 goals, 32 points, and 103 penalty minutes in 67 games for Syracuse last season.
  • The OHL’s Niagara IceDogs acquired Montreal Canadiens defense prospect Daniil Sobolev from the Windsor Spitfires in exchange for three late-round 2024 OHL Draft picks today, according to a team release. Montreal drafted the physical shutdown defender with the 142nd overall pick in 2021 after he didn’t play at all in his draft year – the 2020-21 OHL season was canceled entirely due to COVID-19. Since, he’s registered three goals, 23 assists, 26 points, 92 penalty minutes, and a +37 rating in 110 games across two seasons with the Spitfires. To finish off his junior career, Sobolev joins an IceDogs team that’s finished at the bottom of the league in each of the last three seasons, winning just 12 of 68 games last season.
  • Kumpulainen isn’t the only NHL-affiliated European prospect heading to the CHL today. Carolina Hurricanes goalie prospect Jakub Vondras has committed to the OHL’s Sudbury Wolves for next season after they selected him 22nd overall in this year’s CHL Import Draft, per the league. Vondras, a sixth-round pick of Carolina in 2022, posted a sparkling .929 save percentage and 2.19 goals-against average in 29 games with HC Plzen’s U20 club in the Czech junior Extraliga last season.
  • The AHL’s Chicago Wolves have re-signed defenseman Cavan Fitzgerald to a one-year AHL contract. This move confirms that Fitzgerald, 26, will play a fourth consecutive season with Chicago. The undrafted left-shot blueliner scored 10 points in 30 games for the Wolves last season and played 17 playoff games during the team’s Calder Cup Championship run in 2022. He has 250 games of AHL experience under his belt, meaning he is just ten games away from no longer qualifying under the first tier of “development players” according to the AHL’s rules. As a result, 2023-24 is an extremely important season for Fitzgerald as he’ll need to provide consistent value for the Wolves in order to prove he’s worthy of a non-developmental player slot moving forward. AHL clubs are limited in that they can only dress five skaters who do not qualify as development players under either of the two pro games played thresholds.
  • Former Coyotes prospect Lucas Lessio has signed a one-year contract with the ICEHL’s Bolzano Foxes, making Italy the eleventh different country he’ll have played professional hockey in. Lessio, 30, has played around the world, from Croatia to China to Latvia to Germany, and spent last season playing for Klagenfurt in Austria. He didn’t score as well for Klagenfurt (14 goals, 28 points in 47 games) as he did the year before in the DEL for the Krefeld Penguins (25 goals, 41 points in 56 games) but wasn’t useless either, and will likely play an important role for the ICEHL finalists in Bolzano.
  • The Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears have signed defenseman Colin Swoyer to a one-year AHL contract. The 25-year-old spent most of last season playing AHL hockey for the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, scoring 11 points in 36 games. Swoyer was a pending RFA for the Penguins but did not receive a qualifying offer from the organization. He did also play six games in the ECHL for the Wheeling Nailers, although those games all came in early December and after being called up for a December 17th contest against the Bears Swoyer didn’t return to the ECHL. 2022-23 was Swoyer’s first full season playing professional hockey, as he concluded his four-year NCAA career at Michigan Tech last spring and only got a five-game trial run with the Penguins before the season ended. Now he’ll head to Hershey looking to continue to establish himself in the AHL.
  • The AHL’s San Diego Gulls have signed two players to one-year AHL contracts: veteran forward Eddie Matsushima and rookie Anthony Costantini. Matsushima, 29, scored 28 goals and 47 points for the Tulsa Oilers last season, earning ECHL All-Star honors. He played NCAA Division-III hockey at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls and worked his way into professional hockey starting with the Pensacola Ice Flyers of the SPHL. He produced well enough there to earn a few cameos in the ECHL before breaking in full-time with Tulsa. Now, he’ll get a chance to continue his climb up the pro hockey ladder and skate in some AHL games. As for Costantini, he’s a 20-year-old right-shot blueliner who scored 36 points in 67 games for the Ottawa 67’s of the OHL and could now be making his pro debut with the Gulls.
  • The AHL’s Coachella Valley Firebirds have added some depth, signing 26-year-old Jacob Hayhurst to a one-year AHL contract. Hayhurst split last season between the ECHL’s Worcester Railers (22 points in 35 games) and AHL’s Springfield Thunderbirds, where he played in a depth role and scored six points in 24 games. He’ll likely end up on the AHL/ECHL bubble for the Firebirds as well next season, serving as valuable depth as well as some veteran competition for prospects entering their first AHL campaigns such as Ryan Winterton and Tucker Robertson.
  • Rihards Bukarts, the leading scorer of the Latvian team that won the hockey-mad country their first-ever medal at an IIHF Men’s World Championship earlier this summer, will not be returning to his club of last season, Klagenfurt of the ICEHL. Bukarts, 27, scored 13 goals and 25 points in 28 games in Austria and as mentioned finished his season on a very high note, leading the Latvians with 11 points in 10 games. Bukarts has experience as a scorer in ICEHL, DEL, KHL, and Czechia, and last played in North America in 2016-17, when he scored 33 points in 37 games for the ECHL’s Manchester Monarchs.
  • Longtime University of Wisconsin forward Dominik Mersch and former Barrie Colts captain Luke Bignell have each signed ECHL contracts with the Jacksonville Icemen. Mersch, 24, concluded a five-year, 164-game career with the Badgers in March and got a two-game cameo in the AHL with the Chicago Wolves, his first taste of pro hockey. He’ll make his full-time debut as a professional player with the Icemen, as will Bignell. The 22-year-old left-shot defenseman played nearly 200 games in the OHL for the Colts and has spent the last two seasons playing on the Canadian university circuit for the University of Guelph.
  • Undrafted OHL blueliner Lleyton Moore, the former captain of the Oshawa Generals, will begin his pro career with the ECHL’s Wichita Thunder. He signed a one-year contract with the team and will look to translate his impressive numbers from major junior (he scored 54 points in 67 games in 2021-22) to the pro game in Kansas.
  • Bruising ECHL defenseman Josh Thrower, a veteran of nearly 250 games in North America’s third-tier league, has signed a one-year ECHL contract with the Norfolk Admirals. The 27-year-old played in 39 games with the Atlanta Gladiators last season and has spent three of the past four seasons with the club. Now he’s off to play for the Admirals where he will contend to lead the team in penalty minutes having already racked up 389 in the ECHL.
  • Former Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Stephen Desrocher has signed with the Fife Flyers of the EIHL. The six-foot-four defenseman and former Kingston Frontenacs captain heads to Scotland having played just 31 total games of pro hockey. He played four seasons and spent five years at the University of Western Ontario before signing in the ECHL with the Florida Everblades. He made his pro debut there and lifted the Kelly Cup with the team. He played 10 games in the AlpsHL last season with Merano HC and now heads to the United Kingdom to continue his young pro career.

This page will be updated throughout the day.

Islanders Notes: Nelson, AHL Goalie Depth, Salo

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The past few seasons have been a bumpy ride for the New York Islanders, plagued by injuries and inconsistency. It’s kept them from making any deep playoff runs, something they did with relatively high frequency throughout the late 2010s and early 2020s.

One player who hasn’t let any outside noise affect him is center Brock Nelson. He’s recorded career-best offensive totals in each of the last two seasons, eclipsing the 35-goal mark for the first time in 2021-22 and the 70-point mark for the first time in 2022-23. With Nelson locked in for just two more seasons at a rather affordable $6MM cap hit, some had wondered if his name could be in trade talks with the Islanders’ roster tight to the salary cap. Today, however, The Athletic’s Kevin Kurz shut down all speculation of a move in his latest mailbag, calling any trade rumors involving Nelson “utter nonsense.”

Many people didn’t have Nelson transforming into a number-one center overnight in his 30s on their bingo cards, but that’s exactly what’s happened. He’s one of the team’s most valuable forwards, often overlooked in favor of higher-profile names like Bo Horvat and Mathew Barzal. His role next season will be to help boost the production of the team’s better secondary scorers like Kyle Palmieri and Pierre Engvall, a line that was rather effective down the stretch of the 2022-23 regular season.

More from Kurz on some pressing Islanders topics today:

  • The Islanders’ weakest position when it comes to organizational depth is inarguably goaltending. While the team boasts one of the best NHL-level tandems in Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov, their minor-league netminding leaves much to be desired, and Kurz notes the Islanders are absolutely still in the market for a veteran third-string goaltender. Currently, the starting job in AHL Bridgeport is slated for 23-year-old Jakub Skarek, who’s yet to post above a .896 save percentage throughout four seasons in the minors. Kurz names Jaroslav Halak, Brian Elliott, Martin Jones, and Alex Stalock as options with notable NHL experience still looking for a home who may have to settle for a minor-league role.
  • One player who went into last season with high expectations was defenseman Robin Salo, the team’s 2017 second-round pick. He made the Islanders out of camp but didn’t stick, recording four points in 11 games throughout the first part of the season before the team assigned him to Bridgeport permanently in January. He posted just 14 assists in 38 games with Bridgeport, though, failing to score a goal throughout the entire season. After a rough year, Kurz says he’d be surprised to see Salo make the opening night roster again next season and thinks he’s slipped pretty far down the team’s depth chart of left-shot defenders. He also went so far as to call Salo a trade candidate and that if he’s not moved, the team may not issue him a qualifying offer next offseason.

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