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Islanders Hire Ray Bennett, Bob Boughner As Assistant Coaches

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The Islanders announced Monday they’re hiring veteran coaches Ray Bennett and Bob Boughner to head coach Patrick Roy’s staff as assistants.

The moves complete the first staff changes under new general manager Mathieu Darche. New York created the two vacancies when they relieved Tommy Albelin and John MacLean of their duties over a week ago.

Albelin and MacLean were the Islanders’ primary special teams coaches. It’s a fair assumption that Bennett and Boughner will replace their roles directly, with the former now overseeing New York’s power play and the latter overseeing their penalty kill.

Bennett’s hiring means the 62-year-old will be on an NHL bench for a 25th season. He spent the last eight years with the Avalanche as their power play coach. Colorado relieved him of his duties quickly following their first-round playoff loss to the Stars.

He certainly had loads more firepower to work with in Denver than he will on Long Island, at least to start, but Bennett’s recent track record is strong. Colorado’s 23.0% success rate on the power play since Bennett took it over in 2017-18 is fifth in the league, fourth if you don’t consider Utah’s 24.2% clip last year as a separate franchise from the Coyotes.

Bennett will now look to help jumpstart an Islanders power play that finished 31st in the league last year under MacLean’s watch at just 12.6%. Before his eight-year run with the Avs, Bennett was on the Kings’ staff from 1999 to 2006 and then with the Blues from 2007 to 2017.

Boughner, eight years Bennett’s junior, doesn’t have as lengthy of an NHL track record but has held two head coaching roles, first with the Panthers in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons and again with the Sharks for parts of three seasons from 2019 to 2022. Since being let go by San Jose in the 2022 offseason, he worked on the Red Wings’ staff as their top assistant, managing their defense and penalty kill. He was fired in Detroit along with head coach Derek Lalonde in December.

His last stop didn’t see him fare particularly well. Detroit’s penalty kill was a bottom-10 unit over Boughner’s tenure, but he was given the unenviable task of managing an undermanned group on a club exiting a rebuild. But when he was running the Sharks’ penalty kill in his two-year run as an assistant in the 2015-16 and 2016-17 campaigns, they were still middle-of-the-pack with an 80.6% success rate.

The changes were necessary and foreseeable ones to jumpstart both special teams units, which, along with poor finishing talent, stripped away any hope of a playoff spot for the Isles last season. They were a slightly above-average possession team at even-strength, though, so Darche will hope some improved special teams coaching will gel well with the returning Roy and assistant Benoit Desrosiers in helping the club get back to relevance in 2025-26.

Islanders Continue To Lean Toward Matthew Schaefer At First Overall

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When the Islanders won the draft lottery to move up from 10th to first overall in the 2025 draft, there was immediate speculation they might draft Long Island native James Hagens with the pick. The 5’11”, 185-lb center was the consensus first-overall pick at the beginning of the season.

Despite having a point-per-game freshman season at Boston College, though, he slipped down draft boards throughout the year. That was partly due to concerns about his size and how much he can truly pop offensively in the NHL, but also because other names simply displayed potential that surpassed his.

One of those names is defenseman Matthew Schaefer. Despite sustaining a season-ending collarbone injury at the World Juniors, the 6’2″ lefty was the consensus top prospect in the draft by the time the December tournament rolled around. Even while sitting on the shelf, his stock hasn’t dipped.

Very few public scouts have Schaefer ranked behind names like Hagens or OHL Saginaw star forward Michael Misa, and NHL Central Scouting labeled him the best North American skater in the class in their final rankings. Schaefer was healthy enough to participate in last week’s draft combine and showed out well enough to reaffirm the near-universal belief he’ll go off the board to the Islanders at No. 1 overall, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic relays.

The Islanders interviewed both Hagens and Misa at the combine as well, likely rounding out the trio of players they’re exclusively considering with the selection. However, the sense following the combine is that Schaefer remains a clear favorite and that “it would come as a bit of a surprise” if he isn’t the pick, Wheeler wrote.

Schaefer is one of the youngest players in the class – he doesn’t turn 18 until Sep. 5 – and hasn’t played organized hockey in nearly six months. That obviously works against his chances of being on the Isles’ opening night roster in the fall, but he did dominate with 22 points and a +21 rating in 17 games for OHL Erie to begin the campaign.

Oilers’ Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Uncertain For Game 3

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June 9: Nugent-Hopkins is still questionable for Game 3 and remains a game-time decision, although Knoblauch told reporters today he’ll take warmups regardless (according to TSN’s Ryan Rishaug).

June 8: The Oilers may be down a crucial top-six forward as the Stanley Cup Final shifts to Florida. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will be a game-time decision for Monday’s Game 3 due to an undisclosed injury after missing Sunday’s practice session, head coach Kris Knoblauch told reporters (including Tony Brar of Oilers TV).

Nugent-Hopkins didn’t miss a shift in Game 2’s double-overtime loss and didn’t miss a game due to a non-illness-related injury all season long. He’s routinely been starting games on the wing with Connor McDavid and Corey Perry, but he’s also alternated with Leon Draisaitl as the club’s second-line center. When shifted to Draisaitl’s spot between Evander Kane and Kasperi Kapanen later in Game 2, David Staples of the Edmonton Journal relays that Kane was taking faceoffs instead of Nugent-Hopkins, pointing to a speculative upper-body issue.

On the heels of an underwhelming regular season, Nugent-Hopkins has turned up the heat in the postseason. The 32-year-old is operating at a point per game with a 5-13–18 scoring line despite being held off the scoresheet in his last three appearances. He was especially dominant in Edmonton’s Western Conference Final victory over the Stars, posting a 2-7–9 scoring line in Games 1 through 4.

A potential Nugent-Hopkins absence with a 2-1 series lead on the line is exacerbated by the unavailability of usual Connor McDavid/RNH linemate Zach Hyman, who sustained a serious wrist injury in the Dallas series and is done for the year. While depth pieces like Kapanen and Perry have far exceeded expectations when elevated into top-six roles this postseason, there’s rightful concern about eating too deep into their depth in a seven-game series against the defending Stanley Cup champions.

Jeff Skinner, a healthy scratch for all but two games in these playoffs, took line rushes in today’s practice in Nugent-Hopkins’ place alongside McDavid and Perry and will presumably enter the lineup if RNH can’t go. In his first career postseason action, the veteran of nearly 1,100 regular-season games has a goal and an assist over his pair of appearances.

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Teams Not Expecting Sam Bennett To Reach Free Agency

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While there wasn’t as much transaction activity at the draft combine as some expected, there was still a chance for many to get a sense of what NHL executives are thinking ahead of the draft and free agency. Regarding Panthers pivot Sam Bennett, arguably the top UFA center available on the heels of a spectacular postseason showing, “no one I spoke to around the league expects [him] to be available,” writes James Mirtle of The Athletic.

It wouldn’t be a surprising outcome. The Panthers have had a strong track record of success regarding keeping pending UFAs in the fold in recent years, particularly forwards. They got business out of the way early with winger Carter Verhaeghe, who could have been a UFA this summer but signed an eight-year, $56MM extension back in October, and kept star Sam Reinhart off the market on the eve of free agency last year with an eight-year, $69MM deal worth $8.625MM per season that came in a fair bit under his market value.

Both of those players took less money per season in exchange for the eighth year of security that only the Panthers can offer, plus the opportunity to continue spending their primes with a perennial championship contender in South Florida. Bennett should be expected to take some form of discount on what will presumably be an eight-year contract as well, but with how much his stock has risen amid a year where he leads the postseason with 13 goals in 19 games, that “discount” might even be more than he could have landed as a free agent last summer.

As such, a Bennett extension in Florida is still likely to cost at least $8MM per season, Mirtle said. That indicates there could be some smoke to the fire that erupted when Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic speculated there could be a handful of teams willing to offer Bennett close to $10MM per season if he decided to test free agency.

Even with a rising cap, though, $8MM is quite a lot of money for Florida to tie up in a center at his peak coming off a career-high of just 51 points in the regular season. With the much younger Anton Lundell signed at a much more cost-effective $5MM figure through 2030 and posting similar offensive production to Bennett in lesser minutes this past season, many speculated Florida would give him the keys to the 2C slot. Nonetheless, it appears their one-two-three punch of Aleksander Barkov, Bennett, and Lundell will be in place for at least the next five years, after which Barkov’s and Lundell’s contracts are set to expire.

Ducks May Offer Record-Breaking AAV For Mitch Marner

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Many have speculated that the Ducks will be a major player in the Mitch Marner sweepstakes. The All-Star winger is nearly guaranteed to hit the open market on July 1, and Anaheim has the third-most cap space in the league early in the offseason, according to PuckPedia.

That flexibility, plus a mandate from ownership to contend for a playoff spot next season, means they could offer Marner the most lucrative seven-year offer of any club this summer. James Mirtle of The Athletic reports Monday they’re considering offering him an AAV that would push north of the $14MM mark, making him the league’s highest-paid player starting next season.

Whether Marner is considering teams that aren’t currently established playoff contenders remains to be seen. Still, it’s hard to imagine any team, aside from the Blue Jackets and their $40.4MM in cap space, being willing to enter that range. Even an offer matching, not exceeding, Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl’s league-high $14MM cap hit comes in well north of his projected market value of just a shade under $13MM, according to AFP Analytics.

There will naturally be sticker shock when it comes to many deals this summer, with an 8.5% increase in the salary cap’s Upper Limit from $88MM to $95.5MM. Draisaitl’s mega-extension, which costs 14.66% of the cap when it starts next season, would be equivalent to a $12.9MM AAV had it gone into effect last year.

Any conversation about Marner pushing into the $14MM tier per season will result in direct comparisons between him and Draisaitl, especially with the latter’s extension being signed under a year ago and kicking in at the same time Marner’s next deal will. That’s where things will get hairy for Anaheim regarding public perception of the contract, even if acquiring a dynamic offensive threat of Marner’s caliber is a crucial long-term step in helping them return to relevance.

Draisaitl is one year Marner’s senior and had a two-year head start on him in beginning his NHL career, but the former wasn’t immediately thrust into top-six minutes like Marner was. Even still, Draisaitl’s career points per game rate of 1.21 dwarfs that of Marner’s 1.13.

The discrepancy between the two increases when putting them on equal footing regarding sample size. Draisaitl’s points-per-game rate increases to 1.32 from the beginning of Marner’s career in 2016-17. Over the past three seasons, Draisaitl has operated at a 120-point pace per 82 games compared to Marner’s 102.

The soon-to-be-former Maple Leafs winger has historically been a far more valuable player defensively than Draisaitl, but that changed this season, at least in terms of public perception. Draisaitl came one place ahead of Marner in Selke Trophy voting after posting career-best possession numbers (58.8 CF%, 61.2 xGF%) at even strength. While playoff production has far less impact on contract value, Draisaitl is in a different tier, with a 1.49 career points per game rate in the postseason compared to Marner’s 0.9.

Combine all that with Draisaitl playing a more traditionally valuable position, and it’s hard to imagine many other teams willing to match a $14MM offer for Marner if the Ducks make it, even if they technically have the resources to do so. Suppose he enters July 1 open-minded about his next destination. That discrepancy between Anaheim’s offer and whatever the second-best one is for him financially could be enough to tip the scales in the Ducks’ favor.

How The Canucks Need To Approach This Summer

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The Vancouver Canucks are fresh off one of the most tumultuous years in franchise history, which is saying something, given some of the unusual seasons the team has had over the past 20 years. The relationship between star forwards Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller cast a black cloud over a team expected to compete for a Stanley Cup in 2024-25. Still, the Canucks ultimately missed the playoffs and have a lot of work to do this summer if they want to get back into contention. This summer will be crucial in their re-emergence and could be one that either reopens their window to win or slams it shut, forcing Vancouver to consider another potential rebuild.

At some point very soon, the Canucks are going to need to decide who the core members of this team are. Pettersson is locked up for another seven years, and it’s hard to imagine him being a trade candidate, given his play last season. This locks him in as a core member, whether or not the team wants him to be. He is indeed a candidate to bounce back; if he does, it would be welcome news for the team. Beyond Pettersson is where it starts to get murky concerning the core Canucks.

Any team in the NHL would want defenseman Quinn Hughes in their defense core, but there is a lot of speculation as to whether or not the 25-year-old wants to remain in Vancouver long-term. Hughes has two years remaining on a six-year deal and carries a cap hit of $7.85MM. He isn’t eligible for an extension until July 1, 2026, and rumors will run wild until he signs one with the Canucks or is traded.

Hughes has made it known that he would like to play with his brothers in the NHL, and Canucks president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford has commented publicly on the idea of acquiring the other Hughes brothers to keep Hughes in Vancouver. One thing is for sure, the Canucks are never dull when it comes to storylines off the ice, and the Hughes story will continue until a resolution is met.

The Canucks also have a tough decision to make on goaltender Thatcher Demko, who has dealt with numerous injury issues and was limited to 23 starts last season, during which he posted a .889 SV%. Demko has one year left on his contract at $5MM and will be eligible to sign an extension this summer. It will be interesting to see if that happens, given how last season unfolded for the 29-year-old.

Vancouver will have to decide very shortly whether or not they view Demko as part of their future, or if they can rely on recently extended Kevin Lankinen as their starting goaltender going forward. The hitch with Demko is that he is just a year removed from finishing second in Vezina Trophy voting and could very well recapture his form next season, or he could continue to struggle with injuries. Either way, there is a considerable risk for Vancouver and Demko.

Besides making a call on their core, Vancouver must address the hole left by trading Miller to the New York Rangers. The Canucks acquired Filip Chytil in the trade; however, he is likely best suited for third-line duties, given the stage of his career. Vancouver’s general manager, Patrik Allvin, might be hard-pressed to find a suitable replacement given the demand for centers around the NHL, but there are options available.

In free agency, the Canucks are in a position where they could target Sam Bennett, Matt Duchene, or John Tavares. Vancouver has roughly $12.156MM under the salary cap and has 21 of 23 roster slots filled (as per PuckPedia). This means they could sign any of the players mentioned and still have money left over to fill their final roster spot. Nothing suggests that any of those players would have Vancouver at the top of their list, particularly after the past 12 months. However, financially, the Canucks have as good a shot as just about any other team.

Outside of free agency, Vancouver could look to trade for a center such as Minnesota’s Marco Rossi. The Canucks might not want to explore that option if they can help it, as it might cost them one or both of their top prospects, Jonathan Lekkerimaki or Tom Willander. Vancouver doesn’t have a great prospect pool (21st in the NHL, as per Scott Wheeler of The Athletic) and likely wouldn’t want to deplete it further if they can help it. Lesser targets such as Trevor Zegras and Mika Zibanejad might be options, but given the circus that went on in Vancouver last season, they might steer clear of those two.

The Canucks should also look to bolster the right side of their defense core to allow Tyler Myers to slot in lower in the lineup. Vancouver dealt with many injuries at the end of the season (including Myers) and could use the added depth. The Canucks have several promising young defensemen who could be solutions on the ride side in the future, but they need someone for the short term to patch them over until Willander is ready for a significant role. The free agent market doesn’t offer much help for Vancouver unless they want to go big-game hunting for Aaron Ekblad.

If the Canucks wanted to make a trade for a top-four defenseman on the right side, they could look to Pittsburgh for Erik Karlsson or Philadelphia and Rasmus Ristolainen. While those are both big names, they have massive warts to their game and might not be a good fit in a dressing room that is as fragile as the Canucks have. Right-shot defensemen are always in demand, and even those with obvious flaws generally command a premium, which could force the Canucks to look at other areas of their roster to improve.

Regardless of whether Vancouver addresses their second-line center position and the right side of their defense, they have to add scoring to the lineup. The Canucks finished 23rd in the NHL in goals last season and desperately need to add to their offense, particularly in the bottom six. There are two ways Vancouver could achieve this. The first is to add a top-six forward to the group, and they might need to do this to balance the scales and replace the potentially departing Brock Boeser. The second option would be to add some depth scoring to the bottom six.

Vancouver likely won’t be in on wingers Mitch Marner or Nikolaj Ehlers, which means they will need to look at secondary options to try to add scoring by committee. Mikael Granlund could be an interesting option, as he is an excellent passer and almost always finds a way to put up numbers. Fit could be a concern with him, but he could be a cheaper option for the top six forwards, and Vancouver could use the remaining cap space to find the bottom six forwards to fill out their depth.

Photo by Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Five Key Stories: 6/2/25 – 6/8/25

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With activity around the league set to pick up in the near future, teams have been busy finalizing their coaching staffs and trying to get some early contract work done.  Unsurprisingly, those two topics dominate the top stories from the past seven days.

Key Center Off The Market: Another prominent pending unrestricted free agent came off the board with the Avalanche signing center Brock Nelson to a three-year, $22.5MM contract.  Colorado acquired the 33-year-old near the trade deadline for a pricey package that included 2023 first rounder Calum Ritchie and a 2026 first-round pick.  Nelson was a little quieter offensively than expected with his new team, picking up 13 points in 19 regular season games while adding four assists in their first-round loss to Dallas.  Despite the struggles, GM Chris MacFarland took full advantage of the chance to solidify the second center position, one that has had a considerable amount of turnover in recent years.  In doing so, one of the top middlemen is now off the market.

Coaching Hires: The week started off with two teams still needing a head coach.  Both of those vacancies were filled with first-time hires.  The Penguins named Dan Muse as their new bench boss while soon after, Boston hired Marco Sturm as their head coach.  Muse has five years of assistant coaching experience at the NHL level but has not been a head coach in the pros; his only head coaching time has been in the USHL and international junior levels.  But with GM Kyle Dubas looking to make his roster younger, bringing in more of a development coach makes some sense.  As for the Bruins, Sturm returns to an organization he spent several years with as a player.  He spent the last seven seasons with the Kings, four as an assistant in Los Angeles and the last three running their AHL affiliate in Ontario.  He also has a handful of years of coaching internationally for his native Germany.  While Boston was a big seller at the trade deadline, it appears they plan to try to get back into the playoff mix in a hurry so Sturm will have some win-now expectations fairly quickly.

Staying In Tampa Bay: Yanni Gourde and the Lightning had mutual interest in getting a new contract done but with limited cap space, they had to find a compromise.  They did just that as the 33-year-old signed a six-year, $14MM deal, one that will lower his cap charge to $2.33MM after making nearly $5.2MM per season on his last contract.  Gourde had his lowest point total since 2019-20 this season when he had 31 points in 57 outings between Seattle and Tampa Bay but he projects to be a capable third-line center for at least a few more years.  His market value may have been closer to $3.5MM per season so this could effectively be a case of a four-year, $14MM pact that both sides agreed to pay out over six to keep the cap charge down.

Big Change In Dallas: While there was a moment where all 32 head coaching jobs were filled, it was short-lived.  Despite making it to the Western Conference Final for the third straight year, the Stars elected to fire head coach Peter DeBoer after three seasons with the team.  Dallas couldn’t muster up much against Edmonton in the Western Conference Final and his handling of goaltender Jake Oettinger was a topic of much debate.  DeBoer’s teams have reached the Conference Final in six of the last seven seasons so it wouldn’t be surprising if another team ponders making a move to hire him relatively quickly but in the meantime, he’ll be paid out the final year of his contract.  Now, GM Jim Nill will have to go through what’s left of the coaching market to evaluate whether he should hire an external candidate or promote from within; assistant Alain Nasreddine has a bit of NHL head coaching experience under his belt.

Four For Cates: Initially, it looked as if Flyers forward Noah Cates was intent on signing a short-term deal this summer that would take him to free agency fairly quickly.  But the two sides were able to do a bit better than that, agreeing to a four-year, $16MM deal that buys out his final RFA year and three UFA-eligible seasons.  Cates set a new career high in goals this season with 16 in 78 games while also adding 21 assists.  Notably, he spent most of the season playing at center which gave him some extra bargaining power heading into talks.  With Cates and Tyson Foerster re-signing recently, Philadelphia is down to one remaining prominent pending RFA in defenseman Cameron York.

Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images.

PHR Mailbag: Tkachuk, Blackhawks, Dobson, Red Wings, Jets, Kings

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Topics in this edition of the PHR Mailbag include talks on what Chicago and Detroit could try to do this offseason plus a center option for the Jets that they haven’t explored yet.  If your question doesn’t appear here, check back in our last two mailbag columns.

Gmm8811: What would it take for the Blues to pry Tkachuk away from Ottawa? Kyrou and what else?

The short answer would be an awful lot.  I don’t see any reason why the Senators would move Brady Tkachuk.  But if they did, they would want someone with some grit.  The power forward nature of his game is a big part of his value and with all due respect to Jordan Kyrou who is a strong player, that particular element is not in his toolbox.

The other challenge with Kyrou as the foundation is that his money basically matches Tkachuk’s.  This might seem a little odd as matching money is normally a good thing.  In a case of a player for a player plus some future assets, that’s normally perfect.  But Ottawa isn’t taking an add-on of a first-round pick and a prospect.  No, they would want some other NHL-established talent.

Jake Neighbours would have to be in there at a minimum as the power forward piece.  I would think they’d want another core piece from that age group, maybe Philip Broberg.  Remember, for a ‘unicorn’ type of player, the price has to really hurt.  But those two make over $8MM now (and will make much more than that in 2026-27).  To keep matching money, the Sens would then need to include or offload at least some of that money, possibly further increasing the ask.  And round and round we go to the point where it’s simply not feasible.

There is probably only a handful of players in the league that Ottawa would trade Tkachuk for.  The Sens are on the rise; trading your captain who plays a pivotal role as you’re just emerging from the rebuild is a tactic that is very unlikely to happen.  And if it did happen, they’d want a similar-value core piece back, not a package.  I don’t think there’s a buildable fit here.

tucsontoro1: Put on your Kyle Davidson hat for a minute.

Who do I target in FA?

Ekblad, Marner, Bennett?

Davidson opted to spread the money around last summer on short-term contracts for veterans to help raise the floor of the group and lead them through what was likely to be a turbulent season.  They didn’t do the former but it was indeed another turbulent season.  But that aside, there’s light at the end of the tunnel.  The prospect pool is well-stocked, a good group of youngsters is coming, and Jeff Blashill is a decent coach which is an upgrade on what they had last year.  Things are looking up.

This makes it the time for Davidson to strike.  They have nearly $30MM of cap space per PuckPedia with their only pricey RFA of note looking like a near-lock to be non-tendered (Philipp Kurashev).  The young core group will get a lot more expensive over time but even so, they have the financial flexibility to go and try to buy a core piece on the open market.  It will probably require an overpayment given that they’re probably still a bit away from coming out of the rebuild but when the acquisition cost is zero, it’s justifiable.

Basically, the easiest way to answer the question is this.  Is the free agent a core player and projects to be one for years to come?  If the answer is yes, the Blackhawks will probably be calling.

Of the three you listed, Mitch Marner feels like the most likely to potentially sign.  Chicago is a big market which he’s accustomed to but the spotlight won’t be on him as much in that market compared to Toronto.  Connor Bedard is a solid running mate to potentially partner with or have Marner be the catalyst of a second line to help elevate some of the up-and-coming core group.  There’s a compelling case to make although a lot of teams will have compelling cases to make if he reaches the open market next month.

tucsontoro1: With the Hawks having the second-worst GA this season, don’t they target at least one solid d-man in free agency?

In theory, yes.  The point from the last question applies to defensemen too.  If there’s a long-term core player out there, I expect Davidson to try to sign him.

How many core defenders are out there though?  Aaron Ekblad would be a good fit – they could turn around and flip Connor Murphy and have youngsters Artyom Levshunov and Sam Rinzel apprentice behind him for a little while and then as Ekblad gets a bit older, move him down the depth chart.  But can they make the best pitch when there will undoubtedly be more win-now options available?  (This is a question that applies basically to any core guy.)

Ivan Provorov and Vladislav Gavrikov are solid on the left side.  Team one of them up with Alex Vlasic and that side of the back end definitely looks better.

But if we’re talking about key defenders that would move the needle in a real way, that’s about it.  The leading point-getter among UFA blueliners is Matt Grzelcyk.  Ryan Lindgren is coming off a quieter year but can be a fourth defender.  Cody Ceci, Brent Burns, and Dante Fabbro are the next-best options on the right side – a player who was moved in a salary cap dump less than a year ago, a 40-year-old, and a player who was on waivers after no one wanted to trade for him earlier in the season.  These are good, useful players, but I doubt it’s the caliber you were thinking of with this question.

I’m sure Davidson will try to add a key blueliner on the open market but it’s a pretty small pool to try to draw from.

breakaway: If the Islanders draft Schaefer, do they look to trade Dobson and what could they get in return for him?

I’ve seen this idea out there and while I can track the logic, I don’t really agree with it.  Adding Matthew Schaefer to the roster does not make Noah Dobson redundant.  This is not a roster full of puck-moving defensemen by any stretch.  Beyond Adam Boqvist who is more of a depth piece, Dobson is the only other proven one in that category they have with any sort of meaningful NHL experience.  He and Schaefer can absolutely co-exist, especially since they play separate sides of the ice.

I wonder if adding Schaefer might make them move one of their lefties, however.  Adam Pelech’s $5.75MM price tag is a bit on the high side although with the way the free agent market could go, it might be viewed as an asset this time next month.  Alexander Romanov is a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights like Dobson.  Keeping them would push their back end spending past the $30MM range.  But if one of Pelech or Romanov were to be moved, the remaining one, Schaefer, and Isaiah George could comprise the top three on the left side on opening night, keeping the cap charge a little more reasonable along the way.

Coming up with a trade value for Dobson isn’t easy.  Don’t get me wrong, his trade value is quite high.  But I have no idea what direction the Islanders are going here under new GM Mathieu Darche.  To me, I think they need to rebuild.  And if they opted to move Dobson in that situation, I think two first-round picks, a top prospect, and some sort of salary offset (ideally a defenseman) is attainable.  But if they’re not rebuilding (and if I had to guess today, this would be my pick of the route they take), now you’re looking at more of a player-for-player type of swap.  Maybe a two-for-one with a top-four blueliner and a key forward coming the other way with both players being signed or under club control for the long haul.  Going for a short-term veteran or two wouldn’t make sense.

With each scenario, the potential suitors vary considerably with a very strong return coming in either approach.  But I don’t think drafting Schaefer would push Dobson out, not unless Dobson’s contract demands ultimately have Darche leaning toward trading him.

Thefiend313: With Steve Yzerman under pressure from Detroit Red Wings fans, do you think he can pull off a blockbuster move and sign Mitch Marner?

Thefiend313: What do you think the Red Wings will target once free agency starts: Mitch Marner, John Tavares, Vladislav Gavrikov, or someone else?

Thefiend313: What does Steve Yzerman need to accomplish for the Red Wings to contend for the playoffs?

Let’s start with Marner.  Do I think Yzerman will target him?  Of course.  I expect somewhere around two-thirds of the league to at least passively kick the tires.  Detroit would be a tier above that and they have the money to afford him outright (more than $21MM per PuckPedia) without needing to clear out or offset money somewhere else.  That’s a good thing as not every team has that.  But if I’m Marner, the marquee UFA in this class, the Red Wings don’t feel like the most compelling team to sign with.  If I want to win now, they’re not a team to consider.  If I want top dollar and don’t care about short-term success, I can probably get the same money or more out of Chicago or Utah (or even Anaheim), teams that would appear to have a clearer trajectory to long-term success.  Marner leaving his hometown team to sign with a non-playoff division rival would be quite something but that doesn’t feel like a particularly likely scenario.

I’ll use a similar answer to the second question as I did for Chicago as it’s the same philosophy.  You need to get better and you have a lot of money with an RFA group that isn’t going to cost much.  It’s an even cleaner one for Detroit though.  While a short-term veteran doesn’t necessarily make sense for the Blackhawks, it does for the Red Wings who are indeed trying to win now, they just haven’t had much success at that lately.  So the question is basically this.  Is the player a core piece?  If the answer is yes, Yzerman will probably be targeting him.  In a perfect world, a viable second center emerges, potentially allowing them to flip one of J.T. Compher or Andrew Copp whose terms remaining on their contracts aren’t as concerning now for other teams to acquire.  But I doubt Yzerman would be too picky position-wise.  If there’s an upgrade, take it; it’s as simple as that.

As for what he needs to accomplish to be a playoff threat (that’s as far as I’d go, not a contender), they need a top-four upgrade on the back end.  You could sell me on two top-four additions if they want to ease Axel Sandin-Pellikka into the mix.  But you just saw the last answer about Chicago; getting two in this market would be tough.  Another legitimate scoring threat would help as well.  Patrick Kane coming back would help but another one on top of that, basically to fill the role that Vladimir Tarasenko was signed to fill last season.  Defensive improvements should get their roster near the middle of the pack in goals allowed and one more top-six threat might get the offense near the middle of the pack.  That should be enough to get them in the mix.  Not a lot of teams can add or re-sign that much talent in one summer though so this won’t be easy for Yzerman to accomplish.

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Blue Jackets Notes: Provorov, Danforth, Keskinen

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The Blue Jackets met with the representative for pending UFA defenseman Ivan Provorov at the combine this week, relays Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (subscription link).  Projected as one of the top blueliners to hit the open market next month, he’s in a position to realistically command a max-term contract which would be seven years with another team or eight if Columbus signs him by the end of June.

However, Portzline notes that thus far, GM Don Waddell has been prioritizing a shorter-term agreement with the 28-year-old.  Presumably, that offer would come with a higher AAV compared to a max-term offer but with over $40MM in cap room, per PuckPedia, they can safely afford to overpay if it got them a more desired term on the deal.  Provorov had 33 points in 81 games this season while logging over 23 minutes a night and at this point, it’s unclear if he’d be amenable to a shorter-term pact.

More from Portzline’s piece on the Blue Jackets:

  • Pending UFA forward Justin Danforth has switched agents. Previously represented by Puck Agency’s Jay Grossman, his new agent is Newport’s Pat Morris.  Danforth played in 61 games this season, notching nine goals and 12 assists while also playing center on a full-time basis for the first time in his career.  Coming off a one-year, $1.1MM deal, Danforth should be able to beat that on the open market next month if he doesn’t wind up re-signing with Columbus which Portzline notes is the veteran’s preferred outcome.
  • The contract that prospect Oiva Keskinen received from the Blue Jackets last month contains a European Assignment Clause for next season.  The 21-year-old is expected to get a chance to crack the NHL roster but he can trigger the return to Tappara in Finland if he doesn’t break camp with Columbus.  A seventh-round pick in 2023, Keskinen had 15 goals and 20 assists in 59 regular season Liiga games but was limited to just a single assist in nine playoff outings.

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