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East Notes: Hurricanes, Demidov, Strome

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The Hurricanes are continuing to rebuild their minor-league pipeline after spending 2023-24 without full-time AHL or ECHL affiliates. They inked a three-year agreement to re-affiliate with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves earlier this offseason, but they remain without a full-time third-tier affiliate.

That won’t change for 2024-25, but they have landed what the team calls a “working agreement” with the Bloomington Bison, an expansion franchise beginning play in the fall. Bloomington has already landed an outright affiliation agreement for next season with the Rangers, but they’ll also be the preferred destination for the handful of players under contract with Carolina who get demoted all the way down to the ECHL. The Hurricanes had the same setup with ECHL Norfolk last season, whose primary affiliate was the Jets. Six players who were under contract with Carolina – Domenick Fensore, Griffin Mendel, Blake Murray, Yaniv Perets, Justin Robidas and Ronan Seeley appeared in action for Norfolk under the agreement.

Elsewhere from the East:

  • Following up on a report from The Montreal Gazette’s Stu Cowan earlier this week, it’s becoming more certain that 2024 fifth-overall pick Ivan Demidov will play out the final season of his contract with the Kontinental Hockey League’s SKA St. Petersburg next season. Speaking with matchtv.ru, SKA head coach Roman Rotenberg confirmed the plan is for Demidov to remain on the KHL roster instead of being loaned to a lower-level league (via Marc Antoine Godin of Radio-Canada). Demidov spent nearly all of last season on loan to SKA’s junior club in the MHL, where he had arguably the best draft-eligible season in league history with 60 points and a +47 rating in 30 games.
  • Coming off back-to-back Calder Cup championships, the AHL’s Hershey Bears have retained a core part of their club. The Capitals’ primary affiliate has re-signed left winger Matthew Strome to a two-year deal, per a team announcement. The brother of Washington center Dylan Strome and Ducks forward Ryan Strome had a career-best 20 points in 50 games with the Bears last season and scored the overtime winner in the series-clinching Game 6 of the Calder Cup Final against Coachella Valley. He was a fourth-round pick of the Flyers in 2017 but hasn’t been under an NHL contract since his entry-level deal expired in 2022 after not receiving a qualifying offer.

AHL Notes: Parent, Isley, Sucese, Ahac

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The Utica Comets kicked off a day of minor league signings by re-signing forwards Xavier Parent and Jace Isley to one-year, two-way, minor-league contracts. The duo will have a chance to earn an increased salary at the AHL level next season, after both spending a season in the ECHL’s Adirondack Thunder.

Parent graduated from the Thunder partway through the 2022-23 season, after scoring 23 goals and 51 points in 50 games. He’s continued producing through his rookie AHL season this year, ranking third on the Comets in scoring with 45 points in 71 games. Isley has followed Parent’s path this year, graduating to Utica after 55 games in the ECHL, though he only scored 23 points of his own. He’ll aim to earn his first full AHL season next year, while Parent will be fighting to earn his first NHL contract.

Other notes from around the minors:

  • The Hartford Wolf Pack have announced the signing of forward Nate Sucese to a one-year contract. He’ll move east after spending the last two seasons with the Chicago Wolves. Sucesse found his stride in Chicago, posting a career-high 23 goals and 37 points in 72 games this season – topping his previous high of 23 points, set last season. The pair of years was a big improvement from the 21 points in 49 games that Sucese totaled in his first two AHL seasons. The Penn State alum seems to have the wind behind his sails, and will now look to carve out a strong role in Hartford’s middle-six.
  • Sticking in the realm of Big Ten alumni – the Abbotsford Canucks have signed former Ohio State defender Layton Ahac to a one-year deal. It will be the first move of Ahac’s career, after spending his first four pro years with the Henderson Silver Knights. He failed to find much space on the scoresheet, recording just one goal and 17 points across 148 games. But Ahac has nonetheless fought his way into a routine role, on the back of smart defending and passing. He’ll look to form a more robust resume with a move to Canada, joining a Canucks organization with a wide open defense depth chart.
  • The Chicago Wolves have joined teams making additions today, signing forward Nikita Pavlychev to a one-year contract. Pavlychev will move to Chicago after spending the last three seasons signed with the Ontario Reign, though he spent the majority of those seasons with the ECHL’s Greenville Swamp Rabbits. Pavlychev managed 108 points across 106 games in Greenville, ultimately working his way into a career-high 29 AHL games this season. He vindicated those performances with a stout 10 points, and will now look to firmly cement his feet as an AHL talent with the Wolves.

Evening Notes: Flames, Demidov, Strome

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The Calgary Flames announced today that their new arena will be called Scotia Place. The downtown building and culture and entertainment district will replace the aging Scotiabank Saddledome which has been the Flames home since 1983. The Flames released a first look at the new building today, showing drawings of the building that is expected to house the team beginning in the 2026-27 season.

The Scotia Place arena deal is expected to keep the Flames in Calgary for the next 35 years and will include upgrades to the infrastructure in the surrounding areas. The design plans currently show a capacity limit between 18,000 and 18,400 fans which will mark a small downsize from the current capacity limit of 19,289 at the Saddledome.

In other evening notes:

  • Stu Cowan of The Montreal Gazette believes that Montreal Canadiens prospect Ivan Demidov will play out the final season of his contract with St. Petersburg but concedes that there is a slim chance he will make the jump to the NHL this season. The fifth overall pick in this year’s entry draft is contractually bound to the KHL for this season but if SKA opts not to hold onto him, his situation could mirror that of Philadelphia Flyers forward Matvei Michkov. However, Szymon Szemberg the Managing Director of the Alliance of European Hockey Clubs doesn’t believe that is a possibility. Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes has been non-committal about where Demidov will play next season, saying simply that the KHL would be a good place for him to play for the upcoming season and that the team would keep their options open if he doesn’t play there.
  • Tony Androckitis of Inside AHL Hockey is reporting that forward Matt Strome has re-signed with the Hershey Bears. Strome signed a two-year AHL contract with the Bears that will keep him with the reigning Calder Cup champions through the 2025-26 season. Strome scored the championship-clinching goal in the AHL finals to help Hershey secure their second consecutive AHL title. The 25-year-old is the brother of NHLers Ryan Strome and Dylan Strome and was a fourth-round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers back in 2017. The two-time AHL champion posted seven goals and 13 assists in 50 games last season and is expected to play a depth role again next year.

AHL Notes: Weissbach, Penguins, Wolf Pack

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Free agent forward Linus Weissbach has signed with Frölunda HC of the SHL. Weissbach was a Group-VI UFA with the Sabres, effectively moving to unrestricted free agency after not receiving a qualifying offer from the team before July 1st.

This move returns Weissbach to his hometown of Göteborg, Sweden, where Weissbach grew up through the Frölunda pipeline. He made his debut with the organization’s top club in 2016, though he only played in one game before moving to North America and pursuing a four-year career with the University of Wisconsin. He graduated college in 2021 and has since spent the last three seasons with the Rochester Americans, accumulating 117 points across 191 games in the minor leagues. But despite consistent production and a stout role in Rochester’s top-six, Weissbach was never the top option for a call-up, losing standing to more robust minor leaguers like Lukas Rousek and Brett Murray, and more recently bumped out by prospects like Jiri Kulich and Isak Rosen.

With that logjam only increasing after Buffalo’s successful 2024 NHL Draft, Weissbach will change his focus to pursuing a career with his hometown club. Frölunda’s sporting director Fredrik Sjöström shared his excitement for the move, saying, “We have lost two offensively skilled players in [Malte Strömwall] and [Jere Innala]. We wanted to bring in offensive skill and “Weiss” is just that. He is a skilled forward with good speed and plays like a pattern breaker. He fits what we wanted. We’ve been on him for a while and knew we needed to wait for some other parameters before he could choose us (Linus has been a free agent in North America). But he did and we are happy about that, says Fredrik Sjöström, sports director.”

Other notes out of the minor leagues:

  • The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have added Nick Luukko as an assistant coach. Luukko, 32, has spent the last three seasons as the head coach and Director of Hockey Operations for the ECHL’s Jacksonville Icemen, leading the team to the postseason in each year, though they never made it past the second round. He earned the role with Jacksonville just two seasons after ending his own playing career – which spanned 274 ECHL games – after just one season as an ECHL assistant coach. He’ll now fast-track to the next level, joining a Penguins organization in the midst of cycling out much of their org chart.
  • The Hartford Wolf Pack have hired Brendan Burke as a goaltending coach. Burke has spent the last two seasons as a goaltending coach for his former youth and junior hockey teams – the Phoenix Jr. Coyotes and Portland Winterhawks. He earned an NHL Draft selection with Portland in 2012-13, hearing his name called in the sixth round by his hometown Phoenix Coyotes. Burke is the son of legendary NHL goaltender Sean Burke, who is now serving as Vegas’ Director of Goaltending.

Snapshots: Sprong, Misiak, Julien

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The Vancouver Canucks are among the teams interested in free agent winger Daniel Sprong, shares Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK News (Twitter link). Sprong is the top remaining free agent from PHR’s Top 50 Unrestricted Free Agents.

Sprong has fought his way into NHL legitimacy over the last two seasons, kicked off with a breakout 2022-23 with the Seattle Kraken. He recorded career-highs across the board – netting 21 goals, 25 assists, and 46 points in 66 games despite a measly role on Seattle’s third line. It was a flash-in-the-pan season for the veteran Sprong, who had only managed 70 points in 202 career games up to that point. And he held onto the scoring through a move to the Detroit Red Wings last summer, netting 18 goals and 43 points despite averaging just 12 minutes of ice time. He’s seemingly proven his ability to produce in a depth role, though it’s hard to ignore the long streak of struggles that started his career. Now 28, Sprong doesn’t seem destine for a long-term deal, though he could prove a valuable late-market add for a Canucks team in need of boost down their wings.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Chicago Blackhawks prospect Martin Misiak is expected to return to the OHL next season shares Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). Misiak played through his first year in the OHL this season, netting 23 goals and 47 points in 60 games with the Erie Otters. He signed his entry-level contract with the Hawks at the end of Erie’s season, coupling the deal with an amateur try-out in the AHL. But it seems he’s now quite ready to jump to the pros, instead focused on finding another layer of scoring after a meager debut in the OHL.
  • The St. Louis Blues are sitting happy with their addition of long-time NHL head coach Claude Julien, who joined the team as an assistant coach last June. Blues general manager Doug Armstrong compared the hire to when Larry Robinson, an NHL Hall-of-Famer, joined Craig Berube’s coaching staff ahead of the team’s 2019 Stanley Cup win, telling Lou Korac of NHL.com that he hopes this move will have similar long-term ramifications. He said, “The experience Larry Robinson showed a young staff, it was really impressive. I think Claude’s at a portion of his life now where I think accepting this is easier and seeing the joy of working with young coaches and making them better, sharing his experiences, sharing his experiences with players.” Julien, a 19-year veteran of NHL head coaching, seems set on maintaining his mentoring role in St. Louis, as the team promotes up-and-coming coaches in Drew Bannister and Steve Ott.

Minor Transactions: 7/18/24

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As expected, signing activity across the NHL has largely dried up with training camps still more than a month and a half away.  However, there are some NHL-drafted prospects and players formerly on NHL contracts that have found new places to play in recent days.  We’ll run through those moves here.

  • Free agent blueliner Nick Cicek has signed a one-year deal with Adler Mannheim, the DEL team announced. The 24-year-old started last season in San Jose’s system before being moved to Vancouver where he remained in the AHL.  Between the two teams, Cicek had four goals and 12 assists in 67 games, resulting in him being non-tendered last month.  Cicek does have 16 career NHL appearances under his belt, all coming in the 2022-23 campaign where he had four assists.
  • Capitals prospect Ilya Protas has signed with OHL Windsor for the upcoming season, per a team announcement. Protas, whose brother is a regular in Washington, was a third-round pick last month, going 75th overall.  The 18-year-old, who signed his entry-level deal with the Caps earlier this month was the third-overall selection in the CHL Import Draft and the top selection from an OHL-based club following a strong showing with USHL Des Moines.  In 61 games with the Buccaneers last season, Protas had 14 goals and 37 assists.
  • Still with Washington, the Capitals farm team in Hershey was busy today as the team announced six signings, all on one-year contracts. Joining the Bears are forwards Grant Cruikshank, Austin Magera, Micah Miller, Justin Nachbaur, and Tyler Weiss, along with defenseman Jayden Lee.  The five forwards played professionally last year – primarily at the ECHL level – while Lee is turning pro after a five-year stint at Quinnipiac.
  • After being non-tendered by Dallas last month, free agent forward Max Ellis has found a new place to play as he has joined Jukurit in Finland, per a team release.  The 24-year-old spent last season in Toronto’s system, getting into 36 games in the AHL with the Marlies where he had four goals and ten assists.  His signing rights were thrown into the draft day trade for the rights to Chris Tanev but that was simply for contract-matching purposes.
  • Panthers prospect Vladislav Lukashevich has changed his college commitment. Nathaniel Bott of the Lansing State Journal relays (Twitter link) that the blueliner will now play at Michigan State next season instead of Northern Michigan.  The 21-year-old was a fourth-round pick back in 2021, going 120th overall and spent last season with USHL Tri-City where he had 11 goals and 32 assists in 54 games.

Predators Sign Adam Wilsby

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The Nashville Predators have signed defender Adam Wilsby to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will carry a $775K salary at the NHL level.

Nashville drafted Wilsby in the fourth round of the 2020 NHL Draft, selecting him in his final year of eligibility after a strong season with Sodertalje SK of the HockeyAllsvenskan, Sweden’s second-tier league. Wilsby recorded 30 points in 41 games that year, helping Sodertalje earn promotion to the SHL and following the performance up with two strong seasons at the top flight to help keep them there.

With a successful run in Sweden in the rearview, Wilsby signed an uncommon two-year entry-level contract with the Predators in 2022. But he struggled to carry his momentum over from Sweden, posting just 18 points as an AHL rookie, though he did play in all 72 games. He also appeared in 16 postseason games, where a quicker pace boosted him to a productive eight points. He improved to 21 points in 61 games this season, though still seems far from finding the comfortable footing he had in the SHL.

Still, there’s reason to be excited about Wilsby’s stout control of the blue line and ability to spark transition. He’s a young defender who seems to have more to give and will get a chance to prove his worth to the Predators next season, fighting for a much hardier NHL deal next summer.

Morning Notes: O’Brien, Kambeitz, Blues

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The Charlotte Checkers have signed former first-round pick Jay O’Brien to an AHL contract (as per NHL.com’s Mark Divver). O’Brien was selected 19th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2018 NHL entry draft and turned pro last season after three years in the NCAA with Boston University. O’Brien signed last August with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies but didn’t dress in any games due to injury and has yet to play a professional hockey game.

O’Brien has dealt with injuries throughout his career and was let go last summer by the Philadelphia Flyers before eventually catching on with the Marlies. The 24-year-old had a solid NCAA career posting 26 goals and 44 assists in 79 games during his final three seasons but hasn’t been able to translate that success to his professional career.

In other morning notes:

  • The Abbotsford Canucks have signed forward Dino Kambeitz to a one-year contract for the 2024-25 season. The American Hockey League contract will take Kambeitz into his fourth season of professional hockey after he set a career-high last year with nine goals and six assists in 56 games for the Bakersfield Condors. The 24-year-old spent three seasons with the Condors after going undrafted to the NHL and dressed in 172 career AHL regular season games, tallying 22 goals and 22 assists.
  • Jeremy Rutherford of The Athletic is reporting that the St. Louis Blues have made a change to their ownership group as David Steward has transferred his stake in the team to local businessman Michael Riney who has spent his entire life in St. Louis. Steward had been with the group since 2012 and his stake in the team was less than five percent. The ownership group remains entirely made up of local owners and will continue to be run by Blues Chairman Tom Stillman.

Rockford IceHogs Sign Austin Strand To AHL Contract

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The Chicago Blackhawks AHL affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, will have another familiar face on the roster next season as the team announced they have signed defenseman Austin Strand to a one-year contract for the 2024-25 AHL season. Strand is projected to spend the entire season with the IceHogs after the team acquired him via trade from the AHL’s Chicago Wolves last season.

Strand turned professional in 2018 after signing his entry-level contract with the Los Angeles Kings after an impressive season with the WHL’s Seattle Thunderbirds. He spent his first full season with the Ontario Reign of the AHL, scoring seven goals and 18 points in 43 games. Strand spent the next three years with the Kings organization and collected three assists in 21 games at the NHL level with 12 goals and 27 points in 92 AHL contests.

Moving further south in California, Strand signed as a free agent with the Anaheim Ducks heading into the 2022-23 season. He participated in five games with the Ducks that season collecting two goals and eight points in 46 games for the AHL’s San Diego Gulls. Anaheim traded Strand to the Buffalo Sabres organization in exchange for Chase Priskie at that year’s deadline, suiting up in nine games for the Rochester Americans down the stretch.

Outside of his offensive production — Strand carries plenty of value to the IceHogs as a veteran presence and stabilizing defenseman. The team’s president of hockey operations, Mark Bernard, said as much, “He brings experience and energy to the rink each day and is someone that can help carry the coaching staff’s message into the locker room. He will be a great asset this year as we will have a lot of young prospects that he can be a mentor to“.

Colorado Eagles Hire Dan Hinote As Associate Coach

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After Steve Konowalchuk left this summer to become the next head coach of the Springfield Thunderbirds, the AHL’s Colorado Eagles had a position to fill as associate coach. The team has found their man from the NHL ranks as the team announced they have hired Dan Hinote.

Hinote is a veteran of nine years in the NHL from 1999 to 2009 with six of those years coming with the Colorado Avalanche. The former player was a reliable bottom-six player for the Avalanche and the St. Louis Blues throughout his career and helped Colorado win the Stanley Cup in 2001. Hinote played one year for MODO Hockey in the Elitserien before becoming an assistant coach with the Columbus Blue Jackets for the 2010-11 NHL season.

The Blue Jackets struggled mightily during Hinote’s tenure as an assistant coach as the team finished outside the playoff picture in their last days of residing in the Western Conference. Columbus qualified for the postseason in Hinote’s last year on the bench but was quickly eliminated in the first round by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Hinote was transitioned to a professional scout with the Blue Jackets organization until the 2018-19 season.

Over the next two years, Hinote worked with the US National Team Development Program in Plymouth, MI as an associate coach and also worked with the Team USA U18 in the 2019 World Junior Championship and the Team USA U17 in the 2020 World Junior Championship. After a successful run in the USHL and on the international stage, the Nashville Predators hired Hinote as an assistant coach ahead of the 2020-21 NHL campaign.

Hinote was in charge of a Predators’ penalty kill that had fallen towards the league basement as they finished 29th place in the NHL with a 75.58% success rate. Nashville climbed to 18th in the 2021-22 season, sixth in the 2022-23 season, before falling back to 22nd this past year. Hinote will have much more responsibility as an associate coach with the Eagles and returns to the Avalanche organization after nearly two decades away.

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