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Free Agent Focus: Anaheim Ducks

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Free agency is now just a little more than a month away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in late July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  Several pieces of Anaheim’s young forward group need new deals as does a franchise icon.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Maxime Comtois – Very quietly, Comtois led the Ducks in scoring this season.  That wasn’t expected at all heading into the year considering he had all of 39 career games played but he secured a spot in the top six and became a quality power forward.  In the end, the 22-year-old wound up with 15 goals and 18 assists in 55 games, a more than respectable total on a team that struggled mightily at the offensive end.  While it won’t affect his contract talks, his strong play carried over to the Worlds where he picked up six more points there.  Comtois doesn’t have arbitration eligibility and with only 94 NHL games under his belt, he doesn’t have the track record to command a long-term deal.  A bridge contract around the $2.5MM to $2.75MM mark feels like the expected outcome here allowing both sides to see what his long-term offensive upside will be.

F Danton Heinen – His fall from grace has been quick.  After looking like a good fit as a secondary scorer in Boston for the first couple of years of his career, his offense tapered off last season and went even lower this year as he had just seven goals and seven assists in 43 games.  The 25-year-old is eligible for arbitration and owed a qualifying offer of $2.775MM.  It’s hard to see him getting that so either a cheaper deal is worked out or he’ll be an interesting addition to the UFA market.

F Alexander Volkov – There are quite a few young Anaheim RFAs in similar situations but Volkov is a bit different in that he has arbitration eligibility.  The 23-year-old requested a trade from Tampa Bay to go somewhere where he had a better chance to play and the Ducks gave him that.  His ice time went up by more than four minutes per game and with four goals and four assists in 18 games, so too did his production.  This isn’t a situation where the team should be leery of his ability to request a hearing but it will be interesting to see how much his short time in Anaheim will impact those discussions.

Other RFAs: F Max Jones, F Isac Lundestrom, D Josh Mahura, F Sam Steel

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Ryan Getzlaf – It’s clear that Getzlaf’s best days are behind him and at this stage of his career, he should be on the third or fourth line most nights and not a fixture in the top-six as he was for the better part of his 16 years with the Ducks.  But he’s still a useful player and in a free agent market where there isn’t any star power down the middle (the same can’t be said for the trade market), there should be a fair bit of interest if he’s willing to move on from Anaheim.  That’s the big question as he had made it clear before he’d invoke his no-move clause to be dealt.  That wasn’t the case at this trade deadline but his $8.25MM price tag made that next to impossible anyway.  His next contract should come somewhere between a quarter and a third of that AAV.

F Carter Rowney – This season was basically a write-off as a torn meniscus ended his season back in February.  However, in his three years with the Ducks, he showed that he was capable of playing a bigger role than he had at the beginning of his career with Pittsburgh.  Now 32 and in a market that isn’t kind to role players, Rowney probably won’t be able to match the $1.133MM AAV he had on this deal but as far as physical depth players go, he will be one of the better ones out there.

F Andrew Poturalski – This is a name that many won’t be familiar with as his NHL track record is extremely limited (two games in 2017).  However, the 27-year-old has been a top scorer in the AHL when healthy.  He led the league in scoring this season with 43 points in 44 games and back in 2018-19 (he was injured for most of 2019-20), he was fifth in the league in scoring with Charlotte (70 points in 72 games) and first in playoff scoring (23 points in 18 contests).  It will be interesting to see if teams are more hesitant to hand out a one-way deal to top AHL talent as a cost-cutting measure but if some are, Poturalski should be the recipient of such a contract.

Other UFAs: F Andrew Agozzino, F David Backes, F Sam Carrick, D Trevor Carrick, F Chase De Leo, F Vinni Lettieri, D Andy Welinski

Projected Cap Space

Anaheim has been fairly tight to the cap for a while now but that will change with Getzlaf and Backes’ deals coming off the books and Corey Perry’s buyout cost dropping from $6.625MM to a more manageable $2MM.  All of a sudden, they have ample room to work with just under $59MM on the books.

Having said that, they have seven or eight spots to fill as well and of their pending free agents, Comtois should be the most expensive but still at a reasonable rate.  That should allow them to be an impact buyer over the coming weeks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Snapshots: Shore, Ward, Nelson

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It’s the end of the road for journeyman forward Drew Shore, who announced his retirement today on Instagram. The 30-year-old forward was originally selected by the Florida Panthers in the second round of the 2009 draft and bounced around the hockey world over the last decade. Starting at the University of Denver, Shore became a collegiate star, while also helping the U.S. secure a bronze medal at the World Juniors. Upon signing with Florida he became an NHL regular, playing 43 games in his first season.

Unfortunately, that would be the highest total of his career, as Shore then bounced around the minor leagues and took his talents overseas in 2016. He has since played in Switzerland, China, Russia, Slovakia and Belarus, but most recently signed with the Carolina Hurricanes. He played four NHL games this season but was held scoreless and will now hang up his skates. In 98 career NHL games, Shore recorded 26 points.

  • Geoff Ward, who was let go by the Calgary Flames earlier this season, will now be joining the Anaheim Ducks as an assistant coach. Darren Dreger of TSN reports that Ward will join Dallas Eakins staff for next season after the team had previously shown interest in new Flames associate coach Kirk Muller. The 59-year-old Ward ended up behind the bench for just 66 games in Calgary, taking over for the outgoing Bill Peters in 2019 and then replaced by Darryl Sutter earlier this year. In those games, he posted a 35-26-5 record and actually got Calgary through the qualification round in the bubble, only to fall to the Dallas Stars in six games.  Update: The Ducks have confirmed the hire along with the addition of Mike Stothers to their coaching staff.
  • The Arizona Coyotes will have Todd Nelson in for a second interview tomorrow, according to Craig Morgan of AZ Coyotes Insider. Nelson is one of many candidates the Coyotes are looking at and hasn’t been an NHL head coach since his one partial season in Edmonton. The 52-year-old is a well-respected assistant that has spent the last three seasons with the Dallas Stars however and has plenty of experience as head coach in the AHL. Morgan notes that the timeline for a hire in Arizona isn’t clear, though something should be done before the draft.

Buffalo Sabres Win 2021 NHL Draft Lottery

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For the final time for the foreseeable future, all non-playoff teams were eligible to win the first overall pick in the NHL Draft Lottery. Beginning in 2022, a team can only move up a maximum of ten spots, meaning the teams who finish No. 12 through No. 16 in the final league standings cannot move high enough to take over the top pick. The stage was set for a climactic send-off for the old format.

Well, the lottery balls decided not to take a crazy bounce in their last opportunity to move a team from the middle of the first round all the way to the top. Instead, the draft order stayed virtually the same. The Buffalo Sabres, who held the worst record in the NHL this season and thus the top odds in the lottery, retained the No. 1 pick. The expansion Seattle Kraken, awarded the same odds as the third-worst record in the league, moved up one spot, switching places with the Anaheim Ducks. New this year, there were only two lottery draws as opposed to the former three. Here is the official first-round draft order for the top 15 picks:

  1. Buffalo Sabres
  2. Seattle Kraken
  3. Anaheim Ducks
  4. New Jersey Devils
  5. Columbus Blue Jackets
  6. Detroit Red Wings
  7. San Jose Sharks
  8. Los Angeles Kings
  9. Vancouver Canucks
  10. Ottawa Senators
  11. Chicago Blackhawks
  12. Calgary Flames
  13. Philadelphia Flyers
  14. Dallas Stars
  15. New York Rangers

(As a reminder, the Arizona Coyotes forfeited their first-round pick this years as discipline for scouting violations)

This will be the second time in four years that the Buffalo Sabres will pick first overall after selecting Rasmus Dahlin at the top spot in 2018. It also means that two teams, the Sabres and New Jersey Devils, will have owned the first pick in four of the past five drafts. The two clubs are happy that the NHL’s new rule limiting teams to two lottery wins in a five-year span kicks in next year with a clean slate. Incredibly, the Sabres lottery win also further advances the mythology of Taylor Hall. Although Hall is now with the Boston Bruins, this is the fifth time in Hall’s career that his most recent team eligible for the draft lottery has won. A No. 1 overall pick himself, Hall has brought luck to the Edmonton Oilers, Devils, and now Sabres.

Perhaps bigger news than Buffalo at No. 1 is Seattle at No. 2, a major opportunity for the Kraken to draft a player who is ready to join the team in their inaugural season. The Vegas Golden Knights, with the same odds in the 2017 NHL Draft Lottery, fell to No. 6 overall and drafted Cody Glass, who has still yet to establish himself as a regular in the Vegas lineup. With the second pick, Seattle will have better odds of adding an instant difference-maker.

The 2021 NHL Draft is unique compared to recent years in that there is no consensus top prospect. In fact, it is difficult to remember a draft class in recent memory that is so undecided at the top. One major factor has been the lack of complete scouting due to canceled and shortened seasons and limited live viewings. However, even with complete information, there is still seemingly no prospect that stands heads above the rest. University of Michigan defenseman Owen Power and forward Matthew Beniers are largely considered the top players at each position and the two most likely candidates for the top pick, with Power having a slight lead according to draft pundits. However, current teammate Kent Johnson and Wolverines commit Luke Hughes, a forward and defenseman respectively, are also in the mix. Canadian junior standouts Mason McTavish, Dylan Guenther, and Brandt Clarke and European pros William Eklund and Simon Edvinsson may also be in play.

Snapshots: Rutherford, Urquhart, COVID Protocol

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It sure doesn’t sound as though former Pittsburgh Penguins GM Jim Rutherford is done with hockey. The 72-year-old Hall of Fame executive left the Penguins abruptly back in January and it felt as though it could be the end of an illustrious front office career. However, it didn’t take long for speculation to mount that Rutherford wanted to get back into the management game. Now, his interest is official. PBI Sports Agency has announced that they now officially represent Rutherford, who is looking for new “NHL management opportunities.” The GM and President of the Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes for 20 years and GM and Executive Vice President of the Penguins for another seven, not to mention considerable time spent in the OHL, there are few in hockey with as much front office experience as Rutherford. If he wants a new job in the league, PBI shouldn’t have a hard time finding him one.

  • San Diego Gulls assistant coach David Urquhart is moving to the college game and returning to his old stomping grounds. The Anaheim Ducks’ affiliate has announced that Urquhart has accepted the head coach position at McGill University, where he was an assistant for four years before joining the Gulls in 2018. Urquhart also played at McGill and was one the rare four-year Canadian collegiate players to go on to have an extended pro career, playing three seasons in the AHL and another three in Italy. While USports pales in comparison to its American counterpart, the NCAA, McGill is one of its most highly regarded institutions and based in a high-publicity area in Montreal. While Urquhart’s move was clearly impacted by loyalty to his university, it could also lead to greater heights in his career, especially if he finds success in his first head coaching position.
  • The NHL is loosening it’s COVID Protocol restrictions as it relates to fans. With many playoff teams having already received permission from local authorities to host increasing amounts of fans, the league is moving forward with improving that spectator experience. The NHL has announced that, beginning in the second round, fans will no longer be required to wear masks at games. Individual teams may still enforce a mask mandate if local health policies insist, but the league will no longer do the same. Additionally, the glass behind the penalty boxes and benches, initially removed to allow for more breathing room for teams, can also be removed if teams are 85% vaccinated. This will be the case for most remaining American teams.

Snapshots: Ducks, Kings, Desruisseaux

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The Anaheim Ducks will not be making any changes at the general manager or head coaching positions, according to Eric Stephens of The Athletic. Ducks GM Bob Murray indicated today that both he and Dallas Eakins will return for the 2021-22 season, despite the struggles the team has gone through on the ice. The team finished 17-30-9 on the season but do have some nice building blocks in young players like Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale.

Eakins, who now has an 82-126-32 record as an NHL head coach, is only signed through next season. With the team going through a rebuild, it seems as though he may end up being the sacrificial coach before a more experienced or successful name is brought in to really compete. Of course, if the Ducks turn things around and make the playoffs next year that could all change.

  • The Los Angeles Kings have made four additions to their hockey operations staff hiring Ryan Kruse as Vice President of Research and Development, Jake Goldberg as Senior Director of Hockey Operations, Vukie Mpofu as Manager of Hockey Operations, and Legal Affairs and Rosie Yu as Software Engineer for Research and Development. The group has a varied history, but in terms of NHL experience, Goldberg is coming from the Arizona Coyotes where he served as Director of Hockey Operations and Assistant to the General Manager.
  • The Laval Rocket have announced a one-year, two-way minor league contract for Cedric Desruisseaux, who will join the club for the 2021-22 season. Though he stands only 5’8″ 165-lbs, Desruisseaux dominated the QMJHL this season, recording 42 goals and 78 points in 40 games. That easily led the league in both categories, though the undrafted 21-year-old will have a much tougher time putting up those kinds of numbers in professional hockey. Still, he’ll get a chance to show what he can do in the Rocket organization.

Anaheim Ducks Hire Jeff Solomon As Assistant GM, VP Of Hockey Ops

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A name well known to NHL hockey in Southern California is on the move, but isn’t going far. Long-time Los Angeles Kings executive Jeff Solomon has joined his former team’s most bitter rival. The Anaheim Ducks have formally announced Solomon as their new Assistant General Manager and Vice President of Hockey Operations. He fills the position left behind by the recently-retired David McNab. Solomon served as VP of Hockey Ops (later Senior VP and Executive VP) over 14 years across town with the Kings.

Solomon, 63, has spent 35 years in hockey, first as an agent and then with L.A. since 2007. His role with the Ducks will be very similar to how he served the Kings. Solomon will work primarily in “strategic budget planning”, managing the salary cap, negotiating contracts, and handling salary arbitration proceedings. Of course, Solomon will also have some input into player evaluations and personnel decisions.

A long-time Californian, Solomon oversaw two Stanley Cups ins L.A. but is now on to a new challenge in Anaheim. Whereas the Kings have considerable cap space heading into the off-season, the Ducks are more limited with only 15 regulars under contract, a number of restricted free agents in need of new contracts, and $22.555MM to add a much-needed boost of talent to the roster. With that said, Solomon also enters a situation where the organization has budding stars at forward and defense in Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, a deep pipeline at all positions, and a guaranteed top-four pick this year. His job of managing the cap will be made much easier if the Ducks impressive group of entry-level players all take a step forward next season.

 

Anaheim Ducks Send Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale To AHL

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The Anaheim Ducks’ young dynamic duo is back in action. The team has announced that recent first-round picks Trevor Zegras and Jamie Drysdale, as well as veteran Sam Carrick, have been assigned to the AHL’s San Diego Gulls for the Pacific Division postseason tournament. The group combined for 55 points in 58 games in the AHL this season and will provide a major boost to the No. 3 seed.

This move itself is not a surprise; as young players, it is not strange to see Zegras and Drysdale re-assigned to the minors after their NHL seasons ended. Instead, it’s the timing that is curious. The trio have all been out of action for ten days since the Ducks concluded their season back on May 8. Instead of sending them immediately to the Gulls, who still had regular season game remaining, Anaheim held the group at the NHL level, leading to some speculation that perhaps they would not play again this year. However, they have now been sent down with the playoffs beginning. Perhaps the team simply did not want to risk injury for regular season games, but is more willing with postseason glory on the line. Incidentally, the Ducks also save some money by not having paying out AHL contracts to the group over the past week, with playoff participation now coming cost-free.

Zegras and Drysdale getting some extra play time certainly won’t hurt though, as each lost out on some action in their first pro seasons due to shuffling between the NHL and AHL, on top of an already-shortened schedule. Even in a small sample size though, the duo showed emerging star power and became a bright light in a dim season for the Ducks. Zegras, in just 24 games, recorded 13 points to finish among Anaheim’s top nine scoring forwards. The dynamic play-maker was also the Ducks’ best possession player among lineup regulars and posted a team-best +6 rating. Zegras recorded 10 goals and 21 points in 17 AHL games this year and should dominate in the playoffs this year before refocusing on preparing to take on a top-six role for Anaheim next year. Drysdale, meanwhile, also played in 24 games with the Ducks, recording eight points which was third among defensemen. The 18-year-old may have struggled slightly with adjusting to the defensive requirements of competing in the NHL, but still averaged almost 20 minutes of ice time per game. Drysdale only played in 14 games and, like Zegras, looked out of place, recording ten points and skating around the competition.

Zegras and Drysdale are clearly the cornerstones of the Ducks’ current rebuild. Who can blame them for wanting to take another look at their elite ability in action in the Pacific Division postseason. However, it’s 2021-22 and full NHL seasons for the duo that the Ducks and their fans should really be excited about.

Offseason Checklist: Anaheim Ducks

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The offseason has arrived for most teams that aren’t playoff-bound with a couple of others set to join them in the coming days as they play out their rescheduled games.  It’s time to examine what they need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Anaheim.

Expectations were relatively low for Anaheim heading into this season.  The expectation was that the top three seeds in the Pacific Division were pretty much locks, leaving only one spot available for everyone else to fight for.  It didn’t quite go as expected with who the third seed wound up being (many would have had St. Louis there) but in the end, the rest of the teams were battling for one spot.  That is, except Anaheim as the Ducks fell out of the hunt in a hurry.  The same problems that existed a year before are in place now so GM Bob Murray has a lot to accomplish this offseason to try to get this team out of its rut.

Add Offensive Help

Let’s dive into the obvious one first.  The median goals per game average this season was 2.84 and the year before that 3.07.  Anaheim’s goals per game averages over that same stretch?  2.21 this year (dead last) and 2.56 last season (third last).  You can’t win if you can’t score and the Ducks clearly cannot score.  Their core group just isn’t good enough to produce at a high enough level.

There’s good news on the horizon if you’re looking for some reason for optimism.  Last summer, Anaheim didn’t have a lot of cap space at their disposal but that’s not the case this time around.  They have just under $59MM on the books for next year, per CapFriendly, with no high-priced free agents to re-sign (more on the one you might be thinking of in a little bit).  Even with a flat $81.5MM cap, that’s a lot of room to work with and if they’re willing to go into LTIR again, they would have even more room at their disposal as that $59MM figure includes Ryan Kesler’s $6.875MM AAV and with his playing days done, he can go back on there for next season.

The key here for Murray will be adding difference-makers.  They could use a top center, top left winger, and top right winger.  They could use upgrades on the second line as well.  That’s not to say that they’re going to fill all of those spots – they won’t – but multiple viable top-six additions are needed.  With few teams having the type of cap space that Anaheim will this summer, there should be few impediments in trying to get this done.  Expect the Ducks to be active.

Re-Sign Young Core Forwards

While I’ve been critical of their offense, there are some promising pieces of Anaheim’s core up front and the majority of them need new contracts this summer.  Included in this group are Max Comtois, Max Jones, Isac Lundestrom, Sam Steel, and Alexander Volkov.

With the exception of Volkov, the rest are drafted and developed exclusively by the Ducks and were supposed to comprise a bit part of their young core.  Comtois is on his way – he very quietly led Anaheim in scoring this season – but the other three struggled, notching no more than 12 points.

Accordingly, the majority of these deals will be bridge contracts, allowing for more evaluation as to their overall upside but perhaps more importantly, to give them as much flexibility to try and add to their roster.  Worth noting is that only Volkov has salary arbitration eligibility as well.

But Comtois’ deal will be a bit trickier.  Over his first two seasons, he was pretty quiet at the offensive end in limited action, totalling 18 points in 39 games but in a full-time role this year, that jumped to 33 points in 55 contests while averaging over 15 minutes per night.  Does he have another level to reach?  If Murray thinks so, Comtois could be a quiet candidate for a longer-term deal.  He isn’t an RFA that’s garnering a lot of attention but he’s one of the more intriguing ones of the summer.

Determine Getzlaf’s Future

Ryan Getzlaf has been a fixture in Anaheim’s lineup for 16 years and was a force on their top line for the majority of those.  Along the way, he became their captain and is now the franchise leaders in games played and goals and is within striking distance of Teemu Selanne for the lead in points (just six away from tying the record).  He has long stated his desire to stay with the Ducks to the point where he wouldn’t entertain trade options a year ago.  This season, he appeared to be more open to the idea of moving at the trade deadline but no really viable opportunities really materialized, likely in large part due to his $8.25MM AAV; even with 50% retention, that would have been tough for most teams to fit in.

It’s a guarantee that he won’t get that this summer or even come close to that number.  The 36-year-old had the worst offensive season of his career in 2020-21, notching just five goals and a dozen assists in 48 games.  The days of him being a core contributor are gone but is there a fit at something closer to the $2MM mark, a deal that’s someone comparable to the deal that long-time former linemate Corey Perry inked with Dallas a year ago?  Getzlaf is eligible for performance incentives in his deal as long as he signs a one-year contract.

But is he better off going elsewhere, especially if he has intentions of trying to get back into playoff contention?  And does Anaheim need to keep transitioning to the future by allowing Steel and Lundestrom to get some of Getzlaf’s minutes?  It’s always a tough situation when a franchise icon is nearing the end of his run.  Murray will need to determine if that time is indeed now.

Figure Out What’s Next For Manson

Josh Manson has worked his way from being a role player to a key cog on Anaheim’s back end.  While his offensive outburst in 2017-18 is looking more and more like a one-off, he still is strong in the defensive zone and gives them plenty of physicality.  Those elements made him highly sought after at the trade deadline despite an injury-riddled season.  But Murray set a very high asking price with him having another year left on his contract at a $4.1MM cap hit and nothing came to fruition.

Now he will be entering the final season of his deal and with that is the ability to work on a contract extension.  While he is a key cog for them, he’ll be hard-pressed to command a significant raise with his offensive game regressing lately.  In a flat-cap era, it’s harder to allocate significant salary dollars to players who aren’t going to do a whole lot on the scoreboard but a small increase in pay should be doable.  Something in the $4.5MM to $5MM range is something that would seem reasonable to both sides.

But what if Manson isn’t ready to do that deal this summer?  As we saw this season, cap space is much harder to free up once the season gets underway and unless the Ducks rapidly turn around their fortunes, he’ll enter the year as a highly speculative trade option.  If that is the route that it looks like they will be heading down, they might be better off moving him before free agency starts.  Anaheim’s back end has taken some hits in recent years and it seems likely that Murray will try to make a push to make sure that Manson isn’t the next one on that list.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Management Notes: McNab, Hardy, Drury

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One of the longest-tenured executives in the league has decided to retire, as David McNab will leave the Anaheim Ducks after 28 years. McNab served as the Ducks’ Senior VP of Hockey Operations and had been with the club since its inception in 1993. Between 1994 and 2008 he was the team’s assistant GM and was previously responsible for the team’s scouting and draft choices. McNab worked for the Washington Capitals, Hartford Whalers, and New York Rangers before joining Anaheim.

Some older fans may recognize the McNab name; David’s brother Peter McNab was a dynamic scorer for the Boston Bruins during a 954-game NHL career, while his father Max McNab won the Stanley Cup as a center for the Detroit Red Wings in 1950 and went on to serve as general manager of the Capitals and New Jersey Devils.

  • As one executive leaves the NHL, another may be entering. Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that Ryan Hardy is expected to be hired by an NHL team soon, writing that a number of teams are “circling him” but noting the connection to Toronto Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas in particular. Hardy, 35, has served as general manager for the powerhouse Chicago Steel of the USHL and previously operated as the director of player personnel for the U.S. National Team Development Program. Hardy was also employed as an amateur scout by the Boston Bruins at one point.
  • Of course, the New York Rangers also have a front office to restructure now that Chris Drury has been put in charge. Friedman writes that there is a “lot of interest in working for him” at this point, which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Drury has deep ties with USA Hockey and has been a GM-in-waiting for several years. Drury had been serving as associate GM of the Rangers and GM of the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, likely both roles that will now need to be filled.

Minor Transactions: 05/10/21

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With three of the four major European leagues having wrapped up their postseasons and the NHL and AHL winding down their regular seasons, there are a vast number of players now looking ahead to next season. While most players under contract in North America are still months away from free agency, there are many overseas that are free to move and decide on the next step in their careers. Here are some of those recent moves with NHL implications:

  • A pair of notable forward prospects have found their new home for the next several seasons. Liiga club KalPa has announced multi-year contracts with 2020 draft picks Kasper Simontaival and Jaromir Pytlik. Simontaival, a third-round selection of the Los Angeles Kings, is no stranger to the Finnish pros. The local product has spent time in the Liiga with Tappara over the past few years, but is seemingly looking to move on from his developmental club. Simontaival appears willing to take his time developing at home, signing a three-year deal with KalPa, but has already shown some potential NHL-caliber offensive skill. Pytlik, a fourth-round pick of the New Jersey Devils, is new to Finland but just eager to play after waiting for the OHL all season, only playing in a handful of international tournament games and Czech second-tier games. The big, two-way forward has signed a two-year deal with KalPa and will look to contribute in all scenarios for the club.
  • 2021 NHL Draft prospect Fyodor Svechkov has been traded in the KHL, or rather sold. Lada Togliatti announced today that they have moved their young standout to powerhouse SKA St. Petersburg in exchange for “monetary compensation.” Svechkov signed a three-year extension with Lada before this season, meaning SKA will have him under contract through the 2022-23 season. Given his draft stock, that may be all they get. Svechkov is projected by many to be a first-round pick this summer and helped his case by dominating the Russian junior and minor league ranks this season. The skilled and versatile forward could be an early selection that a team may want to rush to North America as soon as possible. SKA will have to find a spot in their veteran roster for Svechkov sooner rather than later if they want to maximize their investment.
  • Has Igor Bobkov had enough of dominating the KHL? The Gagarin Cup-winning goaltender has been granted a contract termination by the recently-crowned champions, Avangard Omsk announced. A well-respected and well-compensated KHL netminder, it stands to reason that this move likely points toward Bobkov giving the NHL another shot. A 2009 draft pick of the Anaheim Ducks, Bobkov spent two seasons in the OHL and three seasons in the pros, split between the AHL and ECHL. Unhappy with his role and trajectory, Bobkov returned to Russia in 2015. Since then, he has become a three-time KHL All-Star with a career .923 save percentage and 2.09 GAA, including a GAA of 2.01 or lower in each of the past three seasons. The 30-year-old is one of, if not the best goalie in the KHL right now and could be eyeing a return to the NHL with a more established resume and plenty of gas in the tank.

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