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Uncertainty Surrounding Nate Schmidt Injury

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Few players have received as much attention this off-season as new Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt. The up-and-coming blue liner was selected by the NHL’s newest club in the Expansion Draft after a pair of strong seasons with the Washington Capitals. Then, before even playing a game with the Knights, the restricted free agent and his new team went to salary arbitration, where Schmidt was the only player this off-season to actually receive a reward from the arbitrator after a hearing. Vegas signed Schmidt to the two-year, $4.45MM deal that had been awarded and it appeared the two sides were all set for the 2017-18 season, with Schmidt prepared to play a major role on defense.

However, things have changed in an unexpected way. Back in mid-August, it was announced that Schmidt was unable to attend a fan event in Montana due to an injury. It was later revealed that Schmidt suffered an ankle injury while training, but no other details were offered. Weeks later, there has been no update on Schmidt’s condition with training camp just around the corner. Sin Bin inquired about the status of Schmidt’s injury today and, again, received no feedback. A team representative simply stated that “there is no update”.

At this point, some worry by fans has become warranted. Although the Knights still roster ten other NHL-caliber defenseman, Schmidt was slated to battle for a top pairing role and his absence would make the start of Vegas’ inaugural season much more difficult. While there’s just as little evidence to support any thought that he might miss time as there is about the injury itself, the lack of information coming from the team is cause for concern. Keep an eye out for updates on the Knights’ promising young rearguard as the season quickly approaches.

Columbus Blue Jackets Sign Alexander Wennberg

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So much for digging in their heels. The Columbus Blue Jackets have signed Alexander Wennberg to a six-year, $29.4MM contract, ending what has been a long negotiation this summer. The 22-year old was a restricted free agent without arbitration rights, coming off his entry-level contract. The deal will pay him an average of $4.9MM each season, though it is slightly back-loaded:

  • 2017-18: $3.5MM
  • 2018-19: $4.5MM
  • 2019-20: $5.35MM
  • 2020-21: $5.35MM
  • 2021-22: $5.35MM
  • 2022-23: $5.35MM

"<strongWennberg posted career highs in nearly every statistical category last season, registering 13 goals and 46 assists for 59 points. That number put him second in team scoring on the Blue Jackets behind only Cam Atkinson, and solidified his reputation as a number one center for the team. Selected 14th-overall in 2013, Wennberg has quickly overcome any doubts in his ability to rack up points at the NHL level. Through 217 games, he has totaled 119 points and could easily set new career highs once again this season.

At first glance this contract seems like a fairly large bargain for the Blue Jackets. Wennberg comes in well below Jonathan Drouin’s recent six-year extension, despite the Montreal forward having less experience in the league and scoring fewer points last season. While you can point to Drouin’s draft pedigree and dynamic offensive upside, contracts are usually handed out based on actual in-game production which Drouin only leads slightly in a per-game basis. The Blue Jackets will be quite pleased with contract that comes in under $5MM, and it will help them keep their entire core together down the road.

Over the next two summers, Columbus has contracts to give out to players like Atkinson, Artemi Panarin, Boone Jenner, Zach Werenski, Ryan Murray and several more, while a deal for Josh Anderson is still on the table this offseason. Getting a key member of your forward group like Wennberg locked up for a reasonable number is a huge part in keeping your salary structure possible. He’ll actually come in as just the fourth-highest paid forward on the team this season, behind Panarin, Brandon Dubinsky and captain Nick Foligno.

Wennberg isn’t a perfect player. 21 of his assists came on the powerplay this season, and he needs to do a better job generating shots while at even strength. Though his defensive game has potential to be good enough to lock down opposing top lines, it’s not yet at the level of some of the elite centers in the league. He’ll never be an overly physical player, but his size does allow him to work capably in the corners and in front of the net. Success in the faceoff dot should be expected down the road, though the team will obviously live with his shortcomings in that area in order to get him on the ice as much as possible.

It will be interesting to see if Wennberg gels with newcomer Panarin, who plays a much different game than the outgoing Brandon Saad but could form a near-unstoppable trio along with Atkinson should they see time together. The three are all gifted offensive players, but could be spread out among the top two lines in order to work with more physical players like Jenner or Dubinsky. Either way, it will be one of the most dangerous forward groups in the league, capable of beating teams in several different ways.

This contract has ramifications outside of Columbus as well, as David Pastrnak and Bo Horvat look for similar long-term contracts. Both players are in similar situations coming off their entry-level contracts, though have different offensive profiles. Pastrnak put up much higher scoring numbers last year, but plays the wing and is 20 months younger than Wennberg, while Horvat has a better two-way game and has a higher draft pedigree. Pastrnak has been looking for a contract that would far outpace this deal, while Horvat’s negotiations have spanned everything from a two-year bridge deal to an eight-year pact.

Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reported the financial details of the contract. 

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Latest On Columbus Blue Jackets’ RFA Talks

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Even as the calendar turns over into September and NHL training camps are just around the corner, the Columbus Blue Jackets remain locked in important negotiations. Alexander Wennberg and Josh Anderson, two core restricted free agents, remain unsigned. As Aaron Portzline of The Athletic writes (subscription needed), it doesn’t look like anything is close. The Blue Jackets aren’t willing to give in to contract demands for players who are pre-arbitration, while agents look to continuously press the average salaries higher and higher.

Anderson apparently will begin skating in Switzerland to stay in shape, if the contract talks aren’t finished in the next few weeks. He’s coming off his first full year in the NHL, in which he scored 17 goals and showed off his versatility. Wennberg remains the team’s first-line center, and will likely be one of the three most important forwards on the team this year. Missing training camp would be a step back, though there is clearly no animosity between the two sides.

It’s business after all, something that is being seen all around the league this year. David Pastrnak, Bo Horvat and Andreas Athanasiou remain unsigned among many others, and even though there are often late-summer RFA signings, it’s still a scary proposition for fans to wait this long. Columbus still has plenty of cap space to sign both long-term if they so choose, but with big extensions coming up for the 2018-19 season—Cam Atkinson in particular—they’ll have to be very careful with how they spend their dollars.

After Arbitration Hearing, Nate Schmidt Still Without Contract

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Though arbitration hasn’t resulted in any decisions yet this season, Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nate Schmidt could be the first to have a ruling come down. Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the two sides went through the hearing today in Toronto, and still do not have a contract worked out. That leaves them with a 48 hour window with which to come to some sort of an agreement, similar to Tomas Tatar and Viktor Arvidsson last month.

Schmidt submitted a one-year $2.75MM ask, while the team countered with a two-year deal worth a total of $1.95MM. Like any arbitration, those are outside points on a contract that will ultimately fall somewhere in the middle. The two year term is not negotiable however, as Schmidt filed for player-elected salary arbitration, which gives the option on length to the team.

That said, a long-term contract is still a possibility between the two sides. Schmidt has shown impressive potential with the Washington Capitals in the past, and is a dynamic player who could fit in quite well with a team strapped for high-end skill. His skating ability would be quite the draw for new fans, though success on the ice is obviously paramount. If Schmidt does receive a cheap two-year term, he would immediately become an excellent trade chip, something we’ve discussed in the past for the Golden Knights. The 26-year old would be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the two years.

Calvin de Haan Signs With New York Islanders

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Calvin de Haan was one of two remaining players scheduled for arbitration, and was set to have a hearing this morning in Toronto to decide his fate. Just before that happened, the two sides have agreed upon a new one-year deal worth $3.3MM. The two sides had been more than $3MM apart in their arbitration figures, but met somewhere in the middle for de Haan’s final season before unrestricted free agency. "<strong

Now 26-years old, de Haan is coming off the best statistical season of his career. Registering 25 points, he played in all 82 games for the Islanders and averaged almost 20 minutes a night. Though his role is likely unchanged with the trade of Travis Hamonic, he could see a slight bump in special teams time as the Islanders will likely be icing a pair of youngsters at some point throughout the year in Ryan Pulock and Adam Pelech.

de Haan really impressed at the recent World Championships for Team Canada and will now immediately jump to near the top of both a trade candidate and potential free agent list. If the Islanders are out of the playoff race by February, you’ll surely hear his name in rumors to add to a Cup contender. He’ll also be an interesting option on the free agent market, with his combination of youth and two-way play. With many players already starting to sign extensions, he could be one of the top options and earn a contract similar to Karl Alzner on the open market, if not even bigger.

That’s not to say that the Islanders can’t re-sign him, as he’s never shown any indication he doesn’t want to play for them. This agreement could be just a way to avoid the sometimes painful process of arbitration, which can be detrimental to a professional relationship. The two sides can work with the $3.3MM amount, which represents a slight raise on the $2.9MM he earned last year, but fits into the Islanders’ salary structure well. Signing him any longer may have never been an option for the club, as they have a huge offseason coming up next summer.

John Tavares, Josh Bailey, Nikolai Kulemin, Brock Nelson, Shane Prince, Alan Quine, Thomas Hickey, Ryan Pulock and now de Haan are all free agents of one sort or another, giving the team the option to go in one direction or another. That decision likely depends on Tavares’ decision on whether or not to stay long-term. If he doesn’t, the team has an easy tear down to try and rebuild around their young players like Josh Ho-Sang and Mathew Barzal, and de Haan could be more valuable on a cheap one-year deal at the deadline than a long-term contract with a much higher cap-hit. This will be a very important first half of the season for the Islanders, as their franchise could go in very different directions at mid-season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Minnesota Wild Sign Mikael Granlund To Three-Year Deal

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The Minnesota Wild have signed restricted free agent Mikael Granlund to a new three-year, $17.25MM contract. Granlund was scheduled for a salary arbitration hearing on Friday, and would have exchanged figures with the team tomorrow morning. While the deal will carry a $5.75MM average annual value, it breaks down as follows:

  • 2017-18: $5.25MM
  • 2018-19: $5.5MM
  • 2019-20: $6.5MM

Mikael GranlundGranlund’s deal comes in an average of $500K more each season than fellow Wild RFA Nino Niederreiter, despite only giving up one year of unrestricted free agency. The 25-year old broke out this season after a move to the wing, scoring 26 goals and 69 points in 81 games. He followed that up by garnering both Selke and Lady Byng votes, and is a big part of one of the best two-way forward groups in the NHL.

The $5.75MM cap hit comes in fairly high for a player who only has one season with more than 45 points, though the Wild clearly believe in Granlund’s ability to repeat his performance. Ondrej Palat, who gave up four UFA seasons and has a longer track record of offensive success received just $5.3MM per season, though he doesn’t have the same versatility. At Granlund’s hit, he’ll come in as the third-highest paid forward on the Wild behind just Zach Parise ($7.54MM) and Mikko Koivu ($6.75MM). That will come with some added responsibility, and there is some risk to the deal.

Granlund enjoyed a shooting percentage almost twice as high as his previous career total, and rode that to an easy career-high in goals. Regression even to 10% (which would have still been a career-high) would have lost him nearly 10 goals. If he’s discovered a way to put the puck in the net more frequently (which is entirely possible) he’ll likely fulfill the contract with ease, but if he takes a small step backwards it could backfire. The two sides agreed upon a relatively short-term deal for likely this exact reason; Minnesota is minimizing risk, while Granlund believes he’ll be worth even more when he hits free agency.

The Wild now have just Marcus Foligno left to sign, acquired in a trade with Buffalo for Marco Scandella and Jason Pominville. While he’ll likely only command a salary somewhere between $2-3MM per season, the team is getting very close to the salary cap ceiling for the upcoming season. Even with Foligno signed they have just 11 forwards listed on their CapFriendly page, meaning they’re actually at least $650K closer to that ceiling when they bring up a young player to fill the last spot. That’s without carrying a 13th forward or 7th defenseman, either of which will put them right up against the cap—they also have a third goaltender listed currently, which won’t be there when the season begins.

Calvin de Haan and Nate Schmidt remain as the final two players scheduled for arbitration hearings, and both have exchanged figures already.

Michael Russo of the Star Tribune was first to report the contract details on Twitter. 

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Nate Schmidt, Vegas Golden Knights Exchange Arbitration Figures

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Nate Schmidt is one of the final arbitration cases and is due to have a hearing on Thursday morning in Toronto with the Vegas Golden Knights. The two sides traded figures today, with the team offering a two-year deal worth a total of $1.95MM while Schmidt is looking for a one-year $2.75MM award according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Schmidt is the final restricted free agent left to sign for the Golden Knights, who are still working towards avoiding arbitration with the young defender. With two years left before he hits unrestricted free agency, the team opted for the two-year term that will take him right to the open market. As discussed previously, the Golden Knights are clearly trying to position themselves as a player at the trade deadline, and seem uninterested in players signed for more than two years.

While they could still reach a longer term deal with Schmidt, it’s not clear if they view him as a long-term piece of the franchise or a valuable asset that can continue to kick start a build through the draft. The dynamic skater could easily be one of the top options for a team this deadline looking to shore up their defense, especially after the excellent showing he had in the playoffs for the Washington Capitals. Schmidt almost made Karl Alzner obsolete, arguably playing better than him when the now-Montreal Canadien went down to injury in the first round.

Schmidt is coming off a year where he made $875K, so Vegas is offering him a very modest raise heading into next season. As always, these are outer limits for the negotiation and an arbitration decision would almost certainly come somewhere in the middle. In 60 games, Schmidt put up 17 points and was generally effective, though he still doesn’t have a very high profile among fans mostly due to his lack of draft pedigree. He was signed out of the University of Minnesota in 2013.

Buffalo Sabres Sign Nathan Beaulieu To Two-Year, $4.8MM Contract

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The Buffalo Sabres have avoided arbitration with Nathan Beaulieu, signing him to a two-year contract worth a total of $4.8MM just days before his hearing was scheduled. The 24-year old was due in Toronto for his hearing on Friday, but is another case of a player signing before going through the sometimes difficult process. He’ll still be a restricted free agent at the contract’s conclusion. Nathan Beaulieu

Beaulieu was acquired from the Montreal Canadiens earlier this offseason in exchange for a third-round pick, and will be expected to take on a bigger role in Buffalo this season. Playing over 19 minutes a night for the first time in his career, Beaulieu recorded 28 points and showed he was at least somewhat capable in running a powerplay unit. While he’ll likely be slotted in behind Marco Scandella in terms of five-on-five ice time, he should find a home on the second PP unit and be able to lengthen out the Sabres blue line. Montreal clearly wanted to move on from his style, as they moved Beaulieu and Alexei Emelin off and brought in Karl Alzner to fill most of the vacant even strength minutes.

An average annual value of $2.4MM actually slots Beaulieu in as the fifth-highest paid defender on the team, and he should provide good value for the deal. If he’s able to take another step forward it could turn into a huge steal for Buffalo, as he does have the potential to be a high-reward offensive player. Grouped with a more defensive option, Beaulieu could be deployed in a way to maximize that puck-moving ability and turn him into an effective weapon. We’ll see if he can finally sharpen that defensive game enough to be trusted with more minutes, but either way he should be an upgrade on the weak group the team iced last year.

It will be interesting to see what Beaulieu gets in his next contract, if he puts up another pair of seasons in the 30-point range. He’ll be a 26-year old arbitration eligible RFA, meaning any length of contract would be eating into his unrestricted free agent years. The Sabres won’t have to worry about that for a while, but it’s still something to think about as they move forward in long-term negotiations with Jack Eichel and company.

Calvin de Haan, New York Islanders Exchange Arbitration Figures

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Arbitration hearings get back to business on Wednesday after a short break due to early settlements, and Calvin de Haan is next up on the agenda. The two sides exchanged figures today, and they’re still quite a bit apart on his value for next season. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the New York Islanders’ offered a one-year $1.95MM deal, while de Haan’s camp is looking for a one-year $5MM contract. As we’ve seen, the two sides can come to an agreement even after the hearing, in the 48-hours the arbitrator has to decide on a salary for next season. Calvin de Haan

de Haan is in his final year of restricted free agency and therefore could not receive a two-year deal in arbitration like most players. He’ll be heading to unrestricted free agency next summer if it comes down to an arbitrator’s decision, though obviously an extension is still possible after that. If he’s looking for at least $5MM through his UFA years though, the Islanders’ may not be able to afford to keep him. The team already has Nick Leddy and Johnny Boychuk locked up long term for $11.5MM combined, and will need all the money they can get for what is turning into a huge summer for them in 2018. Not only is John Tavares due for a massive extension, but Josh Bailey, Nikolai Kulemin and Thomas Hickey are set to become UFAs and the team will have to decide what to do in net behind (or beside) Thomas Greiss. Brock Nelson, Alan Quine, Shane Prince, Ryan Pulock and Scott Mayfield are all restricted free agents needing new contracts, with most eligible for arbitration.

So, it will be interesting to see what de Haan is awarded should it get that far. He’s coming off a year in which he recorded a career-high in points with 25 while playing over 19 minutes a night for the fourth straight season. Playing in all 82 games he easily led the team in blocked shots and is an excellent possession player in terms of both shot generation and suppression. His effect is clear at both ends of the rink, and he’s asking to be paid like a true top-4 option. The Islanders’ counter seems to make little sense, since de Haan’s qualifying offer was $2.5MM and even his cap hit was (slightly) more than $1.95MM last season.

It would be almost impossible for an arbitrator to decide that the Islanders’ number is acceptable, though unlike the MLB the decision does not have to be one or the other. They can award any salary, and anything over $4MM the Islanders can choose to walk away from. It’s unlikely they’d do that in this case, as they’re trying to compete this season but it would be interesting with only $6.9MM left in cap space and a clear desire to add another piece before the start of the season. Depending on the decision they could be forced to move some salary out in any trade, making a deal for a top name like Matt Duchene even harder to accomplish.

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Nate Schmidt Still Working Towards Contract With Golden Knights

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One of the few remaining arbitration cases left on the docket, Nate Schmidt is the Vegas Golden Knights’ final restricted free agent to sign this summer. Though he has a hearing scheduled for Thursday, August 3rd, Schmidt and the team are still hoping to get something done before the meeting according to Steve Carp of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Schmidt turned 26 a few weeks ago, and has two years of team control left. If the Golden Knights choose a one-year arbitration award, he would remain a restricted free agent again next summer and be eligible to repeat the process. Otherwise, any contract longer than two years would start buying out unrestricted free agent years, driving the price noticeably higher. Schmidt is coming off an interesting season where he averaged less than 15 and a half minutes a night but was dynamic and explosive every time he was given a bigger opportunity. He recorded 17 points in just 60 games, and could easily be the Golden Knights’ highest-scoring defenseman this season.

He’s coming off a contract that paid him just $875K last season, and it will be interesting to see how high the Golden Knights are willing to go and if they even want to lock him up long term. As we’ve looked at before, the team is clearly preparing itself to move several players at the trade deadline this year, and Schmidt would hold a lot of value on a short-term deal. If they don’t believe he can be part of the first winning Vegas team—which could happen sooner than you think—getting him under a reasonable cap number without buying out UFA seasons makes him a very appealing target around the league.

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