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Casey DeSmith Expected To Test Free Agency

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After being acquired right before training camp, Casey DeSmith had a solid season between the pipes for Vancouver.  However, it appears it will be one and done for his time with the Canucks as Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic reported in a recent appearance on Sportsnet 650 (audio link) that there have been no contract talks for the pending unrestricted free agent and that the team is likely to go with Arturs Silovs as their backup next season.

Vancouver acquired the 32-year-old from Montreal in mid-September, sending winger Tanner Pearson and a 2025 third-round pick the other way.  In doing so, they were able to get an upgrade behind starter Thatcher Demko while also freeing up $1.45MM in cap space.

DeSmith played in 29 games during the regular season where he posted a 2.89 GAA and a .895 SV%, the latter number being a career low.  Nonetheless, that still represented a considerable upgrade over the .871 mark from Spencer Martin and .882 from Collin Delia back in 2022-23.  DeSmith also made a pair of playoff appearances following Demko’s injury before being injured himself.  That gave the net to Silovs who took the net and ran with it for the rest of Vancouver’s postseason.

While Silovs is also a pending free agent, it stands to reason that he’ll earn a fair bit less on his next contract than DeSmith.  Silovs is only eligible for restricted free agency and with just 19 career NHL appearances (regular season and playoffs combined), they should be able to get him signed on a short-term bridge contract around the $1MM range.  Those savings could be useful as they look to try to re-sign some of their key pending unrestricted free agents, highlighted by Elias Lindholm and Nikita Zadorov.

As for DeSmith, despite his lower save percentage, he could be in line for a raise from the $1.8MM he made in each of the last two years.  It’s not a great free agent class for goaltenders and there’s a good chance several backups will be moving around.  That should create enough openings for there to be a market for DeSmith’s services once the market opens up on July 1st.

Nikolaj Ehlers Not Interested In Extension With Jets

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Nikolaj Ehlers has been a key part of Winnipeg’s top-six forward group for the last nine seasons and remains under contract for 2024-25.  However, it doesn’t appear that he’s interested in extending that number any further as David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports that the winger isn’t interested in signing a new deal with the Jets.  He adds that while no formal trade request has been made, Ehlers would welcome a move.

Last month, it was reported that Winnipeg GM Kevin Cheveldayoff was likely to explore the trade market for the 28-year-old in the weeks leading up to the draft.   With this report now out there, it stands to reason that his camp had notified the Jets earlier in the offseason that they weren’t interested in engaging in extension talks at this time.

Ehlers is coming off one of the most productive seasons in his career.  He played in all 82 regular season games for the first time since 2017-18 and put 61 points, his second-best total.  However, he was limited to just two assists in their first-round exit at the hands of Colorado.

Despite being one of Winnipeg’s more consistently productive players, it hasn’t resulted in him playing higher up the depth chart.  Ehlers logged under 16 minutes a night in each of the last two years under now-former head coach Rick Bowness.  With associate coach Scott Arniel taking over behind the bench, he might be inclined to keep the status quo in terms of Ehlers’ role so he’s likely hoping to have a more prominent role elsewhere.

Ehlers has one year left on his contract with a $6MM AAV with $6.75MM in salary.  He also has some control on where he could be moved with a ten-team no-trade clause.  That price tag is below what a 25-goal, 60-point scorer is likely to get on the open market next month so teams looking to make a more affordable addition will certainly be calling if they haven’t already.

Of course, Ehlers is a year away from cashing in on a more lucrative contract which has to be factored into the equation.  Generally, players who are open to immediate extensions with an acquiring team will get more in return; Pagnotta adds that it’s unclear if Ehlers is willing to go that route at this time.  Notably, he won’t be able to officially sign an extension in this scenario until July 1st.

The trade market is likely a few weeks away from fully opening up as teams often wait until after the Stanley Cup Final before reshaping their roster.  It appears that Ehlers will be one of the more prominent names on that market when it gets going.

Offseason Checklist: Los Angeles Kings

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The offseason has arrived for all but the two teams who are still taking part in the playoffs.  For the rest, it’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Los Angeles.

After swinging a big trade in the offseason to bring in Pierre-Luc Dubois, expectations were high for the Kings heading into the season.  However, they struggled out of the gate, eventually leading to a coaching change.  While they were able to make it into the playoffs, they went out quickly in the first round, failing to meet those summer hopes.  They checked one item off their to-do list when the interim tag was lifted off head coach Jim Hiller but GM Rob Blake will still have some things to accomplish this summer.

Add A Starting Goalie

The decision to add Dubois forced the Kings to not try to re-sign Joonas Korpisalo who impressed after being acquired at the 2023 deadline and instead go quite cheap at the goaltending position.  Pheonix Copley was in place as a low-cost backup while Cam Talbot came on a one-year deal where he accepted $1MM in bonuses (which will count against their books this season) and they hoped a duo with a combined cap hit of $2.5MM could get the job done.

Talbot fared pretty well in his 50 appearances so that part worked out as well as they could have reasonably hoped.  But Copley struggled before being injured with David Rittich coming up in the second half to serve as the backup.  Rittich is already back on a low-cost one-year deal but can they afford to run it back with the same tandem?  It’s not that Talbot hasn’t earned another contract but after trying to go cheap lately at that position, getting a more proven option on a longer-term agreement seems like it might be the better way to go.

However, the free agent class doesn’t have any true starters available.  There are some platoon options with some question marks (including Talbot) and then some pure backups from there.  Accordingly, if they’re going to add a true starter, it’ll have to come on the trade front.

The good news is that this looks like a year that could see some veteran netminders moved.  Los Angeles is believed to have made a real run at Linus Ullmark before the trade deadline while many expect Jacob Markstrom could be in play again.  Others like John Gibson and perhaps Tristan Jarry have been suggested as possible trade candidates as well.  Getting a capable veteran who can stabilize things for a few years between the pipes should take away a big question mark that has been around for them in recent years.

Re-Sign Byfield

It took some time but Quinton Byfield took a big step forward this season, becoming an impactful top-six producer with 20 goals and 35 assists.  The timing for the jump was certainly ideal as he was in the final year of his entry-level deal in 2023-24, meaning he’ll be a restricted free agent on July 1st.  He is by far their most prominent player to re-sign.

The challenge here will be finding the balance between risk on both sides.  It’s possible that one side will want a bridge contract to get a better sense of what’s to come.  If Blake and the Kings aren’t sold this is repeatable, they may not want to pony up on a long-term agreement right away.  On the flip side, if Byfield’s camp feels that the 21-year-old has another gear or two in him, they may prefer the short-term agreement now to potentially set him up for a more lucrative one when he has arbitration rights down the road.  In that scenario, something in the $3.75MM range might fit, potentially back-loaded to up the qualifying offer upon expiration.

Now, if both sides are open to a long-term pact that buys out some UFA years, then there’s going to be some shared risk.  For it to make sense for Byfield, a long-term agreement likely has to come in somewhere closer to double the bridge amount.  For someone who came into this season with eight goals in 93 career NHL games, the Kings would certainly be taking a leap of faith.  However, there is some potential upside as if Byfield is on that contract and becomes a legitimate top liner, that price tag would change to a team-friendly one quite quickly.

The other factor to consider here is what else Blake has planned for the summer.  If the plan is to add multiple key veterans, they’d be hard-pressed to work out a long-term agreement with Byfield.  Accordingly, if they’re big spenders early into free agency, Byfield’s path could be charted to a bridge by default.  On the flip side, if they aren’t as active, then it suggests they could be open to the long-term agreement and pivot to fill another hole if they ultimately have to settle on a bridge agreement.

RFA Depth Decisions

Quite a few teams around the league have some decisions to make on the qualifying offer front and the Kings are no exception.  They have some depth pieces up front that have filled regular roles in recent years but could be a bit too pricey for what they can afford which makes them potential non-tender candidates.

The first of those is Blake Lizotte.  In 2022-23, he had 34 points, a pretty good return on a $1.675MM cap hit.  The second and final year of that contract didn’t go so well as he dropped to seven goals and eight assists in 62 games.  While he is a serviceable bottom-six forward who can play down the middle or on the wing, he also has arbitration eligibility where his 34-point output will play a factor and likely push his price tag past $2MM.  Would they be better off seeing what depth options come available in free agency and put the difference in salary towards filling another opening?

Then there’s Carl Grundstrom.  When healthy, he’s a capable fourth liner who plays with an edge and can chip in with a few goals.  There’s a role for that type of player but is there a role for one who would earn more than his $1.3MM qualifying offer through salary arbitration?  Fourth liners can be had for less on the open market so again, are they better off going with someone cheaper (either a free agent or a younger option like Akil Thomas or Alex Turcotte, both waiver-eligible going into 2024-25) and using the savings elsewhere?

The other RFA with a question mark is Arthur Kaliyev, albeit with a different question than the other two.  For him, it shouldn’t be a question of tender or not but rather should they be moving him even though his value is probably the lowest it has been in several years?  Kaliyev has reportedly made it known he wouldn’t mind moving on while Los Angeles was believed to be open to moving him at the trade deadline but clearly, a move never materialized.  Do they give him one more shot or take what they can get for him?  Either way, whoever he’s signing his next contract with, it’s probably going to be a low-cost one-year agreement.

Add Top Six Winger

There was a piece missing from the offense for most of this season with Viktor Arvidsson being limited to just 18 games due to multiple injuries, particularly his back.  He did well when he was in the lineup, notching 15 points but it seems likely that he’s going to move on.

This season, the Kings were a team in the middle of the pack offensively and probably could have landed a few spots higher than 16th with a healthy Arvidsson or Dubois not struggling as much as he did.  They should be able to try to do something to augment the attack in the coming weeks.  While they’re expected to talk about an extension with Matt Roy soon according to The Fourth Period’s Dennis Bernstein (Twitter link), they could opt to instead fill that spot on the back end internally with Brandt Clarke.  That in turn should give them enough money to add a top-six winger while adding a goalie and keeping their options open with Byfield in terms of what type of contract they’ll want to offer him.

With the other spots they have to fill, it’s likely that they’ll be priced out of the top free agents next month.  However, there are plenty of other options.  If they’re looking for a medium-term addition, Jonathan Marchessault could be an intriguing candidate if he doesn’t work out a deal to remain in Vegas.  Matt Duchene (who would likely be moved to the wing), Vladimir Tarasenko, and former King Tyler Toffoli all could work.  Jake DeBrusk and Teuvo Teravainen will command longer-term agreements but could be in their price range as well.  Adding one of those players could push the Kings a few spots higher in next season’s goal totals which could help them avoid having to squeak into the playoffs as they did this year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor Transactions: 6/5/24

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While the bulk of signings in the NHL is still at least a month away, activity around the hockey world has picked up in recent weeks.  Here’s a rundown of recent moves with an NHL association.

  • After having his contract terminated by Minnesota last month, winger Vladislav Firstov has returned to the KHL as Torpedo announced they’ve signed him to a one-year deal. The 22-year-old spent most of this season in Russia on loan but once that campaign ended, he suited up in ten games with AHL Iowa, picking up two goals and two assists.  However, he clearly wanted to stay at home for next season, leading to his release by the Wild.
  • The Canadiens’ AHL affiliate in Laval announced they’ve signed forward Israel Mianscum to a two-year contract. The 21-year-old spent his five-year junior career with QMJHL Sherbrooke and was quite productive in his overage year, tallying 35 goals and 52 assists in 61 games, both career bests.  Overall, he had 215 points in 264 major junior contests.
  • The Jets have invited Cornell forward Kyle Penney to their upcoming development camp, reports Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal (Twitter link). The 23-year-old is coming off a strong year with the Big Red, one that saw him collect 10 goals and 18 assists along with a plus-30 rating in 35 games.  Penney has one season of college eligibility remaining.
  • The Panthers’ AHL team in Charlotte announced they’ve re-signed defenseman Mitchell Vande Sompel to a two-year deal. The Checkers acquired the 27-year-old at the AHL trade deadline and he was a regular for them down the stretch where he had five points in 16 games.  Vande Sompel was originally a draft pick of the Islanders, spending five years in their system before moving on in 2022.
  • Kings prospect Matthew Mania is on the move in the OHL as Flint announced that they’ve acquired the defenseman as part of a six-player, nine-pick trade. The 19-year-old was a fifth-round pick last year, going 150th overall and is coming off an injury-riddled season that limited him to just 45 games where he had four goals and 19 assists.  Los Angeles has until June 1, 2025 to sign Mania to an entry-level deal or lose his rights.

Maple Leafs Open Contract Talks With Tyler Bertuzzi

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Winger Tyler Bertuzzi is one of many pending unrestricted free agents for the Maple Leafs and is also one of their more prominent ones.  It had been suggested previously that there was mutual interest in a contract extension and it appears those talks are now underway, according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period (Twitter link).  He added that it’s way too early in the process to determine if the two sides might be able to work out a new deal.

Last summer was an interesting one for the 29-year-old.  Even though he was coming off a down year, Bertuzzi was one of the better unrestricted free agents in last year’s class, landing in the top ten in our annual rankings.  That appeared to have him set to receive a multi-year agreement (if not a long-term one) and a raise on the $4.75MM AAV he had been playing on.

However, the market he was hoping for never materialized.  Rather than accept a multi-year deal at a lower rate, he instead pivoted on the second day of free agency, inking a one-year, $5.5MM pact with Toronto.  It looked like his hope was that a key role on a Maple Leafs team that had a strong offensive core could help better position himself to land a long-term agreement on the open market this time around.

Things didn’t go quite as planned, however.  Bertuzzi got off to a slow start, notching just nine points in his first 27 games despite holding down a spot in the top six for most of that time.  He was able to rebound in the second half, however, finishing up with 21 goals and 20 assists in 80 games before tying for the team lead in playoff points with four.

Bertuzzi is only two years removed from a 30-goal season when he had 30 tallies and 32 assists in 68 games during the 2021-22 season.  He also has two other 21-goal campaigns under his belt so there is a reasonable track record of offensive success.

Having said that, the fact he wasn’t able to get back to that 30-goal mark (instead staying closer to his career averages) won’t help his chances of landing a raise and a long-term pact.  If Bertuzzi wants some job security in the form of a multi-year agreement, he’s likely going to have to take at least a small discount on the salary side.

Toronto has a little more than $18MM in cap room this summer, per CapFriendly.  However, they have to sign a few forwards, several defensemen, and a goalie with that money so while there is some flexibility to make a big signing if they want, they also need to spread that money around.  They have next month to figure out if a new deal for Bertuzzi fits in with how they want to allocate their remaining cap room.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Blues Sign Jakub Stancl To Entry-Level Deal

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The Blues have been busy in recent days signing some of their prospects, inking Aleksanteri Kaskimaki and Juraj Pekarcik to contracts.  They added to that list today, announcing that they’ve signed forward Jakub Stancl to a three-year, entry-level deal.  Financial terms were not disclosed.

The 19-year-old was a fourth-round pick last June, going 106th overall following a good season in Sweden’s junior system.  This year, Stancl played in 28 games with Vaxjo’s under-20 team, notching seven goals and seven assists.  He also got into seven SHL contests, scoring once.  Stancl was more impactful offensively at the World Juniors, however.  He recorded four goals and two assists in seven games for Czechia.

St. Louis will have some options with Stancl next season.  Since he wasn’t drafted out of the CHL, they can assign him to AHL Springfield if they want to get him acclimated to play in North America.  They could opt to send him to major junior where WHL Kelowna holds his rights.  Alternatively, they can elect to send him back overseas and keep him in Vaxjo’s system for another year.  As long as he doesn’t play in ten NHL games in 2024-25, his contract will actually slide and will still have three years left on it heading into the 2025-26 campaign.

Metropolitan Notes: Vesey, Wheeler, Mateychuk, Yager

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Rangers winger Jimmy Vesey skated today in a non-contact jersey, notes NHL.com’s Dan Rosen (Twitter link).  He has missed the last three games after suffering an upper-body injury in the second game of their series against Florida.  At the time of the injury, Vesey was given a week-to-week designation so it remains unlikely that he’ll suit up for the rest of this round.  However, if New York can come back and win the series, he could be an option to return at that time.  Vesey had 13 goals and 13 assists in 80 games during the regular season and added three points in a dozen playoff contests before being injured.

More from the Metropolitan:

  • Still with the Rangers, winger Blake Wheeler did not take the skate this morning due to soreness, notes Arthur Staple of The Athletic (Twitter link). The veteran missed the last two months of the season after suffering a leg injury but recovered in time to be available to suit up against Florida.  However, Wheeler has only played once so far in this series and since he’s still dealing with lingering soreness, it’s quite possible they’ll hold him out of the lineup if this gets to a seventh game on Monday.
  • After his junior team was eliminated at the Memorial Cup on Friday, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic suggests (Twitter link) that Blue Jackets prospect Denton Mateychuk is likely to join AHL Cleveland for the balance of their playoff run. The 19-year-old defenseman was the 12th pick in 2022 and was dominant with WHL Moose Jaw this season, recording 75 points in 52 regular season games while adding 30 more in 20 postseason contests.  He also currently leads all scorers at the Memorial Cup with seven points over his four appearances.  It would be Mateychuk’s first taste of professional hockey if he suits up for the Monsters in advance of his first full professional campaign in 2024-25.
  • Penguins prospect Brayden Yager was named the CHL’s Sportsman of the Year today, per a league announcement. The 19-year-old was a first-round pick last year, going 14th overall.  Yager had a very strong year with Moose Jaw, notching 95 points along with just 20 penalty minutes in 57 regular season games.  He added 27 points in 20 playoff contests and is tied for second in Memorial Cup scoring with six points in four games.

Offseason Checklist: New York Islanders

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The offseason has arrived for all but a handful of teams who are still taking part in the playoffs.  Accordingly, it’s now time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at the Islanders.

For most of the season, the Islanders were teetering on the edge of the postseason and eventually, GM Lou Lamoriello opted to make a change, hiring Patrick Roy to take over behind the bench.  New York got on a bit of a hot streak toward the end of the year to get into the playoffs but they were quickly eliminated by Carolina.  Now, the Isles need to try to add to their group in the hopes of grabbing a firmer hold of a playoff spot next season.  Here’s what they should be looking to accomplish in the coming months.

Create Cap Space

Let’s run the numbers first.  Per CapFriendly, New York has a little over $6MM in cap room for next season and a handful of roster spots to fill.  If they did nothing, they could ice a cap-compliant lineup but it wouldn’t necessarily be any better than the one that struggled for most of the regular season and went out quickly in the playoffs.  If they want to make an impactful addition, they need to find a way to get the money to make that happen.

Anders Lee had a tough year, seeing his output dip to 37 points which isn’t a great return on a $7MM price tag through the 2025-26 campaign.  While it would be hard to see Lamoriello move his captain, it’s worth noting his full no-trade protection drops to a 15-team one on July 1st.  Jean-Gabriel Pageau has two years left at $5MM and is more of a third liner at this point.  Meanwhile, Kyle Palmieri is entering the final year of his deal at a $5MM price tag.  That said, he’s also coming off a 30-goal campaign so while moving him would open more flexibility, it’d also create a bigger gap to try to fill offensively.

The good news for a possible Palmieri move is that his value has gone up to the point where they could move him without retaining or needing to incentivize a team to take him on.  The bad news is that this likely can’t be said for Pageau or Lee.  This is where adding the extra second-round pick in a rare May swap of draft picks with Chicago is notable.  While it’s possible that it was done to give them a chip to dangle to add someone, it’s also possible that they wind up using it as the incentive for a team to take on a player, similar to what they did to move Josh Bailey last summer.

Regardless of how they get it done though, if Lamoriello wants to add to his team, he needs to find a way to add some cap space first.

Extension Talks

Lamoriello is known to like to use the leverage when he has it which resulted in both Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov signing below-market contracts back in 2022.  They’ve benefited from that the last two seasons and will again in 2024-25 but they’ll have to pay the piper after that as both players will be restricted free agents with arbitration eligibility next summer.  With the way both have progressed, it might make sense for the Isles to look into potentially extending one or both players this summer.

Dobson’s is the more prominent case.  After narrowly missing out on the 50-point mark for the second straight year in 2022-23, the 24-year-old blew past that and then some, putting up 70 points in 79 games.  Perhaps more importantly, he grabbed hold of the number one spot on the depth chart and ran with it, logging over 24 minutes a night.  He has established himself as a legitimate top-pairing defender at a minimum and with another year or two like this one, he could become a true number one blueliner.

These are the types of players that are extremely hard to come by, particularly right-shot defenders.  Accordingly, messing around and trying to low-ball in negotiations probably won’t fly so expect New York to put their best foot forward pretty quickly.  His current salary and AAV is $4MM and it’s safe to say that his next deal will at least double that and likely more.  If they wait on doing this now and Dobson has another big year, it’s possible that he could surpass Mathew Barzal’s $9.15MM AAV to become the most expensive player on the team.

Romanov won’t be getting anywhere near that level but he has become an important part of their top four after being acquired at the 2022 draft from Montreal.  He doesn’t have the offense to command top dollar like Dobson will but as someone who logs around 20 minutes a night, kills penalties, and brings a physical edge to the table, he’ll still be well-positioned for a fair-sized raise on his current $2.5MM AAV and should be in the $4MM range on his next contract.  This is a case where there isn’t as much risk in waiting as there might be with Dobson but it wouldn’t be surprising to see Lamoriello try to get this one done early as well.

Add Scoring Help

Scoring goals has been an issue for the Islanders in recent years.  The last time they were better than 20th in goals was back in 2017-18 and their roster as currently constructed doesn’t have a lot of firepower outside their top six.  (And if Palmieri ends up being the cap casualty, they’ll lose another scoring threat.)  Finding a way to add to that will be critical.

They’re hoping that Maxim Tsyplakov will help somewhat on that front after a 31-goal breakout year in the KHL that saw him get interest from at least a dozen teams before signing with New York.  But asking him to step in and play in the top six right away would be putting a lot of pressure on him.  Playing in the bottom six and ideally shoring up the offensive potential of that group would certainly help, however.

But that’s probably a small improvement at most.  A legitimate top-six option is needed to give this group enough firepower to have a chance to stay in the playoff mix next season.  If they’re confident they can extend Brock Nelson (who’s also extension-eligible this summer) which would allow them to keep Barzal on the wing, they wouldn’t necessarily have to look at options down the middle which is ideal since the depth on the wing in this free agent class is better than the center group.

But again, with barely $6MM in cap space, that can easily be spent on one impactful player on the open market without doing anything about filling out the rest of their roster.  Accordingly, they’ll have to get creative to add the scoring depth they need.

Shore Up Defensive Depth

This was a tough year for the Islanders from an injury perspective, especially when it came to their back end.  Ryan Pulock, Adam Pelech, and Scott Mayfield (three of their top five blueliners) all missed at least 24 games due to injuries which put their defensive depth to the test.  After some early struggles, Lamoriello added veterans Robert Bortuzzo and Mike Reilly to try to stabilize things, moves that worked out relatively well considering the low acquisition price.

However, their depth is about to get thinned out.  Both Bortuzzo and Reilly are set to become unrestricted free agents this summer as are Sebastian Aho and Robin Salo (who has seen NHL action in two of the last three years).

It’s possible that Reilly returns if he’s willing to sign for around the $1MM he made this season.  Aho has earned a raise from the $825K he made for the past two years which could price his way out of what the Isles can afford to pay a seventh defender.  In the minors, Salo joins Paul LaDue as veterans on expiring deals so work needs to be done there as well.

Lamoriello might need to sign three or four blueliners in the coming weeks to ensure he has sufficient depth in case injuries strike once again.  As a result, expect to see several blueliners added early in free agency or on the trade front in the coming weeks.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Senators Undecided On Qualifying Erik Brannstrom

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Back in 2019, the Senators thought they were adding a core piece of the future when they picked up defenseman Erik Brannstrom from Vegas as part of the Mark Stone trade.  While he has worked his way into a regular role, he hasn’t been anywhere near as impactful as they were hoping for.

With the team looking to shake things up in Steve Staios’ first summer as GM, it appears as if Brannstrom is one of the players whose future with the team is in some question.  Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that the Sens aren’t sure if they will tender him his required qualifying offer this summer.

It’s a similar situation to the one they found themselves in a year ago, albeit with a higher price tag this time around.  At that time, the qualifying offer was tendered with an agreement pretty much done in principle, finalized on July 1st with a contract that more than doubled his salary to $2MM for 2023-24.  That figure is now the qualifying offer while he will have arbitration rights as well.

Brannstrom played in a career-best 76 games this season, picking up three goals and 17 assists.  He was primarily limited to playing on the third pairing while interim head coach Jacques Martin elected to deploy him as a winger on the fourth line briefly as well.  Those numbers alone might not look great for arbitration purposes but with 69 points in 266 career NHL contests, the longer track record would bolster his case in a hearing.

At the moment, Ottawa already has over $27MM committed to six defensemen for next season, per CapFriendly, with Jake Sanderson’s new contract kicking in this summer.  Should they be allocating at least another $2MM (and likely more to avoid a hearing) to that position or would they be better off using that money elsewhere?  Having said that, if they elect to move a blueliner – Jakob Chychrun has been in trade speculation dating back to the trade deadline – then it might be more justifiable to try to give Brannstrom one more chance.

As things stand, they have a little over $12MM in room for next season with a handful of roster spots to fill.  Pending RFA center Shane Pinto figures to take a good chunk of that so if Staios wants to try to add an impact piece to his roster, it would be difficult to do so and keep Brannstrom on the roster without making some sort of other change first.  Accordingly, this is a decision that could come down to the wire on the June 30th qualifying offer deadline.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

International Rumors: Ouellet, Heatherington, Lethemon

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Defenseman Xavier Ouellet has played 178 career NHL games so far along with 441 career appearances in the AHL.  However, it appears that he won’t be adding to those totals next season as Belarus Hockey relays that the blueliner is expected to sign with Dinamo Minsk of the KHL.  The 30-year-old was a full-time NHLer for a couple of years with Detroit but since then, he has primarily played in the minors.  Ouellet inked a two-year deal with the Penguins in 2022 and was expected to be a key veteran with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton while being a capable recall when injuries arose.  However, injuries limited the pending unrestricted free agent considerably in 2022-23 and while he was healthier this season, he didn’t get a recall to Pittsburgh and wound up posting two goals and 23 assists in 63 minor league appearances.

Other international rumblings pertaining to pending free agents:

  • The Senators have already lost Lassi Thomson and Jacob Larsson to overseas contracts and a third blueliner might be joining them as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that Dillon Heatherington is examining his international options. The 29-year-old played in a dozen games with Ottawa between 2021-22 and 2022-23 but didn’t see any NHL action this season.  Instead, Heatherington skated in 60 games with AHL Belleville and was briefly loaned out to play for Canada at the Spengler Cup back in December.
  • Red Wings pending UFA John Lethemon is expected to sign with Lukko in Finland, per a report from Satakunnan Kansa’s Kimmo Makelainen. The 27-year-old netminder has spent the last two years on an NHL deal with Detroit but has primarily played at the ECHL level in that span.  This season, Lethemon had a 2.90 GAA and a .892 SV% in 37 games with Toledo although he improved those to 2.46 and .899 respectively in nine playoff contests.  An NHL two-way deal likely wasn’t going to be on the table for Lethemon this summer so going overseas, assuming the contract gets finalized, makes some sense.

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