Five Key Stories: 2/19/24 – 2/25/24
While the trade deadline is now less than two weeks away, activity around the NHL was quite limited over the past seven days. Nevertheless, there was still some news of note which is recapped in our key stories.
Brodzinski Gets Rewarded: One of the nice feel-good stories of the season has been Rangers center Jonny Brodzinski. The 30-year-old had ranged from being a full-time minor leaguer to a serviceable recall option in his first eight professional years and even started this season in the minors. Since being recalled in late November, however, Brodzinski has been a regular in New York’s lineup and he was rewarded for his efforts with a two-year, $1.575MM one-way extension. Only one of his contract years before this one saw him receive a one-way salary so this gives Brodzinski some much-desired job and financial security while the Rangers get a good cap hit for a bottom-six forward.
Vegas Injuries: The Golden Knights had some good and bad news on the injury front. First, they got defenseman Shea Theodore back as he was activated off LTIR after missing nearly three months with an upper-body injury. The 28-year-old has put up five assists since returning to bring him up to the point-per-game mark on the season. However, it wasn’t all good news as winger Mark Stone has landed on IR due to what has been reported as a lacerated spleen and is set to be out for a while. The captain leads Vegas in scoring with 53 points in 56 games so his loss is a significant one. It will need to be determined if he’ll be able to return before the regular season ends. If not, he can go on LTIR, freeing up $9.5MM in extra spending flexibility for the Golden Knights.
Four For Rasmussen: Red Wings center Michael Rasmussen has worked his way into becoming a capable secondary contributor and he was rewarded for his efforts as Detroit signed him to a four-year, $12.8MM contract extension. The deal comes in a little less than double what his qualifying offer would have been ($1.752MM) while giving the Red Wings two extra years of club control. The 24-year-old was the ninth overall pick back in 2017 and while he hasn’t emerged as a top contributor that his draft slot might suggest, he has become a capable two-way player who can play both center and the wing. This price point for that type of versatile middle-six option is decent value for the Red Wings. Detroit still has two prominent RFAs to re-sign this summer, winger Lucas Raymond and defenseman Moritz Seider.
Fleury Doesn’t Want To Move: The future of Wild goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury has been speculated about in recent weeks with Minnesota struggling until late in the standings; would he want another chance at a possible Stanley Cup run? However, the 39-year-old has indicated that his preference is to stay with the Wild and try to help them make the postseason. Fleury is on an expiring contract and could be of interest to a few contenders for a depth role but with a full no-move clause, he controls his short-term future. If Fleury ultimately chooses to stay, that will take one goaltending option off the market before the March 8th trade deadline.
Houston Looking For NHL Team: Tilman Fertitta, owner of the NBA’s Houston Rockets, revealed that he is in talks with the NHL about adding a team in Houston. The market already has NBA, NFL, MLB, and MLS franchises since at least 2005 but is big enough that another prominent sports team should still work. The Toyota Center (where the Rockets play) recently underwent renovations that would make it suitable should the city get an NHL franchise. Fertitta noted that he has had talks with the NHL since 2017 but that those discussions have picked up lately. With the future of the Coyotes looking uncertain, Houston could join Salt Lake City as a possible spot for relocation if their latest arena plans fall apart.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Trade Deadline Primer: Pittsburgh Penguins
With the All-Star break in the rearview, the trade deadline looms large and is now less than two weeks away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
When new Penguins GM Kyle Dubas traded for Erik Karlsson over the summer, it looked as if Pittsburgh was aiming to take another crack at a long playoff run. However, things haven’t gone according to plan as they find themselves outside the playoff picture at the moment although they do have enough games in hand to get right back into the mix. Accordingly, they’re a team whose decision on buying or selling could come right down to the last minute.
Record
26-21-8, 6th in the Metropolitan
Deadline Status
Light Buyer or Reluctant Seller
Deadline Cap Space
$4.5MM of LTIR space on deadline day, 1/3 retention slots used, 48/50 contracts used, per CapFriendly.
Upcoming Draft Picks
2024: PIT 2nd, PIT 4th, PIT 6th, NYR 7th, PIT 7th
2025: PIT 1st*, PIT 3rd, PIT 4th, PIT 5th, PIT 6th, PIT 7th
*-If Pittsburgh’s first-round pick this season lands in the top ten, the Penguins have the option to keep it and send San Jose an unprotected 2025 first-round selection as part of the Karlsson trade.
Trade Chips
If the Penguins become sellers, the top chip they have to play is winger Jake Guentzel who could very well be the top forward that moves in the next week and a half. What doesn’t help their cause, however, is that he’s currently on LTIR with an upper-body injury although he’s at least expected back soon after the minimum required absence of 10 games and 24 days. Guentzel sits second on the team in scoring with 52 points in 50 games so far and is the type of top-line addition that doesn’t become available too often at the deadline. On an expiring $6MM contract, the 29-year-old will be eyeing a significant raise on a long-term (or even max-term) agreement; wherever he is after the deadline passes will be the only team that can give him an eighth year directly without needing a sign-and-trade. Worth noting, it’s his LTIR placement that covers all of their current cap space at the moment; Pittsburgh will be quite tight to the Upper Limit when he’s activated.
[Related: Poll: Which Team Will Trade For Jake Guentzel?]
Whether they buy or sell, goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic could attract some interest. The 28-year-old has had a nice bounce-back year after spending a lot of last season in the minors and a 2.67 GAA and a .915 SV% along with a $1.5MM price tag could be appealing for teams looking to upgrade their second-string netminder. If the Penguins are comfortable with veteran Magnus Hellberg as their backup, that would give them a bit of extra spending room ($615K pro-rated).
Buyers are always looking for depth down the middle and while Pittsburgh doesn’t have any viable rental options (Jeff Carter likely isn’t moving with a full no-move clause and a $3.125MM price tag), Lars Eller and Noel Acciari are non-rental veterans who would attract some interest. Both moved at last year’s deadline and had some success with their new teams so they’ve demonstrated they can come in late and still contribute. Eller has one year left after this at $2.45MM while Acciari has two more at $2MM per, price tags that shouldn’t be overly prohibitive for some buyers.
If they wind up being light buyers, prospect Samuel Poulin is someone who stands out as a prospect teams might inquire about. The 23-year-old is wrapping up his entry-level deal this season and is having a good year although he’s currently out with an injury. Waiver-eligible next year, there should be some teams that want to take a look at him at the NHL level that might move someone who could help Pittsburgh’s playoff push.
Other Potential Trade Chips: F Joona Koppanen, D Chad Ruhwedel, D Dmitri Samorukov, D Ty Smith
Team Needs
1) Youth – This one comes directly from Dubas who noted earlier this week that he’d like to see this team get younger. Considering they have the oldest average age in the NHL at 31.3, he’s not wrong about that. With a core group that’s considerably older than the average, getting younger won’t be an easy task or a short-term one but they can start it here by moving out a couple of veterans if they sell and either give the likes of Poulin a chance or acquire a youngster in a trade and get them on the NHL roster. It won’t move the needle much but they need to start somewhere if they’re going to sell.
2) Secondary Scoring – Let’s flip the strategy and look at them as a buyer now in case they go on a bit of a run in the next few games and decide to try to add to their core. Going into today’s action, the Penguins ranked 27th in the league in goals scored. That has largely negated the value of being one of the stingiest defenses in the NHL; even with their scoring struggles, they have the third-best goal differential in the division. Getting Guentzel back would help but if they could find a way to add a top-six winger (or, failing that, a good third-line piece), that might be worth an extra win or two which might be the difference between making and missing the postseason.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
PHR Mailbag: Central Division Edition
There were plenty of Central Division questions for the mailbag so we’ll give that division the focus here. The rest of the questions will be split into two more segments to run between now and next weekend.
Gmm8811: Thoughts on Doug Armstrong being a buyer or seller before the trade deadline? I don’t think he really has anything to offer that would be of interest to other teams. Scandella, Vrana, and Kapanen could probably be had for a minimal return. I’m also not opposed to Perunovich or Saad being moved. Any type of minor league assets or reserve list players would be acceptable. I don’t think the Blues will make the playoffs this year, so maybe a few tweaks to increase the depth might be useful for next year.
St. Louis is right in the think of the Wild Card race and unless they lose every game between now and the deadline, they’ll probably be right in the race on deadline day. Having said that, this is not a team that anyone is going to call a contender so going big on adding doesn’t make sense. And while they might want to sell, they don’t have much when it comes to rental players to move.
Marco Scandella might get a late-round pick with max retention. Kasperi Kapanen might as well since he can kill penalties which gives him some fourth-line utility in the playoffs. I’m not sure there’s a market for Jakub Vrana though. One rental you didn’t mention was Sammy Blais. I know he’s having a rough year but he’s a fourth liner who can hold his own at five-on-five and provide a lot of physicality. Teams will be looking to add that and at $1MM, he’s on a contract most teams can afford. Of the pending UFAs, he might have the most value. I don’t think the return for Scott Perunovich would be high enough to justify moving him so I think he stays put.
Brandon Saad might be a tough sell with two more years left at $4.5MM. He’s not on a bad contract but that’s a tough one for teams to fit in and St. Louis isn’t going to want to retain on him. Unless it’s a player-for-player move, I suspect he stays put. Pavel Buchnevich will be the big fish if Armstrong decides to sell and aim for missing the playoffs next year. At $5.8MM, he’s pricey but he’s the type of impact top-six addition that is in short supply and high demand.
Money will be tight for St. Louis once Justin Faulk comes off LTIR so they’re in a spot where if they want to add, they also need to subtract. It wouldn’t shock me if they moved Scandella with retention for a pick and then flipped that pick or one close to it elsewhere to maintain their depth so that if they do make the playoffs, they’ll have some options.
WilfPaiement: Marc-Andre Fleury was clobbered again on Tuesday night against Winnipeg and yet we keep hearing that a few likely playoff teams are showing interest. My question is who? And why? Fleury is toast and he won’t make any team better in the playoffs!!!!
I don’t think teams are necessarily showing interest in Fleury as someone they’d want to use a whole lot in the postseason. But here’s a player who has several long playoff games under his belt (with three Stanley Cups), has plenty of postseason playing experience, and is known for being good in the room. If I’m looking to add a piece that can either be an upgrade on my current backup or someone who can handle some extra games down the stretch and be an off-ice contributor as well, Fleury makes some sense.
Is that a particularly exciting profile of a player? Not really. Would Minnesota get a lot for him? Probably not. But if a team has a bit of money left or a need to try to do something between the pipes but doesn’t want to pay a high price, there’s a fit with Fleury. Colorado makes some sense if they’re just looking for a stopgap backup upgrade but some work would need to be done to make the money work.
However, would Fleury want to go somewhere to be the designated bench door opener for the postseason? There’s a lot of speculation that if that’s the role that a contender is envisioning for him, he might just opt to remain with his family in Minnesota and play out the season; it’s not as if they’re out of the playoff hunt by any stretch. Teams know they’re not getting the Fleury of a decade ago but there’s a small set of circumstances where he might be the right fit if he’s willing to accept that role. At this point, it doesn’t seem as if that will be the case.
wsendall: Any chance Arizona would listen to offers on Clayton Keller? He has a full no-trade that kicks in next year and Arizona still seems like they’re several years away and has tons of organizational uncertainty. He’s already asked some questions about the team’s direction and the possibility of having a frustrated star player in a year or two with a full no-trade wouldn’t be ideal. It would take a king’s ransom, but his value may never be higher prior to his no-trade kicking in.
I don’t think the Coyotes are at a point where they can unilaterally not listen to offers for anyone but I doubt GM Bill Armstrong has any inclination about dealing Keller away. At 25, he’s the right age to be a ‘veteran’ in this rebuild and at $7.15MM through 2027-28, he’s at a pretty good price point for someone who’s near a point per game. You’re absolutely correct that it would need to be a king’s ransom for it to even be considered but those types of deals are usually easier to make in the summer than at this point of the season.
Keller may justifiably have some questions about the state of this long-term rebuild. However, I think the worst of it is over and it might very well be this offseason where the switch flips and Armstrong gets aggressive using his draft capital to try to add some core pieces, similar to the Sean Durzi acquisition last summer. If that happens and they’re in the thick of the Wild Card race next season – not an unrealistic goal to set given where they are – then I expect some of that frustration might dissipate as he sees the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. I expect Keller sticks around for the long haul and certainly through the next two weeks.
DevilShark: What do you think Saros would cost? Both trade value and his next contract. Which teams can feasibly afford both?
Goalies are so hard to figure out on the trade value front. I’d like to think Nashville could get a first-round pick and a quality young player for Saros since he has another year left at a team-friendly $5MM. They probably would have to take back a salary or two as well which could theoretically then be flipped if need be. That’s a lot for a netminder especially relative to some of the past deals for goalies but Saros is a top-end one so the return should be high.
Extension-wise, I’d have to think he’d look at Connor Hellebuyck’s seven-year, $59.5MM extension as a target. Granted, he doesn’t have quite the accolades that Hellebuyck does but he’s also a little younger so there is a bit less risk when you look at it that way. I don’t think he gets quite to an $8.5MM AAV but it could check in close to that unless next season resembles this one numbers-wise. In that scenario, the next deal would start with a seven.
As for who could afford both, that’s a tough one. I think New Jersey could although they’d need to move out Vitek Vanecek to make the money work for next year. Buffalo can afford both but if they’re confident that Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Devon Levi can be a winning tandem down the road, they don’t necessarily have the need to make a move like this. If Detroit isn’t sold on Sebastian Cossa’s upside, they’d be an under-the-radar team that could afford to make that type of trade and they have the cap space that they could carry Ville Husso as a very expensive backup for a year.
I’d like to put Ottawa on this list as they’ve been trying everything they can to put together a quality goalie tandem short of actually acquiring a proven netminder. In my mind, Saros could be a real difference-maker for them and they certainly have the prospect capital (or even some younger roster players) to make a move. But they can’t make the money work this season unless they move out Joonas Korpisalo and with his contract and performance, that’s not likely happening. Basically, there’s a reason the Devils have been the speculative fit for Saros as they might be the only realistic team that could add him now and have the ability to extend him later.
Central Notes: Vejmelka, Blackhawks, Landeskog, Jankowski
Coyotes goaltender Karel Vejmelka’s name has come up in trade speculation in each of the last two trade deadlines. It doesn’t appear as if that will be the case this time around as Pierre LeBrun wrote in his latest column for The Athletic (subscription link) that Arizona GM Bill Armstrong doesn’t intend to break up his current tandem of Vejmelka and Connor Ingram. Their netminders have played to a combined .902 SV% this season, a number that’s around the league average which isn’t bad for a rebuilding team. However, Vejmelka’s rate is a career-low .891 so even if Armstrong was looking to move him, Vejmelka’s value wouldn’t be at its highest.
More from the Central Division:
- With the Blackhawks locking up most of their notable pending UFAs to extensions already, Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times posits that their cap space might be their best asset before the March 8th trade deadline. Doing so could allow them to act as a third-party retainer to pick up an extra draft pick while they could also take on a bad contract as they did last season with Nikita Zaitsev to also add draft capital. However, Pope notes that Chicago won’t be willing to take on a contract that runs past next season, similar to Zaitsev last season with his contract set to expire this summer.
- Avalanche winger Gabriel Landeskog has become a regular participant in team skates as he works his way back from a knee cartilage transplant procedure back in January, The Athletic’s Chris Johnston noted on the latest TSN Insider Trading segment. The 31-year-old last played in June 2022 but a return at some point in the playoffs this season hasn’t been ruled out yet. If the team feels that there’s a good chance that he’ll be able to suit up in the postseason, that could affect their trade deadline approach.
- A day after being sent down, Mark Jankowski is back up with the Predators, per the AHL’s transactions log. The 29-year-old is one of the top scorers in the minors this season, notching 47 points in 40 games with Milwaukee while also chipping in with a pair of goals in seven games with Nashville while averaging a little less than 12 minutes a night of playing time.
Kings Place Viktor Arvidsson On LTIR, Recall Jordan Spence
It was less than two weeks ago that the Kings got Viktor Arvidsson back from his back injury. However, after already returning to injured reserve recently, the team has gone a step further, announcing that they’ve transferred him to LTIR for the second time this season. Meanwhile, the Kings also recalled defenseman Jordan Spence from AHL Ontario.
Arvidsson missed the first four months of the season before returning to the lineup on February 15th. The 30-year-old picked up two assists in his first three games but then suffered a lower-body injury on his first shift on Tuesday versus Columbus. The good news is that this injury won’t carry as long of a recovery time as the first one did as he is expected to be back before the end of the regular season. Assuming that the placement was back-dated to the time of injury (their release didn’t specify the effective date), Arvidsson could be eligible to return as soon as March 15th against Chicago.
As for Spence, his recall was needed due to Michael Anderson suffering an upper-body injury on Thursday versus Nashville. The exact timeline for his recovery isn’t known but he has been ruled out for tonight’s game against Anaheim already. That would have put the Kings down to five defenders and they had nowhere near enough cap space to bring Spence up, resulting in them needing to transfer Arvidsson to LTIR to create the short-term cap room.
It’s the fourth recall of the season for Spence, who has spent the majority of the campaign in the NHL. The 22-year-old has played in 44 games so far with Los Angeles, collecting 16 points (all assists) while averaging just shy of 15 minutes a night on the third pairing. Spence has made just one AHL appearance with the Reign which was one Wednesday; he was held out of Ontario’s lineup on Friday with his recall pending.
Maple Leafs Assign Marshall Rifai To AHL
After making his NHL debut earlier this week with a pair of appearances, the Maple Leafs announced (Twitter link) that they have re-assigned defenseman Marshall Rifai to AHL Toronto.
The 25-year-old was brought up earlier in the week to give the Maple Leafs a bit of extra depth on the back end and suited up twice where he had four hits and averaged a little under 12 minutes per contest. Rifai, who is on his first NHL contract after playing on an AHL deal last year, has spent most of the season with the Marlies where he has 11 points and 38 penalty minutes in 34 games.
William Lagesson (injury) and Morgan Rielly (suspension) both returned to Toronto’s lineup on Thursday which pushed Rifai back to the press box. Mark Giordano has also been away from the team for a little more than a week following the death of his father; the timing of this assignment suggests he might be ready to return.
Toronto now has an open roster spot which is notable with Joseph Woll’s LTI conditioning loan set to expire in a few days. With Rifai’s demotion, they could elect to carry three goalies upon Woll’s recall and activation to avoid the risk of having to place Martin Jones on waivers who might be more likely to be claimed this time around.
Lightning Recall Max Crozier, Assign Alex Barre-Boulet To AHL
The Lightning made a pair of roster moves in advance of their game this afternoon against the Islanders, announcing they’ve recalled defenseman Max Crozier from AHL Syracuse. To make room on the roster, winger Alex Barre-Boulet was sent to the Crunch.
Crozier has played in seven games for Tampa Bay this season, all coming last month. The 23-year-old has a pair of assists in those outings along with ten hits and ten blocks while averaging 14:30 per night in his first taste of NHL action. Crozier also has played in 32 games with Syracuse, collecting a goal and seven assists. His recall is likely a precautionary one with Erik Cernak’s status being uncertain for this game having missed Thursday’s contest.
As for Barre-Boulet, his demotion shouldn’t come as much of a surprise after he cleared waivers on Friday. The 26-year-old has six goals and three assists in 36 games with the Lightning so far and has yet to see any action in the minors despite also clearing waivers at the beginning of the season. Barre-Boulet finished second in AHL scoring last season with 84 points in 69 games and will be a big boost to a Syracuse team that enters play today four points out of first in the North Division.
Rangers Have Shown Interest In Alexander Wennberg
With Filip Chytil (concussion) out for the season and on LTIR, there has been plenty of speculation that the Rangers would look to make a move to add to their center depth heading into the playoffs. It appears they’re looking to do just that as Larry Brooks of the New York Post reported earlier this week that the team has shown some interest in Kraken middleman Alexander Wennberg.
The 29-year-old is in the third and final season of a contract that carries a $4.5MM AAV. Considering he’ll be an unrestricted free agent in the summer, he’d fit New York’s plans of a short-term addition while keeping their cap space open if Chytil can return as planned next season.
Wennberg has recorded eight goals and 14 assists so far this season in 56 games, a level of production that is slightly below his first two seasons with Seattle. However, Wennberg isn’t known for being a true offensive threat but rather more of a two-way secondary option. He’s a frequent member of their top penalty killing unit which could help what is already a strong Ranger penalty kill that sits sixth in success rate heading into tonight’s action.
Of course, it’s worth remembering that the rental center market is quite thinned out following the trades of Elias Lindholm and Sean Monahan so this will be a case where more teams are looking for one than there are rental centers available. That means the cost for Wennberg’s services could be relatively high should Seattle opt to sell closer to the trade deadline; as they’re three points out of the last Wild Card, there’s no guarantee GM Ron Francis will move out his rentals.
At the moment, the Rangers have a little under $4.4MM in full-season LTIR space, per CapFriendly. While they could add a bit more to that by sending a player down which would then free up enough space for Wennberg, it stands to reason that New York – or pretty much any interested team – would want the Kraken to retain up to the maximum 50% of that. Of course, that should only increase the asking price from Seattle’s end.
The trade deadline is now just two weeks away so teams still have a bit of time to decide what direction they’re going to go from a buyer and seller perspective. It’s safe to say that the Rangers and several other teams will be keeping an eye on Seattle to see if they make Wennberg or any of their other expiring veterans (including Jordan Eberle, Tomas Tatar, and Justin Schultz) available. If they don’t sell, that thin center market is going to get a whole lot thinner.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
East Notes: Tarasenko, Tomek, Bruins
With the Senators being nowhere close to a playoff spot, pending UFA winger Vladimir Tarasenko sits atop their list of trade chips. However, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch notes that there is some talk that the 32-year-old might prefer to finish the year in Ottawa. Tarasenko can control his fate as he has a full no-move clause. Sticking with them might allow Tarasenko to play a bit higher in the lineup which certainly doesn’t hurt from a negotiating perspective but at the same time, the potential to go deep in the playoffs and contribute could also help his case for securing a multi-year deal on the open market, something he wasn’t able to do last July, instead settling for a one-year, $5MM pact.
Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference:
- Flyers goalie prospect Matej Tomek has signed a one-year extension with Litvinov of the Czech Extraliga, per a team release. The 26-year-old was a third-round pick (90th overall) back in 2015 but struggled in limited college action, resulting in him heading back overseas in 2019. Since then, Tomek has spent time in both Slovakia and Czechia. This season, he has a 3.00 GAA and a .911 SV% in 31 games with Litvinov. The Flyers hold his rights indefinitely so this extension won’t have any impact on that front.
- A day after recalling defenseman Ian Mitchell and assigning Justin Brazeau to the minors, the Bruins reversed those moves, per the AHL’s transactions log. Brazeau scored in his NHL debut back on Monday after his AHL deal was converted to a two-year NHL pact. Mitchell, meanwhile, has been shuffled back and forth several times this season. He has two assists in 13 NHL games so far while adding 14 points in 22 games with Providence.
Trade Deadline Primer: Ottawa Senators
With the All-Star break in the rearview, the trade deadline looms large and is now just two weeks away. Where does each team stand, and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the Ottawa Senators.
This season has not gone according to plan for the Sens. A popular pick to push for a playoff spot, they have instead languished for most of the year and find themselves at the basement of the Atlantic Division even after a coaching and GM change. Despite that, there is still a capable young core to try to build around so GM Steve Staios might not necessarily operate as a true seller in his first trade deadline at the helm.
Record
24-27-3, 8th in the Atlantic
Deadline Status
Seller and Light Buyer
Deadline Cap Space
$109.9K on deadline day, 1/3 retention slots used, 47/50 contracts used, per CapFriendly.
Upcoming Draft Picks
2024: BOS/DET 1st* OTT 1st^, OTT 2nd, DET 4th, OTT 4th, TB 4th, OTT 5th, OTT 6th
2025: OTT 1st^, OTT 2nd, OTT 3rd, OTT 4th, OTT 5th, OTT 6th, OTT 7th
*-Ottawa will receive the lowest of Boston and Detroit’s first-round picks as part of the Alex DeBrincat trade.
^-Ottawa must forfeit its own first-round pick in either 2024, 2025, or 2026 as punishment for failure to disclose Evgenii Dadonov’s no-trade list in a voided 2022 trade.
Trade Chips
From the moment that they signed Vladimir Tarasenko to a one-year, $5MM contract, speculation began regarding a possible trade if Ottawa found itself out of the playoff race as it clearly is. After being one of the prizes of the deadline a year ago, he could be a key pickup again for someone this time around as he has 37 points in 52 games so far. However, he does have a full no-move clause so he can control where he goes and he has recently changed agents. The Sens are believed to value his off-ice contributions with their young core group so it’s not a guarantee that he moves. If he does, Ottawa will likely need to retain the maximum 50% of his contract to maximize their return, one that should get them a fairly high draft pick.
The Senators added Dominik Kubalik from Detroit as part of the DeBrincat trade but he has struggled. After putting up 20 goals and 45 points last season, he has been limited to just nine tallies and a dozen points overall. At a $2.5MM price tag, the Sens likely won’t be able to get much for him but he could be a buy-low candidate with a bit of upside for a team looking for depth.
On the non-rental side, Jakob Chychrun’s name has come up in plenty of speculation as well. The Senators have made it clear that they’re not shopping him but with the 25-year-old having another year of team control at an affordable $4.6MM, they’re going to get plenty of calls. Chychrun has 30 points so far, the second-most of his career while he’s averaging nearly 23 minutes a night. If a team strikes out on landing Calgary’s Noah Hanifin, Chychrun could very well be a fallback plan although the price to get him should be high; it’s not out of the realm of possibility that they match the return they gave up for him a year ago (a first-round pick and two second-rounders).
Another non-rental option is blueliner Erik Brannstrom. While he’s on an expiring contract, he’s controllable through restricted free agency through the 2026-27 campaign. An offensive defenseman at the lower levels, Brannstrom has failed to make a significant impact on that front, notching just 12 in 48 games so far while he’s averaging just 15:43 per game. Owed a $2MM qualifying offer, it feels like he’s trending toward non-tender territory if he stays in Ottawa so he’d be a potential buy-low candidate if a team wants to take an early look to see if he’d fit better in another system.
Other Potential Trade Chips: F Mathieu Joseph, F Mark Kastelic, F Jiri Smejkal, D Lassi Thomson
Team Needs
1) Cap Space – If Ottawa wants to try to add a piece, they need to free up cap room. If they need to call up a player for the stretch run, they need cap room. Basically, the Sens need to move out someone first to give themselves some much-needed flexibility before they can attempt to do much of anything else.
2) Veteran Leadership – This has been a long-reported goal since Staios took over for former GM Pierre Dorion. While the Senators have some veterans including Claude Giroux and Travis Hamonic, this is still a fairly young core for the most part. They believe that bringing in the right veteran piece or two could help this team take a step forward. They’re known to have interest in Chris Tanev as the type of veteran addition they want for the back end but that would make more sense for an offseason move than an in-season one. But if they can find a bottom-six forward that fits the bill, it wouldn’t be shocking to see them try to add that piece now.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.