Predators Unsure Of Deadline Plans
After making the playoffs a year ago, the Predators added a pair of key veterans in Ryan McDonagh and Nino Niederreiter in the hopes of trying to take another step forward. However, they’ve gone in the wrong direction and find themselves three points out of a playoff spot heading into tonight’s action. Speaking with Paul Skrbina of The Tennessean (subscription link), GM David Poile acknowledged that while he wants to do something, the lack of success in the playoffs gives him some pause so he’s not sure what his plan is yet leading into the trade deadline:
In the last few years we’ve been in the middle, been making the playoffs. But we have not been able to be successful in the playoffs, (which) causes me pause in terms of where the team is headed, where we should go. This next month before the trading deadline is critical to our thinking and in our planning.
We’ve been here for a few years, so I’d like to get out of that in some form or fashion. That means doing something. Does that mean buy more? Does that mean taking a step back? I don’t know the answer to that yet. That’s what we work on, think about every day.
If Nashville decides to sell, they don’t have much in the way of expiring contracts which is typically the currency at this time of the season; their most prominent pending UFA is goaltender Kevin Lankinen. Next up would be depth winger Cole Smith. Neither player is going to garner much of a return if any. Pending RFA defenseman Dante Fabbro has been a speculative trade candidate dating back to last season but he’s in the midst of a down year and is averaging just over 16 minutes per night; if they move him now, they’d be doing so at a low point in his value.
While they in theory could turn around and do a bigger selloff, Poile ruled out that course of action. Plus, this isn’t typically the right time to move out players with pricey contracts and long-term commitments.
Speaking of those commitments, with nearly $70MM on the books for next season already per CapFriendly, there’s not much room to add aside from rentals if Poile wanted to try to bolster his roster to make a late push at a playoff spot. That said, it’s fair to wonder if a non-playoff team should be adding rental players; that’s generally not a wise course of action to take.
If they sell, they don’t have much to work with in terms of typical trade deadline currency. If they buy, they’re going to be more or less limited to short-term rentals with no guarantee that they can get back into the mix. Either way, the Preds don’t appear to be in an ideal situation with the deadline now just five weeks away.
Rangers Searching For Defensive Depth Upgrade
Although the Rangers gave blueliner Ben Harpur a vote of confidence with a two-year, $1.575MM contract extension earlier this week (a nice outcome for someone who started the year on an AHL tryout), it shouldn’t automatically be construed that he is in the plans for their upcoming playoff push. To that end, Larry Brooks of the New York Post reports that GM Chris Drury is believed to be looking for an upgrade on Harpur on the third pairing alongside Braden Schneider.
New York has had a trio of defenders in that role this season with largely middling results. Zachary Jones had the first opportunity over the first seven weeks of the year but the team decided he was better served by playing big minutes with AHL Hartford. Libor Hajek continues to be stuck in the undesirable situation of not being deemed good enough to play regularly but is too good to risk losing for nothing on waivers. The end result has once again been frequent healthy scratches.
Harpur has had the bulk of the opportunities lately but hasn’t stood out himself although he at least has provided a bit of consistency defensively. Even so, he has just 14 career playoff games under his belt over his first six NHL seasons and as he’s averaging less than 14 minutes a night, it’s understandable that they’d want someone capable of doing a bit more. All told, those three have combined for three goals and four assists across 51 games so it’s definitely a position that could stand to be improved upon.
The Rangers are one of the few buyers that are poised to have considerable cap flexibility heading into the March 3rd trade deadline with CapFriendly pegging their spending room at just over $6.78MM in full-season salary. Between that and the potential for a trading team to retain salary, that’s more than enough space to make a splash up front as expected and then improve a depth spot or two. And while impact defenders don’t often go at the deadline, moves to shore up defensive depth are quite commonplace.
With more than $67MM in commitments for next season already and a few key young players heading for restricted free agency (headlined by blueliner K’Andre Miller, center Filip Chytil, and winger Alexis Lafreniere), it’s unlikely that Drury would want to add someone signed beyond this season. Fortunately, there should be several left-shot depth defenders on expiring contracts from teams that will be selling. It’s a bit early yet to determine who all those sellers will be but Drury will have multiple teams and players to choose from when the time comes to find an upgrade on Harpur.
East Notes: Talbot, Brodie, Murray, Wilson
It’s not shaping up to be a particularly strong trade market for veteran goaltenders but Postmedia’s Ken Warren posits that Senators netminder Cam Talbot could be in play, suggesting the possibility of the veteran re-signing seems less likely now than just a few weeks ago. The 35-year-old – who has already been ruled out of the next two games – has a 2.90 GAA and a .905 SV% in 28 games with Ottawa this season, numbers that are close to league average. While it would likely take some retention on his $3.667MM AAV, the pending unrestricted free agent could certainly serve as an upgrade on the second-string option for several contenders and essentially keep Talbot in the role that he was acquired to fill for the Sens this season.
Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference:
- The Maple Leafs could get a key defenseman back in the lineup tomorrow against Washington as TSN’s Mark Masters relays (Twitter link) that T.J. Brodie is planning to suit up pending medical clearance. The veteran skated on the top pairing at practice today and would be a welcome addition to Toronto’s back end. Brodie is averaging over 21 minutes a night (third-most among their defenders) and has eight points in 28 games so far. Brodie is currently on IR and the Leafs have a full roster so they’d have to send someone down to activate the blueliner.
- Still with the Maple Leafs, Sports Illustrated’s David Alter notes that goaltender Matt Murray is dealing with an ankle issue. He was supposed to get the start last night against Ottawa but exited warmups early, resulting in Ilya Samsonov getting the nod once again. It’s unknown at this point if Murray will be available to dress on Sunday against Washington. He has a 2.73 GAA and a .911 SV% in 19 games so far this season, numbers that are nearly identical to his career averages.
- Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette told reporters including NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti (Twitter link) that they have ruled out winger Tom Wilson for their final two games before the All-Star break. The 28-year-old left Tuesday’s game against Colorado after blocking a shot off his right leg. The team plans to re-evaluate him after the break. Wilson has played in just eight games this season after missing time with an ACL injury and has two goals and an assist so far.
Latest On Dylan Larkin
Last weekend, it was reported that the Red Wings had presented a new offer to center Dylan Larkin as they look to lock up their captain to a long-term extension. Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press reports (subscription link) that the offer was for the maximum of eight years and carried an AAV of $8MM. Considering there hasn’t been an announcement of an extension at this point, it’s safe to say that the offer was declined.
The proposal represented a fair-sized jump on the $6.1MM Larkin is currently getting on his deal that’s set to expire in June. However, St. James points to the eight-year, $73.2MM extension ($9.15MM AAV) that Mathew Barzal signed with the Islanders as a logical comparable from Larkin’s camp. If that’s the case, the two sides are likely trying to bridge somewhere in the range of a $1.15MM gap per season. While a deal isn’t done yet, the 26-year-old doesn’t believe there’s any sort of strain in negotiations:
It doesn’t seem like there are any hard feelings, it is just the way it is going. With Steve, I don’t really expect anything else. It’s been very professional and we’ve had a lot of conversations about the team and certain things that come up during a season with guys or whatever it may be. It’s been pretty status quo.
Larkin put up his second career 30-goal campaign last season and is averaging just shy of a point per game this season with 43 in 47 contests. If he stays at that pace, it’ll be the third time he averages at least 0.9 points per game. Those are certainly strong numbers but how much more of a ceiling does he still have offensively? While Larkin is deployed as a number one center, there’s typically an expectation that the player in that role can help carry an offense and get past the point-per-game threshold.
That’s likely a big factor in negotiations. A $9M-plus AAV would put Larkin in the top-25 in cap hit among NHL forwards but is he a top-25 forward? Could he still become one as some of Detroit’s young talent continues to develop and improve, bolstering the scoring power for the Red Wings over time? These are the questions that GM Steve Yzerman is certainly pondering at the moment.
It’s certainly not an ideal spot for Detroit to be in. Larkin has made it clear that his desire is to stay with his hometown team. Many expected an extension to be in place by now. But while upping the offer for Larkin may not be ideal from a spending perspective, the alternative isn’t any better as trying to find a new top pivot on the open market comes with its own risks and would likely cost more than they’re offering here.
The Red Wings are a team that’s now in the process of trying to build back into being a playoff contender. That’s a lot tougher task to do without a top center which means Larkin walking in free agency would be a tough blow. Accordingly, even though there’s a sizable gap to be bridged financially, Detroit fans should still have some optimism that they’ll be able to find common ground on a new deal. It’s just going to cost more than Yzerman and the Red Wings would like.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Golden Knights Assign Three To The AHL
Ahead of tonight’s contest against the Islanders, the Golden Knights made a trio of roster moves, announcing (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned forwards Pavel Dorofeyev and Byron Froese along with defenseman Kaedan Korczak to AHL Henderson.
Dorofeyev has had three separate stints with Vegas this season but has seen limited NHL action despite that, getting into just three games where he was held off the scoresheet while logging just under 12 minutes per contest. He suffered an undisclosed injury three weeks ago but this assignment means that Dorofeyev has been cleared to return since injured players can’t be sent down. The 22-year-old was a top producer in the minors last season but has been a bit quieter in 2022-23, picking up six goals and six assists in 21 games with the Silver Knights.
As for Froese, he had been on his third recall of the month prior to this assignment and had been centring the fourth line during that stint. So far this season, he has a goal and an assist in seven games while winning 61.5% of his faceoffs. The 31-year-old is in the first season of a two-year, two-way deal and has been productive in Henderson with 27 points in 36 contests.
Korczak, meanwhile, has been up with Vegas on five different occasions this season, all within the last two months. Along the way, he has gotten into ten games on the back end for the Golden Knights, picking up a couple of helpers along with 25 hits while logging 17:34 per night. The 21-year-old also has eight points in 30 games in Henderson. He’s likely to continue to be one of the top recall options the next time a defender goes down or the team wants some extra depth.
Blue Jackets Claim Lane Pederson Off Waivers From Canucks
The Blue Jackets have added some forward depth as NorthStar Bets’ Chris Johnston reports (Twitter link) that they’ve claimed center Lane Pederson off waivers from the Canucks. To make room for him on the active roster, Columbus has placed winger Gustav Nyquist on injured reserve.
Pederson successfully made it through waivers back in October while he was still with Carolina. With them, he played in four games with AHL Chicago before being included as a salary offset in the trade that also saw Vancouver pick up defenseman Ethan Bear. The 25-year-old remained in the minors with Abbotsford for nearly two months, averaging just shy of a goal per game which earned him a recall in late November.
Since being brought up, Pederson had been a regular for the Canucks, getting into 11 games (including last night’s contest against Columbus while on waivers), picking up a goal and two assists while averaging just under 13 minutes a night. For his career, Pederson has two goals and six helpers in 55 games between Arizona, San Jose, and Vancouver. He’s on a one-way contract for the league minimum salary of $750K and is arbitration-eligible if he can get into 25 more games this season. Otherwise, he becomes a Group Six unrestricted free agent.
The move is a low-risk flyer for the Blue Jackets who needed a replacement for Nyquist who is out indefinitely while there’s a strong chance they’ll be trading a few players between now and the March 3rd deadline so extra bodies were going to be needed at some point. Pederson has a chance to play a regular role in Columbus in the hopes of finding some NHL stability that has so far eluded him across four different organizations.
Metropolitan Notes: Hurricanes, Cuylle, Devils
With Max Pacioretty and his $7MM AAV eventually heading back to LTIR, the Hurricanes appear to be a team that will have ample cap space to make a move or two to upgrade for the stretch run. However, in his latest piece for The Athletic (subscription link), Cory Lavalette suggests that while on the surface, a rental to replace Pacioretty (a rental himself) might make sense, Carolina’s trade history suggests that they’re likelier to target someone signed beyond this season. Per CapFriendly, the Hurricanes only have $53.5MM in commitments for 2023-24 so it’s plausible that they could eye a longer-term piece which gives them considerably more options compared to teams that will need to be shopping for one-and-done players.
More from the Metropolitan:
- The Rangers have returned winger Will Cuylle to AHL Hartford, reports Arthur Staple of The Athletic (Twitter link). The move doesn’t come as much of a surprise since New York is now in their bye week. Cuylle got into two games in his first NHL stint but barely played six minutes per game. The 20-year-old has 13 goals and 20 assists in 39 games with the Wolf Pack and will get some more time down there before potentially being brought back up after the break.
- Devils assistant GM Dan MacKinnon confirmed to NJ Advance Media’s Ryan Novozinsky that the plan is for defenseman Luke Hughes to turn pro once his season at Michigan comes to an end. The 19-year-old was the fourth-overall pick in 2021 and has 26 points in 25 games so far for the Wolverines. He’d be an intriguing option for New Jersey down the stretch and in the postseason as he’d definitely be another offensive weapon on their back end. MacKinnon also confirmed that 2020 first-rounder Shakir Mukhamadullin will join AHL Utica once his season with Salavat Yulaev of the KHL comes to an end. The 21-year-old has five goals and 15 helpers in 55 games so far.
Blue Jackets Recall Jake Christiansen
The Blue Jackets have brought up some extra depth in advance of their game tonight against Seattle, announcing the recall of defenseman Jake Christiansen from Cleveland of the AHL. His promotion is likely related to Nick Blankenburg‘s upper-body injury that caused him to miss last night’s game against Vancouver.
It’s the second recall of the season for the 23-year-old who got into 17 games with Columbus during that first stint before being sent back to the Monsters late last month. Christiansen had a pair of assists during that stretch while averaging a hit and block per game in just under 14 minutes of playing time per night. He has been more productive in the minors, picking up a dozen points in 23 contests and is only a year removed from a 45-point sophomore year with Cleveland.
Columbus now has seven healthy defensemen on the roster so there’s no guarantee that Christiansen will be in the lineup tonight against the Kraken. The blueliner is in the final year of his entry-level contract and will be eligible for salary arbitration this summer.
Devils Assign Nikita Okhotyuk To AHL
After being up with New Jersey for more than a month on what started as an emergency loan, Nikita Okhotyuk’s time with the Devils has come to an end for now as the team announced (Twitter link) that the defenseman has been assigned to Utica of the AHL.
The 22-year-old got into ten games with New Jersey and saw action in a particularly limited role as he averaged under 12 minutes a night. Okhotyuk picked up his second career NHL goal earlier this month and also chipped in with 31 hits and nine blocked shots. He has been a bit more productive with the Comets, picking up two goals and four assists in 17 contests at the AHL level.
With this assignment, the Devils are down to just six healthy defenders on their roster. However, John Marino has been skating for a couple of weeks and was upgraded to day-to-day last weekend so it’s possible that he’ll be ready to be activated for their next game after the All-Star break against Vancouver. Otherwise, Okhotyuk or someone else will likely be getting recalled a little more than a week from now.
Flames Assign Three Players To AHL
Calgary’s roster was full for last night’s victory over Seattle but it’s considerably smaller now as the team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve assigned forwards Walker Duehr and Jakob Pelletier plus defenseman Dennis Gilbert to Calgary of the AHL. No corresponding recalls were made.
Duehr and Pelletier were both recalled three weeks ago with Duehr seeing regular action while Pelletier was more limited. Duehr got into eight games with the Flames, picking up his first two NHL goals while averaging a little over nine minutes a night. This season at the AHL level, the 25-year-old has ten goals with the Wranglers, just one shy of his output from a year ago in 28 fewer games. Duehr is in his second full professional campaign after signing a two-year entry-level deal with Calgary as an undrafted college free agent in 2021.
Pelletier is widely considered to be one of Calgary’s top prospects so when he was brought up, there was some excitement to see how he’d fare against top competition. However, he was a regular scratch early and only got into four contests where he logged less than 11 minutes a night. That’s not necessarily the most optimal usage for a player that had 34 points in 31 games in the minors this season but he at least now has a taste of what things are like at the NHL level.
As for Gilbert, this NHL stint was a short-lived one as he’s going down just two days after being recalled. The 26-year-old has played in nine games for the Flames this season, collecting an assist along with 19 hits and 20 penalty minutes while averaging 10:35 per contest. He also has five points in 24 AHL contests.
The Flames are off until February 6th so these three assignments are likely being done to bank some cap space. The demotions will free up a little over $13K per day and add to their cap room heading into the deadline. However, it remains to be seen if these three will be back with the big club when they resume play or if someone else will get an opportunity.