Central Notes: Klingberg, Jets, Guenther
While there has been a stated mutual desire for the Stars and John Klingberg to work out a contract extension, Pierre LeBrun reported in his latest column for The Athletic (subscription link) that there have been no recent discussions on that front and that the current expectation is that the defenseman will test the open market next month. The 29-year-old has been one of the more consistent offensive producers in the NHL; over his eight-year career, only seven blueliners have more points than him over that stretch. Klingberg is coming off a bargain seven-year deal that carried just a $4.25MM AAV and earlier reports suggested he was looking to nearly double that on a max-term agreement. At this point, if he’s going to get that type of contract, it seems unlikely it will be coming from Dallas.
More from the Central:
- The Jets are expected to meet with coaching candidate Barry Trotz this weekend, reports Postmedia’s Paul Friesen. The bench boss has been linked to multiple teams since being fired by the Islanders earlier this offseason and this will be the Manitoba native’s second interview with his hometown team. Winnipeg currently has Dave Lowry as their interim head coach and while he is believed to be among the candidates that would be considered for the full-time role, their preference would certainly be to land a top-flight candidate like Trotz.
- Coyotes prospect Dylan Guenther will miss the upcoming Memorial Cup due to a lower-body injury sustained in the WHL Final against Seattle, notes PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan (Twitter link). While his playoff run came to an early end, it was still a strong one for the 2021 ninth-overall selection as he had 13 goals in 16 postseason contests after putting up 45 goals and 46 assists in just 59 regular season contests to finish sixth in league scoring.
Submit Your Questions For The #PHRMailbag
The Stanley Cup Final is upon us, the first domino has fallen in the coaching shuffle around the league, while the draft and free agency are now less than a month away as the offseason activity is almost upon us. With that in mind, it’s time to run another edition of the PHR Mailbag.
Our last mailbag was broken into two parts. The first included a look at New Jersey’s goaltending situation and the chances they’ll move the second-overall pick, Toronto’s early playoff exit, and Barry Trotz’s contenders (one of which is now off the table). Meanwhile, the second looked at what’s needed for Ottawa to take the next step forward, the second-line center situation for the Rangers, and what Seattle should be doing this summer.
You can submit a question by using #PHRMailbag on Twitter or by leaving a comment down below. The mailbag will run on the weekend.
John Gibson Denies He Wants To Leave Anaheim
Last year, Ducks goaltender John Gibson didn’t exactly hide his frustration with Anaheim being a non-playoff team. With a rebuild squarely in the works now, some have wondered if he’d be looking for a move this summer. Asked exactly that by Eric Stephens of The Athletic, the veteran tried to pour cold water on that idea:
No. I want to win in Anaheim. I’ve been here and I’m happy to be here.
It wasn’t that long ago that the 28-year-old was viewed as one of the top goalies in the league but Gibson has had his struggles over the past few seasons. Over the last three years, his save percentage has been either .903 or .904, marks that were below the NHL average. He struggled mightily over the final three months of the season, posting a save percentage of just .876 as the Ducks went from being in the playoff mix to missing the postseason by 21 points.
Anaheim has missed the playoffs for the last four years and they haven’t made it past the first round since 2017 and there’s a good chance those streaks are extended next season following the exodus of several key veterans including defensemen Hampus Lindholm and Josh Manson, winger Rickard Rakell, and long-time captain Ryan Getzlaf.
However, there is a young nucleus in place headlined by centers Trevor Zegras and Mason McTavish, winger Troy Terry, and defenseman Jamie Drysdale. They will be able to add to that this summer with a pair of selections in the first round including the tenth-overall pick while they enter the offseason with over $39MM in cap space, per CapFriendly. Brighter days should be on the horizon soon and it appears Gibson wants to still be around at that time:
When I signed my extension in Anaheim however many years ago, I said I’d be honored to play in the same city and be a part of the same organization my whole career. I still have all my intentions on doing that.
Gibson has five years remaining on his contract with a $6.4MM cap hit so if the Ducks are willing to keep him around that long, he won’t be leaving Anaheim for quite a while.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Offseason Checklist: Nashville Predators
With the offseason in full swing aside from the two teams in the Stanley Cup Final, it’s time to examine what each squad will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at the Predators.
This was supposed to be a season of transition for Nashville. At least, so it seemed. They got weaker on paper over the summer and it looked to be the start of at least a small rebuild. However, several underachieving veterans had bounce-back years and the end result was the Predators making the playoffs and then being swept by Colorado. GM David Poile likes the term “competitive transition” as it relates to the state of his team so their checklist this summer keeps that in mind.
Add Impact Pieces
With the Predators looking to stay in the playoff hunt, they’ll need to put their cap space to good use this year. With over $23MM at their disposal, they have some room to add a key player or two even after re-signing their own free agents.
Up front, their top six is still fairly thin with several question marks. Matt Duchene had a career year with 43 goals and 43 assists. At the age of 31, can he repeat that type of performance or was this just a season where everything went right? Ryan Johansen had his best season since coming to Nashville back in 2016 while Mikael Granlund was only a few points shy of matching his career-best. There is a question of sustainability for all three of those players and even if there wasn’t, another top-six forward to fill the role vacated by Viktor Arvidsson following his trade last summer is needed.
There was a time when Nashville had the best defense corps in the NHL. That isn’t the case anymore. Instead, the average fan would have a hard time naming anyone beyond Norris finalist Roman Josi and steady veteran Mattias Ekholm. It’s not a particularly deep group and a top-four rearguard to push one of Dante Fabbro or Alexandre Carrier onto the third pairing alongside the recently-extended Jeremy Lauzon would go a long way towards shoring up that unit even if it doesn’t bring them back to the days of being the best group in the league.
Do these moves alone vault Nashville into contender status? No, but if they want to stay where they are or give themselves a shot at moving up a bit in the standings, these would certainly help their chances.
Re-Sign Forsberg
Duchene wasn’t the only veteran to have a career year this season as Filip Forsberg did as well, notching 42 goals and 42 assists despite missing 13 games due to a stint in COVID protocol and an upper-body injury. There’s never a bad time to set new benchmarks but the year before hitting unrestricted free agency for the first time is certainly a great time and that’s what Forsberg did. The two sides engaged in talks off and on during the season but couldn’t reach an agreement and Poile held off on trading him at the deadline.
This is one of the most important contract negotiations in franchise history. Forsberg has been a fixture in their lineup for eight years and the possibility of him jumping ship to another team less than a month from now has to be concerning. It would certainly go a long way towards derailing their competitive transition. Forsberg’s camp knows this and will try to wield that in discussions.
As for what the cost of a new deal will be, it won’t be cheap. Forsberg is coming off a six-year, $36MM deal and as a 40-goal scorer, he can command considerably more than that; a contract in the $8MM to $9MM range should be achievable for him. On top of that, a max-term agreement is certainly doable as well. For Nashville, that’s eight years as long as it’s done before the start of free agency and seven years for everyone else. Forsberg turns 28 this summer and a max-term deal for a winger coming off a career year that will make him the highest-paid forward on the team is not an ideal combination for the Predators but it’s one they’ll have to bite the bullet on to keep him in the fold.
Bring In Goalie Depth
With Juuse Saros, Nashville has their starter in place for the next three seasons on a below-market contract. With Yaroslav Askarov, they believe they have their future starter in place. Most teams would love that combination but the Predators still have some work to do between the pipes.
Poile brought in David Rittich to serve as Saros’ backup this season with the hopes he could rediscover his form from a few years ago. That didn’t happen as he had a save percentage of just .889 in 17 appearances. With Saros injured for the playoffs, Rittich faltered quickly, forcing head coach John Hynes to turn to third-stringer Connor Ingram who had all of three career NHL appearances up to that point. Rittich is unlikely to return and while Ingram is on a one-way deal for next season, are the Predators ready to make him their backup?
If not, they’ll need to turn back to the free agent market and instead of looking for a low-cost option, they would be wise to aim a little higher and get a more proven second option to take some of the pressure off Saros and give them some extra injury insurance. On the other hand, if they do want to go with Ingram, then adding a veteran third-string option becomes a must. Askarov will play his first full season in North America next season and adding a veteran that can be called up as the backup when injuries hit to not interrupt Askarov’s development would be a wise move. Either way, Poile will be goalie shopping next month.
Utilize An Unlikely Trade Asset
When Nashville dealt Ryan Ellis to Philadelphia last summer, they hoped that Philippe Myers would be a capable replacement. Let’s just say that didn’t happen. Instead, the 25-year-old struggled mightily when he was in the lineup, was a frequent healthy scratch, and cleared waivers before the trade deadline. From there, they didn’t even bother sending him to their own AHL affiliate as he was loaned to Toronto instead. And yet, despite all of that, he is one of Nashville’s more intriguing trade chips this summer.
Myers has one year left on his current contract at $2.55MM which, for someone that can’t crack an NHL roster, seems like the type of deal teams should be doing their best to stay away from, not acquire. It’s a lock to be bought out. But his contract is heavily backloaded and since he’s only 25, the buyout cost is one-third instead of the usual two-thirds. The end result is that whoever buys him out this summer will receive a cap credit of $617K. Yes, a team could increase their cap space next season by buying Myers out while they’d only have to eat a $633K cap charge in 2023-24. Who could use some extra cap space this summer for a total cash outlay of $633K? The short answer is a lot of teams.
There isn’t much precedent for a trade like this. Toronto picked up Jared Cowen from Ottawa in 2016 who was in that situation but it was part of a nine-player swap which makes it difficult to ascertain his standalone value in that deal. But with a lot of teams looking for cap space, it stands to reason that Myers will actually have some value this summer. Even if it’s only for a mid-round pick in the end, getting an asset for someone that’s clearly on his way out the door would be a good way to start Nashville’s summer roster movement.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Red Wings Sign Jussi Olkinuora
The Red Wings have added some goaltending depth to their system as CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that Detroit has signed netminder Jussi Olkinuora to a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay him $750K in the NHL, $375K in the minors, and contains a guarantee of $425K.
The 31-year-old spent some time in Winnipeg’s system earlier in his career after signing with them as an undrafted free agent back in 2013 after an impressive couple of years at the University of Denver. However, things didn’t go well in the minors for Olkinuora as he posted a 3.79 GAA with a save percentage of just .879 in 21 appearances, resulting in the Jets non-tendering him in 2015 and him eventually heading back overseas in 2016.
Olkinuora has spent the last three seasons in the KHL and is coming off a pair of strong seasons with Metallurg Magnitogorsk. This past season, he had a 2.45 GAA along with a .917 SV% in 36 games, numbers that were actually a small step back from the year before. However, his performance helped earn him a spot on Finland’s entries into their Olympic and World Championship teams. It was at the recently-completed Worlds that Olkinuora really shined as he posted a 1.11 GAA and a .948 SV%, resulting in him being named as the tournament MVP.
There are certainly some openings in Detroit’s system for goaltenders next season. Backup goalie Thomas Greiss and third-stringer Calvin Pickard are both pending unrestricted free agents and neither appear to be likely to return. The fate of Magnus Hellberg, a late-season signing, is also in question as he’s also a pending UFA. Olkinuora could be ticketed to start at AHL Grand Rapids alongside top prospect Sebastian Cossa although, if they believe his recent showing in Russia is a sign of things to come, he could get a chance to battle for a shot at being Alex Nedeljkovic‘s backup as well.
Five Key Stories: 6/6/22 – 6/12/22
As we get closer to the start of free agency, things are starting to pick up a little bit on the transactions front with several of those being among the top stories of the past seven days.
Driedger Undergoes Surgery: This was a tough season for Kraken netminder Chris Driedger as things didn’t go as planned with his new team with the 28-year-old putting up a save percentage of just .899 in 27 games. But he had a chance to finish up on a high note with Canada at the World Championship. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen as instead, Driedger tore his ACL in the Gold Medal Game and has undergone surgery that will keep him out between seven and nine months. On the short end of that, he’d miss a little more than months but on the longer end, he could be out for half the season. Fortunately for Seattle, they have a third-string option in Joey Daccord that has some NHL experience so they may not have to look outside the organization to fill Driedger’s spot to start next season.
Bishop To Buffalo: Dallas decided to make a move to get out of the final season of Ben Bishop’s contract, sending the veteran along with a seventh-round pick to Buffalo for future considerations. The 35-year-old tried to come back this season but pulled the plug after one appearance in the minors, instead announcing the end of his playing career. The Stars free up a contract slot with the move and also, for now at least, reduces the potential for a carryover bonus penalty as teams in LTIR all season don’t accrue any cap space so any achieved bonuses that put a team past the Upper Limit roll over to the following season. Dallas will be in that situation next season thanks to Bishop being on LTIR this year. Meanwhile, the Sabres don’t have much to lose with this pick as they’re well under the cap and pick up an extra draft pick for doing the Stars the favor.
Two Years For Roslovic: It has been an interesting season and a half for Jack Roslovic in Columbus. After impressing following the trade from Winnipeg, he struggled for a good chunk of this year before finishing on a high note with 19 points over the final six weeks of the campaign. After taking a bridge deal upon being acquired by the Blue Jackets, the two sides effectively agreed on another one as the 25-year-old signed a two-year, $8MM contract. The deal buys out Roslovic’s two remaining RFA seasons, gives him a nice raise on the $1.838MM AAV from last season, and will give him the opportunity to hit the open market in 2024 in the prime of his career.
Gurianov Gets One: While qualifying offers aren’t issued for several more weeks, Denis Gurianov decided to take his early, agreeing on a one-year, $2.9MM deal. The 25-year-old looked to have a breakout year two goals ago when he reached the 20-goal mark but his output has dipped since then, notching just 23 goals over the last two seasons combined in 128 games. He was a possible non-tender candidate as a result but this will give Gurianov one more chance to make his mark with the hopes that a new coaching staff will help unlock his offensive potential on a more consistent basis.
Cassidy Fired: There’s a late entrant into the coaching shuffle this summer as the Bruins decided to part ways with Bruce Cassidy. Boston had plenty of regular season success after Cassidy took over partway through the 2016-17 season with the team posting a .672 points percentage in 399 contests. However, things weren’t as good in the playoffs with the Bruins being a game below .500 in 37 games. Cassidy’s recent track record has made him a hot commodity as he is believed to have spoken with several teams as there are now seven confirmed openings around the league with two others (Edmonton and Florida) with decisions to make on their interim bench bosses.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Offseason Checklist: Vegas Golden Knights
With the offseason in full swing aside from the two teams in the Stanley Cup Final, it’s time to examine what each squad will need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at the Golden Knights.
There’s never a dull moment in Vegas. That thought often applies to the city in general but it also certainly applies to their hockey team. The Golden Knights made a big change in-season to land Jack Eichel which set off a cascade of frequent LTIR placements to keep compliant down the stretch. With a banged-up roster, they came up just short of the playoffs, resulting in a change behind the bench. Between that and their cap situation, GM Kelly McCrimmon has a lot on his plate over the coming weeks.
Hire A New Head Coach
Let’s start with an obvious task. For the second time in their five years of existence, the Golden Knights made a coaching change when Peter DeBoer was dismissed last month after less than three seasons with the team. Vegas certainly didn’t do poorly with him in charge as the team posted a .650 points percentage during the regular season while making the third round of the playoffs in the two seasons before this one. But after missing the postseason this year, an outcome few would have expected in the fall, the change was made.
There is no shortage of veteran coaches available and with Vegas clearly in win-now mode, few expect them to look at a first-time option. Barry Trotz and Bruce Cassidy stand out as two potential candidates although other former NHL bench bosses will be considered as well.
There is plenty to like about where Vegas sits. They’re a perpetually competitive team with a strong nucleus that’s under contract for a while. Spending is certainly never an issue as well. If you’re a coach that’s looking for a spot to try to win right away, this opening may be the most desirable around the league which is good news for McCrimmon as he looks to find his next head coach over the next few weeks.
Free Up Cap Space
Then there’s the other obvious task this summer. Vegas has been dancing around the Upper Limit of the salary cap for several years now with a continual expectation that it’s going to come back to get them soon enough. The challenge for McCrimmon this summer will be freeing up some space without significantly hurting the core.
Let’s look at where things stand. They have $200K in cap space and need to sign at least three forwards and have a healthy backup goalie with Laurent Brossoit having some uncertainty after having hip surgery this summer. Considering the minimum salary remains $750K, there’s clearly some cutting to be done.
The obvious candidate is Evgenii Dadonov. The winger was traded to Anaheim back at the trade deadline without Vegas realizing that Dadonov’s no-trade clause was still in effect and the Ducks were on it. Eventually, the deal was rescinded. To his credit, the 33-year-old didn’t let it be a distraction as he had 16 points in 16 games after the deadline. However, he had a fairly quiet season overall with 20 goals and 23 assists in 78 games, production that is relatively low compared to his $5MM AAV. While the Golden Knights don’t have a deep prospect pool to trade away from or many high draft picks, they’ll need to attach something to get a team that’s on Dadonov’s allowable trade list to take on the final year of his contract.
With Eichel in the fold, Vegas now has a top-line center while Chandler Stephenson has established himself as a quality second option. That could put William Karlsson in some jeopardy. At $5.9MM for the next half-decade, that’s a high price to pay to have premium depth down the middle. He’s coming off a quiet season (35 points in 67 games) but with strong centers always in high demand, there should be some interest on the trade front and it’s worth noting that Karlsson can only block a trade to ten teams.
As for a blueliner that could fit the bill, Alec Martinez is coming off an injury-plagued year that saw him suit up just 26 times. With Shea Theodore and Brayden McNabb being proven options on the left side of the back end, Martinez and his $5.25MM for two more years might be a potential cap casualty although he also has trade protection and can block a trade to a dozen teams.
Reilly Smith is set to hit the open market this summer and there is mutual interest in an extension. At a minimum, one significant salary will need to be moved (likely Dadonov) but if they want to keep Smith in the fold, a second one will need to be moved out unless McCrimmon plans to get very creative with his LTIR usage once again.
Re-Sign Roy
Nicolas Roy had a breakout season in 2021-22, further bolstering their depth down the middle. After putting up just 15 points in 2020-21, he had 15 goals this season along with 24 assists. He also upped his faceoff percentage to 48.8%, an increase of 4% from the year before. He took a regular turn on both the power play and penalty kill, helping his ATOI improve to a career-best 16:16 per game. That’s quite a nice platform season as Roy enters restricted free agency this summer with arbitration eligibility for the first time.
Between that and Vegas’ cap situation, Roy could be an offer sheet candidate this summer if a deal isn’t done early. With the new thresholds, a team could offer Roy $4.2MM ($4MM more than the Golden Knights have in cap space) and only owe a second-round pick in compensation. For a 25-year-old with two years of team control remaining, that’s more than a reasonable price to pay. With that in mind, McCrimmon will want to try to get this contract done sooner than later if possible to avoid any risk of an offer sheet and also ensure one of his core youngsters will stick around.
Look Into Adding Goalie Depth
Injuries were an issue for Vegas last season, particularly between the pipes. Robin Lehner missed time with four separate injuries spanning 23 games and underwent successful shoulder surgery following a rather bizarre set of events where reports had him needing surgery with DeBoer insisting his starter was available to play. Brossoit, meanwhile, had hip surgery last month as well. Accordingly, there are some question marks (if Brossoit is still around and not traded as cap relief).
Vegas does have Logan Thompson who did a nice job down the stretch for them and as he’s now waiver-eligible, it’s safe to say he’ll be in the NHL picture.
The Golden Knights have a pair of goalie prospects signed for next season in Jiri Patera and Isaiah Saville but neither have seen NHL action. If they have an injury with the big club – a likely scenario based on recent history – having a veteran option with AHL Henderson that has some NHL experience would be a worthwhile investment. Experienced third-string goalies often bounce around and Vegas should be adding one to give themselves an insurance policy heading into training camp.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Oilers Notes: Brassard, Kulak, Samorukov
Oilers center Derick Brassard has bounced around a lot in recent years, suiting up for seven different teams over the last four seasons. There has been a desire to add him but it hasn’t resulted in much stability or in his case with Edmonton, playing time; the 34-year-old was a healthy scratch in 15 of their playoff games this spring. Accordingly, Postmedia’s Jim Matheson reports that Brassard is considering retirement. He has been limited with hip trouble in recent years, missing time with injuries on four separate occasions this season alone although he still managed a respectable 19 points in 46 games. If it is indeed the end of the line for Brassard, he’ll hang up his skates with 522 points in 951 games over a 15-year NHL career, a solid run for the sixth-overall pick in 2006.
Elsewhere in Edmonton:
- GM Ken Holland is expected to meet with Brett Kulak’s agent Gerry Johansson this week to discuss a new contract, notes Postmedia’s Kurt Leavins. The 28-year-old Edmonton native was acquired from Montreal at the trade deadline in exchange for blueliner William Lagesson, the 62nd pick in next month’s draft, and a 2024 seventh-rounder. Kulak did a good job on their back end down the stretch, logging a little over 17 minutes a night down the stretch and in the playoffs and he would give them some extra depth for next season. However, with limited cap space, Edmonton would be hard-pressed to offer the $1.85MM AAV on his set-to-expire deal let alone a raise so it would be surprising to see a new agreement reached quickly.
- With defenseman Dmitri Samorukov being waiver-eligible next season, Allan Mitchell of The Athletic suggests (subscription link) that the blueliner could be a trade candidate in the coming weeks. The 22-year-old played just once this season, logging only 2:28 of ice time while being on the ice for two goals allowed. However, he had a solid campaign with AHL Bakersfield, picking up 18 points in 51 games which helped earn him a one-year, one-way extension worth $775K next month. That could make him a seventh defender option for the Oilers next season or on another cap-strapped team around the league.
Metropolitan Notes: Bratt, Blais, Drozg
The Devils have started discussions on a new contract for pending RFA Jesper Bratt, the winger told Ryan Novozinsky of the Star-Ledger (Twitter link). Bratt added that talks haven’t progressed yet to the point of talking salary so it’s clear that a deal certainly isn’t imminent. The 23-year-old is coming off a career year that saw him lead New Jersey in scoring with 26 goals and 47 assists in 76 games, more than doubling his previous career-high of 35 points set in his rookie year. Bratt is arbitration-eligible and two years away from UFA eligibility and both sides have expressed a desire to get a long-term contract in place. But with the year he just had, that type of deal would command a price tag of more than double the $2.75MM AAV he had on his bridge contract. Arbitration hearings aren’t likely to start until early August so there is still plenty of time to get an agreement in place.
More from the Metropolitan:
- While Rangers forward Sammy Blais has resumed skating, Newsday’s Colin Stephenson relays that he will not be available for the sixth game of their series tonight in Tampa Bay. The 25-year-old tore his ACL back in November and would be a welcome addition to New York’s bottom six but he hasn’t received the green light to return just yet. The 25-year-old had four assists and 37 hits in 14 regular season contests.
- Penguins prospect Jan Drozg is highly unlikely to be tendered a qualifying offer this summer, notes Seth Rorabaugh of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The 23-year-old had ten points in 23 games with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton this season before requesting to be loaned to another AHL team in the hopes of getting more playing time. While he got his wish and was sent to Grand Rapids, he struggled mightily with them down the stretch. Rather than bring him back, it would make more sense that Pittsburgh opts to let Drozg go where he’ll likely look to head back overseas.
Free Agent Focus: St. Louis Blues
Free agency is now less than six weeks away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up. There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in mid-July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well. Next up is a look at the Blues.
Key Restricted Free Agents
D Niko Mikkola – It has taken a while but Mikkola has worked his way into being a full-fledged member of the back end for the Blues, albeit in still a limited capacity. The 26-year-old played in a career-high 54 games this season but was also scratched rather frequently. When he has played, he has shown some promise as a stay-at-home, physical defender that can do well on the third pairing. But at Mikkola’s age, that’s not a particularly high bar to try to meet. He’s owed a qualifying offer of just over $826K but the most notable element here is that he’s a year away from UFA eligibility. Between that and arbitration rights, Mikkola will be able to beat that qualifier but are the Blues in a spot where they would be willing to pay closer to $1.5MM and get a couple of extra years of team control? Will they be able to afford to do so?
D Scott Perunovich – Perunovich’s time in the pros has been mired with ups and downs. After missing all of last season due to injury, he was limited to just 36 regular season games this season thanks to injuries. When he did play, however, he showed the offensive skill that he had in college that has made him one of their top prospects. But with missing so much time, the 23-year-old certainly isn’t in a spot to command much more than his $874K qualifying offer which is a two-way tender. It’s entirely possible St. Louis opts to try to get Perunovich to take less than that in exchange for a one-year, one-way deal, giving them a tiny bit of extra cap flexibility and the blueliner a guaranteed payday.
F Klim Kostin – The 2017 first-rounder had an opportunity to spend the bulk of the season with St. Louis and held his own on the fourth line, collecting nine points in 40 games while averaging just over nine minutes a night. Those numbers certainly don’t stand out but he should be a strong candidate for a spot at the end of the roster in St. Louis next season. His contractual situation is the same as Perunovich’s – he’s owed the $874K qualifier but it’s possible the Blues try to get him to take less in exchange for a one-way salary.
Other RFAs: F Will Bitten, F Tanner Kaspick, F Hugh McGing, F Nathan Todd
Key Unrestricted Free Agents
G Ville Husso – For years, Husso was viewed as the goalie of the future for the Blues and while it took him a while to get to the NHL, he showed this season that he can be a strong goalie at the top level, posting a 2.56 GAA along with a .919 SV% (good for a tie for sixth-best in the league). However, he didn’t fare as well in the playoffs, ending his season on a lower note. With just 64 career NHL appearances under his belt (including the playoffs), the 27-year-old doesn’t have enough of a track record to command a long-term, high-dollar contract like the six-year, $36MM deal Jacob Markstrom got in free agency two years ago. But a shorter-term deal in the $4MM range should be achievable as there will be teams out there that will view Husso as a low-end starter or a high-end backup. Either way, he’s heading for a significant raise after making the league minimum the last two years.
F David Perron – Since returning to the Blues in 2018, Perron has averaged a higher point per game rate than his career average which is notable since he turned 34 last month. At a time when many players start slowing down offensively, he’s improving his output. In terms of points among pending UFAs, Perron sits eighth and if he was to get to the open market, he’d likely receive a nice raise from the $4MM AAV he had on his most recent deal. And yet, few expect him to actually get to free agency. While he has played on five different teams in his NHL career, Perron has only signed contracts with St. Louis, opting to come back each time he reached the open market with another organization and there is certainly an expectation that he will do so again. If that’s the case, he might leave some money on the table to do so.
D Nick Leddy – The Blues were able to add Leddy at the trade deadline to shore up their back end and Leddy didn’t disappoint, averaging over 21 minutes a night down the stretch and in the postseason (where he was one of several St. Louis rearguards to miss time due to injury). At this stage of his career, the 31-year-old is not the top defender that he was at times with the Islanders but he could still be a solid second-pairing player or a high-end third-pairing option on a deeper squad. With a UFA crop that isn’t particularly deep, Leddy should generate considerable interest although it would be very surprising to see him beat the $5.5MM he made on his soon-to-expire contract.
Other UFAs: F Sam Anas, F Tyler Bozak, D Dakota Joshua, G Charlie Lindgren, F Mackenzie MacEachern, F James Neal
Projected Cap Space
The Blues have just over $9MM in space below the $82.5MM Upper Limit and while they don’t have many roster spots to fill (likely a couple of forwards, two defensemen, and a goalie), they don’t have enough money to keep all of their pending UFAs around. They also have to be mindful of big contracts on the horizon for Jordan Kyrou and Robert Thomas (both 2023 RFAs) while Ryan O’Reilly will need an extension as well at that time. There’s enough room for GM Doug Armstrong to keep at least one of their UFAs in the fold but if he wants to keep more than one, he’ll need to find a way to free up some cap flexibility first.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.