Offseason Checklist: San Jose Sharks
The offseason has arrived with roughly half of the league finished up after missing the playoffs and several more joining them following their first-round eliminations. It’s time to examine what those teams need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at San Jose.
The Sharks were supposed to be a team that was set to contend. That was the idea behind the Erik Karlsson trade three years ago and while they did that in 2018-19, they missed the playoffs entirely a year ago and weren’t much better this season. Their veteran core struggled mightily and while they had a bit of cap space to add some mid-round picks at the deadline, they don’t have a lot of wiggle room to significantly shake up their core. With that in mind, GM Doug Wilson’s checklist for the summer is somewhat restricted with seven of their eight highest-paid players having some form of trade protection.
Donato Decision
One thing the flattened salary cap did last offseason was increase the number of players that were non-tendered to avoid salary arbitration. With the Upper Limit staying at $81.5MM, that’s likely to be the case again this summer. San Jose has one of those players in winger Ryan Donato who is owed a $2.15MM qualifying offer in July.
The Sharks acquired the 25-year-old in October for a third-round pick, a reasonable price to pay for someone that has shown some flashes of being an impact NHL forward, albeit mixed in with some inconsistent play as well. Unfortunately for Wilson, Donato provided more of the latter than the former, finishing up his year with six goals and 14 assists in 50 games while averaging 12:37 per game.
In a normal year, he’d be likely to get another opportunity given his previous stretches of being a productive top-six piece. Give him a small raise and go from there. But in this cap environment, it’s hard to envision Donato getting $2.15MM on the open market. Bottom-six forwards were largely squeezed out a year ago and with teams as cap-strapped now as they were then, that’s not likely to change.
As a result, if San Jose wants to retain Donato, they need to try to work out a new deal before free agency opens up in late July. Offer a cut in pay to see if he wants to stick around – that’s perfectly legal despite the qualifier that’s owed – with the understanding that if an agreement can’t be reached, he’ll be non-tendered. It’s a bit of a heavy-handed approach but don’t be surprised if many other teams take a similar approach with some of their RFAs.
Add A Goalie
It was only a few years ago that Martin Jones looked like their long-term goalie of the future and his $5.75MM AAV through 2023-24 potentially being a bargain. No one’s saying that now. The 31-year-old posted a .896 SV% for the third straight season, a rate that is well below average for a backup let alone a starter. All of a sudden, forget about the old thought of it being a bargain contract. Now, Wilson may need to give serious consideration to buying him out. If you’re curious as to what that would cost, the cap hit would range from $1.667MM to $2.917MM over each of the next six seasons. That’s a steep price to pay but it would give them a bit of space to try to add a better option.
Even if they don’t buy him out, the Sharks need to add another goalie, preferably a starter instead of another reclamation project. Josef Korenar had some good moments in his first taste of NHL action but he has another year of waiver exemption; he needs to be playing as much as possible in the minors and he’s not ready to push for full-time NHL duty just yet. As is often the case, there are quite a few goalies available in free agency and the trade market could feature a few more options than usual. They should be able to nab a reasonably-priced option and with the struggles they’ve had between the pipes lately, the right choice could yield a few more wins in the standings on their own.
Extension Talks For Hertl
If you were curious as to which of their eight highest-paid players doesn’t have any trade protection, it’s Tomas Hertl. He will be entering the final year of his contract next season so when free agency begins and the calendar flips to the 2021-22 season, the 27-year-old will be eligible to sign a contract extension.
While many of the top players in San Jose underachieved offensively this season, Hertl was one of the exceptions. He finished second on the team in scoring to Evander Kane and had he been healthy and played in all 56 games, he might have got the top spot. Nevertheless, his 19 goals and 24 assists in 50 games was good enough for the second-highest point per game average of his career, a pretty good showing.
When Hertl signed a four-year, $22.5MM deal back in the 2018 offseason, it looked like it might be a bit high considering he had only reached the 20-goal mark twice and never had more than 46 points in a season. Since then, however, he has certainly lived up to the deal, picking up 153 points in 170 games, well above a 46-point pace over a full regular season.
With that in mind, it’s likely that Hertl’s camp will be seeking an increase on his next contract, even with wingers taking a hit in free agency last summer in a marketplace that is likely to be more restrictive than usual for the next few years. Wilson will have to decide if the time is right to do that or to let the season play out first. One thing he can dangle now that he can’t next fall? He can offer to put in trade protection into the final season of his existing contract as he’s now old enough to have that protection in his deal (only UFA-eligible players can have it). Maybe he won’t be the only highly-paid player without that for much longer.
Redirect Cap Spending To Offense
The Sharks have been in the bottom ten in scoring in each of the last two seasons. Part of the reason for that is that they’ve dedicated a lot of money away from the forwards. By the time they round out their roster for next season, it’s going to be close to a 50/50 split in terms of money on forwards versus goalies and defensemen. It’s hard to improve offensively with that much money tied up in non-forwards.
Granted, Karlsson and Brent Burns are supposed to help carry the load offensively but that simply wasn’t the case this season. Add a slumping Marc-Edouard Vlasic to the mix and their big three on the back end counts for $26.5MM without much production from that group. In a perfect world, they could get out of one of those contracts which all run through at least 2024-25 but their high price tags and trade protection make that extremely difficult.
One smaller move they could try to make to add some money to the pot for their forwards is to move out Radim Simek. His four-year, $9MM contract is hardly excessive in terms of cost but he has had difficulty staying healthy and had a limited role when he did play this season. Finding a new team for him would give Wilson a little bit more room to try to add up front which, with their veteran defenders slowly down offensively, will be needed if they want to have a chance at working their way back into playoff contention.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Cap information courtesy of CapFriendly.
North Notes: Canucks, Muzzin, Shore, Canadiens
The Canucks are a team that’s going to be looking to free up some cap room this summer and their situation for next season just got a bit more challenging. PuckPedia reports (Twitter link) that as a result of Quinn Hughes maxing out on his bonuses and Nils Hoglander hitting a games played-related bonus, Vancouver will be facing a $649K bonus overage penalty heading into next season. With the team being in LTIR for the entire year, they were unable to bank any cap room throughout the season which means that full amount is added to their 2021-22 payroll.
More from the North Division:
- The Maple Leafs have not yet ruled out defenseman Jake Muzzin for Monday’s seventh game against Montreal, head coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters including Postmedia’s Terry Koshan. The blueliner left Saturday’s game midway through the second period with a lower-body injury and the team is awaiting results on testing to determine his availability moving forward. If Muzzin is unable to play, Rasmus Sandin would likely return to the lineup to replace him.
- The usage of Devin Shore in their final two postseason games suggests that the Oilers will try to retain him this summer, suggests Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal. While Shore has arbitration eligibility, he also cleared waivers twice in the year and managed just nine points in 39 games so it’s unlikely he’d command much more than the $735K qualifying offer that he’s owed to stick around. Edmonton will need some cheap depth for next season and he could fit in that role for another year.
- Canadiens winger Artturi Lehkonen took part in an optional skate today but was in a non-contact jersey, relays TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie (Twitter link). As a result, his availability for Monday’s game against Toronto appears to be in jeopardy. He has been out since suffering an upper-body injury in the third game of the series. Montreal’s AHL affiliate in Laval also announced (Twitter link) that they’ve re-signed Tobie Paquette-Bisson to a one-year, one-way AHL contract. The blueliner played in 28 games with the Rocket this season.
Snapshots: Sedins, Paquette, Krebs, O’Connor
While the exact role has yet to be determined, Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin will be returning to the Canucks. GM Jim Benning indicated in a recent appearance on CHEK’s Donnie and Dhali show (audio link) that talks about a reunion are ongoing with an announcement hopefully coming over the next couple of weeks. The twins each played 17 years with Vancouver after being selected second and third overall back in 1999 and hung up their skates in 2018. Benning hopes to have the Sedins get their feet wet with several different aspects of the organization and given their commitment as players, this could be the beginning of another long run with the team.
Elsewhere around the NHL:
- Although Hurricanes center Cedric Paquette was listed as injured in their first-round series against Nashville, Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News & Observer reports that Paquette has been available all along and is available to be used against his former team as they take on Tampa Bay in the East Division Final. The 27-year-old was a regular in Tampa’s run to the Stanley Cup in the bubble, recording 112 hits in 25 games and could be called upon at some point to bring a similar level of physicality in the series.
- Golden Knights told reporters today including Jesse Granger of The Athletic (Twitter link) that center Peyton Krebs is well ahead of schedule in his recovery from a broken jaw. Instead of being out for the entire playoffs, there now is a chance for him to be available if Vegas is able to play into the summer. The 20-year-old was a first-rounder in 2019 and got into four games down the stretch, making him an intriguing option if they can make it far enough for him to return.
- Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar told reporters including Adrian Dater of Colorado Hockey Now (Twitter link) that winger Logan O’Connor may be available to play at some point in their series against Vegas. The 24-year-old played in 22 games during the regular season before suffering a lower-body injury in late March. While he is more of a role player, having someone that’s well-rested could be helpful later in the round if Bednar needs to tweak his lines.
Kings Sign Vladimir Tkachyov
The Kings have dipped their toes into the international free agent waters, announcing the signing of winger Vladimir Tkachyov to a one-year, entry-level contract. The deal is worth $832.5K in salary, per the team. PuckPedia reports that the deal also includes up to $850K in Schedule “A” performance bonuses.
The 25-year-old is coming off a strong season in the KHL, leading SKA St. Petersburg in scoring with 38 points in 45 regular season games while chipping in with eight more in 11 playoff contests. He has been a productive player in his seven-year KHL career, recording 185 points in 254 games.
If the name sounds familiar, Edmonton signed Tkachyov back in 2014 following the draft. However, that deal was rejected by the league after he was ruled ineligible for a free agent contract after spending part of the 2013-14 campaign in Russia before joining Moncton of the QMJHL. He spent one more year with the Wildcats and then returned home despite receiving more NHL interest at that time. Several teams have shown interest in him over the years as his contracts in Russia expired but he has decided that now is the optimal time to take a chance at playing in the NHL.
Tkachyov should push for a roster spot with the Kings next season and is experienced enough internationally that he could conceivably hold a middle-six role fairly quickly. Los Angeles will be able to get a look at what he can provide and if they like what they see, they’ll be able to control his rights as a restricted free agent through the 2022-23 season.
PHR Mailbag: Cup Prediction, Georgiev, Messier, Eichel, Prospects, Mock Draft
Topics in this edition of the PHR Mailbag include a prediction of the Stanley Cup winner, Alexandar Georgiev’s future with the Rangers, a thought on Mark Messier in New York, Jack Eichel trade talk, power forward prospects, and an early mock draft. If your question doesn’t appear here, check for it in last weekend’s mailbag.
lapcheung39: Do you see Tampa Bay will repeat as champion this year; if not, who do you see as a dark horse to win it all?
First, that was quite an entertaining series they had against Florida. The fact that the Lightning played well against a team that really mixed it up physically bodes well for them, a team that is tacitly viewed as more of a finesse group. However, even though I see them squeaking by Carolina in the second round, I don’t think they’re the favorite to win the Stanley Cup.
I suspect I’m hardly the only one in this camp but whoever wins the Colorado-Vegas series is my pick to win it all. Those two teams are in win-now mode with rosters that don’t have many flaws and they know that their best chance is now with the flat cap and pending free agents. (I know Tampa Bay is in a similar boat as well.) I have the Avalanche getting through the Golden Knights so they’d be my pick. I know that’s hardly a dark horse but I don’t think there is one.
CoachWall: Any chance the Rangers include Georgiev in a trade for a center and bring “The King” back to mentor/back up Igor? It would give Henry a way to get a proper send-off before #30 takes its rightful place in the rafters.
Let’s address a quick CBA note here in that there is nothing preventing New York from doing this if they wanted to. Players that are bought out can sign back with the team that bought them out (Calgary’s Michael Stone being the most recent example).
But even though they can, I don’t think they want to do that, nor should they. If the inclusion of Georgiev helps land an impact center, that’d be great. I don’t think he carries enough value to be a key piece of such a trade but in a bigger deal, I could see him being included.
But that doesn’t mean Lundqvist should be the target. He hasn’t played this season after undergoing open-heart surgery which means he will have gone about 14 months between game action between the bubble and the start of next year. It’s also important to remember that his numbers in his final season with New York weren’t particularly great and were below average for a backup.
I agree that Igor Shesterkin could benefit from a veteran backup who can help mentor him but the Rangers need someone that’s a little more reliable and doesn’t come with as many question marks in terms of health. For as talented as Shesterkin is, he has all of 48 career NHL games under his belt and we appear to be heading for an 82-game season in 2021-22. If I’m GM Chris Drury, I’m looking for someone that I’m comfortable handing 35-40 starts to next season. It’d make for a fantastic story but I don’t think that Lundqvist can handle that workload at the age of 39, at least to the point of giving them above-average backup goaltending.
The good news is that a lot of the other veteran free agent goalies out there should be able to handle that type of action so if they do move Georgiev this summer, there will be several viable options to turn to.
@flaguy12: Any chance if the Rangers interviewing Mark Messier for their head coaching job?
Is there a chance they’re interviewing Messier? Sure. I’d even go as far as saying they’re likely to talk to him considering his comments earlier this month when he said he was “standing by ready to help out” following the firings of Jeff Gorton and John Davidson. But as a head coach? I’d be shocked.
Messier dabbled in coaching a decade ago, heading up Canada’s entries into the Deutschland and Spengler Cups. He also has a couple of stints as an assistant coach with peewee teams. That’s the extent of his coaching background. That’s not enough to make him a credible candidate to be an NHL coach, let alone a head coach.
If they do speak with Messier, I wouldn’t be surprised if a role similar to the Senior Advisor post he held a decade ago with the team. If he had any intention of being in a full-time NHL role somewhere, his name would have popped up for opportunities somewhere over the past several years. Accordingly, a part-time role makes more sense for him which would be as an advisor or some sort of player development coach.
sabres3277: Do you believe that the Sabres will trade Eichel? If so, what team would be the best landing spot to bring the Sabres the best return? And what kind of return are the Sabres looking at?
It has been a tough stretch in Buffalo for the past several years and to be honest, I don’t see a lot of hope on the horizon for them. That’s not at all a shot at Jack Eichel either but the supporting cast isn’t good enough and the rotating door of coaches and general managers doesn’t help either. He’s one more season away from having the ability to veto a move when his no-move clause kicks in. I don’t get the sense he’s going to be happier with the Sabres a year from now, especially with the current issue of wanting surgery that the team won’t sign off on. Even with that lingering procedure, it certainly feels as if they have a better shot at getting more for him this summer than next offseason when he can limit the market. Accordingly, I do believe that Eichel will be on the move.
I don’t know how willing the Kings are to commit to three players making at least $10MM on their payroll when they’re a non-playoff team but on paper, they match up well. Buffalo needs a top young center in a trade. Los Angeles has Quinton Byfield, Alex Turcotte, and Gabriel Vilardi as recent first-round picks. They don’t have extra first-round picks but have extra picks in the next two rounds this summer which makes it a bit easier to part with their top selection. They also have ample cap space which means they don’t have to match money. That’s a strong foundation of a deal right there.
The Rangers have been long speculated as a landing spot but their package would have to be based on young defensemen more than a center as part of the reason New York would be in the hunt here is that youngsters like Filip Chytil and Brett Howden haven’t established themselves as top-six fits. I don’t know if the fit is as good and it’s a deal where money would need to be matched beyond the inclusion of Ryan Strome. I’ll toss in a dark horse team as well, the Blue Jackets. If Buffalo really likes one of Joonas Korpisalo or Elvis Merzlikins and that goalie is willing to sign, that could give them their starter for the foreseeable future, a core piece. They have three first-round picks at their disposal and could add someone like Max Domi to give him another fresh start although they don’t need to match money either. There are some pieces to work with for an offer there.
I can see this being a four or five-piece package. A young core player that’s either signed long-term or under team control for four or five years (Eichel has five years left on his deal). There needs to be a top prospect in there and probably a first-round pick or comparable prospect. The rest will be taking a player or two back for cap purposes. That’s a higher price than Ryan O’Reilly but Eichel is in a higher tier. O’Reilly is quite good but Eichel is a franchise player. They need to demand a huge return and even in a flat-cap market, they should be able to get it.
Pieters: Which prospects would have the best chance of being the next Brady Tkachuk (i.e., scoring forward that’s not afraid to mix it up)?
That’s a very rare combination to try to match which is part of the reason Tkachuk went as high as he did (fourth overall in 2016). There frankly hasn’t been one like him since then which makes this rather challenging to answer.
I think players like Matt Boldy (MIN) and Samuel Poulin (PIT) could fit the bill offensively. Boldy hasn’t had a chance to throw his weight around much in college but I think as he fills out, he’ll have a bigger willingness to get engaged physically. I’m not sure that means he’ll drop the gloves a ton but there should be a physicality element in time and he should score enough to be in the top six. Poulin has shown the offensive skill in junior that could translate to the pros but he already is a particularly physical player and undoubtedly will be highly valued by Pittsburgh’s new management team. If he puts it all together, he could fit that bill.
One other wildcard that comes to mind is Jake Neighbours (STL). I’m not convinced that his offensive ceiling is as high as Tkachuk’s but he could be a 15-20-goal player that drops the gloves from time to time while being able to mix it up in the corners.
If you’re looking at this and thinking that none of these players are like Tkachuk, you’re right. They’re not. But part of what makes Tkachuk or any other power forward of that ilk (think Milan Lucic and Wayne Simmonds in their primes) is that the combination of physicality and offensive skill is so hard to get; they don’t come around often. There are players with similar offensive games but don’t throw their weight around as much. There are more players willing to engage in the corners and play rough but lack the offensive upside to play in the top six. Rarely do you see both in the same player.
Tkachuk may not have the overall offensive upside as some of the others that went behind him in that draft but with everything else he brings to the table, the Sens believed he’d be more valuable. That belief has been rewarded so far.
East Notes: Oshie, Penguins, Rask
With Capitals winger T.J. Oshie growing up near Seattle, some have speculated that he could be a potential pick for the Kraken in the upcoming expansion draft with his possible selection helping to free up some much-needed flexibility for Washington. However, the veteran told reporters, including NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti, that he’s hoping to not be changing teams this offseason:
So I’ve got family out there, you know, that’s great, but Washington is where I want to be. This is where I’ve bled and cried, everything here. And this is where I want to stay for the long term. I signed an eight-year deal here because this is where I want to spend the rest of my career and retire here.
Oshie is now halfway through that contract and while he has partial no-trade protection, he doesn’t have the no-move clause that’s needed to lock him into one of the Capitals’ seven protected slots for forwards. The 34-year-old is coming off a nice season with 22 goals and 21 assists in 53 games and if he is made available, he certainly could be a tempting choice for the Kraken.
More from the East:
- Following another quick playoff exit, there’s a case to be made that the Penguins should be changing up their long-standing core. However, NBC Pro Hockey Talk’s Adam Gretz argues the opposite, believing that the collapse of the goaltending was their downfall which is a case to change things up there than blowing things up. It will be tricky for Pittsburgh to shake up their goaltending though. With minimal cap space and starter Tristan Jarry making just $3.5MM which is well below what a lot of number ones make, it will be tough to be able to afford a significant upgrade without taking away another key piece from their roster.
- While he was quite sharp in their first-round victory over Washington, Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask indicated on an appearance on WEEI (audio link) that he still isn’t feeling fully recovered from the upper-body injury that kept him out of the lineup for most of Boston’s stretch run. He also indicated that there have been no recent discussions regarding a contract extension as the 34-year-old is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Nazem Kadri To Appeal Suspension
May 27: Colorado head coach Jared Bednar told reporters including Mike Chambers of the Denver Post today that the appeal was in the “conclusion stage.” Today’s hearing was with the commissioner, which means Kadri can still appeal to a neutral arbitrator depending on the decision given in this first stage.
May 23: Avalanche forward Nazem Kadri has decided to appeal the eight-game suspension that he received earlier this week for an illegal hit on St. Louis defenseman, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link). He has already served the first two games (the second of which was today) so the process will need to move fairly quickly for him to have a chance of having any games shaved off.
The process can go through two separate stages. The first is a hearing with Commissioner Gary Bettman who can decide whether or not to uphold the eight-game ruling or to reduce it. If he opts to uphold it, Kadri can then appeal to have it heard by a neutral discipline arbitrator. Notably, this is the route Washington’s Tom Wilson took to have his 20-game suspension reduced to 14 back in 2018. However, it’s worth noting that this process takes some time; it was 13 days between Wilson’s hearing for the arbitrator to issue a ruling while taking a month after the incident took place to have a hearing. If this was to follow a similar timeline if it gets that far, Kadri’s entire suspension would have been served and a ruling would only reduce the absence on paper, if at all.
While the NHLPA is initiating this process through Kadri’s request, Line Movement’s Nick Kypreos reports (Twitter link) that Kadri is likely to hire outside counsel as well for his hearing. Players don’t always go that route but he will have ample representation for his hearing with Bettman which will likely take place over the next few days.
Flames Listening To Offers For Sean Monahan
After a disappointing season that saw them miss the playoffs, many expect big changes in Calgary this summer. Tweaks to the roster alone probably aren’t going to be enough and players like defenseman Mark Giordano and winger Johnny Gaudreau have been speculated as possible candidates to be on the move, the former due to their expansion situation where he may have to be left unprotected and the latter due to his contract situation as he’s about to enter the final year of his contract.
The other long-term core player that the Flames have is center Sean Monahan and it appears that he’s in play as well as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that the team is listening to offers for the 26-year-old.
It was only two seasons ago that Monahan had a dominant season, one that saw him notch 34 goals and 48 assists in 78 games while he and Gaudreau became one of the more productive duos in the NHL. At that point, it looked as if he had arrived as the clear-cut number one middleman they hoped they’d get when they selected him sixth overall back in 2013.
But things haven’t gone well since then. In 2019-20, his production dipped to 22 goals and 26 assists in 70 games in the pandemic-shortened year, the second-lowest point per game rate of his career. Then came this season where things were even worse. Monahan managed just 10 goals and 18 helpers in 50 games. While the fact the pandemic cut the season short again is notable, so too is the fact that his previous career-low in goals was 22. Suddenly, after being one of their more consistent scoring threats, that element of Monahan’s game disappeared and as a result, both Elias Lindholm and Mikael Backlund were more productive this season.
Monahan has two years left on his contract with a $6.375MM AAV with a 10-team no-trade clause, per CapFriendly. That price tag looked like a bargain two years ago but that isn’t the case now based on his recent performance.
Nevertheless, with what is once again a very weak free agent center market and the fact that impact pivots are hard to come by, there still should be several teams interested in Monahan. While the price tag is high for his recent production, he notched between 58 and 64 points in the four seasons preceding his 82-point campaign so there is a proven level of success and at 26, he still should be in the prime of his career. In terms of upside, there probably won’t be many other centers of that caliber that find their way into trade talks this summer.
With the cap being flat and Seattle’s entry into the league, the trade market could be busier than normal as a result. It looks like Monahan can be added to the list of players that could be on the move in the coming months.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Offseason Checklist: Detroit Red Wings
The offseason has arrived with roughly half of the league finished up after missing the playoffs. It’s time to examine what those teams need to accomplish over the coming months. Next up is a look at Detroit.
The rebuild continues for the Red Wings which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise with how their roster was structured coming into the season. They’re playing the long game and have amassed a quality group of prospects that will be added to this summer with a dozen draft picks including five in the first two rounds. GM Steve Yzerman has already checked off one major item from his checklist with the decision to retain head coach Jeff Blashill (though they will need to replace Dan Bylsma behind the bench) but he still has a lot of work to do.
Rebuild The Back End
There’s no denying that Detroit has plenty of cap and roster flexibility, especially on the back end where a grand total of two regulars are under contract for next season in Danny DeKeyser and Troy Stecher. Of those, it’s worth noting that DeKeyser cleared waivers and would almost certainly do so again next year. There’s a lot of work to be done here.
Filip Hronek is the top restricted free agent out of the group and very quietly led the Red Wings in scoring this season with 26 points while logging over 23 minutes a game for the second straight year. He isn’t eligible for salary arbitration as he’s coming off his entry-level deal but that won’t stop him from landing a significant raise. Even with a bridge deal, he should be able to at least quadruple his $714K price tag while a contract that buys out UFA years would be substantially higher and should put him ahead of DeKeyser’s AAV. Dennis Cholowski and Gustav Lindstrom have a bit of upside but project as role players at this point. So too are veterans Marc Staal and Alex Biega, both set to become unrestricted free agents; Hronek is the only core piece of the bunch and it’s a core that isn’t very deep.
There is definitely room for multiple additions in their top four defensively and that’s not even considering top prospect Moritz Seider who is ready to make the jump to the NHL. Detroit has been cautious in their player development so it’s unlikely he’ll get heavy minutes right away. It’s unlikely that they will be a prime free agent destination so Yzerman may need to do what he did a year ago with Staal and leverage their cap room – they have less than $33MM on the books for next season – to add some pieces. A willingness to add someone with term on their deal this time around might be a better way to go than another rental.
Detroit isn’t ready to become a contender next season so this isn’t something that has to all be done this summer but bringing in another building block or two to shore things up would be a welcome step in the right direction.
Re-Sign Key RFA Wingers
There is a long list of forwards that are in need of new deals but there are two that certainly stand out among the group in wingers Tyler Bertuzzi and Jakub Vrana. Both players are eligible for salary arbitration so if they want to avoid a hearing, they’ll be trying to work out new deals by August (assuming the players file by the deadline).
Bertuzzi’s case is going to be an intriguing one. Coming into the season, he was coming off a career year offensively despite the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 campaign and had two straight seasons of 21 goals and at least 47 points. The expectation coming into the year was that he’d be able to take another step forward this season. He looked to be on his way to doing so with five goals and seven points in nine January games but those wound up being his only games. While he initially wasn’t expected to miss the rest of the year, that eventually became the case and he underwent back surgery at the end of April. Bertuzzi, now 26, is a year away from UFA eligibility and while his platform year ended in disappointment, he’ll still carry some leverage knowing that he can force another one-year deal and hit the open market a year from now. He’ll be owed a qualifying offer of $3.5MM but expect Detroit to go considerably higher and try to buy out some UFA eligibility.
As for Vrana, he was the key piece coming back in the deadline deal that saw Anthony Mantha head to Washington. While the 25-year-old underwhelmed with the Capitals, that changed following the move. His playing time jumped by nearly three minutes a night while he produced at a point per game pace, collecting eight goals and three assists in 11 games. That’s certainly a small sample size and no one should be expecting that to continue but it pushed his numbers to a level comparable to his career year in 2019-20 once you extrapolate for the shortened season. His qualifying offer is actually a bit lower than his AAV based on the structure of the deal but Vrana will certainly earn more than the $3MM they’re required to offer. He’s two years away from unrestricted free agency so the two sides could agree to a one-year pact that allows for more evaluation while keeping him RFA-eligible after that. Alternatively, if Yzerman feels that Vrana is a top-six fixture for the foreseeable future, a long-term contract now would make sense.
Add A Starting Goalie
Goaltending has been an issue for the Red Wings for several years now. Jimmy Howard had a good run as a starter but by the end of his playing days, he wasn’t a legitimate starter. Jonathan Bernier has done relatively well considering the weaker team in front of him but he isn’t a number one either. Neither is Thomas Greiss who they signed in free agency last offseason. That allowed them to basically run a platoon of decent veterans which was fine for a season when they weren’t opting to contend but it hasn’t exactly set up them for their post-rebuild either.
Last year, it was Howard’s free agency that created an opening between the crease and this time, it’s Bernier in that situation. He seemed like a probable candidate to move at the trade deadline but there wasn’t much of a market and he wound up staying put. Now, Yzerman has to decide whether or not he wants to keep Bernier and run with the platoon again or look to try to bring in more of a long-term piece. If the expectation is that they won’t be a playoff contender next year, keeping the status quo would make some sense in principle while allowing them the ability to potentially trade a rental a year from now (Greiss will be in the final year of his contract in 21-22).
However, a starting goalie isn’t something a team should be searching for on an annual basis. At some point, a more permanent solution needs to be brought in and it’s probably not coming from their prospect pool. It’s not a great year for proven starters in free agency but there are upgrades available there while the looking Seattle expansion could result in some more activity on the trade market than usual. Yzerman will need to determine if this is the time to make a goalie splash or punt on the decision for another year.
Add Top-Six Forwards
The list of teams that scored fewer goals than Detroit this season begins with Anaheim and also ends with Anaheim. With Bertuzzi, Vrana, and Dylan Larkin, they have three capable top-six forwards but the depth starts to slide after that. Filip Zadina has some upside still and Robby Fabbri was quietly productive in limited action but they’re not ready to be top-six players on a contender just yet.
To help get them to playoff contender status, they need to bring in multiple players that can play in the top six, preferably a winger and a center. The good news is that there are quality UFA wingers available that may require an overpayment in terms of money to bring in but they have ample cap space and can afford to overpay to maintain their prospect and draft pick capital. The bad news is that the same can’t be said for centers. Filling that void will require some creativity.
Last offseason, Detroit used their cap space to take on Staal and add a second-round pick for their troubles. A similar approach could be taken here to both improve their roster as well as keep adding to their stockpile for the future. Yzerman has built up the forward depth since taking over in Detroit and now it’s getting closer to being time to make a bigger splash. This summer, one that should have a lot of player movement, looks like a good place to start improving on that front.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Cap information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Minor Transactions: 5/26/21
While things are relatively quiet on the transaction front during the NHL playoffs, there have been a few transactions today around the hockey world. Here’s a rundown of those involving NHL-affiliated players and teams:
- Panthers free agent defenseman Emil Djuse won’t be returning to North America. Instead, Rapperswill-Jona of the Swiss NLA announced that they’ve inked the blueliner to a two-year deal. Djuse spent the 2019-20 season in North America between AHL Texas and Springfield and was actually rather productive offensively for a blueliner with 32 points in 53 games but opted to play in the KHL this season instead of re-signing with Florida. He is set to become an NHL free agent in July.
- Kings prospect forward Alexander Dergachyov has been traded to Avangard Omsk, the KHL team announced. Going the other way to Vityaz Podolsk is none other than current Calgary Flames defenseman Oliver Kylington, as well as minor league forward Alexander Yaremchuk. Kylington, 24, is of course playing in North America, but as a restricted free agent this off-season following a campaign in which he was used very sparingly, perhaps the Swedish blue liner will be intrigued by the opportunity to move the KHL. On the flip side, the 24-year-old Dergachyov was a fifth-round pick of Los Angeles back in 2015 (74th overall) but hasn’t opted to sign with the team yet, instead preferring to remain at home. He signed a two-year contract with Omsk following the trade, so any move to L.A. will have to wait a while longer.
- The Canadiens have signed defenseman Terrance Amorosa to a one-year AHL contract, their farm affiliate announced (Twitter link). The 26-year-old signed a tryout deal with Laval in March and despite playing just five games, he clearly made enough of an impression to get another deal.