Anaheim Ducks Sign Nathan Gaucher
The Ducks signed Pavel Mintyukov, the first of their two 2022 first-round picks, earlier this month. Now, per a team announcement, the Ducks have inked Nathan Gaucher, their second first-round pick, to his own entry-level deal.
Gaucher, 18, was the 22nd pick at the 2022 draft, a pick that belonged to the Ducks thanks to the team’s trade of Hampus Lindholm to the Boston Bruins.
Gaucher has spent the past three seasons playing for the Quebec Ramparts of the QMJHL. The big six-foot-three, 207-pound forward had 57 points in 66 games last season and 31 points in 30 games in the COVID-impacted 2020-21 QMJHL season.
Gaucher’s size, pro-ready playing style, and overall polished game is what makes him an intriguing NHL prospect. While he may not have true top-of-the-lineup offensive upside, his addition to the Ducks’ prospect pool gives them an even more promising future down the middle, where they have two talented centers in Mason McTavish and Trevor Zegras already in the mix.
With this entry-level deal signed, Gaucher will likely head to training camp and have the chance to make the Ducks’ opening-night roster. If the way the team handled McTavish’s development is any indication, if Gaucher has a strong camp he could get a nine-game trial at the NHL level before being sent back to the Ramparts for a fourth season there.
With Zegras, McTavish, Ryan Strome, Isac Lundestrom, and Derek Grant all already on the Ducks, the Ducks’ center corps is a bit crowded at the moment. But Gaucher will get his chance soon enough, and this entry-level deal indicates that the Ducks are hoping Gaucher takes an accelerated path to the NHL similar to their other recent top picks.
Ottawa Senators Extend Mathieu Joseph
6:17 PM: The folks at CapFriendly have reported on the financial structure of the contract, which is as follows:
- 2022-23: $2.5MM
- 2023-24: $2.7MM
- 2024-25: $3.3MM
- 2025-26: $3.3MM
6:16 PM: After a strong start to his tenure as an Ottawa Senator, Mathieu Joseph has earned a four-year extension from the team. The Senators announced today that the restricted free agent forward has been inked to a four-year deal worth a total of $11.8MM, or $2.95MM per season.
Joseph, 25, arrived in Ottawa at the trade deadline as part of the team’s trade of Nick Paul. Coming from a talented Lightning team, Joseph found immediate success in a larger role in Ottawa, scoring four goals and 12 points in 11 games. He looked to be a strong fit next to Brady Tkachuk and Josh Norris, and its likely that this quality 11-game sample put him in a better position when negotiating this deal.
The Senators’ acquisitions of Alex DeBrincat and Claude Giroux could push Joseph out of the team’s top-six, but even in a third-line role, there is real potential for Joseph to provide surplus value on a $2.95MM cap hit. Joseph played on the Senators’ penalty kill and he could become a fixture on that unit going forward. If he does end up in a third-line role, $2.95MM is not bad value if he can maintain a level of production somewhere in between how he did as a Senator and his lesser production in Tampa Bay.
The Senators have been aggressive this offseason in improving their team. Joseph would likely have been ticketed for top-six duty on the Senators teams of years past, but that likely won’t be the case this year. Nonetheless, this is a solid, reasonable contract for both sides of the equation, and it’s the sort of deal the Lightning would have struggled to afford had they not traded Joseph.
If Joseph can continue the strong play he showed in his Senators tenure so far, this contract could be a fantastic bit of work from GM Pierre Dorion. If he doesn’t quite boom in 2022-23 the way he did in his first 11 games, Joseph could still settle in as a solid middle-six contributor who brings size, physicality, and scoring touch to the Senators’ second and third lines.
Minor Transactions: 07/28/22
It’s been a long, slow grind since the craziness of free agency opening on July 13, with a good number of high-end free agents remaining unsigned. With many other leagues than just the NHL looking to get their rosters set for next season, though, that hasn’t been the case everywhere. Minor-league teams and overseas leagues are making moves and transactions to their squads every day, giving hockey fans something else to look at. We’ll keep track of today’s transactions right here.
- The AHL affiliate of the Vegas Golden Knights, the Henderson Silver Knights, announced today that they have re-signed forward Jermaine Loewen for 2022-23. The former captain of the Kamloops Blazers spent last season with the Silver Knights, scoring 14 points in 44 games. Loewen played most of last season in a depth role in Henderson, and he’ll have the chance to increase his role next year thanks to this new contract.
- Winnipeg Jets forward Adam Lowry‘s brother, Joel Lowry, will be changing teams after a successful season playing for the Vienna Capitals of the IceHL. The EC Kassel Huskies of the German second-tier DEL2 have announced that they’ve signed Lowry to a contract for next season. The 30-year-old forward has shown himself to be a capable professional scorer at lower levels of hockey, as a point-per-game or near point-per-game scorer in the IceHL and ECHL. With the Huskies, Lowry will likely take on a large role as he looks to help his new team improve upon a fourth-place 2021-22 regular-season finish and attempt to earn a promotion to the top-tier DEL.
- Timra IK didn’t lose their spot in the SHL for next season, winning a relegation-round matchup against Djurgarden this spring, but they are losing their captain. Sodertalje SK of the second-tier Allsvenskan have announced that they have signed Timra’s captain, Christopher Liljewall, to a two-year contract. Liljewall struggled along with the rest of Timra in 2021-22, scoring just six points in 26 games, but he brings experience and leadership to Sodertalje’s squad. Liljewall actually served as Sodertalje’s captain in 2019-20 before moving to Timra and helping them earn promotion to the SHL in 2020-21. In Sodertalje, the task will be a bit simpler, as solidifying the team’s place in the Allsvenskan is the priority after a 2021-22 campaign that saw them avoid relegation by the slimmest of margins.
- The Adirondack Thunder didn’t have a great 2021-22 season, going 27-40-4, good for last place in the ECHL’s North Division. That poor finish was despite the efforts of forward Patrick Grasso, who made a successful transition to professional hockey after a long NCAA career. The 26-year-old scored 26 goals and 50 points for the Thunder as a rookie professional, playing well enough to earn a call-up to the AHL, where he had four points in nine games for the Utica Comets. The Thunder announced that they’ve re-signed Grasso to a contract for 2022-23. Grasso will return to his starring role in Adirondack, hoping that even more strong performances can help him climb the professional ladder.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Vegas Golden Knights Extend Brayden Pachal
The Golden Knights’ AHL affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights, had a solid 2021-22 season, going 35-28-5 with a playoff berth. Today, the Golden Knights re-signed the Silver Knights’ captain, Brayden Pachal, to a one-year, $750K contract. Pachal was a restricted free agent.
Pachal, 22, has worked his way up the professional hockey ladder since leaving the WHL as an undrafted player, and he finally made his NHL debut in 2021-22. Pachal got into two games for the Golden Knights and played most of the season in a prominent role in the AHL. In Henderson, Pachal played as a top-four defenseman and anchored the team’s penalty kill.
Pachal is a strong, physical defenseman who has quickly endeared himself to the Golden Knights organization and the coaching staff in Henderson. Being a captain of an AHL team at just 22 years old is an impressive feat, and it’s not out of line with Pachal’s history. Pachal was the captain of the Price Albert Raiders in the WHL in 2018-19, leading them to a WHL championship in the one year he wore the “C.”
This one-year deal for Pachal gives him the chance to lead the Silver Knights once again, and he’ll have the opportunity to get even more NHL games under his belt if the Golden Knights’ most relied-upon defensive defensemen, such as Brayden McNabb or Alec Martinez, have injury issues next season.
San Jose Sharks Expected To Add Ryan Warsofsky To Coaching Staff
The Sharks recently made their hire of David Quinn as their next head coach official, and now Quinn’s staff is starting to take shape. According to San Jose Hockey Now’s Sheng Peng, the Sharks will hire Ryan Warsofsky as an assistant coach with the responsibility of running the team’s defense and penalty kill.
Warsofsky, 34, is one of the fastest-rising coaching prospects in hockey. 2021-22 was Warsofsky’s second season behind the bench of the AHL’s Chicago Wolves, and it ended in a Calder Cup championship for the team. The win was Warsofsky’s second Calder Cup victory, as he won his first as an assistant on Mike Vellucci’s Charlotte Checkers staff. Warsofsky got his first experience as a head coach as the bench boss for the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays.
Warsofsky has won at every level he’s coached at, and he boasts a combined 193-91-30 record in 314 games of head coaching experience across two professional leagues and three teams. His Chicago Wolves squad last season had the fifth-best penalty kill in the AHL and had the fourth-least goals against, meaning he has a strong resume in the areas he’ll be asked to focus on in San Jose.
The expectation for GM Mike Grier, Quinn, and the entire Sharks organization is to deliver winning hockey to the San Jose market in 2022-23. Adding Warsofsky should certainly help them get there.
Snapshots: Slafkovsky, Tarasenko, Oil Kings
From the moment the Montreal Canadiens took Slovakian winger Juraj Slafkovsky with the first overall pick at the draft earlier this month, there has been significant speculation on where Slafkovksy would be playing the 2022-23 season. Canadiens co-director of amateur scouting Nick Bobrov indicated in his post-draft media availability that Slafkovsky had “learned all he could” from playing in the Finnish Liiga, and when one looks at the first-year landing spots of previous number-one picks it doesn’t take long to see a trend. Typically, a number-one pick will make their team’s opening-night roster, and 2021 number-one pick Owen Power‘s choice to begin 2021-22 with the University of Michigan was a rare break to that trend. So, with that history in mind, many have assumed that Slafkovsky would be playing for Montreal in October.
But it isn’t that simple. Slafkovsky’s so-so production in Liiga has left many wondering if a stint in the AHL or another lower league would be preferable for his development, and some have hoped that Slafkovsky could continue his string of strong performances for the Slovak national team at this summer’s upcoming World Junior Championships. It doesn’t look like that’ll be happening, though, and where Slafkovsky will be spending 2022-23 is becoming more and more clear. Today, Slafkovsky told Tomas Prokop of Dennik Sport that his “main goal” is to play in the NHL in the fall and that he would, as a result, not participate in the World Juniors. The Canadiens have room on the left wing next to their budding stars in Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield, so it’s likely that Juraj will spend the rest of the summer preparing to earn a shot on their line to open the season.
Now, for some other notes from across the NHL:
- St. Louis Blues winger Vladimir Tarasenko made headlines in the summer of 2021 when he reportedly requested a trade from the St. Louis Blues. At the time, Tarasenko’s health was still very much a contentious topic and it looked as though his NHL future was cloudy at best. After a 2021-22 resurgence that saw him author the most productive season of his career, Tarasenko looks to be in St. Louis to stay, despite recent rumblings. There were those who supposed that Tarasenko would be included in any of the Blues’ offers to the Calgary Flames for Matthew Tkachuk, but that wasn’t the case. According to Andy Strickland of Bally Sports Midwest, the Blues never asked Tarasenko to waive his no-trade protection to be traded to the Flames. This report is likely an indication that the Blues have Tarasenko in their plans for next season, and his production could be increasingly important to their success thanks to the departure of David Perron.
- The WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings have a new head coach. The team announced today that Luke Pierce was named their fifth head coach in modern history. Pierce, 38, has been an assistant for the Oil Kings for three regular seasons, stretching from 2018-19 to 2021-22. Pierce has prior WHL head coaching experience, as he was the head coach of the then-Kootenay Ice for two seasons from 2015-16 through 2016-17. His time at the helm of the rebuilding Ice didn’t go well, and he had just 26 wins in 144 games. Pierce will be in a better spot in Edmonton, though, as they just won the WHL title and had an extremely successful 50-14-4 record in the 2021-22 regular season. He takes over for Brad Lauer, who left to become an assistant coach on Rick Bowness’ Winnipeg Jets staff.
Roster Crunch Coming For Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames have had quite the offseason. In a span of one month, they’ve lost two pillars of their franchise: Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk. Yet in the same month, they’ve added a Hart Trophy contender in Jonathan Huberdeau and a top-of-the-lineup all-around defenseman in Mackenzie Weegar. It’s clear from GM Brad Treliving’s actions that the Flames are intent on building on last season’s 111-point campaign and competing for a Stanley Cup, despite the roster turmoil. They certainly look poised to do so, boasting a roster that includes a Vezina Trophy contender in net, a balanced, skilled forward corps, and a stout defense.
Outside of negotiations on a new contract for RFA defenseman Oliver Kylington, the team looks decently set, outside of one crucial area. As things currently stand, there’s a bit of a logjam on the Flames’ defense. The recent addition of Weegar, the extension of Nikita Zadorov, and the signings of Nicolas Meloche and Dennis Gilbert have left the Flames with nine defenders on one-way contracts, with a tenth on the way once Kylington’s contract is settled.
NHL teams typically carry seven defensemen on their active roster, rarely carrying more unless there are special circumstances, typically injury-related considerations, in play.
At a glance, a solid chunk of the Flames’ defense is set in stone. The pairing of Noah Hanifin and Rasmus Andersson is rock-solid, and since Kylington’s breakout season in 2021-22 came next to Chris Tanev, it’s definitely possible coach Darryl Sutter wants to keep them together. And then there’s Zadorov and Weegar, two players who belong in the Flames’ nightly lineup.
So, as things currently stand, the Flames have six proven NHL defensemen on their roster, occupying the six slots in the nightly lineup typically reserved for defensemen. The result of this abundance of riches is that Treliving will need to make a choice about how he pursues the construction of his opening night roster, and each route is not without its risks.
The first route Treliving can follow when it comes to his defense is to simply keep the five of their NHL caliber defensemen on their opening-night roster, (Tanev is hurt and will be on long-term injured reserve for the first few months of the year) carry one defenseman in their sixth slot on the bottom pairing, and then hold a training camp battle amongst the remaining one-way blueliners for the job of seventh defenseman.
This route would be the simplest and would be the route that allows the Flames to hold all of their established defensemen on their roster, something few other teams can boast. But the downside to this route would be only one defenseman in the group of Meloche, Gilbert, and Connor Mackey would be guaranteed to remain with the Flames, the rest would be exposed to waivers.
Season-opening waivers can be the best time to attempt to sneak a player on a one-way deal to an AHL affiliate, as most teams are dealing with a roster crunch and waiving their own players. Then-Carolina Hurricanes goalie Alex Nedeljkovic is a perfect example of this, as he cleared season-opening waivers in 2020-21 before making his way to the Hurricanes’ roster and finishing as a Calder Trophy contender by the time the season concluded.
But even with that in mind, could the Flames reasonably expect to waive three defensemen on one-way contracts and keep them all? It’d be a major risk, especially if one of those waived players is Juuso Valimaki, who is just 23 years old and boasts first-round pedigree.
If the Flames don’t want to leave the fate of the lower half of their defense corps up to chance, they could also opt to subtract from their impressive group of six NHL defensemen in order to add to their forward corps or get their hands on a different type of valuable asset.
Kylington sticks out in this regard. Andersson and Weegar are unlikely to be traded, and Tanev and Hanifin have the right to limited no-trade protection on their contracts. Zadorov is extremely unlikely to be dealt as a new signing. That leaves Kylington as the clear choice for the Flames if they choose to deal a defender to clear their logjam, and his ongoing contract standoff only emphasizes that point.
Kylington was once regarded as a top prospect and has been someone Flames fans for many years had hoped would finally turn his hyped prospect status into tangible NHL results. This year, he just did that. The freedom Tanev’s elite defensive play provided Kylington allowed the 25-year-old to make the most of his tantalizing tools, and he finished 2021-22 with nine goals and 31 points in 73 games. He showed he could be a threat as a transitional defenseman and even flashed improvements to his all-around game. He could net the Flames a strong return, perhaps even a young forward from a team in need of defensive help.
Trading Kylington would be a tough pill to swallow after he finally had the break-out season the organization had been waiting for, but it would also help alleviate the Flames’ (admittedly good) problem of having so many NHL defensemen. If the Flames want Valimaki to see regular minutes next season, this may be the route to take.
Whatever direction the Flames choose, they’ll have to do something. As things currently stand, at least some combination of defensemen in Calgary will be available to other teams, either via a trade or waivers. If Treliving wants to control who stays and who goes, he’ll need to be decisive.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
Seattle Kraken Sign Michal Kempny
July 25: Seattle has officially announced the contract, adding Kempny to the organization.
July 24: The Seattle Kraken have added another player, signing defenseman Michal Kempny to a one-year, one-way $750K deal, according to CapFriendly.
Kempny, 31, won the Stanley Cup in 2018 with the Washington Capitals, playing a decently-sized role on their veteran defense. Since that point, Kempny has struggled in larger roles and fallen down the depth chart in Washington, to the point where he split time between the Capitals and their AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, in 2021-22.
The 31-year-old native of Czechia is an undrafted player who once looked like a potential middle-of-the-lineup NHL defenseman. Nowadays, though, he’s more of a depth player, and he’ll likely battle with Cale Fleury and Gustav Olofsson for the seventh defenseman slot in Kraken training camp. In Washington this year, Kempny skated in 15 games and notched two points, playing just under 16 minutes of ice time per game and just over a minute on the penalty kill. In the AHL, Kempny was able to handle a larger role and acted as the Bears’ number-one defenseman in the games he played. In Hershey, Kempny led the Bears in time-on-ice per game and saw significant minutes on their penalty kill.
In Seattle, Kempny will either win a training-camp battle and make the opening night roster, or the Kraken will hope he clears waivers and is able to be sent to their AHL affiliate, the Coachella Valley Firebirds. If the latter scenario comes about, Kempny will likely play as a top-pairing defenseman in the AHL and be one of the team’s first call-ups if injuries hit their blueline. At a $750k cap hit, Kempny is a wise signing for a Kraken team looking to improve upon a dismal first season.
Blue Jackets Notes: Gavrikov, Bjorkstrand, Dubois
The Columbus Blue Jackets have had quite the offseason. GM Jarmo Kekalainen landed the consensus top player available on the free agent market, Johnny Gaudreau, and locked his superstar sniper, Patrik Laine, into a four-year deal to stay in Columbus. With the signing of Erik Gudbranson also on the books, the Blue Jackets have been left in an unfamiliar position: without any salary cap room. The team does have Gustav Nyquist‘s $5.5MM contract coming off the books next summer, and it looks like we may already have a good idea as to who a good chunk of those funds will be re-allocated to next summer. According to Aaron Portzline of The Athletic, (subscription link) the Blue Jackets “would like to get” defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov “signed long-term” to an extension.
It’s easy to see why the Blue Jackets would want to retain Gavrikov, who will be an unrestricted free agent next summer. Gavrikov was the clear number-two defenseman on the Blue Jackets, handling over 22 difficult minutes per night. Gavrikov was also a highly-trusted penalty killer, and he anchored the Blue Jackets’ penalty kill operation alongside Andrew Peeke. The 26-year-old Russian also took a step forward on the offensive side of the game, ending the season with a healthy 33 points despite playing barely any time on the team’s power play. Gavrikov is among the league’s most underrated all-around defensemen and his overall profile should see a boost once his (likely lucrative) next contract hits the books.
Now, for some other notes regarding the Blue Jackets:
- While the Blue Jackets’ trade of Oliver Bjorkstrand wasn’t ideal for management, the player, or the Blue Jackets fans, it was necessary. Kekalainen said dealing Bjorkstrand to Seattle was “the best of the no-good options,” and today, Portzline shed some light as to why that was the case. With the flat cap driving the prices to dump contracts to sky-high levels, Portzline believes that if the Blue Jackets preferred to shed Nyquist’s contract, it likely could have cost a 2023 first-round pick or even a top prospect. If the Blue Jackets wanted to trade Jakub Voracek and his $8.25MM cap hit over two more seasons, Portzline believes it may have even cost both a first-rounder and a top prospect. So, with that reality in mind, Bjorkstrand being the departing player rather than Nyquist or Voracek makes a bit more sense.
- One name Blue Jackets fans have moved on from is that of their 2016 third-overall pick, Pierre-Luc Dubois. The Blue Jackets sent him to Winnipeg in exchange for Laine and Jack Roslovic, and with Laine locked up long-term and Roslovic authoring productive seasons in Columbus, it seems both the fanbase and organization are satisfied with the deal. The one person who hasn’t been satisfied, seemingly, is Dubois, who has made his desire to play in Montreal no secret. According to Portzline, Dubois has “twice gone into a summer wanting” the Canadiens to submit an offer sheet for his services, and it seems that the Blue Jackets were even “tipped off” about the possibility of an offer sheet in 2020 when they dealt Markus Nutivaara and Ryan Murray for minimal returns in order to clear cap space. Dubois recently accepted a one-year qualifying offer, meaning the offer sheet possibility is now off the table, but with Dubois inching towards his own unrestricted free agency it’s definitely possible, if a bit unlikely, that he ends up in Montreal this summer.
Minor Transactions: 07/22/22
We’re now a week out from free agency and Nazem Kadri still hasn’t signed. NHL fans are patiently waiting on the decisions of several key free agents, though plenty of other moves are happening around the hockey world. As always at this time of year, we’ll keep track of all the notable minor moves right here.
- Former NHLer Nick Lappin will be playing overseas for the first time in his professional career. Lappin, who last played in the NHL in 2018-19 for the New Jersey Devils, signed a contract with Italian club HC Bolzano of the ICEHL. Lappin’s departure from North American hockey comes after the least productive season of his AHL career. The 29-year-old forward had just eight points in 38 games, and now heads to the ICEHL, a league with a lower overall talent level. In Bolzano, Lappin will be teammates with another former NHL-er, Matt Frattin, and will look to help the Foxes improve on last season’s ninth-place finish that came without a playoff berth.
- Former NHLer Victor Bartley will have a new team after three seasons playing for the Kunlun Red Star of the KHL. Bartley, who has 121 NHL games on his resume and last played NHL hockey in 2015-16, will play for Black Wings Linz of the ICEHL. Linz won just 11 of 49 games last season and have to hope that Bartley’s experience on their back end can help them have a better 2022-23.
- Kris Bennett, the captain of the ECHL’s Iowa Heartlanders, is heading to Switzerland. Per a team announcement, Bennett signed a contract with Swiss club HC Lugano, who have the option of sending Bennett to the second-division Ticino Rockets if they choose to. Bennett scored 35 goals and 73 points in 50 games for the Heartlanders last season and with this contract will have an opportunity to prove himself in one of Europe’s top leagues in 2022-23.
- Joseph Garreffa, a former star for the OHL’s Ottawa 67’s, has chosen to continue his career overseas. The dazzling forward once formed a lethal offensive trio with 2020 top-ten picks Marco Rossi and Jack Quinn, but hasn’t enjoyed the early success at the professional level that those two earned. Per an announcement from the club, Garreffa has signed a contract with Slovenian side HK SZ Olimpija, based in the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana. HK SZ Olimpija were a playoff team in 2021-22 and are hoping that Garreffa can help them return to the playoffs next season.
- The Vancouver Canucks’ AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks, announced today that they signed defenseman Chad Nychuk to a one-year AHL contract. Nychuk is a 21-year-old undrafted player who has spent the past four seasons manning the blueline for the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL. In his final season in Brandon, Nychuk had 71 points in 64 games, which ranked second on the team in points. This signing marks the beginning of Nychuk’s professional career and he will join Abbotsford with the hope of climbing the developmental ladder and earning an NHL contract with Vancouver.
This page will be updated throughout the day