Nashville Predators Sign Dylan Wells To PTO
According to CapFriendly, the Nashville Predators have signed netminder Dylan Wells to a PTO.
Wells, 25, split last season between the Chicago Blackhawks and Dallas Stars organizations. He played in 17 AHL games for the Blackhawks’ affiliate, the Rockford IceHogs, and posted a .905 save percentage. He was included in the Blackhawks’ trade of Max Domi to Dallas, and ended up playing in three games for the Stars’ AHL affiliate in Cedar Park.
A former Edmonton Oilers prospect, Wells has mostly been an ECHL netminder since ending his major junior career with the OHL’s Peterborough Petes, with 78 career games played in the ECHL compared to 42 in the AHL. Wells got into one NHL game last season, saving 12 of 13 shots in 20 minutes of relief duty during an early November contest against the Winnipeg Jets.
By accepting this PTO with the Predators, Wells will give Nashville an additional netminder for training camp and the preseason. While the team currently has four goalies with clearly defined roles (Juuse Saros as NHL starter, Kevin Lankinen as NHL backup, Yaroslav Askarov as AHL number-one, Troy Grosenick as AHL number-two), the Milwaukee Admirals do not yet have a third goalie on their roster. Additionally, the Predators’ ECHL affiliate, the Atlanta Gladiators, have only one goalie rostered and he has just 10 games of pro experience.
So while Wells doesn’t have a clear path to a prominent role in Nashville, this PTO does give Wells a chance to show he’s worth keeping beyond the preseason in a depth role within the Predators’ organization.
Summer Synopsis: Columbus Blue Jackets
The Blue Jackets shocked the hockey world last summer. After years where the prevailing narrative surrounding the Blue Jackets was about the multitude of star players who left the team to commit their long-term playing future elsewhere (Sergei Bobrovsky, Artemi Panarin, Seth Jones, et cetera) the team managed to sign the top free agent on the open market. They got superstar Johnny Gaudreau to commit the rest of his prime playing years to Columbus, and on the way seemed to accelerate their path back to contention.
Significant injury issues, regression from some important players (such as Cole Sillinger and Elvis Merzlikins), and a lack of talent down the middle left Columbus as one of the league’s worst teams last season, and according to some has firmly placed GM Jarmo Jarmo Jarmo Kekäläinen on the hot seat. In response to mounting pressure to return to contention, Kekäläinen had an aggressive summer and added a big-name head coach. Will this new-look Blue Jackets team be able to turn the team’s fortunes around as soon as next season?
Draft
1-3: F Adam Fantilli, Michigan (NCAA)
2-34: F Gavin Brindley, Michigan (NCAA)
3-66: F William Whitelaw, Youngstown (USHL)
4-98: D Andrew Strathmann, Youngstown (USHL)
4-114: F Luca Pinelli, Ottawa (OHL)
5-156: G Melvin Strahl, MoDo Jr. (J20)
7-194: F Oiva Keskinen, Tappara Jr. (SM-Sarja)
7-224: F Tyler Peddle, Drummondville (QMJHL)
While the Blue Jackets were undoubtedly disappointed to have lost in the draft lottery and missed out on a once-in-a-generation player in Connor Bedard, their luck definitely turned around on draft night. The Anaheim Ducks selected Leo Carlsson, a fantastic prospect in his own right, second overall, leaving the Blue Jackets the chance to pick Fantilli, the reigning Hobey Baker award winner.
There were many rumors that the Blue Jackets would have selected USNTDP product Will Smith had Fantilli been selected by Anaheim over Carlsson, meaning they would have been left with a player who’ll only hit the NHL ice next spring at the earliest. (Smith is committed to play college hockey next season at Boston College) Since the Ducks took Carlsson, though, the Blue Jackets were able to land a prospect widely considered to be NHL-ready, and a player many believe to be the clear-cut best player in the class behind Bedard.
Fantilli could very well end up the franchise-defining first-line center the Blue Jackets have been searching for since their very first season in the NHL, and getting that caliber of a player after losing a draft lottery is an amazing stroke of luck. Behind Fantilli, the Blue Jackets invested heavily in prospects playing in America, investing their next three selections in NCAA and USHL players. Brindley was Fantilli’s linemate at Michigan and could very well end up playing that role in the NHL. Whitelaw and Strathmann were teammates for the USHL Champion Youngstown Phantoms, with Whitelaw the team’s leading scorer and Strathmann a minutes-eating blueliner. Both USHL products play with an edge and will develop in college hockey before turning pro.
Trade Acquisitions
D Ivan Provorov (from Philadelphia)
D Damon Severson (from New Jersey)
This is where the Blue Jackets really made their mark on the offseason. The team identified its defense as a core area of need entering into the summer. Their lack of established defensive talent was exposed last season after numerous injuries took out the team’s more experienced players, such as Zach Werenski. In order to make the playoffs, Columbus knew that they would have to give top-four minutes to reliable players rather than resort to unproven names such as Tim Berni, Marcus Bjork, and Gavin Bayreuther, three names who saw time on the Blue Jackets’ defense last season.
In Provorov, Columbus acquired a somewhat enigmatic defenseman whose career features some very high highs and some even lower lows. Provorov was once viewed as an up-and-coming future number-one defenseman for the Flyers, and at times he looked like an elite all-situations minutes-eater.
He earned some stray Norris Trophy votes after his 2019-20 season, when at the age of 23 he played nearly 25 minutes per night and scored 36 points in 69 games.
In Columbus, Provorov won’t need to be that kind of number-one blueliner his team relies on. With Werenski entrenched in that role, the hope in Columbus is that Provorov will be able to thrive on a second pairing.
As for Severson, the Blue Jackets surrendered a mid-round pick to be able to sign Severson to a maximum-term $6.25MM AAV contract. The at-the-time pending UFA committed to Columbus without testing the wider market, and lands as a potential partner for Provorov. Severson has more of an offensive bent to his game and scored 46 points in 2021-22. He took a step back last season as the Devils injected more defensive talent into their lineup, relegating Severson to a smaller role.
In Columbus, he’ll be a go-to offensive creator from the back end, and while many fairly question whether Severson merited such a lengthy commitment (he’ll be under contract with the Blue Jackets through 2030-31, and is already 29 years old) he undoubtedly makes their team better for next season.
Key RFA Signings
F Mathieu Olivier (two-years, $2.2MM)
F Trey Fix-Wolansky (two-years, $1.55MM)
D Jake Christiansen (one year, $775k)
The Blue Jackets didn’t have any major RFA’s to re-sign, just some NHL-relevant players who figure to factor into new head coach Mike Babcock’s roster picture at some point next season. Getting Olivier, 26, locked into a two-year deal gives Columbus a physical presence on its fourth line at a reasonable cost. The Blue Jackets want to be a difficult team to play against, and re-signing Olivier helps them do that.
Fix-Wolansky, 24, torched the AHL last season to the tune of 71 points in 61 games. This two-year deal keeps him on the Blue Jackets at a cheap price for the foreseeable future, although since he’s not waivers-exempt there’s always the chance that he doesn’t finish this contract playing in Ohio. As for Christiansen, this will be his first season subject to waivers and his league-minimum price tag makes him an intriguing option to be claimed should he fail to make Columbus’ opening-night roster. The soon-to-be-24-year-old blueliner scored 34 points in 50 AHL games last season.
Key Departures
D Gavin Bayreuther (Dallas, one year, $775k)
The Blue Jackets were in the relatively uncommon position this summer of not really being at risk of losing any major contributors to their NHL roster without explicitly choosing to do so. Their most experienced player to sign elsewhere was Bayreuther, a journeyman defenseman who stepped in after Columbus was hit by significant injuries and ended up playing 51 NHL games.
The 29-year-old signed in Dallas and will likely remain a depth defenseman there. The Blue Jackets could certainly have used Bayreuther’s experience for another season, but the reality is if he ended up having another extended NHL stay in Columbus it would mean the team’s defensive corps is once again in dire shape.
Salary Cap Outlook
The Blue Jackets have some hefty contracts on their books, starting with Gaudreaus and extending to some expensive mid-range deals cap hits belonging to Severson, Provorov, and Erik Gudbranson. They have a bit of wiggle room to make a mid-season addition, and since they’re set to avoid long-term injured reserve will be able to bank cap space during the season for a potential trade deadline spending spree.
The most important aspect of this season from a financial perspective is the team’s performance in net. Columbus has committed $5.4MM AAV for the next few years into Merzlikins. Can he get back to playing like a quality starting netminder and reward the team’s faith in him?
Key Questions
Can Mike Babcock steer this team to the playoffs?: The Blue Jackets are looking to reach the postseason in an extremely competitive Metro division. They’ve enlisted the services of Babcock, a controversial coach who, at the very least, has quite a bit of winning on his resume. He helped turn a lost Toronto Maple Leafs franchise into the regular season juggernaut we see today, and won a Stanley Cup ring running the bench of the Detroit Red Wings. Will he be able to engineer a similar success in Ohio?
Which of the team’s young players will rise, who will fall?: The Blue Jackets have an enviable crop of young talent and a few players who have a chance to become stars in the NHL. Sillinger, the team’s 2021 first-round pick, looked to be on that track before a brutal sophomore campaign. Similarly, many had questions over whether Kent Johnson‘s high-octane offensive game would translate from college to the pro ranks without serious adjustment time. Johnson had a promising 40-point rookie campaign, to a strong degree silencing those questions. The Blue Jackets have even more ascending talents set to battle for roles on Babcock’s roster, so a main question regarding their 2023/24 season will be who among that group will rise to the top.
Can Merzlikins bounce back?: As mentioned, the Blue Jackets have committed much of their future to Merzlikins in net. They don’t really have any great method of getting out from under that contract, so their best bet is to support Merzlikins with an improved defense and hope he can return to the form he flashed earlier in his career. Whether he does so will go a long way in determining if this Blue Jackets competitive push ends up successful.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Minor Transactions: 08/31/23
It’s a big day in the wider world of professional hockey, as some of the top clubs in Europe are set to do battle in the first matchday of the Champions Hockey League. Highlights include Finnish champions Tappara Tampere taking on the Aalborg Pirates (Danish Champions) and the Liiga silver medalists, Lahti Pelicans, against the SHL champion Växjö Lakers HC. Clubs outside the Champions League as well as North American teams are still making moves to add players, so as always we’ll keep track of those transactions here.
- Former Cornell University defenseman Cody Haiskanen had an exceptional rookie season in pro hockey, leading the ECHL in plus-minus with a +53 rating, the second-highest single-season rating in ECHL history. The rangy six-foot-four blueliner scored five goals and 29 points in 61 games, and played 19 playoff games en route to the Kelly Cup Finals. Today, he signed a one-year contract extension with the Idaho Steelheads to remain with the club for this upcoming season.
- 21-year-old winger Pavel Tyutnev signed a contract with Admiral Vladivostok of the KHL today, committing his services to the club for the next two seasons. The Russian winger was ranked 49th among European skaters by NHL Central Scouting in 2020, but ended up going undrafted. He scored 17 points in 23 games at the junior level for Lokomotiv Yaroslavl last season and got into 5 games with the senior club, scoring his first KHL goal in the process. Now with this two year deal Tyutnev heads to Vladivostok with the hope of making a push for a full-time KHL job.
- Matt Tugnutt, the son of former NHL netminder Ron Tugnutt, is returning to North America after playing last season overseas in France’s Ligue Magnus. Tugnutt, 27, spent last year with Chamonix, scoring 13 goals and 29 points in 37 games. He’s signing with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays, re-joining the league he played 2021-22 in. He has 25 career ECHL points in 53 career games, and has played in South Carolina before as he’s skated four games for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits.
- Former Los Angeles Kings winger Nikolay Prokhorkin has signed a one-year contract with the KHL’s Sibir Novosibirsk. Prokhorkin, 29, has 43 NHL games on his resume and has, as a 2012 fourth-round pick, attempted to break into the North American game on two occasions. Both occasions ended with his departure to the KHL, the league he’s settled into as a capable scorer. Prokhorkin’s best season came in 2018-19, when he scored 41 points in 41 games for SKA St. Petersburg. Prokhorkin is a KHL All-Star, Gagarin Cup Champion, and Olympic gold medalist, but only managed to play in three KHL games last season. Novosibirsk is where he’ll look to construct a bounce-back season on this one-year deal.
- Former Anaheim Ducks prospect Jack Badini, the 91st overall pick at the 2017 NHL draft, has signed with Stjernen Hockey, a club in the top division of Norwegian hockey. The 25-year-old American forward spent most of last season with the ECHL’s Newfoundland Growlers, scoring 16 points in 31 regular-season games. He earned nine games at the AHL level with the Toronto Marlies and has 78 career games at the AHL level, where he’s scored eight points. Badini was a solid prospect in his days in the USHL and at Harvard, but he hasn’t been able to put together a strong resume in the North American pro game, prompting this signing overseas.
This page may be updated throughout the day.
Examining An Upcoming Montreal Canadiens Roster Crunch
On paper, the Montreal Canadiens don’t look like the type of team one would typically associate with an excess of NHL-caliber talent. The team is in the midst of a full-scale rebuild, attempting to construct a new core of players around some intriguing young pieces such as captain Nick Suzuki, sniper Cole Caufield, and 2022 first overall pick Juraj Slafkovský, among others.
The priority in Montreal under head coach Martin St. Louis has been player development rather than playoff contention, and that mandate to develop players as a top priority is likely to extend at least another season. But even though Montreal is widely expected to finish well outside the NHL playoff picture, they still have an abundance of capable NHL players to choose from when they construct their opening-night 23-man roster, particularly on defense.
Thanks to the Canadiens’ involvement in the three-team Erik Karlsson blockbuster trade, they dealt away Mike Hoffman and Rem Pitlick.
Those two departures did wonders to alleviate what was shaping up to be a crowded situation for the team at the forward position, one that may have even led to the Canadiens taking the somewhat drastic step of placing Hoffman on season-opening waivers.
Earlier this month, we covered the possibility that Hoffman, a well-traveled veteran scorer, could end up on season-opening waivers. With Hoffman and Pitlick departed, the possibility of the Canadiens exposing a relatively established NHLer on waivers has shifted focus to their defense and goaltending.
As a result of the Karlsson trade, (and subsequent deal that sent Jeff Petry to the Detroit Red Wings) the Canadiens ended up acquiring Gustav Lindström, a soon-to-be 25-year-old blueliner with 128 NHL games under his belt. The acquisition of Lindström gives the Canadiens a group of nine defensemen under strong consideration for the seven or even eight roster spots set to be available for that position.
Two veterans are locks to retain their prominent roles on the team: Mike Matheson scored at an impressive 58-point pace in his first season in Montreal and is likely to be the team’s number-one defenseman this season. David Savard is an experienced defensive defenseman who will be counted on to handle difficult minutes and penalty-killing time. Similar to those two veterans, Kaiden Guhle, should be considered a roster lock after a strong (albeit injury-shortened) rookie year.
Beyond those names, the Canadiens have Lindström, Arber Xhekaj, Jordan Harris, Johnathan Kovacevic, Justin Barron, and Chris Wideman left, a group of six defenseman competing for the likely four NHL jobs that remain.
Accordingly, the threat of waivers looms large over the Canadiens’ roster-building calculus as they seek to decide who to roster out of that set of names. Only Xhekaj, Harris, and Barron are able to be sent down to the AHL’s Laval Rocket without needing to hit the waiver wire. But as things currently stand, the Canadiens’ elevation of player development to their number-one organizational goal makes Xhekaj and Harris two highly likely candidates to make the opening-night roster, nearing “lock” territory.
Barron isn’t on quite as strong ground, but the 2020 first-rounder showed flashes of strong play as a rookie and could easily force his way into a roster spot with a strong preseason. Set to turn 22 in November, the Canadiens’ preference is undoubtedly for Barron to do exactly that.
Assuming Barron can manage to either put together a strong training camp and preseason, or at the very least do enough to motivate the Canadiens to spend an opening-night roster spot on him rather than start him in Laval, the result would be only one roster spot left for Lindström, Wideman, and Kovacevic.
Wideman’s valued presence in the Canadiens’ locker room kept him on Montreal’s NHL roster for the entirety of 2022-23, but with so many options to choose from the team may not be able to do the same for Wideman this upcoming season.
The likeliest of the three to win the potential last spot available on the team’s blueline is Kovacevic, who the Canadiens claimed off of waivers from the Winnipeg Jets at the start of last season.
Kovacevic acquitted himself well in his rookie season in Montreal and is a big right-shot defenseman on a highly affordable $766k cap hit for the next two seasons. He is therefore highly unlikely to be placed on season-opening waivers, something that would force the Canadiens into making a difficult choice.
Will they want to carry three netminders on their opening-night roster (Sam Montembeault, Jake Allen, Casey DeSmith) or are they okay with waiving one of those names (likely DeSmith) in order to be able to keep an eighth defenseman, saving Lindström or Wideman from waivers?
The current makeup of the Canadiens roster makes it likely that they’ll only be able to keep one of DeSmth, Lindström, or Wideman away from the season-opening waiver wire, barring a trade. That could present an opportunity for another club, as each name could reasonably be under consideration for rival teams to claim.
Lindström is a six-foot-two right-shot defenseman who saw regular penalty-killing time under former Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill in 2021-22. DeSmith, 32, played in 38 games last season, a personal best, and has a strong .912 career save percentage in the NHL. Wideman is probably the least likely candidate to be claimed due to his age (he’ll turn 34 in January) but as mentioned he’s a valued veteran voice in Montreal and did manage to score 27 points in 64 games in 2021-22.
It’s obviously too early to predict what the Canadiens will ultimately do with their roster dilemma, and the preseason and training camp will go a long way in determining their ultimate course of action. Perhaps a netminder on another team suffers an unexpected injury, motivating them to make a trade offer for DeSmith, or maybe the opportunity will arise for the Canadiens to exchange some of their defensive depth for help in other areas.
But as things currently stand, the Canadiens are facing the prospect of placing a few notable players on waivers. That makes their training camp and preseason one to watch for not only Canadiens fans but also fans of rival NHL teams, especially fans whose clubs could potentially need a right-shot blueliner or backup goalie.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Minor Transactions: 08/26/23
Although the start of the NHL season is still more than a month away, we’re rapidly approaching the beginning of the regular season for many top professional leagues in Europe. Teams have been playing preseason games for quite some time now, and in just a few days some top teams will have their seasons truly begin.
The Champions Hockey League has its first matchday on Thursday, with some notable contests including Liiga runners-up Lahti Pelicans against the Växjö Lakers, the reigning SHL champions. The reigning Swiss champions, Genève-Servette HC, will take on Austria’s HC Innsbruck in a contest set to feature numerous former longtime NHLers, such as Valtteri Filppula, Daniel Winnik, and Sami Vatanen. For many clubs in Europe, this time of the summer remains an opportunity to add players for what they hope will be a strong 2023-24 campaign. As always, we’ll keep track of minor league and overseas league transactions here.
- A report out of Russia has linked veteran NHL goalie Anton Khudobin to a club in the VHL, Russia’s second-tier professional league. The 37-year-old is reportedly signing with Sokol Krasnoyarsk on a contract that contains a termination clause should Khudobin receive a KHL offer. Khudobin hasn’t played overseas since the lockout at the start of the 2012-13 season, and would leave behind a North American pro career with quite a few highlights. He’s played in 260 career NHL games, with his career highlight undoubtedly coming in the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, when he backstopped the Dallas Stars to the Stanley Cup Final. Khudobin only appeared in one NHL game last season, stopping 22 of 28 shots in a March contest as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks.
- After signing 654-game NHL veteran Alex Galchenyuk, the KHL’s SKA St. Petersburg have made another move involving a former NHLer. They’ve acquired the KHL playing rights to forward Dominik Kahun, who has 186 NHL games on his resume. Kahun hasn’t played in the NHL since 2020-21 but has had a successful two-year stint with SC Bern in the Swiss National League, scoring 65 points in 65 games. St. Petersburg may not be able to get Kahun onto their roster officially for quite a while, though, as the recent IIHF Men’s World Championship silver medalist signed a three-year extension with Bern last October that will keep him in the de facto Swiss capital until 2027.
- 20-year-old netminder Tikhon Chayka was not extended a full-time contract from the KHL’s Dynamo Minsk at the conclusion of his try-out deal, the club announced today. This means that Chayka will move on from the team after just a short period with the club. Chayka wrapped up a two-year stint playing major junior hockey for the Prince Albert Raiders in the WHL at the end of last season, accumulating 96 games played with an .899 save percentage. He’ll now look elsewhere for a spot to begin his pro career.
This page may be updated throughout the day.
Examining An Upcoming Columbus Blue Jackets Roster Crunch
After a miserable 2022-23 campaign, the Blue Jackets’ mandate for the 2023 offseason was to pursue significant and meaningful upgrades to their roster that could result in the team having a legitimate chance to reach the postseason next spring.
New head coach Mike Babcock’s contract reportedly only carries a two-year term, suggesting immediate results are expected from his hire. Seeing as marquee 2022 free agent signing Johnny Gaudreau turned 30 earlier this month, it’s easy to see why the team’s general manager, Jarmo Kekäläinen, has so earnestly pursued NHL-ready talent for his club.
The team made some big additions this summer, headlined by two experienced blueliners: Ivan Provorov and Damon Severson. They also have quite a few intriguing young players set to take on potentially significant roles for the franchise, such as 2022 top draft pick David Jiříček, 2021 top pick Kent Johnson (who authored an impressive 40-point rookie season), and Kirill Marchenko, who scored 21 goals as a rookie.
In addition to those names, they could end up getting meaningful contributions from rookie players, such as Hobey Baker winner Adam Fantilli (who could even instantly slot in as a top-six center) and Russian import Dmitri Voronkov, a rangy six-foot-three pivot who scored 26 goals and 43 points across 78 KHL games last season. Babcock will have a diverse group of players to choose from for any role he seeks to fill in his lineup, and with franchise defenseman Zach Werenski back from injury, there’s legitimate hope for a major bounce-back season in Ohio.
The byproduct of the number of new players the Blue Jackets have is that competition for spots in the team’s opening-night lineup will be stiff, and Kekäläinen and Babcock will have some important decisions to make this fall that could massively impact the careers of a few players.
Columbus simply has more players who may legitimately merit NHL roles than they have NHL jobs to offer. As a result, some players could end up in the AHL or exposed to waivers when were they employed by another team they’d be preparing to skate in an NHL opening night.
Up front, there are significant training camp battles likely to occur both at center and along the wings. Gaudreau, Laine, and Johnson are locks for top-six roles and Marchenko isn’t far behind them, but after those names, the competition for roles on the third line, fourth line, or spare forward spots is set to be fierce.
Soon-to-be-24-year-old Alexandre Texier scored 11 goals and 20 points in his most recent 36-game NHL season and is returning to the NHL after a productive season playing with the ZSC Lions in Switzerland. Jack Roslovic has had his fair share of inconsistencies in Columbus, but has nonetheless scored 123 points in 206 total games as a Blue Jacket, a 49-point 82-game pace.
They should each be seen as front-runners for roles along the wings of Babcock’s third line, though they’ll have some stiff competition.
Last season, Trey Fix-Wolansky, at the age of 23, scored 71 points in just 61 games for the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters. He’ll now need to clear waivers in order to be sent to the AHL, and therefore could be an intriguing name to watch for teams looking to profit off of the number of NHL-relevant wingers the Blue Jackets have.
Another player in contention for a roster spot is 22-year-old Yegor Chinakhov, a 2020 first-round pick. He remains waiver-exempt but has only played seven career games in the AHL. At this stage of his career, it would likely be less than ideal for Chinakhov to spend this season (the last before he’s waivers-eligible) in the AHL.
It’s an important year for Chinakhov to deliver on the faith the Blue Jackets showed in him when they picked him 21st overall, and he’ll have his work cut out for him in the preseason as he tries to beat out Roslovic or Texier for a third-line role.
A second Blue Jackets first-rounder, Liam Foudy, finds himself on the team’s roster bubble. Unlike Chinakhov, he has the disadvantage of being waivers-eligible for the first time in his career.
Foudy faces a make-or-break preseason as he looks to secure a fourth-line role competing against more established names such as Eric Robinson and Mathieu Olivier. While it would be a surprise to see the 2018 18th overall pick’s name on season-opening waivers, the possibility can’t be ruled out.
This immense level of competition along the wings extends to the center position, where the Blue Jackets have a wide-open set of options. The team has flirted with the possibility of trying out Laine as a pivot, and it’s that possibility as well as the presence of players such as Fantilli that could force a player like Roslovic, a longtime center, onto the wing. The most intriguing spot to look out for is likely to be the third-line center role, assuming Jenner and one of Laine or Fantilli each take up a top-six job.
2022 first-rounder Cole Sillinger had a brutal sophomore campaign but scored 31 points as a rookie and is still viewed as a crucial part of Columbus’ long-term future. But a variety of factors could lead to him starting the year with AHL Cleveland.
First and foremost, there were many who believed that Sillinger would have been better served last season regaining his confidence in the AHL with the Monsters, where he ended up playing in 11 total games. (compared to 64 in the NHL) That attitude could lead to Columbus opting to start Sillinger off in Cleveland, hoping that he’ll force his way into the NHL roster with some strong play and re-emerge in the NHL with sky-high confidence.
Sillinger is waivers-exempt, so the team could prefer to begin his season in the minors in order to avoid having to place a player such as Fix-Wolansky, Justin Danforth, or a defenseman on waivers.
The addition of Voronkov could also push Sillinger to the AHL, assuming the Russian is able to quickly translate his KHL success to the smaller North American ice surfaces.
A potential battle between Voronkov and Sillinger for an opening-night job down the middle of Babcock’s lineup could be the most intriguing storyline to track during the Blue Jackets’ preseason.
On defense, Columbus faces an arguably even more crowded situation. The top three defensemen are set in stone, with Werenski, Provorov, and Severson guaranteed to play top-four roles. Beyond them, the team has a group of five players competing for what is likely to be just four open NHL jobs: Andrew Peeke, Erik Gudbranson, Jake Bean, Adam Boqvist, and Jiříček.
Jiříček, 19, was exceptional in the AHL last season (he scored 38 points in 55 games, leading all regular under-21 defensemen in scoring on a points-per-game basis) and appears more than ready for an NHL role. But handing Jiříček an NHL job could mean placing one of those names on season-opening waivers, or forcing Kekäläinen to carry eight defensemen on his roster when the team already, as mentioned, has an abundance of capable forwards and a few who would need to be waived if they don’t earn NHL jobs.
While a battle between young centers such as Sillinger and Voronkov could end up a highlight of the preseason, the situation of the Blue Jackets’ defense means the ultimately higher-stakes lineup competition is on Babcock’s blueline, where the threat of waivers potentially looms large for some experienced players.
The NHL preseason isn’t a time generally associated with high-stakes battles. The games don’t count for the standings and the priority for many players is simply preparing themselves for the rigor that comes with the regular season. But for the many players who find themselves on their team’s roster bubble or competing for an open lineup spot, the preseason carries an immense importance for the future of their career.
With a new head coach, many Blue Jackets players will have a blank slate to prove themselves and earn a role this fall. That presents numerous opportunities for not only Blue Jackets players, but also the 31 other teams who could be eyeing up a Columbus skater they hope will end up on the season-opening waiver wire. The training camp battles set to play out at every skater position in Columbus are likely to make the team’s training camp and preseason one of the league’s most interesting this fall.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Tyler Motte Changes Representation
Now in the midst of a second-consecutive offseason where he’s remained a free agent deep into the summer, veteran forward Tyler Motte has made the decision to change representation. The versatile 28-year-old bottom-sixer had to wait until September last year to get a contract for 2022-23, and currently remains unsigned for the 2023-24 season.
Motte posted on social media announcing the change, and PuckPedia confirmed that Motte is now being represented by Pat Brisson, one of the NHL’s most prominent agents. Motte had previously been represented by Richard Evans of Wasserman Hockey.
Last season saw Motte take his first trip to the unrestricted free agent market of his career, and he did so on relatively strong footing.
He had been able to showcase his talents on a big stage that spring, skating in regular minutes on the fourth line of a New York Rangers team that made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Final.
There aren’t many better ways for defense-first fourth-liners to raise their profile leaguewide than to play difficult playoff minutes in one of the league’s biggest markets, and there was some belief that Motte’s performance for the Rangers would set him up nicely to cash in on a multi-year deal that summer.
We shared in that belief, projecting Motte to receive a four-year, $1.75MM AAV contract in our Top 50 Free Agents piece from 2022. We saw Motte valued by teams as a “very effective role player,” though we also noted that NHL clubs “generally don’t want to pay high price tags for fourth-liners.”
NHL teams were indeed reluctant to commit a multi-year contract to Motte, as he ended up lingering on the open market until the fall and ended up receiving just a one-year deal. In that flat cap world, it seemed teams weren’t willing to commit a multi-year deal to a fourth-line player without much offensive production, even despite Motte’s many positive qualities.
As outside observers, we don’t have a concrete understanding of why Motte has ended up on the market so long. We can speculate that the true level of interest in his services was potentially miscalculated by his representation (just as we made the same miscalculation in our free agency preview) but ultimately it will remain a mystery as to why Motte has found himself in this position for two consecutive years.
With that said, though, the fact that he’s made the choice to move on from an agent he has a longstanding relationship with echoes similar moves made by players such as John Klingberg and Vladimir Tarasenko.
In 2022, Klingberg was reportedly looking at a seven-year, $6MM or so AAV contract in free agency before he was ultimately forced to settle on a one-year $7MM guarantee. Many have credited Klingberg’s change in representation to frustration with how his free agency played out, and it’s possible Motte has made his own change due to a similar frustration.
As for what may lie in store for Motte and his new representatives, in our profile of his free agency completed earlier this month we said “it wouldn’t be surprising to see Motte sign for $775K or close to it.” Most of the additions we’ve seen at this stage of the summer are of the PTO variety, meaning it could be difficult for Motte to get any sort of meaningful financial commitment from a team beyond the league minimum.
Regardless of the issues Motte has had in free agency these past two years, he remains a legitimately effective fourth-line energy winger. Although his time with the Rangers this past spring didn’t result in the same kind of long playoff run he enjoyed in 2022, Motte did manage a healthy 10 points in 24 regular-season games, leading to a career-high final point total of 19.
He’s still right in the heart of his prime years, so it’ll be up to Brisson and CAA to find Motte the right place to play next season, a place where he can (assuming he signs a one-year deal) best showcase his talents for another potential trip to the open market next summer.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
St. Louis Blues Sign Isaac Ratcliffe To PTO
The St. Louis Blues have announced the signing of forward Isaac Ratcliffe to a professional tryout agreement for the preseason. Bally Sports Midwest’s Andy Strickland reports that there “could still be another” PTO signing coming for the team as they prepare for training camp.
In July, the AHL’s Chicago Wolves announced they’d signed Ratcliffe to an AHL contract for the 2023-24 season. Ratcliffe’s first priority will now be to make the Blues’ roster out of camp and earn a spot in the NHL, though AHL Chicago could very well end up his 2023-24 team should he fall short in that pursuit.
In Ratcliffe, the Blues are rolling the dice on a former highly-drafted prospect whose professional career has not to this point lined up with many scout’s projections.
Way back when he was a prospect for the 2017 draft, many scouts were intrigued by Ratcliffe’s imposing six-foot-six frame and coveted combination of size and goal-scoring ability.
He was ranked 15th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting and was ultimately drafted near the top of the second round by the Philadelphia Flyers, 35th overall. Although Ratcliffe had slipped out of the first round, the Flyers ended up trading their own second-round pick, a third-rounder, and a fourth-rounder in order to move up nine spots in the draft order to be able to select Ratcliffe, highlighting just how highly Ratcliffe was viewed by some NHL evaluators.
Ratcliffe then proceeded to set the OHL on fire, scoring 41 goals the season after he was drafted and 50 goals in his final regular season of major junior hockey. Ratcliffe also added 30 points in 24 playoff games that year, partnering with Nick Suzuki to win the Guelph Storm an OHL title. At that point, there was a widespread belief that Ratcliffe had a chance to become an important part of the Flyers’ future forward corps, and he was ranked as the team’s fifth-best prospect by The Athletic’s Corey Pronman. (subscription link)
Pronman wrote at the time that “the pace [of the professional game] will be a big test” for Ratcliffe, noting that Ratcliffe’s “quickness is an issue.” That proved to be something of an understatement, as Ratcliffe struggled immensely to adjust to the faster pace of AHL hockey. While he could leverage his size and physicality to overpower his peers in junior hockey, the seasoned pros that populate the AHL proved far more difficult to outmuscle.
At the end of his rookie season as a pro player, Ratcliffe had collected six goals and 15 points in 53 games. His spot in the Flyers’ plans looked to be on increasingly thin ice, and after the COVID-19 pandemic wiped away much of the 2020-21 AHL season, Ratcliffe had the 2021-22 campaign as his best shot to prove to Philadelphia that he was still a legitimate NHL prospect.
He certainly played better, scoring 11 goals and 28 points in 59 games, and even earned his first NHL call-up, ultimately skating in 10 games in Philadelphia. But he still looked to be a step behind the pace of the pro game, and after injuries and inconsistency conspired to make the start of his 2022-23 season a real struggle, he was dealt to the Nashville Predators at the 2023 trade deadline.
Ratcliffe put together a solid stretch of games for the Predators’ AHL affiliate but ultimately was not issued a qualifying offer by the franchise, leading to his signing with the Wolves and this PTO with the Blues. The Blues have a few young wingers they’d like to see take real steps forward in their development and convincingly snatch regular roles in head coach Craig Berube’s lineup.
While players such as Oskar Sundqvist and Samuel Blais are locks for the Blues’ NHL roster, Ratcliffe will compete in camp against less established names such as top prospect Jake Neighbours, big Alexey Toropchenko, and veteran Mackenzie MacEachern.
With this PTO, Ratcliffe will have the chance to join the Blues for training camp and the preseason with the hope of pushing those players for an NHL job. While it’s ultimately unlikely that the Blues elect to sign and roster Ratcliffe over someone like Neighbours, Toropchenko, or MacEachern, he’ll have the chance to potentially showcase his talents to other clubs in preseason games as well.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Snapshots: Ducks Prospects, Ruggiero, Duhamel, Viveiros
It’s been more than a half-decade since the Anaheim Ducks made it to the NHL’s postseason, and despite acquiring some talented players this offseason they remain likelier to finish the season outside of the playoff picture looking in. But even though Pat Verbeek’s rebuilding team may not be ready to earnestly compete for a Stanley Cup in 2023-24, Anaheim may not be far away. That’s at least according to The Athletic’s Corey Pronman, who ranked the Ducks’ prospect pool as the NHL’s best. (subscription link) Headlined by a trio of highly talented pivots in ascending star Trevor Zegras, 2023 second-overall pick Leo Carlsson, and 2021 third-overall pick Mason McTavish, the Ducks have the sort of foundation down the middle that most true contenders boast.
But even beyond those three centers is a deep group of high-upside players, including a glut of talented defensemen. Pavel Mintyukov, Olen Zellweger, and Tristan Luneau each scored at high rates in the CHL last season and all three would be in the conversation for best prospect in several other NHL systems. In Anaheim, they rank fifth, sixth, and ninth, according to Pronman. So regardless of how the Ducks ultimately perform in the standings next season, it appears fans in Orange County will have plenty to look forward to.
Some other notes from across the NHL:
- The New York Rangers are hiring Hockey Hall of Famer Angela Ruggiero as a hockey operations advisor, according to Mollie Walker of the New York Post. Ruggiero is one of the most accomplished women’s hockey players of all time, winning four Olympic medals (one gold), four IIHF Women’s World Championships gold medals, and numerous All-Star and top defender honors. Her playing career ended in 2011-12 and since her retirement Ruggiero has built up an impressive off-ice resume, serving on the board of the IIHF and the executive board of the IOC. She’ll join Rangers GM Chris Drury’s front office in New York and have a voice in shaping the team’s quest for its first Stanley Cup since 1994.
- The Arizona Coyotes have officially confirmed that assistant coach Mario Duhamel has been signed to a multi-year contract extension. Duhamel’s relationship with Tourigny stretches back all the way to 2005-06, when Duhamel joined Tourigny’s staff with the QMJHL’s Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. Duhamel oversees the Coyotes’ defense, and a recent breakout season for waiver claim Juuso Välimäki, the rapid rise of J.J. Moser, and the near-resurrection of Shayne Gostisbehere‘s career after a trade from Philadelphia all speak to the value Duhamel brings to Tourigny’s squad.
- The WHL’s Vancouver Giants have hired Manny Viveiros to be the team’s next head coach, according to a team announcement on X. Viveiros, 57, served as the head coach for the Henderson Silver Knights, the Vegas Golden Knights’ AHL affiliate, for the last three seasons. Although he didn’t produce overwhelming on-ice results this past season with the Silver Knights, Viveiros does have valuable WHL experience, such as from 2017-18 when he won a league title with the Swift Current Broncos and was named WHL Coach of the Year. Viveiros’ one-year stint in 2019-20 with the Spokane Chiefs was also highly successful (he went 41-18-5 in 64 games before the WHL season was scuttled by the COVID-19 pandemic) and it’s likely that the Giants are hoping for big things from Viveiros and his potential partnership with 2023 Calgary Flames first-rounder Samuel Honzek.
Extension Candidate: Mark Scheifele
The Winnipeg Jets are approaching a potentially franchise-altering season. Two of the organization’s key players, former Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck and team number-one center Mark Scheifele are each on expiring contracts that stand to walk them straight to the unrestricted free agent market next summer.
The Jets are intent on remaining competitive with key players such as Kyle Connor, Josh Morrissey, Nikolaj Ehlers, and recent acquisition Gabriel Vilardi still on their roster. So it stands to reason that the team would be interested in retaining Scheifele, the player with the most goals in Jets history since they arrived from Atlanta.
But seeing as his name has come up in trade rumors this summer, it’s also a very real possibility that he ends up on a different team next season. A poor campaign by Winnipeg could finally catalyze the type of re-tool that seems off the table at this current moment entering 2023-24.
The likeliest scenario that would result in Winnipeg engaging in serious discussions about a long-term contract with Scheifele next season would be if the team sprints out of the gate at the start of the regular season and looks like a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.
If that ends up happening, the Jets finding a way to retain their number-one center would likely become an organizational top priority. Should the Jets make a determined effort to extend Scheifele — assuming they haven’t already — what might that contract look like?
2022-23
For quite a while now, the question of Scheifele’s true on-ice value has been a hotly debated one. He’s a divisive player, and that’s not even a reference to the vicious hit he laid on an unsuspecting Jake Evans during the 2021 playoffs — one that got him suspended for the team’s final three games as well as Winnipeg’s season-opener the following campaign — but rather a reference to the way in which Scheifele approaches the game.
Scheifele places a premium on offensive creation and offensive production, something that is certainly admirable, but often comes at the detriment of his all-around value. His fixation on always maximizing his and his linemates’ offensive production has made him something of a lightning rod for criticism as the Jets franchise has declined since their 2018 run to the Western Conference Final.
Scheifele’s approach to the game has at times attracted harsh criticism from those who would like to see him take a more committed approach to the defensive side of the game. A lot is typically asked of elite centers in the NHL, and nothing Scheifele has shown in recent seasons has suggested he is able to capably manage the sort of defensive commitment many coaches want to see out of top pivots. Jets coach Rick Bowness even appeared to show some frustration at Scheifele during last season, per The Athletic’s Murat Ates, suggesting that many fans’ frustration with Scheifele’s offensive focus could be shared, to a certain extent, by figures within the Jets organization.
But on the flip side of those negatives is the undeniable reality that Scheifele is among the most offensively gifted centers in the NHL. He scored a career-high 42 goals last season and has frequently been an at-or-above point-per-game scorer. He’s a two-time NHL All-Star and has even been productive in the playoffs, with 32 points in 37 career games. He undoubtedly has the numbers of a true first-line center, and first-line centers are extremely rare. But then the question becomes, he has number-one center numbers, but does he play like one?
Statistics
2022-23: 81 GP, 42 G, 26 A, 68 pts, -16 rating, 43 PIMs, 206 shots, 20:29 ATOI, 58.5% CF
Career: 723 GP, 272 G, 373 A, 645 pts, +46 rating, 303 PIMs, 1,620 shots, 19:59 ATOI, 55.7% CF
The Market
Centers who put up the kind of numbers Scheifele has throughout his career don’t come cheap. While Scheifele is undoubtedly a cut below the dynamic, league-defining centers such as Nathan MacKinnon that are at the top of the financial leaderboard, he nonetheless has the profile of a player who merits a franchise-defining contract.
It’s very rare for a point-per-game top-line center to hit the open market, and while it’s certainly up for debate if Scheifele truly fits that mold, he’d certainly end up the best center on the open market assuming both Auston Matthews and Steven Stamkos re-sign with their current clubs.
That would likely aid Scheifele significantly should he be seeking the highest AAV mark possible on his next deal, as it’s probable that teams desperate for a true scoring center (such as the Boston Bruins, who lost David Krejci and Patrice Bergeron to retirement) would be ready to open their wallets for Scheifele.
The Jets have the sort of cap space to afford a hefty raise for Scheifele, in large part thanks to the nearly $7MM set to come off their books at the expiration of Brenden Dillon and Dylan DeMelo‘s contracts. The team shifting to a cheaper goaltender should Hellebuyck depart could also make fitting a pricey Scheifele extension all that much easier for Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff.
Comparable Contracts
Dylan Larkin (Detroit Red Wings) – Detroit invested an $8.7MM AAV in Larkin’s next contract, and although Scheifele is three years older he has a decent argument to have earned more than that number. Scheifele has a more extensive track record of offensive production than Larkin, though Larkin’s defensive game certainly surpasses Scheifele’s. It’s also worth noting that Larkin was signing with his hometown team and the club he captains, and although Scheifele has spent his entire pro career with the Jets it’s unlikely he has ties as deep, long-lasting ties as Larkin had, the sort of ties that would make a player particularly motivated to re-sign.
Bo Horvat (New York Islanders) Horvat has posted numbers far below Scheifele’s career standards for much of his time in the NHL, and he earned an $8.5MM AAV from the New York Islanders. Horvat’s commitment to defense far surpasses Scheifele’s and he is two years younger. But NHL teams first and foremost pay for production when it comes to scoring forwards, and as a result, it’s difficult to imagine Scheifele earning less than Horvat on his next deal, at least on an average annual value basis.
Projected Contract
In our preview of the 2024 free agent class, we projected a $9.4MM AAV on Scheifele’s next contract, on a seven-year term. That’s certainly a fair number looking at Scheifele’s offensive production, but one wonders if teams would give pause to committing that kind of money to a player with Scheifele’s defensive warts now that he’s past the age of 30.
That being said, the type of bidding war that would be likely to take place should Scheifele hit the open market would almost undoubtedly see Scheifele offered a contract at that AAV, if not higher. Quite simply, centers of his caliber are among the rarest commodities in the NHL, and almost never hit unrestricted free agency.
If the Jets want to motivate Scheifele to forgo a likely highly lucrative trip to the free agent market, they’ll likely need to pony up, potentially giving him a maximum-term deal above the $10MM mark.
Similarly, for a team to prevail in what is likely to be a hotly contested battle for his signature in any potential Scheifele unrestricted free agency, they’ll likely need to cross that $10MM threshold as well.
It’s far from a given we reach that point since Scheifele still needs to have a productive 2023-24 season, but if he has another near or above-point-per-game season he could very well end up the star of next summer’s free agent frenzy. Though if he does, there will undoubtedly be quite a bit of debate over whether he truly merits the contract he’ll receive.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images