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Snapshots: Point, Husso, Hague

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The Tampa Bay Lightning need to win two straight games in order to defend their back-to-back Stanley Cup championships, including a pivotal Game Six tonight. Today, Lightning coach Jon Cooper told the media that the Lightning would be without star center Brayden Point, just as they were for their Game Five victory. Cooper called Point’s injury “severe,” but did not rule him out for Game Seven, should the Lightning manage to keep their season alive.

Point was originally injured in Game Seven of the Lightning’s first-round playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Point has only gotten into two games since his injury, both in the Cup Final. He has one assist since the injury and five total points in his nine playoff games this year. Point is an elite center (he had 58 points in 66 games) but it’s clear he’s been operating at a significantly diminished level since the injury. Winning the Stanley Cup is obviously the first priority for the Lightning, but looking ahead to next season one can only hope that the attempts to re-integrate Point into the lineup don’t in any way set back his recovery. The Lightning have shown they can still win without Point, as they did against the Florida Panthers and New York Rangers, but his absence could ultimately come with a cost if the Lightning do end up narrowly losing the Stanley Cup to the Avalanche.

Now for some other notes from across the league:

  • Earlier today, Maple Leafs goalie Jack Campbell was the pending UFA of focus, and now we have some news on another netminder set to headline this summer’s open market: Ville Husso. Andy Strickland of Bally Sports Midwest reports that the Blues will “make a real effort” to re-sign Husso, specifically mentioning Husso’s “great relationship” with Jordan Binnington as a factor at play in negotiations. Husso is coming off of a breakout season where he posted a 25-7-6 record, .919 save percentage, and 2.56 goals-against-average. The Helsinki native even got some down-ballot Vezina consideration and is expected to have multiple suitors on the open market as a 27-year-old free agent. Strickland reports that the Blues will attempt to get him back, although it’s difficult to imagine they’ll be able to offer him the sort of long-term deal he may be able to get from elsewhere. The Blues already have Binnington under contract at a $6MM cap hit, and with important extensions for Jordan Kyrou and Robert Thomas needing to be inked next offseason, it’s not likely that the Blues will be able to give Husso a huge extension. What is possible, though, is Husso taking a short extension in St. Louis with the hopes of having another similar season to this past year in order to secure an even bigger free agent contract in the summer of 2023, when he would theoretically have that extra season’s worth of starts to pad out his currently thin NHL resume.
  • The Hockey News’ Ryan Kennedy reported today that “at least two Eastern Conference teams are seriously interested in acquiring Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Nicolas Hague.” The Golden Knights are facing a major cap crunch this offseason and the signing of Reilly Smith to an extension didn’t help matters on that front. Hague, 23, was the 34th overall pick in 2017 and has come into his own at the NHL level. His size (he stands six-foot-six and weighs 230 pounds) combined with his reliable, physical style (he averaged nearly 19 minutes of ice time per game in 2021-22) make him an intriguing defenseman for teams to target. Hague is out of a contract and is a restricted free agent, and as uncommon as it may be he is the exact sort of player that could be targeted by an offer sheet in the second-round compensation range. Dealing Hague could help the Golden Knights solve their salary cap woes, and if that’s the route they choose to take it seems, per Kennedy, that they will have some teams interested in acquiring the blueliner.

East Notes: Blue Jackets Draft, Sanderson, Burke

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While no team can quite match the draft pick stockpile the Arizona Coyotes have amassed for next month’s draft, the Columbus Blue Jackets might be the team best positioned for the first round specifically. The Blue Jackets hold the sixth and twelfth-overall selections, and according to Aaron Portzline of The Athletic, that might not be where they end up picking. (subscription link) Portzline makes it clear that the Blue Jackets will be “keeping their options open” with regard to the two picks, specifically pointing to the Blue Jackets potentially using their two selections to climb higher on the draft board.

Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen is notoriously private about his strategy leading into drafts, so it’s unlikely that we’ll know exactly what the team decides to do until the night of the draft itself. That possibility is made especially true due to the uncertainty at the number-one slot. The Montreal Canadiens, who not only host the draft but also hold the number-one pick, could possibly pass on Kingston Frontenacs center Shane Wright in favor of Slovakian winger Juraj Slafkovsky, whose momentum has been building in recent weeks. If the Canadiens end up doing just that, it brings up an extremely intriguing trade possibility with the Blue Jackets and Devils. The Devils are already set at center — having two number-one picks in Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes on the roster will do that — and there are few teams that could match the Jackets’ offer should Kekalainen dangle both of his first-rounders. While we’re obviously a ways away from any sort of wildly entertaining scenario such as that one from actually taking place, it seems like there are definitely the pieces in place to make this year’s draft one of the more memorable in recent history, especially thanks to the mystery surrounding the Blue Jackets and their two top picks.

Now, for some other notes regarding the league’s Eastern Conference teams:

  • While Columbus holding the sixth and twelfth picks at the 2022 draft is certainly an enviable situation for many teams, few clubs have been able to replicate the sort of high-end draft capital the Ottawa Senators were able to amass in 2020. The team held two top-five picks, and with their second they selected American defenseman Jake Sanderson. Sanderson’s debut has been highly anticipated since he signed from the University of North Dakota, but injuries kept him from getting into NHL games this past season. Per Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun, by the time the season starts in the fall, those injury woes will be behind Sanderson and he’ll be ready to be a full contributor with the Senators, assuming he makes the team out of training camp as he’s widely expected to. Sanderson is a dynamic defenseman who has the potential to transform the makeup of the Senators’ blueline corps. His full recovery coming in time for the start of next season is not only a win for the Senators, it’s a win for hockey fans in general.
  • The Pittsburgh Penguins were a single goal in Game Seven away from advancing to the second round for the first time since 2018, but ultimately their injuries and inability to finish off the New York Rangers doomed their season. That has left the team with an offseason of major uncertainty, and that uncertainty may not involve just their two big-name franchise pillars that are out of a contract. According to Larry Brooks of the New York Post, Fenway Sports Group, the new Penguins owners, “may not be so enamored with Brian Burke keeping his post as president of hockey ops after a second straight first-round flameout.” Burke was hired in tandem with GM Ron Hextall last February, and under their stewardship, the Penguins have had a points percentage above .600, albeit with two first-round losses as Brooks mentions. Burke is a highly experienced hockey executive who is widely respected across the league, and the Penguins parting with him so early in his tenure would certainly be a surprise. While a summer front office shakeup is not something many had on their radar for the Penguins, especially given the high-stakes negotiations the team is currently engaged in, it now looks like it’s a possibility that cannot be ruled out.

Latest On New Jersey Devils Goaltending

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The New Jersey Devils were once again in the league’s basement in 2021-22, finishing fourth-to-last in the NHL standings with a 27-46-9 record. Perhaps the single biggest reason for the Devils’ struggles this past season was their goaltending. The team had a combined .881 save percentage, which was second-worst in the NHL, only ahead of the expansion Seattle Kraken. No Devils goalie managed to get into more than 25 games, and significant injury woes to the team’s two main goalies, Mackenzie Blackwood and Jonathan Bernier, meant the Devils needed to use seven different goalies just to make it through the year. That group of seven included promising 21-year-old 2020 draft pick Nico Daws, a player the Devils undoubtedly would have rather let develop peacefully at the AHL level. So, with that nightmare season behind them, the Devils’ have set forth in this offseason with the intention of stabilizing their situation in net. With significant cap space to spare, many have speculated on what direction the Devils could go in their crease.

According to the New York Post’s Larry Brooks, “multiple industry sources” indicate that the Devils “will be in on impending Toronto free agent goaltender Jack Campbell if he hits the open market on July 13.” Additionally, Brooks adds that the Devils might even attempt to acquire Campbell’s signing rights in order to get a head start on the process. Along with Campbell, Brooks also reports that the Devils “could have interest” in Rangers goalie Alexandar Georgiev, if Georgiev is not issued his $2.65MM qualifying offer.

Targeting Campbell would certainly make a lot of sense for New Jersey. The American netminder had a brilliant 2020-21 campaign, unseating Frederik Andersen as the Maple Leafs’ starter on the back of his 17-3-2 record and .922 save percentage. In his first full year as the Maple Leafs’ number-one goalie in 2021-22, Campbell weathered some mid-season struggles to post a 31-9-6 record and .914 save percentage. While the playoffs were not kind to him, Campbell, 30, is likely to be considered the second-best goalie on the UFA market behind Avalanche starter Darcy Kuemper, who could win the Stanley Cup tonight. The Devils landing Campbell would be a clear indication of the front office’s intention to transition from their rebuild into a more competitive phase, an intention they signaled with their signing of Dougie Hamilton last summer.

The Devils’ reported interest in Georgiev is a bit more curious. While the Georgiev from 2017-18 to 2019-20 would certainly be an improvement from the Devils’ current crop of goalies, Georgiev’s recent form does not make him a slam-dunk upgrade over someone like Blackwood. Georgiev had a .898 save percentage this past year while playing behind a very strong Rangers squad. Perhaps the Devils are confident that Georgiev can revert back to playing as well as he did a few years ago, but relying on that would be risky. Brooks did clarify that the Devils’ interest in Georgiev would be as part of a tandem rather than as a true number-one, however.

While we don’t know exactly which goaltender the Devils will ultimately choose, we do know that goaltending will be a top priority for the them this offseason. The Devils have a strong young core centered around Jack Hughes, Nico Hischier, and other emerging stars. Armed with the number-two overall pick at the draft, the Devils clearly want to be in the hunt for a playoff spot next season. In order to get there, they’ll need significantly improved goaltending, and targeting a top free agent like Campbell is perhaps their clearest path to stability in the crease.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Chicago Wolves Win 2022 Calder Cup

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The Chicago Wolves have won the 2022 Calder Cup, winning their series against the Springfield Thunderbirds in five games. This is the first Calder Cup to be won since the Charlotte Checkers captured the honor in 2019. The Wolves are the AHL affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes, making the Hurricanes the first team to have their affiliate win back-to-back Calder Cups since the Washington Capitals’ affiliate, the Hershey Bears, won in 2008-09 and 2009-10.

The Wolves were a high-scoring, high-flying machine for most of this season. They went 50-16-10, and led the AHL with 110 points. The Wolves are an independently owned team that prioritizes winning above all else in a league where player development is for many the number-one goal. That strategy has led them to success this year, and it’s their veterans that have led the way for them.

Forward Andrew Poturalski, the Wolves’ captain, won the Calder Cup with the Checkers in 2019 and led the Wolves in scoring with 101 points. Former New Jersey Devil Stefan Noesen potted 48 goals in the regular season and Josh Leivo, a veteran of 214 NHL games, scored 15 goals in the Wolves’ playoff run to capture the Jack Butterfield Trophy for AHL playoff MVP.

This victory over the Thunderbirds undoubtedly puts Wolves coach Ryan Warsofsky in the spotlight, as he’s now won two Calder Cups since becoming an AHL coach in 2019.  He won his first as an assistant on the Checkers’ 2019 staff. Warsofsky has a 105-47-10 record as an AHL head coach and a 88-44-12 record as an ECHL coach. While it’s unlikely that he gets one of the current head coaching vacancies, he’s definitely a candidate to keep an eye on for next year’s cycle.

This is the Wolves’ third Calder Cup. They last won in 2008 and also captured the 2001-02 Calder Cup.

Jets Notes: Dubois, Scheifele, Coaching Search

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Ever since it was reported earlier this week that Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois had informed his team of his intentions to test free agency in 2024, it seemed likely that the Dubois storyline would be a major one for this offseason. Now, we have some additional details on Dubois’ choice regarding his future. Murat Ates of The Athletic believes that Dubois “quite sincerely” wants to test free agency, and has “not been shy” about communicating that desire to the team, as well as a desire to play in Montreal “in the long run” specifically. (subscription link)

Ates specifically mentioning Montreal confirms what many had believed about Dubois, that he had his eyes on playing in his home province. Dubois actually was almost drafted by the Canadiens at the 2016 draft, but the Blue Jackets took him third overall, which scuttled that possibility. Now, Dubois could be attempting to finally find his way to the Canadiens. The Canadiens have the opportunity to solidify a Nick Suzuki and Shane Wright one-two punch down the middle at the draft next month, so it’s fair to wonder if the Canadiens’ choice at number-one overall at the draft will ultimately have an impact on Dubois’ future in Winnipeg.

Now, for some other notes about the Jets:

  • One other situation worth monitoring in Winnipeg is the situation of first-line center Mark Scheifele. Ates reports that Scheifele’s name has “made it into preliminary trade conversations,” and further adds on that a contentious exit meeting between the forward and the Jets front office could broaden the fracture between the Jets and their other star center. Centers who can score at above a point-per-game rate, as Scheifele has for the past half-decade, are rarely made available on the trade market or in free agency. Teams looking for center help this offseason could add Scheifele’s name to their possible options, and any deal with him involved is sure to have a major impact on the futures of both the acquiring team and the Jets.
  • In the midst of news on Dubois, Scheifele, and Blake Wheeler, the ongoing Jets coaching search may have taken a bit of a back seat in the minds of Jets fans. It has become clear that widely reported number-one choice Barry Trotz won’t be an option, and that has left the Jets to sort through the remaining candidates to find their next bench boss. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that the following coaches are on the Jets’ radar for the job: two former Manitoba Moose head coaches in Scott Arniel and Pascal Vincent and two former NHL head coaches in Rick Tocchet and Jim Montgomery.

Free Agent Focus: Minnesota Wild

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Free agency is now less than a month away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in mid-July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  Next up is a look at the Wild.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Kevin Fiala — Fiala might be the most high-profile casualty of GM Bill Guerin’s decision to buy out both Ryan Suter and Zach Parise last offseason. The Wild are facing a $6.3MM cap penalty from each of Parise and Suter’s buyouts for next season, and that figure rises to $7.3MM for the next two seasons after 2022-23. So, that has meant that the Wild have essentially acknowledged their reality with Fiala, that they can’t afford the long-term deal he could get from elsewhere and that the best option for both the team and player is a trade this offseason. So, for the Wild, Fiala’s restricted free agency isn’t about what his next contract will look like but is instead about what the return for him will be in a trade. Fiala had 85 points in 82 games this past year and drove the Wild’s second line. Fiala will face questions about his game, namely regarding his playoff woes, as he had only one playoff goal over the past two seasons. Additionally, there is the fair question of how a Fiala-led line would produce outside of an environment where they have another top line to absorb the opposing team’s toughest defensive matchups, as the Kirill Kaprizov line did in Minnesota. But even with those questions, Fiala is in line to be paid this summer, especially when one considers the additional leverage he will hold over any team that acquires him via trade.

D Jacob Middleton — The Wild made a slew of trade deadline additions in order to bolster their squad, and one of their lower-profile pickups was acquiring Middleton from the San Jose Sharks. The Wild surrendered goalie Kaapo Kahkonen in the deal, someone who was once considered to be the Wild’s “goalie of the future.” Guerin’s willingness to part with Kahkonen to get Middleton is an indication of how firmly he believed in Middleton’s fit in Minnesota. Middleton, 26, was brought to the Wild because of his physicality and overall defensive game. He averaged just under 18 minutes per night as a member of the Wild and also featured on their penalty kill. The Wild clearly like what Middleton brings, meaning an extension with some term attached can’t be ruled out. The presence of the buyouts obviously complicates things, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility that Middleton gets a contract between $2MM-3MM to stay in Minnesota, contracts similar to the ones other defense-first blueliners such as Tucker Poolman, Dylan DeMelo and Derek Forbort received.

Other RFA’s: F Mitchell Chaffee, F Nick Swaney, D Fedor Gordeev, G Dereck Baribeau

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

G Marc-Andre Fleury — The Wild acquired the 2021 Vezina Trophy winner at the trade deadline and alternated between him and Cam Talbot for the rest of 2021-22. The Wild are interested in a return for that tandem, but Fleury may be able to earn a larger contract from elsewhere. Fleury did not play to Vezina Trophy form last year, but he was still solid, especially after his trade to the Wild. He didn’t have a great playoffs, but few on the Wild did, and Fleury is at the point in his career where a small dip in performance isn’t likely to tank his earning potential anyway. Fleury is still widely viewed as a starting-caliber goalie, so while he’ll turn 38 later this year a retirement doesn’t seem to be in the cards just yet. What Fleury makes on the open market this offseason will likely depend on if he prioritizes fit over cost on his next contract and therefore whether he is willing to take a smaller contract in order to sign with the team he prefers.

F Nicolas Deslauriers — While the NHL is about speed and skill more than ever before, there is still room in the league for players like Deslauriers and his trip to unrestricted free agency will likely reflect that. The Wild acquired Deslauriers near the deadline to add some grit to their team, and Deslauriers did just that. He didn’t do very much else, with only three goals and zero assists in his 25 total games with the Wild, but that’s what’s about expected from Deslauriers, given that he has only 85 points in over 500 career games. Some fans might scoff at the idea of their team bringing Deslauriers in as a free agent, but he’s clearly valued by the league’s decision-makers and liked by his coaches. A return to Minnesota is definitely possible, although they could prefer to divert as many cap dollars as possible to scoring help in order to compensate for the expected loss of Fiala, which would then push Deslauriers out.

F Nick Bjugstad — Bjugstad, a Minneapolis native, is no longer the player that scored nearly 50 points on Aleksander Barkov’s wing in Florida. Major injury woes have taken their toll on Bjugstad’s play, and since scoring 49 points in 2017-18 Bjugstad hasn’t crossed the 20-point mark since. In Minnesota, Bjugstad has stabilized his career and become a semi-regular face in the Wild’s bottom-six. He didn’t play well enough this past year to earn a spot in the Wild’s postseason lineup, and despite his bottom-six role he has not featured on the Wild’s penalty kill. Bjugstad played on a $900k cap hit last season and, if Minnesota is interested, should be available to them at a similar number for next season.

Other UFA’s: D Jordie Benn, F Brandon Baddock, F Kyle Rau, F Nolan Stevens, F Dominic Turgeon, D Jon Lizotte, G Zane McIntyre

Projected Salary Cap Space

This is the area where the Wild face their greatest challenge. The previously mentioned buyouts of Suter and Parise have left Guerin and the Wild’s front office operating with a significantly lower effective salary cap than other clubs. The buyouts will cost the team nearly $13MM in cap space this offseason and $15MM for the next two after this summer. As a result, the Wild have only $6.5MM in projected cap space this summer. Trading defensemen with only one year left on their deals such as Dmitry Kulikov or even Matt Dumba could give them some more room, but whatever way you cut it the Wild will find it difficult to make major additions in the next few offseasons without some real creativity involved.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Snapshots: Dubois, Papirny, HHOF

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Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois made headlines yesterday when his desire to test free agency in two year’s time was reported by Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Today, Friedman elaborated on his report, taking a wider view on Dubois’ situation in general. Friedman specifically pointed to Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff’s approach to other players who had their eyes on playing elsewhere, such as Jacob Trouba, to reveal how Cheveldayoff could approach the Dubois situation. In the face of Dubois’ desire to test the market in two years, it seems that no trade is imminent. Per Friedman, the Jets hope that Dubois will “be a Jet for a long time,” and will likely attempt to do whatever possible to change Dubois’ mind and get his signature on a long-term deal.

Dubois is an extremely talented player, and it’s easy to see why the Jets would want to do anything they could to change Dubois’ mind and keep him in Winnipeg. The Jets surrendered both Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic in order to secure Dubois’ services, and him leaving in free agency would be a major blow to the franchise. It’s a difficult situation for Winnipeg because ultimately Dubois does have the power to choose where he wants to play. If his heart is truly not in Winnipeg, the choice to hold on to Dubois and hope he changes his mind could be an incredibly costly one for the Jets. Cheveldayoff is an experienced GM who has gone through similar situations to this one before. How well he is able to handle this Dubois complication will be a major factor in determining how quickly the Jets can return to contention.

Now, for some other notes from across the league:

  • The Vegas Golden Knights made a big move today, taking a top UFA winger off the market with a three-year extension for Reilly Smith. The Golden Knights’ AHL affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights, also made a signing today, inking goaltender Jordan Papirny to an AHL contract for the 2022-23 season. (per The Athletic’s Jesse Granger) While this signing may seem a bit curious at first glance since Papirny has only two professional games played on his record, the rationale behind it becomes a bit more clear when you do some digging. Papirny shared the crease with current Vegas goalie Logan Thompson in his time with the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL, and his head coach was Kelly McCrimmon, the current Golden Knights’ GM. Papirny, 26, had his most success last season playing Canadian college hockey in the ACAC, where he had an 11-0-0 record and a .948 save percentage with the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology.
  • Today, the Hockey Hall of Fame announced details of this year’s selection announcement, with the 2022 class’ reveal set to be broadcast on Monday on TSN and NHL Network. The currently eligible players give a potential 2022 class some real star potential, with names such as Roberto Luongo, Henrik Sedin, Daniel Sedin, and Rick Nash entering the field, and familiar names such as Daniel Alfredsson and Alexander Mogilny hoping that this year will be the year their names are enshrined in Toronto.

Free Agent Focus: Nashville Predators

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Free agency is now less than a month away and many teams are already looking ahead to when it opens up.  There will be several prominent players set to hit the open market in mid-July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  Next up is a look at the Predators

Key Restricted Free Agents:

F Yakov Trenin – Don’t let his point total fool you, Trenin was a breakout player this past season for the Predators and one of the better stories of their year. The 25-year-old Russian winger entered this campaign without much expectation, his eleven points in 45 games in 2020-21 not exactly setting the stage for him to become an important member of the team. But that’s exactly what Trenin did, as he established himself as a full-time NHL-er and an embodiment of the team identity coach John Hynes wants to see out of his Predators. You would be hard-pressed to find an NHL-er that plays with more passion than Trenin, and his fit on a crash-and-bang line with Tanner Jeannot and Colton Sissons entertained fans in Nashville all year. Trenin scored 17 goals this year and added three playoff goals in the team’s brief four-game postseason run. While he had only seven assists all year, Trenin’s goal-scoring, energy, and penalty killing (he averaged 1:40 shorthanded ice time per game, which ranked fourth among Predators forwards) proved valuable for Nashville, and those are the qualities that will help him in negotiations this summer.

Trenin is an arbitration-eligible free agent, meaning he does have some leverage, although his negotiations with Nashville probably won’t get to the point where arbitration is needed. It’s tough to find a perfect contract comparable for Trenin because what he brings to the table is so unique, especially within the context of the Predators and the team identity they want to have. A short or medium-term deal at around a $2MM-3MM AAV would make sense, as Trenin may not want to lock himself into a deal that takes him into his thirties while he has under 150 games of NHL experience.

F Luke Kunin – Kunin ranked eighth amongst Predators forwards in time-on-ice per game, and was fifth when excluding the aforementioned Trenin-Sissons-Jeannot line, a line that stuck together and played a very specific role for most of the season. So Kunin, a 2016 first-round pick, did not spend 2021-22 lacking the opportunity to be a difference-maker and put together a productive campaign. What he lacked was the ability to take advantage of that opportunity and fulfill the promise that saw him get drafted between Charlie McAvoy and Jakob Chychrun. Kunin had only 22 points in his full 82-game season this year, and that’s despite offensive resurgences from forwards across the Predators’ top-six, players like Matt Duchene, Ryan Johansen, and Mikael Granlund, the guys Kunin frequently shared the ice with. So that leaves him in a curious position entering the offseason, where he is an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent. This was a crucially important season for Kunin, who will turn 25 next year. His inability to seize the opportunities he’s been given has raised questions over whether his future is in Nashville long-term. Kunin comes with a $2.3MM qualifying offer, which isn’t a huge amount but also not an insignificant number. While it’s possible that the Predators and Kunin enter next season together, it would not be a surprise if he was headed elsewhere this summer.

F Cody Glass – While Kunin represents a first-round reclamation project of sorts that hasn’t gone well for the Predators, Glass is an example of a first-round reclamation project that has shown promise. Glass was acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights last summer in exchange for Nolan Patrick, who Nashville was able to send to Vegas thanks to the Ryan Ellis deal with the Philadelphia Flyers. Glass, 23, was the sixth-overall pick in 2017 and had been a lethal junior scorer, but his professional career had been derailed by injuries and inconsistency. The Predators likely believed that a change of scenery was what Glass needed, and they may have been right. Glass has thrived since the trade. He led the AHL Milwaukee Admirals in scoring with 62 points in 66 games and even earned a brief NHL call-up. A short, cheap extension for Glass makes the most sense for this season, as the Predators will definitely want to see if he can finally stick in the NHL full-time before beginning to think about any possibility of a long-term deal.

Other RFA’s: F Matt Luff, F Jimmy Huntington, F Thomas Novak, F Cole Smith, D David Farrance, G Devin Cooley

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Filip Forsberg – Right now, it seems as though the Predators’ offseason is entirely centered around what happens with Forsberg and his next contract, and GM David Poile seemed to acknowledge as much in his comments today. Forsberg is among the Predators’ most important players. A highly-skilled offensive dynamo, Forsberg had a career year this past season, scoring 84 points in 69 games. He’s the Predators’ all-time leading goal-scorer and means so much to the organization both on and off the ice. But a deal has yet to be completed, and the team and player are reportedly far apart in their negotiations, paving the way for a departure. The Predators pay their captain, Roman Josi, just over $9MM AAV on his long-term deal. It’s definitely possible that the Predators simply do not want anyone on their books with a higher cap hit than Josi, and it’s also definitely possible that Forsberg believes he can earn a bigger contract than that on the open market. Fellow play-driving left winger Artemi Panarin got over $11MM AAV to sign with the New York Rangers, so perhaps Forsberg is eyeing a similar mega-deal. From the Predators’ perspective, it will be extremely hard to find a player who can replace Forsberg at a cost that won’t be significant in either dollars or assets, so in order to keep their core intact, they might need to pay more for Forsberg than they’d like to. This is a high-stakes, high-pressure situation, and one that will have a major ripple effect on the entire Predators franchise, regardless of the outcome. 

D Matt Benning – Benning, the nephew of former Vancouver Canucks GM Jim Benning, quietly had a decent season in 2021-22. His offense isn’t why he’s in the NHL, and he had only 11 points in 65 games, but when he got into the lineup he provided steady, responsible play at a reasonable price. Benning ranked third among Predators defensemen in shorthanded ice time per game and showed versatility in where he could be played within the lineup. With Mattias Ekholm and Josi’s pairings set in stone for most of the year, Benning managed a rotating cast of partners on the team’s bottom pairing and the Predators acquired Jeremy Lauzon from the Kraken in part to ease his defensive burden. Benning cost $1MM against the cap last year and could likely be had on a similar deal for next season.

Other UFA’s: F Nick Cousins, D Ben Harpur, G David Rittich, F Brayden Burke, F Rocco Grimaldi, F Kole Sherwood, D Alex Biega, D Jeremy Davies

Projected Cap Space:

The Predators are projected to have just above $21MM in open cap space this summer, a healthy amount for a playoff team with as many veterans as the Predators have. A new extension for Forsberg will take a chunk of that cap space, and a possible extension for Trenin is of note as well. But with players such as Josi and Juuse Saros, two players who are among the best in the NHL at their position, locked into contracts and other veteran difference-makers such as Duchene, Johansen, and Granlund also under contract for the foreseeable future, the Predators to have room to maneuver in this offseason’s market.

Obviously, any plan they have will start with Forsberg, but if he does end up walking, the Predators will have a stockpile of cap space in a flat-cap league where having space is at its most important. They still have extensions for Jeannot and Phillip Tomasino on the horizon, so they can’t be reckless. But even with those future negotiations in mind, Predators have a world of possibilities open to them this summer. So while the fate of the Predators’ most skilled forward is uncertain, the ability of Poile and the Predators to be a major player this offseason is not.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Avalanche Notes: Nichushkin, Burakovsky, Kadri

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The Colorado Avalanche lead the Tampa Bay Lightning two-to-nothing in the 2022 Stanley Cup Final, and a major reason for their lead has been the play of winger Valeri Nichushkin. The Russian winger, who once went 91 straight games without scoring a goal, scored two goals last night on top of a goal and an assist in Game One to raise his total to four points in the first two games of the series. Nichushkin has been a revelation in Colorado since returning to the NHL after a two-year KHL stint, and the former Dallas Stars top-ten pick had 25 goals and 52 points in 62 games. That performance has led many to believe that Nichushkin, a pending unrestricted free agent, will earn a long, lucrative contract this summer.

According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, the Avalanche are hoping he can find a contract he likes in Colorado. Per Friedman, Colorado has “made him a priority” and have indicated to Nichushkin that they “would like to keep him.” The Avalanche have to hope that Nichushkin values his incredible fit in Colorado more than making the absolute most amount of money he can on his next deal. With Nathan MacKinnon’s inevitable mega-extension on the horizon and potential long-term deals for Nazem Kadri, Darcy Kuemper, Andre Burakovsky, and Artturi Lehkonen to consider this offseason, the Avalanche may not be in a position to offer Nichushkin the sort of money he could be offered from elsewhere. So while we don’t yet know exactly what Nichushkin is looking for this summer, we know the Avalanche are going to try their absolute best to keep him.

Now, for some other notes regarding Colorado:

  • Another important pending UFA in Colorado is winger Burakovsky, and like Nichushkin he has also had a strong start to the Stanley Cup Final. Burakovsky, who was once a healthy scratch in these playoffs, has three points against the Lightning so far, including two points last night despite missing a solid chunk of the game due to an injury. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar issued an update on Burakovsky’s injury today, saying that the winger did not travel with the team to Tampa, is undergoing further evaluation, and will join the team in Tampa tomorrow. While the Avalanche have a commanding lead in the series, the team is already without crucial players in Kadri and Samuel Girard, so they have to hope that whatever Burakovsky is dealing with won’t keep him out for long.
  • Speaking of Kadri, while it was once believed that he would be out for a period that would in all likelihood stretch past the end of the Avalanche’s season, that may no longer be the case. Bednar said today, per Joe Smith of The Athletic, that Kadri flew with the team to Tampa and is “hopeful” that he’ll play in the series. He said that he considered Kadri out “day-to-day” as well. The Avalanche are looking to capture the Stanley Cup for the first time since 2001, and are getting closer. But they have to know that the Lightning, the back-to-back defending champions, won’t go down without a fight. Getting Kadri back would go a long way towards giving the Avalanche the unshakeable confidence they’ll need to finish the job and end the Lightning’s time at the top of the league.

East Notes: Brown, Bratt, Sullivan

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Ottawa Senators forward Connor Brown didn’t have his most productive goal-scoring season, with only 10 in 64 games, but that didn’t stop him from having yet another solid campaign with the Senators. Despite the decline in goals, Brown’s point production remained in line with what’s typically expected of him, his .609 points-per-game this past season being nearly identical to his points-per-game marks from 2020-21 (.625) and 2019-20 (.605). In addition to that steady points production, Brown has been an important leadership figure on a young Senators team, providing the sort of two-way hockey that coaches can fall in love with. Now, one year away from a trip to unrestricted free agency, it seems Brown is looking to cash in.

According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, Brown is “thinking about testing the market” next summer. Accordingly, Friedman notes that this news “punts the ball” into the Senators’ hands in terms of whether they should trade Brown to maximize the long-term value they can gain from him. With comparable players such as Blake Coleman or Artturi Lehkonen returning first-round picks or strong prospects in their own trades, the Senators could prefer a package similar to what the Montreal Canadiens and New Jersey Devils received for those players rather than risk letting Brown walk. Brown is on a $3.6MM cap hit, and he could become an especially desirable trade asset if the Senators offered to retain salary on him as well.

On other teams from the Eastern Conference:

  • Jesper Bratt has become a focal point of many discussions over the past week, with conflicting reports on whether he’d be a prime candidate to be traded this summer. The Devils’ breakout winger, who was nearly point-per-game this year, is a pending restricted free agent, and some, including Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli, have speculated that he could have priced himself off of a team that is reportedly looking for more “hard skill” this offseason. Friedman, though, pumps the breaks a bit on that conversation. According to Friedman, Bratt and the Devils’ last contract negotiation was “a tough one,” and that both sides “really grinded” each other in the process. So, Friedman believes that, knowing how hard the last negotiation was between the team and player, “everybody’s kind of preparing for a tough one” this summer, and Bratt’s name surfacing in potential trade rumors is simply a natural part of a cutthroat negotiation process. That explanation would make a lot of sense since it’s hard to see the Devils, who still have a lot of room to work with under the salary cap, send away their team’s leading scorer just as he’s coming into his own as a superstar player.
  • Brian Burke, the President of Hockey Operations of the Pittsburgh Penguins, gave a wide-ranging interview to Mike DeFabo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Among many topics he covered, one of the more interesting nuggets from the interview came when he was asked about the large number of coaching vacancies across the league. Burke spoke about the leaguewide vacancies, saying that, generally speaking, NHL clubs’ “ownership and management are too impatient on the coaching front.” He also reiterated his faith in coach Mike Sullivan, stating that they were “thrilled” with his work and view him as one of the best coaches in the NHL. So while some aggressively change-oriented fans might want to see a different coach behind the bench of the Penguins, who have not won a playoff series in four seasons, it doesn’t look like they’ll get their wish as long as the two-time Stanley Cup champion wants to coach in Pittsburgh.

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