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Minnesota GM Search Down To Three

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The Minnesota Wild seem to have narrowed their search down a bit as three names seem to have forced their way to the top. In his recent mailbag, The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required) writes that it likely will come down to Pittsburgh Penguins assistant GM Bill Guerin, Montreal Canadiens assistant GM Scott Mellanby and former Philadelphia Flyers GM Ron Hextall.

Guerin continues to be the frontrunner as Wild owner Craig Leipold is enamored by Guerin’s stature and leadership, something that is of high priority after issues with previous GM Paul Fenton, who lasted just over a year with many issues surrounding his ability to lead. Guerin is believed to be a man who can not just lead a front office, but has the ability to affect the coaching staff and the players in a positive way, which Russo believes makes him the favorite. The only issue for the Wild is that they were hoping to get a general manager that already has experience as a GM, which Guerin doesn’t.

Hextall, who many thought was the favorite immediately when the job became available, is still in the mix. Russo writes that while there are rumors that many in Philadelphia were glad to see Hextall leave due to his lack of leadership, the scribe has interviewed quite a few people and believes that those complaints can be easily explained of justified, which might suggest that Hextall, who has the most experience as a general manager, might also make a good GM. However, if the team is worried about re-creating the same problem they had when Fenton was in charge, the team might opt to go in a different direction.

Mellanby could be the darkhorse, however. He has an impressive track record in Montreal and after interviewing on Wednesday, rumors are he impressed Leipold quite a bit. The only other longshot would be New Jersey’s Tom Fitzgerald, but after extensive interviewing with Minnesota a year ago, the Devils aren’t thrilled about allowing him to interview again and only allowed a 20-minute chat. There has been no further interviews with the idea that the only way it can hire Fitzgerald is if they just offer the job to him outright without further discussion, which seems unlikely.

 

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Carolina Hurricanes

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Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2019-20 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Carolina Hurricanes

Current Cap Hit: $79,004,791 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

F Andrei Svechnikov (two years, $925K)
F Martin Necas (three years, $863K)
D Jake Bean (two years, $863K)
F Warren Foegele (one year, $747K)

Potential Bonuses:

Svechnikov: $2.65MM
Necas: $538K
Bean: $500K
Foegele: $20K

With a system full of top prospects, the Hurricanes got an impressive rookie season from Svechnikov, drafted with the second-overall pick in 2018, last season and now will have a top-six option for another two years at an entry-level cost. At 18 years old, he tallied 20 goals and 37 points and should be in line for more playing time and bigger numbers this season as a 19-year-old and could eventually become the franchise winger the team needs long-term. The Hurricanes also have high hopes for Necas to step in and take big role next season at the center position. The 2017 first-rounder had an impressive season for the Calder Cup Champion Charlotte Checkers of the AHL and could provide Carolina with some cheap talent.

Bean, the team’s first-rounder in 2016, has only made two appearances for Carolina, but could get a chance to take a much bigger role after a strong season with Charlotte, which saw his skills take that next step. The 23-year-old Foegele began to show off his offensive skill over the course of the season in Carolina. He scored 10 goals and 15 points during the regular season, but was even more impressive in the playoffs with five goals and nine points in just 15 games. If he can take his game up a notch, the Hurricanes could have an even more impressive offense next season.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

D Justin Faulk ($4.83MM, UFA)
F Erik Haula ($2.75MM, UFA)
D Trevor van Riemsdyk ($2.3MM, UFA)
D Gustav Forsling ($874K, RFA)
D Haydn Fleury ($850K, RFA)
F Brian Gibbons ($725K, UFA)
F Clark Bishop ($700K, RFA)
F Lucas Wallmark ($675K, RFA)

There were rumors that suggested that talks between Carolina and Faulk were no where close on a potential extension and others that said negotiations were promising, however, Faulk could be a legitimate trade candidate if the team can’t eventually work out an extension. The 27-year-old Faulk had a solid season both defensively as he was finally in the positive on his plus/minus for the first time in his career, while also adding 11 goals and 35 points. However, with a number of young defensemen who are waiting for a chance to get an opportunity in Carolina, it wouldn’t be shocking to see Carolina unload him at the trade deadline.

Haula is an interesting acquisition. The 28-year-old was coming off a 29-goal season in Vegas’ inaugural season, but then suffered a gruesome knee injury and never returned. In the end, he played just 15 games, although he was close to returning late in the season with many believing that he would have been available had the Golden Knights had gotten deeper into the playoffs. If he can prove to be healthy, Haula might prove to be one of the best acquisitions of the year. Whether the Hurricanes will re-sign him will obviously depend on how he fares next season.

The team might be ready to move on from van Riemsdyk, who has served as a bottom pairing defenseman, but probably makes too much at $2.3MM to keep around long term, especially since Fleury hasn’t really had a true chance to prove himself and could be a better option at his price.

Two Years Remaining

D Dougie Hamilton ($5.75MM, UFA)
G James Reimer ($3.4MM, UFA)
F Ryan Dzingel ($3.38MM, UFA)
G Petr Mrazek ($3.13MM, UFA)
F Brock McGinn ($2.1MM, UFA)
F Jordan Martinook ($2MM, UFA)
G Alex Nedeljkovic ($738K, RFA)

The team has a number of interesting contracts with two years left, including their entire goaltending situation. The team has Mrazek, who put together a stellar season after years of inconsistency, and new backup Reimer as the new tandem with their top prospect in Nedeljkovic close to ready to step into the lineup. All three will likely stay this season as Nedeljkovic is waiver exempt and likely will just stay in the AHL. However, if he can prove in training camp that he’s ready for the back-up role, few would be surprised if the team found a way to unload Reimer, who had a terrible season last year in Florida.

Despite hearing constant rumors that Carolina was shopping Hamilton around this offseason, it looks like the Hurricanes will have the veteran defenseman for another season. He put up solid numbers, scoring 18 goals an 39 points and is solid defensively, but he could eventually be a trade candidate, perhaps as early as the trade deadline if the team struggles and can’t reproduce the same success it had a season ago. The team also hopes that they can get Dzingel to provide the same type of offense he was producing in Ottawa, rather than his struggles in Columbus. However, he should provide solid value at his pricetag and fit in nicely as a middle-six option.

Three Years Remaining

F Nino Niederreiter ($5.25MM, UFA)

It might have been the trade of the year when the Hurricanes acquired Niederreiter from Minnesota for Victor Rask. While Rask struggled in Minnesota, Niederreiter’s season took off when he arrived, scoring 14 goals and 30 points in 36 games and he slotted in nicely on the first line. If he can produce anything close to that, the team has a steal of a deal for the next three years. If his production drops back to what it was in Minnesota earlier in the year (nine goals and 23 points in 46 games) then the team has a contract that could be a burden for some time.

Four Or More Years Remaining

F Sebastian Aho ($8.45MM through 2023-24)
F Jordan Staal ($6MM through 2022-23)
F Teuvo Teravainen ($5.4MM through 2023-24)
D Jaccob Slavin ($5.3MM through 2024-25)
D Brett Pesce ($4.03MM through 2023-24)

The Montreal Canadiens did Carolina a favor when they shocked the NHL by signing Aho to an offer sheet that didn’t look difficult to match. While five years likely isn’t ideal, the Hurricanes still now have their top franchise player signed until 2024 and can figure out its plans after that, but now are one of the few teams that have locked up their franchise restricted free agent already, with the rest still waiting to sign a contract. That should provide Aho, who had another breakout season with 30 goals and 83 points, with plenty of time to be ready for training camp and see if he can take his game to another level once again.

His linemate in Teravainen is another key piece of Carolina’s future who keeps producing better and better numbers. The 24-year-old produced 21 goals and a career-high 76 points and is locked up for another five years as well, giving Aho a solid winger to work with. The team, however, may not be as thrilled with the four years it still has in Staal, who produced one of his worst seasons although injuries did play apart. The 30-year-old still has four years at $6MM from a 10-year, $60MM deal he signed back in 2012. After posting just 11 goals and 28 points in 50 games, the team hopes he can bounce back.

One thing the Hurricanes did was locking up its young defenders. The team has seen Slavin develop into a top-line defenseman in the last year and to have him locked up at just $5.3MM for six more years will likely be one of the team’s biggest bargain for a long time. He has been averaging more than 22 minutes per game for three of his four seasons in the league. Pesce has also seen his game increase and is also a steal with the rising cost of young defensemen lately. Pesce saw his minutes break 20 minutes for a second straight season, while his offense increased by 10 points.

Buyouts

F Patrick Marleau ($6.25MM in 2019-20)
F Alexander Semin ($2.33MM through 2020-21)

Retained Salary Transactions

None

Salary Cap Recapture

None

Still To Sign

F Justin Williams (UFA)
F Saku Maenalanen (RFA)
D Roland McKeown (RFA)

One question that is still up for grabs is whether Williams will return to the team. The 37-year-old winger has been told he can take as much time as he wants to determine whether he wants to return to hockey. He’s made it clear it’s either Carolina or retirement, but after putting up a solid campaign last year of 23 goals and 53 points, it’s hard to believe that the veteran leader is ready to hang it up if he still is capable of producing as a top-six forward. While he may eventually have to slide down to the third line, the veteran was critical to the team’s deep playoff run and Carolina hopes he will come back.

While McKeown might have a hard time finding playing time in Carolina’s stacked defense, the team will need to get Maenalanen signed at some point. The 6-foot-4 bottom-six winger stepped into the lineup late in the season and was a solid contributor, posting four goals and eight points in 34 games, while skating for just 9:26 of ATOI. He provided some physical play and if he can steal a spot on the fourth line, could be valuable.

Best Value: Slavin
Worst Value: Staal

Looking Ahead

The Carolina Hurricanes have done an impressive job of drafting well, developing their talent and adding veteran talent at reasonable prices. With most of their core already locked up long-term and plenty of talent still on entry-level contracts, the Hurricanes should be able to keep their team competitive for years and keep getting better as the team continues to develop.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Alex Petrovic Signs PTO With Boston Bruins

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While there has been talk for days that former Edmonton Oilers defenseman Alexander Petrovic has signed a professional tryout with the Boston Bruins, there hadn’t been any official confirmation. However, in his Sunday column, Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins confirmed that Petrovic has signed the PTO with Boston. He was supposedly deciding between offers from several other teams, including Carolina and Calgary.

The signing of Petrovic should be a great addition for Boston, who have plenty of issues with their defense. The team dealt with numerous injuries last season that at times forced several players from the Providence Bruins to fill in. With recent news that veteran defenseman Kevan Miller still hasn’t started skating yet after fracturing his kneecap twice last season, and the fact that two of their blueliners, Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo, remain restricted free agents and theoretically may not be at training camp, signing Petrovic makes sense.

Petrovic was a solid defenseman with the Florida Panthers, but was never thrilled with his playing time there as the most playing time he ever received was in his rookie season back in 2012-13 when he averaged 18:47 of ATOI. Unfortunately, his game never truly improved and he saw his time on the ice drop, eventually forcing him to demand a trade. That trade came in December last year when the Oilers acquired him to fill their void on defense. However, Petrovic never really got a fair trial with the Oilers, only playing nine games and dealing with a concussion issue. Of course, Petrovic will have to prove his value in Boston to get a contract, but he could be the perfect insurance for a defense that has plenty of questions.

Free Agent Profile: Valeri Nichushkin

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Just a year ago, the Dallas Stars were praising the signing of Valeri Nichushkin, their first-round pick back in 2013. The young, promising power forward showed quite a bit of promise before opting to return to the KHL. However, the team pressed and pressed before finally getting Nichushkin to agree to come back last year on a two-year, $5.9MM deal. The team hoped the then 23-year-old would immediately jump into their top-six and make an instant impact.

Instead it all backfired. Nichushkin struggled immensely, never scoring a goal all season and saw his playing time drop significantly. He missed time early in the year due to a groin injury and never found his place in the team’s lineup. He was scratched 16 times during the regular season and appeared in just one out of 12 playoff games for the Stars where he only played 7:57 of TOI. After just that one year, the team decided to cut him loose, buying out the team’s final season and letting a talented 24-year-old go.

The question is can Nichushkin bounce back. The 24-year-old is still young and has both the size and talent to put it all together. You would think there would be teams who might be willing to take a chance on him. The positives were that his defense last year was much improved from his first stint in Dallas as a teenager. Nichushkin killed penalties and even got some time on the team’s shutdown line with Radek Faksa. Unfortunately, his inability to put the puck in the net hurt his value.

Potential Suitors

Teams looking for young talent and might have a need for depth could find themselves interested. A team like Edmonton, who is in need of talented wingers, who might be able to have a breakout season, might be an interesting match. However, after trying that a season ago with Tobias Rieder, who also tallied no goals last season, the team may not want to deal with the same type of issue.

The New York Islanders might be another team that could use some depth on the bottom-six and with his defense, could be a good fit after the team lost Valtteri Filpula to Detroit this offseason. Especially with the Islanders having so much youth close, but perhaps not completely ready for the NHL squad, Nichushkin might be the perfect fill-in for one season.

There is also a legitimate chance that he could head overseas, but so far he has not chosen to sign a deal over there and with many leagues already getting started, he may want to find a chance in North America first. However, in the end, it will all come down to what team is willing to take a chance on the young forward.

Projected Contract

Unfortunately for the young Russian, Nichushkin will likely have to look for a PTO and try to prove that his inability to score was an aberration. There were many that thought that he might be able to bounce back, but considering how much Dallas was paying him and the fact they had to free up cap space to bring in Joe Pavelski, the team wasn’t going to put up with that salary. However, at a minimum-salaried deal, many teams might be ready to take a flier on him.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Central Notes: Gustafsson, Boqvist, Turris

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Despite his impressive development over the past two years, the Chicago Blackkhawks could find themselves in trouble with defenseman Erik Gustafsson. The 27-year-old has developed far better than they hoped. After a couple years in the AHL, he established himself with solid half-season in 2017-18 and then followed it up with a dominant year last season. If he continues on that course, unfortunately, the team might not be able to afford him when he becomes a free agent at the end of the season.

Gustafsson, signed out of Finland four years ago, posted an impressive year in 2018-19, scoring 17 goals and posting 60 points and has quietly established himself as a top-line defender for the Blackhawks. In a mailbag column, The Athletic’s Mark Lazerus (subscription required) writes that if Gustafsson continues his success, the team may be forced to trade him at the trade deadline as they likely wouldn’t have the money to pay a top-line defender with their salary cap. Chicago has little money freeing up next year besides their goaltending combination of Corey Crawford and Robin Lehner and they will have to replace that. On top of that, the have a pair of restricted free agents who each should command significant contracts in Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Strome. Regardless, if he commands a significant contract, that could cause a problem if Chicago finds itself in a playoff run.

It might be an easy decision if Chicago is out of the playoff race early and the Blackhawks might be able to nab a first-round pick in exchange for him as Lazerus points out that many teams would be willing to move a late first-round pick for a high quality defenseman.

  • Sticking with the Blackhawks, NBC Sports’ Charlie Roumeliotis writes that perhaps the most impressive player in Chicago’s development camp was defenseman Adam Boqvist, the team’s eighth-overall pick in 2018. According to Chicago’s player development coach Brian Campbell, Boqvist was impressive for a young player, who just turned 19, but the young blueliner still needs time to develop. “Yeah, I was impressed,” Campbell said. “Obviously, he’s come a long way in a year from last development camp. There’s no pressure being put on him. He’ll develop at his time. If he pushes for a spot, great, but I just don’t want people to get away. There’s a lot to keep learning and he wants to learn, which is the greatest thing. His teammates love him: great thing. He wants to do extra and learn the game: great thing. He is preparing himself days before, even in development camp, he’s preparing himself days before. So all great things and he’s on the right path.”
  • In an interview with Nashville Predators general manager David Poile, The Athletic’s Joe Rexrode (subscription required) writes that the GM strongly believes that center Kyle Turris just had a bad season last year. The 30-year-old Turris played in just 55 games, scoring just seven goals and 23 points, not good numbers for a team playing him $6MM for another five seasons. Poile believes that he played impressively for Team Canada at the World Championships and should have a bounce-back season. “I think he’s very happy here,” Poile said. “I don’t think he’s, and I hate speaking for him, but he’s not happy with either how we’re using him or how he’s played. And those are both tied in to each other. So we have to hope and believe after all the conversations and our knowledge of him over many years of success in the National Hockey League, that he’s going to come back and we’ll just chalk this up to a bad year. … That is the question. We want the Kyle Turris that we first traded for. And that’s both on him and on us.”

 

Evening Notes: Ristolainen, Pastrnak, Andersson

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Just a week ago, Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen implied that he might be better off on another NHL team in an interview with a Finnish newspaper. However, Sabres general manager Jason Botterill has made it clear that the franchise expects Ristolainen in training camp next month, according to Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington.

Botterill said while his discussion with Ristolainen are private, the team has worked hard to put the 24-year-old in the best situation possible for success in the future.

“We’re continuing to try to set this team up where we’re putting ’Risto’ in positions to have success,” Botterill said. “Yeah, he wants to win. We also want to put him in a situation where he plays very well, and that’s what we’ve tried to do with some of the acquisitions, add depth to our defense, add competition to our defense.”

The Sabres do have options in front of them as the team has an overload of defensemen on the right side and a dearth of scoring options on the forward lines, suggesting that a trade could solve problems for both the Sabres and Ristolainen, who finished the season with 43 points, but also with an NHL-worst minus-41 plus/minus.

  • Boston Bruins President Cam Neely said that while Bruins forward David Pastrnak seemed to lose confidence late in the playoffs on their Stanley Cup Finals run, he isn’t worried that it will be a long-term issue, according to NBC Sports’ Joe Haggerty. Pastrnak, who still held the team lead tied for nine goals and 19 points in 24 playoff games, but wasn’t dominant in the playoffs like he was during the regular season. Neely believes that Pastrnak should only benefit from his struggles and become a better player. “Then you get to the conference final and the finals and it’s tough hockey out there,” said Neely. “I look at Pasta and he’s grown from the first playoff experience to this last one, and I expect even more growth out of him moving forward. I understand losing confidence, but I don’t understand losing confidence and not shooting. That’s what I’d talk to him about.”
  • The Athletic’s Darren Haynes (subscription required) writes that while the Calgary Flames lost a lot when Juuso Valimaki was injured after tearing his ACL during offseason training, the team does have some young players who are ready to take that next step to fill in the holes that they lost. The scribe writes that Rasmus Andersson might be ready to move into a more permanent top-four role. Andersson started taking minutes away from veteran T.J. Brodie last year and even has seen some power play time. Youngster Oliver Kylington also has shown that he’s ready for a bigger NHL role despite some of his defensive deficiencies.

Salary Cap Deep Dive: Vegas Golden Knights

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Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avert total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.

PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation heading into the 2019-20 season. This will focus more on those players who are integral parts of the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.

Vegas Golden Knights

Current Cap Hit: $80,474,999 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)

Entry-Level Contracts

D Zach Whitecloud (one year, $925K)
F Cody Glass (three years, $863K)
D Nicolas Hague (three years, $791K)

Potential Bonuses:

Whitecloud: $850K
Glass: $850K
Hague: $133K

While there is no guarantee that any of these three will be on the roster when the season begins, all three are expected to see time with the Golden Knights this season and could find themselves with significant roles depending on how things shake out. Glass, the team’s biggest prospect, is finally turning pro and while the organization has said in the past that Glass needs a full year of AHL work, he may have proved himself after his junior season ended last year. The sixth-overall pick from the 2017 draft, tallied five points in six AHL regualar season games, but was also one of the team’s top players throughout the AHL playoffs as he helped lead the team to the Calder Cup Finals. He tallied seven goals and 15 points in 22 playoff games. That play suggests that he might be ready and will compete for an immediate chance on the team’s third line.

Hague and Whitecloud are expected to challenge for a spot on one of the open spots in Vegas’ defense. Both players had impressive seasons with the Chicago Wolves last season and might be ready to make an impact. The 20-year-old Hague scored 13 goals in his rookie campaign, while the defensive Whitecloud showed off some offensive potential in his first full season in the AHL.

One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level

F Cody Eakin ($3.85MM, UFA)
F Ryan Reaves ($2.78MM, UFA)
D Nick Holden ($2.2MM, UFA)
D Jonathon Merrill ($1.38MM, UFA)
F Tomas Nosek ($1MM, UFA)
G Malcolm Subban ($850K, RFA)
G Garret Sparks ($750K, RFA)
F Curtis McKenzie ($750K, UFA)
F William Carrier ($725K, RFA)
D Deryk Engelland ($700K, UFA)
F Valentin Zykov ($675K, RFA)

With their cap room extremely tight, there remains a legitimate possibility that the team may still make a trade and if that does happen, the player is likely to come from this list of players. Eakin, Reaves and Holden are not likely to return in a year and could be trade bait. Eakin is coming off a career-best season with 22 goals and 41 points, but assuming the team is healthier this year, will likely settle into a third-line center role this year unless Glass beats him out. However, with Eakin’s value at its highest, the team might be able to get the best return if they move him and his $3.85MM contract.

Reaves has become a fan favorite in Vegas, giving the team highlight reel hits and become a popular locker room presence. He also posted 305 hits for the Golden Knights. However, Reaves makes quite a bit of money for a player who produced nine goals and 20 points last season. With some young fourth-line players closing in on potentially replacing him, the team could find a taker in Reaves and his $2.78MM deal.

The team has been impressed with the development with Merrill, who was initially only looked at as an emergency defenseman, but really took that next step last season and has earned himself a full-time role with the possibility of even earning top-four minutes next season. Holden would be another option for the team free up cap room as the team signed him last summer to a two-year deal, but the veteran struggled to get consistent playing time and is on the outside looking in. The team might hope it can send Holden to a defense-needy team, but may be forced to bury him in the AHL if he can’t prove he belongs on the Golden Knights roster and with Engelland likely taking a lesser role at the bottom of the defense next season, it might be hard to win a spot.

The Golden Knights also have an interesting battle in net for the backup goalie spot after acquiring Sparks during the offseason from Toronto. While Subban is the likely candidate to keep the position, Sparks could provide some much needed depth in goal for the future if the Golden Knights managed to hold onto him. Sparks was a top prospect goaltender just a season ago, but struggled in his first full season in Toronto. However, the Golden Knights hope he can bounce back quickly.

Two Years Remaining

F Paul Stastny ($6.5MM, UFA)
F Brandon Pirri ($775K, UFA)

The team has been set up to provide a number of short-term deals at higher cost and Stastny is one of those who signed a three-year deal at a high AAV. Injuries limited the veteran to just 50 games last season, but when he played, he provided excellent playmaking on the team’s second line, scoring 13 goals and 42 points. If the 33-year-old can stay healthy this season, he could center one of the strongest lines in the league as he is one of the best playmakers who historically makes his line mates even better.

Pirri is an interesting addition. The 28-year-old showed off his scoring touch after being called up midway through the season. In just 31 games, he tallied 12 goals and 18 points, including a string of goals. Most expected the UFA to find a team that could offer him more playing time this summer. Instead he opted to remain and may get that playing time after the team decided to move KHL star Nikita Gusev to New Jersey this summer. Gusev had been penciled into the third line which now could fall to Pirri, who the team hopes can continue his scoring ways.

Three Years Remaining

G Marc-Andre Fleury ($7MM, UFA)
F Reilly Smith ($5MM, UFA)
D Brayden McNabb ($2.5MM, UFA)

While Fleury has been a stud since arriving from Pittsburgh in the expansion draft, the veteran goaltender is now 34 years old and has three years remaining on his deal. The Golden Knights have to hope that Fleury can continue playing at a high level for that time as they do not have a suitable replacement in the system at all yet and could find themselves in trouble in a few years if they can’t find a suitable player to step in and help take the burden from the netminder. With little faith early in the season in Subban, Fleury played in 61 regular-season games last season, his highest total since 2014-15. Subban did improve somewhat and played better in the second half, but it’s likely that Fleury will take on another significant load this season as well.

While 53 points may not be the type of numbers the team was hoping for from Smith, the Golden Knights know that Smith has proven to be a valuable commodity who is a key on the team’s penalty kill and is an excellent playmaker, especially when playing with the top line. McNabb has also been a key player under a cap-friendly deal who is playing solid minutes in the top-four, while providing excellent defense along with 200 hits last year.

Four Or More Years Remaining

F Mark Stone ($9.5MM through 2026-27)
F Max Pacioretty ($7MM through 2022-23)
D Nate Schmidt ($5.95MM through 2025-26)
F William Karlsson ($5.9MM through 2026-27)
D Shea Theodore ($5.2MM through 2025-26)
F Jon Marchessault ($5MM through 2023-24)
F Alex Tuch ($4.75MM through 2025-26)

It’s hard to believe, but after just two years, the team has its core in tact and locked up for a long time and should be Stanley Cup contenders for the next few years. Stone’s value has only increased in the last year as he completed the team’s quest to have two dominant lines. While the Golden Knights could alter their lines this season, Stone is expected to be a big piece and eventually the face of the franchise in Vegas after being acquired from Ottawa at the trade deadline and then signing a eight-year extension immediately after the trade and at $9.5MM, he may prove a bargain as the 28-year-old posted 33 goals and 73 points during the regular season, but really took off in the playoffs, putting up six goals and 12 points in seven playoff games.

While all the long-term deals look solid, if there is one to scrutinize even closer, it’s the four-year extension that Vegas signed Pacioretty to a year ago. That extension is kicking in this year, but the 30-year-old didn’t bounce back to his 30-goal ways that he had in Montreal in previous seasons. Pacioretty, who scored 30 goals five times in six straight years in Montreal, scored just 22 goals and 40 points in his first year in Vegas, but the team hopes they can get more out of him this year. He did show off more offense in the playoffs as well as he tallied five goals and 11 points in seven games.

The Golden Knights finally locked up Karlsson to a long-term deal, something both sides were hoping for and getting the forward to sign for under $6MM is impressive for the franchise. While the 24-year-old Karlsson saw his goal totals drop from 43 to 24 last season, a drop off was expected and the team believes that with two impressive lines, Karlsson should get more chances to score with less pressure from just top-line defenders.

Schmidt and Theodore should continue to develop and provide top-four defense for many years to come. Theodore in particular is only 24 years old and could break out and develop into a dominant defenseman in the next few years. Tuch took a solid step in his development, scoring 20 goals and 52 points in his second year and if the 23-year-old keeps improving, could be quite the bargain under $5MM in the future.

Buyouts

None

Retained Salary Transactions

F Tomas Tatar ($500K through 2020-21)

Salary Cap Recapture

None

Still To Sign

D Jimmy Schuldt (RFA)

The team might have to free up just a little extra to finally get Schuldt locked up for a number of years, but the top collegiate free-agent this offseason opted to sign with Vegas and could begin his career immediately. With attention from 29 of the 31 teams, many believe that Schuldt will get every opportunity to win a spot on the Golden Knights’ defense and could make his impact right away. After four years at St. Cloud State, he still will have to prove that he can beat out Whitecloud and Hague, but once the RFA signs, he could end up being a big piece to the team’s defensive outlook.

Best Value: Karlsson
Worst Value: Pacioretty

Looking Ahead

The Golden Knights general manager combo of George McPhee and Brad McCrimmon have done an amazing job of putting a team together quickly that is ready to compete immediately and have a chance to compete for many years. At the moment, the team has done a good job of locking up its core and while the team is right up against the cap, it does have a number of players making quite a bit of money while on short-term deals, which could allow the team to continue to upgrade to the team after those deals expire. Throw in a number of younger players who are getting closer and closer to being able to contribute, the team should be in solid shape for quite a while.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Free Agent Profile: Andrew MacDonald

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The Philadelphia Flyers had to make a tough decision earlier this summer when it opted to buy out veteran defenseman Andrew MacDonald. The veteran has been a key piece in the Flyers’ locker room, but the team felt it had to make a change. Regardless of the buyout, there should still be a place for the 32-year-old defenseman in the NHL. He just needs to find it. The blueliner may not be putting up big numbers on offense, but he could easily provide depth as a bottom-line defender for plenty of teams

MacDonald was acquired by Philadelphia back in 2014 from the New York Islanders and was promptly signed to a long-term extension, signing a six-year, $30MM deal a month after the trade. While the defenseman provided solid defense when on the ice, the veteran was often injured and slowly has seen his play decline as his $5MM AAV became a target of criticism for fans. The buyout was largely expected, but many Flyers praised the veteran for his leadership skills.

That ability to lead could give MacDonald an advantage as teams with a young defense might gravitate towards a player who could help lead. Unfortunately, perhaps the main reason that he hasn’t been signed yet is the fact that he has dealt with injuries and has slowed down a bit and certainly wasn’t worth the $5MM AAV that he signed years ago.

Potential Suitors

A possible return to the New York Islanders could always be a possibility. MacDonald played his best years here and could serve as a veteran who could fill in as a 6/7th blueliner and another veteran who could help out with a bunch of up-and-coming defensive prospects such as Noah Dobson and Bode Wilde. However, the team does have several veterans already and likely wouldn’t show a significant interest unless some of those players went down with injuries.

Although they have been mentioned often in regards to blueline free-agents, the Winnipeg Jets will be expected to add a few blueliners to fill out its depth eventually after the team locks up restricted free agents Patrik Laine and Kyle Connor. The veteran could also look to return to Canada and find a home there, but again teams like Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa may not be in need of a veteran blueliner as they all have quite a bit of depth.

In the end, however, MacDonald will likely just have to wait until teams lose a player to injury.

Projected Contract

MacDonald will never get anything near $5MM and likely at this point will have to accept a minimum salaried deal. Considering that he is still getting quite a bit from Philadelphia, that money should make it easier to accept any deal that might come along for him.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Atlantic Notes: Drouin, Red Wings Front Office, Miller

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The Montreal Canadiens seem to be a team on the rise last season as the team finished just two points out of a playoff spot behind the Columbus Blue Jackets. In the end, if the team just could have pulled off a late win, the season could have been looked at differently. The Montreal Gazzette’s Brendan Kelly also wonders whether forward Jonathan Drouin could have made that difference as well.

The winger, who was converted to center to start last season and then quickly moved back to wing after seeing that experiment failed, Drouin struggled throughout the year, especially in the final third of the season. The 24-year-old prized forward the team acquired two summers ago, hasn’t developed into the elite forward the Canadiens had hoped for. But his final 26 games resulted in just one goal and six assists. Had he played better, who knows what might have happened to Montreal?

Kelly writes that much of the Canadiens’ hopes for this season will fall on Drouin, who can be the difference-maker the team needs. Kelly believes Drouin has what it takes to be a star, but needs better coaching to take his game to the next level after looking lost in the final third of last season. The stress of being the savior to the franchise could also be having an effect, but his success could be the most critical element to the team’s season.

  • The Detroit News reports that Detroit Red Wings executive Kris Draper has been promoted to director of amateur scouting. Draper, a former assistant to former general manager Ken Holland, replaces Tyler Wright whose contract wasn’t renewed three weeks into current general manager Steve Yzerman’s tenure. Detroit also announced a few other front office additions as the team hired two amateur chief scouts in Ryan Rezmierski (formerly with Nashville) and Jesse Wallin (formerly with St. Louis). The team also added two more scouts in Bryce Thoma and Rob Rassey as well as bringing over former Tampa Bay Lightning goaltending scout Phil Osaer, who has been named head of goaltending scouting and development.
  • Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe writes that Boston Bruins defenseman Kevan Miller still hasn’t started skating yet in his recovery from his twice-fractured right kneecap. The 31-year-old played just 39 games last season and didn’t make an appearance after Apr. 4 due to the injury. Millar was actually close to being ready to return for the Stanley Cup Finals when he fractured that kneecap a second time, ending any hope of returning. The blueliner said, however, that the kneecap has healed through twice-a-day workouts over six days so far this offseason and he hopes to begin skating in the next few weeks. He doesn’t expect to be ready for drills in training camp and can’t confirm if he’ll be ready for the start of the season either.

Free Agent Profile: Dion Phaneuf

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For years, most people have associated defenseman Dion Phaneuf with the seven-year, $49MM contract he signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs back in 2013 when he was considered a top-pair defender. However, that contract didn’t even kick in until the 2014-15 season and suddenly by that point, Toronto was keen to move on from him, eventually moving his contract to Ottawa after just a year and a half. He was then sent to Los Angeles a few years later. Finally after struggling immensely last season, the Kings finally ended it this summer, buying out the now-34-year-old blueliner and putting him on the open market.

Looking at his numbers from a season ago, it’s no wonder why the Kings chose to move on from him. He played 67 games last season, but was made a healthy scratch for the first time in his career and saw his ATOI go from averaging more than 20 minutes a game down to 15:00, a career-low. Offensively, he potted just one goal and six points, while struggling with a minus-21 rating.

However, despite those issues, the blueliner has said he has more to give and would be willing to take on a mentor role with teams that are rebuilding, hoping that teams might be interested in bringing him back to guide their younger players. While retirement is also an option for the veteran, he’s made it clear he wants another opportunity.

Potential Suitors

One team loaded with young defensemen is the Vancouver Canucks. The team has a number of young players, including Quinn Hughes, Troy Stecher and Olli Juolevi, but the team already added a pair of veterans in Tyler Myers and Jordie Benn in free agency, while re-signing Alexander Edler as well. Is there still a need for another veteran now in Vancouver?

Another team that was highly considered early on in free agency was the Dallas Stars, who might want a player like Phaneuf filling in a third-pairing role as the team is loaded with young defensive talent. However, the team opted instead for grabbing fellow buyout victim Andrej Sekera. It now would seem like an unlikely destination for a more crowded blueline.

The Winnipeg Jets, short on defenders after losing Myers, Jacob Trouba and Ben Chiarot on defense, could bring in someone like Phaneuf to fill in the holes until some of their younger defenseman are ready for a full-time NHL role. However, Phaneuf may also just wait until training camp approaches and keep an eye on teams that suffer some injuries.

Projected Contract

Phaneuf is still being paid by Los Angeles thanks to the buyout, so money is likely not that important to the 34-year-old. A minimum salaried deal is a likely outcome and likely the only option at this point in his career.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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