Ottawa Senators Plan To Be Buyers At Trade Deadline, Beyond
The Ottawa Senators have been dwelling at or near the bottom of the Atlantic Division for several years now as owner Eugene Melnyk has taken a team that was one win away from going to the Stanley Cup in 2017 and has torn it down piece by piece, selling off practically every asset in on its team. Interestingly enough, if you look back to that 2017 team, only two players remain still on the roster from that squad three years ago — Colin White, who played just two games, and forward Nick Paul, who played one.
However, after posting a combined 82-124-29 record over the last three years, Melnyk spoke to Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun on the day of the team’s 30th anniversary, claiming the team is now heading in the right direction and are well on their way to a being a Stanley Cup contender.
“We have turned the corner. We just now need to execute on what we have,” Melnyk said. “This is the team, with what we have right now, I believe can win a Stanley Cup already, and that’s without adding some veterans, which we plan to do.”
Ottawa, which has progressively moved all of its stars over the past three years, which includes a list of Erik Karlsson, Mark Stone, Mike Hoffman, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, amongst others. The team then cut ties with a number of veterans this year, including goaltender Craig Anderson and forward Bobby Ryan before going out and signing a number of free agents in the offseason, bringing in Evgenii Dadonov, Alex Galchenyuk, Erik Gudbranson to complement their youth movement and even added a few others via trade, including goaltender Matt Murray.
Melnyk said in the interview that the team intends to continue to be active at the trade deadline, but no longer as sellers.
“We’ll be a team that’s active at the trade deadline and not as sellers, but as buyers, just like we used to be,” Melnyk said. “If you look at my track record on spending on players, we were always up there. We were never at the top, but we were always right there or around the centre. Now, we’re going to stay somewhere in the centre, depending on where it’s at. Our budgets are always somewhere around $70 million, which is in the centre.”
In those three years of struggles, the Senators have put together a pool of impressive young talent, including a few top lottery selections over the past few years such as Brady Tkachuk (2018), as well as Tim Stuetzle and Jake Sanderson, both top-five picks in this year’s draft. The team has accumulated quite a few picks in the draft too, including six picks in the top 61 this past year and have four more picks in the first two rounds of 2021. With many of their young talents either ready or quite close to being ready to contribute, the Senators could make quite a jump in the standings in the next couple of years, especially if the owner is willing to spend.
Melnyk already made sure to lock up 23-year-old Thomas Chabot to an eight-year, $64MM extension last year and Tkachuk could easily be the next in line to sign an extension within the next year as he will be a restricted free agent after the 2020-21 season.
Maxim Lapierre Announces Retirement
Maxim Lapierre, who played 614 games over his NHL career for five different teams, has announced his retirement, according to a report from NHL.com.
The 35-year-old forward played 10 seasons with the Montreal Canadiens, Anaheim Ducks, Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues and Pittsburgh Penguins. He was known as a physical bottom-six player who spent his first five seasons with the Canadiens. His best season was back in 2008-09 when he scored 15 goals. He was a major factor in the playoffs for the 2010-11 Vancouver Canucks team. He was acquired at the trade deadline and produced three goals and 66 penalty minutes to help the Canucks come within one game of winning a Stanley Cup Championship. His last NHL season was with the Penguins during the 2014-15 season. In total, Lapierre scored 65 goals and 139 points and 586 penalty minutes.
After his contract in Pittsburgh ran out, Lapierre, a Montreal native, signed a one-year deal to play for Modo in the SHL overseas. He then followed that up playing four years for Lugano of the NLA. Last season, he joined the Berlin Polar Bears in the DEL. He did help Team Canada to the bronze medal in the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.
Free Agent Profile: Derick Brassard
Three years ago, Derick Brassard scored 21 goals during the regular season, split between the Ottawa Senators and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Then Brassard found himself struggling the following year. He couldn’t make his mark in his first full season in Pittsburgh and found himself traded to Florida where he struggled even more and then included into a trade deadline to deal to Colorado.
For a short while, it almost looked as if Brassard’s career as a productive middle-six player was at an end in the NHL … until he signed up with the New York Islanders. Brassard proved to be a solid fit in Barry Trotz’ system, posting 10 goals and 32 points in 66 games and another eight points during the playoffs, fitting in throughout the Islanders’ lineup. While those numbers don’t jump off the page, the 33-year-old provided much-needed depth on the team and could provide that almost anywhere.
Of course, Brassard was initially brought in to New York to replace departed center Valtteri Filppula, who left for Detroit. However, Brassard rarely even played the center position as he struggled with the defensive angle of that position and settled in as a fill-in-the-gap forward instead, something the team surely has considered when it comes to bringing him back.
Potential Suitors
The Islanders would make the most sense as the team still has moves it must make while it waits to get star restricted free agent Mathew Barzal signed. However, with limited cap space, will the Islanders opt to bring back Brassard? The Islanders could go a cheaper route as they have a number of young AHL players that could be ready to break onto the team, including Oliver Wahlstrom, Otto Koivula and Kieffer Bellows. However, it might be best to have a veteran on hand just in case that the three aren’t ready to step in on an everyday basis.
There have been reports that Brassard has received interest overseas, but the veteran has indicated he would rather stay in the NHL if he can garner a contract.
Another team that could come calling as the season approaches could be his former team, the New York Rangers. Brassard, who put up his best numbers of his career with the Rangers, might prove to be a useful piece to the short-term puzzle. The Rangers could use some bottom-six depth, especially at center and Brassard could fill that void for a year.
Projected Contract
Brassard didn’t sign until August last season, suggesting that he is willing to wait for a team that wants to look at what it has before grabbing him. That is likely to happen again as the forward will have to wait for the remaining free agents to sign before he gets signed. No matter what, Brassard is more likely to ink another short-term deal, one or two years at most, likely for no more than $1MM. Asking for more with so many teams capped out seems unlikely.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
What Your Team Is Thankful For: Buffalo Sabres
It’s Thanksgiving this week in the United States and the holiday season is right around the corner. Like the last few years, PHR will take a look at what teams are thankful for but this year comes with a bit of a change. Normally teams would have an idea of where their season was heading, coming up on the one-quarter mark with mountains of statistics to analyze. Instead, in this unprecedented year, the season hasn’t even begun. We’ll still take a look at what each group is excited about and what they could hope for once the calendar turns to 2021.
What are the Sabres most thankful for?
A deep forward group.
No longer are the Sabres putting all their hopes on youngsters. The team is suddenly loaded with established players who have proven themselves. To go with Jack Eichel, the team has added a number of key additions to go with solid playmakers as the team now boasts Eichel, Taylor Hall, Eric Staal, Sam Reinhart, Jeff Skinner, Victor Olofsson and a number of other players who can thrive in bottom-six roles like Kyle Okposo, Cody Eakins, Dylan Cozens, Casey Mittelstadt, etc. The depth at forward is a major improvement for a team that needs to score and this team should have that quality of depth that should be able to give Buffalo a chance to earn their first playoff appearance in nine years.
Who are the Sabres most thankful for?
Taylor Hall.
With the pandemic flattening out the salary cap for the foreseeable future, there weren’t too many long-term offers for Hall, the top free agent of the 2020 free agent class. Instead, Hall looked for a short-term deal from a team with extra cap room and surprised quite a few people when he picked the Sabres, due to the chance to play next to Eichel for the year.
The addition of Hall, totally enhances the team’s top-nine as he immediately will slot into the top line next to Eichel and will finally get a chance to play next to an elite center, something he hasn’t had in quite a number of years. The hope is that Hall can find his game from two years ago when he was the Hart Trophy winner with the New Jersey Devils, leading them single-handedly into the playoffs. If he can do that for the Sabres, Buffalo should have a legitimate chance to break their nine-year drought and Hall will establish himself again as the top free agent for 2021 in hopes of landing that big-term deal.
What would the Sabres be even more thankful for?
A return to form of Jeff Skinner.
After posting a 40-goal season in 2018-19 and signing a eight-year, $72MM deal, things never panned out after that for Skinner, who struggled mightily with just 14 goals and 23 points in 59 games last season. The forward was a disaster and found himself spending quite a bit of time on the third line trying to find his game. With seven years at $9MM AAV, the Sabres have to hope that Skinner will be able to bounce back and become that fixture on the second line that they were hoping for. The talent is there to surround the goal-scoring forward, but the team needs for him to execute, otherwise the team will be stuck with a player and a contract that they don’t want.
What should be on the Sabres’ Holiday Wish List?
The Sabres may be in need of help in goal. The Sabres have a solid offense and defense, but their goaltending could be what’s holding them back. The team can hope that Linus Ullmark is ready to take the starting load this season. He did produce impressive numbers with a .915 save percentage in 34 appearances, but is he the answer in net? Unfortunately, top goaltending prospect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, might not be ready for another couple of years, meaning the team may need to find a way to bring in a more proven goaltender that can handle big minutes.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: San Jose Sharks
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 2020-21 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
San Jose Sharks
Current Cap Hit: $79,146,667 (under the $81.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
D Mario Ferraro (two years, $925K)
F Danil Yurtaykin (one year, $925K)
F Lean Bergmann (two years, $837K)
F Fredrik Handemark (one year, $793K)
F Noah Gregor (one year, $768K)
F Alexander True (one year, $763K)
F Joachim Blichfeld (one year, $737K)
Potential Bonuses:
Ferraro: $213K
Bergmann: $133K
Handemark: $133K
Gregor: $65K
True: $20K
Blichfeld: $20K
Total: $584K
The Sharks are overloaded with plenty of prospects on entry-level deals. The team sampled many of those players last year in hopes of finding some bottom-six depth, but very few players were able to make their mark last year. The most obvious success was the play of Ferraro, who established himself as an NHL defenseman after spending two years at the University of Massachussets-Amherst playing alongside Cale Makar, and now will battle for a top-four spot in the Sharks’ lineup this year. While his offense is still coming around, the defenseman is a hard-worker and impressive locker room presence already after one season and should only get better.
Another player who should get a legitimate opportunity at center for San Jose is Handemark. The 27-year-old SHL veteran has been solid presence in Sweden for years and now will bring his talents over to San Jose in hopes of adding to the team’s bottom-six depth. Handemark had career highs of 14 goals and 38 points in 52 games and should replace the spot formerly held by Joe Thornton. The rest are less likely to make the squad unless one of them can prove they can handle a bottom-six role.
One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level
G Devan Dubnyk ($2.17MM, UFA)
F Ryan Donato ($1.9MM, RFA)
F Marcus Sorensen ($1.5MM, UFA)
F Stefan Noesen ($925K, UFA)
F Patrick Marleau ($700K, UFA)
F Matthew Nieto ($700K, UFA)
F Antti Suomela ($700K, UFA)
F Dylan Gambrell ($700K, RFA)
*- Minnesota is retaining an addition $2.17K of Dubnyk’s cap hit and salary
One of the most interesting acquisitions this offseason was bringing in both Dubnyk and Donato from Minnesota. Both be free agents in a year, although Dubnyk will be an unrestricted free agent. The team brought in the long-time Wild starter with the hopes that the 34-year-old might push for the starting goalie spot next season. Dubnyk is coming off one of his worst seasons in Minnesota after many solid seasons. The team hopes he can bounce back and solidify a weak position last year. The other piece to the trade with Minnesota was Donato, a highly-touted college prospect who is already on his fourth team in just three years. The Sharks hope that dropping him into a top-six situation might set the young forward off after scoring 14 goals last season.
For a minimum deal, the team will bring back Marleau, who has the opportunity to pass Gordie Howe for first place in the NHL in games played this season. Sorensen and Noesen should establish themselves in the bottom six. Sorensen looked on the verge of joining the top six after a 17-goal season in 2018-19, but came down to earth instead, scoring just seven goals. Noesen scored 13 goals in 2017-18 with New Jersey, something that San Jose hopes he can re-create this season. The same sentiment goes for veteran Matt Nieto signed out of Colorado.
Two Years Remaining
F Tomas Hertl ($5.63MM, UFA)
F Joel Kellman ($750K, UFA)
D Jacob Middleton ($725K, RFA)
Not much went right in San Jose last year and a major injury to Hertl, who tore his ACL and MCL in his left knee in January and had surgery in February to repair them. However, when healthy, Hertl was one of the team’s top players. He made the all-star game after posting 16 goals and 36 points in 48 games before the injury and was coming off a 35-goal season the previous year. If the team can get him healthy and have him bounce back in 2020-21, the team should be in good shape and have two seasons to observe his play before having to make a decision on a long-term deal.
Three Years Remaining
F Timo Meier ($6MM, RFA)
The 24-year-old forward has proven to be a solid, dependable goal scorer for the Sharks as he posted 22 goals and 49 points in 70 games last year. That’s a touch less than the 30 goals and 66 points he had in 78 games in 2018-19, but considering the type of season that San Jose had, he is still one of the core pieces for the next three years.Read more
Atlantic Notes: Eichel, Hyman, Senators
While many fans look to the Buffalo Sabres offseason as a success, team star Jack Eichel is just as excited about the team’s moves. The 24-year-old expressed frustration with the Sabres’ team and made it clear the Sabres were in need of more veteran players. The team did just that under new general manager Kevyn Adams, who brought in a number of experienced players, including Taylor Hall, Eric Staal and Cody Eakin to bolster their forward depth.
“I know the league is trying to go younger, but I think that you still need those older guys, the veteran guys, the guys that have been there and won,” said Eichel in an interview with Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski. “I think you need them in your locker room, first of all, and you need them on the ice. We’ve definitely been young. We’ve been in a transition for a few years now. There’s always young guys coming through the organization and you want to see everyone have success, but you look at the transformation that our team made this offseason.”
Eichel, who has not been to the playoffs in his entire career, as Buffalo hasn’t reached the playoffs in nine years, has seen a number of veteran players moved out such as Ryan O’Reilly and Eichel’s friend Zach Bogosian in favor of bringing in younger players. However, Eichel is enthusiastic of the direction of the team this season.
“It’s so hard to win when you’re young,” said Eichel. “I think it’s so important to have that veteran presence in the room and on the ice, so I think it was good for us to add that this offseason. We’ll see what happens.”
- The Athletic’s Jonas Siegel and James Mirtle (subscription required) debate whether the Toronto Maple Leafs can retain some of their other soon-to-be free agents, including goaltender Frederik Andersen, defenseman Morgan Rielly and forward Zach Hyman. While all three are not likely to be retained due to the team’s continual cap problems in the future, both writers agreed that the slam dunk signing would be Hyman, whose hard-working attitude and competitive culture that he sets in the locker room are critical to bringing back down the road. Of course, both writers did add that much of those hopes will come down to whether Hyman, now 28 and coming off two 20-goal seasons, will be willing to accept a minor home-town discount to stay. If he’s looking to cash in, that could force the team to go in a different direction.
- While many people are beginning to see hope in Ottawa with some of their offseason moves this offseason as well as the development of their youth, The Athletic’s Hailey Salvian (subscription required) writes that the Senators could find themselves at quite a disadvantage next season assuming they end up in an all-Canadian division next season. Ottawa struggled against their Canadian counterparts, posting a 4-8-2 record, including a minus-12 goal differential against those teams. To make matters worse, most of the Canadian teams have improved during the offseason, which could make Ottawa’s season that much more challenging with no cellar dwellers they can take advantage of.
West Notes: Saad, Schmidt, Turris
The Colorado Avalanche bolstered their offense during the offseason by trading for veteran winger Brandon Saad. The 28-year-old has done nothing but score goals over the last seven years, having scored 169 goals over his career and he should be a perfect fit with the Avalanche. Of course, Saad has just one year remaining on his contract, but has expressed interest in signing a long-term extension in Colorado.
However, what are the chances that the Avalanche bring him back?
NBC Sports’ Adam Gretz writes that there are quite a few factors that determine whether Saad comes back. However, while his numbers are solid, they don’t stand out either. However, Saad brings other aspects to his game, which Colorado might appreciate. He is a possession driver and really excels when around better players, which the Avalanche has a lot of.
However, while the Avalanche have done quite well with managing their cap space over the years, those days will soon be past. The team has already inked Mikko Rantanen to a six-year, $55.5MM deal (with five years still on it). Colorado also will have forward Gabriel Landeskog hitting free agency next season, while defenseman Cale Makar will be a restricted free agent. Those two deals are likely going to cost Colorado quite a bit.
Of course, how he performs in his one year in Colorado will have a huge impact, but unless he takes less to stay in Colorado, the team will likely have too many other contracts to deal with in the next season to bring Saad back.
- Much credit has been given to Vancouver for being able to acquire defenseman Nate Schmidt from the cap-strapped Vegas Golden Knights for just a third-round pick. The team had just lost Chris Tanev, so bringing in Schmidt is a solid if not significant upgrade to the defense. However, The Athletic’s Harman Dayal (subscription required) writes that the real question is will it be an upgrade defensively. Schmidt is mostly known for his puck-moving skills and his ability to move the puck up the ice quickly, not necessarily for his defensive prowess, while Tanev was basically the opposite — a ruthless defensive player. Dayal looks at Schmidt’s underrated defensive game, although he also notes that Schmidt’s defensive numbers took a significant decline this past season. Was it just a down season or is his game slipping in his late 20s. While it looks like Schmidt is a solid top-four acquisition, the scribe wonders if the team needs to acquire a defensive-first blueliner to fill in the unit’s current deficiencies.
- The Edmonton Oilers have emphasized the need for a solid third-line center for a number of years and feel good about the recent acquisition of Kyle Turris, who should fill that role. Of course, Turris, who has struggled for the past two years with the Nashville Predators and was bought out, could still struggle. If Turris can’t handle the Oilers’ No. 3 center position, the Edmonton Journal’s Kurt Leavins writes the team would then only have one option for that spot, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, a player they really want in their top-six. The lack of depth centers could end up being a significant issue if Turris fails.
Salary Cap Deep Dive: Arizona Coyotes
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 2020-21 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
Arizona Coyotes
Current Cap Hit: $84,270,284 (over the $81.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Barrett Hayton (two years, $894K)
Potential Bonuses
Hayton: $1.75MM
Once considered a team full of young players, the Coyotes have changed their image over the last few years and have only one young player on their team under a cheap entry-level deal with only a handful of entry-level players that are even close to joining the team. Hayton, however, could be ready for a breakout season after spending the season with the team last year. Unfortunately for Hayton, he would have benefitted the most with one year in the AHL, but wasn’t eligible to play there, so instead of returning him to his junior team, the Coyotes kept him around. He only appeared in 20 games (although he did miss time with a shoulder injury at the World Juniors), but showed enough potential that he should be an everyday player next season. A big year from the 2019 fifth-overall pick would be a boost to the team’s center position.
One Year Remaining, Non-Entry-Level
F Derek Stepan ($6.5MM, UFA)
D Alex Goligoski ($5.48MM, UFA)
F Marian Hossa ($5.28MM, UFA)
D Niklas Hjalmarsson ($5MM, UFA)
G Antti Raanta ($4.25MM, UFA)
D Jason Demers ($3.94MM, UFA)
D Jordan Oesterle ($1.4MM, UFA)
D Ilya Lyubushkin ($1MM, UFA)
F Conor Garland ($775K, RFA)
F John Hayden ($750K, RFA)
F Dryden Hunt ($700K, RFA)
For a team that is looking to cut salary, the team has a lot of money coming off the books next year, suggesting the team could look drastically different in just one year. Some of those players could find themselves to be trade bait when the trade deadline comes around. The most interesting decision the team might have to make is what to do with Stepan, however. The 30-year-old was brought in from New York to stabilize their top line three years ago. He had four straight seasons of 50 or more points while with the Rangers and posted a 56-point season with the Coyotes in 2017-18. However, his production has taken a dive over the past two years as Stepan posted just 35 points (in 72 games) in 2018-19 and then dropped even further last year with just 28 points in 70 games. A team leader, the Coyotes have to hope that Stepan can return to form this season or the team could choose to move on from him.
The team’s defense is loaded with several high-priced veteran blueliners and almost all of their contracts come up next season, including Goligoski, Hjalmarsson and Demers. Goligoski is 35, but is still playing major minutes for Arizona and could be a candidate to return at a slightly lesser deal. Hjalmarsson is 33, but has seen his game break down a bit as he has dealt with numerous injuries the last couple of years, including a fractured fibula that cost him 43 games last year. The 32-year-old Demers also averaged more than 20 minutes of ATOI per game. The team may keep one or two of those players, but likely will not keep all three.
The team will also want to evaluate the play of Raanta, who has showed flashes of dominance, but also has dealt with injuries and inconsistent play at times as well. Raanta did play well last season, posting a .921 save percentage in 33 games and gives the team several options in the net. Raanta could easily be re-signed to new deal or could be a trade candidate as well.
The team will also finally be free of Hossa’s $5.28MM contract the team took on years ago.
Two Years Remaining
F Phil Kessel ($6.8MM, UFA)
G Darcy Kuemper ($4.5MM, UFA)
F Tyler Pitlick ($1.75MM, UFA)
F Lawson Crouse ($1.53MM, RFA)
F Johan Larsson ($1.4MM, UFA)
F Christian Fischer ($1MM, RFA)
The team brought in Kessel to bring in the firepower that the team needed as goal scoring remains one of the team’s biggest weak points. Unfortunately, the first year with Kessel didn’t turn out to be the big acquisition that the team was hoping for. After an 28-goal, 82-point season in 2018-19, the 33-year-old saw quite a decline in his play with just 14 goals and 38 points in 70 games. That’s way below what they were hoping for and Arizona has to hope that Kessel can return to form this year in hopes of increasing his value if the team wants to move him at the trade deadline or next offseason when he has just one year left on his deal.
Kuemper has become the Coyotes’ top asset as the 30-year-old has been nothing short of dominant over the past two years and remains on a manageable contract. His name came up in trade speculation this offseason, but with so many free-agent goalies available, Arizona didn’t get the offers it was hoping for. That could change down the road. Yet at the same time, Kuemper might be worth keeping around down the road.
Three Years Remaining
None
Ekman-Larsson Could Still Be Traded To Bruins
The Arizona Coyotes, attempting to free up some salary during the offseason, tried to trade their top defenseman, Oliver Ekman-Larsson. With a no-movement clause embedded within his eight-year, $66MM contract, Ekman-Larsson only gave the team two teams, the Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks, he would be willing to accept a trade to and refused any other suggestions. It proved to be a challenging task for new general manager Bill Armstrong and with no quality offers from either team, the Coyotes opted to keep him in house.
However, Boston Hockey Now’s Joe Haggerty writes that there remains a chance that the Boston Bruins could still end up with Ekman-Larsson. While the Canucks have since acquired Nate Schmidt to augment their defensive corps, the Bruins still have a number of holes in their defense after the departure of Torey Krug to St. Louis and with the uncertain status of veteran Zdeno Chara. The team only has three established top-four players in Charlie McAvoy, Matt Grzelcyk and Brandon Carlo and are hoping veterans Kevan Miller and John Moore can bounce back or youngsters Urho Vaakanainen or Jakub Zboril can step up and establish themselves as full-time players next season.
However, if the team can’t get some of those defensemen to take that next step, the Bruins might be more open to re-engage with Arizona about trading for Ekman-Larsson. With Krug gone, it’s likely that McAvoy and Grzelcyk would see a jump in their offensive numbers next year, but the team could definitely benefit from a player who has scored 10 goals of more for six straight years (would have been seven had the league not been shut down due to COVID-19), as well as two 20-goal seasons.
While Ekman-Larsson gave Arizona a window of time earlier in the offseason to send him to either Vancouver or Boston, that window has closed. However, in a recent interview with Coyotes’ insider Craig Morgan (subscription required), Ekman-Larsson suggested he’d still be open to being traded.
“That’s a question for (GM) Bill (Armstrong) to be honest with you,” said Ekman-Larsson. “There’s not much I can do about it. I’m just trying to stay in the moment. I know everybody says that but I really had a good offseason. I worked out really hard to show that I wanted to be here, wanted to get better and hopefully that transfers into the stuff on the ice. I feel really happy that I am here but if that day comes where they ask again, I will deal with it then.”
Haggerty writes that the likely timeline for a trade would be closer to the trade deadline as the Bruins want to give Vaakanainen and Zboril a chance to prove that they can handle everyday NHL duties first. If one or both can step up and prove themselves, then the team doesn’t have to do anything. However, with many questions if they are potential top-four options down the road, the team could choose to add Ekman-Larsson for their stretch run.
Boston has approximately $6.7MM in available cap space, which sounds good if they want to go out and get Ekman-Larsson. However, the Bruins still have to work out a deal with restricted free-agent Jake Debrusk and still hope to bring Chara back, if he so chooses. That likely will use up their remaining cap space. Haggerty writes for Arizona to make the trade work, the Coyotes would have to take back Moore’s contract. The veteran still has three years at $2.75MM and potentially another contract. Boston would almost certainly have to include a prospect like Vaakanainen as well.
Atlantic Notes: Toronto, Rasanen, Raymond
With the city of Toronto beginning it’s 28-day lockdown on Monday, there are many questions on how that might affect the Toronto Maple Leafs if training camp were to begin during that shutdown. However, the Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reports that the Maple Leafs are exempt from the lockdown in that case as professional teams are free to practice.
The scribe adds that according to an NHL source, “at this point” the NHL does not “anticipate that any applicable restrictions would prevent the #Leafs from conducting camp in the normal course.” Of course, that assumes that the NHL season might begin in January, which would require training camp opening in Toronto in December, which is no certainty.
- Sticking with the Maple Leafs, The Athletic’s Joshua Kloke (subscription required) writes that time is running out for Toronto prospect Eemeli Rasanen, the Maple Leafs second-round pick in 2017. The 6-foot-7 defenseman came highly regarded, but has struggled to make an impact since being drafted, which included playing for four different teams in four different leagues last year. Despite his size and impressive shot, the knock on the 21-year-old was his skating which was exposed after signing with Jokerit of the KHL in 2018. He has struggled, playing very little at the KHL level and was eventually sent to Jokerit’s U20 team, then loaned to Kiekko-Vantaa of Finland’s second division and then finally loaned to Frederikshavn of the Danish league. Rasanen now is playing for HFK in the Liiga and hopes to establish himself there as Toronto must make a decision on whether they intend to offer him an entry-level contract next year.
- Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press looks at a group of Red Wings prospects and tries to evaluate which ones are ready to join the NHL club for the 2021-22 season. While some believe that Lucas Raymond, the fourth-overall pick in the 2020 draft, might need a few more years in the SHL, the 18-year-old has already surpassed his 10-point season (in 33 games) from last year as he already has five goals and 12 points in 19 games (second on his team) and taking a much bigger role with his Frolunda squad. St. James believes he will be ready to come over for the 2021-22 season