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Kyle Connor Signs Seven-Year, $50MM Deal With Winnipeg

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The Winnipeg Jets already locked up one restricted free agent in Patrik Laine. Now, the Jets announced they have agreed to a deal with their other RFA as the team has signed Kyle Connor to a seven-year, $50MM contract, which comes to a $7.14MM AAV.

A breakdown of the contract is here as there are no signing bonuses. The deal also includes a no-trade clause in the final two years of the deal:

2019-20: $7.5 million base salary
2020-21: $8 million base salary
2021-22: $7.5 million base salary
2022-23: $5 million base salary
2023-24: $7.5 million base salary
2024-25: $7.5 million base salary
2025-26: $7 million base salary

With Connor signed to a $7.14MM deal and Laine having signed on Friday to a two-year, $6.75MM deal, the team has locked up the pair to a respectable $13.89MM combined. With the signing of both Laine and Connor, the Jets now have $7.61MM in projected cap space. Coincidentally, defenseman Dustin Byfuglien makes $7.6MM, so if the veteran does decide he wants to return to the team (he’s currently on suspension as he decides whether he wants to come back), the team has the money to pay all three players, which many felt might be a tough task for general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff. In fact, Puckpedia reports that Winnipeg now has just $116K of cap space remaining (although Byfuglien’s cap hit doesn’t count while he remains suspended). The team also would likely send a player down to when/if Byfuglien comes back, which would free up more cap space.

With the season soon to get underway and the preference to be with the team at the start of the regular season, many expected that Connor might sign this weekend. While Laine received all the press as the Jets had the misfortune of having two top restricted free agents, Connor slipped somewhat under the radar, but has been a key contributor to the team over the past two years. The 22-year-old jumped immediately onto the scene two seasons ago when he scored 31 goals and 57 points as a rookie (finishing fourth in the Calder Trophy voting). His numbers improved last year, scoring 34 goals and 66 points.

The long-term deal gives both parties some long-term security, especially needed after Laine only agreed to a two-year deal, leaving many to wonder what might happen in that time. Winnipeg already lost Jacob Trouba, who refused to sign a long-term deal with the Jets and eventually forced a trade to  the New York Rangers this summer. The team hopes that Connor can continue to prove and become the playmaking puck mover that they had envisioned.

TSN’s Pierre LeBrun was the first to report the deal.

Mikko Rantanen Signs Six-Year, $55.5MM Deal With Avalanche

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With a number of key restricted free agents having signed in the last few days, only a few holdouts remain. However, one has come off the board as the Colorado Avalanche have signed star winger Mikko Rantanen to a six-year, $55.5MM contract with an AAV of $9.25MM, according to NHL.com’s Brennan Klak.

“Mikko has established himself as one of the premier young wingers in the NHL and is a big part of our core group,” general manager Joe Sakic said. “We look forward to having him back with the team as we get ready to start the season.”

The breakdown of the deal is here as Rantanen contract is all base salary with no signing bonuses (according to CapFriendly):

2019-20: $12MM base salary
2020-21: $12MM base salary
2021-22: $10MM base salary
2022-23: $6MM base salary
2023-24: $9.5MM base salary
2024-25: $6MM base salary

The deal looks like a good one for the Avalanche if compared to the only other significant long-term deal to compare it to, which was Mitch Marner’s six-year deal worth $65.36MM and a $10.89MM AAV. With Rantanen locked up at $9.25MM and Nathan MacKinnon’s $6.3MM AAV, the team has a young tandem locked up for a inexpensive $15.55MM for the next four years.

Considering Rantanen’s statistical production, Colorado looks to have gotten a steal. Rantanen has potted 80 goals and 209 points over three seasons including a career-high 31 goals and 87 points and many believe that there is plenty more to come. Marner, on the other hand, hasn’t come close to putting up the same points over his three-year span as he has tallied 67 goals and 224 points, yet walked away with the bigger contract, suggesting that Colorado may have walked away with a impressive contract considering what they were up against with the Marner contract hanging over their heads.

The Avalanche still have a significant amount of cap space remaining as Puckpedia reports that Colorado still has $7.1MM remaining in projected cap space even after signing Rantanen to his deal.

As for Rantanen, who is currently overseas, he must pass through immigration before he can come to Colorado, although reports suggest there is still a good chance Rantanen could be available to the team for their season opener on Thursday, Oct. 3 when they play the Calgary Flames at home.

Elliotte Friedman was the first to report on the signing.

Los Angeles Kings Assign Nikolai Prokhorkin To AHL

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The Los Angeles Kings are only just starting their rebuilding phase of their franchise, and the team has already decided that KHL veteran winger Nikolai Prokhorkin won’t be part of their immediate future as the team announced that they have assigned him to the Ontario Reign of the AHL.

The 25-year-old was brought in to Los Angeles with the hopes of immediately jumping into their lineup. He has played six full seasons in the KHL already, and had his best season last year when he picked up career highs with St. Petersburg SKA with 20 goals and 41 points. A fourth-round pick back in 2012, he opted to sign with the Kings in May to a one-year, entry-level contract, which would make him a restricted free agent next season. He did attempt to sign with the franchise back in 2012 and played eight games with the Manchester Monarchs of the AHL, before his contract was ruled illegal and was forced to return to Russia.

Prokhorkin does have a European assignment clause that can go into effect at a later date, according to Fox Sports Jon Rosen, but there so far has been no indication that Prokhorkin intends to return to the KHL. With a significant amount of young players on the roster, Prokhorkin may just want to play for Ontario to get used to North American rinks and hope the team will recall him at some point so he can prove he belongs in the Kings’ lineup at a later date.

 

 

Metropolitan Notes: Capitals Goalies, Kempny, Farabee, Holmstrom

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The Washington Capitals may have the ability to keep three goaltenders on their roster with the suspension of forward Evgeny Kuzetsov being off the books for the next few games. However, Capitals head coach Todd Reirden said keeping three goaltenders on the roster is not the plan, according to Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan.

The team intends to start Braden Holtby in net on Sunday, but the real question is who might be his backup. Last year’s backup, Pheonix Copley remains in the mix and isn’t waiver-exempt, which could be an issue if the team attempts to pass him through waivers. However, the team also has their goaltender-of-the future in Ilya Samsonov close to ready as well and the team may want to see what they have in him sooner than later.

Regardless, it looks like the team intends to make a decision on their goaltending situation before the start of the regular season.

  • Sticking with the Capitals, the good news for the team is that defenseman Michal Kempny, who has been out with a hamstring injury, passed his conditioning skating test, but isn’t likely to be ready for the season opener and is currently listed as doubtful, according to The Athletic’s Tarik El-Bashir. While he still could miss some time as he tries to catch up after missing most of training camp, it’s also just as unlikely that the team will place the veteran defenseman on LTIR either. The team has options to replace him in the lineup, including Martin Fehervary, Jonas Siegenthaler and Christian Djoos.
  • The Athletic’s Charlie O’Connor (subscription required) writes that it looks like Philadelphia Flyers rookie Joel Farabee may have wrapped up a roster spot with the Flyers after an impressive performance on the ice Thursday. While Farabee, who has been competing with fellow rookies Morgan Frost and German Rubtsov (as well as a host of veterans), hasn’t put up much offense on the scoreboard, he has performed impressively well as he was all over the ice and created many opportunities for the team. While it was his best game, nothing is written in stone. “You know what, if he’s not in the lineup that first game (of the regular season), it’ll be a surprise,” head coach Alain Vigneault said.
  • The New York Islanders surprised many at the draft earlier this summer when they nabbed forward prospect Simon Holmstrom with the 23rd-overall pick with many believing he should have gone in the second or third round. Homstrom, however, remains in the Islanders camp and now may decide to stay in North America this season afterall with his performance in camp so far. The Athletic’s Arthur Staple (subscription required) writes that Holmstrom may stay in North America and play for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers as opposed to playing in the SHL. “That is what we’re preparing for, my wife and I,” Jonas Holmstrom, Simon’s father, said in a phone conversation on Thursday. “He can play in the AHL and in his mind, he’s willing to stay.”

Atlantic Notes: Debrusk, Suzuki, Evans, Olofsson

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The Boston Bruins went to the wire with two of their restricted free agents this summer in Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo. Next year might be even worse. The team will have 10 free agents to deal with and another key restricted free agent in Jake Debrusk and will have to hope they can negotiate their way to avoid any holdouts.

Debrusk is coming off a 27-goal season, which would suggest a significant raise, especially if Debrusk can duplicate or even surpass last seasons numbers. NBC Sports’ Joe Haggerty writes that Debrusk has kept a careful watch on the negotiations with McAvoy and Carlo and hopes he also can avoid any kind of a holdout.

“Obviously that’s going to be my situation [as an RFA]. Hopefully not [as a holdout], but maybe, possibly next year just looking around the league you see different things with guys dragging it out,” said DeBrusk, who will be joined by Brett Ritchie and Matt Grzelcyk as next summer’s restricted free agents for the Bruins. “It’s one of those where you ask questions on the business side of it. Things change and different stuff happens with talks, but at the same time I mostly just try to stay out of it. I try to stay dialed in to get ready for training camp and the season. I guess when that time comes, though, I’ll be more aware of what to expect.”

  • The Athletic’s Marc Dumont (subscription required) writes that the Montreal Canadiens have two key players vying for a roster spot in an intense training camp. The team especially likes what it has seen so far from Nick Suzuki and Jake Evans. The Canadiens have given Suzuki a chance to play on the wing so he can challenge for a roster spot and the 20-year-old has fared quite well so far in the preseason. Evans is fighting for a job on the fourth line, but will have to beat out quite a few veterans to claim the job, including Nick Cousins, Nate Thompson and Jordan Weal.
  • Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News writes that with many young prospects on the Buffalo Sabres vying for a job with the team, one player that has nothing to worry about is forward Victor Olofsson. The scribe says that Olofsson is a lock to make the team as he has had a dominant camp thus far. The 24-year-olf Olofsson proved himself in the SHL in 2017-18 when he tallied 27 goals. Then he proved himself once again in the AHL last season when he potted 30 goals and scored a pair of goals for the Sabres in six late regular season games. The team has been

 

Metropolitan Notes: Milano, Texier, Morin

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Despite losing all that forward talent this summer, the Columbus Blue Jackets find themselves in quite a roster jam. With 12 spots all but locked up, there is just one spot remaining for the bubble players. Amongst those is Sonny Milano, the team’s first-round pick in 2014, who looked like a impressive top-six option after the 2017-18 season when he tallied 15 goals as a rookie. However, he found himself instead spending most of 2018-19 with the Cleveland Monsters in the AHL and there is no guarantee that he will make the team this year. To make matters worse, Milano would have to pass through waivers if Columbus decides to cut him from the team, which would almost certainly result in another team claiming him.

The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline (subscription required) writes that the Blue Jackets would prefer to trade him than pass him through waivers, but the market for Milano has been cold. The team could opt to keep him and consider moving on from one of its veteran players, such as Markus Hannikainen or Brandon Dubinsky. However, the team wouldn’t be able to bury Dubinsky in the minors with his $5.85MM salary. However, Hannikainen might be an easier option as he makes just $750K.

  • Sticking with the Blue Jackets, Portzine, in a separate article, writes that Columbus is considering giving former star Artemi Panarin’s first-line position into the hands of rookie Alexandre Texier this season. Panarin, the team’s lead winger last season, left for the New York Rangers over the summer, but the team believes that the 20-year-old may be able to succeed in that role this year. Texier scored one goal in two late regular season games and played in all eight playoff games for Columbus, scoring two goals and three points. The scribe adds that if Texier does win the top-line job, he could become a top candidate for the Calder Trophy.
  • Philly.com’s Sam Carchidi believes that the Philadelphia Flyers are likely to keep eight defensemen out of training camp. The team has a numbers problem with defensemen and with only one of them waiver exempt, Philippe Myers, who is a lock to make the team, the Flyers would have to put a player on waivers, likely Samuel Morin. Philadelphia believes there is a good chance they would lose Morin if they put him on waivers and are more likely to keep the extra defenseman instead.

Central Notes: Tolvanen, Koivu, Chibisov

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A few people were surprised when the Nashville Predators assigned top prospect Eeli Tolvanen to the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL Sunday. Many believed with a solid training camp that Tolvanen was close to earning a full-time job with Nashville.

Nashville Post’s Michael Gallagher reported that it was a tough decision for Nashville staff, but with Tolvanen being waiver exempt and a team that is vying for a Stanley Cup, the team wasn’t ready to take a chance yet on Tolvanen, despite the progress he’s made since last year.

“He’s closer (to being NHL ready); let’s put it that way,” said Predators assistant coach Kevin McCarthy. “The biggest thing for him were the strides he’s made physically and coming in in better shape”

  • The Minnesota Wild got good news on Saturday when injured forward Mikko Koivu returned to the ice and played in his first preseason game, playing 16:41 and showing that his season-ending injury is a thing of the past, according to The Athletic’s Michael Russo (subscription required). Koivu won 10 of 18 faceoffs and played 6:34 on the penalty kill, two key elements that Minnesota was lacking without him last season. “He did what we missed last year,” head coach Bruce Boudreau said. “He won faceoffs in our zone, he defended really well, he was responsible. For his first game in eight months, I thought that was really good.”
  • In an early prediction of what the Winnipeg Jets opening day roster might look like, Winnipeg Sun’s Scott Billeck writes that it looks like Russian forward Andrei Chibisov has already earned a spot on the fourth line and with restricted free agents Patrik Laine and Kyle Connor still holding out, Chibisov might be able to earn a spot on the team’s third line. The 26-year-old signed with Winnipeg this summer on a one-year, entry-level contract and can be an unrestricted free agent next season. He played in the KHL for five years already and scored seven goals and career-high 20 points last season for Magnitogorsk Metallurg.

Pacific Notes: Anaheim Roster, Pirri, Yamamoto, Bjornfot, Soderstrom

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The Anaheim Ducks are clearly in a rebuilding phase this season. Afterall, they bought out Corey Perry earlier this summer, the team lost Ryan Kesler for the season and the Ducks hired their AHL coach, Dallas Eakins, who is familiar with many of the team’s prospects. Regardless, Eakins has made it clear, that the best players on the ice are the ones that are going to make the team and no favoritism will be given to the young players, according to Elliott Teaford of the Orange County Register.

“Do we all quietly hope our draft picks work out? Yeah,” Eakins said. “We’ve got scouts who’ve put in thousands of miles and countless hours driving around everywhere looking at these players. They’ve got their names on them and our organization has invested in them. But nothing is going to be given here. We’re not just going to shuffle people out of the way and give our young people jobs. They’ve going to have to earn it. We’re not interested at all in any kind of breaking this down and shuffling out real good players and hand the team over to a younger group.”

  • The Vegas Golden Knights have a few significant roster battles, but the most intriguing may who wins the third line wing opening, according to Jesse Granger of The Athletic (subscription required). The job belongs to Brandon Pirri to lose as Pirri was brought back with a two-year, $1.55MM deal over the summer. The 28-year-old was impressive in a short run with Vegas last year, scoring 12 goals over 31 games. Many expected Pirri to leave for a better opportunity, only for him to come back. However, Pirri is getting quite a battle from Valentin Zykov, who spent the summer training in Vegas with the team and has been equally as impressive as Pirri. Tomas Nosek has also looked solid and most recently, prospect Cody Glass has shown that he might be ready for a third-line role as well.
  • Sportsnet’s Marc Spector reports that the Edmonton Oilers forward Kailer Yamamoto is in Bakersfield where he will continue to rehab his post-wrist surgery that he had this summer. Yamamoto, the team’s first-round pick in 2017, has struggled to break through with the Oilers in two separate stints. He appeared in 17 games last year, scoring one goal. Spector also notes that defenseman Logan Day will have to undergo hand surgery and will be forced to miss time. Day spent last season in Bakersfield.
  • The Los Angeles Kings are considering keeping defenseman Tobias Bjornfot, one of their first-round draft picks this summer, on their opening day roster, according to The Athletic’s Lisa Dillman (subscription required). The team could be considering keeping him around for a few games before sending him back like they did with Jaret Anderson-Dolan last season. However, the team has been impressed with Bjornfot’s two-way game and head coach Todd McLellan compared the 18-year-old to a young Marc-Edouard Vlasic.
  • Another player who could stay with the team would be Arizona Coyotes first-round pick Victor Soderstrom, who The Athletic’s Craig Morgan suggests could remain with the team, much like center Barrett Hayton did last season, to get a feel for the NHL. Soderstrom was the 11th-overall pick in the 2019 draft.

Waivers: 9/22/19

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A new crop of players have been placed on waivers today. Here they are:

Arizona Coyotes

F Beau Bennett
D Dysin Mayo
F Andy Miele
D Robbie Russo

Buffalo Sabres

G Andrew Hammond
F C.J. Smith

Chicago Blackhawks

D Philip Holm
F Jacob Nilsson

Columbus Blue Jackets

F Nathan Gerbe
F Justin Scott
D Dillon Simpson

Dallas Stars

F Tanner Kero
D Dillon Heatherington

Florida Panthers

G Philippe Derosiers
D Ethan Prow
D Thomas Schemitsch

Nashville Predators

F Colin Blackwell
D Alexandre Carrier
F Laurent Dauphin
D Matt Donovan
G Troy Grosenick
F Anthony Richard

New Jersey Devils

F Brandon Baddock
D Joshua Jacobs
D Dakota Mermis
F Ben Street

Ottawa Senators

F Morgan Klimchuk
D Andreas Englund

Philadelphia Flyers

G Jean-Francois Berube

St. Louis Blues

D Derrick Pouliot

Tampa Bay Lightning

D Cameron Gaunce
D Dominik Mason
D Ben Thomas
G Scott Wedgewood

Vancouver Canucks

F Reid Boucher
G Zane McIntyre
D Ashton Sautner

Atlantic Notes: Backes, Domingue, Malgin

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The Boston Bruins are relatively set at the forward position. In fact, there is only one rotation spot that isn’t already set and that’s the third-line right wing position. However, one veteran isn’t guaranteed a job, according to The Athletic’s Joe McDonald (subscription required). David Backes will have to win the job if he wants to stay in the league.

The 35-year-old struggled badly last season with just seven goals and 20 points in 70 games and even saw himself used as a healthy scratch during several games during the Bruins Stanley Cup playoff run. He has two years remaining at $6MM per season, however, that will not be enough to guarantee a spot. However, Backes has spent the summer re-training his body to make sure he stays in the Bruins rotation. While in the past, Backes has played in just three preseason games to gear up for the regular season, he may have to play more this year as he fights for his job.

“In the past I’ve had a more secure role and spot and used (preseason) games as a warmup and had a target date of (opening night) to build up to that,” said Backes. “This year is more of staring down the face of my first preseason game and I need to be going all out and prove myself every shift. Ideally, it’s three games but that’s not in my control and when I’m out there I need to do my best.”

  • After clearing waivers today, Puckpedia reports that the Tampa Bay Lightning can now send goaltender Louis Domingue to the Syracuse Crunch and can  bury his salary in the AHL. With that move, his buried cap hit will just be $75K and the team will save $1.08MM on their salary cap. The Lightning are now projected to have $9.2MM in cap space available with 21 players under contract with one more player remaining to sign — restricted free agent Brayden Point.
  • The Athletic’s George Richards reports that he believes that Florida Panthers forward Denis Malgin is likely to make the team as would have to clear waivers in order to be sent to the Springfield Thunderbirds in the AHL. Malgin has averaged approximately 49 games over the past three seasons, but hasn’t made major offensive contributions to the team. He scored just seven goals last year. However, throw in that Malgin is on a one-way deal and would still make $750K regardless of where he plays, the 22-year-old might be better served staying with Florida.

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