Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Latest On Pierre-Luc Dubois

at CDT | by 8 Comments

The Pierre-Luc Dubois saga with the Winnipeg Jets appears likely to end this summer with a trade. Arpon Basu and Marc Antoine Godin of The Athletic write that it appears that the young forward will submit a list of teams that he is willing to sign with long term and it will be up to the Jets to determine if any of those teams are willing to make a move. In the meantime, Dubois’ agent Pat Brisson could begin talking to those teams to setup a framework for a potential long-term extension.

While this is not an ideal situation for Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff, it does give him the opportunity to have serious negotiations with teams that can plug Dubois into their lineup long term, hopefully maximizing the return for Winnipeg.

Jeff Marek acknowledged on his show today that the Montreal Canadiens are high on Dubois wish list, and The Athletic article even mentioned that the Canadiens called Winnipeg after the season ended. While there does seem to be a fit for a trade between Montreal and Winnipeg there will be plenty of other interested suitors. Players like Dubois don’t come on the market all that often and even an eight-year contract will only carry Dubois into his age 33 season, meaning that he should be very productive throughout the life on any long-term deal.

The Athletic article also mentions that Dubois is willing to be flexible depending on the situation, meaning that he will take a discount to go to a cup contender but would want his full freight if he goes to a rebuilding club.

The situation is not unlike the sign and trade of Matthew Tkachuk and the Calgary Flames last summer. Tkachuk signed his eight-year deal with Calgary and was then quickly dealt to the Florida Panthers for a large haul that was universally praised at the time. Winnipeg could maximize the return by working out a similar situation with Dubois allowing both sides to leave the relationship happy with the end result.

Snapshots: Matthews, Bratt, DeAngelo

at CDT | by

David Pagnotta of the NHL Network is reporting that the Toronto Maple Leafs are focused right now on evaluating their coaching staff and don’t have urgency at this time to speak with star forward Auston Matthews. He adds that they do intend to meet with the 25-year-old and his agent later this month, at which time they will presumably begin to talk about a contract extension for the upcoming unrestricted free agent. Matthews is just a year away from being able to walk out the door for nothing and the direction of the franchise will likely be dictated by what happens in the Matthews talks.

It’s an interesting approach from newly anointed general manager Brad Treliving given that he cited talking to Matthews as his number one priority at his introductory press conference. It’s also curious because he just came from a franchise in which he lost two 100-point scorers in a matter of months just one year ago. One would have to assume he will be prudent in making sure that doesn’t happen again with Matthews who has a no-trade clause that kicks in on July 1st.

In other news from around the league:

  • Pagnotta also writes that talks between the New Jersey Devils and pending RFA Timo Meier have picked up this week, but he describes the situation with Jesper Bratt as status quo. Bratt and the Devils have a bit of a contentious relationship when it comes to negotiations as they have come up against each other in the past when it comes to money. This happened most notably last summer when they nearly went to arbitration but settled on a one-year deal just hours before they were set to square off.  Bratt posted a career high 32 goals last season while posting his second consecutive 73-point season. He has bet on himself in the past and with just a year left until he is an unrestricted free agent, this could be the Devils toughest negotiation yet.
  • Elliotte Friedman mentioned on The Jeff Marek Show today that he believes the Philadelphia Flyers are looking to move defenseman Tony DeAngelo. The 27-year-old continued to produce on the powerplay in his first season in Philadelphia but struggled at even strength and in his own defensive zone. The New Jersey native became a lightning rod for criticism, particularly from head coach John Tortorella who scratched DeAngelo multiple times last season. Philadelphia acquired DeAngelo last summer from Carolina for multiple draft picks and signed him to a two year $10MM contract. Many people questioned the move at the time and that continued into the season despite the defenseman’s offensive production. It’ll be curious to see if any teams bite on the gifted but limited rearguard.

New York Rangers Re-Sign Anton Blidh

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

June 8: The Rangers have officially announced the contract, confirming its two-year term.

June 7: The New York Rangers have re-signed forward Anton Blidh to a two-year/two-way contract extension. The signing continues a trend for the 28-year-old Blidh as he has played under the parameters of a two-way contract for the past eight seasons. CapFriendly is reporting that Blidh will have an NHL cap hit of $775K in each of the two seasons or a minor’s salary of $350K. Should he spend the entire season in the AHL he does have a minimum guarantee of $385K in each year.

The move is a little bit curious as the Swedish winger came over in a trade deadline deal with the Colorado Avalanche but never dressed for the Rangers at the NHL level. It appears that general manager Chris Drury views Blidh as organization depth. He is a very useful defensive player who can kill penalties and chip in occasionally as he did this past season putting up 13 goals and 10 assists in 53 AHL games split between the Hartford Wolfpack and Colorado Eagles. While he struggled early in the season in Colorado, he seemed to find a home in Hartford as he finished his season putting up seven goals and four assists in his final 17 games.

Given Blidh’s career trajectory and his inability to stay at the NHL level it does appear that he’s destined to be a good AHL player and occasional NHL call-up. In 84 NHL games scattered across seven NHL seasons he has four goals and eight assists to go along with 41 PIM.

The signing is a nice story for Blidh who less than a month ago had a scary incident in a playoff game against the Hershey Bears. In the first period of Game One of the Atlantic Division Final, Blidh collapsed on the Hartford bench and the game had to be stopped to provide him with medical attention. In the end it turned out that Blidh had the wind knocked out of him and thankfully he was okay. Fortunately, he was able to keep playing and now he will be able to continue playing for at least the next two years.

Free Agent Focus: Pittsburgh Penguins

at CDT | by 12 Comments

Free agency is less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Penguins.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Drew O’Connor – O’Connor finally established himself as a full time NHLer last season after struggling to do so the two previous years. While his five goals and six assists in 46 games hardly knocked down the door, his play away from the puck was very strong. His ability to get around the ice plays very well in head coach Mike Sullivan’s up-tempo system.

O’Connor began last season in the AHL because of the Penguins salary cap issues but was quickly called up to begin the year. His AHL numbers were terrific as he was able to put up 22 points in 20 games and dominated large stretches of these games by utilizing his strong first step and large frame. Last month at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championship O’Connor found himself centering the second line of the United States team and was able to show some offensive prowess as he put up eight points in 10 games.

Apr 1, 2023; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins left wing Drew O’Connor (10) handles the puck against the Boston Bruins during the third period at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

If O’Connor can find more of an edge to his game, he could be an effective bottom six forward with a power element. He will likely be looking at a one or a two-year deal at around the NHL minimum as he tries to continue to establish himself as an NHL regular.

F Ryan Poehling – Poehling battled a lot of injuries this past season and it created a lost season for the 24-year-old who came over to Pittsburgh from the Montreal Canadiens in the Jeff Petry/Mike Matheson trade last summer. Not much attention was paid to Poehling, but he was one of the few bright spots in Pittsburgh’s bottom six forward group. Poehling put up seven goals and seven assists in 53 games, and while those numbers are pedestrian, he did that in less than 12 minutes of ice time per game and spent nearly 1/3 of his ice time killing penalties.

Overall, there is a lot to like about Poehling’s game especially given that he will likely be playing on a cap hit that is less than $1MM.

D Ty Smith – Smith was in the unfortunate position of being forced into the AHL by a salary cap squeeze.  He spent most of the season in the AHL where he put up seven goals and 17 assists in 39 games. Those aren’t bad numbers but given that former general manager Ron Hextall acquired Smith for John Marino, his numbers leave a lot to be desired. Smith did have a cup of coffee in Pittsburgh drawing into nine games in the NHL where he put up a goal and three assists while struggling in the defensive zone.

As it stands right now Smith will need a new contract and should start the year with the big club. The Penguins currently have a hole on the line side of their defense and could look to Smith to occupy a spot on their bottom pairing. He is still a very capable puck moving defenseman and given the fact that he is just 23 years old his best hockey is likely in front of him. Smith will probably get a two-year bridge deal for around $800K.

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

G Tristan Jarry – Tristan Jarry had arguably the worst season of his career at the most inopportune time. Jarry battled inconsistencies and injuries throughout the year and never seemed to find his footing after suffering an injury at the outdoor game in Boston. He did battle until the end of the year but couldn’t find enough consistency in his game to will the Penguins into the playoffs. Jarry went 24-13-7 on the year with a .909 save percentage and a 2.90 goals against average.

Despite his poor showing last season, he is still likely the best available option on the open market. Given his positioning it has been rumored in Pittsburgh that Jarry is looking for a contract in the range of six years with an average annual value of $6MM. The Penguins would be wise to avoid that kind of a commitment for a goaltender who has been unable to provide consistent goaltending from one year to the next.

D Brian Dumoulin – Dumoulin was a lightning rod for criticism early in the season and rightfully so, he was abysmal in November and December and was continuously put in high leverage situations despite his obvious struggles. Eventually he was demoted from the top pairing to the third pairing, and he began to find some semblance of his game as the year went on. Dumoulin was substantially better towards the end of the year, but he was still just a shell of his former self. Despite these issues, Dumoulin put up a career high 25 points and dressed in all 82 games for the first time in his career.

His free agency will be fascinating to watch as he was largely viewed by the fans in Pittsburgh as a big reason why the team couldn’t find any traction. Despite this, it is very possible an NHL team will look as his pedigree and deem him the perfect veteran compliment to a young defensive core. For this reason, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Dumoulin sign a two- or three-year contract for around $3MM annually.

F Jason Zucker – Zucker struggled with injuries and poor play during his first few years in Pittsburgh. Despite these issues he still was the heart and soul of the Penguins and one of the few forwards in Pittsburgh who was willing to engage the opponent physically. Zucker had the second-best season of his career notching 27 goals and 21 assists in 78 games while sometimes being the only spark the Penguins could find as they were falling out of playoff contention.

His free agency will also be quite interesting because he does have a history of being an inspiring player who can pick up his teammates, but on the other side of things he is injury prone and can’t drive a line. Zucker’s ask will likely be in the $5MM-$6MM range per season on a three or a four-year contract. Pittsburgh would be wise to avoid that kind of commitment but given that the team will likely be a lottery team in a few years, they might not care about the term if they can secure the player for the last few years of the Sidney Crosby/Evgeni Malkin era.

Other UFAs: F Josh Archibald, F Nick Bonino, F Danton Heinen, D Dmitry Kulikov

Projected Cap Space

Kyle Dubas was hired in Pittsburgh to get the Penguins aging core back into Stanley Cup contention. It’s a tall task given the state of the Penguins roster as currently constructed. While the team had some obvious flaws last season, there is enough cap space and flexibility available to make some significant changes. Dubas will have just over $20MM in cap space this summer with 15 players already locked into NHL money. That may seem like plenty of room, but the Penguins have a glaring need in net that could eat up a third of that cap space. The team could free up significant room with a Mikael Granlund buyout and could also move on from expensive bottom pairing defenseman Jan Rutta.

The Penguins had one of the worst bottom six groups in the NHL last season and will likely look to use some of their additional cap space to improve in this area. Dubas has always been good at finding value and given where the Penguins are at he will need to work his magic once again this summer if Pittsburgh is going to get back into the hunt for the Stanley Cup.

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

Pierre-Luc Dubois Has Requested A Trade

at CDT | by 22 Comments

Pierre LeBrun of TSN Insider Trading is reporting that the agent for Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois’ has informed the club that he isn’t interested in signing any type of contract extension with the team, not even a one year deal that would take him to unrestricted free agency. The timing of the news is a little bit surprising as Gary Bettman doesn’t like these types of stories to break during the Stanley Cup final, however the news itself is one of the worst kept secrets in the NHL.

Dubois reportedly told the Jets last summer that he had no intention of signing a long-term deal to stay in Winnipeg and it appears that the 24-year-old is staying true to his word. Dubois had 27 goals and 36 assists in 73 games this season after signing a one year $6MM contract last summer. He helped lead the Jets to the postseason this year, but it appears that he would prefer his time in Manitoba come to a close sooner rather than later.

Dubois is just one year away from being free to sign with anyone. However, he is under Winnipeg’s control for next season as a restricted free agent and may have handcuffed the Jets if they were to shop him in the trade market. Winnipeg could move on and try to facilitate a trade to meet Dubois request, or they could take him to arbitration and accept a one-year deal and lose him as a free agent next summer. While neither option is great for the Jets, it could be a launching pad for a lot of movement this summer. The Jets have quite a few very talented players that are approaching unrestricted free agency and may either opt to take one more run at a cup or begin a painful rebuild.

Superstar netminder Connor Hellebuyck, former captain Blake Wheeler, and center Mark Scheifele are all unrestricted free agents next summer and with a potential exodus on the horizon general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff may decide that the more palatable option is to jump start the rebuild now and bring in a boatload of young controllable talent.

Free Agent Focus: Ottawa Senators

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Free agency is less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Ottawa Senators. 

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Alex DeBrincat – Ottawa general manager Pierre Dorion has said numerous times that the team will explore all options when it comes to DeBrincat. This includes the trade market or a long-term deal. DeBrincat had an uneven first season in Ottawa but appeared to get more comfortable as the season went on. While he wasn’t as good as he was in previous seasons in Chicago, he was still a machine on the powerplay putting up 11 goals and 19 assists with the man advantage. Overall DeBrincat was fine in his first season with the Senators putting up 27 goals and 39 assists in 82 games.

Ottawa acquired the Michigan native last year prior to the draft with the intention of signing him long term, however the 25-year-old forward still isn’t ready to discuss a long-term deal with the Senators which has prompted Dorion to explore the trade market. Given Ottawa’s needs this may be the best course of action, Ottawa has a lot of cap space tied up in the forward group and DeBrincat may be a luxury they can no longer afford.

Ottawa badly needs to improve their bottom six and goaltending situation and $9MM can go a long way towards doing that. DeBrincat will be looking for an eight-year deal on an extension and one would have to assume that it will exceed $8MM annually. The Senators may be wise to recoup their assets and try to fill out their roster with more depth as they attempt to get back to the playoffs for the first time in six seasons.

C Shane Pinto – Pinto is an interesting RFA case as he has Group 10.2 (c) status which basically means he hasn’t accumulated enough playing time to qualify for Group 2 RFA status. This provision will keep Pinto from being eligible for arbitration which allows Ottawa more bargaining power when talking contract with Pinto.

In his first full NHL season Pinto was expected to handle third line center duties but was elevated when Josh Norris went down with a should injury early in the season. Pinto filled in admirably putting up 20 goals and 15 assists in 82 games. The 22-year-old saw some powerplay time with Ottawa on their second unit but did most of his damage at 5v5.

Pinto doesn’t have much in the way of leverage as he enters his contract negotiations and will most likely sign a one-year deal for something between $1MM and $2MM and hope he can improve upon his performance last season and sign a longer-term deal down the road at a much higher cap number.

D Erik Brännström – Brännström took a step forward in 2022-23 as he set a career high with two goals and 16 assists in 74 games. While those numbers aren’t lofty, they do represent a moderate improvement for the young rearguard. Brännström will continue to have unrealistic expectations placed on him due to his draft selection as well as the fact that he was traded for the beloved Mark Stone. While he was drafted 15th overall in 2017, it is unlikely he will ever live up to those kinds of expectations. Despite his draft position, Brännström has become a productive player who should be a good piece for the Senators as a bottom pairing defenseman should they choose to keep him.

It’s hard to see Brännström topping $2MM annually on his next contract, but he could find himself pushed out of the Senators depth charts given how many left-shot defensemen the team already employs. He does still hold some value, and Pierre Dorion could view him as a piece to try and acquire forward help or another goaltender.

Other RFAs: D Jonathan Aspirot, D Jacob Bernard-Docker, G Dylan Ferguson, F Dylan Gambrell, F Julien Gauthier, D Jacob Larsson, F Viktor Lodin, G Kevin Mandolese, F Egor Sokolov

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

G Cam Talbot – Talbot came over from the Minnesota Wild in the now ill-fated one-for-one trade for Filip Gustavsson. While Talbot struggled with injuries and inconsistency, Gustavsson quickly develop into one of the best young goalies in the game and exactly the type of netminder the Senators were starving for. Dorion has already stated that Talbot will not be back, making the 36-year-old an unrestricted free agent coming off a down year in which he posted an .898 save percentage and a 2.93 goals against average. Talbot will likely be staring down a one-year deal with a cap hit somewhere between $1MM and $1.5MM with some incentives added in.

D Travis Hamonic – Hamonic came over in a trade from the Vancouver Canucks that was widely panned. Despite some shortcomings, Hamonic was relatively steady for the Senators this past season. He will never be an offensive juggernaut evidenced by his six goals and 15 assists in 75 games. But he did provide stability to Jake Sanderson during his rookie season. Sanderson praised Hamonic for the steadiness of his game and how easy it was to play with him.  At 32 years old Hamonic could still be a part of the Senators defense, but it would likely be in a bottom pairing role on a cap number far less than the $3MM he made last season.

F Derick Brassard – Brassard had his best season since 2019-20 as he put up 13 goals and 10 assists in 62 games before finishing the season on IR with an injury. While he isn’t the offensive threat he was in his prime, Brassard proved that he could still provide depth scoring in the bottom six while jumping up to play on the top two lines in a pinch. At 35 years old the Hull, Quebec native might elect to hang up his skates and move on, however he is still an effective player who could find a role on a one-year contract around league minimum. Given that the Senators badly need help in the bottom six, they might be wise to hang onto Brassard as a cheap depth option who can slide up and down the lineup.

Other UFAs: G Antoine Bibeau, F Patrick Brown, F Rourke Chartier, D Nick Holden, F Jake Lucchini, F Scott Sabourin, F Austin Watson

Projected Cap Space

The Ottawa Senators provide a very good example of how quickly cap space can disappear as effective young players enter your depth charts. Just a few short years ago the Senators struggled to reach the cap floor and at times had to bring in expensive veterans on bad contracts just to reach the minimum. Now with so many good young players in the system and signed long-term, Ottawa is going to need to be creative to fill out their depth with inexpensive and effective players. This is something they haven’t been able to do the past few years, but it will be of utmost importance if they are going to become a contender in the Eastern Conference. Ottawa has just a shade over $17MM in remaining cap space for next season, but they have just 13 players signed to guaranteed NHL money next year. Pierre Dorion is going to be in tough to improve upon a roster that missed the playoffs this past year and is trending in the direction of being very top-heavy. Ottawa also must contend with possibly trying to fit in another big contract extension should they decide to keep Alex DeBrincat in the fold for the foreseeable future.

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

Free Agent Focus: New York Rangers

at CDT | by 4 Comments

Free agency is less than a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Rangers.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Alexis Lafrenière – Just under three years ago the Rangers watched the lottery balls bounce their way as they were fortunate enough to win the sweepstakes for Lafrenière. At the time the 21-year-old looked like a can’t miss first overall pick having been dominant in the QMJHL and the World Juniors. But now just three years later the Rangers are facing quite the dilemma with the young forward. On one hand he is one of their few valuable trade chips, however, given their cap crunch his cap hit will likely give them a functional player on a reasonable contract.

Lafrenière has played a lot of bottom six minutes and hasn’t really seen the offensive opportunities that other first overall picks have had, however he also hasn’t shown the same skill level or skating as some of the other first overall picks before him.

Lafrenière had a career high 39 points this season in 81 games and did a much better job driving play than he had in previous seasons. However, he also enjoyed much more favorable deployment than in previous seasons which leads one to wonder if he will have better numbers in a different role under a new head coach.

Regardless of who is signing his checks next season Lafrenière is likely to be playing under a two- or three-year bridge deal with a cap hit like the $2.1MM that teammate Kaapo Kakko is playing under.

D K’Andre Miller – Miller’s next contract is going to make for a very interesting negotiation. He is the Rangers best left shot defenseman and played at a very high level for the past two seasons including this past year where he posted nine goals and 34 assists in 79 games. While 43 points total isn’t elite for a defenseman, his 38 even strength points are. Miller saw very little powerplay time and still managed to post very strong offensive numbers.

While his offensive numbers are good, he and partner Jacob Trouba went through some long stretches this season where they couldn’t keep the puck out of their own net. While they turned it around, Miller’s defensive struggles could work against him in negotiations. It’ll be interesting to see how the Rangers navigate their negotiation with the 23-year-old St. Paul native. It’s unlikely they will give him the Rasmus Dahlin contract at a cap hit of $6MM, but an average annual value between $4MM and $5.5MM seems very possible.

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Patrick Kane – The Rangers acquired the three-time Stanley Cup champion at the trade deadline this past winter and while things didn’t end up the way they’d hoped, they didn’t give up a lot of assets to acquire the player. Kane recently had surgery to resurface his hip and will be ready to play in 4-6 months. He makes for a curious free agent because any team that fancies themselves a contender likely won’t give out a big cap number until they can see skate again after his recovery. If this is the case, Kane could wait until after his recovery to see who the contenders are next season before inking a deal. The issue there for Kane would be that most teams will be close to the cap ceiling by the time the seasons starts. Kane is still a very productive forward (when healthy), this past season he put up 21 goals and 36 assists in 73 games during the regular season and followed it up with a goal and five assists in seven playoff games. If he were healthy Kane would probably be looking at a three-year deal worth around $6MM. But, because of his injury I think he will need to wait and sign a one-year deal closer to the start of the season or in season once he has recovers from his injury.

F Vladimir Tarasenko – Tarasenko arrived from St. Louis to a lot of fanfare in New York but couldn’t help the Rangers get over hump in the Eastern Conference. The 31-year-old put up 18 goals and 32 assists in 69 games split between the Blues and the Rangers and struggled in the playoffs putting up just four points in seven games. The Rangers would probably like to sign Tarasenko to a short-term deal but given their lack of cap space they likely can’t pursue the winger. Tarasenko will be interesting negotiation as he struggled to drive play last season and isn’t the player he once was. He’ll still find work, and a good little pay day, but it won’t be at anything close to the $7.5MM he made on his previous deal.

G Jaroslav Halák – It’s hard to believe that Jaro Halák is still chugging along at the tail end of his NHL career. He has struggled in recent years, but the veteran continues to find work in the NHL on one-year contracts. Halak hasn’t posted a .905 save percentage in any of the past three seasons but has been able to stay slightly above average in expected save percentage. Currently Halák is a good backup option for a team that is looking for average goaltending 20-25 nights of the year. He will likely be able to fetch a one-year contract at around $1MM.

Other UFAs: Niko Mikkola, Tyler Motte

Projected Cap Space

The Rangers emerged from a quick rebuild just a few seasons ago and had plenty of draft capital and a lot of salary cap flexibility. Now just a few years later the Rangers are in a very precarious salary cap situation as they have just $11.8MM in cap space with 14 players signed for next year. While that is a bit alarming, the good news for New York fans is that most of the core is signed for at least the next two years to fairly reasonable contracts. That being said, there are a few deals that general manager Chris Drury would probably like the opportunity to dump should an opening arise.

The club likely won’t have room to extend Kane or Tarasenko without moving out a very good player and given the age of both players they may want to pass on doing so. The Rangers are also two years out from having to give superstar netminder Igor Shesterkin a new deal, one which could potentially eclipse $9MM annually if he can duplicate his 2021-22 season in the next two seasons. With all of that going on, it’s unlikely that there will be big changes this summer on Broadway.

 

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

Radko Gudas Won’t Return To Game 2

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

The Score is reporting that Florida Panthers defenseman Radko Gudas won’t be returning to game 2 tonight after taking a reverse hit in the first period from Vegas Golden Knights forward Ivan Barbashev. There was no penalty on the play and Gudas immediately went down the tunnel after leaving the ice.

Florida had elected to dress 11 forwards and 7 defensemen for the game tonight as Gudas was nursing a lingering issue and wasn’t 100%. Casey Fitzgerald drew into the lineup to supplant Gudas even before the hit in the first period. It’s no wonder Gudas is hurting as he leads the playoffs with 79 hits thus far to go along with his three assists in 17 games.

Gudas celebrated his 33rd birthday today and given the current score of tonight’s game and his current injury status, it couldn’t have been the birthday the Czech native was hoping for when he woke up this morning. Florida has made little known about Gudas at this time, but given the way these injuries have been dealt with in these playoffs it is likely that Gudas will be re-evaluated tomorrow before any new news is released.

Free Agent Focus: Edmonton Oilers

at CDT | by 5 Comments

Free agency is a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Edmonton Oilers.

Key Restricted Free Agents

D Evan Bouchard – Bouchard is coming off back-to-back 40+ point seasons and was an absolute wrecking ball on the powerplay in the playoffs for the Oilers as he put up four goals and 13 assists in just 12 games. Now those numbers are staggering, however all but two of those points came with the man advantage.

If the Oilers had infinite cap space, they would likely prefer to get their budding offensive defenseman on a long-term contract, however given their cap constraints they will likely need to look at a bridge deal for 2-3 years. There are plenty of recent comparables for Bouchard with Noah Dobson being the most recent. A two-year deal with an average annual value around $4MM appears like the likeliest of outcomes for Bouchard this summer.

F Klim Kostin – Kostin was finally able to make an impact at the NHL level after several years of struggling to break through from the AHL. The former first round pick had never topped nine points in any NHL season prior to this past year with Edmonton, he settled into a bottom-6 role after coming over in a trade from the St. Louis Blues and was able to post 11 goals and 10 assists in 57 games. The intriguing thing about Kostin is his skill set, he is better suited for a role on a skill line but saw very little of that this year as he rarely played with Connor McDavid and saw just 17 minutes with Leon Draisaitl (in which he scored twice). Edmonton will have a full training camp with Kostin and could have an opportunity to try him on a skill line to see if they can find a fit for a player who will be on a miniscule cap number. Edmonton was apprehensive to try Kostin on the top lines this season due to his struggles away from the puck, but with nothing on the line to start the year, it’ll be an experiment worth conducting. Kostin is likely due for a one-year contract that will be around $1MM.

C Ryan McLeod – McLeod has topped 20 points in back-to-back seasons while toiling away in the Oilers bottom six. He is a former second-round pick who was one of the few Oilers in the bottom six who could move the puck with both speed and purpose. While he is strong with the puck his defensive metrics leave a bit to be desired. McLeod is young and is likely just scratching the surface of what he could be for Edmonton long term. He is arbitration eligible this summer meaning that McLeod will have some leverage when it comes to his contract negotiations. He is coming off a season in which he posted 11 goals and 12 assists in 57 games so he won’t break the bank, however his next contract could eat into 1/3 of Edmonton’s remaining cap space.

Other RFAs: F Raphael Lavoie, F Noah Philp, G Olivier Rodrigue

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Nick Bjugstad – Bjugstad came over to the Oilers before the trade deadline and was just okay. He put up six points in 18 regular season games with the club and followed it up with three goals in 12 playoff games as the Oilers were dropped in the second round. This is the third time Bjugstad will test free agency in the past three years, but the first time he will do so coming off a season in which he topped 20 points. Bjugstad once looked like he would develop into a power forward but has never been able to assert himself in that way. He is a good bottom six option at this point in his career but likely one that has priced himself out of Edmonton’s plans.

C Derek Ryan – Ryan played admirably for the Oilers this season as their fourth line center putting up 13 goals and seven assists in 80 games. While it was a drop off in numbers from the year prior, Ryan was still a big part of a much-improved bottom six for Edmonton. Ryan is undersized and at 36 years old his best games are likely behind him, however if he’s willing to come back at a cap hit that is comparable to the $1.25MM he made last season, it is something the Oilers should explore. Ryan can still kill penalties and take a lot of the defensive zone draws, and if he can continue to chip in the odd goal it would be worth the minimal investment.

F Mattias Janmark – It feels like Janmark has been in the league forever but the Stockholm, Sweden native is just 30 years old. Janmark signed a one-year deal with Edmonton last summer and provided decent value on a $1.25MM AAV as he put up 10 goals and 15 assists in 66 games. Those kinds of numbers have been typical for Janmark as he has put up between 21-25 points in five straight seasons. At this point Janmark is what he is, a depth forward who can chip in offence from time to time.  Janmark will likely seek a comparable contract this offseason but given Edmonton’s cap constraints they may look elsewhere to see if they can find better value.

Other UFAs: F Justin Bailey, F Tyler Benson, D Jason Demers, D Slater Koekkoek, D Oscar Klefbom, F Devin Shore, D Ryan Murray, G Mike Smith

Projected Cap Space

Edmonton has precious little cap room to fill out their roster as they currently have just under $6MM in space and 17 players signed for next season. Filling out their roster with quality players is going to be difficult and as evidenced in the playoffs, this is a flawed hockey team that needs to upgrade in several key positions. Ken Holland has said he will return to the helm for their final season of his contract, and it may be his final kick at the can since he has been unable to get the Oilers over the hump and they have many of the same shortcomings they had when he took over the club four years ago.

The club has committed big money to Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl but both men are still playing on favorable contracts given their talent level. The Oilers have them locked up for a few more seasons but they are running out of time to build a Stanley Cup contender despite having two of the best players in the world.  The Oilers will need to make good use of their limited cap space and in a perfect world would be able to shed a bad contract or two. It’s going to be a busy summer in Edmonton as they look to regroup after another disappointing playoff exit.

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

Snapshots: Senators, Penguins, Luostarinen

at CDT | by 1 Comment

Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia reported today that the talk amongst the bidders for ownership of the Ottawa Senators is that Toronto billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos is the current favorite to purchase the franchise. Apostolopoulos was one of four bidders with the other three being Los Angeles-based producer Neko Sparks, Michael and Jeffrey Kimel of Harlo Capital, and Toronto’s Michael Andlauer. Garrioch goes on to say that Apostolopoulos, who missed out on purchasing the NFL’s Washington Commanders is in the driver’s seat as he had the highest bid at $1 billion.

Garrioch adds that it is far from a done deal as there has been talk that the other ownership groups have been making moves to improve their bids and add additional people to their groups. Sources have told Garrioch that Andlauer is confident he will get the team and he believes his position with the Montreal Canadiens as an alternate member of the NHL’s board of governors will give him the inside track to the Senators ownership. There was talk earlier in the week that Andlauer and the Kimel’s might form a collective group, but those talks have apparently stopped after not getting very far.

It’ll be interesting to see where the Senator’s ownership saga goes in the upcoming weeks. Gary Bettman doesn’t generally like to have other teams making announcements during the Stanley Cup finals, and with game 1 set for Saturday night it might be well into June when there is an official announcement about who will be the next owner of the Senators.

In other snapshots from around the NHL:

  • The Pittsburgh Penguins got to work today in the first day with Kyle Dubas at the helm. Dubas took over as president of hockey operations and interim general manager from Brian Burke and Ron Hextall and was quick to make moves to dismiss some members of the old guard. Josh Yohe of The Athletic reported that director of pro scouting Kerry Huffman, director of hockey operations and salary cap management Alec Schall, and senior VP of integrated performance Teena Murray were all let go with at least one year remaining on their contracts. All three were hired by Hextall and will not be part of the new management group in Pittsburgh as they rebuild their hockey ops after a disappointing season in which they missed the playoffs for the first time in 17 years.
  • Tom Gulitti of NHL.com writes that Florida Panthers forward Eetu Luostarinen is practicing with the team in Vegas ahead of game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals tomorrow night. Luostarinen was paired back up with his usual linemates Sam Reinhart and Anton Lundell. The 24-year-old was injured in game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes but has yet to miss a game. Paul Maurice was quoted in The Hockey News on Monday saying that he expected Luostarinen to be ready for game 1 and things appear to be trending that way. Luostarinen has been a big part of the Panthers third line in this postseason putting up two goals and three assists in 16 games.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top