Devils Optimistic About Signing Dawson Mercer Before Camp
The Devils continue to grind away at contract negotiations with restricted free agent forward Dawson Mercer, and there’s a sense of optimism the two sides will agree on a bridge deal before training camp opens Wednesday, Peter Baugh of The Athletic reports.
Talks seemed to be at a standstill for much of the summer until New Jersey general manager Tom Fitzgerald told James Murphy of Responsible Gambling last month that he’d exchanged proposals with Mercer’s camp and was working toward an agreement. Multiple reports since then indicated a short-term contract was the likeliest outcome. PHR’s Brian La Rose examined possible comparables for Mercer’s pending deal earlier this month, exhausting any long-term options.
The Devils have less than $5MM in projected cap space to get a deal done, per PuckPedia. That number could increase slightly to begin the season if they place defenseman Luke Hughes on long-term injured reserve while rehabbing a shoulder injury. Still, they’d need to clear enough cap space to activate him quickly, as his absence isn’t expected to stretch past early November.
A bridge deal with a sub-$5MM cap hit seems fair to both sides after the season Mercer just had. The 2020 first-round pick’s third NHL season was his worst, posting career lows in assists (13), rating (-26), and shots on goal (134). That came despite a career-high 17:13 ATOI and playing in all 82 games yet again, continuing his career-opening ironman streak.
Yet Mercer, who turns 23 in October, hit 20 goals for the second time and projects as a reliable, versatile top-six utility piece who can play any forward position, even if his overall production this season reflected someone better suited for a third-line role offensively. After hitting 56 points in his sophomore campaign, it’s clear Mercer’s contract year was a bump in the road – one with unfortunate effects on his short-term earnings.
Avalanche, Canadiens, Flyers, Hurricanes Had Interest In Yaroslav Askarov
The Avalanche, Canadiens, Flyers, and Hurricanes were the main contenders in trade talks with the Predators for top goaltending prospect Yaroslav Askarov before he was dealt to the Sharks, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun writes for The Athletic.
Sources didn’t divulge details about those teams’ losing offers for the netminder, LeBrun said, but he did mention the Predators are high on Golden Knights 2023 first-rounder David Edstrom, who San Jose picked up in last season’s Tomáš Hertl blockbuster. That was likely the primary factor that led Nashville general manager Barry Trotz to pick the Sharks’ offer over the four others, all of which presumably included a first-round pick to have any degree of seriousness in discussions.
“I think we did a fair deal with San Jose,” Trotz told LeBrun. “In negotiating with [Sharks GM Mike Grier], it was always, ‘Let’s do a good hockey trade.’ You get the best prospect, you’re going to win the trade most times, but I’m really happy to get David Edstrom because we want to continue to add to our center ice. Our scouts really liked him. He was something we really liked at the draft. And getting the pick (Vegas’ 2025 first-round pick), it gives us a lot [of] draft capital now with three first-round picks next year.”
The full trade came across the wire on Aug. 23, just four days after Kevin Weekes of ESPN reported Askarov had submitted a formal trade request. San Jose also acquired forward prospect Nolan Burke and the Avalanche’s 2025 third-round pick, while the Preds also picked up goalie prospect Magnus Chrona in the swap.
But Nashville managed to keep the request under wraps before it leaked to the rest of the hockey world, per LeBrun. Askarov and his agent, Gold Star Hockey’s Dan Milstein, told Trotz in a Zoom meeting on Aug. 2 that he wouldn’t report to training camp if he weren’t moved.
For the four runner-up clubs, it’s easy to see why they had interest. They each have quality goaltending prospects/youngsters in their own right, whether it be Justus Annunen in Colorado, Jacob Fowler in Montreal, Carson Bjarnason in Philadelphia, or Pyotr Kochetkov in Carolina. But aside from the latter, none of them profile as the potential true gamebreaker San Jose now has in Askarov.
The Avs didn’t have their 2025 first-rounder available after trading it to the Flyers for Sean Walker at this year’s deadline, making it hard for them to construct a competitive offer. The Flyers had plenty of first-rounders available – three of them – but they don’t have a low ‘A’-tier prospect in their pool that they would have been willing to part with, like Edstrom. The Canes also had draft capital but were likely wary of moving on from their more polished prospects, many of whom they expect will make an NHL impact this season after losing a lot of names to free agency. The Habs have plenty of picks and prospects still stockpiled, but how many were they willing to make available without fully turning the corner in their rebuild?
Flyers Hire Wayne Simmonds In Hockey Ops Role
After signing a one-day contract in April to retire as a Flyer, Wayne Simmonds is sticking in the organization. The longtime NHL winger has joined Philadelphia’s front office as a community relations ambassador and hockey operations consultant, the team announced today.
It’s the first front-office gig for the 36-year-old. He hasn’t suited up since the 2022-23 season with the Maple Leafs, spending most of last year as a free agent before confirming his retirement in March.
Simmonds will work closely under general manager Daniel Brière in the role and will likely be a name to watch for promotions in the coming years. Starting as a hockey ops consultant is an increasingly frequent route taken by recently retired NHLers, including the Blues’ Alexander Steen just last season. He’s already been promoted to a special assistant to GM Doug Armstrong for 2024-25 and will take over as GM in 2026.
Simmonds, a second-round pick of the Kings in 2007, played three years in Los Angeles before arriving in Philly via trade in the 2011 offseason. He spent parts of eight years in the City of Brotherly Love, racking up 203 goals, 175 assists, 378 points, a -78 rating, and 784 PIMs while averaging 17:05 per game across 584 appearances.
He was one of many hires announced by the Flyers today. Another former NHLer, Reid Simpson, joins Simmonds in Philly as their director of European pro scouting after serving in a US-bound role for the Canadiens since 2016.
West Notes: Lehkonen, Fowler, Nurse
Whether Avalanche winger Artturi Lehkonen will be in the opening night lineup remains to be seen, reports John Matisz of The Score.
After a comment earlier in the week from Nathan MacKinnon suggesting Lehkonen wouldn’t be “starting the season” in the Avs’ lineup flew under the radar, Matisz reached out to the team for confirmation, receiving a response that there’s still no firm timeline for his return. During exit meetings in May, Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland said that Lehkonen needed offseason shoulder surgery but that his absence wasn’t expected to stretch into the regular season.
That assumption was challenged by head coach Jared Bednar last month, who confirmed Lehkonen wouldn’t be ready to start camp and cast doubt about whether he’d be cleared for Colorado’s season opener.
The 29-year-old Finn has broken out as a bonafide top-six winger in Denver since being acquired from the Canadiens near the 2022 trade deadline. Injuries have limited him since his arrival, though – especially last season. A neck injury kept him to 45 appearances on the year, but he still managed to pot 16 goals and 18 assists for 34 points while averaging over 18 minutes per night.
There’s more from the Western Conference:
- Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler acknowledges most of what Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said was true when he reported last week that both parties were looking to find him a new home on the trade market. “I understand that I’m on the second half of my career and these guys are just getting going,” the veteran blue liner told Eric Stephens of The Athletic, referencing Anaheim’s rebuild. “Those are the people that are going to push this team to where they want to be.” Stephens listed the Red Wings, Maple Leafs, Jets, and Stars as some speculative trade destinations.
- The injury putting Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse‘s availability for the beginning of training camp in jeopardy was sustained in the Stanley Cup Final, Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal reports. The lingering effects are directly related to the hit he took in Game 2 from Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues. The blue liner sat out much of the rest of the game after taking the hit in the first period but didn’t miss any action in Games 3 through 7.
Markus Niemeläinen Signs In Germany
Ex-Oilers defenseman Markus Niemeläinen is headed back to Europe, signing a one-year deal today with Germany’s Eisbären Berlin.
The 26-year-old was a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer after the two-year, $1.53MM deal he inked with Edmonton in 2022 expired. The Oilers buried Niemeläinen, a 2016 third-round pick, with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors for all of last season despite his deal carrying a one-way structure.
A stay-at-home defender, the 6’6″, 190-lb Niemeläinen struggled to make much of an impact after arriving in North America in 2021. He did get an extended look in the NHL, making 43 appearances for the Oilers across the 2021-22 and 2022-23 campaigns, but he recorded just one assist with a -2 rating, 28 shots on goal, and 143 hits while averaging 11:30 per game.
While he was involved physically, it didn’t translate into a positive defensive impact. The Oilers controlled 48.1% of shot attempts and 47.7% of expected goals with Niemeläinen on the ice at even strength in his NHL minutes, subpar numbers given his average-difficulty usage on an otherwise strong possession team.
Niemeläinen also made 120 appearances for Bakersfield in parts of four seasons stateside in the Edmonton organization, where he had seven goals and 16 assists for 19 points in 26 games with a +10 rating. The Finnish defender now lands in Germany for the first time. He does have somewhat of a résumé in the European pros, winning a Liiga championship with HPK in 2019.
Artyom Levshunov Could Miss Start Of Regular Season
Blackhawks top defense prospect Artyom Levshunov could miss up to six weeks with a foot injury sustained earlier this month, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said on today’s “32 Thoughts” podcast. That would sideline him for the entire training camp and potentially cost him some time at the beginning of the regular season.
Friedman said earlier in the week that Levshunov would miss some time after taking a puck to the foot, but there wasn’t much concern about the severity. He added today that the 2024 No. 2 overall pick will spend at least the next two weeks in a walking boot.
It was far from a guarantee that Levshunov would make the opening night roster. If he misses all of camp, that’s almost a surefire sign he’ll be sent to the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs to make his professional debut when he’s ready to play. The 6’2″ right-shot defenseman turns 19 next month and is coming off a spectacular one-and-done showing for Michigan State, leading their blue line with 35 points (9 G, 26 A) in 38 games with a team-high +27 rating. He was named the Big 10’s Defensive Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year.
However, Blackhawks general manager Kyle Davidson wants to give his defense prospects room to breathe in Rockford, signing veterans T.J. Brodie and Alec Martinez in free agency to create increased competition for spots among up-and-comers. Levshunov likely had the most accessible pathway to a roster spot as a right-shot D-man, though. Chicago’s other question marks – Wyatt Kaiser, Kevin Korchinski, and Isaak Phillips – are all lefties.
If Levshunov is out for the full six weeks, his season debut would be in late October. He can play up to nine NHL games this season before his entry-level contract goes into effect.
Islanders Sign Matt Martin To PTO
The Islanders are bringing back a familiar face, according to general manager Lou Lamoriello, who told reporters today that they’ll have veteran enforcer Matt Martin in training camp on a PTO (via Ethan Sears of the New York Post).
It’s an unsurprising move for both sides at first glance. Martin, 35, has spent 13 of his 15 NHL seasons on Long Island, racking up 823 appearances since they drafted him in the fifth round in 2008. Aside from a brief detour in Toronto from 2016 to 2018, the heavy hitter has only signed contracts with the Islanders, including his most recent one – a four-year, $6MM pact that expired this summer.
But this is a bit of a course reversal from Lamoriello, who said last month he was unlikely to bring back Martin or longtime linemate Cal Clutterbuck. He’ll hold true to the latter half of that statement, though, confirming today Clutterbuck was not offered a PTO (per Newsday’s Andrew Gross). Martin said a couple of weeks ago that he was intent on returning to the Isles with a chance at playing his 1,000th career regular season game in 2024-25.
Martin posted four goals and four assists in 57 games last season, pacing just slightly south of his career offensive averages while averaging 9:19 per game. He finished second on the team in PIMs (43) and fifth in hits (151). He has 1,158 career PIMs in 955 games.
If Martin manages to land a deal, it’ll likely be a league-minimum pact and could result in him being waived for the first time in his career. The Islanders do have an open roster spot but are completely capped out with $0 in projected space, per PuckPedia. If he’s sent to the minors, it would be his first time suiting up for AHL Bridgeport since the 2010-11 season.
Phil Kessel Still Hoping To Play This Season
Free agent winger Phil Kessel still fully intends on playing in 2024-25 – though whether it’s in the NHL remains to be seen, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet said on Friday’s “32 Thoughts” podcast (audio link).
As Friedman notes, Kessel was one of the players that Major League Hockey, a 3-on-3 league hoping to start operations later this year, approached about signing with a team before the league postponed its launch to Oct. 2025. It doesn’t appear an NHL professional tryout or guaranteed contract is imminent for him, either.
Kessel is a three-time All-Star Game participant and a three-time Stanley Cup champion but was out of the NHL last season after playing with the Golden Knights in 2022-23. He posted 14 goals and 36 points in 82 games, his lowest total offensive output since his rookie season, before going unsigned for all of 2023-24. He was close to inking a deal with the Canucks at the trade deadline, but it fell through due to a lack of cap space.
With a full year off from the game, the NHL’s active and all-time consecutive games played leader is likely a fringe bottom-six scorer or No. 13 forward at best on most teams. If Kessel is willing to risk losing his ironman streak of 1,064 games, which is only at risk of being passed by the Hurricanes’ Brent Burns (843), he’ll have an easier time landing a deal.
Kessel hasn’t been off the ice since winning the Cup with Vegas over a year ago, though. He’s kept in a standard training routine and practiced with the Canucks’ farm club in Abbotsford in the lead-up to his potential deadline deal.
Taro Hirose Signs With German Team
Former Red Wings left winger Taro Hirose has signed with EHC Munich of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga, according to a team announcement.
Hirose, 28, spent last season playing out the back half of a two-year, two-way extension signed with Detroit in 2022. For the first time since turning pro in 2019, however, he was buried entirely in the minors with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins, where the 5’10”, 170-lb playmaker had 27 assists and 36 points in 54 games. The Red Wings didn’t bring him back after reaching unrestricted free agency in July.
Hirose has appeared in 60 NHL regular season games, all with Detroit – most recently, a three-game call-up in March and April 2023. An undrafted free agent signing out of Michigan State, the Winnipeg native has been an AHL fixture, only logging a career-high 26 NHL appearances with the Wings in 2019-20.
Overall, the 2019 NCAA scoring champion posted four goals, 16 assists, 20 points, and a -17 rating in 60 games with Detroit in parts of five seasons. He joins a Munich roster highlighted by a few other former NHLers, namely Adam Brooks, Tobias Rieder, and Ben Smith.
Metropolitan Notes: Filmon, Hurricanes, Sotheran
Devils prospect Josh Filmon won’t participate in rookie camp and is doubtful for main training camp after being listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury, per the team’s Amanda Stein. The 20-year-old left-winger will report to the AHL’s Utica Comets for his first professional campaign when he’s cleared to play, and Comets bench boss Kevin Dineen said they haven’t yet ruled him out for the start of the regular season.
Filmon, a Winnipeg native, went 166th overall to New Jersey in the sixth round of the 2022 draft. The 6’3″, 170-lb forward has been a premier offensive threat for the Swift Current Broncos of the Western Hockey League in his first two post-draft seasons, totaling 67 points (27 G, 40 A) in 64 games with a +16 rating last season.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the Metropolitan Division:
- The Hurricanes’ home will have a new name this season after the club has reached a 10-year arena naming rights agreement with the multinational technology company Lenovo, the team announced. The arena, known as PNC Arena since 2012, will now be named the Lenovo Center through at least the 2033-34 season. The arena opened for the 1999-00 season, the Hurricanes’ third in Carolina after relocating from Hartford, and was initially named the Raleigh Entertainment & Sports Arena before becoming the RBC Center in 2002.
- Flyers defense prospect Carter Sotheran is limited in rookie camp activities while dealing with a flare-up of Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, he told Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports. According to the Mayo Clinic, the condition results in “an extra pathway for signals to travel between the heart’s upper and lower chambers,” which can cause a fast or irregular heartbeat. Sotheran, 19, said he’s been dealing with the condition for the past four years and hopes to play in some of the Flyers’ rookie tournament contests over the weekend or next week. The 2023 fifth-round pick has not yet signed his entry-level contract and will return to the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks for his third season of junior hockey shortly.