Toronto Maple Leafs Extend Sheldon Keefe
The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed head coach Sheldon Keefe to a multi-year contract extension, according to a team release. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports it’s a two-year extension, keeping him behind the Toronto bench through the 2025-26 season. Treliving later confirmed the length during his media availability following the news.
Keefe was entering the second season of a two-year extension he’d signed in 2021. Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving indicated last week that he was actively talking with Keefe regarding an extension.
After a successful four-year stint as head coach of the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, Keefe was elevated to the NHL early into his fifth season after the Leafs fired Mike Babcock just before American Thanksgiving in 2020. He’s been behind Toronto’s bench ever since, accumulating a 166-71-30 regular-season record in 267 games coached since that time. That’s good enough for a .678 points percentage, which is first in NHL history among coaches with at least 250 games leading an NHL bench. It’s also the fourth-highest points percentage in the league since he assumed the Toronto head coaching role on November 20, 2020, trailing only the Carolina Hurricanes, Colorado Avalanche and Boston Bruins.
It’s been a different story in the postseason, however. While the Leafs’ streak of playoff ineptitude began before Keefe took over, his record of 13-17 is less than inspiring, and he’s won just one out of five series he’s coached the team through since 2020.
Despite that, the team has put full confidence in Keefe publically across both the previous and current front office regime and has backed up their words with financial commitment. In a statement, Treliving said he believes Keefe “has a clear vision for this team and where it needs to get to” and “[looks] forward to working alongside him as we head into the upcoming season.”
The extension wasn’t something that looked like a sure thing when the Leafs opted not to renew the contract of now-Pittsburgh Penguins GM Kyle Dubas earlier this summer. Keefe had worked with Dubas since joining the OHL’s Soo Greyhounds as their head coach during the 2012-13 season, following him up the ranks from juniors to the minors and, eventually, the most scrutinized bench boss role in the NHL.
Keefe’s bench will look slightly different this season after assistant Spencer Carbery departed after two seasons to assume the head coaching role for the Washington Capitals. They’ve brought in former Ottawa Senators head coach Guy Boucher as an assistant for 2023-24, along with longtime St. Louis Blues assistant (and one-time Leafs defenseman) Mike Van Ryn.
With a new-look secondary core featuring Tyler Bertuzzi, Max Domi, John Klingberg, and rookie Matthew Knies, Keefe will likely need to guide Toronto to at least a Conference Final appearance over the next two seasons to earn a third extension in Canada’s largest city.
Minor Transactions: 08/30/23
Welcome to another edition of minor transactions as we dive into the lesser-known player movements, signings, and deals that might not make the front page but are nevertheless crucial in shaping the dynamics of the hockey world in Europe and crucial NHL feeder leagues. As the 2023-24 season approaches (for some teams as early as this week), teams are still fine-tuning their rosters and adding talent. Here’s a running list of minor moves for August 30, 2023:
- Former Florida Panthers and Philadelphia Flyers center Corban Knight remains overseas as he signed a one-year contract with SC Bern in the Swiss National League, per a team announcement. This will be Knight’s first season in Switzerland – he’d spent the last four years in the KHL with Barys Nur-Sultan and Avangard Omsk. He hasn’t played in the NHL since he appeared in 23 games with the Flyers in 2018-19. Since moving overseas, the 32-year-old has been one of the most consistent top-six centers in the KHL, earning a spot on Team Canada at the 2022 Winter Olympics and recording 162 points in 222 games throughout his time in Kazakhstan and Russia.
- After a lengthy career spanning 16 seasons in the DEL, four-time league champion Frank Mauer has announced his retirement at the age of 35. The right winger spent most of his career in Mannheim and Munich before spending his final season with Eisbären Berlin, scoring six goals and adding 11 assists for 17 points in 51 games. A rather consistent top-six scorer for years in his home country, Mauer was also on the German team that captured the silver medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics, during which he recorded a goal and three assists in six games.
- The ECHL’s Toledo Walleye have agreed to terms on a one-year contract with forward Orrin Centazzo, per a team release. Centazzo, 23, is undersized at 5-foot-8 and 163 pounds but has packed quite a scoring punch since turning pro in 2021. Spending the last two seasons with the ECHL’s Newfoundland Growlers, he’s been among the league’s top scorers with 49 goals and 97 points in 90 games. He spent last season under AHL contract with Newfounudland’s parent club, the Toronto Marlies, where he recorded an assist in 15 games. He was loaned to the Growlers for the majority of the season.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Pittsburgh Penguins Sign Austin Wagner To PTO
In addition to signing defensemen Libor Hajek and Mark Pysyk to professional tryouts, as initially reported by CapFriendly last night, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced they’ve also signed winger Austin Wagner to a PTO.
A fourth-round draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings in 2015, Wagner burst onto the scene as a 21-year-old rookie in 2018-19 with a solid showing in a fourth-line role. It was somewhat of an unlikely promotion – he would notch 12 goals and 21 points in 62 NHL games that year in his second pro season after scoring just ten goals and 17 points in 50 games with the AHL’s Ontario Reign the year prior.
Nonetheless, most thought Wagner displayed the potential to be a solid, two-way bottom-six winger – especially after he put up solid production in an extremely limited role at such a young age. The following two seasons didn’t go nearly as well, unfortunately. Throughout the COVID-affected 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons, Wagner would fail to eclipse his rookie production despite playing in 109 total games, recording just 10 goals and nine assists for 19 points. He wasn’t a liability defensively, but he wasn’t a strong enough penalty-kill specialist or shutdown winger to cancel out the decrease in production.
That led to Wagner failing to make the team out of camp in 2021-22, just one season into a three-year, $3.4MM extension. He was waived and assigned to the AHL’s Ontario Reign, where he spent the next season and a half before the Kings dealt him to the Chicago Blackhawks at the 2023 trade deadline in exchange for future considerations. The Blackhawks would recall him after the trade, giving him his first taste of the NHL in 22 months, and he notched a goal and an assist in seven appearances down the stretch of the regular season.
After going unqualified by Chicago upon the expiration of the aforementioned extension earlier this summer, Wagner finds himself on the UFA market at age 26 and will look to land a contract with the Penguins (or their AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton) during training camp. In the minors, he’d scored 34 points in 79 games over the past two seasons with Ontario while adding 140 penalty minutes.
There’s no clear path for Wagner to earn an NHL role in Pittsburgh, even as an extra forward. The team’s financial situation is tight, especially to start the season with Jake Guentzel on injured reserve, and the limited fringe spots they do have will go to non-waiver-exempt, higher-ceiling talent such as Alexander Nylander. He could bolster a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton squad that finished eighth in their division and missed the Calder Cup Playoffs last season, however.
Minor Transactions: 08/29/23
While it’s a slow day on the NHL ledger (as to be expected for late August), there are still some moves to parse through from around Europe, the minor, and junior ranks. We’re keeping track of today’s such moves here:
- Liiga club Pelicans has picked up 23-year-old winger Niklas Virtanen ahead of the 2023-24 campaign, which begins September 12. Virtanen is no stranger to the Lahti-based club, having spent the 2019-20 season racking up 19 points in 38 games for their U-20 team and earning a four-game call-up to the Liiga squad, where he scored his first pro goal. He’s spent the three seasons since in the second-tier Mestis with Peliitat, whom he led in scoring with 18 goals and 31 points in 39 games in 2022-23 while also serving as team captain.
- The OHL’s Windsor Spitfires are bringing over Czech defender Josef Eichler this season after selecting him 46th overall in the 2023 CHL Import Draft, per a team release. Eichler, 17, is eligible for the 2024 NHL Draft. He’s an enforcing bottom-pairing defender by trade, racking up 83 penalty minutes and nine assists in 38 games last season with HC Plzeň’s U-20 club in the Czech junior circuit. The right-shot defender was also named to Czechia’s roster for last year’s U-18 World Juniors, during which he recorded an assist and 25 penalty minutes in five games.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Notable Former NHLers Playing In The Liiga In 2023-24
As overseas campaigns kick off at the beginning of next month, we’ll highlight some notable former NHLers suiting up for teams in major European leagues over the next few days. After highlighting some key Swedish Hockey League contributors last weekend, we’re moving on to Finland with the Liiga, the country’s top pro league, routinely churning out premier draft prospects and marquee European free agents.
D Michal Jordán – Lahden Pelicans
Jordan, 33, was a 2008 fourth-round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes who played 79 games there in 2012 and 2016, serving as captain of their AHL affiliate in Charlotte for a short time as well. He went overseas in 2016 after scoring just one goal in 36 games with the Hurricanes the year prior, and he would spend most of the next seven seasons with Amur Khabarovsk in Russia. The Czech defender is now entering his first Liiga season, joining after registering 15 combined points in 41 games split between Khabarovsk and the NL’s Rapperswil-Jona Lakers last season. He’s still logging minutes internationally, representing Czechia at the last two World Championships. He’s expected to log top-four minutes and play a leadership role for Pelicans, who have already named him an alternate captain.
F Leo Komarov – HIFK Helsinki
Komarov, 36, will play in Finland’s top league for the first time since 2009. The long-time New York Islanders and Toronto Maple Leafs forward left the NHL ranks via mutual contract termination at the beginning of the 2021-22 season, and he’s since played for Luleå HF in Sweden and SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL. He’ll look to regain some offensive confidence in his twilight years with HIFK after recording just nine goals and 18 points in 49 games for Luleå in 2022-23. The versatile, physical forward recorded 63 goals and 170 points in 491 games across nine NHL seasons.
F Lauri Korpikoski – TPS Turku
Korpikoski, now 37, primarily spent his NHL career with the Arizona Coyotes and Edmonton Oilers after the New York Rangers selected him 19th overall in 2004. He’s returning to TPS in the 2023-24 season after playing four out of the last five years there, returning to his youth club in 2018 after a ten-year NHL career and one season in Switzerland with ZSC Lions. A versatile winger with a history of reliable two-way play, Korpikoski finished second on TPS in points last season, scoring 11 goals and adding 13 assists for 24 points in 43 games. In 609 NHL games, Korpikoski recorded 86 goals and 201 points. He last suited up in the 2016-17 season for the Columbus Blue Jackets and Dallas Stars.
F Jori Lehterä – HIFK Helsinki
Lehterä was a top-six center at one point with the St. Louis Blues in the mid-2010s but eventually left for Europe after Finnish police charged him with purchasing and possessing cocaine in early 2019 (as well as his offensive production dropping off a cliff with the Philadelphia Flyers beforehand). Returning to Finland in 2022-23 with Tappara after three years in Russia, Lehtera led the Liiga champions in scoring with 57 points in 57 games and is one of the premier players in the league today. The 35-year-old will suit up alongside Komarov in the country’s capital and biggest city.
D Sami Niku – JYP Jyväskylä
Niku could never really transform into a full-time NHL defender with the Winnipeg Jets and Montreal Canadiens, and he’s now gearing up for his second season in JYP after a strong first campaign back home in 2022-23. The 26-year-old blueliner erupted for 42 points in 54 games after spending five seasons in the NHL. A 2015 seventh-round pick, Niku did give the Jets decent value for his selection, but it was frustrating watching him not being able to convert high-end point totals in the minors to an everyday NHL role. He’s now routinely averaging over 25 minutes per game in Finland and is a bonafide power-play quarterback.
Honorable mentions: F Nicholas Baptiste (Tappara), F Connor Bunnaman (Kärpät), F Jesse Joensuu (Ässät), F Iiro Pakarinen (HIFK), F Kristian Vesalainen (HIFK)
Pittsburgh Penguins Confirm Hires For Scouting, Analytics Departments
The Pittsburgh Penguins have announced the hiring of Mark Osiecki and Matthew Lorito as professional scouts and Robbie Sandland and Brandon DeFazio as amateur scouts. The team also confirmed the previously reported appointment of Cam Charron as a hockey research and development analyst.
Osiecki is a seasoned coach with almost three decades of experience at various levels. Hailing from St. Paul, Minnesota, Osiecki’s coaching journey spans the AHL, USHL and NCAA. He’d spent the past seven seasons as an associate coach at the University of Wisconsin. He’s also had stints coaching at Ohio State University, the University of North Dakota, and the AHL’s Rockford IceHogs. In 2015, he was the head coach for the United States at the World Juniors, but a star-studded team led by Jack Eichel, Dylan Larkin and Auston Matthews lost in the quarterfinal round. Per the Penguins, he will focus on scouting professional organizations in the mid-western United States.
For Lorito, this is his first front-office role after retiring from pro hockey earlier this summer. He’d spent the 2022-23 campaign in Germany with the DEL’s Grizzlys Wolfsburg, recording five points in 18 games. He does have two NHL appearances to his name, both coming with the Detroit Red Wings in the 2016-17 season. Suiting up mostly in the AHL over his nine-year pro career, Lorito also made stops in the KHL and SHL during the 2021-22 season.
Sandland had spent the last four seasons in high-ranking executive roles for the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers, serving as their director of player personnel before earning a promotion to an assistant GM role before last season. He’d helped steer the Blazers to a division title and a Conference Finals appearance, and Pittsburgh will now rely on him to help identify promising amateur players in the Pacific Northwestern United States and Western Canada, a region with which he has obvious familiarity.
DeFazio also comes to the Penguins after concluding his pro career last season, a 13-year stint that spanned the NHL, AHL, ECHL, KHL, Liiga, and DEL. The Penguins were his first stop as an undrafted free agent after four years at Clarkson University, playing his first full pro season in the minors with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2011-12. He would make his NHL debut for the Vancouver Canucks in 2014-15, playing two games before playing out the rest of his career in the minors and overseas. His focus will be on scouting amateur players in Ontario.
2009 NHL Draft Take Two: Eighth Overall Pick
Hindsight is an amazing thing, and allows us to look back and wonder “what could have been.” Though perfection is attempted, scouting and draft selection is far from an exact science and sometimes, it doesn’t work out the way teams – or players – intended. For every Patrick Kane, there is a Patrik Stefan.
We’re looking back at the 2009 NHL Entry Draft and asking how it would shake out knowing what we do now. Will the first round remain the same, or will some late-round picks jump up to the top of the board?
The results of our redraft so far are as follows, with their original draft position in parentheses:
1st Overall: Victor Hedman, New York Islanders (2)
2nd Overall: John Tavares, Tampa Bay Lightning (1)
3rd Overall: Ryan O’Reilly, Colorado Avalanche (33)
4th Overall: Matt Duchene, Atlanta Thrashers (3)
5th Overall: Chris Kreider, Los Angeles Kings (19)
6th Overall: Nazem Kadri, Phoenix Coyotes (7)
7th Overall: Mattias Ekholm, Toronto Maple Leafs (102)
With Toronto’s initial selection being plucked by the Coyotes one pick prior, PHR voters opted to give the Leafs a defenseman, doling out the biggest riser so far in Ekholm. It was a rather sizable win for the Swedish defender, earning 31% of the PHR reader vote, coming in ahead of second-place Evander Kane, who’s now fallen at least four spots from his original fourth-overall billing. He received 19% of the vote.
Like most defenders, especially those drafted in the later rounds, it took Ekholm a few years to develop into a full-time NHLer. After playing single-digit game totals the previous two seasons, Ekholm played 62 contests for Nashville in 2013-14 as a 23-year-old, losing his rookie status. It was another couple of years until Ekholm transformed into the top-four fixture we know today, however. That came in the 2015-16 campaign when he eclipsed the 20-minutes-per-game average for the first time and notched a career-high eight goals, 27 assists and 35 points while playing in all 82 games.
Since then, Ekholm has been a model of consistency, logging heavy minutes while posting consistent point totals and possession metrics. His career-best season came in the 2018-19 campaign, when his 44 points, +27 rating and 23:22 average ice time per game earned him some Norris Trophy consideration, finishing tenth in voting that year. The Predators certainly got their value out of Ekholm, finally moving on from him earlier this year after 12 years and 719 games. He’s now part of perhaps the most skilled core in the league with the Edmonton Oilers, projecting to play a crucial role in helping develop young Evan Bouchard as his defense partner.
Now, we move to the Dallas Stars at eighth overall – a pick on which they’d certainly love a mulligan. They had the only complete whiff of the top ten, selecting speedy winger Scott Glennie from the WHL’s Brandon Wheat Kings. It looked like a fine pick at the time – he’d just rattled off 70 points in 55 games during his draft year. His development stunted once he turned pro in 2011, however, and he would play just one NHL game for the Stars in the 2011-12 season.
There are a handful of solid options for the Stars to pick from here. Kane is still on the board, as mentioned earlier, as are fifth-overall pick Brayden Schenn and sixth-overall pick Oliver Ekman-Larsson. PHR readers, tell us: Who would you take from the remaining crop at eighth overall? Vote in our poll below:
If you can’t access the poll above, click here to vote.
Carolina Hurricanes Extend PTOs To Cory Conacher, Brendan Perlini
The Carolina Hurricanes have added forwards Cory Conacher and Brendan Perlini to their training camp roster on PTOs, per an announcement by team reporter Walt Ruff late last night.
Conacher does have seven seasons of NHL experience but hasn’t suited up in the world’s top league since appearing in four games in 2019-20 for the Tampa Bay Lightning. Now 33 years old, the 5-foot-9 Conacher is far removed from his breakout rookie season in 2012-13 when he recorded 11 goals and 18 assists for 29 points in 47 games split between the Lightning and Ottawa Senators. He was never able to produce near that clip again in the NHL, and while he’s had some successful stints in the minors and overseas, he simply hasn’t been able to translate his strong AHL numbers to the show.
He’s unlikely to unseat anyone for a spot on the Hurricanes’ full-time roster, but he is looking to land an NHL contract in the hopes of earning a call-up at some point throughout the season and playing an impactful depth role, much like Mackenzie MacEachern and Stefan Noesen have done for the ‘Canes in recent memory. There is a significant complicating factor here, however. Both Conacher and Perlini are already under AHL contract next season with the Chicago Wolves, the Hurricanes’ former affiliate who’s opted to operate independently in 2023-24. Wolves general manager Wendell Young has stated publically that the Wolves aren’t likely to accept any players from the Hurricanes on loan after their affiliation agreement lapsed, meaning signing an NHL deal would force Conacher and Perlini to play where the Hurricanes can find a home for them with another AHL squad on loan.
Conacher has put up 75 points in 193 career NHL games and 340 points in 371 career AHL games since turning pro in 2011. He played just 17 games last season with the Belleville Senators and Charlotte Checkers, recording four goals and ten points.
Perlini does have more NHL experience under his belt at 262 games but has suited up in just five seasons, as the 2014 12th overall pick of the Arizona Coyotes has fallen out of a full-time NHL role over the past few seasons. He spent the 2022-23 campaign with AHL Chicago without an NHL deal, playing alongside Hurricanes prospects and recording ten goals and 15 points in just 26 games due to injury. He last suited up in the NHL for the Edmonton Oilers in 2021-22, averaging just 8:22 per game and recording four goals and one assist. It’s not the path most envisioned for Perlini after he opened his NHL career with double-digit goal totals in three straight seasons with the Coyotes and Blackhawks from 2017 to 2019.
Minor Transactions: 08/28/23
The last week of August is upon us, meaning NHL training camps are now just a few weeks away. Across the hockey world, seasons are much closer to beginning, however, meaning transaction activity is beginning to dry up. There are still a few pieces of news to parse through, however.
- The Reading Royals, ECHL affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers and Lehigh Valley Phantoms, have locked in forward Mason McCarty and goalie Jacob Kucharski for the 2023-24 season, per a team release. McCarty, hailing from Blackie, Alberta, is entering his third professional season after accruing 13 goals and 12 assists for 25 points in 43 games with the ECHL’s Kalamazoo Wings last season. Now 26, McCarty’s history includes stints in the WHL with the Red Deer Rebels and Saskatoon Blades, as well as three years suiting up for Acadia University in the Canadian collegiate circuit. Kucharski, a seventh-round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes (who still hold his NHL signing rights), will suit up for his inaugural full professional season in Reading. He’s earned NCAA Atlantic Hockey Goaltender of the Year honors and won two consecutive NCAA titles with American International College. Kucharski also participated in development camp with the Hurricanes in 2018 and 2019 but hasn’t yet landed an entry-level deal.
This page will be updated throughout the day.
Summer Synopsis: Calgary Flames
Last season was a trajectory-altering one for the Calgary Flames, although not in the way they’d hoped. A major reshuffling of their top stars was expected to keep the Flames near the top of the Pacific Division, but they missed the playoffs entirely after a season mired by inconsistency. Multiple players underperformed, their goaltending tandem of Jacob Markström and Daniel Vladar struggled, and most players seemed to rejoice when the team moved on from head coach Darryl Sutter after the season. With Ryan Huska now behind the bench and Craig Conroy steering the ship as general manager, the Flames enter a truly pivotal 2023-24 campaign with multiple core players destined for free agency next summer.
Draft
1-16: F Samuel Honzek, Vancouver (WHL)
2-48: D Étienne Morin, Moncton (QMJHL)
3-80: F Aydar Suniev, Penticton (BCHL)
4-112: F Jaden Lipinski, Vancouver (WHL)
6-176: G Yegor Yegorov, Dynamo Moscow (MHL)
7-208: D Axel Hurtig, Rögle (J20 Nationell)
Without sensibly being able to buy at last season’s trade deadline, former GM Brad Treliving held on to their premier draft choices – a move that quickly paid off. While they aren’t franchise-altering talents, Honzek and Morin make up a high-end haul from the first two rounds and should yield a future everyday top-nine forward and top-six defender, respectively. Honzek is the class star here, but he’s expected to return to WHL Vancouver next season after posting 56 points in 43 games there last year in an injury-shortened campaign.
Morin was also a player who could very well have gone in the late first round, and he was one of, if not the best, defender available out of the QMJHL after recording 72 points and a +29 rating in 67 games with Moncton last season. Suniev, Lipinski and Yegorov round out a list of some high-risk, high-reward picks, while Hurtig projects as a hulking shutdown defender if he can manage a pro career.
Trade Acquisitions
F Yegor Sharangovich (from New Jersey)
While a dependable top-nine scorer, Sharangovich had a down year after a strong first two campaigns in New Jersey. The Devils’ 2018 fifth-round pick burst onto the scene in 2020-21, posting 16 goals and 30 points in 54 games (a 24-goal, 46-point pace over 82 games that he would replicate in 2021-22). His production, relative possession numbers and ice time all dipped last season, though, earning him a spot in the press box at times when the postseason rolled around. Slated for restricted free agency, the Devils had no issue moving on from him to acquire a short-term upgrade from Calgary in Tyler Toffoli. The Flames now have him locked into an affordable $3.1MM cap hit for the next two seasons, and they’re hoping by giving him a top-six role, he can get back to hovering around the 45-to-50-point mark and churn out another 20-goal campaign. He could potentially play as high as a first-line role alongside Elias Lindholm, replacing Toffoli’s spot in the lineup directly.
Key UFA Signings
F Dryden Hunt (two years, $1.55MM)*
D Jordan Oesterle (one year, $925K)
*-denotes two-way contract
After Treliving doled out a healthy amount of cash last summer, the Flames weren’t left with much space to work with. Even with just the two sub-$1MM cap hit signings, the Flames are currently $213K over the cap with a roster of 22 players, according to CapFriendly’s projections. The 31-year-old Oesterle is technically their biggest addition on the UFA market, and he’s far from a lock to play an everyday role, let alone make the team out of camp with their cap restraints. He’d spent the last two seasons in Detroit, where he’s recorded the worst possession metrics of his nine-year NHL career and averaged 15:39 per game last season in a decidedly depth role. It’s a long shot from his days with the Arizona Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks in the late 2010s when he looked like an option that could slide into the top four in a pinch. With Oliver Kylington ready to return to the team next season after taking 2022-23 off on personal leave, Oesterle will likely start the season as Calgary’s seventh defenseman.
Hunt will also battle to make the Flames roster in a 13th forward-type role. Last season was a rollercoaster for the 27-year-old, who played for the New York Rangers, Colorado Avalanche and Toronto Maple Leafs in the span of just a few months after being claimed on waivers and then traded. Playing in 37 NHL games, he scored just three goals after posting 17 points in 76 games with the Rangers in 2021-22. He was traded yet another time at last season’s deadline to the Flames, playing out the rest of the season with their AHL affiliate, the Calgary Wranglers. His 15 points in 17 games there were enough to warrant the team bringing him back after the UFA period opened.
Key RFA Re-Signings
F Walker Duehr (two years, $1.65MM)
F Yegor Sharangovich (two years, $6.2MM)
We’ve already covered Sharangovich’s impact on the team at length above, so Duehr gets our full attention regarding the Flames’ notable RFA signings this summer. Calgary signed the 6-foot-2 undrafted winger out of Minnesota State after his senior campaign ended in 2021, during which he recorded 10 goals and seven assists for 17 points in 28 games en route to a WCHA regular-season championship. He’s since shown the ability to translate his low-ceiling but effective checking game to the pro ranks, posting decent offensive totals in the minors with the Wranglers. He appeared in 27 games for the Flames last season in a bottom-six role, scoring seven goals in 27 games – a feat that’s likely earned him a spot on the team’s opening night roster come October. The 25-year-old would require waivers at this stage to be returned to the Wranglers.
Key Departures
F Trevor Lewis (Los Angeles, one year, $775K)
F Milan Lucic (Boston, one year, $1MM)
D Connor Mackey (NY Rangers, one year, $775K)
F Brett Ritchie (UFA)
F Nick Ritchie (UFA)
D Troy Stecher (Arizona, one year, $1.1MM)
D Michael Stone (retirement)
F Tyler Toffoli (trade with New Jersey)
The only extremely notable departure here is Toffoli, with whom the organization hopes they’ve replaced somewhat laterally with Sharangovich. If the latter doesn’t pan out, however, it will be a tough loss to swallow. Toffoli was their best player last season, leading the team with 34 goals and 73 points while posting high-end possession metrics and taking on 16:37 per game. There’s no other internal option ready to step up and replace that production without causing a domino effect on the team’s depth.
The rest on this list either played fourth-line or other depth roles for the majority of the season, while some (Nick Ritchie and Stecher) were only part of the team for a handful of games post-deadline and had a minimal effect on the team’s success as a whole last season. In Lucic and Lewis, though, they lose a couple of veterans with cup-winning pedigree, although their on-ice performance had withered in recent seasons to the point where they were maybe better served for press-box roles, especially in Lucic’s case.
Mackey and Stone move on after sitting near the high-end of the Flames’ “extra defensemen” list, although Stone will stay with the Flames in an off-ice capacity.
Salary Cap Outlook
Calgary will be cap-compliant to start the season, but it won’t be with a full roster, as we discussed earlier, per CapFriendly. As things stand, they’ll only have room for one extra skater (or none and one extra goalie should they opt to carry Dustin Wolf with the team to start the season). It means a corresponding move could very well be coming before the puck drops on the 2023-24 campaign, and teams need to turn in their cap-compliant rosters, but it’s not an absolute necessity. The Flames have no dead cap complicating things, either, unless they demote Kevin Rooney to the minors again – that will result in a buried penalty of $150K, given his $1.3MM cap hit.
Key Questions
Who Stays And Who Goes?: The slate of pending UFAs has been widely discussed at this point, especially the trio of Mikael Backlund, Noah Hanifin and Elias Lindholm. The team’s play over the first few months of the season will likely dictate which of those players are still team members after the 2024 trade deadline. There are some other important depth players on expiring deals like Christopher Tanev and Nikita Zadorov, too, who could command decent returns as rentals if the team doesn’t anticipate being able to re-sign them.
Who Takes Over In The Crease?: There’s no sugarcoating it – Jacob Markström had his worst season as a full-time starter last season after finishing second in Vezina Trophy voting the year prior, a remarkable falloff for the 33-year-old who’s halfway through a six-year, $6MM AAV deal. He barely crawled over the .500 mark, posting a 23-21-2 record, and had just a .892 save percentage and a lone shutout after leading the NHL with nine last season. If he can’t recapture his previous top-ten form, look for the Flames to turn to the young Wolf, who is still 22 years old but has won back-to-back AHL Goalie of the Year awards in his first two pro seasons.
Can The Young Guns Add Scoring Depth?: The Flames have a pair of wingers slated to start the season in bottom-six roles who could very well end up higher in the lineup by season’s end – Matthew Coronato and Jakob Pelletier. First-round picks in 2021 and 2019, respectively, Pelletier tore up the AHL with 37 points in 35 games last season but didn’t necessarily jump off the page in the NHL, recording seven points in 24 games. Coronato got just one game of action after turning pro after two seasons at Harvard, during which he recorded 36 points in 34 games in back-to-back campaigns.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.